The 1900 House: An Extraordinary Living Experiment (2000) Review

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(More customer reviews)The Bowlers, an everyday British family, were selected from 400 families who applied to star in what would become the most popular series on England's Channel 4 that season. The Bowlers agreed to spend three months living the life of a lower middle-class family of the late 19th century, without modern conveniences, in an authentically reconstructed Victorian house. In the premiere, we see the producers' search for an appropriate house, the hunt for authentic furnishing and housewares, and a construction crew's removal of electricity, central heat, indoor toilet, etc., as they turn a London row home of 1999 into The 1900 House. We also see various families' auditions. In episode 2, the Bowler family is outfitted with their 1900 clothing, and is greeted at their new home by the museum curator in charge of the house's restoration. We witness their first week in The 1900 House. By part 3, Victorian life is starting to wear down the family's composure -- especially the women's -- so the mother places an advert for a housemaid. The maid agrees to abide by the rules: cleaning will be done using late-19th-century technology. In need of a break, much of the family visits a public baths -- except the women, who are not welcome there. Part four presents the end of the Bowlers' stay in the house, and sums up. Utterly fascinating and always entertaining. It's sort of what you'd get if you crossed THE REAL WORLD with UPSTAIRS DOWNSTAIRS. This American video release has an advantage over the video that was sold in the UK, in that the PBS video contains the complete four-hour series.

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Viewers time-travel vicariously in this four-part "docu-soap" that transplants a modern family from 1999 to 1900. The series clearly evinces the radical changes in domestic life wrought by the scientific and technological innovations of the last 100 years. The Bowler family are taken back in time to the spring of 1900 in Greenwich, a suburb of London, England. For 3 months, they live as a family in 1900 would have lived.

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Opeth: The Roundhouse Tapes (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is an amazing DVD worth getting by all means. First off I'll get the only bad thing about this out of the way so the I can get to all the greatness. Besides the show there aren't a lot of extra bonus features. Some band/fan interviews and galleries. But that's not even really a complaint, just the letting you know part. And now to the greatness, The performance. First off they give you 3 audio options. Stereo, 5.1 Surround, and DTS. Also the chain has been broken of them playing older tunes which really makes this DVD special as it has some of the older tunes sounding even better than they did on the original cd. It's only a 9 song set but if you're familiar with Opeth you know why that is and it is a great set. Under the Weeping Moon and Night and the Silent Water have never sounded better. The picture is so clean it looks almost hi def. Also this might be the best mixed DVD I've ever heard. No instrument is too low or too loud. It's simply perfect, as is the performance by the band. Every song is played flawlessly and it's good fairwell to Peter Lindgren who will be missed even though his replacement is great also. Anyways, fans and any fan of great metal should pick this up. This is an amazing band and an amazing performance. While Lamentations was a great DVD this one edges it out due to a better setlist and amazing visual and audio quality. Highly recommended.

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Since their formation in 1990, Opeth has risen to the forefront of the metal world; bringing many aspects of progressive Rock/Metal to a whole new audience by combining soft acoustic ambience with complex, melodic & heavy guitars, perfectly concocted into a completely peerless sound. This 2 DVD set contains a captivating Opeth performance from the Camden Roundhouse, London in 2006. It shows the band in scintillating form playing a selection of classics from their illustrious career. The Roundhouse Tapes was filmed during the band's Ghost Reveries tour.

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Duran Duran - Live From London (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)5 reasons why you should buy this awesome DVD :
1- The audio and visual quality are absolutely amazing!
2- The band has never sounded this good live.It's incredible to hear how they manage to sound even better than on their actual cd's,especially Simon Le Bon.
3- They play their greatest hits and for the hardcore fans there are even songs like the chauffer,careless memories,planet earth..what a treat!!
4- The stage,the huge screens and the audience participation are nothing short of breathtaking!
5- They set the bar way too high for other bands as far as live shows go,proving us once more why they were one the greatest pop bands ever to come out of the wonderful 80's era.
Just get it...YOU'LL LOVE IT!!

