New on DVD & Blu-ray, Week of October 11: 'Green Lantern,' 'The Tree of Life' and 'Horrible Bosses'

It's another banner week for home video releases, with a plethora of choices that run the gamut from the ridiculous to the sublime: There's the meaningful tale of 'The Tree of Life' set off against the nonsense of 'Horrible Bosses,' while the comic book world of 'Green Lantern' is juxtaposed with the fantasy life of 'Zookeeper' ... and there's all manner of 'B' movies in between. Read on. 'Green Lantern' What It's About: Director Martin Campbell -- best known for hotshot work on 'GoldenEye' and 'Casino Royale' -- tackles the origins of the Green Lantern with mixed results. The Green Lanterns -- some 3,000 of them, each with a ring that grants him the ability to create anything his mind can imagine -- have been the galactic keepers of the peace for eons. That peace is threatened when the worst evil force in the universe -- Parallax, whose strength is based on fear -- escapes its confinement and heads for Earth on its first stop to galactic destruction. Only newly minted Green Lantern Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds), a cocky test pilot with fear issues of his own stands in the way of total apocalypse. Will he save the world and win the girl? You betcha. It's Kinda Like: 'Hancock' meets 'Spider-Man' What We Say: Green Lantern was one of those DC comic book super heroes that rebellious fanboys turned to when they were fed up with the predictability of Superman, Batman and their minions. The stories were more involving, the villains more complicated, the powers more otherworldly. None of this translates to the film, however. Reynolds is way miscast -- and way too snarky -- as Jordan/Green Lantern, the other Green Lanterns are way too Disneyesque (to coin a word for being too cartoonish) and Parallax looks more like a thunder cloud with dreads than a devourer of galaxies. There's some cool special effects -- and Blake Lively is always nice to have around -- but for the most part, 'Green Lantern' is a dud. • Extras: The Blu-ray disc includes an extended version of the film, several featurettes, a 'Justice League #1' digital comic, additional scenes, and Warner's Ultraviolet Digital Copy, which allows cloud streaming. Rotten Tomatoes Reviews | Buy DVD | Save DVD to your Netflix queue Watch a clip from the DVD: 'The Tree of Life' What It's About: This ambitious story of love, loss and family ties from Terrence Malick, one of America's most highly-regarded filmmakers, tells the story of a small town Texas family in the 1950s that experiences the loss of one of its sons, a tragedy that triggers each family member's deep questioning about their place in the scheme of things. The mother, father, and remaining brother grapple with the way they can absorb horrific change while still retaining their dignity and remaining thriving human beings. It's a tough journey that taxes each family member ... and audiences as well. It's Kinda Like: 'A River Runs Through It' and 'How the Earth Was Made' What We Say: Maverick filmmaker Malick has had audiences and critics severely divided on this one. Some think it's a masterpiece of lyrical filmmaking; others think it's a cinematic journey sorely in need of an editor. We tend to side with the latter. Malick's scope of one family's place on the planet is so overblown and ambitious that he often gets lost in images that have little to do with the family tragedy at hand. When Malick is able to stay focused on his actors (Jessica Chastain as the mother; Brad Pitt as the father; Sean Penn as the grown brother), he creates magic in showing the tenderness and tensions between them. But when he thrusts the story into imagery of the earth's formation, dinosaurs, and what often seem like the insides of a lava lamp, he loses his grip on good, tight storytelling. Yet this is a film that deserves to be seen. It's a pure example of a director whose vision remains unique and uncompromised. Pitt is a standout as the stern but loving father. • Extras: A behind-the-scenes featurette. Rotten Tomatoes Reviews | Buy DVD | Save DVD to your Netflix queue 'Horrible Bosses' What It's About: Three working stiffs -- Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day -- have the