DVD review - a round-up of the latest DVD releases
?New to rent on DVD/Blu-ray:
Rango (Cert PG, 103 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Animation/ Western/ Comedy/ Action, also available to buy DVD £19.99/Blu-ray & Combi-pack £27.99)
Featuring the voices of: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Ray Winstone, Bill Nighy, Timothy Olyphant, Alfred Molina.
A lonely chameleon (voiced by Johnny Depp) is stranded in the Mojave Desert, where he meets a desert iguana called Beans (Isla Fisher). She takes him to the town of Dirt, ruled by the Mayor (Ned Beatty) and his henchman Bad Bill (Ray Winstone), which is on the brink of collapse because the water supply is running dangerously low. Wandering into the saloon, the chameleon rechristens himself Rango and pretends to be a famous gunslinger. The townsfolk are thrilled to have found themselves a hero and Rango becomes town sheriff, protecting the locals from predators such as Rattlesnake Jake (Bill Nighy). Rango is a rootin' tootin' computer-animated adventure peppered with earthy one-liners ("I'm going to strip away this mystery and expose its private parts!") that should have parents and teenagers chuckling. However, director Gore Verbinski doesn't cater for young viewers. There's no slapstick, almost no cuddly critters and the tone is dark, such as the image of several varmints with nooses around their necks, preparing to fall from the gallows. Depp plies his usual verbal schtick as the insecure lizard with theatrical ambitions and co-stars deliver lively vocal performances, including Winstone as the hard man who promises one terrified victim, "If I see you in this town again, I'm going to slice off your face and use it to wipe my unmentionables." Animation is immaculate, right down to tiny details such as the way the characters' fur moves in the desert wind or the glint of tears in their eyes.
Rating: ****
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never (Cert U, 101 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Documentary/ Musical, also available to buy DVD £15.99/Blu-ray & Combi-pack £27.99)
Starring: Justin Bieber, Pattie Mallette, Scooter Braun, Boyz II Men, Miley Cyrus, Usher, Sean Kingston, Jaden Smith.
In the space of two years, 16-year-old Justin Bieber has become pop music's cutest and brightest young thing, inspiring the kind of ear drum-perforating hysteria that greeted The Beatles and Take That in their heyday. Caught in the eye of a storm, admittedly of his own making, the teenage singer-songwriter welcomes fans into his crazy world in this life-affirming behind-the-scenes documentary, culminating in his first concert at the iconic Madison Square Gardens in New York. If you believe Jon Chu's film, the singer is well protected from the media glare by a team of people which resembles one big, happy family. So you have a tour bus crammed with bodyguard Kenny Hamilton, who doesn't leave Justin's side, vocal coach Jan Smith, stylist Ryan Good, tour general manager Allison Kaye and manager Scooter, who gets all misty-eyed when he says to the camera: "To think, the 12-year-old kid I found on YouTube is going to be at the Garden..." The boy's father appears briefly but the film glosses over the breakdown of the relationship with Justin's mother Pattie Mallette, who has raised him single-handedly since she was 18. Chu structures his film as a diary of the 10 days leading up to the New York concert, during which time Justin's vocal chords become inflamed, providing a modicum of dramatic tension. Concert footage attests to Bieber's ability to sing live including U Smile with backing from Boyz II Men, a duet of Overboard with Miley Cyrus, a remix of Somebody To Love featuring Usher and the infuriatingly catchy Baby.
Rating: ***
The Lincoln Lawyer (Cert 15, 113 mins, Entertainment In Video, Thriller/Drama, also available to buy DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £24.99)
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Ryan Phillippe, William H Macy, Josh Lucas, Marisa Tomei, John Leguizamo, Michael Pena, Laurence Mason, Bob Gunton.
