"Actor: Michael B"

• The Deep End Of The Ocean | DVD | (28/02/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Beth Cappadora (Michelle Pfeiffer) is at her high school reunion when her three-year-old son disappears from his brother's care. The little boy never turns up, and the family has to deal with the devastating guilt and grief that goes along with it. Nine years later, the family has relocated to Chicago. By a sheer fluke, the kid turns up, living no more than two blocks away. The authorities swoop down and return the kid to his biological parents, but things are far from being that simple. The boy grew up around what he has called his father, while his new family are strangers to him; the older son, now a teenager, has brushes with the law and behavioural problems. His adjustment to his lost brother is complicated by normal teenage churlishness, and the dad (Treat Williams) seems to expect everything to fall into place as though the family had been intact all along. It's a tightrope routine for actors in a story like this, being careful not to chew the scenery while at the same time not being too flaccid or understated. For the most part, the members of the cast deal well with the emotional complexity of their roles. Though the story stretches credulity, weirder things do happen in the real world. The family's pain for the first half of the film is certainly credible, though the second half almost seems like a different movie. Whoopi Goldberg plays the detective assigned to the case; casting her is a bit of a stretch, but she makes it work. All in all, a decent three-hanky movie in the vein of Ordinary People. --Jerry Renshaw, Amazon.com

• Midnight In St. Petersburg | DVD | (20/04/2009) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Having lost his intelligence job at the end of the Cold War former British secret agent Harry Palmer (Michael Caine) now travels East to find new outlets for his skills. Harry sets up a Private Investigation company in Russia and soon finds himself charged with rescuing his young assistant Nikolai's girlfriend Tatiana who has been kidnapped. The trail leads to St. Petersburg which Harry finds to be a city held in the iron grip of the violent Russian Mafia. The mafia does its best to stop Harry in his tracks but it may be easier said than done!

• New Jack City | DVD | (01/06/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Some pundits called it a flawed, exploitative action film that glamorised drug dealing and the luxury of a lucrative criminal lifestyle, spawning a trend of films that attracted youth gangs and provoked violence in cinemas. Others hailed it as a breakthrough movie that depicted drug dealers as ruthless, corrupt, and evil, leading dead-end lives that no rational youth would want to emulate. However you interpret it, New Jack City is still one of the first and best films of the 1990s to crack open the underworld of cocaine and peer inside with its eyes wide open. It's also the film that established Wesley Snipes as an actor to watch, with enough charisma to bring an insidious quality of seduction to his role as coke-lord Nino Brown, and enough intelligence to portray a character deluded by his own sense of indestructible power. Director Mario Van Peebles stretched his otherwise-limited talent to bring vivid authenticity and urgency to this crime story, and subplots involving a pair of tenacious cops (Ice-T, Judd Nelson) and a recovering coke addict (Chris Rock) provide additional dramatic tension. Although some critics may hesitate to admit it, New Jack City deserves mention in any serious discussion about African American filmmakers and influential films. --Jeff Shannon

• The Secret of My Success | DVD | (04/07/2005) from £11.24   |  Saving you £-5.25 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Can a kid from Kansas come to New York to conquer the business world and maneuver his way from the mailroom to the boardroom in a matter of weeks? Michael J. Fox proves it can be done in this very funny lampoon of corporate business life. Fresh out of college he's determined to climb New York's corporate ladder in record time by masquerading as an up-and-coming executive even though he's really the new mail boy. However Fox's plans begin to go awry when the boss's wife falls in love with him and he falls in love with a junior executive who also happens to be the boss's mistress...

• Sea Wolf | DVD | (06/04/2015) from £3.79   |  Saving you £11.20 (295.51%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Professor Peter Williams is obsessed with USS LIONFISH, a WWII US Navy submarine that was mysteriously and suddenly chained, welded shut, sealed and locked to a pier in 1943. Forced to resign from the Navy as a young man due to his obsession with the case, one evening, years later, he receives a visit from a Navy official. With a top secret research team, Peter is asked to descend into the deep and board the submarine for the first time in seventy years. But, once on board and miles under the ocean, the team become trapped, and as the boat begins to reveal its darkest secrets, the prospect of returning to the surface alive begins to fade...

