Review, buy Romantic: John Tucker Must Die [2006] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Above and Beyond [2006] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Six Days, Seven Nights [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC), The Far Horizons [1955] (REGION 1) (NTSC), A Tale of Two Cities [1980] (REGION 1) (NTSC), B. Monkey [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Griffin and Phoenix [2006] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Sharpe's Justice / Sharpe's Waterloo [1997], Sharpe's Company / Sharpe's Enemy [1994], Blue Juice [1995] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Sharpe's Regiment / Sharpe's Siege [1996], Sahara [Blu-ray] [2005] [US Import], The Presidio [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Shanghai Express [1932], Return to Snowy River [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Wake of the Red Witch [1949] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Fool's Gold [2008] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Love Is Forever [1983], Knights of the Round Table [1953] (REGION 1) (NTSC), Sharpe's Mission / Sharpe's Revenge [1996]

The African Queen meets Swept Away in this sometimes laboured romantic comedy by director Ivan Reitman. Fortunately, he cast an old pro in Harrison Ford, as Quinn Harris, a South Seas charter pilot who must ferry New York fashion editor Robin Monroe (Anne Heche) from one island to another-a hop that falls flat when they fly into a mammoth storm that causes them to crash on a deserted island. The pair resent and resist each other, until they are forced to team up to escape from the island-and some modern pirates who want their heads. If that part of the story is unconvincing, you can always focus on the smouldering comic chemistry between Heche, who displays strong comic instincts, and the ever-reliable Ford. The script is just an excuse for these two flinty characters to strike increasingly romantic sparks off each other, which is always enjoyable to watch. -Marshall Fine, Amazon. com.

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The Far Horizons [1955] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (Paramount)

Actors & Directors

Charlton Heston
Fred MacMurray
Barbara Hale
William Demarest
Donna Reed
Rudolph Maté

Release date: 2005-06-07
Run time: 107 min.
Price: £2.94

Review The Far Horizons [1955] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / Paramount:

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Review Image / A Tale of Two Cities [1980] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

A Tale of Two Cities [1980] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (Image)

Actors & Directors

Kenneth More
Nigel Hawthorne
Flora Robson
Peter Cushing
Alice Krige
Jim Goddard

Release date: 2007-11-13
Run time: 156 min.
Creator: Allyn Ferguson
Price: £6.04

Review A Tale of Two Cities [1980] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / Image:

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Review Miramax / B. Monkey [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

B. Monkey [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (Miramax)

Actors & Directors

Jared Harris
Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Asia Argento
Julie T. Wallace
Rupert Everett
Michael Radford

Release date: 2000-03-21
Run time: 92 min.
Price: £3.13

Review B. Monkey [1998] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / Miramax:

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Griffin and Phoenix [2006] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (20th Century Fox)

Actors & Directors

Sarah Paulson
Amanda Peet
Ed Stone
Blair Brown
Alison Elliott
Dermot Mulroney

Release date: 2007-09-11
Run time: 102 min.
Price: £7.55

Review Griffin and Phoenix [2006] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / 20th Century Fox:

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Review ITV DVD / Sharpe's Justice / Sharpe's Waterloo [1997]

Sharpe's Justice / Sharpe's Waterloo [1997] (ITV DVD)

Actors & Directors

Caroline Langrishe
Daragh O'Malley
Abigail Cruttenden
Tom Clegg
Philip Glenister
Sean Bean

Release date: 2002-10-07
Run time: 202 min.
RRP: ~~£14.99~~
Price: £0.90

Review Sharpe's Justice / Sharpe's Waterloo [1997] / ITV DVD:

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Sharpe's Company / Sharpe's Enemy [1994] (ITV DVD)

Actors & Directors

Michael Byrne
Hugh Fraser
Daragh O'Malley
Tom Clegg
Pete Postlethwaite
Sean Bean

Release date: 2002-05-13
Run time: 202 min.
RRP: ~~£14.99~~
Price: £1.28

Review Sharpe's Company / Sharpe's Enemy [1994] / ITV DVD:

Based on the novels by Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe (1993-7) ran to 14 full-length television films that follow the adventures of the titular soldier through the later years of the Napoleonic Wars. The programmes are an outstanding achievement for the small screen, dominated by Sean Bean's central performance as the heroic, troubled outsider who turns out to be a resourceful and loyal leader. Bolstered by a strong supporting cast, particularly Daragh O'Malley as Harper and (in later episodes) Abigail Cruttenden as Jane, Sharpe is often visually striking, the action tense and gripping. Consistency is maintained by all 14 episodes being directed by Tom Clegg. On the DVD: Sharpe on DVD contains a photo gallery and several screens of background text. The sound is full-bodied stereo while the very "sharp" picture has been transferred slightly letterboxed at 14:9. Though looking much better than the original TV transmissions the occasionally cropped framing makes it apparent the films were shot in 16:9 widescreen, so it is regrettable they have not been transferred to DVD in that format. Otherwise these are first-rate releases. -Gary S Dalkin.

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Review Lions Gate / Blue Juice [1995] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Blue Juice [1995] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (Lions Gate)

Actors & Directors

Sean Pertwee
Peter Gunn
Catherine Zeta-Jones
Carl Prechezer
Ewan McGregor
Steven Mackintosh

Release date: 2000-03-14
Run time: 98 min.
Price: £3.08

Review Blue Juice [1995] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / Lions Gate:

Wax up your boards and hang 10 (or whatever) where the big waves come crashing in: off the English coast at Cornwall. Huh? No endless summer? No two girls for every boy? No, but in Blue Juice one can see what most of us probably never even thought about: the British Isles are indeed islands and, not incongruously, there's a considerable surfing culture with a handful of home-grown legends. One of the latter is JC (Sean Pertwee), a skilled surfer so driven by the challenge and so dedicated to his mates that it threatens his meandering romance with the long-suffering Chloe (Catherine Zeta-Jones). The two have planned an extensive, around-the-world trip as a kind of prelude to discussing marriage, but the arrangement is threatened when three of JC's old childhood chums arrive from London. One of them (played by Steven Mackintosh) is a famous record producer who has sold his soul (in every sense) to reap profits from fashionable electronica. Another (Ewan McGregor) is a chronic screw-up resorting to hustling junk to unsuspecting customers. The last (Peter Gunn) is an anxious sort, terrified of marrying his long-time girlfriend. Together, these four guys look like a pack of nowhere men and they know it: while the story largely focuses on JC and Chloe, there's plenty of material for the supporting characters to indulge in mucho self-loathing. The film never quite jumps off the screen and the script may be hampered by too many layers of character eccentricity, but this is still an enjoyable piece with some fine comic performances. -Tom Keogh, Amazon. [+]

com.

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Sharpe's Regiment / Sharpe's Siege [1996] (ITV DVD)

Actors & Directors

Nicholas Farrell
Daragh O'Malley
Abigail Cruttenden
Tom Clegg
Sean Bean
Michael Cochrane

Release date: 2002-08-12
Run time: 202 min.
RRP: ~~£14.99~~
Price: £1.28

Review Sharpe's Regiment / Sharpe's Siege [1996] / ITV DVD:

Based on the novels by Bernard Cornwell, Sharpe (1993-7) ran to 14 full-length television films that follow the adventures of the titular soldier through the later years of the Napoleonic Wars. The programmes are an outstanding achievement for the small screen, dominated by Sean Bean's central performance as the heroic, troubled outsider who turns out to be a resourceful and loyal leader. Bolstered by a strong supporting cast, particularly Daragh O'Malley as Harper and (in later episodes) Abigail Cruttenden as Jane, Sharpe is often visually striking, the action tense and gripping. Consistency is maintained by all 14 episodes being directed by Tom Clegg. On the DVD: Sharpe's sound is full-bodied stereo while the very "sharp" picture has been transferred slightly letterboxed at 14:9. Though looking much better than the original TV transmissions the occasionally cropped framing makes it apparent the films were shot in 16:9 widescreen, so it is regrettable they have not been transferred to DVD in that format. Otherwise these are first-rate releases. -Gary S Dalkin.

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Review Paramount / Sahara [Blu-ray] [2005] [US Import]

Sahara [Blu-ray] [2005] [US Import] (Paramount)

Actors & Directors

Mark Aspinall
Jude Akuwidike
Christopher Bello
Nicholas Beveney
Rakie Ayola
Breck Eisner

Release date: 2006-10-24
Run time: 123 min.
Price: £11.61

Review Sahara [Blu-ray] [2005] [US Import] / Paramount:

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Review Paramount / The Presidio [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

The Presidio [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC) (Paramount)

Actors & Directors

Meg Ryan
Sean Connery
Jack Warden
Peter Hyams
Mark Blum
Mark Harmon

Release date: 1999-12-14
Run time: 96 min.
Price: £2.79

Review The Presidio [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC) / Paramount:

In The Presidio the titular piece of real estate is the San Francisco military base that starts at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge and sprawls back into the city itself, co-existing uneasily with Baghdad by the Bay. The two cultures clash when a murder at the Presidio is assigned to civilian police detective Mark Harmon. Harmon has an uncomfortable history with the base commander, Sean Connery-and this relationship doesn't get any less tense when he also becomes romantically entangled with Connery's daughter, Meg Ryan. Unfortunately, the script by Larry Ferguson is a stiff, which suits Harmon's acting style. Director Peter Hyams knows how to choreograph an action sequence, but he has to keep stopping so that Harmon can actually speak. Thankfully, Harmon has the always-interesting Connery and Ryan to interact with, but that's only a small saving grace. -Marshall Fine, Amazon. com.

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