"Actor: John Goodman"

• Speed Racer | DVD | (10/11/2008) from £4.98   |  Saving you £11.01 (221.08%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Based on the classic 1960's Japanese animated series, Speed Racer chronicles the aspirations of a young race car driver as he attempts to obtain glory, with the help of his family and the Mach 5, the advanced car created by his father.

• The Jungle Book 1 and 2 | Blu Ray | (05/08/2013) from £6.97   |  Saving you £19.59 (281.06%)   |  RRP £26.56

  The jungle has never looked so lush and sounded so good! Now on Blu-ray for the first time Disney's song-filled celebration comes vibrantly to life with a new digital restoration and glorious high definition picture. Meet the most unforgettable characters and embark on a thrilling adventure with Mowgli as he journeys deep into the jungle and learns 'The Bare Necessities' of life from happy-go-lucky Baloo the bear. Meet Bagheera the wise old panther and crazy King Louie the orang-utan. But watch out for cunning Shere Khan the tiger and Kaa the ssssneakiest snake in the jungle! Bursting with wild fun toe-tapping music and beloved characters this timeless masterpiece celebrates the true meaning of friendship. Experience all the excitement of Disney's jumpin' jungle classic and share the wonder with someone you love. Special Features: I Wan'na Be Like You: Hangin' Out At Disney's Animal Kingdom Alternate Ending Growing Up With Nine Old Men Audio Commentary With Composer Richard M. Sherman Animator Andreas Deja And The Voice Of Mowgli Bruce Reitherman Plus Guest Archival Appearances Backstage Disney The Bare Necessities: The Making Of The Jungle Book Walt's Lasting Impressions Kings Of The Jungle Drawn To The Voices The Jungle Beat The Last Act Disney's Kipling: Walt's Magic Touch On A Literary Classic The Lure Of 'The Jungle Book' Mowgli's Return To The Wild Frank and Ollie: Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston Discuss Character Animation Music and More Deleted Songs Composed By Terry Gilkyson Brothers All The Song Of The Seeonee The Bare Necessities (Demo Version) Monkey See Monkey Do I Knew I Belonged To Her In A Day's Work The Mighty Hunters 'I Wan'na Be Like You' Music Video Performed By Jonas Brothers Sing Along With The Movie Introduction By Richard Sherman (for Int'l Only)

• Pixar Boxset | Blu Ray | (11/11/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £111.99

