Witchfinder General is one of those cult British films that, like The Wicker Man, seemed to herald a renaissance in the fortunes of the British film industry in the late 1960s and early 70s. With only his third film, director Michael Reeves displayed an assured grasp of technique and a confident ability to mix and match genres that marked him out as a homegrown wunderkind to rival the Spielbergs and Coppolas who were just graduating from film school across the Atlantic. Sadly, this promise remained unfulfilled as Reeves died suddenly, soon after completing the film, from a lethal cocktail of prescription drugs; Witchfinder General remains his only significant work Veteran Vincent Price is wonderfully cast as the titular witchfinder, Matthew Hopkins, whose bloody and usually sexually motivated persecutions across civil war-torn East Anglia are carried out with much relish, graphic fake blood and lots of screaming. Ian Ogilvy, an old school pal of the director's, is the upright new model soldier who swears vengeance against Hopkins for the rape of his betrothed (Hilary Dwyer, who in true Hammer Horror fashion gets to take her top off and scream a lot). Lascivious depictions of burning witches and gratuitous sex aside, what draws the viewer into the film is the setting as Reeves' camera roams lovingly across the East Anglian countryside. The opening-hanging scene, for example, depends strongly on location for its effect, and Ogilvy's quest for revenge takes on a John Ford-style Western aura in the director's hands. Perhaps not quite the masterpiece some seem to think it is, Witchfinder General remains a sturdy piece of distinctively British filmmaking. On the DVD: This disc allows the viewer to select the slightly extended "Export cut" of the movie, which has a little more graphic blood than the censored UK release, although the restored sequences are of markedly inferior quality. The anamorphic picture and mono sound are decent, even if too many murky nighttime scenes and badly dubbed actors' voices betray the film's restrictively low budget. The major extra is a documentary about the life and short career of Michael Reeves, while other fill-ups include text notes from critic Kim Newman, a music video, trailer, filmographies and stills. All in all, it's a welcome restoration of a genre classic. --Mark Walker
Brought in to investigate the murder of a young girl, a celebrated cop accidentally kills his partner and is blackmailed by a sadistic killer who witnessed it.
A gritty and hard-hitting coming-of-age story about one young man looking for answers in all the wrong places as he falls in with a violent gang
Comprises Titles: Rise of The Footsoldier: Based on a shocking true story the Rise of the Footsoldier follows the inexorable rise of Carlton Leach from one of the most feared generals of the football terraces to becoming a member of a notorious gang of criminals who rampaged their way through London and Essex in the late eighties and early nineties. Awaydays: When Carty meets Elvis at a Bunnymen gig they fall headlong into a volatile friendship that each of them aches for but neither can control. Violent sexy and funny Awaydays is a blade-sharp rites-of-passage that buzzes with the post-punk energy of its late-70's Liverpool setting. Based on the classic novel by Kevin Sampson and pulsating to a soundtrack of Joy Division The Cure Magazine Echo & The Bunnymen and Ultravox Awaydays examines identity fate the nature of male longings and their need to belong. It is the first major feature film to be set during and evocatively portray the first dawning of the football casual fashion cult. Cass: Cass is the incredible true story of one man's identity struggle and ultimate redemption. The film follows how a Jamaican orphan baby adopted by an elderly white couple in 1950's London changed from being the most feared hooligan in the country to Britain's best-selling black author.
Adapted from the long-running London West End comedy There's A Girl In My Soup stars Peter Sellers as a handsome 40-year-old TV personality and confirmed bachelor. However he didn't bargain for a lovely nineteen-year-old American girl named Marion (Goldie Hawn). The plot thickens with liberal helpings of exotic locations in France. Sellers and Hawn create an electric partnership in this romantic comedy from The Boulting Brothers.
A gritty and hard-hitting coming-of-age story about one young man looking for answers in all the wrong places as he falls in with a violent gang
Lieutenant Nikolai is a member of the Soviet Special Forces assigned to infiltrate a rebel uprising and assassinate the leader that is causing problems for the Cuban forces occupying the territory. When Nikolai fails to complete the mission he pays the price; torture by the Cuban leaders! He manages to escape to the desert and find the rebel army once more but this time he is on their side! It's all out warfare as he leads a daring attack against his former comrades!
It is difficult to know who this compilation of nominees for the 2002 BRIT Awards is aimed at. It is implausible that anybody will like everything here, and it is unbelievable that anyone possessed of rudimentary critical faculties will like more than three or four of the artists whose videos feature in this collection. Given the perennial determination of the BRITs to celebrate all that is mediocre, and the fact that 2001 was less than a vintage year by any standards, "BRIT Awards 2002" is mostly rather dismal viewing. There are a few heartening moments: Kylie Minogue releasing a decent single ("Can't Get You out of My Head") is testament more to the law of averages than her musical abilities, but the video is a small masterpiece of choreography and computer imaging. Destiny's Child and Dido also owe particular thanks to their directors, though it might reasonably be argued that the bulldozer that eventually destroys the house in which Dido simpers along to "Thank You" arrives about four minutes too late. Probably coincidentally, the best three videos (and the best three songs) are all animated affairs: Daft Punk's "Digital Love", Gorillaz' "Clint Eastwood" and Radiohead's typically baleful, and beautiful, "Pyramid Song". On the DVD: That individual tracks can be easily selected is a necessity with a compilation of this sort. The "bonus features" are barely worthy of the phrase: extremely desultory biographies of the artists, and links to the official Web sites of the BRITs and Sony. --Andrew Mueller
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