David's Iron Man 2 Review

David Reviews Iron Man 2

Iron Man (2008) was an impromptu party that was made memorable by it’s organizer, Jon Favreau, it’s guests, Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, and the back and forth between their characters in the film. To that extent, Iron Man 2 (2010) was an overly calculated and marketed effort to replicate the spontaneity created in the first film.

As someone who loved the first film, I was optimistic in the sequel, as it didn’t seem to have much plaguing its production with the exception of replacing Terrence Howard with Don Cheadle in the role of James Rhodes (AKA War Machine). So did this sequel crush my dreams and spit on my childhood the way that X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) and Spider-Man 3 (2007) did? No, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have similar problems with this that I do with those films.

There are too many villains and conflicts for a two hour running time, and even if that wasn’t the case none of the problems Tony faces are tied to a relatable character arc like in the first film. Even though Tony comes out of the first film reverting back to his carefree playboy ways, he’s experienced the collateral damage first hand, and by that films end he has changed the direction of his company away from making weapons. The character arc of the second has Tony facing the responsibility and consequences of his alter-ego.

The trouble is that there doesn’t seem to be any real character arc. Tony faces his challenges, but isn’t ultimately asked to take responsibility for them beyond facing the bad guys toe to iron toe. In place of this characterization we have a sub-lot with Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury from S.H.I.E.L.D. putting in his time to essentially promote the upcoming Avengers (2012) film.

While I appreciate the continuity for future films, the S.H.I.E.L.D. element of the film does more harm than good. Those scenes trip up this movie in service of another that has yet to be filmed. I hope with the hiring of Joss Whedon as director of The Avengers, more thought is being put into character and story arcs and how those will carry on into the whatever sequels come afterward.

Despite plotting and pacing issues, the characters are consistent with the first film. Pepper Pots is beside herself trying to keeping together what Tony tears apart during his self destructive streak, Rhodes struggles to keep his allegiance to his country and remain Tony’s friend, though it’s never an easy task. Actually their bickering makes more than a couple of the action sequences in the film.

Clearly there was someone competent at the helm of both the first film and this one. It seems though that there was a little fighting for control of the wheel some points in production. As long as they don’t have Iron Man going emo in a jazz club, I’ll return for a third installment. Although Robert Downey Jr. could probably make it work…….

Reckless Reviews - David

Week of September 28th

War Machines

Robert Downey Jr returns as playboy industrialist Tony Stark in Jon Favreau's Iron Man 2. Struggling with the notoriety that his Iron Man suit has brought him, Stark's life is changing: the government wants to take control of his invention, he has a new assistant (Scarlett Johansson) while his long-time assistant (Gwyneth Paltrow) is now the president of Stark Industries, and his celebrity excess and ego have gotten out of control. Worse, an up-and-coming weapons designer (Sam Rockwell) wants to unseat Stark as the top man in powered suits and weapons technology, and a vengeance-seeking russian (Mickey Rourke) has power and skills that could rival Iron Man's. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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Rock 'n Roll

Russell Brand returns as Aldous Snow, the hedonistic rock star from Forgetting Sarah Marshall, in Get Him to the Greek, but he's fallen on hard times-- his newest record was a failure and he's back to drinking and drugs after seven years of sobriety. With business declining, the record label president (Sean Combs) sends a low ranking intern (Jonah Hill) to get the star from London to the Greek Theater in Los Angeles for a show that could save the record company and Aldous' career... but what can an intern do to control an impulsive rock star, who takes detours to find his father (Colm Meaney), his still-successful ex-girlfriend (Rose Byrne), or anything else to find the next party and avoid responsibility? On DVD and Blu Ray.

Rob Stefaniuk is the lead singer for struggling, unsuccessful band in Suck. When people finally start paying attention to them, it's only because their bass player (Jessica Pare) has been turned into a vampire. Though she has a tendency to eat rival bands, and she's turned their roadie (Chris Ratz) into a Renfield-like bug eater, her captivating presence brings the band their first taste of success. The band might be able to make it big if all of its members were undead, but that attracts the attention of Eddie Van Helsing (Malcolm McDowell), vampire hunter. With Alice Cooper, Moby, Henry Rollins, and Iggy Pop.

