New On DVD – May 25, 2010
Posted May 25, 2010 12:42 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Road CityNews.ca Pick of the Week – Based on Cormac McCarthy’s book, The Road is a dreary story about a father and son trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. Why the world is the way it is is never explained and none of the characters have names. The father, played by Viggo Mortensen in what is surely one of his best performances, is credited only as Man. The son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is just Boy. This is a dark, brutal picture that carries an overall sense of doom and rawness. Whether The Road is as good as the book, I can’t say. But like No Country For Old Men, the material makes for an excellent cinema experience and one I can safely recommend. Special features include a making of, commentary with director John Hillcoat, deleted scenes, and more. Also available on Blu-ray. Film **** DVD **** (out of 5 stars).
Dear John – Typical romance based on a Nicholas Sparks novel starring Amanda Seyfried as a college student who falls for a soldier (played by Channing Tatum) home on leave. Or is it vice versa and the soldier falls for her? Who really cares? Besides Seyfried, who has become one of the best young actresses of this generation, Dear John didn’t really have anything for me to enjoy or stand behind. I’d much rather watch The Notebook or even The Last Song again (both based on novels by Sparks) instead of this drivel. Special features include an alternate ending, outtakes, deleted scenes, and more. Also available on Blu-ray. Film ** DVD ** (out of 5 stars).
True Blood: The Complete Second Season (Blu-ray) – In True Blood, vampires are “out of the coffin” and drink synthetic blood so that they don’t have to kill humans. It’s a unique idea and works well on the small screen, thanks to the great talents of creator Alan Ball (of Six Feet Under fame) and main star Anna Paquin, who plays Sookie Stackhouse — a waitress in a Louisiana bar who has the ability to read peoples’ minds. I praised the release of the first season on Blu-ray for the amazing picture and sound and HBO has done it again with the release of the second season. It is so perfect in high-definition I find it hard to stop watching. If you have never seen the show go and pick up both seasons and set aside a weekend to watch them all back-to-back. Special features include enhanced viewing on all 12 episodes, audio commentaries, and more. Show (Season 2) **** Blu-ray ***** (out of 5 stars).
Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog (Blu-ray) – I just don’t get the appeal of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Yes, it’s from the all powerful Joss Whedon (creator Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly) and was originally released on the Internet, and it does star Neil Patrick Harris as an aspiring super villain known as Dr. Horrible. But it also features a ton of singing and gets annoying after the initial “this could be cool” factor wears off. I guess if you are one of the many legion of fans the Blu-ray release is worth it. If not than don’t waste your time. Special features include making of featuerttes, commentary, 42 minutes of new music, and more. Show ** Blu-ray ** (out of 5 stars).
The Collector – Arkin (Josh Stewart) needs money to help his ex (girlfriend or wife, we don’t know) pay off a loan shark so he decides to steal an expensive jewel from a house he’s been doing work on. To his surprise, when he arrives to burglarize it, someone else is in the house and he’s torturing the family. Will Arkin save the family or die by the hands of this masked freak as well? From the writer of Saw IV, V and VI, I expected The Collector to be a much more gruesome viewing. Instead it turned out to be a quite well-made, intense thriller. That doesn’t mean there isn’t loads of gore, but it’s not as sick as any of the Saw films and it’s presented in a better context. I think it’s safe to say that horror fans will definitely enjoy this one. Special features include an alternate ending, commentary, deleted scenes, and more. Also available on Blu-ray. Film *** DVD *** (out of 5 stars).
More New DVD releases this week: Billy Connolly: Journey to the End of the Word, Spartacus 50th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray), City of the Living Dead (Blu-ray), La Domination Masculine (Male Domination)
brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com
Top image: A scene from The Road. Courtesy Alliance Films.
