"Actor: Basil"

• Marked For Death | DVD | (25/08/2003) from £8.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The glowering brutality that is aikido head-banger Steven Seagal's substitute for a star persona at least gives us a rancid taste of authenticity in Marked for Death, a cookie-cutter action picture. This glum lug seems really to enjoy hurting people; he snaps limbs and shatters noses with visible relish. Pitted against a gang of Jamaican gangsters who invade his (white ethnic) Chicago neighbourhood and threaten his family, retired DEA agent John Hatcher sets out to solve the case with robotic efficiency, kicking butt in just about every scene. Not quite as pudgy in this 1990 outing as he became a few films later, Seagal looks like the genuine, lethal article in the fight sequences but like a hopeless amateur when he tries to act his way out of the waterlogged-paper-bag of a script. So what else is new? The one bright spot here is Basil Wallace, a mostly unsung actor who throws himself into the showy role of the Rasta gang-boss Screwface, a garishly scarred psycho with piercing ice-blue eyes. --David Chute, Amazon.com

• Five Easy Pieces | Blu Ray | (16/11/2020) from £21.39   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Following JACK NICHOLSON's breakout supporting turn in Easy Rider, director BOB RAFELSON (The King of Marvin Gardens) devised a powerful leading role for the new star in the searing character study Five Easy Pieces. Nicholson plays the now iconic cad Bobby Dupea, a shiftless thirtysomething oil rigger and former piano prodigy immune to any sense of responsibility, who returns to his upper-middle-class childhood home, blue-collar girlfriend (Nashville's KAREN BLACK, in an Oscar-nominated role) in tow, to see his estranged ailing father. Moving in its simplicity and gritty in its textures, Five Easy Pieces is a lasting example of early 1970s American alienation. SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES Restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director of photography László Kovács, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack Audio commentary featuring director Bob Rafelson and interior designer Toby Rafelson Soul Searching in Five Easy Pieces, a 2009 video piece with Rafelson BBStory, a 2009 documentary about the legendary film company BBS Productions, with Rafelson; actors Jack Nicholson, Karen Black, and Ellen Burstyn; directors Peter Bogdanovich and Henry Jaglom; and others Documentary from 2009 about BBS featuring critic David Thomson and historian Douglas Brinkley Audio excerpts from a 1976 AFI interview with Rafelson Theatrical trailer and teasers PLUS: An essay by critic Kent Jones

• Department S: The Complete Series | Blu Ray | (02/10/2017) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  All 28 episodes of the crimefighting drama series about an elite branch of Interpol agents who take on the cases no-one else can solve. A trio of ace investigators led by suavely assured novelist Jason King (Peter Wyngarde), hard-nosed professional Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani) and coolly efficient computer expert Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nichols) try to outdo each other as they seek to solve the cases baffling police forces throughout Europe. Episodes comprise: 'Six Days', 'The Trojan Tanker', 'A Cellar Full of Silence', 'The Pied Piper of Hambletown', 'One of Our Aircraft Is Empty', 'The Man in the Elegant Room', 'Handicap Dead', 'Black Out', 'Who Plays the Dummy', 'The Treasure of the Costa Del Sol', 'The Man Who Got a New Face', 'Les Fleurs Du Mal', 'The Shift That Never Was', 'The Man from 'X', 'Dead Men Die Twice', 'The Perfect Operation', 'The Duplicated Man', 'The Mysterious Man in the Flying Machine', 'Death On Reflection', 'The Last Train to Redbridge', 'A Small War of Nerves', 'The Bones of Byrom Blain', 'Spencer Bodily Is Sixty Years Old', 'The Ghost of Mary Burnham', 'A Fish Out of Water', 'The Soup of the Day', 'A Ticket to Nowhere' and 'The Double Death of Charlie Crippen'.

