VIDEO: Get behind the wheel
Ryan Gosling delivers a slow, white-hot burn of a performance in "Drive," a nervy, understated ode to one of Hollywood's most cherished archetypes, the sad-eyed man of few words. Gosling and director Nicolas Winding Refn pay homage to wheelmen of yore while reinvigorating the genre with style, smarts and flashes of wit. After skillfully earning the audience's allegiance, "Drive," based on the novel by James Sallis, throws its hero's motives into more troubling ambiguity, with Gosling's grievous angel proving to be capable of startling brutality. Low-key, sleek and sophisticated, "Drive" provides the visceral pleasures of pulp without sacrificing art. --WASHINGTON POST
Out on DVD Tuesday
- "The Big Year"
- "Church Girl"
- "The Double"
- "Dream House"
- "In Time"
- "Texas Killing Fields"
- "The Thing" (2011)
- "Treasure Buddies"
Out on Blu-ray
- "Star Trek: The Next Generation - The Next Level"
- "To Kill a Mockingbird"
GADGETS: Room for iPhone, cash
The Q Card Case for iPhones from CM4 ($40, www.cm4.com) has a mission statement: "to expand and evolve the devices we use to interact with life." To that end, the stylish case has an integrated wallet on the back for storing up to three credit cards or even cash. Along with the case, a scratch-resistant screen protector is included. If you're wondering whether your credit cards will demagnetize in the case, CM4 says it has tested Q Card Case prototypes with the same set of credit cards for more than a year with no issues. The case is available now in black; a white model is expected in March. --MCCLATCHY NEWS SERVICE
GAMES: Military combat to go Handheld gamers who have missed out on the high-intensity firefights that are a regular console experience can rejoice -- a first-person shooter has arrived, and it's carrying the "Modern Warfare 3" banner, to boot. In "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - Defiance" ($30 for Nintendo DS; rated Teen), you play as National Guard and Special Forces units fending off the invading Russian army in parallel stories to what is taking place on the console versions. It isn't the most visually appealing game to watch unfold, but "Defiance" does an admirable job of bringing the tension and fluidity of gunplay to the DS. The campaign is enjoyable enough for on-the-go gamers, but the true gem of this release is the online multiplayer. "Defiance" doesn't present a pretty view of America, but when you're beating back the Russian army, your focus is about victory, not vistas. --SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE
