Killing Zoe

Starring:Eric Stoltz, Julie Delpy, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Tai Thai, Bruce Ramsay, Kario Salem, Salvator Xuereb, Gary Kemp, Martin Raymond, Eric Pascal Chaltiel, Cecilia Peck, Gladys Holland, Gian-Carlo Scandiuzzi, GÃ©rard Bonn, Bernard Baski, Michel Jean-Philippe, Michael Kayman, Elise Renee, Ron Jeremy, Chris Tragos
Director: Roger Avary
Studio: Lions Gate
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com essential video

Helen Mirren's Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison, the only female DCI on an old boy's club London homicide squad, is like a phantom lurking around the edges of the action while the men rush through their latest murder case, joshing and winking in the kind of male camaraderie the cop genre has celebrated for decades. When DCI Shefford dies of a sudden heart attack, Tennison demands to take over. Despite her superintendent's resistance ("Give her this case and she'll start expecting more."), she becomes the squad's first woman to head a murder investigation. Scrutinized at every moment by her superior officers, Tennison is faced with a case that spirals out from a single murder to a serial spree, a second-in-command who undermines her authority and her investigation at every turn, a team resistant to taking orders from a woman, and a private life unraveling due to her professional diligence. Lynda La Plant's script is a compelling thriller riddled with ambiguity that turns dead ends, blind alleys, and the mundane legwork of real-life cops into fascinating details. Mirren commands the role of Tennison with authority, intelligence, and a touch of overachieving desperation. Superb performances, excellent writing, and understated direction make this BBC miniseries one of the most involving mysteries in years. Look for future British stars Ralph Fiennes and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. --Sean Axmaker

Description

Helen Mirren (Teaching Mrs. Tingle/Gosford Park) introduces the character of Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison in the first of the series PRIME SUSPECT, which aired on PBS in January 1992. There will be five series in all, with a sixth currently set to air in the summer of 2004. When a young woman is found brutally murdered and the DCI in charge is unable to take up the case, it is passed to Jane Tennison, the first female DCI to handle such responsibility. Between a slippery suspect and resistance from her team of detectives, Tennison has her hands full. But she's got the strength to take them all on.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent show.......2007-05-08

Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison (Helen Mirren) is in charge of the investigation to uncover a serial killer who rapes, tortures, and brutally murders prostitutes in London. Tennison is put in charge after one of her fellow DCIs has a heart attack and dies. She inherits the murder case and soon comes across the connected second murder. If trying to solve not one but two rape-murder cases is not enough, Jane's work is complicated by the hostility of her staff. The members of the male-dominated police department feel humiliated and have problems following the orders of the female boss, no matter how intelligent, tough, organized, and fit for the position she is. Tennison's obsession with the cases and fighting for credibility and respect from her colleagues don't help to her relationship with the boyfriend Peter Rawlins (Tom Wilkinson), either. Helen Mirren is superb as DCI Tennison playing the character that is sympathetic, tough, vulnerable, bright, very clever, and sexy - all at the same time. Mirren was voted the sexiest 60+ star in the word few months ago. I think she's been always incredibly attractive and desirable - and always will be. She definitely lit the screen at 46, in her first season of "Prime Suspect" (1991). Creator of the show, Lynda La Plante wrote the story that ranks among the best police procedures and it is terrific - complex, dynamic, with unexpected turns, and interesting multidimensional characters. Ralph Fiennes played one of his first roles as a boyfriend of a murdered girl and he was memorable in a very emotional scene opposite Mirren. I look forward for more DVDs with the rest of the seasons coming from Netflix.

Wow! Puts the American police procedurals to shame!.......2007-04-15

I was amazed by the character development, plotting and overall quality of this program. Graphic and gritty, this episode really creates a sense of what working as a detective must be like. I also appreciate the genuine London setting rather than the usual Southern California film set. I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the series soon.

Very Brittish!.......2007-04-10

This series is exactly what the English love about mystery and crime. It's a tad bit dull compared to what we are used to with cop shows and series like "The Shield". That being said, this series is well done and does capture you over time. Rather than individual crime stories, this series contains only one crime investigation. If you like drama and cop stories, this is a good one.

Great actress, great series!.......2007-02-12

I think Helen Mirren is one of the finest actresses alive today, love this series (all the seasons of it), and love seeing her over the years in this series.

Prime Suspect 1.......2007-01-10

This is brilliant gritty British TV at its best. Every one in the series is excellent, I thoroughly recommend it to anyone who enjoys great acting (Helen Mirren is fantastic) and strong story lines.

Average customer rating:

He Just Needed A Hug...
Very Impressed
Science created him, but can Chuck stop him?
norris's charm carries this movie,but only so far
See Norris hit a guy in the round tables with a pool cue!

Silent Rage
Starring: Chuck Norris , Ron Silver , Steven Keats , Toni Kalem , and William Finley
Director: Michael Miller
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
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ASIN: B00005QVZ0
Release Date: 2001-12-04

Customer Reviews:

He Just Needed A Hug..........2007-06-20

Poor John Kirby (Brian Libby), if only he'd taken his pills, all would have been well. Alas, he dropped them on the floor, leading to a husband and wife massacre by axe. John is then captured by police, escapes, and is gunned down by sheriff Stevens (Chuck Norris). John is revived and kept alive by looney doctors who try their new experimental serum on him. This turns Mr. Kirby into an indestructible juggernaut of death! Meanwhile, the sheriff is busy battling bikers and rekindling a romance w/ his ex-girlfriend. Soon John kills enough people to get the sheriff's attention. I like SILENT RAGE, and that's saying a lot since I'm no Chuck Norris fan. The scene where Kirby stalks and kills his old psychiatrist (Ron Silver) and his wife is fairly creepy. I also enjoyed the whole hospital-holocaust! I even got a kick (pun? what pun??) out of the karate-man vs. zombie-madman finalé! Very entertaining indeed...

Very Impressed .......2006-07-04

Dear Sir Or Madam:

I am writing to you to inform you of my response to my shipment from the above mention seller. I am very impressed with this seller and Give him a THUMBS UP.

