Login

Gallup Sun

Friday, Mar 29th

Last update12:57:39 AM GMT

You are here: Home

DVD/Blu-ray Roundup for May 8, 2015

E-mail Print PDF

Hello and welcome to another edition detailing all the highlights coming your way on DVD and Blu-ray. There are loads of flicks that arrived on Tuesday in a variety of genres. So if you can't make it out to the movies this week, be sure and give one of these titles a try!

 

Big New Releases!

Black or White - In this drama, a grandfather takes control over the care of his granddaughter and then gets into a legal tussle with the child’s paternal mother. As the case hits the courtroom, the family members confront issues of race and understanding as they try to reach an amicable settlement. Critics didn’t care for the film, suggesting that while its heart was in the right place, it lacked subtlety and came across as heavy-handed. The cast includes Kevin Costner, Octavia Spencer, Jillian Estell, Bill Burr, Anthony Mackie, Gillian Jacobs and Jennifer Ehle.

Fifty Shades of Grey - The bestselling novel gets a big screen adaptation in this unique romance-of-sorts between a virginal college student and a wealthy S&M enthusiast. Whips, chains and paddles end up getting a workout. The press made the flick its whipping post, calling it a safe and tame take on the story with preposterous dialogue and so little in the way of traditional plotting that it barely qualified as a narrative. Still, the flick made a ton of money. The cast includes Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Jennifer Ehle, Luke Grimes and Marcia Gay Harden.

Lost River - Ryan Gosling makes his directorial debut in this independent thriller that has been described as a "dark fairy tale." A mother struggling to keep her family together must face a sinister force in a strange underworld. The press were miffed by this effort and gave it mixed reviews. Some called it a visually impressive effort harkening to the works of director David Lynch and Nicolas Winding Refn, while others found it too arty and unusual to connect with. The cast includes Anna Kendrick, Iain De Caestecker, Saoirse Ronan and Eva Mendes.

The Pyramid - A group of archeologists discover a long lost pyramid in this horror title. When they enter the ancient ruin, they find themselves trapped and under attack by a mysterious force. It's a found-footage effort, so they also decide to record everything while they're being killed off. The movie was widely panned upon its theatrical release, with almost all calling it dimly-lit, hard to follow and not nearly as scary as it thinks it is. Now horror fans can decide for themselves. It features Ashley Hinshaw and James Buckley.

Selma - Here's another biopic that garnered numerous Oscar nominations (including Best Picture) upon its release. It tells the tale of Dr. Martin Luther King's civil rights marches from Selma to Montgomery. David Oyelowo plays King with a cast that also includes Carmen Ejogo, Oprah Winfrey, Common, Cuba Gooding Jr., Tom Wilkinson and Giovanni Ribisi. The movie garnered rave reviews, with the press singling out Oyelowo's performance as King and calling it an important and powerful movie.

The Cobbler - There was a lot of buzz for this effort when it was originally announced. The comic fantasy teams critically acclaimed arthouse director Tom McCarthy (Win Win, The Visitor, The Station Agent) with Adam Sandler as the title character, a man who given the magical gift of being able to assume the lives of his customers (and walk a mile in their shoes, presumably). Unfortunately, reaction was extremely poor at festival screenings and it only garnered a very limited theatrical run - now it's arriving on Redbox a week before its official DVD/Blu-ray release. The reviewers who managed to get a look called it ill-conceived despite the best of intentions. Reportedly, it combines slapstick humor with loftier themes and fails on both fronts. It features Dan Stevens, Dustin Hoffman, Ellen Barkin, Method Man and Steve Buscemi, so it may be worth a look for the cast alone.

You Know, For Kids!

Here's what is being made available for younger viewers:

Baby Genius: Favorite Children's Songs

The Pink Panther: Fan Favorites Cartoon Colleciton

Pokemon: Adventures in the Orange Islands - The Complete Collection

Scooby-Doo! 13 Spooky Tales: Surf's Up Scooby-Doo!

Sesame Street - Elmo: The Musical 2

Glenn Kay writes for the entertainment website www.cinemastance.com. Go check it out!