The Three Faces of Eve (DVD)

The Three Faces of Eve (1957) starring Joanne Woodward, David Wayne, Lee J. Cobb. Woodward won a Best Actress Oscar for her performance as Eve, a woman with multiple personalities and three intertwined, yet separate, lives. Her performance is great. The rest of the movie leaves much to be desired. In particular, Eve's cure seems to come much too easily. It's explained in only the most superficial terms. Still, an enjoyable 90 minutes can be spent watching this movie. The subtitles are very good, except that the songs aren't captioned. Grade: B

A Face in the Crowd (DVD)

A Face in the Crowd (1957) starring Andy Griffith, Patricia Neal, Anthony Franciosa, Walter Matthau, Lee Remick. Directed by Elia Kazan. Small-town radio producer (Neal) plucks drunken bum (Griffith) from jail, makes him a star. Turns out he has a talent for manipulating audiences, even on TV. Unfortunately, when he hits the big time, he also turns out to be an unscrupulous womanizer, and the power of being a TV star goes to his head. "A Face in the Crowd" is a sharp observation of the growing strength of television as a medium, and its power to make or break a man -- or a woman. As such, it is a cautionary tale, still relevant today. The subtitles on this disc are pretty good. Grade: B+

Twelve O'Clock High

Twelve O'Clock High (1949) starring Gregory Peck, Hugh Marlowe, Gary Merrill, Millard Mitchell, Dean Jagger. Peck plays General Frank Savage, an Army Air Force officer in World War II who is tasked with taking over an air group and restoring morale. He thinks the previous commanding officer failed because he cared too much about the men. Only trouble is, after Savage whips the air group into shape and commands it for a while, he falls prey to the same "weakness." This is a pretty good movie, even inspiring, but the ending feels a little flabby. Good subtitles. Grade: B+

Pork Chop Hill (DVD)

Pork Chop Hill (1959) starring Gregory Peck, Harry Guardino, Rip Torn, George Peppard, Robert Blake, Martin Landau, Harry Dean Stanton, Gavin MacLeod, many more. Based on a true story. A group of combat soldiers, led by Lieutenant Joe Clemons (Peck), try to take a seemingly worthless hill near the end of the Korean War. It's 1953, and peace negotiations with the enemy are already under way. Neither side, however, has stopped fighting. When Clemons' men do take the hill, they have to immediately shift over to defense. On the American side, it's one SNAFU after another. It's interesting to see a combat movie that was made after the Korean War, but before the Vietnam War. Those were definitely different times. The captions on this film are just adequate. Grade: B

The Pope of Greenwich Village (DVD)

The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984) starring Eric Roberts, Mickey Rourke, Daryl Hannah, Geraldine Page. Charlie (Rourke) and Paulie (Roberts) are cousins, and even though Paulie is a screw-up, Charlie hangs with him. After Paulie gets him fired from his job at a restaurant, Charlie finds out that his girlfriend, Diane (Hannah) is pregnant. Then Paulie comes up with the idea for a big score; Charlie and Paulie hire a safe-cracker. Naturally, things go south from there. This movie features a cast of accomplished actors, both in the main roles and in the co-starring roles. The ending is a little vague, though. The only subtitle option is closed captions. Grade: B

Poltergeist (DVD)

Poltergeist (1982) starring Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams, Beatrice Straight, Dominique Dunne, Oliver Robins, Heather O'Rourke. Directed by Tobe Hooper. Produced by Steven Spielberg. Family's placid existence is disturbed when Carol Anne (O'Rourke), the five-year-old daughter, is kidnapped by the "TV people," who only she can see. The climax is foreshadowed early on when the dad (Nelson) learns from his boss that the entire neighborhood was built over a cemetery. Famous tag line, "They're here," is spoken by Carol Anne when the poltergeist, whatever it is, first appears in the TV. The family calls in a team of parapsychologists to try and get Carol Anne back. Then they hire a clairvoyant. This is followed by a lot of hokum, flashing lights and a scary appearance by The Beast. The bottom line is, this movie is just a lot of fun to watch, even when it's being silly. Spielberg's hand is very apparent, for anyone who's familiar with his other films. The disc includes good subtitles. Grade: B+

The Secret in Their Eyes (DVD)

The Secret in Their Eyes (2010) starring Ricardo Darin, Soledad Villamil. A retired judge (Darin), with nothing left to fill his days, finds himself haunted by a murder case from 25 years ago, which ended with the killer being freed and recruited by the government. In flashbacks, we see the judge as a young man, pursuing the killer. And we see Irene, the love of his life, helping him catch the criminal, then marrying someone else. Twenty-five years later, Esposito, the judge, determines to start looking for his man once again. He finds him in a most surprising way. This movie deservedly won the Oscar for best foreign picture. The subtitles are great. Grade: A-

Point Blank (DVD)

