"Actor: Ron Kennedy"

• Cambridge Spies | DVD | (02/06/2003) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Cambridge Spies, the BBC's moody 2003 dramatisation of the most notorious debacle in the history of the British Secret Service, raises the spectre of the treachery of Philby, Burgess, MacLean and Blunt for a generation of viewers who can only imagine the shockwaves generated by their duplicity. Inevitably the story suffers from the basically repellent quality of its raw material. Determinedly non-judgemental, it frequently stumbles along a precarious path between romantic eulogy and fact-based fable of the perils of idealism. For all the handsome casting, the characters have little charm to compensate for their deeds. Their motivations are sketched only vaguely. Even in moments of personal vulnerability, however poignant the performances, sympathy is at a premium. But it has its high points as an atmospheric soap opera: the recreation of a period that stretches from the radical aspects of 1930s university life at Cambridge to Cold War London, dipping into the Spanish Civil War and the Washington diplomatic circle en route, is vivid. The acting, too, is fine. Tom Hollander's rampantly dissolute Burgess verges constantly on parody. But Toby Stephens (Philby), Samuel West (a frosty Blunt) and Rupert Penry-Jones (an emotionally wrung-out MacLean) work wonders with Peter Moffat's insubstantial script. On the DVD: Cambridge Spies is a handsome production with a cinematic quality enhanced by an appropriately edgy soundtrack and widescreen presentation. The main extra is the commentary shared by director Tim Fywell, producer Mark Shivas and writer Peter Moffat. It's a rather self-congratulatory affair, but includes some interesting insights: attempts to film some events in their real location met with refusal, suggesting that in some quarters, the outrage and embarrassment that Burgess, Philby and MacLean left in their wake is still very close to the surface. --Piers Ford

• The Magnificent Seven Collection | DVD | (15/10/2001) from £12.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The Magnificent Seven effortlessly turn samurai into cowboys (the same trick worked more than once: Kurosawa'sYojimbo became Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars) and Akira Kurosawa's rousing Seven Samuri was a natural for an American remake through this movie--after all, the codes and conventions of ancient Japan and the Wild West (at least the mythical movie West) are not so very far apart. The beleaguered denizens of a Mexican village, weary of attacks by banditos, hire seven gunslingers to repel the invaders once and for all. The gunmen are cool and capable, with most of the actors playing them just on the cusp of 60s stardom: Steve McQueen, JamesCoburn, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn. The man who brings these warriors together is Yul Brynner, the baddest bald man in the West. There's nothing especially stylish about the approach of veteran director John Sturges (The Great Escape), but the storytelling is clear and strong, and the charisma of the young guns fairly flies off the screen. If that isn't enough to awaken the 12-year-old kid inside anyone, the unforgettable Elmer Bernstein music will do it: bum-bum-ba-bum, bum-ba-bum-ba-bum... followed by three inferior sequels, Return of the Seven, Guns of the Magnificent Seven, and The Magnificent Seven Ride!--Robert Horton, Amazon.com

• Paycheck | DVD | (17/05/2004) from £5.97   |  Saving you £12.02 (201.34%)   |  RRP £17.99

  Ben Affleck teams up with John Woo for this explosive thriller about a top-notch engineer who wakes up from his latest top-secret job with no memory and the FBI on his tail.

• Boiler Room | DVD | (30/10/2000) from £7.49   |  Saving you £12.50 (62.50%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Welcome to the infamous "boiler room" - where twentysomething millionaires are made overnight. Here, in the inner sanctum of a fly-by-night brokerage firm, hyper-aggressive young stockjocks peddle to unsuspecting buyers over the phone.

• The Dirty Dozen | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £7.31   |  Saving you £6.68 (91.38%)   |  RRP £13.99

  A model for dozens of action films to follow, this box-office hit from 1967 refined a die-hard formula that has become overly familiar, but it's rarely been handled better than it was in this action-packed World War II thriller. Lee Marvin is perfectly cast as a down-but-not-out army major who is offered a shot at personal and professional redemption. If he can successfully train and discipline a squad of army rejects, misfits, killers, prisoners, and psychopaths into a first-rate unit of specialised soldiers, they'll earn a second chance to make up for their woeful misdeeds. Of course, there's a catch: to obtain their pardons, Marvin's band of badmen must agree to a suicide mission that will parachute them into the danger zone of Nazi-occupied France. It's a hazardous path to glory, but the men have no other choice than to accept and regain their lost honor. What makes The Dirty Dozen special is its phenomenal cast including Charles Bronson, Donald Sutherland, Telly Savalas, George Kennedy, Ernest Borgnine, John Cassavetes, Richard Jaeckel, Jim Brown, Clint Walker, Trini Lopez, Robert Ryan, and others. Cassavetes is the Oscar-nominated standout as one of Marvin's most rebellious yet heroic men, but it's the whole ensemble--combined with the hard-as-nails direction of Robert Aldrich--that makes this such a high-velocity crowd pleaser. The script by Nunnally Johnson and Lukas Heller (from the novel by E.M. Nathanson) is strong enough to support the all-star lineup with ample humour and military grit, so if you're in need of a mainline jolt of testosterone, The Dirty Dozen is the movie for you. --Jeff Shannon

• Gangster No. 1 | DVD | (10/06/2002) from £4.99   |  Saving you £5.00 (100.20%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Gangster No. 1 is without doubt the most stylish British violent crime thriller from the many produced at the end of the 20th century. For all the pop-video glamour of Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, neither have anywhere near as much a sense of danger as is shown here. Paul Bettany ignites the screen with a fury that explodes far more than it smoulders beneath his tautly kept temper. The tale concerns his ascent to the titular position of primacy in 1960s London, told in flashback by his present-day self (an equally riveting Malcolm McDowell). A lust for power won't allow anything to stand in either incarnation's way, especially the foppish posturing of established crime boss Freddie Mays (David Thewlis). What distinguishes this from many other tales of greed is that the never-named Gangster actually wants to be Freddie, not simply replace him. Saffron Burrows plays the suffering trophy moll in the middle of this personality clash and provides about the only level head and gentle tongue in what is otherwise a super-violent and super-profane script. This is what The Krays should have been, and therefore not for the squeamish. --Paul Tonks

• Ooh... You Are Awful! | DVD | (30/10/2006) from £8.49   |  Saving you £4.50 (53.00%)   |  RRP £12.99

  ... but I like you! After cheating the Mafia out of a fortune comedy conman Dick Emery trusts his partner to stash the loot in a Swiss bank. As the number of the account is tattooed on the rear of one of his girlfriends a cheeky undercover operation begins. The bottom line is to photograph the evidence for posterity or he'll make a complete ass of himself. And Dick Emery butting in with all his other impersonations could mean another bum rap!

