"Actor: Sessue Hayakawa"

• The Bridge on the River Kwai (UHD & BD - 2 DISCS) (NON UV) | Blu Ray | (04/12/2017) from £19.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Spectacularly produced, and the winner of seven Academy Awards® (1957), including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor (Alec Guinness), THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI continues to be one of the most memorable cinematic experiences of all time. Experience director David Lean's legendary classic like never before with this 60th anniversary edition.

• The Bridge On The River Kwai | DVD | (04/12/2000) from £4.65   |  Saving you £18.34 (394.41%)   |  RRP £22.99

  Based on the true story of the building of a bridge on the Burma railway by British prisoners-of-war held under a savage Japanese regime in World War II, The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) is one of the greatest war films ever made. The film received seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Director, Performance (Alex Guinness), for Sir Malcolm Arnold's superb music, and for the screenplay from the novel by Pierre Boulle (who also wrote Monkey Planet, the inspiration for Planet of the Apes). The story does take considerable liberties with history, including the addition of an American saboteur played by William Holden, and an entirely fictitious but superbly constructed and thrilling finale. Made on a vast scale, the film reinvented the war movie as something truly epic, establishing the cinematic beachhead for The Longest Day (1962), Patton (1970) and A Bridge Too Far (1977). It also proved a turning-point in director David Lean's career. Before he made such classic but conventionally scaled films as In Which We Serve (1942) and Hobson's Choice (1953). Afterwards there would only be four more films, but their names are Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Dr Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970) and A Passage to India (1984). On the DVD: Too often the best extras come attached to films that don't really warrant them. Not so here, where a truly great film has been given the attention it deserves. The first disc presents the film in the original extra-wide CinemaScope ratio of 2.55:1, in an anamorphically enhanced transfer which does maximum justice to the film's superb cinematography. The sound has been transferred from the original six-track magnetic elements into 5.1 Dolby Digital and far surpasses what many would expect from a 1950s' feature. The main bonus on the first disc is an isolated presentation of Malcolm Arnold's great Oscar-winning music score, in addition to which there is a trivia game, and maps and historical information linked to appropriate clips. The second disc contains a new, specially produced 53-minute "making of" documentary featuring many of those involved in the production of the movie. This gives a rich insight into the physical problems of making such a complex epic on location in Ceylon. Also included are the original trailer and two short promotional films from the time of release, one of which is narrated by star William Holden. Finally there is an "appreciation" by director John Milius, an extensive archive of movie posters and artwork, and a booklet that reproduces the text of the film's original 1957 brochure. --Gary S Dalkin

• Swiss Family Robinson | DVD | (29/03/2004) from £5.99   |  Saving you £9.00 (150.25%)   |  RRP £14.99

  A family fleeing from the despotic regime of Napoleon is chased off course by a band of pirates. They are then shipwrecked on a tropical island where they begin a new and adventurous life. Based on the book by Johann Wyss.

• Tokyo Joe | DVD | (26/05/2008) from £14.34   |  Saving you £-1.36 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Humphrey Bogart plays Saloonkeeper Joe Barrett in postwar Tokyo. With an interesting cast including Alexander Knox and an outstanding performance by Sessue Hayakawa (Bridge on the River Kwai) as the japanese gang lord. Florence Marly adds a european/international touch as White Russian Cabaret singer. The theme of postwar Japan is rarely touched on, and like Sam Fuller's 'House of Bamboo', Tokyo Joe takes a long, slow look at the underbelly of Japan's postwar milieu. Like Casablanca, this film has all the elements, haunting theme music, guns, girls and gangsters with a whiff of geopolitical intrigue.

• Tokyo Joe (Standard Edition) | Blu Ray | (22/04/2024) from £9.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Humphrey Bogart (Sirocco) stars with Alexander Knox (The Damned), and Florence Marly (Queen of Blood) star in Tokyo Joe, a post-war film noir tale of smuggling, treason, and blackmail. World War II veteran Joe Barrett (Bogart) returns to his Tokyo gambling den and finds that his wife, Trina (Marly), has remarried to American lawyer Mark (Knox). After learning that Trina was forced to broadcast Japanese propaganda, he finds himself blackmailed into assisting war criminals in order to protect her. Directed by Stuart Heisler (The Glass Key), Tokyo Joe features a powerful central performance from its iconic star, and also represented a return to Hollywood for former silent screen legend Sessue Hayakawa (The Bridge on the River Kwai). Product Features High Definition remaster Original mono audio Audio commentary with writer and film historian Nora Fiore (2022) Bertrand Tavernier on 'Tokyo Joe' (2017, 34 mins): archival appreciation by the celebrated filmmaker and critic A Superstar Returns (2022, 15 mins): archivist Tom Vincent assesses the career of actor Sessue Hayakawa, the silent-era star who made his return to Hollywood filmmaking with Tokyo Joe Second unit photography (1948, 11 mins): rare footage shot by second unit director Art Black and cameramen Joseph Biroc and Emil Oster Jr in Tokyo for use in the main feature The Negro Soldier (1944, 41 mins): WWII documentary film intended as a recruitment drive for African American enlistees, directed by Stuart Heisler and now preserved by the National Film Registry for its cultural and historical significance Jim Pines on 'The Negro Soldier' (2010, 41 mins): audio presentation by the author and lecturer, recorded following a screening of the film at London's BFI Southbank Image gallery: promotional and publicity material New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• David Lean Collection | DVD | (17/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  A collection of classic films from famed British director David Lean. Bridge On The River Kwai (1957): When British P.O.W.s build a vital railway bridge in enemy occupied Burma Allied commandos are assigned to destroy it in David Lean's epic World War II adventure The Bridge on the River Kwai. Spectacularly produced The Bridge on the River Kwai captured the imagination of the public and won seven 1957 Academy Awards including Best Picture Be

• The Bridge On The River Kwai | Blu Ray | (04/12/2017) from £19.99   |  Saving you £3.00 (15.01%)   |  RRP £22.99

  Based on the true story of the building of a bridge on the Burma railway by British prisoners-of-war held under a savage Japanese regime in World War II, The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) is one of the greatest war films ever made. The film received seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Director, Performance (Alex Guinness), for Sir Malcolm Arnold's superb music, and for the screenplay from the novel by Pierre Boulle (who also wrote Monkey Planet, the inspiration for Planet of the Apes). The story does take considerable liberties with history, including the addition of an American saboteur played by William Holden, and an entirely fictitious but superbly constructed and thrilling finale. Made on a vast scale, the film reinvented the war movie as something truly epic, establishing the cinematic beachhead for The Longest Day (1962), Patton (1970) and A Bridge Too Far (1977). It also proved a turning-point in director David Lean's career. Before he made such classic but conventionally scaled films as In Which We Serve (1942) and Hobson's Choice (1953). Afterwards there would only be four more films, but their names are Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Dr Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970) and A Passage to India (1984). On the DVD: Too often the best extras come attached to films that don't really warrant them. Not so here, where a truly great film has been given the attention it deserves. The first disc presents the film in the original extra-wide CinemaScope ratio of 2.55:1, in an anamorphically enhanced transfer which does maximum justice to the film's superb cinematography. The sound has been transferred from the original six-track magnetic elements into 5.1 Dolby Digital and far surpasses what many would expect from a 1950s' feature. The main bonus on the first disc is an isolated presentation of Malcolm Arnold's great Oscar-winning music score, in addition to which there is a trivia game, and maps and historical information linked to appropriate clips. The second disc contains a new, specially produced 53-minute "making of" documentary featuring many of those involved in the production of the movie. This gives a rich insight into the physical problems of making such a complex epic on location in Ceylon. Also included are the original trailer and two short promotional films from the time of release, one of which is narrated by star William Holden. Finally there is an "appreciation" by director John Milius, an extensive archive of movie posters and artwork, and a booklet that reproduces the text of the film's original 1957 brochure. --Gary S Dalkin

