In Bruges [2008]

The considerable pleasures of In Bruges begin with its title, which suggests a glumly self-important art film but actually fits a rattling-good tale of two Irish gangsters "keepin' a low profile" after a murder gone messily wrong. Bruges, the best-preserved medieval town in Belgium, is where the bearlike veteran Ken (Brendan Gleeson) and newbie triggerman Ray (Colin Farrell) have been ordered by their London boss to hole up for two weeks. As the sly narrative unfolds like a paper flower in water, "in Bruges" also becomes a state of mind, a suspended moment amid centuries-old towers and bridges and canals when even thuggish lives might experience a change in direction. And throughout, the viewer has ample opportunity to consider whose pronunciation of "Bruges" is more endearing, Gleeson's or Farrell's. The movie marks the feature writing-directing debut of playwright Martin McDonagh, whose droll meditation on sudden mortality, Six Shooter, copped the 2005 Oscar for best live-action short. Although McDonagh clearly relishes the musicality of his boyos' brogue and has written them plenty of entertaining dialogue, In Bruges is no stageplay disguised as a film. The script is deceptively casual, allowing for digressions on the newly united and briskly thriving Europe, and annexing passers-by as characters who have a way of circling back into the story with unanticipatable consequences. That includes a film crew--shooting a movie featuring, to Ray's fascination, "a midget" (Jordan Prentice)--and a fetching blond production assistant (Clémence Poésy) whose job description keeps evolving. There's one other key figure: Harry, the Cockney gang boss whose omnipotence remains unquestioned as long as he remains offscreen, back in England, as if floating in an early Harold Pinter play. Harry has reasons inextricably tender and perverse for selecting Bruges as his hirelings' destination, and eventually he emerges from the aether to express them--first as a garrulous telephone voice and then in the volatile form of Ralph Fiennes. By that point the charmed moment of suspension, already shaken by several eruptions of violence, is pretty well doomed. But In Bruges continues to surprise and satisfy right up to the end. --Richard T. Jameson

The Wire : Complete HBO Season 1

Television really doesn’t come much better than this. Criminally ignored by far, far too many people, The Wire has proven itself to be that rarest of things: an intelligent, clever, character-driven show, that’s lasted more than one season.
This boxset brings together all the episodes from the maiden series of The Wire, spread across thirteen episodes. Yet those episodes, unlike many in the police genre where the show spends a good deal of its time, are dedicated to just one case. Furthermore, it follows both sides of the case. Thus, there’s the Baltimore police department, with its statistics to manage, its internal politics to manage and its chain of command to respect, set against a highly organised drug gang, who too have more than their fair share of problems.
The Wire is a slow burn show, taking time to delicate put its pieces in place. Rarely do you get a dramatic end to an episode, and it’s not afraid to humanise and blur the lines between good and bad. But, bluntly, there’s nothing--not even The Sopranos--that US TV has broadcast in the last ten years that can hold a torch to it. This first series is genuinely outstanding television, and really deserves your attention. And the good news? Excellent as it is, this first series isn’t even the best that The Wire has to offer…--Simon Brew

Quantum of Solace [2008]

Daniel Craig returns as Ian Fleming's most famous creation in Quantum of Solace, the first film in the James Bond series to follow directly on from the previous entry. Continuing where Casino Royale concluded, Quantum of Solace finds Bond on a perilous mission to uncover the truth behind the betrayal of his beloved Vesper, while keeping one step ahead of M (Judi Dench – Mrs Henderson Presents, Shakespeare In Love), the CIA and a shadowy organisation fronted by the diabolical Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric – The Diving Bell And The Butterfly, Marie Antoinette).Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright – Basquiat, Oliver Stone's W) and the dubious Rene Mathis (Giancarlo Giannini – Black Belly of the Tarantula, Seven Beauties) also return for this high octane sequel directed by internationally-renowned German filmmaker Marc Forster (The Kite Runner, Finding Neverland). Though Quantum of Solace takes its gritty and uncompromising lead from Casino Royale, many of the series' hallmark ingredients are present, including a bevy of beautiful women which includes Gemma Arterton (St Trinians, Rocknrolla) and Olga Kurylenko (Le Serpent, Hitman), and a post-modern music score from series veteran David Arnold.

