Josh Hutcherson, Joanh Bobo and Tim Robbins in "Zathura"
courtesy of Sony Home Video
"The First Cousin"

"Zathura" is a new film out on DVD, and it is the first cousin to the movie "Jumanji." Both movies concern kids and both movies involve magical board games. In "Zathura," the better of the two movies, two brothers play a board game they discover in the basement. Their father (Tim Robbins) is away from the house and their older sister is asleep upstairs. 

Once the brothers start playing the game they discover their house has been transported into outer space. In order to get back to earth they have to complete the game. And along the way there is a multitude of obstacles in their path.

The film is good-natured and fun with a lot of special effects and solid performance from all the actors in the movie. For good family entertainment that will keep the adults involved too, get "Zathura." It is more fun than a good board game, and that's saying a lot.

Another way to have a great evening of entertainment (or maybe a couple of evenings) is by watching "Grey's Anatomy." This TV series is the first cousin to "ER" and while "ER" has gotten old and gray, "Grey's Anatomy" is a youngster just starting out.

Even if you watched every episode of the first season (which I did religiously) you will still enjoy this grouping of all the episodes. For one thing, there are no commercial interruptions. Secondly you will have forgotten just how sharp the actors are and how precise the dialogue is.

Additionally the DVD has all those "extras" that we know and love. Here we have nineteen exclusive unaired scenes, commentaries from the director and cast, a look "behind the scenes" and many, many more. But most of all you get to watch Meredith and Dr McDreamy find love and lose love, while Yang and Burke find love and let it grow. It is all so complex, so heartbreaking, so wonderful!

"Grey's Anatomy" is a hit when the experts thought the medical series was finished. In this case the younger first cousin is winning by a mile.

There aren't any cousins in "Happy Endings" but there sure are a lot of other people in relationships that are complex and involved. Director Don Roos takes a variety of people and turns their lives upside down and films the results. These results are shocking and funny, and every scene is well acted and brilliantly directed.

The cast of players reads like a who's who of lesser known actors who always deliver intriguing performances. This includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, Lisa Kudrow, Tom Arnold (Tom Arnold? Yes Tom Arnold), Bobby Cannavale, Laura Dern and Jason Ritter. Each actor delivers the perfect pitch performance to make the movie fun and interesting.

The relationships contained in this film are off the beaten path but each is designed to hold your interest. So if you like movies that are different, get this film and have a "Happy Endings" night. 

If you are in the mood for a romantic comedy how about "Extreme Dating"? This is a movie about young love and the extremes people will go to in order to find it and make it last. It is a comedy that is about love and a mock kidnapping, that turns into a real kidnapping. How's that for Cupid's sick sense of humor.

The film stars Devon Sawa, Jamie Lynn Sigler and Amanda Detmer. They are bright young actors who are right at home in a movie like this one. Let them take over and give you a night of romantic comedy that will leave a smile on your face and a lift in your heart.

If you are in the mood to be scared then pick up "The Devil's Rejects." This film is by Rob Zombie and concerns deranged killers who think nothing of taking life. It is a horror film to top all other horror films. Zombie may not make mainstream movies but he certainly knows how to make movies that will scare you and haunt your dreams.

The movie stars William Forsythe, Sid Haig, and Sheri Moon Zombie. These are actors who can play these types of roles to the hilt. In a way they are too good at acting deranged and deadly. You believe they are what their characters are supposed to be.

So lock the doors, turn down the lights, and put this movie in the DVD player. Then wait for all hell to break loose as Rob Zombie's "The Devil's Rejects" scares up some horror in your home.

"The Best of Youth" is an epic film that tells the story of two Italian brothers. The six hour movie concerns their lives, their loves, and their politics as forty years evolve and the two brothers grow and change. There is passion and adventure as the world in which they live changes and so do they.

This Italian film has won numerous awards and is recognized as being a film of importance. It is a long adventure but one that tells a full story. You can involve yourself with it; you can submerge yourself into it. It is epic in the best sense of the word,

If you are interested in the background of "The Last Supper" as described in the New Testament of the Bible then you will want to rent "The Amazing Story of the Last Supper." This is a film that takes the viewer through the meaning of each of the elements and gives background information to support that which is done.

The film was shot in the Holy Land and provides much information to the religious scholar or those with a passing interest in such matters. It is a film to be studied and absorbed.

Finally there is "Streetball Confidential," a movie about the famous streetball courts located in Venice Beach, California. By watching this movie you can learn some of the cool moves of the experts, and yes kids you can try these at home.

You know these stars by the names of "Headache," "The Game," and Baron Davis and they are all here to talk you through some of their best moves. So get "Streetball Confidential" and be a star in your own town.

 

 

 

 

 

©2006 Jackie K. Cooper

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