Don McKay (R, 2009, Image Entertainment)
If you like your movies nice and insane and like your movie-watching experience thoroughly unspoiled, stop reading here, because even assigning “Don McKay” a genre infringes on spoiler territory. “McKay” finds lifeless janitor Don (Thomas Haden Church) returning home, 25 years after fleeing an unspecified tragedy, to honor the request of a former high school girlfriend (Elisabeth Shue). Once back, Don immediately finds himself knee-deep in another mess, and it’s like he never left. For roughly half its runtime, “McKay” plays like a self-serious, low-rent thriller starring good actors playing disastrously-written characters trying to wade through a story in which stuff seemingly happens just to happen. But it’s all a long con. An occasional darkly funny moment peeks through as time passes, and then, on the precipice of act three, the dam bursts and “McKay” goes bananas. What initially felt like unintentional parody suddenly feels ingeniously legit, and the film complements the barrage of pitch-black comedy with a similarly fearless unfurling of a mystery that, shockingly, pays off massively during a crazy climax that somehow makes sense in spite of all the insanity flying about. “McKay” still is a bit too messy to make it something everyone will love, and even though the payoff wouldn’t be nearly as good without the bumpy start setting it up, it’s still a bumpy start. But a comeback this fierce within the space of 90 minutes isn’t something you see very often, and if you’re prepared to just go for a ride, hopefully you stopped reading 200 words ago and are preparing to do just that.
Extras: Director/producer commentary, deleted scenes.

Hot Tub Time Machine (R/NR, 2010, MGM)
If you look at the cast (Craig Robinson, Rob Corddry, John Cusack, Clark Duke) and then look at the plot (three longtime friends and one nephew attempt to reconnect at the friends’ dilapidated former vacation spot, only to enter a hot tub that sends them back to their prime), it’s understandable if you also assume “Hot Tub Time Machine” is so preoccupied with trying to be funny that the high concept is purely a means to some fresh gags about time travel and the 1980s. But give “HTTM” some credit: In addition to doing exactly what’s expected of it, it actually kind of, sort of tries — if not to reconcile how a faulty hot tub can engender time travel, then at least to pay the butterfly effect some level of respect. In fact, between this and the surprising level of reverence paid to the overlying message — don’t take your friends for granted and don’t let time and distance do it for you — “HTTM’s” need to make people laugh occasionally plays third fiddle. But it makes for a better movie, in no small part because all that respect and reverence pays out during a satisfying end sequence and supremely funny credit roll. And if all you want is to laugh? Fret not: “HTTM” isn’t as rapid-fire funny as, say, “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” but when it strikes, it hits hard.
Extras: Theatrical and unrated cuts, deleted scenes.

The Eclipse (R, 2009, Magnolia)
Do you like movies thick with atmosphere? Do you like them so much that you can forgive one that prioritizes mood at the arguable expense of traditional three-act plot values? In “The Eclipse,” widower and father of two Michael (Ciarán Hinds), who aspires to be a writer and is volunteering as a driver during a local literary festival, has begun hearing strange noises and fears he’s being haunted by the dead. Fortunately, he’s driving an author (Iben Hjejle as Lena) who specializes in writing about that very thing, so he finally can get some questions off his chest. But while all the necessary materials are on hand to make “The Eclipse” a perfectly serviceable ghost story, its interests lie elsewhere. Michael’s suspicions about the hauntings and the consequences that follow are of lynchpin importance to “The Eclipse’s” storyline, but they also place a distant second to the deeply personal stories of Michael, Lena and a disruptive second author (Aidan Quinn) whose own interests are clouded by these developments. It’s part drama, part thriller, part character piece and not really overwhelmingly any one of the three, and in the school of neat and explanatory conclusions, the ending is an arguable dropout. But what “The Eclipse” wants to do — which is tell a cutting story about a man chasing some harrowing ghosts that have nothing to do with the ghosts who might be chasing him — it does with considerable skill and admirable conviction.
Extras: Two behind-the-scenes features.

Red vs. Blue: The Blood Gulch Chronicles: The First Five Seasons (NR, 2003/2010, Flatiron Film Company)
For those unfamiliar, machinima is what happens when someone takes assets rendered for another purpose — typically video games — and manipulates them, voice acting and all, to tell a story that may have nothing to do with those assets’ original intentions. Most of what results is pretty poorly made, but every now and then, a lot of hard work produces a gem. Until further notice, the gold standard of the art form is “Red vs. Blue,” which takes assets from the “Halo” video game franchise and makes them walk and talk to the tune of a very funny story about smart-mouthed soldiers fighting over land that doesn’t even appear to be worth the trouble. “RvB” has always been freely available to stream either online or via Xbox Live — Microsoft and “Halo” creator Bungie’s support of the project is perhaps the genre’s most inspiring story — but fans should take note anyway: In addition to being a handy way to take the first five seasons with you, this box set completely remasters the first four seasons’ visual assets. Given how dramatically video game graphics have improved since 2003, that’s no small bonus.
Contents: 100 episodes, plus the previously Xbox Live-exclusive miniseries “Out of Mind” and “Recovery One,” deleted scenes, outtakes, alternate endings, hidden tracks, PSAs and various bits of bonus footage from the “RvB” vault.

The Crazies (R, 2010, Anchor Bay)
Maybe it’s the billion-plus zombie movies that release annually, or maybe it’s the million-plus stories Hollywood has told about biological agents gone awry. Either way, the plotline of the remake of “The Crazies,” which finds bad drinking water transforming a small town of people into monsters, just doesn’t have the same novelty the original enjoyed in 1973. But that also makes its ability to entertain anyway all the more impressive. “The Crazies” doesn’t avoid horror movie conventions at all, and many of its would-be scares are undone by the same old twists. But even in a world infested with zombie movies, these mutants are an interesting breed because their previous selves aren’t all the way gone and they partially still know who they are. “The Crazies” doesn’t do all it can with that device, but it does something with it, and its use of characters who may or may not be lost provides intrigue in place of the usual sources of suspense. The storyline surrounding the bad water also checks out — not so much because of its revelation, but because of what happens when things get out of hand. The closing scene is thoroughly ridiculous compared to the modest beginnings, but that — and the simple willingness to go big — is what makes “The Crazies” so much more fun than it seemingly had any chance of bring.
Extras: Director commentary, Two episodes of the “Crazies” motion comic, four behind-the-scenes features, storyboards.

Bass Ackwards (NR, 2010, Flatiron Film Company)
Lias (Linas Phillips) isn’t exactly setting the world ablaze: He makes a pittance as a freelance videographer, the friends off whom he’s been freeloading have politely asked him to move out, and the woman he’d been seeing (Davie-Blue) has pushed him away because oops, she lives with another guy. One semi-random visit to a farm and the acquisition of one old van later, it’s road trip time as Linas drives cross-country to live temporarily with his parents in Boston. If you spotted the whimsical name and await the part where this prototypical road trip movie gets funny, even just quirkily so, you’ll wait forever. Instead, “Bass Ackwards” emphasizes the romance of it all — solitary highway hours, chance encounters with strangers, more self-discovery than some find in four years of college. “Ackwards” is as open-ended as Linas’ journey, and the story isn’t so much a plot as a glance at someone who himself takes a passive approach to the experience. That means some scenes free of dialogue and others shared with characters whose impact on the storyline (term used loosely) is minimal. For some, that also means one boring movie with nothing ultimately gained. So adjust your expectations: “Ackwards” is rich with thoughtful moment-to-moment photography, dialogue and character design, but it’ll land with a thud if you want all those moments to add up to a substantial big picture.
Extras: Phillips/Davie-Blue/cinematographer/film critic commentary, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes feature, bloopers.

Leave it to Beaver: The Complete Series (NR, 1957, Shout Factory)
If you need an introduction to “Leave it to Beaver” — which seemingly has been on the air on some channel in every corner of the country during multiple hours of every day since the beginning of television — you probably need an introduction to television as well. The release timing of this 37-disc set is really odd, because only half of the show’s six seasons are available individually, and folks who purchased the seasons individually will have to wait until September for season four and who knows how long for seasons five and six. That’s bound to engender some hurt feelings, especially if those people miss out on special features exclusive to this set. But if you’re not part of that crowd or simply waited for the inevitability of this release, it’s all good news to you.
Contents: 234 episodes, plus the original pilot episode, two cast retrospectives, theme song composer interview, a Cleavers-fronted special film made for the U.S. Treasury, original promo material.

Beautiful (R, 2009, E1 Entertainment)
Sometimes, everything you need to know about a movie can be found in its musical score. Witness “Beautiful,” which takes place in an otherwise ordinary suburb that houses some very suspicious residents and is reeling from three alleged instances of teenage girls getting abducted. The events of “Beautiful” swirl around several residents but gravitate primarily to an awkward teenager (Sebastian Gregory as Danny) who gets a chance to spend time with his dream girl neighbor (Tahyna Tozzi as Suzy) while she shamelessly pumps him for information about another, shadier neighbor, and the storytelling that results shifts between meandering slice-of-life drama to full-on mystery. But regardless of what mood the movie wants to be in or whether it’s even justified, a foreboding score continually purrs in the background. And even when it appears “Beautiful” is striving for something more than dour melodrama, that single, contagious touch continually drags it back there. The mysteries surrounding the neighbors as well as Danny himself ramp up at a nice pace, and even if you can’t stake a meaningful interest in the characters, there’s something satisfying about how far the debris flies when everything blows up in the film’s climax. Even here, though, “Beautiful’s” presentation of its events undermines those events, giving a story that could have been significantly more memorable a send-off that, appropriate or not, merely reinforces the loss of opportunity.
Extras: Deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes feature.

