Yet for some reason it’s never quite happened for her. She’s never had that breakthrough film that other actresses of a similar ilk (Sandra Bullock for example) managed to get. Of course, she’s hardly helping herself on that front as she seems to play the same character in every film she’s in. Perhaps she’s just given up and realised that she’ll always be ‘Rachel from Friends’, so why try and fight it anymore?

Whatever the reason, she’ll no doubt make a decent living churning out the same sort of film year after year and, as she still looks incredible well into her forties, she can probably make this career last a while longer yet.

It’s just a shame in my opinion because I’d like to see her try something different, whether that be out and out action or a dramatic role, but I think I’ll be disappointed.

Gerard Butler on the other hand seems to be able to try his hand to anything, and his dabbling in the romantic comedy genre is a welcome sight for someone who, let’s face it, isn’t pretty-boy styled guy you usually see in these films.

So, the two main stars aside, what of the film? The Bounty Hunter takes the premise of something that every guy who’s ever been divorced would dream about doing. Milo (Butler) is a bounty hunter. His job is to bring people in to custody when they skip out on bail, usually for fairly minor charges such as driving offenses. He’s down on his luck (having divorced his wife) and lives like a bum – no surprise perhaps that he used to be a cop.

Nicole Hurley (Aniston), his ex-wife, is doing much better for herself. She’s a successful reporter and she’s working on a big story that could expose police corruption and a murder that nobody knew had been committed. However, she’s also due in court for assaulting a police officer – a court appointment that she misses.

You can guess the next part. Milo is given the task of bringing his ex-wife into custody, a task that he attacks with the relish of a man wanting to finally get even – legally.

Naturally she doesn’t go quietly, and two play cat and mouse for a while until Milo realises that firstly, he still loves her and secondly, someone is trying to kill her. Anniston plays this role as she’s played every role beforehand, as an older, not so wiser, version of Rachel from Friends. Gerard Butler seems to be enjoying himself (rumours of a real-life romance on set between the two may explain why) and his infectious enthusiasm shines through on film.

All in all, The Bounty Hunter is a pretty by-the-numbers romantic comedy where two former lovers find that they’re still in love, while someone tries to kill them – much like ‘Did You Hear About The Morgans?’, which was released in the same year, and even has a trailer on this Blu-Ray.

There’s nothing really new here, but it is very entertaining. It is shame however that Nicole’s mother Kitty (Christine Baranski) didn’t feature more in the film, as her three (yes just three) scenes were all stand out moments.

With The Squid and the Whale (2005), writer/director Noah Baumbach not only reinvented himself (he had previously made quirky romantic comedies) but also gave movie stars like Laura Linney and, with Margot at the Wedding (2007), Nicole Kidman, grittier, more realistic roles for them to sink their teeth into. These two films have a loose, almost improvisational feel to them and feature characters expressing raw emotions in an almost uncomfortable way at times. Baumbach mixes comedy and drama in a way that feels natural and authentic – something that is missing from standard Hollywood fare too preoccupied with either broad comedy or heightened melodrama.

Just released from a mental hospital in New York after having a nervous breakdown, Roger Greenberg (Stiller) is invited to stay at his brother’s house in Los Angeles and do some carpentry work while he recovers. His brother (Messina) and family are on vacation but his personal assistant Florence (Gerwig) is staying on to take care of the house and run errands for Roger. He ends up reconnecting with a former bandmate (Ifans) who takes him to a party where he meets his ex-girlfriend (Leigh). However, Roger finds himself increasing drawn to Florence and a relationship gradually begins to develop between them.

Ben Stiller dials it way back with this film as he completely abandons his physical shtick for a dry, more subtle verbal style of humour, like the letters he writes to corporations complaining about trivial things like the failure of the button to recline his chair on an airplane, or one directed at Mayor Bloomberg to deploy a police officer on every street corner in New York City to reduce street noise pollution. Stiller has really grown into his looks which suits the character of Roger, someone who’s made a mess of his life by not making some very good choices. The actor does a good job of playing an obviously damaged person trying to get by on a daily basis.

