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Ma Mere
Foreign Isabelle Huppert, Louis Garrel, Emma De Caunes Pedro Almodóvar
This film has been described by another as disturbing, My view is that it is truly comic. I was falling about laughing by the end. In order to be disturbed by it you would have to take it seriously, which is surely impossible.

It is worth watching for the ending. If anybody can explain that to me, I shall be most grateful.

Ma Vie
Romance Sarah Polley, Amanda Plummer, Scott Speedman, Leonor Watling, Deborah Harry, Maria de Medeiros, Mark Ruffalo, Julian Richings, Kenya Jo Kennedy, Jessica Amlee Isabel Coixet
Unless a person has been through the isolation of teenage days trying desperately to come to terms with different feelings towards ones own sex, then this DVD will not be upto expectations. It is one of the most unsettling, lonely coming to terms I have seen protrayed. Jimmie is a natural actor. The parts of the film which are in silence need no script. It is a thought reminding film for those who have come through the period of trying to understand why feelings are different to others around you, and yet quite natural. For those who seek a thrill type film, they will be disappointed. Jimmy is well cast and a besides being an artist to watch on ice, also a remembrance of how difficult it is to accept feelings different from others.

Madness - At Madstock
Concerts Madness Aubrey Powell
"Madness at Madstock" is a no-frills, nothing-fancy record of the band's 1998 open-air concert in London's Finsbury Park, which was attended by 75,000 people. Madness brought to Two-Tone an ebullient laddish sound that owed much to the suburban hi-jinks of the Kinks in their heyday, as well as a cheeky brassiness that was not just a matter of a good horn section. This concert celebrates both the band's reunion after a long split and the sheer good spirits that went with the occasion--the band dance, the audience dance and everyone jumps up and down, because that's what you do when Madness play. After a brief introduction with some home-movie touches like a trip to the tailor, we are treated to a selection of Madness standards including "House of Fun", "Night Boat to Cairo" and "Baggy Trousers", as well as slightly odder items such as a version of some key themes from "Swan Lake"! --"Roz Kaveney"

Manic
Drama Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Adrienne Rollo, Maggie Baird, Don Cheadle, Blayne Weaver Jordan Melamed

Marion And Geoff - Series 1
Comedy Hugo Blick
Originally broadcast in 10-minute segments on BBC2, "Marion & Geoff" is a very funny if at times unrelentingly bleak comedy in which Rob Brydon plays Keith, a hapless cuckold who addresses us via a camcorder set up in his mini-cab. The Marion and Geoff of the title are his estranged wife and her new lover, though as Keith--who never fails to perceive a bright side to his utterly dismal existence--says, "I don't feel I've lost a wife, I've gained a friend."
Through his monologues, we learn that Keith has a room in a student house where banging techno is played day and night; that in order to make the journey to see his two boys, he must make an overnight journey from London to Cardiff by car; that his only friend is a tollbooth operator (though the operator doesn't seem to know it) and that, although he's been driving a minicab for a while, he's yet to pick up a fare.
Keith's attempts to buy presents for his children generally backfire ("I've kept the receipts. I learned that from my old dad. He always used to say keep the receipts"), no more heartrendingly so than in an evidently disastrous attempt to pay a surprise visit to the newly attached Marion and the kids in Disneyland. As he hugs the tiny Winnie the Pooh puppets he's tried to give to his children, his uniformly chipper tone wavers momentarily and the comedy threatens to darken into something like tragedy. However, Keith's indomitable if inappropriate optimism eventually enables him to bumble through. Masterly in its veracity and Pooteresque banality, "Marion & Geoff" is as near-flawless as "The Office".
On the DVD: "Marion & Geoff" on disc comes with an informative if somewhat giggly commentary, featuring Brydon and director and cowriter Hugo Blick. There's the "Comic Relief" special, in which Keith's cheque to the charity bounces with typically pitiful consequences and outtakes from the series, all of which would have merited inclusion in the final edit. --"David Stubbs"

