James Rocchi
‘Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters’ Review
When 'Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief' came out in 2010, it looked suspiciously as if the would-be franchise, based on Rick Riordan's best-selling teen adventure books, was going to get 'Golden Compass'-ed -- stopped after one installment and left to languish. But the first adventures of title…
‘Pacific Rim’ Review
As basically a three-word genre mash-up -- monsters vs. robots -- the announcement that Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures were making 'Pacific Rim' didn't really need to offer much more than just that siren-song simple idea. But it did, promising a big canvas for a big talent, the director Guil…
New DVD Releases: ‘Resident Evil 5,’ ‘Total Recall’ and More
New DVD releases, Blu-ray and streaming this week: goofy glee club action in 'Pitch Perfect,' kid-friendly fun in 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days,' Colin Farrell in the 'Total Recall' remake and more zombie-killing in 'Resident Evil: Retribution.' ...
New to DVD and Blu-ray: ‘Ted,’ ‘The Bourne Legacy’ and Another ‘Ice Age’
New on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming this week: 'Bourne' is back, 'Ice Age: Continental Drift' tries to keep a franchise warm, plus the raucous comedy of Seth MacFarlane's 'Ted' and Christopher Nolan's first film 'Following' gets the Criterion treatment…
Retro Rental: ‘Playing For Keeps,’ and Playing Soccer for ‘Victory’
I watched the romantic comedy 'Playing for Keeps' a while ago, starring Gerard Butler as an ex-soccer star adrift professionally and romantically, and the less said about that, the better. Soccer is a tough sport to capture on-screen, and an even tougher one to make Americans care about in…
New to DVD and Blu-ray: ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ Comes Home!
New on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming this week, one of the biggest movies of 2012; one of the best movies of 2012; a strange, strong drama; and an old favorite on Blu-ray.
Retro Rental: Seeing ‘Killing Them Softly’? Check Out ‘The Assassination of Jesse James’ I…
Brad Pitt and director Andrew Dominik's 'Killing them Softly' opens this weekend, and it's a film I consider as strained as it is strong -- for every great performance there's a heavy-handed bit of symbolism, and all the subtext is pretty much text. But it -- and a recent Va…
New to DVD and Blu-ray: ‘Men in Black 3,’ Family Friendly Scares and ‘Lawless’
New on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming this week, summertime action, a horror-comedy for kids, some bootlegging with bruising action, and creepy scares. ...
Retro Rental: It’s Thanksgiving (American Style) With ‘I’m Not There’
There's always the very good question of what, exactly, to watch on Thanksgiving when you're relaxing at home and -- not to put too fine a point on it -- jammed to satiety with food. In the past, I've recommended all-American epics like 'A Bridge Too Far' or Mann's 'Last of the Mohicans,' but this y…
There's always the very good question of what, exactly, to watch on Thanksgiving when you're relaxing at home and -- not to put too fine a point on it -- jammed to satiety with food. In the past, I've recommended all-American epics like 'A Bridge Too Far' or Mann's 'Last of the Mohicans,' but this y…
New to DVD and Blu-ray: ‘The Expendables 2′ and the Best of Quentin Tarantino
New on DVD, Blu-ray and streaming this week, old-pro action with 'The Expendables 2,' Quentin Tarantino goes over-the-top, and some gret overlooked movies arrive on streaming.