"Actor: Daniela Amavia"

• Dune Apocolypse | DVD | (18/02/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  It's been twelve years since Paul Maud'dib Atreides's (Alec Newman, Frank Herbert's Dune) desert-dwelling Freman Jihad spread out across the universe to exterminate all that remained of the Old Imperial armies-twelve years of war as all the known planets were colonized, one-by-one, under Maud'dib's rule. Out of this chaos, the House Atreides has emerged as a superpower of Dune-the arid planet, Arrakis. But its Imperial government is not omnipotent. Its greatest enemy, the fallen Baron Harkonnen (Ian McNeice, A Christmas Carol), still strives to regain control of Dune, its mysterious life force, and everything it represents to the galactic order. A far more insidious threat is poised and ready to strike within the treacherous House Atreides. As Maud'dib's secret enemies grow in number, his only chance to protect the family's supreme reign is in his new twins, born of his concubine, Chani. Soon, the hope for Dune will be in the hands of his young son Leto (James McAvoy - X Men: First Class, Filth, Wanted) heir to a power unimaginable. It will be Leto's responsibility to demystify the legacy of his father, raze the old regime, and restore peace to the Empire. But the ultimate battle has yet to be waged, and the children of Atreide-the children of Dune-will find themselves trapped in an unpredictable future of their family's own making. As Frank Herbert's award-winning visionary masterpiece reinvented the mythology of fantasy fiction, so does Dune Apocalypse reinvent the boundaries of fantasy film. From high court intrigue to stupendous battles, from theological/ecological speculations of the future to confrontations with the supreme intelligence of the universe.

• Children Of Dune | DVD | (22/09/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  Children of Dune is the sequel to the Sci-Fi Channel's Frank Herbert's Dune (2000), and surpasses that earlier mini-series in every way. The screenplay is again by John Harrison, who has combined Herbert's novels Dune Messiah and Children of Dune into three 84-minute TV movies, and continues the labyrinthine space opera with little concession to the uninitiated. Indeed, this a very rare attempt to put the complexity of printed SF on screen, and if the result is sometimes rather hermetic it is perhaps inevitable when realising Herbert's Byzantine, pseudo-Shakespearean tragedy. The same tableaux-like qualities infuse the new Star Wars films and the similarities between Herbert's and Lucas' worlds have never been more obvious than here. Performances range from excellent--Julie Cox, Alice Krige, Alex Newman (much better here than in the first series) and James McAvoy--to a surprisingly wooden Susan Sarandon. The set-pieces are exceptional, with many individual images sufficiently memorable to stand comparison with the work of Ridley Scott. Production-wise this is surely the most beautiful mini-series ever made, with gorgeous lighting by cinematographer Arthur Reinhart, breathtaking set design from Ondrej Nekvasil and a ravishing score from Brian Tyler. By TV standards the CGI is first-rate and, though rarely looking real, establishes a credible science fictional universe. Even when rather baffling, the production achieves moments of dramatic grandeur and a sense of wonder not experienced in TV SF since Babylon 5. On the DVD: Children of Dune on DVD has one feature-length episode on each disc. The picture is presented at 1.77:1 anamorphically enhanced for widescreen TVs. Shot in high definition, its clarity and detail is superb with virtually no blemishes to the image at all. Colour has a painterly beauty that is remarkable. However, some shots look inaccurately framed, with what was presumably a 4:3 image being a little too closely cropped for widescreen presentation. It's a minor flaw and really only noticeable in some close-ups. Sound is a richly luxuriant Dolby Digital 5.1, which gives no ground to any modern blockbuster movie. Perfunctory extras are confined to the first disc and consist of an interesting but short look at the special effects (13 minutes), a storyboard comparison for one key scene and a photo gallery. --Gary S Dalkin

• Children Of Dune | DVD | (25/08/2008) from £22.94   |  Saving you £-2.95 (-14.80%)   |  RRP £19.99

  It's been twelve years since Paul Maud'dib Atreides's (Alec Newman Frank Herbert's Dune) desert-dwelling Freman Jihad spread out across the universe to exterminate all that remained of the Old Imperial armies-twelve years of war as all the known planets were colonized one-by-one under Maud'dib's rule. Out of this chaos the House Atreides has emerged as a superpower of Dune-the arid planet Arrakis. But its imperial government is not omnipotent. Its greatest enemy the fallen Baron Harkonnen (Ian McNeice A Christmas Carol) still strives to regain control of Dune its mysterious life force and everything it represents to the galactic order. A far more insidious threat is poised and ready to strike within the treacherous House Atreides. As Maud'dib's secret enemies grow in number his only chance to protect the family's supreme reign is in his new twins born of his concubine Chani (Barbara Kodetova Dune). Soon the hope for Dune will be in the hands of his young son Leto heir to a power unimaginable. It will be Leto's responsibility to demystify the legacy of his father raze the old regime and restore peace to the Empire. But the ultimate battle has yet to be waged and the children of Atreides-the children of Dune-will find themselves trapped in an unpredictable future of their family's own making.

• Mary Higgins Clark - You Belong To Me / All Around The Town / Haven't We Met Before | DVD | (03/03/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Three film adaptations from the novels of the woman known to millions as 'The Queen Of Suspense'. You Belong To Me (Dir. Paolo Barzman 2001): Dr Susan Chandler has a call-in radio show and uses it explore the issues of lonely women murdered by a seductive killer. One such investigation puts her life and those of her closest friends in danger. Based on the novel by Mary Higgins Clark. All Around The Town (Dir. Paolo Barzman 2002): Laurie has no alibi to offer when she