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Review Warner Home Video / Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire [2005]
Actors & Directors
  • Daniel Radcliffe
  • Mike Newell
  • Rupert Grint
  • Maggie Smith
  • Timothy Spall
  • Emma Watson
Release date: 2006-07-24
Run time: 150 min.
RRP: £10.99
Price: £5.40

Review Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire [2005] / Warner Home Video:


Review 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment / Ice Age & Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Double Pack [2002]
Actors & Directors
  • Carlos Saldanha
Release date: 2006-10-23
Run time: 164 min.
RRP: £28.99
Price: £4.98

Review Ice Age & Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Double Pack [2002] / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment:


Review 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment / Edward Scissorhands [1991]
Actors & Directors
  • Tim Burton
  • Kathy Baker
  • Winona Ryder
  • Anthony Michael Hall
  • Dianne Wiest
  • Johnny Depp
Release date: 2000-11-27
Run time: 103 min.
Creator: Richard Hashimoto
RRP: £9.99
Price: £3.92

Review Edward Scissorhands [1991] / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment:

Edward Scissorhands achieves the nearly impossible feat of capturing the delicate flavour of a fable or fairy tale in a live-action movie. The story follows a young man named Edward (Johnny Depp), who was created by an inventor (Vincent Price, in one of his last roles) who died before he could give the poor creature a pair of human hands. Edward lives alone in a ruined Gothic castle that just happens to be perched above a pastel-coloured suburb inhabited by breadwinning husbands and frustrated housewives straight out of the 1950s. One day, Peg (Dianne Wiest), the local Avon lady, comes calling. Finding Edward alone, she kindly invites him to come home with her, where she hopes to help him with his pasty complexion and those nasty nicks he's given himself with his razor-sharp fingers. Soon Edward's skill with topiary sculpture and hair design make him popular in the neighbourhood-but the mood turns just as swiftly against the outsider when he starts to feel his own desires, particularly for Peg's daughter Kim (Winona Ryder). Most of director Tim Burton's movies (such as Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Beetlejuice and Batman) are visual spectacles with elements of fantasy but Edward Scissorhands is more tender and personal than the others. Edward's wild black hair is much like Burton's, suggesting that the character represents the director's own feelings of estrangement and co-option. Johnny Depp, making his first successful leap from TV to film, captures Edward's child-like vulnerability even while his physical posture evokes horror icons like the vampire in Nosferatu and the sleepwalker in The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. [+]
Classic horror films, at their heart, feel a deep sympathy for the monsters they portray; simply and affectingly, Edward Scissorhands lays that heart bare. -Bret Fetzer On the DVD: Tim Burton is famed for his visual style not his ability as a raconteur, so it's no surprise to find that his directorial commentary is a little sparse. When he does open up it is to confirm that Edward Scissorhands remains his most personal and deeply felt project. The second audio commentary is by composer and regular Burton collaborator Danny Elfman, whose enchanting, balletic score gets an isolated music track all to itself with his remarks in-between cues. Again, for Elfman this movie remains one of his most cherished works, and it is a real musical treat to hear the entire score uninterrupted by dialogue and sound effects but illuminated by Elfman's lucid interstitial remarks. Also on the disc are some brief interview clips, a "making of" featurette and a gallery of conceptual artwork. The anamorphic widescreen print looks simply gorgeous. -Mark Walker.

Review Creature Comforts / Creature Comforts - Series 3 - In The USA
Release date: 2008-11-24
Run time: 146 min.
RRP: £19.99
Price: £12.98

Review Creature Comforts - Series 3 - In The USA / Creature Comforts:


Review The Chronicles of Narnia / The Chronicles Of Narnia 4 DVD Box Set [1988]
Release date: 2005-11-14
Run time: 600 min.
RRP: £29.99
Price: £8.99

Review The Chronicles Of Narnia 4 DVD Box Set [1988] / The Chronicles of Narnia:


Review Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm / Mulan [1998]
Actors & Directors
  • Freda Foh Shen
  • Harvey Fierstein
  • James Hong
  • Tony Bancroft
  • Miguel Ferrer
  • June Foray
  • Barry Cook
Release date: 2004-11-15
Run time: 84 min.
RRP: £17.99
Price: £5.40

Review Mulan [1998] / Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainm:

