Diana Rigg

Average customer rating:

Class act, riven by disappointment.
I am in love with Edward Norton!!!
Kitty grows up
Epic Adventure / Love Story
Lavish & Sophisticated Remake of a Classic Tale

The Painted Veil
Starring: Naomi Watts , Edward Norton , Liev Schreiber , Toby Jones , and Diana Rigg
Director: John Curran (II)
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Notes on a Scandal
The Queen
The Last King of Scotland (Widescreen Edition)
Little Children
The Good Shepherd (Widescreen Edition)

ASIN: B000NOIX48
Release Date: 2007-05-08

Amazon.com

Produced by Edward Norton and Naomi Watts, The Painted Veil works well as a movie--even better as an actor's showcase. The year is 1925. When her domineering mother pressures her to marry, Kitty (Watts) settles for shy bacteriologist Walter (Norton). Then Walter is transferred from London to Shanghai and the lonely and bored Kitty drifts into an affair with married diplomat Charlie (Liev Schreiber). When Walter finds out, he makes a startling proposition: either Kitty accompanies him to the cholera-infested countryside or he'll divorce her. With no other prospects, she comes along on what looks like a double-suicide mission. Based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham, The Painted Veil was adapted by Philadelphia's Ron Nyswaner (who knows a little something about infectious diseases). As two previous versions made little impact--despite Garbo's presence in the 1934 melodrama--John Curran's film is sure to stand as definitive. Interestingly, Norton, who studied Chinese history at Yale, chose Watts as his co-star, while Watts chose Curran, for whom she appeared in 2004's underrated We Don't Live Here Anymore. Filmed on location, the handsome production is, in many respects, just as old-fashioned as its source material--sex is merely suggested and Kitty is shocked that their English neighbor (Toby Jones) has a Chinese lover--but the ending packs a feminist twist. Mostly though, The Painted Veil is about the acting, and Watts and Norton, along with Diana Rigg as a disillusioned Mother Superior, have rarely been better. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Description

Based on the classic novel by W. Somerset Maugham, "The Painted Veil" is a love story set in the 1920s that tells the story of a young English couple, Walter, a middle class doctor and Kitty, an upper-class woman, who get married for the wrong reasons and relocate to Shanghai, where she falls in love with someone else. When he uncovers her infidelity, in an act of vengeance, he accepts a job in a remote village in China ravaged by a deadly epidemic, and takes her along. Their journey brings meaning to their relationship and gives them purpose in one of the most remote and beautiful places on earth.

Customer Reviews:

Class act, riven by disappointment........2007-06-23

Somerset Maugham's Painted Veil takes you back to pre-revolution, rural China of the 1920's via the suffocating class snobbery of Edwardian London. The is a beautifully poised and presented film. It will indulge you by gently transporting you to a world of chaotic change. You'll get a glimpse of the fear, misery and helplessness of rural peasants during a cholera outbreak.

Ed Norton plays Dr Thane, who's emotions have recklessley taken him and his wife, played by Naomi Watts, into the seat of the epidemic, ostensibly to help battle the contagion. His subtext is a deathwish for either him or his wife.

The film gently ebbs and twists through its plot, and so greatly emphasises the acting.
Watts delivers a moving and sensitive performance which is gripping. The enigmatic Norton lends this quality to Doctor Thane, and in doing so, leaves us with a slightly hollow character.

Ed Norton appears to have acting talents that are yet to mature. In this portrayal, his naturally and intensley sunny charm with his captivating boyish smile, undoes his fine portrayal of Dr Thane. The character doesn't quite make sense and therefore undermines the story. He can be a great actor, but he needs to put away the boy and the smile and give his talents their full reign.

Diana Rigg gives a magnificent and imperious performance as Mother Superior of the orphanage. She positively crackles with power and haughty, sinister beneficence.

Also notable is Toby Jones, who plays Waddington, a British nabob gone native. Jones injects a solidity into this character which greatly help move the story along.

With such a talented cast, with a real and rich story, you'd be forgiven for expecting more from this film.

An enjoyable film, but a hollow feeling at the end.

I am in love with Edward Norton!!!.......2007-06-22

Edward Norton deserves an Oscar for this one. Actually, he deserves it for any of his movies. I saw Illusionist last year and I was eagerly waiting for this one. Although the story moves slowly, it's beautiful and serene and somehow, you understand that it's not going to be a traditional happy end but that's not the point. Very interesting take on what it's like to fall in love and what at first seems dull becomes completely opposite once you give it a chance.

Kitty grows up.......2007-06-21

Quite enjoyable. The scenery is striking--especially those exotic Chinese mountains--and the acting is supurb. The central and most interesting aspect of this film, in my opinion, is the evolution and development of the character Kitty (Naomi Watts).

Kitty, a spoiled and selfish rich girl, marries the socially awkward research physician, Dr. Walter Fane (Norton) just to spite her meddlesome parents. She has little regard for the good doctor, even though he is madly in love with her, and she spites him by having an affair with the philandering Charlie Townsend. Dr. Fane turns out to be not as niave and timorous as she believes, and when he sternly confronts her, she chooses to follow him into the cholera-ridden interior of China rather than face an ignominious divorce. While there, she must endure boredom and the flinty indifference of her spouse, until she finds meaning and purpose serving in the village orphanage. In the process of time, she learns to appreciate her husband, and develops a true and selfless emotional bond with him. In the end, we see a mature, self-possessed young women, having both self-respect as well as devotion to family.

The music is also lovely. Chinese piano virtuoso Lang Lang and composer Alexandre Desplat team up for some subtle yet memorable melodies. But I must say that the children's choir singing the French song (A La Claire Fontaine)at the very end of the movie is piercingly gorgeous.

Epic Adventure / Love Story.......2007-06-20

Enchanting, grimy, and gripping story set in China before the Communist Revolution. Worth a view just for the Cinematography. It's spell binding. A 'must own' for fans of the genre.

Lavish & Sophisticated Remake of a Classic Tale.......2007-06-20

Produced by it's two stars, Watts & Norton, this film takes the viewer to a time & place ripe with beauty and fraught with danger. Like all remarkable stories, The Painted Veil takes the viewer on a journey; not just from 1920's London to Shanghai and deep into the Chinese interior, but through the human heart. Through Kitty and Walter Frane, whose relationship will prove as challenging as the cholera epidemic decimating the countryside, we discover the depth and capacity that exist within the human being for change, forgiveness and love.

The cinematography is so evoctive that one feels the oppressive humidity of the season on the Chinese plains and hillsides.

Ms. Watts classic features and clipped precise Britishness, work perfectly for the thoughtless and vapid Kitty in the early days of the film. It is only deep into the film, that one senses the true gifts of Ms. Watts as an actor, as with one look or movement she conveys the pain and courage of a woman discovering her true self.

His boyish good looks might have hindered believability in playing a man of such complex and contradictory nature, but fortunately, Edward Norton is more than matinee idol good-looks. Norton is a brilliant and instinctual performer who slips chameleon-like into each new role. His Walter is the man each and every audience member can understand, because we've each and everyone experienced great joy, great anger, the urge for revenge and ultimately the need to forgive and begin again. Norton's movements and indeed his vocal range are small to non-existant throughout much of the film. So much so, that when he does indeed make the grand gesture its affects are deeply felt. It is not often one can refer to a studied performance without sounding as if the performer relied on acting techniques , but there is a strong sense of intelligence, without the loss of real emotion in each of Mr. Norton's performances and the Painted Veil is no exception.

Liev Schreiber, as the caddish married lover of Naomi Watts' Kitty Frane, reminded me of William Powell or Errol Flynn. Mr. Schreiber adds his own special touch of class to an already stylish little film gem.

Just a beautiful film to be relished.

