The twist of private-eye show Randall & Hopkirk Deceased is that in the first episode, gumshoe Marty Hopkirk (Kenneth Cope) is killed off by the villains, only to pop up in an immaculate white suit as a ghost visible only to his hardboiled partner Jeff Randall (Mike Pratt). In theory, the supernatural streak--which meant a complex set of rules about Marty's appearances and effects on the physical world--should lead the show into wilder territory, but most episodes squander the team's unique abilities on ordinary cases about blackmail and murder-for-profit. A persistent subplot has the living Jeff getting cosy with the dead Marty's widow Jean (Annette Andre) to the discomfort of her late husband. The elementary effects and the nice underplaying of the leads have a certain period charm, and the show could afford a high calibre of special guest villains and dolly birds. A 1990s remake with Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer hasn't obliterated memories of the original. --Kim Newman
Get on board for one of the very best hard-boiled thrillers ever to hurtle out of Hollywood. Charles McGraw (His Kind Of Woman) stars as Detective Walter Brown a cop with a simple mission - get mobster's wife Frankie Neale (Marie Windsor Force of Evil) on the train and take her to the grand jury in Los Angeles where she's going to testify against her late husband's colleagues. But the mob don't want her to spill the beans and they'll stop at nothing to stop her taking the stand; Brown realises they've planted assassins on the train with them and it's up to him to keep her safe. It's going to be one hell of a journey...
Every Era Has Its Own Kind Of Hero In this entertaining turn-of-the-century drama based on a real-life story Nicolas Cage stars as Ned Hanlan a juvenile delinquent who rises to become a world-class rower. Seeing in Hanlania chance to make some fast cash Bill (David Naughton) a gambler has Hanlan trained as a sculler and begins to promote him on the racing circuit. Eventually Hanlan's ability grows and so does his fame but success comes at a price when Hanlan falls prey to a ruthless businessman (Christopher Plummer). Through it all Hanlan becomes a world champion garners awards on three continents and becomes the first to successfully utilize the ""sliding seat."" The romantic racing drama about one of Canada's great sports heroes world-class rower Ned Hanlan.
A TV adaptation of Agatha Christie's whodunnit 'Death On The Nile' starring David Suchet as sleuth Hercule Poirot.
Operation Zitadelle the great German offensive designed to deliver a knockout blow against the salient at Kursk was to prove the last great armoured clash in the east. New machines such as the Elefant took their bow and the trusty Panzer III came to the end of the line.
He's the smartest student at Angel Grove High School; a genius inventor able to solve any problem by relying on his brain before resorting to his brawn. He's loyal to his friends and is always there when he's needed. You know him as Billy Cranston, but the world knows him best as the Blue Ranger, and these are his most morphinominal stories! Episodes: Peace, Love And Woe Dark Warrior Switching Places Something Fishy Grumble Bee Blue Ranger Gone Bad Bonus Feature: An Interview With The Blue Ranger, David Yost
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift has all the elements that spelled success for its predecessors: Speed, sex, and minimal dialogue. The plot doesn't need explication; it's a nonsensical series of confrontations and standoffs that serve to get us from one race to another. Tokyo Drift can most accurately be described as a visual poem about screeching tires, crunching fiberglass, and sleek female skin, set to a killer soundtrack of Japanese pop and hip-hop. The actors are only needed for tight close-ups of narrowed eyes or sweaty hands tightly gripping gearshifts, though Sung Kang, Better Luck Tomorrow, stands out as a vaguely philosophical hoodlum with deadpan charisma. The curved bodies of the cars and the luscious flesh of the women are both shot with a fetishistic hunger. The "drift" style of racing--in which the cars are allowed to slide in order to take sharp turns at high speeds--grabs your eyes; there's a strange, spectral beauty to rows of cars sliding sideways down a mountain road at night. Also starring Lucas Black (Friday Night Lights) as our wheel-happy hero; Bow Wow (Roll Bounce) as the scam-artist comic relief; and martial arts legend Sonny Chiba (Kill Bill) as a yakuza big shot. --Bret Fetzer
Running for over 100 episodes, Probation Officer was an early hit for ATV and made a star out of John Paul, who would later go on to give such a memorable performance a decade later in Doomwatch. Created by Julian Bond, Probation Officer's semi-documentary format allowed it to remain topical throughout its four-year run. This set contains twelve episodes.Philip Main reports for duty in his new job as a probation officer. Ex-Army, he has only had a few weeks' basic training and no hands-on experience - will he be able to cope with the cases that come his way?
Ben Kane is a peace-loving man but he takes the job of Deputy Marshall in order to settle a score with the chief trouble-maker. He soon has to deal with others in the town who are looking to create trouble for him like Billy a young sharpshooter and Lily a saloon dancer.
