DEXTER: SEASON 4

DIRECTOR: VARIOUS

Starring: Julie Benz , Jennifer Carpenter , Michael Hall , James Remar , Lauren Velez , David Zayas , Desmond Harrington , C.S. Lee

The Showtime Original Series DEXTER™ is back with an all-new season, and this time America’s favourite serial killer has gone from freewheeling bachelor to responsible husband and doting dad. Maintaining an average-guy facade while satisfying his need to kill has never been easy. But now, with wife and kids in tow, Dexter’s got more to lose then ever, as he gets drawn into a deadly game with a killer every bit as dangerous — and conflicted — as he is.

GENRE: TELEVISION
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 632 MINS
RATED: NR

DATE NIGHT

DIRECTOR: SHAWN LEVY

Starring: Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg, James Franco, Kristen Wiig, Ray Liotta

Steve Carell and Tina Fey are “a match made in comedy heaven” (Ben Lyons, E!) in this uproarious adventure about an ordinary couple in the right place…on the wrong night. Phil and Claire Foster are a sensible, suburban husband and wife slogging through their daily lives and marriage. But a case of mistaken identity sets off an outrageous chain of events involving small-time thieves, big-city mobsters, corrupt cops and a crazed cabbie, as the Fosters’ “date night” turns into a wild ride they’ll never forget!

GENRE: COMEDY
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 88 MINS
RATED: PG-13

THE RUNAWAYS

DIRECTOR: FLORIA SIGISMONDI

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon

Los Angeles 1975, Joan Jett (KRISTEN STEWART) and Cherie Currie (DAKOTA FANNING), two teenage valley girls with punk in their blood, meet and become the heart and soul of the seminal all girl band, The Runaways. Floria Sigismondi brings The Runaways to the big screen in this story of a group of extraordinary young women as they rise from rebellious Southern California kids to rock stars of the now legendary band that paved the way for future generations of girl musicians. Under the Svengali-like influence of rock impresario Kim Fowley (MICHAEL SHANNON), the group evolves into an outrageous success and a family of misfits. With its tough-chick image and raw talent, the band quickly earns a name for itself and so do its two leads: Joan is the band’s pure rock n roll heart, while Cherie, with her Bowie-Bardot looks, is the sex kitten.

GENRE: DRAMA
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 107 MINS
RATED: R

THE BOUNTY HUNTER

DIRECTOR: ANDY TENNANT

Starring: Gerard Butler, Jennifer Aniston

Milo Boyd (Gerard Butler), a down-on-his-luck bounty hunter, gets his dream job when he is assigned to track down his bail-jumping ex-wife, reporter Nicole Hurly (Jennifer Aniston). He thinks all that’s ahead is an easy payday, but when Nicole gives him the slip so she can chase a lead on a murder cover-up, Milo realizes that nothing ever goes simply with him and Nicole. The exes continually one-up each other – until they find themselves on the run for their lives. They thought their promise to love, honor and obey was tough – staying alive is going to be a whole lot tougher. Andy Tennant (HITCH) directs.

GENRE: COMEDY
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 110 MINS
RATED: PG-13

GREEN ZONE

DIRECTOR: PAUL GREENGRASS

Starring: Matt Damon, Greg Kinnear, Amy Ryan, Brendan Gleeson

Academy Award® nominees Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum) reteam in this action-packed thriller. Damon stars as Roy Miller, a rogue U.S. Army officer who must hunt through covert and faulty intelligence hidden on foreign soil before war escalates in an unstable region. Also starring Academy Award® nominees Greg Kinnear and Amy Ryan, GREEN ZONE is “one hell of a thriller” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times).

GENRE: ACTION
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 115 MINS
RATED: R

THE BOOK OF ELI

DIRECTOR: THE HUGHES BROTHERS

Starring: Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Tom Waits

Eli walks alone in post-apocalyptic America. He heads west along the Highway of Death on a mission he doesn’t fully understand but knows he must complete. In his backpack is the last copy of a book that could become the wellspring of a revived society. Or in the wrong hands, the hammer of a despot. Denzel Washington is Eli, who keeps his blade sharp and his survival instincts sharper as his quest thrusts him into a savage wasteland…and into explosive conflict with a resourceful warlord (Gary Oldman) set on possessing the book. “We walk by faith, not by sight”, quotes Eli. Under the taut direction of the Hughes Brothers (Menace II Society), those words hit home with unexpected meaning and power.

