New on DVD
The Ides of March
Sony, $30.99; Blu-ray, $35.99
Writer-director-producer-star George Clooney’s adaptation of Beau Willimon’s play “Farragut North” stars Ryan Gosling as an idealistic political consultant who believes deeply in his candidate (played by Clooney) until he discovers that even doing what’s right in politics requires too much compromise. Clooney has assembled a terrific cast (including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood), and “The Ides of March” goes down easily, with a sophisticated bustle and a strong third-act twist. But it all feels a bit inconsequential, more about the piddly aspects of politics than big issues. The DVD and Blu-ray add four featurettes and commentary track by Clooney and his co-producer/co-writer Grant Heslov.
Abduction
Lionsgate, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.99
“Twilight” heartthrob Taylor Lautner makes a weak stab at becoming an action star with “Abduction,” a sluggish, preposterous thriller in which Lautner plays a high school student who discovers that the parents he’s always known are not his real parents and that he’s actually been hidden away all these years from Eastern European terrorists. It takes almost a third of “Abduction” before the plot kicks in, at which point we’re left with Lautner’s knitted brow and mumbly voice as he races in search of the truth. The action is generic, the characters flat and the performances wooden, forgettable from top to bottom. The DVD and Blu-ray come with featurettes and a blooper reel.
Courageous
Sony, $30.99; Blu-ray, $35.99
The Christian-themed indie company Sherwood Pictures follows up its stealth hit “Fireproof” with another preachy action picture: “Courageous,” about a group of Georgia deputies who commit to becoming better fathers after one of their own suffers a devastating loss. The main Sherwood creative team of Alex and Stephen Kendrick have gotten better at stringing clichés into effective, professional-looking melodrama, but the programmatic nature of their films still makes them hard to take seriously. When every scene aims toward delivering a scriptural message, the characters and the drama don’t have enough room to breathe. The Kendrick brothers provide a commentary track to the “Courageous” DVD and Blu-ray, which also include deleted scenes, bloopers and featurettes.
The Tuskegee Airmen
HBO Blu-ray, $14.98
The upcoming World War II action movie “Red Tails” isn’t the first feature film about the pioneering African American Air Force unit. In 1995, HBO produced “The Tuskegee Airmen,” a well-received made-for-TV movie starring Laurence Fishburne, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Andre Braugher and a pre-Oscar Cuba Gooding Jr. as cadets going through grueling training to earn the right to fight for a country that at the time wasn’t sure that blacks were competent enough to fly a plane, let alone serve in combat. Though “The Tuskegee Airmen” is very much in the prestige-picture mold — imparting lessons, touching hearts — the cast is phenomenal, and the story inspirational. The new Blu-ray edition doesn’t have special features, but any opportunity to see this fine film again is one worth taking.
And…
Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star
Sony, $30.99; Blu-ray, $35.99
Dirty Girl
Starz/Anchor Bay, $29.98
Killing Bono
Arc, $22.99
Mysteries of Lisbon
Music Box, $34.95; Blu-ray, $43.95
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