Library

Languages: English, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English

Sound: Dolby

Summary: In paying simple tribute to firefighters, "Ladder 49" gets to the heart of those who risk their lives for a living. Director Jay Russell brought similar sincerity to his memorable family favorite "My Dog Skip", and despite the banalities of an ultra-conventional screenplay by Lewis Colick, "Ladder 49" generates so much goodwill toward its Baltimore firemen that you may find yourself unexpectedly overcome with emotional appreciation for guys like Jack (Joaquin Phoenix), a firefighter whose career, courtship, marriage, and fatherhood are viewed in flashback as he struggles to survive in the present-day framing scenes, cut off from his fellow firemen in the fiery guts of a collapsing 20-floor building. There are no surprises in the familiar scenes of male bonding, dangerous rescues, injury and death, and the supportive concern of Jack's wife (Jacinda Barrett), but by focusing on the simple integrity of Jack's personal and professional commitment, the movie gives Phoenix a showcase for unselfish virtue, while John Travolta provides dignified support as Jack's mentor and devoted firehouse captain. "Ladder 49" is routine in most respects, but it's a much-deserved valentine to working-class heroes. "--Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: Or, if you prefer, "I See Wet People". M. Night Shyamalan's attempt at a newfangled mythology--about a depressed apartment superintendent (Paul Giamatti) who discovers a sea-nymph (Bryce Dallas Howard) who may hold the key to humanity's hopeful future--is intriguing enough to capture the imaginations of children and adults who haven't lost sight of their innocent sense of wonder. Cynics, on the other hand, will likely scoff at Shyamalan's awkward fantasy, which includes one victim--a film critic--widely interpreted as Shyamalan's revenge against reviewers who panned "The Village". Shyamalan originally improvised this melancholy fantasy as a bedtime story for his children; unfortunately, it still feels mostly half-baked and ultimately ineffective due to a number of plot holes and inconsistencies that a writer as talented as Shyamalan should've been able to avoid. For those wishing to learn more about the film's troubled history, and Shyamalan's petulant split from Disney studios, "The Man Who Heard Voices: Or, How M. Night Shyamalan Risked His Career on a Fairy Tale" is an interesting read. "--Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock pair up again in what could be described as the anti-"Speed": "The Lake House", a sweet, relaxed-paced, whimsical romance. When Alex Wyler (Reeves, "The Matrix") moves into an unusual glass house on stilts over a lake, he discovers a note from the previous tenant in the mailbox--but no one's lived in the house for years. He replies and soon discovers that he's corresponding with a doctor named Kate Forster (Bullock, "Miss Congeniality") who's writing from two years in the future. Their correspondence turns romantic and their paths cross in unexpected ways, but when they try to truly connect, danger looms. Though the plot of "The Lake House" sounds potentially static, the movie is skillfully structured and, despite some truly awful dialogue, will exert an emotional pull on anyone willing to embrace the device of the time-travelling mailbox. What the movie really demonstrates, though, is the genuine rapport between Bullock and Reeves; Reeves, though handsome, has a wooden presence--but in his few scenes with Bullock, his stiffness transforms into a palpable yearning. On-screen chemistry is slippery and hard to define, but these two have it. "--Bret Fetzer"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: Dolby

Summary: Like the video game series it's based on, "Tomb Raider" is best enjoyed for its physical strategies, since even casual scrutiny of story details will induce a headache. It's more concerned with puzzles than plot, populated with characters that don't have personalities so much as attitudes. It's silly and somber at the same time, but as a franchise vehicle for Angelina Jolie in the title role of relic hunter Lara Croft, this is packaged entertainment at its most agreeable, ambitious in scope and scale, and filled with the kind of globetrotting adventure that could make Jolie the best thing that's happened to action movies since Indiana Jones. "Could" being the operative word here, because "Tomb Raider" can't match any of Steven Spielberg's celebrated joyrides, but the ingredients are there for an exquisitely cinematic meal.
Perhaps to distance himself from Lara Croft's video game origins, director Simon West takes things a bit too seriously; "Tomb Raider" handles its plot (involving a planetary alignment, the nefarious Illuminati, and coveted relics that hold the key to controlling the flow of time) with all the gravity of a championship chess match... minus the tension. If the movie had lightened up and been truly suspenseful (instead of being suffused with been-there, done-that familiarity), it would have been an instant popcorn classic. As it is, however, this is an elegantly mounted adventure featuring exotic locations (in Cambodia and Iceland) and an exotic star born for her role. Even without her padded bra, Jolie would be the living embodiment of Lara Croft, and that's enough to bode well for inevitable sequels. "--Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English, French, Spanish

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: While Japan undergoes tumultuous transition to a more Westernized society in 1876-77, "The Last Samurai" gives epic sweep to an intimate story of cultures at a crossroads. In America, tormented Civil War veteran Capt. Nathan Algren (Tom Cruise) is coerced by a mercenary officer (Tony Goldwyn) to train the Japanese Emperor's troops in the use of modern weaponry. Opposing this "progress" is a rebellion of samurai warriors, holding fast to their traditions of honor despite strategic disadvantage. As a captive of the samurai leader (Ken Watanabe), Algren learns, appreciates, and adopts the samurai code, switching sides for a climactic battle that will put everyone's honor to the ultimate test. All of which makes director Edward Zwick's noble epic eminently worthwhile, even if its Hollywood trappings (including an all-too-conventional ending) prevent it from being the masterpiece that Zwick and screenwriter John Logan clearly wanted it to be. Instead, "The Last Samurai" is an elegant mainstream adventure, impressive in all aspects of its production. It may not engage the emotions as effectively as Logan's script for "Gladiator", but like Cruise's character, it finds its own quality of honor. "--Jeff Shannon"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Comments: In Concert And Beyond

