Purefoy, James

Rome - The Complete First Season

(HBO Dramatic Series) Four hundred years after the founding of the Republic Rome is the wealthiest city in the world a cosmopolitan metropolis of one million people; epicenter of a sprawling empire. The Republic was founded on principles of shared power and fierce personal competition never allowing one man to seize absolute control. But now those foundations are crumbling eaten away by corruption and excess. After eight years of war two soldiers Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo unwittingly become entwined in the historical events of ancient Rome. A serialized drama of love and betrayal masters and slaves husbands and wives ROME chronicles a turbulent era that saw the death of the republic and the birth of an empire.Running Time: 720 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA UPC: 026359284823 Manufacturer No: 92848

Family dysfunction. Treachery. Betrayal. Coarse profanity. Brutal violence. Graphic (and sometimes brutal) sex. No, it's not The Sopranos, it's Rome, HBO's madly ambitious series that bloodily splatters the glory of Rome just as savagely as Monty Python and the Holy Grail soiled the good name of Camelot (but with far fewer laughs; very few funny things happen on the way to this forum). Set in 52 B.C. (Before Cable), Rome charts the dramatic shifts in the balance of power between former friends Pompey Magnus (Kenneth Cranham), leader of the Senate, and Julius Caesar (Ciaran Hinds), whose imminent return after eight years to Rome after conquering the Gauls, has the ruling class up in arms. At the heart of Rome is the odd couple friendship between two soldiers who fortuitously become heroes of the people. Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) is married, honorable, and steadfast. Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson) is an amoral rogue whose philosophy is best summed up, "I kill my enemies, take their gold, and enjoy their women." Among Rome's most compelling subplots is Lucius's strained relationship with his wife, Niobe (Indira Varma), who is surprised to see her husband alive (but not as surprised as he is to find her upon his homecoming with a newborn baby in her arms!) Any viewer befuddlement over Rome's intrigues and machinations, and determining who is hero and who is foe, disappears the minute Golden Globe-nominee Polly Walker appears as Atia, Caesar's formidable niece and a villainess for the ages. In the first hour alone, she offers her already married daughter as a bride to the recently widowed Pompey. One eagerly awaits to see what (or who) she'll do next as much as we anticipate her comeuppance in the final episode.

Rome is a painstakingly mounted production that earned eight well-deserved Emmy nominations in such categories as costumes, set design, and art direction. Michael Apted (Coal Miner's Daughter) was honored with a Director's Guild Award for the first episode, "The Stolen Eagle." But artistic considerations aside, instantly addicted viewers will agree with Atia, who notes at one point, "I adore the secrecy, the intrigue. It's most thrilling." --Donald Liebenson

Beyond the Series

The Roman Empire in film and television

The Roman Empire in documentaries

More HBO DVDs

Stills from Rome (click for larger image)

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall

Rupert Graves Toby Stephens and Tara Fitzgerald star in this Peabody Award and BAFTA winning BBC Adaptation of the Anne Bront? novel. Powerful haunting and disturbing The Tenant of Wildfell Hall is as powerful a story as those of Bront??s more famous sisters. In a remote village on the Yorkshire moors a beautiful widow and her son move into the near-derelict Wildfell Hall. Befriended by a handsome young farmer she remains mysteriously silent about her past and why she is afraid ? until she becomes the focus of malicious village gossip.Running Time: 159 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/BBC UPC: 883929010646 Manufacturer No: 1000036990

The BBC adaptation of Anne Bronte's moral tale The Tenant of Wildfell Hall will be a delight to those who revel in classics brought to the screen. Tara Fitzgerald stars as Helen Graham, a secretive woman who seeks independence for herself and her son from her cruel husband, Arthur Huntingdon. Huntingdon, a rake taken with women and drink, is played to perfection by Rupert Graves, believable as both the young lover who seduces Helen and as the depraved and brutish man he becomes. Toby Stephens is Gilbert Markham, the suspicious yet adoring yeoman farmer smitten with the supposed widow. The scenery and costumes of this period piece are lush, although the use of flashback as a narrative device is at times jarring. This tale is darker than the Jane Austen adaptations that BBC audiences are used to, yet the two-part film has an ending satisfying enough for even the most cynical of romantics. --Jenny Brown

Mansfield Park (1999)

This fun and sexy comedy tells a timelessly entertaining story where wealth, secret passions, and mischievous women put love to the test ... with delightfully surprising results! When a spirited young woman, Fanny Price, is sent away to live on the great country estate of her rich cousins, she's meant to learn the ways of proper society. But while Fanny learns "their" ways, she also enlightens them with a wit and sparkle all her own! Featuring an exciting ensemble cast of young stars -- you'll join critics everywhere in their overwhelming praise of this smart, playful, and funny hit!

A Knight's Tale (Special Edition)

"A Knight's Tale" is the rousing story of lowborn William Thatcher's (Heath Ledger) quest to change his stars win the heart of an exceedingly fair maiden and rock his medieval world. Follow this fearless squire and his band of medieval misfits as they careen their way toward impossible glory that's part romance part road trip and part exuberant swashbuckler.Bonus Features: Audio Commentary Documentaries Featurette Deleted Scenes Music Videos Theatrical Trailer Production Notes Filmographies DVD-ROM FeaturesSystem Requirements:Starring: Heath Ledger Mark Addy Rufus Sewell Shannyn Sossamon Paul Bettany and Alan Tudyk. Directed By: Brian Helgeland. Running Time: 132 Min. Color. This film is presented in "Widescreen" format. Copyright 2001 Columbia TriStar Home Video.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: PG-13 UPC: 043396061439 Manufacturer No: 06143

There's no rule against rock anthems from the 1970s in the soundtrack for a movie about a medieval jousting champion, but if you're going to attempt such jarring anachronisms, you'd better establish acceptable ground rules. Writer-director Brian Helgeland does precisely that in A Knight's Tale and pulls off this trick with such giddy aplomb that you can't help but play along. (Upon witnessing a crowd of peasants at a jousting match, singing and clapping to the beat of Queen's "We Will Rock You," you're either going to love this movie or dismiss it altogether.) Other vintage rock hits will follow, but Helgeland--the Oscar®-winning cowriter of L.A. Confidential--handles this ploy with judicious goodwill, in what is an otherwise honest period piece about a peasant named William (Heath Ledger) who rises by grit and determination to the hallowed status of knighthood.

As if the soundtrack weren't audacious enough, Helgeland (recovering from the sour experience of his directorial debut, Payback) casts none other than Geoffrey Chaucer (wonderfully played by Paul Bettany) as William's cohort and match announcer, along with William's pals Roland (Mark Addy) and Wat (Alan Tudyk), and feisty blacksmith Kate (Laura Fraser). Of course there must be a fair maiden, and she is Jocelyn (newcomer Shannyn Sossamon), with whom William falls in love while battling the nefarious Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell) on the European jousting circuit. Add to this an inspiring father-son reunion, Ledger's undeniable charisma, a perfect supporting cast, and enough joyful energy to rejuvenate the film's formulaic plot, and A Knight's Tale becomes that most pleasant of movie surprises--an unlikely winner that rises up, like its hero, to exceed all expectations. --Jeff Shannon

Resident Evil (Deluxe Edition)

Something rotten is brewing beneath the industrial mecca known as Raccoon City. Unknown to its millions of residents a huge underground bioengineering facility known as The Hive has accidentally unleashed the deadly and mutating T-virus killing all of its employees. To contain the leak the governing supercomputer Red Queen has sealed all entrances and exits. Now a team of highly-trained super commandos including Rain (Michelle Rodriguez - The Fast and the Furious Girlfight) Alice (Milla Jovovich - The Fifth Element) and Matt (Eric Mabius - Cruel Intentions) must race to penetrate The Hive in order to isolate the T-virus before it overwhelms humanity. To do so they must get past the Red Queen's deadly defenses face the flesh-eating undead employees fight killer mutant dogs and battle The Licker a genetically mutated savage beast whose strength increases with each of its slain victims.System Requirements:Running Time: 100 Min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE Rating: R UPC: 043396015340 Manufacturer No: 01534

