"Actor: Karl"

• Leonard Bernstein: Trouble In Tahiti | DVD | (20/01/2003) from £23.05   |  Saving you £-3.06 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  This new film of Leonard Bernstein's music-theatre piece Trouble in Tahiti, produced by BBC Wales and Opus Arte and directed by Tom Cairns, makes a strong case for a neglected work. Bernstein wrote his satire on American materialism in 1952, drawing on elements of opera, revue and musical comedy to tell a story of a marriage that's turned sour amid the trappings of suburban prosperity. The brevity of the piece, which flashes by in 39 minutes, perhaps accounts for its rare appearances, making this version specially welcome. Tom Cairns directs with style and panache, moving the camera effortlessly to and fro between the seven scenes. Amir Hosseinpour's choreography recalls with affection the heyday of the MGM musical then at its zenith. The film opens with a Greek-style chorus singing in scat jazz fashion to a montage of 1950s imagery: flickering television adverts, manicured lawns and white picket fences. Characters within the narrative appear in flash-back in home video footage. This is all highly diverting and possibly a ruse to mask some dramatic weakness in the story written by Bernstein himself. The wife never offers an explanation for her visit to the cinema to see Trouble in Tahiti instead of attending her son's school play, nor do we see the boy again after witnessing his parents having a tiff. The two principals, Karl Daymond as Sam and Stephanie Novacek as Dinah, are well cast and sing in a natural and pleasing manner with clear diction. The scat vocal trio is well matched and the City of London Sinfonia under Paul Daniel catch the spirit of the jazz inflected score as if it were second nature. On the DVD: Trouble in Tahiti is shot in wide-screen, appropriate for the era that gave us CinemaScope. There are subtitles in German, Spanish and French. A full translation in English is printed in the booklet. The extras include an introduction that partly overlaps with "A Very Testing Piece", in which Paul Daniel touches on the parallel with Bernstein's own unhappy childhood. Humphrey Burton in "Not Particularly Romantic" elaborates on this theme and goes on to offer a further fascinating commentary on Bernstein, whom he knew well. --Adrian Edwards

• Centurion/ Pathfinder Double Pack | DVD | (03/10/2011) from £4.96   |  Saving you £8.03 (161.90%)   |  RRP £12.99

  CenturionCenturion isn't just a rousing adventure, but a return to form for The Descent director Neil Marshall after the disappointing Doomsday. Irish actor Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds) plays Quintus Dias, a Roman soldier attempting to defend the Empire against Northern England's indigenous Pict population, when they take him captive. Once General Virilus (The Wire's Dominic West), who inspires fierce devotion in his men, gets wind of the skirmish, he sets out to vanquish opposition leader Gorlacon (Ulrich Thomsen) with the aid of Etain (Quantum of Solace's Olga Kurylenko), a mute tracker. Though his Ninth Legion, which includes Bothos (David Morrissey) and Brick (Liam Cunningham, Fassbender's Hunger costar), tracks down Quintus, the Picts slaughter most other comrades and seize Virilus, shifting the battle for conquest into a struggle for survival, a Marshall specialty since Dog Soldiers. Only Arianne (Solitary Man's Imogen Poots), a medicine woman who treats Bothos's wounds, arrives as a light in the darkness, holding out the promise of romance should Quintus make it out of Pict territory alive. Though Centurion isn't a world away from historical epics like Braveheart and Gladiator--and succumbs to some of the same genre clichés--Marshall conjures up more of a Western feel with the Romans standing in for cowboys and the Picts for Indians. There's carnage aplenty, but also stunning Highland vistas in shades of emerald and teal. And though Fassbender is a fine actor, West and Kurylenko end up stealing the show by virtue of their more dynamic performances. --Kathleen C. Fennessy PathfinderPathfinder is a curious, cross-genre movie with elements of horror, sword-clanging fantasy, historical fiction, and Native American mysticism. A classic story of an outsider-hero, Pathfinder is set approximately five centuries before the arrival of Columbus in the New World, a time when Vikings were claiming real estate in Greenland and eastern North America. A young Norse boy is abandoned by his disapproving, conqueror-father and adopted by an aboriginal tribe. He grows up to become Ghost (Karl Urban), almost-but-not-entirely accepted by natives, yet a fierce swordsman and defender of Indians after a terrible assault on those whom he loves best. Clancy Brown (The Shawshank Redemption) plays the fiercest of the invaders, a merciless leader who tangles with Ghost’s inherent prowess as a fighter, and engages in a psychological as well as physical struggle with him in the film’s final third, which involves a harrowing journey through an avalanche-prone mountain path. Russell Means (The Last of the Mohicans) is a typically comforting presence as the all-wise Pathfinder, leader of a tribal nation and Ghost’s supporter, while Moon Bloodgood (Eight Below) is outstanding as a love interest with nerves of steel. Marcus Nispel (who directed the 2003 remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) guides the brutal if often exhilarating action as if it were amplified history. He makes the point for a contemporary audience that Vikings were as terrifying a danger to those whom they conquered as, say, Klingons are in Star Trek--precisely by making his Vikings seem so reminiscent of Klingons. --Tom Keogh

• Stag Night | DVD | (19/04/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Four guys on a bachelor party get off the subway at a station that shut down in the 70's and after watching a transit cop get brutally murdered find themselves running for their lives beneath the streets of New York.

