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Review Made in Hong Kong / The Killer [1989]
Actors & Directors
  • Kenneth Tsang
  • John Woo
  • Danny Lee
  • Sally Yeh
  • Kong Chu
  • Yun-Fat Chow
Release date: 1994-05-31
Run time: 106 min.
Creator: Hark Tsui
RRP: £13.99
Price: £9.99

Review The Killer [1989] / Made in Hong Kong:

John Woo's 1989 Hong Kong action classic, a stylish, bullet-riddled elegy to friendship under fire, firmly established him as the maestro of mayhem. Superstar Chow Yun-Fat, Asia's king of cool, plays the most charming hit man ever (and yes, he only takes contracts on those who deserve it), but when one of his killings leaves an innocent nightclub singer (Sally Yeh) blinded, he dedicates his life to giving her back her sight. Danny Lee is the cop on his tail, but the two adversaries become unlikely comrades when the mob decides to cancel its debt to Chow by taking him out, leading to a beautifully filmed and incredibly violent confrontation. Woo places the showdown in a church and punctuates the acrobatic gunfight with images of religious icons, flying doves, and burning candles. An ode to Jean-Pierre Melville's existential gangster classic Le Samouria, Woo's delirious mix of melodrama and stylized action recalls the balletic bloodletting of Sam Peckinpah, the elegant camerawork of Martin Scorsese, and the operatic, larger-than-life grandeur of Sergio Leone. Woo's love of American musicals (and his own background as a dance instructor) adds a touch of grace to the fluid choreography of the action scenes. In terms of sheer action, Woo topped himself a few years later with Hard-Boiled, his Hong Kong swan song, but most critics still rate The Killer as his masterpiece. -Sean Axmaker.

Review 4 Front Video / The Devil's Own [1997]
Actors & Directors
  • Harrison Ford
  • Treat Williams
  • Brad Pitt
  • Alan J. Pakula
  • Rubén Blades
  • Margaret Colin
Release date: 2002-07-01
Run time: 107 min.
Creator: Vincent Patrick
RRP: £5.99
Price: £1.40

Review The Devil's Own [1997] / 4 Front Video:

Any movie starring Brad Pitt and Harrison Ford has got to be worth seeing, right? That's as close to a guarantee as this well-meaning thriller ever gets, however, and the talents of Pitt and Ford are absolutely vital in making any sense out of this dramatically muddled scenario. Ostensibly the movie's about an IRA terrorist (Pitt) who escapes from British troops in Belfast and travels to New York City, where he stays in the home of a seasoned cop (Ford) who has no idea of the terrorist's true identity. (Why a veteran cop would host a complete stranger in his home is one of those shaky details you're better off not thinking about. ) But while Pitt's passionate character waits to make an arms deal for his IRA compatriots back in Ireland, The Devil's Own conveniently avoids any detailed understanding of the Northern Ireland conflict, focusing instead on the cop's moral dilemma when he discovers that his young guest is a terrorist. The film is superbly acted, and overall it's quite worthwhile, but don't look to it for an abundance of plot logic or an in-depth understanding of Protestant-Catholic tensions in Northern Ireland. (For that, take a look at In the Name of the Father or the underrated historical biopic Michael Collins. ) -Jeff Shannon.

Actors & Directors
  • Tim Thomerson
  • Helen Hunt
  • Telma Hopkins
  • Art La Fleur
  • Michael Stefani
  • Charles Band
Release date: 1990-09-16
Run time: 83 min.
Price: £10.99

Review Trancers [1985] / Entertainment in Video:


Actors & Directors
  • Rodney Bennett
  • Tom Baker
Release date: 1991-08-05
Run time: 98 min.
RRP: £10.99
Price: £39.99

Review Doctor Who - The Masque Of Mandragora / 2 Entertain Video:


Review Cinema Club / Children Of The Corn 666 - Isaac's Return [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • John Franklin
  • Natalie Ramsey
  • Kari Skogland
  • Paul Popowich
  • Nancy Allen
  • Stacy Keach
Release date: 2001-10-15
Run time: 79 min.
Creator: Tim Sulka
RRP: £5.99
Price: £26.95