Greta Gerwig is quite good as Florence, a damaged person in her own way but she has a down-to-earth quality that Roger is drawn to and brings him out of his misanthropic shell. Gerwig brings a refreshing authenticity to the role and has a quirky charm that is disarming. She has good chemistry with Stiller and we are quickly hooked, curious as to where their relationship is going.

Greenberg is about two socially awkward people trying to connect but have personal issues that make it difficult. Roger, in particular, is a real piece of work and often says cruel things to Florence and others near him. Thankfully, Baumbach nor Stiller refuse to water this character down but instead present him warts and all. In some respects, this is the kind of unconventional character-driven drama that could have easily come out of the 1970s. Hopefully, Stiller will do more of these kinds of films and cut back on crap like Little Fokkers (2010).

Special Features:

“A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Greenberg” is basically an extended trailer with soundbite interviews with the cast.

“Greenberg Loves Los Angeles” takes a brief look at setting the film in the city. Crew members talk about how they decided to portray L.A. in the film.

Finally, there is “Noah Baumbach Takes a Novel Approach” which examines how Baumbach wanted to take a novelistic approach to the film reminiscent of the films of Hal Ashby or Robert Altman in the 1970s.

Can’t Stop The Music is an ersatz autobiography of the band, charting their formation in New York’s Greenwich Village to a final, climactically fruity concert at San Francisco. A fresh faced, snake-hipped Steve Guttenberg plays Jack Morell (a thinly disguised Morali) who, after quitting his day job working in a record shop, decides to become a composer. A ten minute roller skating jaunt through New York set to a sickeningly optimistic disco tune later, he meets his landlady (Valerie Perrine) who happens to be an ex-supermodel with lots of contacts in the record business. After recruiting the Native American village person (Felipe Rose), the other members of the band join one by one and their place in disco folklore is assured.

Before we lose ourselves in its sanguine four-on-the-floor beats and relentless Eighties-ness, let’s get one thing straight: in a lot of respects, this movie stinks. The dialogue is terrible, the acting shonky and you could drive a bus through the holes in the plot.

However, I’m prepared to give this film a pass. If you can put your brain in neutral and disengage your critical faculties, it’s actually quite fun. There are a lot of memorable things that stick in the mind long after the film is finished. In every scene where Guttenberg is composing or arranging the band, he puts you in mind of Steve Martin in The Jerk, who has a crippling inability to clap in time to a beat. Leatherman (Glenn Hughes), with a ‘tache that would put Merv the Swerve to shame, gives a memorable rendition of ‘Danny Boy’ atop a grand piano, and there is a mindbending milk commercial that has to be seen to be believed. The music throughout the film is quite catchy, even though the lyrics were seemingly written by someone without English as a first language.

Special mention must be made of the rendition of the band’s biggest hit, YMCA. Filmed in an actual hostel, there’s stylised boxing, diving, gymnastics and cheeky male shower scenes galore, and more naked male flesh on display than is healthy for one person. It’s the gayest thing since Carry On Fisting (a film Sid James refused to talk about until his dying day), and it’s enough to turn Burt Reynolds ginger beer.

All in all, it’s a so-bad-it’s-watchable film. Not Star Wars Holiday Special bad, but Mystery Science Theatre 3000 bad, which makes it okay in my book.

In the first story, “Far from Yokohama,” see two teenager Japanese tourists (Nagase and Kudoh) visit Memphis to take a tour of Graceland and the legendary Sun Studios where Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and so many others recorded numerous hit records. She is a big fan of the King but he digs Carl Perkins. The key to this segment is miscommunication. The couple don’t get much out of the Sun Studio tour because their guide talks too fast and they don’t understand English all that well, but they do care about each other and in the end that’s enough. There are all kinds of atmospheric tracking shots of the Japanese couple walking through the empty streets of Memphis. They decide to stay in a slightly run-down hotel operated by man played by none other than Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Once the couple gets situated, there’s a funny bit where the girl goes through a scrapbook filled with famous people and landmarks that resemble Elvis.

The next story, entitled “A Ghost,” concerns a woman (Braschi) from Italy who has arrived in Memphis to take her deceased husband back home. There is a problem with her flight and she has to stay the night. After being hit on by a creepy guy (Tom Noonan) in a restaurant, she takes refuge in the nearby hotel where she meets a woman (Bracco) unable to afford a night there. The two women decide to share a room. In a memorable scene after retiring for the evening, the Italian woman is visited by the spirit of Elvis in what is a touchingly poignant and yet also whimsical moment.

