"Director: Herbert Ross"

• Funny Girl / Funny Lady | DVD | (04/03/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Like giant monuments to good old-fashioned star quality, Funny Girl (1968) and Funny Lady (1975) hark back to the golden days of American vaudeville, while essentially celebrating one of the great, egotistical show-business talents of all time. Viewed end to end, these two films, which tell the story of Ziegfeld comedienne Fanny Brice, run for almost five hours. That's a lot of biopic. But with the greatest of respect to Brice, undoubtedly a formidable star of her time, the talent really in the spotlight here belongs to Barbra Streisand. Streisand created the role of Fanny Brice in the 1964 Broadway stage musical and her performance for the big screen is a tour de force, fully deserving the Best Actress Oscar which she received. As a biopic, Funny Girl is superior fare, full of sumptuous production numbers. Brice's glory days are explored against the background of her turbulent private life with her flawed playboy husband Nicky Arnstein (a sympathetic performance from Omar Sharif) with considerable attention to the details of her inner turmoil. More rambling and less cohesive, Funny Lady finds Fanny divorced but still in love with Arnstein (Sharif also revisiting his role), drifting into marriage number two with uncouth songwriter and impresario Billy Rose (the excellent James Caan), her successful career again juxtaposed with a less than happy personal life. Combined, both films measure Streisand's rise to greatness. In Funny Girl, the bravura of the performance as a whole masks occasional gaucheness, while if Funny Lady is the less impressive picture overall, it still marks how far she has developed as a screen actress. The rough edges are gone, replaced by a sophisticated poise and the sense of a talent that has come to terms with itself. And of course throughout she is superb in the musical numbers, which include her theme song "People" and the classic belter "Don't Rain on my Parade", as well as Brice's classic torch song, "My Man". On the DVD: this package of tremendous, old-fashioned entertainment takes the viewer back to pre-multiplex days when going to the cinema was an event you might dress up for. Funny Lady's soundtrack includes a pre-picture "Overture" to give you time to unwrap the chocolates. You really need some plush velvet curtains to swing back across the television screen. Then, guaranteeing a twinge of nostalgia, there's an intermission break. Both films are presented in their original widescreen 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Dolby Digital 5.0 (Funny Girl) and LCR (Funny Lady) soundtracks do justice to Streisand's lung power. The first disc offers the most interesting extras, including a couple of featurettes about Streisand. Both discs provide standard filmographies and song highlights so Streisand addicts can skip between numbers to their hearts' content.--Piers Ford

• Billy Elliot/ Steel Magnolias/Erin Brockovich | DVD | (02/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Billy Elliot: Inside every one of us is a special talent waiting to come out. The trick is finding it. Starring Julie Walters and newcomer Jamie Bell the film (based on a real-life story) follows the progress of little Billy Elliot a motherless 11 year-old from a poor Durham pit village. When young Billy chooses ballet classes over boxing lessons his life is changed forever. He decides to keep the lessons secret from his father a coal miner but when his ballet instructor persuades him to try out for the Royal Ballet School in London Billy must make the choice between family responsibilities and his dreams... Billy Elliot received plenty of recognition at the Academy Awards picking up nominations for Best Supporting Actress Best Director and Best Screenplay. (Dir. Stephen Daldry 2000) Steel Magnolia's: A beautiful bittersweet comedy set in deep south Louisiana 'Steel Magnolias' unites talents of America's finest actresses as six very special friends bonded together by mutual triumphs and tragedies. Despite their differences beautiful Shelby (Julia Roberts) her strong-willed mother M'Lynn (Sally Field) beauty parlour owner Truvy (Dolly Parton) elegant wealthy widow Clairee (Olympia Dukakis) sharp tongued Ouiser (Shirley MacLaine) and mousey newcomer Anelle (Daryl Hannah) enjoy a friendship that spans the boundaries of age and status. Sharing each other's strength and loyalty they face their greatest fears and highest hopes with dry wit and a self-deprecating style... (Dir. Herbert Ross 1989) Erin Brockovich: She brought a small town to its feet and a huge corporation to its knees. A research assistant (Roberts) helps an attorney (Finney) in a lawsuit against a large utility company blamed for causing an outbreak of cancer and other illnesses in a small community. (Dir. Steven Soderbergh 2000)

• Undercover Blues | DVD | (14/07/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Jeff and Jane Blue are former FBI and CIA spies on maternity leave and vacationing in New Orleans with their adorable 6-month-old daughter. Despite their desire to enjoy a sabbatical they get drawn into a case against an old nemesis...

• The Seven Per Cent Solution | DVD | (13/10/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £7.99

  Dr. Watson tricks Sherlock Holmes into travelling to Vienna in order to place him in the care of Sigmund Freud after his abuse of cocaine starts to spiral out of control. While Holmes believes he is solving a kidnapping Freud delves into his subconscious.

