New Home Video: Jun. 25-Jul. 2, 2012

I still remember Armie Hammer as the prince of Hell in Reaper, but apparently he's a prince above ground now as well. The Snow White story lends itself to elaborate visuals—fancy balls and gathering malevolence—but a captivating version of the story should do more than look good.
Formats: Blu-Ray and DVD.
The story: An evil queen steals control of a kingdom and an exiled princess enlists the help of seven resourceful rebels to win back her birthright.
Starring: Julia Roberts (The Queen), Lily Collins (Snow White), Armie Hammer (Prince Alcott), Nathan Lane (Brighton), Jordan Prentice (Napoleon), Mark Povinelli (Half Pint), Joe Gnoffo (Grub), Danny Woodburn (Grimm), Sebastian Saraceno (Wolf), Martin Klebba (Butcher), Ronald Lee Clark (Chuckles), Robert Emms (Charles Renbock), Mare Winningham (Baker Margaret), Michael Lerner (Baron), Sean Bean (King).
Directed by: Tarsem Singh Dhandwar.
Features: Looking Through The Mirror; Prince And Puppies.

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• Video, trailer, and clips.
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Interesting what's been happening to Zeus lately in movies. He's played by big names, but gets outstripped more and more by his various offspring. Somehow he's shifted for awesome God of All to King Priam. (But then, the same thing happened to Odin.)
Formats: Blu-Ray, 3D, and DVD.
The story: Perseus braves the treacherous underworld to rescue his father, Zeus, captured by his son, Ares, and brother Hades who unleash the ancient Titans upon the world.
Starring: Sam Worthington (Perseus), Liam Neeson (Zeus), Ralph Fiennes (Hades), Edgar Ramírez (Ares), Toby Kebbell (Agenor), Rosamund Pike (Andromeda), Bill Nighy (Hephaestus), John Bell (Helius), Lily James (Korrina), Alejandro Naranjo (Mantius), Freddy Drabble (Apollo), Kathryn Carpenter (Athena), Matt Milne (Elite Guard No. 1), Kett Turton (Elite Guard No. 2), Sinead Cusack (Clea), Spencer Wilding (Minotaur).
Directed by: Jonathan Liebesman.
Features: Maximum Movie Mode (HD): Choose from two different Maximum Movie Mode experiences: the Path of Gods, where you'll learn about the mythology behind Wrath of the Titans, and the Path of Men, where you'll go behind-the-scenes to see how the production team developed and created Perseus' world, comrades, enemies, creatures and battles; featurettes include "Battling the Chimera," "Agenor: The Other Demi-God," "The Cyclops Fight," "Prison of the Titans," "Minotaur: The Human Nightmare," "The Heavens Raise Hell on Earth," "Who Are the Titans?," "Hephaestus: God of Fire," "Lost in Tartarus' Labyrinth" and "Creatures of the Titans"; Deleted Scenes (HD, 11 minutes).

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• Video, trailer, and clips.
• Review.

We all thought Dreamgirls and Shrek saved Eddie Murphy from joke status in Hollywood, reminding both him and us of his potential. And yet it's movies like this, consisting of terrible ideas badly realized, that he thinks we want. Everyone involved in getting this movie made is on a long downward slide. It was written by Steve Koren, who once wrote Bruce Almighty but whose last two credits are Jack and Jill and this, and was directed by Brian Robbins, who once made Varsity Blues and Good Burger but whose last three credits are Meet Dave, Norbit, and this.
Formats: Blu-Ray and DVD.
The story: After stretching the truth on a deal with a spiritual guru, literary agent Jack McCall finds a Bodhi tree on his property. Its appearance holds a valuable lesson on the consequences of every word we speak.
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Clark Duke, Kerry Washington, Cliff Curtis, Allison Janney, Ariel Winter, John Witherspoon.
Directed by: Brian Robbins.
Features: Deleted Scenes (12:52); Alternate Ending.

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Sector 7 is remarkable as a 3D actioner and as one with a female lead—both unusual in Korea—but what interests me most is who's playing that lead: the fantastic Ha Ji-won, who among other things starred as stuntwoman Gil Ra-Im in a very charming Korean body-swap TV drama called Secret Garden. (It's on Netflix, so go watch it. Though be warned that there's one episode—unfortunately the pivotal episode 5—for which the subtitles are slightly mistimed.)
Formats: Blu-Ray, 3D, and DVD.
The story: The film depicts the crew of an oil drillship that battles a sea monster that has been transformed by a virus.
Starring: Ji-won Ha, Sung-kee Ahn, Ji-ho Oh.
Directed by: Ji-hun Kim.
Features: "Making of" featurette; original theatrical trailer.

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