Cinedelica

DVD Review: Ghost Story (1974)

Some years ago, as a small child, I had an unhealthy habit of staying up and watching the late night horror flicks, usually a 30s Hollywood-made Dracula film or some old Hammer re-run, neither of which were particularly frightening even for someone of my tender years. But on one occasion, Stephen Weeks' Ghost Story was the weekend's midnight movie. I didn't sleep for days and the images from it stuck in my mind from that day until...well, until now.

For years, I didn't even know what the movie was called, I just recalled a movie set in the 1920s with a 'scary doll' and an asylum, which happened to be enough to dig it out of Google. Sadly, at the time, the response was pretty much 'not in print', 'lost gem', 'misunderstood' and 'maybe someone should reissue this. Well, someone has - Nucleus Films - as a rather tasty two-disc set that finally does justice to this mid-70s gem.

A 70s British horror, but miles away from the norm. No heaving bosoms, buckets of ketchup or Peter Cushing here. Instead, we get the big-screen equivalent of an M.R. James chiller, which means less gore, but much more suspense and tension than Hammer or Amicus could ever conjure up in 90 minutes of screen time.

Set in 1920s England (although it was actually filmed in 1970s India for some old school authenticity), Ghost Story is the tale of three school 'friends', Mc Faydon (Murray Melvin), Duller (Vivian Mackerell - the real ife 'Withnail' would you believe) and Talbot (Larry Dann), who plan to spend time in a country pile that's been left to Mc Faydon. Although nothing is said initially, Mc Faydon is wary of the place, horrific family folklore has made him suspicious of what might be there. Duller (the toff with a keen interest in ghosts) and Talbot (quite obviously the class 'oik') are the perfect companions. If they don't see anything, there's quite simply nothing there.

But there is something there. A fairly unassuming vintage doll that's discovered found by Talbot. Or did the doll find him? Either way, the doll is a gateway to another world, to the Victorian era and the world of a young girl (played by Marianne Faithfull) and her domineering brother. Talbot is dragged into their past, seeing how the brother, after what we presume was some kind of illicit affair, has her consigned to a nearby asylum. Later visitis show how her condition deteriorates and eventually, how the girl is 'rescued' from the asylum by one of the household's staff (Penelope Keith in an early role). But once the doors are open, horrific consequences follow.

As I said earlier, this isn't your average 70s horror. As the title says, this is a 'Ghost Story', slowly building both tension and plot before unleashing quite a powerful (and unexpected) finale. The three male leads are superb as individuals thrown together, the supporting cast equally so, not least Anthony Bate as corrupt Asylum owner Dr Borden and horror regular Barbara Shelley as his assistant and matron. The asylum inmates are something to behold too - according to the documentary that accompanies the movie, all were pulled from a nearby hippy commune! A top-notch soundtrack doesn't do it any harm either, courtesy of Pink Floyd collaborator Ron Geesin.

Like all the best suspense flicks, Ghost Story also leaves as many questions unanswered as answered. What becomes of all the main characters? Why are some of the faces from the past living in the present? What happens to the doll? And will the scenario presented in the film repeat itself forever? That's all for your own mind to play out in the hours and days after.

I've been looking forward to seeing this movie again for years and thankfully, I'm not disappointed. Nucleus has done a superb job with its two-disc collector's edition, offering up a restored copy of the movie, an all-new documentary that revisits the director and surviving cast members, an audio commentary, seven previously unseen shorts from the director (including the previously unseen, Tigon-produced 1917), PDF files and...well you'll just have to buy it to get the full lowdown. And in my view, that's exactly what any fan of British suspense or horror should do right now.

Great film, great package, well worth seeking out.

Find out more at the Amazon website

Journey To The Unknown (1968/1969)

I’m sure everyone reading this article has a mental list of favourite TV shows they can return to time and time again, and enjoy just as they did when they first saw them. The easy availability of whole TV series on DVD (a rarity on VHS tape, unless they were wildly successful) or on the many digital, cable or satellite channels means that we can see them all over again. But there are some that never seem to be given an airing by any of the TV channels, that have not appeared on any recorded medium and which we fear may have been victims of the Grim Wiper. I thought that Journey To The Unknown may have fallen prey to the latter, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it was already in the first two. I am delighted to report that I was wrong.

‘JTTU’ was a tense, mysterious show that had a different story to tell each episode, usually about ordinary people who stray into an extraordinary situation or meet a very unusual person. The ‘Unknown’ referred to in the title was the human mind, and its reactions to these strange experiences. Made by our friends at Hammer, and shot on film in the late 60’s, its British locations and actors, with the star role going to an American actor each time, ensure it will be of great interest to lovers of that delirious decade.

To digress a little, being shot on film probably helped its survival, and isn’t it curious how the most flimsy and risk-prone recording medium of all has managed to preserve so much, whereas its distant cousin, videotape, has had much of its contents wiped and replaced by lesser stuff?

Over the last few years, I have been feeding the title of this show into my search engine, usually to little response. Recently, a search turned up a few addresses offering the entire series on DVD for a bewildering range of prices. They all stressed that this show has gone Public Domain and so no-one’s copyright is being infringed by bringing out a DVD copy for those who have tried and failed to bit-stream directly from the databank. I sent off a very reasonable few pounds and duly received my disk. OK, the picture’s ropey. It’s like looking through lightly faceted glass, the colours are s little washed out and the sound is low. Just like many moving images off the internet, unless your pc has the latest drivers and a memory the size of the US Defence Dept. computer. Put all of those petty gripes aside, like I did, and just enjoy this fabulous show.

If you’re familiar with shows like The Twilight Zone and Night Gallery, you’re thinking in the right area. The first story, ‘Eve’, concerns a young man working in a department store (Dennis Waterman) who falls in love with a store manikin whom he believes is real. With this manikin being played by the gorgeous Carole Lynley, it’s easy to understand his preference for her over his uncouth, mouthy female workmates. Needless to say, the affair is doomed, but not before a lot of touching scenes, played with great subtlety, keep us interested in this outrageous conceit.

‘Jane Brown’s Body’ has everyone’s favourite UNCLE Girl, Stephanie Powers, waking up with no memory of her life so far. A psychologist takes on the task of re-educating her, in what I feel can only be a tribute to the classic German (true!) tale, ‘The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser.’

Those of you with a taste for Victorian tack will be amused by ‘The Indian Spirit Guide’, a tale of fake mediums and table-turning to extract money from the gullible.

There is the truly disturbing ‘Miss Belle’, the story of a young boy who has been brought up by a relative to believe he is a girl. The arrival of an obligatory pool-cleaner at the palatial Southern Gothic home of the boy means trouble, as we see the sexually frustrated guardian realising she cannot keep her ward’s true gender a secret for much longer.