• Saturday Night Fever / Save The Last Dance / Footloose / Flashdance | DVD | (18/10/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  The Definitive Dance Collection! 4 Discs of pure dancing magic... Footloose: Teenager Ren MacCormack sends ripples through Bomont a small Midwestern town that could stand some shaking up when he arrives from Chicago with his mother Ethel to settle with her relatives. The adults tend to view him with suspicion as a possible contaminant from the outer world. Some of his male peers eye him as a threat and most of the girls just plain eye him. It's a tough time for Ren

• Rewind To The 80s Collection | DVD | (21/09/2009) from £34.95   |  Saving you £25.04 (71.65%)   |  RRP £59.99

  Rewind To The 80's Collection (10 Disc)

• The Owl And The Pussycat | DVD | (02/12/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Felix and Doris live in the same apartment building. His incessant typing bothers her and her stream of gentlemen callers bothers him. Felix informs their landlord of her activities so Doris then moves in on him. They both get thrown out and move in with a friend untill their antics drive him out! Doris and Felix then decide to put their theory into practise but do opposites attract?

• California Suite | DVD | (14/01/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  California Street' is a classic Neil Simon comedy that takes place at the Beverly Hills Hotel during the weekend of the Academy Awards celebration. Herb Ross's film follows the misadventures of four groups of guests including a divorced couple battling over the custody of their daughter (Jane Fonda and Alan Alda) a husband who gets caught with a hooker in his room by his wife (Walter Matthau and Elaine May) a British actress nominated for an Oscar and her straying gay husband (Maggie Smith and Michael Caine) and two competing doctors and their wives forced to share a hotel room (Bill Cosby and Richard Pryor).

• Stephen Sondheim - Follies In Concert | DVD | (10/04/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  After first being performed in 1971 the magic was recreated 14 years later by an unparalleled gathering of stage and screen luminaries - Carol Burnett Mandy Patinkin Elaine Stritch Lee Remick and George Hearn. Our journey begins days before the show during the rehearsals and ends in a glittering finale. Tracks include 'Broadway Baby' 'One More Kiss' and 'Losing My Mind'.

• Far and Away/Steel Magnolias/Stepmom | DVD | (26/12/2006) from £29.99   |  Saving you £-15.00 (-100.10%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Far And Away (Dir. Ron Howard 1992): Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman star in this critically acclaimed romantic adventure from director Ron Howard. This breathtaking epic opens on the West Coast of Ireland 1892. Joseph Donelly (Cruise) a poor tenant farmer is determined to bring justice to an oppressive landlord. Instead he finds himself accompanying the landlord's daughter Shannon (Kidman) to America in a quest for land. Arriving in Boston Joseph finds a place for them to live while proving a natural at bare-fisted boxing. But his triumph is short-lived as he and Shannon are thrown out into the bitter cold. Joseph sets off for work on the railroad until a passing wagon train reminds him of his original goal to possess his own land. Preparing to stake his claim in the new territory he runs into Shannon who is unhappily reunited with her former fiance. In the excitement of the Oklahoma land rush they realise their dreams of land and life together. Steel Magnolias (Dir. Herbert Ross 1989): A beautiful bittersweet comedy set in deep south Louisiana Steel Magnolias unites talents of America's finest actresses as six very special friends bonded together by mutual triumphs and tragedies. Despite their differences beautiful Shelby (Julia Roberts) her strong-willed mother M'Lynn (Sally Field) beauty parlour owner Truvy (Dolly Parton) elegant wealthy widow Clairee (Olympia Dukakis) sharp tongued Ouiser (Shirley MacLaine) and mousey newcomer Anelle (Daryl Hannah) enjoy a friendship that spans the boundaries of age and status. Sharing each other's strength and loyalty they face their greatest fears and highest hopes with dry wit and a self-deprecating style... Stepmom (Dir. Chris Columbus 1998): Jackie (Susan Sarandon) is a divorced mother of two. Isabel (Julia Roberts) is the career minded girlfriend of Jackie's ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris) forced into the role of unwelcome stepmother to their children. It is the universal dilemma of the 'non-traditional family' they all love the children but the complex interplay between parents step-parents step-children ex-spouses and significant others is decidedly tricky. But when Jackie discovers she is ill both women realise they must put aside their differences to find a common ground and celebrate life to the fullest while they have the chance.