The Matrix
Science Fiction & Fantasy Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, Gloria Foster, Joe Pantoliano, Marcus Chong, Julian Arahanga, Matt Doran, Belinda McClory, Anthony Ray Parker, Paul Goddard, Robert Taylor (VII), David Aston, Marc Gray Andy Wachowski, Larry Wachowski
The Wachowski Brothers' "The Matrix" took the well-worn science fiction idea of virtual reality, added supercharged Hollywood gloss and a striking visual style and stole "The Phantom Menace"'s thunder as the must-see movie of the summer of 1999. Laced with "Star Wars"-like Eastern mysticism, and featuring thrilling martial arts action choreographed by Hong Kong action director Yuen Woo Ping ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"), "The Matrix" restored Keanu Reeves to genre stardom following virtual reality dud "Johnny Mnemonic" (1995), and made a star of Carrie-Anne Moss, who followed this with the challenging perception twister "Memento" (2000). Helping the film stand out from rivals "Dark City" (1998) and "The Thirteenth Floor" (1999) was the introduction of the celebrated "bullet time" visual effects, though otherwise the war-against-the-machines story, hard-hitting style and kinetic set-pieces such as the corporate lobby shoot-out lean heavily on "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" (1991). Elsewhere the influence of John Woo, from the ultra-cool near real-world SF of "Face/Off" (1997) to the raincoats and sunglasses look of bullet-ballet "A Better Tomorrow", is clearly in evidence. The set-up isn't without its absurdities, though--quite why super-intelligent machines bother to use humans as batteries instead of something more docile like cows, for example, is never explained, nor is how they expect these living batteries to produce more energy than it takes to maintain them. "The Matrix" is nevertheless exhilarating high-octane entertainment, although as the first part of a trilogy it perhaps inevitably doesn't have a proper ending.
On the DVD: the anamorphically enhanced 2.35:1 image is virtually flawless, exhibiting only the grain present in the theatrical print, while the Dolby Digital 5.1 sound is demonstration quality, showing off the high-impact sound effects and Don Davis' fine score to great effect. Special features are "data files" on the main stars, producer and director and "Follow the White Rabbit", which if selected while viewing the movie offers behind the scenes footage. This is interesting, but gimmicky, requires switching back from widescreen to 4:3 each time, and would be better if it could be accessed directly from one menu. There is also a standard 25-minute TV promo film which is as superficial as these things usually are. --"Gary S Dalkin"

Me And You And Everyone We Know
Comedy Miranda July, John Hawkes, Miles Thompson, Brandon Ratcliff Miranda July
"Me, You and Everyone We Know" is sweet without being sugary, humorous without being forced but slightly vulgar without being sexy. It follows the lives of people of varying ages living in the same neighborhood and focuses on exploring issues to do with age and sexuality.

There's an aspiring artist struggling to get her first break professionally whilst her fairy-tale notions of a romance with a man she met only briefly, are shattered by harsh reality.

There's the six(ish) year old boy who manages to appeal to the libido of a grown woman when he and his brother log onto an internet chat room.

There's the two teenage girls taunting an older guy by pretending to be grown-up lesbian sisters and eventually going to desperate measures to determine which is the most sexually talented.

There's the young girl who collects home appliances for when she marries in twenty years time.

All in all it's provides and interesting insight into the relationships between neighbors although at times the characters ring untrue and rather unsettling, particularly the bits concerning sexuality in children. I was troubled by the fact that such a young child was given such adult lines.

I like the absence of Hollywood glamour and some of the quirky characters were refreshingly original but unfortunately at the expense of being believable or even likable in many cases.

The touches of humour are welcome in what could otherwise be perceived as rather dreary portrait of life but often it's unclear where the humour ends and the tragedy begins - then again, that's how humour works in real life so perhaps that's what writer/director Miranda July was hoping for?

This is the first feature length film from July and I'm interested to see what she'll do next.

