CULTURE JAMMING -- JANUARY 27

TOP PICK

Bayonetta

(Sega)

In the year’s first must-play videogame, you’re a witch with some big weapons and killer moves (including one that gives you humongous fists to bash enemies with). This action game (for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) blends intense button-mashing with solid storytelling. Best: Finishing moves incorporate old-school torture devices like the guillotine and iron maiden.

CD

Whitney Houston – 25^th Anniversary Edition

(Arista/Legacy)

Before the doodie bubbles, before declaring crack-is-whack and before she became one of the world’s top divas, Houston was a 21-year-old R&B singer primed for stardom by record-company legend Clive Davis. Her 1985 debut glistens in this deluxe edition, which includes five bonus tracks. A DVD features music videos and early TV appearances, including her first.

DVD

The Hurt Locker

(Summit)

Here’s your chance to see one of last year’s best movies (and an Oscar hopeful), which practically nobody saw in theaters. Too bad, because Kathryn Bigelow’s smart film about a Baghdad bomb squad deserves a big-screen viewing. So watch it on Blu-ray, where the terrific action sequences tangle with the more personal stuff (featuring an excellent Jeremy Renner).

DVD

Magnolia

(Warner)

It celebrated its 10^th anniversary last year, but Paul Thomas Anderson’s stunning epic now makes its Blu-ray debut in a set that includes a production diary, extended scenes and an Aimee Mann music video. Anderson’s sprawling tale of human frailty (eight years before he tackled the same subject in There Will Be Blood) stands as one of the ’90s’ best movies.

DVD

9

(Universal)

Last year’s post-apocalyptic CGI movie looks dazzling on Blu-ray. But you may want to keep the little ones away from this story about tiny stitched-together creatures who struggle to survive in a menacing wasteland (spoiler alert: There aren’t nine of them at the end). Extras include commentary, deleted scenes and the original short film that inspired the film.

--Michael Gallucci