It’d be a lot easier to tell you what’s not worth checking out this week than it is to point you to the gems. Among other things, this week sees the release of three of 2009’s best films: the sharp indie comedy Humpday, the moody Korean vampire romance Thirst, and the rousing summer blockbuster Star Trek. Television aficionados are well-served this week too, beginning with the DVD premiere of the It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia Christmas special, and continuing with complete series sets of Rome, The Sopranos and the short-lived Andy Barker, P.I.. Devotees of art-cinema should definitely pick up both the anthology Avant-Garde 3: Experimental Cinema 1922-1954 and the packed two-disc edition of the early ‘60s LA slice-of-life The Exiles (which includes bonus short films and documentaries by and about the movie’s writer-director Kent MacKenzie). Finally, fans of documentaries will have their hands full with Patricio Guzman’s ‘70s trilogy The Battle For Chile and the controversial Lil’ Wayne cinema verité piece The Carter. (Both docs are, in their own way, brutal but revealing.)
American Venus
MPI, $19.98
Andy Barker, P.I.: The Complete Series
Shout! Factory, $24.99
Avant-Garde 3: Experimental Cinema 1922-1954
Kino, $29.95
The Battle Of Chile
Icarus, $44.98
Blue Seduction
Starz/Anchor Bay, $26.97
Bruno
Universal, $29.98; Blu-ray, $39.98
The Canyon
Magnolia, $26.98
The Carter
Virgil, $19.99