Twilight - 2 Disc Special Edition

TWILIGHT, based on the acclaimed novel by Stephenie Meyer, is the highly-anticipated movie of the ultimate forbidden love affair between a vampire and mortal. Boasting a whole host of bright young talent including Robert Pattinson (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), Kristen Stewart (Into The Wild, What Just Happened) and Cam Gigandet (Never Back Down, The O.C.), the screenplay is written by Melissa Rosenberg (Step Up, The O.C.) and directed by the Award-winning filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke (Lords of Dogtown, Thirteen).

Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) has always been a little bit different, never caring about fitting in with the trendy girls at her Phoenix high school. When her mother remarries and sends Bella to live with her father in the rainy little town of Forks, Washington, she doesn’t expect much of anything to change. Then she meets the mysterious and dazzlingly beautiful Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a boy unlike any she’s ever met. Intelligent and witty, he sees straight into her soul.

Soon, Bella and Edward are swept up in a passionate and decidedly unorthodox romance. Edward can run faster than a mountain lion, he can stop a moving car with his bare hands – and he hasn’t aged since 1918. Like all vampires, he’s immortal. But he doesn’t have fangs, and he doesn’t drink human blood, as Edward and his family are unique among vampires in their lifestyle choice. To Edward, Bella is that thing he has waited 90 years for – a soul mate. But the closer they get, the more Edward must struggle to resist the primal pull of her scent, which could send him into an uncontrollable frenzy. But what will they do when Laurent (Edi Gathegi) and James (Cam Gigandet), the Cullens’ mortal vampire enemies, come to town, looking for Bella?

No Country For Old Men [2007]

The Coen brothers make their finest thriller since Fargo with a restrained adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's novel. Not that there aren't moments of intense violence, but No Country for Old Men is their quietest, most existential film yet. In this modern-day Western, Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) is a Vietnam veteran who needs a break. One morning while hunting antelope, he spies several trucks surrounded by dead bodies (both human and canine). In examining the site, he finds a case filled with $2 million. Moss takes it with him, tells his wife (Kelly Macdonald) he's going away for awhile, and hits the road until he can determine his next move. On the way from El Paso to Mexico, he discovers he's being followed by ex-special ops agent Chigurh (an eerily calm Javier Bardem). Chigurh's weapon of choice is a cattle gun, and he uses it on everyone who gets in his way--or loses a coin toss (as far as he's concerned, bad luck is grounds for death). Just as Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), a World War II veteran, is on Moss's trail, Chigurh's former colleague, Wells (Woody Harrelson), is on his. For most of the movie, Moss remains one step ahead of his nemesis. Both men are clever and resourceful--except Moss has a conscious, Chigurh does not (he is, as McCarthy puts it, "a prophet of destruction"). At times, the film plays like an old horror movie, with Chigurh as its lumbering Frankenstein monster. Like the taciturn terminator, No Country for Old Men doesn't move quickly, but the tension never dissipates. This minimalist masterwork represents Joel and Ethan Coen and their entire cast, particularly Brolin and Jones, at the peak of their powers. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Oscar 2009

2009 Oscars Nominations

Little Dorrit [2008]

