In spite of the literary narration that occasionally threatens to derail the proceedings, Todd Field’s (In the Bedroom) extraordinary film adaptation of Tom Perrotta’s (Election) novel Little Children is one of the most haunting movies in recent memory. A few storylines intersect in this unsettling tale of the suburban underbelly. Untypical suburban mom Sarah (Kate Winslet) and her daughter, Lucy (Sadie Goldstein), become friendly with stay-at-home dad Brad (Patrick Wilson) and his son, Aaron (Ty Simpkins), much to the dismay of the other playground mothers who are too afraid to approach the handsome father, described as a man who takes his own beauty for granted, whom they have nicknamed the “Prom King.” Neither Sarah nor Brad is especially satisfied in their respective marriages and, before you know it, they begin to have an affair. Of course, Sarah and Brad’s spouses, Richard (Gregg Edelman) and Kathy (Jennifer Connelly), are not blameless, and Little Children doesn’t refrain from finger pointing.

Nearby, another parent-and-child relationship unfolds. Ronnie (Jackie Earle Haley) is a middle-aged man and sex offender who, after being released from prison after serving his sentence, does what he can to settle into his life. He lives with May (Phyllis Somerville), his elderly mother, who believes that her son just hasn’t found the right woman. Ronnie’s presence in the suburban neighborhood upsets the balance of things, and while Sarah and Brad’s infidelity creates havoc on a personal level, the impact that Ronnie has on his neighbors (the scene at the town pool is a good example) is virtually horrifying.

The cast is topnotch, with Haley giving a career-reviving performance that earned him an Academy Award nomination.

Nicholas Hytner’s big screen adaptation of the Tony Award-winning stage play The History Boys gives viewers a peek at a bygone era in contemporary education. Set in Yorkshire in 1983 during the autumn term at Cutler Grammar School, where the graduating class’s A-level test results rank among the best ever, the boys are being prepared for the next step in their education, at either Oxford or Cambridge. Starring the original cast of the lauded stage production, director Hytner makes an admirable attempt to open it up and move beyond the hallowed halls and walls of the school, but it still feels somehow stagy and theatrical.

Beloved teacher Hector (Richard Griffiths), who in spite of having an “unexpected wife,” is known for occasionally touching a student inappropriately, and when a crossing guard witnesses such an indiscretion and reports him to bilious and homophobic headmaster Felix (Clive Merrison), Hector’s days are numbered.

Enter young and enthusiastic teacher Irwin (Stephen Campbell Moore) to get the boys on the right track. Of course, the boys themselves have their own nearly insurmountable issues to overcome. By the end, however, it’s hard not to get caught up in the momentum and find yourself cheering for the boys, especially gay and Jewish outsider Posner (Samuel Barnett), a character that many queer viewers will be able to relate to on one level or another.

The DVD includes the behind-the-scenes featurette “Pass it On: The History Boys on Screen,” and more.