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• Blue Lamp, The / The Nanny | DVD | (23/06/2003) from £14.99   |  Saving you £1.00 (6.67%)   |  RRP £15.99

  This is a double-feature of two British crime classics, The Blue Lamp (1949) and The Nanny (1965). The Blue Lamp is the film that introduced PC George Dixon, played by Jack Warner, later immortalised in the BBC's long-running Dixon of Dock Green (1955-76). Here Dixon's murder is the catalyst for an exciting London manhunt, shot largely on location in a fast-moving, starkly efficient style showing the influence of The Naked City (1948). The war-damaged East End and the car chases through almost vehicle-free streets offer a documentary-like vision of a London now long gone, and a young Dirk Bogarde makes a serious impact in an early starring role. In contrast, The Nanny has a superstar, the imported Hollywood legend Bette Davis, in the declining years of her career. Just one of three psychological thrillers Hammer produced in 1965 (the others were Frantic and Hysteria), the film capitalises on the popularity of Davis's Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) with a comparable mix of hateful insanity and paranoia. The screenplay skilfully juggles the audience's sympathies between a superb Davis and the dysfunctional family of which she becomes a part, developing a powerful sense of dread which shows such clichéd later fare as The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) how to do this sort of thing with real class. On the DVD: The Blue Lamp and The Nanny are presented in black and white with adequate mono sound. The Blue Lamp is in its original 4:3 ratio; The Nanny is cropped from its theatrical 1.85:1 to 4:3, though it's only in a few shots that it becomes obvious that information is missing at the sides of the screen. The print of The Blue Lamp is soft and grainy, while The Nanny is grainy with a considerable amount of flicker. There are no extras. --Gary S. Dalkin

• Last Action Hero / Kindergarten Cop / Twins | DVD | (03/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Last Action Hero (Dir. John McTiernan 1993): Danny Madigan (Austin O'Brien) a young cinema fan is crazy about his all-time great movie hero L.A. cop Jack Slater (Arnold Schwarzenneger). Having received a magic golden cinema ticket Danny is blasted through the big screen and into the action alongside his celluloid hero who is more than a little puzzled by his presence. Fasten your seatbelt as the dare-devil duo dodge bullets bombs and bad guys in a whirlwind world where anything is possible! But. ..disaster strikes when the baddies grab half the magic ticket and make their escape into the real world where they find life a doddle for two rogues intent on madness and mayhem.With Jack and Danny in hot pursuit hold your breath as the action addicts discover that real life can be even more exciting than the movies Twins (Dir. Ivan Reitman 1998): An ambitious genetic experiment takes the wrong turn when two twins (Danny De Vito and Arnold Schwarzenegger) - who look nothing alike - are born and then separated. Years later the unlikely siblings meet: Julius a highly educated but sheltered giant with a big heart and Vincent a pint-sized hustler with an insatiable lust for women and money. With girl friends in tow and a hitman on their tail the new-found brothers set off on a wild cross-country misadventure to find their mother but end up finding out more about themselves and each other... Kindergarten Cop (Dir. Ivan Reitman 1990): Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as an undercover cop posing as a kindergarten teacher in order to catch a dangerous criminal. Once he wrangles his young charges as well as the affections of a beautiful teacher (Penelope Ann Miller) he prepares for a final showdown with his intended prey in this 'Totally Enjoyable' (People Magazine) action-comedy from Director Ivan Reitman.

• A Soldier's Story | DVD | (04/10/2010) from £6.73   |  Saving you £-0.74 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Charles Fuller adapted his Pulitzer Prize-winning A Soldier's Play for the big screen in 1984. The film version, A Soldier's Story is essentially a murder mystery, played out against a background of inter and intra-racial conflict at a Second World War training camp. To the consternation of his white opposite number at the camp, a black captain (Howard W Rollins) arrives to investigate the death of a black sergeant (Adolph Caesar). Suspicion immediately falls on a pair of bigoted white officers but as the tale unfolds in a series of flashbacks, it soon becomes clear that a different kind of prejudice is also at work. Assisted by some excellent performances, director Norman Jewison opens the story out from its stage roots. There's a wonderful baseball scene (filmed on location at Little Rock) in which the double standards of Dennis Lipscomb's fidgety white captain are exposed with neat irony; he'll cheer his successful black team all the way home in the name of sport. His gradual, forced liberalisation provides the film with an important comic element. A Soldier's Story wears its heart on its sleeve without being superficial in any way. It's a compelling tale, well told and often highly entertaining, in which nobody gets off lightly, least of all the good guy. On the DVD: The widescreen presentation helps give an epic feel to what could, in other hands, have been a claustrophobic production. The picture quality is fine. But the monaural sound track is often rather muffled, leaving you straining to catch some of the dialogue. This is also a shame because the blues music--an inspired job by Herbie Hancock, assisted by Patti Labelle singing her lungs out as bar owner Big Mary--is an important element of the film's underlying theme and deserves to be better heard. The extras are valuable. Norman Jewison's commentary is detailed and sensitive. As he says, the film deals with "ideas in racism never seen on screen before", and he acknowledges the strength of his actors in getting those ideas across. "March to Freedom" is an excellent short documentary which features the moving testimonies of black servicemen on the insufferable prejudices they encountered while attempting to defend their country during the Second World War; A Soldier's Story is thus put sharply into context. --Piers Ford

