"Actor: Karen Martin"

• Starman STEELBOOK | Blu Ray | (26/05/2025) from £29.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Jeff Bridges stars as an innocent alien from a distant planet who learns what it means to fall in love with an earthling (Karen Allen). Universally moving!

• Saturday Night Fever | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £6.91   |  Saving you £9.08 (131.40%)   |  RRP £15.99

  The years have endowed Saturday Night Fever with a powerful, elegiac quality since its explosive release in 1977. It was the must-see movie for a whole generation of adolescents, sparking controversy for rough language and clumsily realistic sex scenes which took teen cinema irrevocably into a new age. And of course, it revived the career of the Bee Gees to stratospheric heights, thanks to a justifiably legendary soundtrack which now embodies the disco age. But Saturday Night Fever was always more than a disco movie. Tony Manero is an Italian youth from Brooklyn straining at the leash to escape a life defined by his family, blue collar job and his gang. Disco provides the medium for him to break free. It was the snake-hipped dance routines which made John Travolta an immediate sex symbol. But seen today, his performance as Tony is compelling: rough-hewn, certainly, but complex and true, anticipating the fine screen actor he would be recognised as 20 years later. Scenes of the Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge, representing Tony's route to a bigger world, now have an added poignancy, adding to Saturday Night Fever's evocative power. It's a bittersweet classic. On the DVD: Saturday Night Fever is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack, both of which help to recapture the unique atmosphere of the late 1970s. The main extra is a director's commentary from John Badham, with detailed descriptions of casting and the improvisation behind many of the scenes, plus the unsavoury reality behind Travolta's iconic white disco suit. --Piers Ford

• Starman | Blu Ray | (15/07/2019) from £7.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In 1977 Voyager II was launched into space, inviting all lifeforms in the universe to visit our planet. Get ready. Company's coming. When his spacecraft is shot down over Wisconsin, Starman (Bridges) arrives at the remote cabin of a distraught young widow, Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen), and clones the form of her dead husband. The alien convinces Jenny to drive him to Arizona, explaining that if he isn't picked up by his mothership in three days, he'll die. Hot on their trail are government agents, intent on capturing the alien, dead or alive. En route, Starman demonstrates the power of universal love, while Jenny rediscovers her human feelings for passion.

• The Chief: The Complete Series | DVD | (11/06/2018) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  A critically acclaimed drama series from the early '90s, The Chief shows a police force under change and the friction generated as attempts are made to reform outmoded policies and challenge the often unacceptable conduct of front-line officers. Tim Pigott-Smith stars as John Stafford, an outspoken and deeply committed officer who has been newly promoted to Chief Constable at Eastland, East Anglia. Not one to shy from difficult decisions, his appointment of the highly capable Anne Stewart as his deputy proves deeply unpopular and exposes some of the more unpleasant institutional attitudes among the ranks. In later series, Stafford moves on and is replaced by Alan Cade (Martin Shaw). While no less capable than his predecessor, Cade finds that the challenge of frontline policing continues to be eclipsed by pressure from both his Home Office superiors and the local government agencies that are increasingly taking over many police roles. Forthright and, at times, controversial, The Chief does not shy from tackling the ever-mounting challenges of modern policing be they the consequences of militant student action, vigilante gangs, bombings, extreme activism, witness intimidation, the exploitation of migrant workers, and dealing with death in the line of duty.

• For The Boys | DVD | (07/06/2004) from £13.14   |  Saving you £2.84 (27.98%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Bette Midler poured her heart and soul into For the Boys, the story of a pair of entertainers who repeatedly took time from their careers to entertain US troops at war, from World War II to Vietnam--and it sank like a stone at the box office. Granted, it's corny and emotionally over the top. It is the tale of an unlikely team of singer and comedian (played by Midler and James Caan), who are brought together for a reunion show in their dotage. As they nervously anticipate seeing each other for the first time in years, they are flooded with memories of their earlier days as a hot show-biz couple whose own troubles always took second place to their patriotic urge to buoy the boys in uniform. Some say this was a veiled film version of the Martha Raye story; Midler gives it her all and Caan isn't bad. But director Mark Rydell lays on the schmaltz so thickly at times that it overpowers the tougher material. --Marshall Fine, Amazon.com

• The Golden Dream | DVD | (10/11/2014) from £7.99   |  Saving you £8.00 (100.13%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Diego Quemada-Diez's astounding and gripping debut feature is a piercing and poetic road movie that follows the fortunes of four Guatemalan teenagers on a dangerous journey across the Mexican border into America.