GENRE: ACTION
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 118 MINS
RATED: R

FROM PARIS WITH LOVE

DIRECTOR: PIERRE MOREL

Starring: John Travolta, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Kasia Smutniak, Richard Durden

James Reece (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), personal aide to the U.S. Ambassador to France, is secretly moonlighting as a low-level CIA operative. Looking for more action, Reece accepts a job that teams him with wise-cracking special agent Charlie Wax (John Travolta), a trigger-happy loose cannon sent to Paris on a mission of international importance. Now, Reece finds himself on the wildest ride of his life as the new partners pull out all the stops to annihilate the enemy in this explosive, white-knuckle, non-stop thriller.

GENRE: ACTION
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 93 MINS
RATED: R

CLINT EASTWOOD: 35 FILMS 35 YEARS AT WARNER BROS

DIRECTOR: VARIOUS

Starring: Clint Eastwood

Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood has touched generations of filmgoers for over half a century. The five-time Academy Award winner has made an indelible mark as one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors and insightful directors. In honor of Eastwood’s long standing 35 year relationship with Warner Bros. through Malpaso Productions, this definitive collection celebrates Eastwood’s entire filmography at the studio from Where Eagles Dare (1968) through Gran Torino (2008) all packaged in an elegant giftset. Also included is an all-new documentary about Eastwood’s life and career produced by esteemed film critic and historian Richard Schickel, featuring in-depth interviews and revealing, intimate footage never-before-seen plus rare photos and letters.

Films included:

GENRE: VARIOUS
FORMAT: DVD & ASSORTED SINGLE BLU-RAY’S

DAYBREAKERS

DIRECTOR: PETER AND MICHAEL SPIERIG

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Sam Neill, Willem Dafoe, Isabel Lucas, Claudia Karvan, Michael Dorman


Two-time Academy Award® nominee Ethan Hawke plays Edward Dalton, a researcher in the year 2019, when an unknown plague has transformed the world’s population into vampires. As the human population nears extinction, vampires must capture and farm every remaining human, or find a blood substitute before time runs out. However, a covert group of vampires makes a remarkable discovery, one which has the power to save the human race.

GENRE: HORROR

FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY

RUNTIME: 98 MINS

RATED: R

THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS

DIRECTOR: TERRY GILLIAM

Starring: Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, Jude Law, Christopher Plummer, Tom Waits

Blessed with the extraordinary gift of guiding the imaginations of others, Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) is cursed with a dark secret. An inveterate gambler, thousands of years ago he made a bet with the devil, Mr. Nick (Tom Waits), in which he won immortality. Centuries later, on meeting his one true love, Dr. Parnassus made another deal with the devil, trading his immortality for youth, on condition that when his daughter reached her 16th birthday, she would become the property of Mr Nick. In this captivating, explosive and wonderfully imaginative race against time, Dr. Parnassus must fight to save his daughter in a never-ending landscape of surreal obstacles – and undo the mistakes of his past once and for all!

GENRE: DRAMA
FORMAT: DVD & BLU-RAY
RUNTIME: 123 MINS
RATED: PG13

Read our review.

Slim pickings for standard Hollywood fare this weekend. You've got Valentine's Day, which looks like someone plucked three scenes each from a pile of rom-coms and stuck them together rather than figuring an entire movie out; Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, which gets no points for incredibly long title and also revolves around three teens who find out they're demi-gods who need to retrieve the bolt from the lightening thief; and The Wolfman, because werewolves are hot right now, and no one noticed that Benicio Del Toro isn't aging well.

Over at the Bytowne, you can check out The Last Station, for which Helen Mirren received an Oscar nod,  and New York, I Love You, because even the Bytowne's not resistant to splashing something with a big heart over St. Valentine's Day.

Finally, the Mayfair has prepared a smorgasbord of love and love-hate movies (notably Audition in the latter category), though you'd do well to start with tonight's Painted Lips and Lolly Licks: Sexy Film Festival. 

In another sign of the ever changing times, DVD and music retailer HMV is entering the digital realm.  Check it out:

Canada’s largest bricks and mortar music retailer, hmv Canada is thrilled to be bringing their extensive knowledge and passion for music into a new and exciting digital realm!  With a continued focus on expanding their business and reinventing their brand, hmv is launching their new Canadian digital store, hmvdigital.ca. 

hmvdigital.ca will launch in ‘beta’ mode on November 4, 2009 when hmv invites its consumers to test the site, and provide hmv with feedback. The site will use an advanced technology platform to allow music lovers to find and enjoy the music they love, in digital form.