This Week on DVD – 04/05/2011
Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday April 5, 2011
De Line Pictures
Cher, Christina Aguilera, Eric Dane, Cam Gigandet, Julianne Hough, Alan Cumming, Peter Gallagher, Kristen Bell, Stanley Tucci, Dianna Agron
Burlesque is the story of a waitress in a small Iowa town who is sick of her life. In her words, she looked at the lives of everyone in her town and found none that she wanted, so it’s off to Hollywood to follow her dream of being a dancer and a singer. But live in Tinseltown isn’t so easy, and finding work means one rejection after another. Ali (Christina Aguilara) is almost out of options when by accident she runs across a small club called “Burlesque” run by Tess (Cher) a retired dancer who is trying to keep running. With stars in her eyes, Ali enters and tries to find a job there. Tess is obviously in love with her co-conspirator Sean (Stanley Tucci) who is unfortunately into guys, and NOT with her ex-husband and partner Vince (Peter Gallagher) who stands against Tess on about everything. To further complicate things, the dancers lip-sync to classic singers while doing an old fashioned show without a pole or any real nudity, just suggestive dancing, but they all have issues that stand in the way of any form of greatness. Marcus (Eric Dane) is a rich real estate mogul who likes to hang out at the club, blow lots of money, and date the girls. But it appears Tess’ days are number as the club is facing a large balloon payment and has no way to pay the mortgage and is about to lose the club for good. Marcus wants to buy it, and offers her a lot of money, but Tess won’t take it, much to her ex-husbands chagrin, and he has some bad intentions for the choice property on the Sunset Strip.
Burlesque is a simple story. It’s been told many, many times before, and I think that’s what held this film up at the box office. Cher has a couple numbers that are vintage Cher, and excellent, and of course Christina is an amazing singer and plays the poor girl from a little town who had a big voice and makes it big in a hurry. This is her life story for crying out loud. It’s a very old story going back to the silent films and classics like A Star is Born or dozens of others. Actually it could be described as the PG-13 version of Showgirls which probably hurt it as well.
But this is a musical theater drama, and is not bad, (i.e. ok for older kids) and is a good story with redeeming qualities unlike the title would suggest. This is old time classic Burlesque, not a stripper story, and the music is excellent and the acting is pretty decent. Marcus is a bastard, and Sean is a very lovable queen. Tess is the bitchy dragon lady boss with a heart of gold inside, and Ali is the sweet little innocent girl from Iowa who everyone takes advantage of until she learns her way around to save the day in the end. Kristin Bell also appears as Nikki, the lead lip sync’r of the group who has so many issues and tries to torpedo Ali when Ali takes her place by turning off the music track which gives Ali a chance to really sing. Nikki’s part was pretty small, and I was a bit surprised that it wasn’t developed better, but I guess this is the Cristina and Cher show, so there’s not much time for any of the others to step up. But the songs are good, Cher and Christina are awesome singers and everyone is a great dancer. This looks and feels like one of those musicals from the 40’s that filled up the screen and it’s a big movie. I think I understand why it did not kick butt in the theaters with all the competition up against it over the holidays, but it’s definitely worth catching on Blu-Ray, especially if you have a large screen and a great sound system! This is a nice little film that looks very big on the screen. Give it a chance.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
Universal Pictures, Media Rights Capital, Gambit Pictures
Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie, Terence Stamp, John Slattery, Michael Kelly, Anthony Ruivivar
David Norris (Matt Damon) is a congressman, who has just lost a bid for the Senate, but seems to be an up and coming politician. In preparing for his concession speech, he is hiding out in the mens room practicing his speech when he hears a noise in a stall. Out walks Elise Sellas (Emily Blunt), a ballerina, who is hiding out from security after crashing a wedding and nearly getting caught. The sparks immediately fly, and based on her input, David is inspired and gives a whale of a speech. Later, accidentally, he bumps into her again on the bus, and she gives him her number. But someone, an “organization” intercepts him and informs him that he can never see her again. He is not about to accept that, so he sets out on a quest taking years and years trying to find her again.
