DVDs: ‘The Boy in the Striped Pajamas’
In “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas,” adapted from the novel by John Boyne, 8-year-old Bruno (Asa Butterfield) is the son of an SS officer assigned to a concentration camp.
Drink: Get the taste of 80-proof rum
Former Las Vegas bartender Bobby Gleason, now the master mixologist for Jim Beam Brands, gives his assessment of several 80-proof rums.
DVDs: ‘Happy-Go-Lucky’
The new film from England’s oft Oscar-nominated Mike Leigh stars Sally Hawkins who, despite the constant vexations of life, always manages to look on the bright side.
YooStar entertainment system
DVD Reviews: Yoostar aims to be the ‘Guitar Hero’ of the film world
Open Season 2
DVD Reviews: Boog is back but not so Martin Lawrence, who voiced the domesticated bear in “Open Season” (Mike Epps takes his place). Same goes his antler-challenged companion Elliot, who’s no less spastic with “Talk Soup’s” Joel McHale subbing in for Ashton Kutcher.
The Films of Michael Powell
DVD Reviews: Of all Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s films, “A Matter of Life and Death” is the most rhapsodic, so three cheers and then some to see it bow on DVD in such a spectacular transfer. Yet it seems a false step to couple the pic with the vastly inferior “Age of Consent.”
The Express
DVD Reviews: The extras on the DVD offer a bit more insight into Ernie Davis’ real-life struggles and accomplishments, but not nearly enough to make it a must buy.
Mary Poppins
DVD Reviews: The 45th anniversary of “Mary Poppins” returns as a two-disc DVD edition and remains the exact same collection as the 40th anniversary package Disney put together four years earlier, save for one new wrinkle: An hourlong-plus set of extras about the Disney on Broadway production.
Magnificent Obsession
DVD Reviews: Criterion has long harbored a weakness for helmer Douglas Sirk, and this two-disc release of his 1954 version of “Magnificent Obsession” furthers the love affair. But though this issue offers ample bonuses, including director John Stahl’s 1935 version of the film, not all the extras live up to Criterion’s generally impeccable standards.
DVDs: ‘Rachel Getting Married’
Anne Hathaway stretches herself admirably and convincingly to play a spoiled, self-centered, broken young woman who is unafraid to be unlikable.