"Actor: Michael Ryan"

• Frenzy | DVD | (17/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  By the time Alfred Hitchcock's second-to-last picture came out in 1972, the censorship restrictions under which he had laboured during his long career had eased up. Now he could give full sway to his lurid fantasies, and that may explain why Frenzy is the director's most violent movie by far--outstripping even Psycho for sheer brutality. Adapted by playwright Anthony Shaffer, the story concerns a series of rape-murders committed by suave fruit-merchant Bob Rusk (Barry Foster), who gets his kicks from throttling women with a necktie. This being a Hitchcock thriller, suspicion naturally falls on the wrong man--ill-tempered publican Richard Blaney (Jon Finch). Enter Inspector Oxford from New Scotland Yard (Alex McCowan), who thrashes out the finer points of the case with his wife (Vivian Merchant), whose tireless enthusiasm for indigestible delicacies like quail with grapes supplies a classic running gag.Frenzy was the first film Hitchcock had shot entirely in his native Britain since Jamaica Inn (1939), and many contemporary critics used that fact to account for what seemed to them a glorious return to form after a string of Hollywood duds (Marnie, Torn Curtain, Topaz). Hitchcock specialists are often less wild about it, judging the detective plot mechanical and the oh-so-English tone insufferable. But at least three sequences rank among the most skin-crawling the maestro ever put on celluloid. There is an astonishing moment when the camera backs away from a room in which a murder is occurring, down the stairs, through the front door and then across the street to join the crowd milling indifferently on the pavement. There is also the killer's nerve-wracking attempt to retrieve his tiepin from a corpse stuffed into a sack of potatoes. Finally, there is one act of strangulation so prolonged and gruesome it verges on the pornographic. Was the veteran film-maker a rampant misogynist as feminist observers have frequently charged? Sit through this appalling scene if you dare and decide for yourself. --Peter Matthews

• Speechless | DVD | (24/02/2003) from £9.43   |  Saving you £3.56 (37.75%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In the screwball comedy Speechless, Michael Keaton and Geena Davis are political speechwriters with bad cases of insomnia who meet, fall in love, and then discover that they are working for opposing candidates. The subsequent short-lived war of dirty tricks and one-upmanship is one of those contrivances that is soon (and thankfully) discarded in light of their instant rapport and mutual respect. In a world where candidates are for sale and campaigns are fought like poker games, these idealists are made for each other--they just don't know it yet. Director Ron Underwood (City Slickers) has a light touch with comedy and a nice feel for romantic fun, but it's the charm of Keaton and Davis that puts the bounce in an otherwise limp political satire. --Sean Axmaker

• Body Heat | DVD | (25/09/1998) from £18.99   |  Saving you £-5.00 (N/A%)   |  RRP £13.99

  While scoring high-profile credits as a screenwriter (including The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and Raiders of the Lost Ark), Lawrence Kasdan made his directorial debut with this steamy, contemporary film noir in the tradition of Double Indemnity and other classics from the 1940s. In one of his most memorable roles, William Hurt plays a Florida lawyer unwittingly drawn into a web of deceit spun by Kathleen Turner (in her screen debut) as a married socialite who plots to kill off her husband with Hurt's assistance. Kasdan's dialogue is a hoot (sometimes it borders on satire) and the sultry atmosphere is a perfect complement to the perspiration-soaked chemistry between Hurt and Turner, whose love scenes caused quite a stir when the film was released in 1981. John Barry's score sets the provocative mood and both Ted Danson and Mickey Rourke are splendid in memorable supporting roles. --Jeff Shannon

• Fantasy Island | Blu Ray | (13/07/2020) from £5.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In Blumhouse's Fantasy Island, the enigmatic Mr. Roarke makes the secret dreams of his lucky quests come true at a luxurious but remote tropical resort. But when the fantasies turn into nightmares, the guests have to solve the island's mystery in order to escape with their lives.

• Jennifer 8 | DVD | (18/03/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Written and directed by Bruce Robinson (Withnail and I), this fast-moving potboiler finds its creator getting about as far from Withnail's fine wines and London and Lake District settings as it's possible to get, and into the world of bloody homicides, narrative red herrings and emotionally damaged policemen. John Berlin (Andy Garcia) is a big-city cop and, yes, that means he drinks a lot of coffee and has a terrible personal life (in this case, signified by a wife who just can't stop cheating on him). Leaving town to visit his understanding brother-in law and fellow detective Freddy Ross (Lance Henriksen), he promptly finds himself embroiled in the hunt for a serial killer with a grisly modus operandi for murdering blind women. As you might expect, it's not long before he's bumbling his way into a number of confrontations with the hick cops around him and an affair with Helena (Uma Thurman), the blind room-mate of one of the killer's victims. Slick and pacey, Jennifer 8 throws out so many plot that it eventually winds up falling over them in its haste to get to the overblown climax. Nothing here makes a great deal of sense and yet, despite its inherent cosmic silliness, Robinson handles the suspense-and-relief routine with a flashy aplomb, and the cast do well in the face of the material's shortcomings. (John Malkovich's brief appearance is a redemptive highlight, even if you do have to wait almost 90 minutes for it). --Danny Leigh

