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Two professional basketball players were recently suspended for the remainder of the season by the NBA for brandishing firearms in the workplace. Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton got into serious trouble for their actions but, to their credit, at least they didn't start shooting each other on the court. Neither, by the way, do the players in the Thai action flick Fireball -- they just beat the crap out of each other.

Fireball, which was released on DVD last week, combines basketball with Thai boxing. Director Thanakorn Pongsuwan says that he wanted to try something different; setting the action on a basketball court serves two purposes. First, it enlarges the field of play for the martial arts action while still limiting it to a set stage. Second, pitting two teams of "players" against each other creates a dizzying array of battles to fill the screen. Thus, the tired premise of savage, underground duels to the death, controlled by shadowy criminal figures gambling large sums of money on the outcome, gets a fresh coat of blood paint.

Pongsuwan amps up the violence and films in such a way that it's often difficult to figure out what's going on. The quick cuts and crazy angles help cover up the extensive wire work. And the basketball is really incidental to the bashing and the kicking. Between the action scenes, though, we get to know the player / warriors on one team, and the plight of the characters adds some nice, if secondary drama to the fisticuffs.

Zombieland
Jesse Eisenberg teams up with Woody Harrelson to survive the zombie apocalypse, as the latter sets out to find the last Twinkie on Earth. Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin enter the fray, and, well, as William Goss wrote in his review: "It's a constantly clever comedy whose characters have amusingly direct motives (i.e. Tallahassee wants a Twinkie above all else) that disguise some genuine losses, and most of the gags stem from their relationships -- coward vs. cowboy, gals undermining guys -- above general (albeit welcome) irreverence." Buy it.

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Amelia
Hilary Swank's Amelia Earhart biopic is now hitting the shelves, detailing her love of George Putnam (Richard Gere), and the advances of one Mr. Gene Vidal (Gore Vidal's dad, played by Ewan McGregor). Jette Kernion wrote that the film: "succeeds in portraying the famous aviatrix in a whole new light ... as a mundane soap-opera character with relationship issues." Skip it.

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Love Happens
A fairly forgotten 2009 romcom, Love Happens stars Aaron Eckhart as a grieving widow who falls in love for student Jennifer Aniston. In her review, Jenni Miller wrote that it was "boring and lazy," and Eric Snider wondered what they were thinking including a classic slow clap. Skip it.

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Also out: Universal Soldier: Regeneration, The House of the Devil, Triangle, Whatever She Wants, Ong-Bak 2: The Beginning

Whip It
Drew Barrymore directs Ellen Page in a coming-of-age tale set in the rough and tumble world of roller derby. As you might expect for the directorial debut of an actor, nearly eveyone in the cast gets their own moment to shine, which drags down the pacing, but overall this is bright and lively entertainment. Page is terrific as a young woman seeking to break out from a small town, but not certain she wants to leave everyone behind. Rent it.

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Michael Jackson: This is It
Jackson's tragic death converted behind-the-scenes footage into a must-see documentary for millions of his fans as well as the merely curious. "A strange, confusing look into Michael Jackson's world, or at least the version of it that his friends, family, and/or estate wanted us to see," wrote Cinematical's Jenni Miller. Jackson fanatics: Buy it. All others: Skip it.

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Surrogates
Bruce Willis stars as an FBI agent in Jonathan Mostow's adaptation of a comic book in which humans control artificial representations of themselves. Our own Jeffrey M. Anderson opined: "It's more of a thriller than a cautionary tale, and it doesn't go very deep in either direction." Sci-fi fans: Rent it. All others: Skip it.

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Also out: Saw VI, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, Give 'Em Hell Malone

After the jump: Indies on DVD, plus more Blu-ray picks and Collector's Corner.

Whiteout
Perhaps Kate Beckinsale is the most powerful superchick of them all, lounging in Antarctica without the slightest winter weathering, fighting off the area's first killer. Or, Whiteout is just a lazy movie not worth your time. As Peter Hall said in his review: "Whiteout is the film equivalent of a PC point-and-click adventure game from the '90s." Skip it.