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Item Name: Duran Duran - Live From London; Studio:Zoe Records

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Visions of Scotland (2005) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a beautiful flyover with good narration and a lovely score, so the missing star is for what's left out. Of course, no tour of Scotland could include everything (I spent two years of my life there, and there is much I missed), but I was so disappointed when it ended without a look at so many of Scotland's most famous places. Yes, Stirling and Edinburgh were there, and Loch Lomond, Loch Ness and a brief glimpse of Inverness... We see Bannockburn, but not Culloden. The Isle of Mull, but not Iona. Nothing of Glencoe. And nothing of the Isle of Skye, the most famous of all Scottish islands and arguably the most beautiful. Nor do we reach the far north, so there is nothing of Orkney or Shetland. Perhaps there were rules about flying over St. Andrews, so we see the cathedral ruins at one end and the golf course at the other, but absolutely nothing of the jewel of an ancient cathedral town that lies in between.... The other enormous omission is the lack of identification (on either credits or liner notes, which were absent altogether) of the many beautiful songs underlying the narrative. These were well-chosen, in a variety of styles, and remarkably un-cliched, so that we had choral works, folk songs, classical and contemporary, well representing the range of Scotland's culture, but I'd have loved to know the names, the artists and possibly what CDs might contain them. For a Scotophile and a music lover, this is a serious omission. I can only hope there is a Visions of Scotland, Part II, that lets us see the Scotland we missed - and maybe a companion CD, or at least a link to the artists whose music provided so much beauty and atmosphere.

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Spectacular views from bustling Edinburgh to the wild, windswept Highlands See bonny Scotland as you never could, even on the most lavish tour. Thanks to a high-definition, helicopter-mounted camera, you soar effortlessly over Scotland’s historic cities, tranquil villages, rugged highlands, and steel-blue lakes. See the country’s legendary landmarks-the dizzying heights of Edinburgh’s Castle Rock, immaculate greens of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, mysterious glacial waters of Loch Ness, and many more-from a unique aerial perspective. Chase wild deer across green hills splashed with yellow gorse. Swoop down on coastal villages so close that you can almost taste the sweet, smoky salmon. With a poetic narration and a soundtrack of authentic regional music, Visions of Scotland opens your eyes, ears, and heart to this legendary land.Includes bonus footage not seen on public television.

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Garfield - A Tail of Two Kitties (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties, is the live-action (plus 2 animated cats) sequel to the 2004 movie basic on the 80's comic strip cat. Like the original this one has Bill Murray (A Life Aquatic, Ghostbusters, etc.) replacing (with distinction) the late Lorenzo Music, who provided the cats voice on the animated TV series and specials. Also back are the cutie but clueless would be couple Garfield's owner Jon Arbuckle, played perfectly bland by Breckin Meyer and Liz the Vet, played by Jennifer Love Hewitt. In spite of the Dickens subtitle spoof, this one is loosely Mark Twain's Prince & the Pauper. Jon follows Liz to London, England where he plans to propose to her. The fat cat stows-away uninvited and in the perfunctory identity swap Garfield finds himself mistaken for his UK double Prince (voiced by the great Tim Curry) and lording over posh castle of four-legged subjects in his stead. The evil Lord Dargis, played by Scottish actor/comedian Bill Connolly, is next in line to inherit the estate, have evil designs to get his evil hands on the royal fortune.
This one is worth seeing if only for more Murray as Garfield. Although it is surprising that the sequel was a theatrical release when the original opened for made most of its revenue from DVD sales. The studio is counting on the summer family pickings being slim until Superman Returns, but Garfield: ATOTK is still rated PG for some tame bathroom jokes. The studio also feels that when John Cleese is unavailable Tim Curry (Rocky Horror & the voice of Lemony Snicket's audio books) is the go-to-weird English guy, for the other pampered cat-currently-called Prince. I have no problem with that Curry is a delicious pansy-cat and Billy Connolly (Lemony Snicket's movie, Head of the Class) is always fun. I also have no problem with the use of recycling of (classic) plots, knowing where the stories going from the get-go makes any departure or twist that much more fun.
This one, like the original is goofy, but entertaining.


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America's favorite fat cat is back, and this time, he's giving England the royal treatment! It's a British invasion of a different kind when Garfield, along with pals Jon and Odie, travels to London and meets his mirror-image in Prince, an aristocratic kitty who has inherited a fabulous castle. The two trade places, and soon Garfield is living large as only he can! There's just one problem: the dastardly Lord Dargis wants him out of the picture. A Tail of Two Kitties is twice the laughs and double the fun for the whole family... It's good to be the king!

