Haven't seen such an exciting film in a long time. The Japanese know how to keep you in suspense from start to finish.

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Ik kon werkelijk niet in deze film komen, teveel van het ene naar het andere.

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From my Amazon.com review on April 9, 2019

Spoiler Alert -
Forget all the blather about Veronica Lake, I'll tell you who steals this film - hands down...supporting actress Doris Dowling as Alan Ladd's two-timing, slutty wife Helen Morrison.
Her scenes are all too brief, but she is unforgettable.
Quite drunk, dressed in a slinky, shimmering cocktail dress along with a smug attitude, she spills her guts out to her husband concerning the death of their son -
Helen: "I could tell you something about Dickie that would hurt you plenty".
Johnny: "What about Dickie"?
Helen: "It could happen to anybody. I'd been to a party. I had to take Dickie with me, I had a few drinks".
Johnny: "Ah - stop the tears".
Helen: "Alright hero, I was drunk. I was in a car smash, Dickie was killed. I wrote you he had died of diphtheria because I was afraid to tell you the truth. Well - how do you like it?" Helen starts to drunkenly laugh.
Johnny enters the bedroom and removes his automatic from his suitcase, then a physical confrontation ensues...while astride a stool with her legs in a provocative pose, Johnny pull his gun and aims it at her (see attached images);
Johnny: "That's what I ought to do, but you're not worth it".
Now, I ask you, what scene in the film did Veronica Lake have that tops this?

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I've added a rating of 2 for this disc, not the movie itself.

I love the movie, as I grew up with it on TV (The mouthless vampire doo-dads which encompass you with their wings and eat you still give me the willies!)

No, I'm rating the print of the movie on this disc, and the absolutely horrific attempt to restore the missing footage, which looks like they found the can of film in a trashcan full of bin juice after all these years, and just plonked it in their with zero restoration, or any attempt to match anything with the existing film (already wobbly, unrestored)...

...This new footage is probably what the word "Shonky" was invented for.

Super-shonk!

Absolute crud, and a cynical, uncaring attempt to merely push this out the door on DVD.

This will disturb your enjoyment of an old movie fave.

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This is indeed the 2.35 widescreen for the first time, in a 16:9 frame. It is the cut US edition, bringing the length down from 2:06 to 1:47. The picture quality is not sharp at all.
There are Italian and English language tracks. The Italian edition contains an original male vocal over the opening titles. No extras.
It is all region, but PAL format. I don't think NTSC DVD players will display it, but your computer likely will. Dual layer.

I think the movie is alright, with lovely sets and interesting characters. Some of the attempts at humor are just too lame though, especially with Jemmy's sidekick Squint.

1 person found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

I like this Christmas movie.

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If you've never seen the 1956 film "The Man Who Never Was" you would probably enjoy this. I think the way the characters that were played by Colin Firth (Ewen Montagu) and Matthew Macfadyen (Charles Cholmondeley) were terrible and the movie had this ridiculous love story going on in the background which was just so corny, Kelly Macdonald was like a square peg in a round hole and even Penelope Wilton was bad in this film and (for me anyway) that's a first. I honestly couldn't find one single redeeming quality in the film, it will be winging it's way to the nearest charity shop as it's not even worth a second viewing. Pity, I was really looking forward to this movie being brought bang up to date with all the newest techniques in filming available today. Instead what we got was (to use old parlance) a quota quickie where it appears this was just rushed off to get some money in or keep actors in employment. It says on the cover "Gripping & Incredibly Moving", the only thing I was gripping was the Remote Control to switch it off and the only way it moved me was to walk over and press the eject button. There was much to much emphasis placed on the fictional love story than there was on the historical aspect of the subject. Definitely one "NOT" to watch again.

1 person found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

This documentary is a complete and utter waste of time that you'll never get back. Lousy film footage and terrible narration make this one fit for the bin. I got it 2nd hand for £2 and even that was too much to pay. Avoid at all costs.