Do we have free will really, or are our lives planned out in advance for us? The Adjustment Bureau is a group who makes sure that certain events happen in the world according to the plan, even if we need a random event now and then to push us in the right direction. Is that coffee we spill, or that bus we miss just an accident, or some event in the master plan? That is what this movie explores. It is very exciting, but it is also a very good romantic story as well. I really bought the connection between Matt and Emily. It was a very good story. I really enjoyed the ride! The suspense in this film was great. It has a very unique chase scene that is quite exciting. It keeps you guessing all the way through. I really recommend this film for fans of suspense, supernatural thrillers, science fiction type films. This will remind you of films like The Matrix or Inception and other things along those lines. I felt it was one of the strongest performances for Matt Damon, much like the Borne films, but much more caring and human. I recommend this film.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
Cloud Eight Films, Everest Entertainment, Darlow Smithson Productions
James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn, Sean Bott, Koleman Stinger, Treat Williams, John Lawrence, Kate Burton, Lizzy Caplan, Clémence Poésy , Rebecca C. Olson
Aron Ralston (James Franco) is a mountain climber who made an awful mistake. Hiking in Utah, he has way too much confidence in his abilities. He took off on a hike without letting anyone where he is going. Hiking in a narrow canyon as rock slide pins him by the arm, way down in the canyon. He is unable to free himself and sets in for the long haul. Finally he has no other choice but to cut off his own arm to escape. This is the true account of the experience of the real Aron Ralston who appears in the closing credits.
This is a pretty decent adventure story. Similar to [Buried] the story of an American in the Middle East who was buried alive, this movie pretty much takes place in a small crack in the rock. There is a lot of things that had to be added to fill up the time, but it does keep you interested in the story. I can see why James Franco got nominated for a lot of awards. It is an exciting and beautiful film. The photography is stunning, and it’s a beautiful place. It’s hard to imagine being in a position like that. How Aron was able to survive this ordeal is beyone me.
I enjoyed this story, and I do recommend it for anyone who likes outdoor adventure films. This is certainly a story of survival agains massive odds. Is it the best film of the year? No. Not even close, but it’s worth watching for sure.
EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog
Larry Levinson Productions, Alpine Medien Productions, Hallmark Entertainment
Lou Diamond Phillips, Ernest Borgnine, Lee Majors, Richard Tyson, Marina Black, Warren Stevens, Jonathan Murphy, David Shackelford, Casey Sander, Tracey Walter, Buck Taylor, Tom Everett, Spencer Redford
Keenan Deerfield (Lou Diamond Phillips) is a recently paroled prisoner who arrives in a mining town looking for work and a chance to go straight. There he meets Christine Beckford (Marina Black) a woman in an abusive relationship with a drunkard and Keenan has to step in to protect her which causes him a lot of trouble. Aside from this there’s the owners of the mining operation who are corrupt and also unhappy to have a new guy in town. Lee Majors plays the Marshall who tries to keep things in line, but is just not able to stop all the bad guys. Ernest Bornine is Eugene, a crusty old peddler and rancher who is not afraid of the bullies and makes friends with Keenan and Christine.
This is a made for TV (Hallmark) film and the most annoying thing is the fade outs at the end of the scenes where commercials are supposed to be inserted. It’s amazing how easy it is to tell a film that could easily stand on its own as a feature film has been edited for TV. But it’s a strong western film, very heartwarming, and exciting, and romantic. There’s a lot of action and adventure, but it’s a lovely love story as well. It’s nice to see Ernest Borgnine again in a relatively meaty role. And it’s nice to watch a good solid western again. It’s a shame we’ve nearly lost this genre, and when you find a good one, it’s a good thing.
This film is available on DVD, but also on Netflix Watch Instantly. It’s a good solid story to fill up a spot on the “instant” queue or to catch on TV when it’s on. I enjoyed this very much.
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