This Week’s DVD Releases

Sundance 2011 is still over a month away, but a couple days ago, the fest announced that Seattle was added to the list of cities taking part in Sundance Film Festival USA, in which festival films screen across the country during the fest itself. So if you’re not in Park City on Thursday, January 27th, you can catch Cedar Rapids at the Egyptian Theatre. Here’s the synopsis:

Director: Miguel Arteta; Screenwriter: Phil Johnston — A wholesome and naive small-town Wisconsin man travels to big city Cedar Rapids, Iowa to represent his company at a regional insurance conference. Cast: Ed Helms, John C Reilly, Anne Heche, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Alia Shawkat, Sigourney Weaver.

But there’s plenty of time in between now and then, so let’s fill it by watching some new releases, care of our good friends at Scarecrow Video. The biggest film out on DVD this week was Inception, which will assuredly end up as one of the ten Best Picture nominees come next year. It includes extras with Christopher Nolan talking about the film, but as to the ending, he’s still not telling. The other big release was the fourth (and hopefully final) Shrek film, Shrek Forever After, which also means you can purchase the Shrek: The Whole Story box set (just in time for the holidays!). Speaking of special editions, there’s also a big ol’ Alice in Wonderland four-disc set too.

---

---

In new documentaries out this week, there’s Restrepo, the Afghanistan war doc from Sebastian Junger, and Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist, and Rebel, about the man and the legend. And if you haven’t gotten enough ballet yet, there’s Dancing Across Borders about a Cambodian dancer who makes it to the States (including a stint at the Pacific Northwest Ballet). In other foreign films, there’s The Milk of Sorrow, a drama about the trials and tribulations of Peruvian women, and Patrik, Age 1.5, a drama about a gay Danish couple adopting a troubled teen. Jean Reno gets shot a bunch in 22 Bullets, while Mademoiselle Chambon is another French romance. Criterion has two new special editions out this week: Guillermo del Toro’s debut Cronos and Videodrome, the Cronenberg media satire.

And then there was the grab bag. In Barry Munday, Patrick Wilson loses his balls and finds out he’s a father-to-be, in short order. In A Dog Year, Jeff Bridges brings a troublesome dog home to his family. Dead Set is a British miniseries about zombies infiltrating a reality tv show. And finally, Love Shack is a Christopher Guest-style porno mockumentary.