VIDEO CHARTS : Streisand Soars Over Dunaway, Streep

Of the three veteran actresses playing unflattering roles in prominent (and depressing) dramas in new video releases, rental audiences prefer Barbra Streisand as the somewhat demented hooker in “Nuts,” which hit No. 4 on the Billboard magazine rental chart this week. The strong lure of Streisand--some people will see her in anything --is primarily responsible for the rental success of “Nuts.” But renters still aren’t clamoring to see Faye Dunaway as a drunk in “Barfly” (No. 18) or Meryl Streep as a transient in “Ironweed” (No. 16). “Cry Freedom,” the South African apartheid drama starring Kevin Kline and Denzel Washington, is up one notch to No. 22.

Rental Weeks Sales Top Ranking On Rental Chart Rentals Last Week Chart Ranking 1. “Fatal Attraction” 1 5 12 (Paramount) 2. “Full Metal Jacket” 4 2 11 (Warner Home Video) 3. “Throw Momma From the Train” 2 6 -- (Orion) 4. “Nuts” 7 3 -- (Warner Home Video) 5. “Overboard” 5 4 -- (CBS-Fox) * “The Couch Trip” 18 2 37 (Orion)

* Critics’ anti-kudos appear to have hurt Dan Aykroyd’s “The Couch Trip.” An Aykroyd picture usually does better than this one is doing (now at No. 15), but initial bad reviews and a lack of market awareness seem to be keeping renters away.