Drama > 5 GBP to 10 GBP Drama > D

"And like that... he's gone,"

Advantages: Intelligent plot, especially the ending
Disadvantages: One bad casting decision, Slow paced at times

...blown away. To sum the plot up without giving too much away, a group of assorted criminals (and one ex-criminal) are herded up in connection with a robbery and end up grouping together to do some jobs. The key to this film is perspective and how brilliantly the director manages to manipulate it to create a compelling thriller. The plot is exciting and filled with twists - truly gripping stuff. The final sequence is where the film really reaches it's ...
...deep enough to be believable. The way they react with each other feels natural and they make it all the more enjoyable to watch. After it had finished, I immediately wanted to watch it again. Not because the plot was so complicated that I didn't understand the first time but because it was almost as though the world I had glimpsed the first time had not been enough and I was coming back for more. I also wanted to try and spot the clues which I could ...

SmilingBuddha 19.10.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Usual Suspects (DVD)

The Godfather Part II - an incredible follow-up to the first film

Advantages: Another superb film
Disadvantages: Slow in parts

The Godfather II is the second part of the Godfather trilogy. This film sees Michael in charge of the Corleone family having taken over from his father Vito. Running parallel to Michael's rise to power and reign over his father's mafia empire is the story of Vito first coming to America as a boy from Sicily and his rise through the crime ranks. The arrival on the young Vito in America gives a background to the character portrayed by Marlon Brando. ...
...insistence on family being the most important thing. Watching how he has struggled as an outsider to create his reputation as a man on honour makes you realise that this is a legacy that must be passed on and that 'the family' must stay together. This film goes further than the first in exploring the idea of loyalty to 'the family' and the corrupting influence of power. Michael physically seems old beyond his years and Al Pacino puts in an astounding ...

jesperado77 25.03.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of The Godfather Part II (DVD)

1900

Advantages: just great!
Disadvantages: none

At the end of the 19th century some European scientists and academics saw that the evolution of man was at odds with the evolution of (western) civilization. As living conditions and medical care improved, more and more humans who might have died before passing on their genes were in fact living long enough to bear and raise children. These people then passed on the undesirable traits they possessed to their children, thus perpetuating a bloodline ...
...To sum it up, it was felt that 'inferior people reproduced more rapidly.' The philosophy of eugenics and race hygiene was based on the quest for the perfect, pure race, as represented in classical art. The movement gained a widespread acceptance in the xenophobic, empire-building West, and was rapidly incorporated into governmental policies in Europe and the US. Practically, eugenics could be applied in two ways: negative and positive. Positive eugenics ...

emzily777 02.09.2007 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of 1900 (DVD)

"an actual life would have come with instructions"

Advantages: It's like being a teenager again.
Disadvantages: It's like being a teenager again.

Angela: My parents keep asking how school was. It's like saying, "How was that drive-by shooting?" You don't care how it *was*, you're lucky to get out alive. This quote pretty much sums up the series. I first saw My So-Called Life on TV probably about 10 years ago, they were showing the series an episode a day during a school holiday and I adored it. I then completely forgot about it until while browsing Amazon I spotted they had it on DVD. Onto ...
...better, dilemmas such as "oh my gosh, I have a terrible spot on my chin" and "will he ever kiss me?" are replaced by more serious problems such as teenage alcoholism, runaways and homelessness, issues with sexuality and school violence. Not issues to be taken lightly, but the show remains compulsively watchable and entertaining. Even now at 23, I find I can relate to Angela's life. I too can barely look at her mother without "wanting to stab her ...

bamamo 29.12.2008 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of My So-Called Life - Complete Series (Box Set) (DVD)

Jean De Florette - Part 1

Advantages: Beautiful landscapes, great acting, compelling story
Disadvantages: You have to see the next film to complete the story!

Jean De Florette and Manon Des Sources, both from 1986, are two of the best-loved and most celebrated films in French cinema. They're adapted from the "L'Eau De Collines" books written by Marcel Pagnol, and really it's best to see them as two parts of the same story, rather than as the original film and its sequel. Jean De Florette won a whole heap of Bafta nominations in that year, and strangely it won Best Film overall yet missed out on Best Foreign ...
...owner has other intentions. Jean (played by Gérard Depardieu) has ambitious plans to make a fortune off his land, and in his first year there, he does extremely well by growing vegetables and breeding rabbits, much to the dismay of César and Ugolin. Jean, along with his opera singer wife (played by Elisabeth Depardieu) and their young daughter Manon, seem to enjoy their new life in the country. Sadly for them, the second year doesn't go so well, ...

l-m-n-o-p 23.09.2006 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Jean De Florette (Subtitled) (Wide Screen) (DVD)