Johnston, Sue

Imagine Me & You

Piper Perabo lights up the screen as Rachel a blushing bride whose perfect nuptials take a surprising turn at the altar. An innocent glance between Rachel and an unexpected wedding guest is all it takes to spark a 'love at first sight' romance with a surprising twist -- the object of Rachel's affection is a smart and sensuous... woman! Their shocking romance causes quite a stir amongst her family and friends as Rachel is forced to choose between her husband and the girl of her dreams. Say 'I do' to the wonderfully witty film that Cosmopolitan calls "a refreshing romantic comedy."System Requirements:Running Time: 93 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY Rating: R UPC: 024543247258 Manufacturer No: 2234725

Writer/director Ol Parker's debut takes its title from "Happy Together" by the Turtles ("Imagine me and you / and you and me") and its inspiration from the romantic comedies of Richard Curtis (Love Actually). There's a twist. Flower shop owner Luce (Lena Headey, The Brothers Grimm) is gay. Newlywed Rachel (a convincingly UK-accented Piper Perabo, Lost and Delirious) is straight. The two meet at Rachel's wedding--Luce designed the floral arrangements--and feel an instant connection. Rachel brushes it off. After all, the charming Heck (Matthew Goode, Match Point) was her best friend long before he became her husband. Shortly after the ceremony, however, she begins to feel as if something is missing. She starts making excuses to see Luce. First it's to thank her for the flowers, then it's to invite her to dinner with Heck and their on-the-make pal Cooper (a hilarious Darren Boyd)...who's crushed when he discovers that Luce prefers women. Rachel, meanwhile, finds married life pleasant enough, but only really feels alive when she's with Luce. It's tricky, because she loves Heck and doesn't want to hurt his feelings, so she and Luce decide to stop seeing each other. But the bond between the two is too powerful for either to resist. What it may lack in originality, Imagine Me & You makes up for in an enchanting soundtrack and sensitive performances from its three likable leads. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Brassed Off!

Take The Full Monty, add a sharper emotional edge, and replace the strutting strippers with a dignified British band. That's the essence of Brassed Off, a bittersweet gem released in 1996, a year before its more popular (and Oscar-nominated) counterpart. In the Yorkshire town of Grimley, there has always been a coal mine, just as for the last 111 years there has been a brass band, and it seems that Danny (the wondrous Pete Postlethwaite) has been the director for every one of those years. Tory economic policies, however, are closing coal mines around the country in favor of nuclear power, and Grimley appears to be next on the list. Danny is unfazed by the threat, claiming, "It's music that matters." But some of the men are about to quit the band until the appearance of Gloria (Tara Fitzgerald at her most radiant), who dazzles the all-male group (including old flame Andy, played by Ewan McGregor) first with her beauty, then with her flügelhorn playing. The new member gives the band a boost as they continue to perform and compete, but closure remains very real, as director Mark Herman (Little Voice) accompanies the band's performances (played with gusto by the Grimethorpe Colliery Band) with scenes of angry labor-management confrontations and family strife. In this context, some of the characters claim that the music is an irresponsible form of escapism. It becomes clear, however, from a touching performance of "Danny Boy" to the stirring conclusion at Royal Albert Hall, that music is an expression of the human spirit, a bit of beauty and sanity in a harsh world. With defiance, the band can play "Land of Hope and Glory," even when the land offers them neither. --David Horiuchi

This delightfully entertaining comedy treat features hot screen stars Ewan McGregor (STAR WARS EPISODE 1: THE PHANTOM MENACE, MOULIN ROUGE) and sexy Tara Fitzgerald (SIRENS). It's the critically acclaimed story about two old friends -- and ex-lovers -- whose surprise reunion turns their lives ... and the lives of everyone else in town ... hilariously upside down! Also starring screen favorite Pete Postlethwaite (JURASSIC PARK: THE LOST WORLD; THE USUAL SUSPECTS) -- don't miss the fun of the laugh-filled comedy that entertained and captivated audiences everywhere!

The Street (The Complete First Season)

The Street is simply one of the best television dramas from either side of the Atlantic. Set among six neighboring families in an unidentified town in northern England, this BBC series builds a story around each household: A woman's illicit affair gets torn apart by a harrowing accident; forced retirement drives a man to attempt suicide; a dedicated teacher is accused of indecent exposure; a taxi driver finds himself stuck with a passenger who speaks no English and has no place to live; and more. The skillful, compassionate writing makes every character vivid and drives each story forward with muscular turns of plot. The outstanding cast--including Timothy Spall (Secrets & Lies), Jim Broadbent (Topsy-Turvy, Iris), Jane Horrocks (Little Voice), and dozens of less recognizable but equally superb actors--vanishes into their characters, their performances spilling over with complex details without a hint of actorly ego. Even the most unsavory characters are recognizable human beings whose problems have to be grappled with. There are a few missteps, but these few false notes only stick out because 99% of this show is so completely absorbing. These six hour-long episodes pack in more emotion than a dozen movies. When they're over, you'll be eager for another series of The Street. --Bret Fetzer

