Week of August 12th

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Muppets

Reunited and back on top after the events of the last movie, Kermit, Piggy, Fozzie and the rest of the gang have to figure out what to do for a sequel in Muppets Most Wanted. Their new manager, Dominic Badguy (Ricky Gervais), tells them the answer is simple: go on a world tour. The Muppets are hesitant, but Badguy's got the whole tour set up... and just in time for his partner Constantine to escape a Russian prison. Constantine looks exactly like Kermit, and quickly steps up as head of the Muppets. With Kermit mistakenly sent to jail (watched over by Tina Fey), Constantine leads the Muppets on a series of capers and heists across Europe. If partners Agent Sam the Eagle and Agent Jean Pierre Napoleon (Ty Burrell) can't stop the crime spree, it's up to Kermit to break out of prison, find his friends, and stop his criminal look-alike. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Outrageous

Malcolm (Marlon Wayans) gets rid of his possessed ex-girlfriend Kisha (Essence Atkins) and hopes to live a haunting-free life in A Haunted House 2, but he finds himself in the same old situation as soon as he moves in with Megan (Jamie Pressley) and her out of control kids. Kisha has possessed the new house, and Malcolm is thrown into slapstick fights with creepy dolls, swarms of moths, aggressive chickens, and perverse demons so obsessed with annoying him, not even exorcist Father Williams (Cedric the Entertainer) can fend them off.

Former gangster Paul Maguire (Nicolas Cage) has gone straight and lives a quiet, respectable life with his wife (Rachel Nichols) and teenage daughter in Rage. When kidnappers abduct his daughter, Maguire assembles a few trusted former colleagues (Max Ryan and Michael McGrady) and sets out to find the men who attacked his family. His former boss (Peter Stormare) tries to talk him out of his rampage, but Paul will follow his warpath to its bitter end... even if it leads to his own past. With Pasha D. Lychnikoff. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Scottish Detective Sergeant Bruce Robertson (James McAvoy) is angling for a major promotion in the adaptation of Irvine Welsh's Filth. Bruce is certain he'll be promoted, not because he's the best cop, but because he lies, cheats, and manipulates his way to the top of every situation: working on his rivals' insecurities, he undermines his fellow officers' (including Jamie Bell and Imogen Poots) chances for advancement. While working on solving the murder of a Japanese tourist-- the case that will guarantee his success-- Bruce carries on as he always has: threatening witnesses, assaulting women, harassing everyone who gets in his way, and ruining the life of his best friend (Eddie Marsan). While his therapist (Jim Broadbent) tries to straighten him out, Bruce seems determined to hit bottom, waiting for the day his lies and excesses finally catch up with him. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Dramatic

Ivan Locke (Tom Hardy) walks out of his construction job and climbs into his car in Locke, beginning a chain reaction that will affect every aspect of his life. Unfolding in real time, Locke calls his wife (Ruth Wilson) and tells her that, if traffic allows, he'll be home in half an hour... but he's on his way to the hospital where his co-worker (Olivia Colman) is about to have a baby. The child is his, and Locke is complicating everything in the rest of his life to be present at the birth, but as he drives to the hospital, he makes a series of phone calls in an attempt to hold his life together. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Outsider Dino (Christina Ricci) has to adjust to a dangerous Australian neighborhood when she starts teaching at an inner-city school in Around the Block. Working at an under-funded school on the brink of closure, she's eager to inspire the kids to engage with their education and convinces the burntout principal (Jack Thompson) to let her stage a production of Hamlet. She finds her lead in Liam (Hunter Page), a kid from the projects whose thespian uncle died in a casino heist led by Jack (Matt Nable), Liam's father. Liam, like most of Dino's students, is inspired by her program, but drawn by his family and society towards a darker and more dangerous life.

