Dean Corso is highly skilled at his work, a position which requires dexterity, cultural expertise, nerves of steel...and few scruples.
Season Four sees Buffy Willow and Oz going to college at UC Sunnydale. Buffy immediately comes face-to-face with the leader of a gang of vampire thieves named Sunday. If that wasn't bad enough we learn that Buffy's roommate (who naturally has a Celine Dion poster) Kathy is a demon... Episodes Comprise: 1. The Freshman 2. Living Conditions 3. The Harsh Light Of Day 4. Fear Itself 5. Beer Bad 6. Wild At Heart 7. The Initiative 8. Pangs 9. Something Blue 10. Hush 11. Doomed 1
Based on the novels by Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe (1993-7) ran to 14 full-length television films that follow the adventures of the titular soldier through the later years of the Napoleonic Wars. The programmes are an outstanding achievement for the small screen, dominated by Sean Bean's central performance as the heroic, troubled outsider who turns out to be a resourceful and loyal leader. Bolstered by a strong supporting cast, particularly Daragh O'Malley as Harper and (in later episodes) Abigail Cruttenden as Jane, Sharpe is often visually striking, the action tense and gripping. Consistency is maintained by all 14 episodes being directed by Tom Clegg. --Gary S Dalkin
'Field of Dreams' begins in an Iowa cornfield when Ray Kinsella hears a mysterious voice - ''If you build it he will come'' and sees a brief vision. With the support of his wife Annie Ray Kinsella pursues his dream and encounters several memorable characters along the way Terence Mann a legendary yet reclusive author ''Doc'' Graham and the infamous Shoeless Joe Jackson. 'Field of Dreams' is the story of a simple Iowa farmer who against all odds finds the courage to believe in his dreams.
Directed by Charles Crichton, who would much later direct John Cleese in A Fish Called Wanda (1988), 1951's The Lavender Hill Mob is the most ruefully thrilling of the Ealing Comedies. Alec Guinness plays a bowler-hatted escort of bullion to the refineries. His seeming timidity, weak 'r's and punctiliousness mask a typically Guinness-like patient cunning. "I was aware I was widiculed but that was pwecisely the effect I was stwiving to achieve". He's actually plotting a heist. With more conventionally cockney villains Sid James and Alfie Bass in tow, as well as the respectable but ruined Stanley Holloway, Guinness' perfect criminal plan works in exquisite detail, then unravels just as exquisitely, culminating in a nail-biting police car chase in which you can't help rooting for the villains. The Lavender Hill Mob depicts a London still up to its knees in rubble from World War II, a world of new hope but continued austerity, a budding new order in which everything seems up for grabs; as such it could be regarded as a lighter hearted cinematic cousin to Carol Reed's 1949 masterpiece The Third Man. The Lavender Hill Mob also sees the first, fleeting on-screen appearance of Audrey Hepburn in the opening sequence. --David Stubbs
John Wayne hams it up as a one-eyed, broken-down marshal in this 1969 adaptation of Charles Portis's bestselling novel. Kim Darby plays the formal-speaking adolescent who goes to Wayne for help tracking down her father's killer, and singer Glen Campbell straps on his guns to join the quest. Directed by old lion Henry Hathaway (Rawhide), True Grit is largely a showcase for Wayne (who finally won an Oscar), but it is also a decent Western with a particularly stirring final act. --Tom Keogh
A 2-Disc Set covering the entire 150-minute concert plus incredible extras. Metallica never resting never ceasing to innovate or amaze returns with an extraordinary document of their concert with the San Francisco Symphony. Metallica's select favorites unfold like never before with the eloquent symphonic backing; they have never sounded more powerful or dramatic. The performance includes two new songs--""No Leaf Clover"" and ""Human."" TRACKS:: The Ecstasy of Gold The Call o
Metallica Through The Never is a ground-breaking music-driven 3D motion picture event combining a spectacular never-before seen live performance by Metallica created exclusively for the film and a suspenseful narrative to produce a bracing raw and visceral cinematic experience. As Metallica perform a roaring live set for fans in a sold-out arena a young roadie named Trip (Dane DeHaan) is sent on a mission to find a broken down truck and retrieve its contents for the band.
