Home Video Spotlight: May 20 - 27

Brief capsules on recently released movies worth renting.

By R. Kurt Osenlund, The Good Life film critic

EDGE OF DARKNESS

Mel Gibson makes a ferocious comeback in this gritty, largely uncompromising revenge thriller co-written by William Monahan ("The Departed") and directed by Martin Campbell ("GoldenEye"). Based on the 1985 BBC series of the same name, "Edge" follows Boston cop Thomas Craven (Gibson) as he initiates a vigilante mission to avenge the death of his daughter, a whistle-blower with ties to a corrupt weapons company. The script is intelligent, as is the pacing, delaying the brutal bursts of action to the breaking point. (Now available)

THE ROAD

Director John Hillcoat ("The Proposition") translates Cormac McCarthy's masterful post-apocalyptic novel "The Road" with eerie authenticity in this long-delayed film version, which stars Viggo Mortensen as a father who must protect his son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) amidst a scorched, treacherous landscape. Preachy voiceovers hamper the movie's grace, and the book is far superior in terms of emotional heft, but the story is gripping all the same. First-rate actors like Robert Duvall and Charlize Theron turn up to endow the subplots with considerable impact. (Now available)