Magnolia

Magnolia has been compared to Ripley's ‘Believe It Or Not’ and Altman’s ‘Short Cuts’, as an array of inter-related events unfold three bizarre deaths... It follows 24 hours in which two dying men attempt to be re-united with their estranged, pathetic, children. The film develops the inter-relation of characters and through a series of events it depicts the loneliness of some lives, the need for putting things right, and what an exploitative and shallow city LA can be.

The plot is so clever and well developed no blurb will do it justice, but believe us when we say it comes highly recommended! It is considered to be writer and director Anderson’s (Boogie Nights) best film to date, and one of Cruise’s finest performances ever. Both received Oscar nominations and the film was released to resounding critical acclaim.
 

Steve Myers (Connolly) is a former lawyer whose frustration with the legal system drove him to a new career as a fisherman. However, when his boat is destroyed by an act of God, he heads to court to sue the Almighty...
 

Martha meet Frank, Daniel & Laurence

Meet Martha, she’s single, sexy and sick of her life. With her last $99 she buys a plane ticket to London… one way!

Meet Daniel, he’s single, successful and he thinks he’s sexy. When he bumps into Martha at the airport in America, it’s love at first sight… well at least Daniel thinks so!

Meet Frank and Laurence, Daniel’s best friends… although it doesn’t always look that way! Frank is constantly engaged in a game of one-upmanship with Daniel, while Laurence always appears to be stuck in the middle. They haven’t met Martha yet but they will; and when they do you’ll soon discover that two’s company, three’s a crowd but four is definitely a catastrophe!
 

Mercury Rising

Art Jeffries (Bruce Willis), a renegade FBI Agent, combats ruthless Federal agents to protect Simon, a nine-year old autistic boy who has cracked the government’s new “unbreakable” code. He can read Mercury, the most advanced encryption code, as easily as other kids read English. This ability renders the new billion dollar secret code vulnerable, especially if enemies of the United States should learn of Simons’s abilities and capture him. Program Chief Nick Kudrow (Alec Baldwin) orders the “security threat” eliminated, but Kudrow hasn’t counted on Jeffries getting involved. As deadly assassins trail them, Jeffries quickly realises that no one can be trusted. Now time is running out and he discovers his only hope of survival is using Simon’s special ability to bring their adversaries to justice.
 

Adrian (James Fleet) is an unmarried, unworldly and somewhat unstable dairy farmer who has spent most of his adult life on a farm in Wiltshire looking after his elderly, slightly quirky mother Lucy. Upon finding his mother dead, Adrian then has to deal with the arrival of his two sisters, Harriet (Francesca Annis) and Virginia (Dawn French), his uncle, his mother's lover and her closest friend Veronica (Phyllida Law). They all want a piece of Lucy, they all have conflicting plans for her funeral, and Adrian intends to confound them all...
 

Jeremy Irons is Father Gabriel, a man of the cloth. Robert De Niro is Rodrigo Mendoza, a man of the sword. Set in the almost mystical rain forests of South America, The Mission presents each man with his greatest challenge. The Jesuit priest has come to spread the word of God amongst the Guarani Indians; the mercenary has come to enslave them.

With the passing of time, their destinies become entwined. A film of breathtaking beauty and raw, passionate power The Mission is an unforgettable experience that glorifies the human spirit above the bloodlust and greed of governments and even the church.

Roland Joffé (The Killing Fields) directs this stirring and powerful epic written by David Lean's screenwriting collaborator, Robert Bolt and produced by David Puttnam and with an affecting score from Ennio Morricone.
 

Monkey!

‘In the worlds before Monkey, Primal Chaos reigned. Heaven sought order. But the Phoenix can fly only when its feathers are grown. The four world's formed again and yet again, as endless aeons wheeled and passed. Time and the pure essences of heaven, the moisture of the Earth, the powers of the sun and the moon worked upon a certain rock, old as creation. And it became magically fertile. That first egg was named "Thought". Tathagata Buddha, the Father Buddha, said "With our thoughts we make the world". Elemental forces caused the egg to hatch. From it then came a stone monkey. The nature of Monkey was irrepressible.'

