There are whole lot of good DVD releases this week. This should keep the DVD junkies busy for a while – until at least next week. Just click on the corresponding links below to purchase the movie posters:

• We are Marshall (Drama) – Starring Matthew McConaughey as a young coach who was determined to rebuild Marshall’s football program after 75 members of the Marshall football team and coaching staff were killed in a plane crash.

  Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Huntley Ritter, Anthony Mackie, Kate Mara; Directed by: McG

• Gracie (Drama) – An inspirational story of a young girl, who is struggling with grief after the death of her brother in a car accident. She works through her grief by deciding to fill the void left on her brother’s football (soccer) team.

  Cast: Dermot Mulroney, Elisabeth Shue, Carly Schroeder, Karl Girolamo, Vasilios ‘Billy’ Mantagas, Donnie Gray, Emma Bell, Dermot Mulroney, Christopher Shand; Directed by: Davis Guggenheim

• Death Proof (Horror) – This is the uncut version of theTarantino and Robert Rodriguez Grindhouse movie, Death Proof.
• Lucky You (Romantic/Drama) – Starring Eric Bana and Drew Barrymore. In the world of high-stakes Las Vegas poker, Huck Cheever (Eric Bana) is a blaster — a player who goes all out, all the time. But in his personal relationships, Huck plays it tight, expertly avoiding emotional commitments and long-term expectations. Huck however, soon learns a valuable lesson – that to win in the games of life and poker, he must try to play cards the way he has been living his life and live his life the way he has been playing cards.

  Cast: Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Jean Smart, Debra Messing, Kelvin Han Yee, Charles Martin Smith; Directed by: Curtis Hanson

• The Condemned (Action) – starring Steve Austin and Vinnie Jones
• Two Weeks (Drama) – Starring Salley Fields

Share on Facebook

Ben Stiller’s Night at the Museum brings in $24 million to stay on top at the box office for a third consecutive week (3 week domestic total: $164.1 million). Pursuit of Happyness starring Will Smith finished in second place again bringing in $13 millon dollars (2 weeks domestic total: $124.2 million). Children of Men expands its debut and leads the new wide releases by coming in third with $10. 3 million.

Debuting in fourth place is Freedom Writers starring Hilary Swank. It brings in $9.7 million while in limited release.

Happily N’Ever After by the makers of Shrek was big disappointment debuting in sixth place bringing in $6.8 million.

• Night at the Museum – $24 million
• The Pursuit of Happyness - $13
• Children of Men – $10.3
• Freedom Writers – $9.7
• Dreamgirls – $8.8
• Happily N’Ever After - $6.8
• Charlotte’s Web – $6.6
• The Good Shepherd – $6.5
• Rocky Balboa – $6.3
• We Are Marshall – $5.1

Share on Facebook

Mcgonahey gives the best performance of his career in We Are Marshall. Read on:

Sometimes when I watch a film like We Are Marshall I realize that one day I might have to give up on this business of being a film critic. The reason I say that, and the reason that movies like this one instigate that thought, is because I love them. But more than that, they appeal to something universal in all of us, and require no interpretation or examination to enjoy. As such, serious folks like my esteemed colleagues rarely take them seriously and usually take folks who do take them seriously… well, even less seriously.

But McG’s third film shows a major move forward for him as a director. Previously helming movies whose emotional weight was mostly derived from the bounce in Cameron Diaz’ boy shorts, the director demonstrates that he can indeed make a movie — albeit a mainstream one — that manages to evoke something other than euphoria and/or motion sickness (and in the best moments, both at once). Because as cheesy as it may sound, McG has crafted a movie that really does stir some serious feelings. Specifically, it’s the kind of movie that not only believes in the goodness of humankind, but makes you believe it, too.

The film stars Matthew McConaghey, himself an actor of questionable reliability, as Jack Lengyel — a football coach who offers to help rebuild Marshall University’s team after its players die in a plane crash. Soliciting the school’s president Donald Dedmond (David Strathairn) as well as surviving assistant coach Red Dawson (Matthew Fox) to help him, Lengyel begins to put together a group of kids he hopes will return the team to glory, if only to fill the gap in the townspeople’s lives. But what he and his colleagues soon discover is that their struggle fills a spot in their hearts as well. And so Lengyel, Dedmond and Dawson champion their fledgling team of freshmen and a few upperclassmen to prove that in some cases, winning isn’t everything as long as you are able to play the game.

There’s a certain point at which critics either have to yield to the fact that they don’t mind formulas, or rebel against them no matter how many warm and fuzzy impulses prod them towards enjoyment. Sports movies in particular are the most guilty of submitting to these conventions, but seldom do I mind – and nor should you – if they are executed well. Perhaps because he trafficked so easily through the various genre-bending sequences in Charlie’s Angels, McG expertly navigates the well-worn tale of a team, or even a town, looking for redemption after a loss. The difference here, of course, is that the back-story is a true one, and the events in the film are taken from things that really happened. But the director perfectly emphasizes the right notes of this familiar tune to make sure that it feels fresh.

Click on the link below to read the entire article:

Read more…

We Are Marshall Movie Posters

View the trailer

In theaters now

Share on Facebook

Synopsis:
For decades in Huntington, West Virginia, a small town steeped in the rich tradition of college football, players, coaches, fans and families have come together to cheer on Marshall University’s “Thundering Herd.” For this team and this community, Marshall football is more than just a sport, it’s a way of life.

But on a fateful night in 1970, while traveling back to Huntington after a game in North Carolina, 75 members of Marshall’s football team and coaching staff were killed in a plane crash. As those left behind struggled to cope with the devastating loss of their loved ones, the grieving families found hope and strength in the leadership of Jack Lengyel (Matthew McConaughey), a young coach who was determined to rebuild Marshall’s football program and, in the process, help heal a community.

Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Huntley Ritter, Anthony Mackie, Kate Mara; Directed by: McG

We Are Marshall Movie Posters

View the trailer

In theaters December 22, 2006

Share on Facebook