"Actor: Donald"

• Earth vs The Flying Saucers | DVD | (14/10/2002) from £13.94   |  Saving you £-0.95 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Notable neither for its director nor its stars, Earth vs the Flying Saucers has been given the widescreen DVD treatment rather because of its special-effects man, the legendary Ray Harryhausen. A Twilight Zone styled voiceover introduces Dr Marvin Russell and his wife of two hours as they're buzzed by an overhead flying saucer--the first of many. When a translation device reveals the saucer-occupants' fiendish plan to take over the world, it's time for a good old army-alien punch-up. Cue screenfuls of avuncular patriarchs, loads of techno-flannel space-speak and plenty of gratuitous American-monument destruction. A by-numbers B-movie, this is only really notable for Harryhausen's stop-motion FX work--and though this, his fifth feature, isn't a patch on his later Technicolor masterpieces, his trick of demolishing facsimiles of recognisable landmarks is cited by many premier filmmakers as being hugely influential on their work. This is very much of its time, the saucer-people arousing few of the thrills engendered by his later creations (Sinbad's Cyclops, for example). And with Cold War fears now just a memory, the Ruskies, or rather aliens, can no longer prevail upon a zeitgeist of xenophobic paranoia for their power. On the DVD: Earth vs the Flying Saucers's black-and-white picture is clean and crisp in this anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen transfer and the Dolby digital mono soundtrack is clear enough. The theatrical trailer will please fans of kitsch, as will the featurette "This Is Dynamation" produced at the same time as the first Sinbad movie. The real corker here though is the generously proportioned documentary "The Harryhausen Chronicles": narrated by Leonard Nimoy, it features a stellar cast of devotees (George Lucas among them) waxing lyrical about the influence of Harryhausen's films, and allows the man himself to ramble fascinatingly over clips of his filmic canon. If you're a fan, it's Harryhausen heaven. --Paul Eisinger

• There's No Business Like Show Business | DVD | (23/07/2012) from £6.39   |  Saving you £3.60 (56.34%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Molly and Terry Donahue, plus their three children, are The Five Donahues. Son Tim meets hat-check girl Vicky and the family act begins to fall apart.

• Lawrence of Arabia - Two Disc Set | DVD | (09/04/2001) from £4.90   |  Saving you £20.09 (410.00%)   |  RRP £24.99

  In 1962 Lawrence of Arabia scooped another seven Oscars for David Lean and crew after his previous epic, The Bridge on the River Kwai, had performed exactly the same feat a few years earlier. Supported in this Great War desert adventure by a superb cast including Alex Guinness, Jack Hawkins and Omar Sharif, Peter O'Toole gives a complex, star-making performance as the enigmatic TE Lawrence. The magnificent action and vast desert panoramas were captured in luminous 70mm by Cinematographer Freddie Young, here beginning a partnership with Lean that continued through Dr Zhivago (1965) and Ryan's Daughter (1970). Yet what made the film truly outstanding was Robert (A Man For All Seasons) Bolt's literate screenplay, marking the beginning of yet another ongoing collaboration with Lean. The final partnership established was between director and French composer Maurice Jarre, who won one of the Oscars and scored all Lean's remaining films, up to and including A Passage to India in 1984. Fully restored in 1989, this complete version of Lean's masterpiece remains one of cinema's all-time classic visions. --Gary S Dalkin On the DVD: This vast movie is spread leisurely across two discs, with Maurice Jarre's overture standing in as intermission music for the first track of disc two. But the clarity of the anamorphic widescreen picture and Dolby 5.1 soundtrack justify the decision not to cram the whole thing onto one side of a disc. The movie has never looked nor sounded better than here: the desert landscapes are incredibly detailed, with the tiny nomadic figures in the far distance clearly visible on the small screen; the remastered soundtrack, too, is a joy. Thanks are due to Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg who supervised (and financed) the restoration of the picture in 1989; on disc two Spielberg chats about why David Lean is his favourite director, and why Lawrence had such a profound influence on him both as a child and as a filmmaker (he regularly re-watches the movie before starting any new project). Other features include an excellent and exhaustive "making-of" documentary with contributions from surviving cast and crew (an avuncular Omar Sharif is particularly entertaining as he reminisces about meeting the hawk-like Lean for the first time), some contemporary featurettes designed to promote the movie and a DVD-ROM facility. The extra features are good--especially the documentary--but the breathtaking quality of both anamorphic picture and digital sound are what make this DVD package a triumph. --Mark Walker

