"Actor: Jimmy Thompson"

• Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones | DVD | (11/11/2002) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (300.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The most densely plotted instalment of the saga so far, Attack of the Clones is a tale of both Machiavellian political drama and doomed romance; it's epic war film and silly comic-book fantasy combined, as teenage Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) chafes at the restrictions imposed by his mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and falls in love with Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman). Renegade Jedi Count Dooku (Christopher Lee) is leading a breakaway federation of disgruntled systems; while the insidious influence of Darth Sidious is felt rather than seen as his invisible hand guides apparently unrelated events, from Jar Jar's unwitting instigation of a disastrous Senate decision to bounty hunter Jango Fett's revelatory role at the centre of the conspiracy. Along the way the story has fun with the conventions of Chandleresque detective fiction as Obi-Wan explores the seedier side of Coruscant, and incorporates the noble warrior ethos of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in its portrayal of the Jedi order. The portentous tone is lightened by tongue-in-cheek self-referential dialogue and the antics of robotic clowns R2D2 and C3PO. (One niggle for music fans, though, is the cavalier cut-and-paste approach to John Williams's music score.) Like the Empire Strikes Back, Clones is the bridging film of the trilogy and thus ends on an equivocally bittersweet note. On the DVD: Attack of the Clones is an all-digital film, and so looks suitably superb in this anamorphic widescreen transfer, accompanied by a THX encoded Dolby 5.1 soundtrack. Anyone who owns The Phantom Menace two-disc set will know what to expect from the special features: here's another group commentary led by George Lucas, two lengthy documentaries on the digital effects ("From Puppets to Pixels" and "The Previsualisation of Episode II") plus several other featurettes and Web documentaries, notably "Films Are Not Released, They Escape", a look at the sound design. There's also a fun trailer for the R2-D2 mockumentary "Beneath the Dome", trailers, photo galleries and more to satisfy any Star Wars fan. --Mark Walker

• Forbidden Planet | Blu Ray | (07/12/2020) from £14.65   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Forbidden Planet is the granddaddy of tomorrow, a pioneering work whose ideas and style would be reverse-engineered into many cinematic space voyages to come. Leslie Nielsen plays the commander who brings his space-cruiser crew to Planet Altair-4, home to Dr Morbius (Walter Pidgeon), his daughter (Anne Francis), a dutiful robot named Robby and a mysterious terror. Featuring sets of extraordinary scale and the first all-electronic musical soundscape in film history, Forbidden Planet is in a movie orbit all its own. Special Features: Deleted Scenes and Lost Footage 2 Follow-Up Vehicles Starring Robby the Robot Feature Film The Invisible Boy The Thin Man TV Series Episode Robot Client TCM Original Documentary Watch the Skies!: Science Fiction, the 1950s and Us 2 Featurettes: Amazing! Exploring the Far Reaches of Forbidden Planet, Robby the Robot: Engineering a Sci-Fi Icon Excerpts from The MGM Parade TV Series Theatrical Trailers of Forbidden Planet and The Invisible Boy

• NYPD Blue - Season 4 | DVD | (14/08/2006) from £32.38   |  Saving you £12.61 (38.94%)   |  RRP £44.99

  The fourth compelling season of TV uberproducer Steven Bochco's NYPD Blue. It was the groundbreaking series that broke all the rules and triggered what may be the biggest mutiny in TV history when some of the station affiliates refused to carry the show. Some viewers also complained but the majority loved what was being touted as TV's first R-rated series. NYPD blue has garnered an amazing 86 Emmy Award nominations and 21 wins. So if you missed all the excitement back

• Carry On Cruising | DVD | (27/08/2001) from £10.42   |  Saving you £3.57 (34.26%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Well, the gang's all here, but Carry On Cruising isn't one of the classics of the series. This may be partly due to the film's well-intentioned stab at some sort of authenticity, being set as it is on a genuine cruise liner rather than in a studio full of cheap sets. It swiftly becomes apparent that the cramped environment isn't well suited to the kind of slapstick which is usually a key ingredient in any Carry On film. Veteran couch spuds will recall that the TV series Triangle was similarly disadvantaged, except that it wasn't supposed to be funny. As ever, though, the brilliant cast-in-residence manage to make the most of the situation. The plot, such as it is, deals with the tribulations which beset a world-weary captain (James) when he realises he's been saddled with a crew of misfits and incompetents (practically everybody else) on a cruise which is of course supposed to offer its passengers every comfort and convenience. If there's a single outstanding performance it has to be that of Lance Percival's chef, whose cheeriness as he presides over his various culinary experiments is extremely funny in a menacing sort of way. On the DVD: The DVD issue has no additional features. --Roger Thomas

• Band of Thieves | DVD | (03/11/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  One of the truly great Trad Jazz films of all time. Band of Thieves capture the unmistakeable sound of Acker Bilk and His Paramount Jazz Band at the height of their success. Packed with fantastic music from beginning to end this unique 1962 film also features guest vocals from Carol Deene who had a successful pop career in the 1960's. After a spell in jail Acker Bilk tries to go straight with his band but falls under the influence of a criminal mastermind... with hilarious consequences.

• Forbidden Planet | Blu Ray | (07/09/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A