"Actor: Jacques Bernard"

• Carry On Christmas Special | DVD | (13/11/2006) from £7.79   |  Saving you £17.20 (220.80%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Unseen for many years these four made-for-TV Christmas Carry On spectaculars feature favourite stories and timely traditions including Treasure Island A Christmas Carol pantomime and much more in the only way the Carry On team know how... pure slapstick comedy and scripts full of trademark innuendo! This is Carry On at its Christmas best! Carry On Christmas 1969: sees Sid James Barbara Windsor et al in a re-working of literary classic 'A Christmas Carol' - obviously thou

• Carry On Camping | DVD | (07/07/2003) from £5.95   |  Saving you £7.04 (118.32%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Prepare for an onslaught of robust breezy humour when the Carry On team take to the great Outdoors.

• Les Enfants Terribles | DVD | (30/08/2004) from £14.75   |  Saving you £5.24 (35.53%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Jean-Pierre Melville's second film, made in 1950, became a significant influence among French film-makers and earned Melville renown as a maverick who could do wonderful things outside his country's studio system. (Melville's independence was a forerunner of that enjoyed later in the decade by New Wave figures such as François Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard.) Les Enfants Terribles is based on a 1929 novel by poet and film-maker Jean Cocteau, who also wrote the script with Melville and according to some people interfered in everything from the casting (the rather stiff male lead was a Cocteau protégé) to the photography. Nevertheless, the story of a sister (an outstanding performance by Nicole Stephane) and brother (Edouard Dhermite) who withdraw into their own, insulated world to play out suggestively erotic dramas, has a fluid, lyrical movement that is part of a visionary whole. In some ways a harbinger of the coming pop narcissism of youth culture, Les Enfants Terribles is also a timeless tale of mythic exploration of existence and purpose. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com

• Carry On At Your Convenience | DVD | (07/07/2003) from £9.49   |  Saving you £3.50 (36.88%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In 1971 when Carry On at Your Convenience hit our screens, the series had long since become part of the fabric of British popular entertainment. Never mind the situation, the characters were essentially the same, film after film. The jokes were all as old as the hills, but nobody cared, they were still funny. But it's just too easy to treat them as a job lot of postcard humour and music hall innuendo. This tale of revolt at a sanitary ware factory--Boggs and Son, what else?--certainly chimed in with the state of the nation in the early 1970s when strikes were called at the drop of a hat. Here, tea urns, demarcation and the company's decision to branch out into bidets all wreak havoc. Kenneth Williams as the company's besieged managing director, Sidney James and Joan Sims give their all as usual, but it's the lesser roles that really add some lustre. Hattie Jacques as Sid's budgerigar-obsessed, sluggish put-upon wife and Renee Houston as a superbly domineering battleaxe with a penchant for strip poker remind us that in the hands of fine actors, even the laziest of caricatures become real human beings. --Piers Ford

• Carry On Matron | DVD | (07/07/2003) from £8.22   |  Saving you £4.77 (58.03%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Hattie Jacques finally got to the play the title role in 1972 when Carry On Matron immortalised the character she had developed during several previous outings, most notably in Carry On Doctor. And she seized it with gusto. This is no one-dimensional performance, but a very human portrait of a woman doing her best to retain her authority in the face of mounting chaos--a raid planned by Sid James to steal the hospital's supply of contraceptive pills. Certainly, she's obsessed with regular bowel movements--this wouldn't be a Carry On film otherwise--but she remains a majestic figure of dignity with a touch of human warmth. Occasionally, too, a real hint of irony peeks through the slapstick and the innuendo. Surely scriptwriter Talbot Rothwell had his tongue lodged firmly in his cheek when he gave Barbara Windsor--then married to Ronnie Knight--the line, "I don't fancy being a gangster's moll!" Terry Scott makes a guest appearance and Sid James is at his most conniving and lecherous. Theatre impresario Bill Kenwright has a cameo role and there's an early appearance from Wendy Richard as a prototype Pauline Fowler. But it's the female stalwarts who shine. Joan Sims and Hattie Jacques were truly comic actresses of the highest order. --Piers Ford

