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Speedo Shooting | Two Neapolitan punks brazenly flout the safety guidelines regarding proper clothing during the use of live ammunication in Gomorrah.

GANGSTERS!
Gomorrah
CAST | Nicoló Manta, Gianfelice Imparato
Matteo Garrone’s sprawling drama about the Italian criminal organization the Camorra has been called the greatest gangster film since GoodFellas, but a more apt comparison would be to TV’s The Wire, which shares Gomorrah’s top-to-bottom depiction of society, its dense narrative, and its refusal to make obviously moral judgments on its characters. This Criterion edition of the film includes an hour-long documentary on the making of the film and an interview with journalist Roberto Saviano, who wrote the bestselling book upon which the film is based.

GAGSTERS!
Funny People
CAST | Seth Rogen, Adam Sandler, Leslie Mann
Judd Apatow’s third film isn’t a complete success, but it’s one of those movies whose failures are kind of fascinating — not to mention revealing about the men who made it. Seth Rogen is the ostensible hero, a shlubby standup comic searching for his voice, but Adam Sandler gives a more interesting performance as a superstar comedian who hires Rogen to be his assistant and “best friend.” As a tearjerker, it’s hit-and-miss, but as a withering portrait of the socially dysfunctional misanthropy that lurks on the Hollywood A-list, it’s one of 2009’s ballsier comedies.

GOLDEN AGESTERS!
The Golden Age of Television
CAST | Rod Steiger, Paul Newman
This is the second Criterion release The Dictator is recommending this week, but what can we say — those guys put out some awesome DVDs. And one of their most ambitious reject projects is this omnibus collection of eight of the most acclaimed live TV dramas from the 1950s, including The Days of Wine and Roses, Marty, No Time for Sergeants, and no fewer than three Rod Serling classics: Patterns, Requiem for a Heavyweight, and The Comedian. Packed with interviews and commentaries, it’s one of the most significant TV-on-DVD releases of the year.