DVD Releases

Roman Polanski’s recent arrest shouldn’t be the only reason Google is steering you toward “Chinatown’’ (1974) this month. Polanski’s neo-noir masterwork has just received a new two-disc reissue that comes with an unexpected bonus: commentary by the screenwriter, Robert Towne, along with “Fight Club’’ and “Benjamin Button’’ director David Fincher. Over the years, Towne has been identified with the film almost as closely as either Polanski or star Jack Nicholson, and with good reason: Although “Chinatown’’ received 11 Oscar nods, Towne nabbed the only statuette. He doesn’t have as much to say about it all as you might expect, in part because Fincher gushes so enthusiastically. Watching Nicholson’s Jake Gittes receive his infamous nostril-slitting, Fincher raves about its dual function as a vengeance trigger and a device for getting Gittes into bed with Faye Dunaway’s concerned Evelyn Mulray. “Who would’ve thought that over hydrogen peroxide, they could finally find one another?’’ says Fincher. “You simply follow the logic of what you’ve done,’’ Towne says with a shrug. “Roman quite wisely insisted, ‘This is not going to be a wound from which he can recover. It’s going to be through[out] the movie, [and] you’re going to exploit it in every way you can.’ ’’ The package’s second DVD includes a History Channel-worthy documentary on the early-20th-century LA water-acquisition wars that supplied the background for Towne’s script. The disc is filled out by production retrospectives previously included on a 2007 reissue. (Paramount, $16.99; available now)

COMEDY

THE PROPOSAL (2009)

Sandra Bullock effectively trades sweet for sour as a New York book editor desperate for a green card, and Ryan Reynolds is characteristically sharp as the assistant she bullies into a sham-marriage plan to quash her imminent deportation. While certainly likable, the year’s big romantic comedy hit settles for routine when it could be something more. The boss-and-secretary gender flip is a pretty ripe dynamic, but it’s just not something the movie is inclined to analyze much. Extras: In commentary, director Anne Fletcher (“27 Dresses’’) breaks down the movie magic that allowed downtown Rockport to double for Alaska. (Buena Vista, $39.99; single-disc edition, $29.99; Blu-ray, $44.99)

HORROR

DRAG ME TO HELL (2009)

Sam Raimi takes a break from “Spider-Man’’ for an over-the-top gypsy vengeance yarn - and makes horror fun in a way we haven’t seen since his “Evil Dead.’’ Alison Lohman (“Matchstick Men’’) is a sympathetic bank employee who makes the mistake of getting firm with defaulting crone Lorna Raver, and winds up cursed. There’s plenty of cartoon gore that wasn’t in the trailers, and even some uncomfortably timely socioeconomic commentary. The only thing more we could hope for is “Evil Dead 4.’’ (In the meantime, Raimi’s “Army of Darkness’’ has also just arrived on Blu-ray.) Extras: unrated footage; production video diaries. (Universal, $29.98; Blu-ray, $39.98)

COMEDY/DRAMA

THE BROTHERS BLOOM (2009)

Writer-director Rian Johnson (“Brick’’) continues to establish his unique voice with the twisty profile and twistier adventures of con-artist brothers Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo. Ruffalo is obsessed with running scams that unfold like literature, full of dense plotting and symbolism, while Brody just wants out, particularly before hurting their latest mark, wide-eyed eccentric Rachel Weisz. The movie’s flashback-to-childhood opener goes heavy on whimsy, but after that the balance of cleverness and tenderness is perfect - “The Sting’’ infused with romantic melancholy. Extras: commentary by Johnson; extensive deleted scenes. (Summit Entertainment, available now for rental only)

EVERY LITTLE STEP (2009)

Life imitates Broadway art as filmmakers James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo take a look behind the scenes at the audition process for the 2006 revival of “A Chorus Line.’’ Extras: commentary by the filmmakers and composer Marvin Hamlisch; conversation with original cast standout Donna McKechnie. (Sony, $28.96)

ADORATION (2009)

Indie filmmaker Atom Egoyan (“The Sweet Hereafter’’) delivers a puzzle-box meditation on terrorism and tolerance in which a high schooler spins a story about his parents’ involvement in a bombing plot - and that’s the opener. With Egoyan’s wife, Arsinee Khanjian, and Scott Speedman. Extras: Egoyan interview; production featurette. (Sony, $28.96; Blu-ray, $39.95)

STOP MAKING SENSE (1984)

Watch David Byrne don the big suitcoat again as Jonathan Demme’s essential Talking Heads concert film gets a 25th anniversary reissue on Blu-ray. Extras: previously unseen hourlong press conference with the entire band from the film’s 1999 re-release; commentary by Demme and the band. (Palm Pictures, $34.99)

WHERE THE DAY TAKES YOU (1992)

Will Smith, Sean Astin, and Balthazar Getty are among the young actors getting serious as homeless LA teens in director Marc Rocco’s uneven drama. (Anchor Bay, $14.98)

FILTH AND WISDOM (2008)

Because you demanded it (?), Madonna makes her directorial debut with a self-indulgent romp about London flatmates (notably Eugene Hutz of gypsy punk act Gogol Bordello) playing stud-for-hire, stripper, etc., while always dreaming big. (IFC Films, $19.98; available now)

Titles are in stores Tuesday unless otherwise specified.