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vidlib@videolibrarian.com
 Updated September 2, 2008 |
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Then She Found Me  THINKFilm, 100 min., R, DVD: $27.99, Blu-ray: $35.99, Sept. 9 
Helen Hunt’s directorial debut may mine a familiar vein--romantic comedy—but unlike other examples of the genre, Then She Found Me, based on Elinor Lipman’s novel, is genuinely clever, amusing, and much more mature. Hunt plays April, a late-thirtysomething New York City schoolteacher who hears her biological clock ticking. Adopted herself, April is anxious to have a child with her new husband (Matthew Broderick), but after he abruptly asks for a divorce, she’s thrown into emotional turmoil. Before long, April finds herself strangely attracted to the rumpled, ill-tempered divorced dad (Colin Firth) of one of her students, and a local television talk-show host (Bette Midler) shows up claiming to be her birth mother. From here the narrative trajectory is fairly predictable, but still quite entertaining since Hunt is adept at walking the fine line between comedy and drama, and she’s helped along by a strong cast (including a cameo by novelist Salman Rushdie as a doctor). In an era when date movies tend to exclusively center on twentysomething slackers, it’s refreshing to find one that deals with adult characters who have real-life concerns—and wrinkles. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director/star Helen Hunt, a 12-minute behind-the-scenes featurette, interview segments with Hunt and costars Bette Midler, Colin Firth, and Matthew Broderick, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a winning film.] (F. Swietek)
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Baby Mama  Universal, 99 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $39.99, Sept. 9 
Saturday Night Live alumni Tina Fey and Amy Poehler star in writer-director Michael McCullers’ Baby Mama, in which Fey is well cast as Kate Holbrook, a single career woman who longs for a baby but fails to conceive after artificial insemination. Increasingly desperate and unwilling to undertake the lengthy, tedious process of adoption, Kate elects to hire a surrogate mother and settles—somewhat apprehensively—on a none-too-bright working-class woman named Angie Ostrowiski (Poehler). When the baby mama’s good-for-nothing husband (Dax Shepard) becomes unreasonable, Angie moves into Kate’s ritzy apartment. The complexities of this unorthodox living arrangement, coupled with Kate’s growing exasperation with Angie, provide ample opportunities for humor, but the script just isn’t as pointed as it should be, forcing Fey and Poehler to rely on their personalities and well-honed comic timing to generate laughs. The first-rate supporting cast includes Greg Kinnear, Steve Martin, Sigourney Weaver, and Maura Tierney. An often pleasant and innocuous film likely to appeal to fans of the two leads, this is a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras include both widescreen and full screen versions on the same disc, audio commentary (by writer-director Michael McCullers, producer Lorne Michaels, and costars Tina Fey and Amy Poehler), the 10-minute “making-of” featurette “From Conception to Delivery,” seven minutes of deleted scenes, a four-minute “Saturday Night Live: Legacy of Laughter” featurette, a three-minute alternate ending, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an uneven but occasionally winning comedy.] (E. Hulse)
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The Forbidden Kingdom Lionsgate, 104 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.95, Blu-ray: $39.99, Sept. 9 
Featuring a mystical story that seems to be derived partly from ancient Chinese legend and partly from The Lord of the Rings, this epic adventure is primarily notable for the teaming of martial-arts superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li. Both are pressed into the service of South Boston teenager Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano), who is transported back in time to China by a magical staff once owned by a warrior known as the Monkey King. Initially frightened and unsure of his own abilities, Jason is mentored by a drunken peasant (Chan) and a taciturn monk (Li), who teach him the time-honored techniques of kung fu. Together, the trio storm the palace of the evil Jade Emperor (Deshun Wang) in an attempt to revive and free the long-imprisoned Monkey King, which is the only way Jason can earn return passage to his home. Predictably, the film’s highlights are its martial-arts sequences, boldly choreographed by Woo-Ping Yuen (The Matrix) and flamboyantly executed by Chan and Li, whose eventual toe-to-toe clash is a real spellbinder. Director Rob Minkoff’s The Forbidden Kingdom looks wonderful (with bold saturated colors), and boasts numerous