"Actor: Dean"

• The Sorcerers | DVD | (01/09/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The Sorcerers, the second film directed by the lost "wunderkind" of British cinema Michael Reeves, may not have the scope and visceral impact of his masterpiece, Witchfinder General (1968), but there's enough fierce originality here to show what a tragic loss it was when he died from a drugs overdose aged only 24. The film also shows the effective use he made of minimal resources, working here on a derisory budget of less than £50,000--of which £11,000 went to the film's sole "named" star, Boris Karloff. Karloff plays an elderly scientist living with his devoted wife in shabby poverty in London, dreaming of the brilliant breakthrough in hypnotic technique that will restore him to fame and fortune. Seeking a guinea-pig, he hits on Mike, a disaffected young man-about-town (Ian Ogilvy, who starred in all three of Reeves' films). But the technique has an unlooked-for side effect--not only can he and his wife make Mike do their bidding, they can vicariously experience everything that he feels. At which point, it turns out that the wife has urges and desires that her husband never suspected. Karloff, then almost at the end of his long career, brings a melancholy dignity to his role; but the revelation is the veteran actress Catherine Lacey as the seemingly sweet old lady, turning terrifyingly avid and venomous as she realises her power. The portrayal of Swinging London, with its mini-skirted dollybirds thronging nightclubs where the strongest stimulant seems to be Coke rather than coke, has an almost touching innocence, but Reeves invests it with a dream-like quality, extending it into scenes of violent death in labyrinthine dark alleys. By this stage, some ten years after it started, the British horror cycle was winding down in lazy self-parody. Reeves had the exceptional talent and vision to revive it, had he only lived. On the DVD: The Sorcerers DVD has original trailers for both this film and Witchfinder General (both woefully clumsy); filmographies for Reeves, Karloff and Ogilvy; an "image gallery" (a grab-bag of posters, stills and lobby cards); detailed written production notes by horror-movie expert Kim Newman; and an excellent 25-minute documentary on Reeves, "Blood Beast", dating from 1999. The transfer is letterboxed full-width, with acceptable sound. --Philip Kemp

• Stargate S.G -1: Season 2 (Vol. 2) | DVD | (20/03/2000) from £4.64   |  Saving you £15.35 (76.80%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The 1994 movie Stargate was originally intended as the start of a franchise, but creators Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin were distracted celebrating their Independence Day. Episodic TV treatment was the natural next step. Since neither Kurt Russell nor James Spader would be able to commit, it gave the producers licence to tinker with the cast and the universe they'd explore. Replacing the roles of Colonel Jack O'Neill and Dr. Daniel Jackson respectively are Richard Dean Anderson and Michael Shanks. They're joined by Captain Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and guilt-stricken former alien baddie Teal'c (Christopher Judge) to form the teacher's pet primary unit SG-1 With a seemingly endless network of Stargates found to exist on planets all across the known universe, their mission is to make first contact with as many friendly races as possible. Chasing their heels at almost every turn are the "overlord" pharaohnic Goa'uld--the ancient Egyptian Gods who are none too chummy after the events of the original film. The welcome notion of a continued plot thread sees offshoots that follow the reincarnation of Daniel's wife, Sam's father literally joining a renegade faction of the Goa'uld, and Jack in an unending quest to out-sarcasm everyone. There's something of The Time Tunnel to the show's premise, but amid a dearth of derivative look-a-likes, Stargate has held its own with stories that put the science fiction back into TV sci-fi. Concluding the cliff-hanger from the end of Season One, "The Serpent's Lair" is a rollercoaster of wit, plot twists, and cutting-edge special effects as the SG-1 team resign themselves to a suicide mission. Then it's a case of ignorance of the law being no excuse in "Prisoners", as the team winds up in a penal colony striking a deal with someone who will have far-reaching influence on their future. Sam is stalked by an assassin after a rescue mission all "In the Line of Duty". She saves someone in the most unique of ways--by taking over as host of their Goa'uld symbiont. This introduction of Jolinar is key to much of the continuing storyline. Dwight Schultz guest stars as "The Gamekeeper" in a garden that forces the team to puzzle their way out of re-living secrets of the past. But all is not what it seems. --Paul Tonks