‘Paper Dolls’ is another one to raise the hairs on the back of your neck, ‘Midwych Cuckoos’-style. Sets of adopted children begin to show a curious character trait-everything one learns, the others learn too, and they speak of brothers and sisters their adopted parents didn’t know they had. Cue the Bad Seed, a boy who can control his siblings and inspire them to acts of defiance.

It is ‘The New People’, however, that really takes the prize for making you feel queasy as you watch. An American couple move to a beautiful English country village, determined that they fit in with the locals. They get invited to parties and generally enjoy the surprisingly lively and swinging set they have fallen upon. However, there is one man who stands out as a leader, and the costume parties and hunt balls our friendly US couple are initially pleased to attend take on a sinister edge. Masterly acting by Patrick Allen as the Aleister Crowley-like leader figure, and solid support from the sympathetic character played by Milo O’Shea, raises this episode, in my view, to a classic. Reminiscent of ‘Masque Of The Red Death’ and ‘Rosemary’s Baby’, it has to be seen!

‘One Man On An Island’ is a little too like a hastily drawn Horror Comic cartoon to be of much interest, but all is made up for in the magnificent ‘Matakitas Is Coming’. Starring one of my favourite actresses of the period, Gay Hamilton, who plays a librarian in what must be the darkest, creepiest library in the country. A journalist is researching, when she comes across a tale of a murderer who stalked his victims only yards away from the very building she’s in! This lonely place gradually becomes ever more uncomfortable, and she also begins to notice that her surroundings appear to have changed; reverted to an earlier time period. Attempts to call her editor on the telephone meet with failure, as the number and district she is trying to call do not (yet) exist. The brooding atmosphere is cranked up to terrifying effect, at the approach of Matakitas, back with murderous intent. Your next trip to your local library may be a short one!

The compelling ‘Somewhere In A Crowd’ is another high spot of the series, and once again stars a favourite of mine, the lovely Jane Asher. A TV news journalist, initially pleased to be on the scene of a series of newsworthy accidents, starts to notice that a certain set of people always appear to be present, close to the action. Trawling through the day’s film rushes confirms him in his belief that there is some sort of conspiracy going on, but no-one seems to share his view or concerns. Not even meeting a beautiful young woman fails to take his mind off these mysterious heralds of doom, and I could not be so cruel as to tell you how it ends.

For title alone, ‘The Beckoning Fair One’ deserves some sort of medal, and in a story that may owe a little to the classic ‘Rebecca’, we find that the influence of a late wife lingers on long after her death, in a painting of the lady.

‘Poor Butterfly’ is an unmemorable ‘ghosts at a sophisticated party’ story, but ‘Stranger In The Family’ more than makes up for it, with its claustrophobic tale of a young man who can command others to do his bidding. The South Bank setting, the well-meant but misguided attempts by his parents to keep him away from normal society, and his exploitation by a theatrical promoter and his female accomplice make this a must-see. The boy’s lack of experience with girls make him an easy target, and it is with very mixed emotions that you see the promoter getting his unwilling accomplice to play along with the boy’s adolescent crush on her. The disk I bought also contains three episodes of a series called ‘Out Of The Unknown’ one of which is another version of this story, brilliantly done. Sadly, this is probably all there is of ‘OOTU’; read the full sad story in Dick Fiddy’s excellent’ Missing Believed Wiped’.

The obsessive ‘technofear’ that was such a strong feature of cinema in the 1970’s gets an early outing in ‘The Madison Equation’, where a computer is used as both murder weapon and alibi provider.

‘The Killing Bottle’ is a classic tale of those who set themselves up as judges of their fellow man, and the abuse of power that often follows.

A good black comedy was obviously called for at this point., and ‘Do Me A Favour, Kill Me’ doesn’t disappoint. Few of us would arrange our own murder to get away from worldly problems, but that’s just what our flawed hero does, and then changes his mind. Not allowed.

‘Girl Of My Dreams’ has Zena Skinner playing a frumpy middle-aged waitress who dreams the future. Enter another scheming entrepreneur, determined to capitalise on her talent, promising her love and companionship in return. The sensitive playing of this gifted but lonely woman will have you wishing a very painful demise on her despicable exploiter. The episode is also notable for having a short role for Justine Lord, a frequent guest on ITC shows and one who needs no introduction at all to fans of ‘The Prisoner’

‘The Last Visitor’ will keep you away from boarding houses in general, particularly out of season, and is that a Brighton location we see?

All of which is a very longhand way of saying that after forty years, I have finally got to see my favourite off-kilter sci-fi/paranormal TV series again, and I can report that its power to keep me glued to my set is undiminished. Difficult it is to imagine a present day production company making anything as subversive as ‘Miss Belle’ (or being allowed to). This show, and many like it, were made in a time when there was, to be fair, much more money available to produce a quality product. However, ‘JTTU’ is not a multi-million dollar production; set work was limited, location shooting was the norm, and the ‘stars’ were usually stars later on, not at the time. The writing was usually superb, and the acting on the button; the time capsule that these episodes represent make them a gold mine to 60’s nuts like me; the everyday clothes worn by the characters are research material, to say nothing of the beautiful colour schemes in people’s homes and the cool, popular cars they drive.

The series was also remarkable for having each episode directed by Joan Harrison, who was, I’m told, the only female director working at this time.

I’ll admit that I would have preferred to see a good, clear picture transfer onto DVD, or better still, an airing on, say, ITV2 or BBC4, but let’s face it, it probably won’t happen. At least they can’t argue ‘there’s no market for old black and white TV shows’, because this one’s in full colour. Its Public Domain status will probably keep it off our screens for ever, except perhaps the National Film Theatre (can you hear me, friends?).

If this has whetted your appetite, then do track it down, but don’t pay some of the extortionate prices being asked by some denizens of the internet, who have sourced it from exactly the same place as my vendor, and with similar picture quality. I paid just £7, and I count it as the bargain of the century.

Lastly, if anyone reading this article recalls seeing it available on VHS/BETA/NTSC or whatever, or saw a repeat on TV, wherever in the world, please would you write and tell us all about it? Thanks in advance.

The Scenester

The Flipside Presents... Witchcraft Night at the NFT

Apologies for the poor picture, a lack of stills is an indication of how rare the movies showing at The Flipside Presents... Witchcraft Night at the NFT really are.

