Barney’s Version
(Sony, $39)
Paul Giamatti “has never been better,” said the New York Daily News. As the title character in this adaptation of a Mordecai Richler novel, he’s a functioning alcoholic still in love with his ex-wife and haunted by the death of his best friend. Dustin Hoffman gives a “poignant turn” as Barney’s father.
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The Best of the Dean Martin Variety Show
(Time-Life, $60)
This show—whose nine seasons are represented here in six highlight discs—is probably best remembered for its host’s “ultra-loose attitude,” said Newsday. Seen today, “the show oozes retro charm.” Prepare to be impressed by Dino’s guest list alone: Bob Hope, John Wayne, and many more.
Adua and Her Friends
(Raro, $30)
An Italian classic, this Antonio Pietrangeli offering from 1960 combines the “moral heart of neorealism with the gimlet eye of commedia,” said The New York Times. Simone Signoret stars as a sex worker who opens a rural brothel. A “subtle” Marcello Mastroianni courts her.
