DVDs for March

MARCH 4th

12 years12 Years a Slave – Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt

The harrowing account of a black man, born free in New York State, who was drugged, kidnapped, and sold into slavery in 1841. Having no way to contact his family, and fearing for his life if he told the truth, Solomon Northup was sold from plantation to plantation in Louisiana, toiling under cruel masters for twelve years before meeting Samuel Bass, a Canadian who finally put him in touch with his family, and helped start the process to regain his freedom. Rated R

 

about timeAbout Time –  Domhall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Mitchell Mullen

The night after another unsatisfactory New Year party, Tim’s father tells his son that the men in his family have always had the ability to travel through time. Tim can’t change history, but he can change what happens and has happened in his own life, so he decides to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend. But as his unusual life progresses, Tim discovers that, in the end, making the most of life may not need time travel at all. Rated R

 

dallas buyers clubDallas Buyers Club –  Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner

Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof’s free-wheeling life was overturned in 1985 when he was diagnosed as HIV-positive. Shunned and ostracized by many old friends and bereft of government-approved medicines, he decided to take matters in his own hands, tracking down alternative treatments from all over the world by means both legal and illegal. Bypassing the establishment, he joined forces with an unlikely band of renegades and outcasts and established a hugely successful ‘buyers’ club. Rated R

MARCH 7th

caTCHING FIRECatching Fire – Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson

Katniss Everdeen has returned home safe after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games along with fellow tribute Peeta Mellark. Winning means that they must turn around and leave their family and close friends, embarking on a ‘Victor’s Tour’ of the districts. Along the way Katniss senses that a rebellion is simmering, but the Capitol is still very much in control as President Snow prepares the 75th Annual Hunger Games (The Quarter Quell); a competition that could change Panem forever. Rated PG-13.

MARCH 11th

book thiefBook Thief –  Sophie Nelisse, Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson

The profoundly moving story of a girl who transforms the lives of those around her during World War II, Germany. Although Liesel is illiterate when she is adopted by a German couple, her adoptive father encourages her to learn to read. Ultimately, the power of words helps Liesel and Max, a Jew hiding in the family’s home, escape from the events unfolding around them. Rated PG-13

 

best manBest Man Holiday – Monica Calhoun, Morris Chestnut, Melissa De Sousa

At a fifteen year reunion over the Christmas holidays, a group of college friends soon discover how simple it is for old rivalries and romances to resurface. Rated R

 

 

 

insideInside Llewyn Davis – Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, Justin Timberlake

Follows a week in the life of a young folk singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961. He is at a crossroads. Guitar in tow, huddled against the unforgiving New York winter, he is struggling to make it as a musician against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, some of them of his own making. Rated R

 

 

MARCH 18th

frozenFrozen –  Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff

When a prophecy traps a kingdom in eternal winter, Anna, a fearless optimist, teams up with extreme mountain man Kristoff and his sidekick reindeer Sven on an epic journey to find Anna’s sister Elsa, the Snow Queen, and put an end to her icy spell. Encountering mystical trolls, a funny snowman named Olaf, Everest-like extremes and magic at every turn, Anna and Kristoff battle the elements in a race to save the kingdom from destruction. Rated PG

 

mandellaMandella – The Long Walk to Freedom –  Idris Elba, Naomie Harris, Terry Pheto

Based on South African President Nelson Mandela’s autobiography of the same name, it chronicles his early life, coming of age, education and 27 years in prison before becoming President and working to rebuild the country’s once segregated society. Rated PG-13

 

 

american hustleAmerican Hustle –  Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams

Brilliant con man Irving Rosenfeld, along with his equally cunning and seductive British partner Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that’s as dangerous as it is enchanting. Carmine Polito is the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator caught between the cons and Feds. Irving’s unpredictable wife Rosalyn could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire world crashing down. Rated R.

 

saving mr banksSaving Mr. Banks–  Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Colin Farrell

When P.L. Travers travels from London to Hollywood in 1961 to finally discuss Walt Disney’s desire to bring her beloved character, Mary Poppins, to the motion picture screen (a quest he began in the 1940s as a promise to his two daughters), Disney meets a prim, uncompromising sexagenarian not only suspect of the impresario’s concept for the film, but a woman struggling with her own past. During her stay in California, Travers reflects back on her difficult childhood in 1906 Australia. Rated PG-13.

MARCH 25th

walking with dinoWalking with Dinosaurs – Charlie Rowe, Karl Urban, Angourie Rice

For the first time in movie history, audiences will truly see and feel what it was like when dinosaurs ruled the Earth. Meet dinosaurs more real than anyone has ever seen and take off on a thrilling prehistoric adventure, where Patchi, an underdog dinosaur, triumphs against all odds to become a hero for the ages.  Rated PG

 

 

wolf of wall streetThe Wolf of Wall Street –  Leonardo Dicaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie

Martin Scorsese directs the story of New York stockbroker Jordan Belfort. From the American dream to corporate greed, Belfort goes from penny stocks and righteousness to IPOs and a life of corruption in the late ’80s. Excess success and affluence in his early twenties as founder of the brokerage firm Stratton Oakmont warranted Belfort the title ‘The Wolf of Wall Street.’ Rated R.