Finally, “Lost in Space” features a trio of inept knuckleheads in the film’s funniest story. Johnny (Strummer) is a cranky Englishman recently fired from his job. After drunkenly waving a gun around in a bar, his friend Will (Aviles) and his brother-in-law Charlie (Buscemi) arrive to diffuse the situation. After Johnny robs a liquor store, he and his friends hide out in the hotel. Charlie and Will try to calm down the mercurial Johnny and keep him under control but it’s not easy. There’s a lot of fun to be had watching Joe Strummer and Steve Buscemi bounce off the walls of the small hotel room they hold up in.

Mystery Train is a fascinating snapshot of Memphis through the eyes of foreigners and the disenfranchised. The stories in this film run the gamut from romantic to touching to amusing but all with a humanistic streak running through them. Jarmusch would follow this film with Night on Earth (1991) which would adhere to the same structure but on a much more ambitious level.

Special Features:

There is a “Q&A with Jim.” As he has done for past Criterion editions of his films, Jarmusch answers questions submitted by fans in lieu of an audio commentary. They are by no means restricted to the film but the bulk of them do pertain to it. Jarmusch confirms that Tom Waits’ D.J. heard in the film is in fact the character he played in Down by Law. He talks about how he worked with the Japanese actors and the origins of their segment title. He also talks about his favourite Elvis era and addresses the barren and bleak look of Memphis in the film.

“I Put a Spell on Me” features excerpts from a 2001 documentary on Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Jarmusch is interviewed and talks about when he first heard Jay’s signature song, “I Put a Spell on You,” how he used it in Stranger than Paradise and then cast him in Mystery Train. Jay talks about working on the film and shares some amusing anecdotes on this fantastic extra.

“Memphis Tour” revisits many of the locations used in the film. We get a brief history of each location and what happened to it since filming. The restaurant used is the oldest in the city. Unfortunately, the hotel featured so prominently in the film was torn down a year after it was made. This is a fascinating extra that takes a look at how these locales have changed over the years.

“Polaroids” features snapshots taken on location during filming.

Finally, there is a gallery of behind-the-scenes images from a photo book published at the time of the film’s release.

The establishment is owned by famous ex-heavyweight boxer Cleon “The Champ” Salmon (Duncan). Apparently, he owes the Yakuza $20,000 and needs his staff to make that money in one night or he’ll lose the restaurant. As an incentive, the top grossing waiter or waitress gets two tickets to an upcoming Norah Jones concert. The wait staff is an eccentric group: Connor (Lemme) is a failed television star who originally left the restaurant for a gig on a CSI-type show only to have his character killed off after two episodes; Rich (Heffernan) is the manager and in charge of motivating the staff; Nuts (Chandrasekhar) is crazy and forgot to take his medicine; Donnie (Soter) is an incompetent busboy; Dave (Soter) is Donnie’s twin brother and the joint’s surly chef extraordinaire; Mia (Bowlby) is a beautiful ballerina who uses her sexy charms to pull in good tips and persuade customers to order expensive items off the menu; Guy (Stolhanske) is a sexist jerk; and Tara (Smulders) is probably the most normal one of the bunch.

Rich uses his powers of persuasion (and mimicry) to scam a more suitable incentive for the wait staff: reservations at a swanky spa/casino/hotel. Once the incentive is established, the film begins to resemble the culinary answer to Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) with The Champ as the same type of ballbusting motivator as Alec Baldwin’s character in the David Mamet-penned film. Naturally, the wait staff tries to sabotage each other in order to get that spa reservation and much of the humour comes from how they will, both with the often trying and annoying customers and with each other.

Michael Clarke Duncan is something of a minor revelation here as the boss from hell. The Champ is an arrogant bully and yet Duncan makes him kinda charming. He normally plays tough guys (Sin City) but has played very empathetic characters as well (The Green Mile). With The Slammin’ Salmon, he showcases some pretty decent comedic chops and gets to stretch a little as an actor. Jay Chandrasekhar is the other standout as Nuts, the heavily medicated waiter. Once his meds wear off, he becomes Zongo, a wild and crazy guy who really cuts loose with zany behaviour. It’s too bad that the film wasn’t better. For a comedy, there aren’t many laughs. The Broken Lizard gang are certainly funny people and there are a few funny gags but unfortunately they are few and far between making one hope that Super Troopers 2 is not far off.

