"Actor: Martin Smith"

• The Very Best Of The Royle Family | DVD | (25/11/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Spanning the three series of this superb sitcom, The Very Best of The Royle Family is a prime taster for those not familiar with the series. Co-created by Caroline Aherne and Craig Cash, who star as Denise and Dave respectively, The Royle Family deserves its own comedic category. They had a hard fight persuading the BBC to leave a laughter track off the show, which would have disrupted its unique ambience and chemistry. Never departing from the house of lazy, good-for-nothing but defiantly sardonic Jim Royle (Ricky Tomlinson) and wife Barbara (Sue Johnston), The Royle Family chronicles the everyday chat and banal comings and goings of this Northern household, which barely qualifies as "working" class, since mostly they are slumped on the sofa in front of the telly in a cathode-induced stupor. Confused viewers waiting for something to "happen" in the conventional sitcom manner will be disappointed. What they'll get instead is an irresistible stream of dialogue that captures unerringly the humdrum cadences of "ordinary" people. These episodes capture the Royles in customary, festive mood--Denise's marriage, Christmas, baby David's birthday party and so forth--which is good, as we get to see more of Liz Smith's magnificent Nana. As each seemingly inconsequential scene vividly illustrates, this is hardly a romanticised family. Denise is an appallingly negligent mother, there's probably never been a green vegetable in the house, most of their friends, including Darren, are well dodgy, and mum Barbara is unfairly put-upon ("Eh, I've been so busy this morning I haven't had time to smoke", she laments at one point). Yet undoubtedly, unlike their regal counterparts, this Royle Family are close-knit, somehow getting by. The family that watches telly together stays together. On the DVD: The Very Best of the Royle Family, disappointingly, has no extra features. --David Stubbs

• The Hot Spot (Limited Edition) | Blu Ray | (19/06/2023) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Harry, a drifter (Don Johnson, Miami Vice) rolls into town and talks his way into a job at a car dealership where he becomes caught between two beautiful women, the boss's conniving wife Dolly (Virginia Madsen, Candyman) and Gloria (Jennifer Connelly, Requiem for a Dream) a naive young accountant whose life is complicated by blackmail. When Harry plans to rob the local bank, he becomes enmeshed in a lethal web of lust, greed and extortion, whose only escape is murder. Adapted from Hell Hath No Fury by Charles Williams, The Hot Spot is a dusty, sweaty modern noir that updates the pulp formula of twists and turns with an intensity to match director Dennis Hopper's earlier film roles. Directed by Hopper (Easy Rider, Out of the Blue) with verve, the stellar cast are supported by William Sadler (The Shawshank Redemption), Charles Martin Smith (The Untouchables) and Jack Nance (Eraserhead) accompanied by a brilliant soundtrack featuring Miles Davis, John Lee Hooker, Taj Mahal and original music by Jack Nitzsche. Limited Edition Features 2K restoration by Kino Lorber, overseen and approved by cinematographer Ueli Steiger Uncompressed mono PCM audio Archival interview with Dennis Hopper who discusses The Hot Spot and features footage of John Lee Hooker and images from the set (1991) Interviews with stars Virginia Madsen (2021, 7 mins) and William Sadler (2021, 7 mins) Nick Dawson on Dennis Hopper and The Hot Spot, an interview with the editor of Dennis Hopper: Interviews (2023) Duane Swierczynski on Charles Williams' source novel, the crime writer and expert looks at the adaptation and provides a background of the author (2023) Trailer English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing Reversible sleeve featuring original and new artwork by Time Tomorrow Limited edition booklet featuring new writing by critics Elena Lazic on the film; Leslie Byron Pitt on the erotic thriller genre and the film's place within it; and an archival piece on the film featuring an interview with Hopper by RJ Smith Limited edition of 3000 copies, presented in full-height Scanavo packaging with removable OBI strip leaving packaging free of certificates and markings

• The Triangle | DVD | (29/05/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  In the Bermuda Triangle nothing stays lost forever... From director Brian Singer (X-Men Usual Suspects) and producer Dean Devlin (Stargate Independence Day) comes a stunning new original mini-series courtesy of the Sci-fi Channel. Billionaire Eric Benireall (Sam Neill) is losing his cargo ships and their crews at a frightening pace - and he wants answers. His bemused hand-picked team of a subject-specific experts include: sceptical tabloid journalist Howard

• Boston Kickout | DVD | (19/04/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In the 1980s Phil moved with his parents from an inner-city slum to start a new life in Stevenage. However on leaving school he finds himself in a world of violence unemployment alcoholism and drug abuse.

