New On DVD – November 17, 2009
Posted November 17, 2009 12:00 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Star Trek (Blu-ray) CityNews.ca Pick of the Week – J.J. Abrams has taken the Star Trek franchise back to the beginning. His Trek begins before James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) was Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. We learn how Kirk met Spock (Zachary Quinto), Uhura (Zoe Saldana) and Bones (Karl Urban) while in Starfleet. We see a young Sulu (John Cho) and Chekhov (Anton Yelchin) awkwardly controlling the brand new Enterprise. It’s campy yet totally awesome. The film looks and sounds amazing in high-def and is another title I’d recommend upgrading to Blu-ray for. Special features on the Blu-ray release include over 30 featurettes in HD, deleted scenes, commentary, a 360 view of the U.S.S. Enterprise, an XBOX 360 trial of the game Star Trek D-A-C, a digital copy of the film and more. Film **** Blu-ray **** (out of 5 stars).
Read our original His Take/Her Take review of Star Trek
Brüno (Blu-ray) – Although it was more enjoyable on DVD than in the theatre Brüno still feels forced and doesn’t compare to the laughs Borat produced, though Sacha Baron Cohen is admittedly funny and doesn’t seem to hold back from shocking the audience every chance he can. Special features on the Blu-ray release include video commentary with Cohen and director Larry Charles, deleted and extended scenes, an interview with Hollywood agent Lloyd Robinson, and a digital copy of the movie. Film ** Blu-ray *** (out of 5 stars).
Read our original His Take/Her Take review of Brüno
My Sister’s Keeper (Blu-ray) – Directed by Nick Cassavetes and based on the Jodi Picolut book, My Sister’s Keeper is a very depressing story about a young girl with leukemia (Sofia Vassilieva) who needs her sister’s bone marrow to survive. Her sister, played by Abigail Breslin, agrees to be a donor and then changes her mind and goes as far as getting a lawyer (Alec Baldwin) to fight her parents (Cameron Diaz and Jason Patric) over the decision. Diaz gives her best performance yet as the mother to the two girls, but be warned you will need a box of Kleenex handy while watching. Special features on the Blu-ray release include extra scenes, a featurette on Picoult and the process of turning the book into a film, and a digital copy of the movie. Film *** Blu-ray *** (out of 5 stars).
Check out an interview CityNews.ca did with Abigail Breslin about her role in My Sister’s Keeper
Thirst – A priest is accidentally turned into a vampire after a failed medical experiment in this stylish, awesome, twisted thriller from Chan-wook Park. If you liked Park’s Oldboy or Lady Vengeance then you will love Thirst. Korean with English subtitles. No special features on the DVD. Film *** DVD * (out of 5 stars).
Franklyn – Split between present day London and the futuristic Meanwhile City, Franklyn is a bizarre sci-fi drama that feels like Watchmen meets Dark City. Great performances from Eva Green and Ryan Phillippe and the cinematography and set design are wonderful. With a more coherent script the film could have been much better than the mediocre end product we’re left with. Special features include interviews, deleted scenes and a making of. Also available on Blu-ray. Film ** DVD ** (out of 5 stars).
The Limits of Control – Long, boring, pretentious film about a man (Isaach De Bankolé) going from place to place in Spain collecting pieces of a puzzle that could or could not be for something illegal. Directed by Jim Jarmusch (Broken Flowers, Coffee & Cigarettes) and featuring small parts from Bill Murray, John Hurt, Tilda Swinton, and Gael García Bernal, I expected a lot more out of it and instead felt like an outsider to an inside joke the entire time. Special features include footage from the locations used in the film and a featurette on Jarmusch’s directing style. Film ** DVD ** (out of 5 stars).
My One And Only – With a cast that includes Renee Zellweger, Chris Noth, Kevin Bacon, Nick Stahl, and Eric McCormack, it’s a surprise this got by with no buzz. Based on the life of actor George Hamilton (Logan Lerman) as his mother Anne Deveraux (Zellweger) uproots him and his brother to leave her cheating husband (Bacon) and find a new life for them. Set in the ’50s, My One And Only is a decent film that is sweet and funny. Special features include a behind the scenes and making-of featurette. Film *** DVD ** (out of 5 stars).
How To Be – With all the Twilight craze going on this month with the theatre release of New Moon, it’s no surprise How To Be is getting pushed out on DVD. Did I mention it stars the one and only Robert Pattinson? It is a different role for him as he plays a depressed musician named Art who is looking for answers by way of a self-help book. It’s more artsy than mainstream but Pattinson/Twilight fans should give it a shot as it may surprise. Special features include commentary, a making of, interview with Pattinson, as well as his audition footage. Film ** DVD *** (out of 5 stars).
My Effortless Brilliance – Sean Nelson of the band Harvey Danger stars as a self-centered semi-famous novelist in this film about male friendship. Heavy on dialogue and close-ups and not much else, I was surprised at how well My Effortless Brilliance held my attention. The film mainly takes places in the woods with Eric (Nelson) trying to reconnect with his best friend Dylan (Basil Harris) who called him out on being a bad person at the beginning of the movie. Definitely not for everyone but if you’re looking for a quirky film, this is worth checking out. Special features include behind-the-scenes footage, deleted scenes and commentary. Film *** DVD ** (out of 5 stars).
Dane Cook: Isolated Incident – Are you fan of Dane Cook’s stand-up? If yes, you will enjoy this 55-minute performance of his at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood that was recorded during his Isolated Incident Tour. If you’re not a fan then there’s really no point in watching this as his humour will be lost on you. Special features include a never-before-seen interview with Cook and the featurette 30 Premeditated Acts which has Cook explaining how some of his routines came to be. DVD *** (out of 5 stars).
More new DVD releases this week: Rome: The Complete Series (Blu-ray); Is There Anybody There; Gone With The Wind (Blu-ray); Margaret Cho: Beaut
iful, Wild Child; Leon: The Professional (Blu-ray)
