DVD Releases: August 26

[Sonnie]

Alfresco Two-disc set with 13 episodes of the British sketch comedy series from the 1980s; launched the careers of Emma Thompson, Hugh Laurie, Robbie Coltrane, Stephen Fry, Ben Elton, others; $39.99. Extras: "There's Nothing to Worry About" three-episode pilot series; story of alternative comedy boom in 1980s Britain. (Acorm Media).

Bakugan Chapter 1: Battle Brawlers Five episodes of the international anime success now airing on the Cartoon Network. Young warriors battle evil to save a parallel universe, $14.98. (Warner).

The Care Bears: Care-A-Lot Collection Two-disc set with 22 episodes, $22.98. Extras: Activity booklet filled with fun activities and games. (Fox).

The Color Honeymooners Collection #4 Three-disc set with 12 episodes of the Jackie Gleason show that aired from Miami Beach in 1966-70; $39.98. (MPI Home Video).

The Duchess of Duke Street: The Complete Collection Ten-disc set with all 31 episodes of the BBC/PBS Masterpiece Theatre series, $99.99. (Acorn Media).

Entourage: The Complete Fourth Season Three-disc set with 12 episodes, $39.98. Extras: Commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurette. (HBO Video).

Errol Flynn Westerns Collection Four-disc set with "Montana," "Rocky Mountain," "San Antonio," "Virginia City," $49.92. (Warner).

Everybody Hates Chris: The Third Season (2007-08) Four-disc set with 22 episodes, $39.99. (Paramount).

Funky Town, Volumes 1 Thirteen episodes of the animated series, $9.98. Extras: (PorchLight Home Entertainment).

Funky Town, Volumes 1 Fourteen episodes of the animated series, $9.98. Extras: (PorchLight Home Entertainment).

How the West Was Won (1962) John Ford (segment "The Civil War"), Henry Hathaway (segments "The Rivers," "The Plains" and "The Outlaws"), George Marshall (segment "The Railroad") Richard Thorpe (uncredited: transitional historical sequences); Carroll Baker, Lee J. Cobb, Henry Fonda, Carolyn Jones, Karl Malden, Gregory Peck, George Peppard, Robert Preston, Debbie Reynolds, James Stewart, Eli Wallach, John Wayne, Richard Widmark, Walter Brennan, Andy Devine, Raymond Massey, Agnes Moorehead, Harry Morgan, Thelma Ritter, Mickey Shaughnessy, Russ Tamblyn, Spencer Tracy. Restored and remastered from original three-panel Cinerama release. Two-disc special edition, Ultimate Collector's Edition, Blu-ray Disc. Extras: "Cinerama Adventure" documentary, making-of featurette, film historian commentary. Collector's edition includes a 36-page souvenir book reproduction, 10 behind-the-scenes photos and 10 postcards, original theatrical release pressbook reproduction. Also available as a two-disc Blu-ray edition. (Warner).

The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning (2008) Direct-to-video animated prequel.Extras:

My Sassy Girl (2008) Jesse Bradford, Elisha Cuthbert. Based on the graphic novel series, turned best-selling novel by Kim Ho-sik. A naive, buttoned-up Midwestern everyman meets a carefree, untamed girl after he rescues her from a near-drunken accident, and the two embark on a romantic roller coaster ride full of concussions, career sabotage, a few slaps in the face and, ultimately, love. (Fox).

NCIS: The Fifth Season (2007-08) Five-disc set with 18 episodes, $64.99. Extras: Featurettes: "NCIS on Location," "From Pauley to Abby: Hairspray, Lipstick and Tattoos," "The Dressing Room: The Costumes and Wardrobe of NCIS," "NCIS Season 5: Stem to Stern and Requiem Revisited," commentaries. (Paramount).

