The BBC, sceptical about the British appetite for extended documentary programmes, edited Ken Burns' epic 17-hour history Jazz back to around 12 hours. That's what's presented in this box set of the series, and while the flow of the original is preserved, so are its idiosyncrasies. The film dwells at length on early jazz, particularly on its origins in New Orleans, and there's a good deal of absorbing history here. On the other hand, in suggesting that the important work of jazz was done by 1975, Burns gives us cause to question how much of his earlier research is awry too. There isn't much here to reflect the brimming vitality of post-1960s jazz, and many listeners and musicians have been enraged by Burns' neglect of such pivotal figures as Joe Zawinul, Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Pat Metheny and Michael Brecker--all players whose work responds vigorously to the question that Burns thinks nobody can answer: "Where are the modern equivalents of Armstrong, Ellington, Parker and Coltrane?" Armstrong and Ellington are the touchstones of Burns' film, providing the narrative thread around which the stories of other major figures turn, among them Bechet, Basie, Goodman, Parker, Miles Davis and Coltrane. Burns also finds populist mileage in the politicisation of jazz, making dramatic capital out of racial divides that most jazz players, black and white, have ignored. The fact is that almost all jazz players, regardless of race, have felt like outsiders. Despite such distractions, Jazz is the longest jazz documentary yet produced, and it's rich in musical examples and classic, rare and unseen footage. Even when working with simple stills, Burns uses seductive camera work and Keith David's epigrammatic narration to maximum effect. There's plenty to enjoy here, but viewers should be aware, as Joshua Redman points out in Musicians' Views in our Ken Burns' Jazz shop, that Burns' film is an often compelling perspective on jazz, not a definitive study. --Mark Gilbert
It is during the great depression in the US and the land is full of people who are now homeless. Those people commonly called ""hobos"" are truly hated by Shack (Borgnine) a sadistical railway conductor who swore that no hobo will ride his train for free. Well no-one but ""A"" Number One (Lee Marvin) who is ready to put his life at stake to become a local legend - as the first person who survived the trip on Shack's notorious train.....
Garden Living Room Dining Room: the three centrepieces of Middle England's social arena and the three backdrops in Alan Ayckbourn's incisive and scathingly funny trilogy. These renowned interconnected plays epitomise and riotously send up the cosseted values of Britain in the late seventies. Eavesdropping on a series of events entwining the same six characters between Saturday afternoon and Monday morning the simple turn of events in ""Table Manners"" ""Living Together"" and ""Round a
Falling radiation from a satellite brings the recently deceased back to life and looking for the living food! A group of living people barricade themselves inside a farmhouse desperate to survive the night as the zombie horde swarms outside. A low budget cult classic from 1968 this film was remade in 1991. The original black and white edition however still chills to the bone.
Available for the very first time for home viewing, Prudence and the Pill serves up a comic slice of sixties permissiveness from the days when the oral contraceptive was an exotic and legendary devise that few people had any experience of using. Made in Britain by Twentieth Century-Fox, and starring the debonair David Niven and the luminous Deborah Kerr, with vivacious support from 'It' girl Judy Geeson, this film takes us back to 1967's 'Summer of Love', when established morality and codes of sexual behaviour were being turned upside down by new ideas and technology. So grab a gonk, straighten your mini-skirt and prepare yourself for a bumpy ride courtesy of the imprudent Prudence. Special Features: Digitally Remastered Picture and Sound In Coversation with David Niven - Documentary Stills Gallery
Agent Cody Banks Cody Banks (Muniz) seems like a typical teenager - he loves skateboarding hates maths his mum drives him crazy and he feels like a complete idiot around girls. But Cody has a really big secret even his family and best friends don't know: he's actually an elite undercover agent for the CIA. Cody is living every kid's dream. Specially trained at a top secret facility disguised as summer camp Cody can drive like a stuntman jump kick like a pro and has an ar
After witnessing a mob hit Frank Johnson goes on the run fearing for his life. Inspector Ferris and Detective Shaw are suspicious when they interview his uncooperative and seemingly uncaring wife Eleanor. But when Eleanor is approached by tabloid reporter Danny Leggatt offering to help find her husband it appears Leggatt is not all he seems! The riveting twists and turns together with the acerbic wit and charisma of the leading lady keep this thriller bubbling along as we head for a dramatic final showdown. San Francisco is cleverly used as an extra character in this enjoyable exciting and engaging film set firmly in the film noir genre with great performances from a strong cast.
