"Director: Mike Nichols"

• Postcards From The Edge | DVD | (08/03/2004) from £4.19   |  Saving you £1.80 (30.10%)   |  RRP £5.99

  A film by Mike Nichols of Carrie Fisher's semi-autobiographical novel, Postcards from the Edge is an intermittently hilarious, occasionally tear-stained account of an actress' struggle with addiction and with her competitive star mother. Meryl Streep turns in yet another flawlessly perfect performance as Suzanne, who is coping with cleaning up while making yet another idiot cop film. Shirley Maclaine is effective and overpowering as her hard-drinking Old Hollywood star mother perpetually trying to remould her daughter, singing Sondheim songs at parties, showing off her still-perfect legs and occasionally driving into trees. Among the many guest stars, Dennis Quaid is self-effacingly unpleasant as an unreliable boyfriend, Gene Hackman charismatic as a fatherly director and Annette Benning impressive in a cameo as a starlet rival. Nichols' standard slickness is very much on display here; this is perhaps too obviously manipulative a film in which the emotional detail is never quite as impressive as the central performances and script deserve. On the DVD: The DVD takes the rather subversive risk of giving the commentary role to Carrie Fisher, who discusses entertainingly how the screenplay evolved from her original novel, occasionally making clear that certain sentimentalisations of the characters were not her idea; she argues coherently that the film makes Meryl Streep's character a little too much the martyr. She also gives us a lot of faintly scurrilous Hollywood and family gossip. It also provides the theatrical trailer and filmographies for the director and major players. --Roz Kaveney

• Primary Colors | DVD | (03/08/2009) from £5.38   |  Saving you £10.61 (197.21%)   |  RRP £15.99

  John Travolta stars as Jack Stanton a presidential hopeful whose campaign is challenged by dual dilemmas: how to squelch a scandal involving the candidate's alleged sex with an underage girl and how to handle information that could potentially ruin Stanton's opponent (superbly played by Larry Hagman). Stanton's wife (Emma Thompson) stands by her man despite awareness of his infidelities but his loyal campaign planners (played by Billy Bob Thornton Maura Tierney and promising newc

• Closer | Blu Ray | (07/05/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen star in this bitingly funny and honest look at modern relaltionships.

• The Birdcage | Blu Ray | (17/04/2019) from £7.99   |  Saving you £5.00 (62.58%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The great improvisational comedy team of Mike Nichols and Elaine May reunited to (respectively) direct and write this update of the French comedy La Cage Aux Folles. Robin Williams stars as a gay Miami nightclub owner who is forced to play it straight and ask his drag-queen partner (Nathan Lane) to hide out when Williams's son invites his prospective--and highly conservative--in-laws and fiancée to a meet-and-greet dinner party. Gene Hackman and Dianne Wiest play the straight-laced senator and his wife, and Calista Flockhart (from television's Ally McBeal) plays their daughter in a culture-clash with outrageous consequences. May's witty screenplay incorporates some pointed observations about the political landscape of the 1990s and takes a sensitive approach to the comedy's underlying drama. Topping off the action is Hank Azaria in a scene-stealing role as Williams's and Lane's flamboyant housekeeper, "Agador Spartacus." --Jeff Shannon