Point Blank (1967) starring Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, Keenan Wynn, Carroll O'Connor. Crook named Walker (Marvin) is double-crossed by his partner in crime, shot twice and left for dead. Two years later Walker comes back, looking for revenge. Not only for being shot, but he wants his share of the loot -- $93,000. This film is supposedly regarded as one of the top films of the '60s, but I can't see it. It was released in 1967, takes place in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and there's not a long-hair to be seen. What's that about? The subtitles are fine. Grade: B-

The Pledge (DVD)

The Pledge (2001) starring Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright Penn, Benicio Del Toro, Vanessa Redgrave, Tom Noonan, Patricia Clarkson. Directed by Sean Penn. Retiring police detective Jerry Black (Nicholson) takes on one last case when a young girl is raped and murdered. Although the first suspect confessed and then killed himself, Black is not convinced that the real killer has been found -- and he swore to the girl's mother that he would find the guilty man. This movie features a star-studded cast, and while the mystery is engaging, it's also fun to play name-that-star while you're watching it. Overall, however, this film was a big disappointment, and the ending is particularly unsatisfying. The disc offers a choice of English subtitles or closed captions. Grade: C-

Max Headroom (DVD)

Max Headroom: The Complete Series -- Disc 1 (1987) starring Matt Frewer, Amanda Pays. This is a ground-breaking, short-lived TV series that ran on ABC in 1987-88. It features a virtual person named Max Headroom (Frewer) who is created when his human progenitor Edison Carter (also played by Frewer) is believed to be dead and his personality is transferred into a computer. Carter is a TV reporter for "Channel 23," a sinister media organization which wields way too much power in a future, dystopian society. The first episode is the one in which Carter uncovers the network's practice of showing "blipverts," ads which are compressed to run in a short time so that viewers can't switch the channel. Only trouble is, blipverts kill. Pays plays Carter's "controller," Theora Jones, who, besides being lovely, is a computer genius. The real heart of the series is, of course, Max Headroom, who became a celebrity in his own right in the late '80s and even appeared on "The Late Show" with David Letterman. The bits in which he appears are amusing. The first episode especially, in which he is created, is very entertaining. Subsequent episodes, not so much. Concept: A. Execution: B-. Only closed captions are offered for the hearing-impaired.

Letters to Juliet (DVD)

Letters to Juliet (2010) starring Amanda Seyfried, Christopher Egan, Gael García Bernal, Vanessa Redgrave, Franco Nero. Sophie (Seyfried) journeys to the Italian city of Verona with her fiance Victor (Bernal) on a "pre-honeymoon." But Victor is so busy talking with suppliers (he is about to open a restaurant in New York) that Sophie is left pretty much on her own. She ends up helping a group of Italian women who write replies to letters to Juliet, of "Romeo and Juliet" fame, which are left on a wall under a balcony in Verona. When she answers a letter from Claire (Redgrave), a British woman who was in love with an Italian named Lorenzo, she is surprised a few days later by Claire herself, who shows up in Verona searching for her long-lost love. With Claire is Charlie (Egan), Claire's grandson, who takes an instant disliking to Sophie. But since Sophie is free, the trio sets out to find Claire's Lorenzo, who they hope is still alive and living in the area. The setup is so romantic, you just know somebody is going to fall in love. Now let's see, who could it be? My bet is, you'll see it coming a mile away. But you'll have to see the movie to be sure. The subtitles are good -- even the songs are subtitled. And I enjoyed hearing Italian spoken, in the few scenes where it made up the dialogue. Grade: B

Kick-Ass (DVD)

Kick-Ass (2010) starring Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloe Moretz, Mark Strong, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Lyndsy Fonseca. Ordinary high schooler Dave (Johnson) decides that he's going to fight crime in a superhero suit of his own design. At first he's a spectacular failure, but he persists. Soon enough, he becomes an Internet sensation; then he is joined by Hit Girl (Moretz) and Big Daddy (Cage), two costumed crime fighters who are way better than him at what they do -- they use swords and guns. Meanwhile he pursues his high-school crush (Fonseca), a girl who hangs out with him because she thinks he's gay. Even though this movie has elements of satire in it, it takes its crime-fighting seriously. In the end, there's plenty of criminal ass that needs to be kicked, and Hit Girl -- with a crucial assist from Kick-Ass -- is the one to do it. The finale is spectacular. This disc has subtitles for the hearing-impaired. Extras: None. Grade: A-

Please Don't Eat the Daisies (DVD)

Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960) starring Doris Day, David Niven, Janis Paige, Spring Byington, Patsy Kelly. Day and Niven play a married couple; he's a rookie theater critic, she's a stay-at-home mom to their brood of four children, all boys. Just when Larry's (Niven) career begins to take off, the family is evicted from their apartment and must quickly find somewhere else to live. Kate (Day) wants to get a house in the country, but it's hard to find anything decent on short notice. Nevertheless, they move to the country (70 miles out of New York), and then the fun really begins. Well, it's supposed to be fun. The two stars are expected to carry the movie with the force of their personalities, but I really felt the chemistry between Day and Niven wasn't quite right. They may have been big stars in 1960, but much of their luster has faded by now. The movie I found to be mildly amusing and mostly harmless. The subtitles are adequate. Grade: B

Play Misty for Me (DVD)