Powerful magical forces are allowing the Castle Of Cephiro to merge with the real world. The Magic Knights must protect the Earth at all costs and take on the might of a spirit beast in the final battle for survival...
The great return of Keith Emerson to progressive rock and to the sound of the '70s was debuted in the summer of 2010 in Moscow Russia at the Moscow Theatre - an explosive combination of the classic ELP sound and modern progressive hard rock which was captured by a Russian film crew and is presented for the first time in 5.1 Surround Sound. Several Emerson Lake & Palmer classics like Karn Evil9 and Pictures At An Exhibition have been cleverly re-arranged with new guitar versions adding entirely new elements to the already epic sound. Emerson's keyboard is flamboyant and explosive more than ever. When interviewed recently Keith confessed that these new re-constructions with guitar reflected more accurately the way he had originally envisioned them. Besides Emerson and Bonilla the band members include drummer Tony Pia (Edgar Winter Brian Setzer Doobie Brothers) and multi-faceted newcomer Travis Davis on bass and backing vocals. This once-in-a-lifetime experience is now available on DVD features the well-known Nutcracker Suite from Tchaikovsky as as well as The Barbarian from Bartok transformed into a rock sensation. See and hear the band in action as they tear away sets on one of the most famous stages in Russia.
Personal differences between two of the Eva pilots sets the team back but when a proposed replacement for the Evas malfunctions runs amok the Evangelion team must stop a rampaging robot before it melts down an entire city! Finally the fight for mankind's survival moves into a whole new phase as the first combat-designed Eva is prepared for a battle! When the Naval convoy transporting the new Eva is attacked by an angel the protected becomes the protector as 2nd child Asuka Langley and shinji must activate Unit 02 for a deadly underwater duel to the death!
The unsettled souls of evil afterlife rise up when two small time thieves steal an ancient relic. Unknowingly they unleash a demon leader of pagans who prays upon depraved lost souls. With the help of a mysterious dark angel the two wage war with fire-breathing monstersand tempting sirens to salvage the relic and save humanity. Gripping suspense and stunning visual effects deliver an amazing thrill-ride for fans of both action and horror alike.
An instant hit in 1977, The Professionals was a fast-moving and occasionally sharp-shooting action series about a couple of cool dudes in a fictional secret service organisation, CI5. The creation of Avengers veterans Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell it was often gritty stuff, leavened by the mildly subversive attitudes of Bodie (Lewis Collins) and Doyle (Martin Shaw) who ultimately are always loyal to their gruff boss George Cowley (Gordon Jackson). Helped by witty, if rampantly sexist, dialogue and trousers of sterility defying tightness, Bodie and Doyle enjoyed a good run as 1970s sex symbols. Jacksons often exasperated Cowley kept them in line with just the right degree of Puritanical steel. The first series set the standard for five successful years, milking the dramatic potential of a rich gamut of scenarios, from international espionage to racism and religious evangelism; Bodie and Doyle usually being called upon to protect a controversial figure from the assassin's bullet. Shaw would later dismiss The Professionals for its stereotypical violence and for a long time refused to allow reruns. In fact, as cult television goes, it has weathered well. Many of its themes are as relevant today as they were then. The constantly elliptical script ("I want you to see that he's well taken care of") is tremendous fun. And despite the macho drive, the whole thing has a camp archness which betrays its Avengers pedigree. Great for a nostalgic wallow. On the DVD: The Professionals on disc still displays the slightly ropey quality of late 1970s television film complete with brassy soundtrack. Presented in 4:3 format, the original production values disconcertingly recreate the original post-homework viewing experience. But the DVD extras are the thing here. Interactive menus allow you to drill down into the history of each of the 14 episodes, cross-referencing guest stars. And there's an appropriately camp fashion note.--Piers Ford
Duty Free' is a pure British sit-com following David Pearce and his wife Amy on a package holiday in sunny Spain where they meet another unsuspecting couple. The cocktail of comedy antics take their course when David sets his eyes on Linda Cochrane. They pursue each other's every move in order to prolong their steamy affair in privacy. It is far from sunshine all the way and by the end they have bags to declare! This 3 DVD box set includes all three series of Duty Free plus the christmas special A Duty Free Christmas.