• Wolf/Vampires/Frankenstein | DVD | (02/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  John Carpenter's Vampires: In the blood-chilling tradition of Halloween and Village Of The Damned comes John Carpenter's unique vision of the ultimate killing machines vampires. ""Forget everything you've ever heard about vampires"" warns Jack Crow (James Woods) the leader of Team Crow a relentless group of mercenary vampire slayers. When master Vampire Valek (Thomas Ian Griffith) decimates Jack's entire team Crow and the sole team survivor Montoya (Daniel Baldwin) set out in pursuit. Breaking all the rules Crow and Montoya take one of Valek's victims hostage. The beautiful prostitute (Sheryl Lee) is their sole psychic link to Valek and through her senses they will track down the leader of the undead. As Valek nears the climax of his 600 year search for the Berziers cross Jack and the new Team Crow do everything humanly possible to prevent him from possessing the only thing that can grant him and all vampires the omnipotent power to walk in the daylight... (Dir. John Carpenter 1998) Frankenstein: It is the late 18th Century. After the death of his beloved mother young Victor Frankenstein leaves his father and Elizabeth the adopted sister he passionately loves to attend university. Here he becomes obsessed with the teachings of Professor Walman who believes that living creatures can actually be created from dead matter. One electrifying night Frankenstein's efforts are rewarded as his Creature struggles to life. Alone despised and driven by a rage of emotional agony it sets off to find its maker. And so begins the nightmare that will engulf Victor Frankenstein... (Dir. Kenneth Branagh 1994) Wolf: Driving through a stormy night a wolf runs in front of Will Randall's car. Checking to see if it is okay Will (Nicholson) is bitten and the wolf disappears into the night. From this moment on Will begins to change in subtle ways that he cannot explain his senses quicken and he becomes dynamic and adventurous in every aspect of his life. However Will's new-found lust for life has a price and he finds it increasingly difficult to contain the wild and predatorial spirit that is also growing within him... Starring Jack Nicholson Michelle Pfeiffer and James Spader Wolf is a supernatural tale with a delicious modern twist. Beware: the animal is out! (Dir. Mike Nichols 1994)

• Charlie Wilson s War | Blu Ray | (26/06/2017) from £7.99   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  A drama based on a Texas congressman Charlie Wilson's covert dealings in Afghanistan, where his efforts to assist rebels in their war with the Soviets have some unforeseen and long-reaching effects.

• Silkwood | DVD | (08/04/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  As a tale of self-discovery, Silkwood, Mike Nichols' 1982 biopic of the plutonium factory worker who uncovered negligence and dangerous practices at the heart of her employer's company, works well enough. Karen Silkwood (Meryl Streep) is no saint. She drinks, cheerfully gets 'em out for the boys, has left her husband and kids and lives in a curious ménage à trois with her lover, (Kurt Russell) and their lesbian friend (Cher). But, through her own dawning suspicions, she is drawn into union activism and embarks on a crusade to expose the rottenness of her paymasters, only to die in a mysterious car crash. And here is the flaw. The film can't decide whether it's quirky soap opera, a campaigning blow for the anti-nuclear lobby or an allegory for the conflict between the rights of the individual and the demands of the corporate giant. It stops short of providing some important conclusions about what really happened to its central character, and why. Streep is fine though, injecting her character with a studied mixture of innate intelligence and trailer park trash. Russell offers solid support and Cher is outstanding as housemate Dolly Pelliker. Their performances give Silkwood its heart as a powerful human drama. On the DVD: Silkwood is well-served on this DVD release by sharp picture and sound quality (Georges Delerue's poignantly jaunty country and western soundtrack benefits in particular), but the extras are static and add little to the package apart from a strictly "budget" feel: standard biographies of the stars and director with some pretty pointless trivia facts, and a brief history of the production. There's nothing here that even the most generalist of film fans won't already know. A director's commentary explaining why the film loses its bottle in the final reel would be more interesting. --Piers Ford

• Wolf | DVD | (01/10/1999) from £9.98   |  Saving you £-3.99 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Sophisticated to a point, this well-executed wolf-man tale works due to its clever setting and enormous star power. We all know Jack Nicholson can go nuts but the script makes his character aware of his changes, sometimes for the better, early on. The setting, a publishing house in the middle of a takeover, gives the characters dramatic life before the horror elements kicks in. A senior editor about to get the boot, Nicholson's character becomes a new man after being bitten by a wolf. He takes on challenges at work, lives a more robust life and attracts a new love. But will his new-found energy consume him? Director Mike Nicholson keeps the action alive in the first half but the film peters out at the end with cheap theatrics and the overuse of slow motion. Michelle Pfeiffer has little to do as simply the love interest with a grittier than average personality. Better is James Spader as a smarmy colleague. Nicholson is in fine form, relying on his keen gift to spark interest (a twitch of the head, a look in the eyes), instead of heavy doses of movie make-up. Giuseppe Rotunno's sweeping camerawork sets the mood quite well. Wolf is easy to recommend, with the added feature it's hardly gratuitous. --Doug Thomas

