"Actor: Nancy"

• Zimmerman: Die Soldaten | DVD | (14/03/2002) from £8.44   |  Saving you £17.81 (248.05%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Opera doesn't come harder hitting than Die Soldaten, Bernd Alois Zimmermann's gripping attempt to reinvent the medium from the Modernist perspective of the 1950s and 60s. Those for whom opera means the Italian and French classics will blanch at the stinging vocal writing and complex orchestral contribution replete with jazz combo and electronics in Zimmerman's only work in the genre. Yet Jakob Lenz's story of the dehumanising quality of war needs no apology, and Harry Kupfer's intricate yet explicit staging--relishing the many opportunities for simultaneous action--pulls no punches. Nancy Shade is persuasive as the awkward adolescent Marie, whose naiveté leads relentlessly to her downfall. Michael Ebbecke is sympathetic as Stolzius, her jilted lover and avenger, while William Cochran is properly brutish as Desportes, the officer who initiates her spiral of decline. Bernhard Kontarsky gets a dedicated response from his Stuttgart Opera forces, who perform with belief in this often excessive but always engrossing work. On the DVD: Die Soldaten on disc has a sharp 4:3 picture and PCM stereo sound that shows little sign of age. Director Hans Hulscher has captured with real immediacy the impact of this 1989 production. There are subtitles in four European languages, and a detailed introduction and synopsis in the booklet. The special feature, however, is merely an ArtHaus trailer: a production such as this really deserves a background feature to reinforce its significance and value. --Richard Whitehouse

• Assault on Precinct 13: 40th Anniversary Edition | DVD | (28/11/2016) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  John Carpenter's Assault On Precinct 13 is a riveting low-budget thriller from 1976, in which a nearly abandoned police station is held under siege by a heavily armed gang called Street Thunder. Inside the station, cut off from contact and isolated, convicts heading for death row and the cops must now join forces or die. That's the basic plot, but what Carpenter does with it is remarkable. Drawing specific inspiration from the classic Howard Hawks Western Rio Bravo (which included a similar siege on disadvantaged heroes), Carpenter used his simple setting for a tense, tightly constructed series of action sequences, emphasising low-key character development and escalating tension. Few who've seen the film can forget the "ice cream cone" scene in which a young girl is caught up in the action by patronising a seemingly harmless ice cream van. It's here, and in other equally memorable scenes, that Carpenter demonstrates his knack for injecting terror into the mundane details of daily life, propelling this potent thriller to cult favourite status and long-standing critical acclaim. From this Carpenter went on to make the original Halloween, one of the most profitable independent films of all time. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

• Rollerball | DVD | (24/06/2002) from £23.36   |  Saving you £-2.11 (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Norman Jewison's dystopian Rollerball portrays a near-future in the aftermath of the Corporate Wars, in which nations have crumbled and conglomerates rule. In place of freedom the people are given bread and circuses: material comfort and rollerball itself. Played on a circular, slanted track by men on skates and motorbikes, this extreme sport is the ultimate extrapolation of the primitive blood lust implicit in many team sports. James Caan is outstanding as Jonathan E, star player with the Houston team. In the elegant detachment of Jewison's direction, emphasised by the stark, alienating use of classical music, there are echoes of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Notwithstanding the brilliantly staged arena sequences, Rollerball is essentially about freedom versus conformity and the corruption of unfettered capitalism, with Caan leading an existential rebellion in the tradition of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 which leads to a chilling, apocalyptic finale. Certainly the most prophetic film of the 1970s, Rollerball has an intelligence and power overlooked by those who simply denounce its brutal violence. On the DVD: Rollerball arrives on DVD with clear three-channel Dolby Digital sound, although obviously it lacks the impact of a more modern 5.1 soundtrack. The 1.77:1 transfer is anamorphically enhanced and is generally very sharp and detailed with excellent colour. Some scenes show a lot of grain, but this is presumably a consequence of having to shoot with very fast lenses to capture the swift and dramatic action under indoor lighting conditions. "Return to the Arena--The Making of Rollerball" is a new 25-minute documentary (4:3 with letterboxed film clips) that features Jewison, Harrison and various other personnel reminiscing about the making of the film. The highlight of the extras are commentary tacks from the Jewison and Harrison, and while there is inevitably some overlap of information, and some quite lengthy gaps in Harrison's track, there is also much to interest the serious film buff. Also included is an original seven-minute promotional featurette "From Rome to Rollerball: The Full Circle", the chilling original trailer, the teaser trailer and a trailer for the remake.--Gary S Dalkin

