"Actor: James Ma"

• Inspector Morse - Disc 31 And 32 - Death Is Now My Neighbour / The Wench Is Dead | DVD | (30/09/2002) from £7.32   |  Saving you £7.67 (104.78%)   |  RRP £14.99

  When Inspector Morse first appeared on television in 1987, nobody could have predicted that it would run into the next century, maintaining throughout a quality of scripts and storylines that raised the genre of the detective series to a new level. Much of its success can be attributed to John Thaw's total immersion in the role. Morse is a prickly character and not obviously easy to like. As a detective in Oxford with unfulfilled academic propensities, he is permanently excluded from a world of which he would dearly love to be a part. He is at odds with that world--and with his colleagues in the police force--most of the time. Passionate about opera and "proper beer", he is a cultural snob for whom vulgarity causes almost physical pain. As a result, he lives from one disillusionment to another. And he is scarred--more deeply than he would ever admit--by past relationships. But he also has a naïve streak and, deep down, sensitivity, which makes him a fascinating challenge for women. At the heart of Morse's professional life is his awkward partnership with Detective Sergeant Lewis, the resolutely ordinary, worldly sidekick who manages to keep his boss in an almost permanent state of exasperation while retaining his grudging respect. It's a testament to Kevin Whately's consistently excellent performance that from such unpromising material, Lewis becomes as indispensable to the series as Barrington Pheloung's hypnotic, classic theme music. Morse's investigations do occasionally take him abroad to more exotic locations, but throughout 14 successful years of often gruesome murders, the city of Oxford itself became a central character in these brooding two-hour dramas: creator Colin Dexter said he finally had to kill Morse off because he was giving Oxford a bad reputation as a dangerous place! --Piers Ford

• Plunkett And Macleane | DVD | (24/12/2001) from £11.63   |  Saving you £1.36 (11.69%)   |  RRP £12.99

  No-one will be neutral about Plunkett and Macleane. Either you go with its notion of cheeky, stylish fun or you want to grab first-time director Jake Scott by the ear and slap him silly. Your inclination may depend on whether you recall his dad Ridley's own directing debut, The Duellists (1977), and savour the correspondences. Dad took a Joseph Conrad tale of the Napoleonic Wars, cast it with the ultra-contemporary Keith Carradine and Harvey Keitel, and filmed it with a swooping, mobile camera. Son Jake has made a feisty period piece about a pair of thieves (Robert Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller) in 1748 London and filled it with blatant anachronisms. A decadent aristo (Alan Cumming), asked whether he "still swings both ways," replies, "I swing every way!" A ballroom full of revellers dances the minuet (or is it the gavotte?) while our ears--if not theirs--are filled with a trance ballad. And so forth. Is this sophomoric? Maybe. But it's also often fresh and inventive. Why shouldn't a filmmaker be allowed to speak directly to a contemporary consciousness, even flaunt it, as long as he also delivers startling imagery and convincing period detail? The solid cast includes Michael Gambon as a corrupt magistrate, Ken Stott as a very nasty enforcer named Mr Chance (who favours a thumb through the eye socket and into the brain as a mode of execution) and Terence Rigby as a philosophical jailer. Even Liv Tyler looks more interesting than usual. In the end pretty frivolous, Plunkett and Macleane is nonetheless a lively debut. --Richard T Jameson, Amazon.com

• Angel: Complete Season 5 | DVD | (21/02/2005) from £49.99   |  Saving you £30.00 (60.01%)   |  RRP £79.99