Science created him, but can Chuck stop him?.......2006-06-23

Chuck does horror in the 1982 classic "Silent Rage" in which Chuck Norris, as Sheriff Dan Stevens, takes on a superhuman biological project gone bad in John Kirby. John Kirby was already dangerously disturbed before he was killed, but after he is brought back to life by a mad scientist, this guy is unstoppable!! I mean I am talking Michael Myers style!! John Kirby is evil, dangerous and deadly as he kills a bunch of people on his way to a match with Sheriff Dan Stevens and his karate kicks...will Chuck be a match for John Kirby? On paper, the answer is no, but with Chuck's karate kicks and chops having more power than shotgun blasts, one would have to give the edge to Chuck Norris in this matchup.

Notwithstanding Chuck Norris' notorious karate scene when he beats the butts of an entire biker gang in a bar all by himself, this movie does have some horror merit to it, although not much. First, you gotta love the music in this flick, especially John Kirby's theme or death song. Kirby does look mad and evil at times in this movie and is quite effective at presenting this look to the audience...I was especially impressed with his killings in the beginning before he became superhuman...brutal kills!!! That being said, this movie is very light to nil on scares.

Give John Kirby credit guys...this guy has skills. Can Chuck Norris stop him? Better check it out along with Chuck Norris's comic sidekick in the 80's classic karate horror flick named "Silent Rage". The kills are decent in this movie and the killer, John Kirby, is extremely formidable. The acting is average to slightly above average for this type of flick and there are moments where horror is evident as John Kirby stalks his victims. I must admit this is not a great or a good horror movie, but I do speak of "Silent Rage" with affection as it does not try to do too much with its simple plot.

The good thing about "Silent Rage" is that it stays within itself and does not try to do too much with silly twists. The creators of "Silent Rage" do a decent job of presenting an evil and maniacal killer with superhuman strength killing people for the sheer enjoyment of it; and it is up to Chuck Norris to stop John Kirby? After watching this movie myself, I do not know who is more unstoppable between the inhuman John Kirby and the infallible Chuck Norris. Check out Chuck Norris in "Silent Rage" NOW!! Do not expect a great horror movie and you should enjoy yourself mightily.

norris's charm carries this movie,but only so far.......2006-06-13

i like chuck norris movies and i like parts of this movie. norris is a lawman in a texas town,and as the movie opens we find a nut job talking to his doctor telling him that he's loseing it,and he does as he kills everyone in the house! of course chuck comes to take him in but in the course of the arrest the killer is shot and killed,so we think. 3 doctors use this nut to test a life saving drug on and it works better than they though because not only does it save him it makes him an even bigger nut and unkillable! now the nut starts to kill people off and chuck must stop him.of course chuck must also stop a biker gang and have a bar room fight along the way!
chuck really looks and acts better in this one than some of his early work,but with the "halloween" theme of unstopable killer wears it's self out early and try as he may norris just can't save this one alone,and with no help from the rest of the cast this one sinks slowly,but it does have a few good points and that is because of chuck!

See Norris hit a guy in the round tables with a pool cue!.......2006-06-05

John chops up some people (off screen) with an ax. Sheriff Dan Stevens (Chuck Norris) don't take kindly to that and smites him with some kicks to the face. John is taken to the hospital where some doctors secretly pump him full of a superhealing drug and it works. A little too well and John's back out on the street - in a snazzy Devo suit - killing people. Then he messes with Chuck's girlfriend and wins a one way ticket to pain.

Mediocre Norris film, there should have been less talking and more fighting. Also when the motorcycle flew through the window and lands in the parking lot why did it sound like a trash can?

Average customer rating:

A classic in its own right
A lot like Resevoir Dogs...
Roger Avary Proves Himself to Be Worthy
Highly violent entertainment
"Killing Zoe" Review

Killing Zoe
Starring: Eric Stoltz , Julie Delpy , Jean-Hugues Anglade , Tai Thai , and Bruce Ramsay
Director: Roger Avary
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005O5AY
Release Date: 2001-08-14

Description

From the Creators of RESERVOIR DOGS and PULP FICTION. An American safecracker named Zed (Eric Stoltz) is summoned to Paris by his childhood buddy, Eric (Jean-Hugues Anglade), to help pull a Bastille Day bank heist. Dreams of easy money quickly evaporate when the heist goes sour and Eric transforms into a psychotic, drug-crazed sociopath. This highly controversial first film by Academy Award(r) -winning filmmaker Roger Avary* was an instant cult classic and fast became the barometer by which Generation X gauged its own nihilism. Killing Zoe is a "must own" dark vision that drags exploitation, kicking and screaming, into the realm of art house cinema - neither will ever be the same. *1995, Best Original Screenplay, PULP FICTION

Customer Reviews:

A classic in its own right.......2007-03-17

Eric Stolz is invited to be the safe-cracking specialist for a bank heist
in Paris, doomed from the start. Jean-Hugues Anglade is the ringleader of
a chaotic gang of bankrobbers-for-one-day. Julie Delpy, appearing divine
as always, is the hooker that Eric orders right after landing.

This movie has "cult classic" written all over it, and after more than a
decade it has lost none of its acuteness in portraying a generation that
doesn't even care about being desperately lost. Abundant drugs permeate
the story, but drugs alone can't fully account for everybody's apathy.

If you want to watch a quality film for a change, settle for this dvd
and immerse yourself in its atmosphere, its snippets of authentic French
dialogue, and its palpable nihilism. Great soundtrack, too.

A lot like Resevoir Dogs..........2007-01-03

First off I hate Eric Stoltz. I think he is a bad actor and has a horrible movie voice. He irritates me to be honest. That being said he is at the top of his limited game in this movie.

It is a very simple tale with a very simple setting. The whole French crew and their gregarious lifestyles and generally crazy demeanor is what makes this movie pretty good. These people live life to the fullest and are fun to watch onscreen. Delpy is great as usual, but I do not understand her attraction to Stoltz who is a dolt and largely uninterested in her on a deeper level it seems.

Worth a watch. It is not stylish violence though like a Tarentino movie. It is gritty and grimy.

