"Actor: Michael Howard"

• Battle Of Britain | DVD | (24/05/2004) from £7.45   |  Saving you £12.54 (168.32%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Despite its manipulative grandiosity, this film is completely irresistible, for several reasons: it recounts the greatest air battle in history, creating the greatest aerial battle scenes in film history; it has a terrific cast (Harry Andrews, Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, Curt Jurgens, Laurence Olivier, Nigel Patrick, Christopher Plummer, Michael Redgrave, Ralph Richardson, Robert Shaw, Patrick Wymark and Edward Fox); and it's technically very well made, thanks to the Bond team of producer Harry Saltzman and director Guy Hamilton and the great cinematographer Freddie Young. --Bill Desowitz

• Reach For The Sky | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £3.99   |  Saving you £6.00 (150.38%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Reach for the Sky was a box-office hit in 1956 and rightly remains a fondly regarded classic of British cinema. Kenneth More is ideally cast as Douglas Bader, the gifted pilot who loses both legs in a pre-war air crash, only to play a major role in the Battle of Britain, rise to the rank of Group Captain and become a war hero. Based on Paul Brickhill's biography, this is an "official" history maybe, but Lewis Gilbert's screenplay and direction are historically accurate and informed by that very British humour, of which More was a natural. The film is graced by a decent supporting cast and a typically "widescreen" score from John Addison. On the DVD: Reach for the Sky is vividly reproduced in 16:9 anamorphic format and decent mono. There are subtitles for the hard of hearing and detailed biographies of More, Gilbert and Barder. The original theatrical trailer is included, but it would also have made sense to include an interview or documentary footage of Bader himself. --Richard Whitehouse

• The Heroes Of Telemark | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £6.49   |  Saving you £6.50 (100.15%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Physics Professor Dr Pederson (Kirk Douglas) and underground leader Straud (Richard Harris) must convince British Intelligence that the Nazis are planning to build the A-bomb. The Norse Hydro Plant at Telemark is central to enemy strategy and the Allies decide to send in a task force to destroy it. Legendary director Anthony Mann (Winchester 73 El Cid The Fall of the Roman Empire) tells the story of nine courageous and indomitable Norwegians without whom the Second World War may ha

• The Battle of Britain | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £7.19   |  Saving you £12.80 (178.03%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Featuring a stellar cast, including Michael Caine, Trevor Howard, Laurence Olivier, Christopher Plummer, Michael Redgrave, Robert Shaw and Susannah York, Battle of Britainis a spectacular retelling of a true story that shows courage at its inspiring best. Few defining moments can change the outcome of war. But when the outnumbered Royal Air Force defied insurmountable odds in engaging the German Luftwaffe, they may well have altered the course of history!

• Blake's 7 - Series 3 | DVD | (20/06/2005) from £17.85   |  Saving you £32.14 (180.06%)   |  RRP £49.99

  Intergalactic adventure with an interplanetary resistance group battling for survival against a totalitarian super-power. Roaming a universe of boundless space and restrictive discipline freedom-fighter Blake with the crew of spaceship Liberator is locked in combat with the all-powerful forces of the Federation. Episodes comprise: 1. Aftermath 2. Powerplay 3. Volcano 4. Dawn Of The Gods 5. The Harvest Of Kairos 6. City At The Edge Of The World 7. Children Of Auron 8. Rumou

• The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £7.99   |  Saving you £7.00 (87.61%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Peter Greenaway directs this culinary tale of passion and revenge. An arrogant gangster (Michael Gambon) invests in a popular French restaurant, which he begins to frequent with his wife (Helen Mirren) and a band of crooks. He delights in humiliating his spouse, and, when she begins an affair with another patron (Alan Howard), the restaurant's cook (Richard Bohringer) tries to protect them from her husband's wrath.

• Kidnapped | DVD | (08/08/2016) from £7.29   |  Saving you £2.70 (37.04%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The adventures of young orphan David Balfour as he travels through the Scottish Highlands during the Jacobite rebellion in search of his rightful inheritance.

• The Missionary | DVD | (29/07/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Fallen women? Does it mean they've hurt their knees? After a decade of soul-saving in Africa Charles Fortescue is asked to minister to the ladies of the night in 1906 London. So Fortescue feeds them shelters them and not infrequently provides them a bed: his! A naive man of the cloth becomes a man of the sheets in this playfully naughty yet always tasteful comedy that stars Monty Python's Michael Palin (who also wrote the script) as Fortescue and features a colourful array of cockeyed characters: a blissful airhead (Phoebe Nicholls) a lusty mission sponsor (Maggie Smith) a bewildered butler (Michael Hordern) an earthy bishop (Denholm Elliott) a cantankerous John Bull (Trevor Howard) and more. Jolly good fun!