• The Vanishing | DVD | (19/11/2012) from £29.95   |  Saving you £-16.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  It's not unusual for Hollywood to remake European hits. What is unusual is the director of the original getting the chance to helm the new version with an American cast, which is what happened with this film based on an intensely creepy Dutch film of the same name (both directed by George Sluizer). Kiefer Sutherland and Sandra Bullock are on vacation when, while stopped at a crowded rest area, she disappears. He devotes the next several years to discovering what happened to her, ruining his life in the process. When he does get a clue, it leads him to Jeff Bridges, who plays a bizarre and highly organized individual whose motives are almost as strange as he is. Bridges is spooky, but Sluizer ultimately is undone by Hollywood's demand for a happy ending, which makes this film affecting but far less unsettling than the original. --Marshall Fine

• Christine | DVD | (07/03/2005) from £25.00   |  Saving you £-12.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Hell hath no Fury...like Christine. She was born in Detroit on an automobile assembly line. But she is no ordinary automobile. Deep within her chassis lives an unholy presence. She is Christine a red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury whose unique standard equipment includes an evil indestructible vengeance that will destroy anyone in her way. She seduces 17-year old Arnie Cunningham (Keith Gordon) who becomes consumed with passion for her sleek rounded chrome-laden body. She demands

• James Bond - Licence to Kill (Ultimate Edition 2 Disc Set) | DVD | (17/07/2006) from £5.98   |  Saving you £11.01 (184.11%)   |  RRP £16.99

  One of Latin America's most powerful drug-dealers Franz Sanchez (Robert Davi) aims to extend his dealings into the Orient while strengthening his holdings in the Americas. His only problem: a bitterly vengeful James Bond who has lost his position with Her Majesty's Secret Service. Look for a cameo by Wayne Newton and excellent performances by two glorious Bond beauties: Carey Lowell and Talisa Soto. Licence to Kill is a gritty story filled with spectacular action and suspense that has made the James Bond film series the best-loved and most successful in cinema history.

• Endless Summer 2 | DVD | (17/12/2001) from £15.76   |  Saving you £4.23 (26.84%)   |  RRP £19.99

  From the gigantic surf off Oahu's North Shore to a man-made surfing park in Texas they're in search of the ultimate wave. Californians Robert Weaver and Patrick O'Connell are chasing the sun around the globe as they journey on a non-stop surfing adventure.

• Eddie Presley | DVD | (13/06/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Eddie Presley (Duane Whitaker). is a security guard who like his lifetime hero is slightly overweight these days. Formerly he occasionally worked as an Elvis impersonator. Recently he has had rather a rough time but his spirits have improved on learning that he will have a chance to revive his impersonation routines for a single evening at a none-too spiffy nightclub. When the club's music equipment chews up his tapes Eddie doesn't simply leave the stage. Instead he delivers a m