1998's Mulan is solid entertainment from a new group of Disney animators. The story source is a Chinese fab\ le about a young girl who disguises herself as a man to help her family and her country. When the Huns attack China, a cal\ l to arms goes out to every village, and Mulan's father, being the only man in the family, accepts the call. Mulan (voiced\ by Ming-Na Wen, sung by Lea Salonga) has just made a disastrous appearance at the Matchmaker and decides to challenge soc\ iety's expectations (that she should be a bride). She steals her father's conscription notice, cuts her hair and impersona\ tes a man to join the army. She goes to boot camp, learning to fit in with the other soldiers with some help from her side\ kick, Mushu, a wise-cracking dragon (voiced by Eddie Murphy). She trains, and soon faces the Huns eye to eye to protect he\ r Emperor. The film is gorgeous to look at, with a superior blend of classic and computer-generated animation. Directors\ Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook make the best of it: a battle in the snowy mountains is as thrilling as the best Hollywood a\ ction films. The menacing Huns are not cute but simple and bad. [+]
The wickedness is subtle, not disturbing. The film is not \ a fully fledged musical, as it has only five songs (the best, "Be a Man", is sung during boot camp). Eddie Murphy is an in\ spired choice for the comic-relief dragon, but his lines are not as clever as Robin Williams's in Aladdin (1992). T\ hese are minor quibbles, though. The story is strong, and Mulan goes right to the top of Disney animated heroines; she has\ the right stuff. -Doug Thomas Solid entertainment from a new group of Disney animators. The story source is a Chinese fable about a young girl who disguises herself as a man to help her family and her country. When the Huns attack China, a call to arms goes out to every village, and Mulan's father, being the only man in the family, accepts the call. Mulan (voiced by Ming-Na Wen, sung by Lea Salonga) has just made a disastrous appearance at the Matchmaker and decides to challenge society's expectations (being a bride). She steals her father's conscription notice, cuts her hair and impersonates a man to join the army. She goes to boot camp, learning to fit in with the other soldiers with some help from her sidekick, Mushu, a wise-cracking dragon (voiced by Eddie Murphy). She trains, and soon faces the Huns eye to eye to protect her Emperor. The film is gorgeous to look at, with a superior blend of classic and computer-generated animation. Directors Tony Bancroft and Barry Cook make the best of it: a battle in the snowy mountains is as thrilling as the best Hollywood action films. The menacing Huns are not cute but simple and bad. The wickedness is subtle, not disturbing. The film is not a fully fledged musical, as it has only five songs (the best, "Be a Man", is sung during boot camp). Eddie Murphy is an inspired choice for the comic-relief dragon, but his lines are not as clever as Robin Williams' in Aladdin. These are minor quibbles, though. The story is strong, and Mulan goes right to the top of Disney animated heroines; she has the right stuff. -Doug Thomas, Amazon. com.

Review Universal Pictures UK / The Trap Door [1984]
Actors & Directors
  • Terry Brain
  • Charlie Mills
  • William Rushton
Release date: 2005-02-21
Run time: 200 min.
Creator: John Michael Howson
RRP: £19.99
Price: £4.92

Review The Trap Door [1984] / Universal Pictures UK:


Review Icon Home Entertainment / Bridge To Terabithia [2007]
Actors & Directors
  • Gabor Csupo
  • Zooey Deschanel
  • Josh Hutcherson
  • AnnaSophia Robb
  • Robert Patrick
  • Bailee Madison
Release date: 2007-10-15
Run time: 95 min.
RRP: £19.99
Price: £3.99

Review Bridge To Terabithia [2007] / Icon Home Entertainment:


Review Brian Cant / Trumptonshire : Trumpton / Chigley / Camberwick Green (Complete Collection Box Set)
Actors & Directors
  • Gordon Murray
Release date: 2006-09-25
Run time: 588 min.
RRP: £24.99
Price: £13.72

Review Trumptonshire : Trumpton / Chigley / Camberwick Green (Complete Collection Box Set) / Brian Cant:


Review 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment / Mrs Doubtfire [1994]
Actors & Directors
  • Polly Holliday
  • Sally Field
  • Robin Williams
  • Chris Columbus
  • Pierce Brosnan
  • Harvey Fierstein
Release date: 2001-07-30
Run time: 119 min.
Creator: Randi Mayem Singer
RRP: £12.99
Price: £4.18

Review Mrs Doubtfire [1994] / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment:

This huge 1993 hit for Robin Williams and director Chris Columbus (Home Alone), based on a novel called Alias Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine, stars Williams as a loving but flaky father estranged from his frustrated wife (Sally Field). Devastated by a court order limiting his time with the children, Williams's character disguises himself as a warm, old British nanny who becomes the kids' best friend. As with Dustin Hoffman's performance in Tootsie, Williams's drag act-buried under layers of latex and padding-is the show, and everything and everyone else on screen serves his sometimes frantic role. Since that's the case, it's fortunate that Williams is Williams, and his performance is terribly funny at times and exceptionally believable in those scenes where his character misses his children. Playing Williams's brother, a professional makeup artist, Harvey Fierstein has a good support role in a bright sequence where he tries a number of feminine looks on Williams before settling on Mrs Doubtfire's visage. -Tom Keogh.

