Polarizing 'Tree of Life' available on Blu-ray

Reclusive filmmaker Terrence Malick's controversial new picture leads these eclectic releases on DVD and Blu-ray.

"The Tree of Life" (Fox/Blu-ray, 2011, PG-13, three discs, $39.99). Malick has directed only five films in some 38 years: the stark "Badlands," the splendidly artful "Days of Heaven," the meandering but interesting "The Thin Red Line" and a dull-as-dishwater tone poem, "The New World." It's a mixed bag to be sure — but even if you've seen the others you may be unprepared for "The Tree of Life."

As the title suggests, Malick is pondering no less than the cosmos here, and his subjects range from the Creation to the afterlife (with dinosaurs thrown in), wrapped around the story of a strained relationship between a father (Brad Pitt) and son (played briefly as an adult by Sean Penn) in mid-20th century Texas. Grief and forgiveness, memories and imagination, and a fractured timeline jumble this heady mix of profundity and pretentiousness.

The cinematography and special effects are stunning and there are extended bits of remarkable beauty. There are also lengthy sequences without dialogue, elegant scenes you may find baffling, and moments so filled with emotion that you can't help but feel something. The most frustrating element is the denouement, a view of the afterlife that is particularly banal … yet also somehow thoughtful.

Whether it all adds up in the end is an intensely personal response. Some think it's the best film they've seen in years; others slept through parts of it without regret.

I found it more thoughtful than ponderous, despite self-indulgent elements. For me, Malick is still a filmmaker worth watching, and, for all its flaws, "The Tree of Life" is a film worth seeing.

Extras: widescreen; Blu-ray, DVD and digital versions, featurette (on the Blu-ray disc)

"The Trip" (IFC, 2011, $24.98). British comic actor Steve Coogan lands a writing assignment to review posh restaurants around England and his comic-actor pal Rob Brydon tags along. Think of a more broadly comic "My Dinner With Andre" played out over a number of meals.

Coogan and Brydon play bickering versions of themselves and more or less expand on the funny chatter they exchanged in an earlier film, "Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story." It's all talk and it's often hilarious, especially when they try to one-up each other's Michael Caine impersonations.

Extras: widescreen, deleted scenes, featurettes, trailer