New on DVD: Brooklyn and Sweden

 Brookyln's Finest

Action/Drama

The Gist: Three cops on the mean streets of Brooklyn have a date with destiny. One's an undercover narc who has begun to forget which side he's on. Another is a Catholic SWAT-team family man tempted by the illgotten riches around him. The third is a tired, jaded, and tarnished officer with a week to go until retirement. Wanna bet it'll be an eventful week?

The Ups: One of those films that deal with heady issues such as redemption and damnation, this movie is just thick with moral quandaries and ethical grey areas that turn out to not be so grey. I love that stuff. Don Cheadle, Richard Gere, and Ethan Hawke are a pleasure to watch. Read our full review here.

The Downs: The film dances on the line of pretension. A little too self aware, it occasionally pounds the viewer over the head with its moral quandary-ness. In its attempt to be real and gritty, it strays into some explicit violence and sexual scenes that don't add much to the movie.

The Verdict: Depends. I enjoyed this film. It was kind of like "Crash" in uniform. I give it a cautious endorsement. If you don't like explicit content, skip it, or keep the fast forward button handy.

Be Aware: Rated R for bloody violence throughout, strong sexuality, nudity, drug content, and pervasive language. And by pervasive, they mean swearing like, well, New York cops.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Indie Suspense/Drama-Swedish language foreign film

The Gist: Based on the best-selling novel by Stieg Larsson, this adaptation follows a former journalist and a hacker as they investigate a 40-year-old disappearance. As the two delve deeper, they find dark secrets about the victim's powerful family.

The Ups: The odd couple team of journalist and punky hacker strangely works, in no small part due to their stellar acting. It's a edgy mystery that some compare to Agatha Christie.

The Downs: The mystery leads to a story of violence and rape, which is graphically shown and may be too much for some viewers. Proceed with caution.

The Verdict: Again, depends. If you love indie cinema, mystery, or the novel, you'll love this film. If you're more the romantic comedy type, the violence will be too much.

Be Aware: Rated R for disturbing violent content including rape, grisly images, sexual material, nudity and language. Not for underage viewing.