DVD Picks & Pans for a New Year

Tom Miller

2008 was one of those years best forgotten.  Stock markets tanked.  Banks and insurers crashed and burned.  Foreclosures soared.  Jobs vanished.  Detroit stood at the brink. 

Congress did what Congress does best: they blamed the mess on someone else and then threw trillions of dollars at the problems.  Sounds like a plan, right?  The Baby Boomers' final legacy will be national bankruptcy.  But, the joke will be on the post-Boomer generations who will have to clean up the mess.

Not much to celebrate, right? 

The last time we had an economic mess this big, people escaped by going to the movies.  Maybe that will work this time too.  If you don't feel much like going out to celebrate this New Years, why not stay home and commiserate by losing yourself in a good movie?  Here are some suggestions . . .

******************************

"Eagle Eye, 2-Disc Special Edition," DVD-2008
($34.98, Dreamworks Home Entertainment) Also available in single-disc and Blu-ray editions.

This adrenaline-laced, pedal-to-the-medal action-thriller is the ultimate chase movie. 

Jerry Shaw (Shia LaBeouf) is a slacker, works a dead-end job, and leads a quiet life.  All that changes when he returns from his brother's funeral to find his apartment full of weapons, the FBI on his tail, and a woman's voice on his cell phone ordering him to run. 

Jerry soon teams up with divorced Mom Rachel Holloman (Michelle Monaghan) who's getting calls from the same mysterious woman.  The voice tells Rachel that her young son has been taken and that she must follow instructions if she wants him back. 

It seems that a Defense Department computer has turned on its programmers and targeted the President and the leaders of government for assassination.  Jerry and Rachel have been chosen to assist in the assassination.  So, while they race about trying to satisfy a computer-generated voice, they're also trying to elude the FBI who believe they are terrorists.  That makes for one long chase--actually lots of sequential short chases that add up to one long chase.  Along the way, enough cars/trucks/SUVs are wrecked to rescue Detroit without a government bailout. 

"Eagle Eye" is embarrassingly derivative and improbable in the extreme but it happens so fast that you either don't notice or don't care.  The acting is solid--besides LaBeouf and Monaghan, that includes Billy Bob Thornton as the lead FBI agent on the case and Rosario Dawson as an Air Force investigator--but the special effects are the real stars.  This is Escapism 101. 

Military.com Rating: ***

(DVD extras include deleted scenes, alternate ending, gag reel, photo gallery, trailer, and several featurettes: "Road Trip: On Location with the Cast and Crew," "Asymmetrical Warfare: The Making of Eagle Eye," "Eagle Eye on Location: Washington, D.C.," "Is My Cell Phone Spying on Me?" and "Shall We Play a Game?")

******************************

"Towelhead," DVD-2008
($27.98, Warner Home Video)

This one won't make you feel any better, but it's provocative and worthwhile. 

Award-winning writer (a screenplay Oscar for "American Beauty") and television director (an Emmy for "Six Feet Under) Alan Ball makes his feature directorial debut with this arresting and disturbing coming-of-age drama.

Thirteen-year-old Arab-American Jasira Maroun (newcomer Summer Bishil) is sent to Houston by her self-absorbed mother (Maria Bello) to live with her clueless father (Peter Macdissi) who is preoccupied with his job at NASA and his new girlfriend. 

With her libido beginning to awaken, it's not a good time for Jasira to be adrift.  But, she is.  If it's the wrong time, it's also the wrong place.  The middle-class suburban family next door is headed by a pedophile (Aaron Eckhart) who homes in on the budding Lolita.  Jasira is alternately thrilled by the attention and confused by the advances. 

For good measure, Jasira begins a relationship with an African-American classmate (Eugene Jones).  Her father objects to her seeing a black boy and forbids further contact.  Herself an object of stereotyping at school-the kids call her "towelhead" and worse-Jasira is upset and, yes, confused. 

The critics were wildly divided over "Towelhead"-a few thought it brilliant, some dismissed it as misguided.  I'm not sure that it's brilliant, but it is provocative.  It's not the easiest film to watch because of the unsettling mood, but discomfort can be a useful tool. 

"Towelhead" is character-driven, and the cast is uniformly solid.  Newcomer Bishil gives a genuinely nuanced performance in a demanding role and veteran Eckhart impresses as the troubled neighbor. 

Military.com Rating: *** ½

(Bare bones DVD includes one bonus feature: "Towelhead: A Community Discussion.")

******************************

"The Duchess," DVD-2008
($29.98, Paramount Home Entertainment) Also available in Blu-ray.

If you're looking for something less frenetic than "Eagle Eye," maybe this elegant historical romance is right for you.  Okay, "historical romance" is a euphemism for chick flick, but don't let that put you guys off.  It just happens to star the delectable Keira Knightley.  I must admit that's what attracted me.

Knightley plays Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, an 18th Century fashion icon and society favorite who reminds one of a certain tragic 20th Century Princess also trapped in a loveless marriage. 

