Ted
(Universal, $30)
A talking stuffed bear grows up to be a troublingly crude best friend in this first comedy feature from Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, said the Tampa Bay Times. Some of the purposely tasteless gags fail, but this Mark Wahlberg vehicle is “often convulsively funny.”
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Girls: The Complete First Season
(HBO, $40)
The year’s most-talked-about TV show turned out to also be “one of its wittiest and most surprisingly touching,” said TheAtlantic.com. Creator and star Lena Dunham has great feel for “the aimless self-regard” of young women in New York, but she makes their plight universal.
Sometimes a Great Notion
(Shout! Factory, $20)
It might be time to upgrade Paul Newman’s reputation as a director, said the Asbury Park, N.J., Press. Based on a Ken Kesey novel, this 1970 film about a logging family is “ultimately uneven.” But “Newman’s sure hand behind the camera” helps cover the rough patches.
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