Ok, you guys–since we know how important at-home-entertainment is for all of us – every Tuesday we’re going to do a little “what’s getting released on DVD/on demand/Netflix this week” round up for you, with nice little excerpts of our past reviews and more. You’ll love it. Trust us. Now–all you need is someone to watch these movies with.

OUT THIS WEEK & PROCEED WITH CAUTION:

• Silent House – Elizabeth Olsen (fresh off of her well deserved MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE hype year) guides us through an 88-real-time-minute horrible ordeal that’s part break-in (the most personally terrifying horror subgenre to watch) and part psychological thriller following a young girl and her Father. Watch the trailer–the film is every bit the claustrophobic, paranoia-inducing thrill ride you think it is. So what’s the catch? It’s hard to say without giving the twist away, though I will say the ending is unfortunately not as creative as one would hope. In fact, it utilizes an age-old trope that’s only begun to frustrate someone who watches a lot of horror films. (If this classification applies not to you, you may not be bothered at all.) Regardless, it’s a suspenseful, well-shot thriller through and through and Olsen’s performance is believable at all points of the plot. Watch it with the lights off, I dare you.
  

OUT THIS WEEK & (MOSTLY) RECOMMENDED:

• The Deep Blue Sea – here’s what we said in our original review:
  “Even with atmospheric, historic touches, Davies keeps the adaptation modern by never letting his characters off the hook, and by challenging us to reevaluate them. His version of romance will not leave anyone clamoring for an embrace, although it may make audiences wish they could be so emotionally incisive in a quarrel.”
  

OUT RECENTLY AND DEFINITELY WORTH YOUR TIME:

• Jiro Dreams of Sushi – here’s what we said in our original review:
  “Jiro Dreams Of Sushi is a love song to the ethereally exquisite world of sushi, but ultimately, it’s about dedicating your life to mastering a skill and working at it with unwavering dedication. In some sense, it is not about falling in love with *your* work, but more so about falling in love with work. Perfectionism, fanatical dedication, and humility are all we really need to know about Jiro.”
  

INSTANT NETFLIX VIEWING OF THE WEEK:

Happy Summer Olympics Kick-Off Week! Did you see our Best/Worst Sports Movies to Get Pumped for the Olympics post? You should (re)visit that for optimum Olympics athleticism awareness (not at all), but it just so happens a few of our picks are on Instant Watch. Watching these is just like training for the Olympics. But on your couch/bed/beanbag chair.

• BASEketball – The story follows Matt Parker and Trey Stone’s characters, who haven’t done anything productive since graduating from high school, as they come up with a game that combines elements of baseball and basketball (BASEketball — get it?!) Their games with friends expand into a neighborhood league which draws large numbers of spectators, and they’re eventually approached to make a professional league sport out of BASEketball and bring back some of the feelings that have gone out of other professional sports. It’s a flawed movie, but it’s more often than not weird and hilarious:
  
• The Cutting Edge – The Moira Kelley/DB Sweeney figure skating classic CUTTING EDGE stars an ice princess (geddit?) having scared pretty much every (sissy) figure skating partner she ever had is saddled with a once promising hockey player, who is now essentially wasting away. No prizes if you can guess what happens next. But when they land that triple double axel -your heart always skips a beat.
  Yes, there are sequels. No, they’re nowhere near as good. TOE PICK!
  
• Bad News Bears – The silliness and fun of baseball shines through in Bad News Bears, but it’s the uncomfortably realistic portrait of little league baseball that gets us. Walter Matthau is spot on as a grizzled divorcé, and the girl (Tatum O’Neal) trying to make him her father, is well written and endearingly irritating. Their dynamic of mutual stubbornness and occasional vulnerability seesaws, helping to keep the story out of the realm of the sentimental or overly dramatic.
  
• Rocky IV – Some of the best Olympic moments that elevated the Olympic games from a quiet international entertainment to gritty competition were when the USSR and the US could release some Cold War tension. So much so that Rocky IV was created, one of the funniest/best movies to come from that stilted dynamic.