We have 3 DVD copies of The Young Victoria give away courtesy of Momentum Pictures.

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée from a script by Julian Fellowes, it chronicles the early years of Queen Victoria (Emily Blunt) and her romance and marriage to Prince Albert (Rupert Friend).

There are also supporting performances from Paul Bettany (as Prime Minister Lord Melbourne) and Miranda Richardson as Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent.

It was produced by Graham King, Martin Scorsese and Sarah, Duchess of York.

Extras include:

• Deleted Scenes
• Making of The Young Victoria
• The Coronation & The Wedding: Behind the scenes look at the production
• Lavish History: Look at the costumes and locations

To stand a chance of winning a copy just answer this question:

Which current film at cinemas stars Emily Blunt alongside Amy Adams?

Just email your answers and postal address to competitions@filmdetail.com

Closing Date: Monday 20th July 2009

The Young Victoria is out on Monday 13th July on DVD from Momentum

> The Young Victoria at the IMDb
> Listen to our interview with Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend about the film
> Find out more about the real Queen Victoria at Wikipedia

Sacha Baron Cohen stepped out of character to appear on Letterman last night to discuss Brüno.

Here he talks about the scene where he interviewed a terrorist and compared Osama Bin Laden to a ‘homeless Santa Claus’.

N.B. There actually is a Craigslist in Beirut, although it may prove tricky to find terrorists on it.

> Official site for Bruno
> My thoughts on the film

If you have been visiting this site over the last couple of weeks you may have noticed that Google has flagged it as being ‘unsafe’ and being ‘harmful to your computer!’

To cut a long story short, someone (possibly) hacked part of my part of my site and infected it with malware which caused Google to flag it as being unsafe.

If you use IE you might have got this warning:

If you were browing in Firefox you would have seen this hysterical warning:

It appeared to be a couple of archive pages from this year that were causing problems although you could be forgiven for thinking from the above warning that I was planning to blow up the entire Internet with help from Russian spammers and Al-Qaeda’s IT department.

The basic deal is that sites like mine can be compromised without owners knowing about it until you get flagged.

It’s a bit of Catch 22 – you don’t know there is a problem until it is pointed out to you and then it takes a while to a) figure out what is wrong, b) fix the problem and c) get Google to see if it is fixed.

For more information just visit www.stopbadware.org (especially this bit) which explains all of this in more detail.

In the meantime I’ve made a few technical changes to the backend of the site and tightened up the security which should mean that in a few days Google will unflag it.

[Photo via Flickr user Stefan]

My site will be undergoing some maintenance tonight (July 7th) whilst I get a few things fixed.

I’ll try and get things back to normal as soon as possible.

Buy Bronson on DVD at Amazon UK

Bronson is a British film about the life of notorious prisoner Charles Bronson (Tom Hardy).

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn it is a striking look at how a man from a respectable family became one of the most notorious prisoners in Britain, persistently causing havoc in the system by staging riots, protests and taking hostages.

Born Michael Peterson and later re-named by his fight promoter in the 1970s – he has spent 34 years of his life in prison, and 28 of those in solitary confinement.

Although on the surface it might seem like another British gangster film, it is actually a very interesting and often darkly funny look at an extraordinary character.

Much of the strength of the film comes from the fact that it eschews the usual biopic route by having Bronson as narrator.

Can we trust him? Probably not, but that is what makes the film interesting as he refuses to blame his background and admits to being a strange kind of fame seeking performer.

Tom Hardy (who actually met with the real life Bronson in prison) gives a remarkable performance in the title role and Refn directs proceedings with considerable style and pace.

Extras on the DVD include:

• Director’s Commentary
• Making-of
• Cast and Crew interviews
• Audio Introduction from Charles Bronson

Bronson is out now on DVD

> Official site
> Bronson at the IMDb
> Buy the DVD at Amazon UK

N.B. This should have been included in my DVD picks this week but slipped through the net. Apologies.

Brüno is a welcome satirical counterblast to the shallow celebrity culture currently engulfing the western world but also another triumph for Sacha Baron Cohen and director Larry Charles.

The first and most important thing about the latest film featuring a character from Da Ali G Show is that it is really funny.

Much of it contains sequences that are not only hilarious but also peppered with an anarchic intelligence that will prompt many to think ‘am I really watching this?’ whilst they laugh out loud.

