"Actor: Claudio"

• Ultra | DVD | (20/04/2009) from £7.71   |  Saving you £7.28 (48.60%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Led by the forceful and extremely violent figure known to his comrades as 'Prince' a hardcore group of AS Roma supporters known as the 'Poison Brigade' travel to Turin to watch their team battle it out with their fierce rivals Juventus. The real purpose of the trip however is not football but violence mayhem and destruction as 'Prince' and his loyal band of fellow hooligans seek out a bloody confrontation with their opposing fans.

• Mansion Of Madness | DVD | (27/09/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  A mysterious man is sent deep into the forest to investigate the bizarre behaviour of the notorious Dr. Tarr. What he stumbles upon is the doctor's torture dungeon a hellish asylum completely cut off from civilisation and presided over by the ultimate madman. Innocent people have been savagely chained tortured and stuck in glass cages then forced to take part in gruesome games of ritual slaughter. Based on a story by Edgar Allan Poe.

• Brahms / Schoenberg / Beethoven - 2013 Lucerne Festival | Blu Ray | (19/05/2014) from £23.57   |  Saving you £6.42 (21.40%)   |  RRP £29.99

  With his very own 'mysterious seductive power and legendary elegance' ( Le Monde ), Claudio Abbado opened for the last time the Lucerne Festival in the summer of 2013. Only a few months later, the world had to bid farewell to a monumental artist, humanist, great conductor and orchestra founder. Even in the concert itself, documented here, lived a moment of farewell, as the three great works performed tell of the transience of life. The centerpiece of the Eroica is the funeral marc.

• Eternal Blood | DVD | (23/08/2004) from £12.99   |  Saving you £-7.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Journalism student Carmilla meets a group of kids who play a role-game called ""Eternal Blood"". She becomes interested in this hobby through ""M"" a young man she met at a philosophy seminar. During a strange party at an abandoned house the group meets ""Dahmer"" a peculiar young man who introduces the group to rituals of vampirism. ""M"" sees that the situation is not normal and shortly realizes that some of them are actually being transformed into vampires. Using ancient texts ""M"" has

• Classic Archive - Claudio Arrau | DVD | (04/11/2002) from £24.88   |  Saving you £-8.89 (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Featuring performances of Schumann's 'Piano Concerto In A minor' 'Carnaval Op.9' and Beethoven's 'Piano Sonata No.32 in C minor Op.111'.

• Sartana In The Valley Of Death | DVD | (01/01/1900) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Lee Calloway known by those who fear him as Sartana arranges a prison break for a notorious and deadly gang. In exchange Sartana wants half the haul of gold the gang has stolen from the army. However after cross and double-cross Sartana is lead from being the hunter to becoming the hunted...

• Mahler - Symphony No. 6 (Abbado, Lucerne Festival Orch) | DVD | (01/04/2008) from £25.00   |  Saving you £-0.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The imposing experience of Mahler's No. 6 is captured live in a performance of tremendous power and towering climaxes with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. The core of the orchestra is provided by the Mahler Chamber Orchestra itself an lite body of players. Soloists like violinist Kolja Blacher (concertmaster of the LFO) clarinettist Sabine Meyer violist Wolfram Christ cellist Natalia Gutman the trumpeter Reinhold Friedrich and members of the Alban Berg Quartet to name just a few

• Southern Cross | DVD | (12/04/2005) from £2.78   |  Saving you £4.47 (294.08%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Malcolm McDowell stars in this fast paced action thriller set in the beautiful surroundings of South America. Felipe Solana (McDowell) is the wealthy mine owner whose mysterious death uncovers a story of death collusion and deception. His estranged son Philip Bergman (Esai Morales) becomes drawn into the mystery by the exotic and beautiful Mariana (Valentina Vargas) who informs him of his potential inheritance in his father's company. Philip begins to uncover the secrets of his

• Cronos | DVD | (28/10/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  A strange object the Cronos device has been found inside the statue of an angel in an antique store. While the dealer Jesus Gris is holding the device it springs open and its metallic legs pierces his flesh. Once bitten he develops a craving for human blood and his body grows more and more youthful with each drink. As the addiction spreads through his body he realizes he desires the blood of his innocent granddaughter. In horror he sacrifices himself and destroys the Cronos for love. Cannes Festival Critics' Week Winner.

