New in Home Entertainment – December 10, 2013

New in Home Entertainment

December 10, 2013

Despicable Me 2
Rated PG for rude humor and mild action
Available on DVD, Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D

It was surprising when the first Despicable Me scored a $500 million plus world wide gross, but absolutely stunning is the almost billion dollar haul from its sequel.  Back again is Steve Carrell as the voice of the super villain Gru as he works with a secret agency to take down an even worse baddy.  This new installment is not only a cuter film but is a much stronger narrative as well.  The minions are still adorable and their antics are hilarious.  While its not the caliber of films like Frozen and The Croods – it is still entertainment that won’t make the adults watching it want to leave the room.  B+

Fast & Furious 6
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action and mayhem throughout, some sexuality and language
Available on DVD and Blu-ray

The Fast and Furious gang, including Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson and the late Paul Walker are back and this time hired by the government to take down a huge criminal ring.  When it pulled in $786 million at the box office I assumed that big improvements were made to the franchise, which I considered silly and ridiculous.  But I was wrong.  The writing is still horrible, filled with senseless exposition dumbed down for an assumed ADD audience.   The action is nonstop, but the laws of physics are completely thrown aside as are any brains behind them.  What you get it is simply the title: fast and furious action with no thought or intelligent design.  C-

Mary Poppins
Rated G
Available on DVD and Blu-ray

Having caught a sneak preview of the new Tom Hanks/Emma Thompson film Saving Mr. Banks, I was in the mood to revisit the Disney classic that inspired it.  Widely considered to be Walt Disney’s crowning achievement, Mary Poppins was nominated for 13 Oscars and won 5 including actress, editing, effects, music and original song.  Now almost 50 years later, the movie still looks amazing thanks to a beautiful digital restoration by the mouse house.  And if you’re like me and haven’t seen it since you were a kid, you, once again, are in for a huge treat.  A