1 person found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

And here in a nutshell is the evolution of The Benny Hill Show from the time he joined Thames Television in 1969 to when they ignominiously dumped him in 1989. The first half (dubbed "The Naughty Early Years" in the first three sets when issued individually) was infinitely better, quality-wise, than the second half ("The Hill's Angels Years"). It is very likely no coincidence that the show's quality - and its esteem, plus its UK ratings over the long term - fell into the toilet once Dennis Kirkland assumed the reins as producer/director in 1979. It was under his watch, after all, that Hill's Angels were created - and in their early years, were presented in such a way as to almost solely pander to the crowd that read "girlie" magazines like Playboy, Penthouse, Hustler and Mayfair, having almost nothing to do with comedy or making people laugh. Too, in the '80's as he got older (and heavier), the repetition factor in his gags began taking a rote, lifeless, by-the-numbers, phoning-it-in, "been there, done that" approach that is utterly deadly in terms of attracting audience interest. It is that type of approach that was most evident in the last years of Jackie Gleason's variety show (from his 1964 move to Miami Beach, FL until his show's final cancellation in 1970), Dean Martin's top-rated NBC variety show (after his second wife Jeannie divorced him that same year), Bob Hope's last years of NBC specials to the end in 1996, Lucille Ball's TV output from the second season of The Lucy Show onwards (culminating in her last-ever series, the very short-lived Life With Lucy), and other "legacy" entertainers who got especially long in the tooth (as, for example, prompted Johnny Carson, after 1992, to disappear from the limelight completely once his nearly 30-year run as host of The Tonight Show ended).

The real travesty in this otherwise complete set is the total absence of his 1977 made-in-Australia special (aired in Britain in 1978 as Benny Hill Down Under) with such local talent as Max Phipps, Barry Otto, Ron Shand, Dawn Cusack, Carmel Cullen and Lorna Lesley; there are apparently two versions, one as shown originally in Australia (with Chow Mein as Chinese Minister of Culture and Mr. Phipps as his straight man) and the other for UK airing which apparently replaced that with the "Love Will Find A Way" period sketch from one of the "Colour Strike Three" of 1970-71 (which contents are infinitely superior to the '80's remakes in every which way - and which are among the 58 shows on here). The Aussie show is also vastly superior to the later show he did after Thames canned him, where outdoor location scenes were shot entirely in New York City with a local cast while the studio segments were taped at Teddington with his usual cast of familiar faces. This show bore such classics as "Archie's Angels" (with Benny in the Farrah Fawcett role, natch'), "Hold Back The Wind" (with Benny as a Southern "Big Daddy" where the running gag is his catchphrase "Cut out the middleman! That's how I made my money - by cuttin' out the middleman!"), and a sketch of Benny and a stablemate (Otto) tending to Lady Godiva's horse on the day of her famous ride through Coventry.

5 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Chuffed to find this one going relatively cheap on ebay (£12 new) as i did not have any of his TV appearances.
Pleased to say it's worth the money, with some great performances, highlights being "Voodoo Chile" on German TV, and trading licks with Jeff Healey on Canadian TV.
Despite a couple of fashion faux pas from Stevie (it was the 80's after all:), his sheer talent shines throughout, and mesmerises you, truly gifted.
Recommended to old fans and those yet to discover him, 9/10

3 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

The Bourne Revelation!

Another of my snapper case DVD acquisitions...

Wasn't overly inspired by the whole Richard Chamberlain in the role concept, but mostly because of my familiarity with the more recent Matt Damon, Chemically enhanced super-ninja take on the character and story that somewhat overshadows this now.

(Thankfully Damon's Bourne did kick the Brosnan era Bond movies into touch, and make them look twee, and highlighted their ridiculousness thereby killing off that rendering of the franchise - yay! :)

However, this version still has more than a lot to offer, in spite of suffering by comparison in terms of action and pizazz.

The story is essentially the same - assassin type gets donked on head, loses memory, and battles to recover identity against unknown forces.

But where this wins out, is that this is more of a story, in the true, international espionage / conspiracy thriller / intrigue sense... more like what I would image the book to read like... a proper unfolding of a story, in the style of an investigation.

Much of the detail here in the story and concept you realise has been jettisoned in the Damon version, in order, presumably, to tighten it up, and make those films crack along in a more cinema friendly, spectacle kind of way, whereas this, across its original three hour (two separate, hour and twenty "miniseries" event format, takes it's time, and is more of a slow burner.

But there are many things here that make you go: "Ah!.. now I understand what that is, and what this means!" - not properly explained or resolved in the Damon movies - like what the deeper, truer meaning, and concept of the very title is: "The Bourne Identity" is not purely a name, or mask identity for a dude with no memory, but is a key concept at the bottom of the plot, and is significant to the story in asking questions about the nature of identity itself here, as the revelations are presented - am I who I was, or who I am now - more myself without my memory than with it, and who and what is that?