• Ealing Studios Boxset 3 | DVD | (16/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  A box set of classic film gems from Ealing studios Includes: 1. The Ladykillers (Dir. Alexander Mackendrick 1955) 2. The Man in The White Suit (Dir. Alexander Mackendrick 1951) 3. The Magnet (Dir. Charles Frend 1950) 4. Scott of The Antarctic (Dir. Charles Frend 1948)

• The Jewel Of The Nile | DVD | (18/07/2005) from £4.58   |  Saving you £8.41 (183.62%)   |  RRP £12.99

  When the going gets tough the tough get going! In the blockbuster 'Romancing The Stone' novelist Joan Wilder (Turner) and wanderer Jack Colton (Douglas) went sailing off into the sunset together. In this thrill-packed sequel Ralph is back on their trail and they're back in the fast lane on a perilous trek through the fierce North African Desert with treacherous tribes deadly dungeons and seemingly endless villains to contend with!

• Rapid Fire | DVD | (30/06/2003) from £19.99   |  Saving you £-14.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Rapid Fire was the penultimate film starring Brandon Lee before his untimely death on the set of The Crow. It's a standard martial arts thriller in which Lee plays Jake Lo, a young arts student who witnesses a gangland execution and is unwittingly drawn into a pitched standoff between the mafia, a Chinese drug syndicate and Ryan, a downbeat but resolute Chicago cop (Powers Boothe) determined to nail his prey. With a plot that careens through every genre cliché, Lee's smouldering looks and showy fighting skills carry the film. The martial arts sequences (which Lee co-choreographed) are nicely staged, but given the unusual settings--the penultimate fight takes place in a Chinese laundry--could have been even more inventive. The workmanlike direction by Dwight H Little (Marked for Death, Free Willy 2) fails to inject much into the material. In particular, traumatised by seeing his Special Agent father die in the Tiananmen Square massacre, Jake Lo's attraction to both a corrupt FBI agent and Ryan as surrogate father figures could have been given more resonance given the loss of Brandon Lee's own father at an early age. With hundreds of bloodless deaths, cringe-worthy dialogue and a dated power rock soundtrack, Rapid Fire looks and feels like a TV film. And on that level, at least, it's entertaining. On the DVD: The main feature is presented in letterboxed widescreen. Sound and picture quality are very good. Subtitles are provided for ten languages (Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norweigian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish) and in English for the hard of hearing. Extra features are limited to chapter selection and a theatrical trailer. --Chris Campion

• Kidnapped | Blu Ray | (01/02/2021) from £15.19   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Based on the novels by Robert Louis Stevenson and directed by Oscar-winning Delbert Mann, this epic, star-studded adventure sees Michael Caine in the role of a Jacobite rebel who befriends an orphan fleeing a life of slavery. A strong drama with a moving score from Roy Budd (and end theme sung by folk legend Mary Hopkin), Kidnapped co-stars Jack Hawkins, Donald Pleasence, Trevor Howard and Gordon Jackson. It is featured here as a brand-new High Definition restoration from original film materials in its original Panavision aspect ratio. 1746: as defeated Jacobite rebels flee government forces in the aftermath of the battle at Culloden, eighteen-year-old orphan David Balfour's attempt to claim his inheritance results in his incarceration on a slaver ship heading for the West Indies. Luckily for David the ship's captain runs afoul of Alan Breck, and both Breck and David make their bloody escape. SPECIAL FEATURES Original theatrical trailer Production featurette A Tale and a Half: 2020 Vivien Heilbron interview Archive Michael Caine interviews Image gallery

• The Paper | DVD | (14/06/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Sometimes a day is all it takes. Today Henry Hackett (Michael Keaton) metro editor of a New York tabloid has some very big decisions to make. His heavily pregnant wife (Marisa Tomei) is facing urgent deadlines of her own. Henry' boss the managing editor (Glenn Close) is also reaching a crisis in her life and her senior (Robert Duvall) has just discovered he is an extremely sick man. To top it all the paper is in pursuit of a hot story that could expose a major scandal and fre

• Police Academy 2 (DVD) | DVD | (30/04/2007) from £5.08   |  Saving you £2.91 (57.28%)   |  RRP £7.99

  To protect serve... and entertain. The comic crimebusters are back! An anti-social nut job and his leathered band of pranksters are on the prowl spray-painting the town red and emptying the pockets of anyone sharing the sidewalk. In the wake of this crime wave you might wonder where the educational system went wrong. But then again consider the Police Academy. For when the newly graduated misfits in blue tangle with these pinheaded punkers in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment the result is an open-and-shut case of nonstop hilarity. Steve Guttenberg George Gaynes and other Police Academy originals return to the roll call facing the formidable Bobcat Goldthwait in the tailor-made role of the wacked-out gangleader. It's a riot - a laugh-riot - in the streets!

• Above The Rim | DVD | (10/05/2004) from £20.00   |  Saving you £-5.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Kyle a talented high-school basketball player has a dream to play for the National Association. Shep a security guard at his school befriends Kyle guiding him down the road to success: a road that seems far too long when Kyle is offered a short cut by teaming up with local gangster Birdie. Blinded by his desire to get out of the ""hood"" Kyle is pulled into a web of crime and deceit...

