Auto Focus (2002) / Model Shop (1969)

Science (and the porn industry) has proven conclusively that visual stimulation is a powerful part of male arousal. And for those with an obsessive nature, sex can be as addictive as any drug. Writer / director Paul Schrader specializes in characters with just those sort of psychological fixations, making him a good match for Auto Focus (2002), the dramatized biography of Bob Crane, star of TV's Hogan's Heroes whose murder seven years after the show wrapped remains unsolved to this day. Schrader's film, however, is more interested in the career-killing spiral of compulsive sexual activity that put Crane on this tragic path in the first place.

A successful radio DJ reticent to star in a comedy about the Holocaust, Crane (played with creepy sincerity by Greg Kinnear) is a charming and likable family man who uses his overnight success to seduce every woman he meets, recording his conquests on videotape with the help of his techie wingman (Willem Dafoe). But as word of his behavior leaks, Hollywood casts the actor aside, pushing him further into a self-involved world of strip clubs, swingers and one-night stands.

Making an audience uncomfortable is Paul Schrader's specialty and, despite the subject matter, Auto Focus is anything but a turn on. The sex is almost workmanlike, matching Crane's mantra: "A day without sex is a day wasted." There's no pleasure, only a need to be filled. And Kinnear wears a mask of geniality, complete with sparkling eyes and Cheshire grin, that makes his behavior all that more disturbing. Auto Focus is profile of celebrity self-destruction that, instead of going viral, is swept under the rug.

Twilight Time's 3000-copy limited edition Blu-ray looks as good as you'd expect a recent release to look on hi-def, with some powerful colors popping up in the late '60s set design. Extras, and there's a bunch, include an isolated score track (from Twin Peaks' Angelo Badalamenti), two audio commentaries, Making Of featurette, deleted scenes, a 45-minute expose on Crane's murder plus trailers and liner notes.

In Model Shop (1969), sex is a lifeline for George (Gary Lockwood), a frustrated architect with no career, a bad relationship and an impending draft notice. Cruising the streets of L.A., he spies Lola (Anouk Aimee), a French divorcee who poses for naughty photos in a sleazy "take your own snapshot" place. Professing love at first sight, George wins her trust but discovers there more to a woman than just a pretty face.

A sequel of sorts to his previous film Lola, director Jacques Demy stages a soul-searching tour through the car culture of Los Angeles, dropping in a cameo (and soundtrack) from local rock group Spirit. The movie drifts with the aimless frustration of its main character, looking for some sort of emotional connection, spiritual advice or enough cash to pay the next bill. The shadow of Vietnam looms large, but the end result of more of a precursor to Richard Linklater's Before trilogy, with two lonely people finding an unexpected oasis...even if just for one night.

Twilight Time's 3000-copy limited edition Blu-ray features a beautiful transfer plus isolated score track, trailer, TV spots and liner notes from L.A. native, Julie Kirgo.