• Laurel and Hardy - Great Guns/Jitterbug/the Big Noise | DVD | (09/10/2006) from £16.50   |  Saving you £8.49 (51.45%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Great Guns (Dir. Monty Banks 1941): Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy join the army to protect their country...but who will protect the army from them? In Great Guns the comic team play a chauffeur and a gardener whose hypochondriac employer (Dick Nelson) a wealthy young man with little experience is drafted. Convinced that he needs them in order to survive in the service they join up as well. Of course the Texas cavalry post to which they're all assigned is made far worse for the wear by the presence of these well-meaning troublemakers and there is never a dull moment in this classic featuring two of the cinema's most revered comic actors! Jitterbugs (Dir. Malcolm St. Clair 1943): Considered the best of the Laurel and Hardy projects filmed at Twentieth Century Fox this energetic musical comedy also introduces singer Vivian Blaine. Stan and Oliver star as a traveling two-man jitterbug band who operate out of a dilapidated jalopy and form an unlikely partnership with a likable con man (Bob Bailey). When the trio joins a carnival they meet Susan a naive young singer (Vivian Blaine) whose mother has been swindled by grifters. Suddenly chivalrous the three orchestrate a sting operation using disguises - with Laurel dressed as Susan's disheveled aunt and Hardy as a rich Texan - to get the woman's money back. Although things don't go as planned the inimitable comedy duo provide nonstop laughs from start to finish in this delightful caper. The Big Noise (Dir. Malcolm St. Clair 1944): The zany antics of legendary comedians Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy come to life in this romp about two phony private detectives. The duo play janitors accidentally hired as sleuths to protect a new super-bomb destined for the War Department in Washington D.C. However the bomb's inventor has loaded his house with crazy contraptions that entrap and confuse the protectors. Meanwhile next door is the biggest threat of all - a gang of crooks determined to get their hands on the inventor's deadly creation. Through a series of crazy misadventures our heroes end up in a remote-controlled airplane along with the bomb and head straight for trouble.

• Black Sheep | DVD | (03/11/2011) from £5.38   |  Saving you £10.61 (66.40%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Deviant, multi-stranded black comedy set in the dark underbelly of modern Berlin. The story follows a group of deadbeats as they act out their bizarre and twisted plans to hit the big time. Satanists, prostitutes, artists and thieves are just some of the unsavoury characters looming large in this anarchically offbeat urban parody.

• Hustle - Series 1-5 | DVD | (11/01/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £59.99

  The Con Is On The Con. An invisible crime built on the premise of finding someone who wants something for nothing then giving them nothing for something. Choose the mark play on their desires set them up and then reel them in.

• The Hunters | DVD | (02/07/2012) from £4.99   |  Saving you £5.00 (100.20%)   |  RRP £9.99

  This classic war film features the talents of Robert Mitchum and Robert Wagner. Mitchum is Major Cleve Saville and Wagner is Lt. Ed Pell, two pilots with differing demeanors. Mitchum is more reserved, while Wagner is cockier. Amidst the drama of war, romance rears its head, giving the soldiers more than they can handle. Based on the novel by James Salter.

• Written On The Wind | DVD | (21/02/2005) from £17.97   |  Saving you £-4.99 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Bathed in lurid Technicolor melodrama maestro Douglas Sirk's 'Written On The Wind' is the stylishly debauched tale of a Texas oil magnate brought down by the excesses of his spoiled offspring. Features an all-star quartet that includes Robert Stack as a pistol-packin' alcoholic playboy; Lauren Bacall as his long-suffering wife; Rock Hudson as his earthy best friend; and Dorothy Malone (who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance) as his nymphomaniac sister.

• The Eagle Has Landed | DVD | (25/07/2005) from £5.98   |  Saving you £0.01 (0.17%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The daring World War II plot that changed the course of history. In November 1943 Heinrich Himmler (Donald Pleasance) received a simple message The Eagle Has Landed. It meant that a crack force of German paratroopers were safely in England poised and ready to kidnap the Prime Minister of England Winston Churchill. The force is under the command of Colonel Kurt Steiner (Michael Caine). All goes smoothly as the German force disguised in Polish uniforms is accepted by the villagers. But one of the men is killed while rescuing a little girl and his German uniform is discovered. The entire village has to be taken hostage and hidden in the town church. Agents and counteragents work desperately to keep the scheme alive. Steiner himself takes a dangerous gamble. He overpowers an American ranger commandeers his jeep and uniform and drives to the mansion where Churchill is relaxing. The action and suspense are nonstop in this World War II thriller which also stars Treat Williams Larry Hagman Anthony Quayle and Jean Marsh.

• Proteus | DVD | (07/10/2002) from £17.82   |  Saving you £-14.83 (N/A%)   |  RRP £2.99

