Readings.com.au: DVD Bargains

The Open Road

When Carlton's mum becomes ill he has to take an unexpected road trip to track down his estranged father, legendary baseball player Kyle. Knowing his dad's charming yet painfully immature likelihood to disappoint, Carlton enlists his friend Lucy for emotional support. Once reunited, Carlton struggles to deal with a series of misadventures caused by his father's antics - missed flights, car trouble and bathroom brawls! Years of miscommunication, frustration and awkward attempts at bonding come to a head as the trio make their way home to reunite the family.

Twin Peaks: Season One

This release includes the first season of director David Lynch's shockingly original television series. When its two-hour pilot episode aired on April 8, 1990, the program forever changed the face of prime-time television. A bizarre, ingenious, hysterical, terrifying murder mystery set in the Pacific Northwest logging town of Twin Peaks, the series opens with the discovery of the body of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), a seemingly straitlaced high school student. Assigned to the case is FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan), a quirky man who converses regularly with Diane, his portable tape recorder. As Cooper settles into his life in Twin Peaks, he meets a revolving cast of characters who are all off-kilter in their own personal way. Gradually, the town’s facade of extreme normality begins to crack mightily, revealing an endless barrage of schemes, fronts, and hidden relationships that expose Twin Peaks as the disturbed, unsettling town that it is.

Twin Peaks: Season Two, Part One

From MARK FROST and DAVID LYNCH (The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet, and Mulholland Drive), the wildly imaginative, darkly comic mystery thriller series that became one of the most acclaimed events in television history, Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks Season 2, Part 1 continues the hunt for the killer of Twin Peaks homecoming queen Laura Palmer turns for Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan). Shot by a mysterious assailant upon returning to Great Northern Hotel, he survives the attack and receives some bizarre clues about Laura's murder from a giant that suddenly materializes during his recuperation. A fire at the mill leaves several residents - and possible suspects - missing. And Laura Palmer's secret diary is uncovered, containing details best read over a steaming hot cup o' joe.

Twin Peaks: Season Two, Part Two

From MARK FROST and DAVID LYNCH (The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet, and Mulholland Drive), the wildly imaginative, darkly comic mystery thriller series that became one of the most acclaimed events in television history, Twin Peaks. Season 1 Part 2 continues the search for the killer of Twin Peaks homecoming queen Laura Palmer, but it's Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) who comes under investigation when he is suspended from the FBI for his unauthorized raid on the One-Eyed Jacks casino. Despite that obstacle, Cooper uncovers some clues regarding the identity of the person who shot him. And, with help from Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean), Cooper attempts to decipher the secret of the Black Lodge .an undertaking that may release its sinister revelations just as the town is preparing for its festive "Miss Twin Peaks" contest.

Special Features:

Log Lady Intros
Director Interviews: Caleb Deschanel, Todd Holland, Jennifer Lynch, Duwayne Dunham, Stephen Gyllenhall, Tim Hunter

Deadwood: The Complete First Season

1876, the Black Hills of South Dakota, two weeks after Custer's last stand. Witness the birth of an American frontier town - and the ruthless power struggle between its just and unjust pioneers. In an age of plunder and greed, the richest gold strike in American history draws a mob of restless misfits to an outlaw settlement where everything - and everyone - has a price. The settlers, ranging from an ex-lawman to a scheming saloon owner to the legendary Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane, share a constant restlessness of spirit, and survive by any mean necessary. Welcome to Deadwood...a hell of a place to make your fortune. The series was nominated for 11 Emmys and two Golden Globe Awards in its debut season.

Deadwood: The Complete Second Season

A new day is dawning in Deadwood... The spring of 1877 brings major changes to the teeming outlaw camp of Deadwood, as civilization makes its way to town. New arrivals will usher in an era of power struggles with the camp founders-and power struggles in Deadwood have a way of turning violent... Created and executive produced by David Milch ("NYPD Blue"), Deadwood is one of most acclaimed dramas on television. The series was nominated for 11 Emmys® and two Golden Globe® Awards in its debut season.

Deadwood: The Complete Third Season

Set in the mid to late summer of 1877, six weeks after the events of the Second Season, the first steps of civilization and law begin to enter the town; as well as the interests of larger, more powerful entities -- in particular Hearst and his mining company. Deadwood preps itself for its first elections as it enters the Dakota territory, with Seth Bullock vs. Harry Manning (sheriff) and Sol Star vs. E.B. Farnum (mayor).