• Saturday Night Fever / Staying Alive | DVD | (02/12/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The years have endowed Saturday Night Fever with a powerful, elegiac quality since its explosive release in 1977. It was the must-see movie for a whole generation of adolescents, sparking controversy for rough language and clumsily realistic sex scenes which took teen cinema irrevocably into a new age. And of course, it revived the career of the Bee Gees to stratospheric heights, thanks to a justifiably legendary soundtrack which now embodies the disco age. But Saturday Night Fever was always more than a disco movie. Tony Manero is an Italian youth from Brooklyn straining at the leash to escape a life defined by his family, blue collar job and his gang. Disco provides the medium for him to break free. It was the snake-hipped dance routines which made John Travolta an immediate sex symbol. But seen today, his performance as Tony is compelling: rough-hewn, certainly, but complex and true, anticipating the fine screen actor he would be recognised as 20 years later. Scenes of the Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge, representing Tony's route to a bigger world, now have an added poignancy, adding to Saturday Night Fever's evocative power. It's a bittersweet classic. On the DVD: Saturday Night Fever is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack, both of which help to recapture the unique atmosphere of the late 1970s. The main extra is a director's commentary from John Badham, with detailed descriptions of casting and the improvisation behind many of the scenes, plus the unsavoury reality behind Travolta's iconic white disco suit. --Piers Ford

• Saturday Night Fever | Blu Ray | (17/07/2017) from £20.00   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The years have endowed Saturday Night Fever with a powerful, elegiac quality since its explosive release in 1977. It was the must-see movie for a whole generation of adolescents, sparking controversy for rough language and clumsily realistic sex scenes which took teen cinema irrevocably into a new age. And of course, it revived the career of the Bee Gees to stratospheric heights, thanks to a justifiably legendary soundtrack which now embodies the disco age. But Saturday Night Fever was always more than a disco movie. Tony Manero is an Italian youth from Brooklyn straining at the leash to escape a life defined by his family, blue collar job and his gang. Disco provides the medium for him to break free. It was the snake-hipped dance routines which made John Travolta an immediate sex symbol. But seen today, his performance as Tony is compelling: rough-hewn, certainly, but complex and true, anticipating the fine screen actor he would be recognised as 20 years later. Scenes of the Manhattan skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge, representing Tony's route to a bigger world, now have an added poignancy, adding to Saturday Night Fever's evocative power. It's a bittersweet classic. On the DVD: Saturday Night Fever is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen with a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack, both of which help to recapture the unique atmosphere of the late 1970s. The main extra is a director's commentary from John Badham, with detailed descriptions of casting and the improvisation behind many of the scenes, plus the unsavoury reality behind Travolta's iconic white disco suit. --Piers Ford

• Sharpe's Justice / Sharpe's Waterloo | DVD | (07/10/2002) from £9.35   |  Saving you £5.64 (60.32%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Sharpe's Justice The Peninsular War is over and Sharpe returns to England with his reputation fully restored. He is soon ordered to the North of England to take command of a local militia force in his home town as it is troubled with unrest and machine-breakers. Sharpe finds that he is torn between two sides - that of the corrupt gentry and that of his own people the rough tough and spirited masses who are kept down by their superiors. He finds himself faced with one of the

• Starman | DVD | (08/04/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Starman is easily director John Carpenter's warmest and most beguiling film, and the only one that ever earned him an Oscar nomination. While most movie buffs are likely to call Halloween the best movie from Carpenter, die-hard romantics and anyone who cried while watching E.T. will vote in favour of the director's 1984 hit. Jeff Bridges is the alien visitor to Earth who is knocked off course and must take an interstate road trip to rendezvous with a mothership from his home planet. To complete this journey he assumes the physical form of the dead husband of a Wisconsin widow (Karen Allen) who responds first with fear, then sympathy, and finally love. Carpenter's graceful strategy is to switch the focus of this E.T.-like film from science fiction to a gentle road-movie love story, made believable by the memorable performances of Bridges and Allen. It's a bit heavy-handed with tenacious government agents who view the Starman as an alien threat (don't they always?), but Carpenter handles the action with intelligent flair, sensitivity and lighthearted humour. If you're not choked up during the final scene, well, you just might not be human. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com On the DVD: Starman on disc is presented in anamorphic widescreen transferred from NTSC and letterboxed at 2.35.1. The picture is clear and sharp with very little grain. The soundtrack is crisp, perfectly complementing the romantic nature of this film. The overriding reason to shell out on this special edition is the commentary from John Carpenter and Jeff Bridges, in which director and actor show a genuine affection for the film. Other extras are a featurette filmed around the original release in 1884, a music video starring Bridges and costar Karen Allen covering The Everly Brothers classic "All I Have to Do is Dream", and a trailer for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. --Kristen Bowditch

• Jupiter Moon 3 - Return To Space City | DVD | (20/12/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Jupiter Moon is about the perils of life on the very frontier of human existence. It is about the loves passions and ambitions of young people growing up in an alien and dangerous environment many millions of miles away from Earth.... It is the year 2050 and mankind has established a space city on Jupiter's moon. In orbit around the moon is the spaceship Ilea home of Columbus College University Of Space.

