A performance of Wagner's opera 'Parsifal' featuring the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Conducted by James Levine. The action takes place in the Middle Ages. At the castle of Monsalvat cut off from the rest of the world the brotherhood of Grail Knights guards the chalice in which the blood of the crucified Saviour had once been caught. In an effort to seize possession of the Grail Klingsor a powerful magician has established his realm at the foot of the mountain peop
Episodes comprise: The Bird The Bird / Butch Mario And The Luigi Kid / King Mario Of Cramalot / Mario's Magic Carpet / Rollin' Down The River / The Great Gladiator Gig
Like giant monuments to good old-fashioned star quality, Funny Girl (1968) and Funny Lady (1975) hark back to the golden days of American vaudeville, while essentially celebrating one of the great, egotistical show-business talents of all time. Viewed end to end, these two films, which tell the story of Ziegfeld comedienne Fanny Brice, run for almost five hours. That's a lot of biopic. But with the greatest of respect to Brice, undoubtedly a formidable star of her time, the talent really in the spotlight here belongs to Barbra Streisand. Streisand created the role of Fanny Brice in the 1964 Broadway stage musical and her performance for the big screen is a tour de force, fully deserving the Best Actress Oscar which she received. As a biopic, Funny Girl is superior fare, full of sumptuous production numbers. Brice's glory days are explored against the background of her turbulent private life with her flawed playboy husband Nicky Arnstein (a sympathetic performance from Omar Sharif) with considerable attention to the details of her inner turmoil. More rambling and less cohesive, Funny Lady finds Fanny divorced but still in love with Arnstein (Sharif also revisiting his role), drifting into marriage number two with uncouth songwriter and impresario Billy Rose (the excellent James Caan), her successful career again juxtaposed with a less than happy personal life. Combined, both films measure Streisand's rise to greatness. In Funny Girl, the bravura of the performance as a whole masks occasional gaucheness, while if Funny Lady is the less impressive picture overall, it still marks how far she has developed as a screen actress. The rough edges are gone, replaced by a sophisticated poise and the sense of a talent that has come to terms with itself. And of course throughout she is superb in the musical numbers, which include her theme song "People" and the classic belter "Don't Rain on my Parade", as well as Brice's classic torch song, "My Man". On the DVD: this package of tremendous, old-fashioned entertainment takes the viewer back to pre-multiplex days when going to the cinema was an event you might dress up for. Funny Lady's soundtrack includes a pre-picture "Overture" to give you time to unwrap the chocolates. You really need some plush velvet curtains to swing back across the television screen. Then, guaranteeing a twinge of nostalgia, there's an intermission break. Both films are presented in their original widescreen 2.35:1 aspect ratio. Dolby Digital 5.0 (Funny Girl) and LCR (Funny Lady) soundtracks do justice to Streisand's lung power. The first disc offers the most interesting extras, including a couple of featurettes about Streisand. Both discs provide standard filmographies and song highlights so Streisand addicts can skip between numbers to their hearts' content.--Piers Ford
Billy Elliot: Inside every one of us is a special talent waiting to come out. The trick is finding it. Starring Julie Walters and newcomer Jamie Bell the film (based on a real-life story) follows the progress of little Billy Elliot a motherless 11 year-old from a poor Durham pit village. When young Billy chooses ballet classes over boxing lessons his life is changed forever. He decides to keep the lessons secret from his father a coal miner but when his ballet instructor persuades him to try out for the Royal Ballet School in London Billy must make the choice between family responsibilities and his dreams... Billy Elliot received plenty of recognition at the Academy Awards picking up nominations for Best Supporting Actress Best Director and Best Screenplay. (Dir. Stephen Daldry 2000) Steel Magnolia's: A beautiful bittersweet comedy set in deep south Louisiana 'Steel Magnolias' unites talents of America's finest actresses as six very special friends bonded together by mutual triumphs and tragedies. Despite their differences beautiful Shelby (Julia Roberts) her strong-willed mother M'Lynn (Sally Field) beauty parlour owner Truvy (Dolly Parton) elegant wealthy widow Clairee (Olympia Dukakis) sharp tongued Ouiser (Shirley MacLaine) and mousey newcomer Anelle (Daryl Hannah) enjoy a friendship that spans the boundaries of age and status. Sharing each other's strength and loyalty they face their greatest fears and highest hopes with dry wit and a self-deprecating style... (Dir. Herbert Ross 1989) Erin Brockovich: She brought a small town to its feet and a huge corporation to its knees. A research assistant (Roberts) helps an attorney (Finney) in a lawsuit against a large utility company blamed for causing an outbreak of cancer and other illnesses in a small community. (Dir. Steven Soderbergh 2000)
From executive producer George Lucas and the pages of Marvel Comics comes Howard the Duck, an unbelievably funny comedy about a fast-talking, cigar-chomping, beer-loving duck from a parallel universe who crashes to Earth and somehow winds up in Cleveland. As Howard attempts to return to his own planet, he falls in love with rock singer Beverly Switzler (Lea Thompson, Back to the Future) and must battle an evil invader known as the Dark Overlord. This wacky, elaborately produced spoof of life, love, comic books and horror movies featuring out-of-this-world special effects is a treasure the whole family can enjoy.