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Live In London (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)I swore I would not open this DVD until after seeing L. Cohen in Oakland the Monday after next. But I'm so glad I broke my vow.
This is one of the most wonderful concerts I've ever seen captured on DVD.
The band and Leonard's singers are top-notch, and one senses that they feel as though they are a part of something special.
The songs span nearly 40 years of a canon that is second to none.
Most amazing of all,though, is how a digital disc can cut through its own technology and exude so much warmth and passion. Even when the camera shows a close shot of Cohen, one can still sense the warmth, love and admiration coming from the ecstatic London audience.
As for Leonard Cohen...if he were to do nothing but sing, that would be enough given the wonderful breadth of material performed at this concert.
However, his gentle and gracious command of the stage provides this show an added depth and dimension. Within the span of minutes he can be hilarious, self-deprecating, humble, poignant, appreciative...and I could easily go on with the superlatives to describe his on-stage demeanor.
Very often I make a point of remembering to trust the art and not the artist. In the case of Leonard Cohen, I tend to trust both. His warmth seems genuine. Unlike so many of his stature, his humility comes across as real. His spoken words are every bit as powerful as those that are sung. Given the way that the barriers are broken down between the singer and the band and the audience...to the point where it feels as though they are all part of one celebratory evening...such humility, graciousness and warmth cannot be anything but genuine.
The highlights are too many to mention: "Suzanne" sounds as fresh as it did 40 years ago. "Anthem" sounds more urgent today than when it was first penned. "The Future" & "First We Take Manahattan" are even more biting now in the 21st Century than when they were first penned. Cohen's increased age gives songs such as "Boogie Street," "Tower of Song," & "Democracy" a world weariness that makes these songs all the more penetrating. His lovely "If It Be Your Will" sounds as much like a prayer as it does one of the loveliest songs ever written. If I don't stop now, I'll wind up writing accolades about every song on this DVD. Yes, it is that wonderful!
I've been fortunate to see so many of the greats in my lifetime - legends whose works will be remembered for decades to come. Some have been surly and stand-offish. Others have been appreciative and welcoming toward their audience.
It is refreshing to see the best of everything embodied in this Leonard Cohen concert. Songs that are amongst the best ever written, still performed with a passion (as well as with the added wisdom that comes from Cohen being 74 years young), with a band & audience & singer all equally committed to one another.
There are moments when I laughed out loud at Leonard's deadpan, wry humor. There were times when tears welled in my eyes from the sincerity of the words that came out of his mouth, either spoken or in song.
In a day and age where so much seems packaged and perfunctionary, it is refreshing to see & hear someone such as Cohen whose observations can warm the heart or cut like a knife to get to the heart of a matter. He is the real deal. No airs, no faux modesty...just a man with four decades' worth of majestic material, with an excellent band whose respect for Cohen is reciprocated by their singer with his respect for their talents & abilities, along with a genuine warmth & sense of humanity that allows Leonard Cohen to turn a large London venue into a setting that is as intimate as being in one's living room.
Without a doubt, one of the finest, most moving and most satisfying concert DVDs I've ever seen.
I'm glad that I opened this prior to April 13. Seeing this makes me look forward to seeing Cohen in a small Oakland theater even more so than I already was.
However, had I not been fortunate enough to have gotten a ticket for his upcoming concert, I have to say that this DVD would have been a more than fine consolation. It is worth every cent. The staging, lighting, musicianship, song selection and sound are painstakingly stellar, obviously given great care & much thought.
This is a true gem, a most worthy representation of one of the greatest songwriters of our time.


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For over four decades, Leonard Cohen has been one of the most important and influential songwriters of our time, a figure whose body of work achieves greater depths of mystery and meaning as time goes on. His songs have set a virtually unmatched standard in their seriousness and range. Sex, spirituality, religion, power - he has relentlessly examined the largest issues in human lives, always with a full appreciation of how elusive answers can be to the vexing questions he raises. But those questions, and the journey he has traveled in seeking to address them, are the ever-shifting substance of his work, as well as the reasons why his songs never lose their overwhelming emotional force. Documentaries, awards, tribute albums and the ongoing march of artists eager to record his songs all acknowledge the peerless contribution Cohen has made to what one of his titles aptly calls "The Tower of Song."
In 2008 Leonard Cohen embarked on his first tour in 15 years. Quickly recognized as musical folklore in the making, 29 of the original dates sold out almost immediately, leaving fans and critics alike hailing the show as a once in a lifetime experience. By popular demand, the Canadian/UK tour was extended and by the end of that year it had reached 84 markets worldwide, selling more than 700,000 tickets. The Live In London release fully captures and recreates the extraordinary show from that tour that earned Cohen more than 80 five-star reviews for his performances. Track Listing: 1. Dance Me To The End Of Love 2. The Future 3. Ain't No Cure For Love 4. Bird On The Wire 5. Everybody Knows 6. In My Secret Life 7. Who By Fire 8. Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye 9. Anthem 10. Introduction 11. Tower Of Song 12. Suzanne 13. The Gypsy's Wife 14. Boogie Street 15. Hallelujah 16. Democracy 17. I'm Your Man 18. Recitation w/ N.L. 19. Take This Waltz 20. So Long, Marianne 21. First We Take Manhattan 22. Sisters Of Mercy 23. If It Be Your Will 24. Closing Time 25. I Tried To Leave You 26. Wither Thou Goest