 

 

 

 

 

DVDs for April

April 3

We Bought a Zoo – Matt Damon, Thomas Hadden Church

When his teenage son gets into trouble, Benjamin Mee gives up a lucrative newspaper job to move his family to the most unlikely of places: a zoo! With help from an eclectic staff, and with many misadventures along the way, Benjamin embarks on a fresh beginning to restore the dilapidated zoo to its former glory, while uniting his family. PG

War Horse – Emily Watson, David Thewlis

Set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War, this movie begins with the remarkable friendship between a horse named Joey and a young man called Albert, who tames and trains him. When they are forcefully parted, the film follows the extraordinary journey of the horse as he moves through the war, changing and inspiring the lives of all those he meets; British cavalry, German soldiers, and a French farmer and his granddaughter. PG 13

April 10

Happy Feet Two – Eljah Wood, Robin Williams

Mumble, the Master of Tap, has a problem because his tiny son, Erik, is choreo-phobic. Reluctant to dance, Erik runs away and encounters the Mighty Sven, a penguin who can fly! Mumble has no hope of competing with this charismatic new role model. But things get worse when the world is shaken by powerful forces. Erik learns of his father’s ‘guts and grit’ as Mumble brings together the penguin nations and all manner of fabulous creatures. PG

Iron Lady – Meryl Streep

A surprising and intimate portrait of Margaret Thatcher, the first and only female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. One of the 20th century’s most famous and influential women, Thatcher came from nowhere to smash through barriers of gender and class to be heard in a male-dominated world. PG 13

April 17

Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol – Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner

Blamed for the terrorist bombing of the Kremlin, IMF operative Ethan Hunt is disavowed along with the rest of the agency when the president initiates ‘Ghost Protocol.’ Left without any resources or backup, Ethan must find a way to clear his agency’s name and prevent another attack. To complicate matters further, Ethan is forced to embark on his mission with a team of fellow IMF fugitives whose personal motives he does not fully know. PG 13

April 24

Contraband – Mark Wahlberg, Lukas Haas

Chris Farraday long ago abandoned his life of crime, but after his brother-in-law, Andy, botches a drug deal for his ruthless boss, Tim Briggs, Chris is forced back into doing what he does best, running contraband, to settle Andy’s debt. Chris is a legendary smuggler and quickly assembles a crew with the help of his best friend, Sebastian, to head to Panama and return with millions in counterfeit bills. Things quickly fall apart with only hours to reach the cash. R

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close – Tom Hanks, Thomas Horn

Oskar is convinced that his father, who died in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, has left a message for him hidden in the city. Feeling disconnected from his grieving mother and driven by an active mind that refuses to believe in things that can’t be observed, Oskar begins searching New York City for the lock that fits a mysterious key he found in his father’s closet. His journey through the five boroughs takes him beyond his loss to a greater understanding of the world around him. PG 13

 

 

DVDs for April

April 7

doubtDoubt – Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman

It’s 1964, St. Nicholas in the Bronx. A charismatic priest, Father Flynn, is trying to upend the school’s strict customs, which have long been fiercely guarded by Sister Aloysius Beauvier, the iron-gloved principal who believes in the power of fear and discipline. When Father Flynn pays too much attention to a new student, Sister Aloysius sets off on a personal crusade to unearth the truth and to expunge Flynn from the school. 5 Oscar Nominations, SAG award to Meryl Streep for Best Actress.

April 14

reader1The Reader – Kate Winslett, Ralph Fiennes

A young man begins an affair with an older woman and learns years later about a secret she’s been harboring, when she must stand trial for Nazi war crimes. Golden Globe and SAG Award for Best Supporting Actress and the Oscar for Best Actress for Kate Winslett.

April 21

frost-nixon2Frost/Nixon – Frank Langella, Michael Sheen

When disgraced President Richard Nixon agreed to an interview with jet-setting television personality David Frost, he thought he’d found the key to saving his tarnished legacy. But, with a name to make and a reputation to overcome, Frost became one of Nixon’s most formidable adversaries. 2 Oscar Nominations

The Wrestler – Micky Rourkewrestler1

A former superstar is now paying the price for twenty years of grueling punishment in and out of the ring. But he’s about to risk everything to prove he has one more match left in him: a re-staging of his famous Madison Square Garden bout against ‘The Ayatollah.’ 2 Oscar nominations.

April 28

bride-warsBride Wars – Ann Hathaway, Kate Hudson

Best friends Liv and Emma have shared a dream since childhood: Each yearns for the perfect June wedding at New York’s famed Plaza Hotel. When a clerical error puts them both down for nuptials on the same day at the same time, one of them will just have to switch the date, right? As if!