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List Price: £15.99
Our Price: £6.46
Rated: Suitable for 15 years and over
Staring:
James McAvoy, Christopher Plummer, Helen Mirren, Anne-Marie Duff, Paul Giamatti
Director:
Michael Hoffman
A film boasting a stellar cast, The Last Station is the story of the last year of life of Leo Tolstoy. Played here by Christopher Plummer, the film doesn’t tell you a great deal about the man himself, but it does nonetheless deliver some terrific, grown-up drama, as the arguments and battles surrounding the latter decisions in his life surface. And that means that there’s room in The Last Station for one of the best ensemble casts of recent times. It was Helen Mirren who picked up a Best Actress Academy Award nomination here in her role as Sofya, but truthfully, Oscar’s gaze could have gone in lots of directions. Paul Giamatti puts in wonderfully understated work once more, for instance, and James McAvoy adds another fine turn to his increasingly interesting career. Fortunately, Oscar saw sense and did reward Christopher Plummer with a Best Supporting Actor nod for his outstanding portrayal of Tolstoy, too. Perhaps it should have spared some light for director Michael Hoffman, too. He takes difficult subject matter here, and shapes it into a compelling, enriched drama with plenty to enjoy. Not for nothing did The Last Station creep gingerly towa...
 Excellent Historical Drama, 2010-05-25
If you took a Leo Tolstoy class in college or read one of his works during your time at the library and wanted to know a bit more about the man, don't really look to The Last Station. Does that make it a poor film? Not by a long shot.
The film follows the story of Leo (Christopher Plummer) and Sofya Tolstoy (Helen Mirren), married couple for 43 years, and the battle that raged between them at the end of Leo's life. As Leo's health is ailing, his long time friend Vladimir Chertkov (Paul Giamatti) urges Leo to write a new will, renouncing his material possessions, leaving his wife and family with nothing. All of this is in order to have Leo's movement of peace to go to the majority. Chertkov sends a young follower of the Tolstoyan movement, Valentin Bulgakov, to investigate and inscribe all of Sofya's exaggerated and histrionic antics to work against her campaign.
Firstly, the film is A-typical period piece with all the correct elements of that type of film. Art Direction by Mark Rosinski and Heike Wolf, stunning costume design by Monika Jacobs, and a score to die for by Sergei Yevtushenko is pitch perfect and exalted brilliance. Nothing is wrong with this film technically.
An extraordinary narrative beautifully adapted by the director Michael Hoffman is one of the crowning achievements of his career. Dedicating his all for the sake of the art form, Hoffman writes and directs the screen with meticulousness and accuracy. Playing that extra special detail to smooth out an rough edges paid off for Hoffman immensely.
The cast presented in The Last Station is stellar and one of the best cast ensembles of the 2009. James McAvoy, proving once again, that you don't just lay down the words of your acting, you let the spirit fight its way through your soul and remain a tangible entity for your audience to engage. McAvoy proves he's one of Hollywood's most outstanding talents. Helen Mirren, riding the see-saw with her viewers, never declares any type of emotion until the bitter end. Mirren shows no apparent ambiance of mood or expression. She sizzles through the film, igniting every scene on fire along the way. Christopher Plummer as the lovable Leo is amiable, captivating, and entrancing. Plummer, a talent long overdue for Oscar recognition is enticing. Paul Giamatti, in a more villainous role we haven't seen of him before, is always dependable and alluring. Anne-Marie Duff and Kerry Condon are both enthralling in their roles respectively
Rated: Suitable for 15 years and over
Staring:
Sean Bean, Carice van Houten, Eddie Redmayne, David Warner, Kimberley Nixon
Director:
Christopher Smith
Deliciously dark and surprisingly good, 2010-08-23
This is a low budget movie, yet it offers so much. To be honest I was expecting a poor film, regardless of Sean Bean's involvement. I'm glad I was wrong. What this movie does is show that you don't need to spend billions on effects etc . . . to put together a memorable story. The acting, from many actors I've never even heard of, was of a very high standard, and at times I could feel the tension and fear they experienced. This film wins the viewer over by being creepy and cruel, without shoving it in your face. The script holds its own and manages to convey a very powerfully eerie tome.
Where this movie excels, in my opinion, is in the tone it sets. There is something truly sinister and dark laced throughout the entirety of it all and, unlike many similar films, it actually works. No need for monsters or CGI phantoms. It just manages to draw out your fear through the masterful way it is put together.
My rating is not in comparison to masterpieces such as Lord of the Rings, but is based on what it actually is: a low budget fantasy-horror. A great one. If you like a good medieval-style horror, then I'm sure this is a film you'll enjoy. It doesn't boast loads of huge stars and massive effects, but it holds its own amongst many films I've seen recently that cost ten times the production costs.
Black Death is a film that will surprise and please . . . and chill to the core.
