'The Princess and the Frog'

‘The Princess and the Frog’

By Noel Murray

March 14, 2010 12 AM PT

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The Princess and the Frog

Walt Disney, $29.99; Blu-ray, $39.99/$44.99

Walt Disney Animation Studios returns to traditional hand-drawn animation with “The Princess and the Frog,” an update of the fairy tale classic that has the royalty turning amphibian instead of vice versa. The story lurches to a start, but once “princess” Tiana (who’s actually a waitress in 1920s New Orleans) undergoes her transformation and joins her “prince” in the bayou, the movie livens up considerably, aided by jaunty Randy Newman songs and a vivid color palette. “The Princess and the Frog” DVD and Blu-ray is as well-stocked as Disney fans might expect, adding a commentary track and multiple interactive features that show how Disney returned to basics.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon

Summit, $32.99; Blu-ray, $34.99

Hey, ever heard of “Twilight”? Started out as a series of books, then became a blockbuster movie? All about vampires and werewolves and teenage girls and stuff? Well, the second “Twilight” movie is arriving on DVD and Blu-ray (on a special March 20 release date), complete with a commentary track by director Chris Weitz and a six-part behind-the-scenes documentary. In this second installment, the moody Bella Swan (played by the moody Kristen Stewart) is torn between two monsters: her stalwart lover Edward (Robert Pattinson) and her best friend Jacob (Taylor Lautner). Supernatural mumbo-jumbo follows, cut with dreamy rock ballads on the soundtrack. If you’re a “Twilight” fan, you’ve probably already got plans to buy this. And if you’re not, well . . . sometimes ignorance is bliss.

Astro Boy

Summit, $26.99; Blu-ray, $34.99

Osama Tezuka’s robot hero Astro Boy originated in Japanese comics, then appeared in a TV series that became one of the first pieces of animé to find an American audience. Now there’s a computer-animated feature film version, recounting the origin of Astro Boy as a robot crafted by a scientist to be a force for peace in a city ruled by warmongers. The movie looks neat and has some stirring action sequences, but the plot is convoluted and a little too harsh in tone for the younger set. The “Astro Boy” DVD and Blu-ray are fairly disappointing too, adding only a few featurettes and deleted scenes.

Broken Embraces

Sony, $28.96; Blu-ray, $34.95

A blind screenwriter tells the story of the woman he loved and lost in Pedro Almodóvar’s melodrama-noir-comedy “Broken Embraces,” which stars Penélope Cruz as an ex-prostitute who marries a rich man and runs into trouble. Almodóvar loses his edge when the movie becomes too plotty, but he rallies late with an ebullient sequence from his movie-within-a-movie, followed by a sweet final scene. It’s pretty far from the Spanish filmmaker’s best work, but with Almodóvar, there’s a baseline of quality that few other directors can claim. The DVD and Blu-ray include deleted scenes, featurettes and a bonus Almodóvar short film.

Armored

Sony, $28.96; Blu-ray, $38.96

The slick heist movie “Armored” sank quickly at the box office but is exactly the kind of low-ambition, low-demand fare that plays well on home video. Credit the cast, which includes Matt Dillon, Jean Reno and Laurence Fishburne as crooked armored car drivers who bring a desperate young man into their scheme to boost $42 million. Twists ensue -- none too shocking -- but “Armored’s” chief appeal has to do with watching veteran actors try to out-heavy each other. The DVD and Blu-ray throw in only a commentary track and a few blah featurettes.

And . . .

“Bandslam”

(Summit, $25.99)

“Breaking Bad: The Complete Second Season”

(Sony, $39.95; Blu-ray, $49.95)

“Brief Interviews With Hideous Men”

(MPI, $19.98; Blu-ray, $29.98)

“Did You Hear About the Morgans?”

(Sony, $28.95; Blu-ray, $34.95)

“Dillinger Is Dead”

(Criterion, $29.95)

“The Fourth Kind”