DVD Release Calendar: May 2011

May 3

The Dilemma 46 Add to Netflix Queue

The dilemma facing Vince Vaughn is that he has discovered that the wife (Winona Ryder) of his best friend and business partner (Kevin James) is cheating on him. It wasn't such a dilemma for audiences of this January release, a rare comedy for director Ron Howard; they simply didn't like it much.

The Green Hornet 39 Add to Netflix Queue

It was an up and down ride for this long-gestating superhero comedy based on the radio serial. When director Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) and screenwriters Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Superbad) jumped on board, it sounded promising, on paper, at least. Then came rumors that the studio was unsatisfied with the film, and it was delayed from the prime holiday season to January. After managing to build up some positive buzz again, the film greatly disappointed critics, though its box office performance was more of a mixed bag. Rogen stars alongside Christoph Waltz and Jay Chou.

Other Releases on May 3, 2011

Title	Netflix	Metascore
Fat Girl Criterion Collection		77
Blu-ray From Dusk till Dawn Harvey Keitel, George Clooney		52
From Prada to Nada Alexa Vega, Camilla Belle	Add to Queue	39
The Promise: The Making of Darkness at the Edge of Town Bruce Springsteen	Add to Queue	n/a
A Somewhat Gentle Man Norwegian comedy	Add to Queue	68
Blu-ray Taps George C. Scott, Sean Penn, Tom Cruise		n/a
Waiting for Forever Rachel Bilson, Tom Sturridge	Add to Queue	26
Blu-ray What Dreams May Come Robin Williams, Cuba Gooding Jr.		44
TV on DVD:
According to Jim Season 3	Add to Queue	n/a
Being Human [UK version] Season 3	Add to Queue	n/a
Drop Dead Diva Season 2		n/a
Melrose Place Season 6	Add to Queue	n/a
Penn & Teller: Bullshit! Season 8	Add to Queue	n/a
The PJs Season 1	Add to Queue	n/a

May 10

Blue Valentine 81 Add to Netflix Queue

Michelle Williams received an Oscar nomination for her performance opposite an also lauded Ryan Gosling in this bleak relationship drama from writer-director Derek Cianfrance. Indie band Grizzly Bear provides the score.

The Illusionist 82 Add to Netflix Queue

One of three 2010 releases nominated for the Best Animated Feature Film Oscar, this French dramedy about the relationship between an aging magician and a young girl comes from The Triplets of Belleville director Sylvain Chomet, and is based on an unproduced script by actor Jacques Tati (who also inspired the physical movements of the animated characters).

No Strings Attached 50 Add to Netflix Queue

Best friends Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher see if adding a casual sexual element to their relationship will harm their friendship in a 2011 comedy directed by Ivan Reitman. Don't confuse this movie with the upcoming Friends with Benefits, in which Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake see if they can have a purely casual sexual relationship while remaining just friends.

Something Wild 73 [Criterion Collection] Add to Netflix Queue

Director Jonathan Demme followed the Talking Heads concert documentary Stop Making Sense with this offbeat 1986 comedic thriller starring Jeff Daniels as a conservative banker who loosens up and embarks on an increasingly adventurous road trip -- that eventually turns violent -- after falling for a free spirit (Melanie Griffith, in one of her first mainstream leading roles). Out of print for a while, the cult film with the killer soundtrack now gets a Criterion DVD and Blu-ray release, with a few new extras, including an interview with the director.

Other Releases on May 10, 2011

Title	Netflix	Metascore
AC/DC Live at River Plate 2009 concert	Add to Queue	n/a
Black Death Carice van Houten, Eddie Redmayne, Kimberley Nixon, Sean Bean	Add to Queue	71
I Saw the Devil Korean thriller	Add to Queue	67
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never [5/13] Music documentary/concert	Add to Queue	52
Now & Later Low-budget drama	Add to Queue	24
Blu-ray Some Like It Hot Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon		n/a
TV on DVD:
Home Improvement 20th Anniversary Complete Collection		n/a
Webster Season 2		n/a

May 17

The Mechanic 49 Add to Netflix Queue

Jason Statham stars in this 2011 remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson action film about a talented hit man who seeks revenge against the people who killed his friend, while taking on an unlikely student (Ben Foster) in the process. Simon West (Con Air) directs.

The Other Woman 37 Add to Netflix Queue

Based on the novel Love and Other Impossible Pursuits (which was also the original title of the adaptation), this 2009 drama sat on the shelf for two years, only to finally surface -- conveniently enough -- in early 2011 after star Natalie Portman earned an Oscar nomination for Black Swan. Here, Portman plays a woman grieving over the death of her infant daughter while adapting to her new husband's family; Don Roos (on a downward trajectory since The Opposite of Sex) directs.

