'Angels & Demons' among DVD releases this week

Ron Howard's adaptation of the Dan Brown novel "Angels & Demons" leads off this look at new-to-DVD movies.

"Angels & Demons" (Columbia, 2009, PG-13, two discs, $36.95). Tom Hanks reprises his role as American symbologist Robert Langdon in this sequel to "The Da Vinci Code" (although the "Angels & Demons" book actually came first).

It seems the four cardinals most likely to succeed the recently deceased pope have been kidnapped, allegedly by a secret society known as the Illuminati, which is threatening to kill one cardinal each hour and blow up St. Peter's Square at midnight.

It's a puzzle, of course, and Langdon is summoned by the Vatican to solve it, along with a beautiful scientist (Ayelet Zurer), to whom he explains complicated plot points in as windy a fashion as possible, all while running up and down circular stairways.

Howard does build some suspense, but it runs out of steam way too soon. And his camera also goes in circles, around and around in a variety of scenes, so that you may wonder if it was attached to a merry-go-round.

Extras: widescreen, featurettes, trailers (also available in a single-disc DVD, $28.96, and Blu-ray, $39.95)

"The River Within" (Cloud Ten, 2009, $24.98). A young law-school grad returns from Philadelphia to his small Arkansas hometown for the summer, hoping to study for the bar exam without distraction. But he soon finds himself drawn into the drama of old friends, including a former girlfriend who is now engaged to someone else. He also agrees to work with his church's youth group. This is a nice, uplifting Christian film, well acted and with a stronger script than most. It has its low-budget weaknesses and is laced with a few too many music videos, but overall it's a satisfying melodrama with a strong message about several kinds of love.

Extras: widescreen, featurette, bloopers, text biographies, trailers; six-page discussion guide

"Four Christmases" (New Line, 2008, PG-13, $28.98). Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon are an unmarried couple who usually avoid family during the holidays, but this year, they are forced to visit both sides over Christmas. It's a shame to see fine veteran actors Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek, Mary Steenburgen and Jon Voight in a raunchy, obnoxious "comedy," and Vaughn and Witherspoon have zero chemistry.

Extras: widescreen, trailers