Review Walt Disney Home Video / Hercules [1997]
Actors & Directors
  • Roger Bart
  • Susan Egan
  • John Musker
  • Ron Clements
  • Josh Keaton
  • Tate Donovan
  • James Woods
Release date: 2002-08-12
Run time: 89 min.
Creator: Joe Haidar
RRP: £17.99
Price: £6.49

Review Hercules [1997] / Walt Disney Home Video:

Not the egregious foul it seemed to be in cinemas, Disney's Hercules (1997) stands up as an entertaining spritzer of an animated feature. The continual peppering of in-jokes and cultural references becomes less irksome on the small screen. That there is no majesty or awe invested in the beloved Greek legends also seems less of an error. Also on the plus side is the bounciest Alan Menken music since Little Shop of Horrors. With Zeus's blood in his veins, young Hercules's amazing strength makes him an outcast (sorry, that still doesn't fly), so he trains with a satyr named Phil to become a hero. Along the way Herc meets Meg, a common mortal who falls hard for him. They are both against the jocular Hades, who has to destroy Hercules to take over Olympus. The hydra is the computer-animated set piece for this little number, a no-chance attempt to beat that wildebeest herd from The Lion King. -Keith Simanton.

Review Warner Home Video / Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone [2001]
Actors & Directors
  • Chris Columbus
  • Richard Harris
  • Saunders Triplets
  • Daniel Radcliffe
  • Robbie Coltrane
  • Maggie Smith
Release date: 2005-10-24
Run time: 146 min.
RRP: £10.99
Price: £6.14

Review Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone [2001] / Warner Home Video:

As the first Harry Potter film of the celebrated series, this is a must for ardent fans and newcomers to the global fantasy phenomenon. An adaptation of J. K. Rowling's enchanting, funny debut novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (known as the Sorcerer's Stone in the US), it's our first big-screen encounter with the series' well-loved characters and the goings-on at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We meet orphan Harry Potter (played by a young Daniel Radcliffe) while he's as yet unaware of his magical powers and is living a miserable existence with his horrible Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. A mysterious letter arrives, delivered by the friendly giant Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane in fine acting form), inviting Harry to study at the exclusive Hogwarts School and he soon discovers his true heritage as the son of a wizard and a witch. He's also gained widespread notoriety, being the only survivor of an attack by the evil wizard Voldemort that killed both his parents. The film explores Harry's growing realisation that there are two worlds: the non-magical world of humans, called "Muggles", in which he used to reside and the magical fantasy world of wizardry that is his destiny. The greatest strength of the film comes from its faithfulness to the novel, and this new cinematic world is filled with all the details of Rowling's imagination, thanks to exuberant sets, elaborate costumes, clever makeup and visual effects, and a crème de la crème cast, including Maggie Smith, Richard Harris, Alan Rickman and more. Especially fine is the interplay between Harry and his new schoolmates Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) as they club together to fight the forces of evil. [+]
-Sally Giles.

Review Fremantle Home Entertainment / Button Moon - Adventures On Button Moon [1980]
Actors & Directors
  • Stan Woodward
  • John Darnell
  • Robin Parkinson
  • Peter Yolland
Release date: 2001-09-17
Run time: 103 min.
Creator: Ian Allen
RRP: £9.99
Price: £3.54

Review Button Moon - Adventures On Button Moon [1980] / Fremantle Home Entertainment:


Review Warner Home Video / Speed Racer [Blu-ray] [2008]
Actors & Directors
  • Christina Ricci
  • John Goodman
  • Matthew Fox
  • Andy Wachowski
  • Emile Hirsch
  • Susan Sarandon
  • Larry Wachowski
Release date: 2008-11-10
Run time: 135 min.
RRP: £27.99
Price: £14.00

Review Speed Racer [Blu-ray] [2008] / Warner Home Video:

Emile Hirsch, Susan Sarandon, Matthew Fox, Christina Ricci, John Goodman

Review Optimum Home Entertainment / The Railway Children
Actors & Directors
  • William Mervyn
  • Jenny Agutter
  • Gary Warren
  • Sally Thomsett
  • Dinah Sheridan
  • Lionel Jeffries
Release date: 2006-08-21
RRP: £12.99
Price: £3.82