TiMER (R, 2009, Phase 4 Films)
In “TiMER,” the concept of finding a soulmate no longer is a concept. Instead, it’s a scientific, commercially viable reality, and anyone 14 or older with $80 to spare can implant a timer on either wrist that literally counts down the minutes until their soulmate comes into view. The logic holes in this idea are predictably gargantuan: What if the other soulmate doesn’t have a TiMER? What if he/she dies? What if you meet someone else in the meantime? But here’s the cool thing about “TiMER:” In addition to trying its hand as a romantic comedy about a soon-to-be-30-year-old (Emma Caulfield as Oona) whose TiMER won’t start, it actually tries its hand at addressing some of these questions as well. Amazingly, by weaving the two objectives into one, it proves surprisingly capable on both fronts. “TiMER” lets the weird concept lead the way, which means it isn’t beholden to the same cliches that deflate so many other romantic comedies that have far less work cut out for them. At the same time, Oona and her sister (Michelle Borth) are funny, perfectly likable people with questions about romance that, impossible inventions aside, are as valid in our world as they are in theirs. Their attempts to reconcile this gap in logic spares us the need to do it for them, and it results in a smart, original and amusing addition to a dead-tired genre.
Extras: Director commentary, deleted scenes, two behind-the-scenes features, bloopers.

Hung: The Complete First Season (NR, 2009, HBO)
High school teacher Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) wasn’t exactly comfortable when all he had was a low-paying job, a divorce and two teenage kids (Charlie Saxton and Sianoa Smit-McPhee) to worry about, so you can imagine how unwelcome it was when a fire reduced his house to ash. “Hung’s” first episode contains the particulars, but the nutshell is that Ray has turned to male prostitution because (a) it pays and (b) it’s the only talent he can conjure that could turn his fortunes around. One look at “Hung’s” concept might inspire visions of a television series stretching itself around the suburban gigolo gimmick and running out of material to fuel it by episode four. But much like “Weeds” and “True Blood” aren’t really about drug dealers and vampires, “Hung” isn’t really about suburban prostitution. Ray’s new job obviously plays a central role, but the show is every bit as much about his suburban disillusionment, his ex-wife’s (Anne Heche) soulless second marriage, his kids’ adventures in adolescence, his makeshift madam’s (Jane Adams) lousy personal life, and the happenings of everyone else who gets tangled up in this story. The attention to detail paid to every character — even the bit ones who show up for an episode or two — is impressive, and “Hung’s” ability to touch nerves without losing its sense of humor, while predictable by the standards of cable’s best shows, is commendable nonetheless.
Contents: 10 episodes, plus commentary, two behind-the-scenes features and Ray and Tanya’s personal ads.
— Also available this week from HBO: “Entourage: The Complete Sixth Season” (NR, 2009): Includes 12 episodes, plus commentary, two behind-the-scenes features and a ONEXONE PSA directed by Matt Damon.

Youth in Revolt (R, 2009, Sony Pictures)
A need to escape some deadbeat behavior on behalf of mom’s newest live-in boyfriend has resulted in an impromptu not-quite family vacation for not-even-close-to-ladies man Nick Twisp (Michael Cera). The good news? It’s pushed him right into the view of Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday), and the few days they spend together before parting has sent Nick out of his mind. Not figuratively, either: He’s created a suave alter-ego only he can see and whose orders he must follow to ensure he can wreak just enough rebellious havoc to bring Sheeni back to him. This all would be a horrible mess if “Youth in Revolt” was trying on any level whatsoever to sell this concept with a straight face. But judging by its need to explain how the alter ego can do all the things he does (it doesn’t) or which Michael Cera is saying what and who can hear what (it doesn’t), making it all make sense isn’t really a concern. And that’s just fine, because it’s all just an excuse to enjoy the classic comedy device of a gutless dweeb stepping outside his own limitations to amaze everybody. “Revolt” is a legitimately funny collage of strange characters doing nearly-random things for reasons that rarely justify what’s going on, and the sheer likability of so many purportedly unlikable people communicates its messages about taking chances and thinking with heart over head in ways more conventional movies couldn’t possibly achieve.
Extras: Cera/director commentary, deleted scenes, deleted/extended animation sequences (makes sense after you see the movie), audition footage.

Green Zone (R, 2010, Universal)
If you ever wanted to have a debate about whether movies are better off creating their own universes instead of loosely weaving fiction around true events, then “Green Zone,” which recites a dramatized account of all that went wrong in the fruitless search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, is as good a launching point as any. “Zone” tells the story from the perspective of mission leader and U.S. Army officer Roy Miller (Matt Damon), and because history has already spoiled the turn this search took, it goes almost without saying that the real suspense comes from Miller’s crisis of confidence in his superiors than any question of whether his team will find anything. Damon and director Paul Greengrass have played on similar playgrounds before with the “Bourne” movies, and “Zone’s” action scenes and polished production take pages from that franchise’s playbook. But Jason Bourne was working with his own backstory and in his own world, while Miller, for all his merits, simply exists as a vessel for Greengrass’ thoughts on the war. The entire movie, in fact, operates from a certain point of view, using some characters (Amy Ryan) as pawns and painting others (Greg Kinnear) with simple strokes for the benefit of the argument. Even if you agree with Greengrass’ perspective, it’s still impossibly distracting, and it takes the air out of what, under other circumstances, would have been a perfectly great thriller.
Extras: Damon/Greengrass commentary, deleted scenes, two behind-the-scenes features.

The Maid (NR, 2009, Oscilloscope)
It stands to reason that a longtime live-in maid would grow attached to the couple who hired her and the children she helped raise. But Raquel’s (Catalina Saavedra) attachment to her employers has reached a complete other plane after 23 years of service, and when the family decides to bring in a second maid to give their prized employee a little breathing room, everything — from Raquel’s cripplingly awkward social composure to her alleged favoritism of some children over others to her antagonistic opposition to anyone encroaching on her territory — spills onto the floor. “The Maid” piggybacks on Raquel’s desperation and disposition to operate on a few different levels: Sometimes, particularly when the competition walks in, it’s a bone-dry comedy, while other times it’s an unflinching picture of a woman who has no idea what she’s doing despite having done the same thing repeatedly for so long. The whole presentation is a bit wobbly — repetitive at times, needlessly meandering other times — but it fits because the woman at the center of the whole thing does quite a bit of teetering herself. A film never hurts itself by serving its character instead of convention, and that’s something “The Maid,” despite not being the funniest comedy or the most cutting drama you’ll see this year or even this month, understands better than most. In Spanish with English subtitles.
Extras: Behind-the-scenes feature, storyboards, director photo gallery.

The Last Station (R, 2009, Sony Pictures Classics)
If you saw that very popular YouTube video earlier this year that mocked all the storytelling motions Oscar-nominated movies go though to get that nomination, you might find yourself flashing back to it while watching “The Last Station.” “Station” is a dramatized account of the last days of cherished Russian author Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer), and it hits every note — strong acting from a loaded cast, dedication (or at least presumed dedication) to authenticity, amusing exchanges that that make you like the characters early, sweeping scores and emotional exchanges to hit more powerful notes later — that award-worthy period pieces and biopics tend to hit. But “Station” also has a bit of a problem with focus. Part of the story is told with Tolstoy’s mindset and ideologies in mind, as if to be a story about a man spending his final days and shaping his legacy to fit his terms. But the story presents itself every bit as much from the perspectives of his wide-eyed assistant (James McAvoy) and the wife (Helen Mirren) who is fighting the prospect of loss and the threat of her husband giving their fortune away before he dies. Eventually, by being everyone’s movie, “Station” become no one’s movie, which allows the conflict over old writings and wealth seize control instead. That, in spite of all the talent and great little moments “Station” has, leaves the effort feeling a bit empty when it’s all over. Paul Giamatti also stars.
Extras: Plummer/Mirren commentary, director commentary, Plummer tribute, deleted scenes, outtakes.

Worth a Mention: Fans of Funny Animation Edition
— “Johnny Bravo: Season One” (NR, 1997, Cartoon Network Hall of Fame): Even if Cartoon Network’s new Hall of Fame DVD imprint is just a means for it to release its older catalog with a little more pre-installed fanfare than it might otherwise receive, all signs point to it being a very good thing anyway. “Johnny Bravo’s” first season is the first set out the door, with “Courage the Cowardly Dog” waiting on deck for a July release. Contents include all 13 episodes, plus commentary, a behind-the-scenes feature, pencil tests for two episodes and a Seth MacFarlane temp track.
— “Family Guy: Volume Eight” (NR, 2009, Fox): Speaking of MacFarlane, here’s another helping — in uncensored and extended form — of the show that made him famous. Includes 15 episodes (with commentary on most), plus deleted scenes, karaoke, one behind-the-scenes feature and a miniature, 44-page replica script for the “Road to the Multiverse” episode.
— “American Dad! Volume 5″ (NR, 2009, Fox): Also speaking of MacFarlane, here’s more MacFarlane. Includes 14 uncensored episodes (commentary on all), plus deleted scenes, “The Power Hour” drinking game and trivia for the “Bar Mitzvah Hustle” episode.

Mary and Max (NR, 2009, IFC Films)
There probably is no way to talk about “Mary & Max” without immediately mentioning the thoroughly awesome display of claymation animation it puts on from start to finish. If ever there was doubt the medium had legs in a world overrun by computer animation, then “Max,” which dotes on the kind of unflattering details and muted color palettes most computer-animated films wouldn’t even flirt with, settles it. But for all the amazing things “Max’s” visual exterior does, it’s merely following the lead taken by the script, which tells the story of what happens when a friendless girl in Australia becomes pen pals with a socially disastrous old man in New York. “Max” is a sweet look at what makes friendships like these just as potentially valuable as the more traditional varieties, but it’s just as much a darkly funny (and sometimes just plain dark) look at misfortune, the harshness of strangers and how people living amongst so many other people still can find themselves hopelessly alone. “Max’s” story regularly meanders as both characters narrate their letters and a narrator provides the go-between moments. But while Mary’s and Max’s situations remain in flux, 92 minutes of meticulously-chosen words ensure their shared story stays on point, and it’s kind of staggering how far that story goes in that time. For all it would appear to lack by way of contemporary effects and bombast, “Max” is as much an epic as any other film that’s chased that title this year. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Toni Collette, Barry Humphries and Eric Bana lend their voices.
Extras: Director commentary, short film “Harvie Krumpet,” two behind-the-scenes features, alternate scenes, casting call footage.