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Gamer
Games stop being purely fictional adventures in this action flick from Crank creators Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. The game controls death row inmates who have a barely-there chance of surviving and earning their freedom. No one ever has ... but Gerard Butler is close. "Gamer is at times striking, and at others silly, and and yet at others sickening, but never too stupid, at least not compared to so much else flash and pop peddled to the masses these days," says William Goss. Rent it.

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The Invention of Lying
Ricky Gervais jumps into the directorial chair while also throwing himself into a world free of lies, and just what happens when he creates the first one, becomes the world's first religious figure, and tries to get the love of the girl? In his review, Eric Snider wrote: "Apart from that and what feels like a rushed finale, however, The Invention of Lying is a satisfying comedy with a fair number of solid laughs. Its strange concept and storyline make it something of a curiosity, too: you can have fun thinking about it even after it's over. Honest." Rent it.

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More big releases after the jump.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
The latest in crazy adventure movies, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs offers a world where weather becomes food, where snowball fights morph into ice cream battles. In his review, Todd Gilchrist wrote: "co-directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller have adapted Ron and Judi Barrett's kids book into a true larger-than-life tale, creating a world that scarcely resembles anything that could or would happen, and manages to be all the more exciting because of it." Buy it on Blu-ray or DVD.

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The Final Destination
In this formulaic fourth installment, once again: a premonition helps save a group of people, only for them to then die one by one in grotesque ways. Except this time, it's in 3D. In his review, Eric Snider wrote: "You might just as well stay home and watch one of the other three, where at least there will be some devilish wit and ironic humor in evidence. You'll get none of that here." Skip it on Blu-ray or DVD.

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50 Dead Men Walking
Loosely based on a true story, Kari Skogland's thriller finds Jim Sturgess playing Martin McGartland, a young criminal recruited by the British police (Ben Kingsley) to infiltrate the IRA. While some shortcomings are noted, the film received a strong 86% fresh rating. Rent it on Blu-ray or DVD.

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Also out: Good Witch, The Circuit, Tommy and the Cool Mule, Ravage, Below the Earth's Surface, The Ministers

(500) Days of Summer
One of the best releases of the summer movie season, (500) Days of Summer took all the tropes we know from the land of romcoms and made them work beautifully by instilling them with a real-life spin. In his Sundance review, Erik Davis wrote that the film "does not, in any way, re-invent the rom-com wheel; it's not the prettiest, the sexiest or the most hot-to-trot -- but she's a looker and a feeler and way too easy to fall in love with if you give her a little room to work that magic." Buy it. Also on Blu-ray.

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District 9
Neill Blomkamp reinvigorated the SciFi scene with District 9, an alien film that made the intelligence of the story just as important as the space creatures themselves. In his review, Peter Martin wrote: "Refreshingly, District 9 upends expectations that have been lowered over the years by remembering that human behavior is the most fascinating special effect of all, with the inexplicable motivations of alien creatures coming in a close second." Buy it. Also on Blu-ray.

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All About Steve
Along with her hits on the romcom and football playing fields, Sandra Bullock starred in the stalker-fest All About Steve. In his review, Jeffrey M. Anderson wrote that the film is "packaged like a regular romantic comedy, but in it, Bullock gets to play around and have fun with a much different character." Unfortunately, it falls to myriad of problems in plot and execution. Considering the award-nominated gigs Bullock has had this year, Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds is one of my favorite films of the year, and now it's also one of my favorite Blu-rays. Other than Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York, which technically was released in theaters last year, there's no movie released to home video in 2009 that will more satisfyingly appreciate in its charms upon multiple viewings. Part of the reason for this, of course, is that Tarantino's movies are almost always a reservoir (no pun intended) of references, in-jokes and influences, many of which only "appear" once you've absorbed their characterizations and stories, and part of this is simply because most filmmakers are content to offer immediate gratification and fail to consider the possibility of true cinematic longevity.