• Columbia Noir #5: Humphrey Bogart (Limited Edition) | Blu Ray | (27/06/2022) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Film List: Dead Reckoning (John Cromwell, 1947) Knock On Any Door (Nicholas Ray, 1949) Tokyo Joe (Stuart Heisler, 1949) Sirocco (Curtis Bernhardt, 1951) The Family Secret (Henry Levin, 1951) The Harder They Fall (Mark Robson, 1956) A fifth foray into the film noir output of Columbia Pictures, but, this time, with a twist. Not only does this volume bring together six more gems from the studio's archives, but it also serves as a showcase for the great Humphrey Bogart. Having established his stardom in the gangster pictures of the 1930s, Bogart fit easily into the world of film noir, where he was equally at home playing troubled servicemen, slick-talking lawyers, black marketeers, gambling den owners, or hard-up journalists. Columbia Noir #5: Humphrey Bogart brings together five of the iconic actor's starring vehicles: John Cromwell's Dead Reckoning, Nicholas Ray's Knock on Any Door, Stuart Heisler's Tokyo Joe, Curtis Bernhardt's Sirocco, and Mark Robson's The Harder They Fall, plus Henry Levin's The Family Secret, a rarity starring Lee J Cobb and John Derek that was produced by Bogart's Santana Pictures, an outfit that regularly delved into the seedy, shadowy world of noir. Featuring a stunning 4K restoration of The Harder They Fall, and with Sirocco and The Family Secret appearing on Blu-ray for the first time anywhere in the world, this stunning collection includes newly recorded commentaries and critical appreciations, archival documentaries and short films, and a 120-page book. Strictly limited to 6,000 numbered units. Product Features 4K restoration of The Harder They Fall HD presentations of Dead Reckoning, Knock on Any Door, Tokyo Joe, Sirocco and The Family Secret Original mono audio Audio commentary with film scholar and preservationist Alan K Rode on Dead Reckoning (2022) Audio commentary with writer and film historian Pamela Hutchinson on Knock on Any Door (2022) Audio commentary with writer and film historian Nora Fiore on Tokyo Joe (2022) Audio commentary with film historians Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson on Sirocco (2022) Audio commentary with professor and film scholar Jason A Ney on The Family Secret (2022) Audio commentary with critics and writers Glenn Kenny and Farran Smith Nehme on The Harder They Fall (2022) The South Bank Show: 'Bogart: Here's Looking at You, Kid' (1997): episode of the British arts television series devoted to the iconic actor Tony Rayns on 'Dead Reckoning' (2022): appreciation by the writer and film programmer Geoff Andrew on 'Knock on Any Door' (2022): the critic and programmer discusses Bogart and Nicholas Ray Bertrand Tavernier on 'Tokyo Joe' (2017): archival appreciation by the celebrated filmmaker and critic Tom Vincent on Sessue Hayakawa (2022): the film archivist looks at the career and stardom of the Tokyo Joe actor from the silent film era through to his Oscar-nominated role in The Bridge on the River Kwai Christina Newland on 'The Harder They Fall' (2022): the critic and writer talks Bogart, boxing and Budd Schulberg Bertrand Tavernier on 'The Harder They Fall' (2017): archival appreciation by the celebrated filmmaker and critic The Negro Soldier (1944): WWII documentary film intended as a recruitment drive for African American enlistees, directed by Stuart Heisler and now preserved by the National Film Registry for its cultural and historical significance Jim Pines on 'The Negro Soldier' (2010): audio presentation by the author and lecturer, recorded following a screening of the film at London's BFI Southbank The Negro Sailor (1945): documentary short film, inspired by the success of The Negro Soldier, directed by Henry Levin Watchtower Over Tomorrow (1945): documentary short film about the formation of the United Nations, directed by John Cromwell Tuesday in November (1945): documentary short on the US presidential campaign of 1944, on which Nicholas Ray served as assistant director That Justice Be Done (1945): documentary short on the Nuremberg Trials, written by Budd Schulberg The Big Moment (1954): short film produced by the United Jewish Appeal starring Knock on Any Door and The Family Secret actor John Derek Max Baer on Super 8: home cinema presentations of boxing matches featuring the prize fighter who acted in The Harder They Fall, including his famous bout with Primo Carnera that he would recreate in the film Theatrical trailer for Knock on Any Door Image galleries: publicity and promotional materials New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing Limited edition exclusive 120-page book with a new essay by Imogen Sara Smith, extensive archival articles and interviews, new writing on the various short films, and film credits World and UK premieres on Blu-ray Limited edition box set of 6,000 numbered units All extras subject to change

• Three Came Home | DVD | (07/03/2005) from £4.98   |  Saving you £-0.99 (N/A%)   |  RRP £3.99

  The true story of one woman's confinement in a World War II Japanese prison camp from the account by Agnes Newton Kieth. She and her British husband were separated when the Japanese invaded Borneo during WWII. Though the camp commander took an interest in her he could not prevent her torture starvation or humiliation by the guards....