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Pink - Live from Wembley Arena (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is the must-have concert from the amazing P!nk, featuring 2 hours of video and 21 great live tracks. The big surprise for me on this concert was the addition of some incredible circus-class acrobatics, as P!nk sings live while doing some very demanding stunts suspended 50 feet above the stage, no net,in a routine I could only compare to Cirque de Soleil. This woman is in top physical shape, and her vocals have never been better. From heart-wrenching ballads like "Dear Mister President" to pop-rock like "Get the Party Started" and "Trouble", this eclectic performer is definitely on top!
I purchased this disc from Amazon to get the UN-EDITED version. It is not that I crave explicit lyrics, P!nk does not use them to excess, but does not hold back when it is appropriate to her statement, and I just cannot see buying a concert that is bleeped as found at WMart. Why they can sell uncut splatter films, but feel compelled to censor musical artists is beyond me...Amazon comes through with the uncut version as the artist intended. Even on this "explicit contents" disc there are a couple of bleeps in the bonus feature footage probably because it aired on MTV, but at least none during the concert itself.

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LIVE FROM WEMBLEY ARENA LONDON ENGLAN - DVD Movie

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The Diary of a Nobody (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)Mr. Charles Pooter, the diary author in "THE DIARY OF A NOBODY", is a nobody, but he simply fails to notice. He is content with life, almost. He presents his diary in a verbal (in this DVD)format, speaking directly to the camera. He most enthusiastically orates about his common middle-class social and family events (the very ones he's written in the diary.) He feels assured the world will eventually enjoy his written diary--when published. Is he the Suburban Snob of 1892? Certainly it's perfected pompousness.
I can not imagine "THE DIARY OF A NOBODY" being as funny without hearing and seeing Pooter (Hugh Bonneville) presenting the diary in dialogue. It's strictly British humor, but at it's Victorian finest. Bonneville's ability to project emotion and expressions is near perfection. Hugh Bonneville can say as much with a lifted eyebrow, an eye roll, a gesture, or a voice change, as what is provided in the script.
In Pooter's written (spoken in this DVD version) accounts, he makes the occasional joke--usually unappreciated by others. A time or two Pooter laughs so hard at his own merriment that he resembles Red Skelton's famous moments of belly-laughing at his own humor.
Pooter loves his 'Home Sweet Home' which is near the rail tracks. He had just moved into the new rental as the diary began, April of 1891. The diary ends in May of 1892. The home is called The Laurels (even though it has no laurels growing, but Pooter and his wife, Carrie, might plant some). It is London, suburbia, Victorian, and the train traffic makes the house quake frequently. But Pooter adjusts. The many views of the 6 or 7 rooms, as well as Pooter's employment location, provides a complete, delightful look at London Victorian living in a middle-class dwelling. Furnished with period pieces and accents, right down to the tea cups and boot scrapper (which is a constant complaint). And the Christmas holiday tops off the Victorian aesthetics. WOW!
So what does Pooter write about? Lupin, the not-so-perfect son and his engagement with a not-so-perfect, older, fatter, uglier, Miss Daisy Mutlar. Spouse spats. His boss, Mr. Perkupp, and Pooter's downns and upps with Perkupp. Social engagements gone afoul or well. Costs, especially with drinks. Stocks, encouraged by his son. Bad lobsters. Friends, Cummings and Gowing, and their comings and goings. And that darn boot scrapper.
The DVD features explained that the term "Pooterism" (taking oneself too seriously) evolved from this work first published in a magazine (1888), then book in 1882 (still in print today), this film via BBC (2007), and now this DVD. The book was written by brothers, George & Weedon Grossmith, biography also in the bonus stuff.
Plus more, but no subtitles--BOOGER!
4 episodes totaling just shy of two hours. In the end my wife and I had enjoyed actor, Hugh Bonneville, as Charles Pooter so much, we finally ceased smiling and laughing. Why? It was over. Sad to see it end.
If you like the subtlety of British comedy, then you'll LOVE this CLASSIC British humor book brought to film/DVD. An astonishing one man show. Listen to Pooter's words, watch him, "For he's the jolly good fellow."

