David Suchet stars as Agatha Christie's enigmatic eccentric and extremely intelligent detective Hercule Poirot. From England to the Mediterranean accompanied by his elegant and trustworthy sidekicks Captain Hastings Chief Inspector Japp and Miss Lemon Poirot pits his wits against a collection of first class deceptions. Includes all 70 episodes plus many extras.
The classic story of the Mutiny on The Bounty with a dream cast; Anthony Hopkins Mel Gibson giving one of the most soulful performances of his career Liam Neeson and Daniel Day-Lewis plus special effects to rival those of The Perfect Storm lush tropical scenery and a gripping story line.
Available for the first time on DVD! With Christmas only a few hours away Philip (Steve Martin) and his dedicated suicide hotline staff based in Venice California are about to go a little crazy. Philip is about to be dumped by his fiancee his hotline service will be evicted he will dance with a lonely cross-dresser and he'll have a run in with a gun-toting Santa Claus. Philip's Lifesavers is a place where the rescuers need help. 'Mixed Nuts' finds the funny side of life death
Ice Cube stars in this new ensemble comedy set around a day in the life of a South Side Chicago barbershop.
The Girls' Night of the title refers to Friday night, the one time of escape from the daily grind for longstanding best friends and factory co-workers, Dawn and Jackie. And Friday night means bingo. One evening their dream comes true when Dawn (the cautious, caring one) scoops £100,000, but the savage twist in the tale is that even before she gets the cheque she discovers she has an inoperable brain tumour. Cue Jackie (the spontaneous, irresponsible one) fulfilling Dawn's lifetime ambition with a holiday in Las Vegas ("Come on, we've got an hour to get the plane"). And from then on it's a buddy movie with inescapable resonances of Thelma and Louise, though the difference here is that the protagonists are two ordinary middle-aged women. Brenda Blethyn and Julie Walters are a magical pairing, with both giving mesmerising moving performances (honorary mention should also be made of Cody, the one sympathetic male character in the film, magnificently played by Kris Kristofferson). Though death is ever-present, this is by no means a depressing movie; rather the opposite, in fact, with a remarkably upbeat ending. If there's a message to be found here, it's that even the most apparently ordinary people can be extraordinary given the right circumstances. On the DVD: As well as the original trailer, there is on-location feature
Undeniably one of the toughest and most powerful gangster thrillers of the 70's 'Across 110th Street' hits hard with a thrill ride through the hell-raisin' hoods of Harlem! When a crew of gangsters make the fatal mistake of crossing a Mafia heist in Harlem things turn very ugly. But as the bullets start flying and the cops start dying a pair of New York's finest are forced to work together to bring justice to the streets before the Mafia brings the Ghetto to its knees! Up against
The Bounty is the third screen version of one of the best-known stories in naval history, here with Anthony Hopkins as Lieutenant William Bligh and Mel Gibson as Fletcher Christian heading an extraordinary cast including Laurence Olivier, Edward Fox, Daniel Day-Lewis, Liam Neeson, Bernard Hill and Dexter Fletcher. HMS Bounty's voyage to Tahiti of 1787-9 and its infamous consequences are recounted with far greater historical accuracy than in the 1935 or 1962 Mutiny on the Bounty. The movie is gorgeously shot on location in Tahiti, England and New Zealand as well as on a full-size recreation of the original Bounty. Roger Donaldson's film benefits from a literate screenplay by Robert Bolt, who here as in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), brings real insight into the English institutional mind in conflict. Hopkins is at his complex best and Gibson offers more depth than his usual two-dimensional hero persona; here Bligh and Christian emerge as complex men gripped by circumstances beyond their control. The haunting score by Vangelis contributes immensely to a very underrated film which deserves to be considered a modern classic. On the DVD: There is an excellent 52-minute "making of" documentary that mixes historical information with on-location interviews. A 12-minute overview of previous screen versions of the story is narrated by the film's historical consultant, Stephen Walters, who also provides a somewhat stilted but nevertheless informative audio commentary. The second audio commentary is from director Roger Donaldson, Producer Bernie Williams and Production Designer John Graysmark, who genuinely appear to enjoy reminiscing and have real enthusiasm for the movie. Also included is a fascinating 28-page booklet. This is the stuff Special Editions should always be made of, and this would be one of the finest DVDs on the market were it not for the transfer of the film itself, which appears to be a reprocessed version of the same NTSC anamorphic 2.35:1 transfer found on the bare-bones Region 1 DVD, with no sign of PAL speed-up. The picture not only shows considerable grain in some scenes, but also demonstrates marked compression artefacting and enhancement shimmer on all horizontal lines, making some scenes extremely ugly. For such a beautiful film it is a most disappointing transition to the digital format. Most unusually for a UK release, the disc is region free.--Gary S Dalkin
