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Review Contender Entertainment Group / Lexx - Vol. 3.1 - 3.01 Fire and Water / 3.02 May / 3.03 Gametown [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Stefan Ronowicz
  • Stephen Manuel
  • Xenia Seeberg
  • Nigel Bennett
  • Michael McManus
  • Brian Downey
  • Jeffrey Hirschfield
Release date: 2000-08-07
Run time: 150 min.
Creator: Paul Donovan
RRP: £12.99
Price: £6.85

Review Lexx - Vol. 3.1 - 3.01 Fire and Water / 3.02 May / 3.03 Gametown [1999] / Contender Entertainment Group:

A "Light Universe" and a "Dark Zone" keep good and bad apart for the characters of Lexx, even though it's often hard to tell the difference between the two in this offbeat and unique sci-fi show that delights in its own nastiness. With flashes of nudity and surgical gore, and a collection of extreme hairstyles and accents, the show's overall look is often akin to a sci-fi Eurotrash. Aboard the stolen 10-kilometre-long spaceship Lexx (designed to look like a dragonfly) are the "Dirty Three-and-a-Half": insufferable coward Stanley H. Tweedle (Brian Downey), the Edward Scissorhands clone and 2000 years-dead Kai (Michael McManus), decapitated and lovesick robot head 790 (voiced by writer Jeffrey Hirschfield), and the skimpily wardrobed Zev (Eva Habermann), replaced for Season Two by Xev (Xenia Seeberg). A disregard both for genre conventions and good taste makes the show a constant series of surprises: by the time of the third season, the expression "anything goes" had long passed being understatement. On this tape: The show's third year has a pre-determined 13 episode run, and in a new direction there's also a pre-determined continual storyline. This is teasingly set-up by "Fire and Water"-the names of a binary planet system. The Lexx is stuck in orbit around 4,000 years after the "End of the Universe". We're introduced to the mysterious Prince (Nigel Bennet) who rules the planet Fire, 790 experiences a shift of devotion, and Xev gets a new hairdo. All threads are expanded by "May" (Anna Kathrin Bleuler) who's found on planet Water. [+]
All too suddenly, Xev's in love with Prince and Stanley with May. The crew are torn every which way. Even more so when a fleet of new Moths land Kai in "Gametown", where the show's most gratuitous nudity yet reassures fans that this third year will be as dangerous and dirty as it's always been. -Paul Tonks.

Review Synergy / Frankenhooker [1990]
Actors & Directors
  • J.J. Clark
  • Frank Henenlotter
  • Carissa Channing
  • Patty Mullen
  • Joanne Ritchie
  • James Lorinz
Release date: 2000-07-24
Run time: 80 min.
Creator: Robert Martin
RRP: £5.99
Price: £6.95

Review Frankenhooker [1990] / Synergy:


Review Contender Entertainment Group / Against The Wall [1994]
Actors & Directors
  • Samuel L. Jackson
  • Clarence Williams III
  • Harry Dean Stanton
  • Kyle MacLachlan
  • Frederic Forrest
  • John Frankenheimer
Release date: 1997-03-10
Run time: 106 min.
Creator: Ron Hutchinson
RRP: £10.99
Price: £6.85

Review Against The Wall [1994] / Contender Entertainment Group:

This HBO docu-drama depicts the notorious 1971 prison revolt at the State Penitentiary at Attica, in upstate New York. One can sense the mastery of veteran theatrical feature director John Frankenheimer at the helm, in the movie's gripping suspense and gritty, hard-hitting realism. The semi-fictionalised narrative is told from the point of view of young Michael Smith, (Kyle MacLachlan), a newly recruited prison guard (the real Smith worked as a consultant on the film). When Smith arrives at Attica, the place is a revolt waiting to happen. When riots break out and the inmates take command of the prison, Smith and several other guards are held hostage. In this powder-keg climate, a relationship develops between Smith and the rebellion's wise, cool-headed leader, Jamaal, (the superb Samuel L Jackson), a political prisoner representing the African Liberation Movement. The insurrection at Attica became emblematic of protests taking place all over the United States at the time. "We've got a civil war going on in this country," says one prison guard, "This is where we hold the line. " Against the Wall illustrates in no uncertain terms which side won this particular battle, and at what tragic cost. Then it goes one step further, becoming a platform for contemporary prison reform. [+]
The film's terrific performances include Clarence L Williams III as a wild-eyed, malcontent prisoner, Frederic Forrest as a rabid prison guard and Anne Heche as Smith's stalwart wife. -Laura Mirsky.

