Firewall ** 1/2|Jack Stanfield (Harrison Ford) has designed an impressively impenetrable security operation for a Seattle financial conglomerate. He runs up against cyber-age bank robber Bill Cox (Paul Bettany), who is disguised as a man with a proposal. But soon Cox uses Jack’s wife and kids as leverage to force him to hack into his own security system. Bettany’s chilly villain has a mildly tony accent and a geek-and-goon squad that owe a debt to Alan Rickman’s “Die Hard” crew. But then this serviceable thriller provides a chastising example of what happens to well-rounded actors forced into the squareness of a Harrison Ford movie: We can no longer discern their gifts. The star shines fine in his familar firmament; it’s everyone else who’s done better work.|PG-13|105 minutes|Released today|Lisa Kennedy
Glory Road ***|A predictable sports movie that pushes the gospel themes a bit too hard, “Glory Road” is nevertheless a great story because it’s nearly all true. In 1966, white coach Don Haskins assembled a ragtag team of black and white players at Texas Western College, starting more blacks than any Southern team. His players endured racism and underdog status to make the unlikeliest of runs to the national championship game against all-white Kentucky. Ignore the soundtrack and emotional bullying, and enjoy a great moment in sports history.|PG|105 minutes|Released today|Michael Booth
Running Scared *|An awful sophomore disappointment for the talented writer-director of “The Cooler,” which was a favorite at the Denver International Film Festival two years ago. Wayne Kramer pens and directs a vile mash-up of mob violence and extreme street language, putting two 10-year-old kids through the worst of it. Audiences don’t know whether to laugh or walk out. Either is a reasonable defense.|R|120 minutes|Released today|Michael Booth
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada *** 1/2|When Melquiades Estrada is killed by a border patrol agent, his first burial hardly deserves the name. His second is a disgrace. Only friend and fellow cowboy Pete Perkins – Tommy Lee Jones – believes in justice and a proper burial. In his directorial debut, Jones and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga deliver a tale worthy of Greek drama. Pete kidnaps the agent, takes possession of Melquiades’ corpse and sets off into Mexico to bury his friend (Jose César Cedillo). Melquiades’ third interment is the stuff of myths remade for modern woes. “Three Burials” is a stunning visual ballad about loss and a staggeringly soulful meditation on loyalty. That would be enough. That it speaks to one of our nation’s most volatile issues makes it a remarkable achievement.|R|121 minutes|Released today|Lisa Kennedy
TV ON DVD
The Dukes of Hazzard: The Complete Sixth
Season|The roughhousing Southern boys (John Schneider and Tom Wopat), their luscious cousin (Catherine Bach) and their souped-up wheels ride again. The four-disc set has Year 6’s 22 episodes and two featurettes, including one on the Dukes’ car, the General Lee.|$39.98|Released May 30|David Germain, Associated Press
OTHER RELEASES | These DVDs are also available today
Air America: The Complete Series
The Big White
Black Hawk Down Extended Edition
Boomerang!
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Ultimate Collector’s Edition
Charmed: The Fifth Season
Come See the Paradise
Dazed and Confused
The Drop
Dumbo Big Top Edition
Emperor of the North
Entourage: The Second Season
F-Troop: The First Season
Farewell to the King
The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things
Home Improvement: Fourth Season
House of Strangers
I Wake Up Screaming
John Ford Film Collection
The Lost Boys
The Magician
Man in the Vault
Mr. & Mrs. Smith Unrated Collector’s Edition
The Missing: Extended Cut
Mommie Dearest: Hollywood
Royalty Edition
Mystery Woman: Snapshot
NCIS: The Complete First Season
Plunder of the Sun
Preaching to the Choir
Private
Ring of Fear
The Sisters
Straight Into Darkness
Thunder Birds
Underworld Evolution
Wild Wild West: First Season
This week’s top videos in rentals and sales:
RENTALS
1. The Ringer
2. When A Stranger Calls
3. Rumor Has It
4. Big Momma’s House 2
5. Munich (widescreen)
SALES
1. The Ringer
2. When a Stranger Calls
3. Big Momma’s House 2
4. The Producers (widescreen)
5. Nanny McPhee (widescreen)
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