Saturday Night Movie Recommendations with Abe

Welcome to a weekly feature here at Movies With Abe. Absent a wealth of new film reviews during the weekend, I’d like to start providing a handy guide to a few choice movies currently playing in NYC as well as several films newly released on DVD. I’ll also aim to comment on those films I have not yet had the chance to see, and I invite you to add in your thoughts on any films I haven’t seen in the comments below. Understandably, some weeks will have considerably fewer releases to address than others.

Now Playing in NYC

Jig (recommended): This documentary, now playing at the Quad Cinema, reminded me of “Make Believe,” the magic movie featured in my giveaway, in that it’s a typical but perfectly enthralling competition film. This one is about Irish dancing, which is quite an interesting field, and if you’re into documentaries or Irish dancing (or both), go for it.

I was thisclose to seeing Green Lantern at a press screening on Wednesday night, but it didn’t pan out, so I now have no plans to see it. Read my capsule review from yesterday. I really want to see Page One: Inside the New York Times, and I hope to get to that soon.

New to DVD

Hall Pass (mixed bag): This foul comedy has a dirty mind but not the same appeal of other movies like “Knocked Up” or “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” mostly because it can’t find a fine line between excessively vulgar and overly sappy. Not the worst way to spend two hours, I suppose, with a few laughs still included.

Now on Netflix Instant Streaming

Harry Brown (recommended): This violent film features a powerhouse performance from veteran actor Michael Caine, and it’s both an impressive and frightening dystopian picture and a strong character piece. Not for the faint of heart, of course, but definitely a film that should have received more recognition and praise than it did.