Please note: there are no recommendations for this week.
Recommended Video and DVD Releases for August 12, 2003
Please note: there are no recommendations for this week.
Recommended Video and DVD Releases for August 19, 2003
“Bowling for Columbine” (2002)
Winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary, this sometimes funny Michael Moore movie takes an idiosyncratic look at guns and violence in the U.S. The title comes from the 1999 massacre in Colorado at Columbine High School, where the shooters were supposed to be in bowling class. Moore speaks with two of the Columbine victims and talks about guns with various people, including Marilyn Manson and Charlton Heston.
Selected DVD Special Features:“Chicago” (2003)
Winner of six Academy Awards including Best Picture, “Chicago” is a musical starring Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Richard Gere. The movie is based on Bob Fosse’s 1970s stage production. Zellweger and Zeta-Jones play song-and-dance women charged with committing murders in Prohibition-era Chicago, and Gere plays a high-powered defense lawyer. Queen Latifah has a notable supporting role as a prison matron.
Selected DVD Special Features:“The Good Thief” (2003)
Starring Nick Nolte and written and directed by Neil Jordan, this crime drama is a remake of the French film “Bob le flambeur” (1955). In “The Good Thief,” Bob (Nolte) is a gambler, heroin addict, and retired thief living on the French Riviera. When Bob hits bottom, he teams up with others in a scheme to steal valuable paintings from a casino. This is a caper movie, but Nolte gives a memorable performance as the charismatic Bob.
Selected DVD Special Features:Recommended Video and DVD Releases for August 26, 2003
“The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” (2002)
This is the second installment in a single long story that spans three films based on the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien. Many find it worthwhile to review “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” (2001) before tackling “The Two Towers.” This time around, Frodo (Elijah Wood), accompanied by Sam, continues his quest to destroy a magic Ring. Meanwhile, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) leads the way in an epic battle against evil forces.
Selected DVD Special Features:“Raising Victor Vargas” (2003)
This warmhearted coming-of-age movie has found favor with critics. Made with little-known actors, the English-language film is the feature-length debut of writer-director Peter Follett. The main character is a teenager named Victor Vargas, who lives in poverty in Lower Manhattan with his grandmother and his two younger siblings. Victor has his first romance with a pretty girl named Judy, but all this is handled in a fresh and satisfying way.
Selected DVD Special Features: