"Director: Robert Rossen"

• Alexander The Great | DVD | (03/01/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Richard Burton stars in Alexander the Great, a middling entry in the 1950s CinemaScope epic cycle. The film boasts excellent production values and a fine cast--including Frederic March, Claire Bloom, Harry Andrews, Stanley Baker, Peter Cushing and Michael Hordern--but it rarely comes to life other than as a big fat ancient Greek wedding of the talents of Burton and Bloom. They strike real dramatic sparks together, so much so they would be reunited in Look Back in Anger (1958) and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965). The film's failures must be laid at the feet of writer, director and producer Robert Rossen, who never before or after helmed anything remotely on this scale; his best work would follow with the intimate The Hustler (1961). Rossen simply shows little sensibility for the epic, staging lavish but brief and rather pedestrian battles and somehow drawing from the usually mesmerising Burton a performance lacking the charisma essential to a great military commander. Burton fans can enjoy him at his epic best as Marc Anthony in Cleopatra (1963). On the DVD: Alexander the Great is presented anamorphically enhanced at 2.35:1, although the picture is still obviously cropped at either side of the screen throughout. The print is very variable, in places quite grainy and soft with some serious flickering blotchiness, but otherwise it has strong colours, detail and contrast. The sound is primitive stereo. The only extra is the theatrical trailer, effectively presented in anamorphic 2.35:1. --Gary S. Dalkin

• The Hustler | DVD | (19/08/2002) from £6.50   |  Saving you £13.49 (207.54%)   |  RRP £19.99

  ""Newman is outstanding."" -Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide Paul Newman is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson an arrogant amoral hustler who haunts backstreet pool rooms fleecing anyone who'll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats who's backed by Bert Gordon a predatory gambler. Eddie can beat the champ but virtually defeats himself with his low self-image. The love of a lonely woman could turn Eddie's life around

• The Paul Newman 3 Film Collection | DVD | (01/10/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidOne of the most popular screen Westerns ever made, this Academy Award-winning classic blends adventure, romance and comedy to tell the true story of the West's most likeable outlaws. No-one is quicker than Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) when it comes to get rich quick schemes, and his sidekick Sundance (Robert Redford) is a wizard with a gun. When these two bungling bank and train robbers tire of running from the law, they set out for Bolivia with Sundance's girlfriend (Katharine Ross). Though they can barely speak enough Spanish to communicate: This is a stick-up!, that's only a minor detail to the two nicest bad-guys whoever rode the West. Special Features: The Making of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Audio Commentary by George Roy Hill, Hal David, Robert Crawford and Conrad Hall Cast and Crew Interviews Theatrical Trailers Alternative Credit Roll Production Notes Interactive Menus Scene Access The VerdictSidney Lumet’s riveting courtroom drama earned five Oscar nominations including Best Picture and Best Actor for Paul Newman's towering performance as a down-and-out alcoholic attorney who stumbles on one last chance to redeem himself. When attorney Frank Galvin (Newman) is given an open-and-shut medical malpractice case that no one thinks he can win, he courageously decides to refuse a settlement from the hospital. Instead he takes the case and the entire legal system as well, to court. James Mason, Jack Warden, Milo O'Shea and Charlotte Rampling co-star. Special Features: Audio Commentary by Paul Newman and others Featurette Theatrical Trailer Behind the Scenes Gallery Interactive Menus Scene Access The HustlerPaul Newman heads a superb cast featuring Jackie Gleason, George C. Scott and Piper Laurie in this riveting film that received an Academy Award nomination as Best Picture of 1961 and brought all four of its stars Oscar nominations. Newman (Best Actor nominee) is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson, an arrogant, amoral hustler who haunts back street pool rooms fleecing anyone who'll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best, Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats (Gleason, Supporting Actor nominee), who's backed by Bert Gordon (Scott, Supporting Actor nominee). The love of a lonely woman (Laurie, Best Actress nominee) could turn Eddie's life around, but he won't rest until he bests Minnesota Fats, no matter what price he must pay. Voted one of the year's ten best by the New York Times and Time, and distinguished by two Academy Awards, The Hustler is a dazzling cinematic triumph. Special Features: Audio Commentary by Dede Allen and others The Hustler: The Inside Story How to Make the Shot Trick Shot Analysis Theatrical Trailer Spanish Theatrical Trailer Behind the Scene Stills Gallery Interactive Menus Scene Access