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The British comedy classic adapted by Emmy®-winner Andrew Davies
First published in 1892, The Diary of a Nobody has never been out of print, and Evelyn Waugh (Brideshead Revisited) proclaimed it "the funniest book in the world." As adapted by award-winning screenwriter Andrew Davies (Bleak House, Pride and Prejudice), this comic masterpiece leaps to life in all its quirky glory.
In a fantastic solo performance, Hugh Bonneville (Iris, Daniel Deronda) perfectly captures the small mind and large aspirations of Mr. Charles Pooter, a middle-aged, middle-class city clerk in late Victorian England who chronicles his daily domestic and social frustrations. Home improvements, petty humiliations, accidents involving an iron boot scraper, tiffs with his wife Carrie, pained encounters with their mildly rebellious son Lupin, visits from friends Mr. Cummings and Mr. Gowing: all are reported by the pompous Pooter in hilarious detail.
"I fail to see--because I do not happen to be a \'Somebody\'--why my diary should not be interesting," Mr. Pooter writes. No blogger ever said it better.
DVD FEATURES INCLUDE biography of authors George and Weedon Grossmith and Hugh Bonneville filmography.

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Sensitive Skin - The Complete Seasons 1 and 2 (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this dvd series because I so enjoyed Joanna Lumley in AbFab and wanted to see more of her work. Two things struck me about this BBC series: First, this is a realistic telling of what it is like to be in your 60's today. We were "the me generation," it is hard to believe we are in our 60's now--we were important, we set the rules, we partied and we thought we'd go on forever. We still think of ourselves that way. Being 60 today is not like when my Grandmother turned 60. We still drive sports cars, bikes, hike, party, drink, some do drugs, and have sex. Seeing flirting and sexual appetites still strong in people in their 60's is common today--just you wait! The Second thing, I felt was that I really knew these people. Joanna's character's discussions with her halucinatory visitors is typical of someone who is trying to come to terms with getting older. How does it affect me, and how should it affect me? What are the boundaries? How should I be living my life now and how should I represent that. It's totally weird to realize that if you are still waiting for things to happen to you, you have missed most of your life! Mr. Blick, who is writer, director and producer has done an incredible job. He is either 60 or he understands that generation extremely well. This is a wonderful series. The actors are first rate, Joanna Lumley is terrific. When you remember Patsy from AbFab, and see Ms. Lumley in this, you realize what a good actor she is. If you are a fan of hers, grab it.

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Al (Denis Lawson) and Davina Jackson (Joanna Lumley)seem to have the perfect life. At 60, they both look great, enjoy their work (he's a music writer for a newspaper; she works in an art gallery) and having finally said au revoir to their son, are ready to indulge themsleves with a funky centeral London apartment and a retro 70s Silver Shadow Rolls Royce. Still, something, somewhere, somehow doesn't feel quite right. Is it that their 30-year-old son Orlando refuses to acknowledge adulthood? Or that Davina's sister Veronica and her husband Roger intimidate them with their confident grasp of life and comprehensive pension plans? And don't forget the sexual temptation, the professional jealousy and that burning question: is this the life I wanted?

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City of Vice (2007) Review

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(More customer reviews)Koch Vision and BBC presents "CITY OF VICE:COMPLETE FIRST SEASON" (14 January 2008) (236 mins/Color) (Dolby Digital) --- Splendidly acted this drama is unlike any other it make you feel you are part of the mystery as it tells stories of these crimes --- But also has the makings of other crime dramas such as Cracker and Prime Suspect --- Historical true crime series CITY OF VICE pits magistrate Henry Fielding (Ian McDiarmid) and his brother John (Iain Glen) against the teeming criminal underworld of 18th century London --- The five part series follows the duo's attempts to police the city and rid its streets of prostitutes, violent gangs, and bands of thieves is dark and dusty streets and basic poverty --- But this story brought to life Georgian England, it's not your usual period drama.
Under the production staff of:
Justin Hardy - Director & Executive Producer
Dan Reed - Director
Clive Bradley - Screenwriters
Peter Harness - Screenwriters
Justin Hardy - Executive Producer
Lachlan MacKinnon - Producer
Rob Pursey - Producer
Richard Blair-Oliphant - Original Music
Story line set in the late 18th century, City of Vice tells the story of London's first police force the Bow street runners lead by John (Iain Glen) and Henry Fielding (Ian McDiarmid) --- London is a centre for debauchery with pick pockets, thieves, murderers and prostitutes, plus gang warfare combines the excitement of contemporary crime drama with actual historical events, this graphic, five part series follows magistrate and author Henry Fielding, his blind half brother John and the Bow Street Runners on their quest to clean up the streets of 18th century London amidst a population of prostitutes, pimps, gangs and villains --- Was very much impressed by the filming of the streets in that three dimensional dark style, the general Gothic- feel of depressingly, stifling despair is fantastic --- A great atmosphere! --- The two brothers are great actors and fascinating figures representing morality and justice, one Anglican one catholic, one blind one seeing. Great contrasts and characterization --- BBC and Koch Vision release.
the cast includes:
Ian McDiarmid ... Henry Fielding
Iain Glen ... John Fielding
Francis Magee ... Saunders Welch
Steve Speirs ... William Pentlow
Alice O'Connell ... Mary Fielding
Sam Spruell ... Lord Newcastle
Sean Francis ... Daniel Carne
Peter McDonald ... Tom Jones
J.D. Kelleher ... Quin
Ian Peck ... Talbot
Juliet Aubrey ... Jane Fawkland
SPECIAL FEATURES
1. The Making of Vice featurette
BIOS:
1. Ian McDiarmid
Date of Birth: 11 August 1944 - Carnoustie, Tayside, Scotland, UK
Date of Death: Still Living
2. Iain Glen
Date of Birth: 24 June 1961 - Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Date of Death: Still Living
Great job by Koch Vision --- looking forward to more high quality titles from the BBC Collection film market --- order your copy now from Amazon or Koch Vision where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch releases --- where they are experts in releasing long forgotten films and treasures to the collector.
Total Time: 236 mins on DVD ~ Koch Vision KOCV-6534 ~ (6/10/2008)