Review The Railway Children / Optimum Home Entertainment:


Review Warner Home Video / Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [2002]
Actors & Directors
  • Emma Watson (II)
  • Richard Griffiths
  • Chris Columbus
  • Rupert Grint
  • Daniel Radcliffe
  • Fiona Shaw
Release date: 2005-10-24
Run time: 154 min.
RRP: £10.99
Price: £6.09

Review Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [2002] / Warner Home Video:

The world's most famous boy wizard dives straight into a darker and more thrilling magical adventure in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. It's practically the same set-up-something evil's afoot at Hogwarts; Harry and his pals must put it right-but fans of the books won't be disappointed. Director Chris Columbus, whose artistic licence is necessarily limited by the demands of adapting JK Rowling's phenomenally popular novel, does a spectacular job rendering Rowling's imaginary world: the production design and costumes are fascinating in their own right; such is the impressive attention to detail. Daniel Radcliffe gives a more assured performance here as Harry, though he's not quite strong enough to carry the film without the aid of an excellent ensemble cast of experienced adults, notably a twinkly-eyed Kenneth Branagh. Of course, most viewers will already know what's going to happen as far as the story is concerned, so for them the pleasure in watching The Chamber of Secrets lies in the visualisation of Rowling's magical creations and the verve brought to the action sequences. It's fantastic fun for kids and a good excuse to regress back to childhood for the rest of us. -Laura BushellOn the DVD: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets's first disc offers the film in all its fine widescreen (2. 35:1) and surround-sound glory-it's a shame they didn't think of adding a commentary. The second disc's special features are sparse compared to last year's release, most notably the games, which are simpler and dull in comparison to The Philosopher's Stone. Gilderoy Lockhart's classroom offers nothing magical, and the interviews with teachers and students offer only snippets of the actors' thoughts on their characters. [+]
Don't get over excited about the "Build a Scene" feature as, unfortunately, this is not a miracle of modern DVD technology, but a simple featurette. The real gem on the disc is a 16-minute interview with JK Rowling and Steve Kloves about the transfer from book to screen. -Nikki Disney.

Review Sony Pictures Home Entertainment / Surf's Up [2007]
Actors & Directors
  • Ash Brannon
  • Chris Buck
  • Jeff Bridges
  • Jon Heder
  • Shia LaBeouf
Release date: 2007-12-10
Run time: 82 min.
RRP: £19.99
Price: £3.85

Review Surf's Up [2007] / Sony Pictures Home Entertainment:

Surf's Up is a computer-animated sports mockumentary about penguin surfing contests, which makes it stand out from the crowd of penguin movies. The story unfolds as it would on any sports-channel on TV, with interviews (with penguins) overlapping footage of (penguin) surfing action, gradually unveiling the tale of Cody Maverick (voiced by Shia LaBeouf, Transformers), a young penguin from Antarctica with dreams of winning a surfing competition-a competition named after his idol, the missing Big Z (Jeff Bridges, The Big Lebowski). But when he joins the competition, Cody finds his zeal for winning may not be enough to defeat the cruel reigning champ, Tank Evans (Diedrich Bader, Grim & Evil). The story of Surf's Up is typical stuff: Youngster learns to value friendship over material success. But the documentary style gives the movie a different rhythm from the usual feature-length cartoon; it stutters and skips around, dithers on side topics, and backtracks to catch up with supporting characters. Some viewers may be annoyed, but others-perhaps the more media-savvy-will find it a refreshing change of pace. (Kids who don't watch much sports, however, may just find it confusing. ) Surf's Up also features the voices of James Woods (Hercules), Zooey Deschanel (Elf), and Jon Heder (Napoleon Dynamite). -Bret Fetzer.

Review Warner Home Video / Tim Burton's Corpse Bride [2005]
Actors & Directors
  • Albert Finney
  • Mike Johnson
  • Emily Watson
  • Tim Burton
  • Johnny Depp
  • Richard E. Grant
  • Helena Bonham-Carter
Release date: 2006-02-06
Run time: 74 min.
RRP: £18.99
Price: £3.29

Review Tim Burton's Corpse Bride [2005] / Warner Home Video:

