This week, it's pretty slim pickings in terms of DVD, to be completely honest. I'm lukewarm on my top choice, and I've only seen one other release, so it's kind of a lost week. Keep in mind though that 2 of the flicks are very highly regarded, so if I had seen them, I might be singing a different tune. That's not the case though, so I'll go with what I know. For my PICK OF THE WEEK, it's not really much to write home about, but it's a decent film with some good music and a nice lead performance. It's:Country Strong
Yes, we saw the better version of this movie a year ago with Crazy Heart, but this is still a passable music drama with some catchy country tunes (that's really the highlight for me, I dug the music in the film, especially the title track). Throw in a nicely effective performance by Gwyneth Paltrow and this is far from a bad film. It pales in comparison to that other country music movie I mentioned, but still...on a down week, this is definitely a worthwhile piece of entertainment. Give it a shot...you likely won't hate it.
-In another universe where I'd seen any of the Harry Potter flicks, the top prize this week very well might have gone to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. I heard very good things about the film, but I've never seen an installment of the Potter franchise, and didn't start now. If you're a fan, go pick it up and enjoy!
-The rest of the releases this week include 2 movies I haven't seen and 1 I have. The 2 former ones are White Material and A Summer in Genoa. One is a well regarded Claire Denis film (I've heard nothing but great things), and the other is a direct to DVD Colin Firth flick that actually is supposed to be much better than the fate assigned it. The movie I saw was the Jim Sturgess suspense film Heartless, and it's nothing to write home about. I'd say give that other couple of films a shot, I know I will.
-My Vintage pick is, in honor of this week's release of Scream 4, the original installment of the franchise. It's Scream, and it's still one of the most successful horror-comedies in existence (as slight a genre as that may be), while also being an incredibly effective slasher movie. Re-visit it and prepare for the return of the Ghostface Killer!
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?