Memento
Mystery & Suspense Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, Mark Boone Junior, Russ Fega, Jorja Fox, Stephen Tobolowsky, Harriet Sansom Harris, Thomas Lennon (III), Callum Keith Rennie, Kimberly Campbell, Marianne Muellerleile, Larry Holden, Buzz Visconti Christopher Nolan
An absolute stunner of a movie, "Memento" combines a bold, mind-bending script with compelling action and virtuoso performances. Guy Pearce plays Leonard Shelby, hunting down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The problem is that "the incident" that robbed Leonard of his wife also stole his ability to make new memories. Unable to retain a location, a face, or a new clue on his own, Leonard continues his search with the help of notes, Polaroids, and even homemade tattoos for vital information. Because of his condition, Leonard essentially lives his life in short, present-tense segments, with no clear idea of what's just happened to him. That's where "Memento" gets really interesting; the story begins at the end, and the movie jumps backward in 10-minute segments. The suspense of the movie lies not in discovering what happens, but in finding out why it happened. Amazingly, the movie achieves edge-of-your-seat excitement even as it moves backward in time! , and it keeps the mind hopping as cause and effect are pieced together.
Pearce captures Leonard perfectly, conveying both the tragic romance of his quest and his wry humour in dealing with his condition. He is bolstered by several excellent supporting players including Carrie-Anne Moss, and the movie is all but stolen by Moss' fellow "Matrix" co-star Joe Pantoliano, who delivers an amazing performance as Teddy, the guy who may or may not be on his side. "Memento" has an intriguing structure and even meditations on the nature of perception and meaning of life if you go looking for them, but it also functions just as well as a completely absorbing thriller. It's rare to find a movie this exciting with so much intelligence behind it. --"Ali Davis, Amazon.com"
On the DVD: this amazing movie looks crisp and clean in a good anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) picture accompanied by Dolby 5.1 sound. The menu is almost as baffling as the movie itself, but once you master the navigation you'll find interviews, biographies, a tattoo picture gallery and the shooting script among other extras. Most mind-boggling of all, however, is the "Memento Mori" option in the special features menu, which allows you to play a specially re-edited version of the movie in chronological order, beginning with the end credits running backwards! --"Mark Walker"

Metropolis
Science Fiction & Fantasy Alfred Abel, Brigitte Helm Fritz Lang
Metropolis as originally conceived by Fritz Lang only survived a short premiere run at one Berlin cinema after which it was withdrawn and the negative sent for re-editing to Paramount the Holly wood associates of the German UFA company.

Paramount considered Metropolis incomprehensible and created a new simplified plot line discarding twenty five percent of the film, and for over fifty years this was the only version available. The vast majority of the missing material is now considered lost forever.

However as a result of research in the 1990s it was possible to definitively reconstruct the plot and the current restoration incorporating all the available material was undertaken. The missing sections of the film are narrated by means of the original captions for the missing sections and additional notes. In addition there is an excellent commentary filling in the gaps.

So at last we can see Lang's original 1927 vision of a horrific future with a favoured elite living on the surface of the earth enjoying a life of luxury, and a vast army of nameless workers living in a grim underground city toiling ten hour shifts.

Freder (Gustav Frolich) son of the ruler of Metropolis and one of the favoured elite investigates the plight of the workers and is so horrified decides to do something about it, and falls in love with Maria (Brigitte Helm) who gives a stunning performance in her first film role. Maria is a leader of the workers seeking justice for them by mediation and sees Freder as the mediator. A major sub plot is the enmity between the ruler (Alfred Abel) and Rotwang (Rudolph Klein-Rogge) who is attempting to create a mechanical version of the dead woman they both loved.

The 1927 sets and special effects are spectacular, reflecting in many ways the art of the period.The acting is good throughout except for Frolich who in my opinion is over the top, the original score (making wide use of leitmotivs) in a modern recording is a major contribution to the success of the restoration, and the digital restoration provides us with a near pristine copy.

This is not a film for a relaxed evenings viewing, but more than repays the effort needed to fully appreciate it.

Metrosexuality
Drama Comedy Ricki Beadle-Blair
Saw the series at the Phoenix Gay & Lesbian Film Festival OutFar. Went alone and bonded with my seatmates instantly laughing and gasping and shocked! Not for the faint of heart, but very loving portrayal of queer families, friends & lovers. So fast-paced I had a hangover after watching it! Buy it, you'll love it (but please...it's definately NC-17 material, mature adults and teens).

