HITS Highlights | Book Reviews | Video Recommendations    

By Melly Anderson, Collection Development

 

Hip talk-radio host and journalist Mingus and his French photographer girlfriend, Marion, live cozily in a New York apartment with their cat and two young children from previous relationships. But when Marion's family unceremoniously descends upon them for 2 Days in New York DVD and Blu-ray, family mayhem ensues. With their unabashed openness and sexual frankness, the triumvirate is bereft of boundaries or filters, and no one is left unscathed in its wake. The visitors push every button in the couple’s relationship, truly putting it to the test.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter DVD and Blu-ray explores the secret life of our greatest president, and the untold story that shaped our nation. Visionary filmmakers Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov bring a fresh and visceral voice to the bloodthirsty lore of the vampire, imagining Lincoln as history's greatest hunter of the undead.

The newest contribution from documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, The Dust Bowl DVD and Blu-ray chronicles the worst man-made ecological disaster in American history, when a frenzied wheat boom on the southern Plains followed by a decade-long drought during the 1930s nearly swept away the breadbasket of the nation. Vivid interviews with more than two dozen survivors of those hard times, combined with dramatic photographs and seldom-seen movie footage, bring to life stories of incredible human suffering and equally incredible human perseverance.

The hot headliner in an all-male revue, Magic Mike DVD and Blu-ray has been rocking the stage at Club Xquisite for years. When he takes a 19-year-old under his wing, it puts Mike in the path of The Kid's sister, Brooke. Captivated, Mike pursues her. But Brooke is not so keen on his lifestyle, and Mike is challenged to defend it.

In May of 2011, Neil Young drove a 1956 Crown Victoria from his idyllic hometown of Omemee, Ontario, to downtown Toronto’s iconic Massey Hall where he intimately performed the last two nights of his solo world tour. Along the drive, Young recounted insightful and introspective stories from his youth to filmmaker Jonathan Demme. Through the tunes and the tales, Demme portrays a personal, retrospective look into the heart and soul of the artist in Neil Young Journeys DVD and Blu-ray. Young's intense performances are presented in full, along with passages from the funny and sometimes wistful ride into town.

Filmmaker and photographer Lauren Greenfield's 2012 Sundance Film Festival award-winner, Queen of Versailles DVD and Blu-ray, is a character-driven documentary about a billionaire family and their financial challenges in the wake of the economic crisis. With epic proportions of Shakespearean tragedy, the film follows two unique characters whose rags-to-riches success stories reveal the innate virtues and flaws of the American Dream.

When an unusual classified ad inspires three cynical Seattle magazine employees to look for the story behind it, they discover a mysterious eccentric named Kenneth, a likable but paranoid supermarket clerk, who believes he's solved the riddle of time travel and intends to depart again soon. Together, they embark on a hilarious, smart, and unexpectedly heartfelt journey that reveals how far believing can take you in Safety Not Guaranteed DVD and Blu-ray.

Laguna Beach entrepreneurs Ben and his closest friend Chon run a lucrative, homegrown industry–raising some of the best marijuana ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with the extraordinary beauty, Ophelia. Life is idyllic in their Southern California town until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them. But the cartel underestimates the unbreakable bond among these three friends. And so, in Savages DVD and Blu-ray begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and maneuvers in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.

Mad Men: Season Five DVD and Blu-ray plunges into the seductive and intriguing world of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Jon Hamm and the rest of the award-winning cast continue to mesmerize as they adapt to changing times, social revolution, and a radical world. Lust is back. Adultery is back. Deception is back.

Copper: Season One DVD and Blu-ray is set in 1860s New York City. The dark crime drama series centers on Kevin Corcoran, an intense, rugged Irish-American cop working the city's notorious Five Points neighborhood. Corcoran is struggling to maintain his moral compass in a turbulent world while on an emotional and relentless quest to learn the truth about the disappearance of his wife and the death of his daughter.

Set in a too-near future, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World DVD and Blu-ray explores what people will do when humanity’s last days are at hand. As the respective journeys of Dodge and Penny converge, the two spark to each other, and their outlooks–if not the world’s–brighten.           

Shot with Michael Winterbottom's agile camera, Trishna DVD is a powerful look at the tension between ancient privilege and modern equality, between codes of urban and rural life, and ultimately a hymn to both the glory and the tragedy that comes with beauty in all forms. Based on Thomas Hardy's classic novel Tess of the D'Ubervilles, Winterbottom uses a contemporary theme with an exotic India as the background.

Following the success of her Sundance award-winning film Humpday, Lynn Shelton weaves another compellingly human story in Your Sister's Sister DVD and Blu-ray. Lost in an emotional funk one year after his brother's death, Jack takes his best friend Iris up on her offer for a reflective week of solitude at her family's remote island retreat. Upon arriving at the house, Jack discovers that Iris' sister Hannah had the same idea, and the two spend an awkward evening together. Iris shows up the next morning unannounced, setting in motion an emotionally twisted tale of sisters, brothers, and best friends.