  Monsters Inc.Loveable Sulley (John Goodman) and his wisecracking sidekick Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) are the top scare team at Monsters Inc. the scream-processing factory in Monstropolis. When a little girl named Boo wanders into their world it's the monsters who are scared silly and it's up to Sulley and Mike to keep her out of sight and get her back home. Monsters UniversityThe story of how two mismatched monsters met and became lifelong friends in a movie screaming with laughter and oozing with heart. Ever since college-bound Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal) was a little monster he has dreamt of becoming a Scarer-and he knows better than anyone that the best Scarers come from Monsters University (MU). But during his first semester at MU Mike's plans are derailed when he crosses paths with hotshot James P. Sullivan 'Sulley' (John Goodman) a natural-born Scarer. The pair's out-of-control competitive spirit gets them both kicked out of the University's elite Scare Program. With their dreams temporarily dashed they realise they will have to work together along with an odd bunch of misfit monsters if they ever hope to make things right. BraveTake a heroic journey with Merida a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of King Fergus and Queen Elinor. Determined to carve her own path in life Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the unruly and uproarious lords of the land. When Merida's actions inadvertently unleash chaos in the kingdom she must harness all of her skills and resources to undo a beastly curse before it's too late and discover the meaning of true bravery. CarsHotshot race car Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) is living life in the fast lane - until he hits a detour and gets stranded in Radiator Springs a forgotten town on Route 66. There he meets Sally Mater Doc Hudson (Paul Newman) and a heap of hilarious characters who help him discover there's more to life than trophies and fame. Feel the sound of roaring engines and rock to the rhythm of some smokin'roadhouse riffs. Cars 2Star race car Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world's fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage! Toy StoryAn astonishing world where toys play while their owners are away. Woody (Tom Hanks) Buzz Light-year (Tim Allen) and all their friends in an adventure filled with humour heart and friendship. This groundbreaking computer-generated classic started it all and set the stage for the equally amazing Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3. Toy Story 2While Andy is away at summer camp Woody is toy napped by Al a greedy collector who needs Andy's favourite toy to complete his Roundup Gang collection. Together with Jessie Bull's-eye and the Prospector Woody is on his way to a museum where he'll spend the rest of his life behind glass. It's up to Buzz Mr. Potato Head Hamm Rex and Slinky Dog to rescue their friend and remind him what being a toy is all about. Toy Story 3In Toy Story 3 Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) Buzz Light-year (voiced by Tim Allen) and the rest of the Toy Story gang return for a new adventure along with a few new faces - some plastic some plush - including Barbie's counterpart Ken (voiced by Michael Keaton) a thespian hedgehog named Mr. Pricklepants (voiced by Timothy Dalton) and a strawberry-scented bear named Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear (voiced by Ned Beatty). As Andy prepares to depart for college Woody Buzz Jessie and the rest of Andy's faithful toys wonder what will become of them. But when a mix-up lands them at Sunnyside Day care. UpCarl Fredricksen a retired balloon salesman is part rascal part dreamer who is ready for his last chance at high-flying excitement. Tying thousands of balloons to his house Carl sets off to the lost world of his childhood dreams. Unbeknownst to Carl Russell an overeager 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer who has never ventured beyond his backyard is in the wrong place at the wrong time - Carl's front porch! The world's most unlikely duo reach new heights and meet fantastic friends like Dug a dog with a special collar that allows him to speak and Kevin a rare 13-foot-tall flightless bird. Stuck together in the wilds of the jungle Carl realises that sometimes life's biggest adventures aren't the ones you set out looking for. Wall-EAfter hundreds of lonely years of doing what he was built for the curious and lovable WALL-E discovers a new purpose in life when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. Join them and a hilarious cast of characters on a fantastic journey across the universe. RatatouilleIn one of Paris' finest restaurants Remy a determined young rat dreams of becoming a renowned French chef. Torn between his family's wishes and his true calling Remy and his pal Linguini set in motion a hilarious chain of events that turns the City of Lights upside down. Ratatouille is a rare treat you'll enjoy again and again. The IncrediblesKnown to the world as superheroes Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl Bob Parr and his wife Helen were among the world's greatest crime fighters saving lives and battling evil on a daily basis. Fifteen years later they have been forced to adopt civilian identities and retreat to the suburbs to live 'normal' lives with their three kids Violet Dash and Jack-Jack. Itching to get back into action Bob gets his chance when a mysterious communication summons him to a remote island for a top secret assignment. He soon discovers that it will take a super family effort to rescue the world from total destruction. Finding NemoIn the depths of the Great Barrier Reef Marlin (Albert Brooks) an overly protective clownfish embarks on a daring rescue mission when his beloved son Nemo gets scooped up by a diver. With his unforgettable friend Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) by his side Marlin encounters an ocean full of memorable comedic characters on his momentous journey - to find Nemo. A Bug's LifeOn behalf of 'oppressed bugs everywhere ' an inventive ant named Flik hires 'warrior bugs' to defend his colony from a horde of greedy grasshoppers led by Hopper. But when Flik's cavalry turns out to be a motley group of flea circus performers the stage is set for comic confusion... as well as unlikely heroes! Cars Toon: Mater's Tall TalesCars Toons starring Mater the loveable and hilarious tow-truck from the hit movie Cars. Nine highly entertaining 'Tall Tales' involving bull fights drag races rock concerts monster truck showdowns and even UFOs. Join Mater the heart and soul of Radiator Springs! Includes Pixar Shorts: Volume 1 and 2

• Cloverfield / 10 Cloverfield Lane (Double Pack) | Blu Ray | (25/07/2016) from £5.85   |  Saving you £4.14 (70.77%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Cloverfield: A group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack. 10 Cloverfiel Lane: Waking up from a car accident, a young woman finds herself in the basement of a man who says he's saved her life from a chemical attack that has turned all females over the age of 36 into a soft vaporous liquid, which can be utilized as a disinfectant.