• Steel Magnolias / Circle Of Friends / Legends OF The Fall | DVD | (06/09/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Legends Of The Fall: Colonel William Ludlow (Sir Anthony Hopkins) built a ranch in the remote foothills of the Montana Rockies where he brought up his three sons away from the carnage of the Indian wars. Alfred (Aidan Quinn) the eldest is dutiful and reserved Samuel (Henry Thomas) the beloved youngest is compassionate and idealistic while the middle brother Tristan (Brad Pitt) has a wild untameable spirit. Into this masculine world enters Susannah Finncannon (Julia Ormond) a beautiful intelligent woman who stirs a passion and rivalry in all three brothers that will change the course of their lives and shape their destinies forever. From the rugged prairie lands of 19th Century America to the trenches of World War I and the changing world beyond 'Legends of the Fall' is a sweeping star-studded epic - a passionate journey into the darkest secrets of love betrayal and the unbreakable bonds of blood. Steel Magnolias: A beautiful bittersweet comedy set in deep south Louisiana 'Steel Magnolias' unites talents of America's finest actresses as six very special friends bonded together by mutual triumphs and tragedies. Despite their differences beautiful Shelby (Julia Roberts) her strong-willed mother M'Lynn (Sally Field) beauty parlour owner Truvy (Dolly Parton) elegant wealthy widow Clairee (Olympia Dukakis) sharp tongued Ouiser (Shirley MacLaine) and mousey newcomer Anelle (Daryl Hannah) enjoy a friendship that spans the boundaries of age and status. Sharing each other's strength and loyalty they face their greatest fears and highest hopes with dry wit and a self-deprecating style... Circle Of Friends: Circle Of Friends is a story of first love first kisses and first betrayals. Three girlhood friends are re-united in college ready to experience life to the fullest. Eve an orphan quiet and observant; Nan socially and sexually precocious; and Benny (Minnie Driver) a modest self-conscious dreamer. It doesn't take long for them all in their exciting new world to meet men and fall in love. But Benny unsure of herself and scared of rejection follows her heart out on a limb for the brightest best-looking boy on the campus (Chris O'Donnell). Will her shyly adventurous spirit be rewarded? One thing is sure. Whatever happens in affairs of the heart Benny will always rely on the people she loves and the people who love her in her Circle Of Friends.

• Stepmom/Steel Magnolias/Lorenzo's Oil | DVD | (21/01/2008) from £17.95   |  Saving you £-2.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Lorenzo's Oil: A five-year-old boy Lorenzo Odone is diagnosed as having a brain disease known as ALD a condition so rare that no medical body has undertaken to research the ailment and develop a cure. Desperate Lorenzo's parents (Nolte and Sarandon) embark on a desperate search for a cure and must battle the medical establishment when they make astounding progress using humble olive oil... Stepmom: Jackie (Susan Sarandon) is a divorced mother of two. Isabel (Julia Roberts) is the career minded girlfriend of Jackie's ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris) forced into the role of unwelcome stepmother to their children. It is the universal dilemma of the 'non-traditional family' they all love the children but the complex interplay between parents step-parents step-children ex-spouses and significant others is decidedly tricky. But when Jackie discovers she is ill both women realise they must put aside their differences to find a common ground and celebrate life to the fullest while they have the chance. Steel Magnolias: Six divas of the silver screen - Sally Field Dolly Parton Shirley MacLaine Daryl Hannah Olympia Dukakis and Julia Roberts - come together as bosom buddies in this hilarious and heartwarming story of life love and loss in a small Louisiana Parish. At The center of the group is Shelby Eatenton (Julia Roberts) newly married and joyfully pregnant despite the fact that her diabetes could make childbirth life-threatening. Terrified and angry at the possibility of losing her only daughter M'Lynn Eatenton (Sally Field) looks to her four closest friends for strength and laughter as she battles her deepest fears of death in order to join Shelby in celebrating the miracle of new life.

• True Colors | DVD | (16/02/2004) from £12.98   |  Saving you £3.01 (23.19%)   |  RRP £15.99

  John Cusack and James Spader star in this dramatic absorbing story of two friends who move from law school to Washington's corridors of power. Cusack plays Peter a lower-class go-getter who climbs to the position of congressman by betraying everyone who ever trusted him including his idealistic blue-blood pal Tim. Tim of course would never cross a friend. Unless it was to avenge his own betrayal...

• Julia Roberts - In The Frame Collection | DVD | (29/10/2007) from £25.90   |  Saving you £-0.91 (-3.60%)   |  RRP £24.99

