DVD Corner

“Coyote Ugly” Blu-ray – “Cocktail” on estrogen, “Flashdance” on testosterone, “42nd Street” on crack. In the film, a likable upstart leaves a small town for the brighter shine – and sharper bite – of the big city. Will she realize her dreams of becoming, in this case, a successful songwriter? Since the film is from producer Jerry Bruckheimer, it’s fair to say that this curvaceous pot of golden naivet? (Piper Perabo) won’t ever be able to do so until she first participates in something close to a wet T-shirt contest at a popular bar called Coyote Ugly. In addition to Tyra Banks, whose character should have been named Coyote Cleavage, “Coyote Ugly” features Perabo as Violet, John Goodman as her doting father, Adam Garcia as her attentive boyfriend, and Maria Bello as the bar’s gruff owner. Unrated. Grade: C-

“Love in the Time of Cholera” – Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s exceptional novel doesn’t disappoint, so it’s best just to curl up with that and forget about the movie based on it. In critical ways, this lush adaptation is a failure, but at least it can’t be accused of not making an effort. Director Mike Newell and screenwriter Ronald Harwood had the challenge of trying to capture the magical prose for which Marquez is known. But the nuances that exist within the pages of Marquez’s book don’t translate well to the screen, a literal environment that kneecaps “Cholera,” which is the story of a 50-year love affair one man (Javier Bardem) has for the aristocratic woman (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) who rejected him as a boy. Complicating matters is the pace, which is sluggish, particularly given the movie’s 21/2-hour running time. Lovely cinematography, though. Rated R. Grade: C

“The 6th Day” Blu-ray – In this futuristic thriller about human cloning, Arnold Schwarzenegger is Adam Gibson, a family man who lives in a world where parents regularly clone their children’s dead pets so nobody ever has to suffer the hardship of finding Fluffy doubling as a hassock in the living room. But when Gibson returns home one evening to find a clone of himself seated at the dinner table with his family, it becomes clear that this whole cloning business is out of hand. Cormac and Marianne Wibberley’s script distills the ethical and moral issues surrounding human cloning into neat sound bites, some of which are intentionally funny, but most of which, in their amusing effort to be profound, only manage to bear the combined intellectual weight of the Doublemint twins. Rated PG-13. Grade: C+

“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” – Bloody, yes – and also bloody excellent. Based on Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s long-running musical, Tim Burton’s excellent film thrums with menace, mischief and malice. In the title role is Johnny Depp, who gives a meaty performance (sorry) as Todd, the gifted, 19th century barber who begins the movie armed with revenge against the evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman, wonderful), who wanted Barker’s wife for himself and who set about getting her by devising a plan that sent Barker to prison. Fifteen years later, Barker returns as Sweeney Todd and meets his deadly accomplice, the not-so-lovely Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), a glowering frump famous for her meat pies. The singing that follows is good, as is the energy that comes from the film’s darkly funny musical numbers. Supporting turns from Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jamie Campbell Bower and Jayne Wisener are superb, but the movie’s real magic is sparked by Depp and Carter, who create something of a bruise onscreen, and whose performances are so intoxicating, they encourage you to enjoy all the sins ground within. Rated R. Grade: A