• The Shield - Series 1 | DVD | (21/07/2003) from £5.92   |  Saving you £29.07 (491.05%)   |  RRP £34.99

  Teeming with gang-bangers, perverts, rapists and killers, The Shield is unabashedly adult TV drama; and even liberal viewers may flinch at plots involving child pornography and serial murder. The first series of this uncompromising police drama focuses on pugnacious detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis), whose amoral Strike Team employs dubious tactics in the crime-ridden (and fictional) Farmington district of Los Angeles. Mackey and his maverick partners are at odds with seasoned detectives and beat cops, escalating tensions with precinct Captain Aceveda (Benito Martinez), a Latino with flexible scruples and a political agenda. The series invites viewers to form their own judgments regarding Mackey's volatile behaviour, which includes killing an undercover cop in the electrifying pilot episode. While each episode stands alone, the arc of the series incorporates Aceveda's campaign to end Mackey's career, the self-loathing of a homosexual rookie (Michael Jace) whose partner (Catherine Dent) is Mackey's occasional mistress, a straight-laced detective (Jay Karnes) yearning for respect, Mackey's compassionate attempt to rehabilitate a crack whore (Jamie Brown, giving the season's finest guest performance), the autism of Mackey's young son and the recklessness of his closest partner (Walton Goggins) and the vigilant stoicism of Det. Wyms (CCH Pounder), who's as sensibly upright as Mackey is corrupted. The Shield is excellent TV for those who can grasp its complexities; all others beware. --Jeff Shannon

• The Stone Tape | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £9.99   |  Saving you £10.00 (100.10%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Nigel Kneal's classic ghost story The Stone Tape, first broadcast by the BBC in 1972, represents his best work outside of the legendary Quatermass series. A team of scientists, eager to discover a new recording medium, take over a brooding gothic mansion recently bought and renovated by their employers. On moving in, however, they find one key room unfinished and the builders refusing to work there. Claims of strange noises and feelings of unease are dismissed. However, the scientists soon discover that the renovation work on the mansion has disturbed something hidden beneath the stone walls, something ancient and malevolent. Special Features: Full Length Commentary Featuring Writer Nigel Kneale and Film Critic Kim Newman

• Fantasy Island | DVD | (13/07/2020) from £6.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  In Blumhouse's Fantasy Island, the enigmatic Mr. Roarke makes the secret dreams of his lucky quests come true at a luxurious but remote tropical resort. But when the fantasies turn into nightmares, the guests have to solve the island's mystery in order to escape with their lives.

• Final Destination 1, 2 and 3 Box Set | DVD | (24/07/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Three features. We're going to tell you not once, but twice. You can't cheat what fate has in store for you, particularly if it involves death. FINAL DESTINATION 1 and FINAL DESTINATION 2 are considered by fans and critics alike as the thinking persons' horror films, showing the usual group of teens put in the peculiar position of - could it be - having to use their smarts to outwit the grim reaper. This package of films is a roller coaster ride of funs and thrills. See individual titles for complete descriptions of this fabulously fun duo. Also includes 'Final Destination 3'.

• The Girl King | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £6.99   |  Saving you £9.00 (128.76%)   |  RRP £15.99

  THE GIRL KING is the captivating new feature by Finland-born filmmaker Mika Kaurismäki (MAMA AFRICA, ROAD NORTH), one of world cinema s most versatile and acclaimed talents. The English-language film is a depiction of several years in the life of the 17th century Queen Kristina of Sweden, the Girl King. Born in 1626 and queen by the age of six, Kristina was the most famous woman in the world during her lifetime and remains a controversial figure in Sweden to this day and one of the most influential and fascinating figures to have graced European history.

• A Field In England | DVD | (05/07/2013) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Fleeing from a battle in the English Civil War a small group of deserters are captured by an Alchemist and forced to aid him in his search for treasure he believes is buried in a nearby field. Crossing a vast mushroom circle which provides their first meal the group quickly descends into a chaos of arguments fighting and paranoia; and as it becomes clear that the treasure may be something other than gold they slowly become victim to the terrifying energies trapped inside the field. A psychedelic trip into magic and madness featuring Reece Shearsmith (The League of Gentlemen) and Michael Smiley (Kill List). Special Features: Audio Commentary with Ben Wheatley Andy Starke and Martin Pavey Interview with Ben Wheatley The Edit The Practice of Magic: Visual Effects Influences If Thoul’t Be Silent: Recording the Sound The World of the Field: Location Costume Cinematography: The Look of the Film Only Shadows: Acting Scoring the Field: Music Time Trailer Camera Tests Reel

• About Last Night | DVD | (28/07/2014) from £3.79   |  Saving you £16.20 (427.44%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Kevin Hart Michael Ealy Regina Hall and Joy Bryant star in this hilarious romantic comedy about what men and women really want. Bernie (Hart) and Joan (Hall) are two fiery flirters who are passionate about everything from hookups to breakups. When he sets up his best friend Danny (Ealy) with her roommate Debbie (Bryant) the sparks soon fly as they try to navigate the relationship minefields from the bar to the bedroom.