The date is Saturday 31st October from 18:20 at NFT1 at the BFI Southbank, the movies on show being:

Secret Rites (1971)
Don’t miss this ultra rare witchcraft documentary by notorious British exploitation veteran Derek Ford. Hairdresser Penny is curious about paganism and meets Alex Saunders, the infamous ‘King of Witches’, for a pint at her local. She is soon initiated – undergoing the mysterious rites of the First Degree – and attends a pagan wedding, complete with groovy post-ceremony ‘free expressive dance’. Saunders, dressed as Anubis, then leads his circle in the climatic Egyptian Rites of Ra. Obscure prog band The Spindle provide the evocative and intense soundtrack to this quirky but respectful film.

Out of Step - Witchcraft (1957)
Controversial founders of modern Wicca, Margaret Murray and Gerald Gardner, make rare appearances here to provide candid, outspoken answers to the question: is witchcraft just glorified nudism?

24 Hours: Witches (1970)
Revealing footage of Alex and Maxine Saunders and their coven as they perform a ritual in a woodland at midnight - licking fire and dancing naked. The self-styled King of Witches says he’s not like other men. We think you’ll agree.

Find out more and get tickets at the BFI website

Can You Dig It? Black Action Films 1969-1975

Soul Jazz is always worth keeping an eye on for some interesting tunes, but movie fans are getting in on the act with Can You Dig It? Black Action Films 1969-1975, which is out today.

Available as a two CD set or limited edition double album set, it charts the rise of black action flicks from the late 60s onwards, throwing in a 100-page booklet, a limited-edition mini-film poster, cards and stickers. There's some very cool soul and funk on-board too, from the likes of James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Willie Hutch and Roy Ayers, helped along by some big arrangement from Quincy Jones, Johnny Pate and JJ Johnson.

Want to see the tracklisting? Check it out over the page. or buy via Amazon now for £9.88. The two vinyl releases are available from Soul Jazz itself, more details here.

Find out more at the Amazon website

TRACKLISTING:

CD1/LPVol.1
1. Roy Ayers – Coffy (Coffy)
2. Gene Page – Blacula (Blacula)
3. Johnny Pate - Shaft in Africa (Addis) (Shaft in Africa)
4. Willie Hutch - Brothers Gonna Work It Out (The Mack)
5. Don Costa - Soul of Nigger Charley (Soul of Nigger Charley)
6. Marvin Gaye - T Plays it Cool (Troubleman)
7. Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street (Across 110th Street)
8. J.J. Johnson – Willie’s Chase (Willie Dynamite)
9. James Brown - Down and Out In New York City (Black Caeser)
10. Quincy Jones – They Call Me Mister Tibbs (They Call Me Mister Tibbs)
11. JJ Johnson - Keep on Movin On (Willie Dynamite)
12. Dennis Coffy - Black Belt Jones (Black belt Jones)
13. Curtis Mayfield - Freddie's Dead (Super Fly)
14. Blackbyrd's - Wilford's Gone (Cornbread, Earl and Me)
15. Willie Hutch - Foxy Brown (Foxy Brown)
16. Isaac Hayes - Run Fay Run (Three Tough Guys)

CD2/LPVol.2
1. Isaac Hayes – Shaft (Shaft)
2. Joe Simon - Theme from Cleopatra Jones (Cleopatra Jones)
3. Roy Ayers – Aragon (Coffy)
4. Gordon Staples - All Strung Out (Mean Johnny Burrows)
5. Brer Soul & Earth, Wind and Fire - Sweetback's Theme (Sweet Sweetback)
6. Johnny Pate - Truck Stop (Shaft In Africa)
7. James Brown - Make It Good to Yourself (Black Caeser)
8. Isaac Hayes - Pursuit of the Pimpmobile (Shaft in Africa)
9. Edwin Starr – Easin’ In (Hell Up In Harlem)
10. Don Julian - Lay it On Your Head (Savage)
11. Gene Page - The Bus (Cool Breeze)
12. Grant Green - Travelling to get Doc (The Final Comedown)
13. Impressions - Make A Resolution (Three The Hard Way)
14. Nat Dove and the Devils - Zombie March (Petey Wheatstraw)
15. Booker T and MG's - Time Is Tight (Uptight!)

Win The Avengers Series One and Two DVD boxset

As we reported earlier, not everything has survived, but the remaining episodes of the first series of The Avengers, along with the second series, have been reissued on an eight-disc DVD boxset, courtesy of Optimum - and we have one of these superb boxes to give away.

Just two and a half first series episodes survive, but thankfully all of series 2 is still around, all fully restored (for the first time) and of course with Patrick Macnee playing Steed, Honor Blackman doing the partner thing as Catherine/Cathy Gale. The entire eight-disc set has a running time of 1,520 minutes, augmented by extras including a 132-page book covering series one, a series one scrapbook, scripts, materials, stills, promotional brochures, audio commentaries and an Honor Blackman interview - most of that new for this release.

It's available from this week (5th October 2009) and priced around £79.99, but if you want one for nothing, we have a box to give away. Just follow the link to the competiton page on our Modculture site.

Enter The Avengers DVD boxset competition at Modculture

DVD Review: Awaydays (2009)

Awaydays was one of those books that became a huge cult hit in the late 90s, primarily via word of mouth and through people who don't usually read (if you know what I mean). The movie version (by all accounts) has been in the offing more or less since the book launched, but didn't really get the go-ahead until Control made its mark at the box office. So was it worth the wait? Well, yes it was, with one or two reservations.

if you haven't read the book (why not?), Awaydays isn't the 'footie thug fiction' you might be expecting. Yes, football violence is at the centre of Awaydays' universe, but it's about much more than that. Set in the pivotal year of 1979 (the year of the Conservatives return to power, the tail-end of punk, the dawn of post punk, the arrival of the mod revival, the arrival of the casual etc etc), it covers football, gang culture, music, relationships and quite simply, growing up in a working class town, specifically on Merseyside - and specifically focusing on a young lad called (Paul) Carty.

Carty is an outsider. He's well-educated and he's hip to new music, but he's retreated into himself after the death of his mother. He wants to feel part of something and at Tranmere Rovers' Prenton Park he sees 'The Pack', a group of hooligans at the cutting edge of casual fashion. He wants to be one of them, he wants to dress like them - and he wants the thrill of battling on a Saturday afternoon.

He finds the way in via Elvis, the one member of the gang with a mind of his own - and when they meet at legendary music club Eric's, these opposites are attracted by a love of all that's cool in music. Carty wants in with the pack just as much as Elvis wants out, but eventually, Elvis relents and gives Carty what he wants. It's the beginning of the end of their friendship - as the thrills of the Saturday afternoon battles break the bond between Carty and Elvis.

It's always hard to judge a film against a book, because, let's be honest, 105 minutes of big screen action is hardly going to replicate any novel worth its salt in exact detail. Awaydays is no exception. Thankfully, the screenplay is the work of Kevin Sampson, so we get most of the main themes, even if we don't quite get enough of the characters and background behind them.

But what we do get is some superb period detail (it really could be '79), detail in terms of the clobber, detail in terms of the music (the slightly obscure post punk soundtrack is superb) and some decent performances from Nicky Bell as Carty, Stephen Graham as 'elderly' Pack leader John Godden and especially Liam Boyle as the sexually and morally ambiguous Elvis. A more hip screen character you'll struggle to find all year. If you're a fan of a big-screen punch-up, you'll probably enjoy the vicious footie scuffles too, soundtracked immaculately of course.

On the downside, there isn't enough of the music side of things for me, Carty doesn't really have the 'swagger' of the book version and for that matter, we don't really get the 'class' difference between art school drop out Carty and the Pack that's such a big part of the novel. The Pack itself is a bit faceless too - we don't have any insight into where they came from, who Godden is and why 'Baby' hates him so much. More questions than answers you might say.

All of which takes it down a couple of notches, but not enough to stop me recommending it. If you have an interest in any of the key reference points of Awaydays, you'll enjoy it - and you'll probably go and dig out some early Ultravox (John Foxx-era) or Echo and the Bunnymen the day after. The DVD has some tasty extras too, with some background to both the movie and the culture. But if you want real background, read the book too - that's a bona fide classic.

Find out more at the Amazon website

The Avengers series one and two get new DVD reissue

Sadly, not everything has survived, but the remaining episodes of the first series of The Avengers, along with the second series, are about to get a DVD reissue, courtesy of Optimum.

Just two and a half first series episodes survive, but thankfully all of series 2 is still around, all fully restored (for the first time) and of course with Patrick Macnee playing Steed, Honor Blackman doing the partner thing as Catherine/Cathy Gale. The entire eight-disc set has a running time of 1,520 minutes, augmented by extras including a 132-page book covering series one, a series one scrapbook, scripts, materials, stills, promotional brochures, audio commentaries and an Honor Blackman interview - most of that new for this release.

Look out for this from 5th October 2009, priced 'officially' at £79.99, but certain to be discounted in the Christmas run-up (it's already around £57 on Amazon for pre-order).

Find out more at the Amazon website

United Kingdom! Radical Television Drama Before and During Thatcher at the NFT

We're huge fans of gritty British TV and drama, so United Kingdom! Radical Television Drama Before and During Thatcher at the NFT sounds right up our street.

The season examines the changes in 'radical' drama from the 60s to the 80s, with part one featuring the classic Up the Junction (a rare showing anywhere), early productions of the 60s by Ken Loach, Tony Garnett, and Dennis Potter, not to mention key dramas of the 70s and 80s plus events and Q&As alongside the screenings.

It all takes places through November - full listing over the page.

BFI website

Events:

Panel Disscussion & Q&A: TV Sold to the Highest Bidder - Thatcher’s Television Revolution. 75 min
In the 80s the BBC was accused of left wing bias and the licence fee itself was questioned, whilst ITV saw its whole franchise system change. An eminent panel working in broadcasting at that critical time – Michael Grade, Exec Chairman ITV; Alasdair Milne, Former DG BBC TV; Tony Garnett, Producer; David Rose, former Head of Drama BBC Birmingham – examine the impact of Thatcherism on the TV industry and radical drama in particular. Chairperson Raymond Snoddy.
Wed 18 Nov 20:45 NFT1

John Hill: From The Big Flame to Leeds United!
In this illustrated lecture, film and television historian John Hill (from Royal Holloway, University of London) will consider how television drama responded to the industrial conflicts of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Drawing on programme clips, Hill will discuss how these two productions promoted a radical political perspective, provoked controversy and proved a headache for the establishment.
Thu 19 Nov 18:30 Studio
This lecture will be followed by a repeat screening of The Big Flame at 20:45 NFT2

Screenings:

Double Bill:
Diary of a Young Man Ep 1. Survival or they came to a City, BBC 1964
Director Ken Loach. With Victor Henry, Richard Moore, Nerys Hughes. 42 min
A Brechtian style fable of two lads who arrive to seek their fortune in London. Stylistically advanced - using a mix of stills, dream sequences and freeze frames - this script by Troy Kennedy Martin & John McGrath exploits humour to get its message across, proving “radical” can also be funny.
+
The Wednesday Play: Up the Junction BBC 1965.
Dir Ken Loach. With Geraldine Sherman, Carol White, Michael Standing. 75 min.
A warm, human but controversial drama about the grim realities facing young people living near Clapham Junction station in South West London, and one of the few plays from the period written by a woman, Nell Dunn.
Wed 4 Nov 18:20 NFT2

The Wednesday Play: The Big Flame BBC 1969.
Dir Ken Loach. With Norman Rossington, Godfrey Quigley, Peter Kerrigan. 85 min.
This gripping drama follows striking dockers as they take on their bosses, their union and the government to stage a worker takeover of the Liverpool docks. Filmed on location in a drama-documentary style, this is one of the definitive collaborations between Loach, producer Tony Garnett and writer Jim Allen.
+
On stage & Q&A with producer Tony Garnett.

Wed 4 Nov 20:40 NFT2

Double Bill:
The Wednesday Play: Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton BBC 1965.
Dir Gareth Davies. With Keith Barron, Valerie Gearon, John Bailey. 75 min.
Dennis Potter’s swinging attack on the party political system has his eponymous anti-hero stand as a Labour candidate in a parliamentary by-election in this follow up to Stand Up, Nigel Barton.
+
Play for Today: All Good Men , BBC 1973
Director Michael Lindsay-Hogg. With Bill Fraser, Ronald Pickup, Jack Shepherd, Francis de la Tour. 63min
When a TV producer arrives at the home of a Labour Lord, old family wounds are opened and his own son betrays him. A blistering polemic on the left/right socialist struggle; only writer Trevor Griffiths could sustain the argument with such dramatic intensity.
Sun 8 Nov 16:00 NFT2

Play for Today: Leeds – United! BBC 1974.
Dir Roy Battersby. With Lynne Perrie, Elizabeth Spriggs, Bert Gaunt. 117 min.
This compelling drama charts the fight of women clothing workers in Leeds for better pay in 1970. Shot on location as a fine example of social realism, it portrays a strong community of women in a bitter struggle with their bosses and union leaders.
+
On stage discussion & Q&A with producer Kenith Trodd, writer Colin Welland and director Roy Battersby.
Wed 25 Nov 18:20 NFT2

