Twister was a mega-million-dollar blockbuster--helmed by a director (Dutchman Jan de Bont) hot off another scorcher hit (Speed)--that flaunted state-of-the-art digital effects and featured a popular leading actress (Helen Hunt) who would win an Academy Award for her next film (As Good As It Gets). But ask anybody who's seen it and they'll tell you who the real star of Twister is: the cow. Not to give anything away, but the cow is one of those inspired little touches (like, say, Bronson Pinchot's career-making cameo in Beverly Hills Cop) that adds a touch of personality to a gigantic Hollywood production. The story is blown out the window after an impressive prologue in which Hunt's character, as a little girl, witnesses her daddy being sucked into a tornado. Basically, Hunt and Bill Paxton are thrill-seeking meteorologists chasing twisters in order to study them (and help warn people of them, of course) with a new technology they've developed. If you thought the Kansas tornado in The Wizard of Oz was every bit as scary as the Wicked Witch of the West, then this may be the movie for you. --Jim Emerson
Tina Turner, that dynamic diva of pop/soul/R&B from the 1960s to the 90s, sings like a woman whose life story is every bit as rough and tough as her voice. And What's Love Got to Do With It, based on her autobiographical account (in I, Tina, written with Kurt Loder) of her years under the iron fist of her abusive husband and musical partner/Svengali Ike, is further proof of what we've always known about Tina: She's what you call a survivor. The movie is sort of the Disney version of Tina Turner's story--a glossy but thoroughly enjoyable, old-fashioned showbiz biopic with laughs, tears, great music, and outrageous (but faithful) period decor, costumes, makeup, and hairstyles. Our Heroine triumphs not only over the rigorous demands of her career in the music business, but finally manages to bust out of her troubled, violent marriage as well and become her own person. This is a movie that'll have you shouting at the top of your lungs: "You go, girl!" --Jim Emerson
A year after proving that she can handle a murder enquiry as well as any man D.C.I. Tennison is launched back into battle at Scotland Yard. The body of a young girl is discovered in a shallow grave in the back garden of a terraced house in an Afro-Carribean neighbourhood of London. The difficult job of identifying the body and finding the murderer is only made worse when the controversial subject of racism rears its ugly head. Having to contend with prejudice and misunderstanding from both the locals and from within her own team and dealing with a boss who has one eye on his own promotion D.C.I. Tennison has to use her powers of ingenuity courage and compassion as she faces the political disapproval of the public and her colleagues.
When DCI Jane Tennison (Mirren) takes over the running of what appears to be an open and shut murder case her investigations lead her into a male dominated world and the hunt for a serial killer. Winner of BAFTA's Best Drama Serial in 1991 written by Lynda La Plante.
Never Promise Never Lie. When a businesswoman (Emma Fielding) is kidnapped in South Africa expert hostage negotiator Dominic King (Trevor Eve) believes he's dealing with a straightforward case - pay the money get her back! But when the release is botched and they strike again in Britain the kidnapper Willard's (John Hannah) motives become far more sinister. With trouble brewing at home with his wife Sophie (Natasha Little) and teenage daughter - and his team boss Angela (Helen Baxendale) and ambitious assistant Carrie (Amara Karan) pushed to the limit King must draw on all his reserves to bring the victims home alive. Kidnap and Ransom stars Trevor Eve (Waking The Dead Bouquet Of Barbed Wire) John Hannah (Spartacus Four Weddings and a Funeral) Helen Baxendale (Friends Cold Feet) and was created by Patrick Harbinson (24 Law & Order).
Winnie lives in a trailer in a desolate part of Dublin, where her family struggle with prejudice and poverty.
Three Faces Of The West (Dir. Bernard Vorhaus 1940): A refugee physician and his daughter find themselves part of a group of townspeople who are trying to relocate out of the dust bowl region of the South Central U.S. John Wayne stars the group's tireless leader. Shepherd Of The Hills (Dir. Henry Hathaway 1941): When a stranger comes to an isolated mountain village and tempers the rough rage of its inhabitants one of the mountaineers (""The Duke"") is still suspicious of this mysterious interloper--and not incidentally still bitter over being deserted by his father as an infant.