Special Features:

There is an audio commentary by Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme. In addition to co-writing the film, Heffernan also directed it and so he points out some technical aspects that he employed. He and Lemme also point out which moments were improvised and the inspiration behind of some of the characters. This is a fairly informative track with jokes sprinkled throughout.

Also included is another commentary by Jay Chandrasekhar, Paul Soter and Erik Stolhanske. Chandrasekhar usually directs the Broken Lizard films and so Soter and Stolhanske have some fun comparing the differing directing styles. They banter back and forth, cracking jokes. All three men have worked in restaurants in some capacity and share some of their experiences and how they informed the film.

“Hellish Kitchens: Art Imitates Restaurant Life” features the Broken Lizard guys sharing some of their war stories about working in restaurants back in the day. This is a fun extra and some of the stories are amusing.

Finally, there is a theatrical trailer.

Inspired by Jon Ronson’s non-fiction bestseller of the same name, The Men Who Stare at Goats follows the misadventures of Bob Wilton (McGregor), an investigative journalist in search of a major story to cover. He stumbles across a secretive wing of the United States military called The New Earth Army, created to develop psychic powers in soldiers. These include reading the enemy’s thoughts, passing through walls, and yes, killing a goat by staring at it. While doing a story about a man (Root) who stopped the heart of his pet hamster with his mind for a local newspaper in Ann Arbor, Wilton finds out that this man used to be part of a top secret military unit of psychic spies in the 1980s. At least, that’s what he claims.

Understandably skeptic about the man’s abilities, Wilton learns about the former leader of the unit, Lyn Cassady (Clooney), “the most gifted psi-guy” who now runs a dance studio. After a co-worker dies suddenly and his wife leaves him for his editor, Wilton interprets these incidents to be a wake-up call and travels to the Middle East to cover the war. By chance (or is it?), while staying at a hotel in Kuwait, he runs into Cassady. This self-proclaimed Jedi Warrior (?!) tells Wilton about Project Jedi, a hush-hush assignment that cultivated Super Soldiers with super powers. Cassady’s technique for tapping into these powers involves drinking alcohol and listening to the music of classic rock band Boston.

Wilton learns all about this elite unit that combines “the courage and nobility of the Warrior” with “the spirituality of the Monk,” and follows in the footsteps of “the great Imagineers of the past”: Jesus Christ, Lao Tse Tung and Walt Disney. Wilton convinces Cassady to allow him to tag along during his mission in Iraq and the rest of the film plays out as a quirky road movie cum satire of war films.

George Clooney is quite good as the clearly bat-shit crazy Cassady. The actor plays the role seriously but you can see that insane glint in his eyes. It’s impressive how he is able to say some of his character’s ridiculous dialogue with a straight face. Clooney gets maximum laughs by playing it straight and is also not afraid to act silly when the situation calls for it. And it does in one of the film’s funniest set pieces during a flashback where Cassady’s New Age commanding officer (Bridges) loosens up the unit by having them spontaneously dance to “Dancing with Myself” by Billy Idol. It’s pretty funny seeing a bunch of uniformed soldiers, Clooney included, dancing their asses off.

Clooney is surrounded by a very impressive supporting cast. Jeff Bridges plays a peace-loving high ranking soldier, sort of the Dude if he had been drafted instead of dropping out of society. Kevin Spacey is the black sheep of the unit and jealous of Clooney’s powers. Meanwhile, Ewan McGregor is the naive reporter and audience surrogate. They all get their moments to show their stuff but the film really belongs to Clooney and his seriously wacky character.

After making serious political films like Syriana (2005) and Good Night, and Good Luck, it’s nice to see Clooney starring in a political satire that is funny but still has something to say as it shows the absurdity of the war in Iraq. This is evident in a scene where Cassady and Wilton narrowly escape a firefight between two competing security firms. The Men Who Stare at Goats falls under the truth is stranger than fiction category as it presents a story populated by eccentric characters and tall tales, some of which might be true. Regardless, it is an entertaining film with a wonderfully oddball sense of humour in the same vein as other memorable war satires like M*A*S*H (1970), Catch 22 (1970) and Three Kings (1999). Don’t be put off by the setting. Although it takes place in Iraq, The Men Who Stare at Goats is not weighed down by the baggage of this war.