• The Flight Of The Phoenix | DVD | (17/04/2019) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In a gripping tale of courage resourcefulness and determination the consequences of a plane crash strip bare the morals of the survivors. The pilot of the doomed aircraft Frank Towns (James Stewart) is an aviator of the old school used to seat-of-the-pants flying distrustful of new technology. With his navigator Lew Moran (Richard Attenborough) he is piloting a cargo-cum-passenger plane high above the Arabian desert when a powerful sandstorm rises from below. Trusting his instincts Frank decides to fly through and above the storm; a risky move which leads to the starboard engine overheating and catching fire shortly followed by the demise of the port engine. Without power the plane begins a long dive towards the ground a sequence memorably intercut with the opening credits before impacting messily. Staggering from the wreckage the living find themselves deep within the Arabian desert far off their original flight plan and with little hope of rescue. Two of their number were killed instantly while a third (a young oil-worker) has been gravely wounded - right from this beginning the crosses of the dead loom over those left alive. Frank blames himself bitterly for this tragedy (correctly so from an objective perspective) but still tries to exert some authority over the rabble and provide reassurance. Since they have enough water for about ten days according to Dr.Renaud (Christian Marquand) and plenty of dates as food Frank and Lew spin the yarn that they will surely be found by search aircraft. Meanwhile a pecking order emerges among the men (a mix of oil-workers soldiers technical personnel and the aircrew) with the more learned/respected exerting control over the manual workers. As time passes the situation becomes increasingly bleak and Captain Harris (Peter Finch) decides to march to the nearest oasis with Sgt.Watson (Ronald Fraser) who is less than keen on the idea. In fact Sgt.Watson manages to fake a sprained ankle just to get out of the desert trip (a move symptomatic of his hatred of the military) and his superior leaves with another passenger. Unfortunately another survivor Trucker Cobb (Ernest Borgnine) is so deranged that he staggers after the departed pair. Frank is still so wracked with guilt that he goes after Cobb risking his own life in the brutal midday heat and fails once again in his task. Just when the situation looks irretrievably lost Heinrich Dorfmann (Hardy Kruger) comes up with an audacious idea - why not build a smaller plane from the debris of the first? Initially he is ridiculed both for being German and for having such a crackpot scheme but attitudes change slightly when he reveals that he is actually an aircraft designer. Once again there is hope no matter how slim that they won't become vulture food - just as long as the struggle for control between Frank and Heinrich doesn't destroy the entire enterprise...

• Guilty As Sin | DVD | (12/02/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Odd teaming of man-of-integrity A-list studio director Sidney Lumet (Twelve Angry Men, Serpico, The Verdict) with muckraking, lively independent screenwriter Larry Cohen (It's Alive, God Told Me To, Q: The Winged Serpent), the court-room drama Guilty As Sin relies rather heavily on the plot of Jagged Edge. Jack Warden reprises Robert Loggia's grumpy but decent private-eye role exactly, while ice-maiden lawyer Rebecca De Mornay is ensnared in a web of duplicity and violence by her client (Don Johnson), accused of murdering his wife. It hasn't got the gravitas of Lumet's best or the maniacal energy of top-rate Cohen film, but as a no-brain thriller it offers a couple of edgy, interesting star performances, with Johnson in particular cutting loose from his image with a display of razor-edged smiling charm as the killer gigolo. --Kim Newman

• Chopper: The Untold Story | DVD | (26/08/2019) from £4.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Mark Chopper Read established a reputation of infamy by becoming one of the toughest criminals in Australian history. But in order to secure the affections of the woman he loves Chopper fights to go straight. Yet the sins of his past his ego and an ongoing feud with Syd Collins will make his hopes of a straight life a dangerous and near-impossible enterprise. Underbelly Files: Chopper explores the collision of Chopper's two competing identities--the myth and the man. Based on the true story of Mark Chopper Read, one of Australia's most notorious criminals, Chopper: the Untold Story follows the vicious tough guy as he attempts to go straight after leaving prison. He makes a commitment to Margaret, the woman he loves, to clean up his act, yet the sins of his past, his ego and an ongoing feud with Syd Collins will make this promise impossible to keep. Back in prison, he tries to prove he's a reformed character by marrying Mary Ann Hodge, but his heart still belongs to Margaret. Chopper: The Untold Story moves seamlessly between his criminal past during the 1990s and his new career as a comedian. His past eventually catches up with him and, after the police interrupt a show in 2002, he confesses to a murder but is this just another performance?

• Raquel Welch Collection | DVD | (04/09/2006) from £29.99   |  Saving you £-20.70 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.29

