The Brothers Bloom

Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo star as Bloom and Stephen, two con artist siblings out to fleece a wacky millionaire, Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz), of her fortune. While pretending to woo Penelope, Bloom predictably falls for her, and as the faked emotions grow more impossibly entangled, the film grows more and more out of control. What it may lack in clarity, however, the film more than makes up for in entertaining characters. Rinko Kikuchi is a delight as Bang Bang, a mute who lets her knack for blowing things up do her talking. The true joy of The Brothers Bloom, though, is watching Weisz’s performance as the heiress. While she’s done her fair share of supporting comedic roles in films like About a Boy or The Mummy, Weisz hasn’t had a chance to really create something special from the ground up before and she just runs with it. She makes Penelope loony and loveable, but never weak or stupid.

Guyver: The Complete Box Set

One day while out exploring nature, a pair of school buddies discovers what looks like a flesh-colored garden hose in a futuristic metal casing. They pick it up and it turns into a strange alien creature that latches on to one of them and coats him with a suit of a bio-boosted armor that not only gives him super powers, but makes him the target of an intergalactic conspiracy. Filled with plenty of battle scenes, this series shines because it gives us characters strong enough to care about as everything around them blows to bits. Better yet, the pop art style of the images used to tell the story is as exciting as anything the characters do.

Beautiful

Something nasty is happening beneath the beautiful façade of upscale Sunshine Hills. Local schoolgirls are disappearing at an alarming rate, there’s a creepy new neighbor in the scary old house on the block and nerdy 15-year-old Danny (Sebastian Gregory) is being seduced by the sexy young slut from across the street. What has all the markings of a sordid teen slasher flick is actually an intelligent, engrossing mystery that will keep you guessing who the bad guy is right up until the end when a sudden twist makes everything you thought totally wrong.

The Maid

After more than 20 years of devotion to the family she works for as a maid, Raquel (Cataloina Saavedra) is starting to show signs of wear and tear. Worse than that, her longtime employment with the same family has given her a sense of entitlement, of being an actual member of the family and not just an employee, which is playing havoc with her mind. When the lady of the house decides to hire some additional help to ease Raquel’s daily burden, a weird game of cat and mouse begins as Raquel starts to defend her territory.

TiMER

Set in a time when true love not only exists but is predictable, TiMER tells the story of Oona (Emma Caulfield), a single woman who spends her life searching for Mr. Right. Thanks to a scientific device attached to her wrist she’ll know when she’s found him because both her device and his will beep to each other when they meet. While waiting for that magical, if a little cold and scientific, moment to happen, Oona dates guys until she finds their TiMERs don’t match, then dumps them and moves on. Her search gets derailed, though, when she falls for a young musician who she can’t get out of her mind – or her bedroom – even though she knows there is no future for them. While it may start to feel a bit predictable at times, writer/director Jac Schaeffer does a great job of tipping the scales anytime the audience gets too complacent without relying on any of the usual Hollywood romcom clichés. The cast is top notch, too, particularly Caulfield as the woman who wants to believe in true love and Michelle Borth as her cynical, sassy and sexy stepsister.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer Live at Montreux

They may be little more than a progressive rock memory these days, but this entertaining DVD is a great reminder that Keith Emerson, Greg Lake and Carl Palmer – ELP to fans – were not only once a musical force to be reckoned with, but a heck of a live band. Listening to them, it’s hard to believe there are just three guys making all those sounds, particularly when its three guys who act like they don’t like sharing the stage with each other. The lack of any bonus material to set the show in the band's historical context is disappointing.

Paris 36

Every once in a while, a film comes along to remind you why you love going to the movies in the first place. Paris 36 is that film.

Directed by Christophe Barratier (The Chorus), this frothy French tale of a theater group struggling to put on a show despite the harsh realities that surround them circa 1936, is a glossy throwback to the old fashion MGM-style musical it so lovingly pays tribute to. It’s filled with romance, big dance routines and songs that you’ll be humming as you walk out of the theater even if you can’t understand a word. And as if that wasn’t enough, Paris 36 features an absolutely terrific performance by Nora Arnezeder, a leading lady you’re destined to fall in love with by the final reel. Playing the part of the not-too-innocent ingénue, Douce, Arnezeder combines a wide-eyed wonder with a killer smile to create the character of the young girl realizing her dreams of being on the stage. And she sings well, too, particularly in the sultry ballads she uses to tell her woes to the audience.