Universal / 2011 / 106 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 21, 2011
Overall Grade 
Great thriller
Starring: Matt Damon and Emily Blunt
Director: George Nolfi
Plot Synopsis: Matt Damon is doing things a lot of top movie stars are sometimes scared to do: spreading his image thin among a range of roles, directors, and material. His forays away from the huge successes of, say, the Bourne movies or the Ocean's series which have highlighted his fully realized strengths as a buff action hero who can also slip effortlessly into natural comic charm aren't exactly risky. His image as a leading-man movie star is pretty much sealed, but in movies like The Informant, Invictus, Hereafter, True Grit, and others, he's stretching some different muscles that take him closer to character-actor territory. That has largely been a good thing for his fans, if not for his box-office stats. The Adjustment Bureau takes him somewhere in between--he's in leading-man territory with the Damon charisma in full bore and giving his all to a story that needs the toned actorly muscle he provides. Based on a novelette by science-fiction icon Philip K. Dick, The Adjustment Bureau exposes a cadre of people who are either superhuman or nonhumans and control the world by magically influencing the fate of every single person in it. Damon plays David Norris, an aspiring politician who rose from working-class roots in Brooklyn (a not-so-closeted skeleton that sometimes comes back to haunt him) to wealth and the likely promise of high office. Unfortunately, David takes some liberties with his fate that don't correspond with the narrative laid out by "the Chairman," the entity in charge of the Adjustment Bureau autocrats whose matching fedoras are none-too-subtle symbols for wings. The movie evades any mention of religion, but those hats and references to the Chairman are huge winks. Emily Blunt is the equally appealing presence who screws up the Chairman's plan in concert with Norris. They fall for each other hard again and again, constantly thwarting and confounding the bureau's best-laid adjusting tricks at every turn. Though it is often simplistic in its plot contrivances, the movie is nifty, clever, nimbly paced, and filled with ingenious special effects. Especially impressive is the recurring motif of doors that are virtual wormholes--a closet that leads to the middle of Yankee stadium, an Escher-like maze of conference rooms that constantly double back on themselves (shades of the dizzying door sequence in Monsters, Inc.). Another cool visual prop are the plain bound books bureau functionaries carry that are filled with intricate, animated schematic diagrams that chart the course of a life and how it interacts with others. John Slattery, Anthony Mackie, and Terence Stamp round out the uniformly excellent cast headed by Damon and Blunt, and with the slick production design and inventive effects, the glossy performances go a long way in adjusting up any dramatic shortcomings The Adjustment Bureau may have improperly calibrated.
Disc Features:
- Audio Commentary — Writer/director George Nolfi provides a good commentary track where he explains his thought process, structuring the script and the technical challenges he faced.
- Leaping Through New York (1080i/60, 8 min) — A brief overview with interviews of shooting locations, the unique look of New York and the visual effects work done for the film's climax.
- Destined To Be (1080i/60, 5 min) — Focused entirely around the believability of the main leads, the cast talks about their respective roles and character motivation.
- Becoming Elise (1080i/60, 7 min) — Interviews and behind-the-scenes footage turn to Emily Blunt and the rigorous training she endured to be a plausible professional dancer.
- Deleted Scenes (HD) — Six exorcised and extended scenes are collected here, with the most interesting being the removal of a caseworker named Henderson.
- The Labyrinth of Doors: Interactive Map of New York (HD) — Users can explore the Big Apple like a member of the Bureau thanks to Google Maps.