• Broken Arrow | DVD | (21/02/2005) from £8.10   |  Saving you £1.89 (23.33%)   |  RRP £9.99

  By 1870 there has been ten years of a cruel war between settlers and Cochise's Apache Indians. Tom Jeffords an ex-soldier saves the life of a young Apache boy and starts to reassess his opinions of the Indians. As an ambassador of goodwill he enters Cochise's stronghold but is peace achievable?

• The Hound of the Baskervilles | Blu Ray | (30/05/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Sir Basil Rathbone stars as the inimitable Detective Sherlock Holmes in The thrilling mystery of THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. Sir Charles Baskerville has been found dead in mysterious circumstances, with the locals ascribing his demise to the ancient family curse a paranormal hellhound, said to roam the moors searching for its prey. With the trusty aid of Doctor Watson (Nigel Bruce), Holmes sets out to uncover the truth and solve the mystery of the terrifying hound before another Baskerville falls victim to the family curse. Extras: Interview with Sir Christopher Frayling, writer and presenter of Nightmare, The Birth of Horror Interview with Basil Rathbone biographer Michael Druxman

• The Favourite | Blu Ray | (13/05/2019) from £7.51   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Early 18th century. England is at war with the French. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapple eating are thriving. A frail Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) occupies the throne and her close friend Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz) governs the country while tending to Anne's ill health and mercurial temper. When a new servant Abigail (Emma Stone) arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah. Sarah takes Abigail under her wing and Abigail sees a chance at a return to her aristocratic roots.

• The Lady Vanishes | Blu Ray | (19/01/2015) from £16.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  One of cinema’s greatest auteurs Alfred Hitchcock's six-decade career generated an unmissable run of suspense-packed thrillers strongly characterised by macabre plots and twist endings. Made in 1938 this classic comedy-thriller was arguably his most popular and significant pre-war feature and one of the films that helped pave his way to Hollywood success. Featuring a whimsically suspenseful script from Launder and Gilliat The Lady Vanishes boasts one of the all-time great ensemble casts and is featured here in a brand-new High Definition transfer from the original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio. Intrigue and espionage abound when a young woman travelling aboard a transcontinental express train strikes up an acquaintance with a charming elderly English governess who then disappears without a trace. Is the young woman hallucinating or is something altogether more sinister afoot..? Special Features: Introduction by Charles Barr Original Theatrical Trailer Image Gallery PDF Material

• Rapid Fire | DVD | (30/06/2003) from £19.99   |  Saving you £-14.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Rapid Fire was the penultimate film starring Brandon Lee before his untimely death on the set of The Crow. It's a standard martial arts thriller in which Lee plays Jake Lo, a young arts student who witnesses a gangland execution and is unwittingly drawn into a pitched standoff between the mafia, a Chinese drug syndicate and Ryan, a downbeat but resolute Chicago cop (Powers Boothe) determined to nail his prey. With a plot that careens through every genre cliché, Lee's smouldering looks and showy fighting skills carry the film. The martial arts sequences (which Lee co-choreographed) are nicely staged, but given the unusual settings--the penultimate fight takes place in a Chinese laundry--could have been even more inventive. The workmanlike direction by Dwight H Little (Marked for Death, Free Willy 2) fails to inject much into the material. In particular, traumatised by seeing his Special Agent father die in the Tiananmen Square massacre, Jake Lo's attraction to both a corrupt FBI agent and Ryan as surrogate father figures could have been given more resonance given the loss of Brandon Lee's own father at an early age. With hundreds of bloodless deaths, cringe-worthy dialogue and a dated power rock soundtrack, Rapid Fire looks and feels like a TV film. And on that level, at least, it's entertaining. On the DVD: The main feature is presented in letterboxed widescreen. Sound and picture quality are very good. Subtitles are provided for ten languages (Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norweigian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish) and in English for the hard of hearing. Extra features are limited to chapter selection and a theatrical trailer. --Chris Campion