Mick Haller (Matthew McConaughey) conducts legal business from the back of a Lincoln Continental sedan driven by former client, Earl (Laurence Mason). The defence attorney is used to representing the dregs of society and he hits the jackpot when bail bondsman Val Valenzuela (John Leguizamo) recommends him as counsel for playboy Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe), who has been accused of assault and attempted murder. Louis vigorously maintains his innocence and Haller and private detective Frank Levin (William H Macy) sift through the flimsy evidence. Haller prepares for a war of words with prosecutor Ted Minton (Josh Lucas) while Louis's mother Mary (Frances Fisher), family lawyer Cecil Dobbs (Bob Gunton) and Mick's ex-wife Maggie (Marisa Tomei) watch from the gallery. Adapted from the novel by Michael Connelly, The Lincoln Lawyer is a solid courtroom thriller that comfortably holds out attention for two hours as Haller realises he will need more than his usual wheeler-dealer tricks to ensure justice is served. McConaughey has the right amount of oily charm in the lead role, catalysing smouldering screen chemistry with Tomei in a breathless sex scene. Macy is a pleasantly quirky sidekick and Phillippe is a snug fit for a man of privilege, used to getting his own way. John Romano's script is tautly paced and peppered with sparkling one-liners ("You got more balls than a Chinese ping pong tournament!") He slowly cranks up the tension by following the characters through every step of the flawed legal process and while there are certainly twists, none stray too far from the film's rigorous logic.
Rating: ***
The Eagle (Cert 12, 109 mins, Universal Pictures (UK) Ltd, Action/Drama, also available to buy DVD £19.99/Blu-ray £24.99)
Starring: Channing Tatum, Jamie Bell, Donald Sutherland, Tahar Rahim, Mark Strong, Denis O'Hare.
In 120 AD, the entire Ninth Legion disappears without trace in Scotland and its standard, a golden eagle, is lost forever to the eternal shame of Rome. The commander of those soldiers also vanishes and 20 years later, his son, Marcus Aquila (Channing Tatum), accepts a posting in Roman-occupied southern Britain to learn the truth about his father's demise. The young soldier is badly injured protecting his men and he recuperates with his uncle (Donald Sutherland) and slave boy Esca (Jamie Bell), whom Aquila saves from certain death in the gladiator's ring. Once he has regained his strength, Aquila heads north in search of answers accompanied by Esca, a member of the tribe of savages responsible for slaying the Ninth. The Eagle is a swords and togas epic, based on the novel The Eagle Of The Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff. Set in the wilds of 140 AD England and Scotland but partly filmed in Hungary, Kevin Macdonald's film hinges on the rapport between the leads and Tatum is impressive, bringing a brooding physicality and emotional vulnerability to his role. Bell pales by comparison but gets his moment to shine in a touching scene, when Esca defies the orders of Aquila and refuses to leave the badly wounded Roman to his untimely fate. Supporting cast cope well with the rigours of Jeremy Brock's screenplay that includes some bone-crunching battle sequences. Blood and mud spatter the camera lens as swords clash and sinews ripple, at least one soldier losing a limb as horse-drawn carriages scythe through Roman defences. War is hell.
Rating: ***
Also released:
Oranges And Sunshine (Cert 15, 100 mins, Icon Home Entertainment, Drama, also available to buy DVD £17.99 - see below)
New to buy on DVD/Blu-ray:
CSI: Miami - Complete Season 08 (Cert 15, 1032 mins, Momentum Pictures Home Entertainment, DVD £49.99, Thriller/Action)
Lieutenant Horatio Caine (David Caruso) recalls the day he brought together the team at the Miami-Dade Crime Lab in the opening to the gripping eighth series of the popular CSI spin-off. A cliffhanger ending from the previous series is resolved as Horatio, Calleigh Duquesne (Emily Procter) and the rest of the squad feverishly continue their search for valued colleague Eric Delko (Adam Rodriguez). Medical examiner Alexx Woods (Khandi Alexander) returns to help solve one tricky case later in the series and a diabolical serial killer taunts Horatio with cryptic clues. The six-disc box set includes all 24 episodes.
Oranges And Sunshine (Cert 15, 100 mins, Icon Home Entertainment, DVD £17.99, Drama)
One woman can make a difference, as social worker Margaret Humphreys proved when she almost single-handedly uncovered one of the most shocking episodes about children in care in recent memory. In late 1980s Nottingham, Margaret (Emily Watson) devotes herself to ensuring that families within her catchment are given the best possible care, while juggling her responsibilities as a wife and mother with her husband Merv (Richard Dillane). By chance, Margaret uncovers evidence of the organised deportation of children in care from the United Kingdom to Australia, tearing apart families for decades. Having reunited one woman, Nicky (Lorraine Ashbourne), with her brother Jack (Hugo Weaving) in Australia, Margaret sets out to salve the emotional wounds of dozens of other families, regardless of the threat to her own safety as she dares to challenge the authorities who covered up the mass relocation.