• The Coen Brothers Collection | DVD | (13/12/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  A collection of films from acclaimed Oscar-winning siblings Joel and Ethan Coen. The Big Lebowski: The Dude Jeff Lebowski (Jeff Bridges) is unemployed and laid-back. That is until he becomes a victim of mistaken identity two thugs breaking into his apartment in the errant belief that they are accosting Jeff Lebowski the Pasadena millionaire. In hope of getting a replacement for soiled carpet the Dude visits his wealthy namesake and with buddy ex `Nam' veteran Walter (Joh

• The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle | DVD | (22/10/2001) from £6.73   |  Saving you £13.26 (197.03%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Classic TV cartoon characters Rocky and Bullwinkle come to the big screen to battle their old foes, who have come across to the real world!

• The Internship/ The Watch/ Dodgeball | DVD | (27/10/2014) from £13.48   |  Saving you £1.51 (10.10%)   |  RRP £14.99

  THE INTERNSHIP Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson team up to crash the digital world in this laugh-out-loud buddy comedy that clicks! Trying to reboot their obsolete careers old-school salesmen Billy (Vaughn) and Nick (Wilson) talk their way into an internship programme at the state-of-the-art Google campus vying for a handful of spots among tech-savvy college students who are half their age and twice as smart. The competition is fiercely funny as Billy and Nick break all the rules in a hilarious quest to land the dream jobs they’ve been searching for! THE WATCH Ben Stiller Vince Vaughn Jonah Hill and Richard Ayoade take male bonding to hilarious new heights in this outrageous no-holds-barred comedy that gets funnier every time you watch! There’s trouble brewing in peaceful Glenview Ohio. That’s why four civic-minded citizens armed with flashlights walkie-talkies and spiffy new jackets have teamed up to safeguard their community. But the guys find more than they bargained for when they uncover an alien plot to destroy Earth and now these bumbling heroes are Glenview’s only chance to save the neighbourhood — and the world — from annihilation! DODGEBALL You’ll dodge duck dip dive . . . and laugh out loud watching VINCE VAUGHN and BEN STILLER settle their differences in a winner-takes-all dodgeball competition. Under the painful tutelage of legendary ADAA champ Patches O’Houlihan (Rip Torn) Peter LaFleur (Vaughn) and his Average Joes take on the Purple Cobras led by egomaniacal fitness guru White Goodman (Stiller). It’s an over-the-top underdog tale filled with hilarious gags and BALLS-OUT FUN!

• Please Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain | Blu Ray | (25/03/2024) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In PLEASE DON'T DESTROY: THE TREASURE OF FOGGY MOUNTAIN, John Goodman narrates the adventure of Ben, Martin, and John, three childhood friends turned deadbeat co-workers, who fend off hairless bears, desperate park rangers and a hypocritical cult leader in the hopes of finding a priceless treasure, only to discover that finding the treasure is the easiest part of their journey. Oh, and Conan O'Brien plays Ben's dad in it. Produced by Judd Apatow (Superbad) and Jimmy Miller (Bad Teacher), and stars Martin Herlihy, John Higgins, and Ben Marshall - aka the Please Don't Destroy guys, and directed by Paul Briganti (Saturday Night Live)

• Cloverfield / 10 Cloverfield Lane (Double Pack) | DVD | (25/07/2016) from £5.95   |  Saving you £-0.20 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.75

  Cloverfield: A group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack. 10 Cloverfiel Lane: Waking up from a car accident, a young woman finds herself in the basement of a man who says he's saved her life from a chemical attack that has turned all females over the age of 36 into a soft vaporous liquid, which can be utilized as a disinfectant. Bonus Features: Commentary by Director Dan Trachtenberg and Producer J.J. Abrams Cloverfield Too (9:01) Bunker Mentality (3:46) End of Story (2:40)

• Argo | Blu Ray | (04/03/2013) from £7.79   |  Saving you £-0.57 (-7.90%)   |  RRP £7.22

  Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Set against the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979 and 1980, Ben Affleck’s Argo is a nerve-jangling footnote to the birth of Ayatollah Khomeini’s Islamic Republic. The movie opens at the crest of the 1979 revolution--the storming of the US embassy in Tehran, and the escape of six diplomats to the precarious safety of the Canadian ambassador’s residence. To the rescue is Tony Mendez--a composed CIA agent whose heroism remained classified until 1997--and his state-approved plan to get the stranded embassy staff out of Iran under a brazen cover story: they’re an innocent film crew on a location hunt for the fake sci-fi blockbuster Argo. Hollywood is usually pressed into the service of the state in the name of comedy (either burying dictators in Team America: World Police or just bad news in Barry Levinson’s Wag the Dog), but Argo is a true story, and the tone of Affleck's Oscar-winning script is carefully split, switching between mounting tension in consular Tehran and a satire of the Hollywood machine as fronted by Alan Arkin and John Goodman--two raffish producers hired by Mendez to reverse-engineer some convincing buzz for the Argo movie. Affleck himself takes the role of Mendez, the steady-eyed agent betting everything on Hollywood’s age-old efficiency at creating a media circus for a project long before it exists. ‘History starts out as farce and ends up a tragedy’, remarks Goodman, but Argo ends on a patriotic upbeat, and doesn’t reflect much on history. It politely nods at the context of Iran’s attitude to the West, and we’re told about but not shown--bar the blank rage of the revolutionary mob--Iran’s anger at the Westerly flow of resources under Shah Pahlavi. Instead, Argo concentrates on the eggshell complexities of deception in plain sight, including a climactic set-piece in which Mendez’ team must fend their way through layers of suspicious Iranian airport security--with imminent capture, execution and political calamity only on the other side of their paper-thin pretext. It may have the ring of historical escapism, but Argo holds its nerve as a great Hollywood escape. --Leo Batchelor /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";}

• Monsters, Inc. --Widescreen Two Disc Collector's Edition | DVD | (07/09/2002) from £4.96   |  Saving you £20.03 (403.83%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The monsters in Monsters, Inc. are just so incredibly cute--and they know it. Whereas Woody, Buzz and pals in the Toy Story saga were filled with self-doubt about just how much the children in their lives would continue to love them, here our heroic monsters and their impossibly lovable human ward Boo have no such worries, at least when it comes to the cinema audience. And that's why Monsters, Inc., for all its wondrous computer-animated artistry, its smart humour and its family-friendly appeal, doesn't quite capture the naïve charm of its predecessors. Nevertheless, John Goodman and Billy Crystal, as scare-champions Sulley and Mike, are a great double-act whose comedy never goes over kids' heads but still reaches up to make their parents laugh. The film's central conceit--that monsters in the bedroom closet are just doing a night's work in order to generate power from screams for the city of Monstropolis--is funny and cleverly worked out; and kids will of course love the fact that the monsters are mortally afraid of the very children they are trying to frighten. The animation is extraordinarily detailed (Sulley's fur is a marvel in itself) and the set-piece action sequences top anything that has gone before for sheer audaciousness. But overall Pixar play things very safe, from the hissable villain to the end credit "outtakes". A bolder film might have taken inspiration from The Nightmare Before Christmas; instead, a little of that Disney disease of knowing cuteness seems to have crept into the formula. --Mark Walker

• Bee Movie | Blu Ray | (17/11/2008) from £12.85   |  Saving you £5.14 (40.00%)   |  RRP £17.99

  A bee sets out to sue the human race after discovering they've been stealing precious honey for years.

• Storytelling | DVD | (24/06/2002) from £9.28   |  Saving you £13.70 (217.81%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Director Todd Solondz presents this characteristically bleak and darkly comic drama in two distinct parts. The first story ""Fiction"" stars Selma Blair as Vi a confused university student who engages in an impulsive tryst with her Pulitzer Prize-winning professor (Robert Wisdom) after arguing with her cerebral palsy-afflicted boyfriend (Leo Fitzpatrick). The second (and longer) tale ""Non-Fiction "" stars Paul Giamatti as Toby a down-on-his-luck documentary filmmaker who turns his ca