• Easy Rider/Wild At Heart/Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas | DVD | (02/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Easy Rider: Originally released in 1969 Easy Rider is widely regarded as the original ""road movie"" and based on the cult following it developed it was soon copied by other Hollywood studios. Written by Dennis Hopper Peter Fonda and Terry Southern (Dr Strangelove) Fonda produced the low-budget production whilst Hopper took on directing duties receiving an award at Cannes for his first work. Since its release Easy Rider has been regarded as a symbol of free-spirited reaction against society and even for those too young to remember its original release it maintains its status as a classic film which characterises the attitude of a decade. Now after 30 years Easy Rider has been remastered and is presented here in High Definition with both clearer picture and sound quality. (Dir. Dennis Hopper 1969) Wild At Heart: ""This whole world's wild at heart and weird on top."" Barry Gifford's cult novel gets the David Lynch treatment eliciting outstanding performances from an incredible cast of character-actors. An erotic violent disturbing blackly-humorous road movie that confirmed David Lynch as one of the most startling and original film-maker of his generation. This twisted homage to The Wizard Of Oz takes Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern on one of the most bizarre journeys of all time as they escape from the clutches of her evil mother and a bunch of hired assassins... Diane Ladd (mother of co-star Laura Dern) was Oscar Nominated for her maniacal supporting turn as Marietta Fortune but sadly she missed out to Whoopi Goldberg's performance in Ghost. However Lynch did pick up the Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival for his efforts. (Dir. David Lynch 1990) Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas: ""We were somewhere around Barstow when the drugs began to take hold."" It is 1971: journalist Raoul Duke barrels towards Las Vegas to cover a motorcycle race accompanied by a trunkful of contraband and his slightly unhinged Samoan attorney Dr. Gonzo. But what is ostensibly a cut-and-dry journalistic endeavor quickly descends into a feverish psychedelic odyssey and an excoriating dissection of the American way of life. Director Terry Gilliam and an all star cast (headed by Johnny Depp and Benicio Del Torro) show no mercy bringing Dr. Hunter S. Thompson's legendary Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas to the screen creating a film both hilarious and savage. Gilliam took over the reigns as director after Alex Cox (Repo Man) left the production due to creative differences. Gilliam quickly re-wrote the screenplay in its entirety to fit his unique creative vision and style while staying true to Thompson's writings. (Dir. Terry Gilliam 1998)

• Exit In Red | DVD | (05/04/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  A psychiatrist moves out West after he is brought up on charges of sexual misconduct for which his adoring female attorney eventually gets the charges dropped... with the hope that this will move him to like her as much as she likes him. But it is not to be for this is a doctor who seems destined to be sexually involved with much more cunning than loving women and it isn't long before one of them has him caught up in an affair only to then have her 'husband' come and make accusat

• Stargate SG-1: Season 6 (Vol.29) | DVD | (23/06/2002) from £5.96   |  Saving you £17.02 (573.06%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Sight Unseen: SG-1 returns through the Gate with a strange energy-emitting device and soon see mysterious discorporeal buglike creatures... Smoke And Mirrors: When SG-1's old 'friend' Senator Kinsey is assassinated O'Neill becomes the lead suspect with indisputable evidence against him; a surveillance camera that took his picture and the murder weapon in the lake near his cabin where he was purportedly fishing... Paradise Lost: Colonel Maybourne tells Jack of a planet once inhabited by the Furlings. On closer inspection it seems Maybourne has an alternative agenda... Metamorphosis: A Russian SG team brings back one of Nirrti's test subjects who self-destructs after testifying she is working to produce a perfect human a ho'tar. SG1 and the Russians go to the planet and find disfigured natives who claim Nirrti to be their saviour!

• A Way Of Life | DVD | (11/04/2005) from £15.19   |  Saving you £4.80 (31.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The lives of a single mother and her friends are changed forever after the death of a neighbour which bears all the hallmarks of a racist attack.

