New On DVD and Blu-ray disc

New On DVD and Blu-ray disc

By Christopher Smith

Recommended:

Apparently, this week, it’s all about Steve Carell, who teams up with Tina Fey on DVD and Blu-ray disc in the funny comedy “Date Night.”

Here, the actors are featured as a couple sandbagged by the life they created for themselves. They’re married. They have demanding children. They have exhausting jobs. And guess what? They’re exhausted because of it. They also have a weekly date night, which is meant to steal them away from this tedium, if only for a few hours, so they can reconnect. And yet even their date nights are rimmed with tin. Same restaurant. Same food. Same wine. Nothing special.

Until one night they take to New York City, where trouble awaits thanks to a case of mistaken identity. The chemistry between Carell and Fey is fire--they feed off each other, and thus feed audiences several big laughs in the process. Echoes of “The Out of Towners” abound, while a shirtless and beautifully deadpan Mark Wahlberg as one of Claire’s former, smoldering real estate clients adds to the lunacy. Joining him there are memorable supporting turns from James Franco and Mila Kunis as the thieves--Taste and Whippit.

On Blu-ray, also recommended this week is the 1972 Comedy “What’s Up, Doc?,” with Barbara Streisand and Ryan O’Neal; the Academy Award-winning dramedy “Fargo,” which always is worth a look; Sean Connery in the James Bond film “Never Say Never Again”; Kevin Costner, Tim Robins and Susan Sarandon in one of our baseball romantic comedies “Bull Durham”; Kurt Russell in the action movie “Escape from New York”; John Candy and Rick Moranis in Mel Brooks’ classic comedy, “Spaceballs”; and the sci-fi television show, “Stargate Universe: SGU: Season 1.5.”

Avoid:

It all can’t be good, and this week is a case in point. Titles you should run from are the Jim Carey comedies “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” and “Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls,” each on Blu-ray--and neither of which has held up. Joining it in the pound are “MetalStorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn,” the first season of “Trauma” and the risible documentary, “The Dungeon Masters.”