More new movies on DVD for January, 2007.
January 23, 2007
The Guardian
Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher star in this drama about the Coast Guard. Ben Randall (Costner) has had a long and distinguished career as a Coast Guard rescue swimmer when, during a difficult operation off Alaska, his entire crew perishes. Deeply distressed, he transfers to Louisiana to put new recruits through tough training, and one of those raw recruits is cocky swimming champ Jake Fischer (Kutcher). Randall teaches the young man how to be a professional, and the veteran learns a few things along the way.
Jesus Camp
This documentary was made by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, the filmmakers who previously did The Boys of Baraka. Jesus Camp is about Kids on Fire, a facility in North Dakota where children go in the summer to receive intense indoctrination in charismatic-evangelical dogma. The film focuses on three campers: a 12-year-old boy and two girls, one 9, the other 10. The documentary is unsettling to many viewers because it raises the issue of the extent to which the Kids on Fire approach fosters intolerance.
Saw III
Terror, torture and gore are what this grisly horror movie is all about. It's the follow-up to Saw (2004) and Saw II (2005), and Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith are back. The sadistic killer Jigsaw (Bell) has a brain tumor, and his assistant Amanda (Smith) forces a physician (Bahar Soomekh of Crash) to treat him. The doctor has an explosive collar around her neck set to detonate if Jigsaw's heart stops. Also, Jigsaw subjects a father (Angus MacFadyen) to a diabolical scenario because the man wants revenge for the death of his son.
January 30, 2007
The Marine
Professional wrestler John Cena stars in this actioner. John Triton (Cena) is a Marine who performs heroically in combat, but in doing so disobeys direct orders and is discharged. Back home in South Carolina as a civilian, John and his wife Kate head off on a road trip. While they are stopped at a gas station, diamond thieves on the lam kill a cop, take Kate hostage and speed away. John takes off in hot pursuit of the bad guys in a desperate attempt to save his wife. The film's tone is jokey, and there are lots of explosions.
One Night With the King
This Biblical epic with high production values tells a version of the Old Testament story of Esther, although the movie is adapted from Tommy Tenney's novel Hadassah. In the film, King Xerxes of Persia seeks a new queen, and the young Jewish woman Hadassah is chosen. However, she goes by the name Esther to conceal her ethnicity. As queen, Esther plays a key role in thwarting a plot by the influential courtier Hamen to massacre the kingdom's Jews. This event is celebrated as the Jewish holiday of Purim.
Open Season
This is a computer-animated adventure-comedy. Boog (voice of Martin Lawrence) is a lovable bear who has grown up in captivity, living with a forest ranger (voice of Debra Messing). But when Boog and the wisecracking mule deer Elliot (voice of Ashton Kutcher) raid a convenience store, they are banished to the wilds. There they encounter a lot of cute animals, but Boog has trouble adjusting. Also, they have to watch out for a hunter (voice of Gary Sinese). The film has songs by Paul Westerberg.
More January DVD Releases on the Previous Page