• Dangerous Game | DVD | (30/04/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Abel Ferrara's taste for the sensational is on display in the flawed but interesting Dangerous Games, even though its subject matter is a long way from the genre material in which he has mostly specialised. The film is a psychological drama in which the Method manipulations of director Eddie (Harvey Keitel) prey on the weaknesses of coke-head actor Burns (James Russo) and insecure soap star Sarah (Madonna) to a point where reality breaks down for all three of them--and, in the film's last moments, the audience too; we are left traumatically hanging by a profound ambiguity in what we have just seen. Ferrara moves backwards and forwards between naturalistic and staged shots: we see scenes in hand-held verité and as rushes on a video. The over-wrought drama of consumerism, decadence and possible redemption that is being shot in the film is clearly intended to be directly relevant to their lives and is only marginally more melodramatic; at one point, Eddie's wife arrives unexpectedly at his hotel room moments after Sarah has left his bed. Keitel gives his usual authoritative performance as a weak man breaking under the weight of his pretensions; as Sarah, Madonna gives one of her less bad performances, attractively underplaying amid a storm of hamminess. On the DVD: the DVD only gives us subtitles and the trailer as extras. --Roz Kaveney

• The Simpsons: Christmas 2 | DVD | (25/10/2004) from £3.19   |  Saving you £9.80 (307.21%)   |  RRP £12.99

  More yuletide fun with Springfield's first family! Homer VS. Dignity: With Smithers away Burns hires a cash-hungry Homer as his 'prank monkey' to peform stunts that ultimately damage Homer's dignity. Skinner's Sense Of Snow: A blizzard traps Skinner and Groundskeeper Willie with an assortment of students at Springfield Elementary. Dude Where's My Ranch?: While out Christmas carolling the famliy finds out from a lawyer that the carol they are singing is copyr

• Comanche Station (Standard Edition) | Blu Ray | (27/07/2020) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The final film in the revered, influential series of collaborations between director Budd Boetticher and star Randolph Scott, 1960's Comanche Station is their most poetic, accomplished and pessimistic work. Here, Scott saves a woman kidnapped by Comanches, and whom he believes is his long-missing wife. When a band of other mercenaries turn up on their trail, he must fight to get both of them home alive. This brooding and almost mythical western is the culmination of a prolific collaboration that would influence filmmakers from the French New Wave to Quentin Tarantino. Extras: High Definition remaster Original mono audio Audio commentary with filmmaker Taylor Hackford Clint Eastwood on ˜Comanche Station' (2009, 7 mins): the iconic actor and filmmaker discusses the influence of Budd Boetticher and Randolph Scott Super 8 version: original cut-down home cinema presentation Isolated music and effects track Original theatrical trailer Sam Hamm trailer commentary (2013, 3 mins): a short critical appreciation Image gallery: promotional stills, on-set photography and publicity material New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing

• Boys On Film 21: Beautiful Secret (DVD) | DVD | (08/03/2021) from £8.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Collection of short films from all over the world centred around the lives of gay men. The films are: 'My Dad Works The Night Shift' (2018), 'My Sweet Prince' (2019), 'A Normal Guy' (2019), 'Pretty Boy' (2020) and 'L'homme Jetee' (2019).

• Dressed To Kill | DVD | (29/04/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  To condemn Dressed to Kill as a Hitchcock rip-off is to miss the sheer enjoyment of Brian De Palma's delirious thriller. Homages to Hitchcock run rampant through most of De Palma's earlier films, and this one's chock-full of visual quotes, mostly cribbed from Vertigo and Psycho. But De Palma's indulgent depravity transcends simple mimicry to assume a vitality all its own. It's smothered in thickly atmospheric obsessions with sex, dread, paranoia, and voyeurism, not to mention a heavy dose of Psycho-like psychobabble about a wannabe transsexual who is compelled to slash up any attractive female who reminds him--the horror--that he's still very much a man. Angie Dickinson plays the sexually unsatisfied, forty-something wife who's the killer's first target, relaying her sexual fantasies to her psychiatrist (Michael Caine) before actually living one of them out after the film's celebrated cat-and-mouse sequence in a Manhattan art museum. The focus then switches to a murder witness (De Palma's then-girlfriend Nancy Allen) and Dickinson's grieving whiz-kid son (Keith Gordon), who attempt to solve the murder while staying one step ahead (or so they think) of the crude detective (Dennis Franz) assigned to the case. Propelled by Pino Donaggio's lush and stimulating score, De Palma's visuals provide seductive counterpoint to his brashly candid dialogue, and the plot conceals its own implausibility with morbid thrills and intoxicating suspense. If you're not laughing at De Palma's shameless audacity, you're sure to be on the edge of your seat. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

