By Chris Kavan - 07/20/10 at 12:24 PM CT
I have a much better outlook this week then I did last week on new releases. While nothing screams "must see", at least all of this weeks entries are more tolerable. At least worth a Netflix rental if nothing else.
1) Top of my list has to be Cop Out
. I'm an unabashed Kevin Smith fanboy - it may be puerile and juvenile and raunchy but Smith is always entertaining (I'll forgive Jersey Girl). With Bruce Willis and Tracey Morgan, it should be worth a look. I don't think it has anything on Hot Fuzz, however. I'm willing to give it a shot.
2) I'm going a bit down the depth chart here, but I have a feeling that Mother
is probably going to be better than anything else on this list. This Korean film is directed by Joon-ho Bong, probably best known for The Host - a throwback monster flick from 2006. Yet Mother is in another class - crime, mystery, horror - this has a little of everything plus the acting and cinematography are exceptional. A gem of a film.
3) As far as biopics go, I'm sure The Runaways
is a decent entry. Still, I don't have as much invested in the all-girls group, even with the current crop of female talent - Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Scout Taylor-Compton and Alia Shawkat. Still, at least the music should be good.
4) If mindless action is what you want, look no further than The Losers
. Even with Zoe Saldana, Chris Evans and Jeffrey Dean Morgan this film embodies all the action cliches with nary a hint of originality. Another graphic-novel based movie that fails to live up to the original material (see also Jonah Hex... or better yet, don't).
On the Blu-Ray front I'm going to go high-brow and include The Red Shoes
and Black Narcissus
. Both of these are Criterion Collection films that had been released before, but are now being re-released with better transfer and sound. Why get them on regular DVD when you can enjoy them on Blu-Ray? The best version of the classics deserve the best possible medium, right? With all the commentary tracks, documentaries and extra features any fan of classic cinema will be more than happy with the selection - provided you don't already have them. I'm usually a big hater of double-dipping, but for Criterion, I can make somewhat of an exception.
That's what I have to crave this week - what's on your list?
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