Susan Granger’s DVD Update for week of Fri., Nov. 16:
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Parts 1 & 2, Ultimate Edition” is filled with more than six hours of special features and collectibles, including a 48-page photo booklet featuring rare cast/crew photos, concluding J.K. Rowling’s popular cinematic franchise.
Boasting a supporting cast that includes Christopher Walken and Mia Farrow, Todd Solondz’s “Dark Horse” revolves around a pathetic 36 year-old underachiever (Jordan Gelber) who falls for a profoundly depressed woman (Selma Blair) and proposes on their first date.
Jude law, Anthony Hopkins, Rachel Weisz and Ben Foster star in “360,” a jigsaw-puzzle drama about people whose relationships are fragmented or falling apart, and the title refers to coming full-circle.
Narrated by Werner Herzog, “Dinotasia” blends classic visual storytelling with CGI dinosaurs in an anthology of prehistoric tales, randomly recalling bizarre, graphic novel-style film vignettes.
In Bryan Malone’s documentary “Celebrity Trials in the Media,” the Kobe Bryant rape trial and Michael Jackson’s child molestation trial are examined in regard to ethical dilemmas in the big business of news coverage.
“Paradise Lost Trilogy” is the true story of the most notorious murder case in Arkansas history, including intimate portraits of grief-stricken families in this strange, uniquely American drama.
As for Ben Stiller’s ill-conceived, incoherent comedy called “The Watch” – it’s unwatchable.
Insofar as foreign films: Class privilege and sexual politics are inextricably linked in “Trishna,” Michael Winterbottom’s loosely-updated version of Thomas Hardy’s “Tess of the D’Urbervilles” in English, Hindi and Marwari, with English subtitles. In Japanese with English subtitles, the charming “I Wish” finds pre-teen brothers’ trying to connect their family after a divorce.
Those meddling kids and their lovable dog are back in “Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, Season 2, Part 1.” And for pre-schoolers, there’s “Fireman Sam: Holiday Heroes” and “Thomas & Friends: A Very Thomas Christmas.”
PICKS OF THE WEEK: For family viewing, Disney/Pixar’s sweet, spirited “Brave” introduces a spunky teenage princess named Merida in medieval Scotland. For adult viewing, the socially relevant documentary “The Queen of Versailles” reveals the financial challenges of an extravagant billionaire family in Florida in the wake of the economic crisis.