New on DVD: Some Duds and a Funny Story

What's new in the DVD aisle? This week, there are several forgettable flicks, but one gem.

Life as we Know It

Romantic Comedy

The Gist: Two non-friends (Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel) suddenly find themselves appointed guardians to a baby whose parents have died. They don’t know nothing about raising no babies!

The Ups: Babies are cute. Most of the time.

The Downs: It’s predictable and not particularly inspired romantic comedy clichés, but with baby puke and poo jokes thrown in.

The Verdict: Skip it. You’ll never know you missed anything.

Be Aware: Rated PG-13 for sexual material, language and some drug content. This film features promiscuous attitudes and probably isn’t something you’d want your kids to watch.

You Again

Comedy

The Gist: A wedding leads to a bunch of cat fights. The sister of the groom was a rival of the bride in high school. The mother of the bride and the mother of the groom have a past as well. Couldn’t this all have been discovered and solved before the wedding? Apparently not in Hollywood.

The Ups: A few laughs. Just a few.

The  Downs: Despite Sigourney Weaver and Jaime Lee Curtis, it never fulfills the promise of its cast. The jokes aren’t funny, the slapstick is tired, and the feel is vindictive. There’s a reason people leave high school and grow up. Some people.

The Verdict: Skip it. Let’s pretend it never happened.

Be Aware: Rated PG for brief mild language and rude behavior.

Paranormal Activity 2

Horror

The Gist: Something is moving in the house. Something scary and creepy. So, naturally, the family sets up cameras to catch the intruder. Even in Junior’s room. Especially in Junior’s room.

The Ups: The original, Paranormal Activity, scared the snot out of the country. This follow up is scary as well, although it’s not as fresh as the original.

The Downs: For horror to matter, it needs to examine good and evil, and the philosophical meaning of the possibility of the supernatural. This movie just scares.

The Verdict: Skip it.

Be Aware: Rated R for some language and brief violence.

It’s Kind of a Funny Story

Comedy/drama

The Gist: A teen boy feels overwhelmed by life and perhaps suicidal. He can’t really tell. He checks himself into the psych ward of the hospital, where he meets some people with real problems, but also with real strengths.

The Ups: Funny and warm, this movie brings dignity to the mentally ill without minimizing their health problems. People are more than the sum of their problems, and sometimes even small victories are powerful. Zach Galifianakis is excellent as a cool dude who occasionally loses it and Emma Roberts does a nice job as a girl who seems normal except she cuts herself.

The Downs: It’s slow and quiet and may feel uncomfortable at first, but I found it worth the wait.

The Verdict: This was actually one of my favorite movies of 2010, but I realize it might be a rare taste. Watch it if it seems at all intriguing and let me know what you think.

Be Aware: PG-13 for mature thematic issues, sexual content, drug material and language. None of it is too explicit, but it is a serious movie. Appropriate for some teens.

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