(There's even a neat little twist within that - which I won't spoil!)

The concept of Treadstone is integral to this too, and is quite something else than the recent films made of it.

But even this, is wrapped around another entirely abandoned central plot point, that the whole point of the exercise is to capture semi-mythical super-villain assassin: Carlos The Jackal.

And to cap it all, the final revelation of who he is / was, has more backstory, whereas the Damon films only give you a name, but not a reason why, or who that name was as a person.

All this is found here though... And if you prefer your spy thrillers a bit more absorbing, and intriguing and a little less hyperactive and actiony (more La Carre than Captain America) then you'll probably love this more than the Damon film(s).

While overall, this style feels like it was probably a little dated even at the time of first showing compared to what was around it (the production feels more like 70s, or at most early 80s), and Chamberlain is a little hard to accept as a Bourne straight off...

(Looking a bit like the ridiculous Roger Moore of his later Bond years - an ageing man lumbering around action sequences with frequent and obvious stunt double cuts)

... he gets into his stride as it goes along, and is even a bit handy (within reason) in later action segments.

The other dynamic that has been altered, that is greatly to this version's benefit, is the relationship between the Bourne character and the female lead character (Jaclyn Smith)... there's more substance here... While in the newer versions, she is basically a damsel in distress, there only to bear an awed witness to what Damon can do with a rolled up copy of Woman's Weekly (tee-hee :), or maybe even a toothpick or pool noodle to his ill starred adversaries...

(Anything in Damon's hands is a lethal weapon folks!)

...here, she starts off as the abductee, but becomes over time an investigative partner, and even instigator of certain scenes... so they end up as almost a n equal pair in the whole matter.

Some great scenes between the pair with good dialogue, and well acted.

(Saphire and Steel, or Dempsey and Makepeace kind of thing?).

So while Chamberlain is struggling initially with a flight of stairs, or the concept of "jogging", while Damon's doing cartwheels on the moon, this is more substantial, makes more sense, and action aside, is actually, probably a better "movie"! - more rewarding, story wise anyway.

Damon's version(s) can't be beat for a high intensity, bad-ass, arms and legs revolving like a squid in a washing machine kung-fu fest, whilst leaping from rooftops and all that jazz...

...but if you want something more real, this is better.

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and maybe - quite possibly - should be adjudged even better than fawlty towers as, after the somewhat uneven first series "the black adder", "blackadder II", "blackadder III" and especially the final series, "blackadder goes forth", add to the frequently extremely and inspirédly silly, an underlying level of acutely observed historically acute criticism and from time to time satirically creative writing, for which the wonderfully funny fawlty towers rarely aimed.

- but this mayn't've been - and may not be, still - to all viewers' taste, nor fit all viewers' ideas of what a sitcom should perhaps be.

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sequel to the first johnny depp film inspired by, rather than based on, one of lewis carroll's two classic fantasy/satire novels, q.v.; these tim burton and james bobbin films are strangely compellingly weird, definitely "deppraved" variations upon their originals' themes, plus others barely present, only hinted at, or deeply buried...

- yet they work really well, handling "grown-up" themes, including some that fundamentally affected the man that rev. charles dodgson - lewis carroll - was, and does so in ways that are - and remain - entertaining, whilst going into the core ideas in some depth, as it were, "under the covers".

- this sequel creates an original setting by "backstrapolating" from the wonderland-based world of the first film, to look into the fraught and more than a little mentally and spiritually abusive childhood and teenage of hatter tarrant hightopp, and invents an eccentric - of course! (?) - time-travelling, time-collecting and time-obsessed lord of time - or slave of his obsession with time - ? - whose iron, steel and clockwork (naturally) steampunk chronosyllogismobile alice has to hijack, to prevent the death - or worse - of the hatter, and the erasure of the outcome of - and even, of the reality of - the frabjous day, itself...

- this film moves much farther away from lewis carroll's originals than tim burton's first, q.v., but imnsho he, james bobin and its other makers kept faith with carroll's thematic concerns, and the story and images are - again, very weirdly - well in keeping with many of those that were his abiding concerns.


- these two deppraved productions should definitely be viewed in the order in which they were made, as hatter's problems are symptomatic of those faced by underland itself, and which could destroy it, twice over. and under.

