New! Tuesday's DVD release feature!

Hello everyone!

Today marks the beginning of my newest feature, which will involve all of the movies being released on DVD that given week.This feature will consist of me listing the movies (the titles will link to their IMDb page), giving a short summary of the movie and my thoughts and anticipations about them, and a rating of 1-5 depending on my level of anticipation for their release. Unlike my new theatrical release series, I won't have a title for each of my number ratings, because there are too many ways to anticipate DVDs, for instance, I will have either seen or not seen these films, so I will have a different type of anticipation for each title, so it is important to look at the sentence following.

Also of note: DVD releases can be tricky. Sometimes movie companies have different contracts with different companies, so a film may be released to rent one week, and released to buy months later. Since this can get confusing, my source for these movies will be none other than comingsoon.net.

Without further ado, here are this weeks releases!

Fantastic Mr. Fox - This was actually one of my favorite films of the year (#4 on my list to be exact), so its obviously one I've been anticipating for a long time. This is Wes Anderson's foray into animation, and what a successful one at that. I found this movie to be very entertaining and charming, and, while I have only seen it once, I couldn't help but feel like this is one that will continue to get better with multiple viewings.
Rating: 5 out of 5

The Blind Side - I'm sure most of you know everything about this movie, because it was a tough one to miss due to its box office success and its surprise best picture nomination. Personally, I wasn't too big of a fan of this film.While I thought it was entertaining and a good story overall, I found it very cliched and flawed. Sandra Bullock gave a decent, albeit overrated performance, but the biggest problem to me was the performance of newcomer Quinton Aaron, which made Michael Oher seem almost mentally challenged in my opinion. While I didn't hate it, I think the one time I saw this film was enough for me.
Rating: 2 out of 5


Brothers - This one had some buzz surrounding it during its initial theatrical release, but it kind of faded once it hit the big screen. This is the Iraq drama featuring Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal, with Natalie Portman playing Maguire's wife. Again, while I didn't find it terrible, I thought it was a bit melodramatic and cliched. I was, however, impressed with Gyllenhaal, even though Maguire is the one that received some awards buzz. If you are dying to see it, go for it, and I doubt you will be too dissapointed. For me, the one viewing in theaters was enough.
Rating: 2 out of 5

The Men Who Stare at Goats - I am finding out more and more that this is a film I enjoyed a lot more than most people did. This one has a great cast featuring George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Kevin Spacey, Stephen Root, and Jeff Bridges about a secret portion of the military that fights using psychological tactics. I found this movie to be rather clever, and I am anticipating being able to watch it a second time.
Rating: 4 out of 5

Red Cliff - This is a film I have not heard about until just now, but it a Chinese period piece directed by John Woo. I'm not too familiar with the work of Woo or have any interest in Ancient China, but I hear it's a great film if you are into that.
Rating: 2 out of 5


After Dark Horrorfest 4 - Normally I don't do straight to DVD releases or Boxed Sets, but this is an exception. Every year they release an After Dark Horrorfest, which compiles 8 independent horror films. While these aren't the cream of the crop, they can be entertaining, and some of them can be quite good if you can rent them or find them for cheap.
Rating: 3 out of 5

So what do you think? What will you be renting this week?