What are you watching on DVD these days?

[eljay]

Chronicle - After a subterranean "close encounter" with an alien object, three high-school acquaintances develop superhuman abilities. Although they agree not to use their powers irresponsibly, Andrew - a social misfit with troubles at home - increasingly finds satisfaction in using them to settle old scores. As Andrew's powers - and as the darkness within him - grow, Matt and Steve realize they need to stop him...if it's not already too late.

Comments: Notwithstanding some weak scripting, bad acting and the increasing staleness of the "shaky-cam documentary" genre of movie-making, this was a decent flick, with a reasonably interesting premise and some cool special effects.

(We didn't actually watch it on DVD - see this thread for more info - but I don't think it would have made much of a difference if we had.)

[eljay]

The Iron Giant - A giant alien robot crashes to Earth near small-town America of the 1950s and, before long, befriends young Hogarth Hughes. Their bond of friendship and morality barely established, Hogarth discovers that the U.S. military is out to find and destroy his iron giant. With the help of the local, good-natured junk-yard owner, Hogarth does his best to hide the giant but, thanks to the doggèd determination of hard-nosed government agent Kent Mansley, the military soon has the robot cornered. The confrontation triggers an unexpected defence mechanism in the robot which, in turn, causes a panicked Mansley to call for a nuclear strike from an off-shore submarine. Hogarth convinces his iron friend to stand down, but the incoming warhead remains a deadly reality...until the iron giant - in a moment of utter selflessness - launches himself into the sky to intercept the warhead and to save his friend Hogarth and the people around him.

Comments: This animated film was slightly awkward in terms of its stylized animation and dialogue, but as far as the story-telling, characters, moral lessons and emotional content are concerned, it was, overall, every bit as moving and wonderful as I expected it to be.

[BCScott]

Both of my sons loved the Iron Giant when they were young. Unfortunately, as a result, our VHS copy is worn out.

[eljay]

Snow White and the Huntsman - Only by consuming Snow White's pure heart can the evil Queen live forever, and only at the hands of someone as pure of heart as Snow White can she be destroyed. Will good triumph over evil, or is the kingdom doomed to remain forever under the Queen's dark shadow?

I was hoping to be entertained by an interesting take on the Snow White tale, but aside from a solid performance by the always lovely and talented Charlize Theron, I ended up being completely disappointed by the dull script and characters (except for the comic-relief dwarves, who were just irritating), the bland acting, an overabundance of clichées, and an overly-long run time (a good 45 minutes too long). What a shame.

[eljay]

Flight - A pilot's heroism in crash-landing a crippled plane and saving most of its passengers is called into question - and his career is jeopardized - when an investigation into the accident reveals that his alcoholism and drug dependency may have been responsible for it.

Comments: This was an interesting, well-scripted and well-paced drama, with a typically solid performance by Denzel.

(Note: This movie is not on DVD yet, but I had the opportunity to view a screener copy.)

[eljay]

Argo - When the U.S. embassy in Tehran is stormed in the aftermath of the 1979 Iranian revolution, six American employees manage to escape and find shelter in the home of the Canadian ambassador. As the window to get them safely out of Iran slowly closes, the CIA implements a daring and desperate plan - devised by specialist Tony Mendez - that just might work...

Comments: Despite some horribly formulaic plot elements, this was a fairly decent and decently-paced drama.

(Note: This movie is not on DVD yet, but I had the opportunity to view a screener copy.)

[eljay]

The Impossible - Separated by the roiling waters of the tsunami that has hit their Thai resort, the members of a tourist family struggle to stay alive and to find each other amid the devastation.

Comments: Aside from the cool tsunami and flood sequences, this movie was a dull, overly-contrived and overly-saccharine piece of refuse.

(Note: This movie is not on DVD yet, but I had the opportunity to view a screener copy.)

[eljay]

Skyfall - Bond leaps into action to stop a former MI6 agent, who is intent on killing M, from carrying out his act of revenge.

I watched this movie at home on DVD about a month after I saw it at the cinema, and it was a much more enjoyable experience. The movie was still alright, but AQ and general comfort were significantly improved.

(Note: This movie is not on DVD yet, but I had the opportunity to view a screener copy.)

[eljay]

The Amazing Spider-Man - Endowed with super-human strength from a bite from a genetically-modified spider, and transformed into a vigilante by the death of his uncle, orphan and high-school student Peter Parker is now faced with saving his city - and the girl he loves - from the diabolical scheme of the Lizard, a former Oscorp scientist whose failed serum, designed to regenerate lost limbs, instead causes reptilian mutations and madness.

Comments: An interesting and mostly-enjoyable re-boot of the Spider-Man franchise. The darker tone was good. Had it been the first one out, I might have liked it even more than I did. Garfield was alright, although he really needs a haircut.

[eljay]

Iron Sky - When their long-hidden lunar colony is accidentally discovered by a pair of American astronauts, the Nazis who have lived and thrived there for decades decide the time has finally come for them to conquer and re-colonize Earth. But first they'll need to overcome the machinations of a venomously-ambitious American president, and the rebellious efforts of a disillusioned Nazi - her idealistic notions of the goodness of Nazism now shattered - and the black American astronaut she has grown to love.

Comments: Although the concept has potential and the CGI and visuals (including Julia Dietze ) are pretty impressive, the movie suffers from a thin plot that is stretched even more thinly over the 90-minute run time, and from weak dialogue that is occasionally clumsily delivered in English by the European members of the cast. Some entertaining moments aside, this movie is mostly just a curiosity piece.

[eljay]

Moonrise Kingdom - Two young people on a small island fall in love and strive to be together.

Comments: Thoroughly irritating and trying way too hard to be quirky. Ten minutes, plus a bunch of fast-forwarding, was all we could stand.

[eljay]

Wreck-It Ralph - Despite having done his video-game bad-guy job dutifully for thirty years, Wreck-It Ralph has remained a social outcast while his heroic colleague - Fix-It Felix, Jr. - has reaped all the admiration and reward. When he concludes that only way he'll gain any respect is by having his own hero's medal - something he can't get in his own game - Ralph journeys to "Hero's Duty", where he steals a medal but accidentally launches himself and one of the game's highly-reproductive and -destructive cyber-insects into a candy-themed racing game called "Sugar Rush". As the series of events triggered by Ralph's ineptitude slowly spirals toward the seemingly-inevitable conclusion in which the entire "Sugar Rush" game - and everyone left in it - is destroyed, Ralph finally realizes that true heroism doesn't come from a shiny medal, but from a willingness to sacrifice yourself in order to save those around you.

Comments: Although it was more crass and violent than a comparable Pixar film would have been, the movie had an imaginative and, overall, well-intentioned story; and animation that was both impressive and, at times, clever. And while I'm not a big fan of John C. Reilly, his natural dopiness suited the lead role nicely. The movie would have benefitted from a lot more of him and a lot less of Sarah Silverman.

[eljay]

Dream House - Following the brutal murder of his wife and two daughters, Will Atenton - an aspiring writer - suffers a mental breakdown and is committed to a psychiatric institution for five years. Upon his release, and still repressing his memories of that fateful night, Will returns to his house...and to his loving family. But as the dangerous reality behind his delusion is revealed to him, Will turns to his spectral spouse, Libby, to solve the mystery of the murder, to catch the killer and to free himself of the guilt and the ghosts of his past.

Comments: It started off as a bit of a horror flick, but once the major plot twist was revealed - strangely, this happened only 40 minutes in - much of the steam was knocked out of the movie, which then turned into a fairly straightforward, but still reasonably enjoyable, whodunnit.