• Argo: Declassified Extended Edition | Blu Ray | (10/02/2014) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  Set against the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979 and 1980, Ben Affleck’s Argo is a nerve-jangling footnote to the birth of Ayatollah Khomeini’s Islamic Republic. The movie opens at the crest of the 1979 revolution--the storming of the US embassy in Tehran, and the escape of six diplomats to the precarious safety of the Canadian ambassador’s residence. To the rescue is Tony Mendez--a composed CIA agent whose heroism remained classified until 1997--and his state-approved plan to get the stranded embassy staff out of Iran under a brazen cover story: they’re an innocent film crew on a location hunt for the fake sci-fi blockbuster Argo. Hollywood is usually pressed into the service of the state in the name of comedy (either burying dictators in Team America: World Police or just bad news in Barry Levinson’s Wag the Dog), but Argo is a true story, and the tone of Affleck's Oscar-winning script is carefully split, switching between mounting tension in consular Tehran and a satire of the Hollywood machine as fronted by Alan Arkin and John Goodman--two raffish producers hired by Mendez to reverse-engineer some convincing buzz for the Argo movie. Affleck himself takes the role of Mendez, the steady-eyed agent betting everything on Hollywood’s age-old efficiency at creating a media circus for a project long before it exists. ‘History starts out as farce and ends up a tragedy’, remarks Goodman, but Argo ends on a patriotic upbeat, and doesn’t reflect much on history. It politely nods at the context of Iran’s attitude to the West, and we’re told about but not shown--bar the blank rage of the revolutionary mob--Iran’s anger at the Westerly flow of resources under Shah Pahlavi. Instead, Argo concentrates on the eggshell complexities of deception in plain sight, including a climactic set-piece in which Mendez’ team must fend their way through layers of suspicious Iranian airport security--with imminent capture, execution and political calamity only on the other side of their paper-thin pretext. It may have the ring of historical escapism, but Argo holds its nerve as a great Hollywood escape. --Leo Batchelor /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";}

• The Coen Brothers Collection 2010 | DVD | (29/03/2010) from £38.99   |  Saving you £11.00 (28.21%)   |  RRP £49.99

  Titles Comprise: Hudsucker Proxy: Hudsucker Industries is flourishing. Profits are stupendous and stock is at an all-time high. So when their founder Waring Hudsucker leaps to his death from the 44th floor his board of directors is thrown into panic. Hudsucker has not left a will and his majority shareholding in the company must therefore soon be offered for sale to the public. But scheming Vice President Sidney J. Mussburger (Paul Newman) has a plan. He'll install a complete imbecile as Chairman and devalue the stock to a level where the rest of the board can acquire controlling interests for themselves. The Big Lebowski: 'The Dude' Jeff Lebowski (Jeff Bridges) is unemployed and laid-back. That is until he becomes a victim of mistaken identity two thugs breaking into his apartment in the errant belief that they are accosting Jeff Lebowski the Pasadena millionaire. In hope of getting a replacement for his soiled carpet 'the Dude' visits his wealthy namesake and with buddy ex 'Nam' vet. Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) he is swept into a labyrinthine comedy/thriller of extortion embezzlement sex dope German Nihilists White Russians mysterious cowboys Shomer Shabbos bowling and severed toes... Barton Fink: John Turturro shines in the lead role in Barton Fink the Coen Brothers' (Miller's Crossing Fargo) hilarious satire set in the 1940s Hollywood. Fink is a New York playwright who reluctantly relocates to Hollywood to write screenplays. Ordered to write a low budget screenplay about wrestling Fink manages to type one sentence and then...nothing! Although his chatty insurance salesman neighbour Charlie (John Goodman) helps out by teaching Fink about wrestling the clock ticks the temperature rises and Fink's life spins more and more out of control. Intolerable Cruelty: Divorce attorney Miles Massey has got it all. Serial gold-digger Marilyn Rexroth wants it all. A hilarious battle of deceit and cunning ensues when Miles falls for Marilyn with each one trying to outsmart the other. Underhand tactics deceptions and an undeniable attraction escalate as Marilyn and Miles square off in this classic battle of the sexes... Blood Simple: Deep in the heart of Texas a jealous bar owner hires a private eye to kill his wife and her lover. The sleazy hitman double-crosses the husband killing him instead and pocketing the cash. The perfect crime or so it seems but disposing of the corpse is not so simple. Blood Simple uncoils its film noir plot with audacious style dense atmosphere and blood-curdling twists. Burn After Reading: When a disc filled with some of the CIA's most irrelevant secrets gets in the hands of two determined but dim-witted gym employees the duo are intent on exploiting their find. But since blackmail is a trade better left for the experts events soon spiral out of everyone's and anyone's control resulting in a non-stop series of hilarious encounters! From Joel and Ethan Coen the Academy Award winning directors of No Country For Old Men and The Big Lebowski comes this brilliantly clever and endlessly entertaining movie that critics are calling smart funny and original. A Serious Man: Larry Nidus is a good man. He is a loving husband a committed father and a dedicated professor who always does the fair and just thing in the face of daily temptations. But one day everything starts to go wrong. Academy Award winning filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen bring their famously wicked sense of humor to this every day tale about a moral man who sees the world inexplicably turn against him in this darkest of comedies.

