Rodriguez, outside of a circle of pre-existing fans, might not be the most famous musician on the planet. But he makes a fascinating subject for the documentary Searching For Sugar Man . Put together in part by the producer of the excellent Man On Wire , Searching For Sugar Man centres around a flop album released by Rodriguez, which went on to build an audience over the decades that followed. But what happened to Rodriguez himself? That’s where the film comes in, and it’s an engaging tale it has to tell.

It’s a terrific documentary, this. Touching, mysterious and centred on a genuinely intriguing subject matter, there’s a lot to grab your interest here. After all, is Rodriguez a myth, the film asks? If not, is he aware of the impact his music has had? The film plays its cards very close to its chest, and is all the better for it.

There’s material beyond the film to be found on the disc, and it digs deeper in the story as part and parcel of that. So you get an interesting commentary track, as well as a making of piece as well. It supplements the main feature extremely well, too, and makes Searching For Sugar Man a surprising and very worthwhile purchase. Especially, ironically, if you’ve never heard of Rodriguez before. -- Jon Foster

It’s hard to rain too many superlatives on The Blue Planet , surely one of the finest and most fascinating nature documentaries ever made. But nonetheless, we’re going to try.

Long in the making, the idea behind the show was to, using some cutting-edge technology, film previously unseen areas of the ocean, and to investigate life beneath the waves. And in doing so, it pretty much encompasses the full spectrum of creature size. From the staggering, gigantic whale of the first episode, through the miniscule life that’s documented as the programme progresses, it’s a jaw-dropping experience.

It’s also a very, very accessible one. Thanks to a diligent, warm narrative from Sir David Attenborough, there’s plenty of fact married up to the sheer spectacle of The Blue Planet , although in many ways the stunning photography almost needs no accompaniment. It’s timeless work, too, with immense rewatch value, uncovering both life that’s never been photographed previously while charting the habits of the more familiar. Icing The Blue Planet ’s cake is a series of short pieces documenting just how some of the incredible pictures were captured, and these are almost as interesting as the main feature.

Enough of those superlatives, though. Because The Blue Planet simply demands to be seen and enjoyed. Prepare, like many before you, to be mesmerised. -- Simon Brew

Kenneth Branagh, André Dussollier, Avery Brooks, Resa KarimDirectors: Jasper James, Tim Haines

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<a name="review">You don’t have to be familiar with Formula One--or the tragic destiny of Ayrton Senna--to enjoy this visceral encounter with one of racing’s finest talents. Spanning a decade of Formula One from 1984, <em>Senna</em> picks through archive footage to show a world where traditional driving skills are under threat from the unsporting forces of big business and technical engineering. A gifted newcomer, Senna goes from anonymity at the back of a rain-soaked debut at Monaco to three-time world champion--earning him legendary status in Brazil and igniting the hopes of a struggling population along the way. Between races director Asif Kapadia (<em>The Warrior, Far North</em>) shows us an isolated figure: unskilled at the politics of Formula One and speaking to journalists about ‘pure driving' as a metaphor for life. On the track, his fierce will to win--fuelled by a bitter rivalry with team-mate Alain Prost--pushes him to the limits of racing brinkmanship, and the scenes of Senna dueling in the wet, weaving down the straight or accelerating towards the disappearing space of a corner rank among the greatest moments of any sports documentary. <em>--Leo Batchelor</em>

<p style="margin-left:3.6pt;"><strong>Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 or region free DVD player in order to play.</strong>

<p style="margin-left: 3.6pt;"> The ground-breaking TV series brought together in one epic collection. Blood And Sand Betrayed by his country. Beaten into slavery. Reborn as a warrior. Spartacus: Blood and Sand is a graphic and visceral account of Rome s most famous gladiator. When he s separated from the love of his life, Spartacus is forced into the gruesome and bloodthirsty arena, where a grisly death is primetime entertainment. Spartacus must fight for survival, befriend his enemies and play politics in this new world of corruption, violence, sex and fame. He ll be seduced by power and tormented by vengeance. But his passion will give him the strength to prevail over every obstacle, in this modern and uninhibited tale of death, honour and endurance. Gods Of The Arena The House of Batiatus is on the rise, basking in the glow of its infamous champion Gannicus, whose skill with a sword is matched only by his thirst for wine and women. These are the times a young Batiatus has been waiting for. Poised to overthrow his father and take control, he ll freely betray anyone to ensure his gladiators are in the highest demand. And he ll have his loyal and calculating wife Lucretia by his side for every underhanded scheme, drawing on the brazen talents of her seductive friend Gaia when it counts. Together, they will stop at nothing to deceive the masses, seize power, and bleed Capua dry in this audacious prequel to Spartacus: Blood and Sand. Vengeance On the heels of the bloody escape from the House of Batiatus that concluded Spartacus: Blood and Sand , the gladiator rebellion continues and begins to strike fear into the heart of the Roman Republic in Spartacus: Vengeance. Gaius Claudius Glaber and his Roman troops are sent to Capua to crush the growing band of freed slaves that Spartacus leads before it can infli

PRESENTED BY ANDREW MARR WHO CELEBRATES THE 60 YEAR REIGN OF QUEEN ELIZABETH II. OVER 3 HOURS WITH EXTRAS.

<strong>Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 or region free DVD player in order to play.</strong>



Narrated by Sir David Attenborough and from the award-winning team behind Planet Earth & Blue Planet comes the ultimate portrait of the earth's Polar regions.<br /><br /> The Arctic and Antarctic remain the greatest wildernesses on Earth. The scale and beauty of the scenery and the sheer power of the elements - the weather, the ocean and the ice - is unmatched anywhere else on our planet. Yet these harsh environments are teeming with life: home to iconic animals from polar bears to emperor penguins and from killer whales to wandering albatrosses.<br /><br /> Using the latest camera technology to film on land, from the air, underwater and below the ice caps, Frozen Planet follows their fascinating lives throughout the seasons as they struggle to survive. With spectacular polar landscapes and amazing animal behaviour, often filmed for the first time, it captures the drama of an extreme natural world.<br /><br /> With both Poles under grave threat from climate change, this extraordinary series may be the last chance to witness these great wildernesses before they change forever.

When this epic series was first broadcast in 1973 it redefined the gold standard for television documentary; it remains the benchmark by which all factual programming must judge itself. Originally shown as 26 one-hour programmes, The World at War set out to tell the story of the Second World War through the testimony of key participants. The result is a unique and unrepeatable event, for many of the eyewitnesses captured on film did not have long left to live: the programme-makers were only just in time. Each hour-long programme is carefully structured to focus on a key theme or campaign, from the rise of Nazi Germany to Hitler's downfall and the onset of the Cold War. There are no academic"talking heads" here to spell out an official version of history; the narration, delivered with wonderful gravitas by Sir Laurence Olivier, is kept to a minimum. The show's great coup was to allow the participants to speak for themselves. Painstaking research in the archives of the Imperial War Museum also unearthed a vast quantity of newsreel footage, including on occasion the cameraman's original raw rushes which present an unvarnished and never-before-seen picture of important events. Carl Davis' portentous main title theme and score underlines the grand scale of the enterprise. The original 26 episodes were supplemented three years later by six special programmes (narrated by Eric Porter), bringing the total running time to a truly epic 32 hours. -- Mark Walker