Flick Picks 3/12/13: Life of Pi, Hitchcock, Rise of the Guardians,

New This Week

ENTERTAINMENT: Which film won four Oscars and costars a computer generated Bengal tiger? Life of Pi, which arrives on DVD and Blu-ray this week. Directed by Oscar winner Ang Lee, Life of Pi is mysterious, metaphorical and visually stunning. It's based on the Yann Martel novel and wowed audiences worldwide. In our other major release this week, Anthony Hopkins plays Alfred Hitchcock in the film of the same last name. Helen Mirren stars as his wife Alma and the film is centered on their relationship during the filming of Psycho. We've got it on DVD and Blu-ray.

There are other interesting options this week as well. Smashed has Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul in the story of a woman who joins Alcoholics Anonymous and is forced to reevaluate her life and relationships after she becomes sober. This Must be the Place provides an unusual role for Sean Penn as a heavy eyeliner-wearing former glam rocker who launches on a road trip following his father's death. Finally, the kids won't want to miss Rise of the Guardians, the animated tale of a group of characters well-known to children (Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy) who battle the boogeyman.

SERIES: New from the BBC is Ripper Street, in which the toughest group of policemen in Victorian England   try to maintain order in post-Jack the Ripper London and keep organized crime under control. Also new is Thorne, a British import starring David Morrissey as detective Tom Thorne, an out-of-the-box thinker who investigates murders while dealing with his own personal demons. It's based on two novels by Mark Billingham.

DOCUMENTARY: David Grohl, drummer from Foo Fighters and Nirvana, makes his directorial debut with Sound City, which tells about the studio of the same name in which hits from Neil Young, Johnny Cash, Fleetwood Mac and Metallica and more were recorded. Many musicians contributed to this film, which is a must-see for popular music lovers. A can't miss DVD for Downton Abbey lovers is the PBS special Secrets of Highclere Castle, which takes you inside the castle that is the real-life setting for the series.

This is Not a Film is the look at Iraninan director Jafar Panahi's house arrest. Shot clandestinely on an iPhone, the film captures Panahi's day-to-day life. It was smuggled out of Iran (in a cake!) for late entry into Cannes and is a fascinating thought piece on politics and filmmaking. Also, learn the story of Donald Trump's attempt to build a golf course in Scotland and the local homeowners who took him on in You've Been Trumped. Finally, chock full of old photos and recordings, Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness tells the story of the great Jewish writer whose words inspired Fiddler on the Roof.

Please check Bibliocommons for all of our new and upcoming releases!

Monday at the Movies
At our next Monday at the Movies, we'll be showing A Late Quartet, with Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener and Christoper Walken in the story of a classical music group that is forced to deal with long-contained emotions when they receive unexpected news about their cellist's health. We will be showing the film at 1:00 and 7:00 on March 18th at the Women's Library Club, 325 Tudor Ct.

Erin Go Bragh!

We may not have corned beef and green beer at the library but we've got plenty of great Irish themed videos to help you celebrate St. Patrick's Day this Sunday. Cead Mile Failte!!!

• Start by getting your history straight with The Story of Ireland, a five part miniseries from the BBC. 
• The Irish Tenors with the Chicagoland Pops Orchestra presents many of your favorite Irish musical favorites performed by a top-notch group of musicians. 
• American boxer John Wayne retires to his Irish homeland in John Ford's The Quiet Man. 
• The charming Once is the story of an Irish street musician who teams up with a Czech immigrant in music and love. 
• The Guard stars Brendan Gleeson as an Irish police officer who teams up with an American FBI agent (Don Cheadle) to take down drug smugglers.
• Acclaimed director Paul Greengrass made Bloody Sunday, the story of the events of that infamous day, feel more like a documentary than the reenactment that it is.
• Veronica Guerin is based on the real life character of the same name who was murdered while investigating the Irish drug trade.
• The Secret of Roan Inish is a mystical film about a young girl who is convinced that her missing brother is being raised by selkies, or seals that can shed their skins to become human. 
• The Secret of Kells is the Oscar-nominated animated tale of the fictionalized creation of the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript of the Bible which has become a national treasure in Ireland.