• The Outer Limits - The Original Series - Vol. 1 | DVD | (12/07/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  There is nothing wrong with your television set. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling transmission... Surrender yourself to the mysterious world of 'The Outer Limits' as one of the creepiest and most provocative series in television history comes to DVD. This fantastic box set comprises every episode from the first season and a glut of eery extras. Featuring 32 original episodes on 8 discs! Episodes comprise: 1. Galaxy Being 2. Hundred Days of

• Revolution: The Director's Cut (DVD & Blu-ray) | Blu Ray | (18/06/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Al Pacino heads a stellar British/American cast (Nastassja Kinski, Donald Sutherland, Joan Plowright, Annie Lennox) in Revolution: The Director’s Cut. The definitive version of Hugh Hudson’s (Chariots of Fire, Greystoke) powerfully unsentimental film set during the American War of Independence is a tour-de-force of epic filmmaking. Single father Tom Dobb (played with dogged resilience by Al Pacino) struggles hopelessly against the violent course of history to protect his only son, meeting many obstacles and hardships along the way.Accompanied by John Corigliano’s poignant score, Hudson’s 1985 film is an uncompromising evocation of the chaos, squalor and upheaval of war which he has re-cut and updated with a new voice over by Al Pacino. Also included on Blu-ray is the original theatrical release of the film. Extra features: Standard Definition and High Definition presentation of The Director’s Cut (DVD & Blu-ray) Optional High Definition presentation of Original Theatrical Cut (Blu-ray only) Revisiting Revolution (2008, 23 mins): Al Pacino and Hugh Hudson in conversation (DVD only) Original theatrical trailer (DVD only) Revisiting Revolution (2012, 13 mins TBC): Hugh Hudson talks about the making of Revolution accompanied by production stills by celebrated photographers David Bailey and Don McCullum Deleted scenes: Re-cutting Revolution (21 mins TBC): a look at the differences between the different versions of the film

• Spooner's Patch - The Complete Series | DVD | (13/08/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £34.99

  Ray Galton and Johnny Speight, two of Britain's most successful comedy writers, teamed up to create this Top 20-rated, wryly comic look at daily life in a suburban police station where corruption is rife and unenlightened attitudes abound. Lasting three series and paying homage to the immortal Will Hay, Spooner's Patch stars Ronald Fraser (in series one only) and Donald Churchill as the eponymous police inspector, alongside sitcom stalwarts Norman Rossington, Peter Cleall and Patricia Hayes...

• M*A*S*H | Blu Ray | (04/11/2013) from £19.19   |  Saving you £-4.94 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  MASH--a 1970 comedy-drama set among surgeons drafted into the Korean war--was a breakthrough not just for director Robert Altman but for movie-making in general. Although set in the 50s, there are few who did not realise that the film's anti-war messages were directed at the US involvement in Vietnam. Indeed, the Pentagon banned US servicemen from seeing the film. Starring Donald Sutherland as Hawkeye Pierce and Elliot Gould as Trapper John McIntyre, two hip young surgeons drafted against their will. Their general attitude--while never corroding either their humanity or their professionalism as surgeons--is one of insolence towards military authority and the arbitrary structures and regulations continually droning from the tannoy system. The film, too, thrives on a lack of attention to conventional order, with its cross-dialogue and random, episodic style reflecting the vivacious and unbuttoned feel of the content. However, MASH has dated and much of what seemed like "liberating" high jinks, today smacks of sexist, frathouse boorishness and harassment, especially at the expense of Major "Hotlips" Hoolihan (Sally Kellerman), while the episode in which "Painless" plans a suicide out of a fear of being gay reflects the persistence of homophobia even in 60s counterculture. Despite this MASH feels ahead of its time and certainly sharper and blacker than the too-cute sitcom it spawned. On the DVD: this is an excellent restoration, overseen by Altman himself, in which any obfuscation from the original have been cleaned up, especially the sound quality. As well as a commentary from Altman, there are three separate documentaries, featuring interviews with Altman, the cast and screenwriter Ring Lardner Jr, who had been blacklisted during the anti-Communist witch-hunt which swept through Hollywood in the 1950s. We learn he was initially appalled at how little of his script Altman actually used but was mollified by the Academy Award he received. Altman is candid about the making of the movie ("It wasn't released by Fox, it escaped from Fox"). There's an abundance of similarly rich, anecdotal material here. --David Stubbs

