Drama

• Rome: The Complete HBO Season 2 (6 Disc Box Set) | DVD | (10/09/2007) from £18.99   |  Saving you £36.00 (189.57%)   |  RRP £54.99

  Unlike another certain celebrated HBO series, Rome's end will satisfy those swept up in its lavishly mounted spectacle and invested in the human dramas of the historical figures and fictional characters. Series 2 begins in the wake of Julius Caesar's assassination, and charts the power struggle to fill his sandals between "vulgar beast" Mark Antony (James Purefoy) and "clever boy" Octavian (Simon Woods), who is surprisingly named Caesar's sole heir. The series' most compelling relationship is between fellow soldiers and unlikely friends, the honorable Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and Titus "Violence is the only trade I know" Pullo (Ray Stevenson), who somewhat reverse roles when Vorenus is overcome with grief in the wake of his wife's suicide. Series 2 considerably ups the ante in the rivalry between Atia (an Emmy-worthy Polly Walker), who is Antony's mistress, and Servilia (Lindsay Duncan) with attempted poisonings and sickening torture. Another gripping sub plot is Vorenus's estrangement from his children, who, at the climax of the season opener are presumed slaughtered, but whose true fate may be even more devastating to the father who cursed them. Rome's second season does not scrimp on the series' sex and violence, in both cases exceedingly brutal. But in this cauldron of treachery and betrayal, words, too, are vicious, as when a defiant Atia ominously tells Octavian's new wife, Livia, "Far better women that you have sworn to [destroy me]. Go look for them now." In writing Rome's epitaph, we come to praise this series, not to bury it. Although two seasons was not enough to establish a Rome empire, it stands as one of HBO's crowning achievements. --Donald Liebenson

• Care - Critically acclaimed BBC drama starring Sheridan Smith and Alison Steadman.) | DVD | (01/04/2019) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  From Emmy winner and multi BAFTA award-winning writer Jimmy McGovern (The Street, Broken) comes Care, starring International Emmy Award nominee Sheridan Smith (Cilla) as a single mother struggling to raise her two children in the aftermath of a family tragedy. After her husband's departure, Jenny (Smith) is fully reliant on the childcare her mother Mary (Alison Steadman - Hold the Sunset, Gavin & Stacey) provides. But when Mary suffers a devastating stroke and develops dementia, Jenny's world comes crashing down, as everything changes for her and her sister Claire (Sinead Keenan - Little Boy Blue, Being Human). Finding herself torn between her own life and the wellbeing of her mother, Jenny soon discovers that another way could be possible - but she'll have to fight for it.'Sheridan Smith has a rare gift' - The Independent; 'Stunningly heart breaking' - The Express; 'This film has BAFTA written all over it' - Metro.

• Sicario 2: Soldado UHD BD | Blu Ray | (29/10/2018) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border has escalated as the cartels have begun trafficking terrorists across the US border. To fight the war, federal agent Matt Graver re-teams with the mercurial Alejandro.

• I Don't Know How She Does It | Blu Ray | (06/02/2012) from £4.75   |  Saving you £20.24 (426.11%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The archetypal single gal from Sex and the City dives into family life in I Don't Know How She Does It. Kate Reddy, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, could easily be Carrie Bradshaw's alternate life: a rising finance analyst, Kate feels guilty for short-changing her husband (Greg Kinnear) and two children. When she gets the opportunity to work with a high-powered exec (Pierce Brosnan), the already tense family relationship gets stretched to the breaking point and Kate has to make some hard choices. I Don't Know How She Does It is pure formula, but executed well. The entire cast (also including Christina Hendricks as a single-mum best friend, Kelsey Grammer as an overbearing boss, Seth Meyers as a sniping rival, and a scene-stealing Olivia Munn as Kate's assistant) play their parts with skill, while Parker's rapport with Kinnear is particularly warm and persuasive. Moreover, you have to admire the sheer chutzpah of hammering home political points about double standards in the workplace and then delivering a fairy-tale ending. Men have realised the importance of family over work in dozens upon dozens of cookie-cutter heartwarming flicks; apparently it's time that women got the opportunity to do the same. No doubt this signifies some important cultural shift; college theses are waiting to be written about it. --Bret Fetzer

• Rain Man | Blu Ray | (01/09/2014) from £9.69   |  Saving you £10.30 (106.30%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Rain Man is the kind of touching drama that Oscars are made for--and, sure enough, the film took Academy honours for best picture, director, screenplay and actor (Dustin Hoffman) in 1988. Hoffman plays Raymond, an autistic savant whose late father has left him $3 million in a trust. This gets the attention of his materialistic younger brother, a hot-shot LA car dealer named Charlie (Tom Cruise) who wasn't even aware of Raymond's existence until he read his estranged father's will. Charlie picks up Raymond and takes him on a cross-country journey that becomes a voyage of discovery for Charlie, and, perhaps, for Raymond too. Rain Man will either captivate or irritate you (Raymond's sputtering of repetitious phrases is enough to drive anyone crazy), but it is obviously a labour of love for those involved. Hoffman had been attached to the film for many years, as various directors and writers came and went, but his persistence eventually paid off--kind of like Raymond in Las Vegas. Look for director Barry Levinson in a cameo as a psychiatrist near the end of the film. --Jim Emerson, Amazon.com

