September 23, 2024
Column

DVD Corner

“The Dirty Dozen” Blu-ray: One of those movies in which you ask yourself, “So, who isn’t in this movie?” The answer? Not many. Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson, Ernest Borgnine, Trini Lopez, Telly Savalas, George Kennedy, Donald Sutherland, Thick Wilson (Thick Wilson!) and John Cassavetes are just a few of whose who show up to support this World War II movie’s tagline – “Train them! Excite them! Arm them! Then turn them loose on the Nazis!” Such chutzpah shouldn’t be ignored. It did, after all, generate a classic. Grade: A-

“Enter the Dragon” Blu-ray: Bruce Lee, on a high-definition tear. Shot in Hong Kong, this 1973 smash was Lee’s final film. It presents a powerful, kinetic ballet by a martial arts master at the peak of his form – just try looking away from him. Drugs and prostitution darken the film’s periphery, but they are no match for Lee’s kicking, punching and whirling. (He did his own choreography, the chief reason to see the film.) John Saxon, then a draw with American audiences, co-stars. Blink and you’ll miss a young Jackie Chan, who no doubt was busy taking notes. Rated R. Grade: A

“The Last King of Scotland”: Forest Whitaker’s Academy Award-winning performance is the reason to see the film, which otherwise doesn’t rise to the power of what he achieves by portraying Gen. Idi Amin, the Ugandan dictator who dazzled a nation with his charm before murdering more than 300,000 people during his eight-year tyrannical rule. Assisted by his intimidating bulk, monstrous sneer and bulging right eye, Whitaker initially plays Amin as a genial bear until the dark side of his power and his failure to connect globally begin to consume him with self-doubt, self-destruction and finally a fall into madness. In many ways, Whitaker recalls Brando in this movie – there is surprise in his step, with a curtain of menace running beneath it. His is one of the fiercest, least predictable performances of 2006, so fully on edge that he becomes the movie’s edge. Rated R. Grade: B+

“King Arthur” Blu-ray: A brash departure from the legend that retains the round table, but that’s about it. Still, the contemporary echoes make the Dark Ages relevant again and the movie, while longwinded in parts, overcomes its shortcomings thanks to Clive Owen, who smolders behind the blade as Arthur. The battle scenes are on par with anything in “Gladiator,” “Braveheart” and “The Lord of the Rings” movies, which is intentional. And while many will long for Camelot, which nearly goes missing here, what’s found in this big, bombastic mix is entertaining, whether intended or not. Rated PG-13. Grade: B-

“Notes on a Scandal”: Judi Dench in one of the cruelest, most isolating roles of her career. Here, she’s Barbara Covett, a British school teacher of a certain age who wields a poisonous wit that’s so cutting, it could come up against the likes of, say, an Evelyn Waugh or a Dorothy Parker, and still draw blood. Her Covett views the world as her foil, with those unfortunate enough to wander into her sights apparently there to be devastated and undermined. Such is the case for the pretty new art teacher Sheba Hart (Cate Blanchett), a young bohemian, married with children, with whom Barbara falls in love – and then works to ruin – when Sheba stupidly sleeps with one of her underage students. The histrionics that ensue are charged with the huffing and puffing of melodramatic cheapness – which, in the hands Dench and Blanchett, is something to savor. Rated R. Grade: B+

“Scooby Doo, Where are You! Complete Third Season”: A harmless fall back into time, with the Mystery, Inc. gang – Velma, Daphne, Freddie and Shaggy – joining Scooby-Doo in solving a mixed bag of mysteries, most involving the supernatural. Whether today’s generation of tots will dig the show is up for grabs – what will they make of Freddie’s ascot? Shaggy’s stoner vibe? But for those adults who remember the show fondly – and who favor an altered state of mind – this ripe slice of nostalgia is served heaped and steaming. Grade: B

“Spider-Man 2.1: Unrated, Extended Cut”: With the third installment of the “Spider-Man” franchise due May 4, let’s just call this unrated, extended cut what it is – marketing for the sake of marketing. Still, the movie is a winner. The sheer artistry of the special effects remain something to behold, as does Tobey Maguire’s performance as Peter Parker. What makes the actor such a perfect fit for the role are the very qualities that made him so appealing in “The Ice Storm” and “Wonder Boys” – the shrewd intellect simmering beneath his bemused detachment and charm. Director Sam Raimi leans hard on those traits, but he also pulls something deeper from Maguire – the sense of isolation, doubt and sadness that have crept into Peter’s soul as the full weight of being Spider-Man becomes more clear to him. Rated PG-13. Grade: A

“Stargate Atlantis: Complete Second Season”: A fine improvement over what came before it. The writing is better, the storylines leaner, the characters richer. This offshoot of “Stargate: SG-1” features stargates, Pegasus galaxies, underwater cities, the cannibalism of the Wraith and The Ancients, human ancestors who built their city 10 million years ago and who had to flee it for reasons better left for you. Sometimes you wish the series would take a cue from “Firefly” and lighten up, but then the action, amplified beyond reason, generates a groundswell of excitement, as well as admiration. Grade: B

“Warriors of Heaven and Earth” Blu-ray: From director He Ping, an Eastern film with overt Western influences about a Japanese warrior’s efforts to defeat a Chinese mercenary. His intent? To return home. Zhao Fei’s cinematography is beautiful, the violence is swift (and bloody), though the movie is at odds with itself – it’s too busy courting genre cliches to mine anything transcendent, which runs counter to the promise inherent in the title. Rated R. Grade: B-


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