Average customer rating:

a little night music
Keep your VHS.
Collectors, Beware!
A Well Meaning Adaptation
An unfortunate mess

A Little Night Music
Starring: Elizabeth Taylor , Diana Rigg , Len Cariou , Lesley-Anne Down , and Hermione Gingold
Director: Harold Prince
Manufacturer: Henstooth Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

Camelot (Broadway Version)
Mame
Curtains (2007 Original Broadway Cast)
Can-Can
110 in the Shade (2007 Broadway Revival Cast)

ASIN: B00003CWT3
Release Date: 2007-06-05

Amazon.com

There are many enjoyable elements in the 1978 film version of Stephen Sondheim's exquisite chamber musical A Little Night Music, based on Ingmar Bergman's film Smiles of a Summer Night. First, Sondheim's score (all based on meters of 3) is full of riches such as "Now/Later/Soon," "Every Day a Little Death," "It Would Have Been Wonderful," and the famous "Send in the Clowns." There's even one reworking, of "The Glamorous Life," that became something of a collector's item for fans. Second, much of the cast is good, with original Broadway lead Len Cariou reprising his role as Frederik, the lawyer torn between his young wife, Anne (Lesley Anne-Down), and his former beau Desiree (Elizabeth Taylor). Others from the original Broadway company are Laurence Guittard (as pompous soldier Carl-Magnus) and Hermione Gingold (Mme. Armfeldt), and Diana Rigg adds a wonderful spice. Unfortunately Hal Prince couldn't translate his successful stage direction to this clunky film, Taylor's marquee value couldn't help her sing her big number, "Send in the Clowns," and a number of decisions--cutting songs, moving the setting from Sweden to Austria, eliminating the Greek chorus--just didn't work. It's worth seeing for the cast and for Sondheim's music, but all in all, A Little Night Music is one of the most dismal Broadway-to-movie adaptations ever made. --David Horiuchi

On the DVD
The 2007 DVD is in a barely perceptible 1.66 widescreen, not enhanced for anamorphic televisions. Years earlier, the film was scheduled to be released by Image Entertainment but the print was judged too poor to release. Hen's Tooth's DVD has visible print damage throughout; you won't use it to show off your home theater, but it is watchable, and the film's reputation makes an expensive restoration unlikely. If you want A Little Night Music, you're unlikely to get anything better than this any time soon, if ever. (Smalller quibble: only 12 chapter stops makes it hard to find the songs.) --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

a little night music.......2007-06-12

I AM RETURNING MY COPY OF "A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC". FIRST OF ALL IT STATES ON THE DVD THAT IT IS IN THE WIDESCREEN FORMAT, IT IS NOT, IT IS FULL SCREEN. I DO NOT KNOW WHERE THEY GOT THIS PRINT BUT THERE IS A BLACK LINE GOING DOWN THE PICTURE FOR ALMOST ALL OF THE FILM. THE SOUND IS BAD AND THERE ARE TWO PLACES WHERE THE A BIG BLACK LINE SHOWING TH AGE OF THE FILM. I TRIED TO FIND OUT WHERE HEN'S TOOTH VIDEO IS LOCATED AND THERE WAS NO WEBSITE FOR THEM. THIS IS AWFUL THAT A FILM OF THE CALUBLAR HAS BEEN LOST. WHERE IS THE MASTER STORED? I AM SURE THAT SOMEONE HAS IT.
THEY WERE ABLE TO RESTORE "MY FAIR LADY". THIS FILM NEEDS SONE RESTORING BEFORE IT IS LOST FOREVER, OR IT IS TIME TO REDUE IT AGAIN WITH A DIFFERENT CAST.

Keep your VHS........2007-06-12

This DVD is not good, not that the quality of the original film was all that good, either. Yes, the film has mono sound- it always did. Yes, the picture quality is not good- it never was. This DVD looks like it was put together from a best-available positive print. Both the DVD and the packaging look like fairly well done home-grown bootleg product. Don't ANY original negatives still exist? The worst part of the DVD is that, unlike the VHS, it has been remastered at a slightly accelerated speed, resulting in ALL the music coming out a half tone higher in pitch- MOST disconcerting.

Collectors, Beware!.......2007-06-08

This DVD is a major disappointment. Like so many other Sondheim fans, I'd been looking forward to this release because the 1978 film is--for better or worse--a rare record of one of my favorite Broadway shows. But, the film itself aside, this DVD is a problem. It is not professionally done. It's supposed to be a new, widescreen print in Dolby stereo, but it isn't. It's a terrible, scratchy old print, and the "widescreen" is apparently stretched out from a fullscreen TV print. The framing is so bad that the opening titles are all cut off, like on an old TV print. And the soundtrack is mono--not even very clear mono. There are more glitches and scratches and sudden jumps (indicating reel changes on old movie theater equipment) than you can count.

I swear, this looks and sounds like it was taken from a TV broadcast with second-rate equipment. Try pausing the picture, and you'll see the horizontal lines that indicate a broadcast on an obsolete TV. And there's a vertical slash down the entire center of the picture for much of the running time, projector damage from long ago. They didn't use the laser disc or VHF recordings, both of which are in much better shape, to make this DVD. Is this legal? Who is "Hen's Tooth Video," anyway?

I don't know what we can do about this, but you really want to think twice before ordering this title. I'm furious, and you will be, too. What a rip-off!

A Well Meaning Adaptation.......2007-05-28

Like Sweet Charity almost a decade before, A Little Night Music was a musical adaptation of a foriegn language film, Ingmar Bergmans' classic Smiles of a Summer Night.

The Broadway musical was set in Stockholm but for the film they moved the action to Vienna and the beautiful Vienna Woods. But the story remains the same.

Lawyer Frederick Eggerman had a torrid affair with actress Desiree Armfeld but is now married to the virtuous Anne. Anne's best friend is the world wise Charlotte. Charlotte's husband, Count Carl Magnus is Desiree's current lover.

When Desiree returns to town, a series of events are set in motion and no one's life will be the same.

Elizabeth Taylor takes over the role of Desiree (originated by Glyniss Johns). While she tries her hardest, this is a complex score and even the simplist of songs needs a trained voice. Liz gives the best performance performance but her singing lets her down.

On the other hand, Diana Rigg takes over the role of Charlotte with flair. Her Charolette becomes the center of the film.

Three original cast members reprise their roles. Len Cariou, as Frederick, has the least demanding acting role but the most complex singing role. And Cariou has the voice to carry it off (well he was the original Sweeney Todd). Laurence Guittiard, as Carl-Magnus, has the comedy relief role and also the most complex song, In Praise of Women. And finally the incomperable Hermionie Gingold as Madame Armfeldt, Desiree's courtesean mother. She has not lost any of here grace or beauty. This role is almost a reprise of her role in Gigi but 20 years later!

Also back is the creative team, director Harold Prince and writer Hugh Wheeler. This is probably the biggest misstep of the movie. Prince is a great theatrical director but does not have a lot of movie experience and does not take full advantage of the medium.

The film won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design (Florence Klotz who also won the Tony for the same.)

This film is a nice bit of nostalgia and is a must for true muscial comedy fans.

An unfortunate mess.......2007-04-26

When the camera tracks for a full minute just to get to the double doors for Taylor's entrance, you know you're in for a slow. plodding time. Prince proved he may be a genius on the stage but is pretty clueless when it comes to movies; he took what was essentially bullet-proof material and made it dull. Poor Sondheim -- this is almost as appalling as the film version of FORUM.

The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition)

Average customer rating:

ESSENTIAL Emma Peel Megaset is sensational!
Diana Rigg and Patrick Macnee Hit the Spot
The Avengers - Emma Peel Megaset
Truly Entertaining
I liked the 27 B&W eps even better than 25 in Color!