Thus begins Monkey, a television programme that defies description but I'll give it a go: a bizarre combination of spectacular acrobatics and martial arts; tacky special effects; magic tricks; 70's disco music; hilarious dubbing; crazy storylines; the odd bit of Buddhist philosophy thrown in for good measure and an unforgettable theme song (click on any of the DVD covers to the left to listen to it). Monkey followed the incredible adventures of three fallen angels: Monkey (Masaaki Sakai); Pigsy (Toshiyuki Nishida) and Sandy (Shiro Kishibe). Thrown out of heaven for various acts of sacrilege and general misbehaviour they hook up with a young Buddhist monk, Tripitaka (Masako Natsume) and embark on an epic, adventure-packed pilgrimage to spread the teachings of Buddha throughout the world and to hopefully gain some true enlightenment themselves.

Made by Japanese television and broadcast in the UK by the BBC, Monkey became a staple of the early evening schedules where it attracted a dedicated following of (mainly) children who would rush home after school to catch the latest instalments of the surreal adventures of Monkey and his gang.

Monkey's success in the UK was due as much to the hilarious dubbing and narration as the spectacular visuals. David Weir, a Londoner with not a drop of Oriental blood (he didn't even speak Japanese or Chinese) was given a translation of the original dialogue and re-worked it for a British audience. Incorporating idiomatic English humour and numerous double entendres, often with no equivalent in the original, this ‘kids' programme was actually full of subversive and really quite adult elements and was destined to become a cult classic in every sense of the word.

Episodes are: 'Monkey Goes Wild in Heaven', 'Monkey Turns Nursemaid' and 'The Great Journey Begins'.

Episodes are: 'Monkey Swallows the Universe', 'The Power of Youth' and 'Even Monsters Can Be People'.

Episodes are: 'The Beginning Of Wisdom', 'Pigsy Woos A Widow' and 'What Monkey Calls the Dog-Woman'

Episodes are: 'Pigsy's In The Well', 'The Difference Between Night And Day' and 'Pearls Before Swine'

Episodes are: 'The Minx And The Slug', 'Catfish, Saint And The Shape-Changer', 'Monkey Meets The Demon Digger'.

Episodes are: 'The Most Monstrous Monster', 'Truth And The Grey Gloves Devil' and 'Land For The Locusts'

Episodes are: 'Vampire Master', 'Outrageous Coincidences' and 'Pigsy, King And God'

Episodes are: 'Village Of The Undead', 'Two Little Blessings' and 'The Fires Of Jealousy'

Episodes are: 'The Country Of Nightmares', 'The End Of The Way' and 'Pigsy's Ten Thousand Ladies'

Episodes are: 'The Dogs of Death', 'The Foolish Philosopher' and 'Who Am I?'

Episodes are: 'What Is Wisdom?', 'The Fountain Of Youth' and 'A Shadow So Huge'

Episodes are: 'Keep On Dancing', 'Give And Take', 'Such A Nice Monster'

Episodes are: ''Pretty as a Picture', 'Mothers', 'At the Top of the Mountain'

As the romantic monsoon rains loom, the extended Verma family reunites from around the globe for a last-minute arranged marriage in New Delhi. 'Monsoon Wedding' traces five intersecting stories, each navigating different aspects of love as they cross boundaries of class, continent and morality. The film celebrates a contemporary India never before seen on screen.

The family's hopes, anxieties and long-guarded secrets emerge amid frantic wedding preparations and are juxtaposed with arresting montages of real-life Delhi. The relentless summer heat mirrors the story's building intensity as the city anticipates the cooling torrent of the monsoons. And when the rain comes, the cathartic downpour brings romance, revelation and liberation.
 

What have the Romans ever done for us?... You could say this is one of the greatest comedies ever, but the Monty Python team said it first! Life of Brian is all about (and here's the big surprise) the life of Brian, who was born in a Bethlehem manger next door to Jesus. Three wise men believe he is the messiah, but it becomes apparent that he is only Brian.

It's written and performed by the Monty Python lads, so you know what you're in for; if you don't, put this disc down and run away!