Medium - The Sixth Season (Cert 15, 924 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, DVD £34.99, Drama/Thriller)
Having been diagnosed with a brain tumour and suffered a stroke at the end of season five, Allison DuBois (Patricia Arquette) regains consciousness and her psychic abilities, but there is trouble in store for her family in the penultimate series of the award-winning drama based on the real-life experiences of a medium who works with the police to solve crimes. Her daughter Ariel (Sofia Vassilieva) exhibits strange behaviour and her husband Joe (Jake Weber) struggles to cope. Meanwhile, Allison continues to channel her disturbing visions to aid District Attorney Manuel Devalos (Miguel Sandoval) and Detective Lee Scanlon (David Cubitt). The five-disc box set includes all 22 episodes, culminating in the nerve-racking finale It's A Wonderful Death.
Love Like Poison (Un Poison Violent) (Cert 15, 82 mins, Artificial Eye, DVD £15.99, Drama)
Katell Quillevere directs this coming-of-age story set in a close-knit Breton village, where it is difficult to keep your personal affairs secret from your neighbours. Fourteen-year-old Anna (Clara Augarde) returns home from a Catholic boarding school to discover that her father has left home and her mother (Lio) is an emotional wreck. While her distraught mama seeks comfort in the Church, young Anna prepares for her confirmation and finds her salvation in the words of her grandfather Jean (Michel Galabru). A local boy called Pierre (Youen Leboulanger-Gourvil), who has little time for God in his freewheeling life, proves a catalyst for Anna's sexual awakening and the teenager must wrestle with a maelstrom of emotions as she takes the first tentative steps towards womanhood.
Yu-Gi-Oh!: Bonds Beyond Time (Cert PG, 50 mins, Manga Entertainment Ltd, DVD £9.99/Blu-ray £14.99, Animation)
The world is on the brink of collapse and a masked menace called Paradox believes that the only way to save civilisation from extinction is to destroy the Duel Monsters card game. So Paradox travels through space and time, destroying the cards from the game one at a time. Fierce rivals Yusei Fudo, Judai Yuki and Yugi Muto put their differences to one side to stop Paradox and save the game they love in this feature-length animation directed by Kenichi Takeshita. The Blu-ray includes the 3D version of the film and both formats are packaged with a Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card.
Chalo Dilli (Cert PG, 111 mins, Eros International, DVD £14.99, Comedy)
Mihika Banerjea (Lara Dutt) is the senior vice president of a multinational investment bank with ambitions to climb even higher up the corporate ladder. She is talented and driven, and never compromises to get what she wants out of life. En route to Delhi for an important conference, Mihika makes a pit-stop to see her husband and subsequently misses her flight. She is forced to take a budget airline only for a technical glitch to strand her at Jaipur airport, seemingly with no way to reach the conference in time. By chance, Mihika crosses paths with boisterous ladies dress seller Manu Gupta (Vinay Pathak), who is street smart but sometimes allows his enthusiasm to get the better of him. Sure enough, Manu lands himself and Mihika in deep trouble and the unlikely travelling companions embark on a journey of self-discovery full of laughter and excitement that neither of them will ever forget.
16 Wishes (Cert U, 88 mins, OMG, DVD £12.99, Comedy/Romance)
Feisty teenager Abby Jensen (Debby Ryan) is looking forward to her 16th birthday. When the special day arrives, she is delighted to receive 16 magical candles from a mysterious stranger (Anna Mae Routledge), each of which will grant her a wish. Abby tests the veracity of her birthday present and is lavished with a flashy sports car, fashionable clothes and a coterie of new friends who want to be part of her glamorous inner circle. However, wishes have repercussions and one foolish wish turns Abby's life on its head. With only one candle left and time of the essence, Abby joins forces with best friend Jay (Jean-Luc Bilodeau) to put everything back in order.
The Violent Kind (Cert 18, 85 mins, Metrodome Distribution Ltd, DVD £15.99, Horror/Thriller)
The Butcher Brothers write and direct this bloodthirsty horror, centred on biker gang leader Cody (Cory Knauf), who heads to a secluded California farmhouse in the woods for a birthday party he will never forget in the company of his cousin Q (Bret Roberts) and friend Elroy (Nick Tagas). With festivities in full swing, Cody's ex-girlfriend Michelle (Tiffany Shepis) is brutally attacked by a demon, which possesses her soul. As chaos spreads, a gang of depraved figures emerges from the night, determined to reclaim the darkness living within Michelle's body.
