"Director: Bille August"

• Night Train To Lisbon | DVD | (28/01/2015) from £6.49   |  Saving you £9.50 (146.38%)   |  RRP £15.99

  After having saved a beautiful Portuguese woman from leaping to her death, Latin Professor Raimund Gregorius (Jeremy Irons) stumbles upon a mesmerizing book by a Portuguese author, which compels him to suddenly abandon his boring life and embark on an enthralling adventure. In search of the author, Gregorius acts as detective and begins to piece together an epic story of oppression and revolution, loyalty and betrayal, love and jealousy, all played out against the backdrop of a brutal fascist dictatorship. His exploration of the author's life evolves into a liberating journey of self-discovery and Gregorius finds that life can change in an instant.

• The Best Intentions | DVD | (26/04/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  With a screenplay by Academy Award Winner Ingmar Bergman (Fanny and Alexander) Bille August (Pelle the Conqueror) masterfully directs this heartwarming love story following the lives of Bergman's parents. Henrik Bergman an impoverished Lutheran pastor falls in love with a wealthy girl Anna. Despite her mother's attempts to discourage the relationship Anna's love grows stronger and the two eventually wed. A compelling look at the hardships extreme faith and rigid discipline of his father and his lifelong commitment to his wife Best Intentions sheds a powerful light onto the themes that have appeared in all of Ingmar Bergman's best movies.

• Les Miserables | DVD | (27/09/1999) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  In this adaptation of Victor Hugo's evergreen classic, Liam Neeson is Jean Valjean, imprisoned for stealing bread then paroled after nearly two decades of hard labour. A gift of silver candlesticks from a kindly priest helps him begin anew. Forging a decent and profitable existence, he finds success as a businessman and as the mayor of a small town. He even takes in a pregnant young woman (Uma Thurman) and raises her daughter as his own. But when a former prison guard (Geoffrey Rush) recognises Valjean, his past catches up to him. Director Bille August culls mesmerising performances from his cast, but loses us with an ending that panders to teen audiences. The focus shifts dramatically, and uncomfortably, from the haunted Neeson and his hawk-like pursuer, to his daughter (Claire Danes) and her romance with a handsome revolutionary. After this narrative shift, the script leaves behind Hugo themes of revenge and redemption to focus improbably on teen angst--hardly what the author had on his mind. --Rochelle O'Gorman

• Goodbye Bafana | DVD | (15/10/2007) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (75.00%)   |  RRP £19.99

  This is the true story of a white South African racist whose life was profoundly altered by the black prisoner he guarded for twenty years. The prisoner's name was Nelson Mandela.

• Les Miserables | Blu Ray | (07/01/2013) from £10.78   |  Saving you £2.21 (20.50%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Victor Hugo's stirring novel of redemption and revolution is brought to life by the artistry of director Billie August and his brilliant cast. Liam Neeson stars as Jean Valjean, a heartless convict who is transformed by a single act of mercy. Uma Thurman is Fantine, the vulnerable prostitute who begs Valjean to raise her only child, Cosette (Claire Danes). And Oscar-winner Geoffrey Rush (Best Actor, Shine, 1996) is an ambitious policeman determined to return Valjean to prison. A truly epic film, Les Miserables is Magnificent! A compelling and powerful human drama with terrific performances by Liam Neeson and Geoffrey Rush.