verbal and visual references to classics of Hong Kong cinema—though it’s equally evident that the movie is geared towards a teenage audience, with none of the lyricism of, say, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Still, this will definitely appeal to action fans, so consider it a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD extras on this two-disc set include audio commentary with director Rob Minkoff and writer John Fusco, “The Kung-Fu Dream Team” featurette (11 min.), a “Monkey King and the Eight Immortals” story featurette (9 min.), six deleted scenes w/optional commentary (9 min.), a “Discovering China” location featurette (8 min.), an eight-minute blooper reel, a “Filming in Chinawood” behind-the-scenes featurette (8 min.), a “Dangerous Beauty” featurette (6 min.), a “Storyboard and Previz: The Movie Before the Movie” pre-visualization featurette (6 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a fun if unexceptional martial arts flick.] (E. Hulse)
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Redbelt  Sony, 99 min., R, DVD: $27.98, Blu-ray: $38.99, Aug. 26 
A cornball martial arts flick by playwright/film director David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross) might sound like a joke, but Redbelt—revolving around a noble jujitsu teacher named Mike Terry (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who is forced to participate in a competition he considers demeaning to his art--is presented with the utmost seriousness…which makes it all the more ridiculous. This being Mamet, the script serves up a bit of sleight-of-hand and misdirection--involving a pill-addicted lawyer (Emily Mortimer) and a Hollywood star (Tim Allen) whom the hero saves from a beating—but the main plot follows the traditional formula of the honorable fighter manipulated (in this case, because of a threat to one of his students) by unsavory promoters into entering a tournament against his will. The match, of course, is rigged, yet Terry manages to emerge--through a series of events that shatter credulity--with his honor intact and his status enhanced. Mamet, a student of jujitsu, obviously wants to protest turning the sport into crass wrestling-style entertainment, but he’s unable to transform the clunky clichés of the martial arts genre into dramatic gold with only some idiosyncratic dialogue and tricky plot twists. Redbelt might have worked as parody, but instead is little more than a Chuck Norris-like fisticuffs flick presented with the solemnity of a Shakespearean tragedy. Not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director David Mamet and costar Randy Couture, a 26-minute Q&A with Mamet, the 19-minute behind-the-scenes featurette “Inside Mixed Martial Arts” (19 min.), an interview with UFC president Dana White (16 min.), “The Magic of Cyril Takayama” featurette on the costar (5 min.), four minutes of fighter profiles, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray version is the BD Live function. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)
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Wide Sargasso Sea Acorn, 84 min., not rated, DVD: $24.99, June 24 
Billed as a prequel to Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Jean Rhys’ 1966 novel Wide Sargasso Sea is adapted by Stephen Greenhorn in this 2006 made-for-TV production. Rhys’ idea was clever and compelling: namely, to create a back story for the crazy woman stashed in Edward Rochester’s attic while he romances governess Jane Eyre. In Wide Sargasso Sea, the young Rochester (Rafe Spall) arrives in Jamaica on family business, where he meets Antoinette Cosway (Rebecca Hall), a fetching young woman of Creole descent who happens to be Edward’s friend Richard Mason’s stepsister. The pair quickly marry, but no one seems thrilled: Rochester confesses to having “sold my soul” in order to get his hands on her dowry, while Antoinette’s aunt prophesizes utter disaster. The newlyweds’ first few days at a shabby cottage deep in the woods are filled with lust and romance, but before long a man claiming to be Antoinette’s half-brother warns him that the Cosway family is haunted by madness, and that the girl herself is sure to be stricken next (all of which the humorless Edward buys without question). Although the film starts out like a typical episode of Masterpiece Theatre, with Brits conversing in drawing rooms, it soon heads in a more sensuous direction (including brief nudity), eventually becoming a Harlequin-esque bodice ripper, replete with aphrodisiacs, miscegenation, and dark portent laid on with a giant shovel. While nice to look at (the lovely cinematography takes advantage of the Jamaican locale), Wide Sargasso Sea is ultimately kind of silly. Optional. (S. Graham)
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Smart People  Miramax, 95 min., R, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $34.99, Aug. 12 