  Fathom: From exploding earrings to dances with bulls to leaps from a plane at 10 000 feet there isn't much Fathom can't handle in this wildly entertaining espionage spoof! Voluptuous dental hygienist-turned-skydiver Fathom Harvill (Raquel Welch) is recruited by a top-secret government agency to parachute into Spain in search of an elusive war defector (Tony Franciosa) and a missing H-bomb detonator he is believed to possess. But the super sexy spy may expose more than she bargained for as she unravels the truth behind her employer's motives - with hilarious results! (Dir. Leslie H. Martinson 1967) Fantastic Voyage: A Fantastic and spectacular voyage... Through the human body... Into the brain. Shrunk to microscopic size an elite scientific and medical team enters the bloodstream of an ailing scientist in a desperate effort to save his life. Battling the body's incredible defenses the crew must complete their mission before time runs out. The film was to win Oscars for Best Visual Effects (by Art Cruikschank) and Art Direction. The legacy of the film was to continue as 'Fantastic Voyage' later received an animated spin-off show. (Dir. Richard Fleischer 1966) Bandolero: It's a Wild West clash of personalities in Val Verde Texas for the warring Bishop brothers (Dean Martin and James Stewart) who must now join forces to escape a death sentence. Featuring an all-star cast including Raquel Welch and George Kennedy and exploding with action Bandolero! packs a smoking six-gun wallop from its first tense show-down to its last exciting shootout. (Dir. Andrew V. McLaglen 1968) Lady In Cement: The suave sleuth Tony Rome makes a shocking discovery while diving for treasure: a beautiful blonde woman anchored in a block of cement. When a local hood hires him to find his missing girlfriend his investigation begins with the mysterious ""Lady in Cement."" But everyone he talks to either is killed or trying to kill him... (Dir. Gordon Douglas 1968)

• Robin Hood - Series 1 Volume 1 | DVD | (13/11/2006) from £3.21   |  Saving you £16.78 (522.74%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The BBC's Robin Hood is a big budget re-imagining of the classic tale with a unique blend of exhilarating action wit and romance all headed by a bright young cast of actors. Robin Hood delights as he fights the authority of the evil Sheriff of Nottingham with outrageous scams disguises tricks and ingenuity breathtaking archery and incredible swordplay. All the while he romances the heavenly Maid Marian and champions the poor with his band of merry men! Starring Keith

• Miss Julie | DVD | (30/04/2001) from £6.26   |  Saving you £9.73 (155.43%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Miss Julie is a claustrophobic class study set within a 19th-century Count's kitchen. It chronicles the events of one midsummer night when the housemistress--an obstinate and confused Julie (Saffron Burrows)--is beaten in a round of sexual gaming with footman Peter Mullan. Based on the play by August Strindberg, the film maintains a constant sense of theatre by only having three speaking parts (the other coming from Maria Doyle Kennedy as Christine, the long-suffering cook and fiancée), just one set and a penchant for hand-held camerawork by director Mike Figgis. Known for his experimental approach to storytelling, this is technically a predecessor to Figgis' Timecode, since the all-important rape scene is conveyed through a disorientating split-screen technique. He'd worked with fellow Brit Burrows before on The Loss of Sexual Innocence and One Night Stand, but gives the gal with the outsized cheekbones top billing here and is rewarded with a thoroughly rounded performance. Backed by the director's own musical score, this melodrama has a very personal feel to it. --Paul Tonks

• With Or Without You | DVD | (03/12/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  With or Without You works as an above-average television drama; but that's about the height of its ambition. It's strange that Michael Winterbottom, director of the hard-edged, bitter Welcome to Sarajevo (1997) and the grandiose snowy western The Claim (2000) should have bothered with anything as routine and undemanding. Perhaps its greatest distinction is that it's set in present-day Belfast without so much as a mention of the Troubles. The plot is a bog-standard romantic triangle. Rosie and Vincent, who have been married five years or so, want a baby, but nothing's happening. It doesn't help that Rosie's older sister has sprogs burgeoning like mushrooms wherever you look. Then up pops a figure from Rosie's past--Benoît, her pen-pal from before she met Vincent. And being French, he's naturally charming, witty, romantic and everything poor old Vincent isn't. Think you can guess what's coming? Well, most likely you can--right down to the all-too-pat happy ending. Still, the actors (Christopher Ecclestone, Dervla Kirwan and Yvan Attal are the leads) are accomplished and watchable, the dialogue stays the right side of banal and it's refreshing to see Belfast shown as a civilised, cultured place to live. With or Without You passes an hour and a half pleasantly enough and may even raise the odd chuckle, but it covers well-trodden territory without much new to say. On the DVD: aptly routine stuff--the theatrical trailer, a bland "making of" featurette and some interviews with the three principal players. Widescreen (16:9 anamorphic) and Dolby Surround Sound give the material the best possible showcase. --Philip Kemp