  Lives were upended--and some co-opted--in the fifth and final season of Angel, as the denizens of Angel Investigations found themselves taking on one of their scariest endeavors ever: corporate life. After making a literal deal with the devil (or something distinctly devil-like), Angel (David Boreanaz) moved his team from their crumbling hotel to the high-rise digs of law-firm-from-hell Wolfram & Hart, his reasoning being they could better fight the forces of evil from the inside, and with more resources to boot. Clever maneuvering or easy rationalization? A few members of Angel's team accused him of selling out (as did a number of viewers), but as with most of the show's previous four seasons, Angel somehow took a dubious premise and mined it for gold. And with one core cast member gone (Charisma Carpenter, whose Cordelia was immersed in a deep coma), it seemed as if the show, from within and without, would suddenly fall apart--that is, until Angel's longtime nemesis Spike (James Marsters) showed up, fresh from his sacrificial roasting at the series finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Let the vampire games begin! With Buffy off the air, fans flocked to Angel's last season to get their fix of Joss Whedon's "Buffyverse" in any form they could, and the addition of Spike was a shrewd one, albeit not enough to keep the show from getting canceled. And for the first half of the season, the creative forces behind the show seemed to be toying ruthlessly with the audience. Spike was around, but not entirely corporeal; Angel himself became sullen and withdrawn; and most horrifically, sweetheart scientist Fred (Amy Acker) and former watcher Wesley (Alexis Denisof) underwent traumas that would test even the most devoted viewer. However, just when you'd be about to throw in the towel, things started changing for the better--Spike became a permanent fixture (both in the flesh and on the show), Angel's secret motives were revealed, and the introduction of demon warrior Illyria, who proved to be the show's answer to Buffy's sardonic demon-made-human Anya, was a welcome breath of fresh air. Creatively, Angel also came up with some of its best episodes, including "Smile Time" (where Angel is turned into a puppet – really!) and "You're Welcome" (the show's 100th episode, which marked the bittersweet return of Carpenter's Cordelia). The ending of the series was deliberately ambiguous, and not everyone made it through alive, but in going out kicking, it was a proper sendoff for a show that always fought the good fight. --Mark Englehart

• All Or Nothing | DVD | (28/04/2003) from £9.99   |  Saving you £10.00 (100.10%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A 2002 Mike Leigh drama, All or Nothing is at times almost unbearably bleak and poignant, yet funny, truthful and richly rewarding. The film's revolves around Timothy Spall's mini-cab driver, his family and the various characters and acquaintances on the South-east London estate where he lives. It's perhaps even better than Secrets and Lies, in which Spall also starred, which was marred a little by some of the tearful excesses of Brenda Blethyn's bravura performance. It's evidence that Leigh has matured and improved with age, rather than mellowed and softened. He's developed into a highly distinctive but rounded and humane filmmaker. Spall's cabbie is too gentle and thoughtful to be described as a slob, but his lack of even the most basic ambition and stoic non-resistance to life has created an unspoken rift between him and wife Penny (Lesley Manville). Working on a supermarket checkout, she must cook dinner and fend off insults from her fat, frustrated, obnoxious 18-year-old son Rory. She receives only passive sympathy from her older daughter Rachel. Only when Rory is taken ill is Phil snapped out of his torpor as the family pull together. A host of minor characters also feature; fatuous cabbie Ron (Paul Jesson) his alcoholic wife and sluttish daughter, as well as the wonderfully good-humoured and resilient Maureen, Penny's best friend, concerned at her daughter's relationship with a violent boyfriend. Once accused of caricaturing his "lower class" characters, here Leigh (with the collaborative assistance of his actors) exhibits them in all their authentic complexity, neither idealising nor sentimentalising them. On the DVD: All or Nothing's extras include the original trailer, as well as interviews with several members of the cast. Timothy Spall is interesting on the unnerving process of collaboration favoured by Leigh, whereby characters are "built from zero" by the actors. The smart and rather posh Lesley Manville strikes quite a contrast in real life with her mousey, put-upon character. There's also a meticulous and absorbing commentary from Mike Leigh, who talks about filming in Greenwich and how he has moved away from some of the more dogmatic ideas about filmmaking of his earlier, avant-garde days. --David Stubbs

• Very Important Person | DVD | (15/08/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Sir Ernest Pease KBE FRS (James Robertson Justice) is a cantankerous and crotchety old professor. Testing one of his new radar inventions (and travelling incognito as Lt. Farrow RN) the plane he is travelling is shot down and he is incarcerated as a POW. His overbearing and abrasive manner leads his fellow inmates into believing he is a German spy but when they discover who he actually is they realise that his escape is vital to the war effort. Written by Henry Blyth (The Bul