The Avengers - The Complete Emma Peel Megaset (2006 Collector's Edition)
Starring: Diana Rigg , and Patrick MacNee
Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Avengers '62 - Complete Set
The Prisoner - Complete Series Megaset (40th Anniversary Edition)
Secret Agent (aka Danger Man) - The Complete Collection Megaset 2007
The Wild Wild West - The Complete First Season
Mission: Impossible - The Complete First TV Season

ASIN: B000CCW2VQ
Release Date: 2006-02-28

Amazon.com

Along with Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Avengers practically defined British cult television, and it was never better than during the three years that Diana Rigg's Emma Peel character tossed out her witty barbs and karate kicks. The supercool 2006 edition of The Complete Emma Peel Megaset encompasses all 51 episodes from 1965-66 (in black and white) and 1967 (in color) plus a new bonus disc, all in 17 space-saving Thinpaks. Paired with Patrick Macnee as the dapper, umbrella-wielding John Steed, Rigg's Mrs. Peel turned heads with her sexy outfits, then broke skulls of the various would-be world-dominating bad guys who crossed her path. Like the mixed crime-fighting teams who came after them in shows like Moonlighting and The X-Files, Steed and Mrs. Peel had a constant platonic playfulness. In one episode when Mrs. Peel is working undercover at a department store, Steed drops in for a visit, remarking, "They told me 'Mrs. Peel is in Ladies Underwear.' I rattled up the stairs three at a time." However, unlike their spiritual successors, Steed and Mrs. Peel never jumped the shark; instead she bid a fond farewell as she passed the torch to Steed's next partner, Tara King (Linda Thorson), just as she had been passed the torch from Honor Blackman. (Blackman left her Kathy Gale character to go on to fame as Pussy Galore in Goldfinger--in one episode, Steed receives a postcard from Gale sent from Fort Knox.) But although Macnee had some enjoyable moments with other partners throughout the series' run, it's the Emma Peel years that fans remember most fondly, not only for the great chemistry between the lead actors, but the superb writing and distinctly British, and distinctly '60s, quirky charm.

The 216-minute bonus disc is the new addition to the 2006 set. Completists will appreciate the "lost" episodes from the first season. Of the very first episode, "Hot Snow," however, only the first 15 minutes were recovered. "Girl on the Trapeze" features a vanilla-esque Ian Hendry as Dr. David Keel investigating the death of a circus performer, while "The Frighteners" perks things up considerably with the addition of Macnee's Steed character, who displays a bit of the comedic twinkle that would be the cornerstone of the series through its entire run. All in all, the episodes aren't nearly as watchable as the peak years of the series. Of greater interest to fans is "Avenging the Avengers," a 1992 documentary recapping the series through clips and interviews with Macnee, crew members, and actresses Honor Blackman (Cathy Gale, 1962-64) and Linda Thorson (Tara King, 1968-69). Diana Rigg appears briefly in older interview footage. The documentary lasts 25 minutes, and an additional nine minutes of interviews are added to the end. There's also a three-minute promotional film that Macnee and Rigg made to promote the series' switch from black and white to color, an alternate opening sequence, and a 1977 episode in which Mrs. Peel makes a cameo appearance. The bonus disc is also available separately for those who already have the 2001 Megaset and don't want to upgrade just for the sake of saving shelf space. --David Horiuchi

Description

She is the perfect balance of sexiness and sophistication, wit and whimsy. The object of many prepubescent lads' desires, Mrs. Emma Peel dazzled television screens on both sides of the Atlantic from 1965-1967. Starring Dame Diana Rigg as Peel and Patrick Macnee as John Steed, the Emma Peel era of THE AVENGERS was the high-water-mark of the groundbreaking series, with adventures more fantastic than ever. A one-stop haven for DVD collectors, this special 17-disc Collector's Edition features all 51 digitally remastered Emma Peel episodes plus a new bonus disc containing three "lost" episodes from the debut season of THE AVENGERS, a `making-of' documentary film, a classic Emma Peel cameo episode from THE NEW AVENGERS `77, and more.

Customer Reviews:

ESSENTIAL Emma Peel Megaset is sensational!.......2007-06-01

Incredibly pleased with the quality of this item! Kudos to A&E for a job well-done! Discs are well-sequenced, and the menus are simple and easy to navigate. Reproduction from the original sources has been done faithfully, and the clarity is even more vivid than on the VHS tapes, which were excellent for their time. Emma Peel and John Steed have never looked or sounded so good!!

Practically speaking, the chapters are well-organized, so that you can skip past the main title or the credits easily without missing any of the story. The bonus disc was a terrific addition, too! This will occupy a treasured place in my collection!

Diana Rigg and Patrick Macnee Hit the Spot.......2007-05-16

My wife was spending too much time going to the library to check out 1960s Avengers tapes/DVDs, so I decided to spring for the Complete Emma Peel Megaset Collectors Edition. This not only saved wear and tear on her car, but it gave me a good gift idea for her birthday. She is very pleased. What can I say? She's addicted to the series and can't wait for the next one. She says that it's not only Mr. Steed and Mrs. Peel that's appeals to her; it's also the "third star": British fashion of 1960s, when she grew up. I believe that it's the only foreign series that has ever made it to commercial (i.e., non-PBS) prime time TV in America.

The bonus disk was much fun, but it's too bad that they lost the ending of "Hot Snow".

The Avengers - Emma Peel Megaset.......2007-05-07

Diana Rigg and Patrick Macnee sparkle in this crisply directed British Classic 60's series. Great entertainment.

Truly Entertaining.......2007-05-07

I enjoy these episodes even more now than when I was in grade school. Many of them I remember the original U.S. showing. Somehow they seem much more humourous now than at that time. "SpyFi" is a great deal of fun. Only problem is, I have a recurring nightmare about a man-eating plant coming through my bedroom window! The guest stars such as Peter Cushing, Ron Moody, David Langton, etc., are a great asset as well.

I liked the 27 B&W eps even better than 25 in Color!.......2007-04-26

In a word... Fab!

Average customer rating:

best witch movie ever =D
The Worst Witch
Great movie for young girls
Good witch bad witch
Good childrens movie

The Worst Witch (The Movie)
Starring: Diana Rigg , Charlotte Rae , Tim Curry , Fairuza Balk , and Sabina Franklyn
Director: Robert Young (III)
Manufacturer: Bfs Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Halloweentown High
Halloweentown/ Halloweentown II - Kalabar's Revenge
The Witches
The Worst Witch Collection - Set 1
Hocus Pocus

ASIN: B0002JP5EK
Release Date: 2004-08-24

Amazon.com

Based on Jill Murphy's book, this charming movie is set in an English boarding school for witches--complete with orange and black school uniforms, broom-flying exercises, and potion assignments for lab. The incompetent student of the title, Mildred, is played by a fetching young Fairuza Balk. Diana Rigg is the nasty head teacher, Tim Curry the (oddly) idolized Grand Wizard, and TV's Facts of Life maven Charlotte Rae does double duty as the school's kindly dean and her evil witch twin, who's bent on taking over the school. Directed by Robert Young, this 68-minute video features less than state-of-the-art effects and several songs that stop the action--most bizarrely an outdoor assembly performance by Curry that turns into a weird music video. Still, preteen girls will identify with the beleaguered heroine who overcomes her wickedly snooty rival, a teacher who doesn't believe in her, and a band of dastardly witches and, of course, saves the day. (Ages 6 and older) --Kimberly Heinrichs

Customer Reviews:

best witch movie ever =D.......2007-06-15

I have always LOVED this movie.. I keep losing it or watching it so many times it will no longer play so I have to keep rebuying it. I can't wait until my own children are old enough to enjoy it.

The Worst Witch.......2007-05-14

This is one of the movies I grew up watching every year on Halloween. It is not full of Sci-Fi Graphics, but this is a family friendly movie that encourages everyone to next give up. Mildred is one of those kids who can never seem to do anything right, but when she looks past failure and tries her best, magical things happen.

Great movie for young girls.......2007-05-09

My six year old daughter really enjoyed this movie. I would recommend it for other young ladies.

Good witch bad witch.......2007-05-04

I liked this movie even as a younger teen myself , now my daughters love the film. It is kiddie stuff but that's the fun part. Keeps the kids interested , which is important & not always the case with mine. Also Tim Curry , a personal favorite of mine, has a role. Special effects are a little on the cheesy side but the kids didn't seem to notice.

Good childrens movie.......2007-03-13

Really brings back memories of childhood and didnt have to be audited by an adult for the kids to watch it. Maybe not such good special effects but the age appropriate content makes up for it.

Average customer rating:

excellent!
My Favorite Of The Hercule Poirot Films
Christie's Evil Under the Sun
Evil Under the Sun
Evil Under the Sun a true delight!

