Blu-ray Movie Reviews

Video: 3/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 3.5/5
Kevin Costner triumphs as the legendary Sherwood Forest outlaw leader in this epic adventure bringing a 12th-century medieval world to spectacular screen life. Enhancing the fun are 12 added minutes of footage not seen in theatres, especially more juicy malevolence of Robin Hoods archenemy, the Sheriff of Nottingham. Morgan Freeman, Christian Slater and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio also star in this lavish production lensed in Britain and France, where historic structures, majestic forests and vividly realistic recreations of Olde England combined to create a world at once ancient and ageless.

Video: 4.25/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 2.5/5
"I own this town." But owning is getting expensive for old-school London gangster Lenny Cole. A wealthier foreign mob is moving in with a riverfront property swindle. A small-timer and his crew think they can play both sides and become big time. Now add a hard-as-ice accountant, a rocker playing dead to boost sales, wannabe music moguls, a missing painting and a mad mosh of money and muscle, and you've got a real "RocknRolla".

Video: 4.25/5
Audio: 3.5/5
Extras: 2.5/5
When her sister is kidnapped by thugs searching for a priceless jewel in the Colombian jungle, a romance novelist soon finds her own life filled with cliffhangers and danger. All alone, she sets out to rescue her sister and meets up with a handsome fortune seeker who convinces her to beat the bandits to the treasure.

Video: 4/5
Audio: 4.25/5
Extras: 3/5
All his life, people have told Rudy he's not good enough, not smart enough, not big enough. But nothing can stop his impossible dream of playing football for Notre Dame. From the time he's a young boy, Rudy is determined to join the Fighting Irish. But his blue collar family only laughs at his ambitions - they know Rudy will follow his father and brothers to the local steel mill. And, for four long years after high school, he does just that. But some dreams won't die, as Rudy proves when he goes to heroic, occasionally hilarious, lengths to win admission to Notre Dame. Once there, he becomes a walk-on player, serving as little more than a human tackling dummy against the starting players. Bloodied but unbeaten, Rudy wins the respect of legendary coach Ara Parseghian and the other Irish players, who give him one shot at gridiron glory.

Video: 3.5/5
Audio: 4.5/5
Extras: 2/5
Kudos to Sony for being one of the best studios for foreign releases so far. I don't understand why so many studios have been neglecting their better known foreign titles. Run Lola Run has been a favorite of mine for quite some time. The film is a kinetic ride lasting really only 20 minutes but repeating itself for different outcomes as Lola tries to save her boyfriend after losing drug money. The film combines several different filming styles including animation and personal camera work giving it a rather frantic pace and look.

<I>Shafiq Syed, Hansa Vithal, Chanda Shrma, Nana Patekar, Aneeta Kanwar, Rughbir Yadav. Directed by Mira Nair. Aspect ratio: 1.85:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1, Mono. 114 minutes. 1988. MGM 1004335. NR. $24.98.</I>