Why 'Tomboy' Tops Indiewire's 5 DVD Picks This Week

This week on DVD/Blu-ray: A tender coming-of-age tale; a documentary on the life of late photographer Francesca Woodman; a peek into the life of Hole ex-drummer Patty Schemel; an expose on the gay bear subculture; and the latest film from "Monster's Ball" director Marc Forster.

#1. "Tomboy"

Filmmaker Céline Sciamma ("Water Lillies") is back with her sophomore feature "Tomboy," another coming-of-age tale, this one concerning a 10-year-old girl who assumes the identity of a boy after moving to a new town in the heat of the summer. An award-winner on the festival circuit, "Tomboy" is a tender and warm tale of early sexual awakening, with an amazing performance by Zoe Heran as the conflicted child.

"There's not a whole lot beyond the basic premise of 'Tomboy,' and anyone familiar with the trailer or even the self-explanatory poster can probably get the gist of this light, touching portrait of early sexual awakening.," wrote Eric Kohn in his review. "However, Sciamma excels at keeping the movie's bare essentials in place, turning 'Tomboy' into a pitch-perfect sketch.."

Extras: Interview with Sciamma and the film's trailer.

#2. "The Woodmans"

Late photographer Francesca Woodman gets the documentary treatment in "The Woodmans," C. Scott Willis unflinching portrait of the artist. Told through the young artist's work and interviews with Woodman's artists parents, Betty and George (each of whom have continued to practice their art while watching their daughter's work eclipse their own), "The Woodmans" is a deeply engaging and sad look at the pressure of the New York art scene, and parent-child competition.

"I always thought of 'The Woodmans' as a sort of 'anti-verite' film," Willis told Indiewire. "Instead of placing the camera in the middle of the action we backed the camera up so you could take in and examine the context and beauty of Betty and George Woodman's world. And instead of constructing a narrative meant to trigger a reaction, I just wanted it to provoke thought."

Extras: None.