• James Bond - Moonraker (Ultimate Edition 2 Disc Set) | DVD | (17/07/2006) from £5.99   |  Saving you £11.00 (183.64%)   |  RRP £16.99

  Agent 007 (Roger Moore) blasts into orbit in this action-packed adventure that takes him to Venice Rio de Janeiro and outer space. When Bond investigates the hijacking of an American space shuttle he and beautiful CIA agent Holly Goodhead (Lois Chiles) are soon locked in a life-or-death struggle against Hugo Drax (Michael Lonsdale) a power-mad industrialist whose horrific scheme may destroy all human life on earth!

• Stargate SG-1: Season 5 | DVD | (28/04/2003) from £25.53   |  Saving you £34.46 (134.98%)   |  RRP £59.99

  It now seems clear that year five of Stargate will be remembered as the one where something went awry with Daniel Jackson. Lots of behind-the-scenes rumours fuelled the idea of cast tension, but whatever the problem, his sudden departure from the show was obviously via a hastily contrived scenario. In retrospect, there must have been a problem for some while before the weird penultimate episode ("Meridian"). Michael Shanks looks frequently bored in his rare moments of individual screen time as he infiltrates a Goa'uld meeting and even when making friends with a creature everyone else wants dead. In fact, there's only one point when everyone really seems to be having fun, and that's in the spoof 100th episode "Wormhole X-treme!" Most shows go through a run-around, skin-of-their-teeth period awaiting renewal and it certainly seems to have affected storylines this year. For example, a next generation of younger SG teams is introduced. Replacements? The most unfortunate aspect of things however was that not a single episode managed to stand alone on its own merits. Every single story was dependent on a part of the greater interwoven warring species threads. Some of the one-off tales were terrific in and of themselves, but it was as if the writers fell into the trap of having to refer to as much backstory as possible, perhaps to ensure loose ends could be easily wrapped up? Ultimately none of this mattered since the show went on for quite a while. --Paul Tonks

• Genius - Albert Einstein | DVD | (12/03/2018) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  From executive producers and Academy Award® Winners Brian Grazer and Ron Howard*, National Geographic's first-ever scripted series, GENIUS, offers an extraordinary look into the life of Nobel Prize-winning physicist Albert Einstein. Academy Award® Winner Geoffrey Rush stars as the rebellious daydreamer who went on to become the greatest scientific mind of the 20th century. Beyond his ground breaking theories of relativity, you'll witness Einstein's struggles to be a good husband and father and a man of principle during a time of global unrest. With Johnny Flynn as young Albert and Emily Watson as his second wife, Elsa, GENIUS takes you on an unprecedented, 10-episode journey of discovery guided by Einstein's wit, wisdom and insatiable thirst for knowledge.

• Funeral In Berlin | DVD | (05/01/2004) from £5.00   |  Saving you £10.99 (219.80%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Funeral in Berlin (1967) is the sequel to 1965's The Ipcress File, again featuring Michael Caine as reluctant spy Harry Palmer. It was clearly the filmmakers' intention to make Palmer a harder-nosed James Bond, and director Guy Hamilton was brought to this project in between Goldfinger and Diamonds Are Forever for that purpose. There's espionage intrigue, easy women (Eva Renzi as Samantha Steel), and gunplay. But without the gadgetry, one-liners, or even the John Barry score of the first movie, the Bond comparison runs dry. Against the backdrop of a bombed-out industrial wasteland that was Berlin in the mid-Sixties, Palmer is sent to facilitate the defection of Col. Stock (Oscar Homolka). Numerous sub-plots weave together involving indifferent chief Ross (Guy Doleman from IPCRESS), mission aide Johnnie Volkon (Paul Hubschmid), and the untrustworthy Kreutzman (Günter Meisner, who was more memorable as Slugworth in Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory). It all comes down to revealing who's working for whom and who's really defecting in the set-piece funeral of the title. The main reason the series continued (Ken Russell's OTT Billion Dollar Brain came next) was the commanding presence of Caine. It's fun to hear him try German, and he manages a few subtle comic gems, such as when a waiter asks "Bitte mein heir?" and he replies, "No. Lager please", but the best moment of characterisation recalling the womanising Palmer of Len Deighton's novels is the put down guaranteed to win any woman: "You're useless in the kitchen. Why don't you go back to bed?" --Paul Tonks