• Coupling: Complete Series 2 | DVD | (23/09/2002) from £6.16   |  Saving you £13.83 (224.51%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Steven Moffat's second series of Coupling, first broadcast in 2001, is a brilliant consolidation of all those neuroses, small deceits, obsessions and personality tics that struck such a resonant chord when Steve, Susan and their four friends were first unleashed on us. Comparisons with Friends itself are tiresome and lazy: Coupling is an intrinsically British comedy that picks apart the trivial and the mundane in everyday relationships and takes them on surreal journeys, leaving the participants hilariously bemused and rarely any wiser. Its success is due to the magical combination of Moffat's very funny scripts and the talents of six extremely likable actors, including Jack Davenport (Steve) and Sarah Alexander (Susan). But it's Richard Coyle's Jeff, whose sexual fantasies and putting-your-his-in-it propensities exert a compelling fascination, who really keeps you watching through your fingers as you hold your hands to your face in disbelief. Breasts, bottoms and pants are the basis for most of the conversational analysis when these friends get together as a group, as couples, as girlfriends or as mates, invariably becoming metaphors for the state of a relationship or situation. Individual viewpoints and terrors are explored through respective memories of the same event and what-if scenarios. Chain reactions inevitably ensue, fuelling comedy that is based almost entirely on misunderstanding. On the DVD: Coupling, Series 2 on disc is presented in 16:9 anamorphic video aspect ratio, together with a crisp Dolby Digital stereo soundtrack; Mari Wilson's sensuous version of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" for the theme tune deserves a special mention. Extras include disappointing interviews with writer Steven Moffat and Jack Davenport, which are mainly an excuse to repeat several major scenes from the series in full. The "Behind the scenes" feature is also a let-down: it's just a not very funny record of a cast photo shoot. --Piers Ford

• David Holzman's Diary | DVD | (30/01/2006) from £14.49   |  Saving you £-1.50 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  A young filmmaker attempts to understand his life by recording it on film only to have his experiment turn into an alienating voyeuristic obsession. One of the neglected milestones in contemporary film history this legendary independent classic captures the state of mind and the state of the art in late 1960s America.

• La La Land | 4K UHD | (15/05/2017) from £19.95   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Written and directed by Academy Award® nominee Damien Chazelle, LA LA LAND tells the story of Mia [Emma Stone], an aspiring actress, and Sebastian [Ryan Gosling], a dedicated jazz musician, who are struggling to make ends meet in a city known for crushing hopes and breaking hearts. Set in modern day Los Angeles, this original musical about everyday life explores the joy and pain of pursuing your dreams.

• Three Outlaw Samurai (1964) (Criterion Collection) UK Only | Blu Ray | (20/07/2020) from £21.65   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  This first film by the legendary HIDEO GOSHA (Sword of the Beast) is among the most canonized chambara (sword-fighting) films. An origin-story offshoot of a Japanese television series phenomenon of the same name, Three Outlaw Samurai is a classic in its own right. In it, a wandering, seen-it-all ronin (TETSURO TAMBA) becomes entangled in the dangerous business of two other samurai (ISAMU NAGATO and MIKIJIRO HIRA), hired to execute a band of peasants who have kidnapped the daughter of a corrupt magistrate. With remarkable storytelling economy and thrilling action scenes, this is an expertly mounted tale of revenge and loyalty. Special Features: High-definition digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition Trailer New English subtitle translation PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Bilge Ebiri

• Fast Times At Ridgemont High (1982) (Criterion Collection) UK Only | Blu Ray | (17/05/2021) from £23.65   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Life as a teenager means growing up fast in the 80s; and for the high school students it means struggling with independence, sexuality, jobs, money and school.

• Shadows In The Sun | DVD | (26/06/2006) from £6.96   |  Saving you £6.03 (86.64%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In life each man must find his own path... A wonderful romantic comedy set in the stunning Italian countryside! Ambitious agent Jeremy Taylor (Joshua Jackson) is sent by his London publishing company on a mission to achieve what many others have failed to do: sign reclusive wildly eccentric author Weldon Parish (Harvey Keitel). Once in enchanting Tuscany however Jeremy instead falls head over heals for Weldon's beautiful daughter (Claire Forlani) and develops a friendship

• The Beiderbecke Tapes | DVD | (10/11/2003) from £19.17   |  Saving you £-9.18 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Trevor Chaplin and Jill Swinborne the reluctant heroes from the TV series 'The Beiderbecke Affair' return in this feature length mystery. Trevor is given some jazz tapes from a fellow Bix Beiderbecke fan the barman at the local pub but he receives far more than music compilations. One of the tapes turns out to be a recording of a sinister conversation about dumping nuclear waste in the Yorkshire Dales. When Trevor and Jill go to the pub to confront the barman they discover he has gone missing and a mystery ensues....

