An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds--in Dolby Digital 5.1) like every penny made it to the screen. In this handsome box set, two discs contain the first four episodes of the first season, completely uncut. In "Premiere", astronaut John Crichton is inadvertently catapulted into a parallel universe where he is taken on board the bio-mechanical ship Moya and meets the inhabitants: D'Argo, a seven-foot-tall Luxan warrior, Zhaan, a blue-skinned Delvian priestess, and the diminutive slug-like Rygel, the Henson Creature Shop's proudest creation. Another humanoid (and potential love interest), formidable-yet-sexy Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun, joins soon after. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up. In episode 2, "Throne for a Loss", Rygel's devious side is developed further as he gets the crew into trouble when he "borrows" a crystal crucial to the operation of the ship and is kidnapped by some unpleasant characters. Disc Two opens with the wittily titled "Back and Back and Back to the Future", the obligatory time-travel episode, followed by "I, E.T.", in which Crichton feels the force of his earlier comment: "Boy did Spielberg get it wrong. Close Encounters, my ass." On the DVD: Disc One includes a "making of" documentary, with comments from the cast, Brian Henson and producer Rockne S. O'Bannon (the man also responsible for Alien Nation and SeaQuest), plus a profile of principal character John Crichton. Disc Two profiles Aeryn Sun and has the original trailer and DVD-ROM extras (screensaver and weblinks). --Mark Walker
A psychology student who experienced ""night terrors"" as a child realizes that her nightmares may be real after all. She finds others who shared similar experiences and most frightenging of all the monsters in their closets marked them as children and are returning to collect them! Their only safety is staying awake and out of the dark!
The first series of Farscape was a revitalising tonic for TV SF. An ambitious coproduction of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape launched itself with a refreshing mix of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry to take a visual leap beyond other genre shows. The witty scripts, too, peppered with double-entendres and pop-culture references, are light years away from the staid style of Star Trek. Admittedly, the first season's basic premise is simply Buck Rogers updated (American astronaut John Crichton, played by Ben Browder, is catapulted to a far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew initially have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it all look and feel completely original. --Mark Walker
Gillies MacKinnon's highly praised adaptation of Pat Barker's novel is a moving and powerful study of war and its devastating effects. Set in a military hospital during World War I the film tells of a real life encounter between army psychologist Dr William Rivers and the poet Siegfried Sassoon who has been institutionalised in an attempt to undermine his public disapproval of the war. It also concerns young poet Wilfred Owen who whith support from Sassoon begins to write his great war poems. Rivers whose duty it is to return shell-shocked officers to the trenches is tormented by the morality of what is being done in the name of medicine especially the treatment of working-class officer Billy Prior who has been struck dumb by the carnage he has witnessed.
Robert De Niro stars in this his second film for director Brian De Palma. 'Greetings' is a satirical comedy focusing on the lives of three New Yorkers each with his own personal fixation ranging from sex and voyeurism to Kennedy assassination theories. Their common interest is discussing the ways to dodge the draft board. De Palma's originalty captures perfectly the spirit of late sixties America. And De Niro even in this early performance displays all the hallmarks that has e
Prepare to be blown out of the water. Jack Sparrow (Depp in an Oscar nominated performance) and Will Turner (Bloom) brave the Caribbean Sea to stop a ship of pirates led by Captain Barbossa (Rush) who intend to break an ancient curse using the blood of the lovely Elizabeth Swann (Knightley)... This special 3 disc edition is available for a limited time only!