The Book of Eli (R, 2010, Warner Bros.)
The setting of “The Book of Eli” follows the post-apocalyptic wasteland template so faithfully that it doesn’t even merit explanation. But the item at the center of all that copying and pasting — a King James Bible, tucked under the arm of a traveling loner (Denzel Washington as Eli) and believed to possess enough spiritual power that another man (Gary Oldman) has sent an army of raiders to find it by any means necessary — gives “Eli” just enough intrigue to elevate its first half beyond the realm of complete also-ran banality. “Eli” pads itself in hopes of providing the manhunt with the substance and gravity it needs to engage early and pay off later, and the overwhelming result is a mix of good scenes that undermine themselves with all that borrowed imagery and not-so-good scenes that simply feel like remixed reincarnations of stuff we already saw. So it’s no small feat when “Eli” caps that uninspired run-up with an inspired ending that both invalidates so much of what preceded it and makes large chunks of it worth re-watching — and much more enjoyable — under closer study the second time around. It’s hard to recommend a movie that really only gets great at the very end, especially when truly enjoying it might entail revisiting the stuff that wasn’t so hot the first time around. But given how ordinary “Eli” initially appears, a comeback like that is a pretty commendable achievement. Mila Kunis also stars.
Extras: Animated short “A Lost Tale,” deleted scenes.

Collapse (NR, 2009, FilmBuff/MPI)
Alarmist documentaries about the pending downfall of our civilization are common enough to largely achieve the exact opposite of their intended impact, so it’s a shame that the one that’s actually worth seeing is bound to go ignored because it has the most alarmist name of all. “Collapse” isn’t even really about societal collapse so much as a period of harsh transition, and the film — which is little more than a feature-length interview with former cop and reporter Michael Rupport — isn’t so much a discussion of pending disaster as a look at the mess that’s already in progress. Rupport predicted the 2008 economic collapse years before it happened, he has the paper and video trail to back it up, and he does an enviable job here of breaking that and so much more down into plain-spoken English and the kind of mathematical cause and effect we all learned in elementary school. The sum of his words, which bounce between empirical and personal and interweave powerfully by film’s end, feels more like a mental toolkit for this shift, already in progress, than some proclamation to run for the hills. Rupport has some unsettling observations about what happens when populations, supplies and certain currencies peak out, but “Collapse” ultimately feels more empowering — maybe even personally liberating — than scary when he lays it all out. How’s that for different, and how unfortunate does that name look now?
Extras: Post-film update, deleted scenes.

Adopted (R, 2009, Phase 4 Films)
Genuine human discomfort caught on camera can be funny, and if you haven’t known that forever, you might have learned it by watching “Borat.” Pauley Shore appears to be in pursuit of the same comedic end in “Adopted,” a mockumentary in which he ventures to Africa and auditions a few kids to be his adopted child and, more importantly, give him a status symbol normally reserved for the likes of Madonna and Angelina. But a strange and arguably fortuitous thing happens en route to Shore making everyone around him uncomfortable: He appears to rattle himself as well. Nothing about Shore’s premise is factual, and it isn’t always clear who is playing along and who the marks are. There also are a few instances where Shore goes for shock and — particularly during a painful bout of attempted standup comedy — misses on every level. But in spite of everything and regardless of how much coaching the kids got, they’re pretty clearly having a ball. Their enthusiasm gives them license to steal the movie, but it also seems to give Shore an onscreen complex about the message he might wish to send through this experience. Even when “Adopted” doesn’t elicit laughs, it exceeds expectations on other levels, and a disclaimer near the credits makes it pretty clear that, whether it began there or creeped up there during filming, the subject matter is closer to Shore’s heart than the premise first implied.
Extras: Deleted scenes.

Alphonso Bow (NR, 2010, Nut Bucket Films)
“Alphonso Bow” is almost entirely a movie about two friends (Jeffrey Pierce as Alphonso, Michael Dempsey as Frank) talking over lunch in a diner. If that sounds like pretentious art film country, here’s the good news: It isn’t. “Bow” has a sense of humor, both in general and about itself, and while the references the two friends make to “Waiting for Godot” and “My Dinner With Andre” aren’t exactly subtle, they at least make it clear where this one’s head is at. More debatable is whether the conclusion of the conversation also is a wink through the fourth wall. “Bow’s” winding conversation, which dances with everything from women to religion to aliens to Franks’ playwright dreams, is more than lively enough to carry a film. But part of its energy comes from the Pierce’s delivery, which plays like a cross between a George W. Bush impersonator and a used-car salesman, and by film’s end, it has become a bit much. When Frank finally applies the brakes to the conversation, it’s hard not to wonder if it isn’t a means to “Bow’s” end so much as a tacit acknowledgement of that worn-out welcome. Content of extras unavailable at press time.

Control Alt Delete (R, 2008, E1 Entertainment)
“Control Alt Delete” literally takes place in a time gone by — specifically, during the run-up to Y2K, where harried programmers like Lewis (Tyler Labine) are scrambling to prevent the pending techpocalypse while also dealing with timeless office politics as usual. But “Delete” also figuratively takes place in another era — a time when scriptwriters all waltzed down the same tired road to make the same tired observations about computers, programmers, the Internet and all that culture entailed before it ensnared the mainstream. The good news is that cheap computer jokes aren’t really the point of “Delete,” which is more about Lewis’ disastrous dating acumen and a literal lust for computers that sends any hope of reversing his fortune hurtling toward the abyss. (Use your imagination.) The bad news is that “Delete” trips over itself in this realm as well. Lewis is too strange to be likeable, his co-workers mostly are half-sketched cartoon characters, and when the script doesn’t look and sound older than the technology on display, it’s repeatedly damaged by awkward interactions, scribbled-on-a-napkin dialogue and a central repeating bit that’s humorously wince-worthy the first time but just gets creepy — and not in any good way at all — each time thereafter.
Extras: Interviews.

Shutter Island (R, 2010, Paramount)
Sometimes, the best special feature a DVD offers is the capacity to pause the film. That arguably holds true on multiple levels for “Shutter Island,” which finds U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) hiding an ulterior motive and suppressing personal demons while investigating a missing persons case in an ocean-locked hospital for the criminally insane. The details of Teddy’s motive, as well as the return favor the hospital has for him, are best left unspoiled, but the net result transforms “Island” from a slightly interesting mystery into a genuinely unnerving horror story about the state of Teddy’s mind. “Island” dresses its central mystery inside piles of imagery that may or may not be real, and occasionally and unfortunately, it complements that imagery with needlessly ham-handed music and the repetition of devices that don’t always need return visits. That makes “Island,” at 137 minutes long, at least 20 minutes longer and several pounds heavier than it needed to be, and it gives way to moments where the film is looking busy accomplishing nothing. But “Island” possesses an equal tendency to catch viewers sleeping and sneak in the occasional foreshadowing verbal exchange or visual cue that eventually pays out to those watching closely. So keep that pause button handy: You might crave a timeout from the heaviness, but you also might find yourself needing to look twice at the innocuous details that come back around during a last-act reveal that’s both open to interpretation and very darkly satisfying. No extras except on the Blu-ray version, which has two behind-the-scenes features.

Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete Seventh Season (NR, 2009, HBO)
A lot of people got back to talking about “Curb Your Enthusiasm” again once word got out that it, and not some disastrous NBC cash grab special, would be the home of the “Seinfeld” cast reunion. Sure enough, the foursome find their way back to Jerry’s old apartment. But because we’re in Larry David’s universe instead of Jerry Seinfeld’s, we’re treated to a thoroughly entertaining show about the show, starring the “Seinfeld” cast as the cast rather than the characters, and the multi-episode sendup of bad reunion specials is so much more appropriate for this crowd than the real thing would have been. Also good news: The rest of the season, which — despite never wavering from its relentless theme of Larry being the world’s most accomplished bridge arsonist — finds “Curb” as sharply observant and freshly funny as it’s ever been. The “Seinfeld” reunion starts in episode three and casually plays out alongside the rest of the season, and opportunities abound for David and individual “Seinfeld” cast members to play off each other in scenes that have nothing to do with the reunion and don’t need any novelty whatsoever to work. The restraint needed to regularly step completely away from the reunion storyline is impressive, and while the reunion arc is perfectly conceived, many of the season’s best moments have nothing to do with it.
Contents: 10 episodes, plus four behind-the-scenes segments (all related to the “Seinfeld” storyline).

From Paris with Love (R, 2010, Lions Gate)
Say, did you like “Training Day?” And did you like it enough that a hokier, logically questionable take on it sounds like something you’d enjoy? If so, it’s probably in your best interest to check out “From Paris with Love,” which finds a fresh-faced undercover CIA agent James Reece (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) teamed up with grizzled wackjob loose cannon Charlie Wax (John Travolta) for an assignment whose details remain somewhat cloudy to him. “Love” feels slightly like a cartoon from the moment Travolta walks on, and by the time the film’s big twist sends it tumbling toward a completely strange ending, it feels like a smart thriller for stupid people. But is that such a bad thing? “Love’s” action doesn’t disappoint, Travolta’s bananas performance makes for one outrageously fun character, and while the storyline swims in some stupid waters, it isn’t due to cringeworthy dialogue or lifeless storytelling. “Love’s” ultimate destination has some gaping plot holes and a weird case of detachment on one character’s part, but the journey that gets us there is pretty fun. In this realm, that’s better than the other way around.
Extras: Director commentary, three behind-the-scenes features.

Power Kids (R, 2010, Magnet/Magnolia)
Wun (Nantawooti Boonrapsap) is a normal little kid except for two things: He lives and trains (along with his older brother and several other kids) at a Muay Thai academy, and his heart is failing him. The good news? A nearby hospital has a new heart for him. The bad news? The same hospital is under siege by terrorists, and if the kids can’t rescue the heart quickly, Wun won’t survive. So yes, this is a movie about young, ragtag martial artists taking on armed and dangerous adults. And yes, movies like that tend to reduce the adults to complete imbeciles while the kids say such unbelievably, cutesily obnoxious things that you still feel tempted to root for the bad guys. But “Power Kids” goes the complete other way. The criminals are credibly nasty, the kids genuinely likable, the action legitimately great. And while the dialogue (to say nothing of the super cheesy English dub) isn’t exactly great, the story is a terrific mix of excitement, comedy, sweetness, darkness and, particularly during the final act, legitimate surprise. The tale of the tape is no less absurd, but “Kids” at least makes it fun to play along and let the imagination take over. In Thai with English subtitles, but the aforementioned English dub is available as well.
Extras: Two behind-the-scenes features.