Trailer Park Boys is a popular Canadian mockumentary television series focusing on the misadventures of Julian (John Paul Tremblay) and Ricky (Robb Wells). After 18 months in jail Julian and Ricky head back to Sunnyvale trailer park. They're aiming to get their lives together but wherever they go trouble is not far behind!
Before he grew up and started to become a serious filmmaker, Robert Zemeckis created arguably the most unashamedly entertaining film trilogy ever with his Back to the Future series. It's here that Zemeckis came closest to emulating his mentor Steven Spielberg, and here, too, that he showed his own talent for combining flashy visual effects and knock-about comedy. The vivacious screenplays, cowritten with Bob Gale, are chock full of forwards and backwards-looking jokes, 1950s nostalgia and wry nods to other movies. Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd, both alumni of successful small-screen sitcoms (Family Ties and Taxi respectively), bring a frenetic energy to their roles, but also the warmth and likability needed to carry the audience with them through time. Don't try and unravel the time-travel thread running throughout, as that way lie paradoxes: just accept its inherent absurdity and enjoy the ride. Marty McFly travels from 1985 to 1955 in a souped-up DeLorean sports car (Back to the Future), then forward in time to 2015 and back to 1955 again (Back to the Future II), before going all the way back to the Old West of 1885 (Back to the Future III). Matters become progressively more complicated as actions in the past have repercussions for the future, and vice versa. Marty learns life-lessons and Doc finds love at last; the joyful, helter-skelter pace never slackens for an instant. --Mark Walker On the DVD: Back to the Future travels through time to the DVD era with a three-disc set charting the much-loved trilogy in full, along with an abundance of special features. The real joy in this box set is the "Making of the Trilogy" featurette, which spans the three discs and offers a wealth of information on the films. The deleted scenes have not faired well with age, with the visuals and sound suffering immensely. On Disc One the anecdotes can be played along with the film as subtitles, which is more than can be said for the commentary with Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale recorded at the California University, which is simply a Q & A session--not played along with the movie--and would have been stronger as a filmed special feature. But all in all as three-disc sets go it doesn't get much better than this--and you won't need 1.21 gigawatts of electricity to enjoy it. --Nikki Disney
Universal Soldier offered director Roland Emmerich and screenwriter Dean Devlin their first venture before going on to make a mountain of money as the creators of Independence Day and Godzilla. Teaming up for this action flick disguised as a science fiction thriller, muscle hunks Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren play embattled Vietnam soldiers who kill each other in combat. They are subsequently revived 25 years later as semi-android "UniSols" in a high-tech army of the near future. Their memories were supposedly wiped clean, but flashbacks occur to remind them of their bitter hatred (Lundgren committed wartime atrocities; Van Damme had tried to stop him) and the warriors resume their tenacious battle while a journalist (Ally Walker) uncovers the truth about the secret UniSol program. With energy to spare, the standard action sequences are adequate for anyone with a short attention span. And besides, with Van Damme and Lundgren in the lead roles, who needs dialogue? --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
A portrayal of the life of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother focusing on her courtship with the future King George VI the birth of their daughters Elizabeth and Margaret and the war years finally leading to Bertie's early death in 1952.
Mario and Luigi are two wacky Italian plumbers who get washed through a warp zone while fixing a clogged drain. They find themselves in the colourful video world of The Mushroom Kingdom where they stumble from one adventure to another helping the perky Princess. Mario And The Beanstalk: When the Marios buy some magic garbanzo beans they are lead up the beanstalk to face a Giant Koopa. Love 'Em and Leave 'Em: Mario finds himself in trouble when the dreaded Queen Rotunda of Rotundaland mistakenly drinks a love potion falls in love with him and then tries to force him into marriage! The Great BMX Race: To save Toad's life Mario and Luigi are tricked into a disaster-strewn Boy's Motor Cross bicycle race with three of Koopa's sneakiest minions. Two Plumbers And A Baby: When Koopa misuses the Fountain of Youth to turn the Princess into a baby the Marios get stuck with a big babysitting problem. Stars In Their Eyes: Our heroes get chased to the Planet Quirk where Koopa has enslaved the natives and then puts the Mario Bros into slavery too. Pirate Of The Koopa: Long John Koopa kidnaps the Princess and is auctioning her off to his fellow pirates when our heroes arrive in pirate disguises.