Roger Avary Proves Himself to Be Worthy.......2006-04-25

I was drawn to see this because Roger Avary was the man who came up with the idea for "The Gold Watch" segment in my favorite movie "Pulp Fiction".
I was curious to see how Roger Avary was when he worked by himself. "Killing Zoe" was his directorial debut and like almost any debut, it has its flaws. It's not a bad movie though and it's a pretty interesting movie, but dialouge over story is truly Avary's strong suit. I hate to compare anybody's dialouge (except Elmore Leonard in his books) to Quentin Tarantino's, but to make a point I must. Avary's dialouge flows like Tarantino's and it's filled with wit and humor. I laughed aloud at a couple parts, like the cat & "I can't do pee on you for 200 bucks." The first time I watched it, I wondered to myself how one of the characters in this movie could feel emotion for the person that she helps at the end after what is done to her. I don't want to say much more than that for fear of ruining the movie...But in the first few scenes between these two, it's obvious. Anyway, "Killing Zoe" begins in a cab with Zed (Eric Stoltz, who's very good here), an American in France, who's on his way to a motel. When Zed gets to the motel, he takes a shower and a prosititute shows up at his house. This prostitute is Zoe (Julie Delpy of "Before Sunset"), an art student. In a great scene, Zoe and Zed have a conversation (after sex) about why they like each other. Then, Zed's friend Eric (Jean-Hughes Anglade) shows up and tosses Zoe, naked, out of the motel. Zed does nothing, but goes with Eric to his place where they begin to map out a bank robberty that's to happen tomorrow on Bastille Day (which I've never heard of except in the song by Rush). The bank will be the only one that's open, Zed will crack the safe. Problem is, Zed is not a bad man by any standard. He's a crook, but he's not a bad man. Eric is a bad man, he's also a drug fiend and that's not a good combination. Anyway, Eric and Zed, and a bunch of other guys go the bank the next day (they don't get to the bank until like 45 minutes into the movie) and preceed to rob it, but (as in all bank heist movies) things don't go their way and the cops are outside. Also,
Zoe happens to work there...That's all I'm going to say about the synopsis.
Anyways, one thing Avary does in this movie really well (besides dialouge) is
he paces the film well. In a lot of movies, the pacing is boring and obvious. The only other director I can think of that can use a lot of pacing is Stanley Kubrick, most notably in "Eyes Wide Shut". Avary isn't using the pacing just to have some story leading up to the bank robbery, he's building the tension. Problem is, there were a few times when the pacing did get boring. Like in the scene where they're driving down the street and yelling at prosititutes. Pointless...But, this is a good movie and a good first feature. Stoltz, Anglade, and Delpy are all very good and Roger Avary proves that he's a worthy director.

DIALOUGE: A
STORY: B-
OVERALL GRADE: B

Highly violent entertainment.......2005-10-05

It's easy to discuss 'Killing Zoe's problems; they are, after all, plentiful and in clear view. It's hard to deny, though, that it's an incredibly entertaining movie. It's important not to be misled by the treacherous phrase 'from the creators of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction'; Killing Zoe was directed by Roger Avary, who may has a co-writer's credit on Pulp Fiction but his part in it was quite small; in Reservoir Dogs all his actually did was write the radio dialogue that runs in the background. Quentin Tarantino was executive producer, but clearly had no influence on the creative side of the movie. The presence of Tarantino's name on the Killing Zoe DVD is a double-ended sword; on the one hand, it's what made me notice it and pick it up in the first place, and I'm sure it helped a lot in the film's sales when it was first released. On the other, it inevitably creates some high expectations, and these can hinder your enjoyment from the movie, as they did mine. Because while Killing Zoe shares with Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction some themes of crime, drugs, sex and honor among thieves, it shares none of Tarantino's witty, sarcastic edge and cultural awareness.

If, however, you remember to steer clear of these expectations - and if you like this kind of movie, of course - then you're bound to enjoy Killing Zoe. It's a fast-paced, entertaining crime story with lots of violence, some sense of humor, some sex and a lot of atmosphere. Very good performances are also given by the beautiful Julie Delpy ("the prostitute with a heart of gold") and Jean-Hugues Anglade ("the psychopathic sadist"), who plays one of the coolest villains of the 90's (who's more than a bit similar to Gary Oldman's fantastic Agent Stansfield from 'Leon'), and these two almost make up for the unimpressive leading man we have in Eric Stoltz - who, though he made a fine career for himself playing small character roles in fantastic films from Pulp Fiction to Singles, had not proven himself as a capable lead since his breakthrough performance as a disfigured boy in Mask - who plays a rather unlikable and uninteresting hero.

Killing Zoe is a featherweight film with absolutely no depth to the story or characters, that generally likes waving around the sex and violence for the sake of sex and violence, which are sometimes unnecessarily excessive (like the far too long sex scene at the beginning, or the gory image of the dying man near the end); it's not a very intelligent crime movie, and it won't stick with you, but it's great entertainment, with fantastic atmosphere, and for any fan of the genre - one who is not easily offended (and you'll be amazed at how dirty a dirty joke sounds in French even if you don't understand one word) - it's well worth seeing. Keep your expectations low, and you'll have lots of fun.

"Killing Zoe" Review.......2005-08-29

Eric Stoltz is a safe-cracker from America who teams up with a childhood friend and his sadistic crew of French heroin-addict bank robbers to take down a Federal Reserve in the heart of Paris. Things go violenty wrong (as is usually the case in "heist" films) when said friend goes berserk. Outrageously violent and filled with dark humor, "Killing Zoe" is like "Reservoir Dogs" on speed-balls. In fact, Quentin Tarantino executive-produced this one along with "Dogs" producer Lawrence Bender. While the movie is not classified as a foreign film, a good portion of it is spoken in French with English subtitles.

