THE LIST: DVDs, CDs and books hitting stores week of June 22
June 22, 2010 - 4:00 am
DVDS
“The Last Station” (R): In this handsome period drama, an aging Leo Tolstoy (Oscar nominee Christopher Plummer) finds himself torn between his idealistic principles and his imperious wife (Oscar nominee Helen Mirren), who’s determined to keep her husband’s literary profits all in the family. Paul Giamatti (as Tolstoy’s devoted yet devious friend) and James McAvoy (as a naive witness to the intrigue) deliver deft support.
Matt Damon, meanwhile, reunites with “Bourne” director Paul Greengrass for “Green Zone” (R), a topical thriller about a U.S. Army officer who goes rogue in wartime Iraq. And if you can’t wait for the latest “Twilight Saga” chapter, “Eclipse,” to hit theaters next week so you can get a Robert Pattinson fix, there’s always “Remember Me” (PG-13), a tragic romance set in the summer of 2001, about a rebellious NYU student (Pattinson) who meets his match in a fellow student (Emilie de Raven). Pierce Brosnan and Chris Cooper co-star. Two romantic comedies round out today’s recent releases: “She’s Out of My League” (R), about a hottie (Alice Eve) in an on-the-rebound relationship with a definite nottie (Jay Baruchel); and “Amanda” (not rated), about a 40-year-old bachelor (Randy Ryan) who thinks love has passed him by, until he meets the title character (Ariana Dubynin).
Turning to movies that never played local theaters, the filmed-in-Vegas comedy “Hard Four” (not rated) stars Edward Asner as a legendary gambler who suffers a fatal heart attack at the craps table — and second-generation actors Ross Benjamin (son of Richard) and Sam Gould (son of Elliott) as the pals who must escort his body home to New Jersey; Bryan Cranston, Ed Begley Jr. and Dabney Coleman co-star. “The Good Guy” (R) finds an ambitious New Yorker (“Gilmore Girls’ ” Alexis Bledel) torn between a Wall Street hotshot (Scott Porter) and his shy co-worker (Bryan Greenberg). On the foreign front, acclaimed Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami’s “Close-Up” (not rated) blends fiction and documentary. And speaking of documentaries, the Sundance award-winner “Fuel” (not rated) explores the impact of our petroleum dependence on our economy, environment and foreign policy — along with possible solutions.
For movie buffs, Judy Garland’s legendary 1954 musical “A Star Is Born” (not rated) arrives on Blu-ray Disc, along with Italian master Michelangelo Antonioni’s first color film, “Red Desert” (not rated), a provocative 1964 study of industrial-age alienation featuring Richard Harris and Monica Vitti; Roger Corman’s 1975 cult classic “Death Race 2000” (R), with David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone as drivers in the killer Transcontinental Death Race; and the Blu-Ray 3-D version of the computer-animated “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” (PG) — which will play in 3-D only if you have both a 3-D-capable TV with active-shutter glasses and a 3-D-capable Blu-ray player. And the super-cool 1962 French New Wave noir “Fire and Ice” (not rated) stars “Z’s” Jean-Louis Trintignant as a right-wing terrorist hiding out with his wife (Romy Schneider) at the home of a gentle friend (“Jules and Jim’s” Henri Serre).
Tuning in to TV transfers (all unrated), Ice Cube narrates “ESPN Films 30 for 30: Straight Outta LA,” about how the Oakland Raiders’ move to Los Angeles made the NFL rebels heroes to a generation of gangbangers — and gangsta rappers. Alan Cumming, Tahmoh Penikett and Laura Vandervoort headline “Riverworld,” based on Philip Jose Farmer’s science fiction epic. Also arriving: “Hung: The Complete First Season,” “Entourage: The Complete Sixth Season” and “Checkmate: The Complete Series.”
CDS
Ozzy Osbourne, “Scream”: And now a big record with a local connection — “Scream,” the latest disc for metal grandpappy Ozzy Osbourne, was produced by the Vegas-based Kevin Churko.
The first Osbourne record in years to not feature lumberjack look-alike guitarist Zakk Wylde, who was replaced by Greek shredder Gus G, the disc is more radio friendly hard rock from a dude so ageless, it’s as if embalming fluid courses through his veins.
Also in stores: Laurie Anderson, “Homeland (CD/DVD)"; Authority Zero, “Stories of Survival”; The Chemical Brothers, “Further”; Mark Chesnutt, “Outlaw”; The Constellations, “Southern Gothic”; Miley Cyrus, “Can’t Be Tamed”; Danzig, “Deth Red Sabaoth”; Eminem, “Recovery”; Front Line Assembly, “Improvised. Electronic. Device.”; Macy Gray, “The Sellout”; Herbie Hancock, “The Imagine Project”; Cyndi Lauper, “Memphis Blues”; Marah, “Life Is a Problem”; Vince Neil, “Tattoos & Tequila”; Robert Randolph and The Family Band, “We Walk This Road”; The Roots, “How I Got Over”; Sia, “We Are Born”; Stars, “The Five Ghosts”; The Derek Trucks Band, “Roadsongs”; and Dweezil Zappa, “Return of the Son of ... .”
BOOKS
“Sizzling Sixteen” by Janet Evanovich: Bounty hunter Stephanie Plum and her co-workers must find, rescue and hide Vinnie, owner of Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, after he runs up a large gambling debt to a mobster who’s holding Vinnie until the debt is paid.
Danielle Steel also has a new book out this week with “Family Ties,” featuring Annie Ferguson, who raises her sister’s three orphaned children in a novel about life’s surprises.
Also hitting shelves this week: “Ancestor” by Scott Sigler; “Beachcombers” by Nancy Thayer; “Broken” by Karin Slaughter; “Crashers” by Dana Haynes; “Dark Flame (Immortals Series No. 4)” by Alyson Noel; “The Devil Amongst the Lawyers” by Sharyn McCrumb; “In My Father’s House” by E. Lynn Harris; “Mission of Honor (Disciples of Honor No. 4)” by David Weber; “Mr. Peanut” by Adam Ross; “The Palace of Impossible Dreams (Tide Lords Series No. 3)” by Jennifer Fallon; and “Pray for Silence (Kate Burkholder Series No. 2)” by Linda Castillo.