Oceans (NR, 2008, BBC Earth)
Give BBC Earth points off for releasing the comparatively ordinary “Oceans” a scant week after releasing “Life,” which very likely will stand alone as the best nature DVD release we see all year. “Oceans,” by contrast, isn’t eight hours of impossibly high-definition footage of sea creatures all alone in their element. To the contrary, its arguable primary subject is people — specifically, an expedition that includes divers, a biologist, a maritime archeologist and the grandson of Jacques Cousteau. But that arrangement is to the series’ benefit rather than detriment. “Life” already covers one terrain rather magnificently on its own, and by incorporating a heavy human element, “Oceans” lets its people tell stories, from their own firsthand perspective, that “Life’s” footage and narrator can’t feasibly tackle. The only place “Oceans” feels like “Life” is in the best way it can: At eight hours long, it’s nothing if not comprehensive, and by electing to tell the stories it wants to tell instead of conforming to needless structures and themes, it doesn’t let those minutes go to waste.
Contents: Eight episodes, no extras.

Ghostwriter: Season One (NR, 1992, Shout Factory)
Age hasn’t been terribly kind to “Ghostwriter,” a PBS cult classic that had young teenager Jamal (Sheldon Turnipseed) and his friends communicating with a ghost whose writings they could see but their parents and other adults could not. The show’s special effects already looked creaky when they originally aired in 1992, the kids can’t really act, and all that was annoying about fashion in the early 1990s is on full, low-definition display here. But “Ghostwriter” wasn’t made for obnoxious DVD reviewers when it first aired, and beyond those who grab this for nostalgic purposes (a point helped along by Shout Factory’s typical attention to fan service packaging), it still isn’t for adults. And where it really counts — in the realm of educational entertainment — “Ghostwriter” still has it. The cases that play out over multiple episodes are clever, opportunities abound for viewers to play along and solve the riddles, and the slowly-unfolding mystery of the ghost’s identity might, 18 years on, satisfy a new generation of kids more than the “Lost” finale satiated their parents. (Of course, that mystery is to be continued in season two.)
Contents: 34 episodes, plus a 12-page liner notes booklet that doubles as a casebook for note-taking.

Worth a Mention
— “Jim Henson’s Dog City: The Movie” (NR, 1989, Lions Gate): The Emmy Award-winning movie, which combined gangsters, film noir and dog puppets at long last, finally gets the DVD treatment as part of Lions Gate’s entirely welcome dive into the vault of Henson’s lesser-known but no less stellar projects. Extras include concept art and behind-the-scenes galleries.
— “Sing-Along Travel Kit: The Wheels on the Bus” (NR, 2010, Scholastic Storybook Treasures): If putting a DVD on for the kids in the back seat and having them stare at a screen like zombies while the great outdoors passes them by isn’t quite your thing, this set, which includes sing-along versions of the titular story and 14 other short stories, might make for a more active compromise. The kit also includes a standalone soundtrack CD, 34-page activity book, some crayons and a few travel tips for adults.
— “The A-Team: The Complete Series” (NR, 1983, Universal): Obviously, this is a cynical ploy by Universal to further cash in on the big-screen “A-Team” reboot that itself appears primed to cash in on fans’ memories of the show. On the other hand: How awesome does this thing, which comes housed in a box that looks like the A-Team van, look? Includes all 97 episodes on 25 discs, plus a retrospective and an interview with series creator Stephen J. Cannell.
— “Bob Hope: Thanks for the Memories” (NR, 1938-48, Universal): Includes six Hope movies: “Thanks for the Memory,” “The Cat and the Canary,” “The Ghost Breakers,” “Nothing But the Truth,” “Road to Morocco” and “The Paleface.” Extras include footage of live Hope performances, sing-alongs, a retrospective and photo galleries.

Life (NR, 2009, BBC Earth)
The title of “Life” — an 11-episode look at, yes, life — would suggest a series with delusions of being the end-all, be-all, definitively definitive look at the world’s staggering collection of species in their respective habitats. In reality, though, the title simply grants “Life” license to shift between vignettes without necessarily bowing to any sort of obligatory pattern. One minute might bring an incredible look at the bouncing pebble toad’s amazing survival trick, while the next might provide insight into the social mores of hippos (and what happens when an outcast violates them). If the randomness sounds like a bad thing, it’s not: The massive length of “Life, which was filmed worldwide over a period of more than eight years, affords it a treasure chest of stories to tell and footage to show, and the loose structure values variety and unpredictability over order for order’s sake. It also allows “Life” to tell the stories it wants to tell and do so at paces that best suit each segment. That, in turn, allows the series to let its incontrovertible selling point — eight-plus hours of see-it-to-believe-it footage of all manner of species completely in their element — to shine as brightly as it can. High-definition technology brings “Life’s” creatures home in staggering detail, but no amount of gadgetry would amount to anything if the people handling those cameras weren’t as incredibly skilled (and, most likely, angelically patient) as they so clearly are here.
Contents: 11 episodes, plus deleted scenes, making-of video diaries and an optional audio track that removes the narrator but keeps the music.

New York Street Games (NR, 2010, NY Street Games Productions)
We’ve all heard the bemoaning by adults who reminisce about childhoods spent outdoors instead of in front of televisions and computers. Cynically, that would appear to be the point of “New York Street Games,” which rounds up celebrities (Ray Romano, Whoopi Goldberg, Keith David, Regis Philbin, C. Everett Koop and more) and street game aficionados to reflect on days spent in the street with nothing but other kids, a Spaldeen ball and their imaginations to make time fly. Happily, though, it isn’t. Instead, our subjects delve into giddy detail while describing the wild rules and customs of such creations as stoopball, ringoleavio, and punchball, and the only thing more convincing than their genuine love of those games is the sense of community that permeates throughout these otherwise disconnected interviews. The spirit of the games — be it the ingenuity that conceived them, the inclusive nature that turned city blocks into neighborhoods, or the inspiring efforts to reintroduce them to today’s kids — is completely infectious. By the time some of the subjects turn to handwringing, no explanation is necessary for their angst to resonate. “Games” is heavier on interviews than action, and the film is likely to resonate with parents more than kids. But in an inspired touch, the DVD includes a 26-page illustrated booklet that details every game’s rules. Get a ball, find some blacktop, and what’s old is new and exciting again.
Extra: The aforementioned rulebook.

My Dog: An Unconditional Love Story (NR, 2009, Docurama)
Sometimes, a movie’s title demands an explanation. And sometimes, as with “My Dog: An Unconditional Love Story,” the title says so much about the movie that even reviewing it seems kind of stupid. “Dog” collects some famous (Glenn Close, Edie Falco, Richard Gere) and not-so-famous (but often more illuminating) people together to share stories about what their dogs mean to them, and the result is as evenhanded as a kindergartener’s review of a candy store. For dog lovers, though, this is a preaching to the choir of the best kind. “Dog” isn’t an educational documentary so much as a virtual gathering with friends you didn’t know you had who love their dogs as much as anyone moved to watch this probably does, and while we’ve been conditioned to suspect the true colors of celebrities when cameras are rolling, those suspicions just don’t fly here. The only knock is that, at 50 minutes long, “Dog” ends too quickly, but the additional 17 minutes of entirely worthwhile deleted scenes help mitigate that somewhat.
Extras: Deleted scenes/interviews, filmmaker bios.

American Pickers: The Complete Season One (NR, 2010, History)
Be jealous, shopaholics and collectors: Not only have Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz found a way to spend their days traveling the country and buying stuff most didn’t even know was for sale, but they make a pretty cool living by occasionally turning that stuff around for pretty amazing profit. Mike and Frank are pickers, and “American Pickers” rolls camera as they visit garages, sheds and storerooms full of antiques and novelties most would consider trash and that their owners have long treated as such. “Pickers” works as a television show because the stuff the guys find often is ridiculous, and it works as a History Channel show because of the stories and historical connotations many of the items have. But it works as entertainment because Mike and Frank have exactly the kind of charisma one needs to knock on complete strangers’ doors, ask to go through their stuff, and successfully haggle with them before hitting the road with a truckload of their possessions. They love their profession, they’re fun to watch as result, and the folks they meet in the process — many of whose stories “Pickers” shares alongside those of our pickers — are pretty fascinating as well. The show occasionally raises an eyebrow when segments show what feels like lowballing of regular folks who may not understand the value their stuff potentially has, but the pickers don’t hide behind pretense and the stuff likely would stay indefinitely buried otherwise, so it’s a fleeting grievance.
Contents: 12 episodes, no extras.

Alice in Wonderland (PG, 2010, Disney)
It was a mere matter of time before someone with lots of money brought “Alice in Wonderland” back to the big screen as the adult-oriented fever dream so many have interpreted Lewis Carroll’s book as being. It probably also was a matter of time before that someone was Tim Burton. And therein lies the problem not only with the movie, but also its director: It’s all just a little too predictable. Millions upon zillions of dollars’ worth of special effects technology have made the new “Wonderland” some kind of visual spectacle, and it’s hard to argue with pitting Johnny Depp (as the Mad Hatter) against Helena Bonham Carter (as the Red Queen) one more time. But beyond the amazing visuals and talents and energies of some reliably great performers, little about “Wonderland” rises beyond being exactly what one expects it to be. At worst, when it beats viewers atop the head with its adult leanings or goes through the motions for special effects’ sake — obligations that contradict each other when the film decides late that it wants to be all things to everyone — “Wonderland” feels pretty soulless. That’s problem the comparatively saccharine animated film, to say nothing of the technologically-deficient book, never had. Mia Wasikowska (as Alice), Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover and Matt Lucas, among others, also star.
Extras: Three behind-the-scenes features.

