Page 28 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • December 17, 2014 New movies (continued from Entertainment page) war, he returned to his family, and married in 1946. Zam- perini recently died at 97 after a bout of pneumonia. “Big Eyes” is a true story. Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz) is a man whose paintings of big-eyed kids with haunting expressions became a popular phenomenon in the 1950s and 1960s and made him and wife Margaret (Amy Adams) very rich. There is a secret tied to these paintings: DVD releases (continued from Restaurant page) she thinks she has found friends. But her new acquain- tances are Web performers who like to turn the tables on their voyeuristic clientele. Michael’s easy charm and the strange bisexual magnetism of Marit lead Allie to realize that people are not necessarily who you think they are. The film draws upon fears about online communica- tion — that anything put online is there forever and hack- ers are just waiting to steal people’s identities with viruses and attachments. This exotic location, lots of hazy neon, crowded streets, and atmospheric photography enhance the anxiety. Ultimately, however, the film fails to live up to a suspenseful opening and intriguing premise. Ultimately, it meanders into familiar, predictable territory. The only Walter is not the painter; Margaret is. She is, however, too shy to be a public figure, so she allows her husband to sell the paintings under his name. As a result, she never receives public recognition for her achievements, while Walter becomes a national celebrity and talk show fixture as he pioneers the mass production of prints of large-eyed kids. Walter’s primary contribution is signing the paintings Mar- garet creates in their basement. Directed by Tim Burton, the movie focuses on a heated divorce battle during which Margaret accuses her husband of stealing her paintings. The case culminates in a dramatic courtroom showdown. Also starring are Krysten Ritter, Danny Huston, Terence Stamp, and Jason Schwartzman. extra on the DVD release is audio commentary with direc- tor Joel Soisson. “Slaughter Hotel” (Raro Video) is a 1971 Italian horror film featuring creepy Dr. Francis Clay (Klaus Kinski), who is in charge of an asylum for suicidal and disturbed women. There is a team of strange doctors, unprofessional nurses, and a hunky gardener ready to perform “services” to help these women recover. Director Fernando DiLeo introduces a mad murderer, typically dressed in black, who uses the old-fashioned armory decorations as slashing tools. Mar- garet Lee and Rosalba Neri are among the frequently unclothed cast, and there are numerous grisly murders and a finale that can best be described as an orgy of blood. Typical of Italian exploitation horror, “Slaughter Hotel” tends to use the horror genre as an excuse to parade exten- sive nudity. The unrated film is in English and Italian, with English subtitles. The new Blu-ray release contains deleted scenes, the featurettes “Asylum of Fear” and “Lady Fran- kenstein’s Memoirs,” and an illustrated booklet.