• Around The World With Willy Fog - Vol. 4 | DVD | (26/07/2004) from £4.99   |  Saving you £1.00 (20.04%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Excellent French/Japanese production based on the popular novel by Jules Verne. When Willy Fog accepts a wager from four fellow members of the reform club to travel around the world in eighty days he cannot have forseen what lies in front for him. Travelling with his valet Rigodon and the tiny Tico Fog believes that his journey against the clock is possible using only scheduled train and shipping services. But two unknown enemies are determined to stop him. One enemy is the

• Firebird / Pulcinella | DVD | (22/11/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  This release offers two short ballets by Stravinsky, The Firebird from 1909-10 and Pulcinella written a decade later, the former based on three Russian fairytales. This 1982 production by the Royal Danish Ballet was choreographed by Glen Tetley, for whom "The Firebird is a symbol of our innermost dreams and longing for freedom and true love". His interpretation has a dreamlike atmosphere, the designs echoing Jean Cocteau's La Belle et La Bete, the languorous, sensual dance evoking an understated fairytale eroticism in parallel with the shimmering score. Pulcinella comes from Stravinsky's neo-classical period and is inspired by the Italian commedia dell'arte of the 17th and 18th centuries. The story, an almost slapstick series of romantic confusions and complications amid the streets of Naples, is brought to life in this 1988 Scapino Ballet production with an enchanting mixture of dance and mime. The design is boldly colourful and Nils Christe's choreography filled with character and playful good humour. The music comes from an enthusiastic LSO under Claudio Abbado, with vocal soloists of the calibre of John Shirley-Quirk. The two works make an attractive programme. On the DVD: Other than a trailer for other Arthaus DVDs there are no special features. Reflecting the age of the material, the sound is unremarkable PCM stereo and the picture conventional 4:3. There is some audio distortion on Pulcinella, particularly on the vocal parts. The image has rich, vibrant colours and is reasonably detailed, but is also grainy and shows compression artefacts. Firebird has a smoother image, largely due to the focus being soft. The booklet contains useful notes and a full scene breakdown. The disc is encoded for regions 2 and 5. --Gary S. Dalkin

• Berlin Philharmonic -- New Year's Gala 1996 | DVD | (14/11/2001) from £14.75   |  Saving you £8.23 (69.98%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The New Year's Gala Concert given by the Berlin Philharmonic is one of the fixtures of the German music scene, as much as the Vienna Philharmonic concerts are of the Austrian one. This concert from 1996 is typical of the genre, including a selection of highbrow lollipops, a brilliant internationally renowned soloist (Maxim Vengerov) and a generous helping of waltzes with which to swing in the new year. Claudio Abbado brings his usual unflashy savoir-faire to the job of conducting, and the orchestra responds with some gorgeously silky, perfectly executed, if not always electrifying, playing. Vengerov makes Ravel's Tzigane flash and thunder with gypsy passion and gives an equally fiery performances of Brahms' Hungarian Dances Nos. 7, 17 and 21. If the Swedish Radio Choir aren't quite as thrilling in Brahms' Liebeslieder Waltzes and Gypsy Songs they still do a fine job with a remarkably tight sense of ensemble and excellent phrasing. All in all, this is an attractive (if not earth-shattering) performance from one of the world's finest orchestras. On the DVD: there are no pleasant surprises here. The visual content includes concert shots of the orchestra, choir and soloist in the Philharmonie Hall. There are no subtitles in any language for the choral sections, and the special features comprise two trailers for Cecilia Bartoli's Vivaldi album and a recording of Penderecki's The Seven Gates of Jerusalem. --Warwick Thompson