• Carry On Matron | DVD | (27/08/2001) from £11.50   |  Saving you £1.48 (17.39%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Hattie Jacques finally got to the play the title role in 1972 when Carry On Matron immortalised the character she had developed during several previous outings, most notably in Carry On Doctor. And she seized it with gusto. This is no one-dimensional performance, but a very human portrait of a woman doing her best to retain her authority in the face of mounting chaos--a raid planned by Sid James to steal the hospital's supply of contraceptive pills. Certainly, she's obsessed with regular bowel movements--this wouldn't be a Carry On film otherwise--but she remains a majestic figure of dignity with a touch of human warmth. Occasionally, too, a real hint of irony peeks through the slapstick and the innuendo. Surely scriptwriter Talbot Rothwell had his tongue lodged firmly in his cheek when he gave Barbara Windsor--then married to Ronnie Knight--a the line, "I don't fancy being a gangster's moll!" Terry Scott makes a guest appearance and Sid James is at his most conniving and lecherous. Theatre impresario Bill Kenwright has a cameo role and there's an early appearance from Wendy Richard as a prototype Pauline Fowler. But it's the female stalwarts who shine. Joan Sims and Hattie Jacques truly were comic actresses of the highest order. On the DVD: Presented like most of the other Carry On DVD releases in 4:3 picture format and mono soundtrack, this release has all the comfy quality of a lazy Saturday afternoon in front of the television. But where are the extras? It's one thing to launch a highly popular series of films as classic entertainment, but they deserve more than the budget treatment. As always, a cast list, some sort of documentary extra and biographies of at least the key players would really do them justice. --Piers Ford

• Herbie Goes To Monte Carlo | DVD | (12/01/2004) from £8.99   |  Saving you £6.00 (66.74%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Herbie the VW with a heart adds some international flair to his lovable personality! Upon entering a Paris-to-Monte Carlo road race Herbie falls hood over wheels in love when he encounters a sleek sporty light-blue Lancia. Also vying for Herbie's attention is a gang of jewel thieves - who've ingeniously hidden a stolen gem in Herbie's gas tank! Thus begins a madcap chase across the French countryside that only The Love Bug could create!

• Van Gogh (Masters of Cinema) (Blu-ray) | Blu Ray | (30/09/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  One of the greatest films by one of the finest directors of the second half of the 20th century Maurice Pialat's Van Gogh represents an ambitious and crowning achievement in its portrayal of the master painter's final weeks of life almost exactly one-hundred years earlier. Van Gogh depicted by the remarkable actor/songwriter-singer Jacques Dutronc (Godard's Sauve qui peut (la vie)) has arrived at Auvers-sur-Oise to come under the care of Dr. Gachet (Gérard Séty) for his nervous agitation. Soon after the arrival of Vincent's brother Théo (Bernard Le Coq) and his wife plein air portraiture and conviviality give way to the more crepuscular moods of brothels and cabarets and the painter's anguished existence tossing between money worries and an impassioned relationship with the doctor's teenage daughter finally meets its terminal scene. With its loosely factual and wholly inspired treatment of the last period of Van Gogh's life Pialat's film applies an impressionist touch to the biographical picture — indeed the filmmaker was himself an accomplished painter and the personal resonance of the subject matter results in an epic major late work. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Maurice Pialat's Van Gogh on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK and also in a special two-disc DVD edition. Special Features: Gorgeous new restoration of the film appearing in 1080p New and improved optional English subtitles Van Gogh (1965) — a short early documentary about the painter by Maurice Pialat A 10-minute video interview with Pialat from 1991 A 50-minute video interview with Pialat from 1992 Video interviews with actors Jacques Dutronc and Bernard Le Coq; director of photography Emmanuel Machuel; and editor Yann Dedet Deleted scenes Original theatrical trailer 56-Page Booklet containing a new and exclusive essay by critic Sabrina Marques; Jean-Luc Godard's letter to Pialat after seeing the film followed by Godard's tribute to Pialat upon the director's passing in 2003; copious newly translated interviews with Maurice Pialat; images of Pialat's canvasses; rare imagery; and more!

• Carry On Dick | DVD | (12/05/2003) from £6.74   |  Saving you £6.25 (92.73%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The 18th century, with its frills and bawds, was ideal territory for the Carry On team: Carry On Dick is one of the few of the series where one notices the quality of the art direction in intervals between terrible old Talbot Rothwell jokes and the creaking of standard farce moments. Captain Fancy (Kenneth Williams) is sent to the remote village of Upper Denture to arrest Big Dick Turpin (Sid James) and makes the mistake of confiding in the local Rector, the Reverend Flasher (who is Big Dick's secret alter ego). Dick has troubles of his own: his liaison with his housemaid and henchperson Harriet (Barbara Windsor) is perpetually interrupted by his amorous housekeeper (Hattie Jacques). Meanwhile, Joan Sims struts around the plot as the proprietor of a touring show of scantily clad young women. This is not one of the best of the series--a certain mean-spiritedness creeps in to the humour as does the self-conscious awareness that 1974 was a date a little late for some of the more sexist jokes--but any film with Kenneth Williams discussing satin coats with his tailor has something going for it. --Roz Kaveney

