Classic Cinema
Blu-Ray Review: Red Angel
War is a horrible business. Whilst today’s technological advancements mean that conflict is often now a hands-off affair, during the Second World War the biggest resource any country had was its fighting men. It made for bloody and brutal combat, especially in the Pacific Theatre. The Second Sino-Japanese War was particularly violent and barbaric, with …
Blu-Ray Review: Nightmare Alley
There’s nothing Hollywood likes more than a good remake. Or, maybe, a reboot, reimagining or rehash. Indeed, anything that basically resembles, as much as possible, a film which was previously been successful is precisely what they know will ‘sell’. When the film in question is older and relatively unknown, there is the unintentional benefit of …
Blu-Ray Review: The Gunfighter
During the 1950s and 1960s, there were few more popular actors in Hollywood than Gregory Peck. He starred in a number of films, across several genres, becoming both a heartthrob and hard man in a number of memorable roles. Winning an Oscar for his portrayal of Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird and plaudits …
Blu-ray Review: Dillinger
America has a long and complex history with its outlaws. This fascination dates back all the way to the time of colonisation and the Old West. The likes of Jesse James, Billy the Kid and Butch Cassidy wrote their own legends and captured the public’s imagination. As the wild frontier was replaced by urban sprawl …
Blu-Ray Review: Hiroshima Mon Amour
In the final year of World War II, mankind did something which, in retrospect, seems almost unthinkable. The dropping of an atomic bomb on Hiroshima in August 1945, resulting in the instant death of 80,000 people (many more were injured or subsequently died from the fallout), highlighted why we should never play god. Originally commissioned …
Blu-ray review: Hungarian Masters
Despite the political and economic factors which have blighted its film industry over the decades, Hungary has always been a powerhouse of Eastern European cinema. Since the dawn of the twentieth century, the country has produced a number of notable personalities who’ve had a huge influence on domestic and world cinema. However, most of its …
Blu-Ray Review: The Love of Jeanne Ney
While the silent era planted the foundation stones for a global film industry which is now worth countless billions, it feels like it’s often dismissed as merely a genre in conversation. When in fact it was cinema, in all its entirety and diversity. The Weimar Republic played host to some of the most influential directors …
Blu-ray Review: Le Samouraï
During the 1960s and 1970s, Alain Delon was one of the most iconic faces of European cinema. He made a string of eye-catching films with famous directors, including Antonioni (L’Eclisse), Visconti (The Leopard), Clément (Plein Soleil) and Losey (Mr Klein). However, it’s probably his work with the great Jean-Pierre Melville which remains the most feted. …
Blu-Ray Review: Champion
Boxing is one sport which punches well above its weight when it comes to popularity and media attention. Indeed, the amount of money to be made, primarily for uneducated young men, has made it a way out of poverty and a viable alternative to a life of crime. These factors have also made big box …
Blu-ray Review: Mill of the Stone Women
When you see programmes charting the history of horror cinema, all too often they concentrate almost exclusively on films emanating from the English-speaking world. Take Italy, for instance. A country which has been responsible for some of the most iconic and memorable moments in genre cinema. The likes of Dario Argento’s Supsiria, Lucio Fulci’s The …