How refreshing: an unpretentious little comedy that doesn’t rely on potty humor or kicks to the crotch for laughs. If anything, the characters, dialogue, and situations in Smart People may be too smart for some, but those longing for humor laced with a bit of intelligence will find director Noam Murro’s film to be an oasis in the vast desert of lowest-common-denominator comedies. Acerbic Pittsburgh college professor Lawrence Wetherhold (Dennis Quaid), a misanthropic widower loathed by students and faculty alike, isn’t much of a role model for his preternaturally brilliant offspring: overachieving, friendless daughter Vanessa (Ellen Page) and marginally better-socialized son James (Ashton Holmes). But when their little family circle is suddenly breached by two outsiders—Lawrence’s irresponsible, financially challenged brother Chuck (Thomas Haden Church), and former student Janet Hartigan (Sarah Jessica Parker), now a doctor—the Wetherholds are forced to make some serious attitude adjustments in a hurry. As in Juno, Page here play a similarly wry, intelligent girl, while Quaid and Church are excellent, with the latter’s dry ripostes contributing some of the movie’s best laughs. The only real drawback is the film’s narrative predictability, but that’s hardly a fatal flaw in this genuine sleeper—one of 2008’s best so far. Highly recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Noam Murro and writer Mark Jude Poirier, 17 minutes of “The Smartest People” interviews with Murro and cast members (including Dennis Quaid and Ellen Page), nine deleted scenes (10 min.), two minutes of “Not So Smart” bloopers, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a smart comedy.] (E. Hulse)
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The Life Before Her Eyes Magnolia, 90 min., R, DVD: $26.98, Blu-ray: $34.98, Aug. 19 
Adapted into a dramatic vehicle for star Uma Thurman (whose underrated skills are worthy of the challenge), the impact of Laura Kasischke's acclaimed 2002 novel seems diluted onscreen (ironically, due to a strict adherence to the novel's delicate structure and symbolism), where the central secret (the title yields a clue) plays out like a weak riff on Jacob's Ladder, a better film built on the same dramatic principle. Thurman stars as Diana, an art teacher who 15 years earlier as a teenager survived (with guilt) a classmate's lethal Columbine-like rampage in high school. It turns out that Diana was aware of the disturbed boy's intentions, but she mistakenly thought he was joking, and in a series of flashbacks that incrementally reveal the source of her adult dysfunction, the rebellious teenage Diana (Evan Rachel Wood) and her decent, churchgoing best friend Maureen (Eva Amurri) confront the killer. Before that encounter, director Vadim Perelman (who fared better with his acclaimed debut House of Sand and Fog) offers teasing hints regarding the story's ultimate revelation, relying on clunky metaphors and plot gimmicks that attentive viewers will readily identify. Despite the gravity of its content, The Life Before Her Eyes is disappointingly forgettable. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Vadim Perelman and production designer Maia Javan, the 55-minute “Flashback” behind-the-scenes documentary, an alternate ending (13 min.), a “Reflections Back & Beyond” production featurette (12 min.), 12 minutes of deleted scenes, costar Eva Amurri’s casting tape (4 min.), a flower montage (3 min.), a flower photo gallery, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a disappointing film.] (J. Shannon)
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Prom Night Sony, 88 min., avail. in PG-13 or unrated versions, DVD: $28.98, Blu-ray: $38.98, Aug. 19 
This remake of the 1980 shocker (which starred Jamie Lee Curtis) is an unusually tame slasher film that eschews graphic bloodletting to justify its PG-13 rating (an unrated version, adding an extra minute, is also available). Top-billed Brittany Snow, the American Dreams sweetheart who was impressive in the recent remake of Hairspray, stars as high-school senior Donna Keppel, whose entire family was murdered three years earlier by criminally insane Richard Fenton (Johnathon Schaech), an obsessed teacher who wanted Donna all to himself. Now living with her aunt and uncle, Donna still has regular nightmares but is trying to move on with her life, looking forward to her senior prom with a hot date (Scott Porter). Unfortunately, Fenton escapes from the loony bin, bent on making prom night memorable in more ways than one. In typical slasher-movie fashion, Donna’s pals are murdered in quick progression, but director Nelson McCormick doesn’t opt for the overt campiness of many films in this genre, instead playing it straight—for the most part—with Idris Elba turning in a sober, effective performance as the dedicated police detective racing against time to save Donna. Still, in the end, Prom Night simply doesn’t deliver enough shocks or thrills to engage viewers. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: Available in both unrated and original theatrical versions on DVD separately, and unrated on Blu-ray, DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary (with director Nelson McCormick, and costars Brittany Snow and Johnathon Schaech), a 13-minute “A Night to Remember” making-of featurette, the six-minute “Bridgeport High Vikings Video Yearbook,” a six-minute “Profile of a Killer” featurette, “Prom Night Photo Album: Real Stories from the Cast” (6 min.), “Gothic Spaces: Creating the Pacific Grand Hotel” set design featurette (5 min.), five deleted scenes w/optional commentary (5 min.), a brief alternate ending w/optional commentary, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray version is a bonus view picture-in-picture storyboard track. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a forgettable slasher remake.] (E. Hulse)
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Son of Rambow Paramount, 95 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.99, Aug. 26 
Set in 1983, Garth Jennings’ quirky but curiously irritating British comedy revolves around two boys with family problems who combine their dubious talents to make a sequel to Sylvester Stallone’s First Blood. Scrawny Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner) is a shy, sheltered lad being raised by his widowed mother, who is a member of a stern religious sect. In school, Will is thrown together with Lee Carter (Will Poulter), a troublemaking bully who cons his wimpy classmate into starring in a video version of Rambo. Will, who’s never seen a movie before, happily engages in all sorts of dangerous stunts, but his new avocation naturally causes family turmoil. Son of Rambow wants to be a nostalgic dramedy about polar-opposite kids who become unlikely chums, but the lads just aren’t very likable, the religious subplot comes off as too dark, and the slapstick resulting from the video shoot is simply lame (although not as bad as the subplot involving an exotic French exchange student). Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include an audio commentary (by director Garth Jennings, producer Nick Goldsmith, and costars Bill Milner and Will Poulter), the 26-minute “making-of” featurette “Boys Will Be Boys,” Jennings’ short film “Aron” (11 min.), a five-minute webisode, and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for an uneven film.] (F. Swietek)
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What Happens in Vegas Fox, 99 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.99, Blu-ray: $39.99, Aug. 26 
An unabashed star vehicle totally devoid of creativity, What Happens in Vegas could easily have been a fluffy, Depression-era comedy from the old MGM dream factory—except, of course, for the crude sexual innuendos and coarse gags involving bodily functions. The story begins promisingly with irresponsible slacker Jack Fuller (Ashton Kutcher) losing his job and careerist control freak Joy McNally (Cameron Diaz) dumped by her fiancé. While having a fling in Vegas to forget their troubles, the two meet in a resort hotel, proceed to drown their sorrows, and impulsively marry after a night of drunken revelry. The next morning, just after the hung-over newlyweds agree to have the marriage annulled, Jack wins a $3 million jackpot with a quarter given to him by Joy. The ensuing court case finds a cynical judge (Dennis Miller) forcing the couple to remain married for six months before even considering a division of the winnings. And therein lies the basis for the film’s humor: by this time Jack and Joy are bitter enemies and each tries to sabotage the marriage in the hopes the other will file for a quickie divorce and relinquish any claim to the money. Given that the gags are predictable and the punchlines telegraphed well in advance, the movie’s appeal basically is limited to fans of Kutcher and Diaz, who labor mightily for their few laughs. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Tom Vaughan and editor Matt Friedman, an eight-minute “Sitting Down with Cameron and Ashton” featurette with stars Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher, a “DVD Extra Time with Zach Galifianakis” interview with costar Galifianakis and Vaughan (8 min.), six deleted/extended scenes (8 min.), a five-minute gag reel, a four-minute “From the Law Firm of Stephen J. Hader, Esq.” mock featurette, and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is the pop-up drinking game “Bottoms Up! An Intoxicating Vegas Experience.” Bottom line: a solid extras package for a lame romantic comedy.] (E. Hulse)
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