Average customer rating:

Good Cop Vs. Bad Cop
Totally bad, totally fun.
TWO COPS VS A DEMON FROM HELL
Helbound

Hellbound
Starring: Chuck Norris , Calvin Levels , Christopher Neame (III) , Sheree J. Wilson , and David Robb
Director: Aaron Norris
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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ASIN: B000AYEL2O
Release Date: 2005-12-06

Description

To Chicago undercover policemen Shatter and Jackson, everything from petty theft to murder one is as common as ham and eggs. But nothing could prepare them for a force spawned by hell itself. Excitement comes on strong when Chuck Norris plays Shatter in the eerie supernatural thriller Hellbound. A murder investigation whisks Shatter and sidekick Johnson (Calvin Levels) to the Holy Land's windswept reaches. There they discover it's more than a murder case that hangs in the balance: it's the fate of the world. Human meddling has restored a powerful satanic messenger to life. Now all that stands in the way of the creature's plan for dominance is a mysterious blood rite - and two never-say-die cops.

Customer Reviews:

Good Cop Vs. Bad Cop.......2006-05-23

When I saw the title, read the product description and the other high-rated reviews for this movie, we ordered it. The story is all right and the plot, maybe not as strong as other movies. I liked the feeling of terror and Chuck Norris comes around to save us and still be cool, calm and collective. The funniest part is where this boy swaps sidekick Johnson's (Calvin Levels) wallet and Shatter (Chuck Norris) has to help him find it and then later gives him his money back. HaHa! The best part though has to be the final fight at the end when Shatter finally destroys the demon by throwing the object of power into him.

SEVERAL COMMENTS ON A "CERTIAN REVIEW" WHICH CAME FROM Letchworth, England on March 20,2006 called Two Cops Vs. A Demon from Hell.
This is a police/horror mix to this movie BUT to say there is NO swearing?!

To EVERBODY out there who reads this, the "F" word was used several times along with repeated uses of other profanities throughout the movie. If somebody doesn't call that swearing, then tell me what is!!! Or you could say, If somebody called it swearing, then SUSAN PARR could tell you what its not?!
There also no close caption either so TV Guardian won't work.
For those of you who get R movies rated just for violence which is just what it was rated for, LOOK ELSEWHERE!!!

And There is NO Gore Either?! Somebody next to Ms. Parr better `knudge' her because she has fallen asleep AGAIN!!!
The scene where the rabbi is murdered in the apartment his Heart is RIPPED OUT and later tossed on the floor in front of Shatter (Chuck Norris) who briefly encounters the demon after a prostitute is thrown from a window onto the cops car. And the subsequent murders are very bloody or Gory.
So Bottom Line, There is too swearing and there is a scene or two of gore. Those are the TRUE facts. To say there isn't would be dishonest. On the other hand, if you don't mind any of that you should probably rent the movie first because it's only good to see ONCE(in my opinion).

Totally bad, totally fun........2006-03-24

Let's be honest, Chuck Norris movies are bad. Pretty much all of them are bad enough to be good.

"Behind Chuck Norris' beard, there is no chin... there is only another fist"

You know, its just like watching all the Schwartzeneger movies, just for the one-liners.

I think Chuck Norris is pretty much the poster boy (better say poster "destroyer" instead of "boy" just in case he finds out i wrote this writeup and comes and kicks my ass) for the tough-guy cop.

You gotta see in the beginning of this movie, when Chuck challenges one of this pimp's sidekicks to hit him in the face, so he can show no emotion or pain as a result - "you call that a hit?". He then punches the guy back so he fly's over the hood of the car. Hilarious.

Well, you know exactly what you're in for when you go watch a Chuck Norris movie. Pretty much an hour and a half of that. Its totally fun.

I think Chuck should make an appearance in the next Starsky & Hutch-stlye comedy film. It would be great.

The plot is the following: An evil spawn of the devil named Prosatanos, is unleashed onto the earth. Chuck and his sidekick cop are out to find and destroy him, while overcoming all the human obstacles in the way. Actually the plot gets a little more complicated than that, involving the crown of some scepter, and royal blood.

But in the year 2006, you're not watching Chuck Norris movies for depth, but pure comedy instead.

Had it not been for his seriousness, the movies wouldn't be near as fun a decade or so down the line.

Ayways, pure comedy is what you'll get. The movie is brilliant.

Buy it. Rent it. Whatever. You gotta see it.

TWO COPS VS A DEMON FROM HELL.......2006-03-21

This play out like or same old cops films you see before, but with a twist. The bad guy is not the same as you see in other cops film. The bad guy is a high rank demon from hell with help from other low ranking demons from hell. The high ranking demon and the low ranking demons is trying to bring fore hell on earth by killing a person with royal blood and the good guy is trying to stop the high ranking demon and the low ranking demon from bring fore hell on earth.

If you like cops film and horror films, this film is mostly a cop film with a little bit of horror mix in if you like that sort of thing. If you do, this film is a ok run ride.

This film has got no swearing and no sex and no nudity and no gore which I am very please to say.

From a chirstian point a view you can teach a non chirstian about demons from hell and tell them this film is base on fact and fiction, but you must tell the non christian the real facts on demons first before you and your non christian see this film. This film will help you as a chirstian to teach the non chirstians about demons and they evil power and bring the closer to Jesus our lord.

For the glory of God.

Helbound.......2006-02-21

I have been looking for this movie on DVD for several months. This is one of the few places I could find it.

Average customer rating:

"But the gun was put in a woman's hand..."
It Will Never Happen Again
A Feminist Taxi Driver
Best B-movie of the 1980s.
The original Kill Bill (...well, sort of...) ?

