"Actor: Harry Ernest"

• From Here To Eternity | DVD | (14/01/2002) from £4.94   |  Saving you £15.05 (304.66%)   |  RRP £19.99

  From Here to Eternity offers a much more heartfelt interpretation of the event that propelled the United States into World War II than any film made in recent years. Here there are no angst-ridden scenes where "true love" returns from the dead, no costly CGI and definitely no Hallmark happy ending. This is a film about illicit sex, military machismo and tragic loss of love, friendship and ultimately life. The filmmakers did, however, have to make some compromises when adapting James Jones's novel: Alma becomes a "hostess" rather than a prostitute and the very downbeat ending, where Captain Holmes is essentially rewarded for his brutality by the military, was replaced with the morally acceptable punishment of his actions by a more self-aware army. Although Private Robert E Lee Pruitt's story provides the meat of the film, there are other subplots woven into the narrative, including a couple of doomed love affairs, which explore themes of adultery and social acceptance. Sergeant Warden (Burt Lancaster) begins a torrid affair with the commander's wife Karen (Deborah Kerr) leading to one of the most famous moments in movie history--the "clinch in the surf". From then on everything is challenged. Love, honour and eventually whether you should conform or stand up for what you believe in. At the end the couples are left wondering about the future of their relationship, but fate decides for them as the Japanese launch their attack on Pearl Harbor, leaving us with one of the most dramatic and moving endings of any war film. On the DVD: The black and white film is not anamorphically enhanced but presented full frame in its original aspect ratio of 1.37:1, although the transfer is well done and the picture is pretty sharp. Sound is 2.0 mono rather than the standard 5.1 reworking of the audio track, and it works. The dialogue is clear without any noticeable hiss. There's a 22-minute "making of" documentary, which doesn't really do justice to the film and contains very little information of interest. Along with this is Fred Zinnemann's As I See It, an extract from the director's home video footage from the shoot. You also get the theatrical trailer, but the best feature is the audio commentary, by Fred Zinnemann's son Tim and screenwriter Alvin Sargent, which has some fantastic detail about the struggle between director and studio-head Harry Cohn over casting, along with the run-ins with the censor and US military over the "inflammatory nature" of the film.--Kristen Bowditch

• Private Buckaroo | DVD | (18/12/2006) from £7.98   |  Saving you £0.01 (0.10%)   |  RRP £7.99

  Set against the background of World War II and featuring the music of The Andrews Sisters 'Private Buckaroo' follows the fortunes of a reluctant army recruit who struggles to adjust to military life until he falls for the charms of a retired officer's daughter.

• Barabbas | DVD | (25/03/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Starring Anthony Quinn in the title role Barabbas was released in 1961 in the midst of a wave of widescreen epics based on Biblical characters. "It begins where the other big ones leave off", declaims the trailer. The screenplay, by playwright Christopher Fry (who also contributed to Ben-Hur), is an unusually intelligent one: listen out for Barabbas' final encounter with the Apostle Thomas, for example. Further assets are the imaginative, sparingly orchestrated score by Mario Nascimbene and a handsome production design by art director Mario Chiari that is so rewarding to the eye in Aldo Tonti's often dazzling cinematography. Like the other Biblical epics of the day, in its original theatrical incarnation Barabbas had an intermission and orchestral intermezzo which is sadly missing from this version. (It occurred at the point where Barabbas emerges from a 20 years exile in the sulphur mines in Sicily, allowing the audience to dwell on his recuperation before we next encounter him. He now appears muscled and bronzed ploughing the verdant fields outside Rome in all too quick a fashion!). Many scenes, such as Christ's crucifixion, are shot and staged like tableaux in a style reminiscent of the great masters of art. And in Fleischer's hands this film surpasses anything Ridley Scott achieved years later in Gladiator: he fills the huge arena--a vast Roman amphitheatre--with a gladiatorial school of hand-to-hand combat, a parade of elephants and a den of lions, and then caps his production with a riveting and thrillingly mounted duel between Jack Palance, careering round the circumference of the arena in his chariot, and Barabbas dodging him on foot. The supporting cast, who sport a variety of accents call for some tolerance, however. On the DVD: Barabbas on disc comes devoid of any extra features other than trailers for it and another contemporaneous blockbuster, The Guns of Navarone. --Adrian Edwards

• Barabbas | Blu Ray | (08/07/2022) from £36.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  An epic account of the thief Barabbas, who was spared crucifixion when the Jews chose Christ in his place. Struggling with his spirituality, Barabbas goes through many ordeals leading him to the gladiator arena, where he tries to win his freedom and confront his inner demons.A 1961 religious epic film, directed by Richard Fleischer (Fantastic Voyage) and starring Anthony Quinn as Barabbas, Silvana Mangano, Jack Palance & Ernest Borgnine.Product Features1080P High definition presentationTheatrical TrailerLimited Edition slipcase on the first 1500 copies with unique artwork.More features TBC

• Sir John Mills' Moving Memories | DVD | (09/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  A film biography with a difference, Sir John Mills' Moving Memories charts the life of one of Britain's most distinguished actors. Compiled from interviews with the man himself and with his family and friends, it traces his career from humble beginnings to all-time great of British cinema. The many film clips reveal an electric screen presence and a willingness to undertake a range of difficult, challenging roles. The package creates major interest with its excerpts from hundreds of hours of home movies shot by Mills during the 1950s and 1960s. These not only capture his young family but many of the period's biggest stars at their most candid: there cannot be many films showing Sir Laurence Olivier belly-flopping into a swimming pool. This is a fascinating document of a bygone age and a fine tribute to a genuine legend. On the DVD: Sir John Mills' Moving Memories is a short main feature and there has been little attempt to make use of the additional disc space. Extras are limited to text-only biographies and filmographies, plus a selection of movie stills. The quality of the picture and sound betrays the film's television origins, although the home movie footage is blessed with a rich, vibrant colour. --Phil Udell

• 3 Classic Tarzan Films Of The Silver Screen | DVD | (05/09/2005) from £10.61   |  Saving you £-5.62 (N/A%)   |  RRP £4.99

  A triple bill of Tarzan movies! Tarzan And The Trappers: Made from three TV episodes from a series that never came to be Tarzan must stop mean white hunters searching for treasure in the jungle. The New Adventures Of Tarzan:More adventures with the King of the jungle Bruce Bennett takes up the lead as Tarzan. Tarzan The Fearless:Tarzan discovers the lost city of Zar when he goes up against a group of Arabs who try desperately to kill him while he tries to hel