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Coco Chanel:
Now and Then

Set in the early 20s, Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky tells the tale of the already successful Coco and her time with Igor Stravinsky (Mads Mikkelsen), who fled to France during the Russian Revolution. Their relationship benefits both of them creatively, but their affair causes a lot of trouble with Igor's wife and family.

The documentary Babies is precisely what the title suggests: it is footage taken from a year in the life of four babies in different parts of the world. With no narration, the film shows babies from Nambia, Japan, Mongolia, and the United States from their birth to their first birthday. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Viggo Mortensen is a professor of literature in 1930s Germany in Good. Though he's not politically active and doesn't see a lot of merit in national socialism, he's invited to join the Nazi party, which would benefit him professionally. Pulled in different directions by his Nazi-supporting mistress (Jodie Whittaker) and his Jewish friend (Jason Isaacs) he has to make a choice, one with consequences he can't anticipate.

Based on the novel by Jim Thompson, The Killer Inside Me, set in 1950s Texas, stars Casey Affleck as small town sheriff's deputy Lou Ford. Most people think Lou is a little slow, but when he's asked to run a prostitute (Jessica Alba) out of town, she awakens a dark and sadistic streak in him-- his cunning, sociopathic side takes over, but he must keep up his facade as a mild mannered police officer. With Kate Hudson.

Werner Herzog's My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? follows a police officer (Willem Dafoe) to the scene of a murder and the house where the murderer is holding hostages. As he talks to the killer's fiance (Chloe Sevigny), she tells him about their history, and how Brad McCullum (Michael Shannon) traveled to Peru and "came back disturbed." She tells the tale of Brad's unraveling, his strange behavior, and what might have led him to kill his own mother. With Brad Dourif.

Three friends on a ski trip (Kevin Zegers, Emma Bell, and Shawn Ashmore) don't want to pay full price for lift tickets in Frozen, so they bribe the ski lift attendant... but since there's no record of them getting on the lift, and the attendant is called away, the lift stops before they reach the top. With the resort closing early because of an incoming storm, they are trapped, hanging in the air, and slowly freezing with no way to get down.

British comedy duo Delcan Donnelly & Anthony McPartlin star as friends who are searching for collectible footage of Elvis in Alien Autopsy, when they meet Harry Dean Stanton, a former Army cameraman who sells them footage of an alien autopsy from 1947. When they try and play the film again, which had been sealed in a film canister for decades, it's deteriorated so badly that they can't do anything with it... so what choice do they have but to re-create the autopsy using an old hand-cranked camera and some homegrown special effects?

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New this week to Reckless Video's TV New Releases are the debut seasons of the Family Guy spinoff The Cleveland Show, the strange Japanese stop motion Domo, and the Emmy winning Modern Family. We also have season 10 of CSI, the second season of The Mentalist, season 5 of the comedy How I Met Your Mother, and season 2 of Sam Raimi's adventure series Legend of the Seeker, as well as the final seasons of the medical comedy Scrubs and Starz' ensemble comedy Party Down. Finally, we have the animated Superman/Batman Apocalypse, as well as two new Scooby Doo DVDs: Scooby Doo: Camp Scare and Scooby Doo: 13 Ghosts.

[X]Delcan Donnelly & Anthony McPartlin:
Love Actually

[X]Harry Dean Stanton:
Alien, The Man Who Cried

[X]Mads Mikkelsen:
Casino Royale, Clash of the Titans

[X]Kevin Zegers:
50 Dead Men Walking, Zoom

[X]Emma Bell:
Gracie, Dollhouse

[X]Shawn Ashmore:
The Ruins, X-Men

[X]Jonah Hill:
Superbad, Accepted

[X]Russell Brand:
St. Trinian's, Bedtime Stories

[X]Rose Byrne:
Marie Antoinette, Damages

[X]Colm Meaney:
The Damned United, Layer Cake

[X]Sean Combs:
Monster's Ball, Made

[X]Viggo Mortensen:
A History of Violence, The Road

[X]Jodie Whittaker:
Venus, Return to Cranford

[X]Jason Isaacs:
Dragonheart, Windtalkers

[X]Jon Favreau:
Zathura, Elf

[X]Robert Downey Jr:
Wonder Boys, Chances Are

[X]Scarlett Johansson:
Girl with a Pearl Earring, The Spirit

[X]Gwyneth Paltrow:
Infamous, Two Lovers

[X]Sam Rockwell:
Moon, Frost/Nixon

[X]Mickey Rourke:
Domino, Sin City

[X]Jim Thompson:
The Getaway, Paths of Glory

[X]Casey Affleck:
Gerry, Gone Baby Gone

[X]Kate Hudson:
The Four Feathers, Nine

[X]Jessica Alba:
Good Luck Chuck, Idle Hands

[X]Werner Herzog:
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans, Fitzcarraldo