It's clear right from the opening episodes of its third series that Farscape has finally developed into a grown-up show. There's a new self-confidence and a new maturity here that's entirely welcome after the often wildly erratic tone of the second series. The production design and high-quality effects work remain true to the show's original quirky style, although both the look and the more adult-themed scripts have become progressively darker. Season 3 is the year when the Wormhole story arc takes precedence, as the interactions between John Crichton and his nemesis Scorpius become ever more complicated (involving various different clones, real or "neural", of both antagonists). It's also the year that some major characters die, new ones are introduced and Crichton (well, one version of him anyway) and Aeryn finally consummate their relationship. Moya's crew endure a vertiginous emotional roller-coaster ride when powerful issues of love, loyalty and sacrifice loom large. They must also face their sternest challenge yet as the series' biggest story arc reaches an explosive climax aboard Scorpius' Command Carrier. Anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very beginning of Series 1 will be utterly baffled by the convoluted plotting and complex character interactions. But for fans, this is the show's most rewarding year. --Mark Walker
An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds in Dolby Digital 5.1) like every penny made it to the screen. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up.In this second box set there are five episodes spread across two discs. Although the generic Star Trek-style storylines seem a little over-familiar, the witty and fast-paced scripts help to keep things fresh. In "Exodus from Genesis" the crew of Moya are invaded by space cockroaches, who, in a suprising twist then help them fend off the Peacekeepers. "Thank God it's Friday Again" shows D'Argo finding happiness in a hippy commune where all is not what it seems; Crichton has a Matrix-style worm inserted in his navel before Rygel's bodily functions prove to be instrumental in rescuing the crew. Crichton finds love with the "PK Tech Girl", much to the consternation of Aeryn Sun, who goes into full Lt. Ripley mode and spends the episode running around with a pulse rifle under flickering strobe lighting. In "That Old Black Magic", a malevolent magician forces a confrontation between Crichton and his nemesis, Crais; Zhaan must revive her bad old ways in order to save the day. "DNA Mad Scientist" is the most original episode, with a neat twist on the Frankenstein scenario thanks to the splendid villain, Namtar; a distinctly unpleasant side to some of the characters is revealed as they bargain body parts in exchange for a map home. On the DVD: Because the first disc contains three episodes instead of the usual two, special features are limited to a trailer and some conceptual art. The second disc also has a profile of Zhaan. --Mark Walker
A group of mercenaries set out to steal a futuristic weapons system. But a vivacious helicopter pilot becomes involved in the terrorist attack.
All-action martial arts tale of three Ninjas competing for a statue of the Golden Ninja Warrior which embodies the divine power of the Ninja Empire. Spectacular fight scenes and swordplay.
The second series of Farscape expands upon and develops the characters introduced in the ambitious first series. John Crichton's new nemesis is the deadly Scorpius, replacing Crais, who has taken the living ship Moya's offspring on a voyage into the unknown. Moya's regular crew--Aeryn, Zhaan, Chiana, D'Argo and Rygel--remain as divided and suspicious of each other as ever, yet somehow manage to pull together at times of crisis. The writers continue to exploit the show's gift for surprising as well as emotionally convincing character development, while the CGI effects, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry--courtesy of Jim Henson's Creature Shop--continue to make Farscape the most original-looking SF show on TV. The witty scripts, peppered with postmodern pop-culture references and movie in-jokes, are also a breath of fresh air. Despite some wildly erratic shifts in tone, this is exceptional TV science fiction that continually pushes the accepted boundaries of the genre. --Mark Walker
Penned by the creators of The Good Life, Feet First takes a humorous look at the trials and tribulations of a gifted young footballer who is plucked from obscurity and plunged into the heady, somewhat bewildering world of First Division football. Until very recently, Terry Prince was a conduit joint insulation mechanic in the Midlands; he and wife Viv lived with his parents, and football was simply a game he enjoyed playing for the local team. But Terry's natural talent has come the attention...
July 1944. As WWII raged on a group of conspirators led by Claus von Stauffenberg plotted to assassinate Hitler and end his reign of terror. Using rare colour footage painstakingly recreated dramatizations detailed CG reconstructions and exclusive interviews with leading historians this thrilling documentary presents the definitive record of what happened before during and after these pivotal events.