• The Winslow Boy | Blu Ray | (03/02/2020) from £12.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Directed by Anthony Asquith (The Browning Version, Pygmalion) and adapted from the seminal play by Terence Rattigan (The Deep Blue Sea Separate Tables) THE WINSLOW BOY is a classic tale of standing up to bureaucracy and one family's testing fight for justice. Based on real life events, The Winslow Boy, Starring Robert Donat (The 39 Steps, Goodbye Mr Chips) as Sir Robert Morton and Basil Radford (Whiskey Galore, The Lady Vanishes) as Desmond Curry the story follows the tribulations of an Edwardian naval cadet who is accused of the theft of a 5 shilling postal order, then expelled from his academy. On returning home his father becomes determined to clear his name and prove his innocence after what he considers an unfair internal enquiry. During his pursuit for justice the case eventually reaches The House Of Commons to cause public outcry and a political furore. A thoroughly British, searing drama about the conquest for truth and the sacrifices that come with it. Extras: NEW - George Arthur Shee and The case of the missing postal order NEW - Interview with cultural historian Matthew Sweet NEW - Interview with Geoffery Wansell, Author and critic, Stills Galler

• When The Boat Comes In - Series 1 - Part 1 | DVD | (14/07/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A Land Fit for Heroes and Idiots. Ex-Sergeant Jack Ford returns home to Gallowshields on Tyneside after the end of World War One. It is time of economic depression and Jack finds his home town gripped by decline and unemployment. Jack soon falls in with the Seaton family and is determined to make his mark on the world. Originally broadcast on BBC in 1976 this double DVD release of When The Boat Comes In contains the first five episodes from the fondly remembered drama series.

• Five Easy Pieces | DVD | (08/03/2004) from £16.36   |  Saving you £-10.37 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  This subtle, existential character study of an emotionally distant outcast (Nicholson) forced to confront his past failures remains an intimate cornerstone of American cinema of the 1970s. Written and directed with remarkable restraint by Bob Rafelson, the film is the result of a short-lived partnership between the filmmaker and Nicholson--the first was the zany formalist exercise, Head, while the equally impressive King of Marvin Gardens followed Five Easy Pieces. Quiet and full of long, controlled takes, this film draws its strength from the acutely detailed, non-judgemental observations of its complex protagonist, Robert Dupea--an extremely crass and frustrated oil worker and failed child pianist hiding from his past in Texas. Dupea spends his life drinking beer and sleeping with (and cheating on) his annoying but adoring Tammy Wynette-wannabe girlfriend, but when he learns that his father is dying in Washington State, he leaves. After the film transforms into a spirited road movie, and arrives at the eccentric upper-class Dupea family mansion, it becomes apparent that leaving is what Dupea does best--from his problems, fears and those who love him. Nicholson gives a difficult yet masterful performance in an unlikeable role, one that's full of ambiguity and requires violent shifts in acting style. Several sequences--such as his stopping traffic to play piano, or his famous verbal duels with a cranky waitress over a chicken-salad sandwich--are Nicholson landmarks. Yet, it's the quieter moments, when Dupea tries miserably to communicate and reconcile with his dying father, where the actor shows his real talent--and by extension, shows us the wounded little boy that lurks in the shell of the man Dupea has become. --Dave McCoy, Amazon.com

• Marked for Death | Blu Ray | (02/12/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The glowering brutality that is aikido head-banger Steven Seagal's substitute for a star persona at least gives us a rancid taste of authenticity in Marked for Death, a cookie-cutter action picture. This glum lug seems really to enjoy hurting people; he snaps limbs and shatters noses with visible relish. Pitted against a gang of Jamaican gangsters who invade his (white ethnic) Chicago neighbourhood and threaten his family, retired DEA agent John Hatcher sets out to solve the case with robotic efficiency, kicking butt in just about every scene. Not quite as pudgy in this 1990 outing as he became a few films later, Seagal looks like the genuine, lethal article in the fight sequences but like a hopeless amateur when he tries to act his way out of the waterlogged-paper-bag of a script. So what else is new? The one bright spot here is Basil Wallace, a mostly unsung actor who throws himself into the showy role of the Rasta gang-boss Screwface, a garishly scarred psycho with piercing ice-blue eyes. --David Chute, Amazon.com