Man on the Moon

Kaufman, the legendary 'Saturday Night Live' comedian, well known for his role as the insecure immigrant in the TV series Taxi, was considered one of the most innovative and eccentric performers of our time. His gimmicks and clever hoaxes created chaos for his audiences, colleagues and himself. Andy Kaufman - madman or genius?

Emma

Set in the lush English countryside in the early part of the 19th Century, Emma (based on the novel by Jane Austen) tells the funny and timeless tale of a young woman so devoted to meddling in the lives and romances of others, that she may miss her chance to learn about love first hand.

The Pianist

Roman Polanski's remarkable, Oscar and Palme D'Or winning film The Pianist tells the true story of Wladyslaw Szpilman (Adrien Brody). Managing to survive in the Krakow ghetto while the vast majority of the Jewish population have been transported to concentration camps, Szpilman leads a lonely, dangerous existence sheltering in abandoned houses. Directed by a film artist who lived through the times it depicts, Polanski's matter of fact storytelling style makes this one of the most haunting of Holocaust-themed films and it features an indelible central performance by the Academy Award's choice of Best Actor in 2003, Adrien Brody.

Ray

Taylor Hackford's critically acclaimed biopic of the legendary blues man covers four decades of Ray Charles' life, including the traumatic incidents that would forever affect his life. Ray is an inspirational story of how a mother's love can motivate a child's will to achieve greatness. Encapsulating his life, career and ongoing battle with racism, both within and outside the industry. But the joy is in Charles' music and Jamie Foxx's uncanny 'ooooohs' - a flawless performance by an actor who has been underrated for far too long.

Naz Nasir is from Readings Carlton

The Deer Hunter (Special Edition)

One of the most widely acclaimed films of all time. The Deer Hunter is Michael Cimino's celebrated interpretation of the stresses and dangers - noth physical and emotional - which confront a trio of Pennsylvanian steel-workers when they are sent out to fight in the horror that was the Vietnam War. Out of this grim material, hewn off the macho block of men's suffering and male bonding, Cimino fashioned a huge movie that operates on the senses oven more than on the mind, the film won many Oscars and immense praise, not least for Meryl Streep's appearances as a war bride. If Vietnam could be said to have produced a Gone with the Wind, proving that courage, love and heroism are still forces in human affairs, this movie would be it.

Apollo 13 (Special Edition)

It had been less than a year sinse man first walked on the moon, but as far as the American public was concerned, Apollo 13 was just another 'routine' space flight-until these words pierced the immense void of space:'Houston, we have a problem.'Ron Howard directs Academy Award winner Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise and Ed Harris in a riviting suspense-thriller from Imagine Entertainment. Stranded 205,000 miles from Earth in a crippled spacecraft, astronauts Jim Lovell (Hanks), Fred Haise (Paxton) and Jack Swigert (Bacon) fight a desparate battle to survive. Meanwhile at misson control, astronaut Ken Mattingly (Sinise), flight director Gene Kranz (Harris) and a heroic ground crew race against time-and the odds- to bring them home. It's breathtaking adventure that tells a story of courage, faith and ingenuity that is all the more remarkable because it is true!

The Last Temptation Of Christ

"The Best Film of 1988" declared Gene Siskel (Siskel & Ebert/Chicago Tribune), echoing the sentiments of numerous critics around the world who included The Last Temptation of Christ as one of their "ten best films of the year". This powerful drama earned director Martin Scorsese an Academy Award nomination for "Best Achievement in Directing", as well as Golden Globe Award norminations for Barbara Hershey ("Best Actress") and Peter Gabriel ("Best Score"). Based on the novel by Niklos Kazantzakis, starring Willem Dafoe and also featuring Harvey Keitel, Harry Dean Stanton and David Bowie, The Last Temptation of Christ is a visually breath-taking accomplishment.

House of Flying Daggers

Hero director Zhang Yimou throws scene after stunning scene at you in House Of Flying Daggers, a dazzling epic of true breathtaking action, passionate romance, Oscar nominated cinematography and serene beauty. Hoping she will lead them to her fellow assassins, two captains (Takeshi Kaneshiro;Andy Lau)hatch a plan to capture and trick Mei (Ziyi Zhang-Hero, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon), a beautiful dancer suspected of having ties to the House of Flying Daggers, a powerful revolutionary faction. From there begins a long trail of dangerous encounters, impossable love triangles and plot twists, in which people are rarely as they seem... With some of the most beautiful martial arts scenes ever filmed, this is a visual masterpiece and a feast for the senses.