[X]Michael Shannon:
Dead Birds, The Runaways

[X]Willem Dafoe:
Inside Man, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant

[X]Chloe Sevigny:
Shattered Glass, Party Monster

[X]Brad Dourif:
Alien: Resurrection, Halloween II

[X]Rob Stefaniuk:
Phil the Alien, Blown Away

[X]Jessica Pare:
Wicker Park, Hot Tub Time Machine

[X]Chris Ratz:
The Incredible Hulk, The Tracey Fragments

[X]Malcolm McDowell:
The Book of Eli, O Lucky Man!

[X]Alice Cooper:
Prince of Darkness, Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare

[X]Moby:
Joe's Apartment

[X]Henry Rollins:
Feast, The Devil's Tomb

[X]Iggy Pop:
Dead Man, Tank Girl

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New this week in Reckless Video's New Releases.	2009 in Reckless Video's New Releases.	2008 in Reckless Video's Drama section.

Week of September 21

Outlaw Hero

Robin Hood:
Now and Then

Ridley Scott tackles a famous tale, starring Russell Crowe as Robin Hood. An archer during the Crusades, Robin returns home to find a new king (Oscar Isaac) being crowned and ruining the lives of the common people in the country, with his will being enforced by the sinister Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong). Telling the tale of how he came to be a hero, a rebel, and an outlaw, the film shows Robin's struggles against the unfair law of the land, the group that will become his band of Merry Men, and his first meeting with Marian (Cate Blanchett). With Max von Sydow. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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The Experiment:
Now & Then

Based on the infamous Stanford prison experiment, The Experiment offers volunteers $14,000 to act as either prisoners or guards for two weeks. A pacifist and protester (Adrian Brody), picked to be a prisoner, refuses to comply to the guards' dehumanizing demands, and the head guard (Forest Whitaker) begins taking more drastic action to keep the prisoners in line. As the prisoners continue to resist, the guards reactions become more extreme, they find themselves in real danger as the experiment's rules begin to decay. With Cam Gigadent and Clifton Collins Jr.

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This year's Oscar winner for Best Foreign Film, The Secret in Their Eyes is told in flashback as an Benjamin Esposito (Ricardo Darin), a federal investigator, searches for a young woman's killer in Argentina in 1974. While other officers are willing to pin the murder on any available suspect, Benjamin becomes obsessed with the case and follows the dark and winding path to the killer, though the growing climate of political violence changes his view of humanity, murder, life, and death. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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A fisherman Colin Farrell finds a woman in his fishing net in director Neil Jordan's Ondine. The fisherman's daughter believes the woman is a selkie-- her name, Ondine, means "from the sea," and as she sings aboard the fisherman's boat, his nets are somehow fuller. As the fisherman begins to fall hopelessly in love with the mysterious woman, his daughter hopes for a miracle from someone she believes is a magical, mythical creature. With Stephen Rea. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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A comedy about art and artists, (Untitled) stars Adam Goldberg as an avant garde composer who creates non-melodic symphonies of tearing paper, kicked buckets, and rubbed hubcaps. His brother (Eion Bailey) is a commercially successful painter who can't get a gallery show, but his work mostly ends up in hospitals and corporate lobbies. The gallery owner (Marley Shelton) working with both of them is still trying to make a name for herself, but the fine line between challenging, uncommercial art and profitable, mediocre work is blurred by fevered egos and pretentious opinions of what is and isn't "art."

