The Godfather (DVD)

The Godfather (1972) starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Robert Duvall. An American classic -- follows the organized crime Corleone family of New York through their travails in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Beautifully directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Memorable soundtrack by Nino Rota. Only flaw is length, which nears three hours. Grade: A-

Chinatown (DVD)

Chinatown (1974) starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston. I was conflicted about this movie. Although it felt like a great movie to me, in the end I was a bit confused about exactly what had happened. And I had the benefit of subtitles. Grade: B+

Leatherheads (DVD)

Leatherheads (2007) starring George Clooney, Renee Zellweger, John Krasinski. Set in the world of professional football in 1925, this romantic comedy is neither very romantic nor very funny. Zellweger is miscast and Clooney does a lot of mugging. Grade: B-

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (DVD)

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008) starring Amy Adams, Frances McDormand, Ciaran Hinds, Lee Pace, Shirley Henderson, Mark Strong. In 1939 London, a nanny (McDormand) loses her job, and chances into a position as a social secretary to a singer/actress (Adams). Though both of their lives are in disarray, they complement each other and have one exciting day together. Though I don't like such labels, I'm afraid this movie verges on being a chick flick. Extras: Deleted scenes, director's commentary, a making-of, and a brief piece about bringing the book to the screen. Grade: B-

Baby It's You (DVD)

Baby It's You (1983) starring Rosanna Arquette, Vincent Spano. It's 1966 in Newark, New Jersey. Middle-class Jewish high-school girl (Arquette) and blue-collar Italian boy (Spano) get romantically involved. He gets kicked out of school, she goes off to college. Will the star-crossed lovers end up together? See the movie and decide for yourself. Co-written and directed by John Sayles. Extras: None. Grade: B

Tea with Mussolini (DVD)

Tea with Mussolini (1999) starring Joan Plowwright, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Cher, Lily Tomlin. Set in Italy in the 1930s and 1940s, and based on director Franco Zeffirelli's childhood in the '30s, this film follows a group of Englishwomen living in Italy who believe that Mussolini will protect them from the gathering clouds of war. To further complicate matters, they find themselves the protectors of a boy named Luca whose mother has died and whose father refuses to claim him. It's all rather charming, even though we pass through a war with them, and it ends happily. Grade: B+

Young @ Heart (DVD)

Young @ Heart (2007). Documentary about a chorus of Massachusetts geezers who perform covers of rock songs all over America and Europe. In spite of myself, I found the film mildly engaging and somewhat poignant (three of the singers died during the course of filming). Grade: B

Snow Angels (DVD)

Snow Angels (2006) starring Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell, Olivia Thirlby, Griffin Dunne, Nicky Katt, Amy Sedaris. Amid the ordinary struggles and intertwined relationships of several small-town occupants, tragedy strikes. From there, the movie spirals down into violence, none of which seems necessary. The viewer is left unsatisfied and, perhaps, bummed out. Extras: None. Grade: C

The Enforcer (DVD)

The Enforcer (1976) starring Clint Eastwood, Tyne Daly. Eastwood returns as San Francisco cop Harry Callahan in this third installment in the Dirty Harry series. Daly plays his female partner, who is assigned to him after his regular partner gets killed. Naturally, Callahan gets kicked off the force for insubordination, but that doesn't stop him from going after the bad guys -- a group of hippie terrorists who have taken the mayor hostage. Unfortunately the script is weak and this outing makes little sense -- not that it's hard to follow, but the internal logic is off. Still, more entertaining than a lot of movies I've seen. Grade: B-

The Thief of Bagdad (DVD)

The Thief of Bagdad (1940) starring John Justin, Sabu, June Duprez. The special effects look like you'd expect in 1940, and the story is laughably contrived. Plus, this DVD doesn't have subtitles in English for the hearing-impaired. Grade: F

Aliens (DVD)

Aliens (1986) starring Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henricksen, Bill Paxton. Directed by James Cameron. The sequel to "Alien" surpasses the original, once the action starts. Unfortunately, the preamble to action takes about an hour, and the first half of the movie seems sluggish. Still, it's an action-packed thrill ride, and Weaver is sensational in the role of Ripley. Grade: B+

Shrek (DVD)

Shrek (2001) with the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz, Eddie Murphy, John Lithgow. The ogre Shrek, voiced by Myers, teams up with a fast-talking donkey (Murphy) on a quest to save Princess Fiona (Diaz) from a castle guarded by a fire-breathing dragon. It's a delightful fairy tale that makes fun of fairy tales even as it follows fairy-tale conventions -- with a number of twists thrown in. Definitely not just for kids. Grade: A

Reprise (DVD)

Reprise (2006) starring a cast of Norwegian actors we've never heard of. An utterly incomprehensible (to me) Norwegian film with characters I had trouble telling apart, and later caring about. Some critics have raved about this film, but I just didn't get it. Grade: D

Married Life (DVD)

Married Life (2007) starring Chris Cooper, Pierce Brosnan, Patricia Clarkson, Rachel McAdams. Married man (Cooper) plans to kill his wife (Clarkson) so that he can be with a younger woman (McAdams). But his best friend (Brosnan) has other thoughts about the situation. Set in 1949, this drama -- or is it a comedy? -- veers toward soap opera. As characters, Cooper and Clarkson seem at home in the mid-20th Century, but Brosnan and McAdams seem oddly out of time. The DVD offers three alternate endings, all very similar, but interesting to watch. What it sorely lacks is subtitles for the hearing impaired, for which I downgrade it a full letter. Grade: C

Smart People (DVD)

Smart People (2008) starring Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, Ellen Page, Thomas Haden Church. A widowed professor (Quaid) gets involved with a former student who is now a doctor (Parker). His daughter (Page) is deep into preparations for college, while his irresponsible adopted brother (Church) has arrived on his doorstep without a dime to his name. Unfortunately, the cast lacks chemistry and the script lacks a compelling story. "Smart People" is a dumb movie. Grade: C+

American Psycho (DVD)

American Psycho (2000) starring Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Reese Witherspoon, Samantha Mathis, Chloe Sevigny. Bale stars as Patrick Bateman, Wall Street businessman by day, serial killer by night. Set in the 1980s in New York City, the movie features a main character who is supremely obsessed with the surface of things, especially of himself, yet who is hollow inside. He commits several murders in gory ways, and this film definitely isn't for the faint of heart. It's a wicked satire on '80s materialism, though, and fascinating to watch. Grade: B+