Lust, Caution

Lust, Caution stars Asian cinema icon Tony Leung as a powerful government figure who becomes enarmoured with Wang Jiazhi (stunning newcomer Tang Wei), the young friend of his beautiful wife (Joan Chen). But Wang is not whom she appears to be, and as their mutual attraction turns to dizzying passion, a perilous game of emotional roulette ensues, where devotion becomes indistinguishable from betrayal, and murder may become the ultimate act of love.

Apocalypse Now (Redux)

More napalm. More Duvall. More jungle. A bit more Brando. More of Michael Herr’s super-cool narration. More of Martin Sheen’s finest ever performance. More of Chef’s mango fetish. More of Vittorio Storaro’s retina-scorching cinematography. More comedy. More Hueys. More Playboy bunnies. More excess. More Coppola genius.

Gosford Park: Special Edition

It is November, 1932. Gosford Park is the magnificent country estate to which Sir William McCardle and his wife, Lady Sylvia, gather relations and friends for a weekend shooting party. They have invited an eclectic group. As the guests assemble in the gilded drawing rooms above, their personal maids and valets swell the ranks of the house servants in the teeming kitchens and corridors below-stairs. But all is not as it seems: neither amongst the bejeweled guests lunching and dining at their enormous leisure, nor in the attic bedrooms and stark work stations where the servants labour for the comfort of their employers. Part comedy of manners and part mystery, the film is finally a moving portrait of events that bridge generations, class, sex, tragic personal history - and culminate in a murder. Or is it two murders...?

Mulholland Drive

She found herself the perfect mystery. A sad illusion. Love. Sounds simple and straightforward... But nothing is straightforward in a David Lynch film. Part erotic thriller, part fantasy, part nightmare, part enigma wrapped in a riddle - this is Lynch at his most daring, provocative and complex. Mulholland Drive is a mind-altering journey to the dark heart of the American dream, where sinister forces lurk beneath every surface. Naive ingenue Better Elms (Naomi Watts_ has come to Hollywood to seek fame and fortune - but she finds something much more disturbing waiting in her apartment - a mysterious woman whose only memory is that someone is trying to kill her. What begins as a simple premise unfolds into a shattering hallucinogenic vision of what it takes to make it in Hollywood. No-one comes out with their soul intact.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Rating:M15+

From acclaimed writer Charlie Kaufman and visionary director Michel Gondry comes Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. An all-star ensemble cast shines in this comical and poignant look at breakups, breakdowns and breakthroughs. Joel (Jim Carey) is stunned to discover his girlfriend, Clementine (Kate Winslet), has had their tumultuous relationship erased from her mind. Out of desperation, he contacts the inventor of the process, Dr. Howard Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkinson), to get the same treatment. But as his memories of Clementine begin to fade, Joel suddenly realises how much he still loves her. Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffolo and Elijah Wood co-star in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – a memorable film that The Wall Street journal calls “a romantic comedy unlike any other!”

Vertigo: Special Edition

Set in San Francisco, James Stewart portrays an acrophobic detective hired to trail a friend's suicidal wife (Kim Novak). After he successfully rescues her from a leap into the bay, he finds himself becoming obsessed with the beautifully troubled woman.

One of cinema's most chillingly romantic endeavors: its fascinating myriad of haunting camera angles shot among some of San Francisco's renowned landmarks. This film is a must for collectors: Leonard Maltin gives Vertigo four stars and hails it as "A genuinely great motion picture that demands multiple viewings."

Smart People

Dennis Quaid plays a widowed professor, and indifferent father, newly admitted to an emergency ward. Sarah Jessica Parker is his physician, who agrees to go on a date with him. His daughter tries to derail his relationship and his brother is a mooch. Four smart people - none with a clue.

Schindler's List (2 Disc Special Edition)

Schindler's List, a Steven Spielberg film, is a cinematic masterpiece that has become one of the most honored films of all time.

Winner of seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director it also won every major Best Picture award and an exceptional number of additional honors. Among them were seven British Academy Awards; the Best Picture Awards from the New York Film Critics Circle, the National Society of Film Critics, the National Board of Review, the Producers Guild, the Los Angeles Film Critics, the Chicago, Boston and Dallas Film Critics; a Christopher Award; and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Golden Globe Awards. Steven Spielberg was further honored with the Directors Guild of America Award.

The film presents the indelible true story of the enigmatic Oskar Schindler, a member of the Nazi party, womanizer, and war profiteer who saved the lives of more than 1,100 Jews during the Holocaust. It is the triumph of one man who made a difference, and the drama of those who survived one of the darkest chapters in human history because of what he did.