• Stargate S.G. 1 - Series 10 - Vol. 2 | DVD | (10/09/2007) from £8.25   |  Saving you £11.74 (142.30%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Stargate SG-1 Season 10 is the final adventure for the team and the last instalment in the SG1 collection. It sees the SG-1 military squad undertaking missions across the universe through the Stargates encountering various alien creatures and cultures on their journeys as they set out on another mission to defend the earth from the unknown. Episodes Comprise: 1. Uninvited 2. 200 3. Counterstrike 4. Memento Mori

• Fortress Of War: Kandahar Break | DVD | (13/09/2010) from £4.49   |  Saving you £10.50 (233.85%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Kandahar Break: Fortress of War

• The Coroner | DVD | (29/07/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Emma has the distinct feeling she's being watched. Soon after this unease hits her someone actually kidnaps her. Stuck in a basement she eventually escapes. But when she leads the police back to the madman's house they know who it is. It's the Coroner. Now with him getting expert treatment from the cops she must fight back on her own and submit him to the same pain that he inflicted on her. Don't play games with a serial killer!

• Dragon Fighter | DVD | (08/03/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Some rare fossilised eggs are found and sent to a scientist who is trying to prove the existence of the winged dinosaur. As the tests on the eggs proceed the eggs begin to hatch unleashing a horror....

• Punk In London | DVD | (31/05/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  With Punk now the stuff of postcards, its good to have Punk in London, a 1977 feature that taps the source of what the scene was all about. German director Wolfgang Büra interviews a number of players and promoters but, apart from concert sequences by The Adverts and The Clash--in gritty form on their ill-fated first European tour--the emphasis is on "almost were" bands. Büras reticent and awkward questioning wont win awards for journalism, but interviewees are prepared to open up to him. Theres political hard-talking from members of Chelsea, a chat with the unassuming bassist of The Lurkers (and parents!), priceless interview footage with Kevin Rowland, then in Birmingham band The Kiljoys; best of all, the laconic roadie of Subway Sect, a true leveller well aware that the whole "Punk thing" will fall victim to commercial pressure like counter-cultures before it. On the DVD: The 1977 film reproduces decently, its faded realism appropriate to the subject, and the sound captures the sweaty environs of Londons club scene with raw immediacy. A pity, though, that sound and vision in the interviews werent better synchronised. There are 21 access points; The Clash sequence is repeated with German subtitles (though markedly inferior picture quality), and an extended adverts sequence with German-only offstage banter. Overall, a quirky package, and a quirky documentary--but with a sincerity and authenticity that no "Best of" could ever hope to capture.--Richard Whitehouse

• Stargate S.G -1: Season 4 (Vol. 15) | DVD | (24/09/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The 1994 film Stargate was originally intended as the start of a franchise, but creators Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin were distracted when celebrating their Independence Day. Episodic TV treatment was the natural next step. In the roles of Colonel Jack O'Neill and Dr Daniel Jackson respectively are Richard Dean Anderson and Michael Shanks. They're joined by Captain Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and guilt-stricken former alien baddie Teal'c (Christopher Judge) to form the teacher's-pet primary unit SG-1. With a seemingly endless network of Stargates found to exist on planets all across the known universe, their mission is to make first contact with as many friendly races as possible. Chasing their heels at almost every turn are the "overlord" Goa'uld--the ancient Egyptian Gods who are none too chummy after the events of the original film. The welcome notion of a continued plot thread sees offshoots that follow the reincarnation of Daniel's wife, Sam's father literally joining a renegade faction of the Goa'uld and Jack in an unending quest to out-sarcasm everyone. There's something of The Time Tunnel to the show's premise, but amid a dearth of derivative lookalikes, Stargate has held its own with stories that put the science fiction back into TV sci-fi. On this DVD: "Divide and Conquer" presents a disturbing theory that none of us may be who we think we are. Newly recurring guest star Vanessa Angel returns as Freya to reveal that "za'tarc" technology can programme a person to be an assassin without their knowledge. This episode becomes a claustrophobic showcase for the actors to display distrust for one another. "Window of Opportunity" is the now mandatory Groundhog Day scenario episode that all franchise series must attempt. Typically the SG-1 writers make more of the material than in other shows, with O'Neill and Teal'c growing to enjoy having 10 hours to live repeatedly. Ultimately, though, there's a lesson to be learned about the fruitlessness of trying to recapture the past. "Watergate" demonstrates the excellent continuity kept up by the show in revealing what happened to the original missing Dial Home Device--the Russians have it! Not only that, they have their own Stargate, a disturbing amount of information on the SG-1 team, a mysterious link to a water planet and a scientist who bears an uncanny resemblance to Deanna Troi from Star Trek: The Next Generation (Marina Sirtis). "The First Ones" is a warm variant on the Lion and the Mouse fable when Daniel establishes a relationship with a primitive alien creature. The planet is the original home world of the Goa'uld parasites, meaning that the SG Team's rescue mission turns into a dangerous period of paranoid suspicion. Who has been compromised and what does Chaka really want with Daniel? --Paul Tonks

