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• Saving Private Ryan | DVD | (06/11/2000) from £3.98   |  Saving you £12.01 (301.76%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Since its release in 1998, Steven Spielberg's D-Day drama Saving Private Ryan has become hugely influential: everything, from the opening sequence of Gladiator ("Saving Marcus Aurelius") to the marvellous 10-hour TV series Band of Brothers, has been made in its shadow. There have been many previous attempts to recreate the D-Day landings on screen (notably, the epic The Longest Day), but thanks to Spielberg's freewheeling hand-held camerawork, Ryan was the first time an audience really felt like they were there, storming up Omaha Beach in the face of withering enemy fire. After the indelible opening sequence, however, the film is not without problems. The story, though based on an American Civil War incident, feels like it was concocted simply to fuel Spielberg's sentimental streak. In standard Hollywood fashion the Germans remain a faceless foe (with the exception of one charmless character who turns out to be both a coward and a turncoat); and the Tom Hanks-led platoon consists of far too many stereotypes: the doughty Sergeant; the thick-necked Private; the Southern man religious sniper; the cowardly Corporal. Matt Damon seems improbably clean-cut as the titular Private in need of rescue (though that may well be the point); and why do they all run straight up that hill towards an enemy machine gun post anyway? Some non-US critics have complained that Ryan portrays only the American D-Day experience, but it is an American film made and financed by Americans after all. Accepting both its relatively narrow remit and its lachrymose inclinations, Saving Private Ryan deserves its place in the pantheon of great war pictures. On the DVD: Saving Private Ryan on disc comes in a good-quality anamorphic 1.85:1 transfer with a suitably dynamic Dolby Digital 5.1 sound mix in which bullets fly all around your living room. Extra features are pretty minimal, with a standard 30-minute "making of" piece called "Into the Breach" and two trailers. There are text notes on the cast and crew as well as the production, and a brief message from Mr Spielberg himself about why he decided to make the movie. --Mark Walker

• Das Boot | DVD | (12/12/1998) from £4.90   |  Saving you £15.09 (307.96%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Wolfgang Petersen's harrowing and claustrophobic U-boat thriller Das Boot was released as both a theatrical film and a six-hour mini-series, and remains the most expensive production ever made by a German studio. The expanded "Director's Cut" of the movie was re-released 1997 and it is this version that is available for home viewing. This epic story became an instant classic on its first release, provoking critical and audience acclaim worldwide for its sympathetic and entirely truthful portrayal of a German U-boat crew. Faithfully adapted from the bestselling novel by Lothar-Günther Buchheim, Petersen and his committed cast (led by the amazing Jürgen Prochnow) were concerned to ensure that every detail was rendered with painstaking accuracy--both physical and psychological--and the result is not only the best submarine drama ever made but also arguably the finest cinematic portrait of men at war and the terrible madness they must endure. On the DVD: The 200-minute "Director's Cut" version of the movie not only has several major scenes restored that were not in the theatrical release but also has been digitally remastered with significantly improved sound (new sound effects have been added) and anamorphic picture. (The six-hour TV version has yet to be released.) Here, the viewer can watch the movie in the original German, with or without subtitles, or in an English dubbed version that uses the voices of many of the original cast. On the utterly engrossing commentary track, director Wolfgang Petersen and star Jürgen Prochnow talk animatedly and in great detail about every aspect of making this epic story--from model shots using Barbie dolls to meeting the Captain of the original U-boat. This is one of the most consistently rewarding commentaries on disc. Also included is a five-minute featurette that promotes this new version. --Mark Walker

• Instrument of War | DVD | (11/03/2019) from £3.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• The Hurt Locker | DVD | (28/12/2009) from £3.74   |  Saving you £16.25 (434.49%)   |  RRP £19.99

  From visionary filmmaker Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker" is an intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world: disarming bombs in the heat of combat.

• Hart's War | DVD | (14/10/2002) from £4.90   |  Saving you £15.09 (307.96%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A law student becomes a lieutenant during World War II, is captured by the Germans and asked to defend a black prisoner of war falsely accused of murder.

• Where Hands Touch | DVD | (27/05/2019) from £3.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Germany 1944: 15-year old Leyna (Amandla Stenberg), daughter of a white German mother and a black father, lives in fear due to the colour of her skin. When she meets Lutz (George MacKay), the son of a prominent SS officer and a member of the Hitler Youth - mandatory for all Aryan boys since 1936 - the two fall helplessly in love, putting both their lives at risk.

• Mimi and the Mountain Dragon | DVD | (15/11/2021) from £2.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Children's animated feature based on the book by Michael Morpurgo, who also narrates. When quiet young girl Mimi (voice of Esther Greaves) discovers a baby dragon she makes the bold decision to travel the snowy mountains of Switzerland to return it to its mother.

• Inglourious Basterds | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £4.49   |  Saving you £15.50 (345.21%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Quentin Tarantino presents a look at WWII the likes of which you have never seen before in the hotly anticipated "Inglorious Basterds".

• Ill Met By Moonlight | DVD | (17/05/2004) from £4.99   |  Saving you £5.00 (100.20%)   |  RRP £9.99

  In Nazi-occupied Crete British officers Fermor (Bogarde) and Moss (Oxley) aided by local patriots are assigned the job of kidnapping German commander-in-chief Kreipe (Goring). The operation if successful will be an incredible propaganda coup for the Allies; while the abduction goes smoothly the resultant chase across the rocky Cretan landscape proves anything but...

• The War Below | DVD | (11/10/2021) from £3.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  During World War I, a group of British miners are recruited to tunnel underneath no man's land and set bombs from below the German front in hopes of breaking the deadly stalemate of the Battle of Messines.

