"Actor: Michael Maxwell"

• Moonraker | DVD | (03/11/2003) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (300.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  This was the first James Bond adventure produced after the success of Star Wars, so it jumped on the sci-fi bandwagon by combining the suave appeal of Agent 007 (once again played by Roger Moore) with enough high-tech hardware and special effects to make Luke Skywalker want to join Her Majesty's Secret Service. After the razzle-dazzle of The Spy Who Loved Me, this attempt to latch onto a trend proved to be a case of overkill, even though it brought back the steel-toothed villain Jaws (Richard Kiel) and scored a major hit at the box office. This time Bond is up against Drax (Michel Lonsdale), a criminal industrialist who wants to control the world from his orbiting space station. In keeping with his well-groomed style, Bond thwarts this maniacal Neo-Hitler's scheme with the help of a beautiful, sleek-figured scientist (played by Lois Chiles with all the vitality of a department store mannequin). There's a grand-scale climax involving space shuttles and ray guns, but despite the film's popular success, this is one Bond adventure that never quite gets off the launching pad. It's as if the caretakers of the James Bond franchise had forgotten that it's Bond-and not a barrage of gizmos and gadgets (including a land-worthy Venetian gondola)--that fuels the series' success. Despite Moore's passive performance (which Pauline Kael described as "like an office manager who is turning into dead wood but hanging on to collect his pension"), there are even a few renegade Bond-philes who consider it one of their favourites. --Jeff Shannon]In the new "making of" featurette the enormous complexities of putting together a feature of this scope are talked about by all those involved, from genius production designer Ken Adam to special effects whiz and Thunderbirds alumnus Derek Meddings (Lois Chiles reveals that to this day she is delighted to have had the most obscene name of any Bond girl; the behind-the-scenes tale of the boat hanging over the waterfall is astonishing). Sensibly enough the supplementary documentary celebrates the work of the special effects men from John Stears to Derek Meddings and John Richardson. The audio commentary has executive producer Michael Wilson in conversation with director Lewis Gilbert, screenwriter Christopher Wood and associate producer William Cartlidge, who are all obviously having a good time watching the movie together again. Altogether, another handsome DVD presentation in this impeccable series. --Mark Walker

• For Your Eyes Only | DVD | (03/11/2003) from £4.89   |  Saving you £15.10 (308.79%)   |  RRP £19.99

  After the lavish, effects-heavy splash of Moonraker, the twelfth Bond film and the seventh with Roger Moore concentrates more on core car-chase-and-crumpet values, evoking an almost retro feel that harks back to the first pressings of the Bond vintage in the 1960s. Starting to look a little wrinkly around the edges by this point, Roger Moore toughens his usually smarmy act up here with a gratuitous bit of killing, casually kicking a baddie and his car over a precipice, reviving memories of the ruthless streak with which Sean Connery made his name. Good old-fashioned Cold War politics lie at the heart of the plot, concerning a weapons system hijacked in the Mediterranean Bond must rescue. He's assisted by the exquisite Carole Bouquet, the only actress in history who can claim to have been both a 'Bond girl' and the star of a Luis Buñuel movie (That Obscure Object of Desire). Sadly, this is the first film to lack Bernard Lee's spymaster M, the actor having died beforehand, although British comedienne Janet Brown is on hand for an amusing Margaret Thatcher impersonation. --Leslie FelperinOn the DVD: The first audio commentary here is another one of those edited selections of interviews with sundry cast and crew members, tied together by an over-earnest host. Producer Michael G Wilson and others provide a somewhat more illuminating second commentary track. Once again the best extra feature is the "making of" documentary, which gives an almost scene-by-scene breakdown of the movie. The animated storyboard sequences will appeal to filmmaking aficionados. Avoid, if at all possible, the Sheena Easton video of arguably the most forgettable Bond song of all time (both song and score were perpetrated by series newcomer Bill Conti, not the estimable John Barry). --Mark Walker

• James Bond - Moonraker (Ultimate Edition 2 Disc Set) | DVD | (17/07/2006) from £6.42   |  Saving you £10.57 (164.64%)   |  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!

• James Bond - For Your Eyes Only (Ultimate Edition 2 Disc Set) | DVD | (17/07/2006) from £6.14   |  Saving you £10.85 (176.71%)   |  RRP £16.99

  When a British ship sinks in foreign waters the world's superpowers begin a feverish race to find its cargo: a nuclear submarine control system. And 007 (Roger Moore) is thrust into one of his most riveting adventures as he rushes to join the search...and prevent global devastation!