  A conventional but spirited monster-at-loose quickie, Proteus stars British hulk Craig Fairbrass (Beyond Bedlam) as an undercover cop marooned with a gang of panicky drug dealers (played by Americans no one has heard from since 1995) on an oilrig-cum-unethical-genetics research station where a shape-shifting creature is on the prowl, mostly impersonating human beings but occasionally appearing as a giant shark-person. The Thing-like creature absorbs personality traits from the victims it absorbs, so--in a gag reminiscent of the cancerous liver gambit from Forbidden World (1983)--it is finally defeated because it becomes a heroin addict. There is a neat joke about the way the towering hero is constantly beaten up by people far shorter than he is, and Fairbrass's fed-up mockney patter sometimes wrings a few laughs from lines like "f***ing typical--you can never find a mutated monster when you want one!" The sick humour and weird science that were the strengths of the original novel (Slimer, written by screenwriter John Brosnan and Leroy Kettle under the significantly initialled pseudonym Harry Adam Knight) is hammered out in favour of rubbery goop effects and familiar running-around waterlogged corridors being pursued by a red-filtered subjective camera. Doug ("Pinhead") Bradley shows up in old-age make-up as the evil industrialist behind the monster-making programme in the last reel, and effects man director Bob Keen stages an especially gross death scene for the villain as he chokes on a huge scaly tentacle in what looks like an outtake from a gay porn film. On the DVD: An extras-free package, full-screen transfer, and a lot of strange colour distortions that make some dark scenes look like photographic negatives. --Kim Newman

• James Bond Collection Box Set | DVD | (14/11/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £129.99

  All 20 Special Edition James Bond DVDs are finally available packaged as one complete collection in a stunning 007 embossed steel box: the ultimate gift for any James Bond fan! Box set includes: 1. Dr. No (1962) - Sean Connery 2. From Russia With Love (1963) - Sean Connery 3. Goldfinger (1964) - Sean Connery 4. Thunderball (1965) - Sean Connery 5. You Only Live Twice (1967) - Sean Connery 6. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) - George Lazenby 7. Diamonds Are Forever (1971) - Sean Connery 8. Live And Let Die (1973) - Roger Moore 9. The Man With The Golden Gun (1974) - Roger Moore 10. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) - Roger Moore 11. Moonraker (1979) - Roger Moore 12. For Your Eyes Only (1981) - Roger Moore 13. Octopussy (1983) - Roger Moore 14. A View To A Kill (1985) - Roger Moore 15. The Living Daylights (1987) - Timothy Dalton 16. Licence To Kill (1989) - Timothy Dalton 17. Goldeneye (1995) - Pierce Brosnan 18. Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) - Pierce Brosnan 19. The World Is Not Enough (1999) - Pierce Brosnan 20. Die Another Day (2002) - Pierce Brosnan

• Meet The Parents | DVD | (02/07/2006) from £3.85   |  Saving you £12.14 (315.32%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Randy Newman's opening song, "A Fool in Love", perfectly sets up the scenario of Meet the Parents: "Show me a man who is gentle and kind and I'll show you a loser". Greg Focker (Ben Stiller) is the fool in love. Just as he's about to propose to his girlfriend Pam (Teri Polo), he learns that her sister's fiancé asked their father, Jack Byrnes (Robert De Niro), for permission to marry. Now he feels the need to do the same thing. When Greg meets Jack, he is so desperate to be liked that he makes up stories and feebly attempts to ingratiate himself with his prospective father-in-law rather than having the courage of his convictions. It doesn't take an elite member of the CIA to see right through Greg, but unfortunately that's precisely what Jack is. Directed by Jay Roach (the Austin Powers films), Meet the Parents is a well-crafted comedy that makes for a pleasant contrast to the sloppy excesses of the Farrelly brothers. Stiller is great at playing up the uncomfortable comedy of errors, balancing just the right amount of selfishness and self-deprecating humour, while De Niro's excels as the intimidating father. Blythe Danner as his wife, the Gracie to De Niro's George Burns, is the true heart of the film and Owen Wilson turns in yet another terrific comic performance as Pam's ex-fiancé. --Andy Spletzer, Amazon.com

• The Four Feathers | DVD | (14/06/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  What it lacks in grandeur, this 1978 TV version of The Four Feathers makes up for in fidelity to AEW Mason's classic novel. By cannibalising the superior 1939 production for epic shots and sequences, this modest adaptation draws attention to its meagre production values, relying heavily on casting and chemistry to compensate. That it succeeds, more or less, in capturing the essence of Mason's grand adventure is largely due to the appeal of Beau Bridges and Jane Seymour in the prime of their early careers. (Bridges' film career was gaining momentum; Seymour would rise from here to the similarly romantic Somewhere in Time.) Bridges is the shamed soldier Harry Faversham, transcending cowardice by rescuing his closest friends during Britain's bloody campaign in 1870s Sudan; Seymour is his beloved back home, torn between Harry and the seemingly braver Jack (Robert Powell). TV veteran Don Sharp provides tepid direction, while screenwriter Gerald DiPego would continue his prolific career for decades to come. --Jeff Shannon

