DVD/VIDEO REVIEWS week of May 11, 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.
The Core
Lavish sci-fi thriller in which the earth's electromagnetic atmosphere has gone awry, necessitating a team of six (including Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank and Stanley Tucci) to bore their spaceship into Earth's core to restabilize it. Director Jon Amiel's lengthy disaster movie may be preposterous but is well-crafted and well-acted, and its special effects are impressive. Scenes of mayhem, lethal danger and an instance of rough language. A-II -- adults and adolescents. (PG-13) (Paramount Home Entertainment)
2003
Fargo
A debtridden Minnesota car dealer (William H. Macy) hires two thugs to kidnap his wife and split the hefty ransom her wealthy father would pay, but all goes horribly awry, resulting in several murders doggedly investigated by a small-town chief of police (Frances McDormand). Finding black comedy in this loosely fact-based tragedy, filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen chillingly depict earnest small-towners caught up in shocking violence, although justice eventually prevails in the unlikely form of a folksy, very pregnant police officer. Recurring gory violence and much rough language. Spanish titles option. L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. (R) (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 1996
Fear Strikes Out
Fact-based story of Boston Red Sox baseball player Jimmy Piersall (Anthony Perkins) whose father (Karl Malden) raises him to be a star outfielder, but the pressure of making good brings on a nervous breakdown requiring psychiatric treatment before he's able to return to the club. Directed by Robert Mulligan, the movie presents a realistic picture of a youth trying to measure up to the high expectations of a well-meaning but ambitious father, with convincing performances from both Malden and Perkins. Brief but intense scenes of emotional instability. A-I -- general patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Paramount Home Entertainment) 1957
The Little Prince
Musical version of Antoine de Saint Exupery's classic fable about a planet-hopping child prince (Steven Warner) who relates his adventures to a pilot (Richard Kiley) who’s crash-landed in the Sahara. Directed by Stanley Donen, the result is warm and upbeat, with engaging acting, pleasant Lerner and Loewe songs and some clever dancing, but the story ends with a gentle let-down that may bring a wee tear to the eyes of the very young. A-I -- general patronage. (G) (Paramount Home Entertainment) 1974
The Man with the Golden Gun
Rather tired spy adventure with James Bond (Roger Moore) as the target for a million-dollar assassin (Christopher Lee) who uses golden bullets. Director Guy Hamilton offers the standard Bond mayhem, including a spectacular auto stunt, but the once brittle and bright double-entendres are now merely tasteless and smutty remarks. Maud Adams and Britt Ekland are the decoratively exploited females. A-III --adults. (PG) (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 1974
The Out-of-Towners
Midwestern couple (Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis) on a business trip to New York City try to cope with an hilarious series of mishaps, including a garbage strike, a snafu with hotel reservations, a rainy night in Central Park, a mugging to go with it, the siege of the Cuban U.N. embassy and a stolen car chase. Arthur Hiller's spirited direction of Neil Simon's script provides lots of fun at the expense of big-city life for family viewers. A-I -- general patronage. (G) (Paramount Home Entertainment) 1970
Passengers
Low-key, somewhat muddled thriller in which an uptight therapist (Anne Hathaway) counsels the few survivors of a major plane crash, investigating why their memories of the accident conflict with the airline's account. As some of them start to disappear, one, an extroverted passenger (Patrick Wilson), initiates a romance. Despite appealing performances from its leads and a welcome subplot about family reconciliation and the enduring influence of loved ones, director Rodrigo Garcia's drama mostly fails to engage. Nongraphic premarital sexual activity, brief partial rear nudity, occasional crude and crass language, some innuendo and disturbing accident scenes; acceptable for older teens. A-III --adults. (PG-13) (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2008
Shirley Valentine
In a British comedy of some wit and intelligence, a 42-year-old Liverpool housewife (Pauline Collins) leaves hubby and grown children for a two-week holiday in Greece where she meets a clay-footed womanizer (Tom Conti) but rediscovers on her own a long-submerged zest for life. Adapted from his own stage play by Willy Russell and directed a bit too literally by Lewis Gilbert, the adult comedy about a spunky middle-aged woman has a lot of heart and a memorable title performance. Some mature themes, fleeting nudity and comic use of a sexual expletive. A-III --adults. (R) (Paramount Home Entertainment) 1989
Taken
Formulaic and contrived but effectively tense thriller about an ex-government operative (Liam Neeson) hunting for his missing teenage daughter (Maggie Grace) who's been kidnapped by Albanian sex traffickers in Paris. Director Pierre Morel keeps things moving with a flashy visual style, and Neeson plays with a genuine intensity that almost, but not quite, makes you overlook the improbable setup and ludicrous plot developments. Intense but nongraphic action violence including torture, multiple killings, vigilante justice, some crude language and expressions, and a single profanity. Spanish titles option. L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. (PG-13) (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) 2009
V for Vendetta
Provocative futuristic thriller based in London about a masked antihero (Hugo Weaving) who enlists the aid of a young office worker (Natalie Portman) to undermine a totalitarian government headed by an Orwellian dictator (John Hurt) and his cowering advisers (Stephen Rea, Rupert Graves, Tim Pigott-Smith). Director James McTeigue, working from a Wachowski Brothers adaptation of Alan Moore (uncredited by choice) and illustrator David Lloyd's graphic novel, has crafted a reasonably intelligent political allegory, with emphasis on character development, ideas and even a bit of romance, rather than simple mindless violence, the performances are first rate, and the film's theme of the individual's responsibility in standing up to tyranny -- while questioning the moral limits of opposition -- is worthy, and stops short of imparting a universal anti-authoritarian message. Some discreetly handled violence with bloodshed, a hanging, scattered profanity, rough and crude language and expressions, minor lesbian-themed flashback and implied gay male character, corrupt Anglican clergyman, attempted rape, sexual innuendo, drug use. Spanish titles option.
L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. (R) (Warner Home Video)
2006
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.