But Basterds is different, surprisingly, on both counts: it's a Tarantinoesque postmodern pastiche, to be sure, and an instant charmer as well, but its emotional and intellectual value is not merely tied to the films and pop culture bullet points it references, nor to the clarity and speed of its ability to entertain. And the new Blu-ray offers, if nothing else, unlimited opportunities for folks to pore over the film's making, its meaning, and much more, providing a juxtaposition to the season's more conventional awards bait and a reminder that some – often, many - of the year's best films need not be released at the last minute in order to be (much less deserve to be) remembered.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry's older now, and that means more darkness, more danger, and of course, more lust. One away from the final installment(s), Dumbledore is preparing Harry for battle while his friends are overcome with the love bug. In her review, Jette Kernion wrote that the film is "a tight suspense film that isn't too scary for older kids, with a good dose of humor, Young Love, and charm." Save from some over-the-top moments in love and Lestrange shenanigans, Buy it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Julie & Julia
The exuberant food personality that brought French cooking stateside finally gets a film, sharing time with the blogger who dared to make every single recipe in one year. Overall, Nora Ephron's film is cute, but the charm, power, and driving force of the film lies with Meryl Streep's Julia. In her review, Jette wrote: "It's a comfort-food movies, the mac and cheese or apple-pie of this year's summer movie fare. And I like apple pie and mac and cheese just fine, but I feel that the potential for something less run-of-the-mill and more passionate, complex and memorable was there and sadly, was missed." If you're a foodie, Buy it for Ms. Child. If not, Rent it. Also on Blu-ray. Note: If this overcomes you with the urge to cook, this week's releases also includes Julia Child: The Way to Cook.

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Public Enemies
Johnny Depp as John Dillinger? With Christian Bale hunting him as Melvin Purvis and Billy Crudup playing J. Edgar Hoover? It's a project that should've raked in the dough, but only made back its hefty budget in its foreign take. Nevertheless, in his review, Jeffrey M. Anderson wrote: "The real person has become disconnected from his own legend, and he has become virtually obsolete. That [Michael] Mann recognized this and was able to so sublimely illustrate it shows that, not only has he made the connection between old gangster pictures and new ones, but also he has made the connection between movies and life." Buy it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Angels & Demons
The first was met with much critical disdain, but fought back to earn over $750 million at the worldwide box office. Angels & Demons still managed to make money, but less than $500 million (needing worldwide take to even make up for the budget) as Tom Hanks tries to hunt down a symbol-loving murderer. Eric D. Snider called it: "is as overly serious as its predecessor, and poor Mr. Hanks -- the world's most likable man, for crying out loud! -- is still dour and intense." Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.

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Four Christmases
Just as the title implies, Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon are forced to stop avoiding their crazy families and must hit four households over the holidays. In his review, William Goss wrote: "The rest makes for an occasionally amusing, mostly shrill series of encounters with an ensemble that only encourages misanthropic ideals, and maybe if Four Christmases had decided to extend itself beyond white trash targets and projectile vomiting, we could've found ourselves talking about a new Christmas classic right now." Rent it if you want some uncomfortable holiday humor. Also on Blu-ray.

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Funny People
If ever there was a reason why Adam Sandler has been sticking to the ridiculous fluff, this is it -- a dramedy with a lot of heart that couldn't even make back its budget after worldwide release. In his review, Todd Gilchrist said: "Funny People is one of the summer's, if not the year's best films, because it's a comedy that inverts the medium's typical use – effectively revealing feelings rather than concealing them – and invites the audience to share in that discovery." Buy it and give the film some love. Also on Blu-ray.

Read Our Blu-ray Review | Add to Netflix queue | Buy at Amazon

Hit the jump for a peek at Shorts and other new releases...

These days it's common practice for filmmakers to document every single aspect of a movie's creation for its eventual home video release – examining previsualization, creature development, fight choreography, set and costume design, effects rendering, and so on. When you're making a comedy, however, there seems to be less of interest in the different aspects of production (not the least of which because many of those above aren't even a factor), leaving only outtakes, gaffes, and alternate line readings to fill out the bonus features for a forthcoming Blu-ray or DVD.

Judd Apatow's Blu-ray for Funny People, however, runs contrary to expectations; indeed, it's by far the most complete and comprehensive portrait of a comedy production ever assembled. Featuring not only the requisite slate of alternate takes, film flubs, and extra scenes, but two different versions of the film, multiple featurettes, archive footage, and a feature-length documentary about the film's origins, development and production, the two-disc set takes the art of being funny very seriously.