Susan Granger’s DVD Update for week of Fri., March 8:
In “Garbage,” two garbage truck drivers (comedians Jon Huck and Jed Rees) discover Cuba Gooding Jr.’s Academy Award in a landfill; as they decide what to do with the Oscar, they realize that this piece of Hollywood history is changing their lives.
In “California Solo,” Robert Carlyle plays a former Britpop rocker-turned-organic farmer who confronts the demons of his post-fame life and finds personal redemption.
Esai Morales delivers a powerful performance as an ex-con struggling to do the right thing in “Gun Hill Road” as his troubled teenage son undergoes a sexual transformation.
British director Stephen Frears details the life of a Las Vegas bookie-in-training in “Lay the Favorite,” starring Rebecca Hall as a one-time stripper and Bruce Willis as an adrenaline-junkie sports nut with Catherine Zeta-Jones as his wife.
Ellen Burstyn and Marcia Gay Harden co-star in “Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You,” the adaptation of Peter Cameron’s heartfelt, coming-of-age novel about a vulnerable, precocious 17 year-old (Toby Regbo) who decides to reject the adult world.
In Hebrew and English, Maya Kenig’s “Off White Lies” is loosely informed by news stories and family events that she experienced during the 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon.
“Red Dawn” is the ill-fated re-imagining of John Milius’ 1984 action hit, as North Korean paratroopers invade Seattle and a high-school quarterback (Josh Peck) and his big brother (Chris Hemsworth) form a guerilla resistance force.
“Tom & Jerry: Pint-Sized Pals” is a 30-cartoon collection for the while family. “Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu, Season Two” features the final 13 episodes of the Cartoon Network’s #1 rated show for boys ages 6-11. And for pre-schoolers, “Thomas & Friends: Go Go Thomas” is a high-spirited race around Sodor, while “Barney: Play With Barney” demonstrates all the benefits of playtime.
PICKS OF THE WEEK: Oscar-nominated “Wreck-It Ralph” is Disney’s inventive, animated arcade-game-hopping adventure, following a bad guy (voiced by John C. Reilly) determined to prove that he’s really a hero with a big heart. And “The Intouchables” is a sweet, irresistibly subversive French odd-couple comedy, starring Omar Sy and Francoise Cluzet.