• The Interrogation of Michael Crowe | DVD | (26/05/2008) from £8.49   |  Saving you £-3.50 (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  The horrifying true story of the Crowe family whose 12-year-old daughter Stephanie is brutally stabbed while asleep in her own bedroom. As the family struggled to dissect the painful evidence of their daughter's death the police pinpoint their prime suspect - her brother Michael. Every tactic at the police's disposal is used to manipulate and bully Michael into confessing to the gruesome crime. But is he truly responsible for her vicious death?

• Attack of the Lederhosen Zombies (Blu-ray) | Blu Ray | (07/11/2016) from £10.98   |  Saving you £11.00 (122.36%)   |  RRP £19.99

  FrightFest and festival zombie favourite the world over - Attack of the Lederhosen Zombies sees Steve (Laurie Calvert), a young professional snowboarder, his girlfriend Branka (Gabriela Marcinková) and fellow snowboarder Josh left behind on a mountain after a publicity stunt goes wrong. Forced to seek shelter in an après-ski tavern that is hosting an all-night party, things go from bad to worse when a scientific experiment to create environmentally friendly snow unleashes an epidemic of zombies and mutant wildlife. As the local lederhosen drunkards run amok, Steve, Branka, Josh and tavern owner Rita (Margarete Tiesel) have to find a way to survive their wurst nightmare without schnapping!

• Toomorrow | DVD | (19/03/2012) from £38.12   |  Saving you £-36.13 (N/A%)   |  RRP £1.99

  A group of students form a pop group called Toomorrow in order to pay their way through school. Dying aliens kidnap the group, needing their vibrations to help their race survive.Written and directed by Val Guest, Toomorrow was an attempt by Don Kirshner to replicate the success he had had with The Monkees. This was also a first starring role for Olivia Newton-John, whose own singing career would take off the following year.

• Mimic 3 - Sentinel | DVD | (20/03/2006) from £19.79   |  Saving you £-4.80 (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Terror has been reinvented! When residents of his apartment building begin to disappear Marvin comes to believe the unthinkable: the mutant breed of giant carnivorous insects that once plagued society are back and beginning to revisit their devastation! Though he's confined to his room due to a severe illness Marvin must rally whatever support he can in order to exterminate these horrifying creatures before he ends up their next victim! Available on DVD for the first t

• The Blue Max/A Yank In The RAF/D-Day The Sixth Of June | DVD | (05/03/2007) from £23.86   |  Saving you £-10.87 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The Blue Max: A raging war time thriller featuring spectacular aerial combat sequences. It is the story of Bruno Stachel a cold ambitious German combat pilot in World War I. As brave as he is ruthless he excels in combat wins the highest medals The Blue Max and becomes a national hero. The Blue Max is among the best aviation films with outstanding photography spectacular dogfights and a dramatic score. A Yank In The RAF: Tyrone Power and Betty Grable are captivating in this romantic WWII drama. When slick money-motivated pilot Tim Baker (Power) takes a high-paying job ferrying bombers across the Atlantic he meets up with Carol (Grable) an old flame who sparks enough new heat that he joins the RAF just to be near her. But Carol is also pursued by another pilot - Baker's superior officer! And when Baker must start flying bombing missions life suddenly takes on far more meaning than ever before. Featuring actual aerial combat footage and Grable's classic musical numbers A Yank In The RAF is an engagingly dramatic love story. D-Day - The Sixth Of June: Hollywood once again looks back at the undeniably compelling story of D-Day this time through the device of two officers facing the coming battle one American and one British recalling their love for the same woman.

• Savage Garden - The Video Collection | DVD | (27/11/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £8.99

  Savage Garden have become an international phenomenon following the success of songs like 'I Want You' 'To The Moon & Back' and the worldwide smash 'Truly Madly Deeply'. The musical and visual appeal of Savage Garden is undeniable as millions of fans the world over have discovered. Collected here are the stunning videos of Savage Garden's hits from the first self-titled album. Tracklisting 'I Want You' 'To The Moon & Back' 'Truly Madly Deeply' 'Break Me Shake Me' 'Tears Of Pearls

• Paquita - Deldevez And Minkus | DVD | (26/02/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  A performance of the Edouard Marie Ernest Delvedez and Ludwig Minkus ballet with the original choreography recreated by Pierre Lacotte.

