<--prev

next-->

Professionals

Professional hitman Arthur Bishop (Jason Statham) finds himself with an apprentice in Steve (Ben Foster), the son of his old friend (Donald Sutherland), in The Mechanic. Bishop sees a capacity for violence and some moral flexibility in Steve, and begins to train him as an assassin, taking jobs from Bishop's contractor (Tony Goldwyn)... but when they end up on the wrong side of a hit, the professional and understudy show everyone just how good at their jobs they actually are. On DVD and Blu-Ray.

---

Triangles

Caroline (Kat Dennings) and her father (Ted Whittall) move to a dead-end town in Daydream Nation where she's the only one of her highschool classmates who doesn't spend her time in a drug-induced haze. At seventeen, Caroline's determined to carve her own path, but she hasn't decided whether that means seducing her teacher (Josh Lucas) or dating a sweet but befuddled boy from school (Reece Thompson). With Andie MacDowell.

Emilia (Natalie Portman) is struggling with her new life in The Other Woman. She's Jack's (Scott Cohen) second wife, considered a homewrecker by his ex (Lisa Kudrow), constantly in conflict with her new stepson, and grieving the loss of her infant daughter. Though her situation is confrontational and dramatic, it also inspires Emilia to reconsider her role in her family, as well as what family really means. With Lauren Ambrose. On DVD and Blu-Ray.

The French The Beautiful Person stars Lea Seydoux as a sixteen-year-old student in a new school. She's pursued by all the boys in the school and eventually settles on a quiet, shy classmate... until she discovers her insatiable Italian teacher (Louis Garrel), putting her in a tense position between a boy her age and an older man.

---

Darker

Michael, a young priest in a crisis of faith, is sent to Rome in The Rite. Though he has his doubts, Michael is sent to a class on exorcism... and this leads him to a reporter (Alice Braga) writing about exorcism and Father Lucas (Anthony Hopkins), who actually exorcized demons. Though Michael is skeptical, he joins Father Lucas on his duties, but remains unsure if he's helping the possessed or the mentally ill. With Ciaran Hinds. On DVD and Blu-Ray.

Sigma Zeta Chi's initiation prank goes awry in Brotherhood, getting a fraternity pledge (Lou Taylor Pucci) shot in what was supposed to be a fake convenience store robbery. As freshman Adam (Trevor Morgan) tries to set things right, the senior fraternity brother (Jon Foster) complicates matters by insisting they not involve the police... he demands they avoid the hospital until they can convince the clerk (Arlen Escarpeta) to lie about what happened, no matter what it takes.

When the lights go out in Vanishing on 7th Street, the dark consumes everyone, leaving empty cars and piles of clothes. Hayden Christensen, John Leguizamo, and Thandie Newton survive the epidemic that has emptied Detroit with flashlights and glowsticks, but they end up together in the only building left with lights on: a little bar on 7th Street. As the sun rises later and sets earlier every day, they stay in the bar and maintain its gas-powered generator, trying to learn what causes the disappearances in the dark and why each of them is still there. On DVD and Blu-Ray.

Sara's (Minka Kelly) first college dorm matches her up with Rebecca (Leighton Meester) in The Roommate. They get along well at first, even though Sara's friend (Alyson Michalka) thinks there's something strange about Rebecca. As Rebecca becomes more obsessed with her roommate, Sara becomes more afraid of the stranger she's living with. With Cam Gigandet. On DVD and Blu-Ray.

---

British Romances

Manchester, a photographer, and Noon, a taxidermist begin a passionate relationship in The Orgasm Diaries, and Manchester documents their affair with revealing, explicit pictures. As his work is discovered and their love and sex become public, the young couple struggle to survive with their intimate, private selves on display.

Will (Tobias Menzies), a troubled singer with a secret, comes to the rescue of Eve (Genevieve O'Reilly) in Forget Me Not. He offers to walk her to the subway station... and so begins their all-night adventure through the streets of London. As they talk and wander from one location to the next, the two of them have an emotional journey until the sun rises on their night together. With Gemma Jones.

---

Documentaries

An HBO Documentary about the history and effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Wartorn: 1861-2010 offers the stories of soldiers from several wars, as far back as the Civil War (recounted from letters.)

Recently recovered, Araya combines imagery and music to paint a portrait of the northern peninsula of Venezuela where the locals gather and stack salt into towering white pyramids.

---

 

New this week to Reckless Video's TV New Releases is the second season of Royal Pains, where a doctor (Mark Feuerstein) and his sidekick (Paulo Costanzo) set up a private practice, making housecalls to Long Island's upper crust. Also new is BBC's South Riding, a romance set in 1930's Yorkshire with Anna Maxwell and David Morrissey, and the animated Thor: Tales of Asgard on DVD and Blu-Ray.