'Haywire' and the Madonna-directed dud "W.E." also arrive in stores this week.
In this film image released by Warner Bros., Dolly Parton, foreground from left, Keke Palmer and Queen Latifah are shown in a scene from "Joyful Noise." (AP Photo/Warner Bros., Van Redin)
By The Washington Post
The following films are available this week on home video:
“Joyful Noise“ (PG-13, 118 minutes, Warner Home Video): Times are tough for the citizens of Pacashau, Ga., and not just because the recession has shuttered most of the town’s businesses. The director of the Divinity Church Choir has died, making the group’s chances for top prize at the National Joyful Noise Competition look bleak. To make matters worse, the choir finds itself divided when Vi Rose Hill (Queen Latifah) is chosen over the choir director’s widow, G.G. Sparrow (Dolly Parton), to helm the group. The movie revolves around keeping the faith through obstacle after obstacle, but the dramedy’s ultimate feel-good nature proves infectious, even for non-churchgoers. Despite some mawkish dialogue, there’s something to be said for leaving the theater with a smile. Contains strong language, brief violence and sexual situations. DVD extras: making-of featurette and “Leading Ladies“ (in the recording studio with Parton and Latifah); also, on Blu-ray, the featurettes “Spotlight on a Song: Dolly Parton’s ’From Here to the Moon and Back’ “ and “Inspiration of Joyful Noise“ and extended songs.
“New Year’s Eve“ (PG-13, 118 minutes, Warner Bros. Pictures): A mash-up of actorly duets, this leaden effort from screenwriter Katherine Fugate and director Garry Marshall sags when it should shimmer, labors when it should glide and plops some otherwise attractive and even talented actors into roles that are completely outside their physical and psychic comfort zone. Most insulting of all, the filmmakers insist on inserting bits of moralizing in the movie like so many razor blades in a candy apple. Clocking in at an unforgivable two hours, “New Year’s Eve“ perpetrates the same forced jollity, oversize proportions and crass superficiality as the very holiday it so wanly exploits. It’s amovie pretending to party but secretly pining for its own pillow. Contains profanity, including some sexual references. DVD extras: commentary by Marshall and gag reel; also, on Blu-ray, “Jon Bon Jovi and Lea Michele Rock New Year’s Eve“ (the collaboration of the rocker and “Glee“ star, with producer Don Was, from the recording studio to the set to a live Times Square performance); “The Magic of Times Square“ (a history); and “New Year’s Eve Secrets of the Stars“ (cast members dish on their best/worst Dec. 31 celebrations) and deleted scenes.
“Haywire“ (R, 93 minutes, Lions Gate): Mallory Kane is the latest tough-girl movie heroine leaving a trail of carnage in her wake. Played by real-life mixed martial arts champion Gina Carano, Mallory is a steely, smoky-voiced creation. It emerges that Mallory, a former Marine, has something to do with a Blackwater-esque private contractor and a black ops mission gone wonky. Carano’s not a great actress, but she doesn’t need to be in a movie that, as conceived by screenwriter Lem Dobbs, doesn’t get bogged down in psychology or humanizing back stories. Instead, “Haywire“ simply gives audiences what they came to see: bruising fight sequences set up and executed with economy, skill and one or two genuine jaw-dropping jolts. “Haywire“ stays true to its low-rent B-movie principles, right down to the fast, strong and quietly competent heroine at its center. Contains some violence. DVD extras: featurettes “Gina Carano: From MMA to ’Haywire’ “ and “The Men of ’Haywire’.“
“W.E.“ (R, 119 minutes, Anchor Bay Entertainment): It seems like yesterday that “The King’s Speech“ and Colin Firth’s stammering King George VI were taking movie fans by storm. What a difference a year makes. “W.E.“ portrays George and his wife, Elizabeth, not as heroes but as henpecked and scheming. “W.E.“ saves its sympathy for George’s brother, King Edward VIII, who famously abdicated the throne in 1936 to marry the American divorcee Wallis Simpson. Wallis and Edward are the heroes and title characters of “W.E.“ Conceived and directed by Madonna, “W.E.“ is a gorgeous mess. Both frantic and inert, the strained effort to wring heroic meaning from two un-heroic characters proves a task too daunting for even Madonna’s flinty determination. Still, there are the elaborate clothes, in all of their luxe, handcrafted, sensuously draped perfection. “W.E.“ doesn’t tell a story as much as it seeks to impose mythic import on the life of the ultimate material girl. Contains profanity and domestic abuse. Extras: making-of featurette.
Also: “George Harrison: Living in the Material World,“ “The Front Line“ (South Korea), “Pillow Talk: Universal 100th Anniversary Collector’s Series,“ “The Dick Van Dyke Show: Carl Reiner’s Favorites,“ “American Experience: Jesse Owens“ (PBS), “Who Do You Think You Are? Season 2,“ “Bubble Guppies,“ “Snow White: A Tale of Terror“ (1997, made-for-TV) and “Covert Affairs: Season Two.“