Company Man (2001). Members of an all-star cast make happy fools of themselves in Douglas McGrath's flaky but uneven period lampoon of the CIA and 1960s Cuba. With Sigourney Weaver, Woody Allen, John Turturro, Ryan Phillippe, Denis Leary, Alan Cumming and Anthony LaPaglia. Paramount: no list price; DVD: $29.99; (CC) PG-13, for sexual humor and drug content.
The Dish (2001). Mixing fictional characters and some actual incidents that happened to the Australian team in the course of the four-day Apollo 11 mission, the film does a wonderful job of evoking the awesome effect of Neil Armstrong's becoming the first person to set foot on the moon, on July 20, 1969. Directed by Rob Sitch. With Sam Neill, Kevin Harrington, Tom Long and Patrick Warburton. Warner: no list price; DVD: $19.98; (CC); PG-13, for brief, strong language.
*
Exit Wounds (2001). Steven Seagal returns to action in this grimy, noisy cop thriller in which he plays a renegade detective chasing down corruption in a rough-and-tumble precinct. Directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak. Warner: no list price; DVD: $24.98; (CC); (1:41) R, for strong violence, language and some sexuality/nudity.
Into the Arms of Strangers (2000). A documentary on the British rescue mission that in the nine months leading up to World War II saved 10,000 children, mostly Jewish, living in German territory. As much a story about childhood as it is about the Holocaust, it's an especially moving and effective piece of work. Warner: $19.98; DVD: $24.98; (CC) PG, for thematic elements.
*
The Invisible Circus (2001). A young woman who missed the '60s goes off in search of a suicidal sister's shadow. The movie hits one note and holds it for 90-odd minutes. With Jordana Brewster, Christopher Eccleston, Cameron Diaz, Blythe Danner. Warner: no list price; DVD: n/a; (CC); R, for sexuality, language and drug content.
*
Joe Dirt (2001). Lewdness, scatology and David Spade's hairdresser rule in this farcical ode to the basic goodness of white trash. Spade is a janitor who searches for his long-estranged parents and gets a lot of gooey things dumped on his head along the way. Columbia/TriStar: no list price; DVD: $24.95; (CC) PG-13, for crude and sex-related humor, language.
*
See Spot Run (2001). A federal police dog hides out from hired gunmen with a nitwit mail carrier (David Arquette) baby-sitting a small boy (Angus Jones). With Paul Sorvino, Michael Clarke Duncan. Warner: $22.96; DVD: $24.98; (CC) PG for crude humor, language and comic violence.
What's Hot
* Last week's Top 5 VHS rentals:1. The Mexican (2001). A violence-prone screwball farce that has its eye on being a jaunty, picaresque adventure, kind of an updated version of those off-the-cuff road movies of some years back. It wants ever so desperately to be hip and offbeat, but it can't manage to make it happen. With Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, James Gandolfini. R, for violence and language.
