Life can be Stranger Than Fiction

Will Ferrell tones down his antics and holds his own with a more dramatic role in Stranger Than Fiction (4 stars, $28.95, Sony) a thoughtful comedy about a lonely IRS agent with a dull existence whose imminent death finally prods him to get a life.

Ferrell plays Harold Crick, a lonely, obsessive compulsive tax auditor who suddenly is able to hear the voice of a narrator in his head. He finds it slightly annoying at first, then is driven to seek help from various sources, including a psychiatrist (Linda Hunt) who determines he’s schizophrenic and in need of prescribed medication.

Harold finally settles on Professor Jules Hilbert (Dustin Hoffman) an English literature professor who tries to help him determine whether he’s in a tragedy, which means he dies, or a comedy, meaning he lives. Along the way Harold finds love with Ana Pascal (Maggie Gyllenhaal), a baker who is facing a tax audit.

Meanwhile, Karen Eiffel (Emma Thompson) is the writer trying to find a way to kill the lead in her new novel, who as it turns out, is Harold. Aiding Eiffel in the cause is her administrative assistant, Penny Escher (Queen Latifah).

DVD featurettes include “Actors In Search Of A Story” in which director Marc Forster and producer Lindsey Doran discuss why each cast member was such an integral part of the film and “Building The Team” in which Forster discusses the importance and contribution of each of his “team” members including director of photography, production design, costume designer, writer, producers, editors, VFX team, etc.

“On Location in Chicago” is an in-depth look at why Chicago was chosen as the place to shoot the film. “Words on a Page” is an interview with Doran and writer Zach Helm. One of the most interesting features is “Picture a Number,” a look at the graphic effects that help propel the story. The special features are wrapped up with “On The Set,” a montage of funny moments on the set, and deleted and extended scenes.

If you missed this one in theaters, pick it up at least for a rental. It’s a chance to see Ferrell stretch his acting legs in what ends up being a touching little story.

IT’S MAGIC: Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale play a deadly game of trickery as rival magicians Robert Angier and Alfred Borden, respectively, caught up in a feud in the early 20th century in The Prestige (3 stars, $29.99, Disney).

Scarlett Johansson, Michael Caine, David Bowie and Andy Serkis round out the main cast. Christopher Nolan, who also directed Bale and Caine in Batman Begins, combines mystery and fantasy with historical drama for this saga of a friendship soured over a tragedy during a magic act, pitting Angier and Borden against each other in a lifelong pursuit to outdo each other.

The extras include “The Art of The Prestige Gallery” and “The Director’s Notebook: The Cinematic Sleight of Hand of Christopher Nolan” featuring segments on the film’s visual gimmicks, twisting plot deceptions and Victorian-era recreations, along with a featurette on Bowie’s character, engineer and inventor Nikola Tesla. It’s exciting stuff, especially if you have an interest in the art of illusion.

SKIN-CRAWLING TERROR: Special effects artist Masahiro Okano directs Prayer Beads (3 stars, $24.98, Dark Sky Films), an anthology of nine half-hour-long horror tales featuring bad karma and convoluted logic. The two-disc set features the short films “Prayer Beads,” “Vending Machine Woman,” “It’s Me,” “Real,” “Mushroom Hunting,” “Eddie,” “Echoes,” “Cat’s Paw” and “Apartment.” There aren’t any special features here, just 270 minutes of fright-inducing experiences.

INDIE THRILLER: Apartment Zero (3 stars, $19.98, Union Station Media) is probably best viewed as the indie film that launched the career of Colin Firth and screenplay writer David Koepp (War of the Worlds, Spider-Man, Jurassic Park). Set in 1988 Argentina, Apartment Zero stars Firth as Adrian LeDuc, an arrogant, repressed theater owner bordering on insanity. With his theater on the brink of financial ruin, and needing the money to care for his dying - and insane - mother, he takes in a boarder, Jack Carney (Hart Bochner, who seems to have only taken bit parts here and there since).

As their relationship moves into friendship, Adrian stifles doubts that his new occupant is the source of the serial killings in the surrounding neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, despite overwhelming clues. In the meantime, he deflects suspicions among his neighbors that his mother’s insanity is hereditary. A claustrophobic film, Apartment Zero carries tremendous overtones of Roman Polanski’s The Tenant along with numerous Hitchcock references.

Special features are slim, but interesting if you delve into them, with only commentary from director Martin Donovan, who co-wrote the script with Koepp, and commentary from Koepp and Steven Soderbergh. Most of Koepp and Soderbergh’s discussion centers on the difficulties and differences of making and releasing an independent film in the late ’80s and today. While film buffs will find the discussion interesting, most will probably want to skip it.

FANGED FILM: Low-budget and prolific director Jess Franco took on Bram Stoker’s novel with Christopher Lee returning to his infamous role as Dracula in Jess Franco’s Count Dracula (2 stars, $19.98, Dark Sky Films). Franco muse Soledad Miranda is Lucy and Euro sex star Maria Rohm plays Mina Murray while Herbert Lom is Van Helsing and Klaus Kinski stars as the insane Renfield. Features include the “Beloved Count” Franco featurette, Lee reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula; and an essay by Miranda. It’s at least worth a rental to see Lee on screen in one of his tried-and-true roles.

FOR CRYING OUT LOUD: The 1980s sit-com that gave Michael J. Fox his big break debuts on DVD with Family Ties: The Complete First Season (2 stars, $42.99, Paramount). Fox plays Alex Keaton, an ultraconservative teen with liberal parents Elyse and Steve (Meredith Baxter Birney and Michael Gross), Mallory, his ditzy sister (Justine Bateman) and a tomboy youngest sister, Jennifer (Tina Yothers). You can catch an early glimpse of Tom Hanks guest starring as Elyse’s younger brother, a rising corporate star whom Alex idolizes now on the run for embezzlement. The four-disc set only has the first 22 episodes, so this is for FT fans that want to relive the better days of situational comedy.

THE ETERNAL OPTIMIST: In the fourth season The Doris Day Show (2 ½ stars, $39.98, MPI) featuring Day as Doris Martin, the widowed mother of two young sons (Philip Brown and Tod Starke) who lives in a San Francisco apartment over an Italian restaurant, she gets a new boss, Cy Bennett (John Dehner) at Today’s World magazine and a new co-worker, administrative assistant Jackie Parker (Jackie Joseph). Martin also gains a new boyfriend with Dr. Peter Lawrence (Peter Lawford).

Bonus material includes a clip of Day on The Pet Set Show with Betty White, the actress’ animal shelter commercial, fashion show outtakes, along with cast interviews, a preview for season five and additional footage from the show. This set is likely for fans who remember the show, or those with an overwhelming interest in Day filmography.

HELLO DOLLY: Dolly Parton & Friends (2 stars, $29.98, MPI) includes highlights from Dolly Parton’s syndicated variety show Dolly!, featuring performances by Dolly Parton and guest stars, including Linda Ronstadt, Kenny Rogers, Anne Murray, Robbie Milsap, Rod McKuen, Emmylou Harris, Marilyn McCoo, and Billy Davis Jr. there are no special features here, just the chance to see some of country’s best stars on the screen.

DOC WITH HEART: Director Ward Serrill trails along for six seasons with the girls basketball team at Roosevelt High in Seattle as they try to build a championship squad in The Heart of the Game ($29.99, Miramax). The documentary follows the team’s tough, idiosyncratic coach and star player, who finds herself in a battle to regain eligibility to play. The disc also has deleted scenes and commentary.

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Sources: www.imdb.com, www.amazon.com

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Associated Press writer David Germain contributed to this report.

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Aaron Baldwin is the features editor for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4420.