DVDS THIS WEEK

Last updated: Tuesday, June 24, 2008

DVDS THIS WEEK

Release Date: June 24, 2008

10,000 B.C.

Cast: Camilla Belle, Steven Strait, Cliff Curtis, Mo Zinal, Omar Sharif

Synopsis: The filmmaker who launched a UFO invasion in Independence Day and unleashed the forces of global warming in The Day After Tomorrow now unveils a new day of adventure, a time when mammoths shake the earth and mystical spirits shape human fates. Roland Emmerich directs 10,000 BC, the eye-filling tale of the first hero. That hero is young hunter D’Leh (Steven Strait), set out on a bold trek to rescue his kidnapped beloved (Camilla Belle) and fulfill his prophetic destiny. He’ll face an awesome saber-toothed tiger. Cross uncharted realms. Form an army. And uncover an advanced but corrupt Lost Civilization. There, he will lead a fight for liberation – and become the champion of the time when legend began.

BONNEVILLE

Cast: Jessica Lange, Joan Allen, Kathy Bates, Tom Skerritt, Victor Rasuk

Synopsis: Jessica Lange, Joan Allen and Kathy Bates hit the road in BONNEVILLE, a story about three friends who ''come of age'' for a second time on a trip across the great American West. Faced with the decision of a lifetime, Arvilla Holden (Lange) loads up her 1966 Bonneville convertible and, with her friends (Allen, Bates) in tow, sets out from Pocatello, Idaho en route to Santa Barbara.
As they detour to spots like Bryce Canyon and Las Vegas, it doesn't take long for the women to realize Arvilla has something unexpected in store. But what none of them realize is that what began as a simple trip will end up becoming a chance to rediscover themselves, their friendship, the importance of promises - and of letting go. Also starring Tom Skerritt and Christine Baranski, BONNEVILLE unites three of the most acclaimed actresses of our time in a story that celebrates fun, adventure and living life to the fullest.

CHARLIE BARTLETT

Cast: Anton Yelchin, Kat Dennings, Robert Downey Jr., Tyler Hilton, Hope Davis

Synopsis: An irreverent teen hero with a wry view of the adult world, an unsinkable belief in the power of youth and an outrageous scheme to ensure his perpetual popularity, CHARLIE BARTLETT quickly drew passionate fans in Hollywood. Among those fans was leading comedy director and producer Jay Roach, who in turn sent the script to his friend Jon Poll, the talented editor who helped create the pace and comedy of Roach’s hit “Meet The Parents” and “Austin Powers” series, and a man now on his own quest to find a project for his directorial debut.
For Poll, CHARLIE BARTLETT was love at first read. “I’d read a hundred scripts in the last year, just waiting to find one I really liked, and this was it,” recalls Poll. “I laughed out loud as well as felt challenged, entertained, surprised and moved. Here was a high school movie about real people and real issues with lots of humor as well as pathos. Charlie Bartlett was such a great character, someone who could overcome nearly anything with his guileless optimism, and that was really appealing.”
The character of Charlie was born in the imagination of rising young screenwriter Gustin Nash, who was making ends meet by working at a camera store in the Burbank Mall at the time he started writing the screenplay. It was there, among the cliques hanging out at the mall, from the super-cool to the outcast, that Nash first started thinking about the wide disparity between raw truth of the teenagers he saw everyday and the far slicker, simplified kinds of kids he saw depicted at the movies. It was a situation he wanted to rectify.

DEFINITELY, MAYBE

Cast: Abigail Breslin, Elizabeth Banks, Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz, Ryan Reynolds

Synopsis: From the makers of Notting Hill and Love Actually comes the charming and irresistibly funny romantic comedy Definitely, Maybe. When Will (Ryan Reynolds) decides to tell his daughter (Abigail Breslin) the story of how he met her mother, he discovers that a second look at the past might also give him a second chance at the future. Co-starring Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Weisz and Isla Fisher, it's the heartwarming story that makes you realize it's definitely never too late to go back…and maybe find a happy ending.

THE HAMMER

Cast: Constance Zimmer, Adam Carolla, Heather Juergensen, Oswaldo Castillo, Tom Quinn

Synopsis: Jerry Ferro's life is brought into focus on his 40th birthday and it's not a pretty picture. A once-promising amateur boxer – who quit so he wouldn't risk his perfect record of underachievement – Jerry has been knocking around from one job to another and spinning his wheels in an unsatisfying relationship. After sparring with an up-and-coming pro and throwing him a one-punch knockdown, Jerry reluctantly steps into the ring and despite an ass-kicking, decides it’s time to make his return to competitive boxing and go for Olympic gold!