A performance of Verdi's opera 'Un Ballo In Maschera' by the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra And Chorus; conducted by James Levine. Singers include: Luciano Pavarotti and Aprile Millo. Directed by Brian Large.
Created by Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, Master of None became an immediate global hit on Netflix, was named the year's best comedy by the New York Times and has won a Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series. Ansari has been nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance as Dev Shah, a 30-year-old trying to jump-start his acting career and elevate his dating game with help from his eclectic group of friends. Set in New York and Italy, this clever, charmingly offbeat comedy co-stars Noël Wells, Eric Wareheim, Kelvin Yu, Lena Waithe and Alessandra Mastronardi. Guest stars include John Legend and Angela Bassett.
Only one member of a documentary film crew returns with his footage from a trip into the wilds of New Jersey in search of the legendary Jersey Devil
While Maggie is away at a Euro Conference Denis invites two of his drinking friends for a weekend at Chequers. Things start to go badly wrong when Maggie returns home unexpectedly and mistakes Denis' friends for EEC Commissioners. Denis' weekend is ruined by the ensuing confusion. Angela Thorne (To The Manor Born) & John Wells (The Kenny Everett Television Show That Was The Week That Was The Secret Police Mans Other Ball) star as Margaret and Denis Thatcher in Thames Television's special production of the hilarious farce which first enthralled audiences at London's Whitehall Theatre. Directed by Dick Clement whose writing credits include Auf Wiedersehen Pet Porridge and The Likely Lads Anyone For Denis? is based on the regular 'Dear Bill' letters published in satirical magazine Private Eye.
Dr. Emmett Brown: Then tell me, "future boy," who is president in the United States in 1985? Marty McFly: Ronald Reagan. Dr. Brown: Ronald Reagan? The actor?! Who's vice president? Jerry Lewis? Filmmaker Robert Zemeckis topped his breakaway hit Romancing the Stone with this joyous comedy with a dazzling hook: what would it be like to meet your parents in their youth? Billed as a special-effects comedy, the imaginative film (the top box-office smash of 1985) has staying power because of the heart behind Zemeckis and Bob Gale's script. High-school student Marty McFly (Michael J Fox, during the height of his TV success) is catapulted back to the 1950s where he sees his parents in their teens, and accidentally changes the history of how Mom and Dad met. Filled with the humorous ideology of the 50s, filtered through the knowledge of the 80s (actor Ronald Reagan is president, ha!), the film comes off as a Twilight Zone episode written by Preston Sturges. Filled with memorable effects and two wonderfully off-key, perfectly cast performances: Christopher Lloyd as the crazy scientist who builds the time machine (a DeLorean luxury car) and Crispin Glover as Marty's geeky dad. Followed by two sequels. --Doug Thomas, Amazon.com
Angela's Ashes (Dir. Alan Parker 1999): Angela's Ashes the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir comes to life in this stirring film from acclaimed director Alan Parker (Evita) starring Academy Award-nominee Emily Watson (Breaking The Waves) and Robert Carlyle (The Full Monty). Life in impoverished Depression-era Ireland holds little promise for young Frank McCourt the oldest son in a tightly knit family. Living by his wits cheered by his irrepressible spirit and sustained by his mother's fierce love Frank embarks on an inspiring journey to overcome the poverty of his childhood and reach the land of his dreams: America. Stepmom (Dir. Chris Columbus 1998): Jackie (Susan Sarandon) is a divorced mother of two. Isabel (Julia Roberts) is the career minded girlfriend of Jackie's ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris) forced into the role of unwelcome stepmother to their children. It is the universal dilemma of the 'non-traditional family' they all love the children but the complex interplay between parents step-parents step-children ex-spouses and significant others is decidedly tricky. But when Jackie discovers she is ill both women realise they must put aside their differences to find a common ground and celebrate life to the fullest while they have the chance. Billy Elliot (Dir. Stephen Daldry 1998): Starring Julie Walters and newcomer Jamie Bell the film (based on a real-life story) follows the progress of little Billy Elliot a motherless 11 year-old from a poor Durham pit village. When young Billy chooses ballet classes over boxing lessons his life is changed forever. He decides to keep the lessons secret from his father a coal miner but when his ballet instructor persuades him to try out for the Royal Ballet School in London Billy must make the choice between family responsibilities and his dreams...
Created by Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, Master of None became an immediate global hit on Netflix, was named the year s best comedy by the New York Times and has won a Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series. Ansari has been nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance as Dev Shah, a 30-year-old trying to jump-start his acting career and elevate his dating game with help from his eclectic group of friends. Set in New York, this clever, charmingly offbeat comedy co-stars Noël Wells, Eric Wareheim, Kelvin Yu and Lena Waithe. Guest stars include Colin Salmon, Claire Danes, Father John Misty and Busta Rhymes.
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