• Hour Of The Gun | DVD | (16/07/2007) from £16.19   |  Saving you £-6.20 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  In Tombstone justice is settled with a gun. Guns don't stay in their holsters long when vigilantes Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday meet outlaws in the Wild West. James Garner (Maverick) and Oscar winner* Jason Robards (All the President's Men) saddle up as the legendary gunslingers in this riveting fact-based story that is the closest filmmakers have ever come to the truth of the OK Corral gunfight. With the dust barely settling at the OK Corral the notorious Clanton brothers unleash their revenge. One by one they gun down Wyatt Earp's brothers - but they won't have the last shot. Using his US Marshal's badge as his authority and Doc Holliday (Robards) as his deputized right-hand man Earp begins a zealous pursuit of vengeance that the west will never forget.

• Bad Influence | DVD | (04/08/2003) from £25.66   |  Saving you £-12.67 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Financial analyst Michael Boll seems to have everything: brains money a socially connected fiancee and a blindingly bright future. Then he meets Alex an impeccably dressed drifter with a fatal charm and an unsatiable appetite for wine women...and danger. Alex befriends Michael and takes him for a walk on the wild side-but Michael soon discovers that there's a terrible price to pay for life in the fast lane because hanging out with Alex...can be murder!

• Donkeys | DVD | (20/08/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  This BAFTA award winning feature is a blackly comic look about the fragility of life and what family means. Starring Martin Compston (The Disappearance of Alice Creed) and James Cosmo (Game of Thrones). Alfred is 64. he has lost touch with his family and a threat to his health sees him wanting to make amends. But his past ways are going to prove an obstacle to his estranged family. Written by Lone Scherfig (An Education) and directed by Morag McKinnon.

• Conan the Barbarian - Limited Edition Steelbook | Blu Ray | (02/12/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Zavvi Exclusive Limited Edition Steelbook. Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as the legendary warrior and hero Conan the Barbarian. When his parents are killed by a band of brutal marauders and the gang's cold-blooded cult leader (James Earl Jones) the orphaned Conan endures a childhood of merciless slavery only to become a gladiator for the amusement of his captors. Eventually set free Conan begins a dangerous full-blooded quest to avenge his parents' massacre. Now the sword-wielding warrior must vanquish his bloodthirsty enemies in this death-defying action-adventure about courage strength character and the triumph of good over evil.

• Bad Girls - Series 6 | DVD | (20/06/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £34.99

  Hard-hitting original and controversial 'Bad Girls' depicts the trials and triumphs of prison inmates and officers in a notorious women's prison. It's a tense and sexually charged atmosphere and it's a hidden world where anything can happen. With such a heady mix of characters will Di Barker (Tracey Wilkinson) be able to keep her grip on the wing and will this be at the expense of some happiness in her personal life? Struggling heroin addict Colin Hedges (Tristan Sturrock) finds

• Battlestar Galactica: Season 1 | Blu Ray | (10/05/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £49.99

  Edgier and racier than its predecessor Battlestar Galactica 2004 is a complete re-imagining of the 1970s series - upping the ante on the action adventure and drama that made the original so popular. The groundbreaking story of man versus machine remains but this time the Cylon robot is no longer a recognisable enemy... it can move among man. With the 12 colonies of man virtually destroyed in the climax of a hundred-year war with the Cylon empire President Roslin (Mary McDonnell) and Commander Adama (Edward James Olmos) gather up the few humans left on the twelve worlds and embark on a journey to find the mythical planet Earth the supposed thirteenth colony of mankind. Battlestar Galactica 2004 gives new life to the stories and ideas that were at the heart of the original series with a compelling plot breathtaking special effects and riveting action-packed adventure speaking to both long-time fans and a new generation of admirers! Also includes the Mini Series.

