DVD Patrol: Jack The Giant Slayer, Oz The Great And Powerful, Hansel And Gretel, Man Of Steel
Published: June 21st, 2013
By: Todd Campbell

Look to the skies, Patrollers! The DVD Patrol is back with a vengeance including a brand new Toddster’s Take with the Man of Tomorrow. We had kind of a mixed bag from the team last week; everybody has their own views on what they like. Anyway, some new DVDs of movies that started 2013 off and every one of them have been reviewed right here at one point. Time to see what we see.

New on DVD

Jack The Giant Slayer – Usually if someone hands you something free, it just might be too good to be true. That’s what happens to Jack (Nicholas Hoult). Jack loved his parents and was always told the stories of how Giants used to live around them until someone found a way to banish them into the sky. Jack had to go live with his uncle and told Jack that he had to take the family horse to the village to be sold because they had no more money. He goes to the village where he sees a young woman being bullied. Jack tries to step in but is quickly stopped. The woman is really Princess Isabella (Eleanor Tomlinson). A strange man helps him to his feet and gives him what appear to be magic beans. The one important fact Jack is told is not to get them wet. Jack’s uncle isn’t very happy with him and has to leave to go find work. Some time later, Isabella escapes from the castle and happens upon Jack’s house. A violent rainstorm starts and Jack loses one of the magic beans that sprouts a giant beanstalk. Not long after, Jack receives some really big company who kidnap Isabella. The King (Ian McShane) sends some men after the giants up the beanstalk to find the princess. Jack volunteers to go along. Will he be able to find her and save her from the Giants? Hoult is currently working with Jennifer Lawrence and Director Bryan Singer on “X-Men: Days of Future Past” that will unite both X-Men: First Class members and other cast members from other X-Men movies including Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry. The film is due next summer.

Oz The Great and Powerful – Magic can come in all different forms and manners. Oscar Diggs (James Franco) was always good at magic, which he used to con people. He gets a little ahead of himself when some people he tried to con in the past find him and want their money back. Oscar gets away in a balloon but is swept up by a tornado that takes him into the magical world of Oz. After Oscar gets there, he meets Theodora (Mila Kunis) who’s convinced that Oscar is the almighty Wizard that is foretold to come and save everyone from an evil that has come to Oz. Oscar decides to play along and see if there might some type of payday. Theodora takes him to meet her sister, Evanora (Rachel Weisz), who tells him about their sister, Glinda (Michelle Williams), who’s responsible for the evil that has come and he has to kill her to get the riches he has coming to him. Oscar goes on his quest to kill Glinda but when he finds her, he finds out that everything he’s been told may not be the entire truth. What do Theodora and Evanora have in store for Oscar and the land of Oz? My sources tell me that there are already sequels in the works for more “Oz” films. More on this as it develops.

Story Continues Below Adverts

Also on DVD

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters – Everyone likes new takes on classic stories. Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Atherton) were caught as children and almost eaten by the Great Witch Muriel (Famke Jannsen) and her sisters. The kids find a way to escape and years go by with some interesting changes to the brother and sister. It seems they find they had acquired a talent for killing witches and become quite good at it. Now they hire their services out to anyone who will have them. They are summoned to a small village that has several children missing. The duo later learn that Muriel somehow survived and now they have another chance to take her down for good. Can Hansel and Gretel find the children and stop the witches for good? My sources tell me that there is already a sequel in the works with Renner and Atherton linked to the project. Stay tuned!

Now in Theaters

Man of Steel – Staying with the new take on a classic theme, Jor-el (Russell Crowe) learns that his world Krypton is dying. He tries to tell the leaders of the planet of this but they don’t believe him. Jor-el decides to save his son Kal-el by sending him to Earth where he will be able to live and possibly find a way to make their race live again. Someone else has other ideas. General Zod (Micheal Shannon) and his forces try to take over. Zod offers Jor-el a chance to work with him but he will have nothing of it. They try to take him down but he manages to get away. Jor-el goes to make sure his son gets safely away. Zod tracks him down and learns that Jor-el has placed a device that will ensure the survival of the Kryptonian race in Kal-el’s rocket. Zod gets there too late and is subdued by Kryptonian forces who send him into exile into the Phantom Zone. Years later, Kal-el is found and raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent (Kevin Costner and Diane Lane), who name him Clark. Clark (Henry Cavill) grows up and learns that he is very different, with powers that can help him make a difference. His activities get the attention of a reporter from the Daily Planet named Lois Lane (Amy Adams). Both she and Clark find out about a ship that the Army has found. Clark activates the ship and this gets the attention of General Zod and his forces who were freed by the destruction of Krypton. Can Clark find out about his heritage and learn just what Zod wants with him and the Earth?

The Toddster’s Take: I wasn’t sure about this one going in but after seeing it, I came to one conclusion. This was a fantastic movie! Henry Cavill, who takes over the role, was just terrific, and Amy Adams as Lois Lane really brought a natural spin to her that we haven’t seen for a long time.Writers Christopher Nolan and David Goyer brought a real world feel to Superman just like they did with Batman in the Dark Knight trilogy. Adding Director Zach Snyder was just the icing on the cake, who adds his own touch to it. They built such a great cast around Cavill and Adams with the special effects and action just raising the stakes. This is the most action-packed Superman I have ever seen, and while Christopher Reeve’s “Superman” will always be a classic, this is now another classic. SEE THIS MOVIE!!!

I don’t usually go to movies more than once but hey, it’s Superman. My favorite movie of the summer so far. I don’t see anything else outdoing it ,but as we know the summer is far from over. Don’t forget to check out “Monsters University,” with “Man of Steel” still at the Colonia Theater for another two weeks.




Comments