"Actor: Miriam McDonald"

• The Sitter | Blu Ray | (14/05/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The Sitter may be the last movie featuring the "heavy" version of Jonah Hill. With the many pounds he's since lost, many movie-industry minds are wondering if the Jonah Hill-ness of his screen persona, flaunted so prodigiously in the likes of Knocked Up, Get Him to the Greek, and Superbad, has disappeared from the scales too. But until Jonah 2.0 gets his chance, The Sitter couldn't capture his trash-talking, man-child, king-of-comeback essence more boldly, more lovingly, or with such blatant vulgarity. Hill plays Noah, a jobless twentysomething layabout still living with his divorced mum along with the delusion that he has a hot girlfriend (she only keeps him around for oral talents that are unrelated to speech). As a favour that might help Mum with her own sad love life, he agrees to a one-night babysitting stand for the neighbours and their three wildly dissimilar but equally messed-up children. The night progresses through slapstick, farce, adventure, romance, danger, pathos, and eventual catharsis for everyone. (Unfortunately there's a touch of maudlin, sentimental corn in the mix too.) The children are as important to the escapades as Noah and are the primary source of his stupid/smooth shtick that mixes clever put-downs, terrified jabbering, and hilariously relentless patter of urban slang vernacular. Noah's spoiled charges are two boys--an anxiety-wracked 13-year-old and a 10-year-old Nicaraguan adoptee with severe anger and pyromania issues--and a precocious 8-year-old-girl who's heavily into make-up, hip-hop, and a score of other age-inappropriate behaviours. As the four of them hurtle deeper into the night, the situations become more antically treacherous with drug dealers, gangster thugs, police officers, and upper-crust snobs as part of the mix, along with their knives, cocaine, diamonds, alcohol, and guns. Director David Gordon Green, whose unusual career has gone from art house (George Washington, All the Real Girls) to raunchy bromance (Pineapple Express, Your Highness), supplants formal technique with the off-kilter and oft-unseemly style of Jonah Hill vs. the world. Green sometimes evokes the flow of surreality that Martin Scorsese took to unnatural ends in After Hours, only with more dirty bits and a lot more full-on crude laughs. Nearly everyone in the large supporting cast makes an excellent foil for the star's constant streetwise riffing, especially Sam Rockwell, who digs in to his role as a psychotic but emotionally conflicted drug dealer always on the lookout for new best friends. But it is Jonah Hill who sits firmly, even heavily in the driver's seat. It's a great place to flash his better-honed actorly chops along with his beloved version 1.0 comedic gift. --Ted Fry

• The Sitter | DVD | (14/05/2012) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (75.00%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The Sitter may be the last movie featuring the "heavy" version of Jonah Hill. With the many pounds he's since lost, many movie-industry minds are wondering if the Jonah Hill-ness of his screen persona, flaunted so prodigiously in the likes of Knocked Up, Get Him to the Greek, and Superbad, has disappeared from the scales too. But until Jonah 2.0 gets his chance, The Sitter couldn't capture his trash-talking, man-child, king-of-comeback essence more boldly, more lovingly, or with such blatant vulgarity. Hill plays Noah, a jobless twentysomething layabout still living with his divorced mum along with the delusion that he has a hot girlfriend (she only keeps him around for oral talents that are unrelated to speech). As a favour that might help Mum with her own sad love life, he agrees to a one-night babysitting stand for the neighbours and their three wildly dissimilar but equally messed-up children. The night progresses through slapstick, farce, adventure, romance, danger, pathos, and eventual catharsis for everyone. (Unfortunately there's a touch of maudlin, sentimental corn in the mix too.) The children are as important to the escapades as Noah and are the primary source of his stupid/smooth shtick that mixes clever put-downs, terrified jabbering, and hilariously relentless patter of urban slang vernacular. Noah's spoiled charges are two boys--an anxiety-wracked 13-year-old and a 10-year-old Nicaraguan adoptee with severe anger and pyromania issues--and a precocious 8-year-old-girl who's heavily into make-up, hip-hop, and a score of other age-inappropriate behaviours. As the four of them hurtle deeper into the night, the situations become more antically treacherous with drug dealers, gangster thugs, police officers, and upper-crust snobs as part of the mix, along with their knives, cocaine, diamonds, alcohol, and guns. Director David Gordon Green, whose unusual career has gone from art house (George Washington, All the Real Girls) to raunchy bromance (Pineapple Express, Your Highness), supplants formal technique with the off-kilter and oft-unseemly style of Jonah Hill vs. the world. Green sometimes evokes the flow of surreality that Martin Scorsese took to unnatural ends in After Hours, only with more dirty bits and a lot more full-on crude laughs. Nearly everyone in the large supporting cast makes an excellent foil for the star's constant streetwise riffing, especially Sam Rockwell, who digs in to his role as a psychotic but emotionally conflicted drug dealer always on the lookout for new best friends. But it is Jonah Hill who sits firmly, even heavily in the driver's seat. It's a great place to flash his better-honed actorly chops along with his beloved version 1.0 comedic gift. --Ted Fry

• Poison Ivy 4 - Secret Society | DVD | (20/04/2009) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (300.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Wide-eyed freshman Danielle Daisy Brooks' first days at Beckshire College are the best ever. She's noticed by the dean's handsome son singled out for a much sought-after scholarship and invited to join an exclusive campus society the Ivies. But the Ivies are more than a close-knit secretive sisterhood. They are hot-blooded temptresses with cold-blooded ambition who are more than willing to seduce blackmail or do away with anyone who gets in their way... even if she's one of their own! This fourth installment in the sexy Poison Ivy series is a delicious thriller starring Miriam McDonald (Degrassi: The Next Generation) as a not-so-innocent country girl whose education at the hands of the Ivies becomes a study in Survival 101.

• Poison Ivy 4 - Secret Society | Blu Ray | (20/04/2009) from £3.39   |  Saving you £21.60 (637.17%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The fourth film in the cult Poison Ivy series begins after the mysterious death of a young college student occurs late one night at a prestigious New England college. Danielle Daisy Brooks (Miriam McDonald) nevertheless decides to escape her small town life and transfer herself to this prominent school. This naive country girl is determined to start a new life leaving behind a two year relationship and the ghosts of her parents who died nearly three years ago. Daisy knows that she must break away from her past in order to move on and find out what she's ultimately made of. Daisy finds herself approached by a college group called the Ivy Society who want her to join and become a member - but as she gradually uncovers the Society's shady history can she escape their grip and stop their murderous plans?

• Sea Beast | DVD | (08/09/2014) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In the isolated fishing village of Cedar Bay, terror lies within the water. While whispers and rumours spread amongst the villagers, the deadly creatures stir in the cold depths with a desperate appetite for human flesh. When a crewmember goes missing from a fishing vessel, a seasoned captain and an expert sea biologist join forces to track down and exterminate the ferocious beasts. However, as the sun sets and the waters chill, the creatures gather for a vicious feeding frenzy that could obliterate the village population. In this flesh-ripping thriller, prepare to have the screams torn right out of your throat