Warner Brothers / 2011 / 113 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: June 21, 2011
Genres: Action thriller, suspense, mystery
Starring: Liam Neeson and January Jones
Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Plot Synopsis: The surprise hit Taken, from 2008, contained a number of red meat pleasures, but chief among them was Liam Neeson's reinvention as an action hero, turning his trademark wounded brusqueness and gentle-giant physique towards new, head-clunking avenues. Despite an ad campaign that makes it appear to be a direct action-packed continuation of that earlier film, Unknown proves to be a somewhat different creature--a sleek mystery that occasionally gives in to temptation and lets its hulking star call down the righteous thunder. Based on a novel by Didier Van Cauwelaert, the story follows a mild-mannered botanist in Berlin with his wife (Mad Men's January Jones) for a mysterious scientific conference. After a freak car accident, he wakes up in the hospital with scrambled memories, missing identification, and--most ominously--someone else claiming to be him. Director Jaume Collet-Serra, previously responsible for the admirably berserko Orphan, handles the early paranoiac cloak-and-dagger passages with aplomb (and delivers one quick beaut of a car chase), but proves less sure-footed when the story drifts towards more conventional Bourne-style punch-ups. Thankfully, Neeson does a fine job keeping things grounded whenever the narrative starts to wander, with able support from Diane Kruger as a cab driver unwillingly along for the ride. There's the germ of a genuinely intriguing, thoughtful thriller inside Unknown--particularly during a superbly minimalist scene between supporting cast members Frank Langella and Bruno Ganz--but it mostly seems content to stay within the realm of a high-pedigreed, reasonably taut action film. Which isn't all that bad of a thing, really.
Disc Features:
- Liam Neeson: Known Action Hero (HD, 4 min.) — This is a clip-heavy promo featurette with the stars of the film commenting on working with Neeson, and also on the film in general.
- 'Unknown': What is Known? (HD, 4 min.) — Another promotional featurette with talking heads talking about the movie and how much they love it, and how much we should love it.
Universal / 2011 / 114 Minutes / Unrated
Street Date: June 21, 2011
Genres: Periodic drama, Thriller, Fantasy
Starring: Channing Tatum and Jamie Bell
Director: Kevin Macdonald
Plot Synopsis: Epic filmmaking has fallen out of favor, but The Eagle fights hard to bring it back. Marcus Aquila (Channing Tatum) chose to lead a Roman garrison in occupied Britain because that's where his father lost a military standard--a metal eagle, representing the glory of imperial Rome--on an expedition into the northern wilds. To reclaim his family honor, Aquila sets off into native territory to recover the eagle, with only a slave named Esca (Jamie Bell) to help him--but the more Aquila learns about Esca's history, the more he has reason to doubt his slave's loyalty. The Eagle starts with engaging momentum; this is a work of fiction, but there's an impressive commitment to the details of life, evoking the sights, sounds, and smells of a raw and brutal time. (Director Kevin Macdonald began as a documentarian, which no doubt contributes to his appreciation for grit and sweat.) Tatum is not the most versatile actor but he has enough solid charisma to anchor the movie; Bell's fluid emotional presence keeps their relationship dynamic. The movie loses steam in the last third, as the outcome is never really in doubt and the plot mechanics start to feel a bit rote. But for anyone with an interest in the era, or who simply enjoys a taste of blood and thunder, The Eagle has pleasures aplenty.
Disc Features:
- Audio Commentary
- Alternate Ending (HD, 5 min)
- The Eagle: The Making of a Roman Epic (HD, 12 min)
- Deleted Scenes (HD, 6 min)
20th Century Fox / 2011 / 135 Minutes / Rated PG
Street Date: June 21, 2011
Genres: Drama, family, comedy
Starring: Zachary Gordon and Devon Bostick
Director: David Bower
Plot Synopsis: Greg Heffley, the kid who made “wimpy” cool, is back in this sidesplitting sequel based on the second installment of the best-selling book series! Having rid himself of the Cheese Touch , Greg enters the next grade with his confidence and friendships intact, and an eye on the new girl in town, Holly Hills . But at home, Greg is still at war with his older brother, Rodrick, so their parents have handed down the toughest “punishment” imaginable – forcing the boys to spend quality time with each other.
Disc Features:
- Audio Commentary — Author Jeff Kinney joins director David Bowers to talk about the movie's roots in the books and how it evolved for the screen. They talk about the basics, like filming, actors' performances, and plot details. It's an informative if slightly bland commentary. Give it a listen if you like the movie.
Disc Features: - My Summer Vacation (HD, 9 min.)
- Deleted Scenes (HD, 9 min.)
- Gag Reel (HD, 4 min.)
- Trailer (HD, 2 min.)
- Alternate Ending (HD, 1 min.)
Other releases/ Back catalog releases:
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