It’s fair to say that the BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Little Dorrit managed to attract quite a cast. Led by the excellent Claire Foy and Matthew Macfadyen, you’ll happily talent spot as the likes of Eddie Marsan, Andy Serkis, Alun Armstrong and Tom Courtney take their places in the production. And what’s more, making more fleeting appearances are the likes of Sue Johnston, Amanda Redman, Pam Ferris and Freema Agyeman. Star-studded doesn’t begin to describe it.
Perhaps the real star of Little Dorrit though is writer Andrew Davies, who once more manages to skilfully wrangle a classic text into a cracking TV adaptation. Across fourteen episodes, he weaves Dickens’ tale of 1820s London into life, and it’s not the easiest text to adapt. Davies, however, does sterling work here, and cements his position as one of the best in the business.
He’s matched toe-to-toe by the production team, though. Little Dorrit is the latest to further enhance the BBC’s pedigree where costume drama is concerned, and the production is simply sumptuous. Perhaps, on the downside, the casting gets a little star-focused, and it does require a little more effort than you’d normally expect on the part of the viewer to get into. But it’s richly rewarded effort, and we can’t be the only ones eagerly wondering what Andrew Davies will tackle next. For Little Dorrit really is something quite special. --Jon Foster

Tropic Thunder - Single Disc [2008]

It's not really a knock to say that nothing in Tropic Thunder is funnier than its first five minutes, so sly that--especially for people watching in theaters--you don't realise right away they are the opening minutes of the movie. This outrageous comedy begins with a series of fake previews, each introducing one of the main characters in the film-proper (not that there's anything proper about this film) and each bearing the familiar logo of a different motion picture studio: Universal, DreamWorks SKG, et al. Such playing fast and loose with corporate talismans verges on sacrilege, but it's an index of how much le tout Tinseltown endorses the movie as a demented valentine to itself. The premise is that the cast of a would-be "Son of Rambo" movie shooting in some Southeast Asian jungle get into a real shooting war with drug-smuggling montagnards. Don't ask--though the movie does have an answer--why such highly paid, usually ultra-pampered personnel as superhero Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), Mozart of fart comedy Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black), hip-hop artist Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson), and five-time Oscar-winner Kirk Lazarus from Aus-try-leeah (Robert Downey Jr.) should be running through the jungle unattended and very vulnerable. It matters only that the real-life cast has a high time kidding their own profession and flexing their comedic muscles. Bonus points go to Stiller for co-writing the script (with Justin Theroux) and directing, and to Downey, brilliant as a white actor surgically turned black actor for his role and utterly committed to staying in character no matter what ("I don't drop character till I done the DVD commentary"). Be warned: The movie, too, is committed--to being an equal-opportunity offender. Its political incorrectness extends not only to Lazarus's black-like-me posturing but also Speedman's recent, Sean Penn–style Oscar bid playing a cognitively challenged farmboy--or, in Lazarus's deathless phrase, "going the full retard." Others in the cast include Steve Coogan as a director out of his depth, Nick Nolte as the Viet-vet novelist whose book inspired the film-within-the-film, Matthew McConaughey as Speedman's sun-blissed agent back home, and Tom Cruise--bald, fat-suited, and profane--as an epically repulsive studio head. Two hours running time is a mite excessive, but otherwise, what's not to like? --Richard T. Jameson

Michael McIntyre Live & Laughing [2008]

If you've already seen Michael McIntyre's 'Live at the Apollo', and watched him on various panel comedy shows then you'll be pleased to hear that his "Live and Laughing" tour isn't a re-working of his older material, although some of it does seem to be cropping up when he makes appearances on TV - but that's to be expected.

Yes there are a couple of lines which you may have seen practised on Mock the Week or something like that, but you watch this and feel that you're getting good value for money. McIntyre takes inspiration from his home life for much of the show, from his seemingly anti-Semitic baby, to booking a holiday, to the 'man drawer' (where the old batteries, keys to the old house, and the old mobile phones live) and this insight into his life makes him more endearing.

In a nutshell: I really enjoyed watching this tour live (at Sheffield) and my wife laughed so much that she was hurting. I initially gave this 4 stars, but in retrospect I think it deserves 5. The Live at the Apollo performance which is included on this DVD contains his legendary 'man getting his head stuck in the tube train doors' routine which always has me in stitches no matter how many times I watch it. This is a brilliant stand up performance, a lot of creative imagination has gone into it, and I do not doubt that you will laugh until you have tears.