• Pelle The Conqueror | DVD | (05/09/2002) from £21.81   |  Saving you £-12.83 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Pelle the Conqueror is a Scandinavian drama which won the 1988 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film and a Best Actor nomination for Max (The Exorcist) Von Sydow. Set at the end of the 19th century, it tells of a widowed Swedish farmer who goes looking for a better life in Denmark with his young son, Pelle (a fine Pelle Hvenegaard). Much like Life is Beautiful (1998) the heart of the film is the bond between father and son and their dreams for a better world. Although the photography brings an austere beauty to the bleak coastlands of Denmark, the story, a 150-minute intimate epic, is intense and harrowing; the antithesis of the feel-good father-son relationship of a movie like Billy Elliot.On the DVD: Unfortunately, rather than the subtitles of the cinema release, this DVD is dubbed for the American market, which significantly diminishes the performances and undermines the emotional impact. This is particularly regrettable given that both subtitled and dubbed versions could exist on the same disc. The only feature is a Photo Library of full-frame screen-grabs. The stated ratio of 1:1.85 is incorrect, the film being cropped from the original cinema 1:1.66 to 4:3 TV ratio. The sound is unremarkable stereo. The picture, transferred from an already imperfect print, is crawling with grain and littered with compression artefacts, making it no better than many videos. Without even a booklet, this release does no justice to a landmark film. --Gary S. Dalkin

• Pelle The Conqueror | DVD | (18/07/2005) from £22.98   |  Saving you £-5.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Winner of the Adademy Award for best Foreign Picture this epic drama about human resilience stars the hypnotic Max Von Sydow as a poor but never downtrodden widower who emigrates with his young son Pelle from the economically depressed Sweden to Denmark at the turn of the century. His illusory quest for the good life leads only to a straw bed in the cold barn of a brutally insensitive farmer. The story centres around the close relationship between the father and son as they attempt to live a happy life amid the oppression. As a hopeful Pelle grows older he wants to see more of the world and sets out on his own full of questions and a need to know and conquer..... Winner of the Palm d'Or at the 1988 Cannes film festival; an Oscar for the Best Foreign Language film in 1989; and a Golden Globe also in 1989.

• Evita/Les Miserables/Gypsy | DVD | (14/11/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Evita (Dir. Alan Parker 1996): Eva Peron (Madonna) was born the illegitimate daughter of a penniless farmer. Determined to make it to the top Eva attaches herself to a poplar tango singer (Jimmy Nail) in the big city. Eva becomes a radio and film actress moving in influential circles within Buenos Aires society. When she becomes involved with rising politician Juan Peron (Jonathan Pryce) the establishment disapproves and he is arrested. Eva fights on the freedom both for her husband and the oppressed masses. Peron is freed by the people the couple marries and Peron is elected president. But Eva's greatest battle is yet to come. Les Miserables (Dir. Bille August 1998): Based on Victor Hugo's classic novel this is an epic tale of love honour and obsession against the dramatic background of the French Revolution. Jean Valjean (Liam Neeson) lives a life on the run for stealing a loaf of bread. Settling in a remote town he devotes himself to the care of the poor including the beautiful young and poverty stricken Fantine (Uma Thurman). When Fantine dies she leaves a daughter Cosette (Claire Danes) who Valjean raises. But they are haunted by Javert (Geoffrey Rush) a policeman whose lifelong search for Valjean has become an obsession. A hunt begins that will come to a final confrontation on the revolution torn streets of Paris. Gyspy (Dir. Emile Ardolino 1993): It's Emmy Grammy and Golden Globe-winner Bette Midler in the role she was born to play. The superstar of Beaches Ruthless People Down & Out in Beverly Hills and For the Boys delivers a standing room only performance as Mama Rose the ultimate vaudeville stage mother. Rose's blind ambition for her two daughters forces one to desert her and the other to emerge as the world's most famous striptease artist - Gypsy Rose Lee. Based on the actual memoirs of Ms. Lee and directed by the late Emile Ardolino (Sister Act Dirty Dancing) this musical motion picture extravaganza is true to the original Broadway production... including the glorious Jerome Robbins choreography and the memorable Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim score. The classics are all here - from Everything's Coming Up Roses to Let Me Entertain You and as a special bonus the complete version of Gypsy's classic overture. Spectacular performances by Ms. Midler and her supporting cast - Peter Riegert Cynthia Gibb (as the legendary Gypsy Rose Lee) and Ed Asner - will leave you asking for an encore!