The Mighty Boosh - Series 1
Comedy Julian Barratt, Noel Fielding, Rich Fulcher, Michael Fielding, Matt Berry, Victoria Wicks Dave Lambert, ,
Be prepared for a treat - if you are open to some really un-conventional humour. Two zookeepers, Vince Noir (trendy, happy-go-lucky, loved by everyone and sporting sensational hair) and Howard Moon (slightly grey, bland and supply-teacher like jazz-loving bloke) get up to some bizzare adventures during their time looking after animals. For example, they are transported to monkey hell, get lost in the jungle, get trapped in the arctic and abducted by a green hitchhiker with an abnormally large thumb, amongst other things.

I actually found the second series better than the first - it seemed that the characters developed better, the adventures were more interesting and the jokes had improved slightly. Nonetheless, this first series is well worth picking up and watching at least twice. (Personally, I find most comedies better the second time through)

Happy watching!

Mighty Boosh - Series 2
Comedy Julian Barratt, Noel Fielding Dave Lambert, ,
I'll follow the trend and tell you which mind boogling boosh episode i seen first - and that was 'Call of the Yeti'. I'd never seen anything like it, so original, so surreal, so silly, so amazingly funny. BBC Three had put the next weeks episode online so i went on straight away and watched that, 'The Priest & the Beast' (Glove Love, Glove Love). Pure Quality, so good I never waited for the televison showings, and told absolutely everyone I knew to watch them. To my surprise not everyone got the humour, it seems like one of those love it or hate it shows, I don't personally understand that, in my opinion its the best thing to hit tv screens in ages. I think for those undecided, you have to approach the show with no preconceptions and suspend any sense of reality or logic. The brilliance of the show is in the dialogue, I found series' 2's music interludes enjoyable but to be honest, would probably have prefered them to be edited down to take up less screen time. The dialogue is where all the laughs come from. Best Boosh episode is 'Nanageddon'; but, they're all brilliant, even 'The Nightmare of Milky Joe' which for some reason, doesn't quite reach the same heights of hilarity as the preceeding five. Series 1 is equally amazing, so heres hoping for a third seesion, and another u-tern in style, setting and with more Bolo, dropping some weather report.

The Mighty Boosh Live
Comedy Julian Barratt, Noel Fielding Nick Morris, ,
I went to the Brighton show and I was in actual physical pain from laughing so much.
I've never wanted to be a rabbit so much in my life.
Brilliant and an essential purchase for anyone.

Millennium - Season 1
Science Fiction & Fantasy Lance Henriksen, Megan Gallagher
"Millennium" marked the second major television series created by Chris Carter, who'd already made his name as the brains behind "The X-Files". And, like its predecessor, it shares a lot of the same themes--it's a crime thriller that gradually unfolds into a grand conspiracy involving the government and the fate of the entire world.
Agent Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) is a former FBI agent who has transplanted his family from Washington DC to Seattle, after suffering something of a breakdown. He's an expert criminal profiler--arguably the best, thanks to his ability to "see" into the minds of killers--and he fears for the safety of his wife and young daughter. In Seattle, he joins the mysterious Millennium Group, an agency of freelance crime-busters who investigate particularly brutal crimes. As a result, "Millennium" is downright bleak viewing, as Black jumps from horrific slaying to horrific slaying. Moreover, there's a growing sense of unease about the workings of the Millennium Group, so that in typical Chris Carter fashion, you don't know who to trust. With its pre-Y2K angst and overwhelming darkness, as well as its general humourlessness, "Millennium" hasn't dated as well as "The X-Files". Still, thanks to Carter's vision and Henriksen's compelling take on the tortured Black, it's difficult not to get hooked. "--Ted Kord"

