Candidates for president and prime minister choose to run, but kings rarely have a choice. Such was the case for Prince Albert, known by family members as Bertie (Colin Firth), whose stutter made public speaking difficult. Upon the death of his father, George V (Michael Gambon, making the most of a small part), the crown went to Bertie's brother, Edward VIII (Guy Pearce), who abdicated to marry divorcée Wallis Simpson. All the while, Bertie and his wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter, excellent), try to find a solution to his stammer. Nothing works until they meet Australian émigré Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), a failed actor operating out of a threadbare office.

As a pleasant dose of holiday cheer, The Holiday is a lovable love story with all the Christmas trimmings. In the capable hands of writer-director Nancy Meyers (making her first romantic comedy since Something's Gotta Give), it all begins when two successful yet unhappy women connect through a home-swapping website, and decide to trade houses for the Christmas holiday in a mutual effort to forget their man troubles. Iris (Kate Winslet) is a London-based journalist who lives in a picture-postcard cottage in Surrey, and Amanda (Cameron Diaz) owns a movie-trailer production company (leading her to cutely imagine most of her life as a "coming attraction") and lives in a posh mansion in Beverly Hills.

Michael Douglas has spent the second half of his career perfecting playing charming, morally flawed rakes (Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, Wonder Boys). So his performance in Solitary Man--as a morally flawed rake who is somehow ingratiating, if not exactly charming--is a subtle but real revelation of Douglas's acting skills. His character in Solitary Man, Ben, shows elements of his roles in the other films, yet Ben is no master of the universe; he's one step away from pathetic--and just enough so that viewers will be invested in finding out how his story plays out, even if at the same time they'd like to see Ben get some comeuppance.

Two disc (CD/DVD) release. Shake It Up is a Disney Channel Original Series about two best friends, CeCe Jones and Raquel "Rocky" Blue, who have dreamed about becoming professional dancers ever since they were little girls. Their big break finally comes when the girls get a gig as background dancers on a local Chicago TV Dance show called Shake It Up, Chicago! Experience the fun of Shake It Up by breaking it down with the dance moves on the second disc of this 2 disc album.

SCRUBS:COMPLETE COLLECTION - DVD Movie

Screenwriter William Goldman's novel The Princess Bride earned its own loyal audience on the strength of its narrative voice and its gently satirical, hyperbolic spin on swashbuckled adventure that seemed almost purely literary. For all its derring-do and vivid over-the-top characters, the book's joy was dictated as much by the deadpan tone of its narrator and a winking acknowledgement of the clichés being sent up. Miraculously, director Rob Reiner and Goldman himself managed to visualize this romantic fable while keeping that external voice largely intact: using a storytelling framework, avuncular Grandpa (Peter Falk) gradually seduces his skeptical grandson (Fred Savage) into the absurd, irresistible melodrama of the title story.

Literary adaptations just don't get any better than director Joe Wright's 2005 version of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice. The key word here is adaptation, because Wright and gifted screenwriter Deborah Moggach have taken liberties with Austen's classic novel that purists may find objectionable, but in this exquisite film their artistic decisions are entirely justified and exceptionally well executed. It's a more rural England that we see here, circa 1790 (as opposed to Austen's early 19th century), in which Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) is one of several sisters primed for marriage, with an anxious mother (Brenda Blethyn) only too desperate to see her daughters paired off with the finest, richest husbands available.

Director Don Roos (Happy Endings) and actress Natalie Portman (Black Swan) turn to Ayelet Waldman's novel for a fresh take on the other-woman melodrama. In adapting Love and Other Impossible Pursuits, Roos starts after the affair and the marriage between two well-heeled New Yorkers, but there's no happily ever after for Emilia (Portman), a legal associate, and Jack (Scott Cohen), an attorney, because their baby succumbed to sudden infant death syndrome. Through an extended flashback, Roos fills in their story. Now their lives revolve around his sensitive 8-year-old son, William (Charlie Tahan), with his chilly ex-wife, Carolyne (Lisa Kudrow in her third outing with the filmmaker). If Emilia has trouble dealing with the loss, William has no such qualms, and can't understand her inability to move on.