• Stargate S.G -1: Season 3 (Vol. 11) | DVD | (23/04/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  The 1994 movie Stargate was originally intended as the start of a franchise, but creators Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin were distracted celebrating their Independence Day. Episodic TV treatment was the natural next step. In the roles of Colonel Jack O'Neill and Dr Daniel Jackson respectively are Richard Dean Anderson and Michael Shanks. They're joined by Captain Samantha Carter (Amanda Tapping) and guilt-stricken former alien baddie Teal'c (Christopher Judge) to form the teacher's pet primary unit SG-1 With a seemingly endless network of Stargates found to exist on planets all across the known universe, their mission is to make first contact with as many friendly races as possible. Chasing their heels at almost every turn are the "overlord" Goa'uld--the ancient Egyptian Gods who are none too chummy after the events of the original film. The welcome notion of a continued plot thread sees offshoots that follow the reincarnation of Daniel's wife, Sam's father joining a renegade faction of the Goa'uld, and Jack in an unending quest to out-sarcasm everyone. There's something of The Time Tunnel to the show's premise, but amid a dearth of derivative look-a-likes, Stargate has held its own with stories that put the science fiction back into TV sci-fi. --Paul TonksOn this DVD: Resolving the cliffhanger from Volume 10, "The Devil You Know" reveals an embarrassing secret that could allow the team to escape the clutches of Satanic Sokar. Then, when following up clues to find the Harcesis child "Forever in a Day", Teal'c is the only one to notice the SGC has been taken over by chameleonic aliens trying to establish a "Foothold" on Earth for invasion. The following "Pretense" is one of those sci-fi series staples as a character is put on trial to prove their guilt on behalf of another. "Urgo" is this volume's highlight, and expands the general sardonic humour with a little pathos for the guest appearance by Dom DeLuise. Lots of slapstick ensues. As well as trailers for the next volume, the disc includes a seven-minute interview with Don Davis on his character of General George Hammond. He talks about his own Captaincy in the army and an acting career that began with MacGuyver! There's also five minutes with costume designer Christine McQuarrie explaining what has to be done in just seven days. --Paul Tonks

• Snake Fist Fighter | DVD | (23/07/2007) from £8.08   |  Saving you £-3.09 (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  At age 17 Chan plays Jackie a young man who is intrigued with martial arts but forbidden by his father to learn. He meets a beggar (Siu Tien Yuen) who offers to teach him. Jackie learns in secret until local mobsters put the squeeze on the family business.

• Stargate S.G -1: Season 5 (Vol. 20) | DVD | (22/04/2002) from £11.45   |  Saving you £11.53 (136.29%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The opening episodes of the fifth season of Stargate SG-1 had a lot of story left over from the nail-biting Season 4 cliffhanger, so this year had to open with a two-part conclusion. "Enemies" is aptly named because the team are faced with their biggest nemeses of all, Apophis and the Replicators, while stuck in another galaxy 120 years away from Earth. The biggest interpersonal problem facing them, however, is a switch in allegiance by Teal'c. Continuing into "Threshold", it takes the wisdom of his old master Bra'tac to perceive that all is not as it seems. But after so many attempts, can the enemies ever truly be vanquished? At long last, Sam gets a sympathetic and revealing spotlight. We get to see some of her home life and who she is away from the science lab. In her garage she has a 1940 Indian motorcycle, a 1961 vintage Volvo and a Harley. These aren't the only things she tinkers with in "Ascension", however. In a case of torn loyalties, she's confronted by an imaginary friend/lover (Young Indiana Jones himself, Sean Patrick Flanery). And then Jack seems to experience something very similar when the team gains a "Fifth Man". Both these episodes' storylines are threatened by the poisonous introduction of Colonel Simmons (John de Lancie, Star Trek's Q). --Paul Tonks