Millennium - Season 2
Science Fiction & Fantasy Lance Henriksen, Brittany Tiplady, Megan Gallagher
Created by Chris Carter, "Millennium" first appeared on television in 1996. It stars Lance Henriksen as Frank Black, a former FBI Agent who specialised in profiling serial killers. Frank retired from the Bureau after suffering a breakdown and moved from Washington to Seattle. However, he didnx27;t completely sever his ties with the world in which he once worked and joined a team of ex-law enforcement agents known as the "Millennium Group". During season one the group appeared happy to lend their expertise to whatever investigation required their help.
With season one, Carter successfully created a murder-mystery show that was dark, could be disturbing and had a real sense of evil. Unlike "The X-Files", there wasnx27;t anything x27;unusualx27; about the show. Frank was not supposed to be a psychic, nor was his gift a form of telepathy - he was simply a very talented serial profiler who could put himself in the killerx27;s head. However, for season two, Carter was a little too busy with the X-Files to take the same hands-on approach. As a result, Glen Morgan and James Wong were brought in as Executive Producers - the pair also wrote a substantial part of the season and changed the focus of the show entirely. If anything, season two became exactly what season one wasnx27;t : rather than the dark murder-mystery show it had been, it morphed into a conspiracy-based, X-Files clone.
As the showx27;s central character, these changes have a direct impact on Frank - one of the key changes centres on his ability. With season two, Frankx27;s gift becomes firmly established as some form of psychic ability that can be passed from one generation to another. Frankx27;s thoughts and comments are, at times, so surreal that he almost becomes Fox Mulder with wrinkles. Itx27;s also revealed that hex27;s a big fan of Bobby Darin. This wouldnx27;t have been a problem, only for Morgan and Wongx27;s insistence on including Darinx27;s songs in the show - a distracting and slightly irritating decision. However, itx27;s what Frank did at the end of the seasonx27;s opening episode - "The Beginning and the End" - that really had me scratching my head. His actions, in my opinion, simply didnx27;t tie up with the character that was established in Season One - most obviously when compared with his behaviour in Season Onex27;s "The Thin White Line".
Season Two does reveal a great deal more about the Millennium Group. However, its role in providing consulting expertise to various law enforcement agencies now appears to be a front and it becomes a devious, manipulative organisation. As the season progresses, it focuses more on the Groupx27;s internal politics, and less on actual investigations - although, thankfully, Peter Watts now plays a greater role. A couple of new characters are also introduced. One, Lara Means, is essentially a female version of Frank - she is a Millennium Group candidate and has visions. Unfortunately, it seemed to me that none of the writers really had much of an idea what to do with her. Brian Roedecker, meanwhile, was an unnecessary and irritating addition and one that computer geeks everywhere will find offensive - think Jar Jar Binks without the merchandising potential.
While Season One was consistently excellent, I could only describe Season Two as patchy. I enjoyed some of the episodes a great deal - "The Curse of Frank Black" and "Midnight of the Century" take a peek into Frankx27;s past, the former also having a nice Hallowx27;een twist to it. "Owls" and "Roosters", which deal with a near-civil war within the Group, are two very good conspiracy-driven episodes. Some episodes couldx27;ve been just as good, but were let down by slightly weak endings - for example, "The Hand of Saint Sebastian" (an episode also hampered by Roedecker) and "The Mikado" (at last - a serial killer !). Others, however, seem like scripts intended for The X-Files, with only minor changes being made for this show. "Sirens" sees Frank behaving like Mulder, with Lara Means playing the Scully role. Lara subsequently switches sides, playing the Believer in "Anamnesis", while Catherine plays the Sceptic. (First broadcast five years before a famous bestseller by Dan Brown was published, it avoids beginning with a list of x27;factsx27;. Brownx27;s fans should enjoy it, all the same). A word of warning though - "Jose Chungx27;s Doomsday Defence" and "Somehow Satan Got Behind Me" are abysmal and are best avoided.
Overall, Ix27;d have to say I was a disappointed with season two. Morgan and Wong turned down an invitation to contribute to the x27;making-of-season-twox27; documentary - a shame, as that might have helped me understand why the show changed so dramatically. Perhaps unfairly, I couldnx27;t help comparing it with Season One. While "this is who we are" seems to have become a catchphrase for the Groupx27;s members, at times I couldnx27;t help thinking "but this is not who you should be". If your likes include conspiracies and the X-Files, therex27;ll probably be enough here to keep you happy. If, on the other hand, youx27;re hoping for a continuation of the very dark murder-mystery show, youx27;ll be disappointed.