When a double homicide happens in a Florida community, the chief of police finds himself in a race against time to solve the murders before he himself falls under suspicion in this modern noir thriller.
Although Belgium's premiere sleuth Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) plans a spectacular Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer, the trip turns into a terrifying search for a murderer after a picture-perfect couple's honeymoon is cut tragically short. Set against a sweeping landscape of pyramids and desert vistas, DEATH ON THE NILE features a stunning ensemble cast. Based on Agatha Christie's beloved novel, this tale of unbridled passion and jealousy is filled with wicked twists and turns that will have you guessing until the shocking finale. Product Features Death on the Nile: Novel to Film Agatha Christie: Travel Can Be Murder Design on the Nile Branagh/Poirot Deleted Scenes x 8 Official Trailer
Bless This House
Every decade has its own kind of cop show and in the 1960s and early 70s following years of national love and acclaim for Dixon of Dock Green it came time for a new breed of policeman to take to the screen. Set in Newtown a fictional setting to the North of Liverpool it captures a time when coppers were leaving the beat for fast-paced response vehicles - the Z-Cars of the title. These colour episodes from 1972 make up our first collection capturing some of the characters and crimes that shaped the long ago decade of old-school policing when the concept of a crime family was up to three generations of burglars shoplifters and smash-and-grabbers. Z-Cars was also innovative in reflecting a changing and challenging time for the police men and women themselves engaging with their own personal crises and their impact on the force. So sit back and buckle-up as we let the criminal underworld of Newtown know that Z-Cars on the way.
How does bitter convict Robert Stroud cope with a lifetime of solitary confinement? The answer in a sense comes from above in the form of a feeble sparrow he finds in the isolation yard. Stroud brings this newfound companion to his cell nurses it to health and from that point on there's no turning back. Despite having only a third grade education and no hope of parole Stroud becomes a renowned ornithologist and achieves a greater sense of freedom and purpose behind prison walls
One of the last decent Carry On movies, Carry On Abroad is a 1972 venture into the world of package holidays. After this, the series descended into unfunny coarseness as opposed to camply laboured double entendre, culminating in the dreadful Carry On Emanuelle. Here, publican Sid James and dutiful mother's son turned sex maniac Charles Hawtrey are among a brace of Brits heading for the "paradise island" of Elsbels. Kenneth Williams is the out-of-his-depth tour operator, reverting to the sort of effete types he played in the 1950s, Peter Butterworth a pre-Manuel-style manager of a half-built hotel. A series of disasters ensue, with the entire gang landing up in jail following a fracas in a brothel at one point, but everyone finds romantic and sexual fulfilment in a quaint disco finale. This includes a gay character who is "dissuaded" from his homosexuality in a typical example of the thoroughly reactionary subtext that constitutes the really naughty bit of most Carry On films. Nonetheless, this throwback to an imaginary time when the lewdest innuendo of a dirty old man was greeted by young females with a flirty "Ooh, saucy!" is enjoyable on condition that you enter into its seaside-postcard spirit. June Whitfield is fine as a sexually uptight wife, Kenneth Connor a model of red-faced frustration as her wimpish husband. On the DVD: Sadly, no extra features except scene selection. The picture is a 4:3 ratio full-screen presentation. --David Stubbs
James Belushi stars as Thomas Dooley an unorthodox narcotics cop who teams with an independently minded police dog in this hilarious action-comedy. Headstrong Dooley is one step away from nailing a prominent socialite in a $50 million cocaine bust. But branded as too crazy to partner with no one will work with him except Jerry Lee a superbly trained German Shepherd police dog with the best nose in the drug-busting business. The unconventional pairing pleases neither partner but a
