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Grey Gardens - How could a
ravishing young debutante and her life-of-every-party mother --
relatives of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, no less -- become crazy
cat ladies, occupying a dilapidated 28-room East Hampton
mansion? "Grey Gardens," an HBO movie inspired by the eponymous
documentary shot in 1973, doesn't fully answer that question --
indeed, there's a rather sizable hole in the story -- but
nevertheless has a fabulous time contemplating it, showcasing
marvelous performances by Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. It's
a must-see for those fascinated by the lore of the U.S.' modern
Camelot, as well as another sure to be lavishly adorned movie
for the pay channel. DVD Release Date: July 14th, 2009
Shark Week: The Great Bites Collection
BR
- Where in the world can you find the strangest and most deadly
sharks? Why do sharks sometimes prey on humans? When are you
most likely to be attacked? And what can you do to avoid
becoming shark food? If you're hungry for answers, join the
experts and some of Discovery Channel's bravest hosts as they go
swimming with the ocean's most feared predator to answer all
your biting questions.
Blu-ray
Release date: June 14th, 2009
Separation
BR
- Separation, scripted and starring Jane Arden, concerns the
inner life of a woman during a period of breakdown - marital,
and possibly mental. Her past and (possible?) future are
revealed through a fragmented but brilliantly achieved and often
humorous narrative, in which dreams and desires are as real as
the 'swinging' London (complete with Procol Harum music and Mark
Boyle light show) of the film's setting.
Blu-ray
Release date: July 20th, 2009
The Most Important Thing: Love
- Sure it comes across as an arthouse melodrama but Zulawski's
L'IMPORTANT C'EST D'AIMER is one of the most moving and
agonizingly emotional statements of a theme that runs through
much of Zulawski's work (up to his most recent LA FIDELITE)
that, as the title states, the most important thing is to love.
For Zulawski, love is more important than bourgeous concerns of
honor and fidelity which is illustrated in the love triangle of
actress (Romy Schneider in what she considered her finest
performance for which she won a César award) torn between her
moral obligation to husband (Jacques Dutronc) and her growing
love for a photographer (Fabio Testi). Mondo Vision DVD
Release Date: 16 June 2009
Repulsion
BR
- Roman Polanski followed up his international breakthrough
Knife in the Water with this controversial, chilling tale of
psychosis. Catherine Deneuve is Carol, a fragile, frigid young
beauty cracking up in her London flat when left alone by her
vacationing sister. She is soon haunted by specters real and
imagined, and her insanity grows to a violent, hysterical pitch.
Thanks to its disturbing detail and Polanski’s adeptness at
turning claustrophobic space into an emotional minefield,
Repulsion is a surreal, mind-bending odyssey into personal
horror, and it remains one of cinema’s most shocking
psychological thrillers.
Blu-ray
and DVD Release Date: July 28th, 2009
Watchmen - Director's Cut
BR
- That level of symbolism is coiling away beneath all
superheroes. What appeals with Batman is his humanity; despite
his skills, he is not supernormal. “Watchmen” brings surprising
conviction to these characters as flawed and minor gods, with
Dr. Manhattan possessing access to godhead on a plane that
detaches him from our daily concerns — indeed, from days
themselves. In the film’s most spectacular scene, he is exiled
to Mars, and in utter isolation reimagines himself as a human,
and conjures (or discovers? I’m not sure) an incredible city
seemingly made of crystal and mathematical concepts. This is his
equivalent to 40 days in the desert, and he returns as a savior.
Blu-ray
Release date: July 21st, 2009
The Red Shoes
BR
- A glorious Technicolor epic that influenced generations of
filmmakers, artists, and aspiring ballerinas, The Red Shoes
intricately weaves backstage life with the thrill of
performance. A young ballerina (Moira Shearer) is torn between
two forces: the composer who loves her (Marius Goring), and the
impresario determined to fashion her into a great dancer (Anton
Walbrook).
Blu-ray
Release Date: July 6th, 2009
Lola Montes - Andrew Sarris
in 1963 dubbed this film the greatest ever made, and although
he's noted for his quirky opinions, he's no fool. A masterpiece,
LOLA MONTES is certainly director Max Ophüls' greatest
achievement. In flashback, we take a fascinating look at the
life of the passionate yet oddly passive title character (Carol,
more perfect in the part than she could possibly have fathomed).
