New on DVD: French gays and chefs, Japanese dolphins and classics

Frenchmen abroad play a key role in the week's major gay DVD releases, as do Julia Child, George Michael and Japanese film master Akira Kurosawa.

Read on for more!

The sexy and acclaimed British gangster film Shank tells the story of Cal (Wayne Virgo), who hides his homosexuality by committing violent acts with his mates. When he falls for a sweet French exchange student visiting the UK, his straight façade becomes harder to maintain.

A traveling Frenchman gets things rolling in Hollywood, Je T'aime, as Jérôme (Eric Debets) impulsively flies off to Los Angeles for a Christmas vacation, secretly hoping he'll become a movie star. While chasing his dreams, he falls in love with Ross (Chad Allen) in this festival fave.

Julia Child's adventures as an American in Paris make up half of Julie & Julia, with Meryl Streep giving an unforgettable performance as the woman who taught Yankees how to embrace the wonders of French cuisine. Amy Adams does what she can with her half of the film, as a New York blogger who, after 9/11, gives herself one year to cook every recipe in Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, but it's a less engaging tale. Still, this movie's a treat (don't watch it hungry) and certainly ranks as the very best film directed by Nora Ephron. And if that's not enough of a Julia Child fix for you, also out this week is her DVD The Way to Cook. And with Christmas around the corner, it's never too late to pick up some new culinary tricks.

He's mainly been in the press lately talking about his relationship status and his love of recreational drugs and cottaging, but George Michael is still, first and foremost, a musician and entertainer. If you need a reminder of his gifts in that department, check out his new Live in London DVD.

One of the year's best documentaries was also one of the grimmest, but after The Cove was released to theaters, its subjects got a real-life happy ending. The film deals with the capture and slaughter of bottle-nosed dolphins in Japan, but this movie brought such public attention to this annual bloodbath that real changes have been brought about to stop it. It's one of the most powerful—not to mention suspenseful—films of 2009.

And speaking of Japan, eager cineastes will no doubt hope to find AK 100: 25 Films of Akira Kurosawa under the Christmas tree this year. This lush 25-disc set from the Criterion Collection comes in a linen-bound case and features four films never before released on DVD.

Note: These DVDs were provided to AfterElton.com for review purposes.