"Actor: Murray Pollack"

• The Man From U.N.C.L.E. | DVD | (08/09/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £30.99

  Fans of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. felt doubly blessed in 1965. Not only did its second series debut in colour, but there was also the first of several spin-off movies. The Spy with My Face thrilled audiences with "The August Affair", a plot to replace Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) with a look-alike. The movie's only disappointment in this golden year for the show was the inexplicable absence of its catchy theme tune. By the third series the show had strayed too far into the campness of Batman, which also started in 1966. One Spy Too Many demonstrated the rush to cash-in on success before the bubble burst. This second theatrical release actually consists of two TV episodes, and played on US small screens first. This then became the pattern for the later movies, although what played where on international TV in episodic fashion becomes extremely complicated. The Karate Killers features Joan Crawford, Herbert Lom and Telly Savalas in a search for a secret formula (from Series 3). The Helicopter Spies pits Solo and Kuryakin (David McCallum) against two criminal masterminds (culled from Series 4). How to Steal the World is very much a finale, in that it comes from the very last episode. It rather shows, too, with only Leslie Nielsen looking serious about his art. It's no top secret that The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'s finest hours came early; the same certainly goes for these movies. Nevertheless, the gadgets are always great, the girls easy on the eye and the two leads superb in their chemistry together. On the DVD: The Man From U.N.C.L.E. has survived pretty well for its DVD incarnation. Although there's some grain and artefacts evident in the print, colours are bright and the image is generally sharp. Some work has gone into providing fun fan material, but unfortunately it's all via DVD-ROM and in PDF format. The eight text documents cover series origins, merchandise, the fans themselves and, of course, the movies featured in this box set. --Paul Tonks

• Tootsie | DVD | (10/12/2001) from £8.67   |  Saving you £11.32 (130.57%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Tootsie inevitably looks dated in some respects now, but it's still fabulous in others--the sexual politics look distinctly faded in their sniggering approach to sexual ambiguities, while the sardonic portrayal of a showbiz that loathes perfectionism is still both timely and hysterically funny. Dustin Hoffman's portrayal of Michael Dorsey is a memorable self-caricature--the man is so obsessed with the craft of acting that he refuses to sit down when playing a tomato in a commercial, and so producers run away rather than work with him. By playing Dorothy Michaels playing her soap character, Dorsey gives himself the freedom to be a bad and popular actor. He is so busy with the surface of being a woman--the voice, the hair, the frocks--and with all the bad faith of his and Dorothy's emotional lives, that he learns to relax into the pleasure of performance. This aspect of the film is far more interesting, ironic and funny than the corny New Man moralising about sexual roles that goes with it. Jessica Lange got, and earned, an Oscar for her sensitive straight woman performance as the colleague Michael falls for, and Bill Murray, Teri Garr, Geena Davis (momentarily) and Charles Durning all turn in reliable supporting roles. Sydney Pollack directs efficiently rather than inspiredly--oddly, he earns almost more credit for his well-observed performance as Michael's world-weary agent. On the DVD: The DVD is presented in crisp Dolby Digital sound and with the original theatrical visual ratio of 2.35:1; enhanced for 16:9 widescreen televisions. It is dubbed into French, German, Italian and Spanish and has subtitles in most European languages as well as Arabic, Hindi and Hebrew. The only special features are the theatrical trailer and filmographies for the leading performers and director. --Roz Kaveney