worst bosses in the world, but their financial situations and weak job market prevent then from quitting. Tired of putting up with humiliation and (sexual) harassment by the likes of Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell and Jennifer Aniston, the three meet with a hustling ex-con (Jamie Foxx) to get some pointers on eliminating these ogres and come up with a plan to kill each other's boss. Naturally everything that can go wrong, does, and the trio soon find themselves way over their heads in deceit, misunderstandings, and mistaken identities. It's Kinda Like: 'Strangers on a Train' meets 'Nine to Five' What We Say: This mash-up of 'Strangers on a Train,' 'Dirty Work,' 'Swimming With Sharks,' 'Throw Momma From the Train,' 'The Devil Wears Prada,' 'The Office,' 'Nine to Five' and 'The Hangover' starts out by promising us the fulfillment of every worker's wildest dream: getting even with your nasty boss. It's a dark premise, but while insinuating that revenge will be sweet, the film quickly devolves into a silly, vapid, nasty mess with bathroom humor, gratuitous sexual innuendo, and a waste of several talented actors. • Extras: Deleted scenes, a couple behind-the-scenes featurettes. Rotten Tomatoes Reviews | Buy DVD | Save DVD to your Netflix queue Watch a clip: Other New October 11 Releases: 'Adventures in Pornoland': (2008) A Canadian couple head to Hollywood to get work in the film industry but reluctantly get involved in the porn biz. 'Arena' (2011) A man kidnapped from his ordinary life is thrust into the savage world of a modern day gladiatorial arena where men fight to the death for the entertainment of the online masses. Stars Samuel L. Jackson, Kellan Lutz, Nina Dobrev, Daniel Dae Kim. 'Beautiful Boy' (2010) A married couple on the verge of separation are leveled by the news that their 18-year-old son committed a mass shooting at his college, then took his own life. Stars Michael Sheen, Maria Bello. 'Cafe' (2010) A week in the life of a group of West Philadelphia residents -- who congregate in the local coffee house -- dealing with life's challenges and trying to get things right. Stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jamie Kennedy, Daniel Eric Gold, Alex Vega. 'Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer': (2011) It's summer time and though feisty, fearless Judy Moody finds herself stuck at home with her pesky brother Stink under the watchful eye of Aunt Opal, she uses her imagination and smarts to turn a boring summer into a fun time. Stars Jordana Beatty, Heather Graham, Jaleel White, Preston Bailey, Parris Mosteller. 'Lunopolis': 2009) Two documentarians accidentally uncover proof of a hidden city on the moon inhabited by people from the future controlling life on Earth. 'Mr. Nice': (2010) The true story of Howard Marks (aka Mr. Nice, a cult figure who inspired books and songs), a middle-class Welsh boy and Oxford scholar who became one of Britain's biggest marijuana smugglers and hobnobbed with Hollywood hotshots, Arab millionaires and IRA honchos until his arrest and eventual 25-year prison sentence. Stars Rhys Ifans, David Thewlis, Chloe Sevigny, Crispin Glover. 'The Princess of Montpensier': (2010 -- France) The latest directorial outing by French great Bertrand Tavernier sets love and intrigue against the backdrop of the savage Catholic/Protestant wars that ripped France apart in the 16th century. Based on a novella by the celebrated Madame de Lafayette. 'Terri': (2011) A school principal and a shy-but-pretty teen girl take an overweight social misfit, Terri Thompson -- the lone caretaker and guardian for his elderly Uncle James -- under their wings to help him find acceptance in school ... and life. Stars John C. Reilly, Creed Bratton, Jacob Wysocki, Olivia Crocicchia. 'Zookeeper': Kevin James is the poor man's Dr. Dolittle in this comedy about the animals in a zoo who offer advice on life and love to their zookeeper in order to prevent him from leaving his job. Stars Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb and the voice talents of Cher, Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler, Sylvester Stallone, Judd Apatow, Jim Breuer, Jon Favreau, Faison Love and Maya Rudolph. Check out more October 11 DVD releases at OnVideo.