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Collins Pennie is a new Theta Nu pledge in the second Stomp the Yard movie, Stomp the Yard: Homecoming, but his chances of leading the Thetas to victory in a national step-off are threatened by his love life, his relationship with his father, and threats of violence from gangs-- he has to discover what's really important in life to claim the championship. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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Wiley Wiggins is a sarcastic intern fielding calls for a senator in the "unromantic comedy" Sorry, Thanks, and while he's quick with a joke, it's possible he may not be a very good person. For example, his one night stand may have been a great success, but it's not a really good fit with his long-time girlfriend, especially as he's become fascinated with the new woman.

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Dakota Blue Richards goes to live with her uncle (Ioan Gruffudd) at Moonacre Manor in The Secret of Moonacre, where she discovers a magical world full of mythical creatures. As she spends time around the manor, magical events occur around her lead her on a fantastic, fairytale journey. With Juliet Stevenson, Tim Curry, and Natascha McElhone. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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New this week to Reckless Video's TV New Releases are the debut seasons of the ensemble comedy Community, the comic book-based action series Human Target, the private-eye comedy Bored to Death, and the roman gladiator series Spartacus: Blood & Sand. Also new are the 4th season of 30 Rock, the 2nd season of Castle, and season 8 of Desperate Housewives. We also have the new direct-to-video cartoon Tinkerbell and the Great Fairy Rescue.

Close this window [X]

New this week in Reckless Video's New Releases.	2001 in Reckless Video's German section

[X]Adrian Brody:
The Brothers Bloom, The Affair of the Necklace

[X]Forest Whitaker:
Species, Battlefield Earth

[X]Cam Gigadent:
Twilight, Pandorum

[X]Clifton Collins Jr:
Crank: High Voltage, Star Trek

[X]Neil Jordan:
The Crying Game, The Good Thief

[X]Colin Farrell:
In Bruges, Crazy Heary

[X]Stephen Rea:
Michael Collins, Stuck

Close this window [X]

New this week in Reckless Video's New Releases.	2006 in Reckless Video's TV Adventure Section	1991 in Reckless Video's Adventure Section	1991 in Reckless Video's Adventure Section
1984 in Reckless Video's TV Adventure Section	1976 in Reckless Video's Audrey Hepburn section	1938 in Reckless Video's Swashbuckling section	1922 in Reckless Video's Swashbuckling section

[X]Ridley Scott:
Blade Runner, Kingdom of Heaven

[X]Russell Crowe:
Romper Stomper, Gladiator

[X]Mark Strong:
Sherlock Holmes, Kick-Ass

[X]Oscar Isaac:
The Nativity Story, Che

[X]Max von Sydow:
Judge Dredd, Shutter Island

[X]Cate Blanchett:
Heaven, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

[X]Dakota Blue Richards:
The Golden Compass

[X]Juliet Stevenson:
Truly Madly Deeply, When Did You Last See Your Father?

[X]Tim Curry:
Congo, Legend

[X]Ioan Gruffudd:
Fantastic 4, Horatio Hornblower

[X]Natascha McElhone:
Californication, The Truman Show

[X]Ricardo Darin:
Nine Queens

[X]Wiley Wiggins:
Goliath, Dazed and Confused

[X]Collins Pennie:
Half Nelson, Fame

[X]Adam Goldberg:
The Salton Sea, Christmas on Mars

[X]Marley Shelton:
Pleasantville, A Perfect Getaway

[X]Eion Bailey:
Mindhunters, Fight Club

Week of September 14th

Adventure (via video games)

Based on the video game of the same name, Jerry Bruckheimer's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time stars Jake Gyllenhaal as the adopted son of an ancient Persian royal family. Framed for the murder of the king (Ronald Pickup), the prince embarks on a quest to clear his name and save the kingdom with a mystical dagger that controls the Sands of Time. Partnered with the princess (Gemma Arterton) sworn to protect the magical dagger, he must save his family and prove his innocence to his uncle (Ben Kingsley). With Alfred Molina. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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Romance

