June 8, 2010

DVD PotW: Shutter Island

Welcome back! Well, to some of you, anyway. To the rest of you, glad you decided to stop by and I hope this humble column helps you navigate the stacks of new releases each week. My goal is to point you toward titles of interest and warn you away from those films that seek to do nothing but leech away your time and give you nothing in return.



Full disclosure: I have not seen many of these titles, and what follows are not necessarily reviews, but opinions based upon what I know of the titles I pluck from the new release lists I peruse. The opinions I give based on the new releases are my own, and my recommendations are based on my personal interest. In any case, I hope you enjoy and perhaps find something you like or a title to point me towards.

Shutter Island (also Blu-ray). Atmospheric, creepy, mysterious, haunting, all words that can be used to describe Martin Scorsese's latest film. It is a twisty, turny mind-bender that will keep you off kilter until the end. However, it is more than that, it is a trip inside the mind of the main character, a man built on the confidence of his convictions despite the curveballs outside influences throw him. It is Scorsese in fine form and he has brought a strong cast with him. Leonardo Dicaprio is in fine form carrying the emotional weight on his shoulders. It is a movie you will want to watch over again as soon as it ends.

Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete Seventh Season. Sadly, I have not seen enough of this series. Whatever episodes I see are always funny. The man has a certain presence on the screen. I am keenly interested in this particular season as it features the reunion of the Seinfeld cast. Hopefully I will get the chance to check it out.

From Paris with Love (also Blu-ray). This is a fun popcorn movie, nothing more nothing less. Jonathan Rhys Meyers and John Travolta star as a mismatched pair of operatives charged with stopping terrorist activity in Paris. What follows is an utterly ludicrous series of events with plenty of bullets, fists, and explosions. Nothing great, and nearly at the level of director Pierre Morel's prior outing, Taken, but still fun.

Caddyshack (Blu-ray). They don't make comedies like this anymore. I have not seen this in a long time and this high definition release may just be a good a reason as any to revisit the golf course and all of its comedic denizens.

Shinjuku Incident. I have not read all that much about this one, but I am keenly interested in it. Jackie Chan stars in this one, cast against type. Mobsters, immigration, poor workers, separated love, all manner of elements not usually associated with Chan. I am looking forward to going into this one clean.


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Article first published as DVD Pick of the Week: Shutter Island on Blogcritics.

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