• Hurricane | Blu Ray | (22/10/2018) from £4.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  HURRICANE tells the story of the Polish fliers who found themselves fighting for the freedom of their own country in foreign skies. Seen through the eyes of Jan Zumbach (Rheon), fighter ace and adventurer, it tells how the Poles, driven across Europe by the German war machine, finally made their last stand. Flying Hurricanes for the RAF over Britain, they became a key component in the legend of The Few . Up against the might of the Luftwaffe they hoped that, by saving Great Britain from Nazi invasion, they were keeping the dream of a free Poland alive. In the lethal melee above England in that summer of 1940, they fought with a tenacity and skill that earned them the admiration of the whole British nation. The dogfights against superior planes cost some of the men their lives. The constant strain of gladiatorial combat took away the sanity of others. But, as Zumbach discovers as the war stutters to a close, becoming the best in the RAF is a hollow victory for the Poles. This powerful and gripping WWII RAF story is directed by David Blair (The Messenger, Away, Accused) and includes an impressive ensemble cast including Iwan Rheon (Game of Thrones, Marvel s Inhumans), Milo Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge), Stefanie Martini (Crooked House, Prime Suspect 1973), Krystof Hadek (Under the Skin, Dark Blue World) and Marcin Dorocinski (Pitbull Anthropoid).

• Lancaster Skies | DVD | (20/05/2019) from £6.19   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• Hurricane | DVD | (22/10/2018) from £4.94   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• The Counterfeiters | DVD | (26/12/2008) from £6.39   |  Saving you £-0.40 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  "The Counterfeiters" is the true story of the largest counterfeiting operation in history, set up by the Nazis in 1936.

• Days Of Glory | DVD | (28/07/2008) from £4.90   |  Saving you £1.09 (22.24%)   |  RRP £5.99

  "Days Of Glory" chronicles the story of the forgotten Algerians who fought alongside the French in WW2.

• The Eagle Has Landed | DVD | (19/07/2007) from £4.99   |  Saving you £1.00 (20.04%)   |  RRP £5.99

  This 1976 adventure story set in World War II concerns a Nazi plot to kidnap Churchill from his retreat--or murder him if need be. The large, great cast and a director, John Sturges, who's been down this road of ensemble action before (The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape) make this project exciting if not as memorable as Sturges' more famous works. The weak ending doesn't help. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com

• Hamburger Hill | DVD | (23/07/2001) from £4.90   |  Saving you £8.09 (165.10%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Because Hamburger Hill was released less than a year after Oliver Stone's Platoon and within months of Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, this exceptionally well-made film about one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War was largely overshadowed and overlooked. It's a pity, because in some respects this is the best of the Vietnam films of the late 1980s, at least in terms of the everyday authenticity it depicts. Stripped clean of dramatically extraneous narrative, the movie opts instead for a straightforward approach to its day-by-day account of one of the war's costliest victories--a deadly siege on Hill 937 in the Ashau Valley, where soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division engaged the enemy over the course of 11 brutal assaults between May 10 and May 20, 1969. The film specifically follows the 3rd Squad, 1st Platoon, a mixture of "new guys" and battle-weary "short-timers" who fought against terrifying odds and suffered a 70 per cent casualty rate. From first scene to last, Hamburger Hill traces the rise and fall of their battle experience, from the horror of fire-fights to the camaraderie of men who've faced death and survived. Racial tensions flare and subside, trusts are established and courage emerges from unexpected places. Through it all, writer Jim Carabatsos and director John Irvin maintain a purity of focus that pays tribute to the soldier's life without promoting false patriotism or gung-ho theatrics. In addition, the film features a cast full of talented and well-known actors in the early stages of their careers, including Dylan McDermott and Don Cheadle (Devil in a Blue Dress, Boogie Nights). Colour accuracy, image clarity and the explosive soundtrack have been remarkably preserved in a flawless DVD transfer, lending even greater immediacy to this underrated film. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

• The Train | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £4.43   |  Saving you £8.56 (193.23%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Inspired by a true incident during World War II in 'The Train' Burt Lancaster plays a French Resistance fighter doggedly attempting to stop a train used by the Nazis (led by Paul Scofield as Colonel Von Waldheim) to steal precious French art treasures in the summer of 1944. Featuring spectacular action sequences expertly directed by John Frankenheimer 'The Train' is a truly thrilling war film. The Oscar-nominated screenplay by Franklin Coen and Frank Davis superbly recreates the te

• Maria Full Of Grace | DVD | (11/08/2008) from £4.98   |  Saving you £8.01 (160.84%)   |  RRP £12.99

  These pellets contain heroin. Each weighs 10 grams. Each is 4.2 cm long and 1.4 cm wide. And they're on their way to New York in the stomach of a 17-year-old girl.

• Tawny Pipit | DVD | (26/07/2021) from £2.49   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  This beautiful and atmospheric British film was made in rural England during WW2 as a show of defiance against those who threatened the English way of life! Jimmy Bancroft (Niall MacGinnis) is a fighter pilot convalescing in an English village, from injuries sustained during the Battle of Britain. Along with his nurse Hazel Broome (Rosamund John) they spend summer days lazing in the Cotswold meadows until they discover a pair of nesting Pipits. Hazel's ornithologist uncle confirms that the birds are indeed Tawny Pipets, but the word soon spreads around the egg-collecting community that there is a rare and lucrative nest in this rural English village. Afraid of having the bird's eggs stolen or destroyed, the villagers agree to defend the nest against thieves, the army and the Ministry of Agriculture! Written and directed jointly by Bernard Miles and Charles Saunders, this British comedy resonates with propaganda that aims to cheer up an audience weary of the ongoing War.