New on DVD: April 17

PICK OF THE WEEK

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Tom Cruise is back as secret agent Ethan Hunt, whose IM Force (including Simon Pegg and Paula Patton) is disbanded when they are implicated in the bombing of the Russian Kremlin. With nowhere else to turn, they are forced to work even further outside the law in order to clear their names and find the true criminal mastermind (Michael Nykvist of the original Girl with the Dragon Tattoo film). With the addition of Hurt Locker’s Jeremy Renner and the directorial debut of The Incredibles’ Brad Bird, this latest entry in the long-running franchise is a mind-boggling thrill-ride that most other action films can only aspire to become. EXTRAS include deleted scenes, features on filming in Vancouver and Dubai and more. (Paramount)

Shame

Steve McQueen (not the late actor, but the director of such films as Hunger) directed this controversial drama about Brandon (Michael Fassbender), a young New York businessman whose attempt to control his sexual urges begins to drive his life out of control, especially after his beautiful sister (Carey Mulligan) moves in with him. (Alliance)

Born to be Wild

This IMAX documentary, narrated by the soothing voice of Morgan Freeman, will soften even the hardest heart and likely not leave a dry eye in the house as it follows a group of people who struggle in the rainforests of Borneo and the dry Kenyan savannah in order to rescue and rehabilitate orphaned baby orangutans and elephants and return them to the wild. This is also available in a 3D blu-ray combo pack as well. (Warner)

The Divide

Fans of obscure foreign horror will recognize the name of director Xavier Gens, who helmed the 2007 French film Frontiere(s). For this film, Gens tells the claustrophobic tale of a group of nuclear-war survivors (including Rosanna Arquette and Heroes’ Milo Ventimiglia) who are holed up in the basement of their apartment building. (Anchor Bay)

7 Below

On the 100^th anniversary of a terrifying event, a group of strangers (including Val Kilmer and Ving Rhames) find themselves trapped in a time-warped house of horrors. (Alliance)

Girl Fight

Jodelle Ferland (Cabin in the Woods) stars in this “ripped from the headlines” thriller about an unpopular teenage girl who wants nothing more than to be part of the trendy clique at her high school. But when negative rumours about her come back to haunt her, she is targeted with a public humiliation that becomes widespread via the internet. (eOne)

An Invisible Sign

Jessica Alba stars in this quirky film about a lonely young woman whose obsession with numbers leads her to becoming an elementary school math teacher. Chris Messina (Damages) is the science teacher that tries to win her heart. (eOne)

Roger Corman Cult Classics: The Nurses Collection

This collection of sexy “nurse” movies from the 1970s probably steamed up more than their fair share of car windows during their run at the drive-ins and now you can relive those daring flicks again with this marathon of four “classic” Roger Corman cheapies. You get Candy Stripe Nurses (1974), Night Call Nurses (1972), Private Duty Nurses (1971) and The Young Nurses (1973). You pretty much get the picture from the titles: hot young nurses get into all kinds of trouble in and out of their uniforms where plot takes a backseat to gratuitous everything else. This 2-DVD set also contains new interviews with producer Corman, his wife and producing partner Julie Corman; as well as directors Jonathan Kaplan and Allan Holleb. (Shout Factory)

MUSIC ON DVD:

Jeff Healey: Live in Belgium (Eagle Rock)

This world-renowned Canadian blues guitarist (who passed away in 2008 when the cancer that took his eyes as a child returned) is probably best remembered by the vast majority of the public for his crossover hit “Angel Eyes” or his appearance in the Patrick Swayze cult classic Road House. This concert DVD/CD set was recorded in 19 at the Peer Blues Festival in Belgium and contains a set of smoking hot numbers including “Roadhouse Blues”, “Confidence Man” and more. (Eagle Rock)

TV ON DVD:

Treme: Season Two

Picking up about eight months after the conclusion of its first season this post-Katrina New Orleans series returns with more of the drama, heart and music that made it an instant hit last year. It’s been just over a year since the hurricane ravaged the historic city and things aren’t much better for its beleaguered citizens (including mouthy radical Steve Zahn, hard-working lawyer Melissa Leo, and resilient bar owner Khandi Alexander) as they still try to rebuild their lives despite rising crime and decreasing national attention to their plight.  While recurring characters played by David Morse (Hurt Locker) and India Ennenga became regulars this season, the burning question still remains about what happened to Creighton Bernette (John Goodman). This 4-disc set contains all 11 episodes with EXTRAS that include features on the music, commentaries and more. (Warner)

Bob’s Burgers: The Complete First Season

Created by Loren Bouchard (Home Movies; Dr. Katz), this animated series follows a family (With voices provided by comedians like H. Jon Benjamin and Eugene Mirman) trying to run a low-rent burger joint while never giving up on the dreams of success. This 2-disc set features all 13 episodes. (Fox)

Ice Road Truckers: Season 5

This 4-DVD set contains 16 more episodes of death-defying drivers making their way through some of the most treacherous terrain on earth including two different teams of truckers: one covering Alaska and the other remote Manitoba. (eOne)

Frozen Planet: The Complete Series

Unlike the American release which was voiced by Alec Baldwin, David Attenborough narrates this stunning look at what goes on above and below the ice of the coldest parts of the world from the makers of the award-winning Planet Earth. Using the latest in film technology and a shooting schedule of over 2,000 days (including 134 of them under the sea), this epic series captures moments that have never been seen on camera before including the birth of a tiny polar bear – which is 25% smaller than a human baby – as well as the “birth” of an iceberg – which is bigger than the largest building on earth – as well as many other unforgettable moments. All 7 episodes (including the controversial final one on global warming) are included here. (Warner)

Conan the Adventurer, Season 2, Part 2 (Shout! Factory)

In the early 1990s, animation studio Sunbow Productions (Transformers; My Little Pony) took Robert E. Howard’s classic character and brought him into Saturday morning territory. In this version, Conan’s blacksmith father used meteor pieces to create a magical sword for his son, but when an evil wizard called Wrath-Amon learned of it, he turned Conan’s entire family into stone leaving the young warrior and his powerful friends to hunt down the wizard and save his family. This 2-DVD set contains the final 13 episodes of the series. (Shout Factory)

Murdoch Mysteries: Season 1 (Blu ray)

Set during the Victorian-era, this Canadian mystery series stars Yannick Bisson as William Murdoch, a Toronto police detective who uses cutting-edge (for the time) criminology to solve unusual (sometimes seemingly supernatural) cases which often have him rubbing shoulders with the famous (like Nikola Tesla and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle). This 3-disc set (released for the first time in Blu-ray) contains all 13 episodes from the first season. (Acorn)

Skins: Season 1

This Canadian-filmed version of the award-winning British drama takes no prisoners in its controversial subject matters of sex, drugs and more sex. Following the misadventures of a group of high-school friends through what is arguably the most difficult time of their lives, it promises to keep up the standards of the original (even having the pilot co-written by the original series co-creator Bryan Elsley), while giving this show an honest North American edge. Unfortunately, this version didn’t have the charm or the impact that the original did and lasted only this one season of which all 10 episodes are available here on 2 DVDs. (eOne)

Secret War

This 13-episode documentary series (which uses a combination of archival footage and new interviews with surviving members) tells the thrilling and fascinating true story of Winston Churchill’s creation of the British Special Operations Executive (or SOE) during the Second World War that was established to put highly trained spies to work in order to bring the enemies down and end the war. (Acorn)