An impressive array of performers — from Pharrell Williams and Karen O to U2 and Adele Dazeem, aka Idina Menzel — rendered this month's Academy Awards telecast something other than a musical wasteland for a change, at least until one realized that the film with the best music of 2013 wasn't represented at all.
New movies
"Inside Llewyn Davis." Despite rapturous reviews from critics, among the kindest of the year, the Coen brothers' latest effort — a character study about a struggling folk singer in the Greenwich Village of the early 1960s — failed to break through during the recent awards season. That was an oversight. The film, starring Oscar Isaac in the title role, may be bleak and melancholy, but it's a remarkably affecting story about what it means to be an artist. The soundtrack alone — featuring Jack White, Marcus Mumford, Joan Baez, Patti Smith, the Avett Brothers and many more — is a worthwhile investment of time and money. Rated R for language including some sexual references, 105 min.
"out of the furnace soundtrack of the Furnace." Gritty, violent tales about desperate men taking the law into their own hands are as old as cinema itself. "Out of the Furnace" may not be anything new, but it features some of the best work Christian Bale, Casey Affleck and Woody Harrelson have ever put on screen. Bale is particularly impressive as his brother's keeper, a steelworker in Braddock, Pa. — the end of the line in today's world — who has little to live for, except perhaps justice. The movie doesn't have a happy ending, but its surprising conclusion is honest. This is the kind of motion picture that lingers — and maybe not in a good way. Rated R for strong violence, language and drug content. 116 min.
"The Book Thief." An "uplifting," "moving" film about the Holocaust — that's become a redundancy if ever there was one. This effort tells a story somewhat tangential to the main event, focused on a young girl, adopted by a German couple, who gets through World War II by reading and reading to others. As the father, Geoffrey Rush is predictably charming. There may be nothing really wrong with this movie; it just feels like it belongs on PBS, not that there's anything wrong with that either. In fact, the picture was helmed by "Downton Abbey" director Brian Percival, and it shows. Rated PG-13 for some violence and intense depiction of thematic material. 131 min.
"The Broken Circle Breakdown." If the folk tunes of "Inside Llewyn Davis" aren't your cup of tea, how about some bluegrass by way of Belgium? This Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Feature soars when its characters are on stage, but take heed — the tragic familial drama at the heart of this story is a wrenching thing that will inevitably be too much (or too maudlin) for some viewers. "With its exquisite depictions of suffering, it's not always easy to watch. But, as in life, sometimes there's beauty to be found in the pain," The Washington Post's Stephanie Merry wrote. Not rated. 111 min. In English and Flemish with English subtitles.
Old movies
"Samson and Delilah." With Easter and Passover weeks away, the parade of religion-themed titles to home video has begun. This Cecil B. DeMille title from 1949, which finally arrived on DVD a year ago, is now being issued on Blu-ray. DeMille's predilection for filling the frame with all manner of color and activity is well served by this high-definition format, and stars Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr are remarkably glamorous for Biblical figures. The entertaining story of Samson and Delilah is amended here and there for modern audiences. Samson uses more than just the jawbone of an ass to kill 1,000 men, and his eyes are merely burned, not removed from their sockets. 133 min.
Top 10
Here are this week's most popular DVD rentals as compiled by the Internet Movie Database —"Captain Phillips," "Nebraska," "Ender's Game," "Escape Plan," "Riddick," "Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa," "Last Vegas," "Thor: The Dark World," "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2" and "Runner Runner."
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