• The Hustler | Blu Ray | (23/05/2011) from £8.99   |  Saving you £7.00 (77.86%)   |  RRP £15.99

  Paul Newman shines as cocky poolroom hustler "Fast" Eddie Felson in Robert Rossen's atmospheric adaptation of the Walter Tevis novel. Newman's Felson is a swaggering pool shark punk who takes on the king of the poolroom, Minnesota Fats (a cool, assured Jackie Gleason in his most understated performance). After losing big and crashing into a void of self-pity, Eddie meets down-and-out Sarah (Piper Laurie in a delicate performance), an alcoholic blue blood who's dropped into Eddie's world of dingy bars and seedy poolrooms. Eddie regains his confidence and attracts the attention of a shifty, calculating promoter, Bert Gordon (George C. Scott at his most heartless), who offers to bring Eddie into the big money--but at what cost?Rossen brings his film to life with the easy pace of a pool game, giving his actors room to explore their characters and develop into a razor-sharp ensemble. Eugen Schüfftan earned an Academy Award for his shadowing black-and-white cinematography, as did art directors Harry Horner and Gene Callahan for their deceivingly simple set designs. Even in the daylight this film seems to be smothered by night, lit by the dim glow of a bar lamp or the overhead glare of a pool-table light, an appropriate environment for this tale of one man's struggle with his soul and his self-esteem. Newman returned as an older, wiser, cagier Felson 25 years later in Martin Scorsese's Color of Money. --Sean Axmaker

• All The King's Men | DVD | (09/07/2001) from £9.54   |  Saving you £10.45 (109.54%)   |  RRP £19.99

  The Best Picture Oscar in 1949 went to All the King's Men, a hard-hitting political melodrama that will strike any number of eerily familiar chords with audiences weaned on later American politics: from the Kennedys to Nixon, Bill Clinton and beyond, US politicians obviously haven't changed much in the intervening decades. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name, this grittily realistic movie charts the rise and fall of Willie Stark (Broderick Crawford in an Oscar-winning role), a hick lawyer whose ideals are inexorably eroded by his relentless pursuit of power. When we first meet him, Stark is the people's champion, a struggling self-taught advocate who isn't afraid to speak out against "graft". Although inspired by the real-life story of Louisiana Governor Huey Pierce Long, All the King's Men also parallels the much later Primary Colors (1998), which is itself a thinly disguised portrait of Bill Clinton's presidential campaign. Like that movie, this one tells the tale from the point of view of a young idealist (John Ireland) who succumbs to the fledgling politician's charm and joins his campaign team. There he meets cynical aide Sadie Burke (Mercedes McCambridge, in another Oscar-winning role) and together they connive at and excuse every increasingly corrupt move made in the name of political expediency, until matters get dangerously out of hand after the governor's son kills his girlfriend in a drunk-driving incident (a spooky premonition of Chappaquidick?). The performances are all top-notch, as is the fast-paced screenplay and direction from Robert Rossen (later director of The Hustler in 1961). Less idealistic than Capra's Mr Smith Goes to Washington, this is a movie ahead of its time which still has plenty to say about the state of modern politics, American or otherwise. --Mark Walker

• The Hustler - Limited Edition Steelbook | Blu Ray | (02/06/2014) from £27.95   |  Saving you £-4.96 (N/A%)   |  RRP £22.99

  Racking up nine Academy Award Nominations including Best Picture this powerful and provocative cinematic masterpiece explodes on screen - as never before - on Blu-ray! Paul Newman electrifies in his brilliant portrayal of Fast Eddie Felson an arrogant hustler whose unbridled ambition drives him to challenge legendary pool player Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason) - but the stakes are higher than either of them could have imagined.

