Blu-ray movie reviews: ‘September 5’ and ‘Juror #2’

A pair of gripping dramas debut in the Blu-ray disc format.

September 5 (Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment, rated R, 2.39:1 aspect ratio, 94 minutes, $28.79) Director Tim Fehlbaum’s Academy Award-nominated historical thriller chronicles, through the perspective of news media, a real-life act of cowards murdering innocents that took place during the 1972 Summer Olympic games in Munich Germany.

With firsts such as a television network broadcasting the event live worldwide by satellite and for a post-war Germany to further distance itself from the former Nazi rule, ABC Sports’ crew handled the duties and found itself covering what was to be called the Munich Massacre.

Specifically, in the second week of the games, 11 Israeli athletes and coaches as well as a West German police officer were murdered by the Palestinian militant organization Black September during a hostage event that started in the Olympic Village.

Viewers get a very behind-the-scenes look at a television drama viewed by 900 million people that featured Peter Jennings (Benjamin Walker) reporting near the under-siege apartment complex and anchor Jim McKay (through archival footage) relaying the events from the broadcast studio.

President of ABC Sports Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard), head of control room Geoffrey Mason (John Magaro) and head of operation at ABC Sports Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin) were on the ground and making critical coverage decisions on the fly.

They included considering broadcasting a hostage execution live, rushing the reporting while not realizing that they gave away crucial information to the terrorists and even relaying inaccurate information about the hostages’ fate.

Interesting details revealed the use of an ABC employee sneaking into the village dressed as an athlete with a fake ID to get film stock and equipment to Jennings; and ABC being forced to share the satellite feed with CBS during a critical time in the event (because of scheduling agreed upon by the networks well before the hostage crisis).

Present world tensions aside, the film methodically dissects the judgments and compromises made under stress through the eyes of journalists and executives as they capture another example of man’s inhumanity to man, while walking the fine line between sensationalizing a horrific event and actually reporting the news.

Best extras: Despite the critical acclaim and historical content, the single Blu-ray disc offers no bonus content.

How about any documentary on the actual events of the entire Summer Games or the always-welcomed optional commentary track with the director.

I’d even like to hear from cinematographer Markus Förderer who delivered very organic and gritty visuals as the events unfolded around the broadcast.

Juror #2 (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, rated PG-13, 2.39:1 aspect ratio, 114 minutes, $38.99) Filmmaking icon Clint Eastwood gets behind the camera one more time to direct a legal thriller packed with acting might and acclaimed by critics.

Georgia family man, journalist and recovering alcoholic Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult) reluctantly performs his civic duty by serving as a juror on a domestic violence murder case.

Mr. Kemp remembers on the first day of the trial that he was at the location where the murder took place and might have actually killed the victim driving home during a rainstorm.

As the jurors look for a quick deliberation, Mr. Kemp refuses to vote to convict, with good reason, and forces the jurors to methodically look deeper at the evidence.

With an expectant wife (Zoey Deutch) dealing with a high-risk pregnancy urgently weighing on his mind and an opportunistic prosecutor (Toni Collette) with an eye for the district attorney refusing to allow a hung jury, Mr. Kemp has found himself in an unwinnable dilemma.

A supporting cast — J.K. Simmons as juror and former homicide detective Harold Chicowski and Kiefer Sutherland as Larry Lasker, a lawyer and Kemp’s Alcoholics Anonymous sponsor — helps set the high level of performances.

The 94-year-old Mr. Eastwood executed the moral roller coaster ride to perfection, delivering first a clinic on the methodical machinations behind a murder jury trial and then analyzing a legal system that can fail despite best intentions.

Best extras: Once again, a home entertainment release of a great film is diminished for owners who purchased the Blu-ray disc due to the studio not bothering to offer any extras.

I would offer that any chance to hear from Mr. Eastwood, either in an exclusive commentary track or through a featurette would have made the purchase mandatory since it’s probably the last time viewers may benefit from his filmmaking skills.