• Tom's Midnight Garden | DVD | (02/04/2001) from £10.90   |  Saving you £5.09 (46.70%)   |  RRP £15.99

  An enchanting adaptation of the classic children's book by Philippa Pearce about Tom Long who has to spend the summer at his aunt's house.

• The Royle Family - The Complete Series 3 | DVD | (19/11/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  On paper, The Royle Family doesn't sound that promising: a working-class family from Manchester sit in their cluttered living room, watch the telly and argue over domestic details (the arrival of a telephone bill, for instance, provides the big dramatic event of the first episode, which aired in September 1998). But from such small everyday incidents, Royle Family creators Caroline Aherne and Dave Best (who play young couple Denise and Dave) have crafted one of the most successful shows on British television--a comedy about the joys and frustrations of family life that's warm, honest and very, very funny. It's Britain's answer to The Simpsons, whose success the show rivalled when it started broadcasting on BBC2 (the programme jumped channels to BBC1 for its second series). Now in its third series, The Royle Family has seen its characters develop like real folk. Denise and Dave got married and now have a little sprog; Barbara starts menopause (how many sit-coms are brave enough to use that for laughs?) and Denise's kid brother Anthony shakes off his surly adolescence when he turned 18 in series two. Unlike Oasis--who provide the shows theme song "Halfway Round the World"--this programme just keeps getting better. But no soap--not even Brookside in its dafter moments--has one-liners as brilliantly crafted as The Royle Family's. Slouched in his armchair, Jim's dour running commentary on the TV shows that are on at the time are particularly priceless. Changing Rooms, for instance, boils down to "a cockney knocking nails into plywood... Is this what it's come to?" Not quite; as long as the Royle Family are around, there is something worthwhile to watch. --Edward Lawrenson

• Herbie Goes Bananas | DVD | (12/01/2004) from £5.47   |  Saving you £10.78 (256.06%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Set in exotic locations in Central America the internationally renowned Herbie everyone's favourite ""love bug"" demonstrates his special brand of car-isma and high-octane humour in this action-packed stunt-filled comedy outing. The fun begins when Herbie sets sail for Rio de Janeiro's Grande Premio racing competition with his two new owners. En route they get sidetracked by a smuggling syndicate pestered by a pint-sized pickpocket and bullied by a raging bull. Laughter shifts in

• All Of Me | DVD | (29/06/2015) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Steve Martin takes his wild and crazy persona and splits it into an hilarious battle of the sexes within the same body. Ambitious attorney RogerCobb is assigned to alter the will of ailing millionaire Edwina Cutwater (Lily Tomlin), who wishes to bequeath her estate to a healthy young woman (Victoria Tennant)--after Cutwater's guru transfers the old eccentric's soul to her healthy body. No one believes for a second it will actually work until Ms. Cutwater awakens in Roger's body and he becomes, literally, a man possessed, fighting for control of himself. Martin delivers a hilariously animated performance as a body torn between two masters as it wrestles with itself in a spastic walk down a city street. Directed with comic aplomb by regular Martin collaborator Carl Reiner, All of Me combines the best of Martin's self-scripted films--anarchic moments of inspired physical comedy--with a solid (if somewhat silly) narrative holding the scenes together. Screenwriter Phil Alden Robinson went on to script and direct Field of Dreams. --Sean Axmaker

• The Chief - The Complete Third Series | DVD | (18/04/2011) from £8.98   |  Saving you £11.01 (55.10%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Series three of this outstanding police procedural drama sees the role of Chief Constable passing from John Stafford (played by Tim Pigott-Smith) to former Metropolitan Deputy Assistant Commissioner Alan Cade (Martin Shaw - The Professionals Judge John Deed). This release contains all six episodes originally transmitted in 1993. As John Stafford takes up a new position with Europol Alan Cade replaces him as Chief Constable at Eastland East Anglia; Anne Stewart continues as Cade's deputy. While Cade is every bit as capable as his predecessor he finds that the challenge of frontline policing continues to be eclipsed by the pressure to manage ever-tighter budgets and justify expenditure. Sharing Stafford's tolerant but scrupulous approach he also faces ongoing conflict with his superiors and certain local politicians whose cavalier attitudes towards issues of civil liberties contrast sharply with his own.