The Nightmare Before Christmas Collector's Edition (1993) Dir.: Henry Selick; voices of Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Paul Reubens. Digitally restored. Also available on Blu-ray Disc. (Disney)

No Blood No Tears (2002-South Korea) Do-yeon Jeon, Hye-yeong Lee. A jaded female cab driver is in trouble with the mob and when she meets the sexy girlfriend of a vicious gangster, an unlikely friendship forces them to take drastic measures -- to steal a ruthless loan shark's loot. (Genius Products).

One Tree Hill: The Complete Fifth Season Five-disc set with 18 episodes, $59.98. Extras: Unaired scenes, behind-the-scenes featurettes, commentaries, gag reel (Warner).

Pale Rider (1985) Dir,: Clint Eastwood; Clint Eastwood, Michael Moriarty, Carrie Snodgress, Chris Penn, Richard Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Douglas Mc Grath, Marvin J. Mc Intyre, Sydney Penny, Billy Drago. (Warner).

Phantasm IV: Oblivion (1998) Dir.: Don Coscarelli; A. Michael Baldwin, Bill Thornbury, Bannister, Angus Scrimm. In this uncut sequel, the original cast returns to undertake a surreal journey through the dimensions of time and space to understand the terrifying birthright of the Tall Man, as well as the origins of the infamous and lethal Sphere, ending with the Tall Man's final assault with his dark army, putting the future of the human race on the line. Extras: Commentary by writer-producer-director Don Coscarelli, retrospective featurette. (Anchor Bay).

Pope Dreams (2007) Phillip Vaden, Stephen Tobolowsky, Julie Hagerty, Marnette Patterson. Coming-of-age story about a directionless 19-year-old who works for his dad during the day and plays in a heavy metal band at night; his only clear goal is to get his ailing mother to meet the pope before she dies. Along the way he falls in love and gets discovered by two Broadway producers. (PorchLight Home Entertainment).

Postal (2008) Zack Ward, Dave Foley, Larry Thomas, Verne Troyer. Uwe Boll's controversial comedy about a cult leader, his nephew and a gang of sexy commandos who face off against the Taliban in Middle America. Unrated. Extras: "Raging Boll": the director boxes his critics; deleted scenes; commentary by Boll; Verne Troyer as Indiana Jones; more. Available in rated, unrated and Blu-ray Disc editions. (Vivendi Entertainment).

Puppy (2005) Nadia Townsend, Bernard Curry, Susan Ellis. When her sister kicks her out, Liz -- a young woman out only for herself -- is rescued from the streets by Aiden, a delusional tow-truck driver who's convinced she's his runaway wife ... and he's intent on making sure she doesn't leave him again. (Dokument Films/MPI Home Video).

Purple Violets (2007) Dir.: Edward Burns; Selma Blair, Patrick Wilson, Edward Burns, Debra Messing, Dennis Farina. Infidelity, first loves and second chances are complexly intertwined in this comedy set in The Big Apple. A one-time promising writer saddled with a cheating husband, a successful crime novelist who lacks significant literary distinction, a tough-talking schoolteacher still smarting from a decade-old break-up and a smooth-talking lawyer determined to win back the one that got away, all seek to regain control of their lives. (The Weinstein Co./Genius Products).

Redbelt (2008) Chiwetel Ejiofor, Alice Braga, Tim Allen, Emily Mortimer, Rodrigo Santoro, Rebecca Pidgeon, Randy Couture. Extras: Commentary by director David Mamet and Randy Couture, "Behind-the-Scenes of Redbelt" featurette, "Inside Mixed Martial Arts" cast and crew featurette, Q & A with Mamet, conversation with UFC president Dana White, "Fighter Profiles," "The Magic of Cyril Takayama featurette on the magician-actor. Also available on Blu-ray Disc. (Sony).

The Real McCain (2008) Maverick or flip-flopper? Robert Greenwald 's new documentary sheds light on John McCain's "straight talk," politics and policies. $9.95. (The Disinformation Company).

Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975 -- Italy) Pier Paolo Pasolini's notorious final film transposes the Marquis de Sade's 18th-century opus of torture and degradation to 1944 Fascist Italy. New, restored high-definition digital transfer. Extras: "The End of Salo," a 40-minute documentary about the film's final scene; "Salo: Yesterday and Today," a 35-minute documentary featuring interviews with Pier Paolo Pasolini, actor-filmmaker Jean-Claude Biette, and Pasolini's friend Nineto Davoli; new interviews with set designer Dante Ferretti and filmmaker/film scholar Jean-Pierre Gorin; booklet featuring new essays by Neil Bartlett, Roberto Chiesi, Naomi Greene, Gary Indiana, and Sam Rohdie, and excerpts from Gideon Bachman's on-set diary. (The Criterion Collection).

The Shield: The Complete Sixth Season Four-disc set with 10 episodes, $59.95. Extras: Three featurettes: "Saturn's Sons," "Two Directors" and "Full Circle: Franka Potente," commentary on select episodes, deleted scenes. (Sony).

Terry Pratchett's Discworld Collection (2007) Animated adaptations of two of Terry Pratchett's sci-fi fantasy books featuring a world of funny wizards, witches, dwarfs, trolls and giants: "Wyrd Sisters: and "Soul Music." A two-disc set, $39.99. Extras: Story boards, interview with Pratchett, bio, more. (Acorn Media).

The Three Stooges Collection: 1940-1942, Volume Three Two-disc set with 23 digitally-restored shorts, arranged chronologically, $24.96. (Sony).

Uncounted (2008) The 2004 Presidential election gave America its first comprehensive look at electronic voting machines. Unfortunately, it seems that a paper ballot wasn't the only thing missing. Like many Americans, Emmy Award-winning director David Earnhardt was perplexed on election night '04 as the outcome clearly didn't match up with exit polls. This prompted the Nashville-based filmmaker to embark on a three-year journey to answer one fundamental question: was our most recent presidential election stolen and, if so, how? $19.95. (The Disinformation Company).

The Untouchables: Season Two, Volume Two (1961) Four-disc set, $42.99. (Paramount).

Warner Home Video Western Classics Collection Six-disc set with "Escape From Fort Bravo," "Many Rivers to Cross," "Cimarron" "The Law and Jake Wade," "Saddle the Wind," "The Stalking Moon," $59.92. (Warner).

What Happens In Vegas (2008) Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher, Rob Corddry, Lake Bell, Michelle Krusiec, Dennis Farina, Krysten Ritter, Jason Sudeikis, Queen Latifah, Zach Galifianakis, Treat Williams. Extras: Commentary by director Tom Vaughan, "Sitting Down With Cameron and Ashton" featurette, "From the Law Firm of Stephen J. Hader, Esq." featurette, "DVD Extra Time With Zach Galifianakis," gag reel, "An Inside Look at 'Marley and Me'," digital copy. Available as a single DVD, in an Extended "Jackpot" Edition two-disc DVD set, and on Blu-ray Disc. (Fox).

Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden? (2008) Tongue-in-cheek yet thought-provoking documentary by writer-director Morgan Spurlock. Amazed by Osama bin Laden's continued success at evading capture, a gung-ho Spurlock sets out with virtually no military experience or expertise to find the man that numerous government agencies and bounty hunters have been unable to locate. But before he can begin the hunt for bin Laden, Spurlock must first learn where the man came from, what makes him tick, and what historical forces made him the person he is today. Taking it to the streets and speaking one-on-one with people in Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel, Pakistan and international hotspots throughout the Middle East, Spurlock will stop at nothing in his effort to make the world a safer place for his family. Extras: Alternate ending: Western Showdown, "Three Girls Saudi," "Martin McGuinness," "Watergate," "Saad Ibrahim," "Shimon Peres," "Afghan Animation." (The Weinstein Co./Genius Products).