In the Valley of Elah (DVD)

In the Valley of Elah (2007) starring Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, Susan Sarandon. Jones plays the father of a marine who has been killed after returning to the States from a tour in Iraq. A former MP, Jones' character carries on his own investigation when the authorities seem indifferent. But the movie really belongs to Theron, who plays a civilian policewoman who pays attention to him and ultimately must fight to get the murder investigated. Grade: B

Definitely, Maybe (DVD)

Definitely, Maybe (2008) starring Ryan Reynolds, Abigail Breslin, Elizabeth Banks, Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz. So-so romantic comedy about a man who is telling his daughter his history of past loves, one of whom is her mother. The structure seems contrived, and Reynolds is lacking in the charisma to carry a movie. Still, the female leads do not fail to charm. Grade: B

Winchester '73 (DVD)

Winchester '73 (1950) starring James Stewart, Shelley Winters. Stewart plays an obsessed gunman who wins a Winchester repeating rifle in a shooting competition. The rifle is soon stolen, and Stewart sets off across the Old West in search of the rifle -- and his arch-enemy, who stole it. Winters plays the romantic interest. Seems filled with Western cliches until you realize that they happened first here. Rock Hudson appears briefly as an Indian chief, and Tony Curtis also appears in a blink-and-you-miss-him role. Directed by Anthony Mann. Grade: A-

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (DVD)

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007) starring Anamaria Marinca, Laura Vasiliu. In 1987 in Romania, a young woman seeks an abortion -- something which is illegal at the time, and punishable by prison. This is a grim, increasingly tense portrait of one aspect of life under the oppressive Ceaucescu regime. It's not much fun to watch, but carries an important message. (In Romanian, apparently, with English subtitles.) Grade: B+

Juno (DVD)

Juno (2007) starring Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman. Juno (Page), a high school junior, gets pregnant the first time she has sex. She considers abortion, but rejects it in favor of finding adoptive parents for her baby. This makes for a touching and endearing story, heavily juiced by the clever script, and well performed by the entire cast. First-time screenwriter Diablo Cody won an Oscar for the screenplay. Grade: A-

Grace is Gone (DVD)

Grace is Gone (2007) starring John Cusack. TV-movie quality film about a man whose wife is killed in combat in Iraq. He spends the entire film working up the courage to tell his two daughters what has happened. Cusack is only passable in the central role. Grade: B

Teeth (DVD)

Teeth (2006) starring Jess Weixler, John Hensley, Hale Appleman, Josh Pais. Modest, low-budget film about a girl who discovers, as she nears adulthood, that she has vagina dentata. The condition is puzzling and frightening to her at first, but it comes in handy when she is sexually assaulted. She learns, through the course of the film, to accept it, then to embrace it. The first half-hour of this film is pretty boring, and the script lacks sizzle, but it's entertaining enough. Grade: B-

I'm Not There (DVD)

I'm Not There (2007) starring Marcus Carl Franklin, Ben Whishaw, Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, Richard Gere, Cate Blanchett. The six stars play Bob Dylan during different stages of his career, as conceived by writer and director Todd Haynes. Your enjoyment of this film will likely depend on how big a fan of Dylan and his music you are -- although even big fans may be confused by the movie's chaotic structure. Grade: D

Blade Runner: The Final Cut (DVD)

Blade Runner: The Final Cut (1982) starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, M. Emmet Walsh, Daryl Hannah, William Sanderson, Brion James, Joe Turkel, Joanna Cassidy. Visually stunning, packed with imaginative ideas, yet fatally flawed, "Blade Runner" is an enduringly compelling movie. The people who made it sure must think so, as this disc is part of a five-disc set, with five different versions of the movie on offer. This version, however, dates to 2007 and is director Ridley Scott's preferred -- and final-- version. Even though the plot and the dialog are second-rate, I can't stop re-viewing this film, and I have come to love it.
The plot: A futuristic film noir in which six replicants (superhuman androids) have escaped from an off-world colony, and have returned to Earth seeking the secret of their origins. Blade runner (detective) Rick Deckard (Ford) has received the grisly assignment of hunting them down and killing them. There are some flaws, as noted, in the execution of the concept, but still I must give it a Grade: A

Lars and the Real Girl (DVD)

Lars and the Real Girl (2007) starring Ryan Gosling, Patricia Clarkson, Emily Mortimer, Kelli Garner, Paul Schneider. Lars (Gosling) is a man who has trouble connecting with real human beings. So he orders a life-sized, anatomically correct doll off the Internet and introduces her as Bianca, his girlfriend. The fantasy element comes in when the people of the small town where he lives decide to accept Bianca as a real girl. Instead of making fun of Lars or locking him up in a mental institution, they go along with his delusion -- and their kindness is shown to have restorative powers. This is an off-kilter movie, but oddly entertaining. Grade: B

There Will Be Blood (DVD)

There Will Be Blood (2007) starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Paul Dano, Kevin J. O'Connor, Ciaran Hinds, Russell Harvard. Day-Lewis plays Daniel Plainview, an early 20th century oilman, in a role that earned him an Oscar. The first half of the movie, in which he builds his oil empire, is engaging and visually interesting, but the second half seems like just a study in cruelty and violence. This disc contains no extras. Grade: C+

