Surf’s Up
$28.95 AND $38.98 FOR BLU-RAY
Let’s face it, penguins are funny — OK, cute and funny — which is why we’ve been inundated with them recently. “Madagascar,” “Happy Feet,” “March of the Penguins” and now “Surf’s Up.” The lively CG animated film is told in mockumentary style. It’s about a young penguin, Cody Maverick (Shia LaBeouf), who dreams of riding giant waves just like his hero, surfing guru Big Z (Jeff Bridges). On his way to make his mark at a surfing contest, Cody encounters a spaced-out chicken (Jon Heder), James Woods as the trash-talking otter who runs the tournament and a love interest cooed by Zooey Deschanel. “Surf’s Up” may not knock your tuxedo off, but it’s fun enough for kids and adults.
DVD EXTRAS
The disc includes the standard commentary, behind-the-scenes stuff and deleted scenes. A nice bonus, though, are two short animated films — 2002’s “The Chubb-Chubbs!” and the new “The ChubbChubbs Save Christmas.”
28 Weeks Later
$29.99 AND $39.98 FOR BLU-RAY
The sequel to Danny Boyle’s zombie shocker “28 Days Later” begins with American soldiers allowing British survivors of the undead epidemic back into a decimated London. Don (Robert Carlyle), who had abandoned his wife (Catherine McCormack) in zombie mayhem, reunites with his two children in the safe zone. Then she shows up infected. New director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo’s film isn’t up to the original, but as a shocker, it succeeds.
Evan Almighty
$29.98 AND $39.98 FOR HD
Steve Carell, as a newly elected congressman from Buffalo, N.Y., is commanded by God (Morgan Freeman) to build an ark. The action shifts from Buffalo to Washington, D.C., and gets less interesting. There’s a lot of animal humor. Well, there’s going to be doo-doo, you know. Actually, the beasts have more to do in the film than the humans. “Evan Almighty” isn’t terrible, just mostly uninspired. One of the best extras is about Carell.
Reign Over Me
$28.95 AND $38.98 FOR BLU-RAY
“Reign Over Me” tries for a delicate balance in a story about loss and pain, comedy and tragedy. The best parts of “Reign Over Me” are the scenes between Don Cheadle, a dynamic actor, and Adam Sandler, who is better in dramas than you’d expect. Too bad the film goes off course at times with some plotlines that add little. And Binder needlessly punches up the pathos, sending the film into tear-jerker territory.
You Kill Me
$19.95
John Dahl’s noir comedy “You Kill Me” features a spirited performance by Oscar-winner Ben Kingsley as an alcoholic hit man in Buffalo. The wild plot of “You Kill Me” is ridiculous. But as action careens from one implausibility to the next, Dahl keeps the roller coaster on track. Kingsley, who can play really scary (“Sexy Beast”), is scary and funny in this one. The film’s added bonus is Tea Leoni, who is luminescent in a ludicrous role.