• Van Gogh (Masters of Cinema) (2-Disc DVD) | DVD | (30/09/2013) from £18.88   |  Saving you £1.11 (5.88%)   |  RRP £19.99

  One of the greatest films by one of the finest directors of the second half of the 20th century Maurice Pialat's Van Gogh represents an ambitious and crowning achievement in its portrayal of the master painter's final weeks of life almost exactly one-hundred years earlier. Van Gogh depicted by the remarkable actor/songwriter-singer Jacques Dutronc (Godard's Sauve qui peut (la vie)) has arrived at Auvers-sur-Oise to come under the care of Dr. Gachet (Gérard Séty) for his nervous agitation. Soon after the arrival of Vincent's brother Théo (Bernard Le Coq) and his wife plein air portraiture and conviviality give way to the more crepuscular moods of brothels and cabarets and the painter's anguished existence tossing between money worries and an impassioned relationship with the doctor's teenage daughter finally meets its terminal scene. With its loosely factual and wholly inspired treatment of the last period of Van Gogh's life Pialat's film applies an impressionist touch to the biographical picture — indeed the filmmaker was himself an accomplished painter and the personal resonance of the subject matter results in an epic major late work. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Maurice Pialat's Van Gogh on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK and also in a special two-disc DVD edition. Special Features: New and improved optional English subtitles Van Gogh (1965) — a short early documentary about the painter by Maurice Pialat A 10-minute video interview with Pialat from 1991 A 50-minute video interview with Pialat from 1992 Video interviews with actors Jacques Dutronc and Bernard Le Coq; director of photography Emmanuel Machuel; and editor Yann Dedet Deleted scenes Original theatrical trailer 56-Page Booklet containing a new and exclusive essay by critic Sabrina Marques; Jean-Luc Godard's letter to Pialat after seeing the film followed by Godard's tribute to Pialat upon the director's passing in 2003; copious newly translated interviews with Maurice Pialat; images of Pialat's canvasses; rare imagery; and more!

• Carry On Collection | DVD | (27/09/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £99.99

  The Carry On Collection DVD box set contains the following 17 films in Special Edition versions, complete with a selection of commentaries, documentaries or other features on each disc, plus That's Carry On, a celebration of 20 years of the series hosted by Kenneth Williams and Barbara Windsor. The individual films are: Don't Lose Your Head; Follow That Camel; Doctor; Up the Khyber; Camping; Again Doctor; Up the Jungle; Loving; Henry; At Your Convenience; Matron; Abroad; Girls; Dick; Behind; England; Emmanuelle and That's Carry On.

• Carry On Loving | DVD | (07/07/2003) from £11.27   |  Saving you £1.72 (15.26%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Setting a Carry On film in a marriage bureau has a certain self-serving obviousness, so it's hardly surprising that Carry On Loving milks the idea for all it's worth. The Wedded Bliss Agency is of course a pretty dubious outfit, being run by Sid (James) and Sophie Bliss (Hattie Jacques), who together are the worst possible example for both marriage and their own profession: they constantly snipe at each other, they aren't actually married and their sophisticated computer matching system is in fact a complete fake. The remainder of the team are mostly cast as hapless clients, with predictable but often very funny situations arising from the various mismatches engineered by the agency, such as the inevitable misunderstanding over one client's interest in modelling. Yes, the humour is about as subtle as a flatulent elephant, but you can't help entering into the spirit of the thing. If there's an outstanding performance it has to be that of Imogen Hassall, who handles her transformation from round-shouldered frump to well-bred love goddess with considerable expertise and a genuine sense of fun. --Roger Thomas

• Ridicule | DVD | (29/01/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A poor nobleman has a plan to rid his homeland of its disease infested swamp. To do this he needs backing and so heads to the court of King Louis XV1 in a bid to solicit aid. He soon discovers that the worthiness of the plan itself will not grant him an audience with the King at Versailles the sharpnesss of ones wit is what gets you noticed. Those found lacking in the art of wordmanship are maliciously despatched Patrice Leconte's lavish superbly written costume drama was a BAFTA winner and nominated for both an Oscar and the Palm D'Or. Available for the first time on DVD!

