April 2008 DVD Releases

April 1

Alvin and the Chipmunks
The lovable rodents Alvin, Simon and Theodore are back and computer generated in this modern-day adaptation. Struggling songwriter David Seville (Jason Lee) stumbles upon the trio of musically inclined chipmunks and utilizes their talent to boost his dwindling career.

The Good Night
Gary Shaller (Morgan Freeman) has hit his mid-life crisis, and he's hit it hard. He's working a dead-end job, and his wife, Dora (Gwyneth Paltrow), is driving him up the wall. Gary's life gets a jolt of something new, however, when he meets the sexy and intelligent Anna (Penelope Cruz). The only problem is he can see her only in his dreams.

Resurrecting the Champ
Erik Kernan (Josh Hartnett) is a sports reporter on the rise whose career and life take an interesting turn when he happens upon a homeless man (Samuel L. Jackson) who turns out to be a former boxing legend.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Director Tim Burton and Johnny Depp team up yet again is this macabre musical centered on Benjamin Barker (Depp), a man who has just been released from prison for a crime he didn't commit. With the help of his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovitt (Helena Bonham Carter), Barker, a.k.a. Sweeney Todd, is reaping his bloody revenge and seeking justice under the guise of his barbershop. (See MPM's movie review.)

What Love Is
Tom (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is more than ready for Valentine's Day. He has the flowers, the suit and the engagement ring for his girlfriend. Tom receives a sad surprise, however, when he finds out his would-be fiancée has left him. Now, he must put the pieces of his life back together with the help of his friends.

April 8

The 11^th Hour
Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, The 11^th Hour takes a shocking look at the declining state of Earth and ways we all can restore it. (See MPM's review of the film's Cannes appearance.)

Day of the Dead
Steve Miner helms this remake of George A. Ramero's 1985 cult horror classic. After a wave of zombies has ravished the land, a small band of survivors must fight their way toward an underground military bunker.

Fog City Mavericks: The Filmmakers of San Francisco
Gary Leva's documentary gives a much-deserved nod to prominent San Francisco Bay area filmmakers, including Francis Ford Coppola, Chris Columbus, Clint Eastwood and George Lucas.

Innocent Voices
Luis Mandoki's moving drama focuses on the life of Chava (Carlos Padilla), an 11-year-old boy who becomes the man of the house after his father goes missing during a 1980s civil war in El Salvador.

Lions for Lambs
Meryl Streep, Tom Cruise and Robert Redford star in this gripping drama that revolves around the politics and emotions involved in war. (See MPM's movie review.)

Oublier Cheyenne (Looking for Cheyenne)
After being fired from her job, Cheyenne flees from Paris and opts to live in the middle of nowhere - leaving behind her girlfriend, Sonia, who futilely attempts to forget her.

Manda Bala (Send a Bullet)
Jason Kohn's documentary dissects the corruption and stark class differences in Brazil through a plastic surgeon, a politician and a successful businessman.

Music Within
Based on a true story, Music Within tells the story of Richard Pimentel (Ron Livingston), an intelligent public speaker who returns from Vietnam significantly hearing impaired and determined more than ever to spread the word of Americans with Disabilities.

Mystery of the Nile
This cinematic adventure takes viewers down the breathtaking and deadly river, The Blue Nile.

P2
It's Christmas Eve, and young business executive Angela (Rachel Nichols) is trapped in a parking garage courtesy of a car that won't start and a cell phone with no signal. When the seemingly harmless security guard, Thomas (Wes Bentley), offers his assistance, Angela realizes her predicament is far from coincidence and must find a way out of the level P2 parking lot if she wants to live to see another Christmas.

Reservation Road
Director Terry George (Hotel Rwanda) brings this powerful drama from the pages of John Burnham Schwartz's novel to life. On a deceptively tranquil September afternoon, the lives of two fathers (Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Ruffalo) are strung together by a common tragedy. (See MPM's movie review and candid interview with Joaquin Phoenix.)
 
There Will Be Blood
Daniel Day Lewis gives an Academy Award winning performance in P.T. Anderson's gripping turn-of-the-century tale of a struggling silver miner turned ruthless tycoon after striking oil and expanding his business to California where his manipulating ways know no bounds. (See MPM's movie review.)

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
John C. Reilly stars as Dewey Cox, a dim witted musician with a comedic rollercoaster career that touches on the highs of fame and the lows of drug abuse with a variety of hilarious situations and characters in between.

The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
Based on the children's novel by Dick King-Smith, The Water Horse tells the story of a lonely boy who discovers a mysterious egg that hatches into what will eventually become the legendary Loch Ness Monster.

April 15

Alien vs. Predator - Requiem
The Strause brothers co-direct the latest installment in the sci-fi thriller series Alien vs. Predator. Warring alien and predator races bring their battle to a small town, where unsuspecting residents are caught in the middle and must band together to survive.

Bosque de Sombras (The Backwoods)
In the summer of 1978, Lucy and Norman have hit the marital skids and decide to take a vacation with their friend, Paul (Gary Oldman), at his home in the Basque region of Spain. When the group comes upon a terribly mutilated girl, their attempt to help her puts them in danger in the unfamiliar woods.

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
In need of some extra cash, two brothers (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke) organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store but with no guns or violence. When an accomplice ignores the rules, however, the heist goes terribly wrong, setting off a chain of events that affects everyone involved.