Marilyn Manson worked on the soundtrack, so it's no surprise that Resident Evil is best enjoyed by headbangers, goth guys, and PlayStation junkies. Like the interactive game it's based on, this horror hybrid pits a small band of SWAT-like commandos (including Milla Jovovich and Girlfight's Michelle Rodriguez) against a ravenous hoard of zombies, resulting in a gorefest that only sociopaths could love. The tenacious heroes are trapped inside the Hive--an underground complex where an evil corporation conducts illegal research with a deadly virus--and the zombies (reanimated corpses of sacrificed employees) are fodder for endless rounds of gunfire. It's utter nonsense (not unlike director Paul W.S. Anderson's previous Event Horizon), so your best defense is to wallow in it or avoid this trash altogether. A few cool sequences are borrowed from better films (that slice-and-dice laser is cribbed from the 1998 Canadian shocker Cube), but if you're in the mood for heavy-metal carnage, this movie's for you. --Jeff Shannon

A Dance to the Music of Time

There'll always be an England--and Anglophiles shall be forever grateful. A Dance to the Music of Time is a sumptuous, leisurely portrait of a time in Britain's history (from the 1920s to the '60s) that epitomizes the pinnacle of romance. At the center of this Dance is Nicholas Jenkins, the narrator of the tales of intrigue, infidelity, queer friendships, and ruthless ambition that intersect throughout the series. Jenkins is played by the appealing James Purefoy, who, with starring turns in the likes of the film Vanity Fair and the HBO series Rome, clearly has not met a period drama he could not master. Flawed but clear-eyed, Jenkins observes the machinations of the upper crust from a bit of a remove, as if watching a play unfold.

And unfold it does. The plot is far too intricate to encapsulate, and in the end, plot isn't the appeal of British drawing-room dramas, anyway. Instead, it's the evocation of a time bound by intricate, unspoken rules--which participants seem to spend as much time and furtive energy trying to break as they do abiding by them. Notable characters include the greasy Widmerpool (played by the BAFTA-winning Simon Russell Beale), who, despite being utterly unremarkable, manages to build quite a career in the British government and military. John Gielgud is riveting as the novelist St. John Clarke, whose books are wildly popular but sniffed at by serious critics, and Miranda Richardson is the devilish Pamela Flitton.

The miniseries bears more than a passing resemblance to the much-beloved Brideshead Revisited, and in fact the cast of characters is so complex that the boxed set includes a "cheat sheet" guide to the most prominent 15 of them. But keeping tabs is less important than simply being swept into the lush period of time and allowing its gorgeous details wash over the viewer. For Anglophiles, the experience of watching A Dance to the Music of Time is truly transcendent. --A.T. Hurley

Resident Evil (Special Edition)

Marilyn Manson worked on the soundtrack, so it's no surprise that Resident Evil is best enjoyed by headbangers, goth guys, and PlayStation junkies. Like the interactive game it's based on, this horror hybrid pits a small band of SWAT-like commandos (including Milla Jovovich and Girlfight's Michelle Rodriguez) against a ravenous hoard of zombies, resulting in a gorefest that only sociopaths could love. The tenacious heroes are trapped inside the Hive--an underground complex where an evil corporation conducts illegal research with a deadly virus--and the zombies (reanimated corpses of sacrificed employees) are fodder for endless rounds of gunfire. It's utter nonsense (not unlike director Paul W.S. Anderson's previous Event Horizon), so your best defense is to wallow in it or avoid this trash altogether. A few cool sequences are borrowed from better films (that slice-and-dice laser is cribbed from the 1998 Canadian shocker Cube), but if you're in the mood for heavy-metal carnage, this movie's for you. --Jeff Shannon

