Director Boyle lets the 'Sunshine' in

Nobody puts Danny in a corner.

Danny Boyle, that is. Boyle, the director of "Trainspotting" and "28 Days Later," has never made the same movie twice, and the philosophical sci-fi excursion "Sunshine" (Fox, 2007, R) -- about a ragtag crew sent into space to jump-start the sun -- is no exception.

Boyle's a smart guy, and his comments liven up the disc's not-entirely-generous but certainly respectable special features. One odd inclusion, however, is a pair of short films with absolutely no relationship to the film or, for that matter, to Danny Boyle, though he does defend their presence as a sort of boost to creative unknowns.

Also new this week

"3:10 to Yuma" (Lionsgate, 2007, R): The original "3:10 to Yuma" is the kind of rusty old western that had just enough going for it to make it a fondly remembered favorite of aficionados. The big-budget remake scrubs away the rust and throws in a pair of great turns from the reliable Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, but somehow the movie never quite gels, a problem magnified by a perplexing, unsatisfying conclusion. Squished down to TV size, the flick feels more than ever like a rote cable movie.

"She's Gotta Have It" (MGM, 1986, R): Spike Lee is a longtime supporter of DVDs, and several of his films (namely "Malcolm X" and "Do the Right Thing") are paradigms of the format. Yet Lee's first feature, "She's Gotta Have It," went mysteriously AWOL, even missing its 20th anniversary, and odd oversight considering the film's place in the indie pantheon. So what happened? Unfortunately, the DVD arrives with nary a supplement. While it's nice to have the disc finally in hand, it would have been even nicer to have the infamously chatty Lee present to give the DIY effort the treatment it deserves.

"The Naked Prey" (Criterion, 1966, Not Rated): Cornel Wilde was a popular leading man until his career took a turn toward the auteur, resulting in a series of tough, violent studies of man's inhumanity to man. "The Naked Prey" (based on a true story) is about an ivory hunter (played by Wilde himself) released in the African wild to be hunted himself. It's a particularly vicious viewing experience, with the minimalist narrative interspersed with footage of man-on-animal and animal-on-animal carnage, as if the movie's themes weren't clear enough already.