"Actor: Arlene Cockburn"

• Tom's Midnight Garden | DVD | (02/04/2001) from £10.90   |  Saving you £5.09 (46.70%)   |  RRP £15.99

  An enchanting adaptation of the classic children's book by Philippa Pearce about Tom Long who has to spend the summer at his aunt's house.

• The Winter Guest | DVD | (03/12/2001) from £9.73   |  Saving you £3.25 (48.22%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Set during the brief hours of light one day in February when the sea has frozen, The Winter Guest is about how four pairs of people at different stages of life attempt to fill the emptiness in their hearts. While that sounds bleak--and the setting in a small town on the East coast of Scotland is certainly stark--there is considerable human warmth in Alan Rickman's directorial debut. Without a conventional story, Rickman simply cuts between four strands, spending most of the time with the difficult relationship between a mother and daughter, played by real-life parent and offspring Phyllida Law and Emma Thomson. Strong dialogue, with a dash of Samuel's Beckett's existential squabbling angst and outstanding performances make this both funny and touching. Meanwhile Thomson's teenage son begins a tentative romance with the new girl in town, two younger boys bunk off school to the icy beach and a pair of elderly ladies attends a funeral. Ultimately the ice-locked sea and Michael Kamen's crystalline piano score become additional characters, the film offering a pseudo-mysticism akin to Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) while echoing with the spare dramas of Krzysztof Kieslowski; especially Three Colours: White (1994). A beautiful drama that demands attention throughout. --Gary S Dalkin

• The Governess | DVD | (19/02/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  It is 1840. The headstrong Rosina leaves behind her family and Jewish identity to take a governess position on the Isle of Skye. There she finds herself drawn to her mysterious employer the handsome and reclusive scientist Charles Cavendish. As Rosina helps him in his work the two begin an intense and sensuous affair. Starring Minnie Driver Tom Wilkinson and Jonathan Rhys Meyers The Governess is a captivating tale of a remarkable woman ahead of her time.