DVD Releases for the Week of Sep. 1, 2009
Baseball is the stuff American dreams are made of; and if you feel the sport has been highly overlooked in recent cinema look no further than Sugar, a very well-received rags to riches sports tale about Miguel Santos, a baseball player from the Dominican who makes it to the minor leagues in America to show off his talent. More than just a sports movie, it reveals the feelings of alienation felt by many Hispanics in the US.
It’s Hispanic week! Sin Nombre is about the modern-day struggles of Honduran teenagers. One, Sayra, wants the opportunity to take the train into America and start a new life for herself and her father. The other is a young gang member who takes the same journey. “It contains risk, violence, a little romance, even fleeting moments of humor, but most of all, it sees what danger and heartbreak are involved. It is riveting from start to finish.” (source)
In Northern Ireland, 1981, IRA member Bobby Sands began a hunger strike to protest the decrepit conditions of Maze Prison where he and other paramilitary prisoners were being held. Steve McQueen’s Hunger chronicles this point of history with a very narrow focus: the prison itself. That Bobby (expertly played by Michael Fassbender) does not appear until the second third of the film allows director McQueen to focus on the conditions of the prison through the eyes of others. This gives a pretext for Bobby’s eventual decision to starve himself. And it is in the details of the conditions where Hunger manages to capture its audience. (read more of my review)
If the above movies have you feeling down and out, try out Earth, Disney’s re-compiling of images and scenes from the classic BBC series “Planet Earth”. While there is still cruelty in nature, at least it looks more beautiful set against impressive backdrops and sweeping aerial shots.
Other Releases
De l’autre côté du lit
Good Dick
State of Play
DVD Previews | 
September 1, 2009
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