Writer/director/producer/comedian Yahoo Serious turns out his third opus this time starring as egg factory maintenance man Roger Crumpkin. Roger's a little bit cracked but his love for Sunday Valentine (Helen Dallimore) will make him stop at nothing to prove his worth. When it turns out his employers might be adding something to their eggs to make them more addictive Roger dons the yolk of social responsibility and sets out to scramble the factory's nefarious schemes!
The first Prime Suspect introduces Helen Mirren's detective chief inspector Jane Tennison, the only female DCI on an old boy's club London homicide squad. She is like a phantom lurking around the edges of the action while the men rush through their latest murder case, joshing and winking with the kind of male camaraderie the cop genre has celebrated for decades. When DCI Shefford dies of a sudden heart attack, Tennison demands to take over. Despite her superintendent's resistance ("Give her this case and she'll start expecting more"), she becomes the squad's first woman to head a murder investigation. Scrutinised at every moment by her superior officers, Tennison is faced with a case that spirals out from a single murder to a serial spree, a second-in-command who undermines her authority and her investigation at every turn, a team resistant to taking orders from a woman and a private life unravelling due to her professional diligence. Lynda La Plante's script is a compelling thriller riddled with ambiguity that turns dead ends, blind alleys, and the mundane legwork of real-life cops into fascinating details. Mirren commands the role of Tennison with authority, intelligence, and a touch of overachieving desperation. Superb performances, excellent writing, and understated direction make this BBC miniseries one of the most involving mysteries in years. Look for future stars Ralph Fiennes and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. --Sean Axmaker
Take An Easy Ride: Special Edition
Det. Superintendent Jane Tennison's (Helen Mirren) relationship with psychologist Patrick Schofield (Stuart Wilson) has developed into a promisingly happy affair. When a series of murders take place which resemble those investigated in the first Prime Suspect she is faced with a possible miscarriage of justice and promptly suspended. Are they copy-cat crimes or is George Marlow (Tim Woodward) innocent as he always insisted? Prevented from working possibly betrayed by her lover and haunted by the past Tennison is forced to re-examine her most fundamental beliefs about her life and work.
Tough yet emotionally vulnerable the newly-promoted Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) returns to old territory at London's Southampton Row to work on a case involving the disappearance of a young child. The investigation leads her to Chris Hughes (Robert Glenister) a serial child sex offender who has recently been released from a custodial treatment centre. As the investigation reaches its climax a badly bungled arrest attempt results in a tense siege situation. With police marksmen in a position and concern mounting for the safety of the three hostages D.S. Tennsion moves in to take control.
In the first Prime Suspect, Helen Mirren's ballsy woman Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennyson battled the boys club and their sexist barbs to prove herself in a chauvinist department. In Prime Suspect 2, she's assigned to head a racially charged murder investigation in a largely African/Caribbean neighbourhood. It's politics as usual in the image-conscious organization, so the superintendent adds to the team black Detective Robert Oswalde (Colin Salma), a sharp but hot-headed investigator who has just broken off an affair with Tennyson. Now Tennyson grapples with her own conflicted feelings while fighting political and public-relations battles both in the media and within the police system itself in the midst of investigating the labyrinthine case. Between the scant clues left to sift, a prime suspect on the verge of death himself and divisions in her own team that result in a devastating death, Tennyson soon begins to suspect she's been hung out to dry by the department. Screenwriter Allan Cubitt dives into the murky waters of volatile racial and social relations to create an even more complex and compelling mystery in Tennyson's second appearance and Mirren rises to the challenge to explore the contradictions of an uncompromising cop in a compromising position. --Sean Axmaker
Det. Superintendent Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) finds herself investigating a bizarre death in a very different part of London an affluent commuter suburb. When the manager of the local country club is found dead in his home neighbours are quick to blame youngsters from the rundown housing estate nearby and the local police are happy to go along with that view. With her personnel resources at full stretch D.S. Tennison is forced to engage in political games with the community while pulling together a difficult team and leading a problematic investigation.
Michael Hampe's celebrated production of Benjamin Britten's shattering opera based on the spine-chilling short story by the 19th century American novelist Henry James. The Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart performs under the renowned Britten specialist Stuart Bedford.
Detective Superintendent Jane Tennison's return to London's Southampton Row is complicated by personal upheaval and an investigation into the disappearance of a child...
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