Episodes 6-10 of Farscape's fourth series continue the themes set at the start of the year while concentrating on one-off adventures. John Crichton is still upset that Aeryn Sun has not confided in him about her pregnancy; Aeryn is still trying to cope with the loss of his dead copy; Chiana is trying in her lascivious way to get them back together; Scorpius and Sikozu are gradually becoming integrated into the life of the crew, and John and the others are trying to learn to trust their former arch-enemy. In "'Natural Election"', the process of choosing which of the crew shall be captain becomes more urgent when the living ship Moya is attacked by a space-dwelling plant that hangs around wormholes; "John Quixote" has Crichton and Chiana trapped in a surreal gameworld full of old friends and enemies; in "I Shrink, Therefore I Am", Crichton has to rescue his friends from bounty-hunters who have shrunk them and hidden them in their heavily-armoured bodies. Aeryn finds herself compelled to homicidal violence in "'A Prefect Murder"' and time goes wonky on her; Crichton has to get into drag and Scorpius has to vomit a lot to save their crewmates from getting caught in the cross-fire of "Coup by Clam". These are enjoyable albeit routine episodes of the most imaginative space opera ever to hit the TV screen, though they only hint at the wonders that were to come later in this final series. On the DVD: Farscape 4.2 has a wealth of special features that include two deleted scenes--one of them a touching discussion of their love lives between Aeryn and Chiana--and a text guide to swearing in the Farscape universe. There is a documentary about the special effects and a prolonged interview with Claudia Black in which she talks about how the show stretched her as an actress. It is presented in widescreen with a visual aspect ratio of 4:3 and has Dolby Digital sound. --Roz Kaveney
Based on a memoir of English writer Laurie Lee and featuring narration by Lee himself, this made-for-television adaptation begins in wartime 1918 with Lee's family moving to the Gloucestershire countryside. Juliet Stevenson (Truly, Madly, Deeply) shines as the matriarch of this large blended family, a compassionate and distracted woman who pines for the brood's missing father. The movie takes Lee from a young boy sleeping in his mother's bed through his girl-obsessed adolescence, fondly dealing with an assortment of relatives, schoolmates and villagers along the way. Lee doesn't actually have cider with girlfriend Rosie until a few minutes before the 82-minute movie ends, but in the meantime Charles Beeson, directing from an adaptation by John Mortimer, has offered up a gentle homage to long-passed era. --Kimberly Heinrichs, Amazon.com
An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds--in Dolby Digital 5.1) as if every penny made it to the screen. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up.Box Set 4 includes four episodes, another gallery of conceptual art, and video profiles of everyone's favourite Hynerian Dominar, Rygel, as well as a profile of Moya the living Leviathan transport ship and her pilot. The episodes are: "Durka Returns", in which the crew meet the beautiful Chiana for the first time, as well as Rygel's old tormentor, Captain Durka; "A Human Reaction", where Crichton finally gets back to Earth but with unfortunate results for the rest of Moya's crew; "Through the Looking Glass" in which the crew and Moya are thrown into a dimensional schism inhabited by a strange creature; and "A Bug's Life", in which an intelligent virus is released on the ship after an encounter with Peacekeepers. --Mark Walker
Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise, but taking a visual and conceptual leap beyond those shows. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, courtesy of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script, which is peppered with post-modern pop culture references and film in-jokes, never takes itself too seriously. It may be expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds--in Dolby Digital 5.1) like every penny made it to the screen. Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as a latter-day Buck Rogers but with an entirely believable sense of bewilderment, not to mention loss; the rest of the living ship Moya's crew also has plenty of difficult issues to deal with, allowing Farscape's writers licence to develop their characters in often unexpected ways. The result is episodic TV sci-fi that continually pushes at the accepted boundaries of the format. Box Set 5: these four episodes lead up to the climax of the show's first season. "Nerve" and "The Hidden Memory" make for a bold two-parter in which Crichton is reunited with his Peacekeeper Tech girlfriend, Gilina, and emotions are strained as he infiltrates a Peacekeeper base to find a cure for Aeryn's wound. But the story's most important function is to introduce the dreaded Scorpius, who uses his Aurora chair torture device to extract what he mistakenly believes is vital knowledge from Crichton. Scorpius, it soon becomes clear, is just not going to go away. In "Bone to be Wild" the crew is still on the run from the vengeful Scorpius and take refuge on a strange vegetation-covered asteroid where there's a deadly role-reversal of the beauty and the beast story taking place. Finally in "Family Ties" the season ends on a tense cliffhanger as Rygel plots with Scorpius, Crais intervenes unexpectedly, Moya's child turns out to be something of a handful, and Crichton and D'Argo must take a desperate gamble. Also on the disc is an interview with costume designer Terry Ryan and a profile of the Australian Creature Shop. --Mark Walker
In his directorial debut Michael Sergio reveals the mean streets that run beneath NYC's Hellgate Bridge. In a world where money guns and drugs are a way of life two old enemies Ryan (Rodrick) and Vincent (LaPaglia) confront each other in a battle for love and power. Returning to Astoria Queens after being falsely imprisoned Ryan is drawn to ex-girlfriend Carla(Bayne) who is now married to the small time mobster Vincent. As the secrets that all have kept hidden begin to resurface Ryan again finds himself in a world that he has desperately tried to avoid. Confronted with the reality that he is about to lose everything and seeking redemption for his past actions Ryan turns to the local Priest(Chianese). In a neighborhood where a bridge symbolizes death escape and renewal Ryan learns that sometimes we must all choose between the lesser of two evils.