The Eastwood Factor: Extended Version (NR, 2010, Warner Bros.)
It’s hard to ignore the slightly self-back-patting tone of “The Eastwood Factor,” which chronicles Clint Eastwood’s astounding resume (35 films in as many years) at Warner Bros. Studios. Morgan Freeman — who has collaborated with Eastwood on a number of films and who most recently was as responsible as anyone for bringing his latest directorial project, “Invictus,” to screen — handles narration duties, and when he describes “Invictus” as “the most inspiring movie Clint Eastwood has ever made,” it’s enough to wonder where the objectivity lines are drawn. Then again, it probably doesn’t really matter. “Factor” studiously bounces from one Eastwood project (“Dirty Harry,” “Bronco Billy”) to the next (“Unforgiven,” “Gran Torino”), and it makes few bones about being anything more than a fond celebration of his career to this point. Fortunately, Eastwood himself didn’t get that memo: He has numerous opportunities to discuss his own work, and he’s candid, humble and occasionally self-deprecating enough to offset whatever self-congratulatory designs everyone else might have had. Just make sure you’ve seen whichever of these movies you wish to see before putting this one on. “Factor” assumes you have, and it isn’t afraid to spoil the endings of most of them in its process. No extras.
— Also available: Warner Bros. goes a little Eastwood crazy this week with the availability of several rereleases on top of “Factor.” The “Essential Eastwood: Director’s Collection” box includes “Letters from Iwo Jima,” “Million Dollar Baby,” “Mystic River” and “Unforgiven,” while “Essential Eastwood: Action Collection” includes “Firefox,” “Heartbreak Ridge,” “Kelly’s Heroes” and “Where Eagles Dare.” The Blu-ray “Clint Eastwood Collection” includes 10 films (including everything from the “Director’s” set), and a handful of double features (including “Dirty Harry/Magnum Force”) are available alongside individual catalog releases in Blu-ray form. In other words, basically everything. Fox also crashes the party with the Blu-ray debut of “The Man with No Name Trilogy,” which includes “A Fistful of Dollars,” “For A Few Dollars More” and “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.”

Worth a Mention:
— “Elvis 75th Birthday Collection” (NR, Fox): It’s going to get a little confusing later this summer when Warner Bros. releases its own “Elvis 75th Anniversary DVD Collection” box set, but for now, the racket is all Fox’s. The seven-disc “Birthday” box includes seven films: “Love Me Tender,” “Flaming Star,” “Frankie and Johnny,” “Wild in the Country,” “Follow That Dream,” “Kid Galahad” and “Clambake.” No new extras.
— “MLB Bloopers: Baseball’s Best Blunders” (NR, 2010, MLB/Shout Factory): You won’t find last week’s footage of Kendry Morales breaking his leg during a walk-off grand slam celebration gone abysmally wrong. But while the 2010 season creates fodder for future volumes, there’s more than enough recent material to fill these 90 minutes, which do for today’s players what the mountain of baseball bloopers VHS tapes did for players in the 1970s and 1980s. Extras include random bonus segments that cover fun with gum, fun with mascots and, among other things, fun with Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster.
— “Aqua Teen Hunger Force 7″ (NR, 2009, Adult Swim): Either you need no introduction to this volume’s availability or you’re shocked there’s a seventh volume’s worth of episodes to put on shelves. Either way, the 11 episodes on “Aqua Teen Hunger Force 7″ include the live-action episode, which also receives the behind-the-scenes feature treatment.

Mystery Team (R, 2009, Lions Gate)
Like a lot of kids with active imaginations, Jason (Donald Glover), Duncan (D.C. Pierson) and Charlie (Dominic Dierkes) like to run around their neighborhood and solve not-quite crimes as the Mystery Team. And the whole exercise — disguises, tech from a 1985 Toys ‘R’ Us catalog, an “office” that looks suspiciously like a lemonade stand — would be awfully cute if they weren’t 18-year-olds on the cusp of going to college. But they are, and when a real crime lands in their lap, they’re as predictably overmatched in solving a double murder as they are in every other facet of their young-but-not-that-young lives. Fortunately, the story of their plight doesn’t have nearly the same issue. “Mystery Team’s” immaculate sense of self-awareness makes its cute bits exponentially funnier than they would be in the hands of most comedies, and its amazing control over that tone makes it that much funnier when it decides, for whatever reason, to drop a blue humor bomb right in the middle of everything. But while “Team” achieves parody nirvana in its successful evisceration of the after-school-special-esque coming-of-age story, it allows just a small piece of itself to play it straight, making our awkward heroes considerably more fun to root for than if they simply were pawns in the joke. The resolution of the mystery isn’t really the point, but if “Team” wants to make it fun to see how it wraps up, who is anyone to argue?
Extras: Cast commentary, “Who is Wally Cummings?” comedy short, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes feature, bloopers, test footage, Sword Club Hall of Fame (makes sense after you see the movie).

Owl and the Sparrow (PG, 2007, Image Entertainment)
Moving to a bustling new city is a scary endeavor for anyone of any age to undergo alone, so it must take some serious determination for 10-year-old Thuy (Pham Thi Han) to run away to Saigon with no family, no plan and barely any money in her pocket. Can you relate? Two people — a woman tired of meaningless relationships and a man still reconciling the sting of a failed engagement (Cat Ly and Le The Lu, respectively) can, and when their paths each cross with Thuy’s, you probably can figure out what she has designs to do next. But the great thing about “Owl and the Sparrow,” beyond its skillful development of all three characters, is the way it takes a potentially lethally contrived storyline and, by way of such great character designs, nearly completely strips it of any such hollowness. As much as it is about what happens next (and Thuy’s fantastically blunt delivery makes those developments more unpredictable than they would be in the hands of your typical saccharine kid), “Sparrow” really is a story about what brought everyone here in the first place. Be it though its photography or its characters’ words, the movie’s observations about what a joy and what a pain it can be to need other people are thoughtful, dead honest and never prone to ham-handed preachiness. When everything comes together, what ultimately happens is far more captivating than “Sparrow’s” seemingly predictable setup would imply. In Vietnamese with English subtitles.
Extras: Director commentary, deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes feature, photo gallery.

Royal Pains: Season One (NR, 2009, USA/Universal)
Whether intentionally or not, the USA Network has cornered the market for shows that borrow formats and formulas traditionally reserved for dramas and inject them with enough comedy to completely blur the genre lines. So if you’ve seen and enjoyed the likes of “Monk,” “Psych” and “Burn Notice,” your capacity to enjoy “Royal Pains” is practically predestined. In outline form, “Pains” shares a lot of common ground with any number of other medical dramas, introducing self-contained medical mysteries in each episode while also telling a bigger picture about its characters’ lives. But instead of a hospital, “Pains” takes place in the Hamptons. And while the personal lives of Dr. Hank Lawson (Mark Feuerstein) and his slacker brother Evan (Paulo Costanzo) provide a significant portion of the show’s comedic content, “Pains’” real trick is its ability to laugh at the expense of Hank’s excessively wealthy, often street-stupid clientele while simultaneously making just enough of them just human and likable enough for Hank’s work to matter. Like most of the shows with which it shares a network, “Pain” is neither viciously hysterical nor edge-of-seat suspenseful, but a perfectly entertaining hybrid of both extremes. It feels like formula in light of USA’s other offerings, but in the larger pool of me-too medical dramas, it’s a pleasant novelty that’s engaging enough to merit a long look.
Contents: 12 episodes, plus commentary, deleted scenes, video blogs, one behind-the-scenes feature and bloopers.

Hoarders: Season One (NR, 2009, A&E)
If a messy house or even the prospect of too many icons cluttering your computer’s desktop makes you uncomfortable, consider this a warning: “Hoarders,” a reality television show that observes compulsive hoarders trying to clean their way out of abysmally cluttered and potentially unsafe living conditions, might be the scariest thing you’ve ever seen. The mountains of clutter these folks scale just to get from room to room — old newspapers, empty fishtanks, toiletries, boxes that long since have served any purpose — is one thing. But even someone comfortable with clutter might have trouble stomaching some of “Hoarders’” nastier episodes, which find people living in oceans of expired foods, bacteria, mold, bugs and worse. (Warning: Way worse.) The show provides a service insofar that the objective of each episode is to dispatch experts who can help turn these lives around and clean house before landlords and government employees have to get involved, but there’s no sense denying it: This is exploitative theatre that, for most of us, has zero educational value and zero value of any kind beyond that of witnessing a train derailment. There’s also no denying this: Like any good horror show that touches certain uncomfortable nerves, it’s as hard to look away from — if your conscience can handle it — as it is to look at in the first place.
Contents: Seven episodes, plus unaired footage.

Tell-Tale (R, 2009, Vivendi)
After receiving what appears to be a successful heart transplant, Terry Bernard (Josh Lucas) is all set to resume tending to his ill daughter (Beatrice Miller) and courting her doctor (Lena Headey) when an incident outside the hospital triggers a memory he’s sure isn’t his. The flashback leads to questions, those questions open a floodgate, and the subsequent visions have Terry wondering if his heart is trying to tell him that its journey into his body wasn’t exactly routine. If the title and premise call a certain Edgar Allan Poe poem to mind, it’s no accident. “Tell-Tale” represents itself as a re-imagination of the poem, but it really only borrows the gist, letting modern conventions and plenty of creative license take it the rest of the way. The result isn’t narratively impeccable: Some deep plot holes open up, and some characters do some things that seem, politely put, to be a stretch. But provided you can suspend some intermediate levels of disbelief, it’s a pretty creepy good time anyway. Those leaps in logic allow “Tell-Tale” to go kind of crazy with a classic premise (which, let’s face it, isn’t exactly ground in authenticity in the first place), and while what happens doesn’t always make total sense, it still entertains on its own unsettling level. The final turn, while not entirely unforeseeable, is pretty great as well. No extras.