• Air America | Blu Ray | (07/10/2024) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Set in the 1960s, Billy Covington (Robert Downey Jr.) is a big-city chopper pilot who reports traffic conditions for a radio station but ends up losing his license due to a traffic incident on the freeway. Longing to do some real flying, Billy is recruited by the government for a secret and safe (he thinks) civilian airline in Laos. Knowing that by agreeing to do it he'll get his license back, he signs up. Upon arrival in Laos, he soon befriends ace pilot Gene Ryack (Mel Gibson) and realises that Air America isn't quite what it seems, instead of transporting civilians, it's food, money, ammunition and napalm that are the real cargo and the pilots are risking their lives daily.

• Robocop Limited Edition | Blu Ray | (25/11/2019) from £54.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  PART MAN, PART MACHINE, ALL COP. RoboCop, from Orion Pictures, marked director Paul Verhoeven's (Flesh + Blood) Hollywood debut and instantly became an enduring sci-fi/action classic when it landed in theatres in the summer of 1987. Verhoeven's peerlessly exciting and kinetic visuals were matched by a sharp script, iconic cast and exceptional special effects by Rob Bottin (The Thing) and Phil Tippett (The Empire Strikes Back). The film takes place in Detroit in the not-too-distant future. Heroic cop Alex Murphy (Peter Weller, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai) is gunned down in the line of duty, only to be resurrected as RoboCop a cybernetic mix of spare human parts and Motor City steel, and the latest defense against crime designed by the all-powerful OCP Corporation. As RoboCop's memories of his former life as Murphy resurface, only his ex-partner (Nancy Allen, Dressed To Kill) stands beside him to fight against the vicious thugs responsible for his death, as well as a nefarious top-level OCP executive orchestrating the chaos from above. Unsurpassably thrilling, unexpectedly moving and unforgettably hilarious in equal measure, the future of law enforcement is back in a definitive Blu-ray™ presentation packed with hours of brand new bonus features and exclusive collectable packaging. Limited Edition Contents: 4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative by MGM, transferred in 2013 and approved by director Paul Verhoeven Newly commissioned artwork by Paul Shipper Director's Cut and Theatrical Cut of the film on two High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray™ discs Original lossless stereo and four-channel mixes plus DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround sound option on both cuts Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing on both cuts Six collector's postcards (Limited Edition exclusive) Double-sided, fold-out poster (Limited Edition exclusive) Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork Limited edition collector's booklet featuring new writing on the film by Omar Ahmed, Christopher Griffiths and Henry Blyth, a 1987 Fangoria interview with Rob Bottin, and archive publicity materials (some contents exclusive to Limited Edition) Disc One Director's Cut Archive commentary by director Paul Verhoeven, executive producer Jon Davison and co-writer Ed Neumeier (originally recorded for the Theatrical Cut and re-edited in 2014 for the Director's Cut) New commentary by film historian Paul M. Sammon New commentary by fans Christopher Griffiths, Gary Smart and Eastwood Allen The Future of Law Enforcement: Creating RoboCop, a newly filmed interview with co-writer Michael Miner RoboTalk, a newly filmed conversation between co-writer Ed Neumeier and filmmakers David Birke (writer of Elle) and Nick McCarthy (director of Orion Pictures' The Prodigy) Truth of Character, a newly filmed interview with star Nancy Allen on her role as Lewis Casting Old Detroit, a newly filmed interview with casting director Julie Selzer on how the film's ensemble cast was assembled Connecting the Shots, a newly filmed interview with second unit director and frequent Verhoeven collaborator Mark Goldblatt Composing RoboCop, a new tribute to composer Basil Poledouris featuring film music experts Jeff Bond, Lukas Kendall, Daniel Schweiger and Robert Townson RoboProps, a newly filmed tour of super-fan Julien Dumont's collection of original props and memorabilia 2012 Q&A with the Filmmakers, a panel discussion featuring Verhoeven, Davison, Neumeier, Miner, Allen, star Peter Weller and animator Phil Tippett RoboCop: Creating a Legend, Villains of Old Detroit and Special Effects: Then & Now, three archive featurettes from 2007 featuring interviews with cast and crew Paul Verhoeven Easter Egg Four deleted scenes The Boardroom: Storyboard with Commentary by Phil Tippett Director's Cut Production Footage, raw dailies from the filming of the unrated gore scenes Two theatrical trailers and three TV spots Extensive image galleries Disc Two Theatrical Cut Archive commentary by director Paul Verhoeven, executive producer Jon Davison and co-writer Ed Neumeier (originally recorded for Theatrical version of the film) Two Isolated Score tracks (Composer's Original Mix and Final Theatrical Mix) in lossless stereo Edited-for-television version of the film, featuring alternate dubs, takes and edits of several scenes (95 mins, SD only) Split screen comparison of Theatrical and Director's Cuts RoboCop: Edited For Television, a compilation of alternate scenes from two edited-for-television versions, newly transferred in HD from recently-unearthed 35mm elements

