“Old” Washes Ashore Just in Time for Halloween

M. Night Shyamalan's spooky adaptation Old got mixed reviews this summer, but to me it was one of his best films to date. The explanation of aging effect was downright silly, but otherwise this was a truly disturbing experience, with incredible make-up work. Unlike a lot of films released this year, it hasn't been available for streaming yet. If you missed it in theaters, your first chance will be next month.

First up is digital rental and purchase on Tuesday, October 5, for those who can't wait. But for those who still collect physical media (like yours truly), they'll get their chance two weeks later. Available on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD, the discs each have a good number of bonus features. In addition to the standard deleted scenes and making-of doc, there's a big focus on family. Night shares the experience of collaborating with his daughters, and a special interview with the four main cast members (Gael Garcia Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Thomasin McKenzie and Alex Wolff) covers one particular night of filming and its emotional impact on them.

Old hits retailers on October 19.

About Kip Mooney

Like many film critics born during and after the 1980s, my hero is Roger Ebert. The man was already the best critic in the nation when he won the Pulitzer in 1975, but his indomitable spirit during and after his recent battle with cancer keeps me coming back to read not only his reviews but his insightful commentary on the everyday. But enough about a guy you know a lot about. I knew I was going to be a film critic—some would say a snob—in middle school, when I had to voraciously defend my position that The Royal Tenenbaums was only a million times better than Adam Sandler’s remake of Mr. Deeds. From then on, I would seek out Wes Anderson’s films and avoid Sandler’s like the plague. Still, I like to think of myself as a populist, and I’ll be just as likely to see the next superhero movie as the next Sundance sensation. The thing I most deplore in a movie is laziness. I’d much rather see movies with big ambitions try and fail than movies with no ambitions succeed at simply existing. I’m also a big advocate of fun-bad movies like The Room and most of Nicolas Cage’s work. In the past, I’ve written for The Dallas Morning News and the North Texas Daily, which I edited for a semester. I also contributed to Dallas-based Pegasus News, which in the circle of life, is now part of The Dallas Morning News, where I got my big break in 2007. Eventually, I’d love to write and talk about film full-time, but until that’s a viable career option, I work as an auditor for Wells Fargo. I hope to one day meet my hero, go to the Toronto International Film Festival, and compete on Jeopardy. Until then, I’m excited to share my love of film with you.