First transmitted in 1984, Chocky is a six-part TV adaptation of John Wyndham's clever novel. Matthew, an apparently normal 12-year-old boy, starts talking to an invisible presence called Chocky, who quizzes him on a wide variety of subjects as if unfamiliar with life on Earth. Over the course of the serial it is suggested that Chocky is an alternate personality or, after Matthew has been helped by Chocky to rescue his sister from drowning, a guardian angel. But we realise early on that this non-imaginary friend is in fact an alien who has made exploratory contact with the boy. Though Chocky manifests as a swirl of blue light, this is a rare piece of TV science fiction that sticks to the domestic arena, exploring ideas rather than playing with special effects. Wyndham's very 1950s-styled novel is updated by making the kids less well-spoken, and throwing in Rubik's cubes and space invaders video games, but adaptor Anthony Read's script preserves the virtues of the novel. Young Andrew Ellams is fine in a demanding role, and there's good-quality puzzled concern from dad James Hazeldine and 80s TV's resident sexy mum Carol Drinkwater. Apart from a few eye-abusing 1984 fashions--Jeremy Bulloch's huge glasses and blinding white jeans in a cameo as a psychiatrist--and the general leisurely pace, which is no bad thing in such a careful piece of drama, this has dated little. Those who remember its first broadcast will find it lives up to the memory, and those who weren't born then should still find it an entertaining watch. On the DVD: Chocky on disc can be accessed as a marathon two-and-a-half-hour watch or as six individual episodes (the latter is recommended). Print quality is fine given the techniques of its production. A nice extra is a 20-minute, in-depth chat with writer Anthony Read. --Kim Newman
Metallica Through The Never is a ground-breaking music-driven 3D motion picture event combining a spectacular never-before seen live performance by Metallica created exclusively for the film and a suspenseful narrative to produce a bracing raw and visceral cinematic experience. As Metallica perform a roaring live set for fans in a sold-out arena a young roadie named Trip (Dane DeHaan) is sent on a mission to find a broken down truck and retrieve its contents for the band.
Set in Nazi-occupied France at the height of World War Two the story centres on a young Scottish woman (Cate Blanchett) working with the French Resistance in the hope of rescuing her lover, a missing RAF pilot shot down behind enemy lines.
Everyone knows her name - but few know her story. Fifty years ago the publication of D.H. Lawrence's scandalous novel led to one of the most celebrated obscenity trials of the 20th century. To mark that occasion we present acclaimed director Ken Russell's powerful film version which brings this vivid and extraordinary tale to life. Joely Richardson stars as Lady Chatterley wife to the emotionally and physically paralysed Sir Clifford in a post-war England which finds itself on the cusp of change. The old ways and class divisions have begun to crumble as the bulk of a nation's youth fell in the trenches leaving a downtrodden but emboldened few. As Lady Chatterley bereft of her husband's attention finds a re-awakening in the arms of a working man more is at stake than honour and more is at risk than marriage in this dramatic and passionate re-telling of Lawrence's now classic tale.
Four of the British film industry's best-loved comedies in one box set makes The Ealing Comedy Collection absolutely essential for anyone who has any passion at all for movies. The set contains Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951), The Man in the White Suit (1951) and The Ladykillers (1955). Ealing's greatest comedies captured the essence of post-war Britain, both in their evocation of a land once blighted by war but now rising doggedly and optimistically again from the ashes, and in their mordant yet graceful humour. They portray a country with an antiquated class system whose crumbling conventions are being undermined by a new spirit of individual opportunism. In the delightfully wicked Kind Hearts and Coronets, a serial killer politely murders his way into the peerage; in The Lavender Hill Mob a put-upon bank clerk schemes to rob his employers; The Man in the White Suit is a harshly satirical depiction of idealism crushed by the status quo; while The Ladykillers mocks both the criminals and the authorities with its unlikely octogenarian heroine Mrs "lop-sided" Wilberforce. Many factors contribute to the success of these films--including fine music scores from composers such as Benjamin Frankel (Man in the White Suit) and Tristram Cary (The Ladykillers); positively symphonic sound effects (White Suit); marvellously evocative locations (the environs of King's Cross in Ladykillers, for example); and writing that always displays Ealing's unique perspective on British social mores ("All the exuberance of Chaucer without, happily, any of the concomitant crudities of his period")--yet arguably their greatest asset is Alec Guinness, whose multifaceted performances are the keystone upon which Ealing built its biting, often macabre, yet always elegant comedy. On the DVD: The Ealing Comedy Collection presents the four discs in a fold-out package with postcards of the original poster artwork for each. Aside from theatrical trailers on each disc there are no extra features, which is a pity given the importance of these films. The Ladykillers is in muted Technicolor and presented in 1.66:1 ratio, the three earlier films are all black and white 1.33:1. Sound is perfectly adequate mono throughout. --Mark Walker
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