My DVDs

I think you need to be at least 30yrs old to fully appreciate Cinema Paradiso. Not only does it focus on what part cinema plays in the life of Salvatore as he grows up, but the changes in Salvatore's life and village too over the space of about 40 yrs. The music is absolutely perfect. The young actor playing Toto is amazing. The 2hr version is near perfection. The 2hr 45m version adds a whole new dimension to the original, and whilst still brilliant, changes the viewers' feelings about certain characters which is not necessarily for the better. I recommend seeing both versions, but if you can only watch one, go for the 2hr version. Take some tissues with you too!

Surely one of the best films there ever was.

One of the best WW2 films I've ever seen. The 2hrs 25m just flies by. The actors are all perfect for their roles, especially Carice van Houten who must've been criminally overlooked for an Oscar. They all speak Dutch, German and English, while Carice sings well too. Even after several viewings, the clues to the plot twists become more apparent, but it still holds the viewers' interest well.
(If I have a criticism, and it's a tiny one, it's that Rachel is seen alive and well in Israel in the 1950s at the beginning of the film. It is therefore known that she must survive the 1940s in Holland, which detracts very slightly from the tension. I would also like to know about the true events on which this film is based, perhaps as a DVD extra, as the subterfuge and double-dealing is quite stunning.) Quite brilliant.

Can't really fault it apart from the slightly laughable Elyzium scenes at the end.

Like many Italian films of the era, it's dark in subject matter, kind of miserable and seems not to really be about much, yet it's probably one of the deepest neo-realistic films you're ever likely to see. Thought-provoking on so many levels, even at nearly 3hrs, you won't be bored for a moment.
A masterpiece.

My favourite of the trilogy, Rouge is probably also the oddest and most thought-provoking one. As is often the case with artworks, there are many small elements that don't really make any sense, but still add to the overall ambience. The cast, especially Irene Jacob (and Rita!) played their roles perfectly. Highly recommended.

A great film when watched first time around. I've seen it three times now over the years, and the denouement does drag a little on repeat viewing. Unlike with The Great Escape, Amelie or Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid, there aren't so many of the little charming touches that you notice and appreciate more on repeat viewings. Even so, it's an easy 4.5 stars for one of Hitchcock's masterpieces.

I've seen this film probably 5 times or so and it's still very watchable, primarily for F Murray Abraham's portrayal of 'old' Salieri which is quite brilliant. The pace, editing, music, storyline are all top notch. The only gripe I have that stops me from giving it 5 stars is the very American accents many of the actors have - even Simon Callow sounds American & he's British! Why? They could at least put on a neutral accent.

I actually liked this slightly more than the first film - probably as there were no horse's heads or blown-up Alfa Romeos - and I thought Al Pacino and Robert De Niro were faultless in this, as opposed to James Caan and Marlon Brando who were almost caricature mobsters in the first film. The only gripe I have, is that it was so very long! It comes on 2 DVDs and feels much like two films intertwined. I didn't think the non-linear telling of the story was especially successful and may have been improved by being split so that ptII was the 1920s Robert De Niro storyline and ptIII was the 1960s Al Pacino storyline, making a total of four films. This may sound like sacrilege, but how many people can truly enjoy a film 3hrs 20m long in one sitting? There were a few pointless scenes (eg the "pop goes the weasel" scene) that I would've removed altogether and a few 'lazy' plotlines that I would've lengthened, such as the 2nd hit on Hyman Roth. Who in their right mind would've been that hitman? Nobody. All said and done though, despite the dark mood, this is pretty much perfect.

Very very good, but I'm knocking off half a star for the destruction of the lovely rare Alfa Romeo. Surely it could've been done with a mock-up, or off camera? Spoiled the whole film for me.

Funny and clever, although a little too mad for most people.

Very similar to Cinema Paradiso in many ways. Whilst Malena may start off seeming rather crass, littered with unsubtle almost-cartoonish jokes and lingering shots, it slowly develops into a near masterpiece, powerful and thought-provoking on so many levels.

The plot of this classic film noir is quite brilliant. Whilst perhaps not stunningly original in premise, it has hardly a dull moment. The acting and dialogue may be a bit stilted in places (the scene with the cat for example) but this doesn't detract much. The stunt scenes with the old cars are very effectively done and show just how little special FX and CGI are needed to make a great movie. One of the best noirs around.

Great cinematography really adds a South American ambience. The 'awakening' of the young Che Guevara is, at times, quite touching amongst all the road trip fun shenanigans. For those without in-depth knowledge of Che Guevara, this film is educational and inspirational. I even liked the end credits music! (My only gripe is the speed of the subtitles which on occasion disappear before even the fastest of readers get to read them.) Highly recommended.

