New in Home Entertainment
January 13, 2014
Gone Girl
Rated R for a scene of bloody violence, some strong sexual content, nudity, and language
Available on Blu-ray and DVD
Based on the best-selling novel by Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl follows the world of a husband (Ben Affleck) who is under suspicion for killing his wife (Rosamund Pike) when she goes missing. Twisted and sadistically funny, Gone Girl is masterfully directed by David Fincher and written for the screen by Flynn herself. What I loved most about Gone Girl is that I KNEW which direction the film was going in, until I discovered how wrong I really was. When a film takes you completely by surprise and then blows you away, its hard not to fall in love with it, even when the material is this dark. A
The Two Faces of January
Rated PG-13 for some violence, language and smoking
Available on DVD and Blu-ray
Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst are a couple traveling through Greece in the 60’s when they run across a young, semi-distrustful tour guide played by Oscar Isaac. When Mortensen gets in trouble at his hotel, Isaac comes to the rescue to help them try to escape Greece. While I enjoyed the production, or rather their reproduction of 1960’s Greece, the film is one of the least thrilling thrillers I’ve seen this year. One of the biggest problems is that its hard to feel empathy for any of the characters, so when bad things happen, who cares? It’s a shame too, because all three of the actors are fantastic and worthy of much greater material. C-
Men, Women & Children
Rated R for strong sexual content including graphic dialogue throughout – some involving teens, and for language
Available on DVD and Blu-ray
One of my favorite writers/directors in recent years is Jason Reitman, who has come on the scene strong with Juno and Up in the Air. This time around he takes on relationships between a host of deeply flawed characters living in a world of social media. Starring an impressive ensemble cast, the movie ultimately fails due to their not being a likable character in the entire script. While some are better than others, pretty much everyone is a turd in the punchbowl, and I for one quickly grew thirsty for something else. D
Black Sails: The Complete First Season
Available on DVD and Blu-ray
Some of my favorite guilty pleasures from recent years have come from television shows based on historical bad guys like gladiators, vikings and now pirates. This ambitious and well-crafted show from Starz creates a fun world based on pirates of old that is as naughty as it is violent. While I’m assuming its not in the least bit realistic, it is a lot of fun watching the action-packed drama unfold. And it doesn’t hurt that the production values are first rate. I can’t wait to see how they continue things in season 2, starting January 24. B+