• Kenneth More Collection | DVD | (15/10/2007) from £15.89   |  Saving you £6.63 (41.72%)   |  RRP £22.52

  Affable bright and breezy Kenneth More epitomised the traditional English virtues of fortitude and fun. At the height of his fame in the 1950s he was Britain's most popular film star and had appeared in a string of box office hits including Genevieve (1953) Doctor in the House (1954) Reach for the Sky (1956) and A Night to Remember (1958). Like many British actors he commuted between film and theatre and steadily became of or Britain's most treasured actors. This 8 disc collection celebrates some of his greatest work. Films include: Chance of a Lifetime (1950): The workers in a small plough factory take over the firm but when a large order falls through the old management come back to help out. Genevieve (1953): Two friends race their vintage cars on the annual London to Brighton rally. But once they place a 'friendly' wager on who will win the race the competitive juices start flowing! Genevieve is the name of one of the cars which like her competitor runs into one problem after another. A Night to Remember (1958): Based on the best selling book by Walter Lord this is the true story of the R.M.S. Titanic which struck an iceberg on its maiden voyage from Europe to New York in 1912. The Galloping Major (1951): An elderly pet shop owner who sets up a scheme to buy ""Montana Mist "" a race horse who promises to finish in the money. When the animals are switched at an auction his lifelong dream comes crashing down - unless the old glue horse he has purchased turns out to be more than meets the eye. North West Frontier (1959): Captain Scott (More) is sent by the British Governor in India to rescue a five year old Hindu prince and his American governess (Bacall) when a rebellion breaks out among the tribesmen. Pursued by the abductors the trio commandeer a derelict steam train to take them 300 miles through the mountains to safety... Reach for the Sky (1956): A story of one man's indomitable courage and endurance. As a young sports-loving Pilot Officer Douglas Bader loses both legs in a flying accident. Not only does he overcome his devastating disability; he goes on to become a Battle of Britain ace. Eventually Bader is shot down and imprisoned in Germany. In 1945 when three hundred aircraft fly in triumph over London led by a solitary Spitfire the honour of leading the fly-past goes to Douglas Bader. This is the story of one of the few to whom so many owed so much.

• The Mark Of Zorro | DVD | (06/03/2006) from £16.40   |  Saving you £-6.41 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  The jagged mark of his sword struck terror to every heart but one! This swashbuckling remake of the silent classic stars Tyrone Power as the dashing masked avenger who single-handedly saves Los Angeles from Spanish despots. Don Diego Vega (Power) is summoned home from his elite training corps in Spain to California where he finds his father the Alcade deposed and the people living in tyranny. Disguised as Zorro a sword-wielding mystery man dressed in black he works to restore his father to power and return tax money stolen by the villains (J. Edward Bromberg Basil Rathbone). He even finds time to romance the ruling tyrant's beautiful niece (Linda Darnell). This celebrated screen adventure is filled with action adventure excitement and romance as well as featuring 'one of cinema's best ever duels' (Empire).

• Countryman | DVD | (06/02/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  A young woman smuggling marijuana crash-lands her plane in Jamaica. A local named Countryman rescues her and leads her away from the authorities who have been pursuing the plane. Features a fantastic soundtrack with the likes of Bob Marley 'Natural Mystic' Wally Badarou 'Obeah Man Dub' and Human Cargo with 'Carry Us Beyond'.