Undoubtedly an epic, a masterpiece, a 'great' film. However, it's not an immensely likeable one and at almost 4hrs, not fantastically enjoyable either. In the gangster genre, it fits somewhere between Goodfellas and The Godfather - somehow lacking the wit, pace and humour of the former, yet not quite as epic as the latter. The events of the 35 'gap' years that the film spans are left just hanging in the air for the viewer - Maxie seems to have lived a little, maybe Deborah too, but Noodles, Fat Moe and the other hoods seem to have just skipped that interim period, growing old but doing nothing much - which seems rather an omission in such a super-long epic. (Deborah didn't even look 35yrs older either!)

They say on the DVD extras featurette that the score is one of Morricone's greatest works. To me (and I'm a big fan), his other Dollars' trilogy music and those for Tornatore's Malena and especially Cinema Paradiso are far superior. This music, though suitable enough, wouldn't seem out of place in a sombre Spaghetti Western. The slow pace of many of the scenes may even dissuade many people from seeing it all the way through, and I wasn't very satisfied with the closure of several plot points at the end.

Certainly worth seeing once or twice, but not something you'll want to see again and again.

An amazing, little-known true story well told. Whilst any story of this nature is inherently going to be quite depressing, this one doesn't overdo it. The 1hr 38m flies by and the DVD extras about the real people portrayed in the film expand on the real-life events quite considerably.

A convoluted and clever plot which outwits most of today's offerings - the adage "They don't make 'em like they used to" couldn't be more true than with this film. A near masterpiece, marred only by some rather wooden uncharismatic female characters and a slightly farcical ending. Recommended especially if you find the DVD with the US/UK versions on opposite sides. Fans of Throw Momma From the Train will find extra enjoyment from this original.

Very good. I can't find the Transit van in the background.

I can't really imagine how a film of this genre could be bettered. It's the sort of film that schools should make kids watch. Quite brilliant.

It's alright, but the Lamborghini scene left me traumatised.

A very gentle, charming film that is a lot cleverer than it first seems. Beautiful scenery and music combine to make this a film that will please young and old audiences alike. Deservedly acclaimed.

Zulu portrays the ambience of the battle of Rorke's Drift very well and at the end, briefly touches on the absurdity of war, although there is hardly a mention of how this historical battle came about. The actual plot is hardly intricate and for many viewers, the waves and waves of Zulus will become a bit tiresome after 2hrs. The cattle stampede and the fire are very well done, but unfortunately during the battle scenes, some of the bayonet stabs clearly miss and many of the other shootings/stabbings leave no visible impression on the victim which makes it rather laughable in places. That said, Zulu is justly considered one of the best films of its kind.

It's got soooo much swearing in, it would make Joe Pesci blush, otherwise very good. Not quite Goodfellas, but close. Nicholson & DiCaprio are on top form.

If you're not immediately turned off by the horrible opening scene, what follows is a very watchable, Ridley Scott equivalent of Goodfellas. Somehow it just falls slightly short of Goodfellas (the equivalent "what do you mean funny?" quickfire scene with Frank & his gangster pal's suit is far less memorable). It's interesting, it's enjoyable enough if a bit yucky in places, the music is good, but overall it's somehow lacking in general wit.

A surprisingly captivating documentary, that could be considered the geeky equivalent of Rocky for arcade machine fans of the 1980s. It won't shake your world, but it's an enjoyable enough way to spend 1hr 20mins.

Rather slow to get going, but some shiny old cars, a few surprises and decent cinematography help keep the viewer's interest. The ending is worth the (rather long) wait. It's like Dragnet crossed with Gladiator, and certainly better than average, but rather seedier than perhaps need be.

Well written, well acted etc but oh so very drab and dull. The hours seemed to drag by slower than a wet weekend in Leipzig.

Stylish, moody and well made though this film may be, but just like City Of God, I found it overly unpleasant. Everyone shoots everyone and nobody is likeable. It's nearly Scarface, it's nearly Goodfellas, it's nearly Godfather pt III, and whilst never really boring, it somehow falls short on most counts. Apart from a few interesting 1970s cars, some reasonable music and some decent cinematography, I find this film difficult to recommend. I far prefer Distretto di Polizia.

It's like a comic book cross between Gladiator and some of those old Sinbad films. Whilst based (very loosely I imagine) on true history, by using so much "strength, courage, honour" & "This is Sparta" machismo with husky dying breath whispering, long overly-stylish CGI battle scenes featuring strange, ugly giant Persians who don't die as easily as the rest of us and marauding semi-fictional CGI battle creatures, it somehow manages to come across as less realistic than even said Sinbad films and a long way short of Gladiator. That said, if you want a laddish night in over a lager, something to poke fun at, and you're a Frank Miller fan, you could do a lot worse. Not really one for when you've got your Nan visiting though.