Special Features:

There is an audio commentary by the film’s director Grant Heslov. He points out certain characters that are composites but is quick to explain that what they say comes from Jon Ronson’s book. He sometimes spends too much time telling us where certain scenes were shot which gets tiresome pretty fast. Heslov’s focus is mostly on the nuts and bolts of filmmaking but done in a fairly dry and uninteresting way.

Also included is a commentary by the book’s author Jon Ronson. He points out the scenes that are based on real incidents and talks about meeting the actual people that the characters are based on. He also explains who the composite characters are and tells all sorts of fascinating anecdotes. If you want to learn more the people and events behind the ones depicted in the film, this is worth a listen if only to find out how much is taken from his book and experiences.

“Goats Declassified: The Real Men of the First Earth Battalion” features some of the actual military personnel depicted The Men Who Stare at Goats. They talk about some of their intentions. We also learn about how this top secret unit’s techniques were brought to light. It’s great to hear from the actual people as they tell their fascinating stories.

“Project ‘Hollywood’: A Classified Report from the Set” takes a brief look at the origins of the film and how it got made. Several of the lead actors talk about their characters and there’s footage of them having fun on location.

“Character Bios” is a collection of trailer for the film emphasizing several key characters.

Also included is four minutes of deleted scenes. There is more flashback footage some of which should’ve stayed in as it’s quite funny.

Finally, there is a theatrical trailer.

Ryan Bingham (Clooney) is a professional hatchet man. Companies too squeamish to do it themselves hire him to come in and fire an employee. He has the slick charm to cushion the blow but it means nothing to him because it’s just a job – no more, no less. Because of the nature of his work, Ryan leads a nomadic existence, essentially living out of a suitcase as he crisscrosses the country racking up the frequent flyer points and seeing more of the insides of airports and hotel rooms than wherever he calls home. Ryan’s philosophy of life basically boils down to a question he asks at the seminars he gives: “How much does your life weigh?”

Ryan keeps his life simple – he has no attachments. All he has is his work and that suits him just fine. During his travels he meets Alex (Farmiga), a beautiful woman and fellow veteran business traveler. They have a fling and schedule another rendezvous as if they were penciling in an upcoming meeting. Ryan’s boss (Bateman) assigns him a partner, a young woman by the name of Natalie Keener (Kendrick) who has found a way to do his job cheaper and more efficiently. This is achieved by firing people remotely via video conferencing on a computer. This approach threatens Ryan’s entire way of life. While Natalie may have confidence and smarts, she lacks experience and so he is instructed to take her on the road and show her the ropes.

With his seemingly limitless reservoir of charisma, George Clooney is well cast as a smooth talking businessman. There is a scene where Ryan and Natalie tell a man (Simmons) that he’s fired and she says the wrong thing. The already upset employee vents his frustration and this upsets her confidence. With his years of experience, Ryan turns things around and actually convinces the guy that he being fired will now allow him to follow his dreams. The way Clooney masterfully does this is fascinating to watch. After all, if you had to be fired wouldn’t you want him to do it?

Supporting Clooney is Anna Kendrick and Vera Farmiga as the two women that unexpectedly enter Ryan’s life and show him that there is more to life than traveling business class and living out of a suitcase. Kendrick, fresh from her small role in the Twilight films and capitalizing on the promise she showed in Rocket Science (2007), she gets some decent screen time to demonstrate her acting chops. On the surface, Natalie is confident and ambitious but when Ryan takes her on the road, she realizes that it’s not so easy firing someone to their face. Kendrick conveys this realization really well.

Ever since making a notable impression in the male-dominated Martin Scorsese crime film The Departed (2006), Farmiga has done all kinds of roles and brought an intensity that is always interesting to watch. She’s at her most engaging here as Clooney’s love interest. She brings a warmth and humanity to Alex that makes it easy to see why Ryan is attracted to her. Alex is smart and sexy as well as confident in her own skin. She knows what she wants and this also draws him to her.