Evil Under the Sun
Starring: Peter Ustinov , Jane Birkin , Colin Blakely , Nicholas Clay , and James Mason
Director: Guy Hamilton
Manufacturer: Anchor Bay
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Death on the Nile
Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express
The Mirror Crack'd
And Then There Were None
Agatha Christie Collection Featuring Peter Ustinov (Dead Man's Folly / Murder in Three Acts / Thirteen at Dinner)

ASIN: B000059LGF
Release Date: 2001-02-27

Amazon.com

Mostly for Poirot completists and admirers of then-trendy, all-star ensemble casts from the 1970s and early '80s, Evil Under the Sun finds Peter Ustinov in his second outing as Agatha Christie's famous Belgian detective (three years after 1978's Death on the Nile). As the title promises, the action this time takes place on an Adriatic island (though Christie fans will surely balk at the switch from the novel's setting on the English coast), where a famous stage star (Diana Rigg) is murdered, and the list of likely suspects is unusually high. The parade of legendary performers--Roddy McDowall, James Mason, Sylvia Miles, Maggie Smith, Jane Birkin--plus Ustinov's energetic performance keep things hopping. But Anthony Shaffer's lazy screenplay and director Guy Hamilton's superficial approach nudge everything (action, characters, tone) toward campy, near-parody, with bitchy sniping, tacky costumes, and an obligatory soundtrack of Cole Porter tunes. It's only in the last lap that the film transcends such obviousness and finds its way back to the glories of detective fiction. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

excellent!.......2007-04-07

THE COLOR BALANCE,SATURATION AND CLARITY WERE ALL EXCELLENT. THE SOUND WAS PERFECT! THE COLE PORTER MUSIC SHOULD MAKE COLE PORTER FANS VERY HAPPY!

My Favorite Of The Hercule Poirot Films.......2007-01-31

I enjoyed all the Agatha Christie adaptations, but this is my favorite. Great acting, which is the norm. I like Ustinov's portrayal of Poirot, and no place more so than in this film. And of course, you want to know who the murderer is, right? Would you believe the killer in this movie is Taylor Hicks? No? I wouldn't either, but you have to watch for yourself to know who it is!

Christie's Evil Under the Sun.......2007-01-12

Peter Ustinov is far from the Christie description of Hercule Poirot, but Mr. Ustinov makes him more endearing. A good script, faithful to the original story, great actors in supporting roles and great photography of sea, sand and an island make this film a real winner. I actually prefer this version to the David Suchet one, even though Suchet looks more like Ms. Christie's Poirot. A must for all Christie fans!

Evil Under the Sun.......2007-01-10

One of my favorite Agatha Christie movie adaptations. It has an outstanding cast and wonderful soundtrack exclusively of Cole Porter songs. I recommend adding it to your collection.

Evil Under the Sun a true delight!.......2007-01-04

This film is one I have watched multiple times. It is a sheer delight. The setting is beautiful, the photography superb, the cast magnificent, and how can you top the music of Cole Porter. This blend of cast (especially Peter Ustinov as Poirot), music and scenery is unbeatable. I highly recommend "Evil" as a viewing of great enjoyment.

Average customer rating:

wonderful Cannon MovieTale version
snow white! much better than the disney version!
Grimm story reborn.
The Fairest One of All!
snow white

Snow White
Starring: Diana Rigg , Billy Barty , Sarah Patterson , Nicola Stapleton , and Mike Edmonds
Director: Michael Berz
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Beauty and the Beast
Hansel & Gretel
Rumpelstiltskin
Red Riding Hood
Puss in Boots

ASIN: B0009UVCRQ
Release Date: 2005-08-09

Customer Reviews:

wonderful Cannon MovieTale version.......2007-05-21

It's very rare to have a screen version of SNOW WHITE that tries to stay faithful to the original Grimm Brothers fairytale. This rendition, part of the fabulous Cannon MovieTales series, does tell the story with a faithful eye to the original material.

Young Snow White flees into the forest after her jealous stepmother the Queen (Diana Rigg) tries to have her killed. The girl finds a safe haven with seven dwarfs, but her life is threatened once more when the Queen discovers her hiding-place. After several thwarted attempts to kill her, the Queen conjures up a poisoned apple...

As in the original Grimm Brothers story, this version depicts the Queen in several disguises trying to kill Snow White, using a tight-fitting bodice, a poisoned Japanese hair-comb, and finally the poison apple.

Diana Rigg plays the evil Queen with relish. Nicola Stapleton plays little Snow White, with Sarah Patterson ("The Company of Wolves") playing the older incarnation.

The Cannon MovieTales series was filmed--rather economically--in Israel, where producers had access to a wide range of appropriate locations. Most of the films have now found their way to DVD (the series also includes "Hansel & Gretel", "Rumplestiltskin", "Sleeping Beauty", "The Frog Prince", "Red Riding Hood", and "Beauty & the Beast").

(Single-sided, single-layer disc).

snow white! much better than the disney version!.......2007-01-29

I have seen several version of the beloved fairytale and this has to be the best one i've seen. I enjoy the disney version but this one sticks to the origional grimm story. The queen gets snow white with the corset,the comb,and the apple. I also think the romance is more touching than the disney version and that is what i love about fairy tales. The songs are more catchy as well. I like "everyday","the one i long for",and "let it snow" I have seen this cannon movie tale and sleeping beauty and really enjoyed both and i recomend them to anyone who loves live action fairy tales or at all.

Grimm story reborn........2006-06-26

Brothers Grimm stories are far less cutesy than we think. This version is much closer to the original German story without being quite so grotesque. It is certainly closer (and in a way more interesting) than Walt Disney's version. I don't like the names for the dwarves (there Disney is at least more memorable). The Dwarves are very good, led by Billy Barty. Diana Rigg as the Queen must have loved doing this stuff. She is to the hilt and just shy of over the top. Delightful. The King is okay, the 1st queen not so hot. Young Snow White is just too precious, but the grown up heroine is very good. The songs are okay to very good. They aren't wonderful, but they don't jump out as awful either.

The Fairest One of All!.......2006-05-20

Legendary stars Billy Barty and Diana Rigg bring one of the world's most beloved fairy tales to life in the Cannon Movie Tale, "Snow White." Starring beautiful and charming Sarah Patterson (The Company of Wolves) in the title role as the princess who fled her wicked, jealous, and murderous stepmother's castle as a child, "Snow White" tells the tale of how the princess is taken in by seven kindly dwarfs living in a cottage in the forest. As the dwarfs go off to dig in their mines each day, Snow White cooks and keeps house for years, growing into a sweet and lovely young woman. But, as Snow White grows ever more beautiful, the evil queen grows ever more jealous. Consulting her magic mirror and book of spells for ways to terminate Snow White, the dwarfs must repeatedly undo her vicious magic. It seems the final spell is beyond even the dwarfs abilities to break though. Their only hope lies in a young prince who is returning home from a long journey still seeking a great discovery to satisfy the longing in his heart.

"Snow White" sits among the best of the nine wonderful Cannon Movie Tales, which are among the best live-action fairy tale films available to date. Sticking more closely to the original stories from the Brothers Grimm, "Snow White" and the other Cannon tales mix in simple but fun-filled songs with fantastic casts and writing that blends realism and fantasy seamlessly. "Snow White" features some of the best songs in the lot, and it's clear that Diana Rigg really has a ball with her villainous role. It's so terrific that these childhood favorites many of us remember from the Disney Channel's 1980's and early 90's glory are finally available on DVD (most of them at least). The DVDs include trailers (not sure if these films ran anywhere theatrically), and "Snow White" is the only one of the four that I currently own that is presented in a letterbox format (though not much of one). The Cannon Movie Tales are mostly family fun, though be warned that some can have their scary moments (for example, "Red Riding Hood," my favorite, is done as a werewolf story that at times may be a bit frightening). The other Cannon Movie Tales, all of which I highly recommend, are: Rumpelstiltskin, The Emperor's New Clothes, Red Riding Hood, Puss In Boots, Hansel and Gretel, Beauty and the Beast, The Frog Prince, and Sleeping Beauty. Those last two have not yet been released to DVD, and I have yet to see Rumpelstiltskin at any retail stores, though Amazon seems to carry it. I wish to get them all, but currently only own my favorites: Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Puss In Boots (starring Christopher Walken!), and Hansel and Gretel. Fairy tale fanatics should own all these films, and I also highly recommend my top favorites, the Disney animated versions. Also, for a scarier version of Snow White, pick up the outstanding, "Snow White: A Tale of Terror," starring the beautiful Monica Keena. More recommendations: Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre collection (also best known from the Disney Channel airings), Shrek and Shrek 2, The Slipper and the Rose (for a live-action Cinderella), Ever After (another live-action Cinderella), The Adventures of Pinocchio (1996), Peter Pan (2003), The Wizard of Oz, Return to Oz, and Rodger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella (1965) among others!

snow white.......2006-03-02

When i saw this version of Snow White, it became my vavorite. It brought this fairy tale to life better than I have ever seen,
it stayed with the Brothers Grimm story very well. I have also
seen their Sleeping Beauty, Hansel and Gretel, and Rumplestltskin
all of these have been a favorite of mine.