• Wolf (Blu Ray) | Blu Ray | (20/11/2017) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Sophisticated to a point, this well-executed wolf-man tale works due to its clever setting and enormous star power. We all know Jack Nicholson can go nuts but the script makes his character aware of his changes, sometimes for the better, early on. The setting, a publishing house in the middle of a takeover, gives the characters dramatic life before the horror elements kicks in. A senior editor about to get the boot, Nicholson's character becomes a new man after being bitten by a wolf. He takes on challenges at work, lives a more robust life and attracts a new love. But will his new-found energy consume him? Director Mike Nicholson keeps the action alive in the first half but the film peters out at the end with cheap theatrics and the overuse of slow motion. Michelle Pfeiffer has little to do as simply the love interest with a grittier than average personality. Better is James Spader as a smarmy colleague. Nicholson is in fine form, relying on his keen gift to spark interest (a twitch of the head, a look in the eyes), instead of heavy doses of movie make-up. Giuseppe Rotunno's sweeping camerawork sets the mood quite well. Wolf is easy to recommend, with the added feature it's hardly gratuitous. --Doug Thomas

• The Graduate | Blu Ray | (13/01/2014) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £22.99

  Mike Nichols directs this 1960s comedy drama starring Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft and Katharine Ross. After graduating from college, Ben Braddock (Hoffman) returns to his wealthy parents' South Californian home unsure of what he wants to do next. Feeling pressurised to get on with his life, the young Braddock escapes into an aimless affair with Mrs Robinson (Bancroft), an older, married woman and friend of the family. The pair meet regularly, with neither expecting anything serious from the...

• Regarding Henry | DVD | (06/10/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Ruthless lawyer Henry Turner is left an amnesiac after being shot when caught up in a store robbery. Trying to rebuild his life Henry must learn to walk again tie his shoelaces and become a better husband...

• Harrison Ford Collection | DVD | (06/10/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  Titles Comprise: Witness: When a young Amish woman (McGillis) and her son (Haas) are caught up in the murder of an undercover narcotics agent their unlikely savior proves to be the worldly and cynical Philadelphia detective John Book. Harrison Ford is sensational as Book the cop who runs head-on into the non-violent world of a Pennsylvania Amish community. The end result is an action-packed struggle of life and death interwoven with a sensitive undercurrent of caring and forbidden love. K-19: The Widowmaker Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson star in a thrilling action-drama inspired by the true story of a Soviet submarine crew trying to save its vessel from a nuclear meltdown - and avert global war. Clear And Present Danger: When his mentor Admiral James Greer (James Earl Jones) becomes gravely ill Ryan is appointed acting CIA Deputy Director of Intelligence. His first assignment: investigate the murder of one of the President's friends a prominent US businessman with secret ties to Colombian drug cartels. Unbeknownst to Ryan the CIA has already dispatched a deadly field operative (Willem Dafoe) to lead a paramilitary force against the Colombian drug lords. Caught in the crossfire Ryan takes matters into his own hands risking his career and life for the only cause he still believes in - the truth. Patriot Games: His days as an intelligence agent behind him former CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Harrison Ford) has traveled to London on vacation with his wife and daughter. Meeting his family outside of Buckingham Palace Ryan is caught in the middle of a terrorist attack on a member of the Royal Family. Ryan helps to thwart the assailants and becomes a local hero but his courageous act marks him as a target in the sights of the terrorist whose brother he killed. Now he must return to action for the most vital assignment of his life: to save his family. Sabrina: 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 ruthlessness. He courts Sabrina intending to drop her when the deal closes. Will the world's only living heart donor discover his heart? Regarding Henry: Ruthless lawyer Henry Turner is left an amnesiac after being shot when caught up in a store robbery. Trying to rebuild his life Henry must learn to walk again tie his shoelaces and become a better husband...

• The Fortune | DVD | (01/08/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  The early 1900's with its Mann-Act (disallowing women to be transported across State lines for immoral reasons) brings a married man to devise a scheme for taking his upper-class girlfriend away with him... he simply has her marry his unmarried buddy. However, it doesn't take very long before both men start laying claim to her affection... until, that is, she's about to be cut out of her parent's fortune. So, a new scheme is devised, which only adds to their problems...

