A ton of cool stuff out on DVD this week, including a harrowing sci-fi thriller, two films about individuals seeking happy/iness (man and penguin), a colorful Chinese epic, Heath Ledger as a druggie, and an HBO doc on the American voting system.

All this and more in the latest list of new and coming releases!

The first great Bond film in years, a memorable black comedy from Spain, a notorious nudie indie from Hedwig's John Cameron Mitchell, and two masterpieces from Japan highlight this very eclectic week of DVD releases.

On Burmese Harp: Kon Ichikawa's gorgeous meditation on the aftermath of war, as seen through the eyes of a Japanese soldier who becomes a monk while his mates are held captive in a POW camp, comes to us in a newly restored edition from Criterion. Also out today is Ichikawa's follow-up, the darker Fires on the Plain, also set at the end of the war; both films would make a fine double-feature with Letters from Iwo Jima. Harp is an enormously moving work of art; not to be missed.

Click the link below to see all the titles out on DVD today.

super Dylan, Terry Gilliam, Will Ferrell, Jack Black, and a doc on girls hoops highlight this week's new DVD releases. And don't forget a superb British miniseries that is as thrilling as it is topical. Plenty more to come, too, as you can see.

More: Interview with D.A. Pennebaker >>

Thoughts on Tideland? More >>

A girl hoop dreams? More >>

Another huge releasing day, even bigger than last week's. Includes several Oscar-nominated films, a few cult items and on low-budget indie with a lot of critical praise behind it:

The Departed: Nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture, Director (will Scorsese be a bridesmaid once again?) and Supporting Actor (Mark Wahlberg, just part of a stellar cast), this remake of the HK crime film Infernal Affairs [box set] took that story and ran with it. If it's not completely original, it's thrilling nonetheless. "The whole film is a powder keg on the verge," wrote GC's Craig Phillips in his Best of '06 list. The two disc special edition includes additional scenes with intros by Scorsese, a feature-length TCM profile on him and a profile of the real-life gangster behind Jack Nicholson's character.

Mutual Appreciation: Director Andrew Bujalski was interviewed on GreenCine on the subject of his black and white indie comedy. "The sort of unassuming discovery that could get lost in a crowd or suffer from too much big love," wrote Manhola Dargis in the NY Times, "and while it won't save or change your life, it may make your heart swell...

For more highlights and all the new and coming releases click below!