Couch Time with Sheldon

By no means is this a complaint but movies show up at my door constantly. I am rarely without something to screen when I look for something to watch. Why then did I find myself at the video store this weekend renting a bunch of movies when I already had a bunch at home? I guess I'm insatiable that way.

It isn't going to get any better either with releases like what I'm about to divulge to you coming soon. The hilarious comedy that is hip enough for teens but smart for adults, EASY A, drops right in time for Christmas on December 21. One of 2010's most celebrated adult dramas, THE TOWN, just a few days before that on December 17. James Franco plays Allen Ginsberg in the obscenity obsessed docudrama, HOWL, hitting stores on January 4. And looking a little further to the spring, Disney will be bringing BAMBI to blu-ray on March 1. (Click any film title above, save for BAMBI, for a full review.)

And now, back to the couch ...

SEX AND THE CITY 2

The girls are back where they belong, in my living room. It is so much easier to forgive writer/director, Michael Patrick King's ridiculously outlandish production and nonsensical plot when I'm lazying around in my jammies in the couch. At least watching it this way means I don't have to get dressed all pretty and trek myself over to the theatre to sit there for 2 1/2 hours. No, this way I can drink as many cosmos as I like during the film to make it even more plausible. In all honesty, the second "Sex and the City" movie has its moments. They are not particularly deep or insightful and they certainly don't hold any of the gravitas that they would have years ago when the series was running but they are amusing. If you miss the girls, check them out. You will laugh plenty and the regret will be minimal. Click here for the full Black Sheep review. (Warner Brothers)

LEAVES OF GRASS

How could a movie starring well liked thespian, Edward Norton, go straight to home video? This Tim Blake Nelson film played at TIFF in 2009 and was intended for a theatrical release this fall so what went wrong? Allow me to tell you, pretty much everything. Norton plays twin brother, one is professor of philosophy and the other is a pot dealer. The professor goes home to the middle of nowhere for the first time in ages to play a little identical twin trickery, as if this were a television sitcom or something. As competent as the players are (rounded out by Susan Sarandon and Keri Russell), something always feels off and amateurish in this film. It could have been interesting but never quite gets there. (First Look)

THE SECRET OF KELLS

I'm so happy to have finally gotten around to seeing THE SECRET OF KELLS, the surprise Oscar nominee in the Animated Feature category last year. A young lad named Brandon, who has never been outside the walls that surround Kells, must challenge himself to be the best he can be in order to bring order to a chaotic world. It plays out like a fantasy quest film where the meek must triumph over tragedy and all things evil. This will likely play better to adults fans of the fantasy genre than to attention deficient children but this fable will certainly enchant anyone with an appreciation for breathtaking and imaginative animation style. Give in to Kells and it will show you all the secrets it has to offer.

(New Video Group)

If you're stopping by the video store, there are a ton of brand new first run titles available for rental or purchase this week. Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, etc. get together for the reunion comedy, GROWN UPS ... Jim Carrey's holiday leftovers from 2009, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, are now available for your consumption ... Lars Von Trier's latest, ANTICHRIST, gets the Criterion treatment ... Cutie, Zach Efron's big dramatic turn as CHARLIE ST. CLOUD is now available for slumber parties and drinking games ... It's supposed to be great family fun for RAMONA AND BEEZUS ... Or how about a supposedly dreadful prostitute drama with Helen Mirren and Joe Pesci running the LOVE RANCH ... And finally, most of you missed this in theatres but you had better get out there and watch one of the most exciting and hilarious films on the year, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD. Don't make Michael Cera come after you. (Click here for the Black Sheep SCOTT PILGRIM review.)

See you on the other end of the couch ...

Source: Blu-ray.com