DVD Picks & Pans: Post-Santa Choices
Military.com - Tom Miller
Dec 27, 2007
Santa is on a nude beach in Jamaica enjoying a well-deserved vacation. The rest of us are weary from dealing with surly crowds at the Returns counter and the latest winter storm. It's time to warm up the hot chocolate, microwave some popcorn, and pop a new DVD into the player. Here is our unbiased opinion on some recent releases:
"The Kingdom," DVD-2007 ($29.98, Universal Studios Home Entertainment) Also available in HD.
Director Peter Berg ("Friday Night Lights") takes viewers on a high-octane ride through the secretive and volatile Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in this timely drama that's part police procedural and part terror thriller.
Following a terrorist attack against a Western compound in Saudi Arabia-reminiscent of the Riyadh compound bombings on May 12, 2003 that killed thirty-five and wounded 160-an FBI team led by Special Agent Ronald Fleury (Jamie Foxx) is sent to Saudi to investigate.
The Saudi are not anxious to cooperate and assign them a minder, Colonel Faris Al Ghazi (played deftly by Ashraf Barhom). The rambunctious Americans-who include a sexy forensics expert (Jennifer Garner), an explosives wizard (Chris Cooper) and an intelligence analyst (Jason Bateman)-prod Al Ghazi into doing things their way.
That leads to a wild chase through the dangerous streets of Riyadh that culminates with an extended shootout with the terrorists.
Despite Berg's faux documentary style and the contemporary topic, this works primarily as an action movie. It also works, though less well, on other levels. The terrorist attack and Saudi nativism, for example, are convincingly scripted. Berg takes a false step by ending the movie on a note of moral relativism. There is no equality between terrorists and their victims.
Military.com Rating: ***
(DVD extras include deleted scenes, feature commentary with director Berg, an interactive timeline, and "Creating the Kingdom," an inside look at the making of the movie.)
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"Eastern Promises," DVD-2007 ($29.98, Universal Studios Home Entertainment) Also available in combo HD & Standard DVD.
David Cronenberg ("A History of Violence") directs this ultra-violent thriller about the Russian mafia in London.
When a young Russian girl dies during childbirth, a midwife (Anna, Naomi Watts) takes her diary home to try to find her relatives. The diary reveals a sordid tale of broken promises, prostitution, drug abuse, and rape, and implicates the local Russian mafia and its boss Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl).
Semyon is determined to recover the diary and delegates the task to Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), the family's mysterious chauffeur (who's also very capable of handling the dirty work). In an excellent cast, Mortensen stands out in a memorable, Oscar-worthy performance.
The suspense is unrelenting, the action fast-paced, and the violence graphic (the extended knife fight in a steam room is particularly brutal) in this bleak examination of the dark underbelly of immigrant life in London. Not for the squeamish.
Military.com Rating: ***
(DVD extras include two featurettes: ""Secrets and Stories," on the making of the film, and "Marked for Life," on the hidden history of Russian tattoos.)
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"The Tudors-The Complete First Season," DVD-2007 ($42.99, Paramount Home Entertainment)
The first season of Showtime's cousin of the popular HBO historical drama "Rome" arrives on DVD January 1.
It's no accident that Michael Hirst, the creator of "The Tudors," wrote the feature film "Elizabeth." That film stars Cate Blanchett as a young Queen Elizabeth I. Here Hirst turns his attention to the Virgin Queen's infamous father, King Henry VIII. Yes, that Henry VIII. The one with the six wives.
This, however, isn't the overweight, misogynist Henry VIII that we're familiar with from Western Civ lectures. This is the young, sexy, fashionable Henry-the Mick Jagger of his day if Showtime is to be believed.
Historians have raised objections to this racy and frothy version of history, but they didn't like "Rome" much either. Who knew that television would take liberties with history? That the result is an entertaining romp, and at the same time, gets the story essentially right will be enough for viewers.
Military.com Rating: ***
(DVD extras include featurettes on production and costume design and a look at "The Tudors" favorite locations in contemporary London; free episodes of "Californication," "This American Life," and "Penn & Teller BS"; and free streaming of the first two episodes of "Dexter-Season 2" via N Technology.)
Military.com Picks & Pans Rating Scale
* Pan-Save your money & time
** Borderline Pick-Okay but only as a last resort
*** Pick-Worthwhile & enjoyable
****Enthusiastic Pick-Outstanding
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Copyright 2008 by Tom Miller