• The Missionary (Limited Edition) | Blu Ray | (26/08/2019) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Monty Python alumnus Michael Palin writes and stars in this ribald comedy of sex and sensibility. Timid Reverend Charles Fortescue returns to London in 1906 after ten years of service in Africa to start a mission to save the fallen women of Soho. But his dedication to tending to the needs of those in his care soon meets with the disapproval of the church and his patron. Directed by Richard Loncraine (Richard III, Bellman & True), The Missionary is a charming and beautifully detailed comedy which boasts a superb supporting cast that includes Maggie Smith, Trevor Howard, Denholm Elliott, Michael Hordern, Graham Crowden and Neil Innes. This world Blu-ray premiere edition boasts a stunning new 2K restoration from the original negatives, supervised and approved by cinematographer Peter Hannan and director Richard Loncraine, finally enabling the film to be seen in its original 2.35:1 theatrical aspect ratio for the first time ever on any home video format. Limited Edition Features: New 2K restoration by Powerhouse Films from the original negative, supervised and approved by cinematographer Peter Hannan and director Richard Loncraine Original stereo audio Audio commentary with director Richard Loncraine (2019) Making the Missionary (2019): featuring new and exclusive interviews with stars Michael Palin and Maggie Smith Interview with Shuna Harwood (2019): new interview with the costume designer Interview with Mike Moran (2019): the film's composer discusses his collaborations with HandMade Films Interview with Ken Lintott (2019): new interview with the make-up artist Interview with Tony Jackson (2019): new interview with the sound recordist Rob Deering on ˜The Missionary' (2019): an appreciation by the comedian, musician and writer Theatrical trailer Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by John Oliver, extracts from Michael Palin's diaries on the film's location shooting, archival interviews with Palin, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles, and film credits First ever home video presentation in the film's original 2.35:1 theatrical aspect ratio World premiere on Blu-ray Limited Edition of 5,000 copies All extras subject to change

• The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover | DVD | (10/11/2003) from £13.55   |  Saving you £2.44 (18.01%)   |  RRP £15.99

  The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover is both adored and detested for its combination of sumptuous beauty and revolting decadence. Few directors polarise audiences in the same way as Peter Greenaway, a filmmaker as influenced by Jacobean revenge tragedy and 17th-century painting as by the French New Wave. A vile, gluttonous thief (Michael Gambon) spews hate and abuse at a restaurant run by a stoic French cook (Richard Bohringer), but under the thief's nose his wife (the ever-sensuous Helen Mirren) conducts an affair with a bookish lover (Alan Howard). Clothing (by avant-garde designer Jean-Paul Gaultier) changes colour as the characters move from room to room. Nudity, torture, rotting meat, and Tim Roth at his sleaziest all contribute the atmosphere of decay and excess. Not for everyone, but for some, essential. --Bret Fetzer

• A Taste Of Honey | DVD | (21/10/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Shelagh Delaney's play 'A Taste of Honey' had already played in the West End and on Broadway when Tony Richardson made his film adaptation shot on location in Salford and Blackpool. Rita Tushingham made her indelible screen debut as Jo a young girl who falls pregnant after leaving home and her floozie of a mother - a revelatory performance by Dora Bryan. Jo befriends Geoff (Murray Melvin) a gentle kind-hearted gay man and they move in together like two children playing house for a while finding an innocent but fragile happiness. Richardson always skilled with actors draws fine performances from his entire cast and 'A Taste of Honey' remains an outstanding example of the British New Wave shot by its star cinematographer Walter Lassally.

• Sudden Impact | DVD | (21/01/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Clint Eastwood is Detective Harry Callahan in SUDDEN IMPACT the third sequel to DIRTY HARRY. This is probably the most violent film of the series. Here the brutal but effective Callahan is looking for a killer who shoots her male victims in the genitals. Jennifer Spencer (Sondra Locke) is tracking down the people responsible for raping her and her sister 10 years earlier killing them one by one. Callahan is on the case but will he stop her from meting out her own brand of jus

• The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (Standard Edition) | Blu Ray | (29/06/2020) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The second in Hammer's lucrative Mummy franchise, Michael Carreras' The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb follows an ill-fated expedition to Egypt as archaeologists discover a cursed crypt, unleashing an unspeakable ancient evil upon themselves. Photographed by the great Otto Heller (The Ladykillers, Peeping Tom) and with an evocative score by Carlo Martelli, The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb was one of Hammer's most successful films of the sixties. Features: High Definition remaster Original mono audio Blood and Bandages: Inside ˜The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb' (2017, 13 mins): an analysis of the film by Hammer expert Jonathan Rigby and cultural historian John J Johnston Hammer's Women: Jeanne Roland (2017, 11 mins): film expert Kat Ellinger offers an appreciation of the Burmese-born actor's short career Interview with Actor Michael McStay (2017, 6 mins): the British film and television star looks back at his time working for Hammer Interview with Composer Carlo Martelli (2017, 4 mins): the great horror-film composer on his work with Hammer Super 8 version: original cut-down home cinema presentation Original theatrical trailer Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing