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What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 07:30:00 -0700

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to the titles below, family-friendly flicks Bee Movie and August Rush are available as well.

No Country for Old Men
If you haven't heard about No Country for Old Men, the staggering, Oscar-winning adaptation of Cormic McCarthy's novel, you might well be living under a rock. Not for those looking for warm fuzzies, this is the Coen Brothers at their best: entertaining, dark, and thought-provoking. Javier Bardem (um, how scary is he on that DVD cover?) won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Anton Chigurh, a demented serial killer whose evilness will haunt you for days. The film also stars Josh Brolin as a man on the run from Chigurh and Tommy Lee Jones a local sheriff on both of their trails.

Though the film's ending is obscure and has left many scratching their heads, I really thought it worked and I was completely entranced by the suspenseful cat-and-mouse plot. If you haven't yet seen this darn-near-perfect flick, now is your chance. Special features include a featurette about the making of the movie and one titled "Diary of A Country Sheriff."

One more release starring a beloved comedian if you read more.

Dan in Real Life
I will be the first to admit this wasn't my favorite movie of all time but like most people, I really love Juliette Binoche and Steve Carell, and I figured you may like to know that this one is out on DVD.

Dan in Real Life is about an advice columnist (Carell) raising three daughters on his own. Yet he could use some advice himself when he meets and develops "eyes" (as they say) for the beautiful Marie (Binoche) - who also happens to be Dan's brother's girlfriend. Much soul-searching over this and other life issues goes down when Marie joins a vacation with the entire extended family. One of the best things about the movie is the great music provided almost entirely by Sondre Lerche.

Fall Movie Preview: Family Matters

BuzzSugar — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 07:15:00 -0700

We may not be getting the crisp fall weather just yet, but we are getting previews for tons of movies opening in the fall. In preparation for this autumn and winter at the theaters, I've broken up the lengthy list of upcoming movies into many small themes for my Fall Movie Preview series. This way, you'll be in the know when the chillier months roll around, bringing a whole new crop of new films. Today's roundup features the movies that explore those fickle family dynamics.

Martian Child
Yes, that's John Cusack in what looks like it will be one of the fall's most endearing movies. Cusack plays "a recently widowed science fiction writer who adopts a young boy that claims to be from Mars. But the new father ignores some sage advice about the perils of parenthood from his sister and gets more than he bargained for when a series of strange occurrences lead him to believe the child's claim may be true." The trailer on the movie's website is adorable and heart-squeezy, so check it out before Martians land in theaters October 26.

Much more family love if you read more

Juno
I really can't wait for this movie to open December 14, but at this point I'd settle for any kind of promotional material - photos, trailers, anything! The cast is basically a roundup of some of my favorite actors ever: Michael Cera, Ellen Page, Jason Bateman, Jennifer Garner, Allison Janney and Rainn Wilson. Page plays a bright teenager whose life is compromised when she's faced with an unplanned pregnancy by - wait for it - Michael Cera's character. Luckily, a wealthy suburban couple (Bateman and Garner) agree to adopt Juno's baby. According to this plot description, "Juno has the total support of her parents (J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney) as she faces some tough decisions, flirts with adulthood and ultimately figures out where she belongs." I seriously can't wait.

The Savages
This is one of the many movies that I wish I'd been able to see at Sundance this year, as it stars some highly capable actors: Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman. In this "serious comedy," the two play middle-aged siblings struggling to come to terms with their father's deteriorating health. The trailer looks poignant and funny at the same time. The Savages opens December 26.

Grace Is Gone
I think someone recently decided that John Cusack plays a damn good widower, since this fall finds him in not one, but two roles that require him to put on the sad-puppy face. Grace Is Gone also screened at Sundance and was quickly snatched up by The Weinstein Company. Cusack plays Stanley Phillips, a father of two who learns that his wife has died in the Iraq war. He knows he must tell his daughters about their mother's death, but first decides to bring them on a road trip to their favorite amusement park. On the journey, the daughters try to understand their father's strange behavior, and Stanley realizes that he needs to know who his children are before he can help them with this sorrowful turn of events.

Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson's latest project looks extremely promising: Josh Schwartzman, Adrien Brody and Owen Wilson play brothers on a journey together in India. The trailer is all sorts of bizarre mixed and sweet with a dash of funny.

Rails and Ties
The plot description for this movie makes it seem achingly sad, so hopefully there are traces of redemption in there somewhere: "Tom (Kevin Bacon) and Megan Stark (Marcia Gay Harden) always thought there would be time - time to have children, time to take that trip to San Francisco, time to fix the problems in their marriage. But Megan's illness and Tom's inability to face the possibility of losing her are stealing all the time they have left. All Tom can do is bury himself in his job as a train conductor... Tom's train has hit a car on the tracks in a tragic turn of events that, while not his fault, may still cost him his job. Worse, a young woman is dead and her son, Davey, has been left to cope with the loss of his mother. The accident puts the Starks and Davey on their own collision course. But instead of leading to tragedy, this crossing could mean new hope for a woman who has only one chance left to fulfill her dreams, for a man who must learn to open his heart before it's too late, and for a young boy who has never known the true meaning of family." I'll be checking out Rails and Ties - tissues in hand - when it opens October 26.

August Rush
I'm very curious about August Rush, a story about a lonely boy who seeks out his birth parents (played by Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Kerry Russell) through their shared gift for music. Here's what I'm not as stoked to see: Robin Williams playing (what else?) the inspirational urban cowboy. Check out the trailer before August Rush opens November 21.

Martian Child, The Savages, Darjeeling Limited and Rails and Ties photos source
Grace Is Gone, August Rush photos source

First Look: Keri Russell, Jonathan Rhys Meyers in August Rush

BuzzSugar — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 07:30:00 -0700

August Rush is a fantasy-drama (I think) that comes out in October, but I know many of you are fans of Jonathan Rhys Meyers (don't forget to enter my "Tudors" DVD giveaway!), so I'm passing along this brand-new trailer. Keri Russell also stars, as Louis Rush's (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) love interest. Together the two have a child, August Rush, who they are forced to give up (played by Freddie Highmore who played Charlie in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory). Later, they all magically seek each other out via their unique musical talents. Or something.

All I know is that it looks like Robin Williams plays an advice-doling urban cowboy - without a trace of irony. The jury's still out as to who, exactly, this movie is geared toward, but if you like any of these actors the trailer is worth checking out, so read more

Source