• Jeeves And Wooster - The Complete 3rd Series | DVD | (17/06/2002) from £13.02   |  Saving you £6.97 (53.53%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The first three episodes of this third series of Jeeves & Wooster take place in Manhattan. In spite of the change of scene, our hero continues to get into the most terrible scrapes, and it falls to the faithful Jeeves to save the day, frequently. When he realises that Honoria Glossop may once again have her sights set on his precious bachelorhood, Bertie Wooster sets sail for the New World. Here he helps old pal Tuppy to make a business deal. At the same time he has to keep Motty Malvern on the straight and narrow, while helping two writer friends deceive their prying relatives. The final straw comes in the shape of Cyril Bassington-Bassington, the stage-struck son of Aunt Agatha's closest friend. Back home in England, Bertie and Gussie Fink-Nottle switch identities, the lunatic Roderick Spode reappears, Bertie is forced to commit burglary (again!), and there's a spot of trouble with a tin of treacle and some communists. The unflappable Jeeves is Bertie's only hope. Although the humour in this collection sometimes feels a little less assured than in earlier episodes and the new actor playing Gussie is a disappointment, the central performances of Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry are as good as ever. Few actors have ever brought such beloved characters so convincingly to life. --Simon Leake

• Road To - The Complete Collection | DVD | (03/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £49.99

  The Road To Morocco: Two bumbling buffoons are shipwrecked on an island off the coast of North Africa. When the beautiful Princess Shalimar comes to their rescue Jim and Turkey think they've died and gone to heaven. But once her brawny jealous husband finds out what these clowns have been up to they're going to wish they had never left their island. The Road To Singapore: Josh Mallon and his best buddy Ace Lannigan are avowed playboys. They won't even consider getting married. But Josh's shipping magnate father is tired of his prodigal son's whimsical ways. So he forces him to settle down and get a job. Rebellious to the bone Josh puts and end to those plans when -- on the eve of his big engagement party -- he and Ace set sail for Singapore. They accidentally wind up in Kaigoon instead but these free-spirited bachelors couldn't care less. Unfettered by money or responsibility they're as happy as can be. Their trouble begins when they both fall in love with the same lovely native lass. The Road To Utopia: The irrepressible Chester and Duke are back on the road again. This time around the vaudevillians -- disguised as Alaskan bruisers -- are trekking to the Klondike with a newly-found map to a gold mine. A comedy of errors begins when the citizens of a rough and tumble miner's town mistake the boys for claim-jumpers. Saloon mistress Sal goes gunning for the luckless pair whose treasure map just happens to have been her late father's property. Eventually the three gold-hunters team up and begin searching for the mine together. The Road To Zanzibar: After Chucks and Fearless sell a phony diamond mine to a crook the two escape to Zanzibar where they meet comely Brooklyn gals Donna and Julia. Amid jokes and songs the foursome embark on a wacky safari but the women are only going along in hopes of finding Donna's missing brother. When the guys discover the true reason for the safari they decide to return to Zanzibar; that is until they encounter a band of wild cannibals -- who have their own plans for the duo. The Road To Rio: To avoid being charged with arson after burning down a circus Hot Lips Barton (Bob Hope) and Scat Sweeney (Bing Crosby) stow away on an ocean bound ship. Aboard the vessel the duo fall for Lucia Maria de Andrade (Dorothy Lamour) who is under the spell of her evil aunt (Gale Sondergaard) who has arranged a marriage for the young beauty. This film was in good hands since many of Hope's best collaborators worked on the picture. Director Norman Z. McLeod went on to direct Hope in four more features -- Alias Jesse James Casanova's Big Night My Favourite Spy and The Paleface. McLeod had a remarkable career behind the cameras working with such Hollywood greats as Danny Kaye (The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty) W.C. Fields (It's A Gift) and Cary Grant (Topper). Writer Edmund Beloin supplied the stories for both My Favorite Spy and The Lemon Drop Kid. His collaborator Jack Rose penned My Favourite Brunette The Great Lover Sorrowful Jones and The Seven Little Foys. This The Road To Bali: Hope and Crosby play George Cochran and Harold Gridley American vaudevillains on the run from some angry fathers in Australia. To avoid a dual shotgun wedding George and Harold end up on the island of Bali and sign on as deep sea divers for Prince Arok - and become smitten with the princess Lalah. The Road To Hong Kong: Vaudevillians Harry (Crosby) and Chester (Hope) travel to Tibet to search for a drug to restore Chester's memory. Once they find the cure Chester's memory becomes so good that he accidentally memorizes a secret formula for space navigation. Soon the two meet up with a beautiful spy (Collins) and get slightly sidetracked... to another planet!