New On DVD: 'Stop-Loss,' 'Vantage Point'

"Stop-Loss" (R): After failing to attract an audience in theaters, "Boys Don't Cry" writer-director Kimberly Peirce will get another chance to rivet moviegoers with "Stop-Loss," a searing drama that tackles the sensitive subject of the war in Iraq.

The interesting thing about the movie is, it's not so much about the war itself as it is the people who are serving in it and the effects a loophole in military policy has on their friends and family.

The "Stop-Loss" provision in a soldier's military contract provides for their retention in the armed forces and prevents them from retiring once their term of service is complete. It's the provision Sgt. Brandon King (Ryan Phillippe) faces in the film -- who is Stop-Lossed after his return home to Texas from a tour of duty in Iraq.

Scarred by an ambush prior to the end of his tour, Brandon is determined to fight his Stop-Loss order, even if it means testing the loyalties of his longtime friend and fellow soldier, Sgt. Steve Shriver (Channing Tatum) and the fears of his military family by going AWOL.

Complicating matters is that Brandon's main ally is Michele (Abbie Cornish), who aids him as a fugitive -- an ally who also happens to be Steve's fiancee.

"Stop-Loss" begins with powerful visuals as Peirce graphically details the checkpoint breach in Iraq that rapidly escalates into chaos. Once King is given his orders, however, the film turns to drama to drive the narrative. The film is more of a character study of the effects war has had on King and his buddies, but with uneven results. A visit to one of King's troop members in a VA hospital is riveting, yet the fate of another one of his close friends is disturbing yet predictable.

A graphic look at the hardships of modern soldiers, "Stop Loss" is not a feel-good movie by any means. But no matter your stand on the war, for the sake of the men and women serving in it, is a necessary movie to see nonetheless.

DVD Features: Commentary with Peirce and co-writer Mark Richard; deleted scenes; a production featurette and more. (Paramount Home Entertainment)

'Vantage Point' (PG-13): The story of an assassination attempt on the U.S. president is told, rewound and retold from several different points of view with mostly effective results in "Vantage Point," a masterfully-constructed political thriller from director Pete Travis.

Dennis Quaid and Matthew Fox play Secret Service agents assigned to the president (William Hurt), who is speaking at a global summit in Spain. Forest Whitaker plays a tourist videotaping the event, while Sigourney Weaver plays a television news director on location. The film plays, essentially, in 8- to 10-minute segments, replaying the events first from Weaver's character's point-of-view, then Quaid's, and so on -- each of which escalate the tension until the film's thrilling conclusion.

The execution of "Vantage Point" is a bit gimmicky, to be sure, but you can't fault Travis and his fellow filmmakers for being creative. The result is a good nail-biter of a movie, sometimes with surprising results. (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)

Also New:

"The Ruins" (R and Unrated Editions): Shawn Ashmore (Iceman from the "X-Men") movies and Jena Malone are among the cast of a gory horror thriller set at an ancient Mayan Temple. (Paramount Home Entertainment)