Starts off by being mysterious-but-dreary which fortunately picks up towards the end, despite some unnecessarily miserable flashbacks at inopportune moments. On paper, the idea is rubbish, but the cast carry it off well enough for you to see it through. The aliens are quite amusing when they make their brief appearances. Not as good as Sixth Sense but not bad either.

Goes on a bit and CGI dinosaurs etc get a bit tiresome.

I liked the strange menu system on the DVD and I liked the end credits music. Apart from that, everything else was tiresome in the extreme. The water scene and anything involving the Troglos was chaotic, grating and I found myself wishing it would end. I really liked Amelie and Long Dimanche, so was terribly disappointed by this severely unfunny comedy.

This film only really had two memorable scenes, both of which were very unpleasant. I absolutely hated the sudden flashback to the horrible scene with the chicken. Otherwise, there is not much to recommend a film with such deep meaning that the viewer is bored rigid whilst trying to figure it out, only to be met with an unsatisfactory and sudden ending. Yawn.

Nobody ever told the Spiderman producers that "less is more". The action sequences and the CGI (amazing though it is) just swamp the film, leaving very little else in between, which is a shame as the previous films were perfectly watchable fare. The 'Staying Alive' scenes where Peter Parker becomes cool & bad were quite amusing, but at 2hrs 20m, you'll find your patience being a little tested by the CGI finale. It's alright, but not great.

Although this film is long, it never really becomes boring. It starts off a bit like Terminator 2 and ends a bit like Donnie Darko without really making any sense in between. It may not quite be my cup of tea, but it's certainly different.

Edward G Robinson makes a humdrum film quite good here, although I'd still put it some way behind White Heat. The new remastered version I saw, had great picture quality in parts, terrible quality in others & the audio was pretty rough throughout. This didn't enhance my enjoyment of what was a fairly reasonable, although slow by modern standards, gangster flick.

A bit more of the Alaskan scenery would've dramatically improved what is otherwise a fairly humdrum police detective story. The scene with the floating logs is quite memorable, but not much else. It's ok, but towards the end, it cured me of any insomnia.

Stylish and clever in its own way, but never really becomes gripping. It starts off interestingly, soon becomes unseemly and ultimately becomes tiresome. It's like a good made-for-tv movie, but is certainly something you could miss and not regret.

It says on the box that it's like a Brazilian Goodfellas. It's more like the most horrible bits of Goodfellas, Trainspotting and Snatch all distilled into one unpleasant cocktail of gun-toting children, shaky cameras, drug-taking, swearing and of course, endless shooting. Everybody shoots everybody in this. I knew after about 30 seconds I wasn't going to like this, and true enough, I didn't. A shame really because the general thread about the photographer is a worthy (true) story in itself, only it's masked by the wall-to-wall violence. It's certainly not boring, but if you enjoyed it, you'll probably feel bad about it. I don't suppose the Rio Tourist Board enjoyed it and I pretty much hated it.

The John Cusack backbone to this film is not bad at all, but the periphery - Jack Black especially - is irritating in the extreme. It says in the description "biting romantic comedy", yet for me it didn't raise even the slightest smirk. That's not to says it was entirely bad, just misdescribed. The neo-realism of Rob's life story was indeed well done. So well done in fact, that it was easy to find Rob and Laura rather loathsome leaving the viewer with not much sympathy for either of them until the very end. Well-meaning, but ultimately, instantly forgettable.

I don't see why this is so highly thought of. The semi-Swedish accents became very irritating very quickly. Ok, so it's rather different and quirky, but the comedy wasn't really there, and neither was any real suspense or surprises. The cinematography and music were barely average, the pace rather slow and Peter Stormare's lack of dialogue was completely unrealistic unless he was out of his head on drugs. It was ok and fortunately, quite short, but certainly nothing to write home about.

A rather typical free-inside-a-newspaper DVD, this British cold war thriller often reminded me of a made-for-tv spy film crossed with a bit of Get Carter. Michael Caine keeps the film moderately watchable, and there are a few decent scenes, but over all it's nothing memorable.

Although Dracula himself is very well portrayed, the terrible quality of the print and mostly-annoying musical soundtrack was, to a modern viewer, quite unbearable. The creepiness is rather overplayed and borders on pantomime in places. (I liked the hyena though!) If you've seen Bram Stoker's Dracula or read the book, there's not enough extra here to make an hour and half of your time feel worthwhile.