Scum BBC 1977
Director Alan Clarke. With Ray Winstone, David Threlfall, Phil Daniels, Martin Philips. 73min
A devastating critique of the borstal institution, involving scenes of male rape and extreme violence. The BBC banned the original transmission in 1977. Although it went on to be remade as a critically acclaimed film, this original TV version would not be screened on British television until some 14 years later. A truly groundbreaking production in its courageous refusal to compromise on the issues at stake.
+
On stage discussion & Q&A with Producer Margaret Matheson & Writer Roy Minton
Fri 13 Nov 18:20 NFT2

Play for Today: Bloody Kids BBC/Blacklion Films 1980
Director Stephen Poliakoff. With Derrick O'Connor, Gary Holton, Richard Thomas, Peter Clark. 88min
When a dysfunctional child's fantasy, to fake being stabbed by his best friend, is put into action both kids are enveloped in a nightmare and things spin rapidly out of control. Poliakoff creates a disturbing world of disaffected youth prowling the night time streets where reality is skewed to heighten the psychological impact. A dreamlike state that permeates much of his work since and which was perfectly suited to the sense of alienation being expressed in the early 80s.
Mon 16 Nov 20:40 NFT2

Play for Today: The Black Stuff BBC 1980
Director Jim Goddard. With Bernard Hill, Michael Angelis,Tom Georgeson, Alan Igbon. 100min
Bleasdale's play graphically illustrated the reality for a group of men struggling to keep their head above water. Through their comradeship and humour we come to care about these characters and in Yossa, Bleasdale created an Everyman figure whose desire simply to make something of himself and “be noticed” is profoundly moving. The play was to spawn the hugely influential series Boys from the Blackstuff, that touched something deep in the collective psyche.
Wed 18 Nov 18:20 NFT1

Play for Today: United Kingdom BBC 1981.
Dir Roland Joffé. With Val McLane, Ricky Tomlinson, Peter Kerrigan, Colin Welland. 125 min.
Prescient drama about a left-wing council being removed from office for overspending on public services and heading on a violent collision course with an authoritarian chief constable. Powerful central performances and a challenging script from self-confessed Trotskyite Jim Allen make for strong politics and gripping viewing.
+
On stage discussion & Q&A with producer Kenith Trodd.
Sun 29 Nov 16:00 NFT2

Double Bill:
Oi For England Central TV 1982
Director Tony Smith. With Neil Pearson, Adam Kotz, Richard Platt, Ian Mercer. 54min
Trevor Griffiths play tackles a disintegrating Britain, the opportunism of the BNP and the alienation felt by young white working class males. Four lads seek to escape their dead end lives through punk music, but when offered their first break by a mysterious man is the political price too high to pay?
+
Made In Britain Central TV 1983
Director Alan Clarke. With Tim Roth, Terry Richards, Bill Stewart, Eric Richard (73min)
This Prix Italia winning production, written by David Leyland, saw Tim Roth give a coruscating performance as Trevor, the disaffected skinhead for whom authority of any kind means nothing. Unnerving in its intensity, Roth charts Trevor's self destruction with an uncanny sense of reality.
Thu 26 Nov 20:40 NFT2

Of Dreams and Cities - Architecture and Film at the BFI

To mark the 175th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the BFI will in November 2009 present Of Dreams and Cities - Architecture and Film at BFI Southbank and in the BFI Mediatheques at BFI Southbank, QUAD in Derby and the new Cambridge Central Library.

Essentially, this is cinema where the architecture is as key as the stars, including gems like The Fountainhead (1948), Murnau’s Sunrise (1927), Manhattan (1921), Jacques Tati’s Playtime (1967) and the classic Citizen Kane (1941), along with lesser-known works and TV documentaries from the BFI National Archive.

Want the full season? See over the page.

EVENTS

From Chartres to Xanadu (via Citizen Kane)
Throughout his illustrious career, Orson Welles made highly imaginative use of buildings and sets as a means of enriching not only the moods but the meanings of his films. As part of our ‘Of Dreams and Cities…’ season, and tying in with our re-release of Citizen Kane, Geoff Andrew, Head of Film Programme at BFI Southbank, will give an illustrated talk that explores Welles’ use of architecture as a fertile source of cinematic metaphor in all his work, but with special reference to Citizen Kane.
Mon 2 Nov 18:30 NFT3 Tickets £5

A Convenient Truth followed by RIBA Panel Discussion
USA 2006. Giovanni Baz del Bello. 52min. EST
For 40 years the city of Curitiba has transformed problems into solutions. This inspirational documentary shares ideas for cost effective environmental changes in cities worldwide based on the
Curitiba model that has transformed the city into one of the world’s most liveable urban spaces. Following the screening we welcome Jaime Lerner, urban planner and three-times mayor of Curitiba and (hopefully) the film’s makers into a discussion hosted by Peter Jenkinson OBE of CrunchLab.
Wed 4 Nov 18:30 NFT1

RIBA Building Futures ‘This House Believes We Have Lost Sight of the Future.’
Directors have the art of visualising the future nailed. Film can instantly make the utopian tangible, but why has the popular future become such an unobtainable place? Architects once aligned themselves with the future, fusing their visions to political ideals and ambitions for a bolder tomorrow, but where is our contemporary vision coming from? RIBA Building Futures with WIRED magazine host a multidisciplinary evening fusing film, architecture and debate to reveal our ambitions for tomorrow.
Tue 17 Nov 18:30 NFT1 Tickets £5

SCREENINGS FILM SEASON | OF DREAMS AND CITIES

Los Angeles Plays Itself
USA 2003. Dir Thom Andersen. 169min.Video
A riveting and hugely enjoyable documentary created from scores of clips from fictional films shot and set in Los Angeles, from which Anderson hopes to find and resurrect the real city. Anderson’s own rueful voiceover guides us through this cinematic archaeology in two parts: The City as Background and the City as Subject. Sections on the lost Bunker Hill neighbourhood resonate with contemporary regeneration schemes.
Fri 6 Nov 19:50 Studio, Sat 7 Nov 15:00 Studio, Sun 8 Nov 14:50 Studio

A Convenient Truth: Urban Solutions from Curitiba, Brazil
USA 2006. Giovanni Vaz del Bello. 52min.EST
For 40 years the city of Curitiba has demonstrated how to transform problems into solutions. This inspirational documentary shares ideas for cost-effective environmental changes in cities worldwide based on Curitiba’s model, and the transformation of the city into one of the world’s most liveable urban spaces.
+
Twelve Views of Kensal House
UK 1984 Peter Wyeth. 55min
Biography of West London’s 1936 model estate, echoing the work of Le Corbusier and the Bauhaus in Europe.
Sun 8 Nov 20:30 NFT2

