"Actor: Joan Hopkins"

• Corrina, Corrina | DVD | (30/06/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  In Corrina, Corrina Ray Liotta plays a 1950s jingle composer whose wife dies, leaving him to raise their grieving young daughter (Tina Majorino) alone. Dad hires an African-American housekeeper (Whoopi Goldberg), who helps fill the gap in the child's life--and then Dad's life. Soon an interracial relationship crossing the social mores of the era is underway. Written and directed by Jessie Nelson (The Story of Us), the film is a spot-on recreation of 1950s suburbia without gratuitous kitsch. Liotta is perfect as a working man of the day, given to white shirts and narrow ties; Goldberg gives one of her finest performances as the level-headed Corrina; and little Majorino is heartbreakingly effective. But the film entirely bears the stamp of one person, and that's Nelson, who has a wonderfully witty eye and a sophisticated but sensitive approach to the crosscurrents of emotion at play in this story. --Tom Keogh, Amazon.com

• Man on the Run | DVD | (06/04/2020) from £16.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  A key post-war British Noir unseen since the late 1940s, Man on the Run stars Derek Farr as an army deserter unjustly accused of murdering a policeman during an armed robbery. Co-starring Edward Chapman, Laurence Harvey and Kenneth More, it is presented here as a brand-new transfer from original film elements in its original theatrical aspect ratio. A prison escapee, army deserter Peter Burdon makes a new life for himself in London. Short of cash, he tries to pawn his old service revolver and is caught up in an armed robbery, during which a constable is shot and killed. Suspected of being part of the gang, Burdon must go on the run to prove his innocence. Special Feature: Image gallery

• World War II Classics 2 - We Dive At Dawn / Reach For The Sky | DVD | (12/11/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Two examples of British Second World War films, We Dive at Dawn (1943) and Reach for the Sky (1956), are here stylishly packaged as a World War II Classics pack. We Dive at Dawn tells of the encounter between a British submarine and a German warship in the Baltic Sea. John Mills gives a dependable performance as the submarine commander, with Eric Portman the pick of a strong supporting cast. Director Anthony Asquith finds the balance between action sequences and "in situ" dialogue, and there's an evocative score from Louis Levy. The movie was an underrated film that deserves reappraisal, whereas Reach for the Sky (1956) was a box-office hit and remains a fondly regarded classic. Kenneth More is ideally cast as Douglas Bader, the gifted pilot who loses both legs in a pre-war air crash, only to play a major role in the Battle of Britain, rise to the rank of Group Captain and become a war hero. Based on Paul Brickhill's biography, this is an "official" history maybe, but Lewis Gilbert's screenplay and direction are historically accurate and informed by that very British humour of which More was a natural. The film is graced by a decent supporting cast, and a typically "widescreen" score from John Addison. On the DVD: The black and white prints look and sound excellent. Whereas We Dive at Dawn has 4:3 video aspect ratio, 15 chapter points and no subtitles, the later Reach for the Sky has vivid 16:9 anamorphic reproduction, 20 chapter points, subtitles and detailed biographies of More, Gilbert and Barder. The original theatrical trailer is included, but it would also have made sense to include an interview or documentary footage of Bader himself. Even so, this is an excellent starting-point for investigating a key area of British cinema.--Richard Whitehouse

• Man on the Run | Blu Ray | (06/04/2020) from £10.36   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  A key post-war British Noir unseen since the late 1940s, Man on the Run stars Derek Farr as an army deserter unjustly accused of murdering a policeman during an armed robbery. Co-starring Edward Chapman, Laurence Harvey and Kenneth More, it is presented here as a brand-new High Definition transfer from original film elements in its original theatrical aspect ratio. A prison escapee, army deserter Peter Burdon makes a new life for himself in London. Short of cash, he tries to pawn his old service revolver and is caught up in an armed robbery, during which a constable is shot and killed. Suspected of being part of the gang, Burdon must go on the run to prove his innocence. SPECIAL FEATURE: Image gallery

• Double Confession | DVD | (11/02/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Ken Annakin directed this 1950 production. He went on to direct many pictures including Battle of the Bulge and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines. Derek Farr stars in this story of murder and criminal gangs around British seaside resorts. Filmed mostly in Hastings and Bexhill, Farr visits his ex wife only to find her murdered. In his attempts to find the killer he meets gang boss William Hartnell and his physco side kick played by Peter Lorre. This long lost film has been restored to a very high standard.

• The Hollywood Action Box Set 2 | DVD | (30/01/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Five great action films in one amazing value box set! Hired To Kill Frank Ryan (international star Brian Thompson) is a soldier of fortune. Hired by a powerful organisation to infiltrate a volatile Middle East country his job will be to locate jailed rebel leader Petros Rallis (screen legend Jos'' Ferrer) then free him - or kill him. Either result will ignite a revolution and destroy the present regime. Ryan's unscrupulous boss Willard Thomas (screen legend and Naked Gun straight man George Kennedy) recruits six beautiful but deadly women who will enter Cypra disguised as fashion models on tour. Though Ryan is in charge of the operation he doesn't like the set up one bit. Explosive action follows in this dynamic thriller that delivers the goods with sexy results... Frank And Jesse With the Civil War over Frank and Jesse James (Bill Paxton and Rob Lowe) retreat to the family farm where they witness the murder of their younger brother while Yankee soldiers turn their backs. The James boys feel they have no choice but to seek their own justice. They join the younger brothers to form a gang of rebels that wage a bloody war against its corrupt enemies in robbing their banks stagecoaches and train. In retaliation their adversaries hire famed detective Allan Pinkerton (William Atherton) to stop them. When his nephew is gunned down by the James Gang Pinkerton vows he will not rest until the day the notorious brothers are brought to justice at the end of a rope... A Father's Revenge It's a parent's worst nightmare a kidnapped child. Paul and Anne Hobart (Brian Dennehy and Joanna Cassidy) watch their television screen in disbelief as their only daughter reads a prepared statement saying that she is a prisoner of war. Karin Hobart is being used as a pawn between a terrorist group and the government that has arrested their comrades. The terrorists promise that she and her fellow captives will be executed if their demands are not met. As the terrorists' deadline approaches Paul Hobart becomes desperate to rescue Karin. When he receives word from the State Department that the United States will not interfere Paul takes matters into his own hands. Securing the information that helps him locate his daughter Paul plans his assault refusing to become a hostage of terror. Nightmare At Noon A vial containing a mind altering drug is dumped into a lake by a group of armed men led by a mysterious pale-eyes albio (Brion James). Two days later the inhabitants of the local town Canyonlands start to go beserk. A married couple (Wings Hauser and Kimberly Beck) travelling through the town and Sheriff Roy Hank (George Kennedy) are among those caught up in the mayhem... Hercules In New York Bored with life on Mount Olympus Hercules (Arnold Schwarzenegger in his debut film) decides to visit Earth against the wishes of his father Zeus. Zeus explodes with anger and hurls a thunder-bolt at Hercules who plummets