• Shark Tale | Blu Ray | (04/06/2019) from £18.57   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane | DVD | (05/10/2015) from £18.38   |  Saving you £3.37 (20.28%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Rynn Jacobs (Jodie Foster) is a smart thirteen-year-old girl who lives in a secluded house that she and her father rent. After a number of locals come calling, they find that Rynn's father is never around. Suspicions are soon raised and members of the community - including the local police officer (Mort Shuman) and the landlord's sleazy son (Martin Sheen) - make it their business to pry into Rynn's affairs but how far will she go to hide the truth of what she has been up to? Featuring an outstanding performance by a young Jodie Foster, this dark and unsettling film was released the same year as her other critically acclaimed hits Taxi Driver and Bugsy Malone. Audio commentary by DVD Delirium's Nathaniel Thompson and Tim Greer Original theatrical trailer

• American Graffiti | Blu Ray | (31/05/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• All Of Me | DVD | (28/05/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Steve Martin takes his wild and crazy persona and splits it into an hilarious battle of the sexes within the same body. Ambitious attorney RogerCobb is assigned to alter the will of ailing millionaire Edwina Cutwater (Lily Tomlin), who wishes to bequeath her estate to a healthy young woman (Victoria Tennant)--after Cutwater's guru transfers the old eccentric's soul to her healthy body. No one believes for a second it will actually work until Ms. Cutwater awakens in Roger's body and he becomes, literally, a man possessed, fighting for control of himself. Martin delivers a hilariously animated performance as a body torn between two masters as it wrestles with itself in a spastic walk down a city street. Directed with comic aplomb by regular Martin collaborator Carl Reiner, All of Me combines the best of Martin's self-scripted films--anarchic moments of inspired physical comedy--with a solid (if somewhat silly) narrative holding the scenes together. Screenwriter Phil Alden Robinson went on to script and direct Field of Dreams. --Sean Axmaker

• Stuck | DVD | (11/05/2009) from £5.38   |  Saving you £7.61 (141.45%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Stuck stars Mena Suvari as Brandi - a compassionate young retirement home carer - and Stephen Rea as Tom - a victim of the downsized economy he is out-of-work and newly homeless. Their worlds collide when Brandi driving home from a club after too many drinks accidentally hits Tom the impact smashing his body head-first through her car's windshield. With Tom lodged in broken glass the panicked Brandi drives home and locks the car in her garage. She pleads with Tom conscious and in severe shock to stay calm promising to take him to a hospital. That is until she realizes her fate is tied to that of her victim: if discovered this accident will extinguish her bright future. Blocking the image of the bloody broken Tom from her mind Brandi waits for him to die so she and her drug-dealer boyfriend can dispose of the body. Realizing her plan Tom knows he must escape if he wants to survive...

• Box Of The Banned | DVD | (26/09/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  Video Nasties.... For the first time ever 'together' six of the most shocking depraved and corrupt movies which were banned under the Obscene Publication Act 1983/4 - Along with a feature length documentary 'Ban The Sadist Videos' which was a headline for the Daily Mail at the height of the frenzy. Zombie Flesh Eaters (1979): There is something sinister about the sailing-boat drifting slowly in Hudson Bay upon boarding the coast-guard police are confronted with a terrifying sight appearing out of the hatchway - a man covered in blood walks towards them menacingly only after being shot repeatedly does he fall overboard and disappear amid the waves. This news causes a panic in America as the sailing-boat belonged to a famous scientist who mysteriously disappeared in the Caribbean. Ann the scientist's daughter together with a famous journalist Peter West set out to look for him setting sail on a schooner belonging to Brian an American Ethnologist and Susan an underwater photographer they head for the Caribbean. Meanwhile on Mutal Island in the Antilles professor Menard is conducting strange experiments. What follows in the Caribbean and later in New York is truly terrifying - Zombie Flesh Eaters are here! (Dir. Lucio Fulci) I Spit On Your Grave (1978): Jenny (Camille Keaton) a New Yorker who goes to a secluded country retreat to finish work on her novel is one day assaulted raped and left for dead by four men. But she survives to take revenge. She seduces each of her rapists separately and personally performs their painful executions... (Dir. Meir Zarchi) Driller Killer (1979): Reno is struggling artist close to breaking point. The loud punk band in the flat next door practices for 24 hours a day. His debts are mounting. He needs to sell his new painting to pay the overdue rent on the shabby New York apartment he shares with his girlfriend and her spaced-out lesbian lover. Despite the desperate need for cash Reno will not admit that he has completed the painting. It becomes an obsession. In his troubled mind the picture triggers a violence he cannot contain... (Dir. Abel Ferrara) The Last House On The Left (1972): The terrifying story of two teenage girls Mari and Phyllis heading up to the city to celebrate Mari's 17th birthday at concert by the band Bloodlust. Prior to the show the pair are drugged beaten and kidnapped by a group of escaped convicts and taken into the woods where their horrific ordeal ends in rape and murder. When the criminals coincidentally but unknowingly take refuge at the nearby house of one of their victims the girl's parents discover the gruesome fate of their daughter and seek to exact their revenge... (Dir. Wes Craven) Nightmares In A Damaged Brain (1981): Escaped mental patient George (Baird Stafford) repeatedly suffers a graphic nightmare that depicts the axe murders of a couple making love. In Florida a prowler stalks a babysitter - when she is attacked the youngest child she is looking after just sits and laughs... George begins a journey of brutal murder death and destruction until the final moment of truth when his nightmares come to frightening life! (Dir. Romano Scavolini) The Evil Dead (1982): In the literary tradition of Stephen King and the cinematic mode of George Romero (Night of the Living Dead) The Evil Dead is a visual and aural attack on the senses which requires a strong stomach and a healthy sense of humour! Whilst holidaying in the Tennessee woodlands five innocent teenagers unwittingly unleash the spirit of the evil dead. One by one the teenagers fall victim to the frenzied flesh-eating monsters amidst a tour-de-force display of stunning special effects. (Dir. Sam Raimi)

