Lynch, Susan

Waking Ned Devine

When local wag Jackie O'Shea (Ian Bannen) discovers that one of his neighbors in the village of Tulaigh Mohr is a lottery winner he sees a chance to share in the wealth. Things get complicated when Jackie and his pal Michael O'Sullivan (David Kelly) discover that the winner, Ned Devine, died of shock at the very moment he learned of becoming a millionaire. Undaunted, Jackie and Michael dispose of the lucky stiff and hatch a plot to impersonate him and claim the prize. Soon the whole village is involved and the plot rapidly thickens.

This film has been compared to The Full Monty, but it lacks the vein of desperation that added depth to that film. Instead, Waking Ned Devine is closer in tone to classic British comedies like Whisky Galore!, with its cast of eccentrics gleefully conspiring to outwit the authorities. Those with a low tolerance for twinkly eyed Irish charm might be tempted to steer clear, although the movie is saved, for the most part, by its central performances. Bannen is superb as an old man who is clearly hungry for any excitement he can drum up and David Kelly is remarkable as his scrawny sidekick. Kelly has had a long career as a character actor in film and television, but here he has a chance to really let loose. His naked motorcycle ride is a marvelous set piece and in all of his other scenes his twitchy, perfectly timed performance quite simply steals the movie. --Simon Leake

When Ned Devine dies from shock after winning the lottery, two longtime friends, Micheal and Jackie, discover the body and agree Ned would want them to benefit from his good luck. They embark upon an outrageous scheme to claim the ticket but first they have to get all the townsfolk to go along with their plan!

The Secret of Roan Inish

As one of the most respected American independent filmmakers, John Sayles has created a body of work as distinguished in its diversity as for its consistent quality and inspiring originality. He's never been one to march to the commercial beat, but chooses instead to follow his creative impulse wherever it leads him. The Secret of Roan Inish led Sayles to the beautiful and moody West Coast of Ireland; it is a tale of a girl who discovers that her family has been touched by myth and magic throughout the years. Following the death of her mother, young Fiona (Jeni Courtney) is sent to live with her grandparents on the Irish coast across from Roan Inish, the island where her family once lived. She's told stories about the selkies--seals that can turn into humans--who have been connected with Fiona's family over the ages. At first she's not sure if the selkies are real or mythological, but she later realizes that they hold the key to reclaiming her family heritage.

What's remarkable about this film (which Sayles adapted from Rosalie Fry's novel Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry) is that it's not told as a cute fantasy for children, but as a straightforward, unsentimental story of a young girl's family history. That gives the film--which was beautifully photographed by master cinematographer Haskell Wexler--an understated charm that is completely absorbing in its atmosphere and subtle tone. There's magic as well, to be sure--you could almost swear that the seals and seagulls in the film took direction from Sayles as well as any human actor! --Jeff Shannon

From Hell (Widescreen Edition)

In 1888 in the Whitechapel section of London, Inspector Fred Abberline uses his psychic powers to track down Jack the Ripper.
Genre: Horror
Rating: R
Release Date: 7-SEP-2004
Media Type: DVD

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

From Hell (Two-Disc Special Edition)

Heavy on atmosphere and light on everything else, From Hell is visually impressive while lacking the depth of the acclaimed graphic novel it's based upon. Making their third feature since 1993's Menace II Society, twins Allen and Albert Hughes approach the Jack the Ripper case with physical precision, re-creating the gritty Whitechapel district of 1888 London in meticulous detail. What they've forgotten is the sheer terror that gripped Whitechapel in the wake of the Ripper's slaying of five prostitutes, investigated here by a Scotland Yard sleuth (Johnny Depp) who uses opium, laudanum, and absinthe to fuel his semiprescient visions of the slayings. Heather Graham attempts a slippery Cockney accent as a would-be victim, while Ian Holm steals the show as a has-been surgeon with devilish delusions of grandeur. Violence is obliquely suggested or briefly graphic, but no matter how you cut it, From Hell is only marginally thrilling as it treads familiar territory. --Jeff Shannon

Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe

This grand six-part adaptation of Sir Walter Scott's rousing adventure of the Middle Ages makes the most of its generous running time. In the course of five hours, director Stuart Orme tells the epic tale of the idealistic young knight Ivanhoe (Steven Waddington) and his battle against the evil Templar Bois-Guilbert (Ciarán Hinds, whose thoughtful performance gives his dark character a compelling dimension). Caught between the rivalries and religious struggles are Ivanhoe's betrothed Rowena (Victoria Smurfit) and the brave, beautiful Jewess healer Rebecca (Susan Lynch), who wins Ivanhoe's heart with her courage. Set against the historical backdrop of a Britain straining under the corrupt rule of Prince John while Richard the Lionhearted fights in the Crusades, director Stuart Orme makes up for a small budget (the crowd scenes are somewhat skimpy) with sweep, scale, and the lush green British countryside of verdant forests and rolling hills, where ancient castles still stand. While this production can't compete with the majesty of the gorgeous 1952 Hollywood production, Orme creates his own vision in which Merrye Olde England is grounded in earthy colors, creating a country of both sunny fields and dark, dangerous timberlands, open sunlit courts, and cramped candlelit inns. The uniformly superb cast etches vivid characters and the length allows the novel's rich array of subplots to play out (including appearances by Robin Hood and his men and the Black Knight) and slowly wind together for the exciting conclusion. --Sean Axmaker

