DVD Rants
Rants about New Movies on DVD
RUNNING WITH SCISSORS, based on the 2002 memoir by bestselling author Augusten Burroughs, tells the story of a young man (Joseph Cross) whose divorcee mother (Annette Bening), an eccentric, borderline schizophrenic poet, abandons him into the care of her equally unhinged therapist (Brian Cox).
THE KING OF KONG falls into the category of films I like to the call "Little Engines That You Never Thought Would, But They Could Anyhow." On paper, a documentary about two video game players going after the world record high score on Donkey Kong doesn't sound that thrilling, does it? You're probably thinking that you'd either need to be a) a video game nut, b) a documentary nut, or c) someone who just likes odd trivia. Well, you'd be wrong on all counts. I went and saw this movie with a slew of people who weren't video gamers or documentary fans, and we all loved this movie. Now you can pick it up on DVD with a ton of extras and relive the mullet-haired competition in your own home.
SUNSHINE is a lot of 2001 with a little EVENT HORIZON, too much SOLARIS (both versions), and to top things off, there’s a small shout out to director Danny Boyle’s masterpiece 28 DAYS LATER. In other words, it’s a recycled story that I’ve seen a few times over which is a little disappointing with a guy like Boyle behind the camera.
When ALPHA DOG hit theaters this time last year, I was one of the many who brushed it aside as being another, tired, Justin Timberfake vehicle. When the DVD was released in the spring, I again brushed the film aside as the kind of MTV fare, best left to HBO Saturday night viewing. Then people began to talk—people whose opinions I actually listen to. They said I should give ALPHA DOG a chance, that there was far more depth to it than the trailers (mis) advertised. So, after a lengthy wait in my Netflix que, ALPHA DOG recently got its turn in my DVD player.
I knew there was very little chance of 3:10 TO YUMA not being a good movie. With a solid cast and a great director, there’s very little room for error, and I was not at all disappointed. Never before have I been so anxious about people making it to a train on time. Christian Bale is Dan Evans, a Civil War veteran who’s struggling to keep his farm and his family afloat. When big-time criminal Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) crosses his path, Evans jumps at the chance to make some money and take Wade to the train that will take him to Yuma prison.
So you managed to end up with a stash of holiday loot, gift certificates, or the newest gift-giving craze: gift cards. Now you're wondering what to spend 'em on? Fear not, you can use our handy-dandy post-holiday DVD self-gift-giving guide-a-palooza to pick out a nice DVD set for yourself. Or, if you're still in a giving mood, for someone else. However, we say since giving unto others is considered to be the best thing, just consider yourself an other. Works every time.
Check out the list inside, and let us know what would've been on yours!
Ugh, I hate Zach Braff. Whose decision was it to make him the sexy nerd posterboy? Whoever it was, I am out to kill them cause I have known a lot of sexy geek guys and he is absolutely not one of them. Zach Braff is just another ugly guy that comes across and tortured, neurotic and not very good-looking, but in a charming way. Dear casting directors, I hate you.
THE HOTTEST STATE is supposedly about the angst of young love. But the angst most viewers will feel has more to do with the quality of the story. The movie is self-indulgent, its dialogue insipid and there’s not a fresh thought in the nearly-two-hour movie. It’s enough to give independent films a bad name.
For every new role that he accepts, I’m pretty sure Sir Anthony Hopkins has to turn down a hundred scripts that call for him to play some bastardized version of Hannibal Lector. Imagine my surprise then to come across FRACTURE, a film that denies its own existence as a SILENCE OF THE LAMBS knock-off by dressing itself up as a courtroom drama.
The producers of HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF PHOENIX are to be congratulated on a number of significant accomplishments. PHOENIX is the fifth film in the series and David Heyman and David Barron have managed to hold the cast together. If this were an American production, the young actors would have been hold-outs for money when they weren’t out clubbing at night, getting embarrassing pictures (or videos) posted on the web and getting arrested for drink and drugs.