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In the mid-eighteenth century London's perilous streets were overrun by notorious gangs, prostitutes, pimps and corrupt night watchmen. Out of this dark underworld, emerged two Westminster magistrates - novelist Henry Fielding (Ian McDiarmid) and his blind half brother, John (Iain Glen). These unlikely crime-fighters organized the infamous Bow Street Runners and introduced law and order to the crime-riddled city. Combining the excitement of contemporary crime drama with the detail of actual historical research, this graphic, five-part series tells the true story of London's first police force.

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The Last Enemy (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)I was having a discussion with a much younger person, a college freshman, who was talking enthusiastically about how much she accomplishes on the internet: banking, investing, shopping, updating her information on Facebook. I suggested that she read George Orwell's 1984, Margaret Atwood's Handmaid's Tale and watch the movie The Net. Also to check out what happened during the 2003 North East Blackout when debit cards wouldn't work, computers stopped, cell towers were overloaded so it was hard to make a call and if you needed a card to enter a building, you're out of luck. This BBC drama takes the whole scenario even further to demonstrate the good and the bad of using surveillance technology to protect us as long as we are considered "the good citizens." You don't have to be particularly paraniod to see how many of the things written about in 1984 and The Handmaid's Tale have become matters of course.
This series has excellent acting, plenty of suspense and makes you want to watch it all in one viewing. It's entertaining as well as thought-provoking.

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Item Name: The Last Enemy; Studio:WGBH - Preorder