• Shadowland - Edge Of Night (Dvd & Cd) | DVD | (06/07/2009) from £23.49   |  Saving you £4.50 (16.10%)   |  RRP £27.99

  The legendary neo-prog rock band Shadowland returns with its first live DVD Edge of Night! Shot at the first edition of the Prog Rock festival in Katowice Poland the DVD features an exquisite feast of superb musicianship brought to you by Clive Nolan (Pendragon Caamora Arena Neo) Mike Varty (Landmarq Credo Jannison Edge and Mick Pointers project Script for a Jesters Tour) Karl Groom (a well-known music producer on the prog rock scene and a member of Threshold and Strangers on a Train) Mark Westwood (Caamora Neo) and Nick Harradence (NW10). Almost 2 hours of footage presenting songs from Shadowland's classic albums Ring of Roses Through the Looking Glass and Mad as a Hatter performed by the elite of the scene! Tracklist: 1. A Matter of Perspective 2. The Hunger 3. The Whistleblower 4. Mephisto Bridge 5. The Kruhulick Syndrome 6. The Waking Hour 7. Painting by Numbers 8. Hall of Mirrors 9. The Edge of Night 10. U.S.I. 11. The Seventh Year 12. Jigsaw 13. Dreams of the Ferryman 14. Ring of Roses

• Get Some In! - Series 5 - Complete | DVD | (05/10/2009) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Get Some In: Series 5

• The Sword In The Stone | DVD | (03/06/2002) from £20.57   |  Saving you £-0.58 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  As far as Disney is concerned, The Sword in the Stone was a portent of things to come, with slapstick upstaging storytelling, and cultural in-jokes substituting for wonder. Based on TH White's beloved novel The Once and Future King, this Disney version chronicles King Arthur's boyish adventures. There's much to enjoy here as coach Merlin the magician shows the young Arthur, nicknamed Wart, the skills that will help him become the future ruler of the Britons. The transformation sequences, where the boy is turned into a fish, a bird and a squirrel are vintage Disney. The oft-repeated scene of Merlin battling it out with mean old Madame Mim still is worth a few chuckles, but it underlines the problem with most of the film--most of its scenes are only played for laughs. References by Merlin to television and other items of modern life also mar the generally innocuous landscape. Younger children will like it, while older kids will find it slower compared with recent Disney films. --Keith Simanton, Amazon.com

• Xena - Warrior Princess - Series 6 Box Set 2 | DVD | (03/06/2002) from £26.97   |  Saving you £8.02 (22.90%)   |  RRP £34.99

  More action/adventure from the princess who knows how to kick some butt!!!

• The Truth About Demons | DVD | (03/02/2003) from £12.97   |  Saving you £0.01 (0.10%)   |  RRP £9.99

  When you discover the truth about demons can you make it back alive? Harry Ballard has just unearthed the essence of evil. He's a marked man a living sacrifice thrown into the depths of the demon world. His only hope is a beautiful young woman an ex-cult member who has witnessed their immeasurable power. In the place between what you know and what you fear demons rule.

• Man Pride & Vengeance | Blu Ray | (01/07/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Western | DVD | (26/03/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The Outlaw (Dir. Howard Hughes 1943): Jane Russell plays a busty siren who steals the heart of Billy the Kid in this Howard Hughes/Howard Hawks-directed story which centres on the rivalrous tentative friendships between Billy Doc Holiday and Pat Garrett. Vengeance Valley (Dir. Richard Thorpe 1941): An unusually adult Western for its time Vengeance Valley (1951) gave Burt Lancaster his first Western role. His athletic prowess made him perfect for the genre and he'd

• Tchaikovsky - Swan Lake | DVD | (02/01/2007) from £25.12   |  Saving you £1.13 (4.74%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Agnes Letestu, a feminine and warm Odette, Jose Martinez, a convincing, pale vulnerable Prince Siegfried, and Karl Paguette, doubling as a dutiful Wolfgang and an equally devious Rothbart, are the stars of this deeply passionate, 'dream' version of Swan Lake, Rudolf Nureyev's interpretation of Tchaikovsky's lyrical ballet, far from being a cliched stereotype of this celebrated masterpiece, is an expose of astonishingly powerful and recognisable human emotions. Under the inspired and clear-cut musical direction of Vello Pahn, this production of one of the jewels of the Paris Opera Ballet's repertoire brilliantly displays the meticulous precision, technical prowess and pure, unmanbnered style of the company's unrivalled female corps de ballet, eliciting an ethereal, intense beauty, captured for DVD in High Definition video and superb surround sound.

• Star Trek Into Darkness - Limited Edition Steelbook (Exclusive to Amazon.co.uk) | Blu Ray | (02/09/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• One Eyed Jacks | DVD | (15/03/2004) from £8.59   |  Saving you £-6.60 (N/A%)   |  RRP £1.99

  Outlaw Rio (Marlon Brando) is betrayed by his partner Dad Longworth (Karl Marden) and sentenced to five years in a Mexican prison. When he escapes he has revenge on his mind and tracks Longworth down to a town in California where Longworth has become the local Sheriff! This is Brando's only directorial film a position he took somewhat reluctantly replacing Stanley Kubrick after early shooting.