What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 01 May 2007 03:31:01 -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.

Dreamgirls
The Dreamgirls DVD features about a million extra things, including but not limited to: 12 extended and alternate scenes, the music video for Beyonce's "Listen" along with Beyonce's screen test for the film, a feature-length making-of documentary, Anika Noni Rose's audition, and "Steppin’ To The Bad Side" – the choreography audition. The film itself follows a trio of friends who hit it big as a girl group and then experience the highs and lows of fame and fortune. You may have heard that Jennifer Hudson won this year's Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her performance. Yet the tables may turn at the MTV Movie Awards, as she and Beyonce vie for Best Performance. I thought this movie was pretty good, though I maintain that Eddie Murphy gives the most amazing performance of all.

Two more great DVDs, so read more

Little Children
Adapted from Tom Perotta's absorbing novel, Little Children tells a tale of suburban woe. Kate Winslet turns in a wonderfully nuanced performance as Sarah, a stay-at-home mother who finds herself bored with the other moms and often annoyed by motherhood itself. When she meets stay-at-home dad Brad, however, life gets a little rosier. The two form a friendship which soon turns into something deeper. Meanwhile, a disturbed man with pedophilic tendencies invokes the fear and ire of the townspeople. The direction is impressive, lending a hazy summertime feeling to issues that dive into very dark places. This is a rare time when I don't know which to recommend more: the novel or the film.

Alpha Dog
When Alpha Dog first came out, Justin Timberlake shocked many (myself included) by earning major kudos for his performance in this disturbing film. Based on a true story, Alpha Dog follows Johnny Truelove (Emile Hirsch), a drug dealer in a privileged L.A. suburb who becomes one of the youngest men to ever be on the FBI's most-wanted list. He and his friends imitate what they believe to be the glamorous gangster lifestyle, and when Johnny's competitor Jake Marzursky (Ben Foster) cheats him out of a chunk of money, Johnny kidnaps Jake's younger brother, Zack (Anton Yelchin). A total of 38 people witness the three days during which Zack is Truelove's prisoner, but no one thinks to break up the party and notify the police - until it's way too late.

Movie Preview: Alpha Dog

BuzzSugar — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 08:34:50 -0800

Justin Timberlake has come a long way from when he sported this curly blond 'do. (Can you believe this is the main photo on the star's IMDB page?!). His biggest acting project to date, Alpha Dog, comes out this Friday, and Timberlake is getting stellar reviews for his role.

Inspired by a true story, Emile Hirsch plays Johnny Truelove, a drug dealer in a privileged L.A. suburb who becomes one of the youngest men to ever be on the FBI's most-wanted list. He and his friends imitate what they believe to be the glamorous gangster lifestyle, and when Johnny's competitor Jake Marzursky (Ben Foster) cheats him out of a chunk of money, Johnny kidnaps Jake's younger brother, Zack (Anton Yelchin). A total of 38 people witness the three days during which Zack is Truelove's prisoner, but no one thinks to break up the party and notify the police.

Director Nick Cassavetes has a varied resume, having acted in Face/Off, written the screenplay for Blow, and directed The Notebook. I'm curious to see Timberlake show off his dramatic acting chops; we've already seen him take on comedy. But I'm just not sure the movie will be worth it. Watch the trailer and tell me what you think.