Bleak House

Starring:Diana Rigg, Denholm Elliott, Philip Franks, T.P. McKenna, Brian Deacon, Robert Urquhart, Chris Pitt, Felicity Finch, Paul Venables, Cyril Appleton, Bernard Hepton, Colin Jeavons, Lucy Hancock, Samantha Holland, Bill Wallis, Harry Jones, Malcolm Terris, Ian Hogg, Rebecca Sebborn, Stella Tanner
Director: Ross Devenish
Studio: BBC Warner
Product Type: DVD

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Andrew Davies isn't much of household name in the U.S., but he's the king of the BBC mini-series. His skillfully adapted scripts for Pride & Prejudice (the beloved Colin Firth version) and many, many more are peerless examples of classic novels done right--cunningly edited and shaped to let all the rich emotion and sharp intelligence spill over with zip and vigor. Bleak House is no exception; it's one of the best Dickens adaptations to date. The mini-series form allows Dickens' panoramic view, brimming with eccentric characters and complex turns of plot, to sprawl out without losing an iota of suspense or momentum. Two innocent young orphans (Patrick Kennedy and Carey Mulligan) are the potential heirs to a fortune, but their fates are snarled in a monumental legal battle known as Jarndyce and Jarndyce. But the heart of the story is another orphan, Esther Summerson (Anna Maxwell Martin), whose mysterious parentage proves to be intertwined with the fate of the Jarndyce wards and the aloof Lady Dedlock (Gillian Anderson, The X-Files). Dickens' story twines through an excoriating vision of the legal system to heartbreaking domestic drama to a murder investigation to near-Gothic horror, all broken into utterly delicious half-hour segments (after the hour-long opening episode). Martin is utterly beguiling, homely at one moment and luminous the next; Anderson's grippingly eerie and brittle performance will delight her fans. But to single out anyone seems absurd, because every character--from the vicious lawyer Tulkinghorn (Charles Dance, White Mischief) to the foppish parasite Skimpole (Nathaniel Parker, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries) to the simpering clerk Guppy (Burn Gorman)--is intricately drawn, all hitting a mesmerizing balance between caricature and stark emotional honesty. Bleak House demonstrates that humor, pathos, and social criticism can all be contained in one wonderfully entertaining package. --Bret Fetzer

Touch of Evil (Restored to Orson Welles' Vision)

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Touch of Evil (Restored to Orson Welles' Vision)
Starring: Joe Basulto , Joseph Calleia , Ray Collins , Marlene Dietrich , and Zsa Zsa Gabor
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Third Man (50th Anniversary Edition) - Criterion Collection
Sunset Boulevard (Special Collector's Edition)
Citizen Kane
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The Big Sleep

ASIN: 6305999872
Release Date: 2000-10-31

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Considered by many to be the greatest B movie ever made, the original-release version of Orson Welles's film noir masterpiece Touch of Evil was, ironically, never intended as a B movie at all--it merely suffered that fate after it was taken away from writer-director Welles, then reedited and released in 1958 as the second half of a double feature. Time and critical acclaim would eventually elevate the film to classic status (and Welles's original vision was meticulously followed for the film's 1998 restoration), but for four decades this original version stood as a testament to Welles's directorial genius. From its astonishing, miraculously choreographed opening shot (lasting over three minutes) to Marlene Dietrich's classic final line of dialogue, this sordid tale of murder and police corruption is like a valentine for the cinematic medium, with Welles as its love-struck suitor. As the corpulent cop who may be involved in a border-town murder, Welles faces opposition from a narcotics officer (Charlton Heston) whose wife (Janet Leigh) is abducted and held as the pawn in a struggle between Heston's quest for truth and Welles's control of carefully hidden secrets. The twisting plot is wildly entertaining (even though it's harder to follow in this original version), but even greater pleasure is found in the pulpy dialogue and the sheer exuberance of the dazzling directorial style. --Jeff Shannon

The Charles Dickens Collection (Oliver Twist / Martin Chuzzlewit / Bleak House / Hard Times / Great Expectations / Our Mutual Friend)

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The Charles Dickens Collection (Oliver Twist / Martin Chuzzlewit / Bleak House / Hard Times / Great Expectations / Our Mutual Friend)
Starring: Ben Rodska , Scott Funnell , Eric Porter , Frank Middlemass , and Lysette Anthony
Director: Gareth Davies , Pedr James , and Ross Devenish
Manufacturer: BBC Warner
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Charles Dickens Collection, Vol. 2 (David Copperfield / The Pickwick Papers / The Old Curiosity Shop / Dombey and Son)
Jane Austen Collection (Sense & Sensibility / Emma / Persuasion / Mansfield Park / Pride & Prejudice / Northanger Abbey)
Middlemarch
The Shaw Collection (Pygmalion / The Millionairess / Arms and the Man / The Devil's Disciple / Mrs. Warren's Profession / Heartbreak House)
Bleak House

ASIN: B0009PVZMS
Release Date: 2005-09-06

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As can be clearly seen from the care lavished on these six BBC adaptions of Charles Dickens' novels, the British love their Dickens! And why not--Dickens is ideally suited to television, with his elaborate but vigorous plots, each a compendium of comically odious personalities (and one or two nice folk, just to keep things from getting too awful). Actors dig into these meaty roles with zeal, delighting in the hairpin turns from macabre horror to sweet sentiment. The more popular (and most frequently adapted) of the books at hand--Great Expectations and Oliver Twist--are the most conventional. The 1981 mini-series Expectations (in which young Pip learns the pitfalls of wealth through his relationship with the rich and bitter Mrs. Havishamand and her warped ward, Estella) is dutiful to its source but not adapted with much inspiration. Twist, from 1985, fares better; it's a zippy treatment of this tale of childhood deprivation and juvenile delinquency, and the horrors of Victorian orphanages will raise your hackles. The adaptation is capable but a little flat--still, any story where an undertaker observes, "Every tear is another shilling in the till," is clearly not lacking in wicked wit.

Fortunately, the others are considerably juicier: Martin Chuzzlewit, a lesser-known but richly satirical book, has a star-studded production from 1994, featuring Paul Scofield, Tom Wilkinson, Pete Postlethwaite, and Julia Sawalha, among others. The wealthy Martin Chuzzlewit, deeply suspicious of all mankind due to being hounded by greedy, grasping relatives, threatens the happiness of his ward Mary and his namesake grandson. In addition to the sterling and energetic cast, Chuzzlewit has outstanding production values, as does the 1998 version of Our Mutual Friend, which goes to great lengths to evoke the textures of life in Dickens' London. The mysterious death of a man about to inherit a great fortune sets in motion a complex plot that intertwines two love stories (it's one of Dickens' most romantic works), social scheming, and murderous obsession. The names aren't quite as famous (such as Paul McGann, Timothy Spall, Anna Friel, and Keeley Hawes), but the performances are top-notch and the script is particularly dynamic.

Bleak House, a Kafka-esque story of young innocents caught in an all-consuming, multi-generational lawsuit, cultivates a rich and potent Gothic horror; the 19th century seems like an unnerving alien world, through which lawyers and policemen stride like cruel predators. Diana Rigg is the most famous face in this 1985 production, but strong performances abound. The final component of this box set is the most curious: A 1994 version of Hard Times starring Alan Bates and Richard E. Grant, which turns this dark story--about a schoolmaster/politician who raises his children on reason at the expense of all feeling and finally reaps the bitter rewards--into a compact, theatrical feature film that's so swift it's almost jaunty. Adapted and directed by Peter Barnes (writer of The Ruling Class), it's the most stylized production of the bunch, and while lacking the depth and narrative detail of the others, it effectively cuts to the essence of Dickens. --Bret Fetzer

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House of Sand and Fog
Starring: Jennifer Connelly , Ben Kingsley , Ron Eldard , Frances Fisher , and Kim Dickens
Director: Vadim Perelman
Manufacturer: Dreamworks Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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Waking the Dead
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The Hot Spot
Mystic River (Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B0001DMVBC
Release Date: 2004-03-30

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Jennifer Connelly followed up her Academy Award for A Beautiful Mind with this dark but moving story of small mistakes that escalate, with tragic necessity, to disaster. In House of Sand and Fog, Kathy (Connelly) gets evicted from her house for failing to pay a tax she never should have been charged in the first place. The house is swiftly put up for auction and bought by a former military officer from Iran named Behrani (Ben Kingsley, Sexy Beast). When legal efforts fail her, Kathy turns to a sympathetic cop (Ron Eldard, Bastard Out of Carolina), who wants out of a loveless marriage and who's willing to step over legal boundaries if it might give him a fresh start. Topnotch performances by the entire cast make House of Sand and Fog a compelling psychological drama; your sympathies will be pulled in all directions. --Bret Fetzer

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Academy Award winners Ben Kingsley (Gandhi) and Jennifer Connelly (A Beautiful Mind) deliver stunning performances as two strangers whose conflicting pursuits of the American Dream lead to a fight for their hopes at any cost. What begins as a struggle over a rundown bungalow spirals into a clash that propels everyone involved toward a shocking resolution. "The surprise ending will leave you breathless!" (Clay Smith, Access Hollywood)

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Alien Resurrection
Starring: Sigourney Weaver , Winona Ryder , Dominique Pinon , Ron Perlman , and Gary Dourdan
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Alien 3
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AVP - Alien vs. Predator (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