• British Transport Films Collection - Vol. 2 - See Britain By Train | DVD | (28/11/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Following the nationalisation of transport in 1948 the British Transport Commission set up its own in-house film production and distribution unit headed by Egar Anstey OBE one of the pioneers of British documentary films. The unit produced hundreds of travelogues promoting travel on Britain's railways and other forms of transport. Consistently winning top awards at film festivals including an Oscar in 1966 the films provide a wonderfully crafted visual record of 20th century life

• The Calling | DVD | (16/02/2015) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  A small town detective finds herself tracking a truly terrifying serial killer across the country.

• Salem's Lot - The Mini Series | DVD | (11/07/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £16.99

  In a small town evil spreads quickly. A journalist returns to his hometown to research the mysterious memories that have haunted him since childhood. But soon the closely held secrets of small-town life turn into unimaginable terror when a fearsome stranger arrives - looking to sink his teeth into a new home. This is the latest version of Stephen King's vampiric novel. The Previous version was directed by Tobe Hooper and featured performances from the likes of James Mason

• The Unknown Known | DVD | (11/08/2014) from £7.55   |  Saving you £7.44 (98.54%)   |  RRP £14.99

  In The Unknown Known Academy Award-winning director Errol Morris offers a mesmerizing portrait of Donald Rumsfeld the larger-than-life figure who served as George W. Bush's secretary of defence and as the principal architect of the Iraq War. Rather than conducting a conventional interview Morris has Rumsfeld perform and explain his 'snowflakes' - the enormous archive of memos he wrote across almost fifty years in Congress the White House in business and twice at the Pentagon. The memos provide a window into history - not as it actually happened but as Rumsfeld wants us to see it. By focusing on the 'snowflakes ' with their conundrums and their contradictions Morris takes us where few have ever been - beyond the web of words into the unfamiliar terrain of Rumsfeld's mind. The Unknown Known presents history from the inside out. It shows how the ideas the fears and the certainties of one man written out on paper transformed America changed the course of history - and led to war. Special Features: DocHouse Q&A with Errol Morris

• Halloween | DVD | (30/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £49.99

  A group of teens win a contest to spend a night in Michael Myers' childhood home to be broadcast live on the internet. But things go frightfully wrong and the game turns into a struggle to make it out of the house alive.

• National Lampoon's Animal Hous | Blu Ray | (25/07/2011) from £21.95   |  Saving you £-1.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  One of the most popular movie comedies of all time is also the film that made food fights an art form and John Belushi a star. This raunchy screwball comedy directed with madcap zest by John Landis (The Blues Brothers An American Werewolf In London) offers a relentless spoof of 1960s college life by following the hilarious adventures of the Delta fraternity. There's nothing this motley collection of students won't do to get the best of Dean Wormer who secretly conspires to revoke Delta's charter. In addition to Belushi as the guitar bashing beer can smashing garbage eating Bluto Blutarsky the outstanding cast includes head skirt-chaser Tim Matheson innocent freshman Tom Hulce and Stephen Flounder Furst along with Otis Day and the Knights with their showstopping performance of 'Shout'. Toga! Toga! Toga!

• Warship: Series 2 | DVD | (09/11/2015) from £39.99   |  Saving you £-10.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  This unprecedented collaboration between the BBC and the Royal Navy gripped the nation with a fascinating insight into the lives of seamen on tour across the globe. From hot shot new Commander Glenn (Bryan Marshall) right down to the lower decks, the series follows the personal and professional lives of all the crewmembers as they sail across the world tackling dangerous sea-faring missions. Real Royal Marine Commandos mix with a cast that includes James Cosmo (Game of Thrones, Braveheart) and Andrew Burt (Emmerdale) as the series, shot on location aboard the HMS Phoebe, blurs the lines between drama and documentary. Scottish Naval Officer and screenwriter Ian Mackintosh MBE teamed up with producer Anthony Coburn who wanted to create a series ‘that would do for the Navy what Z-Cars had done for the police.’ In this series the HMS Hero’s new captain is tested when he must navigate an Arctic ice field, Commander Glenn must choose between doing his duty or repaying a debt, Commander Nialls returns to the Hero and a court martial seems imminent when a cruiser suffers friendly fire from a naval jet.