• The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror | DVD | (28/10/2002) from £8.08   |  Saving you £4.91 (60.77%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror collection proves that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, as Stephen King, Ray Bradbury, 2001, Harry Potter, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Tron get the inimitable Simpsons skewering in this shockingly funny collection of four mostly classic episodes. Best is "V" in which no TV and no beer make Homer go crazy in "The Shinning" ("You mean The Shining", Bart corrects. "Shh, you want to get sued?" Homer reprimands him). "VI" contains the ambitious, computer-animated "Homer3". "VII" features aliens Kang and Hados's finest quarter half-hour as they assume the identities of Bill Clinton and Bob Dole. "XII" boasts the star power of Pierce Brosnan as the voice of a mechanised house that falls in love with Marge and lures Homer to his apparent death with "unexplained bacon". For Halloween and beyond, this crypt-kicking collection is full of screamingly funny treats. --Donald Liebenson

• Ring of Spies | DVD | (21/07/2014) from £7.85   |  Saving you £2.14 (27.26%)   |  RRP £9.99

  There have always been spies men and women who have pried for patriotism for religion for love... or for money. This intriguing drama is based on the true story of the Portland spy ring an unlikely Soviet operation active in southern England from the late 1950s until January 1961 when the core members were arrested. Directed by TV drama veteran Robert Tronson Ring of Spies stars Bernard Lee (best known as Ian Fleming s M ) William Sylvester Thorley Walters and BAFTA winners Margaret Tyzack and David Kossoff. It is presented here in a brand-new digital transfer. An antiquarian bookseller and his wife; a disgruntled hard-drinking naval clerk and the lonely secretary he recruits; a polished Soviet agent who assumes the identity of a dead Canadian citizen: the players in a familiar Cold War story of hidden cameras dead-letter drops and a long-range radio calling Moscow Central. A duel between Soviet intelligence and British counter-espionage and a trade in deadly secrets directed from a bungalow in suburban Ruislip hidden for years from unsuspecting neighbours and British spycatchers... SPECIAL FEATURES: [] Image Gallery [] Promotional material PDF

• Sabrina | DVD | (10/06/2002) from £13.69   |  Saving you £-0.70 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Love is a funny thing. Especially when Harrison Ford Julia Ormond and Greg Kinnear form the warmest romantic triangle ever! Directed by Sydney Pollack Sabrina shimmers like a fairy tale come true. Ford plays Linus Larrabee a busy tycoon who has no room for love in his appointment book. But when a romance between his playboy brother (Kinnear) and Sabrina (Ormond) daughter of the family chauffeur threatens one of Linus' business deals the CEO clears his schedule for some ruthl

• War Hunt | DVD | (07/08/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  No one is a better soldier than Pvt. Raymond Endore (John Saxon) at least in his own mind. Stationed in Korea as the conflict between the United States and the divided peninsula is coming to an end Endore sleeps while his platoon works to gear up for his nightly patrols of the area. These patrols used to bring vital information but now they have become a nightly ritual for Endore to slash the throats of suspected enemies tolerated by a Captain (Charles Aidman) who fears Endore's unstable nature. A Korean war orphan (Tommy Matsuda) befriends Endore as well as an idealistic soldier (Robert Redford) and these two soldiers must decide the fate of the child as the ceasefire is announced.... Madness in men during their tour of duty a subject also at the heart of Hell Is For Heroes and Attack! is the focus of this brutal 1961 war drama. Redford in his film debut offers a strong counterpart to the criminally underrated John Saxon (who would go on to a career of character work) who gives a stunning performance as a killer who only seems at peace after taking the life of another victim.

• Poltergeist III | Blu Ray | (07/10/2013) from £8.99   |  Saving you £1.00 (11.12%)   |  RRP £9.99

  In this climactic finale to the Poltergeist trilogy Carol Anne moves to a Chicago high-rise to live with her aunt (Nancy Allen) uncle (Tom Skerritt) and cousin (Lara Flynn Boyle). But she soon finds herself facing demons more frightening than ever before as they move from invading homes to taking over an entire skyscraper!