Millennium - Season 3
Science Fiction & Fantasy Lance Henriksen
Chip Johannessen faced a difficult creative challenge when he became Millennium's Executive Producer at the start of the third season. The show's fictional world had seemingly been brought to an end at the close of the previous year. How could the creative staff continue a series in which most of the major characters and powerful plot threads had apparently been put to rest? The answer to this question, of course, was to reinvent the series once again.

The final season of Millennium began with a shaky start. Fortunately, it didn't take long for the cast and crew to meet and triumph over these challenges, and the results were commendable. Millennium's third season provided some of the show's most intelligent, bizarre, and intriguing stories. As a result, the episodes presented in this collection offer viewers a glimpse at the show's remarkable range. There are tales of police investigation, complex conspiracies, black comedy, scientific threats, and classic horror. Millennium was an artistic drama series unlike any other and it continues to stand apart in the anals of television history.

Sadly, nothing could save the series from the harsh demands of the network television industry. Just months before the dawn of the new millennium, the series was cancelled and aired its final episode. Frank Black's journey had come to an end, and this DVD collection presents the thrilling conclusion to the Millennium mythology. It is not to be missed.

--Brian A. Dixon
Revelation Magazine

Mirrormask / Labyrinth / Dark Crystal
Children's Stephanie Leonidas, Dora Bryan, Gina McKee, Rob Brydon, Andy Hamilton, Jason Barry, Robert Llewellyn

Monkey Dust - Series 1
Comedy Simon Greenall, Rebecca Front, Frances Barber, Enn Reitel, Sharon Horgan, Kate Robbins, Morwenna Banks Suzanne Deakin, Christian Chessell, Michelle Yu, Damian Fox (II), Alan Smith (XVII), Paul Donnellon, John Sunter, Martyn Jones, Steve May (II), Sam Morrison, Luke Carpenter
This is the most depressing programme ever made. Here is why you must buy it: the nightmarish portrayal of New-Labour Britain in Monkey Dust is so extremely shocking and ruthlessly bleak that you sometimes wish you could just dismiss it. Yet the way it manages to ring true throughout makes for deeply disturbing and always compelling viewing. The fact that it is consistantly hilarious as well is an incredible achievement. Monkey Dust demands repeat viewing and remains just as good each time. Absolutely essential. Come on BBC, put series 2 and 3 out now!

N.B. To the reviewer who said "the creator is seventy something", you're a fair way off - Harry Thompson sadly died last year at the age of 45.

Monty Python: The Movies
Comedy Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, Connie Booth, Carol Cleveland, Neil Innes, Bee Duffell Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
This "Monty Python Movie Box Set" contains all four Python movies: "And Now for Something Completely Different" (1971), "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" (1974)--the two-disc set--"Monty Python's Life of Brian"--including a 50-minute documentary--and "Monty Python's The Meaning of Life".

The Motorcycle Diaries
Drama Gael Garcia Bernal, Rodrigo De La Serna, Mia Maestro, Mercedes Moran, Jorge Chiarella, Walter Salles Walter Salles
The beauty of the South American landscape and of Gael Garcia Bernal ("Y Tu Mama Tambien", "Bad Education") gives "The Motorcycle Diaries" a charisma that is decidedly apolitical. But this portrait of the young Che Guevara (later to become a militant revolutionary) is half buddy-movie, half social commentary--and while that may seem an unholy hybrid, under the guidance of Brazillian director Walter Salles ("Central Station") the movie is quietly passionate. Guevara and his friend Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna, a lusty and engaging actor) set off from Buenos Aires, hoping to circumnavigate the continent on a leaky motorcycle. They end up travelling more by foot, hitchhiking, and raft, but their experience of the land and the people affects them profoundly. No movie could affect an audience the same way, but "The Motorcycle Diaries" gives a soulful glimpse of an awakening social conscience, and that's worth experiencing. "--Bret Fetzer"