• The Dam Busters | Blu Ray | (21/09/2009) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  A much-loved British classic Michael Anderson's 1954 drama captures the tension and bravery of an audacious raid on the centre of Nazi Germany's industrial complex and the quintessentially English combination of inventiveness and dogged determination. Split into two distinct sections the film deals first with the fraught but ultimately successful development of a new weapon by Dr. Barnes N. Wallis (Michael Redgrave). The second and pacier section deals with the mission itself during the British raid on the Ruhr Dams and its associated costs for the enemy and for the British airmen. Adapted by R.C. Sherriff from Paul Brickhill's book Enemy Coast Ahead and featuring superlative special effects photography by Gilbert Taylor (to say nothing of Eric Coates' stirring theme tune) The Dam Busters was Britain's biggest box-office success of 1955. Shot in black and white to allow the integration of original footage of the bomb trials the film boasts a 'gritty' documentary-style reality.

• The Dam Busters | DVD | (14/06/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Dr Barnes Wallis was possessed with a seemingly crazy idea - the creation of a bouncing bomb designed to destroy the Ruhr dams and paralyse the enemy's industrial nerve centre. He fought persistent scepticism and disbelief that such a feat was possible though even with the matchless skill of RAF Wing Commander Guy Gibson and his squadron could such a mission succeed?

• The Jessie Matthews Revue Vol. 5 | DVD | (18/01/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Throughout the 1930s Jessie Matthews was Britain's best-loved musical film star, her dynamism and gamine charm beguiling audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. With a string of box-office hits spotlighting her unique talent, it's easy to see how she became so popular and why she remains so to this day.Showcasing some of the era's finest cinema talent including Michael Redgrave, Alastair Sim, director Carol Reed, actor/director (and Matthews' husband) Sonnie Hale and art director Alfred Junge the two films in this set are presented as transfers from the original film elements, in their original theatrical aspect ratios.GANGWAYOn the trail of a jewel thief, a dashing detective meets a young reporter masquerading as a film star's maid and soon believes she is none other than the elusive felon!Black and White / 87 mins / 1.37:1 / Mono / EnglishCLIMBING HIGHCarol Reed directs a madcap comedy revolving around a young West End model, the wealthy young playboy who loves her and his mercenary would-be fiancee!Black and White / 76 mins / 1.37:1 / Mono / English

• Son Of Frankenstein | DVD | (30/01/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Son Of Frankenstein (1939)

• 1950s Great British Movies | DVD | (22/09/2014) from £14.05   |  Saving you £5.94 (42.28%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Boxset of four classic films from the 1950s. 'Simba' (1955) is an adventure drama about a man who travels to post-colonial Africa to visit his brother only to find he has been killed by a Kenyan rebel group. When Alan Howard (Dirk Bogarde) arrives in Africa, he soon learns his brother has been killed by the Mau Mau, a group of rebels who are fighting against the newly imposed rule of the white man. Enraged by his brother's murder, Alan decides to stay and put all of his energy into fighting the Mau Mau who he now considers his enemy. However, along the way he falls in love with a neighbouring settler called Mary (Virginia McKenna) who disagrees with his abhorrence of the native people and tries to put an end to his prejudices. 'Sapphire' (1959) is a hard-hitting crime drama exploring racism towards immigrants among the London police and public. Sapphire (Yvonne Buckingham), a fair-skinned West Indian immigrant is discovered hiding in London and murdered. To the police, led by Superintendent Hazard (Nigel Patrick) and Inspector Learoyd (Michael Craig), the case seems clear cut - Sapphire must have been killed by a member of the black community. However, when Sapphire's brother (Earl Cameron) turns up at the police station and Sapphire's true ethnic roots become known, Hazard and Learoyd must face up to the racism of two communities and, quite possibly, their own. 'The Happy Family' stars Stanley Holloway and Kathleen Harrison as a couple who refuse to move from their house as the government reveal their plans to build a Festival Hall on the South Bank. The tenants of the local corner shop, Mr and Mrs Lord (Holloway and Harrison), are the only residents who refuse to make way for the construction - even when the police issue an eviction order. As the family barricade themselves into the shop, the bailiffs must try to think of another way to get them out. Violent Playground (1958) is a tough kitchen sink drama starring Stanley Baker and David McCallum and is set amongst the tough council estates of Liverpool.