THE LIST

DVDS

"Away From Her" (PG-13): Washington Post film critic Ann Hornaday said that "in this exquisite, closely observed portrait of a marriage," Julie Christie, who plays a woman in the early throes of Alzheimer's disease, proves yet again that she's an actress not just of supreme physical beauty but finely tuned sensitivity. Fiona and Grant (Christie and Gordon Pinsent) have built a wonderful life in their 45 years of marriage. When Fiona distractedly puts a frying pan in the freezer, it's a moment that could happen to anyone half her age; when she forgets the word for "wine," Grant laughs it off. But it's not a joke. The film, which writer-director Sarah Polley adapted from Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain," chronicles the ebb and flow of Fiona's awareness, as well as Grant's reluctant realization that, to keep the love of his life, he has to let her go.

Also out today: "Dirty Sanchez Unrated and Uncensored" (Unrated); "DOA: Dead or Alive" (PG-13); "Snow Cake" (Unrated); "I Have Never Forgotten You: The Life & Legacy of Simon Wiesenthal" (PG-13); "Even Money" (R); "Obsession: Radical Islam's War Against the West" (Unrated); "Supernatural: The Complete Second Season" (Unrated); and "Fraggle Rock: The Complete Third Season" (Unrated).

CDS

50 Cent, "Curtis": He has been shot nine times and now he's looking to return fire in a major way: 50 Cent takes aim at the top of the charts this week in one of the biggest hip-hop showdowns in recent memory.

With Kanye West also dropping his hotly anticipated third LP today, this is shaping up to be a seismic battle between hip-hop's backbone and its conscience, between id and superego.

Who'll come out on top?

Hip-hop fans, namely.

Also in stores: Kenny Chesney, "Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates"; Flynnville Train, "Flynnville Train"; Joe Henry, "Civilians"; Hot Hot Heat, "Happiness Ltd."; Soundtrack, "Across the Universe"; Soundtrack, "Grey's Anatomy: Vol. 3"; Soundtrack, "The War: A Ken Burns Film"; Ann Wilson, "Hope & Glory"; and Trisha Yearwood, "Greatest Hits."

BOOKS

"You've Been Warned" (Little, Brown) by James Patterson and Howard Roughan: Kristin Burns, an aspiring photographer making ends meet as a nanny in New York City, finds her dreams of love and success near coming true when she becomes plagued by murderous nightmares. The line between what is real and not blurs as Kristin's bad dreams begin haunting her during the day.

Also out today: "Pontoon: A Lake Wobegon Novel" (Penguin) by Garrison Keillor; "The War: An Intimate History, 1941-1945" (Knopf) by Geoffrey C. Ward; "The 47th Samurai" (Simon & Schuster) by Stephen Hunter; "The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World, 1788-1800" (HarperCollins) by Jay Winik; "Tomorrow" (Knopf) by Graham Swift; and "Sundown, Yellow Moon" (Random House) by Larry Watson.