The Holiday (DVD)

The Holiday (2006) starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black, Edward Burns, Rufus Sewell. Both seeking to escape their disastrous love lives, two young women (Diaz and Winslet) agree to swap homes for the holidays. One lives lives in England, one in L.A. Each finds that in her new surroundings, there are people worth getting to know. And all turns out well in the end. This disc, from Netflix, started skipping and freezing during the last half-hour. It was very irritating. Grade: B-

Breach (DVD)

Breach (2007) starring Chris Cooper, Ryan Phillippe, Laura Linney, Dennis Haysbert, Caroline Dhavernas. Soon after landing a plum assignment working for FBI operative Robert Hanssen (Cooper), Eric O'Neill (Phillippe) realizes he's been brought in to spy on his boss, who is suspected of selling secrets to the Soviets. Cooper is a great actor, but Phillippe seems weak cast opposite him. Even though we know how the movie will end, there are some genuinely suspenseful moments. Based on a true story, in which the worst known spy in U.S. history was finally caught. Grade: B

Shortbus (DVD)

Shortbus (2006). An unknown group of actors combines to present this unrated, rather kinky view into the fringe world of sexuality in New York City. Lots of sex and nudity, but strangely unappealing; mostly homoerotic action, not my thing. Sincere, but amateurish. Grade: C-

Bridge to Terabithia (DVD)

Bridge to Terabithia (2007) starring Josh Hutcherson, AnnaSophia Robb, Robert Patrick, Zooey Deschanel. Two fifth-grade outcasts become friends and create the make-believe kingdom of Terabithia, where they reign supreme and plot revenge against the school bullies. But the film is not, as Disney might want us to believe, a fantasy wonderland with happy ending. Well into the story, it takes a tragic turn, and becomes a rather serious movie about loss and transcendence. Grade: B+

Maxed Out (DVD)

Maxed Out (2006). Somewhat depressing documentary about the load of debt, both personal and national, being carried by Americans. Ringing indictment of the credit card industry and the major banks. Subtitles are not available in English, so some of the dialogue is hard to understand. Grade: B

The Painted Veil (DVD)

The Painted Veil (2006) starring Naomi Watts, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Diana Rigg. Kitty (Watts) marries Dr. Walter Fane (Norton) to escape her parents' home, and ends up traveling with him to China, where he is fighting a cholera epidemic. Although she didn't marry him for love, she finds herself admiring his dedication to the cause. This understated period drama (it takes place in the 1920s) will reward the thoughtful movie viewer. Grade: B+

Children of Men (DVD)

Children of Men (2006) starring Clive Owen, Michael Caine, Julianne Moore. Dystopian drama set in 2027, in a world in which humans have lost the ability to reproduce. When a single woman mysteriously becomes pregnant, a conflicted government bureaucrat (Owen) tries to protect her. Based on the novel by P.D. James, directed by Alfonso Cuaron. If this relentlessly downbeat movie has a point, it escaped me. Grade: C

The Italian (DVD)

The Italian (2007). Six-year-old Vanya is about to be handed every Russian orphan's dream: A loving Italian family wants to adopt him and take him away from the run-down orphanage where he lives. But he can't get the thought of his birth mother out of his mind, and runs away to find her. This film, with an apparent happy ending, seems chiefly designed to reveal the plight of orphans in Russia today. The young actor who plays Vanya is not especially good. Grade: C+

Letters from Iwo Jima

Letters from Iwo Jima (2007) starring Ken Watanabe and a large cast of Japanese actors who will be unfamiliar to American viewers. Directed by Clint Eastwood. Excellent companion piece to Eastwood's "Flags of Our Fathers," this Oscar-nominated movie tells the story of the World War II battle for Iwo Jima from the Japanese point of view. Outnumbered and outgunned, the Japanese defenders of the island do not think of surrender, but of dying honorably -- even if this means suicide in the face of defeat. Eastwood does a good job of humanizing our former enemies, and even shows American soldiers being brutal in one memorable scene. Grade: A-