• A Clockwork Orange Ultimate Collector's Edition | Blu Ray | (04/10/2021) from £34.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Stomping, whomping, stealing, singing, tap-dancing, violating. Derby-topped hooligan Alex (Malcolm McDowell) has a good time - at the tragic expense of others. His journey from amoral punk to brainwashed proper citizen and back again forms the dynamic arc of Stanley Kubrick's future-shock vision of Anthony Burgess' novel. Controversial when first released, A Clockwork Orange won New York Film Critics Best Picture and Director awards and earned four Oscarr* nominations, including Best Picture. Its power still entices, shocks and holds us in its grasp.This 50th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition includes:. •A Clockwork Orange on 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray. •Blu-ray Bonus Disc featuring Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures and O Lucky Malcolm! documentaries. •32-page booklet. •Double-sided Poster. •Set of 3 Art Cards. •Behind the scenes stills. •Newspaper prop replica. Special Features:. • Commentary by Malcolm McDowell and Historian Nick Redman. • Channel Four Documentary Still Tickin’: The Return of Clockwork Orange. • New Featurette Great Bolshy Yarblockos!: Making A Clockwork Orange. • Career Profile O Lucky Malcolm! [in High Definition]. • Theatrical Trailer.  

• Life for Ruth | Blu Ray | (12/09/2022) from £14.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Michael Craig and Patrick McGoohan give memorably fiery performances as ideological opposites fighting to save the life of a gravely injured young girl in Life for Ruth. Co-starring Janet Munro in a BAFTA-nominated performance, this tense, emotionally-charged drama from director Basil Dearden is featured here as a brand-new High Definition remaster from original film elements in its original theatrical aspect ratio. Badly injured in a boating accident, John and Pat Harris's daughter Ruth is rushed to hospital. They are told that an urgent blood transfusion is needed, but John refuses his consent on religious grounds - even though that would mean his daughter's certain death. Product Features Brand-new interviews with actor Michael Craig and 1st assistant director Anthony Waye Archive career-retrospective interview with Michael Craig Theatrical Trailer Image gallery Limited edition booklet written by Neil Sinyard

• The Ruling Class | DVD | (25/06/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Based on Peter Barnes' hit play this caustic hilarious and irreverent black comedy has rightly become a cult classic. The House of Gurney has a family problem - namely the 14th Earl of Gurney (Peter O' Toole) who thinks he is Jesus Christ and when restored to `normalcy' turns into Jack the Ripper. Unfortunately the young earl is also the sole heir to the family fortune so his relatives go to great lengths to trick him into siring a new heir. Then they can institutionalise him and

• Laws Of Attraction | DVD | (27/09/2004) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (300.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  When a pair of mismatched, high-powered New York divorce attorneys wake up as man and wife after a particularly drunken night out, sparks start to fly - and not only in the court room.

• Philadelphia Experiment (1984 & 2012) | DVD | (13/01/2014) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  In 1943 a secret government project attempted to create a cloaking device that would make warships invisible. But during the first test the USS Eldridge successfully vanished... and could not be found again. 70 years later the Navy destroyer momentarily reappears on a Pennsylvania runway allowing the sole surviving crewman to escape and a local lawman to board. What is behind a sinister reactivation of the project? Where will the massive ship materialize next? And what will become of two men trapped in a time/space catastrophe? Nicholas Lea (Kyle XY) Michael Paré (of the original film) Ryan Robbins (Falling Skies) Emilie Ullerup (Sanctuary) Gina Holden (Saw 3D) and Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange) star in this electrifying remake of the '80s hit about the allegedly true military operation known as The Philadelphia Experiment. Includes bonus film! Watch it from where is all started with the 1984 Philadelphia Experiment starring Michael Paré.

• Adventureland | DVD | (17/04/2011) from £4.96   |  Saving you £15.03 (303.02%)   |  RRP £19.99

  A comedy set in the summer of 1987 and centered around a recent college grad who takes a nowhere job at his local amusement park only to find it's the perfect course to get him prepared for the real world.

• Deadly Target | DVD | (16/11/2015) from £5.27   |  Saving you £10.72 (67.00%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Special Operative James Webster (Michael Jai White, The Dark Knight, Blood and Bone) has just returned home from duty, only to witness the brutal slaying of his brother. Webster's instinct is retaliation and he immediately sets out to hunt down the perpetrators, but as he delves deeper into the secret world of corruption and murder, he finds himself at the centre of a deadly conspiracy that cuts deep inside the walls of the U.S. Government. With the most ruthless military assassin (Steve Austin, The Expendables) hot on his trail, Webster must expose the corrupt high-ranking officials before he becomes just another victim of the nefarious plot

• TT 2010 Review | DVD | (26/07/2010) from £4.98   |  Saving you £20.01 (401.81%)   |  RRP £24.99

  TT 2010 Review