• Carry On At Your Convenience | DVD | (27/08/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  In 1971 when Carry On at Your Convenience hit the screen, the series had long since become part of the fabric of British popular entertainment. Never mind the situation, the characters were essentially the same, film after film. The jokes were all as old as the hills, but nobody cared, they were still funny. But it's just too easy to treat them as a job lot of postcard humour and music hall innuendo. This tale of revolt at a sanitary ware factory--Boggs and Son, what else?--certainly chimed in with the state of the nation in the early 1970s when strikes were called at the drop of a hat. Here, tea urns, demarcation and the company's decision to branch out into bidets all wreak havoc. Kenneth Williams as the company's besieged managing director, Sidney James and Joan Sims give their all as usual, but it's the lesser roles that really add some lustre. Hattie Jacques as Sid's budgerigar-obsessed, sluggish put-upon wife and Renee Houston as a superbly domineering battleaxe with a penchant for strip poker remind us that in the hands of fine actors, even the laziest of caricatures becomes a real human being. On the DVD: Presented in 4:3 format with a good clean print and standard mono soundtrack, Carry On at Your Convenience feels as comfortable as an old pair of shoes. But where's the context? The lack of extras leaves the viewer wanting biographies and some documentary sense of the film's position in the series. The scene index is often arbitrary and the budget packaging means that we don't even get a full cast list. --Piers Ford

• Carry On Dick | DVD | (27/08/2001) from £14.26   |  Saving you £-4.27 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The 18th century, with its frills and bawds, was ideal territory for the Carry On movies: Carry On Dick is one of the few of the series where one notices the quality of the art direction in intervals between terrible old Talbot Rothwell jokes and the creaking of standard farce moments. Captain Fancy (Kenneth Williams) is sent to the remote village of Upper Denture to arrest Big Dick Turpin (Sid James) and makes the mistake of confiding in the local Rector, the Reverend Flasher (who is Big Dick's secret alter-ego). Dick has troubles of his own: his liaison with his housemaid and henchperson Harriet (Barbara Windsor) is perpetually interrupted by his amorous housekeeper Hattie Jacques). Meanwhile, Joan Sims struts around the plot as the proprietor of a touring show of scantily clad young women. This is not one of the best of the series--a certain mean-spiritedness creeps in to the humour as does the self-conscious awareness that 1974 was a date a little late for some of the more sexist jokes--but any film with Kenneth Williams discussing satin coats with his tailor has something going for it. On the DVD: Sadly, the DVD has no frills: it is presented in mono and 4:3 screen ratio.--Roz Kaveney

• Place Vendome | DVD | (27/12/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Marianne is at a terrible crossroads in her life following the shock of her husband Vincent's apparent suicide and the revelation that his prestigious jewellery business is riddled with crippling debt. Once a promising young jeweller herself Marianne has gradually sunk into alcoholism since her marriage. However the discovery of seven magnificent diamonds secretly stashed away by Vincent rekindles Marianne's forgotten ambition. Resolving to sell them she unwittingly enters the shady underworld of the diamond trade uncovering a sinister web of intrigue that will lead to a mysterious former lover and a dangerous struggle for her own survival. An elegant and suspenseful thriller Place Vendome features an outstanding performance by Catherine Deneuve which won her the Best Actress Award at the Venice Film Festival.

• Carry On - The Ultimate Carry On | DVD | (08/10/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £109.99

  Twelve classic titles in one box set

• Van Gogh | DVD | (26/09/2005) from £14.98   |  Saving you £9.01 (60.15%)   |  RRP £23.99

  Pialat's stunningly beautiful portrait of Van Gogh's last days widely acclaimed as the best film about the artist ever made stars Jacques Dutronc whose powerful performance earned him a Cesar award for Best Actor. The film is set between May and July 1890 in the French village of Auvers where Van Gogh went to consult the local physician Dr Gachet and to convalesce from his year long stay in an asylum. This was a period of great activity when he painted a new canvas every day inclu

• Carry On Camping | DVD | (01/10/1999) from £9.32   |  Saving you £10.67 (114.48%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Prepare for an onslaught of robust breezy humour when the Carry On team take to the great Outdoors.

• Carry On Loving | DVD | (27/08/2001) from £7.93   |  Saving you £2.06 (25.98%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Setting a Carry On film in a marriage bureau has a certain self-serving obviousness, so it's hardly surprising that Carry On Loving milks the idea for all it's worth. The Wedded Bliss Agency is of course a pretty dubious outfit, being run by Sid (James) and Sophie Bliss (Hattie Jacques), who together are the worst possible argument both for marriage and for their own profession: they constantly snipe at each other, they aren't actually married and their sophisticated computer matching system is in fact a complete fake. The remainder of the team are mostly cast as hapless clients, with predictable but often very funny situations arising from the various mismatches engineered by the agency, such as the inevitable misunderstanding over one client's interest in modelling. Yes, the humour is about as subtle as a flatulent elephant, but you can't help entering into the spirit of the thing. If there's an outstanding performance it has to be that of Imogen Hassall, who handles her transformation from round-shouldered frump to well-bred love goddess with considerable expertise and a genuine sense of fun. On the DVD: The picture ratio is 4:3, and as is usual for this series the disc has no added features, which always seems like a terribly missed opportunity.--Roger Thomas