All My Friends are Funeral Singers (NR, 2010, IndiePix)
It’s pretty uncommon for a movie to save itself in its first scene. But one could argue that’s what “All My Friends Are Funeral Singers” — which opens with a dryly, very funny exchange between a dead male ghost and the dead female ghost he’s trying to seduce — does. These and several other ghosts inhabit the home of Zel (Angela Bettis) — who makes a living as a psychic and medium and who counts the ghosts as the only real friends and family she has — and “Singers” isn’t really a movie about the ghosts so much as it is one about what a lonely girl must do when it’s time for everyone else to move on. Just don’t expect the film to lay that out for you. In between the occasional scene that matches the deadpan perfection of that first scene, there are stacks of scenes that often do their storytelling through musical interludes and body language instead of spoken words. “Singers” does a pretty good job of conveying its storytelling purposes through both means, but it would be a lie to say that the more opaque stuff, which also outnumbers the funny parts by a wide margin, won’t come off to many as a wastefully inaccessible intrusion of what might otherwise have been a very original and very funny comedy. If unapologetically artsy films rub you the wrong way, there’s a strong chance this will sand your sides right off.
Extras: Ghost interviews, three behind-the-scenes features, music video, live music performance.

44-Inch Chest (R, 2009, Image)
Colin Diamond (Ray Winstone) may not have the most loving wife (Joanne Whalley as Liz) in the world, but he would be hard-pressed to find better friends than the band of small-time gangsters (Ian McShane, John Hurt, Tom Wilkinson, Stephen Dillane) whose company he keeps. When he shares the news of Liz’s unfaithfulness with them, they stalk and kidnap the homewrecker and offer Colin a choice: He can kill the guy who in his mind killed him, or he can spare him so Liz doesn’t hate him forever and maybe, just maybe, takes him back. What follows is a clinic on how to do something with almost nothing. “44-Inch Chest” takes place almost entirely in a single dingy room, and the vast majority of the film is talk rather than action. But from that talk comes an absolutely supreme dissection not only of a guy who barely can comprehend where his mind is at in light of being cheated on, but also one of friends who dance between compassion and machismo in an attempt to comfort their friend while trying to slap some manhood back into him. The cast plays the parts to perfection, and the mood darts between dark drama and dark comedy without showing its seams. All the while, the mystery of Colin’s choice hangs above the proceedings, giving “Chest” a near-overload of sensory satisfaction despite almost never even changing locations. Tallied up, it puts like-minded movies with bigger budgets but bankrupt imaginations to complete shame.
Extras: Director commentary, director interview, behind-the-scenes feature.

The Messenger (R, 2009, Oscilloscope)
No one would blame you for having experienced a bit of Iraq War movie fatigue by now, but that’s more a testament to the multitude of movies harboring the same themes than any sign of a complete fulfillment of storytelling niches the war offers. In that respect, “The Messenger” feels fresh not only because it takes place entirely in America, but also because it zeroes in on a sacred assignment — the act of soldiers (Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster) informing families that their loved ones died in combat — we’ve seen dramatized ad nauseam but rarely utilized as anything more than dressing. Naturally, there’s more here than just a series of encounters with devastated families, and a large portion of “The Messenger” deals with the lives of our two soldiers — who fought, respectively, in the first and second Gulf Wars — and what effect their assignment has on some already messy personal lives. That’s all well and good, and Harrelson and Foster do stellar jobs of giving those messes a serious pulse. But “The Messenger’s” best trick is the way it continually returns the focus to the task at hand and shows, rather than simply uses the soldiers to discuss, the soul-crushingly rote exercise that wreaks personal havoc on the issuer of the news as well as the recipient. Repetition and spinning in circles rarely works in a film’s favor at all, but in this case, it’s the best of a great many good qualities. Samantha Morton also stars.
Extras: A documentary, “Notification,” about U.S. Army Casualty Notification Officers. Also: Director/producer/Harrelson/Foster commentary, cast/crew Q&A, shooting scrip, behind-the-scenes feature.

Invictus (PG-13, 2009, Warner Bros.)
The true stories that comprise “Invictus” — Nelson Mandela’s (Morgan Freeman) return to power, South Africa’s return to the international sports scene, the country’s hosting of the 1995 Rugby World Cup and its team’s unfathomable transformation from zeroes to cup contenders — pretty much are a Hollywood script without Hollywood having to lift a finger. And that’s kind of the problem we have here: Beyond dramatizing the story as only a big-budget Hollywood production can, “Invictus” really doesn’t do a thing. All the ingredients of a good polish are here: Freeman’s a dead ringer for Mandela, and his castmates (Matt Damon, Tony Kgoroge, Matt Stern and Leleti Khumalo, among others) are generally terrific. Key points in the story’s history receive beautiful replication, and the rugby action provides a nice showcase for a sport that, at least in America, rarely gets one. But while most of “Invictus” shines with elegance, almost nothing benefits from of any kind of risk or unique narrative bent. The story flow is biopictography by the numbers, and while we don’t need to see these characters in unflattering light, the script rarely attempts to show them even as fallible beings who speak in anything other than pieces of grand speeches. That may not matter, and perhaps those who are completely uninitiated won’t mind the straightforward history lesson. But those who already know how “Invictus” ends and are hoping for a fresh perspective with some teeth won’t find much fulfillment here.
Extras: Behind-the-scenes feature.

Gamera: The Giant Monster (NR, 1965, Shout Factory)
The great thing about a fan-minded DVD imprint like Shout Factory is that it doesn’t wait for the movie reboot, toy or video game tie-in to bring an old not-quite classic into the DVD age. Case in point: This 1965 Japanese monster movie, which is to the “Godzilla” films what GoBots were to Transformers. In true mid-20th century monster movie form, “Gamera: The Giant Monster” — which finds the giant monster wreaking havoc in the wake of a Cold War-fueled nuclear accident — isn’t a mark of pristine script detailing or high production budgets. It also lacks any qualms whatsoever about borrowing from the franchise that inspired its creation. But that’s the beautiful thing about cheesy black-and-white movies about gigantic monsters: No one watching really cares. “Gamera” is tremendous fun in its own stupid way, and if the mark of a great film is that it’s fun to watch, then this may as well be a classic after all.
Extras: “Gamera” retrospective, image gallery, liner notes and audio commentary from “Eiji Tsuburaya: Master of Monsters” author August Ragone.

The Disappeared (NR, 2008, IFC Films)
There are moody films, there are brooding films, there are downright dreary films, and then there are films that, like “The Disappeared,” can’t resist touching all three bases en route to a grand slam of bleakness. It’s not entirely unearned: When “Disappeared” begins, Matthew (Harry Treadaway) is heading home from a mental hospital weeks after a lazy attempt at babysitting resulted in his young brother’s apparent kidnapping and possible murder. Matthew hears his brother’s voice calling for his help at odd times, and when he isn’t seeing and communicating with what might be delusions by day, he’s embroiled in nightmares by night. Attempts to find his brother and reclaim his sanity are further clouded by cruel bullies, nosey locals, crumbling relations with his father (Greg Wise) and seemingly only friend (Tom Felton), and a girl (Ros Leeming) who may or may not a whole movie’s worth of trouble of her own. Were the mystery that dangles in front of “Disappeared’s” every minute not so unsettlingly enticing, the film’s oppressively dour mood would be a killer. For those whose buzz can take only so much killing in 97 minutes’ time, it still may be. But the mystery ultimately validates the mood. “Disappeared” teases just enough at just the right rate to prevent dreariness from eating it alive, and the payoff at the end, though a bit over the top, rewards viewers who stick with it.
Extras: Three behind-the-scenes features.

The Spy Next Door (PG, 2010, Lions Gate)
There’s a reason stars are called stars. There’s also a reason Jackie Chan’s name gets top billing all to itself on “The Spy Next Door,” which stars Chan as a soon-to-be-retired undercover government spy who masquerades as a dorky pen salesmen and is fighting a losing battle to win favor of his could-be wife’s (Amber Valletta) disapproving children. “Spy” is a kids movie, but it’s one of those kids movies even kids can predict inside out, and between the mostly tired humor, downright exhausted character stereotypes and a couple of kids (Madeline Carroll, Will Shadley) who talk like obnoxious adults for two-thirds of the journey, there’s a lot not to like here. The only saving grace, naturally, is Chan, who is charming even when the script leaves him with nothing. He also makes the most of his infrequent chances to put on a great stunt show. That effort isn’t enough to make “Spy” anywhere near great, especially early on when those kids are committing acts of verbal violence against our intelligence, but for parents and siblings who might be stuck watching along, it at least provides something. George Lopez and Alina Foley (as the only likable kid) also star.
Extras: Two behind-the-scenes features, bloopers.

Tidal Wave (R, 2009, Magnet/Magnolia)
You know what makes Asian disaster movies so, so, so much better than their flashier, budget-endowed American counterparts? The first hour or so of “Tidal Wave,” that’s what. As hinted by the title, “Wave” ultimately is about a tidal wave that inevitably wreaks havoc while head-in-sand politicians and other non-leaders fidget about and ignore the warning signs. But “Wave” precedes this eventual massacre with a full half-film’s worth of what might as well be a handful of completely different genres — a little character drama here, some full-blown comic insanity (made even better by a delightfully absurd English dub) there, and liberal mixing of the two moods in between. Occasionally, the storytelling provides a preclude to the disaster. Mostly, though, it’s a bunch of extremely high-energy stories about people doing stuff before some bad stuff crashes through and changes everybody’s plans. That makes “Wave” as fun to watch during its march toward the inevitable as it is when hell breaks loose, and because we have characters with personality and history instead of an assembly line of boring archetypes — take notes, Hollywood — the normally anticlimactic aftermath isn’t so anticlimactic after all. (The actual disaster itself, which leans on raw action movie ingenuity instead of just slathering computer animation indiscriminately, is pretty awesome too, by the way.) In Korean with English subtitles, but the aforementioned dub also is available.
Extras: Deleted scenes, two behind-the-scenes features, bloopers.