Moulin Rouge -- Two-Disc Set
Musical Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent, Richard Roxburgh, Garry McDonald, Jacek Koman, Matthew Whittet, Kerry Walker, Caroline O'Connor, Christine Anu, Natalie Jackson Mendoza, Lara Mulcahy, David Wenham, Kylie Minogue Baz Luhrmann
Watching Baz Luhrmann's award-winning "Moulin Rouge" is a lot like falling in love. It is total immersion cinema and while you're experiencing it ("watching" is too passive a word) you can't imagine that cinema could be for anything else. In the harsh, objective post-viewing daylight Lurhmann's gaudy spectacular might seem like a triumph of glossy style over any genuine substance, but as the film unfolds Lurhmann subjects his audience to a such a barrage of overtly stylised music, dance, colour, design and human passion that the senses are overwhelmed and critical faculties put on hold for the duration.
The story is paper-thin, but that's hardly the point. Nicole Kidman's courtesan Satine falls for poor poet Ewan McGregor while pledged to a psychotic English Duke. The show goes on, of course, and we know it will end in tragedy--because that's the sort of story this is, and the only thing that makes it bearable is the knowledge that it's all just brilliant artifice. The third of Luhrman's "Red Curtain" trilogy (after "Strictly Ballroom" and "Romeo + Juliet"), "Moulin Rouge" reinvents musical cinema, acknowledging its debt to past masters like Vincente Minnelli ("Gigi") and Michael Powell ("The Red Shoes"), but taking in the best of rock video along the way. The incessant MTV-style editing might seem like a distraction, but in the end a film insane enough to include Jim Broadbent's cover of "Like a Virgin" defines its own genre rules.
On the DVD: this double-disc package sets new standards of presentation while also having an ideally appropriate light-heartedness. The extra features are as inventive in their use of the format as the film itself. Highlights include not one but two commentaries--one by Luhrmann, his designer and his cinematographer, the other with Lurhmann and his fellow scriptwriter Craig Pearce. We get two videos of "Lady Marmalade" and there are also uncut dance numbers, for example the fabulously dark Tango sequence in all its detail, which come with alternate camera angles so that you can edit your own version. There are whole segments on the glittery costumes, the three-dimensional model of Paris and the transformation of Kylie Minogue into the Green Fairy of absinthe. The film is presented in anamorphic widescreen (formatted for 16:9 TVs) with a visual aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and has lush, velvety Dolby Digital 5.1 or DTS 5.1 sound options. --"Roz Kaveney"

Murder One - Season 1
Crime Daniel Benzali, Grace Phillips, Stanley Tucci, Dylan Baker, John Fleck, Kevin Tighe, Patricia Clarkson, Jason Gedrick, Clayton Rohner, Jack Kehler, Vanessa Williams Steven Robman, Marc Buckland, Michael Fresco, Lesli Linka Glatter, Rick Wallace, James Hayman, Charles Haid, Elodie Keene, Joe Napolitano
The trial of Niel Avadon is compelling viewing and stretched out over twenty three episodes makes this one of my favorite American series.

I can remember when it was first televised,I couldnot wait for the next installment,the acting is top notch and the twists and turns make the story very exciting.

The script is a very intelligent affair not being far fetched or unbelievable.

Written by Steven Bochco the creator of NYPD Blue and L.A. Law
you know you are in for a treat.

Daniel Benzali who plays Tedd Hoffman the owner of the law firm is brilliant as is Stanley Tucci who plays Richard Cross the most important character in the entire series.

What you get is a thrilling 6 DVD set totalling 1030mins over23 episodes.

IF YOU MIST THE SERIES WHEN IT WAS ORIGINALLY TELEVISED TEN YEARS AGO YOU MISSED A REAL TREAT.

This is top quality entertainment a dvd set you will watch again and again.