• The Fortune (Blu-Ray) | Blu Ray | (22/01/2018) from £17.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  This high-concept, big-budget screwball comedy directed by Mike Nichols (The Graduate, Wolf) stars Warren Beatty (Mickey One, Bonnie and Clyde) as a slick con man and Jack Nicholson (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Border) as his dim-witted sidekick trying to get their hands on the fortune of a hapless young heiress played by Stockard Channing (Grease, The West Wing). A commercial failure on its initial release, this buoyant and beautifully staged madcap comedy is ripe for rediscovery and reappraisal.

• Day Of The Dolphin | DVD | (27/02/2006) from £17.53   |  Saving you £-4.54 (N/A%)   |  RRP £12.99

  The most amazing outdoor adventure ever filmed! Dr Jake Terrell (Scott) who has been training a pair of dolphins for many years has had a breakthrough. He has taught his dolphins to speak and understand English although they do have a limited vocabulary. When the dolphins are stolen he discovers they're to be used in an assassination attempt. Now he is in a race to discover who is the target and where the dolphins are before the attempt is carried out... The successful

• Closer | DVD | (03/08/2009) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £9.99

  Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen star in this bitingly funny and honest look at modern relaltionships.

• Jack Nicholson Collection | DVD | (06/10/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  ChinaTown: A landmark movie in the film noir tradition Roman Polanski's Chinatown stands as a true screen classic. Jack Nicholson is private eye Jake Gittes living off the murky moral climate of sunbaked pre-war Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite (Faye Dunaway) to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together for one unforgettable night in ... Chinatown. The Two Jakes: Jack Nicholson returns as private eye Jake Gittes in this atmospheric 'Chinatown' follow-up that's hit upon the elusive sequel formula for somehow enhancing a great original. Much has changed since we last saw Jake. The war has come and gone 1948 Los Angeles teems with optimism and fast bucks. But there's one thing Jake knows hasn't changed: Nine times out of ten if you follow the money you will get to the truth. And that's the trail he follows when a routine case of marital hanky panky explodes into a murder that's tied to a grab for oil - and to Jake's own past. Terms of Endearment: This Oscar-winning film is both eccentrically funny and an old-fashioned tearjerker. The story centers around the volatile relationship between a mother and daughter spanning 30 years. The various permutations of their lives are examined including the daughter's bout with terminal cancer. Heartburn: Heartburn is an autobiographical tale based on the marriage of high-flying journalists Carl Bernstein (who helped uncover the Watergate scandal for the Washington Post) and Nora Ephron. When the two meet at a friends wedding they fall in love and subsequently marry. Living in different cities the relationship begins to unravel as the pair slowly drift apart and infidelities eventually wreck the marriage. Focusing on social events like weddings parties and birthdays the film expertly brings to life the cynical and often destructive world of a group of thirty something's living out their lives through their relationships with their families and each other. Intriguing performances from Nicholson and Streep depict a relationship that neither has any real control over. These interactions between the two central characters and their circle of friends are brilliantly real allowing the audience to establish an affinity with the lives of the protagonists. Further enhanced by a script that casts a wickedly sharp and witty observation on life the film offers a snapshot of reality that is totally absorbing.

