Thursday, June 18, 2009

DVD releases June 2nd ON REVIEW



Revolutionary Road - A (Gotta Rent)

In the film that reunites Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio after 11 years, they show that they still have some of the best on-screen chemistry between an actor and actress. In Kate Winslet’s best performance of the year (even better than her Oscar-winning role in The Reader) she plays a suburban wife dealing with all the problems of married life. DiCaprio was definitely robbed of at least an Oscar nomination, as he showed once again that he is one of the best actors today. With all the praise of how great the acting and directing was, it’s one downfall is that it is one of the most depressing films I’ve ever seen. It ranks up there with Requiem for a Dream as leaving you feel sad, depressed and empty after it’s over. Well worth the watch, just don’t expect to be inspired afterwards.


Defiance - A- (Gotta Rent)

Both Daniel Craig and Liev Schreiber give the performance of their careers in this powerful, action-packed movie about a band of Jews trying to survive the Holocaust by living in secrecy in the wilderness. Both actors make you want to care about what happens to them and to their group of refugees. Throughout most of the film the director does a nice job not “hollywoodizing” a true story. It does however seem less like a film about resisting the Nazis and more about surviving in the woods against an unknown enemy. In that regard it’s less effective than movies like Valkyrie or Schindler’s List. Only those who are familiar with the real story will notice the large amount of historical inaccuracies, everyone else will enjoy it as a very well made WWII movie.



He’s Just Not That Into You - B- (Wait for It)

Let me start off by stating that I was definitely not the target audience for this movie, so my initial opinion is a little biased. It’s derived from a self-help book, He’s Just Not That Into You is a stereotype packed web of conflicts. It makes women look desperate, needy and a little crazy. The male leads are mostly portrayed as being afraid of commitment and adulterers. It seemed like the director wanted to add as many storylines as possible in order to win the award for best cast ensemble. All of that aside, I can see why women would like it. The character development pretty good, the love triangles are entertaining and Ginnifer Goodwin does a great job. If you’re looking for a slightly over-dramatized romantic comedy then this is a good choice, otherwise I would pass it up.


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