ASIN: B00000ILDG
Release Date: 2007-01-02

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Perhaps these films are like the Star Trek movies: The even-numbered episodes are the best ones. Certainly this film (directed by French stylist Jean-Pierre Jeunet) is an improvement over Alien 3, with a script that breathes exciting new life into the franchise. This chapter is set even further in the future, where scientists on a space colony have cloned both the alien and Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), who died in Alien 3; in doing so, however, they've mixed alien DNA with Ripley's human chromosomes, which gives Ripley surprising power (and a bad attitude). A band of smugglers comes aboard only to discover the new race of aliens--and when the multi-mouthed melonheads get loose, no place is safe. But, on the plus side, they have Ripley as a guide to help them get out. Winona Ryder is on hand as the smugglers' most unlikely crew member (with a secret of her own), but this one is Sigourney's all the way. --Marshall Fine

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A group of scientists has cloned Lt. Ellen Ripley, along with the alien queen inside her, hoping to breed the ultimate weapon. But the resurrected Ripley is full of surprises for her "creators," as are the aliens they've imprisoned. And soon, a lot more than "all hell" breaks loose. To combat the creatures, Ripley must team up with a band of smugglers, including a mechanic named Call (Ryder), who holds more than a few surprises of her own.

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Ju Dou
Starring: Wu Fa , Zhang Yi , Zhijun Cong , Wei Li , and Li Gong
Director: Fengliang Yang , and Yimou Zhang
Manufacturer: Razor
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ASIN: B000BBOU54
Release Date: 2006-02-14

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The House of Mirth
Starring: Eleanor Bron , Terry Kinney , Anthony LaPaglia , Laura Linney , and Jodhi May
Director: Terence Davies
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00003CXSA
Release Date: 2001-05-29

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Meticulously adapted from Edith Wharton's 1905 novel, The House of Mirth may seem at first to be as dry (and as flat) as pressed flowers, but it's quickly evident that director Terence Davies and X-Files star Gillian Anderson (in a breakthrough film role) have tapped directly into the venality of Wharton's New York society. As the ill-fated socialite Lily Bart, Anderson perfectly conveys the understated wit and craftiness of a woman who knows how to play the game, and yet learns too late that it's loaded with ruthless, unspoken rules. Rising above the traditional crop of "marriageable girls," Lily is desired by any number of men who could ensure her place among the moneyed elite, but she deflects their courtship; lawyer Lawrence Selden (Eric Stoltz) is her true love but, tragically, his modest financial status leads them both into a cycle of unfulfilled romance.

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Edward G. Robinson's ill-gotten gains embroil his entire family in scandal and murder. Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.

Life with Judy Garland - Me and My Shadows

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Life with Judy Garland - Me and My Shadows
Starring: Judy Davis , Victor Garber , Hugh Laurie , John Benjamin Hickey , and Sonja Smits
Director: Robert Allan Ackerman
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: DVD
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A Star Is Born
Judy Garland Live at the London Palladium with Liza Minnelli
I Could Go On Singing
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Me and My Shadows : A Family Memoir

ASIN: B00005U8QP
Release Date: 2002-01-22

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Pulling off the rare feat of winning Emmys for portraying the same role, Judy Davis and Tammy Blanchard raise this widely watched TV movie above the usual weepy-biopic standard. Since the project is based on a memoir by Lorna Luft, Judy Garland's "other" daughter, the emphasis is on Garland's rocky post-MGM years, spotlighting marriages, pills, and spectacular stage comebacks. Davis handles the neurotic swoops with authority; when Garland sighs on her birthday, "I'm 47 today--with my life, that makes me 412," you believe her. One thing she can't capture is Garland's onscreen incandescence: Davis's lip-syncing of "The Trolley Song" is expert but joyless. The luminous young Blanchard (who won the supporting actress trophy) has a physical and vocal resemblance to the former Frances Gumm that's often breathtaking, and the Wizard of Oz sequences look like outtakes from the real thing. Too much TV-flick telescoping dooms the movie to sketchiness, but those performances are over the rainbow. --Robert Horton

Description

The remarkable story of Hollywood legend Judy Garland is vividly told in this widely acclaimed film, which features amazing, Emmy Award-winning portrayals by Judy Davis (Best Actress) and Tammy Blanchard (Best Supporting Actress). Loved by millions the world over, Judy was the brightest star in Hollywood's Golden Era. Away from the bright lights and brilliant performances, however, her devotion was to her family. But while she loved her children unconditionally, they could only desperately try and hang on to their mother as a powerful dependence on alcohol and prescription drugs began to consume her life. Based on the book by Garland's daughter Lorna Luft, and honored recipient of 5 Emmy Awards, LIFE WITH JUDY GARLAND: ME AND MY SHADOWS is a deeply moving testament to the healing powers of embracing one's past, facing one's demons, and charting a course of self-discovery!

Alien - Resurrection (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

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Alien - Resurrection (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Starring: Sigourney Weaver , Winona Ryder , Dominique Pinon , Ron Perlman , and Gary Dourdan
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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