Many stand-up DVDs contain nothing you haven't seen performed before, but the main feature is pretty much all new material, and the Live at the Apollo routine is effectively his 'best of the rest' - and it's all good!

Scrubs: Complete Season 7 [2007]

Scrubs staged a near-miraculous recovery in its seventh season; this despite the usual indifferent treatment by the network, low ratings, and a writer's strike that only allowed for 11 episodes. In this case, less was more. Scrubs regained its footing with sharper writing (Dr. Cox's signature rants are more inspired than tiresome this season, although at one point, nemesis Dr. Kelso threatens to hire an orchestra to "play him off"), more empathetic situations, and meta-fun with such "third-tier" characters as Snoop Dogg Attending (formerly Snoop Dog Intern), Dr. Beardface (pronounced "Beard-fassay"), and new squeaky-voiced intern, Josephine (Scrubs scribe Aseem Batra). Beginning with J.D. (Zach Braff) and Elliott (Sarah Chalke) coming to their senses before they can consummate that sixth season cliffhanging kiss, this season will be one of "weird crystallizing moments." Elliott will call off her upcoming nuptials to Keith. J.D. will be forced to tell Kim ("cute as a button" Elizabeth Banks), whom he impregnated after only their first date, that he does not love her. The "annoying whiny man-child," as Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley) calls him, will finally ponder whether it is time for him to grow up. Dr. Cox will admit that he is lonely without his acerbic wife (Christa Miller) and son when they go out of town. Other developments include the smitten Janitor's (Neil Flynn) initially suspect new girlfriend (can she really be named "Lady?") and on a Scrubsian sad note, Kelso (Ken Jenkins) faces forced retirement when it is revealed he is actually 65 years old. Scrubs deftly blends absurdist fantasy, flat-out silliness and dramatic, emotional moments, as in "My Number One Doctor," in which Elliott must deal with a terminal patient's suicide attempt. The season's most ambitious episode is the finale, "My Princess," a Princess Bride homage in which Dr. Cox transforms one undiagnosable patient's case into his son's bedtime story that is populated by Scrubs characters, with Elliott as a princess, Turk (Donald Faison) and Carla (Judy Reyes) as a two-headed witch, and J.D. as, you guessed it, the village idiot. The ample bonus features include audio commentary for every episode, a fun "Alternate Lines" segment that illustrates the improvisational leeway cast members enjoy, deleted scenes, bloopers, an interview with Ken Jenkins, and a behind the scenes look at the "My Princess" episode. Poised for cancellation, Scrubs got a second opinion from ABC, which picked up the series for an eighth season. That's heartening news for devoted fans who would never pull the plug. To borrow Turk's well-worn catchphrase, "That’s what I'm talkin' about." --Donald Liebenson

Planet Earth : Complete BBC Series

As befits the BBC’s reputation for producing some of the world’s best nature documentaries, the five-disc set Planet Earth is an epic travelogue, focussing on different ecologies and the unique animals that inhabit them. Once again, Sir David Attenborough provides the narration, as the cameras fly across the surface of the earth, zooming in to give us a bug’s eye view one minute, zooming out to give us an eagle’s perspective the next. The BBC’s cameramen filmed more than 200 locations, resulting in some truly spectacular footage, much of which has never before been seen--such as the rare sight of an endangered snow leopard hunting in the Himalayas, or great white sharks leaping from the water as they hunt. The creators of Planet Earth endured some of the world’s most hostile environments, from the deepest ocean depths to an Antarctic blizzard to a fetid, cockroach- and bat-infested cave, just to grab a few moments of film; it’s worth watching the "Making of" shorts that accompany each episode, in order to see just what lengths they had to go to. The three extra episodes here--Planet Earth: The Future--provide a sobering finale, as Sir David practically pleads with viewers to cherish the animals that we share this planet with, before it’s too late. --Ted Kord

