“Five Star Day” is about a young man named Jake (Cam Gigandet) who has the worst day of his life on his birthday. He loses his job, apartment, car and girlfriend all in one day. This happens in spite of the fact that his horoscope said that he was going to have an amazing “five star day.”

Frustrated and angry, Jake finds three other people born on the same day at the same hospital, at roughly the same time as him. His goal is disprove the science of astrology by visiting these people and interviewing them about their day. His thesis is that if these people had just as bad a day as him, then astrology is proven a fraud.

Gigandet is persuasive and charming as Jake. He knows how to look tough and serious when the situation warrants, but he also has an easy smile and a look in his eye that lets everyone know he’s having fun. As a result, it’s fun to go with Jake as he journeys across the country for his interviews. This makes “Five Star Day” at least a three star movie, which means it is good enough to Rent It.

“Martha Marcy May Marlene” stars one of America’s most promising young actresses in one of 2011’s most boring movies. In it, young starlet Elizabeth Olsen plays Martha—or is it Marcy May? Or is it Marlene? Depending on where she is in the story and who she’s with, the name changes. The premise is promising: A young woman (Olsen) escapes from a cult and hides out by living with her older sister Lucy (Sarah Paulson) and brother-in-law Ted (Hugh Dancy). Olsen proves herself to be an excellent actress. All accolades she receives for her performance are well deserved. And the film does have some bright spots. Some cult members get their kicks by invading homes, with very creepy–and sometimes lethal–results, and there is an argument between Ted and Martha during a dinner that is well played and highlights their drastically different philosophies on life. However, the rest of the film is a big snore. Not only could the pacing have been much better, but the narrative structure of the film could have used some streamlining as the back and forth timeline does the viewer no favors. Skip It and hope that if Olsen’s upcoming “Silent House” is as silly as it looks, then at least she once again gives an outstanding performance in a mediocre film.

Eddie Murphy and Brett Ratner made big headlines least year by dropping out as, respectively, host and producer of this year’s Academy Awards. However, if we want to see what this duo can accomplish together, there’s always “Tower Heist.” In it, Murphy plays Slide, an ex-thief who helps Ben Stiller’s rag tag group of regular folks rob a wealthy money manager played by Alan Alda. As Dan noted in his review, “we do get the expected extreme level of planning and luck as things transpire. But that’s all par for the course and part of the fun. And thankfully there’s enough fun throughout ‘Tower Heist’ to not quite make it a steal for the admission price, but you will get your money’s worth.” Rent It.

Clint Eastwood has generated a lot of great buzz for himself lately by directing such modern masterpieces as “Million Dollar Baby,” “Letters from Iwo Jima,” and “Gran Torino.” However, if one takes a look at his career as a director, it’s easy to see that Eastwood has been directing great films for the past forty years, starting with a chilling suspense film in 1971 called “Play Misty for Me.”

The film that falls smack dab in the middle of then and now is 1992’s “Unforgiven,” which won Eastwood Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director and is getting the 20th anniversary Blu-Ray treatment this week. The film is more than just a revisionist western. It’s a meditation on the horror of violence and killing. After years of making standard westerns in which violence is casual and consequences are barely existent unless they relate to the plot in some way, Eastwood decided to make a film that puts violence and the actual act of killing under the microscope to examine it. What results is one of the most sorrowful, gut wrenching, and beautifully made films of all time. To me, it’s the highlight in Eastwood’s already great and brilliant career, and is a must own. Buy It, and whenever you get the feeling that films have gotten too violent, callous, and soulless, watch it, and remember that there are filmmakers who know how to do it right.

Director Otto Preminger’s 1959 film “Anatomy of a Murder” is tame by today’s standards. Nowadays, discussions of sex crimes, whether or not a woman was wearing panties, and spermatogenesis are perfectly acceptable on the six o’clock news when the whole family is watching. However, in the late 1950s these subjects were taboo. Audiences were shocked to hear America’s favorite everyman, James Stewart, discuss such things while defending Ben Gazzara’s Army Lieutenant on a murder charge. The lieutenant is accused of killing a bartender whom he believed sexually assaulted his wife, played by Lee Remick. The cast is completed by a young George C. Scott as the prosecuting attorney. “Anatomy of a Murder” was not only successful in pushing the envelope and re-shaping what is and is not appropriate content for a film, but it also demonstrated great storytelling and was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture. Buy It.

Also out this Week: “Honey” and “Honey 2,” which have the same director and same basic plot about an aspiring young dancer, just different actresses—Jessica Alba and Katerina Graham, respectively; “London Boulevard,” with Colin Farrell as an ex-con entangled with criminal life in London; and “World on a Wire,” a re-discovered, 1973 made for German television film about an intricate corporate conspiracy that offers a bizarre look at the future.

Andrew Hudak is a lifelong film lover. His column on Blu-Ray new releases appears every Tuesday; he also regularly reviews new theatrical releases for Hudak On Hollywood. He lives in Connecticut.

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