New DVDs – Winter 2012

New Releases (in order of release date, most recent first)

Muppets – March 20, 2012
Movies attempting to retrieve cherished nuggets of pop culture often stumble, either by appealing solely to the die-hard minutia enthusiasts or clunking up the batter with unnecessary additions to the base material. (Enough with the human love triangles, get to the giant robots fighting.) Thankfully, this revival of Jim Henson’s beloved characters gets the formula delightfully right, providing a googly-eyed nostalgia trip for adults while also retaining the original’s sense of bright (and mildly subversive) wonder.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy – March 20, 2012
High-ranking intelligence officer George Smiley (Gary Oldman) was forced out of service when a mission in Hungary went very wrong, but rumors of a Soviet mole hidden within the agency bring him back into play. If the theory of the former head, Control (John Hurt), is to be believed, the mole is at the very top, one of four senior officers, played by Toby Jones, Ciarán Hinds, Colin Firth, and David Dencik (of the Swedish Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). With the help of a lower-ranking agent with a few secrets of his own (Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock) and a field agent who may be a source of disinformation (Tom Hardy, Inception), Smiley slowly draws out the clues he needs to lay a trap for the mole.

Footloose – March 6, 2012
The struggle between innocence and rigid morality is revisited when city-boy Ren finds himself in an uptight town where dancing has been banned. Filled with contemporary music and iconic classics from the original, this fresh look on youth culture is sure to win fans of young and old.

Game of Thrones – March 6, 2012
Set in a world where summers span decades and winters can last a lifetime. From the scheming south and the savage eastern lands, to the frozen north and ancient Wall that protects the realm from the mysterious darkness beyond, the powerful families of the Seven Kingdoms are locked in a battle for the Iron Throne. This is a story of duplicity and treachery, nobility and honor, conquest, and triumph. In the Game of Thrones, you either win or you die.

Like Crazy – March 6, 2012
Like Crazy beautifully illustrates how your first real love is as thrilling and blissful as it is devastating. When a British college student (Felicity Jones) falls for her American classmate (Anton Yelchin), they embark on a passionate and life-changing journey only to be separated when she violates the terms of her visa. Like Crazy explores how a couple faces the real challenges of being together and of being apart. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for best Actress for Felicity Jones, Like Crazy depicts both the hopefulness and the heartbreak of love.

Tower Heist – February 21, 2012
Queens native Josh Kovacs has managed one of the most luxurious and well-secured residences in New York City for more than a decade. Under his watchful eye, nothing goes undetected. In the swankiest unit atop Josh’s building, Wall Street titan Arthur Shaw is under house arrest after being caught stealing two billion from his investors. The hardest hit among those he defrauded? The tower staffers whose pensions he was entrusted to manage.

The Way – February 21, 2012
“The Way” is a powerful and inspirational story about family, friends, and the challenges we face while navigating this ever-changing and complicated world. Martin Sheen plays Tom, who comes to St. Jean Pied de Port, France to collect the remains of his adult son , killed in the Pyrenees in a storm while walking the Camino de Santiago,. Rather than return home, Tom decides to embark on the historical pilgrimage to honor his son’s desire to finish the journey. What Tom doesn’t plan on is the profound impact the journey will have on him. From the unexpected and, oftentimes, amusing experiences along “The Way,” Tom begins to learn what it means to be a citizen of the world again. Through his unresolved relationship with his son, he discovers the difference between “the life we live and the life we choose.”

Paranormal Activity 3 – February 14, 2012
Paranormal Activity 3 takes you back to where it all began and the activity is more intense than ever. The cameras are on and recording the chilling moments when evil begins to terrorize young sisters Katie and Kristi for the first time. Brace yourself for the horror phenomenon that delivers “heart-exploding scares”* so frightening that “the last 15 minutes will mess you up for life.”

Breaking Dawn Part 1 – February 11, 2012
In the highly anticipated fourth installment of the Twilight Saga, a marriage, a honeymoon, and the birth of a child bring unforeseen and shocking developments for Bella and Edward and those they love, including new complications with young werewolf Jacob Black.

The Double – January 31, 2012
When a United States Senator is brutally murdered, the evidence points to a Soviet assassin code-named Cassius, who was long-thought to be dead. Two men who know Cassius best are thrown together to catch him. Paul Shepherdson is a retired CIA operative who spent his career tracking Cassius around the globe. Ben Geary is a hotshot young FBI Agent and family man who has studied the killer’s every move. Ben thinks he knows Cassius, but Paul knows he is dead wrong.

Abduction – January 17, 2012
Taylor Lautner explodes on-screen as a young man whose secret past is set to collide with a dangerous reality. After uncovering a deadly lie, Nathan (Lautner) is propelled on a lethal, no-holds barred mission to learn the truth. Aided by a devoted family friend, Nathan’s hunt for the facts pits him against ruthless assassins and questionable allies.

Bucky Larson Born to be a Star – January 17, 2012
A small-town grocery bagger discovers that his conservative parents were once adult film stars and heads out to Los Angeles, hoping to follow in their footsteps.

The Ides of March – January 17, 2012
During the frantic last days before a heavily contested Ohio presidential primary, an up-and-coming campaign press secretary finds himself involved in a political scandal that threatens to upend his candidate’s shot at the presidency.

Boardwalk Empire. Season 1 – January 10, 2012
A lavish period drama set in Atlantic City, following the life and times of Nucky Thompson, the undisputed political and criminal mastermind whose grip on power and control of the city’s liquor supply is under constant threat.

Don’t be Afraid of the Dark – January 3, 3012
Sally Hurst is going to Rhode Island to live with her father Alex and his new girlfriend Kim in the nineteenth-century mansion they are restoring. While exploring the estate, Sally finds a hidden basement and accidentally lets loose a race of ancient, dark-dwelling creatures who conspire to drag her down into the mysterious house’s bottomless depths. Before the evil lurking in the dark consumes them all, Sally must convince Alex and Kim that it’s not a fantasy.

I Don’t Know How She Does It – January 3, 2012
The tale of Kate, a finance executive who is the breadwinner for her husband and two kids. When Kate gets handed a major new account that will require frequent trips to New York, her husband also wins the new job he’s been hoping, spreading them both even thinner. Complicating matters is Kate’s charming new business associate, a handsome executive who proves to be an unexpected source of temptation.

Mildred Pierce – January 3, 2012
The tale of an independent woman who finds herself newly divorced during the Depression. As a struggling single mother, she is determined to fulfill the demands of her eldest daughter, surpassing societal expectation and the betrayal of lovers along the way.