• Roseanne - Series 2 | DVD | (06/02/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  America's favourite dysfunctional family - Roseanne Conner (Roseanne Barr) husband Dan (John Goodman) her sister Jackie (Laurie Metcalf) and kids Becky (Lecy Goranson) Darlene (Sara Gilbert) and D.J. (Michael Fishman) - is back! An unforgettable season of odd jobs and bathtub dreams broken romance and Halloween pranks weight-loss programs and school assembly humiliations the arrival of Arnie Thomas and the reunion with Ziggy Dan's dad hooking up with Crystal Jackie joining

• Punchline | DVD | (14/06/2004) from £5.40   |  Saving you £0.59 (10.93%)   |  RRP £5.99

  At the height of the stand-up comedy boom of the 1980s, Punchline offered the revelation that many comedians were, in fact, rather psychologically unstable individuals for whom performing was an outlet for hostility and aggression. Wow--who would have guessed? This film focuses on two who meet and forge an unlikely friendship: Tom Hanks plays a caustic, self-destructive comic looking for his big break and Sally Field plays a more Roseanne-like comedian who begins neglecting her husband (John Goodman) and children because she gets such a kick out of performing. The offstage stuff is strictly soap opera, but Hanks and Field both develop solid comedic rhythms once they get behind a microphone. --Marshall Fine, Amazon.com

• Argo | 4K UHD | (12/12/2016) from £34.99   |  Saving you £-15.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Set against the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979 and 1980, Ben Affleck’s Argo is a nerve-jangling footnote to the birth of Ayatollah Khomeini’s Islamic Republic. The movie opens at the crest of the 1979 revolution--the storming of the US embassy in Tehran, and the escape of six diplomats to the precarious safety of the Canadian ambassador’s residence. To the rescue is Tony Mendez--a composed CIA agent whose heroism remained classified until 1997--and his state-approved plan to get the stranded embassy staff out of Iran under a brazen cover story: they’re an innocent film crew on a location hunt for the fake sci-fi blockbuster Argo. Hollywood is usually pressed into the service of the state in the name of comedy (either burying dictators in Team America: World Police or just bad news in Barry Levinson’s Wag the Dog), but Argo is a true story, and the tone of Affleck's Oscar-winning script is carefully split, switching between mounting tension in consular Tehran and a satire of the Hollywood machine as fronted by Alan Arkin and John Goodman--two raffish producers hired by Mendez to reverse-engineer some convincing buzz for the Argo movie. Affleck himself takes the role of Mendez, the steady-eyed agent betting everything on Hollywood’s age-old efficiency at creating a media circus for a project long before it exists. ‘History starts out as farce and ends up a tragedy’, remarks Goodman, but Argo ends on a patriotic upbeat, and doesn’t reflect much on history. It politely nods at the context of Iran’s attitude to the West, and we’re told about but not shown--bar the blank rage of the revolutionary mob--Iran’s anger at the Westerly flow of resources under Shah Pahlavi. Instead, Argo concentrates on the eggshell complexities of deception in plain sight, including a climactic set-piece in which Mendez’ team must fend their way through layers of suspicious Iranian airport security--with imminent capture, execution and political calamity only on the other side of their paper-thin pretext. It may have the ring of historical escapism, but Argo holds its nerve as a great Hollywood escape. --Leo Batchelor

• Treme - Season 1 (HBO) | Blu Ray | (30/05/2011) from £12.59   |  Saving you £37.40 (297.06%)   |  RRP £49.99

