Susan Granger’s dvd update for week of Friday, March 12:
“2012” draws on every cataclysmic disaster movie you’ve ever seen, as an Everyman hero (John Curtis) and conscientious government scientist (Chiwetel Ejiofor) struggle to ensure humanity’s survival now that the Earth’s core temperature is rising. If you ignore the generic gobbledygook of geology and physics, the CGI effects are spectacular.
Set in a staid, central Connecticut retirement community, “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” stars Robin Wright Penn as a 50 year-old housewife whose continual sublimation of her own needs leads to a subtle nervous breakdown and flagrant affair with her neighbor’s son (Keanu Reeves).
Michael Moore’s “Capitalism: A Love Story” delivers an indictment of our country’s financial system, emphasizing the human cost of our current economic crisis. Do I agree with Moore’s conclusions? No. But this provocative docu-drama does make you think.
From 68 year-old Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki comes “Ponyo,” loosely inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid; it’s a fantastical, sweet-natured charmer about a willful, mischievous goldfish that’s bound to delight children and adults alike. From the sublime to the ridiculous, there’s “Planet 51,” a bland, innocuous, reverse “E.T.”/”Wall-E” cartoon riff about a planet populated by happy, little green people with four-fingered hands who are visited by Earthlings.
For tiny tots, “Barney: Egg-Cellent Adventures” looks ahead to Easter, while “Thomas & The Runaway Kite” finds the spunky engine rescuing kites, saving a swarm of bees and preventing railway disasters. And there’s “Elmo and the Rainbow and Other Springtime Stories.” All three teach timeless life lessons such as discovery, friendship and cooperation.
PICKS OF THE WEEK: Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s “Where the Wild Things Are” follows the adventures of a nine year-old boy who escapes to a land of fantasy, where he encounters bestial manifestations of his own turbulent, conflicting emotions. Venturing into dark, cryptic territory, it earns a place of honor among recent family-friendly films. And there’s also “Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak,” a fascinating look at one of the most cherished and controversial figures in children’s literature.