• Prizzi's Honor | DVD | (08/04/2002) from £6.11   |  Saving you £-0.12 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Director John Huston was a master of storytelling and Prizzi's Honor was his black comedy masterpiece. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards including Best Picture and Anjelica Huston won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her caustic performance. Charley Partanna a do-it-yourself kind of guy has been loyal to 'The Family' since he can remember. If you need somebody rubbed out he's your eraser ready to kill at the drop of a dollar. Boss Don Corrado Prizzi's daughter Maerose has eyes for Charley but Charley has already fallen for a sultry hit-woman named Irene Walker. Their unlikely romance hits a snag however as Irene and Charley have each been hired to knock off the other.

• The Protectors: The Complete ABC Series | DVD | (16/06/2014) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  'The criminals and us - we're all in the same business. The difference is our clients pay us to keep one jump ahead of the criminal mind. Diagnosis? Call the police. Prognosis? Call Welbeck 3269.' Meet The Protectors: Ian Souter Robert Shoesmith and their Girl Friday Heather Keys. Their motto: 'We Sell Security'. Their object: to prevent crime. Operating from a smart Marylebone office they form a high-powered private investigation team dedicated to fighting crooks and forestalling crimes of all kinds in the twilight borderland between the underworld and the policeman's beat. This classic ABC adventure series stars former RSC player Andrew Faulds as the fiercely moral Souter a Black Watch officer turned private detective; Michael Atkinson is fellow troubleshooter Shoesmith an ex-policeman with an unnervingly acute understanding of the mind and methods of the criminal; and Ann Morrish is secretary and confidante Heather a former auctioneers' assistant with a sharp eye for art fakes and forgeries. Originally screened in 1964 - predating its ITC namesake by eight years - the complete series is made available here for the first time in any format.

• Biloxi Blues | DVD | (08/03/2004) from £5.44   |  Saving you £0.55 (10.11%)   |  RRP £5.99

  In this semi-autobiographical screenplay Neil Simon's private memoirs in the US Army are made public. Set in 1943 at an army base in Biloxi Mississippi a lowly recruit (Broderick) comes under the command of a very weird drill sergeant (Walken)...

• Fish Tank | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £6.98   |  Saving you £9.01 (129.08%)   |  RRP £15.99

  In "Fish Tank", 15 year old Mia's life is turned on its head when her mum brings home a new boyfriend. Starring Michael Fassbender ("300", "Inglourious Basterds") and talented newcomer Katie Jarvis.

• Loves Kitchen | DVD | (26/09/2011) from £8.08   |  Saving you £7.91 (49.50%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Director Ben Ramsey and writer Michael Andrews team for this martial-arts action thriller concerning a mysterious drifter (Michael Jai White) who becomes ensnared in the seedy world of underground street-fighting. In the back alleys of Los Angeles life is cheap and to go against the grain is to take on the most powerful criminal organisation on the West Coast.

• Shooter | Blu Ray | (14/03/2022) from £18.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Mark Wahlberg and director Antoine Fuqua (INFINITE ) first teamed up for this standout action thriller, available for the first time in 4K UHD. Respected former Marine scout and sniper Bob Lee Swagger (Wahlberg) is pressed into service to stop an assassination attempt against the President. But the unthinkable occurshe's double-crossed and framed for the attempt. And so begins a high-tension race against every law enforcement agency in the country and a shadowy organisation that wants him dead. Proving his innocence will be the most dangerous mission of his life.

• The Scorpion King | DVD | (04/11/2002) from £4.29   |  Saving you £5.70 (132.87%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Wrestling superstar The Rock reprises his role from "The Mummy Returns" as a deadly assassin in ancient times, destined to become The Scorpion King.