Just Wright is a story of a love triangle that involves Leslie Wright (Queen Latifah) and her Godsister, Morgan (Paula Patton) who are frustrated with their average love lives and fanaticize about a life less ordinary, preferably something that involves a dishy and famous athlete. Lucky for both of them, a man who fits the profile, NBA star Scott McKnight (Common) stumbles into both of their lives and quickly earns the affections of Morgan. After an injury threatens his career, Morgan suggests that Leslie step in to care for her new fiance. The move causes Mr. McKnight to reconsider his romantic priorities, and for Leslie and Morgan to decide just what sisterhood is all about. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) and her fiance take an Italian vacation, but she finds herself wandering Verona alone in Letters to Juliet. Sightseeing at the home of Shakespeare's Juliet, where people write and post their love letters, Sophie finds an undiscovered letter from 1957 and decides to answer as Juliet-- involving herself in the life of the letter writer (Vanessa Redgrave) and her grandson (Christopher Egan). The trio head out on a romantic journey to find Redgrave's long lost romance, and they all learn that love shouldn't be left behind... it needs to be embraced in the moment. With Marcia DeBonis. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Princess Ka'iulani is reportedly a mostly historically accurate portrayal of the story of one of the last heirs to the throne of the Kingdom of Hawaii. The young Princess Ka'iulani (Q'orianka Kilcher) is burdened with the weight of a declining monarchy that is stuck in the crosshairs of America. She struggles to balance her romantic life involving Clive Davies (Shaun Evans) with her responsibility to her people.

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B-Movies

From the producer's of Ong Bak and Chocolate, Thailand's Raging Phoenix is a martial arts action film where violent gangs are abducting women. Deu escapes being captured and finds her pursuers beaten back by a group of stumbling street fighters who teach her their secret: a Thai version of Drunken Monkey boxing that they use to stop the gang once and for all.

It's not exactly the Jesus that your pastor told you about, and they aren't exactly the vampires you may be used to, stalkery or sparkly. Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter is a twisted B-movie that stars Jesus, as a kung-fu carpenter who is hell-bent on protecting lesbians from blood-thirsty monsters.

Wild Zero Drinking Game

Take a drink if:

• Someone drinks
• Someone combs their hair
• Fire shoots out of anything
• Anyone says Rock n Roll
• Something explodes
• A zombie's head pops

The game is available on the DVD's special features: a mug will appear on screen when a drink should be taken.

The best way to describe the Japanese rock 'n' roll zombie film Wild Zero is by the drinking game included on the DVD, where pompadoured Ace becomes rock 'n' roll blood brothers with the dangerous and violent Guitar Wolf... an alliance that will help him through the UFO and zombie invasion of the world.

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Actorless

Our new documentaries this week are Alex Gibney's Casino Jack: The United States of Money, about lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the series of events that led him to plead guilty to charges of fraud in 2006, the science of laughter documentary Laughology, and the evolution vs. intelligent design documentary Flock of Dodos.

We also have new the stand-up discs ...but I'm Not Wrong by Bill Maher and Janeane Garafolo's If You Will, filmed at the Moore Theater in Seattle.

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Clark Rockefeller (Eric McCormack) is a charming man that effortlessly earns the affections of Sandra Boss (Sherry Stringfield). However, as Sandra gets closer to Clark, lies begin to surface that jeopardize their marriage. Afraid of being discovered for who he really is, Clark disappears with their daughter, leading Sandra, and some determined FBI agents (Stephen McHattie and Regina Taylor) to solve the mystery of Who is Clark Rockefeller?

The Exploding Girl is a coming of age drama about a twenty-year-old college student, Ivy, who is torn between two blossoming romances. Ivy struggles to control her new emotions, but the pressure may have a negative effect on her epilepsy.

In an effort to earn the edge over their fellow art-monger peers, a throng of players will do what they each do best to win the prize and become the envy of their corner of the London art scene in Boogie Woogie. Starring Gillian Anderson, Alan Cumming, Heather Graham, Danny Huston, Jack Huston, Christopher Lee, and Amanda Seyfried.

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New this week to Reckless Video's TV New Releases are season 3 of the geek comedy The Big Bang Theory and season 5 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as well as the debut seasons of The Good Wife and The League, season 6 of the medical drama Grey's Anatomy, and the new Barbie DVD Barbie: A Fashion Fairytale. On DVD and Blu-Ray, we have season 2 of Fringe and the complete first season of Glee (only the first half of Season 1 was previously available).