Well over half way through its third season and Farscape has plenty more surprises in store. This box set concludes the cliffhanger of "Infinite Possibilities" with the extraordinarily brave "Icarus Abides", in which the battle between Crichton and his Scorpius clone is resolved, but with fatal consequences. Then, in a dizzying change of pace, we return to Moya and the "other" Crichton for "Revenging Angel", part of which is a madcap Farscape take on the Road Runner cartoons, with a furious D'Argo standing in for Wiley Coyote. Matters turn sombre again as Aeryn communes with the spirits of the dead in "The Choice", but the reappearance of her mum, the vengeful Xhalax Sun, creates problems for Rygel and Stark. Across these four episodes the action seesaws between the crews of Moya and Talyn until a reluctant and painful reunion takes place in "Fractures", setting the scene for the final quartet of episodes of this enthralling season. Anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very first episode of season one should go right back and begin at the beginning. On the DVD: four uncut episodes are accompanied by the now-familiar gallery of extras. There are "Info Pods" on D'Argo and Pilot, some deleted scenes, "Farscape Facts", Sci-Fi channel promos and a picture gallery. --Mark Walker
In its fourth series Farscape is as much dramatic and romantic fun as it's ever been and it's even more stylish than ever before. A pity, then, that this series is also the show's last, following its abrupt cancellation by the Sci-Fi Channel. If at times the tone seems a little lighter here than in its gloriously doom-laden predecessor, that is because its story arc is the first half of what was intended to cover two series and some of the material is clearly here for the long run. It is, for example, probably no coincidence that the priests' chant in "What Was Lost" has been part of the show's signature tune from the beginning. There are five episodes here. In "Crichton Kicks", Crichton has been a castaway for months on a senile Leviathan which is waiting its time to die. He has worked out wormhole technology, trained an orchestra of DRDs to sing the 1812 Overture, and is generally content, until his worldly resignation is shattered by the arrival of the beautiful, bossy and untrustworthy Sikozu, a bunch of aggressive butchers and a somewhat battered Chiana and Rygel. "What Was Lost Part 1: Sacrifice" takes them to an archaeological dig where they join Jool, D'Argo and the mysterious, annoying old woman Noranti and start to uncover lost secrets that change everything. In "What Was Lost Part 2: Resurrection" Crichton, drugged into bed by the seductive evil Peacekeeper Grayza, regains his self-respect by helping save yet another world. "Lava's a Many-Splendored Thing" is a puzzle episode: how to rescue an amber-encased Rygel from the bottom of a pool of lava without getting crisped or shot by renegades and how to use D'Argo's ship to rescue him when it is keyed to his DNA. Finally, "Promises" takes everyone back to Moya to find a dying Aeryn Sun and a Scorpius she has promised to protect--the issue here is how to outwit both a Peacekeeper torpedo and an extortionist with a big ship and a taste for hiding behind holograms. On the DVD: Farscape 4.1 has a very useful guide to the show's back-story as well as an interview with Anthony Simcoe ( D'Argo) and various character profiles and galleries. The deleted and extended scenes are unusually interesting--there is an exchange between Scorpius, Braca and Grayza which turns out later in the season to have been especially important. The DVD is presented in 4:3 visual aspect ratio and has Dolby Digital 5:1 sound. --Roz Kaveney
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