I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With (DVD)

I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With (2006) starring Jeff Garlin, Bonnie Hunt, Sarah Silverman, Amy Sedaris. Garlin, who plays Larry David's sidekick in HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm, stars as an overweight, middle-aged actor who lives with his mother. In one day, his girlfriend dumps him, his agent fires him, and he is fired from his job in the Second City comedy troupe. Various Second City veterans are featured in minor roles, and the whole production has the feel of a long episode of a TV show. Mildly amusing, but perfect in its own way. Grade: B-

Collection of 2007 Academy Award Nominated Short Films (DVD)

Collection of 2007 Academy Award Nominated Short Films (2007). This anthology features the nominees for the 80th Academy Awards Short Film category, including the live-action winner, "The Mozart of Pickpockets," and the animated winner, "Peter and the Wolf." In all, there are five live-action films and three animated films. The menu is varied, so you're likely to find something you like. It took me more than one evening to view the entire collection on this disc. Grade: B+

3:10 to Yuma (DVD)

3:10 to Yuma (2007) starring Christian Bale, Russell Crowe, Peter Fonda, Ben Foster, Logan Lerman, Gretchen Mol. Exciting horse-and-gun action with tense psychological subplot. Rancher Dan Evans (Bale) agrees to help transport captured outlaw Ben Wade (Crowe) to the nearest town with a train station, where they'll wait for the 3:10 to Yuma. Evans is trying to prove himself to his son, while Wade's motives are ambiguous. He wants to escape, but he seems to take a liking to the rancher. Meanwhile, Wade's gang is in pursuit. The action is impressively well filmed, but there are a few points in the plot where characters' decisions are a little tough to accept. For the most part, I enjoyed it. Grade: B

Charlie Wilson's War (DVD)

Charlie Wilson's War (2007) starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Emily Blunt. Set in the 1980s, Texas congressman Charlie Wilson (Hanks) conspires with a rogue CIA agent (Hoffman) to help the Afghan rebels defeat the Soviet Union. Roberts plays the wealthy, right-wing Texas socialite who motivates Wilson to take up the fight. Based on a true story, this movie is a little heavy on the dialog (the script is by Aaron Sorkin), but delivers enough thrills to be highly watchable. Grade: B+

Mafioso (DVD)

Mafioso (1962) starring Alberto Sordi. An Italian factory executive, living in Milan with his wife and two young daughters, decides to take a vacation back to his home in Sicily. While he's there, the mob decides to call in a favor, and he finds himself in the unlikely role of Mafia assassin. Tapped by a Sicilian don to perform a hit in New York, the inexperienced Antonio (Sordi) must somehow carry out his mission, but is not emotionally prepared to be a hit man. Walking the fine line between comedy and tragedy, this film succeeds as a darkly humorous look at a time in our history. From another angle, it's "The Godfather" seen through the other end of the telescope. My only complaint is that the ending seems a bit abrupt -- one of the few times I've criticized a film for being too short. Grade: A-

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (DVD)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) starring Mathieu Amalric. True story of Elle magazine editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who in 1995 suffered a stroke and was left with "locked-in" syndrome. The only part of his body he could move was his left eye. With the help of a dedicated secretary, he was able to "dictate" his autobiography by blinking his eye. The autobiography became a published book and now a movie. Although there is no happy ending, it's a tribute to the power of the imagination and the human spirit. Grade: B+

The Savages (DVD)

The Savages (2007) starring Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Philip Bosco. Two adult siblings, played by Linney and Hoffman, find themselves responsible for the care of their elderly father, who has dementia. The situation is complicated by the fact that, when the siblings were young, their father was abusive. At times savagely funny, this movie is enough to give one pause. What will you do when your own parents get old enough that they can't take care of themselves? What will happen to you when you get that old? Grade: B+

The Golden Compass (DVD)

The Golden Compass (2007) starring Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Dakota Blue Richards, Ben Walker, Ian McKellan (voice), Eva Green, Jim Carter, Sam Elliott, Freddie Highmore (voice). The first book of Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy is brought to the screen, albeit somewhat truncated. The fantasy world, a parallel universe where everyone's soul lives outside their body in the form of an animal "daemon," is brought to life effectively. It's an adventure in which young Lyra Belacqua (Richards) must journey to the North to save the children who have been taken away by the "Gobblers." She makes an alliance with an armored polar bear, and all kinds of magical things happen. Unfortunately, a lot of material from the book had to be left out so that the movie could have an acceptable running time. Still, it's a pretty good entertainment. Grade: B

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (DVD)

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney, Marisa Tomei. Two brothers (Hoffman and Hawke) hatch a scheme to rob their parents' jewelry store, and of course the robbery goes terribly wrong. The plot devolves from there, and what had started out as a macabre thriller turns into a death-fest. What should have been resolved by clever writing instead is solved with guns (and other implements). It's quite a letdown. Grade: B-