• The Royle Family - The Complete First Series | DVD | (06/11/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  On paper, The Royle Family doesn't sound that promising: a working-class family from Manchester sit in their cluttered living room, watch the telly and argue over domestic details (the arrival of a telephone bill, for instance, provides the big dramatic event of the first episode, which aired in September 1998). But from such small everyday incidents, Royle Family creators Caroline Aherne and Dave Best (who play young couple Denise and Dave) have crafted one of the most successful shows on British television: a comedy about the joys and frustrations of family life that's warm, honest and very, very funny--Britain's answer to The Simpsons, whose success the show rivalled when it started broadcasting on BBC2 (the programme jumped channels to BBC1 for its second series).The Royle Family marked an on-screen reunion for Brookside-actors Ricky Tomlinson (who plays bearded, big-hearted, banjo-playing Jim Royle) and Sue Johnston as his wife Barbara, the driving force behind the Royle household. It is smart casting because The Royle Family is as much a soap opera as a situation comedy. Now in its third series, The Royle Family has seen its characters develop like real folk. Denise and Dave got married and now have a little sprog; Barbara starts menopause (how many sitcoms are brave enough to use that for laughs?) and Denise's kid brother Anthony shakes off his surly adolescence when he turned 18 in series two. Unlike Oasis, who provide the shows theme song "Halfway Round the World", this programme just keeps getting better.But no soap--not even Brookside in its dafter moments--has one-liners as brilliantly crafted as The Royle Family. (The scripts from the series are available to buy.) Slouched in his armchair, Jim's dour running commentary on the TV shows that are on at the time are particularly priceless: Changing Rooms, for instance, boils down to "a Cockney knocking nails into plywood... Is this what its come to?" Not quite: because as long as the Royle Family are around, there is something worthwhile to watch. --Edward Lawrenson

• Depeche Mode: Devotional | DVD | (20/09/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  Directed by the innovative photographer and director and longterm Depeche Mode visual collaborator Anton Corbijn this hugely impressive and visually stunning film perfectly captures the essence of one of Britain's most pioneering acts at the height of their powers. On its release in 1993 `Devotional' was nominated for a Grammy award for Best Long Form Music Video. The `Devotional' 2 disc DVD is a compilation of the band's live performances recorded in Frankfurt and Barcelona on th

• The Fantastic Films of Ray Harryhausen (7th Voyage Of Sinbad/The Golden Voyage Of Sinbad/Sinbad And The Eye Of the Tiger/Jason & The Argonauts) | DVD | (24/02/2015) from £29.90   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• 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

• Left Behind - World At War | DVD | (03/04/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  This is the latest action-packed installment of the faith-based franchise based on the hugely popular 'Left Behind' series of books! In the prophesied world of the Book of Revelation global icon and world leader Nicolae Carpathia (Gordon Currie) has finally done the unimaginable - he has managed to unite the world in peace - and bring an end to the bloodshed that has ruled the world since the beginning of time. American President Gerald Fitzhugh (Lou Gossett Jr.) has shared th