Average customer rating:

Definitive
Magnificent in every way
Makes the Peter Brooks version look bad
King Lear
Great acting amidst clunky backgrounds

King Lear
Starring: Laurence Olivier , Colin Blakely , Anna Calder-Marshall , Jeremy Kemp , and Robert Lang (II)
Director: Michael Elliott
Manufacturer: Kultur Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Macbeth / McKellen, Dench (Thames Shakespeare Collection)
King Lear
Macbeth [Region 99]
Twelfth Night
The Taming of the Shrew

ASIN: 0769712231
Release Date: 2000-06-13

Description

The late Sir Lawrence Olivier stars in this Emmy Award winning production of Shakespeare's King Lear. It is the timeless tale of greed and lust for power, and of a sick old man, his scheming children and lost loyalties. Also stars Diana Rigg, John Hurt, Leo McKern, and Colin Blakely. Special DVD features include a biography and filmography on Sir Lawrence Olivier, character and cast list, chapter stops on each scene, and more. 158 minutes.

Customer Reviews:

Definitive.......2007-05-08

This is by general consensus one of Shakespeare's two greatest works, Hamlet being the other. (Which one you think is best is purely a matter of taste; you can generate passionate arguments either way.) No matter where you come down on that debate, King Lear is indisputably a top masterpiece by the greatest writer in the English language.

This production features a cast that is consummately superb, from the title role on down. Every character is played by an actor who ranks near the top of the profession, including such luminaries as Diana Rigg, Leo McKern, David Trelfall, Jeremy Kemp, and on and on and on. And, of course, there is Olivier, who is at the very peak of his powers here. There isn't a weak, or even ordinary, performance anywhere.

A teacher I once knew used to describe Shakespeare's language as "opera for people who can't sing." This company makes the language crystal clear, but beyond that, they make it sing. If this production doesn't make Shakespeare accessible for you, no production ever will.

Magnificent in every way.......2007-02-17

This is the first Lear I ever saw and so it will always be dear to me as it touched me so deeply way back when it was first shown on TV as it still does now when I pop my video in the player. I can't imagine any production topping this one as each character is played so thoroughly true and with such amazing skill and clearness of language. Every student or lover of Shakespeare must watch this and is highly recommended to purchase it for repeated viewing throughout your life. To me, Shakespeare's plays are so rich because they can be performed successfully innumerable ways. So it is absurd to expect any one performance to encapsulate everything a play can offer. You can't do it all in one production. However, I could easily be satisfied with this one Lear without ever seeing another. All the actors here, even the bit parts, play their parts essentially to perfection. I suppose my favorites are Lear, Gloucester, Edgar, Cordelia and Regan, but that is not to diminish anyone else. My only complaint about the play in general is that it is too difficult to believe that the others (excepting perhaps Lear himself since he is so old, nearsighted, half-mad/senile) do not recognize Kent for who he is merely because he has shaved his beard and put on ragged clothes. But, of course, if they did, or he revealed himself, the plot would be ruined and it would become a very different play altogether. I say enjoy the magnificent acting, the beautiful poetry and insights into human nature, and let Shakespeare sweep you away. You can't help but be moved when Lear realizes he has "ta'en too little care" of the homeless wretches, or when Lear is reunited with Cordelia and she so tenderly speaks to him, or, alas, when Lear is overcome with grief as he carries the dead Cordelia onto the battlefield and desperately tries to will her back to life before succumbing himself. One final note: the violence of the play, though horrible to contemplate, is presented in such a way as to be believable but also watchable (not for small children of course). Obviously, they couldn't be TOO REAL about it or someone would really get hurt!

Makes the Peter Brooks version look bad.......2006-11-25

If you want to see King Lear presented the way it should be, then this is for you. If you want to hear the lines spoken with total clarity and intelligence, the story presented with total understanding, almost every part played with total mastery, then this is for you. If you want to see special effects, expensive scenery, kung fu fight scenes, graphic killings, quirky direction imposed on the text Shakespeare wrote, go elsewhere. This is not for semi-literate mental adolescents panting for eye-candy, but for people mature enough to value the lessons of life and to accept its injustices and paradoxes. This work is a 400 year old play, written for the stage, perhaps the greatest of its kind. It speaks to those who are capable of listening, concentrating, absorbing its marvellous composition; who can recognize great acting, who can allow themselves to be drawn in by a performance built on a long, long lifetime of superlative achievement, supported to the hilt by every other player. I could find a few petty flaws to complain about and carp at, but I'm not going to lower myself to a high-school level of crass stupidity.

King Lear.......2006-08-22

I gave it 3 star because of my own inadequacy - I am Filipino and we are more familiar with the American english. At first I had difficult time following the "British english" accent. Otherwise I would have rated it highier. It is very good because while it is a movie, you can still feel that it as if it was stage play. I recommend it for all students of Shakespeare

Great acting amidst clunky backgrounds.......2006-07-04

Granted, this production was made for television and they were obviously intent on keeping it a play and the set design as such. However, it certainly would have been a better "film" if it were given the budget to be so. A prime example being "Merchant of Venice" with Robert Deniro and Jeremy Irons. Just the wonderful cinematography and attention to detail alone give Shakespeare that extra touch of realism that makes for a truly satisfying film. "King Lear" could have benefitted from the same. In fact, even as a play, I found the sets simplistic, clunky, and distracting. HOWEVER, the acting is wonderful and that really is the main reason for watching this in the first place.

The Last King - The Power and the Passion of Charles II

Average customer rating:

Three hours is enough
One rare visual treat of late 17th century period drama
History comes alive
A Jewel in BBC'c Crown
How Charles II used both of his heads

The Last King - The Power and the Passion of Charles II
Starring: Rufus Sewell , Rupert Graves , Helen McCrory , Christian Coulson , and Ian McDiarmid
Director: Joe Wright (IV)
Manufacturer: A&E Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Restoration
Cromwell [Region 99]
Bertie and Elizabeth: The Reluctant Royals - The Story of King George VI & Queen Elizabeth
The First Churchills
Elizabeth I

ASIN: B0001KL5M6
Release Date: 2004-04-27

Amazon.com

It's not always good to be king in this fascinating BBC/A&E historical drama, featuring a complex performance by Rufus Sewell as the exiled British monarch who returned to a volatile, post-Cromwell England in the 17th century. Pressed to forgive the enemies who killed his father, Charles II takes the throne and finds himself squeezed from all sides by vicious power brokers, his vengeful mother (Diana Rigg), a manipulative mistress (Helen McCrory), dubious advisers, a contrarian best friend (Rupert Graves), and his bewildered Portuguese wife (Shirley Henderson). Problems with the Plague and Charles's own, restless libido further complicate family and political dramas, but beneath the king's operatic tenure are visible strains of progressive government: Charles, after all, ushered in an early era of democracy in England. The Last King's sharp script never slows, but it's the cast's intense performances that bring royal intrigues to life. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Three hours is enough.......2007-01-31

I found myself finding the movie Restoration filling in holes of the story when the great fire and the Plague were shown. There was not enough emphasis given to the great love he had for the Arts. Most of the pieces did connect but as a former review commented, there is something missing not much though. Three hours is quite long enough to get the gist of the main points. I got a real sense of the political pressure from Catholic France, from Parliament to keep a power hungry king at bay with financial ruin, and a moral mob to curb his immoral behavior which had little effect. You can see the relationship and the severe trauma working in him as he recalls his fathers death. He believed that aristocracy was more important than democracy and held firm in that belief until the end. The one scene that keeps itself burned into my memory is Charles handing coins to a panicked and devastated population as the fire rages. He looks up and sees a man in the tower pronouncing judgement of ruin on the king as the fire envelopes him. A deep sense of what the aristocracy is came to mind. Armed with only coin and pomp, he was ignorant and helpless to actually do anything to comfort his people because he was too far removed from them given his lofty station in life. In that regard, I found it a very likable albeit long movie.

One rare visual treat of late 17th century period drama.......2006-08-31

The Last King is not a regular period film where all can sit comfortably and watch from beginning to end without a pause. Stretching over three hours, it is too gorgeous a set to be compartmentalized into a mini-series; yet it is perhaps a little too long for a full-fledged film.

I watched the entire DVD in 3 to 4 sittings. The only flaw I could find after watching the entire production was with the beginning - I was quite uncomfortable with the jerky camera style and the biography took quite a while to gain momentum.

I thought the film started to gain momentum during the second half of Part 1, when there was a marked change in costumes of the English court, influenced by predominant fashion sensibility led by the French court of Louis XIV.

The costumes were first-rate, and they showed the replacement of long tresses with wigs in the European court, of which a variety of colours were in vogue.

The character of Charles II played by Rufus Sewell took time to find rapport with the audience but once it did, the effect was spell-binding, long-lasting and deep. Sewell's charismatic portrayal played an indubitable role in the success of the production.

The relationship with the Queen was an emphatic one, and Charles' lasciviousness and his weakness for women is always given a balanced portrayal against his deep respect for his legal wife, as reflected in history.

Barbara Palmer, Charles' long-time mistress was by far, the most obnoxious character I found - portrayed as an insatiable nymphomaniac that devoured men of all ages. Helen McCrory is hardly the ideal choice for her age and lack of facial resemblance - Palmer was reputed to be the most beautiful woman in court during her prime - her surviving portrait testifies to this. The incongruence in appearance and behaviour of Palmer as played by McCrory hardly endears one to her eventual plight when she was finally ousted from court by Charles, tired of her manipulations. But her performance was nothing short of marvellous and even though one soon tires of her duplicity and sexual appetite, one could not help but feel a tinge of empathy during the scene of her breakdown.

Emma Pierson as Nell Gwynn was a tad too modern and MTV-ish, but perhaps that was the intention of the producer - to make her a prototype feminist of sorts.

Louis XIV made a brief appearance and was portrayed as somewhat effeminate and over-powdered.

The title theme and the soundtrack is regal, binding and largely effective in augmenting the film's dramatic stature. I was particularly moved by the sublimity of the scene when Charles adamantly proclaimed his regal right, dissolved the parliament and walked out of the parliament, non-plussed.

The time-run of the production gives ample development for Charles' character and the viewer is pre-empted to discover the transformation and motivation behind Charles' final and secret conversion to Catholicism at his deathbed, through his disillusionment with the hypocrisy of Protestants in the parliament and the unwavering love of his Catholic wife.

The film gives a balanced account of both the politics and passion of Charles II, and should probably be one of the most comprehensive filmic productions on any monarch to have been made.

History comes alive.......2006-08-22

I very much enjoyed this four-episode drama about Charles II life. I think a perfect balance was found between the private and political sphere of the king: both was portrayed excitingly and vividly depicting his personality both as man and king with strengths and weaknesses as well. The Restoration Age, as its king, is shown in detail with its splendour and decadence.

A superb cast is empolyed including Rufus Sewell, Rupert Graves and the excellent Shirley Henderson among others. The music is beautiful. A documentary film about Charles' childhood and adolescence can be found on the dvd as an extra which is also worth watching.

A Jewel in BBC'c Crown.......2006-07-13

Absolutely immaculately filmed and acted 188 minute mini-series that originally aired (in a slightly longer version)in 2003 on BBC. More recently it has aired in America on A&E.

Rufus Sewell as King Charles II is in virtually every scene and though the history books label him the "Merry Monarch", Sewell plays the king as a traumatized and perpetually stressed out monarch trying his best to keep his mother, his brother (James II, Duke of York), his bastard son (James, Duke of Monmouth), his friends (Duke of Buckingham and his cousin Lady Castlemaine), his mistresses (Nell Gwynne...), his Queen, Parliament, the French, the Dutch, and the mob happy. All while trying to recover those rights that Parliament stripped from his executed father.

Charles seems to know that the time of Kings is quickly passing but as a matter of family honor he never stops fighting for the divine right of kings.

The acting is superb even though history buffs might find some of the casting to be a little eccentric. Lady Castlmaine was supposedly the most desired woman of her day but the actress cast to play the role (Helen McCrory) is not exactly a knockout, in fact shes not much of a looker at all and is much too old. Also the Duke of Buckingham is played by Rupert Graves who is not formidable enough to handle the role. However some of the casting is inspired: Emma Pierson as Nell Gwynn is superb.

Some reviewers have stated that this mini series focuses on the kings mistresses and it does do a bit of that but I found there to be plenty of focus elsewhere as well. The question of the king's faith as well as the question of the king's succession seem to be the primary focus of television screenwriter Adrian Hodges script. And theres plenty of political intrigue as a series of advisers to the king rise and fall out of favor. The main lesson of King Charles II tenure seems to have been that the King cannot afford to have principles as Charles sells many of his most trusted advisers down the river whenever Parliament or the mob want someone to blame for the mismanagement of domestic or foreign affairs.

Sewell's star power probably makes us sympathize with the King even though as democrats our sympathies should be with Parliament. The Parliament is just not all that likable in this mini-series, however, and we kind of suspect that during this era England was probably better off with a King than it would have been if it were run by a divided and contentious Parliament who knew they needed a king (even if he was only a figurehead) to unite the people. Everyone in this mini-series is plotting something; it would seem everyone realizes that power is tenuous and no one stays in favor for long so you must take what you can get and run.

The king knows that after he is gone that Parliament will reverse everything that he has done and this and the fact that Hodges/Wright make it seem as though the King never really has any choice and that all of his major decisions are forced upon him makes us even more sympathetic with the king. It would seem even the king is a plotter but somehow since he is king and we suspect that he has Englands best interest at heart we forgive him for his covert dealings with France and his way of playing France against Holland and vice versa.

Charles II is definitely a Machiavellian who believes that whatever the King does is justified, but this is the very arrogance that the Parliamentarians cannot stand. It would seem that filmmaker Joe Wright (who also recently directed Keira Knightly in Pride and Prejudice) wanted to do everything in his power to show the king in a sympathetic light. If that is to be considered a noble deed then this mini-series deserves to be knighted.

I suspect that these mini-series that celebrate and romanticize order are especially attractive during times of political strife and division. Be that as it may Joe Wright definitely makes a mini-series that is exciting even if it is politically suspect. The recreation of London is very impressive. And the interior shots of Whitehall are magnificent. I only wish that there were a few characters that were representative of the common people and that we could have perhaps gleaned something of the common man's political point of view. But that is perhaps a small gripe in an otherwise imressive production.

How Charles II used both of his heads.......2006-06-03

Based on the title, The Last King is supposed to delve into the power and passions of one of Great Britains's more colourful monarchs, Charles II. But this movie really seems to focus more on the passion side of his life, which consisted of a number of mistresses and resulted in the siring of several illegitimate children. Unfortunately for Charles II, his legitimate wife, the devoutly Catholic Catherine of Berganza, could not bear him a successor, and this threatened to once again destabilze Great Britain.

Overall, I found The Last King to be a good and entertaining movie, but as is typical of A&E movies there's just something missing, and so it's not as good as it could have been. There is a certain amount of sexual content in the movie, even a little bit of nudity. Other reviews state that about an hour has been cut from the original for the DVD, but in my opinion it doesn't make all that much of a difference. The DVD version still provides a sound overview of Charles II's reign.

