Murder Ahoy (1964): Miss Marple investigates the murder of one of her fellow trustees of a fund which rehabilitates young criminals... Murder At The Gallop (1963): The old and wealthy Mr. Enderby dies of a heart attack but the ever suspicious Miss Marple has her doubts... Murder Most Foul (1964): Miss Marple is the only member of a jury who believes that an accused is innocently charged with murder and sets out to uncover the real killer... Murder She Said (1961): While on board one train Jane Marple witnesses a murder on another train. Can she expose the murderer before all the passengers disembark?
Robin Williams stars as an English teacher who doesn't fit into the conservative prep school where he teaches but his charisma and love of poetry inspires several boys to revive a secret society with a bohemian bent. The script is well-meaning but a little trite, though director Peter Weir (The Truman Show) adds layers of emotional depth in scenes of conflict between the kids and adults. (A subplot involving one father's terrible pressure on his son--played by Robert Sean Leonard--to drop his interest in the theatre reaches heartbreaking proportions). Williams is given plenty of latitude to work in his brand of improvisational humour, though it is all well-woven into his character's style of instruction. --Tom Keogh
Dances with Wolves is the film that sent director-producer-actor Kevin Costner on his hubristic way; yet it is such a resonant and powerful film that we can almost forgive him for inflicting upon us his later "epic" The Postman. Here Costner plays a Union solder stationed at the far edges of the West, and left there to rot at his post. He finally sees the wisdom of the Lakota Sioux and finds peace within their community. But his decision to "go native" is greatly frowned upon by his military commanders, and the subsequent culture clash forms the backbone of the narrative. The story is told simply, and wastes not one word of dialogue, while the South Dakota locations provide a magnificent backdrop. Costner is sympathetic and accessible as an American Everyman who awakens to himself and the world around him... --Rochelle O'Gorman, Amazon.com
You wouldn't know it by watching the Batman movies they collaborated on, but this smart adaptation of John Grisham's novel proves that director Joel Schumacher and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman have some talent when the right project comes along. Schumacher had previously directed Grisham's The Client, and brought equal craft and intelligence to this story about a young Southern attorney (Matthew McConaughey, in his breakthrough role) who defends a black father (Samuel L Jackson) after he kills two men who raped his young daughter. Sandra Bullock plays the passionate law student who serves as McConaughey's legal aide and voice of conscience in the racially charged drama. Added to the star power of the lead roles is a fine supporting cast, including Kevin Spacey, Ashley Judd and Oliver Platt. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
For Rosemarys Baby, his modern horror tale about Satanic worship and a pregnant womans decline into madness, Roman Polanski moves from the traditional monolithic mansions of Gothic flicks to an apartment building in New York City. Based on Ira Levins novel, the story concerns Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and Guy Woodhouse who find the apartment of their dreams in a luxurious complex in Manhattan. Soon after moving in and making friends with a group of elderly neighbours, Guys career takes off and Rosemary discovers she is pregnant. Their happiness seems complete. But gradually Rosemary begins to sense that something is wrong with this baby, and slowly and surely her life begins to unravel. Polanski uses such subtle means to build up the sense of preternatural disquiet that initially you suspect Rosemarys prenatal paranoia to be a figment of her imagination. But the guilty parties and their demonic plan to make Rosemary the receptacle of their masters child are eventually revealed and, as Rosemary looses her grip on reality, she realises that no one can be trusted. The performances are excellent throughout; Farrow as the young wife is so fragile that you wonder how she made it unscathed to adulthood and John Cassavetes is horrifyingly duplicitous as her husband Guy. But the real star is Polanskis masterful direction. The mood is at the same time oppressive and hysterical with the mounting terror coming from the situation and gradually unravelling plot rather than any schlock horror moments. On the DVD: the Dolby 5.1 soundtrack shows off Christopher Komedas eerie "lullaby" score to its haunting best. The film is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen and is relatively free of speckle and dust, some scenes filmed in low light are slightly grainier but this adds to the oppressive tension that Polanski is building up in the film. In terms of extras there is a 20-minute "making of" feature from 1968 and retrospective interviews with Polanski, production designer Richard Sylbert and producer Robert Evans. --Kristen Bowditch
EL CAMINO: A BREAKING BAD MOVIE reunites fans with Jesse Pinkman (Emmy® Award-winner[i] Aaron Paul). In the wake of his dramatic escape from captivity, Jesse must come to terms with his past in order to forge some kind of future. This riveting thriller was written and directed by Vince Gilligan, the creator of Breaking Bad.
The first of 1997's volcano disaster movies (the second being Volcano) was arguably the better of the two but both of them made for passable entertainment with some spectacular special effects to serve as icing on the stale cake. After all, Dante's Peak doesn't pretend to be anything more than an updated variation on a whole catalogue of disaster movie clichés. Despite all that, it's reasonably enjoyable. It's an added bonus that the script is just smart enough to allow Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton to play their roles with straight faces, never condescending to the audience of the formulaic story. He's a volcano expert from the US Geological Survey, and she's the mayor of a cosy Washington State town perched beneath a volcano that's about to blow. Tell-tale signs are everywhere, so evacuation must be carried out immediately. Of course, not everybody's eager to leave and even some of Brosnan's colleagues think his alarm is premature. This sets the stage for massive ash clouds, rivers of raging mud and molten rock, flattened forests and death-defying escapes by Brosnan, Hamilton and some (but not all) of her family, friends and townsfolk. So what if it's all pretty flaky ... and can a four-wheel-drive vehicle travel over fire and molten lava without bursting its tires? Don't ask too many questions and you'll find Dante's Peak to be (if you'll pardon the pun) a total blast. --Jeff Shannon
Action comedy tale of two legendary bank robbers who are released on parole after their thirty year imprisonment. Together they face the 1980's as they plan a daring train heist eagerly pursued by a stubborn old cop and a myopic hitman...