• Meryl Streep - It's Complicated/Out Of Africa/Julie & Julia/Kramer Vs Kramer/Postcards From The Edge/Adaptation | DVD | (20/09/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  Titles Comprise: It's Complicated: Two-time Academy Award winner Meryl Streep (Mamma Mia! The Devil Wears Prada) Steve Martin (The Pink Panther Cheaper By The Dozen) and Alec Baldwin (My Sister's Keeper 30 Rock) star in this hilarious look at marriage divorce and everything in between. With a thriving bakery a new romance and her divorce finally behind her Jane Adler (Streep) has her life all figured out... until her ex-husband Jake (Baldwin) decides he'll stop at nothing to win her back. Out Of Africa: Meryl Streep stars as Karen Blixen the restless wife of European aristocrat and plantation owner Baron Bror Blixen (Brandauer). When Bror departs to hunt big game and chase women the running of their East African coffee plantation falls to Karen. She throws herself into this task with the same determination and spirit she brings to her passionate but sporadic affair with free-spirited British hunter Denys Finch Hatton (Robert Redford). While enduring her husband's infidelities and the eventual destruction of their beloved land she entertains Denys and befriends the workers. Hatton shares Karen's profound love for the African landscape but is unwilling to sacrifice his independence for their relationship... Julie & Julia: Meryl Streep is Julia Child and Amy Adams is Julie Powell in writer-director Nora Ephron's adaptation of two bestselling memoirs: Powell's Julie & Julia and My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme. Based on two true stories Julie & Julia intertwines the lives of two women who though separated by time and space are both at loose ends... until they discover that with the right combination of passion fearlessness and butter anything is possible. Kramer Vs Kramer: Returning home late from work one night a career-obsessed Ted Kramer is told by his wife that she is leaving him. After a life of being 'somebody's daughter' or 'somebody's wife ' she's going off to find herself - leaving Ted to care for their 6 year-old son. Ted while trying to hold down his job gets to really know his son: cooking his meals taking him to the park understanding every need and fear. For the first time in his life he feels like a fulfilled parent. But then Joanna returns. And she wants her son back... Postcards From The Edge: Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine star as daughter and mother in this wickedly witty expos'' of life in the Hollywood fast lane based on the autobiographical book by Carrie Fisher. Adaptation: Lovelorn screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (Cage) turns to his less talented twin brother Donald (also Cage) for help when his efforts to adapt a non-fiction book go nowhere...

• Eat, Pray, Love (2011) / Closer (2004) / Erin Brockovich (2000) - Triple Pack | DVD | (24/09/2012) from £3.49   |  Saving you £16.50 (82.50%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Titles Comprise:Eat Pray Love: Based on the best selling book. After several personal disappointments and a broken heart, 35 year old Elizabeth Gilbert decides to venture out alone on a year long journey of self discovery. In Italy, she explores the art of pleasure through food, language and friendship. In India, she goes to her guru's ashram to study the art of spiritual devotion and finds peace with herself through the help of unlikely strangers. In Bali she learns the art of balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence... and accidentally finds her true love along the way.Closer: If you believe in love at first sight, you'll never stop looking...Writer Patrick Marber adapted the screenplay from his own scathing stageplay in which a chance meeting between Englishman Dan (Jude Law) and American visitor Alice blossoms into a troubled relationship, bringing together and then affecting a second couple involving Larry (Clive Owen) and Anna (Julia Roberts). Sex and love are explored, capturing all the vulnerability and brutality of people falling in and out of love...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.

• Closer/Scenes Of A Sexual Nature/Cruel Intentions | DVD | (21/01/2008) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £14.99

  Scenes Of A Sexual Nature: Seven couples. Seven Stories. One Common Ground... Sex and love. Some seek it some need it some spurn it and some pay for it but we're all involved in it. Set on one afternoon on Hampstead Heath London the film investigates the minutiae of seven couples. The film is a comedic and erotically charged look at what makes us tick and it seems that what makes us tick is complex dark and ludicrously funny. Cruel Intentions: Kathryn Merteuil (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Sebastian Valmont (Ryan Phillippe) are two gorgeous filthy rich manipulative step-sibblings from Manhattan's upper east side. Bored of the girls he has so easily seduced in the past Sebastian has set his sights on the ultimate challenge - the beautiful virginal headmasters' daughter Annette Hargrove (Reese Witherspoon). Kathryn sees the perfect opportunity for a wager. If Sebastian fails to lure Annette into his bed he will have to surrender his priceless vintage Jaguar; if he succeeds he will win the most tempting prize of all - Kathryn. Sparks fly in this wickedly sexy tale of seduction as Kathryn and Sebastian play a dangerous game of sex and betrayal... Closer: If you believe in love at first sight you'll never stop looking... Writer Patrick Marber adapted the screenplay from his own scathing stageplay in which a chance meeting between Englishman Dan (Jude Law) and American visitor Alice blossoms into a troubled relationship bringing together and then affecting a second couple involving Larry (Clive Owen) and Anna (Julia Roberts). Sex and love are explored capturing all the vulnerability and brutality of people falling in and out of love...