• Nip/Tuck - Series 1 (Box Set) | DVD | (20/09/2004) from £7.43   |  Saving you £43.56 (586.27%)   |  RRP £50.99

  The turbulent lives of two handsome and high-priced Miami plastic surgeons may be one of the more unusual premises for a television series, but the FX Channel's Nip/Tuck combines sudsy sex and biting wit with the emotional quandaries involved in body modification in a way that makes for an engrossing--and occasionally gross--hourlong drama. The show benefits greatly from its two leads--Dylan Walsh as the troubled "good" surgeon and Julian McMahon as his predatory (but equally troubled) "bad" partner--as well as Joely Richardson as Walsh's wife and Roma Maffia as the surgeons' nurse. If Nip/Tuck does have a stumbling point, it's in its occasionally glib dialogue (series creator Ryan Murphy was a writer for the verbally flashy high school series Popular), which can clash with an episode's more dramatic and poignant moments. The show also doesn't shy away from showing the more gruesome aspects of plastic surgery, but viewers can often see more stomach-churning images on the top-rated CSI. But the strength of the performances and the originality of the premise make these rough spots manageable for viewers looking for an interesting spin on the usual "doctor show." The five-DVD set offers an extended version of the pilot and all 12 episodes of the first season as well as a trio of documentaries (one on the show itself, another on its special effects, and a third, "Realistic Expectations," on real-life plastic surgeons). A gag reel (amusingly titled "Severed Parts"), a selection of deleted scenes for most episodes, and a music video for the title theme ("A Perfect Lie" by the Engine Room) round out the box. --Paul Gaita

• The Koker Trilogy | Blu Ray | (23/09/2019) from £59.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Iranian master Abbas Kiarostami's poetic trilogy of tales that blend reality and fiction. Abbas Kiarostami (Taste of Cherry) first came to international attention for this wondrous, slyly self-referential series of films set in the rural northern-Iranian town of Koker. Poised delicately between fiction and documentary, comedy and tragedy, the lyrical fables in The Koker Trilogy exemplify both the gentle humanism and playful sleight of hand that define the director's sensibility. With each successive film, Kiarostami takes us deeper into the behind-the-scenes reality of the film that preceded it, heightening our understanding of the complex network of human relationships that sustain both a movie set and a village. The result is a gradual outward zoom that reveals the cosmic majesty and mystery of ordinary life. Includes: Where Is The Friend's House? (1987) The first film in Abbas Kiarostami's sublime, interlacing Koker Trilogy takes a simple premise - a boy searches for the home of his classmate, whose school notebook he has accidentally taken - and transforms it into a miraculous, child's-eye adventure of the everyday. As our young hero zigzags determinedly across two towns, aided (and sometimes misdirected) by those he encounters, his quest becomes both a revealing portrait of rural Iranian society in all its richness and complexity and a touching parable about the meaning of personal responsibility. Sensitive and profound, Where Is the Friend's House? is shot through with all the beauty, tension, and wonder a single day can contain. And life Goes On (1992) In the aftermath of a 1990 earthquake that left at least thirty thousand dead, Abbas Kiarostami returned to Koker, where his camera surveys not only devastation but also the teeming life in its wake. Blending fiction and reality into a playful, poignant road movie, And Life Goes On follows a film director who, along with his son, makes the trek to the region in hopes of finding out if the young star of Where Is the Friend's House? is among the survivors, and discovers a resilient community pressing on in the face of tragedy. Finding beauty in the bleakest of ci'rcumstances, Kiarostami crafts a quietly majestic ode to the best of the human spirit. Through The Olive Trees (1994) Abbas Kiarostami takes metanarrative gamesmanship to masterful new heights in the final instalment of The Koker Trilogy. Unfolding behind the scenes of And Life Goes On, this film traces the complications that arise when the romantic misfortune of one of the actors - a young man who pines for the woman cast as his wife, even though, in real life, she will have nothing to do with him - creates turmoil on set and leaves the hapless director caught in the middle. An ineffably lovely, gentle human comedy steeped in the folkways of Iranian village life, Through the Olive Trees peels away layer after layer of artifice as it investigates the elusive, alchemical relationship between cinema and reality. Special Edition Features: New 2K digital restorations of all three films, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks New audio commentary on And Life Goes On featuring Mehrnaz Saeed-Vafa and Jonathan Rosenbaum, co-authors of Abbas Kiarostami Abbas Kiarostami: Truths and Dreams, a 1994 documentary New interview with Abbas Kiarostami's son Ahmad Kiarostami New conversation between Iranian-film scholar Jamsheed Akrami and film critic Godfrey Cheshire Conversation from 2015 between Kiarostami and film-festival programmer Peter Scarlet New English subtitle translations PLUS: An essay by critic Godfrey Cheshire and more!