• Female Perversions | DVD | (05/07/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £3.99

  Female Perversions is the provocative and stimulating story of Eve Stephens a successful attorney struggling under the tremendous pressures of power promiscuity and a destructive sister. Consumed by wild sexual fantasies she is unable to feel satisfied by either her male or female lovers. She uses them to fuel her all consuming desire for sexual fulfilment regardless of the damage she is doing to those around her. In a truly shocking exploration of female perversion Swinton delivers a riveting performance that ranks alongside her stunning portrayal of `Orlando'. Dare to let yourself go... where you've never been before.

• Female Perversions | DVD | (26/02/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Female Perversions is the provocative and stimulating story of Eve Stephens a successful attorney struggling under the tremendous pressures of power promiscuity and a destructive sister. Consumed by wild sexual fantasies she is unable to feel satisfied by either her male or female lovers. She uses them to fuel her all consuming desire for sexual fulfilment regardless of the damage she is doing to those around her. In a truly shocking exploration of female perversion Swinton delivers a riveting performance that ranks alongside her stunning portrayal of 'Orlando'. Dare to let yourself go... where you've never been before.

• Curse Of The Forty Niner | DVD | (07/02/2005) from £6.29   |  Saving you £4.70 (42.80%)   |  RRP £10.99

  Six friends unwittingly stir up a ghostly spirit... Legend has it that Jeremiah Stone was the meanest man who ever lived. Seeking the lost gold of the fabled Forty-Niner Nick Claire Tori Roxanne Axl and Hayden succeed only in resurrecting the Evil spirit of Jeremiah Stone. Now the Legendary ghost has become virtually unstoppable flesh and bloodkilling machine. The Forty-Niner is after them! One by one they are stalked and killed until Old Nellie a reclusive mountain woman tells them how to destroy the deadly creature...

• Brotherhood Of Murder | DVD | (04/02/2002) from £5.99   |  Saving you £-2.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £3.99

  Based on a true story, Brotherhood of Murder is the sorry tale of Tony Martinez, an army dropout who becomes convinced that the downturn his life has taken is attributable to the fact that America's ethnic minorities are getting a better deal than he is. There's a ghastly inevitability to what follows as he joins a group of white supremacists who are funding a survivalist community largely through criminal activities. Eventually it's more than even he can bear, so he betrays the group to the FBI. Along the way, there are a few extraordinary scenes, such as when the group cleans out the cash register of a porno video store, leaving the proprietor unharmed but demanding that he remove from his shelves any material depicting interracial sex. This low-key but compelling production gives an insight into how such a strange and very ugly culture can arise out of ignorance and blunted perception. The disc also includes a trailer and a Synergy showcase. --Roger Thomas

• Something Weird Collection | DVD | (26/05/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  There's schlock-horror movie-making par excellence from producer Dick Randall in this Something Weird Collection 1 twofer. Meat Is Meat (1971) finds mad butcher Otto Lehman back in the Viennese community doing what he does best. With its Sweeney Todd overtones this is not for the faint of stomach, but those who enjoy seeing nagging wives and creepy sidekicks transformed into sausages will lap up accordingly. Victor Buono is perfect casting as Lehman, with Brad Harris stylish as the bored American journalist who rumbles his activities and Karen Field looking good as the housekeeper next door. Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks (1973) is less OTT than the title suggests. Rossano Brazzi (earlier of South Pacific!) is a thoughtful Count Frankenstein, while Michael Dunn is seriously unlikable as necrophile dwarf Genz. As anthropologist-cum-sex kitten Krista, Christiane Royce brings a welcome sophistication to this gloss on the hoary Karloff classic, whose opening "location" sequence and standard of dubbing has to be seen to be believed. On the DVD: The Something Weird Collection 1 DVD presentation is of the no-frills variety usual with Siren releases. With decent remastering at 1.33:1 aspect ratio the lurid colour of both films comes through unadulterated. An added attraction is the poster gallery of low-budget shockers with mildly psychedelic soundtrack to boot. It's good, if not so clean fun for all the family. --Richard Whitehouse