The Street is a star-studded drama featuring six extraordinary stories of ordinary people and how their lives intertwine living on the same street. There are mothers and daughters fathers and sons a wife and her lover; a husband and wife failing in love all over again 40 years on; an unexpected friendship that turns the life of an ordinary taxi driver upside down; and two battling sisters brought back together by the breakdown of a marriage. Above all The Street is about love-love stories as unexpected messy and exuberant as real life itself.System Requirements:Run Time: 354 minsFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 741952642992 Manufacturer No: KOC-DV6429

Preaching to the Perverted

A young infiltrator named Peter is dispatched by moral crusaders, led by Member of Parliament Henry Harding, to gather evidence for a private prosecution against fetish and S&M clubs in Britain, where many activities are still illegal. Peter is thrust into the sex-glamour shock of these big clubs and parties. He soon becomes infatuated with a sex goddess from New York, Tanya Cheex. Her outrageous show and lifestyle at the House of Thwax theatens to send her straight to jail.

Face

In criminal circles they are known as "faces." They are men of honor and respect. Their word is their bond, and crossing them can be deadly. Robert Carlyle stars as a hardened gangster in this explosive story of betrayal and revenge. Along with his crew, he's planned a daring heist that will set them all up for life. But when the loot suddenly disappears, the gang is gripped with greed and fear as they hunt down the traitor among them. Visit London's bloody underworld with this edgy crime thriller that shows you the true face of crime. - From Antonia Bird, director of PRIEST and RAVENOUS - Featuring the acting debut of Damon Albarn, lead singer for the British supergroup Blur - Featured Stars: Robert Carlyle (THE FULL MONTY, THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH), Ray Winstone (SEXY BEAST, KING ARTHUR), Lena Headey (star of this summer's THE BROTHERS GRIMM from Terry Gilliam), Steven Waddington (THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS, EDWARD II), Andrew Tiernan (THE PIANIST)

Preaching To The Perverted: Guinevere Turner Signature Edition

Peter is hired to infiltrate the seedy, psychosexual London S&M scene. He must gather evidence of -physical assaults- to prosecute and shut the down this sexual hell. Inevitably, Peter goes too deep and falls for the irresistable Mistress Tanya Cheex. Will he accomplish his mission or be lured into this modern day Pompeii?

SPECIAL FEATURES: New 10th Anniversary Audio Commentary by Guinevere Turner, New 16 x 9 Anamorphic Video, Commentary by Director Stuart Urban , -Making of'-documentary, Premiere Party Featurette, Tanya's Toons: Interactive Comic Story Strip.

My Uncle Silas - Series 2

Adored by his 10-year-old nephew, the incorrigible Uncle Silas is not the ideal role model. As one acquaintance points out, "He is noisy, dirty, mischievous, and nothing but trouble. And he is played to the hilt by Albert Finney, whose lecherous, wine-nipping poacher suggests Tom Jones, one of Finney's signature roles, gone gloriously to seed. Originally broadcast on the venerable PBS series Masterpiece Theatre, this raucous miniseries is based on the nostalgic, turn-of-the-century rural stories by H.E. Bates. These six episodes are much less sentimental than those in the first series. "Finger Wet, Finger Dry" is a particularly randy farce, as Silas dallies with the village policeman's robust wife and winds up trapped in her cellar. The very model of escapist entertainment, each breezy near-half-hour episode is like a little holiday. --Donald Liebenson

Sex, Chips and Rock 'n' Roll

Manchester, England, in 1965 seems like a dead end to a pair of sisters, flirty Arden (Emma Cooke) and bookish Ellie Brookes (Gillian Kearney). They ache to get out from under the thumb of their domineering grandmother (Sue Johnston), and when their cousin Norman (David Threlfall) proposes to Ellie, she accepts. But just then the sisters meet a struggling band called the Ice Cubes, who grudgingly play backup for a smarmy singer named Larry B. Cool while trying to land a record deal. Arden throws herself at the group's leader, Dallas (Joseph McFadden), but Dallas finds himself drawn more to Ellie, who's also an aspiring songwriter. From there, Sex, Chips and Rock 'n' Roll spins a complex web of secret loves and twisted ambitions against the backdrop of the mid-'60s British music scene. It's a rock & roll soap opera, but it's smartly written and engagingly acted, full of subtle commentary on the cultural changes cutting across British society. The multidimensional characters take unexpected turns; you'll quickly find yourself drawn into their lives. (Plus, in a clever bit of casting, the loathsome Larry B. Cool is played by Phil Daniels, who played the hero of the Who's rock opera Quadrophenia.) --Bret Fetzer

New Year's Day

Preaching to the Perverted

A young infiltrator named Peter is dispatched by moral crusaders, led by Member of Parliament Henry Harding, to gather evidence for a private prosecution against fetish and S&M clubs in Britain, where many activities are still illegal. Peter is thrust into the sex-glamour shock of these big clubs and parties. He soon becomes infatuated with a sex goddess from New York, Tanya Cheex. Her outrageous show and lifestyle at the House of Thwax theatens to send her straight to jail.