• Interiors | DVD | (19/08/2002) from £12.79   |  Saving you £3.20 (25.02%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Although indisputably a film by Woody Allen, Interiors is about as far from "a Woody Allen film" as you can get--and maybe more people could have seen what a fine film it is if they hadn't been expecting what Allen himself called "one of his earlier, funnier movies." An entirely serious, rather too self-consciously Bergmanesque drama about a divorcing elderly couple and their grown daughters, it is slow, meditative and constructed with a brilliant, artistic eye. There is no music--a simple effect that Allen uses with extraordinary power. In fact, half the film is filled with silent faces staring out of windows, yet the mood is so engaging, hypnotic even, that you never feel the director is poking you in the ribs and saying, "sombre atmosphere". Diane Keaton, released for once from the ditzy stereotype, shines as the "successful" daughter. Some of the dialogue is stilted and it's hard to tell whether this is a deliberate effect or simply the way repressed upscale New Yorkers talk after too many years having their self-absorption sharpened on the therapist's couch. Fanatical, almost childish self-regard is the chief subject of Allen's comedy--it's remarkable that in this film he was able to remove the comedy but leave room for us to pity and care about these rather irritating people. --Richard Farr

• The Aristocats (Disney) | DVD | (29/10/2001) from £4.79   |  Saving you £15.20 (317.33%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Duchess and her three kittens are enjoying the high life with their devoted human mistress until the wicked butler Edgar, with his eyes on a big inheritance, decides to dope them and get them out of the picture. How can these fragile creatures cope in the unfamiliar countryside and the meaner streets of Paris? Only by meeting the irrepressible alley cat O'Malley, a rough diamond with romance in his heart. After they get a taste of the wide dangerous world, he guides them home, and Edgar gets his just desserts at the wrong end of a horse. As always, it's really the voices rather than the animation that are the heart of the Disney magic: Phil Harris is brilliant as O'Malley, Eva Gabor as Duchess is ... well ... Eva Gabor; but perhaps the most memorable turns are by Pat Buttram and George Lindsay, who turn the old hounds Napoleon and Lafayette into a couple of bumbling Southern-fried rednecks. Their scenes with Edgar, and the musical numbers with Scat Cat and his cool-dude band, are classic. Most striking about seeing The Aristocats now is how deeply Disney's style of animation has changed since this was at the cutting edge in 1970. Perhaps the nostalgic, dated feel are just a result of being plonked down in Belle Epoque Paris, but the illustrations are fussier (a pity) and the animation and overall pace much less frenetic (sometimes a relief) than in more recent efforts such as Aladdin. --Richard Farr

• Halloween | DVD | (30/09/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £49.99

  A group of teens win a contest to spend a night in Michael Myers' childhood home to be broadcast live on the internet. But things go frightfully wrong and the game turns into a struggle to make it out of the house alive.

• So I Married An Axe Murderer | DVD | (05/09/2005) from £7.03   |  Saving you £-1.04 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Enjoyable on many levels ... OK, it's enjoyable on only one level--if you're a big fan of Mike Myers's screwball idea of funny. That this script had been through a lot of hands in Hollywood before Myers agreed to star in it (using his Wayne's World clout) seems amazing as most of the truly funny bits here seem to be straight from Myers. Most memorable is his role as his own irascible Scottish father, screaming at his youngest son and talking about the Bay City Rollers. But Myers also plays Charlie, a bookshop owner/poet who falls in love with a "hardhearted harbinger of haggis", the local butcher (Nancy Travis), who may also be a serial killer. Mostly enjoyable, but there's also some weird stuff here. Try as you might, you may never rid yourself of the image of Brenda Fricker and Anthony LaPaglia making out. Also features a great soundtrack with Soul Asylum and Toad the Wet Sprocket. --Keith Simanton

• Blue Hawaii 4K UHD | Blu Ray | (14/11/2022) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Paramount brings Elvis Presley's eye-popping 1961 Technicolor musical to 4K Ultra HD™ with HDR-10 and Dolby Vision. Ex-G.I. Chadwick Chad Gates is coming home to Hawaii. Though his mother (Angela Lansbury) expects him to take over the family business, Chad would rather wear an aloha shirt than a white collar. When he goes to work as a tour guide at his girlfriend's agency, it isn't long before a group of amorous gals fights for his attention. The first of three Elvis movies shot in Hawaii, the film's GRAMMY-nominated album totalled 20 weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200. Product Features Disc 1: 4K Ultra HD Feature Film Disc 2: Blu-Ray Feature film and special effects Commentary By Historian James L. Neibaur Blue Hawaii Photo Scrapbook Original Theatrical Trailer