INCLUDES BEST COMEDY ROSE D'OR WINNER LA COUCHETTE STEVE PEMBERTON AND REECE SHEARSMITH FOLLOW UP THE AWARD-WINNING SERIES 1 WITH ANOTHER ANTHOLOGY OF TALES OF THE GENUINELY UNEXPECTED. Be invited into six more entirely different No. 9s, ranging from the poignant to the unsettlingly scary, but always funny and surprising. Starring alongside Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith (Psychoville, The League of Gentlemen) is a myriad of talent including Sheridan Smith (Cilla), Jack Whitehall (Bad Education, Fresh Meat), Alison Steadman (Gavin & Stacey), Claire Skinner (Outnumbered), Paul Kaye (Game of Thrones) and Jane Horrocks (Absolutely Fabulous). EXTRAS: BEHIND THE SCENES
Chris Morris' Brass Eye is a brilliantly funny spoof on current affairs media that carries on where his previous The Day Today left off. The show ran for one single, contentious series in 1997, to be followed by an even more controversial one-off in 2001. While these episodes might cause offence to those not versed in Morris' satirical methods, and while one occasionally suspects his work is informed by a dark seam of malice and loathing rather than a desire to educate, Brass Eye remains vital satire, magnificently hilarious and, in its own way, fiercely moral viewing. Brass Eye satirises a media far too interested in generating dramatic heat and urgency for its own sake than in shedding light on serious issues. Morris mimics perfectly the house style of programmes such as Newsnight and Crimewatch, with their spurious props and love of gimmickry. Meanwhile his presenter--an uncanny composite of Jeremy Paxman, Michael Buerk and Richard Madeley among others--delivers absurd items about man-fighting weasels in the East End and Lear-esque lines such as "the twisted brain wrong of a one-off man mental" with preposterously solemn authority. Much as the media itself is wont to do, each programme works itself up into a ridiculous fever of moral panic. Most telling is the "drugs" episode, in which, as ever, real-life celebrities, including Jimmy Greaves and Sir Bernard Ingham, are persuaded to lend their name to a campaign against a new drug from Eastern Europe entitled Cake. The satirist's aim here isn't to trivialise concern about drugs but to point up the media's lack of attention to content. A response to the ill-conceived News of the World witch-hunt, in the wake of the Sarah Payne affair, the 2001 "paedophilia" special was the most supremely controversial of the series. It followed the usual formula--duping celebs such as Phil Collins into endorsing a campaign entitled "Nonce Sense", urging parents to send their children to football stadiums for the night for their own safety and mooting the possibility of "roboplegic" paedophiles--and prompted the sort of hysterical and predictable Pavlovian response from the media that Brass Eye lampoons so tellingly. On the DVD: Brass Eye on DVD includes brief outtakes, such as "David Jatt" interviewing celebrities about breeding hippos for domestic purposes, an hilarious exchange with Jeffrey Archer's PA ("He's a very wicked little man") as well as trailers for the paedophilia special.--David Stubbs
By the time the first public performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 (Eroica) took place in Vienna in 1805 a privileged few had already heard the work at a private play-through at the Lobkowitz Palace. Nick Dear's award-winning period drama starring Ian Hart as Beethoven brings to life the momentous day that prompted Haydn to remark 'everything is different from today'.
When is Jake going to bring round his mysterious girlfriend? Why is Karen suddenly so obsessed with 'browsing'? ...and just what is Ben up to with the washing machine? These are just some of the tricky questions facing Pete and Sue in the forth series of hit comedy Outnumbered. A year is a long time in the Brockman household. But older doesn't necessarily mean wiser as the family negotiate a host of new challenges. In this brand new series Jake wrangles with Mum and Dad about the source of his cash flow; Ben baffles his secondary school classmates and teachers with perplexing particle physics theories and Karen has joined a coven of fashion obsessed 9 year-old girls. While shopping may now be a vital pursuit her grasp of logic and reason remain as finely honed as ever. Charity workers beware... Meanwhile Pete and Sue have concerns of their own; next door's Labrador for one and Auntie Angela is back from the states but where's her husband Brick?
Herein lies all four series and the 2009 Christmas special of Britain's favourite comedy series Outnumbered.That's four school years of spookily familiar and often bafflingly surreal family dilemmas, traversed by Pete and Sue Brockman and their brood. From the seemingly innocent, can I have a biscuit? to progressive theological debate; what would Jesus do if someone stole his mobile? Outnumbered has redefined the family comedy by bringing it closer to home.
Moving On: Series 2 (2 Discs)
Conspiracy theories sex education psychotherapy colonoscopies astrology and kangaroo saliva. These are just a handful of the obstacles that the Brockman family must negotiate in the third series of the multi-award winning comedy Outnumbered. In this new series Karen busies herself recreating Britain's Got Talent and introduces her family to the wonderful world of superstition Ben tackles the school chess league in his own ineffable style and mum worries that Jake's healthy interest in the girl-next-door is turning unhealthy. Meanwhile Dad is grumbling about an ailment that much to the children's amusement may require some invasive investigation. To make things even more uncomfortable Gran has come to stay and made the family a generous offer that may be difficult to refuse. And there are rocky waters ahead after Pete makes a very foolish mistake.
