DVD/VIDEO REVIEWS week of August 31, 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.
Earth
Majestic and moving nature documentary chronicling a year in the lives of a variety of wild animals in different habitats, most prominently a polar bear, an elephant and a humpbacked whale. In this big-screen adaptation of their television series, "Planet Earth," co-directors Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield make the most of high definition technology to present a stunning portrait of creation and a subtle plea for environmental responsibility. A couple of bleeped exclamations. Spanish language option. A-I -- general patronage. (G) (Walt Disney Pictures Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2009
Some Like It Hot (50th Anniversary Edition)
Two musicians (Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis) witness the St. Valentine's Day massacre at the height of Chicago's gangster era, and must disguise themselves as women to escape the mob, joining an all-girl band, with one of them falling for the lead singer (Marilyn Monroe). Director and co-writer Billy Wilder's farce is a classic that has stood the test of time. Some innuendo and risque humor, discreet sexual situations and comic gangster violence. A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) 1959
State of Play
Engrossing political thriller about a veteran reporter (Russell Crowe) and a rookie blogger (Rachel McAdams) on the same Washington paper who join forces to investigate a series of murders, one of which involves a crusading congressman (Ben Affleck) who's trying to expose corruption involving a powerful military contractor. Kevin Macdonald directs this streamlined version of an acclaimed BBC miniseries which, though not always plausible, and with some of its revelations all too transparent, has an intriguing narrative, a solid cast and a script that eschews overt sex and violence, making this acceptable for older teens. Nongraphic violence, implied past adultery, some rough language and profanity, brief sexual remarks and innuendo, abortion and drug references. Spanish language option. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (Universal Studios Home Video; also available on Blu-ray) 2009
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TCM Greatest Classic Films: Sci-Fi (1956-73; Warner Home Video)
Forbidden Planet
Engaging sci-fi outing with a space expedition (led by Leslie Nielsen) fighting unseen monsters of the Id on a planet where the powers of a superior, long-extinct civilization are being harnessed by a maverick scientist (Walter Pidgeon) with the help of his daughter (Anne Francis) and a very personable robot named Robby. Directed by Fred M. Wilcox, the premise echoes Shakespeare's "The Tempest" but the movie has its own suspenseful plot developments, intriguing gadgetry and colorful sets, flawed only by some clunky dialogue and desultory action. Occasional stylized violence and much menace. A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. 1956
The Time Machine
Imaginative adaptation of H.G. Wells' fanciful tale of an English inventor (Rod Taylor) who travels from 1900 into the far-distant future where he tries to rally an oppressed people against their loathsome overlords, the radiation-damaged Morlocks. Directed by George Pal, the special effects may not be very elaborate but they're effective enough to convey the fantastic nature of the sci-fi scenario and its underlying anti-war theme. Some stylized violence. A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. 1960
2001: A Space Odyssey
Director Stanley Kubrick's epic work, co-written with Arthur C. Clarke, is both science fiction and metaphysical poetry using an unconventional mixture of visuals and music to bridge humanity's reconstructed past, identifiable present and projected future, all tied together by the recurring image of a monolith as symbol of a superhuman existence. The central narrative follows the struggle of two astronauts (Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood) to wrest control of their spacecraft from HAL, a talking computer (voice of Douglas Rain), on a half-billion-mile trip to Jupiter and the unknown. For young people and imaginative adults but too long, deep and intense for children. A-II -- adults and adolescents. (G) 1968
Soylent Green
Charlton Heston plays a New York City cop in the year 2022 when lack of food forces people to subsist on a mysterious substance called Soylent Green, the secret of which Heston discovers after the voluntary death of his assistant (Edward G. Robinson). For all its posturing about ecological and moral disaster, it's no more than a routine detective movie with a slick and shallow futuristic setting.
A-III -- adults. (PG)
1973
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.