A lot of people are eagerly awaiting the May/June 2007 DVD movie releases. Some enjoyed these films so much on the big screen, they want to see them again at home. Others missed these movies in theaters and want to catch them for the first time on DVD. While some of these films were panned by a majority of critics, viewers have their own ideas about what they want to watch. In order of release date, here are some of the most-anticipated DVD movie releases for May/June 2007.
Beyoncé Knowles, Jamie Foxx and Eddie Murphy star in this adaptation of the 1980s Broadway musical. The story is set in the 1960s and is based loosely on the Supremes. A struggling trio (Knowles, Jennifer Hudson, Anika Noni Rose) meets a music producer (Foxx) who gets them a job backing up an established singer (Murphy). The trio eventually achieves stardom, but there are personal and professional problems along the way. The showstopper song is Hudson's "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going." DVD release date: May 1, 2007
Diane Keaton and Mandy Moore star in this lightweight movie. Having raised three daughters by herself and seen two of them married off, single-mom Daphne (Keaton) turns her attention to helping her youngest, Milly (Moore), find a mate. Soon Milly begins dating two men — an architect found for her by her mother and a musician that Daphne deems unsuitable. Tension develops between mother and daughter, and Milly must figure out what to do, even as Daphne finds herself attracted to the musician's father. DVD release date: May 8, 2007
Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore are paired in this romantic comedy. In his youth, Alex (Grant) was in a popular band, and now he plays class reunions and fairgrounds. He gets a chance for a comeback when a young pop diva asks him to write a new song that he and she can sing together. He's okay at composing tunes, but is having trouble coming up with the words when he discovers that Sophie (Barrymore), the woman who tends his plants, has a knack for lyrics. Soon Alex and Sophie find themselves falling in love. DVD release date: May 8, 2007
This drama is set in the world of stepping, elaborate synchronized group dance routines performed in competitions between African-American fraternities. The main character is DJ (Columbus Short), who gets in trouble in L.A. and is sent to live with his uncle in Atlanta. There DJ attends Truth University where he joins a fraternity and is also attracted to a coed (Meagan Good). Complications arise, but eventually it all comes down to a big dance-off, and DJ helps his group incorporate some kinetic street moves. DVD release date: May 15, 2007
Mel Gibson directed this violent action-adventure film set in 16th-century Central America. The dialogue is in Maya, and English subtitles are provided. The main character is Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood), who lives a simple village life with his pregnant wife and their little boy. But warriors attack, and Jaguar Paw is captured. He is taken to a city where hearts are ripped from human chests and severed heads are rolled down a tall pyramid. He escapes and is chased through the jungle as he tries to get back to his family. DVD release date: May 22, 2007
This English-language horror film featuring creepy visuals was directed by the Pang brothers (
The Eye). In
The Messengers, Kristen Stewart plays Jess Solomon, a troubled teenage girl who moves with her family from Chicago to a spooky farmhouse in North Dakota. Soon Jess is having encounters with ghostly creatures, although her father (Dylan McDermott), her mother (Penelope Ann Miller) and the hired hand (John Corbett) don't believe her. But Jess realizes there's danger, and she struggles to figure out what's going on. DVD release date: June 5, 2007
Eddie Murphy plays three roles, including an obese woman and an elderly Asian, in this crass comedy. Norbit (Murphy) is a nerdy guy who is miserable in his marriage to the ill-tempered Rasputia (Murphy in a fat suit). They live in the town where Norbit was raised in an orphanage run by old Mr. Wong (Murphy again). But things begin to look up for Norbit when his childhood friend Kate (Thandie Newton) comes back to town. He would like to strike up a romance with her, but she has a fiancé (Cuba Gooding Jr.). DVD release date: June 5, 2007
Based on a true story, this drama showcases the acting talents of Chris Cooper as veteran FBI agent Robert Hanssen. In the film, Eric O'Neill (Ryan Phillippe) is just starting out with the FBI when he is assigned by a senior agent (Laura Linney) to be Hanssen's assistant. Hanssen turns out to be a peculiar individual, and he and O'Neill develop an odd relationship. But it emerges that there are indications Hanssen is selling U.S. secrets to the Russians, and O'Neill is tasked with gathering evidence to get a conviction. DVD release date: June 12, 2007
In this action-adventure movie, Nicolas Cage portrays the title character, a Marvel Comics superhero brought over to the screen. Ghost Rider looks like a leather-clad skeleton with a flaming skull for a head as he rips around on a fiery motorcycle. The film is an origin story in which stunt motorcyclist Johnny Blaze (Nicolas Cage) prevents his father's death from cancer by making a deal with Mephistopheles (Peter Fonda). That's how Blaze gets his superhero alter ego. Johnny's old flame Roxanne is played by Eva Mendes. DVD release date: June 12, 2007
Adapted from the Newbery Award-winning novel by Katherine Paterson, this movie is about the friendship between a pair of fifth-graders. Growing up in a rural area, 10-year-old Jess Aarons (Josh Hutcherson) is good at drawing and painting. Then Leslie Burke (AnnaSophia Robb), a girl who is into writing, becomes his neighbor, and the two kids become inseparable friends. They happen upon a secluded wood containing an abandoned tree house, and there they imagine themselves as being in a magical fantasy world. DVD release date: June 19, 2007
