DVDs: Norm, Leo, Maggie, Agatha Christie, Veep, and more on home entertainment

LIONSGATE’s family adventure Norm of the North is now in a Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and On Demand. Follow the adventures of Norm, a polar bear from the Arctic who happens to have some very unusual talents and has to head outside of his comfort zone to save his home. Norm embarks on an adventure in New York City with his lemming pals as they all try to stop greedy humans from turning the Arctic into a suburban neighborhood. He also makes some new friends along the way.

Norm of the North features the voices of Rob Schneider (Grown Ups), Heather Graham (The Hangover movies), Ken Jeong (TV’s Dr. Ken), Colm Meaney (Con Air), Loretta Devine (TV’s Grey’s Anatomy) and Bill Nighy (Love Actually).

This animated adventure is packed with comedy, music, memorable characters and heart. Extras include deleted scenes, outtakes, “The Arctic Shake” sing-along and a trivia challenge.

*****

Nicholas Hytner’s The Lady in the Van arrived on Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. This endearing comedy stars Downton Abbey’s Maggie Smith, Alex Jennings, James Corden and Dominic Cooper.

The Lady in the Van was written by Oscar-nominated playwright Alan Bennett (The Madness of King George) and is based on his memoir about an eccentric elderly woman who “temporarily” parked her van in Mr. Bennett’s driveway and proceeded to live there for 15 years. Smith’s portrayal of Miss Mary Shepherd earned her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Motion Picture. Smith first portrayed Miss Shepherd in 1999’s West End play of the same name (directed by Hytner), as well as in the 2009 BBC Radio 4 adaptation.

The Blu-ray, DVD and digital releases include a Maggie Smith profile, making-of featurette, deleted scenes, visual effects piece and more.

*****

Leonardo DiCaprio delivers an Oscar-winning performance in The Revenant, available on 4K Ultra HD Disc, Blu-ray and DVD from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Taking home two additional Oscars including Best Director (Alejandro G. Iñárritu) and Best Cinematography (Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki), The Revenant was one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, garnering more than $380 million worldwide at the box office. The period adventure drama also is available on Digital HD.

Inspired by true events, The Revenant follows the story of legendary explorer Hugh Glass (DiCaprio) on his quest for survival and justice. After a brutal bear attack, Glass is left for dead by a treacherous member of his hunting team (Tom Hardy, Mad Max: Fury Road). Against extraordinary odds, and enduring unimaginable grief, Glass battles a relentless winter in the Pacific Northwest in uncharted terrain.

The film features cinematography by three-time-consecutive Academy Award winner Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki (Gravity) along with supporting performances by Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson (Brooklyn) and Will Poulter (The Maze Runner). Making his big screen debut is newcomer Forrest Goodluck.

The Blu-ray includes the documentary A World Unseen, which takes viewers into the world of 19th century America and uncovers Iñárritu’s vision behind The Revenant and the parallels found in our world today through his along with DiCaprio’s eyes.

*****

Filmmaker Ross Partridge’s Lamb is now available on DVD. The drama revolves around a man struggling with his emotional pain in the aftermath of his divorce and the death of his father. David Lamb (Partridge, Secret in Their Eyes) hopes to restore his faith in his own goodness when he turns his attention to Tommie, (Oona Laurence, Southpaw), an awkward and unpopular 11-year-old. Lamb is convinced he can help her avoid a destiny of apathy and emptiness by taking the girl on a road trip from Chicago to the Rockies. He plans to initiate her into the beauty of the mountain wilderness. The journey leads these two lost souls toward an unexpected resolution. The provocative drama is based on Bonnie Nadzam’s award-winning novel.

The DVD contains bonus features that include feature commentary with writer/director/star Partridge and his co-star Laurence, deleted scenes, the landscape of Lamb and more.

*****

Silicon Valley: The Complete Second Season is now on Blu-ray and DVD. The Emmy winning HBO series takes a comic look at the modern-day epicenter of the high-tech gold rush, where the people most qualified to succeed are the least capable of handling success. A collaboration between Mike Judge (Beavis & Butthead, Office Space) and former Seinfeld writer Alec Berg, who each direct five episodes, the series returns to Blu-ray with Digital HD and DVD.

After taking the tech world by storm last season at TechCrunch Disrupt, Richard and rest of the Pied Piper team — Erlich, Jared, Dinesh and Gilfoyle — look ahead to a bright and profitable future. But their success may be in jeopardy, thanks to big changes at Raviga, the company created by Peter Gregory, and Nucleus, the competing compression platform launched by Hooli CEO Gavin Belson.

