New on DVD: ‘Journey’ ends up being only amiable

Capsule reviews of this week’s video releases, on DVD and Blu-ray, including special features:

• “The Hundred-Foot Journey” (PG, 122 minutes, in English and bits of unsubtitled French and Hindi, DreamWorks): French and Indian restaurants stage a culinary showdown in “The Hundred-Foot Journey,” but the result is neither rich nor spicy. This rom-com-drama starring Helen Mirren is merely amiable, even when the two central couples pretend to be bristlingly incompatible. Contains thematic elements, some strong violence, language and brief sensuality. Extras include “The Recipe, the Ingredients, the Journey” featurette. Also, on Blu-ray: commentary with producers Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey, on the set with Winfrey, and “Coconut Chicken,” a how-to recipe demonstration with Chef Anil Sharma.

• “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (PG-13, 122 minutes, Fox): If the CGI apes stole the show from their less lifelike human counterparts in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” the two groups are more evenly matched in “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.” The latest chapter in the rebooted sci-fi franchise charts the emergence of a culture of super-intelligent chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans and the simultaneous decline of the human race, after it is nearly destroyed by a laboratory virus. In the process, the movie presents us with two equally engaging and frustrating families: one human, and one ape. Contains violence and brief crude language. Extras include “Andy Serkis: Rediscovering Caesar” featurette. Also, on Blu-ray: commentary by director Matt Reeves, deleted scenes, seven featurettes including a making-of, a look at the cast and “Move Like an Ape: An Artist’s Medium.”

• “As Above, So Below” (R, 93 minutes, Universal): What horrors lurk beneath the streets of Paris? All you could imagine and more in this Gallic-accented American thriller that throws everything but the devil’s kitchen sink at six attractive young spelunkers. Purportedly shot by its characters’ head-mounted mini-cams, the movie is another example of the found-footage genre, although it doesn’t bother to explain how the raw video came to be edited into the finished product. Most of the action takes place in deep shadows or complete darkness and amid booming, howling noises, all of which attempt to cover for the frequently incoherent story. Contains bloody violence, profanity and partial nudity. Extras: An inside look featurette.

• “Field of Lost Shoes” (PG-13, 96 minutes, ARC Entertainment): Filmed at the Virginia Military Institute in Lexington and other Virginia historic sites, this drama is based on a true Civil War story about the teenage cadets who were called upon to defend the Shenandoah Valley against Union forces at the Battle of New Market in May 1864. The cast includes Jason Isaacs as Confederate Gen. John Breckinridge and Tom Skerrit as his opposite number, Union Gen. Ulysses Grant. In supporting roles are David Arquette and Lauren Holly. But the movie, which had only limited release in theaters this summer, belongs to the seven boys, each with their own set of values and feelings about the war, faced with a shattering moment in their young lives.

Also:

“The Congress” (starring Robin Wright, with Harvey Keitel and Paul Giamatti, Drafthouse Films/Cinedigm), “Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection” (10-disc Blu-ray set includes eight Kubrick classics and a new documentary, “Kubrick Remembered”), “Cantinflas (this story of Mexico’s greatest and most beloved comic film star is the country’s entry in the 2014 Oscars foreign language film category, Pantelion/Lionsgate), “The Notebook” (Hungary’s 2013 Oscars foreign language film submission, based on the best-seller “Le Grand Cahier,” Sony), “The Hero of Color City” (animated adventure about crayons that come alive, with voices of Christina Ricci, Owen Wilson and Sean Astin), “Jingle All The Way 2” (direct-to-video sequel to the 1996 hit, with Larry the Cable Guy), “To Kill a Man” (Chile), “InRealLife” (documentary on kids and the Internet), “The Dark Place,” “Gutshot Straight.”