• Mozart: Requiem | DVD | (05/04/2000) from £26.98   |  Saving you £-6.99 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The packaging labels this disc Mozart Requiem, but the actual programme on the DVD bears the title "Herbert Von Karajan Memorial Concert", a document of a concert given on July 16, 1999 in Salzburg Cathedral to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the death of the conductor. Mozart's unfinished Requiem, as completed by Süssmayr, is obviously the main work. We are told that other works were performed, but not what they were, the only additional pieces being two short arias for soprano, Betrachte dies mien Herz un Frage Mich, KV42 and Laudate Dominum, KV339 beautifully sung by Rachel Harnisch. In the Requiem Claudio Abbado summons a deeply atmospheric performance from the Berlin Philharmonic and Swedish Radio Choir, and equally expressive singing from his finely matched soloists. Bass Bryn Terfel is powerfully communicative, soprano Karita Mattila hauntingly resigned. If not as fiery as if Karajan himself were conducting, this is still a memorable and rewarding tribute.On the DVD: There is a wonderfully three-dimensional Dolby-Digital 5.1 sound mix which brings the Salzburg Cathedral ambience alive, and a stunningly detailed and clear anamorphically enhanced picture. Documentation is minimal; no texts, subtitles or information about either Von Karajan or Rachel Harnish is given. There is only one special feature, which is not documented on the disc: by default the disc offers a standard multi-camera view, but at a press of the "angle" button it switches to a second set of cameras focused entirely on Abbado. --Gary S. Dalkin

• Lampedusa | DVD | (09/10/2017) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Two-part Italian drama starring Claudio Amendola and Carolina Crescentini. After moving to the small Italian island of Lampedusa, coast guard Serra (Amendola) finds himself pushed to the limit as the island is overwhelmed with migrants desperately trying to make it to Europe from northern Africa. With hundreds of people arriving each day, Serra and local reception centre officer Viola (Crescentini) do their best to help as many people as they can. The cast also includes Antonino Bruschetta and Farid Elouardi.

• European Concert 2002 - Berliner Philharmoniker - Claddio Abbado | DVD | (15/12/2003) from £23.88   |  Saving you £-3.89 (-19.50%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A concert performance by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in Palermo in 2002. Works include: Brahams Violin Concerto and Dvorak Symphony No. 9. Conducted by Claudio Abbado.

• Berlin Philharmonic - New Year's Gala 1997 - A Tribute To Carmen | DVD | (15/05/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Not to be confused with the more famous Vienna New Year's Day concerts, this is a recording of the Berlin Philharmonic's New Year's Gala from 31st December 1997. The concert was billed as "Dances of Life, Love and Death", a homage to Carmen. Beginning with six of the most famous selections from Bizet's opera, the all-star cast features mezzo-soprano Anne Sophie Von Otter, baritone Bryn Terfel and tenor Robert Alagna. Other than being passionately romantic there is no direct link between Carmen and Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini, but a warm-hearted performance by pianist Mikhail Pletnev requires no excuse. Delivered with fiery virtuosity by violinist Gil Shaham, Pablo de Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy then transforms Bizet's melodies into a concentrated instrumental extravaganza. The mood continues with Ravel's Rhapsodie Espagnole and De Falla's Ritual Fire Dance, with the closing Hungarian Dance No. 5 by Brahms maintaining the theme by gypsy association. This is a wonderfully sultry concert for a cold winter's day, conductor Claudio Abbado delivering pure romance, winning uplifting performances from his fabulous gallery of musicians and stellar soloists. On the DVD: The packaging mistakenly states a picture format of 4:3. The DVD is actually presented at 16:9, anamorphically enhanced for widescreen TVs. There is no option for standard 4:3 viewing. When viewed on a "standard" television the programme is squeezed and distorted, making everyone too tall and thin. On a widescreen TV the picture, while vastly superior to VHS, shows grain and is not always well focused. The sound, in both PCM and Dolby Digital stereo, is excellent. Unless one counts the well-appointed booklet there are no bonus features. However, the disc is Region 0, and should work in any DVD player. --Gary S. Dalkin

• Songs of Love and Desire / Freni, Schäfer, Alvarez, Keenlyside, Berlin Phil., Abbado - Silvesterkonzert 1998 | DVD | (02/12/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Under the musical direction of Claudio Abbado a cast of singers perform works from Bach to Haydn from Donizetti to Verdi and from Schumann to Schonberg.

• What Have They Done To Your Daughters? | DVD | (24/01/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

• Alfred Brendel - Claudio Abbado | DVD | (29/05/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.3 / Bruckner: Symphony No.7

• Il Matrimonio Segreto - Cimarosa | DVD | (31/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  'Il Matrimonio Segreto' is Cimarosa's most famous opera which is reputed to have won immense admiration from Emperor Leopold II at its first performance in 1792. T Austrian Emperor liked this masterpiece so much that he ordered it to be played again from the beginning! Domenico Cimarosa's opera about the amorous bumblings of Bolognese gentry is performed by the Cologne Opera at the 1986 Schwetzingen Festival.