Reviews

Dr Who and his family/companions encounter the metal monsters , the Daleks on the lost planet of Skaro. A real treat , it is just so much fun to watch , Peter Cushing is really excellent as the doctor and is a great strong intellectual foe for the Daleks. However the stars of the show are the metal monsters themselves , they are towering and look excellent with that 60s alien , slick look that adds to their menace and their guns emit co2 that almost makes them more like Nazis ( since they gas their enemies ). The film is based on the first television serial of BBC's Doctor Who and follows the story fairly closely but with that epic feel of a motion picture from Britain's Amicus productions. Check out the sequel as well it's just as much fun.

Paul Newman gives us the greatest private eye ever in this highly underrated Neo-noir that includes acting greats Shelly Winters , Lauren Becall and Julie Harris. The film has got a great story and Newman's performance is one of his best if not the best performance of his career , Harper is a well developed character who is cheeky , cynical , funny , down and out but tough as nails and it is so much fun to watch the character interact with all the suspects and villains in LA , really good film and The Drowning Pool ( Harper's sequel ) is well worth a watch as well since it has all the great qualities that this film has, check it out !

The ( fictional ) life of WW1's greatest flying ace. This film receives a lot of negative attention due to the fact that it differs from historical truth quite a lot. However that aside the film is quite decent since the acting is quite good and it features great flying sequences and really nice planes that are all accurate for the time . It's not going to be fun to watch for anyone who knows about Von Richtofen , but it is just a film after all and does provide excitement and enjoyable drama so it definitely is worth giving a watch. It is quite similar to the battle of the bulge film in the sense it tramples all over historical events in order to create a better and more exciting story. Unorthodox but still a good film.

The story of the Trojan war that puts the Trojans in a rather good light. Hmmmmmmm .... a very tricky film to review , it has a share of good points and then more than it's fair share of problems. To start with the good points it looks amazing , a very beautiful film with stunning sets , costumes. The music is very credible bu Max Stiener and anyone who is a fan of classic film music should listen to it. The story has promising points since it offers a different view point and the cast ( mostly British ) have enormous potential. Saying this however the fight scenes are very very poorly choreographed and not convincing in any way. The acting is really dull and uncharismatic even by screen greats like Cedric Hardwick and Stanley Baker who deliver performances that seem to be just read from a script rather plainly. The story ultimately comes across as rather boring and events simply skip on and on without containing any excitement or adventure that stimulate the audience. Ultimately the film is worth watching but is a rather dull and slumbering ( expensive ) epic that is fun to watch but really painful as far as acting is concerned. It is worth a look but don't expect too much.

The life of Van Gogh in glamorous Metro-color. The film is quite simply magnificent. Everything is fantastic , from the performances to the cinematography. Kirk Douglas' performance is what carries the film , his charisma and brilliant use of physical acting help convey the conflicting and tormenting emotions and desires felt by Van Gogh. The colour scheme for the film is very clever since it almost parallels the colours and shades in Van Gogh's paintings. The rest of the cast produce great acting that matches the dramatic tones and beauty of the film. A classic from Hollywood and one of the most beautiful and thought provoking films ever made.

Napoleon Bonerparte shocks Europe by escaping his island prison on Elba. The combined forces of Britain and Prussia must face him and a new French army at Waterloo to decide the fate of Europe. It is very difficult to fault this film. It is presented almost as a theatrical documentary. Practically most of the events depicted are incredibly accurate. Impressive for a historical film ! The costumes are amazingly realistic, the acting is good by both Stiegar and Plummer who give vivid portrayals of Napoleon and Wellington ( both even look the part to the last detail ). What is most spectacular about this film are the battle sequences ( i cannot begin to describe in words how enormous they are , no other film has bigger battle scenes , true giants of cinema scenes )they are vast and action packed and astounding to watch due to their sheer immensity. The only problem with the film is that it is more of an event film , little emphasis is put on the characters but you still get accurate and provoking portrayals of them , just less character development than most films but certainly a look. A forgotten masterpiece.

Richard Bradford stars as ex-CIA agent McGill now working as a private eye based in London. There are not words to express simply how good this show is , the character is brilliantly complex and this gives the show an enhanced realistic feel to it. ITC action shows were always superior to the USA's action shows like Hawaii-five O , Kojak and S.W.A.T due to the fact all the characters were unique and all were played brilliantly by their lead actors. These shows included The Saint , Jason King , The Persuaders and The Baron. The only trouble with these shows was that all the characters despite their originality had one flaw and that was there simplicity . To a certain degree this was what also made them excellent characters but often left them too in control of events during the shows . Man In A Suitcase however makes McGill a cynical , hard boiled and yet sympathetic person who wrestles with the anger he feels inside for being betrayed by life and his own country. Often the episodes have bitter sweet endings unlike the typical "good guy always makes things great" ending. The episodes are all exciting and original including well written scripts that are rare to find in a TV series. This is partly due to Richard Bradford's development to the character. Man In A Suitcase is simply an amazing action show , possibly the best you'll ever see , if you are a fan of ITC watch it ... every episode ! if you just like crime and investigator shows this show is still the best , check it out.

Disgusted with the policies of the tyrannical king Charles the first Oliver Cromwell , a puritan and god fearing man decides to head for the new world. However his plans are soon to be put aside as he ventures forth to lead Parliament against the monarchy and bring about a new order of government that still exists today. Richard Harris gives a fiery and impressive performance as Cromwell and captures the sense of a holy man with an unyielding sense of duty and unequalled ambition. Alec Guiness always gives a charismatic performance and portrays the king in a respectable manor. With notable performances from Robert Morley and Charles Gray amongst others. The battle scenes are excellent with a sense of tremendous scale and stature. The costumes are lavish and beautiful to view. All in all Cromwell stands out as one of the best historical films to date. The history i believe is quite incorrect however it certainly dosen't spoil the film. An excellent film with a great cast and production.

Omar Sharif stars as Temujin the mongol lord who soon becomes conqueror of half the world. A radical take on actual historical events ( meaning they are completely inaccurate) shows the Mongol in a rather better light than most of the world would view him. His rise from enslavement by Stephen Boyd to leader of a mighty army is done with style and grand spectacle. The sets for peking in the film are excellent and have a sense of supreme stature and beauty as would befit an epic like this. The performances are good , charismatic , mostly from Boyd and Sharif who play off each other well. The only criticisms of this film is the comic performance of Mason as china's ambassador and the script at times is rather flimsy and wooden but can work in its favor to make the film more fun and enjoyable. Not a film to recommend but certainly fun if you are in the mood. To enjoy it however it will require turning a blind eye to the large mistakes. Not a great film but certainly gets a high score for most of it's good points.

The life of Temujin later Genghis Khan , conqueror of Asia and Russia from childhood in slavery to master warrior and chief of all Mongols. The film has a vast nature of beauty unequalled in most films with excellent cinematography and well choreographed fight scenes. The story is told in an excellent way ( but i won't spoil it ) , the acting is convincing and charismatic from all the cast. It has all the good qualities of a classic historical epic such as Ben-Hur or Cleopatra along with the excellent action and style of Gladiator but with much greater depth to the characters. A great historical epic and the best film depicting Genghis Khan , the other two famous in the west are John Wayne's The Conqueror and the 1965 epic with Stephen Boyd and Omar Sheriff 'Genghis Khan' the latter being the only one worth watching. Mongol is simply one of the best historical films ever made.

Inventor George ( Rod Taylor ) has created a Time Machine or so he claims wildly in front of his astonished friends at diner , as the evening unfolds he begins his fantastic tale of how he shot thousands of years into the future to discover the earth ruled by two races descended from humans , one race gentle and docile while the other is savage and repulsive. As a child i watched this on the TV with no understanding of what the film was or that it even existed and it blew my mind , it is probably the fondest memory i have of watching a film. The sets and the costumes and the time machine itself is fabulous looking. Superb story and a harrowing premonition of what mankind's future may become.

December 16th 1944 , the German army has been beaten back by the combined forces of Great Britain and America. In a last ditch effort to save themselves and their army they unleash the Ardennes offensive using the new powerful king tiger tanks against the allies. Whilst the film has a huge production and a great cast it suffers from inaccuracies however these turn out for the better as it makes the action scenes more heroic and action packed even if they aren't accurate , the tanks used are all inaccurate , shermans are m24 chaffees and tiger 2s are m47 pattons , however neither of the real tanks were available for the film. Despite the faults in events it is a brilliant film , if your a fan of war movies give it a watch , it's one of the best around.

Jim Stark is a troubled teenager who moves to a new town finding friends and enemies whilst he clashes with his parents ho do not understand him or how he feels. A simple and provoking story and the first film to deal with teenage angst as a story. Dean again makes the film a classic , the image of him in a red windbreaker , jeans , boots and a white t-shirt have become one of the most famous looks in popular culture , the way Dean portrays Stark is one of the most realistic performances ever , he really makes the viewer feel the angst and hormone ridden emotions that his character feels. The scenes which really show this are often with his parents where his feelings contrast with their lack of understanding. Natalie wood and Sal Mineo also give memorable performances as two other young kids who's own emotional troubles help them to connect with Dean's character however once again Dean is the show stealer here. A great film and probably the best film depicting teenage unrest and still holds up just as emotionally dramatic and challenging today as it did over 50 years ago.

The film that made Dean a star. Cal Trask is a teenager living in Salinas valley during the first world war. Everyday he constantly struggles to win the affection of his bible bashing father who directs all his love towards his brother Aron , his quest leads him to discover who is mother is and what she is compelling him to connect with his father. Dean's first major motion picture , and he shines in the role as the sullen and hard done by Cal , Dean gives the character a sense of realism that makes the viewer feel the angst and emotional suffering that Cal feels , while all the performances in the film are great it is Dean who makes the film a masterpiece , Elia Kazan's best film above On the waterfront and A streetcar named desire. An exceptional film that was one of the first to address the troubled youths of the fifties and still speaks out to them today along with Dean's second film Rebel without a cause.

Paul ( Brando ) is a 45 year old man who is grieving the the suicide of his wife , wandering the streets in despair he goes to rent an apartment which is as bare and tragic as his own life. Here he meets Jeanne a 20 year old Parisian girl who is engaged to a talentless young french film maker who's passion for the art clashes with Jeanne , while here they engage in impulsive and brutal sex. Afterwards they agree to meet there to engage in loveless and meaningless sex , both using it as a means to escape the reality of their imperfect lives. Brando"s finest role , he creates an atmosphere of despair and sorrow that his character is overwhelmed by and his performance really communicates to the audience the terrible need and desperation Paul has for the company and the touch of another human being. Maria Schnieder gives another fine performance as the girl who's naive sense of suffocation by her boyfriend and the adventure of an affair lead her to degrade herself to Paul's primal needs. A superbly shot film , excellent dialogue and a great music score by Gato Barbieri , Last Tango in Paris remains one of the most liberating and emotionally realistic films of all time.