"Actor: Dave Prowse"

• Peter Cushing - The Peter Cushing Collection | DVD | (13/03/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  This terrific box set features a profusion of Peter Cushing-led horror films. The Abominable Snowman (Dir. Val Guest 1957): The final film collaboration between director Val Guest and writer Nigel Kneale. Starring Forrest Tucker and Peter Cushing The Abominable Snowman tells of an expedition to the Himalayas to track down the mythical Yeti. A wonderfully atmospheric chiller from the heyday of the Hammer Studios. Island of Terror (Dir. Terence Fisher 1966): When oh when will scientists learn to stop playing with radiation? Island of Terror takes place on a remote island off the coast of Ireland. No phones no regular transport to and from the mainland but there is a well-equipped cancer research center where the well intentioned - but foolish! - scientists are irradiating lumps of tissue. The local constable finds a body with no bones in it ('No bones?' 'No bones!') and soon a team from London led by the ever-game Peter Cushing arrives to investigate. Let's hope that darned generator doesn't give out... Island of Terror isn't going to keep you awake at night but it is a lot of silly fun. Be warned though - whatever the evil menace is it can climb trees! The Blood Beast Terror (Dir. Vernon Sewell 1968): A Victorian English entomologist whose daughter happens to be a giant moth moves with her to a quiet village where he can begin work on an insect mate for her. His family problems worsen when his winged daughter starts killing people and drinking their blood. Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (Dir. Terence Fisher 1974): Doctor Helder (Briant) is sent to an asylum for experimenting on cadavers. There he is rescued by Doctor Carl Victor (Cushing) the original Doctor Frankenstein now living under a new identity who learns that a new monster is set to walk the earth...

• Star Wars Trilogy Metal Tin Edition | DVD | (12/11/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  Each of the three films in the Star Wars trilogy has been digitally restored and re-mastered by THX for superior sound and picture quality. Episode IV - A New Hope: Luke Skywalker a young farm boy from Tatooine is thrust into the struggle of the rebel alliance when he meets Obi-Wan Kenobi who has lived for years in seclusion on the desert planet. Obi-Wan begins Luke's Jedi training as Luke joins him on a daring mission to rescue the beautiful rebel leader Princess Leia from the clutches of the evil Empire. Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back: Three years later Imperial forces continue to pursue the rebels. After the rebellion's defeat on the ice planet Hoth Luke journeys to the planet Dagobah to train with Jedi Master Yoda who has lived in hiding since the fall of the Republic. In an attempt to convert Luke to the Dark Side Darth Vader lures young Skywalker into a trap in the Cloud City of Bespin... Episode VI - Return Of The Jedi: In the epic conclusion of the saga the Empire prepares to crush the rebellion with a more powerful Death Star while the rebel fleet mounts a massive attack on the space station.

• Jabberwocky | DVD | (03/09/2012) from £9.70   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  A medieval comedy-adventure starring Michael Palin and directed by Terry Gilliam, Jabberwocky is an episodic adaptation of Lewis Carroll's surreal poem. Having previously directed Monty Python and The Holy Grail (1975) with Terry Jones, Jabberwocky marked Gilliam's solo directorial debut--is it coincidental that Jones is killed by the titular monster in the opening scene? Palin plays the naive Dennis Cooper, a man seeking his fortune just as the Jabberwocky is laying waste to the country. It's much the same world as Holy Grail, with all the trappings of the romantic Hollywood epic being liberally coated with literal and metaphorical muck. Palin's character causes unwitting mayhem wherever he goes--one stand-out scene involves the destruction of a maintenance shop for damaged knights-in-armour--though as much humour comes from exposing the foibles of the people he meets. And those people constitute a roll call of contemporary British comedy: Harry H Corbett as a sex-mad squire, Warren Mitchell's Mr Fishfinger, plus Annette Badland, Max Wall, John Le Mesurier, Rodney Bewes, John Bird, Neil Innes and John Gorman. Jabberwocky lacks the hilarity of Holy Grail, but is a consistently amusing, exceptionally atmospheric, gleefully gory yarn which points the way to Gilliam's Time Bandits (1981) and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988). On the DVD Jabberwocky is distinguished by an engaging and enthusiastic commentary from Gilliam and Palin, in which they delight in the amazing cast and ponder how such a handsome film was made. Otherwise the extras are a short sketch-to-screen comparison, three posters and three trailers (only one for Jabberwocky). Transferred anamorphically enhanced at 1.77:1, the picture is variable, with many beautifully lit indoor scenes looking fine, while other exterior, daylight shots appear washed out. There is some minor print damage. The sound is a revelation for a low-budget 1970s film originally released in mono. Given a full Dolby Digital 5.1 remix the tremendously detailed, rich and involving soundscape really brings Gilliam's world alive and puts many much more recent and expensive titles to shame. --Gary S Dalkin