Right Cinema

There’s quite a selection of new DVD releases this week. Another Oscar contender is making the transition from silver screen to small screen, as well as a few other movies that look interesting. Here are your DVD releases for April 15, 2008. At least there’s something to take your mind off the fact that it’s tax day.

Juno

Juno

Everyone remembers “Juno” from Oscar season, and if you missed it, here’s your chance. A clever comedy about love and hope in the world of high school, which sometimes isn’t so lovely or hopeful, “Juno” tells the story of a pregnant teen dealing with her newfound situation. Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jason Bateman, and Jennifer Garner star in this instant classic which also features music by the Moldy Peaches (a great band). Set your Netflix queue people, because I’ve only met one person who didn’t like this movie, and those are pretty good odds.

Lars and the Real Girl

Oh, Ryan Gosling, where have you been all my life. He is an amazing actor who can go from playing a self-loathing Jewish teen (”The Believer”) to a drug-addicted basketball coach (”Half Nelson”). Now he’s a boy who is struggling with some personal issues, and he copes by dating a blow-up doll named Bianca, who he met “on the internet”. When the his therapist convinces everyone to just go along with the charade, it makes for an interesting movie. And this is the only movie I’ve ever seen that didn’t have a bad review on Rotten Tomatoes.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead

When two brothers find themselves strapped for cash, they come up with a plan to solve their problems. Unfortunately, the jewelry store they target is their parents’, and the whole thing goes horribly wrong. Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, and Marissa Tomei star in this dramatic thriller that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. The New York Times calls it “a chronicle of destruction … [without] a single decent human being in the whole movie.” And even though that’s the case, the reviewer loved it.

Also releasing this week on DVD is “Alien vs. Predator”, which I feel no need to tell you about it. Because if you don’t know what it’s about, then you shouldn’t be seeing it anyway.

See the trailers for the movies below.