Lies And Illusions (Cert 15, 88 mins, Lionsgate Home Entertainment UK Ltd, DVD £15.99, Comedy/Thriller)
Tibor Takacs directs this comedy thriller about a man of words plunged unexpectedly into a thrilling world of espionage and intrigue. Self-help guru Wes Wilson (Christian Slater) is blessed with a job and a fiancee, Samantha (Sarah Ann Schultz), he adores. When Samantha is murdered, Wes's previously idyllic life is shattered, not least when he discovers that his fiancee was leading a double life. Jewel smuggler Isaac Kahn (Cuba Gooding Jr) gatecrashes Wes's grief and the self-help guru must learn the sobering truth about his beloved Samantha and a horde of stolen diamonds apparently in her possession.
Middle Men (Cert 18, 107 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, DVD £15.99/Blu-ray £19.99, Comedy/Drama)
George Gallo's comedy unfolds in the early 1990s when the success of the internet spawned lucrative new businesses. Financial operator Jack Harris (Luke Wilson) enjoys a comfortable life in the suburbs with his wife Diana (Jacinda Barrett) and their two children. Ruthless lawyer Jerry Haggerty (James Caan) introduces two of his clients, Wayne Beering (Giovanni Ribisi) and Buck Dolby (Gabriel Macht), to Jack. The men have an exciting business proposition: an adult website that charges visitors to access its salacious, x-rated contents. In no time at all, the website is making millions and Jack savours his cut of the profits, but behind the money lurk dangerous men including Russian gangsters and the FBI agents determined to put these high rollers behind bars.
Scream Of The Banshee (Cert 15, 86 mins, G2 Pictures, DVD £15.99, Horror/Thriller)
Lauren Holly headlines this straight-to-DVD horror directed by Stephen C Miller about a mythical woman with the power to kill men with her blood-curdling scream. Archaeology professor Isla Whelan (Holly) and her students are searching for artefacts in the basement of the university when they stumble upon a concealed box. Deciding to open the container, Isla and her proteges unwittingly unleash the Banshee (Kim Ormiston), which kills with the ferocity of her voice. In order to survive the ear-splitting onslaught, Professor Whelan must coax the Banshee back into her box.
The Two Ronnies - Series Eleven (Cert 12, 250 mins, BBC DVD, DVD £15.99, Comedy)
Elaine Paige makes regular appearances as guest singer in these five hilarious episodes of the fast-paced comedy show hosted by Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. This series includes the classic sketch The Sheik In The Grocery Store, the musical number Plop Of The Flops and the homage Tinker Tailor Smiley Doyle alongside the usual news items and Corbett's rambling monologues.
Went the Day Well? (Cert PG, 88 mins, Optimum Home Entertainment, DVD £15.99/Blu-ray £19.99, War/Drama/Thriller)
A welcome reissue of Alberto Cavalcanti's 1942 wartime information film that warned the people of Britain to be wary of strangers infiltrating their areas. In the countryside idyll of Bramley End, villagers are thrilled to help newly arrived Major Ortler (Basil Sydney) and his men to settle in and arrange billets in the sleepy community. Oliver Wilsford (Leslie Banks) and his neighbours help with the military exercises in any way that they can, unaware that they have been infiltrated by German troops, who intend to disrupt the Allied operation from within.
Fifi and the Flowertots: Twinkle Time Bumper! (Cert U, 130 mins, BBC DVD, DVD £7.14, Children)
Fifi Forget-Me-Not (voiced by Jane Horrocks) and her chums Bumble, Primrose and Violet keep a close eye on mischievous Stingo and Slugsy before making delicious ice cream and practising for a magic show in 13 episodes of the popular animated series, aimed at pre-school girls. The DVD includes Flowertot Fairies, Dandelions, Come & Play Slugsy, Bumbles Magic, Naughty Twins, Shadows, Buttercup Bad Wolf, When The Sky Cried, Violet's Song, Poppy's Ice Cream Show, Painting Practice, Hide & Squeak and Twinkle Twinkle.
Dora The Explorer: Singing Sensation (Cert U, 35 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, DVD £12.99, Children/Animation)
The animated heroine (voiced by Kathleen Herles) and her monkey pal Boots (Harrison Chad) entertain pre-school viewers with a selection of songs combining English with occasional words in Spanish. A special edition of the DVD is packaged with a giant inflatable microphone.