  As Treme opens, a group of New Orleans residents are celebrating their first "second-line parade" since Hurricane Katrina blew through the city and across the Gulf Coast just three months earlier. Folks are strutting and dancing, a brass band is blowing a joyful noise--it's a celebration of "NOLA's" resilience and proud spirit ("Won't bow--don't know how," as they say). But there's darkness just below this shiny surface, and anyone familiar with The Wire, cocreator-writer David Simon's last show, won't be a bit surprised to find that he and fellow Treme writer-producer Eric Overmyer aren't shy about going there. The New Orleans we see is a city barely starting to recover from what one character calls "a man-made catastrophe… of epic proportions and decades in the making." Many people's homes are gone, and insurance payments are a rumor. Other locals haven't come back, and still others are simply missing. The people have been betrayed by their own government, and New Orleans's reputation for corruption is hardly helped by the fact that the police force is in such disarray that the line between cop and criminal is sometimes so fine as to be nonexistent. Bad, but not all bad. NOLA still has its cuisine, its communities, and best of all its music, which permeates every chapter, from the Rebirth Brass Band's "I Feel Like Funkin' It Up" in episode 1 to Allen Toussaint and "Cha Dooky-Doo" in episode 10. There's Dixieland and zydeco, natch, but also hip-hop and rock; there are NOLA stalwarts like Dr. John, Ernie K-Doe, Lee Dorsey, and the Meters (as well as appearances by Elvis Costello, Steve Earle, and others), but plenty of younger, lesser knowns, too. Whether we hear it in the street, in a club or a recording studio, at home, or anywhere, music is the lifeblood of the city and this series, and it's handled brilliantly. Treme has a lot of characters and their stories to keep up with. There's trombonist Antoine Batiste (Wendell Pierce), a wonderful player but kind of a dog, especially to his current baby mama and his ex-wife, LaDonna (Khandi Alexander), a bar owner who's desperately searching for her missing brother. There's Creighton Bernette (John Goodman), a writer preoccupied with telling the world what's really going on in the city, and his wife Toni (Melissa Leo), a lawyer and thorn in the side of the authorities. There's Davis McAlary (Steve Zahn), a well-meaning but annoyingly clueless radio DJ, his occasional girlfriend Janette (Kim Dickens), who's struggling to keep her restaurant open, and Albert Lambreaux (Clarke Peters), who returns from Houston, finds his house in ruins, and sets about rebuilding it. You might not like all of them. Not all get through the series unscathed, or even alive. But that's part of the deal. The show feels authentic: dialogue (natural, plain, and profane), story lines, locations, camera work, the utter lack of gloss and glamour--this is no Chamber of Commerce travelogue. It's not a documentary either, but there are moments when it's just down and dirty enough to pass for one. --Sam Graham

• The Princess and the Frog Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD) | Blu Ray | (21/06/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £23.99

  After the visual bombast of many contemporary CGI and motion-capture features, the drawn characters in The Princess and the Frog, Walt Disney Studio's eagerly awaited return to traditional animation, feel doubly welcome. Directed by John Musker and Ron Clements (The Little Mermaid, Aladdin), The Princess and the Frog moves the classic fairy tale to a snazzy version of 1920s New Orleans. Tiana (voice by Anika Noni Rose), the first African-American Disney heroine, is not a princess, but a young woman who hopes to fulfill her father's dream of opening a restaurant to serve food that will bring together people from all walks of life. Tiana may wish upon a star, but she believes that hard work is the way to fulfill your aspirations. Her dedication clashes with the cheerful idleness of the visiting prince Naveen (Bruno Campos). A voodoo spell cast by Dr. Facilier (Keith David) in a showstopping number by composer Randy Newman initiates the events that will bring the mismatched hero and heroine together. However, the animation of three supporting characters--Louis (Michael-Leon Wooley), a jazz-playing alligator; Ray (Jim Cummings), a Cajun firefly; and 197-year-old voodoo priestess Mama Odie (Jenifer Lewis)--is so outstanding, it nearly steals the film. Alternately funny, touching, and dramatic, The Princess and the Frog is an all-too-rare example of a movie a family can enjoy together, with the most and least sophisticated members appreciating different elements. The film is also a welcome sign that the beleaguered Disney Feature Animation Studio has turned away from such disasters as Home on the Range, Chicken Little, and Meet the Robinsons and is once again moving in the right direction. --Charles Solomon