[X]Gillian Anderson:
X-Files, Last King of Scotland

[X]Alan Cumming:
Dare, The Anniversary Party

[X]Heather Graham:
The Hangover, Anger Management

[X]Danny Huston:
Children of Men, The Aviator

[X]Jack Huston:
Shrink, Outlander

[X]Christopher Lee:
The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

[X]Amanda Seyfried:
Big Love, Chloe

[X]Alex Gibney:
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Taxi to the Dark Side

[X]Mark Rendall:
Charlie Bartlett, 30 Days of Night

[X]Janeane Garafolo:
Mystery Men, Wet Hot American Summer

[X]Queen Latifah:
The Secret Life of Bees, What Happens in Vegas

[X]Common:
Terminator: Salvation, Date Night

[X]Paula Patton:
Hitch, Swing Vote

[X]Marcia DeBonis:
13 Going on 30, Tadpole

[X]Vanessa Redgrave:
Atonement, Camelot

[X]Christopher Egan:
Eragon, Kings

[X]Jerry Bruckheimer:
Pirates of the Caribbean, National Treasure

[X]Jake Gyllenhaal:
Brothers, Zodiac

[X]Gemma Arterton:
Quantum of Solace, Clash of the Titans

[X]Ben Kingsley:
Shutter Island, Gandhi

[X]Ronald Pickup:
Dry White Season, The Mission

[X]Alfred Molina:
Spider Man II, Raiders of the Lost Ark

[X]Q'orianka Kilcher:
The New World

[X]Shaun Evans:
Cashback, Boy A

[X]Barry Pepper:
Saving Private Ryan, Seven Pounds

[X]Will Patton:
Wendy and Lucy, Brooklyn's Finest

[X]Julian Glover:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Young Victoria

[X]Eric McCormack:
Alien Trespass, My One and Only

[X]Sherry Stringfield:
The Stepfather, 54

[X]Regina Taylor:
The Unit, The Negotiator

[X]Stephen McHattie:
Watchmen, A History of Violence

Week of September 7th

The Lighter Side of Gunplay

When Jen (Katherine Heigl) meets Spencer (Ashton Kutcher) while vacationing in France, she isn't aware that he's a government assassin. He quits his violent life marry her in the comedy/romance Killers, and three years later they're living a quiet, suburban life where Spencer's challenges have switched from eliminating foreign operatives to interior design, property developments, and opinionated in-laws (Tom Selleck and Catherine O'Hara). When his old boss (Martin Mull) contacts him for another job, Spencer refuses, but now killers are popping up everywhere, and Jen finds herself dodging bullets as she has to cope with her husband's hidden past even as she has to try to secure their future. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Will Forte stars as the title character in the action/comedy MacGruber: part MacGyver, part 80's Patrick Swayze action hero, he's pulled out of a ten year retirement by Colonel Faith (Powers Boothe) because MacGruber's the only man to handle a new world threatening crisis. Along with Kristen Wiig and Ryan Phillippe, MacGruber must track down and stop his nemesis (Val Kilmer), who's stolen a nuclear warhead and plans to wreak havoc across the globe. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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Choices

The story of a German businessman (Ulrich Tukur) in China during World War II, John Rabe is derived from Rabe's diaries, detailing how he negotiated a safety zone to protect civilians from the Japanese Army, and his impact during the Nanking Massacre in 1937. With Daniel Bruhl and Steve Buscemi.

Michael Douglas is a smooth talker in Solitary Man, trying to get back on top after his business and personal indiscretions nearly ruined his company. His self-involvement and ability to get what he wants has estranged him from his wife (Susan Sarandon), though his daughter (Jenna Fischer) is still his confidant, and he's working on his new life with his girlfriend (Mary-Louise Parker) by taking her teenage daughter (Imogen Poots) for her college interview... but he's still prone to all his old, bad habits, and can always land himself in trouble. With Jesse Eisenberg. On DVD and Blu Ray.

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Down South

Abner (Hal Holbrook) returns to his Tennessee home in That Evening Sun only to find that his son (Walton Goggins) has rented the place to an old rival (Ray McKinnon). Now living in a shack on the property, Abner wants the renters out of his home, but without any legal way to reclaim his home, he's left to sit aside and be cantankerous-- sniping at the new tennants and making sure they know they're not welcome.