In 1962's On the Beat, Norman Wisdom's Pitkin, the most famous incarnation of his riotous buffoon character, is dreaming of something better as usual. Pitkin wants to follow in his father's footsteps and become a policeman, but being decidedly on the short side, has to settle for washing police cars. Of course it's not long before Norman is impersonating an officer of the law. Wisdom also plays his nemesis here, the German General Schreiber, as well as the chief suspect in a series of jewel robberies which only Pitkin's chaotic antics can solve. Terence Alexander effectively reprises his character from The Square Peg (1958), and Wisdom regular David Lodge, previously seen costarring in The Bulldog Breed (1960), is also on hand, though otherwise the supporting cast is less stellar than before. By the time of 1955's Man of the Moment, Wisdom was firmly established as Britain's favourite movie comedian, his shy, helpful and good-natured "gump" character forever unintentionally causing catastrophe in the great tradition of Charlie Chaplin. However, while Chaplin ventured into politics in Modern Times (1936) for satirical purposes, when Norman's minor civil servant here accidentally becomes the UK delegate at a conference in Geneva the emphasis is on farce and pratfalls. The plot sees Norman sticking up for the rights of the fictional kingdom of Tawaki against less-than-honest government interests, while his new-found status brings the attention of the ladies, including the return of his Trouble in Store (1953) costar Lana Morris. Continuing his collaboration with veteran director John Paddy Carstairs, the film is a polished laughter machine that continues to entertain. --Gary S Dalkin
When Inspector Morse first appeared on television in 1987, nobody could have predicted that it would run into the next century, maintaining throughout a quality of scripts and story lines that raised the genre of the detective series to a new level. Much of its success can be attributed to John Thaw's total immersion in the role. Morse is a prickly character and not obviously easy to like. As a detective in Oxford with unfulfilled academic propensities, he is permanently excluded from a world of which he would dearly love to be a part. He is at odds with that world--and with his colleagues in the police force--most of the time. Passionate about opera and "proper beer", he is a cultural snob for whom vulgarity causes almost physical pain. As a result, he lives from one disillusionment to another. And he is scarred--more deeply than he would ever admit--by past relationships. But he also has a naïve streak and, deep-down sensitivity, which makes him a fascinating challenge for women. At the heart of Morse's professional life is his awkward partnership with Detective Sergeant Lewis, the resolutely ordinary, worldly sidekick who manages to keep his boss in an almost permanent state of exasperation while retaining his grudging respect. It's a testament to Kevin Whateley's consistently excellent performance that from such unpromising material, Lewis becomes as indispensable to the series as Barrington Pheloung's hypnotic, classic theme music. Morse's investigations do occasionally take him abroad to more exotic locations, but throughout 14 successful years of often gruesome murders, the city of Oxford itself became a central character in these brooding two-hour dramas: creator Colin Dexter stating he finally had to kill Morse off because he was giving Oxford a bad reputation as a dangerous place! --Piers Ford
Welcome to Eddie's world. It exists at the very juncture where Hollywood meets the mountains, where the almost-rich and not-yet-famous live on cheap thrills and heady ambition while searching for true love and redemption.
Alvin, Simon and Theodore have plenty to sing about in three hilarious comedies for the whole family! In Alvin and the Chipmunks, when struggling songwriter Dave Seville (Jason Lee) opens his home to a trio of talented chipmunks, they become overnight sensations. Then in Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, the boys are back for an awesome encore and joined by the beautiful Chipettes. Finally, a rockin' vacation aboard a cruise liner turns into a nutty adventure in Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked! Chip-Tasic Bonus Disc includes: Alvin and the Chipmunks: Road Chip Down Memory Lane The Ultimate 'Munk Mash Up Chip-tastic Personality Test
Mega Star Jack Nicholson (A Few Good Men, As Good As It Gets) and an outstanding, star-packed cast power this suspenseful, critically-acclaimed action thriller about a man with a vengeful obsession. For six long years, Freddy Gale (Nicholson) has waited to take his revenge on John Booth (David Morse, Twelve Monkeys) and the man jailed for a crime that stripped Freddys life of all happiness and meaning. Now, Booth is getting out of prison and Freddys giving him just three days to live before he returns to get even. Directed by Sean Penn and starring Hollywood favourites Angelica Huston (The Addams Family and Robin Wright (Unbreakable)
The Beyond
A Touch Of Frost Series 6-15 (29 Discs)
Grow up a Cutler and you don't have to worry about career plans. The real family business is crime and extortion. When the Cutlers take over a high class restaurant Joey sees a way to step back from the violence and get involved in a legitimate business that will keep his wife and kids safe. In an atmosphere of jealousy betrayal sibling resentment and deeply hidden secrets it's clear that family tensions within the Cutler firm are more sinister and threatening than anything rival gangs can hit them with.
When Inspector Morse first appeared on television in 1987, nobody could have predicted that it would run into the next century, maintaining throughout a quality of scripts and storylines that raised the genre of the detective series to a new level. Much of its success can be attributed to John Thaw's total immersion in the role. Morse is a prickly character and not obviously easy to like. As a detective in Oxford with unfulfilled academic propensities, he is permanently excluded from a world of which he would dearly love to be a part. He is at odds with that world--and with his colleagues in the police force--most of the time. Passionate about opera and "proper beer", he is a cultural snob for whom vulgarity causes almost physical pain. As a result, he lives from one disillusionment to another. And he is scarred--more deeply than he would ever admit--by past relationships. But he also has a naïve streak and, deep down, sensitivity, which makes him a fascinating challenge for women. At the heart of Morse's professional life is his awkward partnership with Detective Sergeant Lewis, the resolutely ordinary, worldly sidekick who manages to keep his boss in an almost permanent state of exasperation while retaining his grudging respect. It's a testament to Kevin Whately's consistently excellent performance that from such unpromising material, Lewis becomes as indispensable to the series as Barrington Pheloung's hypnotic, classic theme music. Morse's investigations do occasionally take him abroad to more exotic locations, but throughout 14 successful years of often gruesome murders, the city of Oxford itself became a central character in these brooding two-hour dramas: creator Colin Dexter said he finally had to kill Morse off because he was giving Oxford a bad reputation as a dangerous place! --Piers Ford
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