Ms. 45
Starring: Wayne Caro , Scott Covert , Vincent Gruppi , Alex Jachino , and Jayne Kennedy
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ASIN: B00004S89Y
Release Date: 2000-04-25

Amazon.com

Abel Ferrara, the bad boy of American independent filmmaking, made his first splash with this violent twist on Death Wish and the revenge-vigilante genre. Nastassja Kinski look-alike Zoë Tamerlis Lund stars as a beautiful mute seamstress in New York's garment district, a shrinking violet who is brutally raped and assaulted not once but twice in the same day. After dispatching the second predator in an adrenaline-driven rush of panic, she pockets his handgun and disposes of the body in small chunks. Tamerlis makes the most of her wordless role, her wide-eyed vulnerability hardening to a dead-eyed determination as she transforms from quivering victim to avenging dark angel, a one-woman vigilante force hunting pimps, perverts, sickos, and slimeballs and using herself as bait. Consider this Ferrara's Taxi Driver, a very different portrait of New York's mean streets. Though this shot-on-the-cheap production occasionally suffers from amateurish performances in supporting roles, Ferrara's impeccable eye for composition and bravura sense of editing create momentum that carries it through to its memorable Halloween party finale. Tamerlis is decked out in a nun's habit with a slash of lipstick across her face, a handgun tucked in a garter, and a contract out on the entire male sex. It's a deliriously effective exploitation thriller that undercuts every expectation of the genre. Ferrara makes a cameo as the first attacker. Tamerlis later cowrote and costarred in Ferrara's most notorious production, Bad Lieutenant. --Sean Axmaker

Description

A young, voluptuous New York City woman is intensely shy and unable to speak. Her naive beauty provokes the aggressive attention of all men. One evening while walking home, she is assaulted at gunpoint and brutally raped by two thugs. Her enormous fears, which had driven her inward before, now push her to an outward course of action. After killing one of her assailants, she cuts his body into pieces and disposes of the parts, one by one, at various spots in Manhattan. She carries her dead assailant's .45 automatic, initially for protection, but ultimately for unrelenting revenge against all males. Men, keep your legs crossed for this frightfully erotic thriller that delves into the life of a nubile young maiden out for blood.

Customer Reviews:

"But the gun was put in a woman's hand...".......2006-08-22

When two rapists in seperate attacks on the same woman, on the same day, warn her to keep silent, the joke's on them. Thana is a mute, and couldn't scream if she wanted to. She soon finds her 'voice', however, when she fells the second attacker in her apartment and acquires his .45-caliber pistol. It's not long before you can't shut her up-- if you're a man. Thana is a femme fatale with a refreshingly direct approach.

Zoe Lund was a remarkable beauty. To cite some other reviews here, crassly: Is she a dead ringer for Nastassia Kinski, or is it Denise Richards? (Nah, maybe *they* look kinda like *her*.) Anyway, how her looks matter in this role is that she appears so stunningly fragile, a flower of innocence. Even when she's all dolled up to bait the hook, she's nearly a child playing dress-up: makeup to the hilt, soon adding avenger-superhero accents to her garb (black boots and gloves, a beret, a cloak). This young fragility also makes Thana's transformation more believable: she seems all the more easily broken and re-made. It helps that Lund (or Tamerlais, at the time) was 17 years old.

It should be made clear that this B-movie is a B-movie--low-budget, high-concept-- but within those bounds it is *not* campy. It is grim but thoughtful. It has a confrontational uncertainty over what the difference is between vengeance and justice.

It's also got mood and pace. The violence is broken up in part with the story of Thana's gradual disposal of the body parts of the second rapist, scattered around New York in Hefty bags (is she getting rid of the evidence, or sending a message?). The camera ominously lingers on wastebaskets, gutters, and bag-lady shopping carts. The editing is in fact great at holding a shot just a little longer than you expect, and the film develops deliberately and artfully. Even the most outrageously sleazy guys are given their due, and are hardly presented simply as deserving villians (the ones that aren't villians anyway-- you can decide which is which).

At the same time, of course, it's a delirious ride in how extreme the situations get. Don't expect every detail to be believable, that's not the point. It's primal and kind of mythic in a way that any decent exploitation movie should be. The minimal but very dynamic score, with lots of percussive horn blast echoes, is great-- basically horror movie music. And it's all in a perfect setting: New York city deep in its seedy era.

It's nice that some say this film has a 'cult classic' status, but it's one of those that deserves a bigger cult. It's squarely within the off-putting exploitation subgenre of rape revenge films, but it never forgets that this woman is a person, nor that this person is a woman. Zoe Lund, writing in 1993, put it like this: "Ms .45 presents a humble, yet well-crafted metaphor for rebellion of the any-sexed oppressed. But the gun was put in a woman's hand. A woman carried that universal message, and so it was all the more powerful. It made us shiver. Male and female. Different timbres and temperatures of shiver, but shiver all round."

It Will Never Happen Again.......2005-03-09

I am glad "Ms. 45" is back on the shelf, because for a long time it was hard to find, certainly up here in Canada. This film is superior to "Driller Killer" in every way except for the lead track. Nothing touches the live performance of Tony Coca Cola and the Roosters playing The Grand Street Stomp. It is quite obvious in "Ms. 45" that that is not the sound of a trumpet. Anyway, for those who don't dig this, you can't tell me you can diss it. This, his second film, is night and day between "Driller Killer". What an obvious improvement. I was hoping that the DVD wouldn't be Vanilla and have at least a directors commentary. "Driller Killer's" commentray is legendary. And while you could chalk this up as being the female version of "Death Wish" there are some elements here that make it a true horror flick. For all those who liked "Eating Raoul", this is a must see. Suspension of disbelief is an obvious exercise here, but you won't be disappointed with it if this is your thing. See if you can spot Michael Richards as one of the extras at the Halloween party.

A Feminist Taxi Driver.......2005-01-22

I saw Ms. 45 a few months ago and was completely blown away by it. I understand it's been edited, and I assume I saw a version that had been cut. But I can assure you that it's still worth seeing.

Thana is a mute seamstress who is sexually assaulted not once, but twice, on her way home from work. When I read the description, I thought this sounded a bit overly dramatic and far-fetched. However, the way it plays out in the film is very believable, both in the way it is portrayed, and the way it effects Thana in the rest of the film.

Thana is walking home and gets attacked and raped in an alleyway. While we can still see feel genuine sympathy for Thana as the victim, we can also see how truly pathetic the rapist is, in his desperate need to have power over another person. Zoe Tamerlis does not speak, since her character is mute, but suggests more than enough with her facial expressions. Thana is in shock, and returns home to pull herself together. Once she gets to her apartment, she sits down on her bed, and the first thing she sees on the floor is a foreign pair of boots. Another rapist has entered her apartment. She has already been violated on the street where she is vulnerable, and before she is able to recover from the initial shock, she is violated further in her apartment, her own space.