Average customer rating:

Rebecca
Pretty Good Re-make of Rebecca
Rebecca
Eyes like a snake
Rent don't buy

Rebecca
Starring: Anthony Bate , John Branwell , Jonathan Cake , Tom Chadbon , and Lucy Cohu
Director: Jim O'Brien
Manufacturer: Wgbh Boston
ProductGroup: DVD
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Masterpiece Theatre: Frenchman's Creek
The Moonstone
Jane Eyre (BBC, 1983)
The Buccaneers
Middlemarch

ASIN: B00008DDRZ
Release Date: 2003-02-25

Description

Daphne du Maurier's classic tale of romance, suspense and jealousy, Rebecca, is brought to you in this lavish adaptation. Set in elegant Monte Carlo and dramatic Cornwall in the 1930s. this drama stars Charles Dance (Gosford Park, The Jewel in the Crown)as the sophisticated Maxim de Winter and Emilia Fox (Pride and Prejudice) as the young woman who becomes the second Mrs. de Winter. When Maxim de Winter proposes to such a young woman nobody is more surprised than the circle of society friends who learn the intriguing news, especially as his new wife is the opposite of Maxim's first wife, the beautiful Rebecca, who mysteriously died in a tragic drowning accident. After Maxim takes his new wife back to his home, the ancient and magnificent Manderley, it soon becomes evident that the shadow of Rebecca is all-pervasive, nurtured all the more by the sinister gothic housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Diana Rigg, The Avengers, Mother Love, A Hazard of Hearts). The new Mrs. de Winter beings to uncover the darkness of the past that taints the present and threatens to haunt her future... Special DVD features include: Q&A with Diana Rigg; select cast filmographies; Masterpiece Theatre poster gallery; access to Masterpiece Theatre web site; scene selection; English audiotrack; and closed captions. On one DVD9 disc. Region coding: All regions. Audio: Dolby stereo. Screen format: Full screen

Customer Reviews:

Rebecca.......2007-01-12

Dear Sir or Madam,

I cannot comment on this DVD, since I encountered a bad seller, and I did not receive the DVD. I cancelled my order in the end.

Pretty Good Re-make of Rebecca.......2006-11-06

In short, I am a fan of Hitchcock's work and have seen almost all of his movies and I agree that there is nothing like the original Rebecca (1940), which is my all time favorite. I also agree that no remake will ever come close to the original. Having established that, I was pleasantly surprised with this 1997 version with its beautiful scenary, good casting, fine acting and a different take from the original. I found myself glued to the TV and very much entertained. Yes, the movie is 3 hours long, but it is very well made and you get more details than what the classic offers. I think the reason some viewers are dissappointed is because they truly expect to see the 1940 version with Hitchcock's movie magic touches. No current director will ever have that type of unique and uncanny talent that Hitchcock brought to each of his movies. Having said that, I feel this 1997 version stands on its own as a pretty good film and worth taking a look if you don't expect this version to be an exact duplicate of the classic. I highly recommend this film version of Rebecca if you want to explore another take of this fine classic and if you don't expect this to be a Hitchcock film because it's not. I feel this version deserves 5 stars standing on its own and without comparing it to the original.

Rebecca.......2006-08-15

It looked like brand new and came pretty quickly. Thumbs up for me.

Eyes like a snake.......2006-07-30

There should be some sort of rule that if Alfred Hitchcock did it, then it should never be adapted or remade again -- you only compare it unfavorably to his work. In the case of the BBC's "Rebecca," it's high on story fidelity but lacking in gothic atmosphere, very slow, and with a cast that is hit-and-miss.

A young girl (Emilia Fox) is at Monte Carlo with her employer, where she meets and befriends the wealthy Maxim de Winter (Charles Dance). When she's due to leave, he asks her to marry him -- though he was supposedly heartbroken over his wife Rebecca's death -- and whisks her back to Cornwall, to his ancient family estate Manderley.

But Manderly is haunted by Rebecca's presence, partly because of the ominous housekeeper (Diana Rigg), who is still obsessively devoted to Rebecca. The new Mrs. de Winter believes that Maxim still love Rebecca -- until the horrific secrets of Rebecca's life and death are revealed. And a smashed boat with a body has been found in the nearby bay.

One thing you can't fault "Rebecca" with is fidelity to Daphne DuMaurier's original novel. This miniseries sticks like glue to the words and events of the book. Unfortunately it sticks a little too slavishly at times, which leads to the miniseries being rather long and kind of dull at times.

Not to mention the famed "window-suicide" scene, when Danvers tries to hypnotize her new mistress into walking out of a window. It's a powerful scene, but I'd love to see anyone try to spontaneously commit suicide from a tiny, high-up window about ten feet off the ground.

The BBC has always been terrible with ominous atmosphere. There is zero gothic flavor, no suspense, and that is what "Rebecca" should be about -- not a murder mystery. They stick to what they know, with lots of sumptuous British sets and period details, especially in the artificial glamour of Monte Carlo's hotels, and the costume ball.

The casting is spotty -- Emelia Fox is excellent as Ms. de Winter, looking mousy and childlike, but gaining new strength as she realizes how much Maxim needs her. Dance gives an enthusiastic but rather pallid performance. And Rigg does an amazing job with a terribly written character: Mrs. Danvers is turned into a pitiful figure rather than a frightening one, who breaks down crying in front of everyone.

But there is another big flaw -- we see all of Rebecca in bits and pieces. The power of the character is in never seeing this uber-femme fatale, and so seeing her entire body, bits of her face and hearing her voice all take away from it. Rebecca's "power" over Manderley seems to die when we see her.

Faithful but dull, "Rebecca" loses a lot of what should have made it shine, like gothic atmosphere, drama and an absent namesake. It's passable as a BBC miniseries, but try the Hitchcock version instead.

Rent don't buy.......2006-06-05

Since the Hitchcock version is out of print,I bought this version.It lacks the sinister atmosphere,suspense,and foreboding of the book and Hitchcock version.Lacking these qualities, the movie is plodding and rather boring. While Diana Rigg is intriguing as Mrs. Danvers, the portrayal of the characters of Maxim and the second Mrs. DeWinter are unsatisfying.The two have no chemistry, and I care about neither. Ultimately,I read the reviews to judge if I should purchase the movie.I will pass this version on to a friend but will not keep it in my library.Wish I would have rented it instead.

Theater Of Blood/MadHouse (Midnite Movies Double Feature)

Average customer rating:

Vincent Price's magnum opus plus one
Excelent Dvd with two movies!
Review of Theatre of Blood - Price's personal favourite...
Grossly under rated Price vehicle!
2 More Vincent Classics For The Price of 1!

Theater Of Blood/MadHouse (Midnite Movies Double Feature)
Starring: Vincent Price , Diana Rigg , Ian Hendry , Harry Andrews , and Coral Browne
Director: Douglas Hickox , and Jim Clark
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Abominable Dr. Phibes/Dr. Phibes Rises Again!
Tales of Terror/Twice Told Tales (Midnite Movies Double Feature)
The Fall of the House of Usher /The Pit and the Pendulum
The Masque of the Red Death / The Premature Burial
The Haunted Palace / The Tower of London

ASIN: B0007R4T2Q
Release Date: 2005-02-15

Description

Theater of BloodVincent Price delivers a thrilling "tour-de-force" (Variety) performance as a small-time actor plotting big-time revenge in inventively Shakespearean ways! Boasting a topnotch supporting cast, this dramatically "delicious concoction" (New York) delivers an "equal mixture of horror, comedy and Shakepeare [that'll] please just about everyone ? critics included" (Boxoffice) and proves that all the world really is a stage for MURDER!MadhouseMasters of macabre Vincent Price, Peter Cushing and Robert Quarry give performances to die for in this "diverting little chiller" (Boxoffice)! When horror star Paul Toombes' fiancée is brutally killed, he loses more than this job he loses his mind. But twelve years later, when he returns to TV ? only to discover a fresh batch of corpses ? Paul finally begins to understand that melodrama can be murder on your career!

Customer Reviews:

Vincent Price's magnum opus plus one.......2006-12-31

If "Theatre of Blood" were the only film on this DVD it would still be worth the price. Make that the Price. Made more than a decade before the legendary actor's graceful last act, which began with "The Whales of August" and culminated in "Edward Scissorhands," this was by far Vincent Price's best film. Playing the demented (and supposedly dead) dreadful classical actor Edward Lionheart, Price gets a chance to strut his stuff like never before in a host of Shakespearean snippets (and his Shylock and Richard III are gems). In addition, he gets to gruesomely murder the critics who have assailed him over the years -- dead critics...what's not to love? Even more fun is the fact that the smarmy critics are played by a host of some of the best supporting actors Britain then had to offer.

"Madhouse," made only a year later, doesn't exactly try to copy the format of "Theatre of Blood," but it has certain elements of it in its story of horror film actor Paul Toombes (Price) who may or may not delve too deeply into his signature character "Dr. Death" and kill young women. "Madhouse" is basically a murder mystery disguised as a horror film, and not a bad one, but it suffers from a few too many ingredients. The character of Dr. Death (Price in rather simple, but very effective skull-face makeup) is clearly patterned after "Dr. Phibes," the two-film series that had been hugely successful a few years earlier, while Paul Toombes (who is nothing like the character from the source novel, "Devilday," by Angus Hall) is slightly reminiscent of the character Jon Pertwee played in "The House That Dripped Blood" -- a role for which Price had been sought. In structure, the film is also a bit reminiscent of the 1969 oddball film "Scream and Scream Again," which involed a serial killer stalking young girls in London, and there is a very peculiar subplot with Adrienne Corri as a burn-scarred and crazy former actress hiding in Peter Cushing's cellar, which seems like something out of a mid-1960s Italian horror film. It's quite a stew. Where the picture really drops the ball, though, is as a conscious effort to do for Price what Peter Bogdanovich's "Targets" did for Boris Karloff: present him with a canny career summation role in which he more or less plays himself. Price does more or less play himself -- an affable, good natured man who has managed to retain his professional integrity even after years of questionable films, which he gamely continues to make even as he believes himself to be unfairly exploited -- but the use of old film clips from past AIP epics (including "House of Usher," "Pit and the Pendulum" and "The Raven") does not have the resonance that "Targets"' employment of old clips from "The Terror" did. A prolonged sequence of Toombes appearing on Michael Parkinson's chat show is more dull than illuminating. "Madhouse" does at least offer Peter Cushing a decent role, after years of wasteful cameos in AIP's British productions, and a good one for Robert Quarry, who AIP was then grooming as a horror man for the 70s, as a shady producer. Director Jim Clark stages some very effective, atmospheric scenes of Dr. Death stalking the countryside, but it must be said that the identity of the killer is not a big shock to anyone paying attention. "Madhouse" was not widely released in the US and for years was something of an "unknown" Price movie, which makes its availability doubly attractive. It's no "Theatre of Blood," but it's fun.

Excelent Dvd with two movies!.......2006-01-27

I haven't seen them, but they are pretty good. "Theatre Of Blood" is the movie to watch with those who have had bad reviews levied against them by snobby critics who are so foolish that they can't see beyond their own noses. By the way, I'd love it when I would reenact death scenes from Shakespearean tragedies to lure Simon Cowell and his gunes in, so that I can destroy them.
Julius Caesar: Simon Cowell stabbed to death on the Ides Of March.
Romeo And Juliet: Paula Abdul drowned in a vat of wine
Cymbeline: Fantasia Barino electricuted.
Revenge is so sweet. If you're looking for the movies to satisfy your lust for blood against the critics that scorned you, then this double feature Dvd is the one for you. Highly recommended.

Review of Theatre of Blood - Price's personal favourite..........2005-08-07

I have not seen Madhouse, so this review is a reprint of one I wrote on the previously available single film DVD version.

In an interview with NPR's Terry Gross, the daughter of the late great Vincent Price was asked which of her father's films was his favourite. She said he loved Theatre of Blood because he got to do Shakespeare (albeit with a bit of poetic license).

1973's Theatre Of Blood followed the two Dr. Phibes films which were marvelously devilish black comedies. In Theatre Of Blood, Price tops his Phibes performances. Price plays Edward Lionheart, a Shakespearan actor loved by his fans but mercilessly reviled by a group of snobby theatre critics who berate his performances in print and later humiliate him at an awards ceremony. Lionheart sets out to get revenge on the nine critics by use of murder plots in Shakespeare's plays. The makeup and costumes are superb as well as the supporting cast -- particularly the lovely Diana Rigg, Milo O'Shea, and Robert Morley. Price dons dozens of disguises as he methodically carrys out his mission. He's hysterically funny as "Butch", a hairdresser for one of the female critics. This film should be considered among his essential works.

Grossly under rated Price vehicle!.......2005-04-10

Ahh, Vincent Price the world would have been boring without his droll delivery. Without wearing any make up, Price became a horror icon in the 60's and 70's while appearing in "The Tingler", "The Last Man on Earth", "The Mask of the Red Death" and the "Dr Phibes" films. "Theater of Blood" the first film in this twofer from MGM is one of Price's finest 70's horror films. Price plays Lionheart a Shakespearean actor denied a major critics award out of spite who commits suicide. Or did he? Two years later on the anniversary of Lionheart's death the critics that snubbed him begin to die like the characters from the plays that Lionheart was performing prior to his death. Featuring British vets Jack Hawkins, Arthur Lowe and the lovely Diana Rigg as Lionheart's daughter, "Theater of Blood" ranks up there with the witty "Dr. Phibes" films one of Price's later films.

One of the finest moments is a fencing scene where the two opponents face off on the floor, on a trampoline and various gym equipment. It's quite well staged and entertaining.

"Madhouse" the flipside of this twofer is a lesser film but features a stellar cast. The predictable plot focuses on an actor Paul Toombes (Price again naturally) who returns to acting after suffering a nervous breakdown as a result of his the murder of his fiance. Twelve years have passed and now Toombes returns to acting only to find that those around him are now being murdered! Toombes wonders if he is the cause of it all or if someone is out to incriminate him. The marvelous cast of Price, Peter Cushing ("Horror of Dracula", "Curse of Frankenstein", "Star Wars", "She") Robert Quarry ("Count Yorga Vampire", "Dr. Phibes Rises Again")makes the film memorable. Director James Clark (editor of "Vera Drake", "Copycat", "The World is Not Enough")does a stylish job with the predictable screenplay by Ken Levison and Greg Morrison. It's a blast to see Cushing, Price and Quarry together (along with archieval footage of Boris Karloff). A pity there was no way to fit Christopher Lee into the mix (he was busy shooting "The Man with the Golden Gun" and "The Wicker Man").

As usual the transfer look pretty good given the age of the negatives although "Theater of Blood" looks a bit washed out. Then again, it's always looked like that as long as I can remember. A pity that Clark wasn't asked to do a commentary track. It's one of only three or four movies he directed. The late Hickox who directed "Theater of Blood" primarily directed mini-series for TV after the film. The first film deserves a strong four stars while "Madhouse" deserves 2 1/2 for effort and performances. Theatrical trailers for both films are included.

2 More Vincent Classics For The Price of 1!.......2005-04-09

I remember seeing THEATRE OF BLOOD back in 1992 on Halloween of all days. I saw the second half of it and it pretty much disturbed me and haunted my nightmares. But last night I bought this new DVD (with MADHOUSE on the other side) and watched it. And now I find it to be alternately shocking and side-splittingly funny! As for MADHOUSE, I only saw half of it but so far I am impressed.

THEATRE OF BLOOD is the ultimate wish-fulfillment movie for anybody in the movie industry or theatre that has ever had scathing reviews levied against them. Edward Lionheart is a Shakespearian actor who employs death scenes from the Bard in his vengeance against nine critics who have been really harsh on him to say the least. This movie is DR. PHIBES with a theatrical element in lieu of the Biblical plague thing, but on its own, it's very good. The highlight is the salon electricution, especially seeing Price disguised as Butch! The great music score is a precursor to what Pino Donaggio would do for Brian DePalma! And there's a great punchline!

MADHOUSE has Price as a horror movie actor doing a TV movie and getting stuck in the middle of a killing spree. Plus, there's Count Yorga as a producer and Peter Cushing as a director! A reunion from DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN! The murders are inventive and predate FRIDAY THE 13TH and its ilk. And another great music score punctuates the prodeedings. This is what makes Best Buy so awesome (and makes me happy that it finally came to Dover); they work with MGM to provide double the pleasure in horror movies!

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