4 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

the first, very strange johnny depp film "inspired by" the first of lewis carroll's two classic fantasy/satire novels, tim burton's "alice in wonderland" (2010) creates an original, but clearly carrollian wonderland, a world riven by the bitter sisterly rivalry of the red and white queens, at daggers drawn since a long-repressed utterly horrific betrayal, an incident too dreadful to be mentioned in more than hushed whisper, into the middle of which which alice - definitely an alice - and possibly, but not necessarily, "the right alice'' - is pitchforked,

(- intro précis to be completed when yr hmbl srppnt.'s a bit better recovered from the death of a friend. sorry.)

the stories of the hatter, and of the jabberwock, and their fates, and whether the outcome of - the long foretold, inexorably oncoming - frabjous day depend upon whether ''the right alice'' has indeed been matched to the right job - that of the long-awaited heroine who will save everyone and wonderland from the vengeful, demented rage of the red queen.. probably...

- only probably. . .

- this film moves some distance away from lewis carroll's original first "alice" fantasy novel - if that's quite the right classification for it (that creation possesses many levels besides that of ''fantasy''), but imnsho burton and its other makers kept faith with carroll's thematic concerns, and the story and images are - again, very weirdly - well in keeping with many of those that were his abiding concerns.

- this "alice in wonderland" is complete and satisfying in itself, coming to a thundering fine climactic conclusory frabjous day - and one that fully satisfies alice - this alice - in the fantasy world of underland, and about her place in her real world too; she gains confidence through shaping events according to her own ideals - mostly - in the one, and discovers it transfers in its own, weird way, and ways, into insights into the difficulties and decisions she faces, in the other.

- and yet the 2016 james bobin-directed sequel (q.v.) isn't an anticlimax of any kind, and in its own right is a superb film.

3 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Other than Peter Coyote's narration, the sound quality couldn't be worse. Significant audio cleanup of the archive footage and the Laura Huxley segments, which are mired via her heavy Italian accent, could have changed the entirety of this doc. The lack of subtitles means you lose the majority of the text. Further, there is no excuse for a DVD released in 2009 to present a widescreen film in a non-anamorphic display (meaning black borders on all four sides of the screen). Shot on video, it comes off more like a home movie than a serious documentary.

The DVD menus are also quite flat and uninspired. For bonus content, we have a number of extended interview segments, John Densmore has the longest one, as well as the most interesting to watch. There's also some trailers for other Docurama releases (Bob Dylan: Don't Look Back, Air Guitar Nation, A Crude Awakening, The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill).

6 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

This VHS, along with The Lion King II: Simba's Pride and The Little Mermaid, it has the Universal Home Entertainment rating from 2000 until 2005.

2 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

D. at LLRC
Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2019
For the knowledge that these DVDs have, it's exciting to see steam engines working.

I purchased these DVDs for the history of Southern Pacific in modeling my HO SP trains.

I found out that Cab Forward steam locomotives pulled passenger trains over the "HILL."

I hope to model these at my model railroad club.

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This film and The Craic are amazing Jimeoin movies.

2 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Pulp Fiction - reminded a not small, but a big popular movie, has won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.



The 90s decided to make this movie a delight to this country - and it's the most popular 90s movie people could watch along with Titanic.

2 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Amazing true story!

2 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

In my opinion, I think the movie is great.

1 person found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

The film itself is a classic as everyone should already know. This review is for the technicalities of the Blu-ray presentation.

Unfortunately it seems that someone made the decision to saturate the colour palate so now the action seems to take place on Mars, with orange-skinned men and Clint 'Blondie' now having much darker hair than before. I think possibly there may have been some tweaking on the soundtrack, much to the story's detriment eg no clinking of the spurs at the hotel shootout ....(maybe it was pushed over to some satellite speaker behind the viewer on a surround sound system which is useless when watching in mono).

2 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Relive the enchantment of the Silver Lady

Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2009

This is a professionally produced, fair-minded, and vividly photographed recollection of what many believe to be America's greatest passenger train, the California Zephyr (CZ), which operated between Chicago, IL and Oakland, CA from 1949 until 1969. A product of postwar collaboration among three railroads (the Burlington, Rio Grande, and Western Pacific), the CZ featured what many aficionados consider to be the most beautiful passenger railroad equipment ever built, gleaming in its stainless steel exterior and incomparably luxurious inside. The CZ's standard equipment included five dome cars, which enabled passengers to see the beautiful scenery (and the train itself, snaking ahead and trailing behind). Railfans will savor the brief, but rewarding shots of CZ consists and locomotives that aren't available in other videos, but this is a video that can be enjoyed by anyone -- it includes touching interviews with former Zephyrettes, a CZ diner steward, and the CEO of the WP, who was quite obviously still dealing with guilt for his role in putting the Silver Lady to death. To its credit, the film doesn't wallow in nostalgia -- it just tells the story, and does so even-handedly, without strident posturing or pointing fingers of blame. If you're in love with trains and would like to give a DVD to family and friends to explain why, this is it.