In some respects, Up in the Air mixes elements of The Accidental Tourist (1988) and Lost in Translation (2003). Like the former, Ryan has his own philosophy of travel, complete with rituals and tricks of the trade that make it more efficient. Like the latter film, Ryan is something of a lonely soul who makes a connection when he least expects it. Most significantly, Up in the Air is a reflection of the times we live in. It reflects the terrible shape our economy is in with massive layoffs happening in every sector. Reitman’s film shows the damage that has been done and continues to be inflicted on everyday people. And yet the film offers some glimmer of hope by hinting at Ryan’s possible redemption. Up in the Air suggests that what gets us through the tough times is the support and love of others, be they siblings, friends or significant others. We all need that human connection. Reitman’s film doesn’t give us any easy answers and is not exactly the feel-good film of the year, but you do feel that Ryan has changed. Whether it’s for the better or for the worse remains to be seen but at least he has experienced an alternative to his routine existence.

Special Features:

There is an audio commentary by writer/director Jason Reitman, director of photography Eric Steelberg and first assistant director Jason Blumenfeld. Reitman talks about how the economic recession affected the tone of the film. Originally, the montages of people being fired were to be satirical but he realized that this was no longer funny anymore. The three men tend to put an emphasis on the nuts and bolts of filmmaking, like the challenge of shooting in airports including the lengthy process of getting permission to shoot in them. Reitman is quite energetic and, not surprisingly, guides this track, prompting the other two participants with questions.

“Shadowplay: Before the Story” is a brief featurette on the company that created the opening credits sequence. In fact, they have worked on all of his films. They talk about the desired effect that they wanted to achieve.

Also included are five deleted scenes with optional commentary by Reitman. There is more footage of people being fired. We also see more of Ryan and Alex connecting at a party which is nice to see. There is more of Ryan finally making a home base for himself. There is a dream sequence that seems out of place and was rightly cut. Reitman puts this footage in context and briefly explains why he ultimately removed it from the picture.

Finally, there are teaser and theatrical trailers.

No, Zombieland has zombie, lots of ‘em, and it has Woody Harrelson killing them, frequently.

Despite this, Zombieland is incredibly good fun, and the Blu-Ray medium has been used to the full for every gore soaked, blood spattered scene. You know exactly what you’re in for during the opening title sequence as people are shown either dying, or inches from death, at the hands of zombies in slow motion as the blood flies through the air in vivid colour.

This is not a movie to watch with the kids or the elderly parents. It’s loud, it’s offensive and it’s hilarious – if you like zombies being shot, beaten and crushed with pianos, this one’s for you.

The film’s plot, or what there is of one, focuses on Columbus, played by Jesse Eisenberg, and his efforts to get home from college in the midst of a zombie outbreak in the US. Columbus isn’t his real name, that’s where he’s heading, but Tallahassee (Harrelson) doesn’t like real names and insists on using place names instead.

Columbus is nervous of everyone, which comes in useful when the world is overrun by zombies. The pair meet two sisters, Wichita and Little Rock (Stone and Breslin) who seem to want nothing more than to reach an amusement park in California.

Why not?

Along the way the usual mistrust turns into trust, and then love, before they finally end up at the best part of the film, Bill Murray’s house. Tallahassee is a big Bill Murray fan and thinks that staying in Murray’s house is a good way of avoiding the zombies, which leads to a hysterical cameo from Bill Murray. Ghostbusters references fly thick and fast before the gang head off to the amusement park, and a brilliantly worked sequence where Tallahassee lays ruin to pretty much every zombie he can find in some truly imaginative ways.

As an indication of just how dumb some of the scenes are in this film, when Columbus is being chased by zombies at the amusement park, where does he head? The haunted house… sheesh.

So, as zombie films go this one’s pretty devoid of meaning – but it doesn’t need it. It’s entertaining, gore filled and worth watching just for the Bill Murray cameo, if nothing else.

It’s 1967 and Larry Gopnik (Stuhlbarg) is a physics professor leading a fairly normal life. He has a good job and a family but this all starts to unravel when his wife (Lennick) tells him that she wants a divorce as she’s in love with one of his fellow teachers (Melamed). One of his students, in danger of losing his scholarship, tries to bribe Larry. He attempts to continue on with his daily routine the best that he can but soon finds that his chances of getting tenure at work are in danger from mysterious sources. Larry’s gruff next-door neighbour plans to build a boat shed that encroaches on his property.

