Latest DVDs, CDs, books: Nov. 15
November 15, 2011 - 1:59 am
A look at some of the DVDs, CDs and books hitting stores this week:
DVDS
"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (PG-13): Capt. Jack Sparrow (who else but Johnny Depp?) sails again, this time in search of the fabled Fountain of Youth, joined by pirate-turned-privateer Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), dreaded pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane) and his feisty daughter Angelica (Penelope Cruz).
Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, meanwhile, reunite for "Larry Crowne" (PG-13), Hanks' second big-screen filmmaking foray, as an average Joe downsized out of a job enrolls at a community college and falls for his brittle public-speaking instructor. In "Beginners" (R), a morose young artist (Ewan McGregor) finds his world turned upside down when his father (an Oscar-worthy Christopher Plummer) shares two revelations: Dad's got terminal cancer -- and he's gay. Rounding out the week's recent releases: the offbeat indie "Bellflower" (R), about two slacker pals bonding over booze, muscle cars and weaponry.
Topping today's "Welcome to Las Vegas" arrivals: "Main Street" (PG), with Colin Firth, Orlando Bloom, Ellen Burstyn and Patricia Clarkson, set in a decaying Southern town; Patrick Dempsey and Tim Blake Nelson in the heist comedy "Flypaper" (not rated); and "Money Matters" (not rated), about a mother (Aunjanue Ellis) and teenage daughter (Terri Abney) coming of age -- together.
Two Vegas-related titles, meanwhile, lead today's TV-to-DVD contingent: "Crime Story: The Complete Series" (not rated) and the "Pawn Stars" spinoff "American Restoration: Volume One" (PG).
CDS
Drake, "Take Care": Equally cocky and candid, Drake is hip-hop's id and superego wrapped up in one.
His second album, "Take Care," sees him further refining his R&B-flecked repertoire to a bayonet-sharp point.
Yeah, the dude may occasionally come off as overly full of himself, but then again, he's earned the right to be.
Also in stores: Angels & Airwaves, "Love: Part One & Part Two"; Paul Anka, "Songs of December"; Childish Gambino, "Camp"; Howie D, "Back to Me"; Gym Class Heroes, "The Papercut Chronicles II"; Cher Lloyd, "Sticks + Stones"; Newsboys, "God's Not Dead"; and Betty Wright and The Roots, "Betty Wright: The Movie."
BOOKS
"Kill Alex Cross" by James Patterson: In the 18th Alex Cross thriller, the detective has his hands full after someone kidnaps the president's children and poisoned water sickens many in Washington, D.C.
In another series installment, Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone character returns in "V Is for Vengeance," in which a slew of new cases includes a suicide that could be a murder.
Also hitting shelves: "Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series No. 6)" by Jeff Kinney; "Devil's Gate: A Kurt Austin Adventure" by Clive Cussler; "Dollhouse" by Kim Kardashian; "Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope" by Gabrielle Giffords; "How I Got This Way" by Regis Philbin; "Imperfect Justice: Prosecuting Casey Anthony" by Jeff Ashton; "My Friend Michael: An Ordinary Friendship with an Extraordinary Man" by Frank Cascio; "The Oprah Winfrey Show: Reflections on an American Legacy" by Deborah Davis; "The New New Rules " by Bill Maher; "Shaq Uncut: My Story" by Shaquille O'Neal; "Then Again" by Diane Keaton; and "The Whore of Akron: One Man's Search for the Soul of LeBron James" by Scott Raab.