• The Bridge On The River Kwai/The Guns Of Navarone/Das Boot - The Director's Cut | DVD | (01/10/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Bridge Over The River Kwai: Set in Burma during World War II the story tells of British P.O.Ws who are forced to build a large bridge for the Japanese while a British Commando team is sent to destroy it. Winner of seven Academy Awards. (Dir. David Lean 1957) Das Boot: Das Boot is a graphic and gripping tale that follows the daring patrol of U-96 one of the famed German U-Boats known as 'The Grey Wolves'. Prowling the North Atlantic they challenged the British Navy at every turn. The crew abroad the U-96 is portrayed in a desperate life-and-death struggle coping with life beneath the waves quickly gives way to terror when confronting the enemy... (Dir. Wolfgang Peterson 1981) The Guns Of Navarone: Exciting war film based on a novel by Alistair Maclean which tells of the attempts of a British raiding team to sabotage two giant German guns on a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. Carl Foreman brought Allistar MacLean's best-selling novel to the screen winning nominations for seven Academy Awards in 1961. (Dir. J. Lee Thompson 1961)

• Three Came Home | DVD | (19/05/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The true story of Agnes Newton Keith's imprisonment in several Japanese prisoner-of-war camps from 1941 to the end of WWII. Separated from her husband and with a young son to care for she has many difficulties to face.

• The Classic War Collection - Bridge On The River Kwai/Das Boot/Guns Of Navarone/All Quiet On The Western Front/Sands Of Iwo Jima | DVD | (02/06/2008) from £23.90   |  Saving you £11.09 (46.40%)   |  RRP £34.99

  This Box Set Includes: Bridge On The River Kwai (Dir. David Lean) (1957): Set in Burma during World War II the story tells of British P.O.Ws who are forced to build a large bridge for the Japanese while a British Commando team is sent to destroy it. Winner of seven Academy Awards. Das Boot (Dir. Wolfgang Peterson) (1981): Das Boot is a graphic and gripping tale that follows the daring patrol of U-96 one of the famed German U-Boats known as 'The Grey Wolves'. Prowling the North Atlantic they challenged the British Navy at every turn. The crew abroad the U-96 is portrayed in a desperate life-and-death struggle coping with life beneath the waves quickly gives way to terror when confronting the enemy... Guns Of Navarone (Dir. J. Lee Thompson) (1961): Exciting war film based on a novel by Alistair Maclean which tells of the attempts of a British raiding team to sabotage two giant German guns on a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. Carl Foreman brought Allistar MacLean's best-selling novel to the screen winning nominations for seven Academy Awards in 1961. All Quiet On The Western Front (Dir. Delbert Mann) (1980): A devastating story of war and a generation destroyed. In 1914 a group of German schoolboys idealistic and inflamed with youthful patriotism set off to fight in the ""glorious"" war. During their brutal basic training disenchantment begins. Then boarding a train for the front they see the wounded being rushed back to the hospitals and they begin to grasp the grim reality of war. On their first night in action they come under heavy attack. In the trenches they begin to fall. Their youth is stripped away by the violence and the boys become as sullen as veterans. Sands Of Iwo Jima (Dir. Allan Dwan) (1949): Blazing action and spectacle are on the menu as battle-toughened sergeant John M Stryker (John Wayne) prepares a group of soldiers for action in the Pacific. The men have got their biggest test ahead on Iwo Jima where they have to inch their way up Mt. Suribachi under constant Japanese fire.

