DVD/VIDEO REVIEWS week of May 4, 2009
This week's DVD and Blu-ray releases
The following are capsule reviews of new and recent DVD and Blu-ray releases from the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Theatrical movies have a USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification and Motion Picture Association of America rating. These classifications refer only to the theatrical version of the films below, and do not take into account the discs' extra content.
Chandni Chowk to China
In this flavorful yet prolix fusion of Bollywood cinema and Hong Kong martial arts, a clownish cook (Akshay Kumar) from Delhi travels to China to vanquish a gangster exploiting villagers near the Great Wall. He crosses paths with a set of female twins and is transformed into a fighter by their father, a kung fu master. Director Nikhil Advani blends music and melodrama, cartoonish humor and stylized action into a colorful spectacle that proves to be too much of too many things, destined to test the patience of uninitiated moviegoers as well as ardent fans of both genres. Frequent martial arts violence that is occasionally intense, and pervasive broad, if generally chaste, humor characteristic of the Bollywood idiom. In Hindi. English and Spanish titles options. A-III --adults. (PG-13) (Warner Home Video) 2009
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Overly long but imaginative expansion of an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story set in New Orleans about a man born old (Brad Pitt) who ages backward from World War I to the present and his bittersweet romance with a dancer (Cate Blanchett). Under David Fincher's direction, the leads give fine performances and outstanding digital effects make the forward and backward aging remarkably believable, and the unusual story -- presenting a unique, often profound perspective on the transience of human life and how we deal with the people we meet and the things we experience, including death -- is thought-provoking and poignant. Implied nonmarital situations including nongraphic encounters, some rough language and brief profanity, mild innuendo, out-of-wedlock pregnancy, adultery, brief rear nudity and wartime violence. Spanish language option. A-III --adults. (PG-13) (Paramount Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2008
Ghost Town
Bittersweet romantic comedy set in New York in which a misanthropic dentist (Ricky Gervais) finds he has acquired the ability to see ghosts after he is clinically dead for seven minutes during a routine medical procedure and is persuaded by the spirit of a recently deceased husband (Greg Kinnear) to break up the engagement of his widow (Tea Leoni), falling for her himself. A melancholy tone pervades director and co-writer David Koepp's cross between "A Christmas Carol" and "Topper," but the laughs are there, along with an overriding message about living life in service to others, and ultimately "letting go" of our deceased loved ones. Some rough language and brief profanity, sexual humor, partial male nudity and drug references; acceptable for older teens. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (DreamWorks Paramount; also available on Blu-ray) 2008
Last Chance Harvey
Delicate romantic comedy about an isolated New York jingle composer (Dustin Hoffman) who travels to London for his estranged daughter's (Liane Balaban) wedding and falls for a lonely airport employee (Emma Thompson). While somewhat predictable, writer-director Joel Hopkins' skillfully wrought valentine to midlife romance -- which also features Eileen Atkins as Thompson's mother -- draws masterful performances to touching effect and shows the lingering negative consequences of both divorce and abortion as it portrays a mutually generous relationship untainted by irresponsible sexuality. Some sexual references and humor, occasional crude words, the acceptability of divorce and an abortion reference. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (Overture Films Anchor Bay Entertainment) 2008
A Plumm Summer
Gentle and winning fact-based coming-of-age tale, set in 1968, in which a 13-year-old aspiring detective (Chris J. Kelly) and his girlfriend (Morgan Flynn) search their small Montana hometown for the TV puppet with whom his kid brother (Owen Pearce) is obsessed and who has made the show's host (Henry Winkler) a local star, while he also supports his mother's (Lisa Guerrero) struggles with his father's (William Baldwin) alcoholism. Director Caroline Zelder's nostalgic first feature, narrated by Jeff Daniels, gleams with innocence and affection, and takes full advantage of its magnificent rural setting. A-II -- adults and adolescents. (PG) (Freestyle Releasing Paramount) 2008
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Gothic fantasy adventure tale set on an isolated Victorian estate once occupied by an eccentric student of the paranormal (David Strathairn) and now home to his great-niece (Mary-Louise Parker), her twin sons (both played by Freddie Highmore) and daughter (Sarah Bolger), all of whom find themselves caught up in a struggle among normally invisible creatures, some good, others evil, for possession of a book detailing their ancestor's discoveries. Director Mark Waters' lavish film, showcasing first-class special effects, some fine performances, unobjectionable dialogue and estimable lessons about family life, is appropriate for all but the youngest viewers, who might find it too intense. Some fantasy violence and a couple of mild oaths. A-I -- general patronage. (PG) (Nickelodeon Paramount; also available on Blu-ray) 2008
Movies have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishop's Office for Film and Broadcasting according to artistic
merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating,
the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief
synopsis of the movie.
The classifications are as follows:
- A-I -- general patronage;
- A-II -- adults and adolescents;
- A-III -- adults;
- A-IV**
- L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
- O -- morally offensive.
** Discontinued classification. All archived movies that were originally in the A-IV category are now classified as L.