Review Children Of The Corn 666 - Isaac's Return [1999] / Cinema Club:


Review Touchstone Home Video / Instinct [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Maura Tierney
  • Anthony Hopkins
  • Cuba Gooding Jr.
  • Donald Sutherland
  • Jon Turteltaub
  • George Dzundza
Release date: 2000-07-31
Run time: 118 min.
Creator: Gerald Di Pego
RRP: £12.99
Price: £4.44

Review Instinct [1999] / Touchstone Home Video:

Anthony Hopkins is a brilliant actor; Cuba Gooding Jr is a talented guy with a lot of charm. Both have recently won Oscars (Best Actor for The Silence of the Lambs and Best Supporting Actor for Jerry Maguire, respectively); neither can make Instinct compelling. Hopkins plays a brilliant anthropologist studying gorillas who entered into their world, becoming part of their family, and who killed two park rangers in the gorillas' habitat. Gooding plays a brilliant young psychiatrist who is supposed to evaluate Hopkins and determine whether he's fit to stand trial. Hopkins, along with a number of other psychotics, is being held at a prison, which serves to illustrate the movie's themes about control and freedom. It's not so much that the ideas themselves are hokum-nature versus civilisation is always a rich topic-it's that Instinct boils them down to inane sound bites. Psychology is reduced to a game in which the psychiatrist's job is to trick the patient into believing the correct thing or revealing the key that will solve the puzzle. There's not a credible moment in the whole movie, despite the presence of a good cast, including Donald Sutherland and Maura Tierney. -Bret Fetzer, Amazon. com.

Actors & Directors
  • Donovan Leitch
  • Chuck Russell
  • Shawnee Smith
  • Kevin Dillon
  • Jeffrey DeMunn
  • Candy Clark
Run time: 91 min.
Creator: Theodore Simonson
Price: £6.99

Review The Blob [1988] / Entertainment UK Ltd.:


Review Warner Home Video / Firefox [1982]
Actors & Directors
  • Clint Eastwood
  • Warren Clarke
  • Freddie Jones
  • Ronald Lacey
  • Clint Eastwood
  • David Huffman
Release date: 1997-06-23
Run time: 119 min.
Creator: Wendell Wellman
RRP: £5.99
Price: £12.99

Review Firefox [1982] / Warner Home Video:


Review Arrow Films / The Count Of Monte Cristo [1998]
Actors & Directors
  • Florence Darel
  • Ornella Muti
  • Jean Rochefort
  • Josée Dayan
  • Gérard Depardieu
  • Pierre Arditi
Release date: 2001-10-22
Run time: 360 min.
Creator: Didier Decoin
Price: £16.99

Review The Count Of Monte Cristo [1998] / Arrow Films:

Memories of past adaptations of the Alexandre Dumas novel inevitably hover over this Count of Monte Cristo, a four-part French mini series from 1998. Yet despite a rocky beginning, this lengthy costume adventure, starring Gérard Depardieu as the vengeful Dantès, is absolutely mesmerising in its own way. Rich in detail and overlapping subplots, strikingly handsome in art direction without getting ostentatious, this particular Count comes to life after Dantès escapes his lengthy incarceration in solitary confinement. Fans of the story know what comes next: Dantès makes his way to an uninhabited island off Italy, where he locates a vast treasure he has heard about. His sudden, phenomenal wealth gives him the means to reward allies, punish enemies and become an architect of events without anyone knowing who's behind them. While Dantès' mind is bent on destroying those who betrayed him, his deeper nature causes him to perform a vast amount of good as well. Depardieu's big, beefy, clean-shaven self is not exactly the right fit, initially, for a character supposedly subsisting on thin soup for 18 years. He quickly assumes the central role with one of his most knowing and subtle performances, ingeniously painting Dantès as a man who has exchanged one sort of prison for another, the latter his own hatred. The sharp, engaging screenplay is by Didier Decoin (The Chambermaid on the Titanic), and the production is directed with flashes of bold inventiveness by Josée Dayan. -Tom Keogh, Amazon. [+]
com.

Actors & Directors
  • Robert Ginty
  • Mark Buntzman
  • Scott Randolf
  • Deborah Geffner
  • Frankie Faison
  • Mario Van Peebles
Release date: 1991-03-18
Run time: 83 min.
Creator: James Glickenhaus
RRP: £6.99
Price: £17.98

Review Exterminator 2 [1984] / 2 Entertain Video:


Review Buena Vista / Thirteen Days [2001]
Actors & Directors
  • Len Cariou
  • Lucinda Jenney
  • Kevin Costner
  • Bruce Greenwood
  • Steven Culp
Release date: 2002-02-04
Run time: 145 min.
RRP: £12.99
Price: £6.00

Review Thirteen Days [2001] / Buena Vista:

On its theatrical release Thirteen Days was pummelled by American critics for taking liberties with the facts of the Cuban missile crisis and smothering its compelling drama with phoney Boston accents by its primary stars. But anyone who enjoys taut, intelligent political thrillers will find little to complain about here. Co-star and co-producer Kevin Costner drew criticism for fictionally enhancing the White House role of presidential aide Kenneth O'Donnell, but while Costner's Boston accent may be grating, his fine performance as O'Donnell offers expert witness to the crisis, its nerve-wracking escalation and the efforts of John F Kennedy (Bruce Greenwood) and Robert F Kennedy (Steven Culp) to negotiate a peaceful settlement with Russia. While Soviet missiles approach operational status in Cuba, director Roger Donaldson (who directed Costner in No Way Out) cuts to exciting US Navy flights over the missile site, ramping up the tension that history itself provided. Donaldson's occasional use of black and white is self-consciously distracting, and he's further guilty of allowing a shrillness (along with repetitive, ominous shots of nuclear explosions) to invade the urgency of David Self's screenplay. Still, as Hollywood history lessons go, Thirteen Days is riveting stuff. You may find yourself wondering what might happen if reality presented a repeat scenario under less intelligent leadership. -Jeff Shannon, Amazon. com.

Review Vipco / Zombie Flesh Eaters 2
Actors & Directors
  • Massimo Vanni
  • Bruno Mattei
  • Ulli Reinthaler
  • Claudio Fragasso
  • Beatrice Ring
  • Lucio Fulci
  • Deran Sarafian
  • Ottaviano Dell'Acqua
Release date: 2002-03-11
Run time: 88 min.
Creator: Rossella Drudi
RRP: £14.99
Price: £4.87

Review Zombie Flesh Eaters 2 / Vipco:


Review Warner Home Video / THX 1138 [1970]
Actors & Directors
  • George Lucas
  • Ian Wolfe
  • Maggie McOmie
  • Don Pedro Colley
  • Donald Pleasence
  • Robert Duvall
Release date: 1995-09-18
Run time: 82 min.
Creator: Walter Murch
Price: £5.99

Review THX 1138 [1970] / Warner Home Video:

George Lucas's enigmatic feature film debut expands on a student film he made at USC. Created under the wing of producer Francis Ford Coppola, this movie is a bleak vision of a world in which technology, not man, is the ultimate dictator. Efficiency overrides every other aspect of human life, as people are reduced to code names and their lives are contained, monitored and manipulated for the sake of the system. Featuring unsettling performances by Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasance and Maggie McOmie, THX 1138 does not attempt to explain how things became this way; rather, it utilises the alienation of its characters, the stifling white-on-white imagery of its sterilised society, and the claustrophobic, droning sound design to emphasise the dangers of a world reliant on soulless technology. Even though this is not a film one will want to take in repeatedly, THX 1138 merits attention because it is that rare film that uses images and sounds-rather than relying heavily on dialogue-to communicate its dark prophecy. -Bryan Reesman.

Review 4 Front Video / The Odessa File [1974]
Actors & Directors
  • Jon Voight
  • Maria Schell
  • Maximilian Schell
  • Ronald Neame
  • Mary Tamm
  • Derek Jacobi
Release date: 2002-07-01
Run time: 123 min.
Creator: Kenneth Ross
Price: £5.99

Review The Odessa File [1974] / 4 Front Video:

Originally released in 1974, The Odessa File is set in Hamburg a decade earlier. Its starting-point is the Nazi support network Odessa, and its involvement with Egyptian plans to destroy Israel. Peter Miller is a freelance journalist whose interest appears initially to be a professional one, before a personal dimension finally becomes apparent in his confrontation with SS Captain Roschmann. Kenneth Ross adapts a well-honed screenplay from Frederick Forsyth's bestseller, and director Ronald Neame captures a typically Cold War sense of individuals and organisations playing out a scenario of political right and wrong. John Voight, long before he became a cameo star, makes a sympathetic lead, able to judge between the moral and material aspects of his profession. Mary Tamm is photogenic, if uninvolving, as his girlfriend, while Maximillian Schell is a convincing Nazi stereotype. Andrew Lloyd-Weber contributes a serviceable score, centred on the catchy "Christmas Dream" sung by Perry Como. Not a classic suspense thriller, but an enjoyable and thoughtful one. On the DVD: the letterbox widescreen format preserves the 2. 35:1 aspect ratio of the cinema release with decent if not exceptional clarity, with optional 16:9 TV enhancement. [+]
There are French, German, Italian and Spanish overdubs, and subtitles in 21 languages. Detailed filmographies for Neame, Voight and Schell are included and the theatrical trailer is to the point in a way they so rarely are these days. -Richard Whitehouse.

Review ITV DVD / Extremely Dangerous [1999]
Actors & Directors
  • Sean Gallagher
  • Ralph Brown
  • Alex Norton
  • Sean Bean
  • Juliet Aubrey
  • Sallie Aprahamian
Release date: 1999-11-29
Run time: 199 min.
Creator: Rupert Dilnott-Cooper
RRP: £14.99
Price: £34.99

Review Extremely Dangerous [1999] / ITV DVD:


Review / The Wolf Man 1941 [VHS Tape] Lon Chaney
Run time: 69 min.
Price: £2.25

Review The Wolf Man 1941 [VHS Tape] Lon Chaney:


Review 4 Front Video / The Mummy/The Mummy Returns [2001]
Actors & Directors
  • Rachel Weisz
  • Oded Fehr
  • John Hannah
  • Arnold Vosloo
  • Brendan Fraser
  • Stephen Sommers
Release date: 2004-02-16
Run time: 254 min.
Creator: Sean Daniel
Price: £9.99

Review The Mummy/The Mummy Returns [2001] / 4 Front Video:

"We don't have time for subtle," says Brendan Fraser, the star of The Mummy Returns, neatly encapsulating the relentless pace and hammerheaded tone of the film. As is the way of sequels here we have more, more, more of the same formula: more explosions, more action and more mind-numbingly endless CGI effects. Once again borrowing shamelessly from the Indiana Jones series, The Mummy Returns, like its predecessor, has boundless energy but lacks the stylish verve and charm of Spielberg's trilogy. All the original cast are reunited, this time joined by WWF star the Rock in a cameo role designed to plug his spin-off vehicle, The Scorpion King, and young actor Freddie Boath who plays an English eight-year-old in the 1930s whose dialogue borrows from Bart Simpson ("Get a room" and "My dad's gonna kick your arse" are two of his choice phrases). Other cinematic thefts include a Jurassic Park-style creatures-in-the-long-grass sequence and a lengthy triple-threat finale along the lines of Return of the Jedi. Still, despite the wearying relentlessness of its computer-generated effects, endless chases and fights, this is undeniably fun popcorn fodder and provides some memorable scenes along the way, notably Rachel Weisz and Patricia Velasquez battling it out for the affections of nasty old Imhotep. On the DVD: This two-disc "Special Edition" is a treat for fans of the franchise. The first disc has an anamorphic widescreen print of the movie in its 2. 35:1 CinemaScope ratio, and a choice of Dolby 5. 1 or DTS for the headache-inducing soundtrack. [+]
There's a decent commentary from the director and producer, plus a couple of DVD-ROM features. Disc 2 has all the usual stuff, including a 20-minute "making-of" documentary, a five-minute interview with the Rock about The Scorpion King, plus an exclusive trailer for it that is unsurprisingly reminiscent of Conan the Barbarian. There are also some detailed special effects breakdowns of key sequences, a blooper reel of outtakes and a virtual tour of the Universal theme park attraction "The Mummy Returns Chamber of Doom". Sundry trailers, production notes, a music video and an "Egyptology 201" text feature round out a well-loaded second disc. -Mark Walker.

Review MGM Entertainment / Some Like It Hot [1959]
Actors & Directors
  • Tony Curtis
  • Marilyn Monroe
  • Billy Wilder
  • George Raft
  • Pat O'Brien
  • Jack Lemmon
Release date: 2000-03-20
Run time: 117 min.
Creator: Robert Thoeren
RRP: £9.99
Price: £7.90

Review Some Like It Hot [1959] / MGM Entertainment:

Maybe "nobody's perfect", as one character in this masterpiece suggests. But some movies are perfect, and Some Like It Hot is one of them. In Chicago, during the Prohibition era, two skirt-chasing musicians, Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon), inadvertently witness the St Valentine's Day Massacre. In order to escape the wrath of gangland chief Spats Colombo (George Raft), the boys, in drag, join an all-woman band headed for Florida. They vie for the attention of the lead singer, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe), a much-disappointed songbird who warbles "I'm Through with Love" but remains vulnerable to yet another unreliable saxophone player. (When Curtis courts her without his dress, he adopts the voice of Cary Grant-a spot-on impersonation. ) The script by director Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond is beautifully measured; everything works, like a flawless clock. [+]
Aspiring screenwriters would be well advised to throw away the how-to books and simply study this film. The bulk of the slapstick is handled by an unhinged Lemmon and the razor-sharp Joe E. Brown, who plays a horny retiree smitten by Jerry's feminine charms. For all the gags, the film is also wonderfully romantic, as Wilder indulges in just the right amounts of moonlight and the lilting melody of "Park Avenue Fantasy". Some Like It Hot is so delightfully fizzy, it's hard to believe the shooting of the film was a headache, with an unhappy Monroe on her worst behaviour. The results, however, are sublime. -Robert Horton.

Review Walt Disney Home Video / Power Rangers - In Space : Mission To The Secret City
Actors & Directors
  • Roger Velasco
  • Christopher Khayman Lee
  • Patricia Ja Lee
  • Tracy Lynn Cruz
  • Selwyn Ward
Release date: 2002-09-02
Run time: 80 min.
Creator: Shuki Levy
RRP: £9.99
Price: £9.99

Review Power Rangers - In Space : Mission To The Secret City / Walt Disney Home Video:


Actors & Directors
  • Madonna
  • Anne Archer
  • Joe Mantegna
  • Willem Dafoe
  • Uli Edel
  • Jurgen Prochnow
Release date: 1997-09-08
Run time: 96 min.
RRP: £5.99
Price: £2.49

Review Body Of Evidence - Full Uncut Version [1992] / 4 Front Video:


Browse Horror & Suspense:

Models & Brands:
The Killer [1989], The Devil's Own [1997], Trancers [1985], Doctor Who - The Masque Of Mandragora, Children Of The Corn 666 - Isaac's Return [1999], Instinct [1999], The Blob [1988], Firefox [1982], The Count Of Monte Cristo [1998], Exterminator 2 [1984], Thirteen Days [2001], Zombie Flesh Eaters 2, THX 1138 [1970], The Odessa File [1974], Extremely Dangerous [1999], The Wolf Man 1941 [VHS Tape] Lon Chaney, The Mummy/The Mummy Returns [2001], Some Like It Hot [1959], Power Rangers - In Space : Mission To The Secret City, Body Of Evidence - Full Uncut Version [1992]

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