"The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1" (PG-13) Format: DVD, Blu-ray

Taylor Lautner remains an unreliable, wildly uneven actor. His line readings range from fine to passable to stilted and awkward, sometimes all within the same scene.

The wolf pack — the five Native Americans of Quileute descent who morph into werewolves — are played by actors chosen for their six-pack abs, not their talents. And the computer-generated werewolves still look cheap and cartoonish.

But despite all that, "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1" does something the three previous "Twilight" movie didn't: This one draws you close and keeps you there — and, for those of us who haven't read Stephenie Meyer's novel, delivers some surprising, even shocking turns.

As the movie opens, the long and tortured courtship between the teenage Bella (Kristen Stewart) and her vampire boyfriend Edward (Robert Pattinson) has reached an end, and they are finally preparing to marry.

The film hurtles towards Bella and Edward's big day with a sense of purpose and drive, giving us hints along the way (such as Bella's nightmares) that this couple may not necessarily live happily ever after.

A long sequence in which the newlyweds honeymoon off the coast of Brazil and start having sex is easily the best, most engrossing stretch of any "Twilight" movie to date.

Bella winds up pregnant — and her baby starts to grow inside her at an alarming speed. The birth of Bella and Edward's child will have far-reaching consequences, most of which won't be settled until "Part 2" arrives in November.

The biggest compliment you can pay "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn—Part 1" is that the entire series could have ended with this movie, and I would have been satisfied — silly werewolves and all.

— Rene Rodriguez, McClatchy Newspapers

"Masterpiece Classic: Downton Abbey Season 2" (Not rated) Format: DVD, Blu-ray

Season 2 of the Emmy-winning "Downton Abbey" returns as the Great War rages across Europe, and not even the serene Yorkshire countryside is free from its effects. The men and women of Downton are doing their part both on the front lines and the home front, but the intensity of war only inflames the more familiar passions: love, loss, blackmail and betrayal.

"A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas" (R) Format: DVD, Blu-ray

After years of growing apart, Harold Lee and Kumar Patel have replaced each other with new friends and are preparing for their respective Yuletide celebrations. But when a mysterious package mistakenly arrive at Kumar's door on Christmas Eve, his attempts to redirect it to Harold's house ends with the contents going up in smoke. Harold decides to cover his tracks, rather than come clean. Reluctantly embarking on another ill-advised journey with Kumar, their search for the perfect replacement tree almost blows Christmas Eve sky high.

Also released this week: "Lady and the Tramp" diamond edition (DVD, Blu-ray), "Anonymous" (DVD, Blu-ray), "Project Nim," "Cyberbully," "The Sunset Limited" (DVD, Blu-ray), "Dangerous Liaisons" (Blu-ray), "Love Store" (Blu-ray), "A Fish Called Wanda" (Blu-ray), "Dreamgirls" (Blu-ray), "Warrior's Heart" (DVD, Blu-ray)