Thana manages to kill the second rapist in her home, and takes his gun with her when she goes out the next day. She disposes of his body by cutting off a piece at a time and dumping it. As the corpse gradually disappears, so does Thana's composure. She begins to use the gun to kill men, first retaliating when she feels threatened, then going out in search of them, using herself as bait.

"Ms. 45" isn't so much of a feminist revenge fantasy as it is a feminist portrait of a victim turned anti-hero. In one scene, Thana walks through a park, and a group of men encircle her with the obvious intention of gang raping her. She surprises them by turning 360 degrees and killing them one by one. However, there are a few instances in which the intentions of the men she kills are not so obvious, and she seems to be killing innocent men as well as would-be rapists. The point of this is not to say that what Thana is doing is right and just, but to show the effects of sexual assault on the female victim. Women and girls who are sexually assaulted and abused by males often feel threatened by all men. This movie illustrates how sexual assault effects how female victims view men and interact with them.

The reason why I call this a feminist film is not because it glorifies her actions of revenge, but because it follows the story of the female victim from beginning to end. In most slasher movies, we usually see one or more women who are killed for voyeuristic purposes, which many feminist film theorists consider mysoginistic. The female victim looks attractive, and keeps the audience entertained by dying a violent death before she is ever developed as an actual character. In "Ms. 45," the male attackers themselves are the ones who never become further developed, and Thana is the one we follow, the one we care about.

Zoe Tamerlis is perfect as the mute Thana. Although she never speaks, her face shows the gradual transformation from shrinking violet to femme fatale killing machine. Portraying Thana as a mute is a brilliant move on part of Abel Ferrera. Rape is the most underreported crime, and Thana's inability to speak symbolizes perfectly a sexual assault victim's inability to express what happened to her.

"Ms. 45" is considered an exploitation movie. If it is, it's the one of the finest, most real, and most sensitive exploitation movies I've ever seen. Feminist exploitation cinema, just like the Jack Hill classic, "Switchblade Sisters."

Best B-movie of the 1980s........2004-10-20

Pay no heed to some of the desciptions of this film as being graphic or unreasonably exploitive. This film is actually,at least in the context of Taxi Driver,a deceptively witty stab at cinematic misogyny that was almost inescapable throughout the very peculiar 1980s. The photography and editing are superb indicating ferrara as a major talent. Unfortunately his work,much like Scorsese's, does tend to be somewhat digested incorrectly by the more meat-headed of movie lovers I could see this DVD sitting on a shelf , unfortunately I might add,next to something along the lines of The Usual Suspects or blecht!Fight club.However the lead's hypnotic almost silent film performance along with the film's hip downtown New York score will keep this one from ever going stale.

The original Kill Bill (...well, sort of...) ?.......2004-07-16

Take the swordplay out of "Kill Bill" and add a heaping cup of creepiness and you've got Ms.45: a helluva flick about a woman done wrong --REALLY WRONG-- who gets so much revenge you'll be afraid to look almost any female in the eye. This is not a film about a relationship (as "Kill Bill" was) but rather a hardcore film about lonely vengeance. It a slowly maddening spiral into the private hell of the ultimate victim. On one hand it will leave you cheering for her (feels so good to see male sex monsters get what's coming to them) and on the other hand you will be left screaming innocent men to run for their frickin' lives! This is a great flick. The perfect female "Death Wish". It was captivating from start to finish. Sexy, disturbing, and wild-eyed. The fact that it is dripping with 70's styles and sounds and ambience just made it all the more surreal to me. If you want a simple movie with a deep complex terror that will leave it's mark right between your eyes, you gotta see "Ms.45"!

Average customer rating:

A classic in its own right
A lot like Resevoir Dogs...
Roger Avary Proves Himself to Be Worthy
Highly violent entertainment
"Killing Zoe" Review

Killing Zoe
Starring: Eric Stoltz , Julie Delpy , Jean-Hugues Anglade , Tai Thai , and Bruce Ramsay
Director: Roger Avary
Manufacturer: Live / Artisan
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Love & a .45
True Romance - Director's Cut (Two-Disc Special Edition)
Bad Lieutenant
Four Rooms
Natural Born Killers

ASIN: 6305742367
Release Date: 2000-08-15

Description

An American safe cracker is summoned to Paris by a childhood buddy to help pull off a "can't fail" Bastille day bank robbery, but their dream of easy money quickly becomes a nightmare as his drug crazed friend looses control of the heist-and his mind-leading to a violent blood bath in the tradition of Reservoir Dogs.
From the Creators of Pulp Fiction and True Romance.

Customer Reviews:

A classic in its own right.......2007-03-17

A lot like Resevoir Dogs..........2007-01-03

Roger Avary Proves Himself to Be Worthy.......2006-04-25

Highly violent entertainment.......2005-10-05

"Killing Zoe" Review.......2005-08-29

Average customer rating:

Excellent show
Wow! Puts the American police procedurals to shame!
Very Brittish!
Great actress, great series!
Prime Suspect 1

Prime Suspect 1
Starring: Helen Mirren , John Benfield , Tom Bell , John Bowe , and Zoë Wanamaker
Director: Christopher Menaul
Manufacturer: Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
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Prime Suspect 2
Prime Suspect 3
Prime Suspect 4
Prime Suspect 5
Prime Suspect 6 - The Last Witness

ASIN: 6304911599
Release Date: 1998-04-07

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

Excellent show.......2007-05-08

Wow! Puts the American police procedurals to shame!.......2007-04-15

Very Brittish!.......2007-04-10

Great actress, great series!.......2007-02-12

I think Helen Mirren is one of the finest actresses alive today, love this series (all the seasons of it), and love seeing her over the years in this series.

Prime Suspect 1.......2007-01-10

This is brilliant gritty British TV at its best. Every one in the series is excellent, I thoroughly recommend it to anyone who enjoys great acting (Helen Mirren is fantastic) and strong story lines.

Average customer rating:

A disappointing Cohen film.
Very Little Effect!
Rough-hewn movie buoyed by great lead performance.

