Page 26 THE VILLADOM TIMES I & III • September 14, 2011 DVD releases (continued from Restaurant page) Thor learns his hammer has been found in a nearby crater and an unnamed government agency is guarding it until it can be removed. Thor determines to retrieve it. Hemsworth plays Thor seriously for the most part, but is adept at delivering a comic line when called for. Hopkins is a logical choice for Odin. He brings stature and authority to the role and makes what could have been a caricature come alive. The talents of Portman, who delivered a tour de force performance in “Black Swan,” are under-used. “Thor” is available in a combination pack that contains Blu-ray 3-D, 2-D Blu-ray, DVD, and digital versions. Bonuses include commentary by director Kenneth Branagh, 11 deleted scenes, and several featurettes. “Thor” is also available on a two-disc Blu-ray/DVD edition and a single-disc DVD. “Le Quattro Volte” (Kino International), meaning the four times, is set in the southern Italian town of Calabria. An elderly shepherd tends goats that seem to control him more than he controls them. Defying a traditional plot, the movie seeks to illustrate the interdependence of four elements: animal, vegetable, mineral, and human. The shepherd is white-haired and ailing. His rugged, lined face blends into the landscape that surrounding him. He lives in a stone apartment and the goats occupy a small pen at the edge of a walled town. Dialogue is sparse, but the ambient sound is rich: the wind rustling leaves in the trees, the bleating of the herd, the barking of a dog, and the loud chattering of the townspeople. Though the film is confusing and it is tough to connect one scene to another, there is a visual gracefulness to this movie. Director Michelangelo Frammartino is not afraid of keeping shots on screen long enough for viewers to think about what they are seeing. For moviegoers who are used to the breakneck pacing of Hollywood films, this editing choice may be a rough go. Think of “Le Quattro Volte” as a unique and beautiful meditation on the mysterious cycles of life. Extras include a stills gallery and theatrical trailer. Available in Blu-ray and DVD, the film is in Italian, with English subtitles. “Beverly Lewis’ The Shunning” (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment), based on story from one of America’s top Amish fiction writers, illustrates the power of faith and portrays realistic Amish life and characters. Katie Lapp (Danielle Panabaker) has always struggled with the rules that define her sheltered Amish community in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. When a wealthy outsider (Sherry Stringfield) begins asking questions about her family, Katie begins to wonder about her origins and starts to weigh the teachings and faith on which she was raised with options outside her parochial community. Director Michael Landon Jr. is better at portraying the day-to-day life of the Amish than at handling the film’s love story, which is complicated because the main characters share little screen time together. The only extra on this DVD release is a series of deleted scenes.