Review Abbey Home Media / Transformers - The Nightmare Planet
Actors & Directors
  • Peter Cullen
  • Corey Burton
  • Peter Wallach
  • Frank Welker
  • Chris Latta
  • Casey Kasem
Release date: 1991-02-18
Run time: 27 min.
Creator: Roger Slifer
Price: £4.99

Review Transformers - The Nightmare Planet / Abbey Home Media:


Review Contender Entertainment Group / Farscape Vol. 1.7 - 1.15 Durka Returns / 1.16 A Human Reaction [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Ian Watson
  • Tony Tilse
  • Claudia Black
  • Anthony Simcoe
  • Lani John Tupu
  • Jonathan Hardy
  • Ben Browder
  • Geoff Bennett
Release date: 2000-08-07
Run time: 110 min.
Creator: Rockne S. O'Bannon
RRP: £12.99
Price: £5.90

Review Farscape Vol. 1.7 - 1.15 Durka Returns / 1.16 A Human Reaction [1999] / Contender Entertainment Group:

An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds-in Dolby Digital 5. 1) like every penny made it to the screen. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up. Series One continues with two more episodes on this tape: "Durka Returns", in which the crew meet the beautiful Chiana as well as Rygel's old tormentor, Captain Durka; and "A Human Reaction", where Crichton finally gets back to Earth but with unfortunate results for the rest of Moya's crew. -Mark Walker.

Review Metrodome Distribution / Invaders, The - Vol. 6 - Counterattack / Inquisition [1967]
Actors & Directors
  • Roy Thinnes
Release date: 1994-08-22
Run time: 98 min.
Price: £12.99

Review Invaders, The - Vol. 6 - Counterattack / Inquisition [1967] / Metrodome Distribution:


Review Metrodome Distribution / Invaders, The - Vol. 5 - Dark Outpost / Task Force [1967]
Actors & Directors
  • Roy Thinnes
Release date: 1994-08-22
Run time: 98 min.
Price: £12.99

Review Invaders, The - Vol. 5 - Dark Outpost / Task Force [1967] / Metrodome Distribution:


Review WARNER HOME VIDEO / Goodbye Lover [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Don Johnson
  • Mary-Louise Parker
  • Patricia Arquette
  • Ellen DeGeneres
  • Dermot Mulroney
Run time: 97 min.

Review Goodbye Lover [1999] / WARNER HOME VIDEO:

Overlooked and underrated, Goodbye Lover is a tawdry, tasty film noir with a soft spot for its scheming anti-heroine. Sporting a platinum Lulu bob, a killer wardrobe and a Sound of Music fetish that inspires her to "climb every mountain" of bad-girl ambition, Patricia Arquette is perfectly cast as Sandra, the sweet but lethal wife of Jake (Dermot Mulroney), who works in a top-drawer ad agency with his brother Ben (Don Johnson). Weary stud Ben falls prey to simultaneous affairs with Sandra and his devoted secretary (Mary-Louise Parker). Cynical Detective Pompano (Ellen DeGeneres) unravels the murder-for-insurance plot while her clueless Mormon partner (Ray McKinnon) tries to keep pace. Combining mordant humour and rampant depravity, this deliciously dark comedy starts fast and never lets up, liberating director Roland Joffé (The Killing Fields) from the sobriety of his previous work. The entire cast is great, but it's DeGeneres who makes this a recommended sleeper. -Jeff Shannon, Amazon. com.

Review Mosaic Movies / The Enemy Within [1994]
Actors & Directors
  • Jonathan Darby
  • Jason Robards
  • Rory J. Aylward
  • Forest Whitaker
  • Greg Brickman
  • Sam Waterston
Release date: 1996-10-28
Run time: 86 min.
Creator: Ronald Bass
RRP: £9.99
Price: £5.98

Review The Enemy Within [1994] / Mosaic Movies:


Review Synergy / Basket Case 3 - The Progeny [1991]
Actors & Directors
  • Frank Henenlotter
  • Jim O'Doherty
  • Dan Biggers
  • Gil Roper
  • Kevin Van Hentenryck
  • Annie Ross
Release date: 2000-07-24
Run time: 86 min.
Creator: Robert Martin
RRP: £5.99
Price: £6.95

Review Basket Case 3 - The Progeny [1991] / Synergy:


Actors & Directors
  • Harvey B. Dunn
  • Bela Lugosi
  • Tony McCoy
  • Edward D. Wood Jr.
  • Tor Johnson
  • Loretta King
Release date: 1995-06-19
Run time: 68 min.
Creator: Alex Gordon
Price: £9.99

Review Bride of the Monster [1953] / ITV DVD:


Review Synergy / Basket Case 2 [1990]
Actors & Directors
  • Heather Rattray
  • Annie Ross
  • Judy Grafe
  • Frank Henenlotter
  • Kevin Van Hentenryck
  • Chad Brown
Release date: 2000-07-24
Run time: 86 min.
Creator: James Glickenhaus
RRP: £5.99
Price: £4.95

Review Basket Case 2 [1990] / Synergy:


Review Manga Entertainment / X [1996]
Actors & Directors
  • Toni Barry
  • Ken Narita
  • Rintaro
  • Tomokazu Seki
  • Junko Iwao
  • Rupert Degas
Release date: 2000-08-14
Run time: 96 min.
Creator: Satsuki Igarashi
RRP: £5.99
Price: £4.99

Review X [1996] / Manga Entertainment:

Tokyo is the city where the final battle between the Dragon of Earth and the Dragon of Heaven will take place in the Japanese anime film X, directed by Taro Rin and written by the all-woman writing team Clamp. The Dragon of Earth wants to wipe out humankind because of the damage people have inflicted on the Earth, while the Dragon of Heaven is fighting to protect civilisation. At the centre of all this is Kamui, the chosen one, who must pick a dragon to fight for. Full of dreams and flashbacks that pop up out of nowhere, the structure of X could be considered confusing and needlessly complex if the story weren't so simple. Obviously, we are supposed to root for the Dragon of Heaven to win and save mankind, but the funny thing is, the Dragon of Earth has the better argument. If it were a debate, humanity would lose. But it's not a debate, it's an action film, and many of Tokyo's most famous buildings get destroyed in the battles. As with most anime, the women are either girlishly cute or slutty, but luckily in X, there are no graphic rapes; the love interest is merely crucified three or four times. It may not be the greatest anime film out there, but at least it's never boring. -Andy Spletzer.

Review Eureka Entertainment / The Last Contract [1997]
Actors & Directors
  • Mikael Persbrandt
  • Pernilla August
  • Reine Brynolfsson
  • Michael Kitchen
  • Kjell Sundvall
Release date: 2000-08-21
Run time: 110 min.
RRP: £15.99
Price: £1.90

Review The Last Contract [1997] / Eureka Entertainment:


Review Paramount Home Entertainment / Twilight [1997]
Actors & Directors
  • Robert Benton
  • Reese Witherspoon
  • Susan Sarandon
  • Paul Newman
  • Stockard Channing
  • Gene Hackman
Release date: 2000-10-02
Run time: 91 min.
Price: £5.99

Review Twilight [1997] / Paramount Home Entertainment:


Review Pioneer Entertainment Europe Ltd / Tenchi Muyo V3-Kagato Attack [1992]
Release date: 1995-02-13
Run time: 60 min.
Price: £12.99

Review Tenchi Muyo V3-Kagato Attack [1992] / Pioneer Entertainment Europe Ltd:


Review Eastern Heroes Ltd. / Holy Virgin vs The Evil Dead [1990]
Actors & Directors
  • Lam Wei Lan
  • Hui Hoi Chung
  • Donnie Yen
  • Chun-Yeung Wong
  • Sibelle Hu
  • Pauline Wong
Release date: 1998-02-09
Run time: 88 min.
Price: £12.99

Review Holy Virgin vs The Evil Dead [1990] / Eastern Heroes Ltd.:


Review Eastern Heroes Ltd. / Spooky Encounters [1980]
Actors & Directors
  • Lung Chan
  • Sammo Hung Kam-Bo
  • Fat Chung
  • Sammo Hung Kam-Bo
  • Ha Wong
  • Dick Wei
Release date: 1998-03-02
Run time: 94 min.
Creator: Ying Huang
Price: £12.99

Review Spooky Encounters [1980] / Eastern Heroes Ltd.:


Review / Love at First Bite
Actors & Directors
  • George Hamilton
  • Dick Shawn
  • Arte Johnson
  • Richard Benjamin
  • Stan Dragoti
  • Susan Saint James
Run time: 94 min.
Creator: Bram Stoker

Review Love at First Bite:


Review Contender Entertainment Group / Lexx - Vol. 3.2 - 3.04 Boomtown / 3.05 Gondola [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Michael McManus
  • Brian Downey
  • Stefan Ronowicz
  • Xenia Seeberg
  • Stephen Manuel
  • Nigel Bennett
  • Jeffrey Hirschfield
Release date: 2000-08-07
Run time: 100 min.
Creator: Paul Donovan
RRP: £12.99
Price: £5.99

Review Lexx - Vol. 3.2 - 3.04 Boomtown / 3.05 Gondola [1999] / Contender Entertainment Group:

A "Light Universe" and a "Dark Zone" keep good and bad apart for the characters of Lexx, even though it's often hard to tell the difference between the two in this offbeat and unique sci-fi show that delights in its own nastiness. With flashes of nudity and surgical gore, and a collection of extreme hairstyles and accents, the show's overall look is often akin to a sci-fi Eurotrash. Aboard the stolen 10-kilometre-long spaceship Lexx (designed to look like a dragonfly) are the "Dirty Three-and-a-Half": insufferable coward Stanley H. Tweedle (Brian Downey), the Edward Scissorhands clone and 2,000 years-dead Kai (Michael McManus), decapitated and lovestruck robot head 790 (voiced by writer Jeffrey Hirschfield), and the skimpily wardrobed Zev (Eva Habermann), replaced in Season Two by Xev (Xenia Seeberg). A disregard both for genre conventions and good taste makes the show a constant series of surprises: by the time of the third season, the expression "anything goes" had long passed being understatement. On this tape: After a fleeting glimpse of Ralph (Withnail & I) Brown at the end of this season's first volume, his character Duke suddenly comes to the fore in "Boomtown". These towns teach us more and more about the lifestyles on the two planets, and since this one is essentially a non-stop orgy Stan decides Water is the planet for him! (If the nudity seemed gratuitous in "Gametown", that's nothing in comparison. ) Ending on a shock appearance by Kai (no spoilers here), a balloon chase leads straight into "Gondola". Much of the running-time of this episode is spent anguishing over who should be sacrificed to make the balloon lighter, but the meat of the show is to be found in the debate about whether there is an afterlife. -Paul Tonks.

Browse Horror & Suspense:

Models & Brands:
Lexx - Vol. 3.1 - 3.01 Fire and Water / 3.02 May / 3.03 Gametown [1999], Frankenhooker [1990], Against The Wall [1994], Transformers - The Nightmare Planet, Farscape Vol. 1.7 - 1.15 Durka Returns / 1.16 A Human Reaction [1999], Invaders, The - Vol. 6 - Counterattack / Inquisition [1967], Invaders, The - Vol. 5 - Dark Outpost / Task Force [1967], Goodbye Lover [1999], The Enemy Within [1994], Basket Case 3 - The Progeny [1991], Bride of the Monster [1953], Basket Case 2 [1990], X [1996], The Last Contract [1997], Twilight [1997], Tenchi Muyo V3-Kagato Attack [1992], Holy Virgin vs The Evil Dead [1990], Spooky Encounters [1980], Love at First Bite, Lexx - Vol. 3.2 - 3.04 Boomtown / 3.05 Gondola [1999]

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