DVD Description
AS YOU'VE NEVER SEEN IT BEFORE... The makers of The Blue Planet present the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production, over 2000 days in the field, using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations, this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that combines rare action, unimaginable scale, impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved, wildest and most elusive creatures. From the highest mountains to the deepest rivers, this blockbuster series takes you on an unforgettable journey through the challenging seasons and the daily struggle for survival in Earth's most extreme habitats. Using a budget of unprecedented proportions, photography and unique, specially developed filming techniques, Planet Earth takes you to places you have never seen before, to experience sights and sounds you may never experience again

Mamma Mia! [2008]

The delirious sight of Meryl Streep leading a river of multigenerational women singing "Dancing Queen" is one of the high points of Mamma Mia!, the musical built around the songs of the hugely popular pop group ABBA. The plot sets in motion when Sophie (Amanda Seyfried, Mean Girls), daughter of Donna (Streep), sends a letter to three men, inviting them to her wedding--because after reading her mother's diary, she suspects that one of them is her father. When all three arrive at the Greek island where Donna runs a hotel, Donna flips out and finds that passions she thought she'd laid aside are coming back to life. But let's face it, the plot is not the point--it's a ridiculous contrivance that provides an excuse for the characters to sing the massive hits of ABBA. Regrettably, first-time film director Phyllida Lloyd (who directed the original stage production) has drawn over-the-top performances from everyone involved, even Streep; every production number hammers its exuberance into your eyeballs. Which is too bad, because Mamma Mia! is a rarity: A middle-aged love story. The kids start things off, but the story is really about Streep and the three guys (former James Bond Pierce Brosnan, former Mr. Darcy Colin Firth, and Swedish star Stellan Skarsgard), as well as Donna's best friends (Christine Baranski, best known from the TV show Cybill, and Julie Walters, Calendar Girls). It's a romantic comedy aimed at the people who were around when all these songs were new, and that's an age group Hollywood largely ignores. For that alone, Mamma Mia! deserves to find an audience. --Bret Fetzer

Davina - Super Body Workout [2008]

Hello! I’m back and fitter than ever, and this is all thanks to my new Super Body Workout DVD.
My personal trainer Mark is an ex-Marine, and runs my workouts like a real Sergeant Major, so we decided that military–style fitness training would be a great concept for the DVD. It’s fun and pacy, full of variety and gets the very best results.
Each routine is completely self-contained and designed to work your whole body. There are two complete 40 minute routines for you to do – and both of them include their own warm-up and cool-down, so no excuses for skipping those bits!
Super Sculpt is designed to really tone up your whole body, and has aerobic intervals to make sure there’s some essential fat-burning going on.
'Super Fit' is full of fantastic aerobic kickboxing. You’ll love it and again, it’ll work your whole body – but with the emphasis on building fitness and burning fat.
If you have time for a longer routine, and to add even more variety, there are also three 50 minute options for you to choose from:'Super Legs' combines the 'Super Sculpt' routine with an extra ten minutes concentrating on your legs and bum.'Super Pump' uses the 'Super Sculpt' routine but with an added ten minutes of upper body exercises.'Super Abs' is an extra ten minutes of abdominals exercises added to the Super Fit workout. 'Super Six Pack' is if you want a six pack like mine, we’ve got this ten minute routine especially for you.
Try to do one of the routines three times a week. Mix them up too – we don’t want you to get bored. If you’re eating sensibly as well, this is enough to whip you into shape, I promise.
Now hop to it!
Love Davina

Hancock [2008]