Created by Jason Katims (Friday Night Lights), NBC's Parenthood arrives with a roster of familiar names, including producer Ron Howard, who directed the original comedy. In the pilot, Adam Braverman (Peter Krause, Six Feet Under) learns that his son, Max (Max Burkholder), may have Asperger's syndrome; his brother, Crosby (Dax Shepard), finds out he's a father; and Sarah (Lauren Graham, Gilmore Girls) moves back to Berkeley with her kids, Drew (Miles Heizer) and Amber (Mae Whitman, Arrested Development). That leaves their sister, Julia (Erika Christensen), who struggles to balance motherhood with a career.

If you get caught up in the sweaty fight scenes in Never Back Down--and, despite the formulaic plot, you very likely will--it will be due to the sheer kinetic pleasure of muscular bodies in motion. Jake (Tom Cruise look-alike Sean Faris, Yours, Mine, and Ours), full of anger after his father's death, starts to find a place for himself at his new Florida high school--until Ryan, the head of an underground mixed-martial arts (Cam Gigandet, The O.C.), picks Jake out as a prime opponent.

Nanny McPhee Returns is a simultaneously dark and funny film that features the formidable Nanny McPhee (Emma Thompson), an ugly woman who has a magical way of helping kids mature and learn proper behavior--even against their will. Based on the Nurse Matilda books by Christianna Brand, Nanny McPhee Returns is not so much a sequel to the first Nanny McPhee film as a second, stand-alone story. While her husband is off fighting in the war, Isabel Green (Maggie Gyllenhaal) has her hands full taking care of her three children (Oscar Steer, Asa Butterfield, and Lil Woods), running the family farm, and refusing the constant entreaties of her brother-in-law (Rhys Ifans) to sell her share of the farm.

No Strings Attached (Two-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo + Digital Copy) (2011)

History comes alive in this excellent Emmy and Humanitas Award-nominated 40-episode, animated series about the experiences of two young teens during the American Revolution. Far more than a simple chronicle of the battles and major events of the American Revolution, Liberty’s Kids tells the story of the cultural, scientific, political, and social forces that helped shape America’s fight for independence from the perspective of two young teens from very different backgrounds. Sarah is a young English woman living in America who maintains a strong sense of loyalty to England and James is a printer’s apprentice living the American dream, but feeling the constraints of British oppression. Working together on Benjamin Franklin’s newspaper the "Pennsylvania Gazette," Sarah and James often find their interpretations of current events differ markedly and the pair constantly grapples with tough issues like slavery, self-governance, fair representation, and the role of women in battle and politics.

Killers has been murdered by most film critics, and the box-office receipts haven't been too impressive either. But that's kind of a bad rap. Granted, it isn't likely to make many year's best (or even month's best) lists, but this is an entertaining little diversion that at the very least offers an appealing cast, a few laughs, and some cool chase scenes. Katherine Heigl plays Jen, who, having recently been dumped by her boyfriend, is vacationing in Nice with her parents (Tom Selleck and Catherine O'Hara). Enter Spencer (Ashton Kutcher), a hired assassin (hey, it's a comedy) who happens to be on the scene for a job.

Studio: Tcfhe Release Date: 09/27/2011 Run time: 518 minutes Rating: Nr

Based on Anthony Swofford’s excellent memoir about his experiences as a Marine Sniper in Gulf War I, Jarhead is a war movie in which the waiting is a far greater factor upon the characters than the war itself, and the build up to combat is more drama than what combat is depicted. To some viewers hoping for typical movie action, this will seem like a cruel joke. But it’s not. It’s just the story as it was written, and if you liked the book, you will probably like the movie. If you didn’t, then the movie won’t change your mind.

The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is the film all Harry Potter fans have waited 10 years to see, and the good news is that it's worth the hype--visually stunning, action packed, faithful to the book, and mature not just in its themes and emotion but in the acting by its cast, some of whom had spent half their lives making Harry Potter movies.