My Winnipeg
Canada 2008. Dir Guy Maddin. With Ann C Savage, Louis Negin, Amy Stewart, Darcy Fehr, Brendan Cade. 80min.12A
Memories and reflections mingle with regret in Maddin’s “docu-fantasia” about his Canadian prairie hometown. What spell does a hometown cast over the grown-up child? Maddin mixes animation,
archive footage and recreated scenes of childhood trauma in his usual neo-Soviet style in an attempt to break free.
+
The Fugitive Futurist: A Q-Riosity by “Q”
1924. Dir Gaston Quiribet. 10min
Futuristic London by way of a ‘magic’ camera that can see beyond the limits of ordinary life.
Fri 30 Oct 18:40 NFT3, Sat 31 Oct 16:30 NFT2

L’Eclisse
Italy 1962. Dir Michelangelo Antonioni. With Alain Delon, Monica Vitti, Francisco Rabal, Lilla Brignone. 123min. EST. PG
Using magnificent shots of Rome and its 1950s suburbs initially developed for the Esposizione Universale di Roma (EUR) as a backdrop for a couple’s doomed affair, L’eclisse completes Michelangelo Antonioni’s film trilogy (started with L’avventura and La Notte) reaching the apotheosis of his modernist style, returning to his favourite themes: individual and societal alienation and the difficulty of finding connections in an increasingly mechanized world.
Thu 12 Nov 18:00 NFT2, Sun 15 Nov 20:30 NFT3

Sketches of Frank Gehry
USA 2005. Dir Sidney Pollack. 84min. 12A
This examination of the life and career of architect Frank Gehry engenders an emotional narrative in conversations between Gehry and Pollack, and provides an insight into the world of the architect through the rediscovery of early experiences, the potential of new technologies, experimenting on his own home, and bringing an artist and sculptor’s sensibility to architecture.
+
Manhatta
USA 1921. Dir Paul Strand. 7min
The poetry of everyday life in New York City of 1921.
Sat 14 Nov 18:10 NFT2, Tue 17 Nov 14:00 NFT2*, Sat 21 Nov 20:45 NFT. *Seniors’ Matinee

The Belly of an Architect
UK 1987. Dir Peter Greenaway. With Brian Dennehy, Chloe Webb, Lamber Wilson, Sergio Fantoni. 118min. 15
American architect Stourley Kracklite arrives in Italy to supervise an exhibition for a French architect, Boullée. Over nine months he becomes obsessed with his belly, suffers stomach pains, and loses his wife, exhibition, his unborn child and his own life. Through metaphors of pregnancy and architecture, Greenaway constructs a poetic visual narrative of Rome that contrasts with the physical and mental
decay of the creative individual.
Sun 15 Nov 18:10 NFT3, Wed 18 Nov 20:40 NFT2*. *Introduced by Ruth Reed, President, RIBA

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans
USA 1927. Dir FW Murnau. With George O’Brien, Janet Gaynor, Margaret Livingston, Bodil Rosing. 94min. U
The seductive city, represented by a murderous vamp, nearly destroys the idyll of two rural innocents. Murnau’s first Hollywood film pairs breathtaking studio artifice with the naturalism of an unbearably touching and luminous Janet Gaynor. Working with the best on the Fox lot (Edward Ulmer, Charles
Rosher, Karl Struss) Murnau offered up a gorgeous, groundbreaking masterpiece of visual, thematic and moral contrasts.
Wed 11 Nov 18:30 NFT, Sun 15 Nov 15:50 NFT2

The Fountainhead
USA 1949. Dir King Vidor. With Gary Cooper, Raymond Massey, Patricia Neal, Kent Smith. 112min. U
Based on Ayn Rand’s 1943 novel expounding her “individualism” philosophy, The Fountainhead uses
architecture as a stage for the struggle between modernity and tradition, with the ambition of humankind winning over doubt and convention. Howard Roark is an idealistic architect who
struggles in obscurity rather than compromise his artistic and personal vision. The film follows his battle to practise modern architecture despite an establishment focused on the worship of tradition.
Tue 17 Nov 20:30 NFT3, Sat 21 Nov 15:40 NFT2

Model Shop
France-USA 1968. Dir Jacques Demy. With Anouk Aimee, Gary Lockwood, Alexandra Hay, Carol Cole, Tome Fielding. 95min.
Filming in English for Columbia, Demy brings a sadder but no wiser Lola to a Los Angeles not usually depicted on screen: drab, enervating, industrial. A ravishing though tired Anouk Aimee works in a tawdry pay-to-photo “model shop” where she meets ’Nam-bound burn out architect Gary Lockwood.
Distances and barriers abound: an alienatingly spread-out Los Angeles, emotional and geographical distance, the model shop cameras. Cult band Spirit play themselves.
Sun 22 Nov 15:50 NFT3, Tue 24 Nov 20:40 NFT2

Of Time and the City
UK 2008. Dir Terence Davies. 72min. Digital. 12A.
The golden moments pass, and leave no trace. Chekhov, Mahler and Peggy Lee underpin a melancholy eulogy for the people and places of a vanished Liverpool by way of a journey into Davies’ past. Davies’ rich narration links archival images with his homosexual self-actualisation, the terrors of Catholicism, his loathing of the Fab Four, the Betty Windsor show, and the heartlessness of post-war planning policy.

Playtime
France 1967.Dir Jacques Tati. with Jacques Tati, Barbara Dennek, Rita Maiden, France Rumilly. 124min. U
The familiar sites of Paris have been replaced by a grey Miesian steel and glass nightmare (not that it bothers Tati’s American tourists). Hulot bumbles through the unfamiliar city, meeting the tourists, and getting caught in a melee at a club. Tati built a giant cityscape set (Tativille) to illustrate the soullessness of modern architecture and modern French life. Playtime bankrupted Tati and effectively ended his career.
Fri 27 Nov 20:30 NFT3, Sun 29 Nov 15:00 NFT1
+
Proud City: A Plan for London
UK 1946. Dir Ralph Keene. 26min. Video
The original LCC project for the replanning and building of London explained by two architects responsible for the plan, Sir Patrick Abercrombie and JH Forshaw.
Thu 19 Nov 14:30 NFT2, Fri 20 Nov 20:50 Studio, Sat 21 Nov 18:40 Studio, Sun 22 Nov 16:20, 18:40 Studio, Tue 24 Nov 20:50 Studio, Wed 25 Nov 20:50 Studio, Thu 26 Nov 20:50 Studio

Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House
USA 1948. Dir HC Potter. Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, Melvyn Douglas, Reginald Denny, Sharyn Moffat. 93min. U
Advertising executive Cary Grant dreams of escaping the cramped city with Myrna Loy and the kids. Led up the garden path by architects, engineers and builders, the titular dream house in the suburbs turns out to be an insanely troublesome money pit. Recently remade with Ice Cube, which proves that the American suburban dream continues to flim flam and trip up the unwary.
+
Architectural Millinery
1954. Dir Sidney Petersen. 10min
Wed 25 Nov 18:00 NFT1, Sat 28 Nov 15:20 NFT1

BFI website

Ghost Story (1974) finally heads to DVD as two-disc Collector's Edition

Many months ago, we ran a 'where's the DVD' feature on Stephen Weeks' Ghost Story from 1974, hoping someone somewhere would finally give this lost gem a DVD release, Well, our prayers have been answered by the excellent Nucleus Films label.

