DVDs - Confirm/Ignore

Hmm. Considering the title, one wonders if I've been spending TOO much time on Facebook of late. Probably have.

But I'm only a few sentences into the post and already I'm digressing. I had gotten away from doing DVD posts largely because I'd found them a bit of a chore. And last month was pretty dull for releases. However, I did want to alert you to/remind you of titles I think are worth checking out - or not.

Confirm

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans: The script never quite takes hold the way it should because the crime Nicolas Cage's titular lieutenant is investigating never really registers. Perhaps it's too much of a McGuffin that way. Still, it remains compulsively watchable, thanks to Cage's live-wire performance and director Werner Herzog's excellent atmospherics. GRADE: B

An Education: Find out why Carey Mulligan would have an Oscar if I were the only one voting. Full review: GRADE: A

It's Complicated: Pretty decent at male/female relationships. not as deft with fall-down comedy. Pretty typical Nancy Meyers, really. Entertaining, if not exceptional. Full review: GRADE: B

The Imaginarium of Doctor Paranassus: It's not QUITE a return to form for director Terry Gilliam; the sequences in the "real world" tend to fall flat. But when it goes into the imaginarium, and Gilliam lets rip with his visual flair, the movie is a feast for the eyes. Full review: GRADE: B

The Lovely Bones: Not the excellent film it could have been, but not the grave misfire some made it out to be *cough* Ebert * cough*. The tone is too inconsistent for the film to hold together very well, but Saoirse Ronan's haunting work in the lead, plus some imaginative direction, make it a fascinating mess. Full review: GRADE: B+

Ignore

Avatar: Some might be surprised to find this hear. After all, I did put it on my ten best list, and I'm really tired of all those glib Dances with Wolves/Ferngully put-downs. I still love the film - but I do not love movie-only discs. I'm waiting for the deluxe set. BTW, I was meaning to ask - how does this play in normal 2D? I never saw it that way.

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel: OK. this is a little unfair. I haven't actually seen this movie, but I'm still putting it here because I cannot stand that STUPID title!

Sherlock Holmes: It's a mystery fit for the great detective: A movie that's faintly entertaining, yet fairly forgettable at the same time. It was decent enough while I watched it, but it hardly stayed with me at all. Guy Ritchie's typical sensory overload couldn't mask the fact that neither the story nor the characters were particularly compelling. Full review: GRADE: C+