Pulling John (NR, 2009, IdiePix)
It took a while, 22 years if we’re counting, but we finally have another great movie about the celebrated sport of arm wrestling. And if the terms “Over the Top” and “greatness” have no business coexisting in your world, this documentary might be the film that finally allows you to understand the fuss. The John in “Pulling John” is John Brzenk, who for 25 years has been to arm wrestling what Jordan and Gretzky are to basketball and hockey. Age naturally has begun taking its predictable toll, and during the course of the four years in which “John” was filmed, challengers from America and elsewhere have come primed to finally dethrone him. You say you never heard of Brzenk? Well join the club, but it doesn’t matter: “John” is as much a story about fighting mortality and coming to grips with losing that fight as it is about arm wrestling, and Brzenk’s predicament — facing the inevitability of failure despite a quarter-century of perfection — completely transcends his profession. “John” gives viewers access to the competition in similarly personal light, and when everyone meets in the same place and the whole thing comes to a head, the intrigue — over arm wrestling, yes, but that’s how good a job this one does at building it up — is miles better than anything Sly Stallone could have ever imagined.
Extras: Brzenk/director commentary, nearly an hour of additional footage, eight-page liner notes that doubles as a miniature comic book.

North Face (NR, 2008, Music Box Films)
Imagine a thriller set on the side of a mountain few could live to ascend and descend, and mental images surface of intense isolation and showdowns between man and unpredictable elements. But “North Face,” which dramatizes the highly politicized 1937 race between multiple teams of climbers to ascend the Eiger in Switzerland’s Bernice Alps, succeeds by going in a whole different direction. The elements are naturally in place, but most of the isolation is eschewed not only in favor of multiple teams of climbers getting in each other’s way, but also a horde of journalists and other onlookers who treat the challenge like they might any other sporting event. The swapping of settings — between fancy dining rooms, spartan ground-level encampments and, eventually, the grueling Eiger mountainside, provides “Face” ample opportunity to flash the full might of its characters’ (climbers and otherwise) personalities. Consequently, when things get dangerous and adversaries have to become allies, the fate of everyone involved — and not just the two climbers (Florian Lukas and Benno Fürmann) positioned as our main characters — actually matters for something. “Face” deftly captures both the thrill and absurd danger that everyone merely hypothesizes about in the early going, and because it’s based on a true story, a neat and tidy ending is by no means promised. Johanna Wokalek and Ulrich Tukur, among others, also star. In German with English subtitles.
Extras: Deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes feature.

Tokyo Sonata (PG-13, 2008, E1 Entertainment)
For all we can guess, the life of businessman and family man Ryûhei Sasaki (Teruyuki Kagawa) has been an enchanted one. But within roughly a minute of “Tokyo Sonata’s” existence, a round of layoffs at Ryûhei’s company strips the businessman part away, and his attempts to find work while shakily hiding his lack of employment from his wife (Megumi Sasaki) and two sons (Takashi Sasaki, Inowaki Kai) means his head of house status is teetering as well. “Sonata” focuses equally on all four characters, and some strange story turns take it down some really odd — and sometimes seemingly random and other times excessively melancholy — avenues. But if Ryûhei’s backbone status is on the brink, his story — and the awesome look it provides at the Japanese unemployment scene (and yes, it really qualifies as a scene) — makes “Sonata” worth sticking with when some weird twists might otherwise undermine it. Kagawa never plays for laughs, and the toll Ryûhei’s tumble takes doesn’t always leave him in a likable light. But there’s a slightly humorous and unmistakably relatable sympathy surrounding his plight, and that glue keeps the film together long enough to make “Sonata’s” final sendoff a satisfying one. In Japanese with English subtitles.
Extras: Cast/director Q&A, behind-the-scenes feature, premiere footage.

California Dreamin’ (NR, 2007, IFC Films)
It feels unfair to criticize a movie that, due to director Cristian Nemescu’s untimely passing after filming had wrapped but ostensibly before production had finished, may not actually be the final draft he had in mind. But this is the version of “California Dreamin’” that we have — a disclaimer describes the cut as “the way it looked at the time” — and so this is the version we must judge. “Dreamin’s” based-on-true-incidents story — a trainload of American soldiers and some valuable military cargo is en route to Kosovo in 1999, only to get mired in red tape by a small Romanian village determined to cash in on the once-in-a-lifetime encounter — sets it up for umpteen sharply funny observations about war, greed, culture clashes and disparate views of hospitality. During its best moments, the film makes good on that potential. Mostly, though, “Dreamin” finds itself neck-deep in details — occasionally about the soldiers, but mostly about the locals — and often, these scenes are good for developing characters and side stories at a painstaking pace while the main story, like the train, sits idle. The attention to detail is skillful, and the cast flourishes in such a way that some might prefer this outcome over a fulfillment of those comedic implications. It’s hard not to wonder how many of those 154 minutes would miss the final cut had Nemescu been able to see “Dreamin’” to completion, but it’s infinitely preferable to have too much of his final effort than nothing at all. In English and (mostly) Romanian with English subtitles. No extras.

Play the Game (PG-13, 2008, Phase 4 Films)
The trajectory of a cute romantic comedy is like that of a bullet train rounding a corner: A little too much gas, and we’re off the track with no hope of getting back on. “Playing the Game,” which follows the separate-but-connected romantic misadventures of car salesman David Mitchell (Paul Campbell) and his grandfather (Andy Griffith as Joe), would seem to be begging for derailment — if not with its sometimes childish summarizations of dating logic, then certainly with grandpa’s wacky return to the singles scene after decades of marriage and a few years of grieving. Occasionally, “Game” scrapes the edge of reason, and there really isn’t a point where it just nails its subject matter or changes the genre in any meaningful way. The twist at the end, while clever, also takes that oversimplification of dating psychology entirely beyond the cusp of believability. But even with all that said, “Game” never completely succumbs to its shortcomings, and Griffith in particular avoids some early cutesy turbulence en route to a funny and thoughtful (if never necessarily fresh) look at retirement home dating. It isn’t enough to make “Game” the best or even 15th best romantic comedy you can see this year, but it’s more than enough to push it past the pack of also-rans that initially look like its peers. Doris Roberts and Marla Sokoloff also star.
Extras: Deleted scenes, outtakes.

Penn Teller: Bull****! The Seventh Season (NR, 2009, Showtime)
You would think it would get old. Penn Jillette can drop an atomic F-bomb only so many ways, Teller’s options as an even-tempered mute are even more limited, and “Penn Teller: Bull****!” would appear to be constricted by sticking to the same formula — pick subject, build subject up, viciously (but intelligently, with facts, data and reasoning as well as violent barrages of words unfit to print) tear subject down — for seven seasons. But 700 seasons wouldn’t be enough time to cover the amount of bullbleep the world has on offer, and the disparately unique ways Penn and Teller tell their subjects to wear it simply do not get old. An episode of “Penn Teller: Bull****!” is a battle of attrition between hysterically funny and brilliantly illuminating, and there’s no point in determining which side wins when both are performing at levels as high as these. Season seven takes on video games, organic food, stress, taxes, the apocalypse, lie detectors, orgasms, astrology and … lawns.
Contents: Nine episodes, no extras. In a curious move acknowledged but not explained on the box, the episode about the Vatican has been left off the DVD.

Tooth Fairy (PG, 2010, Fox)
The sound you hear, just as you heard it when this one hit theaters, is that of millions of fans mourning the seeming passing of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s action hero career. But here’s the thing about “Tooth Fairy,” which stars Johnson as a soon-to-be-washed out hockey star forced to work tooth fairy duty after angering the tooth fairy gods (really): It’s as much a showcase for his real draw — force-of-nature-level charisma — as anything in the action realm. “Fairy” most definitely is a movie for kids first and parents second, and it’s chock full of predictable non-twists, bits that don’t shoot for the moon and jokes that cut as sharply as a wooden butter knife. But even the movie’s most vanilla bits tend to aim higher than the entirety of entirely too many kids movies, and between those moments, “Fairy” flashes some comic brilliance with surprising semi-regularity. Johnson’s talent is uniquely potent enough to work here as well as anywhere — he plays down without dumbing it down — and with an equally surprising and comparably unrestrained supporting cast (Stephen Merchant and Julie Andrews throughout the film, Billy Crystal and Seth MacFarlane pulling first-rate cameo duty), he isn’t working alone.
Extras: Tooth fairy training center feature, “Fairy-oke” singalong.

Paper Covers Rock (NR, 2008, IFC Films)
“Paper Covers Rock” is, like a lot of independent slice-of-life movies, dense with minutes in which completely unremarkable things happen and characters aren’t necessarily doing anything that has a direct effect on the central storyline. But when those minutes make you want to shake some sense into the main character (Jeannine Kaspar as Sam) one minute and telepathically tell her it’s going to be all right the next, they clearly aren’t being spent in vain. Our introduction to Sam takes place with her halfway through a suicide attempt while her kindergarten-aged (Juliet Stills) daughter prepares herself for school, and the vast majority of “Rock” consists of the rambling aftermath of Sam’s hospitalization and her subsequent attempts to piece her life back together. Much of what follows is mundane, and the story occasionally goes in circles. But the meandering and spinning makes sense in the context of Sam’s own missing bearings, and even when nothing really is happening, “Rock” makes sure to leave each scene with just a little more insight into where everything is going. The picture it ultimately paints feels authentic rather than like some trite march toward some hackneyed emotional crescendo, and the ironic result of that unassuming construction is a final trio of scenes that resonates in exactly the right way to just the right degree. Sayra Player also stars.
Extras: Two behind-the-scenes features.