Forget the shallow hipsters who complained with the mantra that ‘yeah, Borat was OK, but it wasn’t the funniest film ever‘ (which it wasn’t despite being a groundbreaking studio comedy) because Bruno takes the Borat baton and runs further and faster.

If you are unfamiliar with the central character (played by Sacha Baron Cohen), he is a flamboyant gay Austrian fashion journalist, who first appeared in segments on Da Ali G Show.

He often interviews unsuspecting guests about fashion, entertainment, celebrities often making them uncomfortable with his oblivious references to gay sex or the Holocaust.

The arc of this film sees Bruno blacklisted from his usual haunts after causing a major scene at Milan fashion week and then following him as he tries to make it big in the US.

With the help of his sidekick Lutz (Gustaf Hammarsten) he tries to get a pilot together with the help of an agent and interviews all manner of people including Paula Abdul, Harrison Ford and Ron Paul.

There are also some stand out sequences involving Bruno going to the Middle East where he upsets orthodox Jews and Palestinian terrorists; an uncomfortable appearance on a TV chat show where he unveils an adopted African child; an extended attempt to ‘become straight’ with the help of religion, martial arts and the US military and a truly riotous climax involving a cage wrestling match in Arkansas.

It utilizes the techniques used in Borat and Religulous in which various people were contacted and slyly duped into signing release forms before being interviewed.

I suspect that some will think that a lot of the scenes were faked or setup given their outrageous and uncomfortable nature.

Although I wouldn’t doubt that some clever editing has been employed I actually suspect much of it actually happened.

When I spoke with Larry Charles last October he told me how on Borat and Religulous he learned that the irony is that people are dying to speak on camera if you give them a vague outline of what the film is about.

He also stressed the key in a lot of scenes was to keep the cameras running until they were literally shut down.

Bruno seems like the most extreme example yet of this kind of comedy guerilla filmmaking and there were long stretches where I was in awe of Baron Cohen’s ability to keep his character going in the craziest of situations, where arrest or physical harm seemed likely.

It is the underlying and often uncomfortable sense of comic dread
in the various situations that gives the film its raw power and ability to surprise even if it bears many structural and stylistic similarities to Borat.

What makes it a sharper and more audacious film than its predecessor though is its ability to scratch a little deeper.

It gleefully exposes the prejudices of various cultures towards homosexuality but also manages to turn the tables on the vapid cultures of modern-day celebrity and the fashion world.

Previous satires such as Pret-a-Porter (1994) never worked because – aside from being poorly made – the fashion world is arguably beyond parody anyway.

But somehow Charles, Baron Cohen and his team of writers have managed to have their cake and eat it – Bruno is a repellent narcissist who actually mirrors and lampoons the inanities of fashionistas and the wider celebrity culture.

One sequence in which he asks for help in finding which charity is ‘hot’ at the moment seems like a throwaway scene but is more pointed than it may seem on first viewing.

Somehow the character of Bruno feels like the perfect double agent in the age of Paris Hilton, reality TV and celebrity magazines which take themselves more seriously than even they know.

This has been one of the features of an extraordinary marketing campaign which has seen Baron Cohen promote the film in character (a clever move repeated from Borat).

So far it has seen him get a load of publicity by staging a stunt with Eminem at the MTV awards, dress up at various premieres around the globe and engage with fans via some clever social media marketing (including specially branded pages on MeinSpace, Tvitter and Facebuch).

The irony of all this is that the film is likely to be a big mainstream hit, perhaps proof that Bruno is the ultimate comedic double agent: a fake celebrity highlighting the very fakeness of celebrity itself.

> Official site
> Bruno at the IMDb
> Read other reviews of the film at Metacritic

Woody Allen and Russell Crowe were just two of the famous spectators at yesterday’s Wimbledon final which saw Roger Federer beat Andy Roddick in a five set epic.

DVD PICKS

Doubt (Disney): In 2005, John Patrick Shanley wrote the hit play Doubt: A Parable, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play. Now Shanley has directed a film version called Doubt which stars Meryl Streep as Sister Aloysius, the stern principal of a Catholic school in the Bronx during the 1960s, who comes into conflict with a reforming priest named Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman).

A strong supporting cast includes Amy Adams and Viola Davis and although at times it is a little too stagey, the strength of the original play shines through and gives the impressive cast a chance to flex their considerable acting muscles. Although some audiences will be left frustrated by the climax, it is worth remembering that it contains the very crux of the play and is also what gives it a rich and lasting power.