Written by Tennessee Williams, The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond stars Bryce Dallas Howard as Fisher Willow, a young woman from a wealthy family who needs to stay in her aunt's (Ann-Margret) good graces in order to win her inheritance. Fisher is in love with the lower-class Jimmy (Chris Evans), so she grooms him to pass as a wealthy suitor to keep up appearances, but the loss of a valuable diamond could jeopardize her future. With Ellen Burstyn.

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Imports

American bachelor Raj is being pushed towards marriage by his uncle in Kuch Naa Kaho: his uncle sets Raj up on dates and has his employee Namrata (Aushwarya Rai) chaperon... but Raj sabotages all of these arranged dates until he eventually realizes that he's fallen in love with Namrata, which comes with its own set of complications.

A sixteen year old misfit spends all his time daydreaming about his hero in Kung Fu Master, and though he's no good at making friends and doing poorly in school, he believes everything will get better if he can track down Jackie Chan and learn kung fu. When he actually gets the star to teach him, he finds that Jackie's got more to teach him than just martial arts.

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Our two new documentaries this week are Welcome to Macintosh, the history of the rise of Apple computers told from the programmers and designers who were there at the beginning, and The Thorn in the Heart, filmmaker Michel Gondry's documentary about his aunt, the matriarch of his family.

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Disney's Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam returns Demi Lovato to the rock 'n' roll summer camp with a new challenge to face-- the head of rival Camp Star (Daniel Kash) dazzles Camp Rock and steals most of their talent. Now it's up to Demi and her friends The Jonas Brothers to stand up to Camp Star and restore the name of Camp Rock.

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New this week to Reckless Video's TV New Releases are the 3rd season of the spy comedy Chuck, the 6th season of the workplace comedy The Office, and the complete series of Norm MacDonald's sitcom The Norm Show. We also have season 9 of the pre-Superman series Smallville, season 5 of the supernatural thriller Supernatural, and season 5 of the procedural Criminal Minds. Finally, we have two new Goosebumps discs: Go Eat Worms and The Blob That Ate Everyone.

[X]Demi Lovato:
Camp Rock, Princess Protection Program

[X]Daniel Kash:
Aliens, The Good Shepherd

[X]Jackie Chan:
Police Story, The Spy Next Door

[X]Ulrich Tukur:
The White Ribbon, North Face

[X]Daniel Bruhl:
Inglorious Basterds, The Bourne Ultimatum

[X]Steve Buscemi:
Interview, Saint John of Las Vegas

[X]Ashton Kutcher:
Guess Who, Spread

[X]Katherine Heigl:
27 Dresses, The Ugly Truth

[X]Tom Selleck:
Jesse Stone, Myra Breckinridge

[X]Catherine O'Hara:
Home Alone, Temple Grandin

[X]Martin Mull:
Clue, Jingle All the Way

[X]Aushwarya Rai:
The Pink Panther 2, The Mistress of Spices

[X]Tennessee Williams:
A Streetcar Named Desire, Night of the Iguana

[X]Bryce Dallas Howard:
Terminator Salvation, Lady in the Water

[X]Chris Evans:
Fantastic Four, The Losers

[X]Ann-Margret:
The Break Up, Viva Las Vegas

[X]Ellen Burstyn:
According to Greta, Requiem for a Dream

[X]Will Forte:
Baby Mama, The Brothers Solomon

[X]Kristen Wiig:
Extract, Date Night

[X]Ryan Phillippe:
Cruel Intentions, Breach

[X]Val Kilmer:
Felon, Top Gun

[X]Powers Boothe:
Frailty, Tombstone

[X]Michael Douglas:
Basic Instinct, King of California

[X]Mary-Louise Parker:
Fried Green Tomatoes, Weeds

[X]Imogen Poots:
28 Weeks Later, Me & Orson Welles

[X]Susan Sarandon:
Igby Goes Down, The Lovely Bones

[X]Jenna Fischer:
The Promotion, Slither

[X]Jesse Eisenberg:
Zombieland, The Living Wake

[X]Hal Holbrook:
The Majestic, Capricorn One

[X]Walton Goggins:
The World's Fastest Indian, The Shield

[X]Ray McKinnon:
Things That Hang from Trees, A Perfect World

[X]Michel Gondry:
Be Kind, Rewind, The Science of Sleep