Summary: The line forms here for the world?s greatest and possibly most influential band ? Led Zeppelin! With Dazed and Confused Stairway to Heaven Whole Lotta Love and more signature performances this mesmerizing movie built around Zep?s famed ?73 NYC concerts is convincing proof why. Band members supervised the Re-mastering and Dolby 5.1 Re-mixing of the film?s image and sound. In addition to their performances fantasy sequences and at-home glimpses of Jimmy Page Robert Plant John Paul Jones and the late John Bonham this 2-disc Special Edition has over 40 minutes of newly-added extra features including: Two (2) never-before-released songs in rare performance footage: Celebration and Over the Hills and Far Away; Vintage TV Footage: Drake Hotel Robbery during the New York Concert Stand; Robert Plant BBC Interview and Tampa Concert Band Arrival. Also available in Hi-Def and Blu Ray!Running Time: 138 min.Format: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: MUSIC DVD/CONCERTS UPC: 883929010776 Manufacturer No: 1000037221

Languages: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese

Subtitles: Chinese, English, French, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: The Zorro brand of hot-blooded derring-do returns with "The Legend of Zorro", starring Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones in the roles that brought them stardom with "The Mask of Zorro". Now married for ten years and parents to young rascal Joaquim (charming Adrian Alonso, perhaps being set up for a future "Son of Zorro"), dashing swordsman Alejandro (Banderas, a Spaniard playing a Mexican) and sultry spitfire Elena De La Vega (Zeta-Jones, a Welshwoman playing a Spaniard) abruptly divorce, sending Alejandro on a drunken binge--which only gets worse when he learns Elena is being wooed by the mysterious Armand (Rufus Sewell, a Brit playing a Frenchman). Little does Alejandro know that Elena has ulterior motives, and that a worldwide conspiracy and a secret weapon will soon threaten the integrity of the U.S. "The Legend of Zorro" has way too much plot, leaving room for only two genuinely preposterous donnybrooks and a handful of lackluster brawls. Banderas and Zeta-Jones flash a bit of their considerable charisma, but by and large they (and the movie as a whole) are on autopilot. Not awful, but lacking any real spark. "--Bret Fetzer"

Languages: English, French

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: Mel Gibson set aside his art-house credentials to star as a crazy cop paired with a stable one (Danny Glover) in this full-blown 1987 Richard Donner action picture. The most violent film in the series (which includes three sequels), it is also the edgiest and most interesting. After Gibson's character jumps off a building handcuffed to a man, and Gary Busey (as a cold, efficient enforcer) lets his hand get burned without flinching, there is a sense that anything can happen, and it usually does. Donner's strangely messy visual and audio style doesn't make a lot of aesthetic sense, but it stuck with all four movies. The DVD release includes production notes, Dolby sound, theatrical trailer, optional full-screen and widescreen presentations, optional French soundtrack, and optional English, French, and Spanish subtitles. "--Tom Keogh"

Languages: Afrikaans, English, French

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Summary: The series formula started to kick in with this immediate sequel to "Lethal Weapon", but that doesn't necessarily make it a weak movie. Joe Pesci joins the fold, Richard Donner directs again, and Mel Gibson and Danny Glover return as LAPD partners, their relationship smoother now that Gibson's character has recovered from his maddening grief over his wife's death. But the reckless Mel and cautious Danny equation, good for a million laughs, settles into place in this story involving a South African smuggler and a new girlfriend (Patsy Kensit) for Gibson. The movie is hardly comfy, though. The last act gets nasty, and a climactic fight between Gibson (who gets the worst of it) and some high-kicking villain is ugly. "--Tom Keogh"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English

Sound: Mono

Comments: Roger Moo7re is James Bond

Summary: Several British agents have been murdered and James Bond is sent to New York, to investigate these mysterious deaths. Mr. Big comes to his knowledge, who is self-producing heroin. Along his journeys he meets Tee Hee who has a claw for a hand, Baron Samedi the voodoo master and Solitaire and her tarot cards. Bond must travel deep inside New York, through marshy grass and on water as he completes his mission.

Languages: English, French, German, Spanish

Subtitles: English, Spanish

Sound: AC-3

Comments: 42 STARS IN THE LONGEST DAY

Summary: After seeing "Saving Private Ryan", this epic tale about the Normandy invasion will look sanitized. But in its re-creation of events leading to the epochal battle, the film is captivating and grand, and the parade of famous actors who cross the screen naturally give the already charged action even more of a boost. Three directors worked on it: Ken Annakin ("Battle of the Bulge"), Andrew Marton ("Crack in the World"), and Bernhard Wicki (this film being his only credit). "--Tom Keogh"

Languages: English

Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Sound: Dolby

Summary: This 1987 thriller was a predictable hit with the teen audience it worked overtime to attract. Like most of director Joel Schumacher's films, it's conspicuously designed to push the right marketing and demographic buttons, and granted, there's some pretty cool stuff going on here and there. Take Kiefer Sutherland, for instance. In "Stand by Me" he played a memorable bully, but here he goes one step further as a memorable bully "vampire" who leads a tribe of teenage vampires on their nocturnal spree of bloodsucking havoc. Jason Patric plays the new guy in town, who quickly attracts a lovely girlfriend (Jami Gertz), only to find that she might be recruiting him into the vampire fold. The movie gets sillier as it goes along, and resorts to a routine action-movie showdown, but it's a visual knockout (featuring great cinematography by Michael Chapman) and boasts a cast that's eminently able (pardon the pun) to sink their teeth into the best parts of an uneven screenplay. "--Jeff Shannon"