Special Effects
Starring: Zoë Lund , Eric Bogosian , Brad Rijn , Kevin O'Connor , and Bill Oland
Director: Larry Cohen
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
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Perfect Strangers
Ms. 45
God Told Me To
Q - The Winged Serpent
Blood & Black Lace

ASIN: B0001VTPVI
Release Date: 2004-06-01

Description

From the mind of Larry Cohen (Phone Booth) springs this kinky (Chicago Reader) thriller about voyeurism, filmmaking and murder. Starring Zoe Tamerlis (Bad Lieutenant) and Eric Bogosian (Wonderland), Special Effects is a searing exploration of human nature's darkest depths! She was young. She was beautiful. She was primed to be a star. But now she's dead, and the morally bankrupt director who strangled her is intent on covering up his crime by shrouding its details in the plot of his next movie! By convincing the homicide investigators to consult on his film, director Chris Neville (Bogosian) successfully alters the course of the investigation. But when the movie make-believe becomes too hauntingly similar to reality, Neville finds his plot unraveling in the final reel.

Customer Reviews:

A disappointing Cohen film........2006-09-03

Larry Cohen usually made entertaining movies based on interesting concept, and there's nothing wrong with the concept here; a film director makes a movie about the murder that he himself committed. Unfortunately, a good idea isn't enough to make a good movie and the script here is much below average for Cohen and the pace is much too slow. The soundtrack distracts from the suspense rather than add to it. Don't bother with this movie unless you feel you need to see all of Larry Cohen's movies.

Very Little Effect!.......2006-04-06

Genere favorite Larry Cohen wrote and directed this film, which offers a little more than your typical slasher pic from the 80s. In this movie we follow a husband as he goes to the big city in search of his wife,whom moved from the country in hopes of making it big as an actress. Clues lead the husband to a known director, whom apparently was the last to see his wife. Little does he know that the director actually murdered the wife and caught it on film, which also bcame the inspirationof a new movie featuring the deceased woman's characterand guess who plays the husband inthe film. Yes the real husband actually plays the woman husband in the movie, and the girl they got to playthe role actually looks a lot like the original girl. A case of deja-vu occurs when the director attempts to recreate the actualmurder in his film, where he begins to question fantasy from reality, and ultimatley putting the new girl and husband life in danger. Although the movie does bring an intresting formula to film, the low budget, poor performances,and unintresting characters cause the project to suffer.The film has its up and downs, but do to the slow pacing and seemingly clueless characters, we're left rolling our eyes more than pondering what will happen next. Had they gotten better actors and fxed the script up, then maybe we could have a tense picture.Overall we had poor acting and low budget,it could have been an intresting hitchcockian- thriller was nothing more than a dull interpretation of a would be fake snuff film.

Rough-hewn movie buoyed by great lead performance........2004-10-25

The presence of Ms. .45 star Zoe Tamerlis was what made me rent this DVD in the first place. Unfortunately, since her role in Ms. .45 was as a mute, I had no idea how bad her dialogue delivery could be. She has physical presence and an unusual beauty, but her performance in Special Effects is simply amateurish, like watching an acting student in class. This effectively ruined her character, no matter how much flesh she was willing to show and how victimized the character is.

Luckily, bug-eyed Eric Bogosian delivers the goods big-time as an obsessive, borderline psychotic film director who recreates his murder of an actress in his own film. Bogosian doesn't overdo the mental instability of the character (unlike, say, Joe Spinell in Maniac), relying on low-key menace and internal intensity to do the job, and it succeeds grandly. Fortunate for the film, because Special Effects is an otherwise rough, oftimes pretentious movie with a laughable music score that makes the whole thing look like a porn parody. However, one or two effective thrill sequences (the lights-out ending is great, as well as the murder by film strip) added to Bogosian's terrifically unnerving presence make for a watchable thriller whose strong moments do reward you for enduring through the weak ones. Worth a look.

Average customer rating:

Hellbound
Starring: Jack Adalist , Albert Illouz , Calvin Levels , Ori Levy , and Robert Lowell
Director: Aaron Norris
Manufacturer: Terror Vision
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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X-Men - The Last Stand (Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B0002MFFZG
Release Date: 2004-09-21

Average customer rating:

Killing Zoe by The Way of the Gun

The Way of the Gun/Killing Zoe
Starring: Eric Stoltz , Julie Delpy , Jean-Hugues Anglade , Tai Thai , and Bruce Ramsay
Director: Roger Avary , and Christopher McQuarrie
Manufacturer: Live / Artisan
ProductGroup: DVD
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Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels (Widescreen Edition)
True Romance - Director's Cut (Two-Disc Special Edition)
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Fight Club (Collector's Edition Steelbook)

ASIN: B00005V1WS
Release Date: 2002-02-26

Customer Reviews:

Killing Zoe by The Way of the Gun.......2005-03-22

The Way of the Gun (2000)

Along with writing the film, McQuarrie (The Usual Suspects) also makes his directorial debut. Appearing in the film is James Caan (Misery), Benicio Del Toro (The Usual Suspects), and Ryan Phillippe (I Know What You Did Last Summer), along with Taye Diggs (Chicago), Juliette Lewis (Cold Creek Manor), Geoffrey Lewis (Salem's Lot), and Scott Wilson (In the Heat of the Night).

The film starts with an exercise to see how much profanity can be crammed into the first two minutes. If there ever were a contest for such a thing, The Way of the Gun would surely rank. Once we get past that, we meet two individuals in Longbaugh (Del Toro) and Parker (Phillippe). They appear to be a couple of grifter types, surviving on the fringe of the system, collecting money where they can, including, but not limited to, donating baby batter, which is where they conceive (pardon the pun) an idea to kidnap a pregnant woman (Lewis) and hold her for ransom. Turns out the woman is a surrogate mother, and her benefactors, the soon-to be recipients of the unborn babe, are going to pay the woman one million dollars once the transaction is completed, so the duo figure they got some very deep pockets. The plan goes off, but not without a hitch as a gun battle between the duo and the bodyguards ensues, but they eventually do make off with the woman, only to learn the surrogate father is a rich and powerful figure linked to various underworld elements, and has no problem in using such elements to avoid any nasty entanglements with the police. One of these elements is Joe Sarno (Caan), essentially a bagman (a person who collects money, as for racketeers), but also someone who has a unique interest in the events so far, much more so than just performing a task assigned to him by his employer. As the once duo, now a trio (a foursome, if you count the unborn baby) head south of the border (that's Mexico to you and me, pard), things get really complicated as certain aspects of certain relationships are revealed, leaving this viewer to often time be left scratching his head, not so much out of the need to relieve an itch, but in a bewildered sense, as confusion settled in...but never fear, things do sort themselves out in their own, sweet time, at least enough to stop me from scratching my head and move on to other parts of my anatomy...(ain't thet a pretty picture)