The Rite 38 Add to Netflix Queue

Anthony Hopkins, who once starred in good movies, plays a Vatican priest who counsels a young trainee (Colin O'Donoghue) in the ways of exorcism in an atmospheric supernatural thriller reportedly based on true events.

The Roommate 23 Add to Netflix Queue

TV stars Leighton Meester (Gossip Girl) and Minka Kelly (Friday Night Lights) play college roommates -- one deranged, the other the target of her obsessions -- in a psychological thriller that was much better when it was 1992 and called Single White Female.

Other Releases on May 17, 2011

Title	Netflix	Metascore
Blu-ray Beverly Hills Cop Eddie Murphy		n/a
Brian Eno - 1971-1977: The Man Who Fell To Earth Music documentary		n/a
Daydream Nation Kat Dennings, Josh Lucas	Add to Queue	n/a
Diabolique Criterion Collection		n/a
I Want Your Money Political documentary	Add to Queue	n/a
Pale Flower Criterion Collection		n/a
Vanishing on 7th Street Hayden Christensen, John Leguizamo, Thandie Newton	Add to Queue	50
TV on DVD:
All in the Family Season 9		n/a
The Bionic Woman Season 2	Add to Queue	n/a
Covert Affairs Season 1	Add to Queue	64
Degrassi: The Next Generation Season 10		n/a
Flashpoint Season 3	Add to Queue	n/a
Royal Pains Season 2	Add to Queue	n/a
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! Season Cinco	Add to Queue	n/a

May 24

Gnomeo & Juliet 53 Add to Netflix Queue

About as good as an animated family comedy version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet featuring garden gnomes could possibly be, Gnomeo & Juliet is still saddled with the burden of being an animated family comedy version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet featuring garden gnomes. James McAvoy and Emily Blunt lead the vocal cast, and there's music from Elton John.

I Am Number Four 36 Add to Netflix Queue

A humanoid alien life form with superpowers who is living in exile as a Midwestern high school student discovers that an enemy alien race has already killed off three targets on their list ... and guess who the fourth one is. Based on the young adult novel co-written by James Frey, this Michael Bay-produced teen sci-fi drama didn't exactly become the next Twilight as its backers hoped, and a movie sequel doesn't look likely.

Other Releases on May 24, 2011

Title	Netflix	Metascore
Anton Chekhov's The Duel Drama based on Chekhov's story	Add to Queue	75
The Great Dictator Criterion Collection		n/a
Blu-ray Platoon Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe		n/a
Public Speaking Scorsese-directed doc about Fran Lebowitz	Add to Queue	n/a
Seconds Apart Horror/thriller	Add to Queue	n/a
Solaris [1972] Criterion Collection		n/a
TV on DVD:
Childrens' Hospital Seasons 1 and 2	Add to Queue	n/a
Decoded Season 1	Add to Queue	n/a
The Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town	Add to Queue	n/a
Transformers The Complete Series		n/a

May 31

Biutiful 58 Add to Netflix Queue

Javier Bardem earned a surprise Oscar nomination for his lead performance as a Barcelona criminal struggling to raise his children as a single father in a somewhat depressing Spanish-language drama from Alejandro González Iñárritu (Babel). Some critics were disappointed in the film as a whole, but it still earned quite a few nominations and awards for best foreign language film last year.

Drive Angry 44 Add to Netflix Queue

This intentionally campy action film stars Nicolas Cage as a man who breaks out of Hell and, while driving a variety of old muscle cars, seeks revenge against the men (including William Fichtner) who murdered his daughter and abducted her baby. Nobody saw it when it played in theaters earlier this year.

Kaboom 64 Add to Netflix Queue

Gregg Araki's take on the raunchy college comedy (with some sci-fi thriller elements thrown in for good measure) is shot in the filmmaker's endearingly amateurish and unconventional style and is reportedly influenced by Twin Peaks. Unlike most raunchy college comedies, it screened at Cannes.

Other Releases on May 31, 2011

Title	Netflix	Metascore
Blu-ray American Graffiti Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Cindy Williams		n/a
Blu-ray Once Upon a Time in the West Henry Fonda, Jason Robards, Charles Bronson		n/a
Passion Play Bill Murray, Megan Fox, Mickey Rourke	Add to Queue	n/a
TV on DVD:
The Dog Whisperer Season 5		n/a
Psych Season 5	Add to Queue	n/a
Rookie Blue Season 1	Add to Queue	52
Stargate Universe Season 2	Add to Queue	n/a
True Blood Season 3	Add to Queue	79