TOP PICK — Indie Sex (Genius Products)
This two-disc DVD compiles a four-part miniseries about sex in the movies that aired on IFC last year. The former Mrs. Marilyn Manson, Dita Von Teese, hosts the roundup — which juggles talking heads (John Waters, Ally Sheedy) and film clips (Porky's, Shortbus). Bonus materials include extended scenes and a helpful "Sex in Cinema Milestones" feature.
BOOK — Cinema of Obsession: Erotic Fixation and Love Gone Wrong in the Movies (Limelight Editions)
After you've finished watching Indie Sex, check out this companion piece: a look at psychotic passion in the movies over the past 100 years. Writers Dominique Mainon and James Ursini can be a tad too scholarly at times, but their incisive takes on Vertigo, Boxing Helena, and Mulholland Drive reveal just how screwed up sex-starved maniacs are. Besides, there are plenty of pictures of half-naked stars.
BOOK — 501 Movie Stars/501 Movie Directors (Barron's)
These hefty, valuable volumes are stuffed with tons of info about all your favorite filmmakers. The Stars set does its best to balance golden-age actors like Katharine Hepburn and Robert Mitchum with Us magazine perennials like Leonardo DiCaprio and Angelina Jolie. Meanwhile, the Directors book profiles the obscure (Jean-Marie Straub, who made 1968's The Bridegroom, the Comedienne, and the Pimp) as well as the mega-rich (Steven Spielberg).
DVD — Saturday Night Live: The Complete Second Season (Universal)
The Not Ready for Prime-Time Players were still exploring the boundaries of the live skit program in 1976. The original first-season cast — anchored by Chevy Chase, John Belushi, and Gilda Radner — returned for a second season of some of the ballsiest comedy to ever air on network television. This mammoth eight-disc box includes all 23 episodes in their entirety. Best: rarely seen music performances by George Harrison, the Kinks, and Tom Waits.
TV — 31 Days of Sundance (Sundance Channel)
The indie-movie network wraps up its monthlong salute to its influential film fest with a bunch of flicks that premiered at the shindig over the past decade. You'll want to tune in on Sunday, starting at 9 p.m., when Best of the Fest looks at this year's most promising works. It's immediately followed by Donnie Darko, the mind-fucking thriller about a very bad bunny, which bowed at Sundance in 2001.
COURTESY FLUSH, PLEASE — 14th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (TNT, TBS)
Of all the self-congratulatory awards shows that pop up on TV this time of year, this one (which airs live at 8 p.m. on Sunday) is the most self-absorbed. Actors vote for their favorite performances by other actors in 2007. Daniel Day-Lewis, Cate Blanchett, and Javier Bardem are among those vying for the industry's gayest-looking trophy.