• Lilith (Limited Edition) | Blu Ray | (22/04/2019) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  The final film by the great, yet underrated Robert Rossen (All the King's Men; The Hustler) is a compelling tale of love, madness, and forbidden desire. Warren Beatty (Mickey One; The Fortune) stars as a young war veteran who takes a job as on orderly in a local asylum and falls under the spell of beautiful schizophrenic, Lilith (Jean Seberg A Bout de souffle; Bonjour Tristesse). Boasting a superb supporting cast that includes Peter Fonda, Jessica Walter, Gene Hackman and Kim Hunter, Rossen's delicate and powerful film is one of the most under-appreciated American films of the 1960s. Extras: High Definition remaster Original mono audio The Guardian Interview with Warren Beatty (1990): archival audio recording of the celebrated actor in conversation with Christopher Cook at London's National Film Theatre The Suffering Screen (2019): a visual essay by journalist and author Amy Simmons which explores cinema's enduring fascination with female madness The Many Faces of Jean Seberg (2019): critic and film historian Pamela Hutchinson explores the career of the famed actor Theatrical trailer Image gallery: on-set and promotional photography New and improved English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing Limited edition exclusive booklet with a new essay by lecturer and broadcaster Richard Combs, an overview of contemporary critical responses, archival articles, and film credits UK premiere on Blu-ray All extras subject to change Format Blu-ray

• They Came To Cordura | DVD | (22/11/2004) from £9.69   |  Saving you £3.30 (34.06%)   |  RRP £12.99

  Gary Cooper's forte--the searching, lone figure beleaguered by conflicts over conscience, truth, and ethics--followed him all the way to the ambitious They Came to Cordura, his third-to-last feature. Cooper plays Thomas Thorn, a career officer in America's fading horse Army of the early 20th century. Thorn's alleged cowardice in battle has been papered over by superiors: He is to identify acts of bravery during an attack on Pancho Villa's troops and lead those designated heroes to a Medal of Honor ceremony in Cordura, Texas. Though Thorn tries to extract the secret behind courage from each man, he discovers a battle-hardened, bestial side to them as well. The Cordura journey becomes fraught with mutiny and near-assaults on a Yankee expatriate (Rita Hayworth). Thorn, reputation aside, redefines courage on his own terms. This widescreen drama (the DVD offers full-screen format as well) is suspenseful, morally complex, and visually rich, but Cooper's performance carries the day. --Tom Keogh

• Paul Newman - Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid / The Hustler / The Verdict | DVD | (04/11/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £35.99

  Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid The Sundance Kid is the fastest gun in the West his sidekick Butch is a dreamer always planning that bigger better bank raid. But things are getting tougher and soon the accident-prone anti-heroes decide it's time to head south and disappear into legend... Winner of 4 Oscars including Best Screenplay for William Goldman and Best Song ('Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head') and Best Score for Burt Bacharach. The Hustler Paul Newma

• Body And Soul | DVD | (30/01/2006) from £12.98   |  Saving you £3.01 (23.19%)   |  RRP £15.99

  John Garfield delivers an Oscar-nominated performance in this story of driving ambition in and out of the ring. Garfield stars as Charley Davis a strong-willed young prizefighter whose ruthless quest for a shot at the title forces him to mortgage his humanity to a Mafia-run boxing syndicate -- plunging him into a whirlpool of deceit double-dealing -- and death. But when faced with the chance to regain his self-respect Charley climbs into the ring one last time... Widely regarde

• Lilith | DVD | (03/10/2005) from £6.73   |  Saving you £-0.74 (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Before Eve there was Evil... and her name was Lilith! Available on DVD for the first time. Warren Beatty and Jean Seberg co-star in this haunting drama about the obsessive love between a therapist and his patient. Vincent (Beatty) a war veteran returns to his bleak Maryland hometown and takes a job as an occupational therapist at Poplar Lodge a private mental institution for the wealthy. There Vincent meets a young schizophrenic Lilith (Seberg) an enchanting patient who

