A dignified sense of justice
New on Blu-ray
RBG Magnolia DVD, $26; Blu-ray, $29.98; also available on VOD
This year has seen a number of unexpectedly profitable documentaries, and none more surprising thanthis moving profile of octogenarian Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Co-directed by Betsy West and Julie Cohen, the film tracks Ginsburg’s quiet rise through the legal ranks, via a handful of her most famous cases — each of which she used to push the laws of the land toward an unconditional recognition of gender equality.The little history lessons in “RBG” are fascinating, though perhaps the biggest reason the movie’s become so popular is that it’s just as engaged with Ginsburg’s personal life, revealing how this reserved, dignified woman benefited from a loving and supportive husband and family. Special features: Deleted scenes and extended interviews VOD Active Measures Available Friday
Now that the media and citizenry are starting to reckon with the full extent of foreign intervention in the American political process, we can expect to see a lot more documentaries like Jack Bryan’s blood-boiling “Active Measures.” With the help of some high-profile interview subjects (including John McCain and Hillary Clinton), Bryan spends nearly two hours laying out the case that Russian leaders and oligarchs have been working for decades to corrupt, compromise and hinder their counterparts in the United States, to the ultimate end of neutralizing western influence abroad. Whether you buy the argument or not, the volume of evidence and level of detail here is impressive, making “Active Measures” a good primer on a complex issue. TV set of the week Freedom Fighters: The Ray Warner Bros. DVD, $18.94; Blu-ray, $19.98; also available on VOD Another fine addition to the CW’s “Arrowverse” superhero franchise, this animated series tells of a meek Oklahoma lawyer who gains superpowers and then is immediately drawn into a bloody revolution on a Nazi-controlled alternate Earth. While leaning heavily on some lesser-known DC Comics heroes — including Phantom Lady and Black Condor — “The Ray” weaves in the usual Arrowverse themes of strength-through-teamwork and cultural diversity. The Ray himself (voiced by Russell Tovey) is a semi-closeted gay man, and between the fascist-fighting action, the series derives some drama from whether the hero will come out to his parents or feel comfortable enough with who he is to ask someone out on a date. Special features: A Tovey interview From the archives Tucker: The Man And His Dream Lionsgate Blu-ray, $14.99
Francis Ford Coppola directed four of the best movies of the 1970s — the first two parts of “The Godfather,” plus “The Conversation” and “Apocalypse Now” — then stumbled a bit through the ’80s, alternating between ambitious flops and slick crowd-pleasers. He closed out the decade with another masterpiece, under appreciated at the time. The 1988 biopic “Tucker: A Man and His Dream” uses the life of independent car designer Preston Tucker as a study in how the gears of American business chew up and spit out true geniuses. The metaphor’s grim, but the movie’s incredibly entertaining, with a shiny look, a breathless pace and a winning lead performance by Jeff Bridges as Tucker. Special features: A Coppola commentary track, deleted scenes, a vintage Tucker promotional film and a retrospective featurette Three more to see American Animals Lionsgate DVD, $19.33; Blu-ray, $21.99; also available on VOD Book Club Paramount DVD, $18.99; Blu-ray, $24.99; also available on VOD Tag Warner Bros. DVD, $19.99; Blu-ray, $35.99; also available on VOD