The extras on the DVD and Blu-ray are as follows:

• From Stage to Screen: A discussion with John Patrick Shanley about the history of Doubt, including his inspirations for the story, the acclaim the play’s Broadway run received, the Pulitzer Prize and the process of adapting it for the screen. Joining the conversation are Meryl Streep and Sister Margaret McEntee (a consultant on the film and Shanley’s former teacher).
• Scoring Doubt: Renowned composer Howard Shore discusses his inspiration for the music in the film and his collaboration with both John Patrick Shanley and producer Scott Rudin.
• The Sisters of Charity: Meryl Streep and John Patrick Shanley discuss the interviews that Shanley did before shooting with real nuns to discuss their lives and make sure they would be accurately portrayed in the film.
• Feature Commentary with John Patrick Shanley
• The Cast of Doubt: A conversation with actors Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams and Viola Davis.

The Red Shoes (ITV DVD): Moira Shearer stars as talented young dancer Victoria Page who finds herself torn between Julian Craster (Marius Goring) and Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook).

Directed by Powell and Pressburger, featuring cinematography by the late Jack Cardiff, this is the new digital film restoration that was premiered at this year’s Cannes Classics Film Festival.

It was restored in partnership with UCLA Film & Television Archive in association with The BFI, The Film Foundation, Janus Films and ITV Global Entertainment Ltd. Restoration funding was provided by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, The Film Foundation, and the Louis B. Mayer Foundation.

Features on both editions include:

• Re-mastered film feature
• A Profile of The Red Shoes
• The Ballet of The Red Shoes
• Cannes 09: Martin Scorsese introduction
• Cannes 09: Thelma Schoonmaker
• Behind the scenes gallery
• Theatrical Trailer
• Biographies and photo gallery of cast and crew

Three Monkeys (New Wave Films): Directed by Nuri Bilge Ceylan (who made Uzak (Distant) in 2002 and Climates in 2006) this dark family drama is about a politician (Ercan Kesal) who accidentally kills someone whilst out driving and manages to convince his lowly driver (Yavuz Bingol) to take the wrap.

The plot then thickens whilst the driver is in jail, with his wife (Hatice Aslan) and son (Ahmet Rifat Sungar) getting drawn into the web of deceit.

It screened in competition at Cannes in 2008 to considerable acclaim and Ceylan won Best Director although the limited run at UK cinemas meant DVD will be the place discerning filmgoers will catch it.

Extras include the trailer and an interview with Nuri Bilge Ceylan.

ALSO OUT

Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody (Manga)
Blind Loves (ICA Films)
Doctor Who: The War Games (2 Entertain)
Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts (Drakes Avenue Pictures)
Horse People With Alexandra Tolstoy (2Entertain)
If War Should Come: The GPO Film Unit Collection Volume Three (BFI)
Lola Montes (Second Sight)
Marley & Me (Fox)
Meatball Machine (4Digital Asia)
Panda! Go Panda! (Manga)
Prison Break Season 4 (Fox)
S. Darko (Lionsgate)
Stargate Atlantis Season 5 Volume 5 (Fox)
The Genius of Photography (2Entertain)
The Grocer’s Son (ICA Films)
The Innocent Sleep (Bluebell Films)
The International (Sony)
The Scarlet Tunic (Bluebell Films)
The Sky at Night – Apollo 11 – A Night to Remember (Acorn Media)
Viva (Nouveaux Pictures)
Watching the Detectives (Momentum Pictures)

> Browse more DVD Releases at Amazon UK and Play
> Check the latest DVD prices at DVD Price Check
> Take a look at the current UK cinema releases (W/C Friday 3rd July)

In honour of Independence Day (July 4th) here are a few relevant clips from film and TV.

The drafting of the declaration of independence in the HBO series John Adams, which sees Thomas Jefferson (Stephen Dillane), Benjamin Franklin (Tom Wilkinson) and Adams (Paul Giamatti) read through the original draft.

From the same series this is the scene where Congress approve of the separation from Great Britain.

The trailer for Oliver Stone’s Born on the 4th of July:

The famous Superbowl teaser trailer for Independence Day in 1996:

This short film of the 4th of July fireworks in New York was shot by Mike Kobal on a Canon camera.

Can you think of any others?

This Japanese advert for Softbank stars Brad Pitt as the agent/manager of a Sumo wrestler.

I have no idea what it means other than a hefty paycheck for the Pitt household.