• Classic Cuts Collection - Oscar Winning Drama | DVD | (26/03/2007) from £9.95   |  Saving you £15.04 (151.16%)   |  RRP £24.99

  All The Kings Men (Dir. Robert Rossen): Broderick Crawford stands out in this fine drama about the rise and fall of a corrupt southern governor who promises his way to power. Crawford portrays Willie Stark who once he is elected finds that his vanity and power lust prove to be his downfall. The film is based on the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Robert Penn Warren which in turn was based largely on the story of Louisiana legend Huey Long. From Here To Eternity (Dir. Fred Zinnemann): Director Fred Zinnemann's 1953 Oscar-winning best picture 'From Here To Eternity' is a powerful portrait of a peacetime military camp stationed in Hawaii just before the attack on Pearl Harbour. Montgomery Clift is superlative in the major role of Robert Prewitt while Frank Sinatra delivers an electrifying Academy Award-winning (1953 Best Supporting Actor) performance as Clift's buddy. Deborah Kerr's love scene in the Hawaiian surf with Burt Lancaster is enshrined as one of the most famous moments in cinema history. To Kill A Mockingbird: Gregory Peck won an Oscar for his brilliant performance as the Southern lawyer who defends a black man accused of rape in this film version of the Pulitzer Prize winning novel. The setting is a dusty Southern town during the Depression. A white woman accuses a black man of rape. Though he is obviously innocent the outcome of his trial is such a foregone conclusion that no lawyer will step forward to defend him - except Peck the town's most distinguished citizen. His compassionate defense costs him many friendships but earns him the respect and admiration of his two motherless children. Harvey (Dir. Henry Koster): James Stewart stars as Elwood P. Dowd a wealthy alcoholic whose sunny disposition and drunken antics are tolerated by most of the citizens of his community. That is until Elwood begins to claim that he has a friend named Harvey who is an invisible six foot rabbit. Elwood's snooty socialite sister Veta determined to marry off her daughter Myrtle to a respectable man begins to plot to keep Elwood's lunacy from interfering.

• The Hustler Play Exclusive | DVD | (23/03/2010) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  Paul Newman is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson, an arrogant, amoral hustler who haunts backstreet pool rooms fleecing anyone who'll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best, Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats, who's backed by Bert Gordon, a predatory gambler. Eddie can beat the champ, but virtually defeats himself with his low self-image. The love of a lonely woman could turn Eddie's life around, but he won't rest until he beats Minnesota Fats, no matter what price he...

• The Hustler - Book & DV | DVD | (08/08/2005) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  ""Newman is outstanding."" - Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide Paul Newman is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson an arrogant amoral hustler who haunts backstreet pool rooms fleecing anyone who'll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats who's backed by Bert Gordon a predatory gambler. Eddie can beat the champ but virtually defeats himself with his low self-image. The love of a lonely woman could turn Eddie's life around

• The Hustler | DVD | (18/09/2006) from £12.13   |  Saving you £5.86 (48.31%)   |  RRP £17.99

  ""Ten grand I'm gonna win ten grand in one night. Well who's gonna beat me?"" - 'Fast Eddie' Felson (Paul Newman) Paul Newman is electrifying as Fast Eddie Felson an arrogant amoral hustler who haunts backstreet pool rooms fleecing anyone who'll pick up a cue. Determined to be acclaimed as the best Eddie seeks out the legendary Minnesota Fats who's backed by Bert Gordon a predatory gambler. Eddie can beat the champ but virtually defeats himself with his low self-image. The love of a lonely woman could turn Eddie's life around but he won't rest until he beats Minnesota Fats no matter what price he must pay... Voted one of the 1961's best by ""The New York Times"" and ""Time "" and distinguished by 2 Academy Awards - Cinematography Art Direction/Set Decoration (B&W) The Hustler is a dazzling cinematic triumph!