• tulip fever | DVD | (01/04/2019) from £11.09   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• 127 Hours (Double Play Blu-ray + DVD) | Blu Ray | (06/06/2011) from £9.98   |  Saving you £17.00 (212.77%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Aron Ralston (played by James Franco) is traipsing alone through Utah's Canyonlands National Park, minding his own sweet-natured, loosey-goosey business, when an errant step drops him into a crevasse. That in itself wouldn't be so bad if he hadn't managed to get his right hand stuck between a heavy boulder and the side of the cavern--a cavern that will be his grave, if he doesn't figure out how to get himself out. Danny Boyle's film of this real-life 2003 incident builds up to what we all know is going to happen: Ralston must sever his arm between his elbow and wrist, after a few long, lonely days of avoiding the idea. (Superb casual line delivery by Franco: "So I found this great tourniquet….") Because this is a film by the director of Slumdog Millionaire and Trainspotting, we can expect a barrage of visual high jinks, despite the fact that this story would seem to be a simple tale of a man stuck in the desert. Boyle deploys flashbacks and fantasies to fill up the screen, plus he gets some mileage out of Ralston's video camera--and, of course, this director can't resist juicing the soundtrack with pop tunes, from Sigur Rós to Edith Piaf to Slumdog composer A.R. Rahman. Maybe Boyle is simply hyperactive, or maybe he's really onto something about what would happen inside the mind of a man left in extremis for an extended period (who wouldn't have a few Boyle-esque hallucinations, under the circumstances?). The cumulative effect is overbearing, but Franco's performance is spirited and endearing--he makes Ralston sufficiently "of life" that you definitely don't want to see this goofball soul be lost. --Robert Horton

• Untold Scandal | DVD | (22/08/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Based on 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses' the infamous bodice-ripping novel by Pierre Choderlos De Laclos 'Untold Scandal' focuses on the end of the Chosun dynasty in Korea; a period when rigid Confucianism clashed with encroaching new beliefs. Chosun's most infamous Casanova irresistible temptress and virtuous widow entangled in provocative and dangerous liaisons! Lady Cho (Lee Mi-sook) is a brilliant woman who mastered the classics on her own and resents the limited life she must lead

• The Last Keepers | DVD | (21/04/2014) from £9.26   |  Saving you £6.73 (72.68%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Sci-fi drama starring Zosia Mamet and Olympia Dukakis. When Rhea Carver (Mamet) realises that she is different to the other children at school, she reaches out to her grandmother, Rosmarie (Dukakis). As Rhea's mother (Virginia Madsen) and grandmother tell her the truth about the women of the Carver family being descendents of ancient witches, Rhea fears that life as she knew it will never be the same.

• The Good Soldier | DVD | (22/08/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Jeremy Brett Susan Fleetwood Robin Ellis and Geoffrey Chater star in this adaptation of Ford Madox Ford s classic Edwardian story of love and deception widely regarded as one of the greatest English-language novels of the twentieth century. A household name from his iconic performance in ITV s The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Brett relishes the title role giving one of the outstanding performances of his long and distinguished career. The complex plot evolves around two outwardly perfect married couples Englishman Edward Ashburnam and his wife Leonora and Americans John and Florence Dowell; the couples meet annually in the German spa town of Bad Nauheim a resort favoured by those with heart conditions. But as the friendships deepen the intricacies of the relationships are gradually laid bare and the carefully concealed flaws destructive passions and infidelities of the protagonists bring about a sequence of tragic events that will consume them all.

• Fear the Walking Dead Season 5 | Blu Ray | (02/12/2019) from £16.69   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  5 disc set! Includes 16 episodes, plus 1 hour of bonus features In Season 5 of Fear the Walking Dead, the group's mission is clear: locate survivors and help make what's left of the world a slightly better place. Each character believes that helping others will allow them to make up for the wrongs of their past. Spearheaded by Morgan Jones, the group are put to the ultimate test when they find themselves in uncharted territory and are forced to face their greatest fears. But it is only by facing those fears that they will discover an entirely new way to live, one that will change them forever... Bonus Features: Greetings From Set Look At S5 Look at Dwight's Journey Look at Daniel Salazar's Journey Relationships in the Apocalypse Taking Action Not Just Surviving Building a Future Wrap Up