NEW ON DVD AND BLU-RAY:

“PIRATE RADIO,” starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Bill Nighy. This super-fun ode to old-school rock ‘n’ roll insubordination ’60s-style finds the always welcome Nighy (“Notes on a Scandal”) leading a merry band of drug-fueled DJs in defying the BBC’s crackdown on rock music by broadcasting the devil’s music from a boat out on the North Sea. Rounding out the roster of soused spinners are Hoffman and Rhys Ifans (“Notting Hill”) as a pair of feuding mic men. Rambunctious and hilarious, “Pirate Radio” is another sprawling, winning comedy from director Richard Curtis (“Love, Actually”). Special features include interviews with cast and crew and deleted scenes. Rated R for language, and for some sexual content including brief nudity. Running time: 1:56.

Suggested retail price: DVD $29.98; Blu-ray $36.98. 

NEW ON DVD:

“TENDERNESS,” starring Russell Crowe, Jon Foster and Sophie Traub. Directed by John Polson and based on the novel by Robert Cormier. Traub steals the show by playing an abused teen who chases after a young serial killer with whom she is obsessed. Crowe is the cop trying to figure it out. Rated R for disturbing violent and sexual content, and language. Running time: 1:41.

Suggested retail price: $29.98 

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“DEFENDOR,” starring Woody Harrelson and Elias Koteas. Unsettling dark comedy of sorts follows damaged citizen Harrelson donning an extremely unprofessional getup to become the title’s would-be superhero, setting out to rid his city of an ever-increasing criminal element. Aiding him in his quest is Kat Dennings (“Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist”) as a crack-addicted prostitute who forms a bond with the well-meaning if poorly equipped crusader. The tonal mishmash may put off some audiences, but overall “Defendor” is a worthy character study with a cast fully up to the challenge, with particularly strong work from the always interesting Harrelson. Special features include deleted scenes and outtakes. Rated R for drug use and language throughout, violence and sexual content. Running time: 1:35.

Suggested retail price: $24.96. 

“THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE: MYSTERY IN THE MIST EDITION,” animated with the voices of Vincent Price and Basil Rathbone. Hot on the heels of Guy Ritchie’s update of “Sherlock Holmes” comes this re-release of the underrated Disneyfied take on the beloved sleuth from 1986, which of course casts animated mice as thinly veiled versions of Doyle-antiquated gumshoes investigating the kidnapping of a toymaker. At once cute and classy, “Detective” is the perfect tonic for parents tired of “squeakuels.” Special features include a making-of featurette. Rated G. Running time: 1:14.

Suggested retail price: $19.99. 

NEW ON BLU-RAY:

“APOLLO 13: 15TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION,” starring Tom Hanks and Kevin Bacon. Director Ron Howard’s fact-based 1995 blockbuster about the ill-fated moon mission of the title is tailor-made for Blu-ray technology, replete with an excellent making-of documentary and two commentaries — one from Howard and one from Jim and Marilyn Lovell, who lived the tale. Rated PG for language and emotional intensity. Running time: 2:20.

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Suggested retail price: $26.98. 

“GONE WITH THE WIND: THE SCARLETT EDITION,” starring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh. The windswept epic to end all windswept epics, “Gone With the Wind” pushed the boundaries of film possibility like none before and few since, and its beautifully lensed portrait of love amidst the Civil War remains thrilling and affecting to this day. Furthermore, Gable’s machismo level has yet to be topped onscreen; he’s a manly force to be reckoned with. Old-fashioned silver-screen spectacle at its best. Special features include extensive making-of featurettes. Rated G, contains violence and mild language. Running time 3:58.

Suggested retail price: $49.99. 

“A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET,” starring Robert Englund and Heather Langenkamp. The ’80s horror phenomenon (soon to be reintroduced to audiences via an undoubtedly underwhelming remake) that ushered dream-infiltrating, razor-fingernailed janitor Freddy Krueger (the inimitable Englund) into pop-culture history finally arrives on Blu-ray this week, along with two commentaries and a making-of featurette. Better than it’s given credit for (the silly if undeniably entertaining sequels don’t help its cause), “Nightmare” is well worth revisiting for horror fans. Rated R for language, nudity, violence and gore. Running time: 1:31.

Suggested retail price: $24.98. 

VIDEOPORT PICKS:

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“HAPPY ENDINGS?” This eye-opening documentary from first-timer Tara Hurley hinges its expose on one surprising and evidently little-known fact: under certain circumstances, it is legal to work in the sex industry in Providence, R.I. “Happy Endings?” focuses on the contradictions inherent in the massage parlor industry, wherein clients can pay a masseuse extra in exchange for sexual favors. Comparing interviews with politicians, pimps and masseuses alike (sometimes splicing wildly divergent conversations from both sides of a particular argument together, in one of Hurley’s most effective techniques), the film succeeds in humanizing a widely demonized enterprise, presenting the issue from all angles as opposed to following an agenda. Compelling and, dare we say, touching. Not rated, contains language and sexual content. Running time: 1:21.

Suggested retail price: $24.99. 

“THE SLAMMIN’ SALMON,” starring Michael Clarke Duncan and Jay Chandrasekhar. We at Videoport have long sung the praises of comedy troupe Broken Lizard, an ingratiating five-man team probably best known for 2001’s cult hit “Super Troopers,” a laid-back goof about incredibly negligent Vermont cops that remains one of our top comedy section renters. Although perfectly willing to engage in the type of crass tomfoolery and bathroom humor prevalent in comedies today, the Broken Lizard guys prefer to mine humor from oddball characters dropped into chaotically surreal situations, and then let them flail their way out via slapstick and some of the best left-field one-liners in the business.

This time around, the Lizards are working for Duncan (“The Green Mile”), a former heavyweight champion-turned-restaurant owner determined to make enough money in a single night to pay off a gambling debt, and resorting to threats of violence if his waiters don’t milk the customers for all they’re worth. The jokes never really let up, with more misses than hits overall, and Duncan proves a comic revelation as the boss from hell. Criminally underpromoted, “Salmon” is Broken Lizard’s most consistent effort since “Troopers.” Rated R for pervasive language and sexual references. Running time: 1:30.

Suggested retail price: DVD $29.98; Blu-ray $34.98. 

 


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