Susan Granger’s video/dvd update for week of Friday, June 19:
It’s unusual when a coffin is delivered with the wrong body inside and that’s just the beginning of “Death at a Funeral,” a droll, British farce set in a small, bucolic town in England. Matthew Macfadyen is handling all the arrangements for the burial of his father when his brother (Rupert Graves) realizes that a terrible mistake has been made. Adding to the confusion, there’s a mysterious mourner (Peter Dinklage) with a tawdry revelation about the deceased, along with compromising photos.
“Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail” is a silly, forgiveness-themed comedy revolving around African-Americans struggling to make ends meet, surrounded by good people with faith in God and each other.
Marcus Nispel’s remake of “Friday the 13th” is a gory, grisly return to Crystal Lake, where the cold-blooded carnage continues. Whitney Miller (Amanda Righetti from TV’s “The Mentalist”), who decapitated Mrs. Voorhees, has disappeared and her brother (Jared Padalecki from TV’s “Supernatural”) is searching for her, while predatory Jason in his signature hockey-mask continues prowling around, piling up corpses.
If you’re intrigued by the films of Ingmar Bergman, Marie Nyerod’s “Bergman’s Island” is an amazing documentary portrait of the reclusive filmmaker in his later years in seclusion on Faro Island in Sweden. And foreign film buffs should check out Doris Dorrie’s “Cherry Blossoms,” a tender, gentle tale about a German couple confronting each other’s death, one in prospect, the other in fact.
For kids, there’s “Thomas & Friends: Hop On Board Songs and Stories” and “Sing & Dance with Barney,” while “Shaun the Sheep: Sheep on the Loose” is farmyard fun for the whole family.
PICK OF THE WEEK: For wine aficionados, Randall Miller’s “Bottle Shock” uncorks the momentous occasion in 1976 when a small American winery won over the French cru in a blind tasting, putting California grapes on the gastronomic map. Participating in the caper, known as the “Judgment of Paris,” are Alan Rickman, Dennis Farina, Bill Pullman, Chris Pine, Freddy Rodriguez and Rachael Taylor.