In 1985, the truly outrageous TV show, Jem and The Holograms, premiered to the delight of young girls and boys. This new animated series focused on the dual life of beautiful Jerrica Benton, co-owner of Starlight Music, and her pop star alter-ego, Jem, lead singer for the all-girl band Jem and The Holograms. With its unique story line combination of drama, action, romance and music, Jem and The Holograms was a smash hit and became an icon for a decade. It's message of glamour, glitter, fashion and fame helped define a generation. Now you can relive the adventures of Jem and The Holograms and their archrivals, The Misfits and The Stingers, in this first-ever complete collector's edition DVD box set.

Humans are out to destroy the forest in the name of progress, but the animals that live there won't go out without a fight. We've seen it before in films like Over the Hedge, but this time it's a green, eco-friendly company versus a very organized group of animals under the leadership of a clever raccoon. Dan (Brendan Fraser) is the project manager who has moved his family from Chicago to the middle of an Oregon forest to live on-site in the community's model home. His wife Tammy (Brooke Shields) and son Tyler (Matt Prokop) aren't particularly happy about the move, but how bad can it be for one year When unforeseen obstacles like an inconveniently located beaver dam threaten to slow progress and put the project over budget, Dan's commitment to eco-friendly methods is tested and his son dubs him a hypocrite.

Stills from Dollhouse: Season One (Click for larger image)

Under a thick carpet of green-dyed yak fur and wonderfully expressive Rick Baker makeup, Jim Carrey is up to all of his old tricks (and some nifty new ones) in this live-action movie of Dr. Seuss's holiday classic. He commands the title role with equal parts madness, mayhem, pathos, and improvisational genius, channeling Grinchness through his own screen persona so smoothly that fans of both Carrey and Dr. Seuss will be thoroughly satisfied. Adding to the fun is a perfectly pitched back-story sequence (accompanied by Anthony Hopkins's narration) that explains how the Grinch came to hate Christmas, with a heart "two sizes too small."

Martin Scorsese's 1990 masterpiece GoodFellas immortalizes the hilarious, horrifying life of actual gangster Henry Hill (Ray Liotta), from his teen years on the streets of New York to his anonymous exile under the Witness Protection Program. The director's kinetic style is perfect for recounting Hill's ruthless rise to power in the 1950s as well as his drugged-out fall in the late 1970s; in fact, no one has ever rendered the mental dislocation of cocaine better than Scorsese. Scorsese uses period music perfectly, not just to summon a particular time but to set a precise mood.

More is less is generally the case with blockbuster sequels these days, with budgetary bloat often overshadowing the qualities that made the original film click with audiences. The Fast and the Furious movies, however, somehow manage to spin doughnuts around this concept of diminishing returns, with each installment becoming more ridiculously entertaining. Fast Five may be the most overblown entry in the series to date (which is saying quite a bit), but there's a dunderheaded earnestness to it that's hard to resist. This time around, Vin Diesel and Paul Walker and Co. go for an Ocean's 11 vibe--swapping out the Armani and martinis for Ed Hardy and Muscle Milk--as the gang go on the lam in Rio following a botched train heist.

Screenwriter David Benioff (The 25th Hour) didn't have to do much to relocate Brothers from Denmark to America. The story remains the same: Captain Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire) loves his family, but he's equally devoted to his career. Just as his ne'er-do-well brother, Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal), exits prison, where he did time for robbery, the Marines deploy Sam to Afghanistan. Tommy starts looking in on his wary sister-in-law, Grace (Natalie Portman), but then Sam's helicopter crashes in the mountains, and the military informs Grace that her husband has died.

Tina Fey and Steve Carell are two of the most charming performers in entertainment today. Their goofy attractiveness makes them a perfect couple in Date Night: an unremarkable husband and wife from New Jersey, they get mistaken for crooks in Manhattan, sending them on a wild night replete with snooty wait staff, crooked cops, glitter-specked strippers, a shirtless superspy (Mark Wahlberg, as buff as ever), and a preposterous car chase.