127 Hours, Love and Other Drugs, and Others on DVD This Week

Let the Oscar films begin to roll out! They might have lacked serious chemistry hosting the Oscars together, but James Franco and Anne Hathaway each offer one of their best performances separately onto DVD shelves today. Also, Christina Aguilera and Cher in Burlesque and Dwayne Johnson in Faster. I've seen the first two, but haven't gotten around to the last two yet. But, honestly, my hopes aren't high.


127 Hours wasn't an Oscar winner, but it should have been. Franco gives the performance of his career, and one of the best I've seen in years, as Aron Ralston - the modern adventurer who gets his arm caught underneath a boulder during a canyon exploration. His performance puts us right underneath that boulder with him, but Danny Boyle's loving direction lets us feel as the raven that passes overhead of Ralston every morning. It's a touching, inspirational, and divinely made film. For the full review, click here.

Danny Boyle brings his Slumdog Millionaire team back to the table, with a beautiful musical score by A R Rahman, a delicate and tense screenplay by Simon Beaufoy, and meticulous editing from Jon Harris.

The balance and urgency of that balance between living and dying have rarely felt more tangible in any film that I've seen - and I'm still amazed by how fluid and affable Boyle got the film to feel. It's about a man stuck under a rock, and it's one of the most free movie-going experiences of last year.

More after the cut --

Love and Other Oscar Hosts

"You know, there's a pill for that..."

The most comforting thing about Edward Zwick's first foray into the rom-com world is that we can be pretty sure he won't be doing it again. Love and Other Drugs was far from a success, and it's understandable why. Think back to... Autumn in New York. Or Sweet November. Or Stepmom. Or Love Story. You remember how banal those films were? This really isn't any better. That isn't to say that the film is without merit, or not at all enjoyable. It has merit, and it's a ridiculously easy watch. It's medicine that goes down smooth, but never gets to the symptoms. 

True Grit is a true hit.

The latest film from the Coen Brothers has passed the $100 million mark, specifically, the $110 million mark, and the success is just bound to keep growing. This is the first film for Joel and Ethan to pass this mark domestically, and it speaks very highly of where film might be headed over the next couple of years.

Our movie made how much?

Numbers like this make me a bit hopeful for the immediate future, as a filmgoer. We can see the impact, both financially and in popular culture, that Black Swan has made - here, below, is a recent Jim Carrey/Black Swan spoof -