Introduced by a New Orleans circus master (Ustinov), the aging
Lola answers (or has answered for her) personal questions from
the audience for a small fee. The ringmaster tells of her many
romances throughout Europe, including one with Franz Liszt (Quadflieg)
and another with the king of Bavaria (Walbrook). In the last
scene, Lola (who throughout has been made to perform various
acts like a well-trained seal) stands atop a high platform,
preparing for a dangerous jump. Her health is as precarious as
her position, yet the ringmaster removes the safety net. The
finale is unforgettable. Restored Edition DVD Release Date:
July 6th, 2009
The Edge of Love
BR
- It all kicks off in the 1940 London Blitz, with bomb shelters
in the Underground. Enter Vera (an impressive Keira Knightley)
under makeshift stage spotlights. A singer raising morale for
those at home. Meeting Dylan for the first time again in years,
her heart is flushed. Their eyes shine through the smoke of the
room with purity of passion last experienced as teenage lovers.
Dylan is no sanctified, sanitised poet. It is as if to be master
of his vices he must experience them all fully. He hardly breaks
his stride as he introduces his wife - mother of his child and
love of his life - before continuing to woo Vera with every word
and gesture.
Blu-ray
Release date: July 14th, 2009
Explicit Ills
BR
- For much of its 87 minutes, “Explicit Ills,” an episodic movie
about a number of Philadelphians living, working and often
struggling in the same neighborhood, appears to move from life
to life without particular reason. Its first-time writer and
director, Mark Webber, doesn’t immediately reveal the story’s
structure or his intentions: he simply places you among some
dozen characters — children and young adults of different colors
and with differing economic contexts — without introduction. A
young boy buys a soda in one scene, an older boy explains the
benefits of a vegan diet in another; one man sells pot while
another sells colonics.
Blu-ray
Release date: July 14th, 2009
Lady Cop & Papa Crook
BR
- “Chaotic” is a word that crops up in reviews of this film and,
while apt in some ways, a little pandemonium is not entirely a
bad thing. I found its sense of anarchy not only consistent with
the basic premise of the story - who’s in charge here? (a better
title, in any case) – and the madness of it star character:
Inspector Maureen Szeto Mo Lin, played by the effervescent and
sassy Sammi Cheng (Chung Mo Yim, Needing You and My Left Eye
Sees Ghosts – all directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai).
Maureen has been living with a sculptor who, for some years, has
promised he will marry her once he finishes his long-suffering
present project – which happens to take up a good portion of
their apartment. The artist’s life does leave a certain amount
of time to indulge in love-making and Maureen finds herself
pregnant at about the same moment that she begins to suspect
that her boyfriend may have other romantic interests.
Spaceballs
BR
- Spaceballs is what I guess people call a guilty pleasure. It's
a loosely strung together movie whose very bodaciousness is its
charm. All would-be parodies, take note. Mel Brooks can now feel
that he has done his worst to the space opera genre, as he has
done for the western (Blazing Saddles), horror (Young
Frankenstein), costume drama (History of the World, Part 2),
Hitchcockian thriller (High Anxiety) and silent movies (Silent
Movie.) Brook’s movies are of remarkably variable quality, even
considering that many are parodies, for which the bar is lowered
accordingly. At his best (The Producers & Young Frankenstein),
he imbues warmth into his characters that moves us despite the
overt sex jokes and downright silliness.
Blu-ray
Release date: June 16th, 2009
Time Between Dog and Wolf -
Instead of a show built around food, twins separated at birth,
or the Joseon Dynasty, Time Between Dog and Wolf is a
contemporary crime drama about an police undercover operation
that goes deadly awry. It still has some familiar Korean-style
elements: a love triangle, amnesia, and childhood friends who
reconnect as adults, but the substance of the story and the
action shared between Korea and Thailand have a newish feel.
Moreover, the performance of its lead actor, Lee Jung Ki, is
riveting, and the main reason for checking this out. DVD
Release date: May 31, 2009
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