DVD/VIDEO REVIEWS week of March 27, 2011

This week's DVD and Blu-ray releases 

The following are capsule reviews of new and recent DVD and Blu-ray releases from Catholic News Service. Theatrical movies have a Catholic News Service classification and Motion Picture Association of America rating. These classifications refer only to the theatrical version of the films below, and do not take into account the discs' extra content.

The Bible (Blu-ray Edition)

Six episodes from Genesis (Creation, Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah, the Tower of Babel and Abraham) are pictured as literally as they were written, largely leaving their interpretation to the viewer. John Huston directs, narrates and plays the part of Noah in this reverent but entertaining spectacular. George C. Scott as Abraham takes acting honors among a cast including Ava Gardner, Richard Harris, Ulla Bergryd and Michael Parks. A-I -- general patronage. (G) (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) 1966

Flicka (Blu-ray Edition)

Warmhearted story set in contemporary Wyoming about a strong-willed teen (Alison Lohman) who, defying her tough but loving dad (Tim McGraw), determines to tame a spirited wild mustang, ultimately bringing father and daughter closer together, even as the former contemplates selling the financially strapped family ranch. In adapting Mary O'Hara's book, director Michael Mayer makes some changes but remains faithful in spirit, imparting a sentimental message about family bonds, youthful ambition, and the passing of the American West. Minimal mildly crass expressions and some minor peril involving a marauding mountain lion that may upset very young viewers. A-I -- general patronage. (PG) (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment) 2006

How Do You Know

Cheerless romantic comedy in which a champion softball player (Reese Witherspoon), who has recently been cut from her team, worries about her future. She is also trying to decide whether she loves the good-natured but philandering major league baseball player (Owen Wilson), with whom she has been living, or a neurotic businessman (Paul Rudd) whose indictment for stock fraud threatens to land him in jail and ruin the company founded by his hard-driving dad (Jack Nicholson). With its oddly unsympathetic characters endlessly analyzing their every emotion and reaction, the few laughs and insights provided by writer-director James L. Brooks' script hardly seem worthwhile, all the more so given that subjects like womanizing and single motherhood are played for laughs. Brief nongraphic sexual activity, a nonmarital situation, promiscuity theme, an out-of-wedlock pregnancy, a birth-control reference, at least one use of profanity, a couple of rough and a few crude words. Spanish language and titles options. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2010

Skyline

Apocalyptic yarn (with sequels ahead) about invading aliens in Los Angeles with an insatiable appetite for human brains. Four people (Eric Balfour, Scottie Thompson, Brittany Daniel and Donald Faison) attempt to fight the invasion from a high-rise apartment building. But directing brothers Colin and Greg Strause and screenwriters Joshua Cordes and Liam O'Donnell don't bother to explain anything. Fleeting crass language, a single profanity, a single instance of implied premarital sex, and darkly lit aliens eating glowing human brains. Spanish language and titles options. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (Universal Studios Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2010

Stand By Me (25th Anniversary Edition)

The power of this drama lies in the simple, profound truths four boys learn about themselves while on a journey through the backwoods of their rural hometown in the late 1950s. Director Rob Reiner's pre-teen coming-of-age picture carefully avoids excess while focusing upon simple tests of patience, courage, caring and the joys of male camaraderie. Some harsh language, uncharacteristic of the times, and brief violence but it is an experience some parents might wish to share with their youngsters. Spanish language and titles options. A-III -- adults. (R) (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 1986

The Tourist

A flirtatious encounter with an elegant, mysterious fellow passenger (Angelina Jolie) on a train to Venice leads a vacationing American math teacher (Johnny Depp) to be mistaken for a fugitive embezzler known to have altered his appearance via plastic surgery. It makes the visitor the target of both a high-level British police investigation (led by Paul Bettany and Timothy Dalton) and the quest for revenge of the brutal gangster (Steven Berkoff) the thief betrayed. Director and co-writer Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck constructs an enjoyably old-fashioned romantic thriller, with the leads showing amorous restraint and La Serenissima providing the colorful backdrop for a pleasant, though hardly memorable, diversion. Brief graphic violence, an implied premarital situation, at least one use of the F-word, a few crude and crass terms, occasional sexual references. Spanish titles option. A-III -- adults. (PG-13) (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment; also available on Blu-ray) 2010

Yogi Bear

Television's "smarter than the average bear" Yogi (voice of Dan Aykroyd) is back in a big-screen adventure mixing computer-generated animation and live action. Yogi's still obsessively stealing food from campers in Jellystone Park, despite the warnings of his faithful sidekick, Boo Boo (voice of Justin Timberlake), and the resulting exasperation of a nerdy park ranger (Tom Cavanaugh). Amid the slapstick antics, and the ranger's budding romance with a visiting documentary filmmaker (Anna Faris), dark clouds are hovering, as the wicked mayor (Andy Daly) seeks to close the park, cut down the trees, and endanger the wildlife. So talking bears must unite with humans to save the day. While the look of this strictly-for-the-kids film is impressive, its one-joke premise fast wears out its welcome. Spanish language and titles options. Some mild rude humor and harmless cartoon action. A-I -- general patronage. (PG) (Warner Home Video; also available on Blu-ray) 2010