The Mayor of Casterbridge

Common sense suggests that no good can come of auctioning off your wife in a drunken fit, but Thomas Hardy's classic novel The Mayor of Casterbridge turns this dark story, set in rural England in the mid-1800s, into a compelling, compulsive ride. The discarded wife (Juliet Aubrey) returns after 19 years with her daughter (Jodhi May) in tow, only to discover that her former husband, Michael Henchard (Ciarán Hinds) has risen as a merchant and a politician. But though he welcomes her back and arranges to renew their bond without public shame, Henchard's pride and fear remain intractable; the struggle for love and happiness collides with shame and secrets as Hardy's complex tale unfolds. While the 1978 miniseries with Alan Bates is much less abridged and gives a fuller immersion into the novel and life at the time, the swiftness of this two-part adaptation makes it more immediately emotionally engaging, and the superb, compact performances by the entire cast (including Polly Walker and James Purefoy) give this version a potent punch. --Bret Fetzer

A Knight's Tale - Extended Cut

There's no rule against rock anthems from the 1970s in the soundtrack for a movie about a medieval jousting champion, but if you're going to attempt such jarring anachronisms, you'd better establish acceptable ground rules. Writer-director Brian Helgeland does precisely that in A Knight's Tale and pulls off this trick with such giddy aplomb that you can't help but play along. (Upon witnessing a crowd of peasants at a jousting match, singing and clapping to the beat of Queen's "We Will Rock You," you're either going to love this movie or dismiss it altogether.) Other vintage rock hits will follow, but Helgeland--the Oscar®-winning cowriter of L.A. Confidential--handles this ploy with judicious goodwill, in what is an otherwise honest period piece about a peasant named William (Heath Ledger) who rises by grit and determination to the hallowed status of knighthood.

As if the soundtrack weren't audacious enough, Helgeland (recovering from the sour experience of his directorial debut, Payback) casts none other than Geoffrey Chaucer (wonderfully played by Paul Bettany) as William's cohort and match announcer, along with William's pals Roland (Mark Addy) and Wat (Alan Tudyk), and feisty blacksmith Kate (Laura Fraser). Of course there must be a fair maiden, and she is Jocelyn (newcomer Shannyn Sossamon), with whom William falls in love while battling the nefarious Count Adhemar (Rufus Sewell) on the European jousting circuit. Add to this an inspiring father-son reunion, Ledger's undeniable charisma, a perfect supporting cast, and enough joyful energy to rejuvenate the film's formulaic plot, and A Knight's Tale becomes that most pleasant of movie surprises--an unlikely winner that rises up, like its hero, to exceed all expectations. --Jeff Shannon

After serving a number of years as a squire, an earnest young commoner poses as a knight and establishes himself in the jousting tournaments of Europe. He and a princess fall in love, but she is unaware of his deceit and common roots. The false knight is estranged from the princess once his true roots are revealed. He struggles to amend their relationship.

George and the Dragon

The first crusade to free the Holy Land has ended. A mass of weary knights, squires, soldiers of fortune and priests are making their way home across a Europe that has changed forever. An age of legends and mystery is about to unfold.

George, a handsome English knight, unsettled by the horrendous bloodletting he witnessed in Palestine, desires to hang up his sword and settle down to a quiet, peaceful life. On returning to England, George heads north where he's heard the land is good and the population sparse and of a kindly King named Edgaar.

He finds King Edgaar in a terrible state. His beautiful daughter, Lunna has recently disappeared. In return for a small plot of land, George agrees to search for Princess Lunna. With Edgaar's faithful servant, Elmendorf, George sets out.

George discovers both the princess and the truth behind her strange disappearance. The quest now set before them ends in a love, a lie and a legend that has lasted a thousand years.