IN BRUGES

Cast: Clemence Poesy, Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes, Brendan Gleeson, Thekla Reuten

Synopsis: Academy Award-winning writer/director Martin McDonagh takes audiences on a killingly funny trip In Bruges , which is world-premiering as the opening-night film of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.
Mr. McDonagh makes his feature directorial debut on the film, from his own original screenplay. His plays (which include 'The Lieutenant of Inishmore' and 'The Pillowman') have brought him two Olivier Awards and four Tony Award nominations. He wrote and directed 'Six Shooter,' starring Brendan Gleeson, which earned him the 2006 Academy Award for Best Live-Action Short Film.
'In Bruges' was filmed on location; Bruges (pronounced 'broozh'), the most well-preserved medieval city in the whole of Belgium, is a welcoming destination for travellers from all over the world. But for hit men Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson), it could be their final destination; a difficult job has resulted in the pair being ordered right before Christmas by their London boss Harry (two-time Academy Award nominee Ralph Fiennes) to go and cool their heels in the storybook Flemish city for a couple of weeks.
Very much out of place amidst the gothic architecture, canals, and cobbled streets, the two hit men fill their days living the lives of tourists. Ray, still haunted by the bloodshed in London, hates the place, while Ken, even as he keeps a fatherly eye on Ray's often profanely funny exploits, finds his mind and soul being expanded by the beauty and serenity of the city.
But the longer they stay waiting for Harry's call, the more surreal their experience becomes, as they find themselves in weird encounters with locals, tourists, violent medieval art, a dwarf American actor (Jordan Prentice) shooting a European art film, Dutch prostitutes, and a potential romance for Ray in the form of Chloë (Clémence Poésy), who may have some dark secrets of her own.
And when the call from Harry does finally come, Ken and Ray's vacation becomes a life-and-death struggle of darkly comic proportions and surprisingly emotional consequences.

THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES

Cast: David Strathairn, Mary-Louise Parker, Nick Nolte, Seth Rogen, Freddie Highmore

Synopsis: From the beloved best-selling series of books comes 'The Spiderwick Chronicles,' a fantasy adventure for the child in all of us. Peculiar things start to happen the moment the Grace family (Jared, his twin brother Simon, sister Mallory and their mom) leave New York and move into the secluded old house owned by their great, great uncle Arthur Spiderwick. Unable to explain the strange disappearances and accidents that seem to be happening on a daily basis, the family blames Jared. When he, Simon and Mallory investigate what's really going on, they uncover the fantastic truth of the Spiderwick estate and of the creatures that inhabit it.

PERSEPOLIS

Cast: Catherine Deneuve, Chiara Mastroianni, Danielle Darrieux, Gabrielle Lopes, Simon Abkarian

Synopsis: Persepolis is the poignant story of a young girl in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. It is through the eyes of precocious and outspoken nine year old Marjane that we see a people's hopes dashed as fundamentalists take power - forcing the veil on women and imprisoning thousands. Clever and fearless, she outsmarts the 'social guardians' and discovers punk, ABBA and Iron Maiden. Yet when her uncle is senselessly executed and as bombs fall around Tehran in the Iran/Iraq war, the daily fear that permeates life in Iran is palpable.
As she gets older, Marjane's boldness causes her parents to worry over her continued safety. And so, at age fourteen, they make the difficult decision to send her to school in Austria. Vulnerable and alone in a strange land, she endures the typical ordeals of a teenager. In addition, Marjane has to combat being equated with the religious fundamentalism and extremism she fled her country to escape. Over time, she gains acceptance, and even experiences love, but after high school she finds herself alone and horribly homesick.
Though it means putting on the veil and living in a tyrannical society, Marjane decides to return to Iran to be close to her family. After a difficult period of adjustment, she enters art school and marries, all the while continuing to speak out against the hypocrisy she witnesses. At age 24, she realizes that while she is deeply Iranian, she cannot live in Iran. She then makes the heartbreaking decision to leave her homeland for France, optimistic about her future, shaped indelibly by her past.
Marjane Satrapi's graphic novels Persepolis: the Story of a Childhood (Pantheon, 2003, English version) and Persepolis 2: the Story of a Return (Pantheon, 2004, English version) won widespread acclaim in France, now her home, and around the world. Now, she has co-directed, with Vincent Paronnaud, the animated film version of her memoir.
The title PERSEPOLIS comes from the Persian capital founded in the 6th century BC by Darius I, later destroyed by Alexander the Great. It's a reminder that there's an old and grand civilization, besieged by waves of invaders but carrying on through milennia, that is much deeper and more complex than the current-day view of Iran as a monoculture of fundamentalism, fanaticism, and terrorism.
'I believe that an entire nation should not be judged by the wrongdoings of a few extremists,' Satrapi says. 'I also don't want those Iranians who lost their lives in prisons defending freedom, who died in the war against Iraq, who suffered under various repressive regimes, or who were forced to leave their families and flee their homeland to be forgotten.'

Source: CelebrityWonder.com

| Tuesday, June 24, 2008

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