Based on a novel by Barbara Cartland, A Ghost in Monte Carlo is an undemanding period romp packed full of twists and turns. The perfect cinematic equivalent of Cartland's literary style, the film is a glossy, star-filled but ultimately shallow exercise. Lysette Anthony is the wide-eyed innocent Mistral, released from her convent upbringing into the care of her Aunt Emilie (Sarah Miles). On arriving in glamorous Monte Carlo, she immediately strikes up a relationship with a dashing young lord and sets out to experience her newfound freedom. Matters take an unexpected, darker turn as Mistral finds herself caught up in the plotting of her aunt and in increasing danger. The performances range from Anthony's passable purity to a ludicrously over-the-top turn from Miles. The much-vaunted all-star casting amounts to a series of brief cameos from the likes of Oliver Reed, Joanna Lumley, Lewis Collins and Gareth Hunt--presumably at the request of executive producer Lord Lew Grade. It's fun for what it is but only as long as you leave any critical sensibilities on hold. On the DVD:A Ghost in Monte Carlo is essentially a video release transferred directly to DVD. The sound is digitally remastered and there is a very poor interactive menu to guide you through the various chapters but no extras. --Phil Udell
Another series from Lew Grade's ITC stable, The Protectors attracted high ratings on both sides of the Atlantic when screened during 1971-3. Combining the high-tech ingenuity of Mission: Impossible with the glamour of The Champions, the basic premise of jet-setting special agents going where governments fear to tread is typical of its era. As Harry Rule, Robert Vaughn develops the thinking man of action persona he perfected in The Man from U.N.C.L.E, complemented by Nyree Dawn Porter's stylish Contessa di Contini. The underrated Tony Anholt makes the most of his Mediterranean good looks as Paul Buchet. Ten episodes are included here, all following a well-honed formula of intrigue and strategy, but with enough variety in scenario and setting--a range of European cities and resorts--to offset routine. Look out for a host of soon-to-be-familiar faces. There's also Tony Christie's full-throated rendition of the "Avenues and Alleyways" theme to round off each episode. On the DVD: The Protectors on disc comes in a full-screen format that reproduces excellently for its age (Lew Grade's productions always seem to last well). Each episode is divided into four chapter headings, with English subtitles available. A detailed biography of Vaughn is included along with a gallery of captioned stills, some of which are curiously reproduced in black-and-white. Taken with a healthy dose of nostalgia, entertainment is assured. --Richard Whitehouse
Another series from Lew Grade's ITC stable, The Protectors attracted high ratings on both sides of the Atlantic when screened during 1971-3. Combining the high-tech ingenuity of Mission: Impossible with the glamour of The Champions, the basic premise of jet-setting special agents going where governments fear to tread is typical of its era. As Harry Rule, Robert Vaughn develops the thinking man of action persona he perfected in The Man from U.N.C.L.E, complemented by Nyree Dawn Porter's stylish Contessa di Contini. The underrated Tony Anholt makes the most of his Mediterranean good looks as Paul Buchet. Eight episodes are included here, all following a well-honed formula of intrigue and strategy, but with enough variety in scenario and setting--a range of European cities and resorts--to offset routine. Look out for a host of soon-to-be-familiar faces. There's also Tony Christie's full-throated rendition of the "Avenues and Alleyways" theme to round off each episode. On the DVD: The Protectors on disc comes in a full-screen format that reproduces excellently for its age (Lew Grade's productions always seem to last well). Each episode is divided into four chapter headings, with English subtitles available. With an informative run-down of how the series evolved and a gallery of captioned stills--some of which are curiously reproduced in black-and-white--taken with a healthy dose of nostalgia, entertainment is assured. --Richard Whitehouse
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