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By | Friday, January 9, 2009

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Pineapple Express (Sony, $28.96 for DVD, $34.95 for two-disc DVD, $39.95 for Blu-ray) - Last year was a pretty good one for comedies, with "In Bruges," "Tropic Thunder," "Choke" and the first two-thirds of "Hancock" being particularly funny entries. "Pineapple Express," though, probably offered the purest laughs.

Seth Rogen and James Franco star as a slacker process server and his drug dealer who go on the lam together when Mr. Rogen's character witnesses a dirty cop commit murder. It's kind of hard to evade the bad guys when you're totally stoned, though.

The king of contemporary comedy, Judd Apatow, co-wrote and co-produced. What sets "Pineapple Express" apart from his other films, such as "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up," is its take on another genre - the buddy action film. Mr. Apatow's films have often focused on male friendships, so perhaps it was only a matter of time until he rethought films like "Lethal Weapon" in his own image.

The one-disc DVD includes extended and alternate scenes, a making-of featurette, a gag reel and commentary with Mr. Apatow and Mr. Rogen. The two-disc DVD and Blu-ray up the ante, with all that plus deleted scenes, commentary with director David Gordon Green and cast members Danny McBride, Ed Begley Jr. and Rosie Perez, and 15 featurettes that include footage from rehearsals and the first table read. The Blu-ray disc also has a "Ride the Express Game" in which you can play either of the two main characters.

All editions include both the theatrical release and a naughtier, unrated version of the film.

This is also the very first film to include a free download of the movie from iTunes, on the two-disc and Blu-ray versions. Many films have included digital copies, but this is the first you can download right into the popular iTunes program. (If you don't have it, though, you can also watch it using Windows Media Player.)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Weinstein/Genius, $28.95 for DVD, $34.99 for Blu-ray) - Another stand-out comedy from 2008 was this latest feature from writer-director Woody Allen. It's up for best picture (comedy or musical) at the Golden Globes this weekend, as are three of its stars: Rebecca Hall for best actress (comedy or musical), Javier Bardem for best actor (comedy or musical) and Penelope Cruz for best supporting actress.

Mr. Allen has been working for decades now, but "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" is his freshest film in a while. It has many familiar elements - the neurotic New Yorker, indecision about love, a sprinkling of amusing arty and intellectual conversation - but Mr. Allen's first filmmaking trip to Spain gave his movie some real Latin passion that makes it a very fun and sexy romp.

Miss Hall and Scarlett Johansson are best friends in America who decide to spend a summer in Barcelona. Miss Hall's Vicky is a serious scholar engaged to be married; Miss Johansson's Cristina is a free-spirited girl who doesn't know what she wants from love or work, except that she doesn't want to settle down. Both women are thrown when they meet the charismatic artist played by Mr. Bardem, who's dealing with some love troubles of his own: He's got a fiery love-hate relationship with his ex, played by the sultry Miss Cruz putting in her best work in years.

Sadly, as is usual for Woody Allen DVD releases, this one doesn't include any extras.