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A Harlot's Progress (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)Koch Vision and BBC presents "A HARLOT'S PROGRESS" (2006) (120 mins/Color) (Dolby Digital) --- Toby Jones (AMAZING GRACE) plays English artist William Hogarth in this retelling of his life --- The film brings all the grubbiness of 18th century London to the screen as Hogarth's undoubted talent, and his infamous relationship with a prostitute, is outlined in vivid style --- Great contrasts and characterization --- William Hogarth (November 10, 1697 - October 26, 1764) was a major English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic and editorial cartoonist who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art --- His work ranged from excellent realistic portraiture to comic strip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects" --- Much of his work, though at times vicious, poked fun at contemporary politics and customs --- Illustrations in such style are often referred to as Hogarthian --- BBC and Koch Vision release.
Under the production staff of:
Justin Hardy - Director
Clive Bradley - Screenwriter
Clare Alan - producer
Richard Blair-Oliphant - Original Music
Douglas Hartington - Cinematographer
Michael Harrowes - film editor
A Harlot's Progress (also known as The Harlot's Progress) is a series of six paintings (1731, now lost) and engravings (1732) by William Hogarth. The series shows the story of a young woman, Mary (or Moll) Hackabout, who arrives in London from the country and becomes a prostitute. The series was developed from the third image: having painted a prostitute in her boudoir in a garret on Drury Lane, Hogarth struck upon the idea of creating scenes from her earlier and later life. The title and rich allegory are reminiscent of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.
In the first scene, an old woman praises her beauty and suggests a profitable occupation, procuring her for the gentleman shown to the back of the image. She is a mistress with two lovers in the second, has become a common prostitute on the point of being arrested in the third, and is beating hemp in Bridewell Prison in the fourth. By the fifth, she is dying from venereal disease, and she is dead aged only 23 in the last.
The protagonist is named after the heroine of Moll Flanders and Kate Hackabout. Kate was a notorious prostitute and the sister of highwayman Francis Hackabout: he was hanged on 17 April 1730; she was convicted of keeping a disorderly house in August the same year, having been arrested by Westminster magistrate Sir John Gonson.
The series of paintings proved to be very popular, and Hogarth used his experience as an apprentice to a silversmith to create engravings of the images, selling a "limited edition" of 1,240 sets of six prints to subscribers for a guinea. Pirate copies of the engravings were soon in circulation, and Hogarth procured a 1735 Act of Parliament (8 Geo. II. cap. 13) to prohibit the practice. Soon after, Hogarth published his second series of satirical and moralistic images, A Rake's Progress, followed some years later by Marriage à-la-mode.
The original paintings were destroyed in a fire at Fonthill Abbey, the country house of William Beckford in Wiltshire, in 1755. The original plates survived, and were sold by Hogarth's widow, Jane, to John Boydell in 1789; by him to Baldwin, Cradock and Joy in 1818, and then to Henry Bohn in 1835. Each produced further copies.(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
the cast includes:
Toby Jones ... William Hogarth
Philip Martin Brown ... Gaoler
Zoe Tapper ... Mary Collins
Geraldine James ... Mother Needham
John Castle ... Sir John Gonson
Kate Ambler ... Top floor whore
Sophie Thompson ... Jane Hogarth
Vicky Hall ... Sarah
Roger Hammond ... Doctor Rock
Adam Levy ... Nathaniel Hirsch
Francis Magee ... James Dalton
Nicholas Rowe ... Henry Fielding
Oliver Ryan ... Samuel Scott
Richard Wilson ... Sir James Thornhill
Sarah Jane Wolverson ... Singing Prisoner
SPECIAL FEATURES
Disc #1 -- Harlot's Progress
1. The Foudling Hospital [4:52]
2. Starvation [3:27]
3. Covent Garden [11:43]
4. Fortunes [8:40]
5. Black Market Gin [6:52]
6. Mother Needham [4:46]
7. The Wig Box [14:17]
8. Beating Hemp [7:02]
9. A Visitor [6:43]
10. Moral Welfare [17:44]
11. Notorious Quack [11:45]
12. Closing Credits [1:31]
Great job by Koch Vision --- looking forward to more high quality titles from the BBC Collection film market --- order your copy now from Amazon or Koch Vision where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch releases --- where they are experts in releasing long forgotten films and treasures to the collector.
Total Time: 120 mins on DVD ~ Koch Vision KOCV-6535 ~ (6/10/2008)

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You may well be wondering how a respectable gentleman like me came to paint such scenes... 1731. Searching for inspirations inside London s seedy shadowlands, William Hogarth (Toby Jones) meets the beguiling Mary Collins (Zoe Tapper) in a Covent Garden brothel. The young prostitute soon becomes his muse, and as the artist strives for integrity, he grows dangerously close to his sordid subject. Torn between virtue and vice, Hogarth ultimately finds the spark he needs and creates A Harlot s Progress the series of paintings which brought him fame, wealth and respectability.

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George Michael: Live in London (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)As someone who saw George on his U.S. 25LIVE tour in 2008, I can say that this blu ray does a great job of reproducing the live experience. The video and audio are fantastic!
VIDEO: All the vibrant colors of the light show are brilliantly reproduced. The wide variety of camera angles have been well edited together, giving you a sense of the show from every seat in the house while keeping it visually interesting. For you videophiles out there, very occasionally, there is a little macroblocking as the camera pans across the LED wall, but this is not distracting or prevalent.
AUDIO: I was concerned by some negative comments about the sound on this recording, but I was pleasantly surprised by the audio. I had to switch from the stereo track to the DTS-HD track, but after that, the audio was great. It might be a little bass-heavy, but that is how the performance was originally engineered, and it never interferes with the vocals or the other instrumentals. I suspect other reviewers' concerns are caused by the live performance nature of the show. At any rate, I can say that it sounds like the original show, and I found it to be thoroughly enjoyable.
SONG SELECTION: Just about every song you'd want to hear at a George Michael retrospective is here. I personally would have traded a few of the songs from his "Patience" album for older hits (I Want Your Sex), but I don't begrudge his wanting to perform recent work in front of an audience. It is also fun to see the inflatable parody of George W. Bush that was understandably omitted from the U.S. tour. The following is the disc's set list:
WAITING (REPRISE)
FASTLOVE
I'M YOUR MAN
FLAWLESS (GO TO THE CITY)
FATHER FIGURE
YOU HAVE BEEN LOVED
AN EASIER AFFAIR
EVERYTHING SHE WANTS
ONE MORE TRY
A DIFFERENT CORNER
TOO FUNKY
SHOOT THE DOG
JOHN AND ELVIS ARE DEAD
FAITH
SPINNING THE WHEEL
FEELING GOOD
ROXANNE
MY MOTHER HAD A BROTHER
AMAZING
FANTASY
OUTSIDE
CARELESS WHISPER
FREEDOM '90
Bonus Tracks
PRECIOUS BOX
JESUS TO A CHILD
FIRST TIME EVER
BONUS FEATURES: The 42 minute documentary is a bit fluffy and silly, but it gives a nice taste of the European tour. It's nice to have the crew behind his performances introduced, even if we don't really learn more than their names. It's especially interesting to see the little changes he made to his set list for specific locations.
In summary, if you're a George Michael fan, you should definitely pick this up. It's likely the only performance you'll get on home media from George Michael, and it's a great one. On blu ray, it looks and sounds fantastic.