When projectionist Stuart Lloyd (Englund) is made redundant by the multiplex cinema he has given his life to he looks to exact vengeance on a generation that no longer requires his skills. Trapping an innocent young couple inside the cinema after a midnight screening of a horror movie he decides to create his own film using the CCTV cameras. As the pair struggle to escape his deadly plot Stuart’s movie has one final killer twist: he wants to become the hero.
The Dead Zone: Christopher Walken stars as high school teacher Johnny Smith a car crash victim who emerges from a 5 year coma with the ability to see into people's future. Consequently this extra sensory perception enables Johnny to avert several potential disasters and earns him a degree of local celebrity. After his 5 missing years however Johnny has lost both his job and his fiance and he longs for his former existence minus his new 'gift'. That is until he meets with local politicians and would-be Presidential candidate Greg Still son (Martin Sheen) and sees future-events of genuinely cataclysmic proportions. It is only then that Johnny must come to terms with his powers his conscience and his destiny... Firestarter: Firestarter the best-seller by top writer Stephen King came blazing to the screen in a million saga produced by Dino De Laurentiis. Eight year-old Drew Barrymore who won America's heart in E.T.-The Extra-Terrestrial stars as the child who has the amazing ability to start fires with just a glance. But can this power and the love of her father save her from the sinister government agency.. 'The Shop'? The top-notch story an all-star cast that includes George C. Scott Martin Sheen Louise Fletcher Art Carney David Keith and Heather Locklear plus amazing special effects and stunts from the masters who worked on Star Wars E.T.-The Extra-Terrestrial and Raiders Of The Lost Ark make Firestarter the classic 80s horror movie.
Night Of The Living Dead is the black and white classic that spawned the zombie genre from its 1968 release. Still today The Night Of The Living Dead is one of the most gruesome and terrifying films ever made. Guaranteed to frighten you out of your wits this is the story of seven people barricaded inside a farm house while an army of flesh eating zombies roams the countryside. Don't watch it alone...
Series 3 of the Emmy Award-winning Deadliest Catch follows the legendary captains and crew of five crab-fishing vessels on the Bering Sea doing one of the deadliest and most lucrative jobs in the world. The brave men endure subzero arctic weather 60-mph winds and turbulent seas with waves the size of four-story buildings all on three to four hours of sleep each night - if they're lucky. Then in Series 4 Captain Sig Hansen a 30-year veteran of the sea and a third generation fisherman matches his skills against his old rivals Phil Harris of the Cornelia Marie and the Hillstrand family of the Time Bandit plus a new challenger. Captain Keith Colburn of the Wizard. The Hillstrand family is reunited as Captain Johnathan's son Scott joins the Time Bandit crew. The fleet then push hundreds of miles out to sea and fish four hundred feet deep in search of the prized crustaceans. Follow the captains and their crew as they are pushed to their limits of mental and physical endurance.
Over 65 years ago the Rev.W.Awdry told his young son, Christopher, a story about a cheeky, fussy, little blue engine called Thomas the Tank Engine™. Since then Thomas & Friends™ has captured the hearts and imaginations of children and parents around the world. Over the years Thomas has been joined by his best friend, the small green engine Percy! Percy is the No. 6 member of The Fat Controller’s railway and his favourite job is delivering the mail. To celebrate the friendship between Thomas and Percy, we have put together 20 fantastic Percy episodes, from the classic live action to the all new animation. Peep Peep it’s Percy!
The series is based around the central characters of Koala Brothers Frank and Buster Ned the little wombat and Mitzi the feisty little possum and is set in the middle of the Australian outback. Flying out on daily patrol in their yellow plane the Koala Brothers are always on the look out for anyone in need of help and in the outback it's never too long before someone needs a little help even if that someone doesn't know it yet! Episodes comprise: Ned The Pilot Mitzi's
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