• The Flight Of The Phoenix | DVD | (17/04/2006) from £13.23   |  Saving you £-0.24 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  In a gripping tale of courage resourcefulness and determination the consequences of a plane crash strip bare the morals of the survivors. The pilot of the doomed aircraft Frank Towns (James Stewart) is an aviator of the old school used to seat-of-the-pants flying distrustful of new technology. With his navigator Lew Moran (Richard Attenborough) he is piloting a cargo-cum-passenger plane high above the Arabian desert when a powerful sandstorm rises from below. Trusting his instin

• Ooh... You Are Awful! | DVD | (24/05/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  After cheating the Mafia out of a fortune comedy conman Dick Emery trusts his partner to stash the loot in a Swiss bank. As the number of the account is tattooed on the rear of one of his girlfriends a cheeky undercover operation begins. The bottom line is to photograph the evidence for posterity or he'll make a complete ass of himself. And Dick Emery butting in with all his other impersonations could mean another bum rap!

• Poison Ivy 4 - Secret Society | DVD | (20/04/2009) from £4.99   |  Saving you £15.00 (300.60%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Wide-eyed freshman Danielle Daisy Brooks' first days at Beckshire College are the best ever. She's noticed by the dean's handsome son singled out for a much sought-after scholarship and invited to join an exclusive campus society the Ivies. But the Ivies are more than a close-knit secretive sisterhood. They are hot-blooded temptresses with cold-blooded ambition who are more than willing to seduce blackmail or do away with anyone who gets in their way... even if she's one of their own! This fourth installment in the sexy Poison Ivy series is a delicious thriller starring Miriam McDonald (Degrassi: The Next Generation) as a not-so-innocent country girl whose education at the hands of the Ivies becomes a study in Survival 101.

• Robin Hood - Series 1 - Vol.2 | DVD | (22/01/2007) from £7.79   |  Saving you £12.20 (156.61%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The BBC's Robin Hood is a big budget re-imagining of the classic tale with a unique blend of exhilarating action wit and romance all headed by a bright young cast of actors. Robin Hood delights as he fights the authority of the evil Sheriff of Nottingham with outrageous scams disguises tricks and ingenuity breathtaking archery and incredible swordplay. All the while he romances the heavenly Maid Marian and champions the poor with his band of merry men! This release features the second part of the first series.

• Poison Ivy 4 - Secret Society | Blu Ray | (20/04/2009) from £3.39   |  Saving you £21.60 (637.17%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The fourth film in the cult Poison Ivy series begins after the mysterious death of a young college student occurs late one night at a prestigious New England college. Danielle Daisy Brooks (Miriam McDonald) nevertheless decides to escape her small town life and transfer herself to this prominent school. This naive country girl is determined to start a new life leaving behind a two year relationship and the ghosts of her parents who died nearly three years ago. Daisy knows that she must break away from her past in order to move on and find out what she's ultimately made of. Daisy finds herself approached by a college group called the Ivy Society who want her to join and become a member - but as she gradually uncovers the Society's shady history can she escape their grip and stop their murderous plans?

• Robin Hood - Series 1 Vol.3 | DVD | (26/02/2007) from £6.54   |  Saving you £13.45 (67.30%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The BBC's Robin Hood is a big budget re-imagining of the classic tale with a unique blend of exhilarating action wit and romance all headed by a bright young cast of actors. Robin Hood delights as he fights the authority of the evil Sheriff of Nottingham with outrageous scams disguises tricks and ingenuity breathtaking archery and incredible swordplay. All the while he romances the heavenly Maid Marian and champions the poor with his band of merry men! This release features the third part of the first series