Larry comes across as an incredible doormat willing to take an unbelievable amount of grief from everyone: his wife, his boss and the father of the student who tried to bribe him. He doesn’t understand why it seems like everyone is against him and looks to his faith for answers. So, he visits three different rabbis. The first of which is too young and inexperienced to really help. The second one tells him a story which has no apparent bearing on Larry’s situation. The third one doesn’t even have the time to see him. What does this mean and what should Larry do?

As always, the Coens create fully-realized characters that are always distinctive. For example, Larry’s brother Arthur (Kind) is staying with him and his family and he initially appears to do nothing but hog the bathroom. However, one night, Larry checks out a notebook that Arthur occasionally writes in and it’s absolutely filled with all sorts of complex mathematical equations that the enigmatic sibling describes as “a probability map of the universe.”

A Serious Man is one long slow burn as Larry’s life gradually falls apart but all done in the Coen brothers’ trademark dry, deadpan humour. In many respects, it is their cinematic rebuttal to their two chief critics: J. Hoberman and Jonathan Rosenbaum who claim that several of their films are anti-Semitic in nature (i.e. the killing of the Jewish gangster in Miller’s Crossing and the unpleasant nature of the Jewish protagonist in Barton Fink). To counter, or rather poke fun of these criticisms, the Coens created a defiantly proud of his Jewish faith Vietnam war veteran in The Big Lebowski. With A Serious Man, they have created a film that is set in a world almost entirely populated by Jews. Their film asks some serious questions about what it means to be Jewish and one man’s place in the universe that is indifferent to his problems.

Special Features:

“Becoming Serious” is a standard featurette that is fairly informative as several cast members briefly talk about what they believe the film is about. According to the Coens, several of the characters are based on people they knew growing up.

“Creating 1967” takes a look at how the filmmakers captured the look of the late 1960s. The production designer did a lot of research on Judaism to make sure that the faith was authentically represented.

“Hebrew and Yiddish for Goys” gives a run down of what several key Jewish terms and words mean. This featurette acts as a good primer for the uninitiated.

Fans of erectile dysfunction might remember a certain advert where football legend Pele talked about erection problems; that was Peter Serafinowicz dubbing his voice. Fans of Star Wars may be trying to forget The Phantom Menace, but they won’t want to forget Ray Park as Darth Maul, the best thing about the film; that was Peter Serafinowicz providing his voice.

Peter Serafinowicz is a very versatile voice actor, and that’s where most of his best comedy comes from. For example, his sketches in The Peter Serafinowicz Show that show The Beatles arguing demonstrate the skill of Peter’s impressions as he plays John Lennon and Paul McCartney perfectly.

Serafinowicz is also providing the voice of Paul McCartney in the upcoming 3D movie version of Yellow Submarine.

In The Peter Serafinowicz Show, we’re treated to a series of sketches showing various comedy creations, such as the gay Sherlock Holmes who becomes aroused when he solves a case and has to take Watson there and then, and the robot talk-show host who keeps outing his guests’ secrets before they can say them, and then proceeds to try and kill everyone.

The trouble with this sketch show is that sketch shows by and large are becoming passé. Right the way through to the 80s, sketch shows were the mainstay of British comedy – however we now have different tastes and improvisation shows such as Mock the Week, Would I Lie To You and QI are more popular than the sketch show format. Only shows such as Little Britain and The Catherine Tate Show have successfully lasted with the sketch show format. It’s an old style of comedy and one that takes a long time to build up any momentum, due to its reliance on the audience’s familiarity with the characters and the catchphrases that they use.

Whether The Peter Serafinowicz Show will be around long enough to build up any kind of momentum is another matter, but this show, while having its moments (such as the brutally honest shopping channel presenters who call everything shit) still suffers from too many missed laughs.

From a personal note though, Serafinowicz’ impression of Vader was funny on a geek level because he ‘is’ the voice of Darth Maul – nerds up and down the country would have chortled to themselves over that one, before explaining it to their parents or better halves.