• Thomas And Friends - It's Great To Be An Engine | DVD | (18/10/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  With a new theme tune and seven brand new episodes from series 8 have more fun with Thomas and his friends with these exclusive adventures! 1. Too Hot For Thomas 2. Emily's Adventure 3. You Can Do It Toby! 4. Gordon Takes Charge 5. Edward The Great 6. James Goes Too Far 7. Percy And The Magic Carpet

• The Fourth Protocol | DVD | (20/10/2003) from £14.98   |  Saving you £-1.99 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Frederick Forsyth wrote both the novel and screenplay of The Fourth Protocol, a story about a plot to stage an enormous nuclear accident in England, a catastrophe so large that its source can never be identified but will lead to assumptions that America is behind it. Michael Caine plays an ageing intelligence agent who picks up clues that the ingredients for such an apocalypse are being smuggled piece-by-piece into the UK--but he cannot seem to get his superiors to care. Caine is outstanding in a role that seems tailor-made for him and Pierce Brosnan is very good as the Russian agent working undercover in England to effect the planned tragedy. The film perfectly captures a spreading suspicion and resentment toward superpower adventurism, even though such sentiments are in fact being exploited by the bad guys. Caine, as always, suggests a man walking a narrow line through a gauntlet of moral compromises. --Tom Keogh

• The Little Things | Blu Ray | (10/05/2021) from £5.49   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Kern County Deputy Sheriff Joe Deke Deacon (Washington) is sent to Los Angeles for what should have been a quick evidencegathering assignment. Instead, he becomes embroiled in the search for a serial killer who is terrorizing the city. Leading the hunt, L.A. Sheriff Department Sergeant Jim Baxter (Malik), impressed with Deke's cop instincts, unofficially engages his help. But as they track the killer, Baxter is unaware that the investigation is dredging up echoes of Deke's past, uncovering disturbing secrets that could threaten more than his case. Special Features Denzel Washington - Four Shades of Blue-The Little Things, Training Day, Ricochet and Fallen are all Warner Bros. cop films starring Denzel Washington. In this extended featurette, we will examine Denzel's roles in these movies. A Contrast in Styles-Go inside the process of Denzel Washington and Rami Malek with this intimate portrait of how they created the polar opposite detectives of Deke and Baxter.

• Alias: Complete Season 1 | DVD | (29/09/2003) from £16.17   |  Saving you £30.08 (201.74%)   |  RRP £44.99

  Created by JJ Abrams, Alias plays like a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and James Bond. Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) is a super (and super-sexy) spy, fighting nefarious villains and working for the good guys--or so she thinks. Recruited as a college freshman for espionage work, Sydney found her true calling with SD-6, a secret division of the CIA. When her hunky doctor-boyfriend proposes to her, she decides to let him in on the truth she's not supposed to tell anyone: she's not a grad student with a demanding job for an international bank, but a secret agent who constantly puts her life on the line for the free world. But when SD-6 discovers her security breach, her fiancé is brutally assassinated, and Sydney suddenly finds herself face-to-face with the truth: she's been working for the bad guys. Deciding to become a double agent for the CIA and bring down the evildoers, Sydney gets one more surprise--her estranged father (Victor Garber) is also working for SD-6, and the CIA as well. Welcome to the family, Syd! Confused? This is all just the first episode. With its double-edged tension (how long can Syd play double agent?) and one heck of a MacGuffin (the dreaded Rambaldi device, the mythic creation of a Renaissance genius), the show leads its viewers from episode to episode with visceral, compelling action, not to mention the nascent romance between Syd and her CIA handler, Vaughn (Michael Vartan), and her clashes with her heretofore distant father. Sharp, smart and always suspenseful, Alias' centre was held by the gorgeous Garner, a stellar action heroine and an even better actress who could pull off Sydney's exotic undercover missions and conflicted emotions with equal dexterity. By the end of this first series, which concludes with a breathtaking cliffhanger, you'll be seduced into Alias' world with, happily, no desire to escape. --Mark Englehart