I did enjoy the film, but I felt there were really no standout performances. It was almost like the story overshadowed the characters. Phillippe and Del Toro's characters seemed to be the main ones early on, but they soon became peripherals as the story progressed. As far as Caan's character goes, it isn't like we haven't seen him do virtually the same character he's done many times before..and then there's Juliette Lewis...I don't really care for her as an actress that much, as I tire of the waifish idiot routine, and imagine that same routine except now she's waddling around, about to spew forth a baby. I thought McQuarrie got a little too cutesy with the dialogue at some points, and maybe he himself realized this as there's one scene featuring one of the characters making fun of the way another talks. The pacing of the story felt a little odd, as the beginning starts out with a lot of action, then wanes throughout the middle, finishing up stronger than it began. The plot proceeds in a linear fashion, but the details involving the characters do not, as bits of crucial information are revealed when McQuarrie deemed necessary. This results in confusion and sometimes frustration, but he doesn't leaving you hanging too much, as things become clear near the end. I respect his ability to visualize telling a tale in this manner, as if I tried to do it, I would mess things up horribly, constantly tripping over my own plot threads. All in all, there's lots of gunplay, lots of blood, smart performances, smart writing, and an entertaining film.

The widescreen anamorphic (1.85:1) picture (enhanced for 16 X 9 TVs) looks sharp, and the Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is clear. Special features include a commentary track by the director and composer, an isolated music track featuring commentary by the composer, storyboards and script of a deleted scene, production notes, and biographies with video interviews with the cast.

By the way, if I learned anything from this film (as I'm sure Ryan Phillippe's character of Parker did), it is to always look before you leap, especially in and around a Mexican brothel...

Kinning Zoe (1994)

Written and directed by Roger Avary (The Rules of Attraction), the film stars Eric Stoltz (The Wild Life), Julie Delpy (An American Werewolf in Paris), and Jean-Hugues Anglade (Taking Lives). Also appearing is Bruce Ramsay (Alive), Kario Salem (Nomads), Salvator Xuereb (The Doom Generation), and Gary Kemp (The Krays).

The film begins as Zed, played by Stoltz, looking much like a scruffy poster boy for the Grunge movement, arrives in Paris and hails a cab to take him to a hotel. During the cab ride, the driver offers to set Zed up with some female companionship, to which a comely woman named Zoe (Delpy) show up a few hours later. After some brief formalities (we learn she doesn't do `weird' stuff), the two further the cause for Franco-American relations, to which we learn she's just doing it for the money (duh) to pay for school. Soon Zed's French friend Eric (Anglade) arrives, and he quickly and unceremoniously ejects Zoe from the room (sans her clothes). Seems Zed has arrived in Paris at Eric's bequest, as Zed is a safecracker, and Eric has a job lined up. Zed meets with the rest of Eric's crew (I wasn't impressed), and the gang goes out on the town for a dose of the three D's, drinking, drugs (there's a lot of `riding the snake' involved), and Dixieland music...seriously. Anyway, the next day arrives, and the gang hits the bank...and their well-oiled plans quickly go down the drain (much the same as Zed's breakfast, lunch, and dinner the night before). All kinds of complications develop, from uncooperative bank employees to less than capable members within Eric's group. Did I also mention that Zoe works at the bank (talk about your moonlighting)? Well, things continue to deteriorate (the police show up, and they seem to care little for the hostages) as we witness the importance of careful planning and being picky when choosing associates for such an undertaking.

There were a few things that detracted from this film, some major, some minor. First of all, how stupid do you have to be to go on a drunken drug binge (scenes that took way too much time) the night before you're planning to pull a major robbery (I think it was presented as some sort of `bonding' sequence)? Did I mention this before? It's worth bringing up again...and an experienced safecracker (Zed) would have never agreed to perform a job with such short notice and so little planning...talk about stupidity...I did feel the script was decent, even strong at some points, and there's plenty of action, but more often it seemed like the violence was there only for the sake of having it there...the random shooting of the various bank employees and patrons (actually, we don't get to see a lot of people get shot, as a good deal of the violence happens off screen) seemed a bit gratuitous (a Quentin Tarantino film with gratuitous violence? Gee, that's a shocker...). I appreciated some of the comic elements throughout the film, like when Zed, who was mainly working on the vault doors, and is unaware that the police have since gotten involved, discover such in the elevator as him and another have liberated the booty and are bringing it to the ground floor. The film was set in Paris, with the opening and closing scenes featuring Paris locations, but the rest of the film was shot in L.A., the bulk taking place in the bank and its underground vault area, which was painted an awful, garish, red. The film is filled with lots of flashy spectacle, so-so acting, two-dimensional characters, guns, guns, and more guns, and lots of blood. Some scenes to watch for...Delpy gets nekkid...this happens shortly after the beginning, and is worth it, as she's an attractive woman. Also watch for a cameo by Ron Jeremy aka A Man Called Horse, as an unfortunate bank employee.

The widescreen anamorphic (1.85:1) picture on this DVD looks very good, and the Dolby Digital 2.0 audio is clear most of the time, but could have been better...special features include cast and crew bios, productions notes, and a theatrical trailer.

By the way, if I learned anything from this film, it's that Frenchmen, especially those involved in criminal activities, respect you more if you smell like you've just been with a woman, if you know what I mean...

Cookieman108

DVD:

DVD List

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DVD

Hans Brinker

Fifth Element/Le Dernier Combat

Bury Me in Niagara/The Cartier Affair (REGION 1) (NTSC)

DVD: Leeches!

Star Kid