Tetro (R, 2009, Lions Gate)
It takes a special kind of person with a special level of creative control to make a movie like “Tetro,” Francis Ford Coppola’s coming-of-age story about 17-year-old Bennie’s (Alden Ehrenreich) attempts to reconnect with his estranged older brother (Vincent Gallo as Tetro) and understand what happened to leave his family in pieces. Consequently, it takes a special kind of tolerance to enjoy Coppola’s work on the level it’s designed to be enjoyed. Laid out in bullet point form, “Tetro” delivers on multiple fronts: The sense of setting is terrific, Gallo’s turn makes Tetro as potentially engrossing to us as he is to Bennie, and a loving attention to detail provides warmth and character to a storyline we’ve all seen before on paper. But “Tetro” is a nothing short of a complete validation to all who detest the things that constitute an outsider’s stereotypical picture of arthouse cinema. The monochromatic, high-contrast cinematography and shameless use of a soundtrack that might make film noir connoisseurs roll their eyes is one thing. But with each turn “Tetro” takes, pieces of its initially promising sense of humor fall off. By film’s end, the air is so thick with self-seriousness overreactions to relatively harmless plot developments that this may as well be parody were it not so self-unawarene. “Tetro” never fully loses sight of what made it worth sticking with once some investment is made, but even those who suspend their sense of irony and give this the long leash it needs might find it hard not to chuckle at how completely up its own self-serious derriere the final act is.
Extras: Coppola/Ehrenreich commentary, six behind-the-scenes features.

Leap Year (PG, 2010, Universal)
Only those who have never seen a movie before could find a way to be fooled by “Leap Year,” which attempts to deviate from the basic romantic comedy template about as often as someone born on February 29 celebrates a proper birthday. In the occasional right light, there’s something very slightly pleasant about how completely unadventurous the whole thing is. Amy Adams is sweetly likable (in typical Amy Adams fashion) as Anna, who attempts a surprise trip to Dublin to propose to Jeremy (Adam Scott) — a prototypical male movie lead too occupied with business trips and workaholism to propose first — only to get sidetracked and lost in the quaint middle of nowhere. The natives are a dependable mix of wholesome and politely condescending in their role as hosts to the clueless (but sweet!) American, and Declan (Matthew Goode) fills the niche as the brooding (but handsome!) local whose role in this whole triangle is carved in wood the very second he enters the picture. And there’s the problem with “Year:” Every last moment is telegraphed — not just by the movie itself, but by decades of movies that already beat to death the plot turns down which this one strolls. The charm of predictability works only so often and not for very long, and nothing about “Year” is special nor lovable enough to overcome how completely ordinary everything feels once that charm runs out.
Extra: Deleted scenes.

Five Minutes of Heaven (NR, 2009, IFC Films)
Sometimes, the aftermath is better than the actual event, and “Five Minutes of Heaven” is a pristine example of why. “Heaven’s” opening block of scenes depicts a 1975 encounter, propelled by the conflict in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants, between teenager Alistair Little (Mark Davison) and a young Joe Griffin (Kevin O’Neill), and without spoiling what happens for those who don’t read the back of the box and find out that way, the miniature thriller that results is terrifically tense even if you can bet the farm on how it’s likely to end. But that encounter comprises only a fraction of “Heaven’s” runtime, the vast majority of which centers around a reunion, 30 years later, between a seemingly reformed Alistair (now played by Liam Neeson) and a cripplingly bitter Joe (James Nesbitt). “Heaven” becomes an entirely different kind of film in its modern light, and while the uncertain outcome of Joe’s and Alistair’s second confrontation provides an even better climax than that of their first meeting, it’s the stuff in the middle that really makes the film special. Neeson’s dissection of a changed man trying to reconcile (but also arguably benefit from) past misdeeds is a sight in its own right, but Nesbitt’s schizophrenic portrayal of a man trying to come to terms with his past, present and Alistair’s aforementioned arguable fortune is just mesmerizing. When “Heaven” finally comes to a head, the only thing it does wrong is end too soon.
Extra: Behind-the-scenes feature.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (PG-13, 2009, Sony Pictures)
Some movies more than others leave their watchability at the mercy of personal subjectivity, and if there ever was a fork in the road of personal taste, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” would be as qualified as any film to be its gatekeeper. Described one way, “Imaginarium’s” storyline — a father (Christopher Plummer) sits days away from facing the fallout of a deal with the Devil (Tom Waits), and his daughter (Lily Cole as Valentina) sits unknowingly at the center of that deal — is easy to grasp. But that simple description doesn’t adequately explain the presence of the Imaginarium, an old-fashioned sideshow that allows participants to enter a ridiculous wonderland designed according to the constrictions of one’s own imagination. And while the presence of Tony (played alternately by Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law) also is easy to explain — he’s there to rescue Valentina from her fate, even if he doesn’t know it — it’s a bit more dense in practice. “Imaginarium” liberally mixes modern and ancient imagery to establish a disorienting sense of context, and while the Imaginarium plays pivotal roles in the story’s advancement, its presence occasionally feels like an excuse for Director Terry Gilliam to spray his own imagination at will. One could argue in depth that the whole thing makes perfect sense, but another pair of eyes could write an essay about what a mess “Imaginarium” is and have pages of arguments to back it up. This is artistic conviction on overdrive, and whether you come away loving it, hating it or having no idea what you just saw, you’ll almost certainly come away having seen something you’ve never seen before. Verne Troyer and Andrew Garfield also star.
Extras: Gilliam introduction and commentary, deleted scenes, seven behind-the-scenes features.

It’s Complicated (R, 2009, Universal)
Judge a movie by its first 10 minutes, and “It’s Complicated” doesn’t seem very complicated at all — just another cute but inordinately formulaic comedy that is bound to be remembered for its impressive cast (Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin, John Krasinski) if it’s remembered at all. But all that onboard talent gives “Complicated” — which finds middle-aged Jane (Streep) facing an empty nest as her kids leave home and her ex-husband (Baldwin as Jake) steps out with his younger new wife (Lake Bell) — enough likability to overcome how stale the whole setup feels. From there, the characters who grow out of that talent and likability give the film enough ammo to make Jane’s and Jake’s clumsy but entirely predictable reunion (it’s on the front of the box, for crying out loud) more entertaining than it otherwise might be. Once “Complicated’s” story truly gets complicated, all bets are off, because where so many likeminded films lose comedic steam as the plot piles up and pushes them into corners, “Complicated” actually becomes considerably funnier. The inevitable dramatic dips arrive on schedule, and “Complicated” never blows one’s mind with its storytelling choices, but it never loses its sense of humor and never leans on the plot to provide the entertainment. The end result is so much better than initial appearances suggest that “Complicated” comes off as a much better film than it probably actually is. But given the old saying about perception, who cares about the truth?
Extras: Crew commentary, behind-the-scenes feature.

Survivors: Complete Seasons One and Two (NR, 2008, BBC)
Stories about flu scares that evolve past the scare stage pretty much write themselves … which is why so many of the movies and miniseries centered around them produce 10 scary minutes followed by countless minutes of tedious, dialogue-deficient reconciliation. But the original “Survivors,” which aired in 1975, played the virus-wipes-out-humanity card long before it was fashionable to do so, and the remake seems intent on following that series’ blueprint rather than hopping on the godawful fear-monger bandwagon that’s been rolling through town since “Outbreak” scared people silly. The new “Survivors” gets off to a slightly shaky start by taking itself a little too seriously too soon. But the scare materializes into reality and passes through humanity before the first episode is even two-thirds finished, and “Survivors” spends its remaining time exploring a world through the eyes of a precious few survivors who must cope with the loss of technology and modern conveniences as well as their loved ones. “Survivors’” characters initially fall into archetype country — there’s the playboy, the prisoner, the kid and so on — but all this free time allows them to evolve into something more unique while their new surroundings shape up similarly. The achilles heel of most disaster stories ends up being this one’s strength, and that’s a good a tribute to the original series as one could want.
Contents: 12 episodes, plus three behind-the-scenes features, an Easter egg and character profiles.
— Speaking of which, also available: “Survivors: The Complete Original Series” (NR, 1975, BBC): The series around which the present-day “Survivors” was remade. Includes 38 episodes, plus a behind-the-scenes feature and photo galleries.

District 13: Ultimatum (R, 2009, Magnet/Magnolia)
Here’s the thing about “District B13:” It was smarter than your average dumb action film, but not so much that it needed a sequel to address whatever questions it left unanswered. That, however, does not mean “District 13: Ultimatum’s” arrival isn’t welcome. Narratively, “Ultimatum” picks up where “B13″ left off: Police Capt. Damien Tomaso (Cyril Raffaelli) and vigilante-with-heart-of-gold Leïto (David Belle) restored order to the semi-lawless Paris sub-city known derisively as District 13, but (surprise!) two years later, the gang wars are spiraling back out of control and the government once again is contemplating nuking the area off the map. So here we go again. Fortunately, while “Ultimatum’s” storyline feels like a rewrite of “B13′s” script, it also gets right the things “B13″ got right. Tomaso and Leïto are fun to root for, the rest of the characters (district- and government-dwellers alike) are more colorful than their archetypes would suggest, and the story hits the same smart-slash-B-movie sweet spot. Most importantly, the action scenes deliver. “B13″ found a deserving audience by mixing stunt displays and explosions to an almost artful degree, and “Ultimatum” earns its return visit by doing the same thing and maintaining the same pace despite a longer (by 17 minutes) runtime.
Extras: Deleted/extended scenes, production diary, two behind-the-scenes features, music video.

William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe (NR, 2009, Arthouse Films)
Documentaries about controversial subjects have the potential to go down some ugly avenues when, as with this biography of legendarily controversial attorney William Kunstler, they come courtesy of the subject’s children. Kunstler’s body of work — which includes representation for suspected violent criminals (the Attica Prison rioters, Assata Shakur, Gambino crime family associates) as well as civil rights icons (Martin Luther King Jr., the Chicago Seven, Leonard Peltier) — lays out the red carpet for scrutiny and criticism, and “William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe” doesn’t shy away from taking hard looks at what made Kunstler tick during different missions in different eras. Those hungry for nepotistic payback won’t get it here, because Kunstler’s daughters appear to have created “Universe” out of their own fascination than because of any bone they have to pick. But the daughters, who provide some narration but mostly let interviews and footage do the talking, also don’t hide their misgivings about certain cases Kunstler took or his motivations for taking him. The end result is surprisingly evenhanded without ever losing its point of view. That works just fine, too: Kunstler’s resume is all the fascination this one needs, and attempts to cloud it with personal baggage would only get in the way.
Extras: Additional Kunstler speeches, interviews and performances, home movies, courtroom audio and footage, filmmakers interview.