• The Bridge on the River Kwai/Das Boot/The Guns of Navarone | DVD | (02/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Bridge Over The River Kwai: Set in Burma during World War II the story tells of British P.O.Ws who are forced to build a large bridge for the Japanese while a British Commando team is sent to destroy it. Winner of seven Academy Awards. (Dir. David Lean 1957) Das Boot: Das Boot is a graphic and gripping tale that follows the daring patrol of U-96 one of the famed German U-Boats known as 'The Grey Wolves'. Prowling the North Atlantic they challenged the British Navy at every turn. The crew abroad the U-96 is portrayed in a desperate life-and-death struggle coping with life beneath the waves quickly gives way to terror when confronting the enemy... (Dir. Wolfgang Peterson 1981) The Guns Of Navarone: Exciting war film based on a novel by Alistair Maclean which tells of the attempts of a British raiding team to sabotage two giant German guns on a Greek island in the Aegean Sea. Carl Foreman brought Allistar MacLean's best-selling novel to the screen winning nominations for seven Academy Awards in 1961. (Dir. J. Lee Thompson 1961)

• Swiss Family Robinson | DVD | (05/02/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  The Disney touch is all over this grand, colourful version of the Johann Wyss adventure of a European family setting off for the new world of New Guinea. The film opens on a ship jostled and torn by a raging storm while a family struggles to make it through alive. Tossed into a reef near a deserted tropical island, father John Mills takes charge and the family soon turns their island prison into a veritable paradise. Their multi-level tree house, built in record time, is complete with running water and a working pipe organ scavenged from the ship, while their grand yard is abloom in English roses. As a tale of hardship and pioneer pluck it's pure fantasy, but as entertainment it's energetic and appealing. The island is impossibly populated by ostriches, zebras, lions and elephants, a private zoo that delights the youngest boy and offers plenty of comic relief. The two older brothers discover even wilder life when they rescue the prisoner of oriental pirates (led by hard-bitten Sessue Hayakawa). There's little real danger anywhere in the film: even the climactic battle with the pirates is a cartoonish affair, with coconut bombs and non-lethal booby traps, until the final desperate, deadly moments. Hardly a faithful adaptation of the novel, but a lush, beautifully shot film and an entertaining adventure safe for all ages. Dorothy McGuire co-stars as the proper, worry-prone mother. --Sean Axmaker

• Tokyo Joe | DVD | (26/05/2008) from £11.15   |  Saving you £-1.16 (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Humphrey Bogart plays Saloonkeeper Joe Barrett in postwar Tokyo. With an interesting cast including Alexander Knox and an outstanding performance by Sessue Hayakawa (Bridge on the River Kwai) as the japanese gang lord. Florence Marly adds a european/international touch as White Russian Cabaret singer. The theme of postwar Japan is rarely touched on, and like Sam Fuller's 'House of Bamboo', Tokyo Joe takes a long, slow look at the underbelly of Japan's postwar milieu. Like Casablanca, this film has all the elements, haunting theme music, guns, girls and gangsters with a whiff of geopolitical intrigue.

• The Bridge on the River Kwai (65th Anniversary Limited Edition) | Blu Ray | (07/06/2022) from £79.05   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

• The Bridge On The River Kwai - The Reel Collection | DVD | (02/10/2006) from £19.95   |  Saving you £-6.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Set in Burma during World War II the story tells of British P.O.Ws who are forced to build a large bridge for the Japanese while a British Commando team is sent to destroy it. Winner of seven Academy Awards

• Three Came Home | DVD | (07/03/2005) from £6.46   |  Saving you £-1.47 (-29.50%)   |  RRP £4.99

  A true story based on the life of author Agnes Newton Keith an American woman caught up in the Japanese invasion of Borneo in 1942. She is separated from her British husband and forced to endure three years of hell being switched from one Japanese prison camp to another.

• The Bridge On The River Kwai | DVD | (08/08/2005) from £9.99   |  Saving you £3.00 (30.03%)   |  RRP £12.99

  When British P.O.W.s build a vital railway bridge in enemy occupied Burma Allied commandos are assigned to destroy it in David Lean's epic World War II adventure The Bridge on the River Kwai. Spectacularly produced The Bridge on the River Kwai captured the imagination of the public and won seven 1957 Academy Awards including Best Picture Best Actor (Alec Guinness) and Best Director. Even its theme song an old WWI whistling tune the ""Colonel Bogey March"" became