Top 10 new movies on DVD, Blu-ray, & Digital Copy

Want a good movie to watch at home? Take my advice. Here are my attention-span-sensitive movie reviews of the top ten best films recently released on DVD, Blu-ray, and Digital Copy:

Rise of the Planet of the Apes - Rent-it - Andy Serkis deserves an Oscar for his leading role as Caesar, the motion-captured CGI ape, in this surprisingly emotional film from the same special effects team that created Avatar and Lord of the Rings.
Midnight in Paris - Rent-it - It's a typical Woody Allen film starring Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, and Adrien Brody about an engaged couple who travels to Paris where their lives are - individually - changed forever. Fans will embrace it, millennials will be bored.
Our Idiot Brother - Rent-it - Paul Rudd is the nicest moron on the planet, and quite possibly the funniest. Don't miss the second best comedy of the summer (Bridesmaids is #1) about that one sibling that everyone can relate to (only took my sister an hour to further investigate this statement).
Super 8 - Rent-it - Super 8 is as "mint" as a summer blockbuster can be these days, pairing Steven Spielberg and J.J. Abrams in a sci-fi adventure about a group of small town kids who accidentally capture a shocking military secret on film. It falls somewhere between Goonies, Stand By Me, E.T. and Close Encounter of the Third Kind. And don't leave the theater until you see the kid's homemade zombie film roll during the credits.
Margin Call - Rent-it - This fictional mystery covering a 24-hour period at an investment firm during the early stages of the financial crisis of 2008 is solid and smart and full of stars (Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, and Simon Baker aka The Mentalist).
Kung Fu Panda 2 - Rent-it - The lovable, overweight, martial arts panda Po (Jack Black) and the Furious Five (Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, Angelina Jolie, and Jackie Chan) are back at it again, literally, it is basically the same story. Despite that, Kung Fu Panda is a well-proportioned (not fat or big-boned) balance of action and comedy making it largely entertaining for children and adults.
Winnie the Pooh - Rent-it - I'm not just saying this because my sister read every Winnie the Pooh story to me as a kid, Winnie the Pooh truly is a sweet and nostalgic family treat - it is a perfectly short family film for children (which Harry Potter is not!)
Fright Night - Rent-it - Colin Farrell stars in this stylishly scary remake of the 1985 cult classic about a high school senior and his "bloody" strange new neighbor.
Crazy, Stupid, Love - Rent-it - This typical romcom hodgepodge of a guy losing his perfect life but then bumping into her high school sweetheart is anything but typical and truly a hodgepodge of talented actors.
The Debt - Rent-it - Three retired Mossad secret agents find that an anti-Nazi mission accomplished in 1966 might not have been. Secrets and suspense ensue.

Ten more new releases that just missed the best-at-home movie rankings:

Warrior - Rent-it - Even if you're not a UFC fan, you need to see Tom Hardy in this gripping MMA film before he gets even bigger as Bane in the 3rd Dark Knight film. He will win an Oscar very soon.
Friends with Benefits - Rent-it - Now we know why Justin Timberlake and Cameron Diaz broke up, and why Bad Teacher stunk, because JT and co-star Mila Kunis's chemistry carries this formulaic yet hip romcom just enough the nearly recommend seeing it in theaters - if you're into that sort of thing.
Dolphin Tale - Rent-it - This touching tale about a dolphin tail is as heart-warming as it is true.
Water for Elephants - Rent-it - Despite a completely unbelievable relationship between a stumbling-bumbling Robert Pattinson and honestly-still-looks-21-drop-dead-gorgeous Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz is his usual multi-faceted villainous self, and Water for Elephants is an emotionally engaging romantic adventure about the world's greatest circus disaster that offers an intriguing peek under the big top.
The Help - Rent-it - This racially hyper film about some extraordinary women in Mississippi during the 1960s is carried by its talented cast who make it a touching and satisfactory drama.
Cowboys and Aliens - Rent-it - Director Jon Favreau actually fails us here, despite Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford's best efforts to carry this sci-fi western where nothing exciting ever really happens - despite a name like Cowboys & Aliens. However, if you like Olivia Wilde, and old-fashioned westerns (not to be confused with the new hip Oscar-worthy westerns), you might mildly (and Wildely) enjoy this.
Shaolin - Rent-it - This film about feuding warlords and Shaolin monks is more of an epic drama than an kung-fu action-adventure, but the handful of hand-to-hand fight scenes are spectacular and the big-budget cinematography is beautiful. It's no 13 Assassins though.
Bad Teacher - Skip-it - Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, and Jason Segel star in the completely wrong comedy about three high school teachers. If you're interested in romantic comedy parody or just want to see Diaz's charity car wash scene - this film is probably for you.
The Change-Up - Skip-it - Honestly, the only reason to see this comedy where Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman switch bodies (and typecasts) is to see Olivia Wilde's nude scene with CGI nipples.
Glee: The 3D Concert Movie - Rent-it if you are a Gleek - Otherwise, you will remain as confused as ever as to why this dramedy is such a pup-culture phenomenon.

Five worst films recently released on DVD, Blu-ray, and Digital Copy:

The Smurfs - Skip-it - The Smurfs visiting New York is nothing more than a handful of recognizable voices buried beneath a heaping pile of boring blue baby junk.
Mr. Popper's Penguins - Skip-it - This Jim Carrey family comedy has certainly flown under the radar. And it's not because penguins can't fly. As my good friend Ryan Beltz (@RJB1983) put it: "Jim Carrey has obviously decided at this point in his career he is going to follow down the Eddie Murphy road of comedy #talktoanimals"
Straw Dogs - Skip-it - If you want to see a gruesomely violent analogy for our bipartisan beliefs go rent Dustin Hoffman's 1971 version of this film about a screenwriter's bloody conflict with his new neighbors.
Colombiana - Skip-it - Zoe Saldana, the naked blue chick from Avatar, is an assassin seeking revenge for her murdered parents - if you are still interested in seeing that story play out you won't be disappointed by the over-the-top action.
The Tempest - Skip-it - Shakespeare told by Helen Mirren = brilliant. Shakespeare told via CGI - and unimpressively obvious CGI at that = stupid.