“Nacho Libre”For his follow up to “Napoleon Dynamite,” writer-director Jared Hess essentially does “Nacho Napoleon Dynamite,” transplanting things south of the border for another tale of odd outsiders finding kinship. With a shock of hair reminiscent of Napoleon’s, Jack Black stars as a cook at a Mexican orphanage who moonlights as a masked lucha libre wrestler to buy better food for the kids and earn respect for himself. And, like Napoleon, he finds a stoic sidekick and strikes up a chaste relationship with a wallflower, in this case one of the orphanage nuns. Black and his producing partner, co-writer Mike White, join Hess for audio commentary. The DVD also has deleted scenes and five behind-the-scenes featurettes. DVD, $29.99. (Paramount) Read the review
“Monster House”
Something different rises up among this year’s rush of animated movies featuring cute talking animals. This one’s a story about humans, created through the same motion-capture technique used in the holiday tale “The Polar Express,” in which live actors are filmed with dozens of infrared cameras that render 3-D images of movements and facial expressions, which animators use as the basis for the finished characters. The story centers on three intrepid kids who try to unravel the spooky mysteries lurking in the home of a crazy old recluse. The DVD comes with seven featurettes examining the technology and methods of motion-capture, along with commentary from the filmmakers. The movie is available in regular DVD format or as a high-definition Blu-Ray disc. DVD, $28.95; Blu-Ray disc, $38.95. (Sony) Read the review
“Astaire and Rogers: The Complete Film Collection”Following up on an earlier five-film collection, all 10 of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers’ song-and-dance collaborations are gathered in a 12-disc set: “Top Hat,” “Swing Time,” “Follow the Fleet,” “Shall We Dance,” “The Barkleys of Broadway,” “Carefree,” “Flying Down to Rio,” “The Gay Divorcee,” “Roberta” and “The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle.” The films are accompanied by vintage shorts and cartoons, plus a new documentary on Astaire and Rogers. If you already bought the “Volume 1” boxed set, “Volume 2” with the last five films is available separately. For those who bought the earlier set but want the whole thing in one tidy box, there’s a partial “Complete Film Collection” set for sale with the final five movies plus empty cases for the first five. The films also are available as single DVDs. “Complete Film Collection” DVD set, $119.98; “Volume 2” DVD set, $59.92; single DVDs, $19.97 each. (Warner Bros.)
TV on DVD:
“The Addams Family: Volume One” — The creepy and kooky family of the 1960s sitcom debuts on DVD. John Astin and Carolyn Jones star as Gomez and Morticia, heads of the macabre household that includes towering butler Lurch and a meandering severed hand. The three-disc set has 22 episodes, with two featurettes and commentary by Lisa Loring and Ken Weatherwax, who played the Addams children, and Felix Silla, who played Cousin Itt. DVD set, $29.98. (20th Century Fox)
“That’s My Bush!” — “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone spoofed sitcoms and the White House with this short-lived 2001 comedy about the wacky domestic life of George W. Bush (Timothy Bottoms). The two-disc set has all eight episodes, plus commentary with Parker, Stone and cast members. DVD set, $26.99. (Paramount)
“The O.C.: The Complete Third Season” — The glitzy soap opera continues among teens and their families in the swanky environs of southern California’s Orange County. A seven-disc set packs all 25 episodes from season three, plus three featurettes and commentary from creator Josh Schwartz. DVD set, $69.98. (Warner Bros.)
“The L Word: The Complete Third Season” — America’s favorite circle of lesbian friends and lovers returns in the show set among a hip group of Los Angeles residents looking for romance. All 12 episodes from season three are included in a four-disc set, along with a handful of featurettes. DVD set, $69.99. (Showtime)
“Creature Comforts: The Complete Second Season” — Aardman Animation, creators of “Chicken Run” and “Wallace & Gromit,” presents its latest clay-animated tales, featuring dogs, cats, penguins and other critters speaking out on the animal issues of the day. Season two’s 12 episodes come in a two-disc set. DVD set, $24.96. (Sony)
“Wings: The Complete Third Season” — The goofy gang at a small Nantucket airport takes off for another season. The four-disc set has year three’s 22 episodes of the show featuring Tim Daly, Steven Weber, Thomas Haden Church and Tony Shalhoub. DVD set, $42.99. (Paramount)
“Bewitched: The Complete Fourth Season” — The ‘60s sitcom stars Elizabeth Montgomery as the well-meaning witch turned housewife, Dick York as her mere mortal husband and Agnes Moorehead as the mother-in-law from hell. Season four’s 22 episodes come in a four-disc set. DVD set, $39.95. (Sony)
“The Facts of Life: The Complete Third Season” — Charlotte Rae is the mentoring house mother for a group of girls at a boarding house in the 1980s sitcom. A three-disc set has year three’s 24 episodes. DVD set, $29.95. (Sony)
“Sesame Street: Old School — Volume 1, 1969-74” — A three-disc set packs the 1969 pilot plus the season premieres from the next four years of the venerable children’s show. The set includes other highlights from the first five seasons, with such guests as Jackie Robinson, Bill Cosby, Johnny Cash and Carol Burnett. DVD set, $39.98. (Sony Wonder)
“SCTV: Best of the Early Years” — Before it became a 90-minute late-night classic of network sketch comedy, “SCTV” began as a half-hour Canadian show that later was syndicated to U.S. stations. A three-disc set has 15 of the best episodes from the early days, featuring John Candy, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas. DVD set, $39.98. (Shout)
“Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: Season Two — Volume One” — The souped-up submarine Seaview is back in action in Irwin Allen’s 1960s undersea adventure. The first 13 episodes from season two are collected in a three-disc set. DVD set, $29.98. (20th Century Fox)
Other new releases:
“An American Haunting” — Sissy Spacek and Donald Sutherland star in the story of a 19th century farmer’s daughter (Rachel Hurd-Wood) who’s the focus of manifestations by a wicked spirit. Available in the PG-13 theatrical release or an unrated version, the DVD has deleted scenes and commentary with director Courtney Solomon. DVD, $28.98. (Lionsgate) Read the review
“The Road to Guantanamo” — Directors Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross mix interviews with real people and dramatizations to spin a powerful story about three British Muslims caught in the crossfire in Afghanistan and held for two years without charges in the U.S. military prison in Cuba. DVD, $24.96. (Sony) Read the review
“Slither” — Nathan Fillion heads a cast of small-town yokels battling killer slugs from space in this gory spoof of horror conventions. Fillion and writer-director James Gunn team for commentary, and the DVD has deleted footage and making-of featurettes. The movie comes in DVD format or in a combo disc with the DVD release and HD DVD high-definition version. DVD, $29.98; HD-DVD disc, $39.98. (Universal) Read the review