• Future Sport | DVD | (25/10/1999) from £20.00   |  Saving you £-14.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Shades of Rollerball! Director Ernest Dickerson and executive producer Wesley Snipes ponder the sport of the future and come up with... "Futuresport", a combination of handball, ice hockey, and skateboard hot-dogging begun as an inner-city alternative to gang warfare and transformed into a glitzy media sensation. Dean Cain stars as the reigning Futuresport hero, a cocky glory hound who counts his cash and "popularity index" ratings with a smug grin until his narcissism costs him the championship game. As a ruthless terrorist group pushes the world to the brink of war, the suddenly altruistic Cain hatches a plan to bring Futuresport back to its roots. With the help of reporter (and former flame) Vanessa Williams and the game's creator (a rastah-inflected Snipes, who gives himself the film's best role), Cain proposes a winner-take-all game to settle the territorial dispute. Beefy former TV "Superman" Cain makes a better reformed hero than a snotty superstar and looks great in the game scenes, but Snipes steals the film with his funky turn as the inner-city guru with more on his mind than the game. Dickerson gives this TV film a handsome look and even injects a little grit into the otherwise bland screenplay, but apart from the zippy game scenes (which Dickerson films with an electrified energy), it's a familiar and rather flat bit of science fiction hokum. --Sean Axmaker, Amazon.com

• Decadent Evil Dead | DVD | (20/10/2008) from £6.73   |  Saving you £-0.74 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  B-movie maestro Charles Band directs another entry in his cannon of campy low-budget horror films with the made-for-video feature Decadent Evil. The bloodletting action centers around a sleazy strip club called the Meat Market where sexy female vampire Morella (Debra Mayer) has transformed her former lover Marvin into a half-man/half-reptile creature whom she keeps suspended in a birdcage. Together with her vampire-stripper cohorts Sugar (Jill Michelle) and Spyce (Raelyn Hennessee) Morella lures unsuspecting men to their deaths in a vile plan for world domination that is soon threatened by the arrival of Marvin's midget son Ivan (Phil Fondacaro) who seeks vengeance for his father's condition. Loaded with gratuitous nudity and violence Decadent Evil is a worthy addition to the Band oeuvre.

• Dragon Fighter | DVD | (04/03/2002) from £7.96   |  Saving you £-0.98 (N/A%)   |  RRP £3.99

• Cocaine Fiends | DVD | (13/10/2003) from £6.73   |  Saving you £-1.74 (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  Jane Bradford (Lois January) moves from a small town to a large city and is turned into a cocaine addict by drug running gangsters. When her brother Eddie (Dean Benton) arrives in the city he too becomes addicted and forces his girlfriend into prostitution in order to support their habit. Similar in style to Reefer Madness this has become something of a cult classic with the underlying message being ""There always will be Jane Bradfords until you Mr Citizen co-operate with the forc

• Stargate SG-1: Season 6 (Vol. 28) | DVD | (26/05/2003) from £5.71   |  Saving you £-0.72 (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  Allegiance: SGC's Alpha Site is crowded with Tok'ra and Jaffa refugees and tensions mount between them when the base falls under sabotage and both Tok'ra and Jaffa civilians are mysteriously killed. Jacob Carter and Bra'tac try to keep their respective sides restrained. Cure: On the newly contacted planet Pangera SG-1 is offered a deal for a miracle medicine but they eventually discover that the source is a captured Gou'ald Queen. Worse still the Pangerans can't supply enough of the medicine and what they have is only a temporary effect that requires continued dosage to sustain... Prometheus: A camera crew is mistakenly allowed to tour SGC's Nevada facility and end up exposing Project Prometheus in order to break a big story... Unnatural Selection: The SG-1 team is visited by Thor. He informs them that one of the Asgard planets has been overrun by Replicators and the Asgard need their help to defeat the invaders.