Fifty-something Keith (Guy Pearce) experiences a shock when he develops intense feelings for Sophie (Felicity Jones), the English exchange student going to school with his daughter, in Breathe In. Piano prodigy Sophie reminds Keith, a cellist turned music teacher, of the vibrancy of his youth, passion for music and writing, while his wife (Amy Ryan) senses what could be happening between the two more than what actually is between them. As their relationship subtly develops, it affects everything around them, driving Keith and Sophie toward an inescapable conclusion. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Johanna (Kristin Wiig) has worked most of her life as a domestic aide for one elderly woman, but has to move on when her employer passes away in Hateship, Loveship. Taken on as a housekeeper by rich, elderly Mr. McCauley (Nick Nolte), Johanna starts a new life maintaining the household and caring for Sabitha (Hailee Steinfeld), McCauley's teenage granddaughter. Sabitha is mourning the loss of her mother and is immediately suspicious of her new nanny, but the new household puts Johanna in contact with the girl's father, Ken (Guy Pearce). Ken is a troubled ex-con with a drug problem and Johanna lives a meek, cloistered life, but their world gets larger in each others' presence. With Sami Gayle. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Real World

The story of a 1970s go-go dancer with Dissociative Identity Disorder, Halle Berry stars as Frankie in Frankie & Alice. Put into the care of Dr. Oswald (Stellan Skarsgaard) after running into traffic, Frankie reveals two other personalities live within her: Alice, a middle aged white supremist, and a precocious little girl Oswald christens "Genius." Frankie's mother (Phylicia Rashad) sees her through the therapy as Frankie and Dr. Oswald work through her past to find the trauma that caused her personality to split.

Based on a 1972 parapsychology experiment, The Quiet Ones is the story of Oxford Professor Joseph Coupland (Jared Harris) and his study of mysterious young Jane Harper, who manifests strange phenomena. The professor, his assistants, and a timid camera man (Sam Clafin) take Jane to a secluded country house where they want to document the supernatural occurrences, depriving her of sleep and encouraging her instability. Coupland tells Jane to put all of her negative energy into a doll they call Evey, but as the experiments continue, Evey proves to be a real force that, once awakened, can't be easily dismissed.

The Railway Man is an adaptation of World War II prisoner of war Eric Lomax's memoir. Framed by Lomax in the 1980s (Colin Firth), a troubled veteran trying to live a normal life with his wife Patti (Nicole Kidman), the story recounts his younger self (Jeremy Irvine) and his time in a Japanese POW camp. When a friend (Stellan Skarsgaard) who served in the camp with Eric tells the story of the beatings and torture, Patti drives him to find and confront the man who tormented him. After living for years with severe, untreated Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Eric may be able to find peace in confronting the horrors of his past. On DVD and Blu Ray.

Dramatizing the young life of painter Alfred Munnings, Summer in February begins in 1913 Cornwall, a popular environment for artists of the time. A.J. Munnings (Dominic Cooper) is the magnetic center of a group of artists (including Hattie Morahan and Shaun Dingwall) who paint, play, drink, and carouse-- he's a bit of a blowhard, commands the direction of the party, and considers himself the most talented artist in the group. His rule is challenged when upper-class Florence Carter-Wood (Emily Browning) arrives in their midst, putting Munnings in competition with his handsome, athletic best friend (Dan Stevens) for her affections.

The newest film from the Disney Nature series is Disney Nature: Bears, spending a year with an Alaskan bear family. Following mama bear Skye and her two newborn cubs, Scout and Amber, the film documents the difficult first year of the young bears' lives. Emerging from winter hibernation and striking out into the world, the family contends with both the dangers of their environment and the excitement and discover of youth. On DVD and Blu Ray.

New this week in our TV New Releases:

The Blacklist Season 1

The FBI's most-wanted supercriminal Red Reddington (James Spader) walks in to FBI headquarters and surrenders, offering to help the government track down "The Blacklist," an organization of dangerous international criminals. As former agent, before he went rogue, Red's motivations are secret, but no one can deny: he gets results.