  This box set features the following films: Steel Magnolias (Dir. Herbert Ross) (1989): Despite their differences beautiful Shelby (Julia Roberts) her strong-willed mother M'Lynn (Sally Field) beauty parlour owner Truvy (Dolly Parton) elegant wealthy widow Clairee (Olympia Dukakis) sharp tongued Ouiser (Shirley MacLaine) and mousey newcomer Anelle (Daryl Hannah) enjoy a friendship that spans the boundaries of age and status. Erin Brokovich (Dir. Steven Soderbergh) (2000): A real woman. A real story. A real triumph. Julia Roberts stars as Erin Brockovich a feisty young mother who fought for justice any way she knew how. Desperate for a job to support herself and her three children she convinces attorney Ed Masry (Albert Finney) to hire her and promptly stumbles upon a monumental law case against a giant corporation. Now Erin's determined to take on this powerful adversary even though no law firm has dared to do it before. My Best Friend's Wedding (Dir. P.J. Hogan) (1997): Roberts dazzles as commitment-shy Julianne Potter who suddenly realises she is in love with her best friend Michael (Mulroney). There's just one catch - he's about to marry someone else. America's Sweethearts (Dir. Joe Roth) (): Gwen (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Eddie (John Cusack) are America's Sweethearts two wildly popular celebrities who share their love on and off the screen in this farcical romantic comedy. A messy breakup sends Eddie to a New Age Hollywood healing center and Gwen into the arms of her current affair a Spanish bohunk short on charm (Hank Azaria). When their relationship troubles begin to threaten their superstar celebrity status and the release of their final film together the studio heads call in legendary press agent Lee Phillips (Billy Crystal) to helm the troubled film's press junket. Julia Roberts costars as Kiki Gwen's personal assistant and sister who has always lived to please her demanding diva sister. Once overweight and severely self-conscious Kiki's life revolves around her sister's ridiculous demands in this send up of ego-driven movie star vanity. Phillips manages to gather the warring superstars together at a remote desert location for the all important press junket where his best laid plans begin to unravel in this hysterical parody of the movie industry replete with neurotic actors eccentric crazed directors (Christopher Walken in a gem of a cameo) maniacal studio heads and gossip-starved press who will do anything or anyone for the next big story. Mary Reilly (Dir. Stephen Frears) (1996): Mary (Julia Roberts) is sensitive to the needs and weaknesses of her master Dr Henry Jekyll (John Malkovich) and is prepared to do almost anything for him. Her trust is a blessing as the doctor embarks on a new dangerous experiment - one that will bring about a meeting between Mary and Dr Jekyll's sinister assistant Mr Hyde. Although Mary remains devoted to her brilliant but rather reserved employer she finds herself attracted to the charms of the mysterious Mr Hyde. Together Mary and Mr Hyde share a terrible secret that will cast both fear and danger on the Jekyll household. Stepmom (Dir. Chris Columbus) (1998): Jackie (Susan Sarandon) is a divorced mother of two. Isabel (Julia Roberts) is the career minded girlfriend of Jackie's ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris) forced into the role of unwelcome stepmother to their children. But when Jackie discovers she is ill both women realise they must put aside their differences to find a common ground and celebrate life to the fullest!

• The Secret of My Success | DVD | (04/04/2016) from £6.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Derivative fluff from 1987, The Secret of My Success is made tolerable by its bawdy exuberance and an appealing performance by Michael J Fox, who was still enjoying TV stardom and the career momentum he earned by travelling Back to the Future. Here he plays a Kansas farm boy who dreams of scoring big in New York City... but reality turns out to be brutal to his ambition. When his uncle (Richard Jordan) gives him a mail-room job in the high-rise headquarters of a major corporation, Fox occupies an empty office and poses as a young executive, winning the attention of a lovely young colleague (Helen Slater) and having an affair with his boss's wife (Margaret Whitton). Sporadically amusing as a yuppie comedy and rather off-putting as a wannabe sex farce, the film's still recommendable for its lively cast and a breezy style that almost succeeds in updating the conventions of vintage screwball comedy. Whitton is a standout performer here, so you may wonder why her comedic talent has been underrated, apart from a good role in the first two Major League movies. This may be little more than a big-screen sitcom, but it's not without its charms. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

• Footloose | DVD | (31/10/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  The music is on his side. Teenager Ren MacCormack sends ripples through Bomont a small Midwestern town that could stand some shaking up when he arrives from Chicago with his mother Ethel to settle with her relatives. The adults tend to view him with suspicion as a possible contaminant from the outer world. Some of his male peers eye him as a threat and most of the girls just plain eye him. It's a tough time for Ren whose father deserted him and his mother leaving them

• Legends of the Fall/Steel Magnolias | DVD | (27/09/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £8.99

  Legends Of The Fall: Colonel William Ludlow (Anthony Hopkins) built a ranch in the remote foothills of the Montana Rockies, raising his three sons away from the carnage of the Indian wars.
  
  Alfred (Aidan Quinn), the eldest, is dutiful and reserved, Samuel (Henry Thomas), the beloved youngest, is compassionate and idealistic, and middle brother Tristan (Brad Pitt) has a wild and untameable spirit. Into this masculine world enters Susannah Finncannon (Julia Ormond), a beautiful, intellig...

• Funny Lady | DVD | (01/01/1980) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Audio: English, French, Italian. Subtitles: Czech, English, French.