New on DVD: True Grit and two duds

One of the best movies of 2010 makes it DVD debut today. If you haven't seen True Grit, you're in for a treat. Here's the rundown of what's new on the DVD aisle.

True Grit

Western

The Gist: A young girl (Hailee Steinfeld) wheedles an aging US Marshall (Jeff Bridges) into pursuing the man who killed her father. A vainglorious Texas Ranger (Matt Damon) is in hot pursuit of the same man. To catch him in the wilds of the Old West, all three will have to have incredible grit.

The Ups: Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, this film is fantastic. The characters crackle, the action grips, and the story is powerful. All the acting is superb, but young Hailee carries the movie as a girl who refuses to be intimidated by anything the West can throw at her. She burns with a thirst for righteous justice and will not rest until she sees it done. The Coen brothers create a dirty, gritty, serious frontier atmosphere that reflects the deep religiosity and corresponding infamy of the time. Read our full review.

The Downs: None except I wish there were more of it.

The Verdict: Absolutely watch this movie that was nominated for multiple Oscars. One of the best of 2010.

Be Aware: Rated PG-13, the film contains some mild profanity but no sexuality. The violence is occasionally intense. The somber setting can be too much for younger kids. The film starts with a hanging and deals frankly with themes of death and the need for salvation. For this reason, it may be too intense for younger children.

Sanctum

Supposed thriller

The Gist:  A team of cave explorers sets out to map an underwater cave. But when the underwater river starts to rise, they must strap on their oxygen tanks and escape through the unexplored regions of the cave. I hate it when that happens. Read our full review.

The Ups: There are some lovely shots of beautiful caves. Sadly, the people in the shots mostly ruin them.

The Downs: This dreary, dark, and depressing movie will create claustrophobia in you if it doesn’t already exist. The characters and plot are thin as the walls of the cave are think. Neither works to create an exciting adventure. Plus, it makes a distressing argument for euthanasia. Twice.

The Verdict: Skip it. No one needs this. If you’re interested in caving, look up “The Cave of Forgotten Dreams,” which will blow your mind.

Be Aware: Rated R for language, some violence, and disturbing images such as a person pounded into a bloody pulp by a water torrent.

Just Go With It

Supposed Comedy

The Gist: Adam Sandler plays Danny, a guy who pretends to be married so he can seduce hot women and then walk away from them. In other words, a winner. Jennifer Aniston is his assistant Katherine. When Danny meets a woman with whom he might actually want to share a future, he enlists Katherine to play his ex-wife so he can pretend to be a loving father to her kids.

The Ups: With a plot like that, can you imagine there could be anything worthwhile about this film? If your answer is no, then you are correct.

The Downs: In addition to the complete unlikeability of someone who would pretend to be married in order to have pretend affairs, the film is just awful in its own right. Aniston and Sandler have no chemistry together and seem to dislike their characters as much as we do. The script is insultingly stupid and the children are completely unrelated to anything resembling a real child. Worse, it’s just not funny.

The Verdict: No, no, no. For the love of Pete, no.

Be Aware: Rated PG-13 for frequent crude and sexual content, partial nudity, drug references, and language. And did I mention the plot is about a guy who pretends to be married so he can sleep with hot women? I did? Yeah. Definitely not for kids. Not recommended for adults either.