Up-and-coming young lawyer Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) has just been fired by his prestigious law firm. They say he hasn't got what it takes. Andrew knows it's because he's got AIDS. Determined to defend his professional reputation Andrew hires fierce brilliant personal-injury attorney Joe Miller (Denzel Washington) to sue his former employers for wrongful dismissal. Joe is initially reluctant to take on the case. Although he as grown up knowing the pain of prejudice he's never
The all time classic tale of a massive escape from a World War Two German Prisoner of War camp released as a two disc DVD set with a host of extra features.
The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-speciesthought to be mere mythsrise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity's very existence hanging in the balance.
A powerful study of courage in the face of irrational odds, The Bridges at Toko-Ri (based on James Michener's novel) is no less patriotic than many other war films, but it dispenses with the gung-ho bluster to focus on the very real and tragic consequences of war. This is also one of the first films to openly criticise the morality of the Korean War while praising the honour and integrity of the men who fought it. Lt Harry Brubaker (William Holden) is one of those men: a lawyer with a loving wife (Grace Kelly) and two young daughters, who is recalled to duty from the Navy Reserve, his mission; to fly with a bomber jet squadron over one of the Communists' most heavily protected targets, the strategically vital bridges in the Korean canyon of Toko-Ri. Brubaker has his own noble protection from his fellow pilots (including Charles McGraw in a fine supporting role), admiring admiral (Frederic March), and from the helicopter scouts (Mickey Rooney, Earl Holliman) who saved his life on a previous missions. But his ambivalence--and his fear that the Toko-Ri mission will be his last--is what gives the film its potent emotional impact. Holden is perfect in his role, and director Mark Robson steadfastly avoids any false sentiment or macho theatrics that would diminish the film's devastating climax. The Bridges at Toko-Ri is also a superlative showcase for the naval operations; the aerial sequences earned an Oscar for special effects and the Navy's cooperation assures total authenticity in the "flat-top" aircraft carrier scenes. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com
Reign of the Supermen finds Earth's citizens and the Man of Steel's heroic contemporaries dealing with a world without Superman. But the aftermath of Superman's death, and the subsequent disappearance of his body, leads to a new mystery is Superman still alive? The question is further complicated when four new super-powered individuals Steel, Cyborg Superman, Superboy and the Eradicator emerge to proclaim themselves as the ultimate hero. In the end, only one will be able to proclaim himself the world's true Superman.
Kevin Costner's 1990 epic won a bundle of Oscars for a moving, engrossing story of a white soldier (Costner) who singlehandedly mans a post in the 1870 Dakotas, and becomes a part of the Lakota Sioux community who live nearby. The film may not be a masterpiece, but it is far more than the sum of good intentions. The characters are strong, the development of relationships is both ambitious and careful, the love story between Costner and Mary McDonnell's character is captivating. Only the third-act portrait of white intruders as morons feels overbearing, but even that leads to a terribly moving conclusion. Costner's direction is assured, the balance of action and intimacy is perfect--what more could anyone want outside of an unqualified masterpiece? --Tom Keogh
Leslie Nielsen takes espionage less than seriously in the outrageously funny parody of the spy world! Secret agent WD- 40 (Nielsen) is assigned to foil the evil plan of his arch enemy General Rancor - a tyrannical madman who lost two limbs in an explosion and is now unarmed and dangerous! WD-40's mission is to save the world from destruction rescue the daughter of his former partner and of course do some ""undercover"" work with a sexy fellow agent (Nicollette Sheridan). Guided by a
Nashville's singers, songwriters and superstars struggle to reconcile their public and private realities. Some will fight to climb to or stay on the top. Some will succumb to their own ambition. And all will learn how to survive in the wake of loss proving that music may be at the heart of Music City, but drama always reigns.
Denzel Washington is a disillisioned soldier of fortune who grows close to a child he is paid to protect. When she is abducted, his fiery rage is unleashed on those he feels responsible, and he stops at nothing to save her.
After a nine-year break from the genre that made him an international star (the Western just before this one was The Outlaw Josey Wales, from 1976), Clint Eastwood returned in this gritty Western, crafted in the tradition of Shane and High Noon. Eastwood directed and stars as the nameless stranger known only as "Preacher" because he rides into a beleaguered mining town wearing a clerical collar. He's either an agent of death or an angel of mercy, and the echoes of Shane ring loud and clear when he comes to the aid of independent miners who are being terrorized by a local tycoon (Richard Dysart) and his ruthless band of hired guns. Befriended by a miner (Michael Moriarty) and idolized by the miner's wife and daughter (played by Carrie Snodgress and Sydney Penny, respectively), the "Pale Rider" sparks the defiant spirit of the underdog miners and takes after the bad guys with single-minded purpose. --Jeff Shannon
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