Outnumbered follows the daily chaos of family life with two parents and three young children locked in an unequal contest. Containing strong elements of improvisation this comedy is an honest portrayal of the well meaning parental incompetence that happens in most homes as Mum and Dad attempt to raise their kids with the minimum of emotional damage for all concerned. From the creators of Drop The Dead Donkey Andy Hamilton & Guy Jenkin Outnumbered is quite unlike any other family comedy seen before.
Outnumbered follows the daily chaos of family life with two parents and three young children locked in an unequal contest. Containing strong elements of improvisation, this comedy is an honest portrayal of the well meaning parental incompetence that happens in most homes, as Mum and Dad attempt to raise their kids with the minimum of emotional damage for all concerned. From the creators of Drop The Dead Donkey, Andy Hamilton & Guy Jenkin, Outnumbered is quite unlike any other family comedy seen before.
It's Christmas Day and the Brockman family have decided to escape the festivities and head for the sun, but fate seems determined to intervene. Grandad has been taken ill and is languishing in the hospital from hell. Karen has toothache so her special yuletide treat is a trip to an emergency dentist. Ben is intent on getting into the Guinness Book of Records, preferably with a record involving knives, and their ditsy friend Jane is going to be looking after the house, with her ex-convict boyfriend. What can possibly go wrong?
Evacuated to a house in Dorset from war-torn London, Madge Arwell and her two children, Lily and Cyril, are greeted by a madcap caretaker whose mysterious Christmas gift leads them into a magical wintry world.
Trinity (3 Disc)
20th Anniversary Limited Collector's Edition On Blu-Ray INCLUDES 40-PAGE BOOK OF THE WASHINGTON IRVING CLASSIC STORY, THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW. Master storyteller Tim Burton (Batman, Edward Scissorhands) weaves an eerie, enchanting version of this classic tale of horror. Johnny Depp is Ichabod Crane, an eccentric investigator determined to stop the murderous Headless Horseman. Christina Ricci is Katrina Van Tassel, the beautiful and mysterious girl with secret ties to the supernatural terror. This release includes Special Features never before available on Blu-ray in the UK: Commentary by Director Tim Burton Sleepy Hollow - Behind the Legend Reflections on Sleepy Hollow
Limelight tells the story of a fading music hall comedian's efforts to help a despondent ballet dancer learn both to walk and feel confident about life again. The highlight of this moving Academy Award-winning film is the classic duet with Chaplin's only real artistic film comedy rival Buster Keaton. This Dual Format Edition (Blu-ray and DVD) features the film restored in HD
Life Begins: Series 2 & 3 (4 Disc)
Adapted from the novel by Anthony Powell this miniseries tells the story of the upper classes in England from the early 1920s to modern times. Friendship murder adultery ambition and failure are set against a backdrop of social political and artistic life during the pivotal years of this century - from the decadence of the early Twenties to the sobering Thirties from the devastation of the Second World War to the world created in its aftermath. Centre stage is Kenneth Widmerpool and his rise to power through business the military and politics. The comings and goings of Widmerpool and his circle is charted by the omnipresent Nicholas Jenkins.
Outnumbered: Series Two
Life is Sweet, Mike Leigh's 1990 snapshot of the suburban family condition at the tail end of the Thatcher era, is often depressing and occasionally harrowing. It is also ultimately joyous, not just for the sharpness of Leigh's satire--the script was improvised with and by the cast--but also for the real affection that binds the family together. Through a series of minor crises, channels of communication silted up by the daily grind and terminal self-absorption are gradually eased open and the film ends on a note of genuine hope. As parents Wendy and Andy, Alison Steadman and Jim Broadbent give virtuoso performances: two adults who use fantasy, mundane work and a stream of banal chatter to keep reality at bay before a freak kitchen accident forces them to stop and take stock. They have two daughters to perplex them: one a plumber (Claire Skinner) and the other an angry anorexic (Jane Horrocks, unsparing in a gut-wrenching bulimic scene). Timothy Spall is hilarious as family friend Aubrey, a would-be restaurateur whose efforts to establish a gourmet eatery in Enfield collapse in hopeless, drunken farce. This is not an overtly political film, but the sense of a stake being driven through the heart of the 1980s enterprise culture is unmistakeable. Inspiring. --Piers Ford
Behind the generic title of Boys and Girls lies a surprisingly enjoyable and nuanced romantic comedy. Teen heartthrob Freddie Prinze Jr plays Ryan, a dorky, emotionally sincere young guy who keeps crossing paths with Jennifer (Claire Forlani), an independent and wilfully unattached young woman. Their chance meetings coincide with relationship traumas and they start to confide in each other, which leads to a more genuine friendship and, in the midst of their college years, a romance. It's a bit of a stock plot line to have their friendship threatened by sexual attraction, but Boys and Girls has just enough genuine feeling to make it compelling. Meanwhile, Jason Biggs (from American Pie) plays Ryan's roommate, a compulsive liar and would-be scam artist, who carries off some pretty funny scenes. Forlani and Prinze work together quite well. Their performances hearken back to the classic screwball comedies of the 1930s, with the repressed male simultaneously attracted and horrified by a footloose dame. Some kooky moments are a little strained, but at other times the movie has a refreshing realism about human emotions. --Bret Fetzer, Amazon.com
Outnumbered: Seasons 1 & 2 (3 Discs)
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