Who else but Tim Burton could make Corpse Bride, a necrophiliac's delight that's fun for the whole family? Returning to the richly imaginative realm of stop-motion animation-after previous successes with The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach, Burton, with codirector Mike Johnson, invites us to visit the dour, ashen, and drearily Victorian mansions of the living, where young Victor Van Dort, voiced by Johnny Depp, is bequeathed to wed the lovely Victoria. But the wedding rehearsal goes sour and, in the kind of Goth-eerie forest that only exists in Burton-land, Victor suddenly finds himself accidentally married to the Corpse Bride, voiced by Helena Bonham Carter, a blue-tinted, half-skeletal beauty with a loquacious maggot installed behind one prone-to-popping eyeball. This being a Burton creation, the underworld of the dead is a lively and colorful place indeed, and Danny Elfman's songs and score make it even livelier, presenting Victor with quite a dilemma: Should he return above-ground to Victoria, or remain devoted to his corpse bride? At a brisk 76 minutes, Burton's graveyard whimsy never wears out its welcome, and the voice casting is superbly matched the film's gloriously amusing character design, guaranteed to yield a wealth of gruesome toys and action figures for many Halloweens to come. -Jeff Shannon.

Review Walt Disney Home Video / The Lion King (2 Disc Special Edition) [1994]
Actors & Directors
  • Whoopi Goldberg
  • Jeremy Irons
  • Jonathan Taylor Thomas
  • James Earl Jones
  • Rob Minkoff
  • Matthew Broderick
  • Roger Allers
Release date: 2003-10-31
Run time: 85 min.
Creator: Chris Sanders
RRP: £22.99
Price: £28.00

Review The Lion King (2 Disc Special Edition) [1994] / Walt Disney Home Video:

Disney's 1994 animated feature, The Lion King, was a huge smash in cinemas and continues to enjoy life in an acclaimed stage production. The story finds a lion cub, son of a king, sent into exile after his father is deposed by a jealous uncle. The little hero finds his way into the "circle of life" with some new friends and eventually comes back to reclaim his proper place. Characters are very strong, vocal performances by the likes of Jeremy Irons, Nathan Lane and Whoopi Goldberg are terrific, the jokes are aimed as much (if not more) at adults than kids, the animation is sometimes breathtaking and the songs from Tim Rice and Elton John, accompanied by a colourful score, are more palatable than in many recent Disney features. -Tom Keogh On the DVD: The Lion King Special Edition is a superb restoration: take a look at the serviceable but dull film clips incorporated in the plethora of extras and compare them to the vivid gorgeousness of the film presentation. This special edition also adds a 90-second song ("Morning Report") that originated in the lavish stage musical. To Disney's credit, the original theatrical version is also included, both restored and featuring two 5. 1 soundtracks: Dolby Digital and a new Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mix, which does sound brighter. As with the Disney Platinum line, everything is thrown into the discs, except an outsider's voice (the rah-rahs of Disney grow tiresome at times). The excellent commentary from the directors and producer, originally on the laser disc, is hidden under the audio set-up menu. [+]
The second disc is organised by 20-minute-ish "journeys" tackling the elements of story, music and so on, including good background on the awkward Shakespearean origins at Disney where it was referred as "Bamlet". The most interesting journey follows the landmark stage production, and the kids should be transfixed by shots of the real African wildlife in the animal journey. Three deleted segments are real curios, including an opening lyric for "Hakuna Matata". Most set-top DVD games are usually pretty thin (DVD-ROM is where it's at), but the Safari game is an exception-the kids should love the roaring animals (in 5. 1 Surround, no less). One serious demerit is the needless and complicated second navigation system that is listed by continent but just shows the same features reordered. -Doug Thomas.

Review Uca / Trumpton - The Complete Collection [1967]
Actors & Directors
  • Brian Cant
Release date: 2007-10-29
Run time: 180 min.
Creator: Alison Prince
RRP: £14.99
Price: £4.27

Review Trumpton - The Complete Collection [1967] / Uca:


Browse Family Favourites:

Models & Brands:
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire [2005], Ice Age & Ice Age 2: The Meltdown Double Pack [2002], Edward Scissorhands [1991], Creature Comforts - Series 3 - In The USA, The Chronicles Of Narnia 4 DVD Box Set [1988], Mulan [1998], The Trap Door [1984], Bridge To Terabithia [2007], Trumptonshire : Trumpton / Chigley / Camberwick Green (Complete Collection Box Set), Mrs Doubtfire [1994], Hercules [1997], Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone [2001], Button Moon - Adventures On Button Moon [1980], Speed Racer [Blu-ray] [2008], The Railway Children, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [2002], Surf's Up [2007], Tim Burton's Corpse Bride [2005], The Lion King (2 Disc Special Edition) [1994], Trumpton - The Complete Collection [1967]

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