This week: Sam Worthington plays a prison escapee who orchestrates an intricate heist while clinging to the outside of a tall building in the appropriately titled action thriller "Man on a Ledge."
Also new this week are the Amanda Seyfried thriller "Gone," the hockey-themed comedy "Goon" (no relation), and Ralph Fiennes' adaptation of Shakespeare's "Corionalus."
'Man on a Ledge'
Box Office: $19 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 31% Rotten
Storyline: An ex-cop (Sam Worthington) escapes from prison to prove his innocence and steal the $40 million diamond he was accused of swiping from a ruthless businessman (Ed Harris). With the world watching, he jumpstarts the heist from a precarious ledge of the Roosevelt Hotel as a disgraced negotiator (Elizabeth Banks) tries to talk him down and his brother (Jamie Bell) races against time to get the diamond.
Extras! Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain an odd feature: Banks giving funny commentary on the trailer. It only lasts two minutes, but hearing Banks sound vaguely annoyed ("Look at all of this action!") makes it worth a listen.
We Say: There are some moments of tension in this high-wire act as Banks tries to talk the titular man from the titular ledge, but the side story featuring a scene-chewing Genesis Rodriguez as Bell's sassy, diamond-thieving accomplice is played so hard for laughs that it kills any sense of realism or danger.
'Gone'
Box Office: $12 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 11% Rotten
Storyline: Amanda Seyfried stars as a young woman who takes the law into her own hands and hunts down the serial killer she believes has kidnapped her younger sister. The PG-13 thriller costars Jennifer Carpenter, Wes Bentley and Daniel Sunjata.
Extras! Neither the DVD nor the Blu-ray have a single bonus feature, but the Blu-ray does have bookmark functionality so that you can easily access your favorite scenes.
We Say: Seyfried deserves better than this tepid cat-and-mouse game that unfolds like a made-for-TV movie of the week.
'Goon'
Box Office: $4 million
Rotten Tomatoes: 82% Fresh
Storyline: Seann William Scott plays Doug Glatt, a bouncer who is encouraged by his best friend (Jay Baruchel) to join a league hockey team after Doug pounds a thug during a chance encounter on the ice. The big catch in this comedy is that Doug is a fighter, not a skater.
Extras! The Blu-ray's Power Play Mode is an interactive behind-the-scenes movie experience that can be accessed while the movie is playing.
We Say: This gleefully raunchy, R-rated comedy cowritten by the cowriter of "Superbad" and "Pineapple Express" will have fans of those movies busting their guts laughing.
'Coriolanus'
Box Office: $751,724
Rotten Tomatoes: 93% Fresh
Storyline: This adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy stars Ralph Fiennes as the revered and feared Roman general whose extreme views ignite a riot and get him banished from Rome. Allying with his sworn enemy (Gerard Butler), he plots revenge on the city.
Extras! Both the DVD and Blu-ray contain illuminating commentary by Fiennes, who makes his directorial debut with "Coriolanus."
We Say: This classic story of honor and betrayal is smartly cast -- especially Vanessa Redgrave as Coriolanus' manipulative mother -- and serves up bloody violence worthy of a Bard tragedy, if you can handle Fiennes's heavy-handed approach and all of the unapologetic histrionics.
Also New This Week:
"Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies"
"Memorial Day"
"We Need to Talk About Kevin"
"Summer with Monika" Blu-ray
"Summer Interlude" Blu-ray
