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DVD/Blu-Ray Review


Film Review: Initiation

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Blu-Ray Review: Carla’s Song

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No war has focused the minds of American film-makers quite like Vietnam. It’s a conflict which split American society; polarising a nation. Given the controversy surrounding events within the region, it’s a subject which has produced some of the greatest modern war films. Including the likes of Jacob’s Ladder, Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and Hamburger …

Stanley Baker was hardly what you’d call a typical leading man in post-war British cinema. Unlike his peers, who were almost always handsome and debonair, the former electrician’s apprentice cut a rough and ready figure. In many ways a brooding brute of a man, he carved out a niche for himself in the likes of …

Films about boxers overcoming adversity are a long and noble tradition within cinema, but the protagonists of such films are, with very few exceptions, men. Spaced star Jessica Hynes is seeking to correct that lack of representation with The Fight, her debut as an actor-writer-director. The film is set in present-day Folkestone and centres on …

In a career which spanned over sixty years, Charlton Heston became an American icon and one of the most familiar cinematic faces. He has starred in over seventy films with the likes of Ben-Hur, El-Cid, Planet of the Apes, Touch of Evil, The Omega Man and The Ten Commandments ensuring he became a household name. …

Samuel Fuller was never a director to shy away from controversy or take the easy road. The controversial film-maker never abided by convention and was seemingly incapable of resting on his laurels. After starting out making Westerns and war films, he made the shift into thrillers during the 1960s. Operating largely outside of the studio …

It has been a long time coming but, in the West at least, mental illness is finally being treated as seriously as physical conditions. The brain is an incredibly complex organ. So labyrinthine that we are still far from understanding how it works. This ‘grey’ area makes mental institutions rich pickings for film-makers. One Flew …

Living under an oppressive regime essentially means spending your life in a constant state of anxiety and trepidation. Those citizens residing in communist countries during the Cold War faced a constant barrage of propaganda and indoctrination. You never knew who was listening. Could never be at ease. Friends and neighbours would inform on each other. …

Spike Lee is one of the most powerful political voices in black American film-making. During the late 1980s and early 1990s he released a string of films which either challenged or amused. Often both. The likes of Malcolm X, She’s Gotta Have It, Mo’ Better Blues and Jungle Fever made him a household name. However, …

British films tend to play up to stereotypes. Whether that’s the cheeky Cockney, comedy Celt or slimy spoilt public-school boy. This trend is often at its basest when it comes to regional variations. As a Yorkshireman, I feel the representation of my county on the big screen is usually dubious, at best. If we’re not …

Today, Belgium is a multi-cultural mecca which attracts visitors from all around the world. However, it wasn’t so long ago that it was considered one of the continent’s least appetising holiday destinations. Despite hosting the European Parliament, back in 2008 the low country was still quite frankly considered to be a bit dull, grey and …