Play Misty for Me (1971) starring Clint Eastwood, Jessica Walter, Donna Mills, John Larch. Directed by Clint Eastwood. Radio disc jockey Dave Garver (Eastwood) is pursued by crazy fan Evelyn (Walter). When she starts to smother him, he pushes her away, and she becomes a stalker. The movie never explains how she knows where he lives. Maybe 1971 was just a more innocent time. The dialogue is wooden at times, as is Eastwood's acting. He's a good action hero, but this film calls for something a little more nuanced. Eastwood the director does take full advantage of the scenery; the movie is set in Carmel, California, and the seaside scenes are beautifully shot. The subtitles are more than adequate. Grade: C

The Exploding Girl (DVD)

The Exploding Girl (2009) starring Zoe Kazan, Mark Randall. Ivy (Kazan), a college student on spring break in Brooklyn, finds that her relationship with boyfriend Greg is fizzling via cell phone. Meanwhile, her longtime platonic friend Al (Randall) is obviously in love with her. To top off her troubles, Ivy has epilepsy. This is a modest little indie film, with a pretty simple plot. It was watchable, but not great. It does come with English subtitles, which is a plus. Grade: B

Red Riding - 1974 (DVD)

Red Riding - 1974 (2009) starring Andrew Garfield. When a young girl is found murdered, journalist Edward Dunford (Garfield) thinks he sees a pattern linking the killing to earlier disappearances of girls. But when he starts asking questions, the police come around and rough him up. Soon after, a fellow journalist and friend dies in an "accident." Dunford suspects foul play. The deeper he digs, the more trouble he stirs up. In the end, this movie gets more and more violent, until it goes out in a blaze of gunfire. The question is, will you want to see Parts 2 and 3 of the Red Riding trilogy? I don't think I'll be renting them. The subtitles that come on the disc are very good, but curiously, closed captions are not offered. Grade: B

The Player (DVD)

The Player (1992) starring Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward, many more. Directed by Robert Altman. Robbins plays Griffin Mill, a Hollywood producer who is being harassed by a writer whom he apparently brushed off. When the harassment goes on too long, it starts to drive Mill crazy, and he starts to act crazy. Vincent D'Onofrio (of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent") appears as David Kahane, the writer who's mad at Mill because he said he would get back to him and didn't. The real story of this movie, for me, was the amazing, large cast and the plethora of celebrity cameos that Altman managed to shoehorn in -- just incredible. The DVD includes an Extra that shows all the cameo players and lists their film credits. The movie itself drags a little in spots, but I'm sure it's full of movie in-jokes and references. I caught a few of them. The ending is killer. The subtitles are OK. Grade: A-

Platoon (DVD)

Platoon (1986) starring Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen. Directed by Oliver Stone. "Cherry" Chris Taylor (Sheen) arrives in Vietnam in 1967, at the height of the war. Berenger plays Barnes, a hard-ass sergeant who leads the platoon in the destruction of a village. Dafoe plays Elias, the good sergeant to Berenger's bad sergeant, trying to bring some reason to the chaos of the war. The combat sequences are as intense as any I've seen on film. This movie won four Oscars, including Best Picture. It offers a choice of subtitles in English or closed captions. Grade: A

Sunshine Cleaning (DVD)

Sunshine Cleaning (2008) starring Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin. Rose (Adams), in desperate need of money to get her young son into a private school, decides to start a business cleaning up biohazards and crime scenes. She ropes her sister Norah (Blunt) into being her partner in the enterprise. While dealing with gruesome scenes of carnage and death at work, the pair are also trying to get their personal lives in order. At the same time, the job brings up painful memories of their mother's suicide. I really wanted to like this movie, and it has its likable elements, but overall I was disappointed. The script was just too thin -- not enough good lines, not enough funny jokes, just not satisfying. The subtitles, though, are quite good. Grade: B-

The Wire (DVD)

The Wire (2002) starring Dominic West. This HBO series has been praised to the skies by other critics, so I finally decided to take a chance on renting it. It's really not possible to judge an entire series by the first three episodes (contained on this disc), but so far so good. The show is a gritty dramatization of the illegal drug scene in Baltimore, seen alternately from the point of view of the cops and the perpetrators. The acting is good and the writing is very good. There are subtitles included on the disc, or if you prefer you can use the closed captions provided by your TV. I will definitely be renting more discs in this series. Grade so far: A

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (DVD)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) starring Zachary Gordon. Greg Heffley (Gordon) enters middle school with no idea what it takes to be "cool." In fact, he already thinks he's pretty cool (he would never describe himself as a wimp), it's just a matter of getting the rest of the world to recognize it. Unfortunately, it's his dorky best friend Rowley who climbs the vine of popularity, while Greg's stock just continues to sink lower and lower. Naturally, it all resolves itself in the end. This movie is OK entertainment, but it definitely lacks depth. It seems clearly targeted at tweens -- kids the same age as the kids in the film. Everything is kept simple -- too simple, for my adult tastes. The subtitles are OK, kind of hard to read. Grade: C+