• Star Trek 7 : Generations | DVD | (20/12/2004) from £9.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (150.15%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Two captains. One destiny. Stardate: the 23rd Century. Retired Starfleet officers James T. Kirk Montgomery Scott and Pavel Chekov are guests of honor aboard the newly christened Enterprise-B. A test run takes an unexpected turn however when the starship encounters two vessels trapped inside the Nexus a mysterious energy ribbon. During a perilous rescue attempt Kirk is swept out into space. Seven decades later Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of Enterprise-D rescue an

• Catherine Cookson - The Complete Collection | DVD | (21/08/2006) from £71.96   |  Saving you £48.03 (66.75%)   |  RRP £119.99

  Catherine Cookson was born Catherine McMullen in 1906. Her life began in poverty and she grew up believing her real mother was her sister. In a life that could have been taken from any of her own novels Catherine aspired to achieve more than many of her time. From poverty to wealth she left the sadness behind to start a new life in Hastings where she was to meet her husband Tom Cookson. As a form of therapy Catherine began to write and never stopped and became one of the world's be

• Hard Times | DVD | (21/02/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

• The Exterminator | DVD | (28/06/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Christopher George Robert Ginty and Samantha Eggar star in filmmaker James Glickenhaus' riveting story of a Vietnam vet gone berserk after a New York street gang leaves his best friend paralysed. Driven by revenge John Eastland becomes a one-man task force who annihilates his buddy's attackers then sets out to bring down the city's entire dark underworld. To the public he's a hero but to law enforcement officials The Exterminator is a psychopath capable of dangerously underminin

• Men With Brooms | DVD | (26/01/2004) from £14.37   |  Saving you £-1.38 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Nothing has been the same in the little town of Long Bay Ontario since Chris Cutter (Paul Gross) disappeared ten years ago. When curling star Cutter took off he didn't just throw away a chance to win the Golden Broom he actually hurled the curling stones into the waters of Trout Lake! His three team-mates did not fare too well. Neil Bucyk (James Allodi) is a dissatisfied mortician in a marriage as lifeless as his customers; James Lennox (Peter Outerbridge) is constantly courtin

• Marooned | DVD | (26/07/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  They are trapped in a spaceship with no power. Outside there is no air and no heat. Earth spins 200 miles below. Three astronauts face a desperate situation in this spellbinding science fiction cliffhanger. After completing a daring mission in space the three-man spaceship Ironman One orbits Earth preparing for re-entry. But a retro-rocket misfires and the crew commander Jim Pruett (Richard Crenna) scientist/astronaut Clayton Stone (James Franciscus) and pilot Buzz Lloyd (Gene Hack

• Against All Odds | DVD | (10/01/2000) from £15.97   |  Saving you £7.01 (54.01%)   |  RRP £19.99

  James Woods doesn't get to play many romantic leads--and he certainly doesn't get the girl in this handsome, if occasionally hollow, remake of Out of the Past. As the mover-and-shaker lover of Rachel Ward, he loses her--if only temporarily--to ex-football star Jeff Bridges. Woods captures the insecurity behind a man of power who understands that the women in his life love his money first. But he also shows us the real tenderness that kept Ward close when money lost its glitter. Bridges is at his best, playing the should-have-been trying to keep his future from repeating his dead-end past. Look for actress Jane Greer (who played the Ward role in the 1947 original opposite Robert Mitchum and Kirk Douglas) in a small role. --Marshall Fine, Amazon.com

• Piranhas | DVD | (19/01/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Dr. Baines' genetically altered piranha are virtually unstoppablethey can survive in salt water and they thrive on human flesh. When Maggie (Alexandra Paul Baywatch) and Paul (William Katt Carrie) accidentally release them into the Lost River these ferocious predators threaten to destroy everything and everyone in their path. With only a rickety raft to keep the piranha at bay Maggie and Paul must reach Lost River Lake in time to warn its residents and close its dam before the vicious piranha reach the ocean and spawn.

• A Killing In A Small Town | DVD | (23/02/2004) from £6.94   |  Saving you £-0.95 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  In a small town a woman is found brutally murdered by an axe. There are no suspects or witnesses to the killing. Based on the novel 'Evidence Of Love' by John Bloom who based the story on the actual events in a small American town.