• The Leisure Seeker (DVD) | DVD | (20/08/2018) from £10.98   |  Saving you £-2.01 (N/A%)   |  RRP £6.98

  The Leisure Seeker is the nickname of the old RV used by Ella and John Spencer to go on vacation with their children in the 1970s. On a summer morning, to escape a destiny of medical care that would keep them apart forever, the couple leave their adult and intrusive children astonished as they hop on board that dated vehicle and dash down Old Route 1 towards Key West for a new adventure. John is muddle-headed and forgetful but strong, Ella is feeble and fragile but still very lucid, together they seem to barely make up a whole person. Their trip through an America they no longer recognize between hilarious moments and others of pure terror - is their chance to retrace their married life nourished by passion and devotion, but also by secret obsessions that abruptly resurface and bring surprising revelations right up to the very end.

• Priest of Love | Blu Ray | (11/11/2013) from £8.75   |  Saving you £13.24 (151.31%)   |  RRP £21.99

  In his first starring role, Sir Ian McKellen (Lord of the Rings, Gods and Monsters) gives a sensational performance as D.H. Lawrence in the impressively mounted and acted biopic (Variety) Priest of Love. After the English government burns copies of The Rainbow, Lawrence continues through his exodus around the world, joined by his combative wife Frieda (Janet Suzman). From his destructive sojourn to the American Southwest, to an earth-shaking visit to Oaxaca, and finishing with his erotic adventures in Italy, Priest of Love provides a colorful and insightful portrait of Lawrence's life and art. Featuring an excellent supporting cast of Ava Gardner, Penelope Keith and John Gielgud. Special Features: An extensive feature on Christopher Miles' early career Christopher Miles: Priest of Love and D.H. Lawrence featurette The Way We Got it Together: A Documentary on the Making of the Film Interviews with Ian McKellen and Christopher Miles Deleted Scenes with Director's Commentary Trailers

• Columbo - Season 4 | DVD | (18/09/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  ""Oh just one more thing..."" Peter Falk dusts down his trenchcoat for another season of Columbo. Again there's a veritable smorgasbord of stars and big-names behind each episode... Featuring all the cigar-chewin' episodes from Columbo Season 4 including the Emmy-award winning episodes By Dawn's Early Light and Playback! Episodes Comprise: 1. An Exercise In Fatality 2. Negative Reaction 3. By Dawn's Early Light 4. Troubled Waters 5. Playback 6. A Deadly State Of Mind

• Bleak Moments | Blu Ray | (29/11/2021) from £14.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Sylvia (Anne Raitt) leads a quiet life caring for her sister Hilda (Sarah Stephenson) who has complex care needs. Their lonely suburban existence is accentuated by a social awkwardness that detaches them from the community and fuels a life of seclusion and despair. Released in 1971 to critical acclaim, Mike Leigh's debut feature film is a haunting study of social isolation. Uncompromising and deeply affecting, the film introduced Leigh's unique and highly influential natural style that he has continued to develop over a 50 year career. A true landmark in the history of British film Bleak Moments has been newly remastered by the BFI and is presented on Blu-ray for the very first time. Special Features Newly remastered by the BFI in 2K Extras TBC

• Roman Polanski Boxset | DVD | (25/08/2003) from £49.99   |  Saving you £-10.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  Cul-De-Sac: A mismatched couple (he effeminate and petulant she sensual and enigmatic) share a bizarre sexual relationship living in a remote castle. Their very isolation from the world prevents their eccentric partnership from foundering. Only an outsider can disrupt their make-believe lifestyle. That disruption arrives in the belligerent form of Richard and Albert two oddball gangsters straight out of a 1940's film noir wounded desperate and on the run. They demand s

• Puffball | DVD | (01/02/2009) from £11.45   |  Saving you £8.54 (74.59%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Adapted from the 1980 Fay Weldon novel about a young architect who happens upon some witchery in the Irish countryside.