Lost in translation

The Interpreter, 15, £19.99
**

Nicole Kidman is The Interpreter in Sydney Pollack's confused film about the impact of love, loss and betrayal in a war-torn corner of Africa. She works for the UN and when she overhears a plot to assassinate the war criminal president of her African homeland she understandably becomes fearful for her life.
Enter Sean Penn's melancholy Secret Service agent and cue a lot of meaningful discussion between the lady who interprets language and the man delegated to act on others' orders. Both have secret grief but Pollack is too ambitious for his film to make this a conventional love story; the result is interestingly wordy but ultimately muddled.
Extras: Deleted scenes, an alternative ending and various Pollack and UN-related featurettes. Nina Caplan

The Bad Sleep Well, PG, £19.99
****

Akira Kurosawa's 1960 story of business corruption, The Bad Sleep Well, lives up to its terrific title. Toshiro Mifune gives a wondrously complex performance as Nishi, who's marrying the boss's crippled daughter to get ahead. Or is he? Turns out, his new father-in-law caused the death of Nishi's father and the son is now out for revenge. Which bodes ill for the boss - and for his daughter, who is quietly in love with her new husband. For revenge, as Kurosawa masterfully points out, is a dish liable to give everybody indigestion.
Extras: None. NC

The Dukes Of Hazzard, PG, ££29.99
****

Remember The Dukes Of Hazzard? The two quintessentially 1970s-looking rapscallion cousins who, with cousin Daisy (Catherine Bach), a red Dodge Charger and assorted chums took on the law in Deep South Hazzard Country for seven seasons? Of course you do - who could forget Bo (John Schneider), Luke (Tom Wopat) and the curious mixture of knowingness and innocence that made this TV series such a hit. The boys are on probation for running moonshine, but who cares when they have their trusty automobile the General Lee and the corrupt duo of Sheriff Roscoe P Coltrane and Boss Hogg to bait.
It's such fun that it stands up surprisingly well despite car chases (lots of them) that seem positively prehistoric in their execution. Tuck in to the whole first season before Johnny Knoxville and friends sully the memory with their remake.
Extras: Reunion doc, featurette and commentary from Schneider and Bach on pilot episode. NC

Coach Carter, 12, £19.99
***

Let's be honest: if you've seen one based-on-a-true-inspirational-story sports movie, you've pretty much seen 'em all. And that's certainly the case with Coach Carter. The only new spin, as old basketball pro Samuel L Jackson guides an inner-city high school team to the play-offs, is that he insists every one of his underdawgs maintains Respect, Pride and a C+ grade average or he locks them out of his gym. That said, there's enough tough teen back-story to bulk out the utterly slam-dunktastic (if still utterly predictable), 'we just need this one hoop to win the championship' adrenaline shots. If this had only hit the showers 25 minutes earlier it coulda been a contender.
Extras: None. Larushka Ivan-Zadeh