In "The Black Dahlia," detective Bucky Bleichert (Josh Hartnett) finds himself tempted by high society party girl Madeleine Linscott (Hilary Swank), who's a dead ringer for the title murder victim. In "The Last Kiss," sparks fly between wedding guests Kim (Rachel Bilson), a college girl, and almost-30 Michael (Zach Braff), despite the fact that Michael and his live-in girlfriend are expecting a baby.

What a long, strange trip it's been.

When Video Preview began its Review-Journal run in the Beta-versus-VHS '80s, home video meant bulky videocassettes -- released at a pace so glacial the column didn't switch from monthly to weekly until 1989.

These days, however, DVD has replaced VHS as the standard home video format -- with Blu-Ray and HD DVD storming the gates. People buy more DVDs than they rent, and video outlets have expanded beyond local stores to include such cyberspace sources as Netflix.

And, reflecting the changing times, Video Preview will make way next Tuesday for a weekly guide highlighting the latest video, music and book releases.

So, let's make it one for the road as Video Preview rides off into the sunset, starting with ...

The big screen scene: Big-budget disappointments or low-budget winners? That is the question.

Representing the former: "The Black Dahlia" (Universal), based on James Ellroy's fictionalized best seller about the grisly 1947 murder of a wannabe starlet (Mia Kirshner). Josh Hartnett and Aaron Eckhart play the Los Angeles cops on the case; Hilary Swank and Scarlett Johansson are the femme fatales.

On the smaller-is-better side of the scale: "The Last Kiss" (Paramount), an Americanization of an Italian comedy-drama, about an almost-30 guy (Zach Braff) who jeopardizes his relationship with his pregnant girlfriend (Jacinda Barrett) by encouraging the flirtations of a college sophomore (Rachel Bilson).

Also on the indie beat, "Factotum" (IFC) stars Matt Dillon as the fictional alter ego of author Charles Bukowski, who drifts between random jobs while chronicling life among Los Angeles' down-and-outers.

And raucous comedy rides again in "Jackass Number Two" (Paramount) as the cast and crew of MTV's "Jackass" and "Jackass: The Movie" (including Chris Pontius, Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and Bam Margera) return to inflict more senseless damage on their bodies.

On the horror front, spunky spelunkers find themselves trapped -- and pursued -- by some mighty creepy creatures in "The Descent" (Lionsgate).

And in "Haven" (Fox), two shady businessmen (Bill Paxton, Stephen Dillane) trying to dodge federal prosecution flee to the Cayman Islands. Orlando Bloom co-stars.

Critic's choice: Returning after its June debut at the CineVegas film festival, the psychological thriller "Danika" (First Look) stars Marisa Tomei as a wife and mother plagued by premonitions of death and disaster.

The Canadian comedy "Bon Cop, Bad Cop" (Park Ex Pictures), meanwhile, teams English- and French-speaking officers (Colm Feore, Patrick Huard) when a murder victim is discovered on the Ontario-Quebec border.

Traveling farther afield, Isabelle Huppert and Catherine Frot play very different siblings in the French comedy-drama "Me and My Sister" (Christal). "The Spectator" (Syracuse International) focuses on an Italian translator obsessed with a client, while a feminist and her chauvinist husband do battle in the Iranian comedy "Cease Fire" (Irmovies.com). And three tales of love inspire Singapore's "Be With Me" (Film Movement).

Hot docs: The wide world of cinematic history inspires a pair of very different releases. "Sex, Censorship and The Silver Screen" (Echo Bridge) features scenes from more than 100 controversial movies, while in "Moscow Elegy" (Ideale Audience), "Russian Ark" director Alexander Sokurov salutes another master filmmaker, Andrei Tarkovsky.

Kidvid corner: PBS' "Reading Rainbow" returns with a host of colorful tales, including "The Biggest Test in the Universe," "Boxes for Katje," "Game Day," "I Lost My Tooth in Africa" and "Snow Way."

TV transfers: The heyday of the TV-movie inspires an avalanche of DVD debuts on the Direct Source label. Angela Lansbury headlines the fact-based "Shootdown" (1988), about the 1983 incident in which Soviet jet interceptors shot down a Korean Air Lines flight en route from New York City to Seoul, killing all aboard.

A notorious 1911 New York sweatshop disaster, meanwhile, inspires the Emmy-winning "The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal" (1979), with Stephanie Zimbalist, Tovah Feldshuh, Tom Bosley and Charlotte Rae. Los Angeles cops (A Martinez, Richard Jordan) track a notorious killer in "Manhunt: Search for the Night Stalker" (1989). And, on a lighter note, Richard Kiley and Beatrice Arthur play high school flames who reconnect at a reunion in "My First Love" (1988).

Leading the series arrivals: "Airwolf: Season 2" (Universal), "Dane Cook's Tourgasm" (HBO), "The Simple Life 4: 'Til Death Do Us Part" (Fox) and "Two-A-Days: Hoover High -- The Complete First Season" (Paramount).