List Price: £17.99
Our Price: £2.99
Rated: Suitable for 15 years and over
Staring:
Penélope Cruz, Nicolas Cage, John Hurt, Christian Bale, Irene Papas
Director:
John Madden
While Captain Corelli's Mandolin may frustrate admirers of Louis de Bernières' densely detailed novel, it proves Shakespeare in Love director John Madden is a worthy craftsman of literary films. It's a tastefully old-fashioned adaptation, preserving the novel's flavour while focusing on its love story set against the turbulence of World War II. Set on the Greek island of Cephallonia, the drama begins in 1940 with occupation by Italian troops, awkwardly allied with the Nazis and preferring hedonistic friendliness over military intimidation. That attitude is most generously embodied by Captain Corelli (Nicolas Cage), who is instantly drawn to the Greek beauty Pelagia (Penélope Cruz) despite her engagement to Mandras (Christian Bale), a resistance fighter whose absence leaves Pelagia needy for affection. Mandras's eventual return--and the inevitable attack by German bombers and ground troops--threaten to stain this Greek-Italian romance with deeply tragic bloodshed. Accompanied by pensive serenades from the captain's cherished mandolin, the film charts the unlikely attraction of Corelli and Pelagia, whose wizened physician father (splendidly played by John Hurt) fe...
Love and passion, Medditerranean days and nights during a troubled time, 2009-08-01
I am a little surprised that this film has been panned by some of the critics, I suspect that is because it doesn't conform to the typical stereotype of a Hollywood film about the Second World War.
Perhaps many of the critical reviewers here got to the scene on the beach and switched off ? I have news for you guys, it is the only scene like that in the whole film. Persevere, you will be pleased that you did.
I think that ultimately it is quite a moving film.
Despite the fact that it is somewhat different to the book (on which it is based) it is still a very well made film with a very positive storyline.
Penelope Cruz is excellent, as is John Hurt. I was a little surprised (and apprehensive) at the casting of Nicholas Cage but overall he doesn't make a bad job of things.
The filming is wonderful, the story is good, and the scenery breathtaking and, as others have already pointed out, it can usually be purchased for next to nothing, which genuinely surprises me.
This is a good film !
Buy this film, you will not be disappointed !
List Price: £19.99
Our Price: £2.73
Rated: Parental Guidance
Staring:
Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewell
Director:
Neil Burger
The Illusionist offers welcome proof that "arthouse" quality needn't be limited to the arthouses. Set in turn-of-the-century Vienna, this stately, elegant period film benefited from a crossover release in mainstream cinemas, and showed considerable box-office staying power--granted, teenage mallrats and lusty males may have been drawn to the allure of Seventh Heaven alumna Jessica Biel, who rises to the occasion with a fine performance. But there's equal appeal in the casting of Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti, who bring their formidable talents to bear on the intriguing tale of a celebrated magician named Eisenheim (Norton) whose stage performance offends the Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell), a vindictive lout who aims to marry Duchess Sophie (Biel), Eisenheim's childhood friend and now, 15 years later, his would-be lover. This romantic rivalry and Eisenheim's increasingly enigmatic craft of illusion are investigated by Chief Inspector Uhl (Giamatti), who's under Leopold's command and is therefore not to be trusted as Eisenheim and Sophie draw closer to their inevitable reunion. Cleverly adapted by director Neil Burger from Steven Millhauser's short story "Eis...
Compulsive enchantment, 2010-08-14
This film spins a woven net of compusive golden enchantment around you (like all good fairy tales). The cross weave of magic and illusion, with romance and the massive social imbalance of the time, holds you rapt to the end. And then you immediately need to watch it again, to see what you missed, and how you can correctly assemble every aspect of the puzzle.... The cast, especially Edward Norton are glorious in this, and then there is of course Vienna. I accidentally stumbled upon this a year or so after its release. How did I miss it? Will watch it many many times.
List Price: £24.99
Our Price: £3.49
Rated: Suitable for 12 years and over
Staring:
Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins, Omar Sharif
Director:
David Lean
In 1962 Lawrence of Arabia scooped another seven Oscars for David Lean and crew after his previous epic, The Bridge on the River Kwai, had performed exactly the same feat a few years earlier. Supported in this Great War desert adventure by a superb cast including Alex Guinness, Jack Hawkins and Omar Sharif, Peter O'Toole gives a complex, star-making performance as the enigmatic TE Lawrence. The magnificent action and vast desert panoramas were captured in luminous 70mm by Cinematographer Freddie Young, here beginning a partnership with Lean that continued through Dr Zhivago (1965) and Ryan's Daughter (1970). Yet what made the film truly outstanding was Robert (A Man For All Seasons) Bolt's literate screenplay, marking the beginning of yet another ongoing collaboration with Lean. The final partnership established was between director and French composer Maurice Jarre, who won one of the Oscars and scored all Lean's remaining films, up to and including A Passage to India in 1984. Fully restored in 1989, this complete version of Lean's masterpiece remains one of cinema's all-time classic visions. --Gary S Dalkin On the DVD: ...
Lawrence of Arabia (twin DVD), 2010-08-18
My partner saw this film when originally released in Leicester Square, London, huge screen etc. he said that it was just fantastic.
I was concerned that this reworking using DVD's to be shown on a comparatively small TV screen at home would be a let-down BUT it worked very well indeed down to the intermission (change DVD), which is needed because it's a long film.