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Disc 11. Intro - " That Is Not George Michael"(Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 2. Waiting (Reprise) (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)3. Fastlove (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)4. I'm Your Man (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)5. Flawless (Go To The City) (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 6. Father Figure (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 7. You Have Been Loved (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)8. An Easier Affair (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)9. Everything She Wants (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)10. One More Try (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 11. A Different Corner (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 12. Too Funky (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 13. Shoot The Dog (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 14. Faith (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)15. Spinning The Wheel (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 16. Feeling Good (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 17. Roxanne (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)18. My Mother Had A Brother (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 19. Amazing (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 20. Fantasy (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)21. Outside (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo) 22. Careless Whisper (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)23. Freedom! '90 (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)24. Credits - Freedom '90 (Instrumental - Dolby Digital Stereo)25. John And Elvis Are Dead (Dolby Surround Sound 5.1) Disc 21. I'd Know Him A Mile Off! (Documentary Part 1 - Dolby Digital Stereo)2. Precious Box (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)3. Jesus To A Child (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)4. First Time Ever (Live In London - Dolby Digital Stereo)

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Sweeney Todd - The Director's Cut (2006) Review

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(More customer reviews)Although some have tried to argue that he was an actual person, it seems likely that the story of a throat-cutting barber named Sweeney Todd arose first as a bit of urban myth that was developed into an 1846 story titled THE STRING OF PEARLS by writer Thomas Prest. A year later the story was adapted to the stage as SWEENEY TODD, THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET. It proved a popular ticket, and in age that knew little of copyright law, versions of the play were soon springing up all over the place, each one tweaking the story a little bit in the process. Consequently, it is almost impossible to say that any one particular version is "more authentic" than any other.
In this particular version, filmed for BBC in 2006, Todd (Ray Winstone)is a barber who spent twenty years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Released, he finds himself shaving a prison guard and on sudden impulse slits the man's throat. One thing leads to another, as you might say, and he soon makes the acquaintance of bake-shop worker Mrs. Lovett (Essie Davis); his fondness for her not only leads him to set her up in her own business, but to supply the occasional cut of meat as well. The twist to this particular version of the story is in the relationship between Todd and Lovett, the latter of whom is more sinned against than sinning.
The script is quite clever, essentially winding most of Todd's motives (including his interest in Mrs. Lovett) around his own mistreatment while an inmate of the notorious Newgate prison, and both Winstone and Davis are extremely impressive in their performances. But for all the blood, and there is aplenty, and for all the sex, and there is some, the film looks exactly like what it is: a made-for-television movie. It is also rather slow and quite often a bit too "stiff upper lip" for its own good.
The DVD release offers a good transfer but, excepting cast credits, nothing in the way of bonus material. Those interested in the various directions the story has taken will find it intriguing, but most others will likely be only mildly interested.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer

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SWEENEY TODD - DVD Movie

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The Buddha of Suburbia (2008) Review

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(More customer reviews)This movie (miniseries, actually) remains on my top ten list of favorite films. The writing, the acting , the storyline, everything, just leaves me wanting to watch more (after four hours, that is saying a lot!). This film is inventive and captivating without a lot of special effects or high budget - it is just good. The basis of the story is the coming of age in 1960's London, of Kareem, (played by Naveen Andrews, from the English Patient) who is the son of and Englishwoman and Indian man. His place in English culture, in Indian culture, among his respective extended families on each side, as well as his place in life - exploring his career options, his [body], etc. - make this a thoroughly enjoyable experience. This movie is very entertaining and quite funny, especially when Kareem's ... father decides to jump on the East-West Hindu yoga and spirituality bandwagon of the sixties to make money. I just cannot describe all of the amusing and touching scenes from this film that make it such a gem. Very well made, and it has a very good soundtrack as well, featuring some good David Bowie songs. This film is a must-see.

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Before Velvet Goldmine, there was Buddha of Suburbia. The coming of age story of Karim, an assimilated Indian in London during the swinging seventies. Winner of seven international film awards. Soundtrack by David Bowie.

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