I recall this vividly from my childhood and to be honest, I've never seen it since - but the fear it put into me at that young age isn't easily forgotten. Directed by Stephen Weeks and starring Marianne Faithfull, Ghost Story is set in the 1920s, with three old schoolmates reuniting in a country mansion, haunted by an insane former resident (Faithfull), who transports them back to the horror of her Victorian world. Soundtrack by Pink Floyd collaborator Ron Geesin too, would you believe.

The new DVD version looks every bit as interesting as the movie itself, featuring a 60-minite featurette on the film, seven previously-unseem shorts by Weeks, a 1960s Chelsea Cobbler commercial, audio commentary and theatrical trailer. It lands on 19th October 2009, with Amazon already discounting it to just over £13.

Find out more about the DVD at the Amazon website

The Prisoner allnighter in Central London

How do you fancy watching every episode of the The Prisoner back-to-back on the big screen in high definition? You can if you get yourself down to The Prisoner allnighter.

It's the first time the show will be seen in high-definition and promises to be something special. Taking place at the Prince Charles Cinema, you'll get to see all 17 episodes ahead of the box set release, with the night opened by Prisoner Loudspeaker Announcer Fenella Fielding and closed by an surprise special guest. Each attendee will also receive a 1967 reproduction ITC brochure exclusive to this event and go into the draw for some unique Prisoner merchandise.

What's the catch? Well, to get a ticket, you'll need to pre-order The Prisoner Blu-ray Box Set from Network - the first 125 people that do will get a pair of tickets for the event. As far as we know, tickets aren't available elsewhere. To find out more, check out the Network site.

Network website

BBC Four does film noir

Lovers of film noir will be spoiled for choice this weekend as BBC Four serves up six classic films and a new documentary The Rules of Film Noir (Saturday 22nd, 9pm. Repeated 12.50am and Sunday 23rd, 10.35pm).

Matthew Sweet presents a celebration of the hard-boiled world of noir movie, exploring this classic genre from its earliest days around 1940, through its heyday in the bleak, cynical postwar era, to the dying days of the 1950s, when American audiences wanted a bit more certainty with their entertainment. Writers and academics such as Paul (Taxi Driver) Schrader and The Wire's George Pelecanos outline the rules to which film noir adhered, with clips aplenty from every noir you know (and a few you might not). Want to know about the movies? See over the turn.

Film: Farewell My Lovely (1944) - BBC 4. 7.30pm - 9.00pm
Classic film noir starring Dick Powell and Claire Trevor. Raymond Chandler's famous creation, private eye Philip Marlowe, faces one of his toughest cases when he is hired by an ex-convict to find his former girlfriend.

Film: The Lady From Shanghai (1948) - BBC 4. 10.00pm - 11.25pm
Crime drama starring Rita Hayworth, produced, written and directed by Orson Welles, who also co-stars. When Michael O'Hara is hired by a mysterious couple to work on their yacht, he is persuaded to become involved in a bizarre plan they have devised, and as a result he finds himself accused of murder.

Film: The Big Combo (1955) - BBC 4. 11.25pm - 12.50am
Film Noir starring Cornel Wilde and Richard Conte. Police Lieutenant Diamond is determined to break up a gang, headed by the vicious Brown. Help appears from an unexpected source - Brown's shunned wife.

Film: Force of Evil (1948) - BBC 4. 1.50am - 3.05am
Film Noir with John Garfield. Dark, brooding and cerebral drama from writer/director Abraham Polonsky about two brothers caught up in crime and corruption. An ambitious lawyer in search of materialistic gain begins work for a New York criminal mastermind, who plans to take over New York’s illegal lottery.

Film: Build My Gallows High (1947) - BBC 4. 9.00pm - 10.35pm
Classic Film Noir starring Robert Mitchum, Jane Greer and Kirk Douglas. Former private detective Jeff Bailey finds his violent past catching up with him when he's recognised by a customer at his gas station. The meeting reminds Bailey of the time he was hired to find the girlfriend of a gambler who disappeared with $40,000.

Film: Stranger on the Third Floor (1940) - BBC 4. 11.30pm - 12.35am
Thriller starring Peter Lorre. At a murder trial, testimony by a newspaperman, added to circumstantial evidence, convicts a young man. The reporter then becomes increasingly convinced of the man's innocence, but owing to a bizarre set of circumstances, he too finds himself in the dock.

BBC Four website

DVD Review: All The Right Noises (1969)

Some people like fast-moving Hollywood blockbusters, but me? I love realism, especially when it comes in a 60s or 70s flavour. So I was very much looking forward to reviewing Gerry O'Hara's All The Right Noises, a film that's been off my radar until now, despite starring one of my favourite British actors, Tom Bell.

It's part of the second batch of releases from the BFI and Flipside and on the face of it, is very much the sensationalist flick - man falls for underage girl and has a fling. But unlike Pete Walker's Home Before Midnight, All The Right Noises adopts a more serious, level-headed approach to an accidental affair.

Tom Bell plays 32-year-old Len Lewin, happily-married to Joy (Judy Carne), who has scaled down her acting career to look after their two children, while Len still goes out to work as an electrician - much of that work taking place in the theatre. A chance meeting with one of the actresses, Val (Olivia Hussey) leads to a quick drink in the local pub, then onto Len escorting Val home to the far reaches of the Underground system, then...well, after some playful flirtation, the pair fall head over heels for each other.

So begins an extra-marital affair - Len re-living his youth with his younger girlfriend, then returning home to his home and his flat in Battersea, making 'all the right noises' to is wife, so she suspects nothing. Except it isn't that simple. One day at the theatre, Len notices Val in a school uniform, whereupon she confesses she's just 15 and a half. Rather than running a mile, Len carries on the affair with Val, even heading out on tour with the theatre company 'up north' to be with her. But the double life could be shattered when Val claims she might be pregnant.

it sounds hard going, but in truth, it isn't. Indeed, for such tricky subject matter, it's incredibly light, aided by a folk/pop musings of Melanie in the background no doubt, although some will certainly find it a little slow. That all depends on your taste in movies to be honest - if you want something fairly low key with substance, there's much to admire here.