John was so pleased that his clear memory of the experience and the general impact that this film had on him was left undiminished, the DVD version worked very well and the price is frankly ridiculously low!
List Price: £19.99
Our Price: £4.99
Rated: Parental Guidance
Staring:
Emily Blunt, Jim Broadbent, Mark Strong, Paul Bettany
Director:
Jean-Marc Vallée
Very Enjoyable Film, 2010-07-26
This film is well worth purchasing if you like costume dramas. Based on the early reign of Queen Victoria - it can be watched many times without getting bored.It is a heart warming story with a happy ending.
List Price: £19.99
Our Price: £1.48
Rated: Suitable for 15 years and over
Staring:
Keira Knightley, James McAvoy, Romola Garai, Vanessa Redgrave, Brenda Blethyn
Director:
Joe Wright
Atonement reunites Keira Knightley with her Pride & Prejudice director, Joe Wright, for the movie based on Ian McEwan’s book of the same name. The result? Once of the most widely acclaimed pictures of 2007. Atonement tells the story of Cecilia Tallis (Knightley), and the housekeeper’s son, Robbie Turner (played by the increasingly prevalent James McAvoy). Set during the heat of 1935, their coming together and the ensuing drama brings in Cecilia’s thirteen-year old sister, Briony, whose actions prove to have far-reaching repercussions. With a terrific cast and superb direction from the aforementioned Wright, it’s utterly understandable as to how Atonement has earned itself such praise. Diligently told, with some superb photography, Wright is blessed by terrific central performances by Knightley and McAvoy, both of whom have never been better. His trick also is to get the pacing of the film bang-on, taking his time to build up and layer events before he looks for any kind of pay off. As a result, as Atonement heads into its latter stages, it proves itself as a top quality drama, with a real emotional punch. Furthermore, itâ€...
Delightful, 2010-06-28
It is a delightful film, well paced, with a beautiful background, strong emotions and remarquable actors. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it. I found it just as enjoyable as the book it was adapted from.
List Price: £12.99
Our Price: £2.87
Rated: Universal, suitable for all
Staring:
Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, James Fleet, Tom Wilkinson, Harriet Walter
Director:
Ang Lee
Emma Thompson scores a double bull's-eye with Sense and Sensibility, a marvellous adaptation of Jane Austen's novel. Not only does Thompson turn in a strong (and gently humorous) performance as Elinor Dashwood--the one with "sense"--she also wrote the witty, wise screenplay. Austen's tale of 19th-century manners and morals provides a large cast with a feast of possibilities, notably Kate Winslet, in her pre-Titanic flowering, as Thompson's deeply romantic sister, Marianne (the one with "sensibility"). Winslet attracts the wooing of shy Alan Rickman (a nice change of pace from his bad-guy roles) and dashing Greg Wise, while Thompson must endure an incredibly roundabout courtship with Hugh Grant, here in fine and funny form. All of this is doled out with the usual eye-filling English countryside and handsome costumes, yet the film always seems to be about the careful interior lives of its characters. The director, an inspired choice, is Taiwan-born Ang Lee, here making his first English-language film. He brings the same exquisite taste and discreet touch he displayed in his previous Asian films (such as Eat Drink Man Woman). Thompson's script won an Oscar. --R...
An intelligent screenplay, 2010-07-15
I find Emma Thompson's screenplay condenses the story without losing any of the spirit of the book. While she is, perhaps, a little older than Jane Austen intended, she plays the sensible Elinor to perfection. My only criticism is that perhaps Lucy's awareness of Edward's partiality for Emma and her jealous reaction could have been more pointed. Alan Rickman smoulders to great effect.
List Price: £13.99
Our Price: £3.24
Rated: Parental Guidance
Staring:
Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Thomas Mitchell, Barbara O'Neil, Evelyn Keyes
Director:
George Cukor, Sam Wood, Victor Fleming
Gone with the Wind is a sprawling mosaic of a picture, one of the best-loved and most successful in movie history, but also one of the most frustrating. Wonderfully epic in scope, the decline and fall of the antebellum South as seen through the eyes of feisty, independent and wilful heroine Scarlett O'Hara makes the first half of the picture an absolutely riveting spectacle. From the aristocratic old world of Tara to the horrors of Atlanta under siege, Gone with the Wind features any number of indelible scenes and images: the genteel girls taking an enforced siesta during the Twelve Oaks barbecue, a horrified Scarlett walking through the wounded, the flight from burning Atlanta, and Scarlett's moving pledge against a burnished sunset set to Max Steiner's glorious music score. But the second half shifts gear, the melodramatic quotient is upped yet further as tragedy piles upon tragedy, and despite its unwieldy length everything feels rushed. Add to that the central problem that the audience never really understands, why Scarlett could ever fall for weak-chinned Ashley in the first place, and the picture begins to unravel unsatisfactorily. Behind the scenes problems dou...
A film I had always wanted, 2010-05-27
I loved the film of Gone With The Wind many years ago when a friend and I were lucky enough to go and see it in The Odeon Leicester Square in London. So I was thrilled when my husband bought me a Video of it several years ago. Sadly our video player is now useless. So it was lovely to be able to purchase a the DVD and an a 70th anniversary one at that.
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