"Eight Below's" husky heroes face a test of Antarctic survival with -- and without -- tracker Jerry Shepherd (Paul Walker) in this fact-based remake of the Japanese film "Nankyoku Monogatari." In the topical thriller "Syriana," Middle Eastern oil industry intrigue catches up with disillusioned CIA agent Bob Barnes (Oscar-winner George Clooney), center, who faces a possibly deadly payback.

Extremes of temperature -- and extremes of attitude -- key the leaders of the pack on ...

The big screen scene: George Clooney captured a supporting actor Oscar for his turn as a world-weary CIA agent in "Syriana" (Warner), a topical thriller about the CIA, the U.S. oil industry and the clash between commerce and ideology in the Middle East. Matt Damon, Christopher Plummer and Jeffrey Wright co-star.

From the desert, we trek to Antarctica for the stirring, fact-based "Eight Below" (Disney), about a valiant sled-dog team stranded in a harrowing Antarctic winter. Paul Walker and Bruce Greenwood lead the human contingent.

Two creepy features round out today's recent releases.

The Russian vampire epic "Night Watch" (Fox) follows a shape-shifting vampire (Konstantin Khabensky) who joins an underground force keeping humans safe from the contemporary Moscow's dark side.

And, returning to the desert, horrormeister Wes Craven's 1977 cult classic "The Hills Have Eyes" (Fox) gets a 21st-century remake as cannibalistic mutants put the bite on unsuspecting vacationers (led by Ted Levine and Kathleen Quinlan).

Critic's choice: Hollywood's two golden ages ('30s/'40s and '60s/'70s) inspire some at-long-last DVD debuts.

One of the '60s best movies (and one of the best time capsules of San Francisco's summer of love), director Richard Lester's 1968 "Petulia" (Warner) details the haunting affair between a divorced doctor (George C. Scott) and the charming, scatter-brained title character (Julie Christie).

Other offbeat '60s titles arriving on Warner DVD range from the scathing 1965 funeral-business satire "The Loved One" (1965) with Robert Morse, Rod Steiger, Jonathan Winters (and Liberace!) to "I Love You Alice B. Toklas" (1968), the madcap, marijuana-laced adventures of a mild-mannered lawyer (Peter Sellers). And an out-of-Bondage Sean Connery plays a rebellious poet in the satirical "A Fine Madness" (1966).

An iconic silver-screen hero, meanwhile, inspires "The Clark Gable Signature Collection" (also from Warner), featuring the DVD debuts of such Depression-era treats as 1936's "San Francisco" (Gable's a rogue romancing songbird Jeannette MacDonald, while priest pal Spencer Tracy tries to keep him in line -- before the earthquake hits) and "Wife vs. Secretary" (Myrna Loy's the wife, Harlow's the secretary, Gable's the boss and a young James Stewart's the boyfriend waiting in the wings).

"China Seas" (1935) finds Gable, Harlow and Rosalind Russell sailing toward Singapore, while Gable, Tracy and Claudette Colbert team up for the 1940 oil-drilling saga "Boom Town." And in the musical "Dancing Lady" (1933), director Gable clashes with lead-footed chorine Joan Crawford. No wonder the movie is best remembered for the screen debut of a future Hollywood legend: Fred Astaire.

Hot docs: Borrowing the title of Frank Capra's World War II documentary series, the award-winning "Why We Fight" (Sony) focuses on America's military-industrial complex -- and questions whether recent wars have been fought more for profits than policy.

On a lighter note, "Look, Up in the Sky: The Amazing Story of Superman" (Warner) traces the Man of Steel's path from comic books to the big screen (where, far from coincidentally, his latest adventure, "Superman Returns," arrives next week).

"When Stand Up Stood Out" (Velocity/Thinkfilm) chronicles the Boston comedy scene of the late '70s and early '80s, when such performers as Janeane Garofalo, Denis Leary, Paula Poundstone and Steven Wright first stood out.

From the PBS vault, "A Flea Market Documentary" offers a beguiling coast-to-coast tour of swap meets, flea markets and other collectors' meccas, while "A Century of Quilts -- America in Cloth" explores their artistry and history. Harrison Ford narrates a profile of a renowned primatologist in "Jane Goodall -- Reason for Hope." And "Frontline" investigates America's "Meth Epidemic."

Kidvid corner: With "Superman Returns" looming, Warner warms up with the "DC Comics Collection" DVDs "Superman -- The Animated Series, Vol. 3," "Superman: Brainiac Attacks," "Justice League, Season Two" and the live-action "Superboy: The Complete First Season" (Warner).

TV transfers: Why stop the "Superman" onslaught now? Not with "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, Season 3" (Warner) waiting in the wings.

More down-to-earth heroes fight for truth, justice and the American way, meanwhile, in "NYPD Blue: The Complete Fourth Season" (Fox).

And favorite sitcoms expand their DVD presence in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show: The Complete Fourth Season" (Fox), "The King of Queens: The Complete Fifth Season" (Sony), "NewsRadio: The Complete Fourth Season" (Sony) and "Married .... With Children: The Complete Fifth Season" (Sony).