Ride along with the risk-taking ‘Valerian’
New on Blu-ray
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets Lionsgate DVD, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.99; 4K, $42.99; also available on VOD
American audiences didn’t exactly rush out to see the mega-budget sciencefiction adventure “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” this past summer, but mere box-office failure doesn’t make this zesty adaptation of a classic European comic a bust. International action maestro Luc Besson brings the same wild visual imagination to “Valerian” that made his “The Fifth Element” and “Lucy” genre classics; and into that spectacle he drops Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne, playing 28th century special agents who zip through time and space to solve complicated problems. With a colorful cast that includes Clive Owen, Ethan Hawke, Rihanna, and Rutger Hauer, this movie’s so busy and weird that it won’t be to every taste. But it’s the kind of big swing that more blockbuster filmmakers should take. Special features: An extensive behind-the-scenes documentary
VOD Cuba and the Cameraman Available on Netflix on Nov. 21
Over the course of 45 years, award-winning documentarian Jon Alpert took periodic trips to Cuba, where he made friends with the locals and even developed a rapport with Fidel Castro. The decades-in-themaking documentary “Cuba and the Cameraman” compiles footage from Alpert’s many visits, turning those clips into a lively and enlightening portrait of a country that remains a mystery to many Americans. By meeting the same people over and over — Castro included — the filmmaker has tracked how the fortunes of the island have fluctuated from the early ’70s to now, as food
TV set of the week The Fall Complete Collection Acorn DVD, $69.99; Blu-ray, $69.99
The BBC has a wellearned reputation for airing hard-boiled, refreshingly adult crime dramas, like the excellent “The Fall,” a 17-episode serial killer thriller created by Allan Cubitt, a former “Prime Suspect” writer. Gillian Anderson plays a police detective who arrives in Belfast, Ireland, to investigate a murder she’s sure is part of a larger pattern. Jamie Dornan plays the man she’s looking for: a genteel but deeply troubled soul who proves hard to catch. Over the course of three seasons, “The Fall” told this unlikely duo’s story in full, delving into their personal lives while considering how the justice system both helps and hinders us all. Special features: Deleted scenes and featurettes
From the archives My Journey Through French Cinema Cohen DVD, $25.99; Blu-ray, $30.99
Like Martin Scorsese’s essential cine-essays “Personal Journey Through American Cinema” and “My Voyage to Italian Cinema,” director Bertrand Tavernier’s “My Journey Through French Cinema” is a simultaneously analytical and personal reflection on the movies he grew up with, from the 1930s to the early ’70s. While guiding the viewer through the huge changes that took place between World War I and the arrival of the New Wave, Tavernier also takes deep dives into some of his favorite screen artists — from directors Jacques Becker and Jean Renoir to some of the best actors and composers of his generation. The result is a fine education, ideal even for cinephiles who think they know everything about classic foreign films. Special features: A bonus Tavernier interview
Three more to see
Beach Rats Universal DVD, $22.98; Blu-ray, $29.98; also available on VOD Good Time Lionsgate DVD, $19.98; Blu-ray, $24.99; also available on VOD The Hitman’s Bodyguard Lionsgate DVD, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.99; also available on VOD