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Blue Valentine

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  • Title: Blue Valentine
  • IMDB: link

blue-valentine-blu-raySome couples shouldn’t stay together. That’s the basic message behind Blue Valentine from writer/director Derek Cianfrance which stars Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams trapped in the painful end of a marriage which should have never happened.

Through flashbacks we’re shown their shy beginnings and the events which rush the couple into an all-too-quick marriage. The effects of this are all to obvious on the current state of their relationship.

I liked the film enough to sneak it onto my Best Movies of 2010 list. Williams and Gosling carry the film with a pair of strong performances of two people going through the motions of a doomed love affair which should have ended years ago.

Available on both Blu-ray and DVD the extras include deleted scenes, a making of the film featurette, and commentary with Cianfrance and editor Jim Helton.

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XIII: The Conspiracy

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  • Title: XIII: The Conspiracy
  • IMDB: link

xiii-blurayInspired by the original Jason Bourne novel, The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum, the Franco-Belgian comics by Jean Van Hamme and William Vance entitled XIII took things to an entirely new level by amping up the action by layering mystery, conspiracy, and mistaken identity on top of each other until no one knew who exactly the main character really was, even the readers.

I’m a fan of the comic and this TV mini-series, despite a couple of changes to the story, does a pretty good job making sense out of the Byzantine plot of the comic. Stephen Dorff stars as a man with a unique set of skills, suffering from amnesia, and with an appearance and wounds that match that of the assassin who killed the President of the United States (Mimi Kuzyk). The only clue to his identity is a roman numeral tattoo of XIII on his chest.

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Country Strong

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  • Title: Country Strong
  • IMDB: link

“Was [Townes Van Zandt] famous?”
“In some circles. But not as famous as Carrie Underwood.”

Coming out of rehab (again) country music star Kelly Canter (Gwyneth Paltrow) hits the road with her manager and husband (Tim McGraw), and two young aspiring stars (Garrett Hedlund, Leighton Meester) on a comeback tour.

The film’s running time is under two hours but it feels much longer as the characters and plot struggle to make their way to the story’s climactic performance in Dallas.

The performances are solid, but nothing special. The music is more country pop than country, and both Paltrow and Meester are adequate at performing them. However, neither the songs nor the performances will make you buy the soundtrack. And the story itself, aside from the ending (which serves up a very questionable message), is all to predictable.

Although the version I viewed contained no extras (not even the trailer was included), some version do include deleted scenes, the film’s original ending, an extended musical performance, and cast and crew featurettes.

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The Next Three Days

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  • Title: The Next Three Days
  • IMDB: link

How far would you go for the person you love? That’s the central question at the heart of writer/director Paul Haggis‘ dramatic thriller The Next Three Days.

After his wife (Elizabeth Banks) is incarcerated for a murder she didn’t commit, and every legal option is exhausted, John Brennan (Russell Crowe) decides to take the only choice left. He begins planning to break his wife out of prison and flee the country with their young son (Ty Simpkins).

Haggis delivers a compelling thriller filled with hard choices as John finds himself going further and further down the rabbit hole. The film is scattered with an assortment of strong supporting roles (Olivia Wilde, Jason Beghe, Liam Neeson, Aisha Hinds, Brian Dennehy), but the weight of the story falls entirely on Crowe’s shoulders and, not surprisingly, he delivers.

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127 Hours on Blu-ray

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  • Title: 127 Hours
  • IMDB: link

127-hours-blu-rayBased on a true story, 127 Hours has a simple premise which relies on a strong performance by James Franco, and slowly building tension around one man trapped with his time running out, to provide one of last year’s most memorable films.

Aron Ralston (Franco) is a mountain climber who becomes trapped in a narrow canyon when a large boulder pins his arm. Almost the entire film takes place in this small space as Ralson thinks back over his life and desperately tries to find a way out of his life-threatening situation.

Aside for a short appearance by Kate Mara and Amber Tamblyn early in the film, and a small selection of actors seen in flashbacks, Franco is alone on-screen in darkness for almost the entire film. And it’s his Academy Award nominated performance that makes 127 Hours a must-see.

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