New Release of the Week/Month/Year!!!
*** Loot (Carnivalesque Films) — Darius Marder’s Loot isn’t just proof that truth is stranger than fiction; in this case, it is infinitely richer than the very best of fiction. Marder turns his camera on Lance, a hustler-and-bustler who is always after a big score. When he hears about two separate World War II veterans, Darrel and Andrew, who have information that might lead to actual pots of gold at the end of the rainbow, he sees this as his ticket to glory. Unfortunately, Lance’s literal excavation sparks an emotional excavation into both Darrel and Andrew’s troubled pasts, which turns out to provide a haunting parallel with Lance’s own family situation. Thinking about Loot too deeply makes one’s head spin, for it doesn’t seem possible that one filmmaker could happen upon a story so profoundly layered. Loot has the emotional gravity of Steinbeck and the narrative flair of the Coen Brothers, yet it is anything but fiction. It is a film that devastates on a multitude of levels, and is best experienced with as little pre-viewing knowledge as possible. Buy it on DVD.
Two Very Good 30 For 30 Docs Now On DVD
The Best That Never Was (Team Marketing) — Could the story of Marcus Dupree, a boundlessly talented running back who never reached his true potential, sustain itself for 100 minutes? Thanks to Dupree, the answer is a resounding yes. In looking back on the events that led to his disappointingly unfulfilled career, Dupree reveals himself to be a quiet, humble hero filled with humility and grace. Aspiring athletes—especially those of you with the biggest of heads—should be forced to watch The Best That Never Was immediately. Read the rest of my review, then buy it on DVD.
Pony Excess (Team Marketing) — Buy it on DVD.
Have Not Seen But Wanna
Soul Kitchen (IFC Films) — Buy it on DVD.
Easy A (Sony Pictures) — Buy it on DVD or Blu-ray.