Open Road
This week: Steven Soderbergh's supposedly final film "Side Effects" is a psychological thriller starring Jude Law, Rooney Mara, Channing Tatum and Catherine Zeta-Jones. We tell you why it's a final work worth checking out.
Also new this week is the return of Arnold Schwarzenegger to leading-man status in "The Last Stand," the YA supernatural romance "Beautiful Creatures," Al Pacino and Christopher Walken in "Stand Up Guys" and a 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray of "National Lampoon's Vacation."
'Side Effects'
Open Road
Box Office: $32 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 85% Fresh
Storyline: This twisty tale from Steven Soderbergh is about a woman named Emily (Rooney Mara) who turns to psychiatrist Dr. Banks (Jude Law) to help her deal with her intense anxiety attacks after her husband (Channing Tatum) is released from jail. After Banks prescribes an experimental drug to Emily, the side effects have deadly consequences and Banks reaches out to Emily's former shrink (Catherine Zeta-Jones) for advice.
Extras!: Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain a spoof of typical behind-the-scenes featurettes filmed by "amateur photographer" Zeta-Jones in which she identifies the rest of the cast as Academy Award losers, a fun mock-up of an actual pharmaceutical website called "The Ablixa Website Experience" and commercials for both Ablixa and the supposed ADHD drug Intenin.
We Say: Soderbergh has said that this is his last theatrical film and, if it is, at least he exits on a high note. You never know who is screwing over whom in this unpredictable thriller that plays like a super high-class version of "Wild Things" with a prescription drug twist (blame the drugs for your deviant behavior!). All four lead actors are on board to mess with your head and you'll be guessing until the end credits which one walks away the least affected by all the scheming.
'The Last Stand'
Lionsgate
Box Office: $12 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 59% Rotten
Storyline: Arnold Schwarzenegger is back as Sheriff Ray Owen, a former LAPD narcotics division officer who now lives an excitement-free existence in a sleepy border town. His semi-retirement is disrupted when he learns that a dangerous cartel boss (Eduardo Noriega) has escaped from a courthouse and is speeding at 200 mph towards the Mexican border, where his only obstacle is Ray and his inexperienced staff. Johnny Knoxville, Forest Whitaker, Luis Guzman and Jaimie Alexander also star in this old-school action flick.
Extras!: Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain deleted and extended scenes, a making-of featurette, a scene breakdown of the cornfield chase, "The Dinkum Firearm and Historic Weaponry Museum Tour" and footage from one morning on the set taken by Knoxville and Alexander.
We Say: This is Schwarzenegger's first on-screen leading role since that whole California Governator gig. We're glad he's back even if he seems a little rusty acting-wise, but at least he has Knoxville and Guzman around for comic relief. This R-rated film directed by Kim Jee-woon is a welcome throwback to the action flicks Ahnuld used to make in his '80s and '90s heyday with tough-guy talk and lots of practical FX. Schwarzenegger didn't blow up the box office with this one like he did in the golden era of action films, but fans who weren't satisfied by his brief appearances in the "Expendables" movies will walk away smiling.
'Beautiful Creatures'
Warner Bros.
Box Office: $19 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 45% Rotten
Storyline: This teen supernatural romance based on the YA novel of the same name by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl centers on Lena Duchannes (Alice Englert), a "caster" (i.e. witch) who moves to the small town of Gatlin, South Carolina and quickly catches the eye of classmate Ethan Wate (Alden Ehrenreich), a boy who has been dreaming about her since before they met. Even if Ethan is OK with the spookier side of Lena's dysfunctional supernatural family, he meets her at a critical time before her 16th birthday when she must undergo the Claiming and decide if she will live her life Light or Dark.
Extras!: Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain deleted scenes, "Book to Screen" and several behind-the-scenes and making-of featurettes.
We Say: If the plan for this wannabe franchise was to keep the "Twilight" momentum going by capturing its audience, this supposed saga-starter was an epic fail. Not only did it bomb at the box office but the silly soap opera story elicited embarrassing, hammy performances by seasoned actors like Jeremy Irons and Emma Thompson. Between this and the failure of "The Host," the YA spell on moviegoers seems to have been broken ... at least until the next "Hunger Games" arrives in theaters.
'Stand Up Guys'
Lionsgate
Box Office: $3.3 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 37% Rotten
Storyline: This crime comedy has three aging gangsters reuniting for one epic final night when Val (Al Pacino) is released from prison after serving 28 years. Val's old friend Doc (Christopher Walken) has orders to kill Val by 10 a.m. the next day, but the two instead bust their old pal Hirsch (Alan Arkin) out of his retirement home for a night of playing shoot-'em-up. Julianna Margulies co-stars as Hirsch's daughter.
Extras!: The DVD and Blu-ray have featurettes on the making of the stunt-driving sequences, the film itself and the music by Jon Bon Jovi as well as deleted scenes and commentary by director Fisher Stevens.
We Say: This movie works best when everyone else gets out of the way and cinema veterans Walken, Pacino and Arkin are allowed to just play off each other and have a little fun. The tone veers from silly action (rushing Pacino to the hospital to have his Viagra-induced erection drained) to syrupy sentiment (Walken visiting his estranged granddaughter every day at a diner without telling her who he is), which makes this golden-boys reunion wildly uneven.
'National Lampoon's Vacation' 30th Anniversary Edition Blu-ray
Warner Bros.
Box Office: $61 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 94% Fresh
Storyline: This 1983 road-trip comedy classic follows Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase), his wife (Beverly D'Angelo) and their two children (Anthony Michael Hall and Dana Barron) from their home in Illinois to the theme park Wally World in California. Clark is hell-bent on showing his family a good time, even if it means strapping a dead relative to the roof and continually embarrassing himself with his madcap pursuit of the ultimate family vacation.
Extras!: All of the extras from the previous Blu-ray edition are here, including an audio commentary and a quick introduction by Chase, Randy Quaid and Marty Simmons. New to this Anniversary Edition is an 85-minute "Inside Story" retrospective documentary that includes recent interviews with the cast and crew.
We Say: Since this seminal laugh fest spawned several sequels and a remake currently in the works, it has earned its well-deserved place as one of the funniest comedies of all time. Although this new edition has the exact same picture and sound quality as the previous Blu-ray release, fans will want to double dip for the exhaustive documentary on this version that the original must have left tied to the back of the station wagon.
Also New This Week:
"Parker"
"Howl's Moving Castle" Blu-ray
"The Burning" Blu-ray
"The Town That Dreaded Sundown" Blu-ray
"Vegas Vacation" Blu-ray
"Struck by Lightning"
"The ABCs of Death"