It stars a talented ensemble of series regulars, including Thomas Middleditch as Richard Hendricks; T.J. Miller as Erlich; Josh Brener as Big Head; Martin Starr as Gilfoyle; Kumail Nanjiani as Dinesh; Zach Woods as Jared; Amanda Crew as Monica; Matt Ross as Gavin Belson; Suzanne Cryer, who joins the cast as Raviga managing partner Laurie Bream; and Jimmy O. Yang as Jian-Yang. Guest star Ben Feldman returns as Ron LaFlamme. New guest stars include Chris Diamantopoulos as Russ Hanneman and Alice Wetterlund as Carla.

The Second Season includes bonus features including Reality Bytes: The Art & Science Behind Silicon Valley, deleted scenes and six audio commentaries with the show’s creators and cast.

*****

Dominion Creek, the first Western to be made in Ireland, debuted on DVD. This new epic, character-driven four-part miniseries follows three Irish brothers and emigrants seeking riches in the American Gold Rush in the 1890s. As they work the silver mines of Montana, the ambitious Connolly brothers dream of riches and adventure. Seduced by rumors of a greater prize to the north, they embark on a dangerous journey to the heart of the Yukon in this epic tale of greed, love, betrayal and gold. As they become increasingly corrupted by the lust for power and wealth, the Connollys must stick together if they are to survive the harsh realities of the Yukon.

Starring Owen McDonnell (Single Handed), Sean T. O’Meallaigh (Charlie), Siobhán O’Kelly (Call the Midwife), Dara Devaney (Above Suspicion: Silent Scream), Julian Black Antelope (Blackstone), Robert O’Mahoney (One Hundred Mornings) and Steve Wall (Vikings), the miniseries — known as An Klondike in Ireland — made its US premiere in January on Acorn TV, the streaming service from Britain and beyond.

This DVD two-disc set features four episodes plus bonus deleted scenes and interviews with the cast and crew.

*****

Lifetime and BBC’s acclaimed whodunit miniseries And Then There Were None, is now available on DVD and Blu-ray. This landmark adaptation of Agatha Christie’s best-selling novel is by Sarah Phelps (The Casual Vacancy, Great Expectations) and features Aidan Turner (Poldark), Charles Dance (Game of Thrones), Anna Maxwell Martin (Midwinter of the Spirit), Sam Neill (Jurassic Park), Miranda Richardson (the Harry Potter films), Douglas Booth (Great Expectations), Maeve Dermody (Serangoon Road), Burn Gorman (Turn: Washington’s Spies), Toby Stephens (Black Sails) and Noah Taylor (Peaky Blinders).

Set the brink of World War II, 10 strangers are invited to isolated Soldier Island. Among them are young secretary Vera Claythorne (Dermody), soldier Philip Lombard (Turner), General John MacArthur (Neill), spinster Emily Brent (Richardson) and Judge Lawrence Wargrave (Dance). With seemingly nothing in common, the guests wonder who their mysterious host may be. But the ominous reason for their visit soon becomes clear and by the end of the night, the first of them is dead.

The two-disc DVD and Blu-ray releases feature the complete UK/BBC edition (three parts) and include a bonus behind-the-scenes featurette, a featurette about Agatha Christie and an interview with writer Sarah Phelps.

The three-part miniseries also is available for digital download on multiple platforms including iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, Vudu, Google Play, Xbox Video and Sony Entertainment Network. RLJE’s streaming service Acorn TV will add the miniseries in September. RLJ Entertainment owns a majority share in Agatha Christie Limited, which co-produced this miniseries and manages Agatha Christie’s extensive literary.

*****

The 10-episode, Emmy winning fourth season of the hit HBO comedy series Veep is available on Blu-ray with Digital HD and DVD. The box set includes deleted scenes.

Hilariously skewering the whirlwind day-to-day existence of the Vice-President’s office and Washington politics at large, Veep: The Complete Fourth Season continues to prove that in Washington, even the most banal decisions can have ripple effects, with unexpected and far-reaching consequences.

Having become president after her predecessor stepped down, it remains to be seen whether her term will outlast that of America’s shortest-serving president, William Henry Harrison. With the stakes for Selina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and her team higher than ever before, she must still run for election, and over the course of the season’s 10 episodes they will grapple with how to make her seem “presidential.” The series, created by Oscar nominee Armando Iannucci, features an ensemble cast including Emmy nominee Anna Chlumsky, Reid Scott, Matt Walsh, Timothy C. Simons, Sufe Bradshaw, Kevin Dunn, Gary Cole and new series regular Sam Richardson. Recurring guests this season include Hugh Laurie, Patton Oswalt, and Sarah Sutherland.

*****

Join best friends Goldie and Bear on their adventures through Fairy Tale Forest in Disney Junior’s hit series Goldie & Bear: Best Fairytale Friends on DVD, which includes seven episodes with more than over two hours of classic fairytales with a twist. Plus it contains an exclusive Playtime Fun Activity Kit with re-usable stickers, games and more. — Front Row Features