If there was an American tv classic other than Star Trek and Dallas then here it is.

My Own Private Idaho
Drama River Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, James Russo Gus Van Sant
Mapping the spaces between fortune and degeneracy, Shakespeare and street cant, Europe and the Pacific Northwest, and gay and straight, "My Own Private Idaho" is the 1991 masterpiece by director Gus Van Sant. River Phoenix gave the most generous and memory-searing performance of his tragically shortened career as Mike Waters, a narcoleptic street hustler in search of his mother. His best friend, Scott, played by Keanu Reeves, is a son of privilege who fosters plans of rejoining the moneyed world of his father after gallivanting with assorted urchins and ne'er-do-wells. The beautifully symmetrical story that emerges between the two is one of friendship, yearning for lost time, and sexual identity conveyed with a poet's eye for landscape. The camera lingers on abandoned houses in golden fields and time-lapse clouds, providing what T.S. Eliot called "the objective correlative"--external representations of interior emotional states. We're treated to striking iconic sequences like a barn falling from the sky and still-life scenes of carnal entanglement. The supporting cast is a rogues' gallery that includes Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Udo Kier, director William Richert, and a variety of "nonactors" pulled literally off the street to provide documentary veracity to a film that gleefully careens into riffs on Henry IV. It's beautiful.
What's also beautiful is the Criterion Collection's treatment of the film's DVD debut. The director-approved transfer successfully conveys the warmth of the film's palette of oranges and browns, and preserves the whimsical atmospherics of the yodeling country music soundtrack. Many members of the original crew contribute their fond memories to the documentary features, which include a conversation between Phoenix's sister Rain and producer Laurie Parker. There are also two lengthy audio-only conversations--one between Van Sant and Velvet Goldmine director Todd Haynes, and another between author J.T. Leroy and filmmaker Jonathan Caouette about their experiences on the street. The deleted scenes mostly suggest alternate endings that Van Sant wisely left on the cutting room floor. A superb example of a beloved film on DVD. "--Ryan Boudinot, Amazon.com"

My Wrongs #8245-8249 & 117
Comedy Paddy Considine Chris Morris
As Chris Morris ventures into the realms of the short film with "My Wrongs Number 8245-8249 and 117" it makes complete sense that the king of vicious satire should team up with Warp Records' new film section. Warp have constantly strived to subvert the norm in music--signing acts such as Boards of Canada and the mad yet beautiful music of Aphex Twin--and so Morris has been able to lay a superb soundtrack over the top of his film.
Having merged the spoken word with Warp-style music in his earlier release "Blue Jam", Morris goes one step further with "My Wrongs" and adds multiple layers to the visuals. Imbued with surreal and macabre comedy, it follows one man's descent into an off-kilter world where dogs and babies become lawyers defending everything he has done wrong since the age of four. Don't expect any political "Brass Eye"-type wranglings from this Morris creation, though, since "My Wrongs" is more concerned with the turmoil of the subconscious mind. As such it looks set to become a darling of the alternative scene.
On the DVD: "My Wrongs Number 8245-8249 & 117" offers a surprising amount of extras for such a short film, including a commentary from one of the production runners, a number of remixes (including a superb mix of Barbara Woodhouse's dog training sessions) and an inner-monologue from the starring man. --"Nikki Disney"

Mysterious Skin
Mystery & Suspense Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Brady Corbet, Michelle Trachtenberg, Jeff Licon Gregg Araki
This movie was far from being rubbish. I am not one to watch gory details when it comes to human life, but nor I'm I able to watch mind-numbing boring and easy movies either. The summary got me, and I had to rent it. This movie dealt with a lot more than more or any gay themed movies can ever imagine. It was heart felt, shocking, scary and damn right vomit worthy at times. But all that brought in such a powerful storyline. We always get hit with political stories in movies, especially when it deals with aids or rape. But this movie dealt with how two people suffered the same incident but how different they were as people and how differently they took the incident.

A fan of the movie, and will be off the book once I get around to buying it. The warnings are all there, if you still pick it up and don't like it, don't blame it on the theme.



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