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Storyline
The third television adaptation of the adventures of super sleuth Ellery Queen, this time set during the 1940s. Queen (Jim Hutton) was a mystery writer who assisted his father, Inspector Richard Queen (David Wayne), who was with the New York Police Department, in solving murders. Sergeant Thomas Velie (Tom Reese) was Inspector Queen's assistant and Simon Brimmer (John Hillerman), a rival detective. Queen's methods were arcane and intellectual rather than action oriented, and he always astounded his father by arriving at a correct solution by purely deductive reasoning. In this version, just before he revealed his solution to the crime, Queen always turned to the camera and asked the television audience if they had figured out the identity of the killer yet, they had all the clues, because he was about to reveal the correct killer as we met the entire slew of suspects in one room for the ending.

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Editorial Reviews
Three electric lines in one video: The Sacramento Northern, SP Red Trains and the Peninsular Railway. See SP ferry boats on the San Francisco Bay and the SN's ferryboat that linked the south-end to the north-end - carrying entire trains, both passenger and freight, from Chips to Mallard.

You'll also see Sacramento Northern freight trains and the interchange with the electric Oakland terminal line at 40th & Shafter yard. The scenes in Oakland, Berkeley and the Oakland Hills plus Sacramento Northern lines out to Contra Costa County are the essential Eastbay of a by-gone era.

Follow several freights through the Oaklnad Hills, Montclair, the long tunnel and through Redwood Canyon to Moraga. From there we run out to Walnut Creek, Concord and the "subway" crossing under Santa Fe and SP tracks. This 1910 to 1957 history is a favorite of railfans and rail historians.

The reviews are in and the press loves this DVD. Railfan & Railroad says, "The 16mm film used in this program was shot by almost 20 photographers and ranges from very good to excellent. This is another excellent and highly educational program from this producer." And Model Railroad News had this to say, "He takes old 8 and 16mm film and spins it into gold... If you're not already a traction fan, this video may push you over the edge!"

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Editorial Reviews
Each year, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honors rock music's greats during a prestigious black-tie ceremony. These induction ceremonies featuring the biggest names in classic rock from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s have become nearly as epic as the artists they celebrate.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: In Concert brings together the very best performances from 30 years of induction ceremonies. You'll see poignant reunions, one-of-a-kind collaborations, moving and often hilarious induction speeches, and so many unforgettable performances.

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Surprisingly poor quality, both visually and audibly!

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This is without doubt the worst movie in existence. It beggars belief that somebody can actually get away with this. You would think that somebody somewhere at sometime would say to the director that this is just a pile of dog crap that needs shoveled up and put into an incinerator. Don't waste time and energy watching this and worse still don't under any circumstances pay out hard earned money for it. Walk away from it, you're not missing anything believe me.

5 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Having watched the original series from start to finish and thoroughly enjoyed it, I approached this new remake with some trepidation, knowing that remakes aren't always successful but this is one that bucks that trend. I really needn't have worried though because the casting is superb and the filming is amazing. I was already a big fan of Samuel West who plays Siegfried in this series and he doesn't disappoint. Nicholas Ralph as James Herriot is pretty good as well. I was disappointed that it didn't come out on blu-ray but maybe sometime in the future when they test the market with a DVD release. If you haven't seen it yet then keep an eye open for it, it doesn't disappoint

4 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?

Great storyline - superb acting all round. What more can you say. This is one of my wif'e's favourite films. This has some light and some very dark moments, based on a tue story from Hells Ktchen in NYC.
When we went to New York in 2013, we visited the area that this was based.on and had a good walk around.

Well worth seeing.

I'm not a huge Kevin Bacon fan but he is superb in this as are all the other big name stars including Brad Pitt, Minne Driver, Jason Patric, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro.

6 people found this review helpful.   ✔︎ Helpful Review?