The Final Season
Based on a true story, The Final Season tells the story of Kent Stock (Sean Astin), a young coach who puts his life on hold to help his crestfallen team march to victory one last time.

I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With
After hitting rock bottom with a failed relationship and career, struggling actor James Aaron (Jeff Garlin) has a refreshing encounter with the quirky ice cream shop girl, Beth (Sarah Silverman), and gets a new perspective on life and love.

In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale
Director Uwe Boll's tale of revenge revolves around Farmer (Jason Statham), a courageous man who sets out to rescue his kidnapped wife and avenge his son's murder.

Juno
Thanks to a one-time sexual encounter with her best friend, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera), Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page) is 16 and pregnant and is becoming even more of a social outcast among her high school peers. Deciding to give her baby up for adoption, Juno finds the seemingly perfect couple in Vanessa and Mark (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman). (see MPM's movie review and video interview from the Toronto International Film Festival)

Lars and the Real Girl
Awkward and shy Lars Lindstrom (Ryan Gosling) tells his brother and sister-in-law that he's bringing the love of his life to their home for a visit. All seems normal until they discover Lars's new girlfriend is a lifelike sex doll he found on the Internet. Now, Lars's family and friends are politely going along with his delusions, too afraid of hurting his sensitive feelings. (see MPM's movie review)

War/Dance
Sean Fine and Andrea Nix's documentary gives voice to northern Ugandan children living in displacement camps after their country's civil war who find hope in the national music and dance festival. (see MPM's movie review and video interview from the Sundance Film Festival)

April 22

Charlie Wilson's War
Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in Mike Nichols compelling comedy based on a true story. A womanizing Texas congressman, Charlie Wilson (Hanks), a Houston socialite fighting for a good cause, Joanne Herring (Roberts) and a rebel CIA agent, Gust Avrakotos (Hoffman), come together to bring about the end of the Cold War. (see MPM's movie review)

Cloverfield
A small group of friends fights to stay alive when a mysterious monster rampages through New York City.

Hannah Takes the Stairs
A quirky love triangle ensues when Hannah falls for two of her co-workers.

Nina's Heavenly Delights
When young and saucy Glasgow chef Nina Shah (Shelley Conn) returns home to London for her father's funeral, she strikes up a lesbian affair with her childhood friend, Lisa (Laura Fraser), and, together, they try to save Lisa's family restaurant by winning a curry cooking contest.

One Missed Call
Shannyn Sossamon stars in this Japanese horror film remake about a group of college students who receive a call that goes straight to voicemail, hear their death and then die - and Beth Raymond (Sossamon) is next. Now, time is running out for Beth as she teams up with detective Jack Andrews (Edward Burns) to find out who or what is behind the mysterious calls and murders.

El Orfanato (The Orphanage)
Laura brings her family back to her hometown and decides to turn her childhood home into an orphanage. Things take a turn, however, when her son befriends a new invisible companion who holds the key to a world of horrors. (see MPM's movie review)

Romulus, My Father
Based on Raimond Gaita's moving memoir, Romulus tells the story of Raimond's father, Romulus, and his mother, Christina, who overcome adversity as lowly immigrants, starting their lives over in Australia.

The Savages
Tamara Jenkins's original film takes a bitter, yet comedic, look at a modern family that's forced to come together under circumstances out of their control. Jon (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and Wendy (Laura Linney) have to put their lives on hold to take care of their increasingly ill father, who was anything but fatherly when they were growing up. (see MPM's movie review and video interview from the Toronto International Film Festival)

Starting Out in the Evening
Heather Wolfe is an ambitious young graduate student who convinces a once-famous writer that her thesis can jumpstart his dwindling career.

April 29

27 Dresses
Always the bridesmaid and never the bride, Jane (Katherine Heigl) has never been lucky in love - that is, until she falls for her boss, George. The only catch is that George is her sister's fiancé.

Bernard and Doris
Ralph Fiennes and Susan Sarandon star as the unlikely twosome Bernard and Doris. Doris Duke is a diva multi-millionaire tobacco heiress who shares a peculiar, yet compassionate, relationship with her recovering alcoholic butler, Bernard Lafferty.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le scaphandre et le papillon)
After a severely debilitating stroke, French Elle Editor-in-Chief Jean Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric) gains new perspective as he visits faraway lands in his imagination and tells his life's story while bedridden. (see MPM's movie review)

The Golden Compass
Based on Philip Pullman's award-winning trilogy of novels, The Golden Compass is an adventurous ride through a parallel universe and tells the story of 12-year-old Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Blue Richards), who sets out to save her friend but is ultimately given the task of saving the world.

Hero Wanted
Local hero Liam Case (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is left for dead after a bank robbery where he attempted to save the life of a teller. After exacting his revenge against the thief who almost killed him, Liam life is in danger yet again when the criminal's associates look to finish the job.

How She Move
When her sister dies from a drug overdose, Raya's dream of attending a private high school is dashed when she is forced to return home to her crime-ridden community with no money. After learning of a step competition with a grand prize of $50,000, Raya's passion for dance and attending school is rekindled.

Moondance Alexander
After a chance encounter with a loose pinto pony named Checkers, Moondance Alexander (Kay Panabaker) convinces the pony's gruff owner, Dante Longpre (Don Johnson), to train her and Checkers for the Bow Valley Classic.

Nanking
Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman's film tells the tragic tale of the 1937 Rape of Nanking, when the invading Japanese army ravished the Chinese, murdering more than 200,000 and raping thousands of others.