Special Features:

Features new digitally enhanced picture and 5.1 sound
Over 90 minutes of brand new bonus material: o Behind the Shoah Foundation with Steven Spielberg o Voices From The List - A powerful featurette showcasing never seen before testimonials

Serpico

Al Pacino in Sydney Lumet's film of police corruption in New York is one of a group of films that defined the era of great American cinema of the 1970s. Moral, gritty, uncompromising and above all intelligent drama.

Milk

His life changed history. His courage changed lives. Academy Award winner Sean Penn stars in this stirring celebration of Harvey Milk, a true man of the people. Milk is based on the inspiring true story of the first openly gay man elected to major public office. This compelling film follows Milks powerful journey to inspire hope for equal rights. With a stunning all-star cast, including Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch, Diego Luna and James Franco, Milk tells an emotionally charged story that is the winner of two Academy Awards.

Special Features:

Deleted Scenes
Remember Harvey
Hollywood comes to San Francisco
Marching to Equality

Garden State

Hot stars Zach Braff (TVs Scrubs), Natalie Portman (Cold Mountain) and Peter Sarsgaard (Boys Dont Cry) give unforgettable performances in this original motion picture! An aspiring actor living in Los Angeles, Andrew Large Largeman (Braff) has managed to avoid a visit to his hometown in New Jersey and the inevitable confrontation with his father (Ian Holm The Aviator). But as he reconnects with the place once he returns, a twist of fate introduces him to Sam (Portman), a quirky girl who gives Large the courage to open his heart to lifes experiences!

An Official Selection at the Sundance Film Festival and set to a great soundtrack featuring Coldplay, Remy Zero and the Shins, GARDEN STATE is the must-see cult hit of the year!

Chaplin (Special Edition)

Starring an incredible all-star cast and directed by the legendary Richard Attenborough, CHAPLIN is a loving, grand scale portrait of the Little Tramps amazing life and times. His poverty-stricken childhood in England comes to life, along with his friendships with Mack Sennet and Douglas Fairbanks, his many wives and scandalous affairs, and his relentless pursuit by J.Edgar Hoover. Chaplin is the larger-than-life story of the actor behind the icon and a stunning depiction of a bygone era when Hollywood was at its most glamourous.

The Changeling

Inspired by actual events that occurred in 1920s-era Los Angeles, Clint Eastwood's The Changeling tells the story of a woman driven to confront a corrupted LAPD after her abducted son is retrieved and she begins to suspect that the boy returned to her is not the same boy she gave birth to. The year was 1928, and the setting a working class suburb of Los Angeles. As Christine said goodbye to her son Walter and departed for work, she never anticipated that this was the day her life would be forever changed. Upon returning home, Christine was distressed to discover that Walter was nowhere to be found. Over the course of the following months, the desperate mother would launch a search that would ultimately prove fruitless. Yet just when it seemed that all hope was lost, a nine year old boy claiming to be Christine's son seemed to appear out of thin air. Overcome with emotions and uncertain how to face the authorities or the press, Christine invites the child to stay in her home despite knowing without a doubt that he is not her son Walter. As much as Christine would like to accept that fact that her son has been returned to her, she cannot accept the injustice being pushed upon her and continues to challenge the Prohibition-era Los Angeles police force at every turn. As a result, Christine is slandered by the powers that be, and painted as an unfit mother. In this town, a woman who challenges the system is putting her life on the line, and as the situation grows desperate, the only person willing to aid her in her search is benevolent local activist Reverend Briegleb (John Malkovich).

Hilary And Jackie

The touching and tragic real-life story of brilliant, international concert cellist Jacqueline Du Pr (Emily Watson) as seen by her sister Hilary (Rachel Griffiths) and brother Piers (Rupert Penry-Jones). From their early life together as musicians, flautist Hilary was the one in demand until their mother Iris (Celia Imrie) scolded Jacqueline that if she wanted to be with her sister she must become as good as her. To Jacqueline's debut performance in the Wigmore Hall, London following which she is presented with the Stradivarius Davidoff by an unknown benefactor. Following a wedding appearance in Italy the lives of Hilary and Jacqueline separated as Hilary returned to London and her flute studies whilst Jacqueline embarked on her international concert career. In London Hilary marries Kiffer Finzi (David Morrissey) and starts a family whilst Jacqueline meets and marries conductor Daniel Barenboim (James Frain).