#Middlebury #DVDs
“Harriet” (PG-13) – From self-liberation to American human-rights icon, Harriet Tubman (Cynthia Erivo) takes center stage in a stirring and inspirational biopic. When her husband, a freeman, attempts to secure her release, the farm’s owner refuses. Tubman is labeled a troublemaker and sent to be sold, but escapes, making the arduous trek to Pennsylvania and winning her freedom. But it’s not enough, so she returns for her family again and again, bringing home many slaves in the process. The supporting cast includes Janelle Monae as a savvy boarding-house manager and Leslie Odom Jr. as abolitionist William Still.
Scene from “Parasite” (FOCUS photo)
“Parasite” (R) – South Korea’s sleeper hit is a black comedy that effortlessly tackles social aspirations and class conflict. The Kim family lives in a squalid basement, with no prospects and no resources. Son Ki-woo, egged on by a college-bound peer, fakes some credentials and takes a job as a tutor to the daughter of the filthy rich Parks family. Buoyed by the lavish lifestyle, Ki-woo plots to secure jobs for all of his family members so that they can live the good life by association. Getting there was only part of the battle, though. The ends inevitably begin to unravel, with macabre consequences. Written and directed by acclaimed director Bong Joon Ho.
“Terminator: Dark Fate” (PG-13) – James Cameron returns to the helm of the latest “Terminator” offering, which pits a newer, even more dangerous terminator sent back in time to kill a young woman, Dani (Natalia Reyes), who unbeknownst to her, will play a pivotal future role in the war between technology and humanity. Fortunately, along with the new Rev-9 terminator (Gabriel Luna), a cybergenetically enhanced Resistance soldier named Grace (Mackenzie Davis) also time travels back as a protector to Dani. She finds backup in some familiar faces: Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) and a grizzled but domesticated T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger).
“Motherless Brooklyn” (R) – Lionel Essrog (Ed Norton) is a detective, afflicted by Tourette syndrome and singularly focused after witnessing the killing of his mentor, Frank Minna (Bruce Willis). Although impaired by his disease, he also is shaped by it. His investigation drives him to chase a deadly secret across a highly stylized New York City, from the gritty underbelly to a Harlem club and into the lion’s den of political intrigue. Based on the novel by Jonathon Letham, it’s written and directed by Norton, who took the contemporary story and gave it a 1950s noir feel. You can’t ask for better talent – Willis and Norton, along with Alec Baldwin, Willem Dafoe, Bobby Cannavale and others – but it’s a commitment at 144 minutes, all of which require your strict attention.
New TV Releases
“Duck Dodgers” The Complete Third Season
“Ballers” The Complete Series
“Roswell, New Mexico” The Complete First Season
“My Life Is Murder” Series 1
© 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
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