Georgiana marries the Duke of Devonshire, the second most powerful man in England (Ralph Fiennes), at seventeen.  She's pretty, outgoing, and naïve.  He's distant, arrogant, and much older and wants a single thing from the young Georgiana: a male heir.  When that takes a while, he treats her ever more shabbily.  He even takes her best friend and ally as his mistress. 

Her revenge--although it doesn't bring her much joy--is to become a social butterfly, befriending prominent politicians and writers.  And, once she's delivered the elusive male heir, she takes a lover: the handsome young politician (and future Prime Minister) Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper). 

All of this is bittersweet, but the script is literate, the cinematography is gorgeous, and the acting is first-rate.  The Duke is the villain of the piece, and Fiennes' nuanced characterization keeps him from becoming a caricature.  Knightley is a superb Georgiana, and the rest of the cast is solid. 

Military.com Rating: ***

(DVD extras include three featurettes: "How Far She Went . . . Making The Duchess," "Georgiana in Her Own Words," and "Costume Diary.")

******************************

"Battlestar Galactica: Season 4.0," DVD-2009
($49.98, Universal Studios Home Entertainment)

A favorite of critics and viewers, "Battlestar Galactica" continued its hit run on the Sci-Fi Channel with a solid fourth season.  A crossover success, "Battlestar" is enjoyed by both serious science fiction fans for its basic premise and format and casual viewers for its human drama and contemporary metaphors.

The basic storyline follows the odyssey of the last surviving humans as they search for a new home and battle the Cylons--the man-made machines turned evil who are out to destroy the human race.

Traveling in a fleet of ships including the powerful warship Battlestar Galactica, the human survivors of a Cylon nuclear attack are searching the galaxy for a fabled colony: Earth.  The survivors are led by Commander William Adama (Edward James Olmos), former President Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell), and pilot Number Eight (Grace Park).
And, of course, there's our favorite Cylon:  the very sexy Number Six (Tricia Helfer). 

Season 4 is dominated by the civil war among the Cylons which escalates, leaving the fate of humanity in the balance.  The 4-disc set includes all ten Season 4.0 episodes plus some nice bonus features (See below).  

Season 4 was advertised as the final season of the series, but 4.0 is only the first part of Season 4.  Season 4.5 starts on Jan. 16, 2009, and will be followed by a telemovie entitled "Battlestar Galactical: The Plan" that will air in June 2009 on SCI FI.  According to writer Jane Espenson, the telefilm will tie up loose ends and "cap off the show."

The series has won Emmy and Peabody awards and spawned a two-hour television movie, "Battlestar Galactica--Razor," which is available on DVD. 

Military.com Rating: ***

(DVD extras include over hours of special features including an extended version of "Battlestar Galactica: Razor," deleted scenes, podcast commentary, episode commentary, minisodes, "Razor" commentary, video blogs, and several featurettes: "The Look of Battlestar Galactica," "My Favorite Episode So Far," "The Journey," "Cylons: The Twelve," "Season 4.5: The Untold Story", and "The Music of Battlestar Galactica.")

******************************

"The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Season One," DVD-2008
($39.99, ABC Family/Walt Disney Video)

 As high school dramas go, this one is best left to the kids.  And, that's okay.  Adults already have one that's more intelligent, nuanced, and relevant.  It's called "Friday Night Lights."

But, enough about that. 

"Secret Life" is a rather traditional coming-of-age show that promises to tackle big issues--teen pregnancy, for one--but tends toward the banal. 

The show follows the misadventures of 15-year-old Amy Juergens (Shailene Woodley) and her friends and family as they navigate her unexpected pregnancy.  There's Ricky (Daren Kagasoff), the father of Amy's baby and a high school Lothario; Ben (Kenny Baumann), Amy's boyfriend and a sensitive guy; school slut Adrian (Francia Raisa); Grace (Megan Park), a perky cheerleader and a proud Christian who is pursued by the unscrupulous Ricky; Ashley (India Eisley), Amy's rebellious younger sister; and Amy's parents, George and Anne (Mark Derwin and Molly Ringwald), who are trapped in an unhappy marriage. 

Everybody knows that adolescence is fraught with challenges and everything is amplified by hormones and inexperience.  "Secret Life" gets that part right.  It just doesn't feel authentic to this old-timer.  The younger set, however, must disagree.  The show received the 2008 Teen Choice Award for "Summer TV Show." 

The DVD is advertised as "Season One," but it's actually "Season 1.0."  The first season airs in a split run: this set includes the initial run of eleven episodes (on three discs); the second run begins in January 2009 on ABC Family. 

Military.com Rating: ** ½

(The only bonus material is a featurette, "On Set with the Cast.")

******************************
Military.com Picks & Pans Rating Scale
* Pan--Save your time
** Borderline Pick--Okay but only as a last resort
*** Pick--Worthwhile & enjoyable
****Enthusiastic Pick--Excellent 
*****Not to Be Missed--A Classic

----

More movie reviews

Copyright 2012 by Tom Miller