• Randall And Hopkirk Deceased - Vol. 5 - Episodes 15-18 | DVD | (18/02/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Episodes include: The Man From Nowhere: A stranger enters Jean's flat and claims to be her husband... When The Spirit Moves You: Marty demonstrates how a ghost detective can sometimes do better than his mortal counterparts... Somebody Just Walked Over My Grave: Marty finds himself accusing his partner of seeing things! Could You Recognise the Man Again? Jeff and Jean are non-plussed to find a dead body in the back seat of their car...

• Cleopatra | Blu Ray | (24/09/2012) from £31.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  A pre-code film that sneaked onto screens just as the censorious Hays Office began cracking down on Hollywood's racier propositions, Cleopatra is a libertine paean to decadence and depravity that can still send a viewer's mind reeling and pulse thumping – all courtesy of the Golden Age's swampiest psychosexual auteur, Cecil B. DeMille (The Ten Commandments; The Greatest Show on Earth; The King of Kings). Claudette Colbert (It Happened One Night; The Palm Beach Story; Drums Along the Mohawk) presides over the most outrageous spectacle this side of The Scarlet Empress as the eponymous pharaoh queen who speeds from Julius Caesar (Warren William) to Marc Antony (Henry Wilcoxon), from Egypt to Rome, from war-room to bedroom… The whiff of incense permeates every scene, with each connected to the next in a veritable matrix of whips, blindfolds, and bindings – the crazed arrangement laying bare all the fetish inklings of the moving-picture dream.

• Slave | DVD | (24/08/2009) from £6.73   |  Saving you £3.26 (48.44%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Slave

• Saturday Morning Pictures - The Best Of The Children's Film Foundation - Vol. 3 | DVD | (28/10/2002) from £20.00   |  Saving you £-10.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Go Kart Go Rival groups build their own Go-Karts and encounter excitement and trouble in their efforts to win the local Go-Kart race. Featuring a very young Dennis Waterman! A Hitch In Time An erratic time machine cuts a bullying teacher down to size...

• Raffles - The First Step | DVD | (09/02/2004) from £24.91   |  Saving you £-4.92 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Five instalments from the classic TV series featuring the debonair A. J. Raffles the idol of society at the end of the nineteenth century who was also an accomplished jewel thief and safe-cracker.

• CLEOPATRA (Masters of Cinema) (DVD) | DVD | (24/09/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £16.99

  A pre-code film that sneaked onto screens just as the censorious Hays Office began cracking down on Hollywood's racier propositions, Cleopatra is a libertine paean to decadence and depravity that can still send a viewer's mind reeling and pulse thumping - all courtesy of the Golden Age's swampiest psychosexual auteur, Cecil B. DeMille (The Ten Commandments; The Greatest Show on Earth; The King of Kings).Claudette Colbert (It Happened One Night; The Palm Beach Story; Drums Along the Mohawk) presides over the most outrageous spectacle this side of The Scarlet Empress as the eponymous pharaoh queen who speeds from Julius Caesar (Warren William) to Marc Antony (Henry Wilcoxon), from Egypt to Rome, from war-room to bedroom... The whiff of incense permeates every scene, with each connected to the next in a veritable matrix of whips, blindfolds, and bindings - the crazed arrangement laying bare all the fetish inklings of the moving-picture dream.Lavishly produced with some of the most inspired waxing-moon photography and unwholesome set-design to come out of the studio system, DeMille's film is an erotic tour-de-force that obliges us to re-examine the appeal of this most popular of Hollywood directors. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Cleopatra on DVD.

• Randall And Hopkirk Deceased - Vol. 1 - Episodes 1 And 2 | DVD | (10/07/2000) from £12.98   |  Saving you £-2.99 (-29.90%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The twist of this private-eye show is that in the first episode, gumshoe Marty Hopkirk (Kenneth Cope) is killed off by the villains, subsequently popping up in an immaculate white suit as a ghost visible only to his hardboiled partner Jeff Randall (Mike Pratt). In theory, the supernatural streak--which meant a complex set of rules about Marty's appearances and effects on the physical world--should lead the show into wilder territory, but most episodes squander the team's unique abilities on ordinary cases about blackmail and murder-for-profit. A persistent subplot has the living Jeff getting cosy with the dead Marty's widow Jean (Annette Andre) to the discomfort of her late husband. The elementary effects and the nice underplaying of the leads have a certain period charm, and the show could afford a high calibre of special guest villains and dolly birds. A recent remake with Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer hasn't obliterated memories of the original. This disc contains episodes one and two: "My Late Lamented Friend and Partner" and "A Disturbing Case". --Kim Newman