The sensationalist storyline is only half the tale (if that, to be honest), with O'Hara producing a movie that's packed with layers, probably offering a little more each time you watch it. As one example, check out the difference between Len's married life and his time with Val - it's almost like dark and light. On the one hand, the dull, dependable life in front of the TV, on the other side, a youthful rebirth, falling in love and acting like a teenager all over again. Len's father (Robert Keegan) pops in now and again too, a reminder of what Len's life could become if he throws away his marriage and becomes distant from his children. And by the closing scene, we realise this isn't a story, just a snapshot of three people's lives. We're left to make our own judgements as to where they might go when we leave the scene - or if their lives carry on as if nothing has happened at all.

With all previous Flipside releases, I've tended to recommend wholeheartedly, but All The Right Noises is just a little bit different. If you like the idea of 60s realism with depth, I would say buy this disc. But if you like things a little more fast-moving or sensationalist, you might find it a little too much like hard work. Saying that, there is an added little incentive added to the disc - The Spy's Wife from 1972.

Again starring Tom Bell, it's a bizarre mini-movie that ran in support to Gumshoe around the cinemas, focusing on a spy (Bell), his journey to his next 'job' and what his wife gets up to when he's away. It's got some great period shots of early 70s London, some hip fashions and a nice little storyline. Well worth catching, even if it does leave you wanting more.

If all of that's not enough,there's also a booklet with features and interviews that focus on the movies here, packing the kind of depth we've come to expect from Flipside. Great package overall - if you like the sound of it, get All The Right Noises in your collection.

Find out more at the Amazon website

Network to release The Prisoner The Complete Series on Blu-ray

Invested in a Blu-ray player? Want to feed it something hip and cool? You're in luck - Network is about to release The Prisoner The Complete Series on Blu-ray as a six-disc limited edition box set.

The date for your diary is 28th September 2009, with the set containing all 17 episodes of Patrick McGoohan's 1967 cult classic in glorious high definition, along with a host of special features. Those include 'Don’t Knock Yourself Out' a feature-length documentary of the show told by those involved in its creation, a restored original edit of 'Arrival' with an optional music-only soundtrack featuring Wilfred Josephs’ complete and abandoned score, production Crew audio commentaries on seven episodes, trailers for all episodes, archive textless material, commercial break bumpers, behind-the-Scenes footage including much previously unseen, scripts on pdf, iamge galleries, an exclusive book on the making of the series by TV historian Andrew Pixley, 5.1 sound mixes on all episodes and much more.

The total running time is a whopping 850 minutes and the official price is £59.99 (although Amazon is already discounting to around £42 for pre-orders). Definitely one for the Christmas list.

Find out more at the Amazon website

DVD Review: Man of Violence (aka Moon) 1970

The second wave of BFI/Flipside movie releases is upon us, including this intriguing Pete Walker gangster flick - Man of Violence.

Also known as Moon (after the central character), Man of Violence is a strange, often confusing movie, but one I'm pretty certain anyone with any interest in Brit flicks of the 60s and early 70s will love. Set in a (just) swinging London, Man of Violence is essentially the tale of two warring northern property developers, Sam Bryant (Derek Francis) and Charles Grayson (Maurice Kaufmann). Both hire private eye / gun for hire / man about town Moon to spy on the other, demanding to know what big scheme the other is planning. It's actually the same scheme, something involving gun running, gold and oil rights in a post-revolutionary Arab state, one doing the deal, the other chasing the goods. So who does Moon (Michael Latimer) bat for? Simple - himself, aided by a blonde called Angel (Luan Peters), who has some vague contacts and a lot of knowledge about it all.

Which sets off a typically ridiculous 60s-style crime caper which throws in hard-hitting violence, a good amount of sanitised nudity, some cracking one-liners, a tour of swinging London, a Manchester-based psych band (the bizarrely-named Flossie and the Crunch) and even a jaunt over to north Africa. All of which adds some meat to the bones of a plot that's quite simply a dash to get find and claim some dodgy gold. Who gets there first? The property developers? Moon? The Law? The mysterious Burgess? or someone else? You'll have to watch it to find out, although the ending (without giving anything away) is perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the whole movie.

But don't let that put you off. Man of Violence was Pete Walker's first 'proper' film (with some serious technical people available) and he carries the thing off with some style. Although not half as much style as Moon himself. Moon is never short of a sharp suit, a fast car (Aston Martin DB6 generally) and an attractive girl to fix to his arm. He's also fast with a gun and equally fast at dropping his trousers, whether that's with a female or with a male (the sight of Moon in bed with another man probably gave the censors cold sweats in 1970).

Don't expect a classic, but do expect some great, very un-PC, very British, very 1960s entertainment which never takes itself too seriously. The plot at times seems a little bloated and confusing, the ending disappointing, but if you like the premise of Man of Violence, I'm almost certain you'll love the end product. Lovely transfer too from the original 35mm negative - we are reviewing the DVD, but I suspect the Blu-ray really brings 60s London back to life.

Is that all? Of course not, this is a Flipside release. So aside from the trailers and some very interesting background features (including some words in print from Walker himself), you get another Pete Walker crime flick that pre-dates Man of Violence by a couple of years, The Big Switch from 1968.

A distinctly budget feature, The Big Switch opens with some very interesting shots of London 'back in the day' (Carnaby Street, the Bag O' Nails club, Lord John etc etc), it focuses on man about town John Carter (Sebastian Breaks), a successful ad man who is described by the voiceover as being '30-years-old' and 'too old for this scene'. But his luck is in tonight. He meets a young woman and heads straight back to her place. But after a detour for cigarettes, he finds her dead on the floor and flees. The next day he loses his job without warning, then he's chased for a huge gambling debt. One man (Karl Mendez, played by Derek Aylward) wants to help - and offers Carter a large amount of money to go to Brighton for a 'job'. That job is to disappear, so a gangster can return, plastic surgeons using Carter's face to give the crime boss a new life. Carter needs to escape - but time is running out before 'the Big Switch'.

The plot is excellent (no surprise, it was 'borrowed' from a 1952 noir flick, 'His Kind of Woman'), but a lack of budget and a fairly abrupt end to proceedings limits its overall appeal. Not that's it's worth dismissing completely, far from it. Personally, I loved the period settings, the tension that slowly builds in the early part of the movie and the fairly exciting climax, a shoout-out on Brighton Pier, not to mention some all-too-short footage of 60s beat combo Timebox in the club footage. And remember, this is a bonus feature, so you're effectively getting it free anyway.

Another top-notch release by the BFI and Flipside and for fans of Walker or the era, something of a must-buy. I'm sure there will be a slightly duff Flipside release at some point, but right now, there's thankfully no sign of such a thing on the horizon.

Find out more about the DVD at the Amazon website