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments unfolds with all of the spectacle, violent human drama, and grand inspiration that have earned it its distinction as the greatest story ever told. When an oracle prophesizes that a child will become Prince of Egypt, a time of danger approaches the kingdom. The Egyptian Pharaoh orders the massacre of all newborn males. But one child, Moses--the son of a Hebrew slave--escapes certain death when he is set adrift on the Nile. As years pass, he is raised in a royal Egyptian household and, with no memory of his family, rises to the stature of prince. Upon discovery of his true heritage, and inspired by a fiery message from God, Moses embarks upon a noble and desperate fight to reclaim his destiny as the leader and liberator of the Hebrew people. With a stellar cast that includes Mia Maestro and Golden Globe® winner Omar Sharif, The Ten Commandments is unsurpassed in its vision--both intimate and grand. DVD Features include: The Making of "The Ten Commandments", Closed Captioning.

Enduring Love (Widescreen Edition)

A red hot-air balloon floating gracefully over the green English countryside leads to a shocking death in Enduring Love, an eerie and hypnotic movie based on a novel by Ian McEwan. Two men tried and failed to help, and afterwards Joe (Daniel Craig, Sylvia, The Mother) finds himself being stalked by the hungry-eyed Jed (Rhys Ifans, Vanity Fair, Human Nature). Like a gangly wraith, Jed follows Joe and begs him to recognize the passionate love Jed feels certain was sparked by the balloon accident. Jed's obsession crawls into Joe's head and his life, clawing at his happy relationship with his girlfriend Claire (Samantha Morton, Morvern Callar, Minority Report) and derailing Joe into an obsessive spiral of his own. Enduring Love builds the taut delirium of a Hitchcock movie. Ifans, best known for his comic performances, curls his tall frame into a seemingly helpless but creepily aggressive shuffle; the haunted eyes of Craig and Morton make the crumbling of their relationship as suspenseful as Jed's stalking. Director Roger Michell (Notting Hill, Persuasion) uses fresh, jarring images and sinuous visual rhythms to craft a tight thriller with unsettling emotional layers. --Bret Fetzer

In ENDURING LOVE, a Joe (Craig) and Claire's (Morton) romantic picnic is disrupted after a hot air balloon drifts into a field, appearing to be in trouble. Inside the balloon is a young boy and the pilot whose leg gets tangles in the anchor rope. After three men, including Joe, rush to secure the basket and try to save the two passengers, it seems they cannot rescue the pilot, who eventually falls to his death and the young boy remains unscathed. When Joe and one of the other men, Jed, go to retrieve the body of the fallen man, Jed feels an instant connection with Joe--one that, as the weeks go by, becomes ever more intense.

16 Years of Alcohol

Frankie (Kevin McKidd; Trainspotting, Dog Soldiers, De-Lovely) is an intelligent but angry man who reacts to the pain that life has dealt him with vicious fits of brutality. After being raised by a philandering, alcoholic father and spending his formative years leading a gang on the mean streets of Edinburgh, he discovers solace in an unfamiliar form - love. The affection of Mary (Susan Lynch; From Hell, Waking Ned Devine) forces Frankie to open up for the first time in his life. At a crossroads, Frankie looks inside himself in one last effort to deal with his demons.

Amongst Women

"...great television... as close to the bone as a drama can get." - Daily Record

"Hit Irish drama..." - Sunday Mirror

"...a great performance from Tony Doyle..." - The Independent

"One of the finest TV dramas... emotional..." - Birmingham Evening Mail

WINNER - Best Television Drama - Irish Film and Television Academy Awards / WINNER - Best Leading Performance Tony Doyle - Irish Film and Television Academy Awards / WINNER - Best Mini-Series - Banff World Television Awards / NOMINEE - Best Drama Serial - BAFTA Awards

A family bound together by love and fear

Based on John McGahern's award winning novel and set in 1950's rural Ireland, this is the searingly truthful story of embittered ex-IRA soldier Michael Moran (Tony Doyle - A Love Divided, Ballykissangel), a brutal, domineering patriarch. Widowed and desperate to keep his family together, he succeeds only in driving his children from him. His daughters, bound together by love and fear of him, struggle painfully to establish their own lives away from the family home, while his sons, resentful of his harsh and at times, violent discipline, manage to break free - and break his heart.

Also Starring: Ger Ryan (Malice Aforethought), Susan Lynch (Elizabeth: The Golden Age), Geraldine O'Rawe (The Harpist), Ann-Marie Duff (Notes on a Scandal), Brían F. O'Byrne (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead)

approx. 219 mins.

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments unfolds with all of the spectacle, violent human drama, and grand inspiration that have earned it its distinction as the greatest story ever told. When an oracle prophesizes that a child will become Prince of Egypt, a time of danger approaches the kingdom. The Egyptian Pharaoh (Paul Rhys, From Hell) orders the massacre of all newborn males. But one child, Moses - the son of a Hebrew slave - escapes certain death when he is set adrift on the Nile. As years pass, he is raised in a royal Egyptian household and, with no memory of his family, rises to the stature of prince. Upon discovery of his true heritage, and inspired by a fiery message from God, Moses (Dougray Scott, Mission: Impossible II) embarks upon a noble and desperate fight to reclaim his destiny as the leader and liberator of the Hebrew people. With a stellar cast that includes Mia Maestro (TV's Alias) and Golden Globe® winner Omar Sharif (Lawrence of Arabia), The Ten Commandments is unsurpassed in its vision - both intimate and grand.