• Randall And Hopkirk Deceased - Vol. 2 - All No Work And No Pay / Never Trust A Ghost | DVD | (12/02/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  It's good to have a ghost on your side in the private eye business especially in cases when an invisible ally can really turn the tide in your favour. Mike Pratt plays Jeff Randall and Kenneth Cope is his ghostly partner Marty Hopkirk cursed to wander the earth for 100 years. Episode 3 - All Work and No Pay: Poor Jean is plagued by a poltergeist. She is convinced that it is Marty's ghost trying to get in touch with her and suspicious spiritualists the Foster Brothers to try to establish contact. Episode 4 - Never Trust a Ghost: Wandering the streets of London one night Marty witnesses a man Howarth being shot dead in his home. Jeff summons the police but Howarth appears alive and well... Marty however is unconvinced. Episode 5 - That's How Murder Snowballs: A Russian roulette act at a music hall goes horribly wrong when the mind reader is shot dead in front of the audience including Jeff and Marty! Special Guest Star: David Jason. Episode 6 - Just For The Record: Jeff and Jean act as escorts at an international beauty contest. During a sightseeing tour Marty's suspicions are aroused by Miss London's odd behaviour.

• Randall And Hopkirk Deceased - Vol. 4 - Ghost Who Saved / For The Girl / But What A Sweet / Cock Robin | DVD | (16/07/2001) from £12.34   |  Saving you £3.65 (29.58%)   |  RRP £15.99

  It's good to have a ghost on your side in the private eye business especially in cases when an invisable ally can really turn the tide in your favour. Mike Pratt plays Jeff Randall and Kenneth Cope is his ghostly partner Marty Hopkirk cursed to wander the earth for 100 years. Episodes include: Episode 11 - The Ghost Who Saved The Bank At Monte Carlo Episode 12 - For The Girl Who Has Everything Episode 13 - But What A Sweet Little Room Episode 14 - Who Killed Cock Robin?

• Randall And Hopkirk Deceased - Vol. 3 - Murder Ain't / Who Ever Heard / House On Haunted Hill | DVD | (14/05/2001) from £9.82   |  Saving you £6.17 (62.83%)   |  RRP £15.99

  It's good to have a ghost on your side in the private eye business especially in cases when an invisable ally can really turn the tide in your favour. Mike Pratt plays Jeff Randall and Kenneth Cope is his ghostly partner Marty Hopkirk cursed to wander the earth for 100 years. Episode 7 - Murder Aint What It Used To Be?: Marty has a ghostly rival Bugsy a gangster who met his demise in the Roaring Twenties. Not only does he have a repertoire of better tricks he is also out to kill one of Jeff's clients. Episode 8 - Whoever Heard of a Ghost Dying?: A criminal mastermind and his clairvoyant co-conspirator discover the reason for Randall's recent success at detection - the late Marty Hopkirk. They plot to make the duo fall guys for robberies and even try to exoricse poor Marty! Episode 9 - The House On Haunted Hill: It's a case for Marty when Jeff is asked to investigate the mystery of a 'haunted house'. It's just as well as Jeff is preoccupied with solving a diamond robbery. Episode 10 - When Did You Start to Stop Seeing Things?: The day Randall and Hopkirk have been dreading has arrived. Jeff can no longer see or hear his ghostly partner. To Marty's consternation Jeff doesn't even appeared to be bothered by this!

• Deep Evil | DVD | (07/06/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Five experts are sent to solve the mystery of what's happened to 'White Flag' an American top secret military weapons research lab.... 'White Flag' has been breeched. It is in total lock-down. When a team of 5 experts are sent in to investigate they are horrified to discover that the site is abandoned and covered in a strange unidentifiable substance. Facing a hostile evolving enemy which is not of this world a team of Alien experts are sent in to ignite a neutron bomb. But first

• UFO - Vol. 6 - Episodes 17-19 | DVD | (10/06/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Gerry Anderson's classic sci-fi series. The operatives of the secret Supreme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation (S.H.A.D.O.) defend the earth from extra-terrestrials who are abducting humans to obtain their organs which can be transplanted into their own bodies... Episodes include: Sub-smash The Sound Of Silence The Cat With Ten Lives

• UFO - Vol. 7 | DVD | (12/08/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Gerry Anderson's classic sci-fi series. The operatives of the secret Supreme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation (S.H.A.D.O.) defend the earth from extra-terrestrials who are abducting humans to obtain their organs which can be transplanted into their own bodies... Episodes include: Destruction The Man Who Came Back The Psychobombs

• The Parade | DVD | (02/08/2004) from £6.58   |  Saving you £-2.59 (-64.90%)   |  RRP £3.99

  It's an eventful time of year for Halstead Kansas. The small town is preparing for the annual Independence Day Parade... and a not-so favourite son's release from prison. Matt Kirby has just served seven years on a 'bum rap' for protecting a friend. But instead of celebrating his freedom Matt faces a new set of challenges. His wife Rachel and his family struggle to accept Matt's past and attempt to deal with their own future.

• Fandango | Blu Ray | (12/04/2022) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A