Drama > 1945 Drama

"The train now arriving at platform four is the 5:40 for Churley.

Advantages: Pure classic film
Disadvantages: Those accents!!!

BRIEF ENCOUNTER (1945) DIRECTED BY DAVID LEAN REVIEW OF THE 2008 ITV DVD INTRODUCTION Continuing my ‘Lean Season’ reviews this latest review is about one of David Lean’s earlier films – ‘Brief Encounter’ released in 1945 The film received Oscar nominations for Best Actress, Best Director and Best Screenplay. It won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival. It is at second place in the British Film Institute Top ...
...was the fourth film that David Lean had directed.. As with his first three films, the story was based on a play by Noel Coward. Coward himself worked as a screenwriter and producer on the film. My geographical claim to fame with this film is that the famous station scene with ‘that’ clock was shot at Carnforth station, Lancashire, which is about 10 miles away from where I live. I always think of this film as a British ‘Casablanca’, and like ‘Casablanca’ ...

oldchem 19.08.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Brief Encounter (DVD)

Henry V. DVD ... 'Cry God for Harry!'

Advantages: Educational, entertaining and historical.
Disadvantages: Iambic pentameter isn't for everyone. Almost no extra features.

Henry V is available on DVD in a 1989 production directed by, and starring, Kenneth Branagh. This is a direct and edgy story about England’s war with France in which the flower of the French aristocracy were slaughtered in the mud of Agincort beneath a rain of arrows from English longbow men. Derek Jacobi is the chorus who introduces the stage on which this ‘muse of fire’ will burn, and it is a modern one with electric lights and props. I’ve seen ...
...who favoured his company in Henry IV Part One, has now rejected his lower connections and assumed the mantle of royal responsibilities. Derek Jacobi appears on the White Cliffs of Dover to introduce a scene in which three English lords, Scroop, Richard, and Grey, are revealed to be traitors. Henry pretends to be on good terms with them, and then sentences them each to death. The working class subplot continues with Bardolph, Nym, Mistress Quickly, ...

FlameDruid 15.01.2005 · Read full review
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Review of Henry V (DVD)

eX-rated Comedy

Advantages: Classic charm
Disadvantages: None

...My only complaint about Blithe Spirit, which is one of my all-time favourite movies, is the lack of extras on the DVD. In truth, this is hardly surprising for a movie made on a relatively low budget way back in 1945. All the main characters and the director (David Lean of Lawrence of Arabia fame) are most likely to be all dead. The playwright, Noel Coward, passed on years ago, leaving behind a wealth of literature. Even the songwriter who wrote the ...
...has left us. Still, it would not be passed the studio to throw something together, rather than just offering the trailer. FINALLY For lovers of the cinema’s golden era, this is one film that you MUST not be without. It has everything for the perfect Sunday afternoon relax after dinner. ...

CRIPPLE 24.02.2004 · Read full review
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Review of Blithe Spirit (DVD)

Why I, I, I do believe I'm having a flashback, darling!

Advantages: Excellent characters and psychoanalysis
Disadvantages: Drags at parts

...the cinematic exploration of psychoanalysis. Spellbound is described by Hitchcock as being 'just another manhunt story wrapped in pseudo-psychology' but it is so much more than that. Don't let the opening fool you, as it did me, with the first minute or so given away to a brief explanation of exploring psychoanalysis, highlighting this virtues in curing mental illness and reverting the disturbed human mind to reason. I groaned, wondering what I was ...
...However, this means there are no DVD extras to comment upon, nor was there a price, as it was 'free' unless you count the cost of the paper itself! If this piques your interest, then Spellbound is available from amazon.co.uk for £5.48, or slightly cheaper for a second hand copy. ...

pmcds 02.04.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Spellbound (DVD)

A mans life needs at least 1 hour of our time

Advantages: Cleverly worked out
Disadvantages: Not action packed - some might find boring

BEWARE! THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS AND PLOTLINE! THE STORY The story starts with a young man of 18 on trial in court for murder. His life is in the hands of the jury of 12 men. If he is found guilty, he will be executed. All 12 must agree on a verdict. We learn that the boy is accused of killing his father. The father hit the young boy frequently and the prosecution see this as the motive. A witness who lived opposite boy and the father ...
...knife and an old man living below said that he heard the boy shout "I'm gonna kill you" before he heard something fall to the floor above. The old man ran to his door and says that he saw the boy running away. However, the boy says that he was at the cinema during the stabbing and did not return until 3 hours later where upon he was arrested. The men go into a room to decide if the boy is guilty or not. The men decide to take a preliminary vote. ...

rufusredcoat 31.12.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Twelve Angry Men (DVD)