Hancock turns the standard superhero movie inside-out. The titular character, played by Will Smith, can fly, has super strength and is invulnerable. But he's also a sloppy, arrogant alcoholic who causes millions of dollars in property damage whenever he bothers to fight crime. When he saves the life of a PR agent named Ray (Jason Bateman, Arrested Development), Ray decides to improve Hancock's image--starting by having Hancock surrender himself to the authorities and go to prison for his lawless behaviour. The idea is that once he's in prison, the crime rate will go up and people will start realising Hancock might be of value after all. This is only the first act of Hancock though--from there, the film takes several surprising turns that shouldn't be revealed. Hancock isn't a great movie, but it is an extremely entertaining one. The script, which holds together far better than most superhero movies, has a propulsive plot, good dialogue, some compassion for its characters, and even an actual idea or two. The spectacular action at least gestures towards obeying the laws of physics, which actually makes the special effects more vivid. The three leads (Smith, Bateman, and Charlize Theron as Ray's wife, Mary) deftly balance the movie's mixture of comedy, action, and drama. All in all, a smart subversive twist on a genre that all too often takes itself all too seriously. --Bret Fetzer

WALL-E (2 Disc Special Edition) [2008]

WALL.E - a hero for our times? The human race has fouled up again and the Earth is covered not in flood water but a sea of junk. In space, humanity has been preserved on an upmarket ark (shopping malls, beauty parlours and swimming pools) courtesy of the Buy `n' Large Corporation. The original passengers had planned to take a short holiday in space to get away from the mounting rubbish: that was 700 years ago. Seven centuries of inbreeding and shopping have taken their toll with each generation several sizes larger than the last, resulting in a race of couch potatoes. Meanwhile, back on Earth, WALL-E, a rubbish collection robot who cheerfully carries on collecting, compressing and sorting junk in a deserted city where stalagmites of waste dwarf crumbling skyscrapers, just as he has done every day for the last 700 years. But all that is about to change ... This is a visually uneven film, but the stunningly cinematic scenes on Earth and in space easily outweigh the ho-hum animation inside the space liner. A strong story line that moves along at a good pace puts this firmly in the category of films that can be enjoyed by adults and children alike. But the star of the show is undoubtedly WALL-E. Physically, there is more than a passing resemblance to ET; but the character is that of Chaplin's Little Tramp: a seamless blend of child-like wonder, humour, pathos and awkwardness with robots of the opposite sex that will have you laughing, crying and cheering until the credits roll. It's perhaps no accident that the most memorable part of the film is the first 20-30 minutes where there is no dialogue. Eco parable? Paradise lost and regained? Clever piece of marketing? Or just good solid family entertainment? All of these and more.

The Dark Knight (2 Discs) [2008]

The Dark Knight arrives with tremendous hype (best superhero movie ever? posthumous Oscar for Heath Ledger?), and incredibly, it lives up to all of it. But calling it the best superhero movie ever seems like faint praise, since part of what makes the movie great--in addition to pitch-perfect casting, outstanding writing, and a compelling vision--is that it bypasses the normal fantasy element of the superhero genre and makes it all terrifyingly real. Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is Gotham City's new district attorney, charged with cleaning up the crime rings that have paralysed the city. He enters an uneasy alliance with the young police lieutenant, Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman), and Batman (Christian Bale), the caped vigilante who seems to trust only Gordon--and whom only Gordon seems to trust. They make progress until a psychotic and deadly new player enters the game: the Joker (Heath Ledger), who offers the crime bosses a solution--kill the Batman. Further complicating matters is that Dent is now dating Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal, after Katie Holmes turned down the chance to reprise her role), the longtime love of Batman's alter ego, Bruce Wayne.
In his last completed role before his tragic death, Ledger is fantastic as the Joker, a volcanic, truly frightening force of evil. And he sets the tone of the movie: the world is a dark, dangerous place where there are no easy choices. Eckhart and Oldman also shine, but as good as Bale is, his character turns out rather bland in comparison (not uncommon for heroes facing more colorful villains). Director/co-writer Christopher Nolan (Memento) follows his critically acclaimed Batman Begins with an even better sequel that sets itself apart from notable superhero movies like Spider-Man 2 and Iron Man because of its sheer emotional impact and striking sense of realism--there are no suspension-of-disbelief superpowers here. At 152 minutes, it's a shade too long, and it's much too intense for kids. But for most movie fans--and not just superhero fans--The Dark Knight is a film for the ages. --David Horiuchi