DVDs - 6/6/08

Jun 6 2008 Flintshire Chronicle

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (Cert 15, 117 mins, Paramount Home Entertainment, Thriller, also available to buy DVD £19.99)

Starring: Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson, Kelly Macdonald, Garret Dillahunt, Tess Harper.

LLEWELYN Moss (Brolin) stumbles upon the bloody aftermath of a botched drugs deal and a suitcase containing 2.4 million dollars. The money would solve all of Llewelyn's problems, and secure a rosy future for his wife Carla Jean (Macdonald).

Unfortunately, Llewelyn is caught stealing the cash by the dealers and they dispatch twisted hit man Anton Chigurh (Bardem) to kill the thief and reclaim their loot. As the killer edges closer to his terrified prey, world-weary Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Jones) gives chase, following Anton's trail of destruction.

The game of cat and mouse becomes even more complicated when bounty hunter Carson Wells (Harrelson) begins to shadow Anton too.

Writer-directors Joel and Ethan Coen deserved won an armful of Oscars for this elegantly scripted and frequently bloody thriller, based on the book by Cormac McCarthy.

Surpassing their near-perfect 1996 caper Fargo, No Country For Old Men is a breathtaking demonstration of concise storytelling and filmmaking brio, coupled with powerful performances and the blackest humour.

Bardem chills to the bone with a genuinely discomfiting portrayal of an unstoppable angel of death, surveying everyone with dark, soulless eyes.

A scene at a petrol station, where the elderly attendant makes the mistake of engaging in small talk, sends shivers of terror up and down the spine.

Brolin impresses and Jones tinges his role with humour almost as dry as the Texan desert. Violence is used sparingly and to devastating effect as the Coens crank up the tension until we're holding our breath, knuckles white with anticipation.

DVD extras: The Making Of No Country For Old Men featurette, Working With The Coens featurette, Diary Of A Country Sheriff featurette.

Rating: *****

NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS (Cert PG, 119 mins, Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, Family/Action/Drama/Comedy/Romance, also available to buy DVD £17.99/DVD box set £22.99/Blu-ray £23.99)

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Jon Voight, Ed Harris, Helen Mirren, Bruce Greenwood.

RENOWNED treasure seeker Benjamin Franklin Gates (Cage) is stunned when Mitch Wilkinson (Harris) interrupts one of his lectures to flaunt incontrovertible evidence – a half-burnt page from John Wilkes Booth's diary - linking one of Ben's ancestors, Thomas Gates, to the assassination of President Lincoln in 1865.

Determined to clear the family name, Ben joins forces with his university professor father, Patrick (Voight), techno-wizard assistant Riley (Bartha) and estranged girlfriend, National Archives conservator Abigail Chase (Kruger), to unravel the mystery.

En route, Ben's mother, linguistics professor Emily Appleton (Mirren), becomes embroiled in the intrigue, working in close proximity to her ex-husband, 32 years after they last exchanged heated words.

National Treasure: Book Of Secrets is a harmless diversion, which doesn't quite surpass the tongue-in-cheek entertainment of the original, despite a breathtaking car chase through London that strives to emulate the slam-bang thrills of The Bourne Identity.

Jon Turteltaub's film crushes logic under a stampede of slickly orchestrated set pieces such as a daring robbery from Buckingham Palace. Husband and wife writing team Cormac and Marianne Wibberley ask us to accept each ludicrous plot twist without hesitation, down to Ben kidnapping the US President (Greenwood).

Cage keeps a straight face throughout as Kruger gamely fills the heels of his romantic interest. Mirren and Voight bring gravitas to their roles as ageing sidekicks, while Harris squanders his considerable talents as the glowering, greedy villain gifted a chance at redemption in the spectacular, waterlogged finale at Mount Rushmore.

A DVD box set comprising the original National Treasure and the sequel is also available.

DVD extras: Director and actor commentary, extended and deleted scenes, The Treasure Reel out-takes and bloopers, Secrets Of A Sequel featurette, The Book Of Secrets: On Location featurette, Street Stunts: Creating The London Chase featurette, Inside The Library Of Congress featurette, Underground Action featurette, Evolution Of A Golden City featurette, Knights Of The Golden Circle featurette, Easter Eggs; Blu-ray: Director and actor commentary, extended and deleted scenes, The Treasure Reel out-takes and bloopers, Secrets Of A Sequel featurette, The Book Of Secrets: On Location featurette, Street Stunts: Creating The London Chase featurette, Inside The Library Of Congress featurette, Underground Action featurette, Evolution Of A Golden City featurette,

Rating: ***