Menaul, Christopher

Prime Suspect 1

Helen Mirren (Teaching Mrs. Tingle/Gosford Park) introduces the character of Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison in the first of the series PRIME SUSPECT which aired on PBS in January 1992. There will be five series in all with a sixth currently set to air in the summer of 2004. When a young woman is found brutally murdered and the DCI in charge is unable to take up the case it is passed to Jane Tennison the first female DCI to handle such responsibility. Between a slippery suspect and resistance from her team of detectives Tennison has her hands full. But she's got the strength to take on them all.Running Time: 208 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA UPC: 026359202025

Helen Mirren's Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison, the only female DCI on an old boy's club London homicide squad, is like a phantom lurking around the edges of the action while the men rush through their latest murder case, joshing and winking in the kind of male camaraderie the cop genre has celebrated for decades. When DCI Shefford dies of a sudden heart attack, Tennison demands to take over. Despite her superintendent's resistance ("Give her this case and she'll start expecting more."), she becomes the squad's first woman to head a murder investigation. Scrutinized at every moment by her superior officers, Tennison is faced with a case that spirals out from a single murder to a serial spree, a second-in-command who undermines her authority and her investigation at every turn, a team resistant to taking orders from a woman, and a private life unraveling due to her professional diligence. Lynda La Plant's script is a compelling thriller riddled with ambiguity that turns dead ends, blind alleys, and the mundane legwork of real-life cops into fascinating details. Mirren commands the role of Tennison with authority, intelligence, and a touch of overachieving desperation. Superb performances, excellent writing, and understated direction make this BBC miniseries one of the most involving mysteries in years. Look for future British stars Ralph Fiennes and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. --Sean Axmaker

Secret Smile

"Great cast, led by a menacing David Tennant; nicely shot; carefully directed to build up the suspense." - The Times

"David Tennant was a convincing evil, stalking fantasist... Plotwise, Secret Smile grabbed you by the lapels and dragged you along." - The Guardian

It's all about control

What's the worst that can happen when a new romance goes wrong - you end up with a broken heart and put it down to experience? Not when self-styled entrepreneur Brendan Block (David Tennant - Casanova, Blackpool, Doctor Who) is involved. He's not a man to let go easily - as Miranda Cotton (Kate Ashfield - Shaun of the Dead, Do or Die) finds out in this love and revenge thriller based on the bestselling Nicci French novel. Miranda puts the brief fling behind her, but Brendan is not finished with her yet. Three weeks later, her younger sister Kerry excitedly reveals she has a new boyfriend - Brendan Block.

How far will Block go to get his revenge on Miranda? Convinced that Brendan is involved when people she loves begin turning up dead, Miranda realizes that the only way to beat her manipulative ex-lover is to turn the tables on him. Soon, she finds herself in a terrifying war of nerves with a master of the game. She has to prove he's a killer and she's prepared to risk her own life to do it.

Also stars Claire Goose (Waking The Dead, Casualty), John Bowe (Tipping The Velvet, Prime Suspect), Jill Baker (Shakespeare In Love, Perfect Strangers), Susannah Wise (An Ideal Husband), Rory Kinnear (The Second Coming) and Robert Lowe (The Project)

approx. 137 mins.

The Forsyte Saga, Series 1

Granada Television's adaptation of The Forsyte Saga achieved the seemingly impossible in spring 2002, matching the BBC's 35-year-old black-and-white classic version with a richly cast and superbly directed take on John Galsworthy's first two novels. The success of these six 90-minute episodes proved that despite the current emphasis on miniseries and dramas developed around the hot actor of the moment, our appetite--and attention span--still craves ensemble pieces that are given space and time to develop. It also demonstrates that nothing generates television gold like a compelling family drama crammed with lust, rape, class conflict, and the insuperable power of money.

The Forsyte Saga is nothing if not superior soap opera. It could all have gone horribly wrong, haunted by the specter of its BBC predecessor--a television legend for anyone over 40. Instead, it succeeds entirely on its own merits with scarcely a weak link--from Stephen Mallatratt's taut and fluid script to David Moore's carefully measured, seamless direction. Risks were taken to banish the old ghosts, particularly in the casting. Damian Lewis's repressed Soames and Gina McKee as his ill-matched bride, the enigmatic Irene, are inspired choices delivering complex portraits of unhappy, damaged human beings who deserve our sympathy. In a sea of marvelous cameos and splendid acting, the top honors go to Corin Redgrave and Rupert Graves for their hauntingly sensitive interpretations of old and young Jolyon, as well as to Amanda Root for her increasingly exasperated Winifred and Gillian Kearney for her sharply intelligent and worldly June. --Piers Ford

The Passion of Ayn Rand

Passion is not one of those words usually associated with the controversial author Ayn Rand, unless one is speaking of her controversial ideas. Her novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged made egoism a virtue, and her philosophy of objectivism, which she defiantly trumpeted in the face of criticism, proclaimed self-interest was a patriotic virtue. For 15 years she also used her philosophy to justify an affair with her "intellectual heir" (as she proclaimed him) Nathaniel Branden. This made-for-cable drama, based on the memoir by Barbara Branden (Nathaniel's wife), hones in on this clash between her ideas and her emotions. Helen Mirren is sharp and intense as the demanding, often icy Rand, playing down her striking features to become severe and plain. Eric Stoltz brings an insidious mix of charm and calculation to Nathaniel, a sycophantic devotee who espouses the gospel of intellectual honesty while compromising himself at every turn. Peter Fonda and Julie Delpy are the wounded spouses who endure their open affair. It's an unusually handsome film for a cable production, and the cool jazz score beautifully sets both the era and the mood of the film. Director Christopher Menaul, who previously directed Mirren in the brilliant British miniseries Prime Suspect, is fascinated by the hypocrisies justified by love and jealousy. While he's critical of Rand's philosophy and the cultlike following it spawns, he is nonetheless respectful of her intellect and devotion to her ideas, contradictions and all. --Sean Axmaker

Feast of July

No Description Available.
Genre: Feature Film-Drama
Rating: R
Release Date: 6-APR-2004
Media Type: DVD

A Dangerous Man

See No Evil: The Story of The Moors Murders

See No Evil: The Story of the Moors Murders.2006 1 disc Drama/thriller.Stars: Maxine Peak as Myra Hindley Sean Harris as Michael McNulty Joanne Froggatt as Maureen Smith George Costigan as DCI Joe MounseyDirector: Chris MenaulPowerful factual drama based on one of the most shocking crimes of the 20th Century. This is the chilling story of child killers Ian Brady (Sean Harris) and Myra Hindley (Maxine Peak) and how they were finally brought to justice. Convicted of the torture and killing of five youngsters the Moors Murderers remain two of the most hated figures in Britain. See No Evil reveals the untold story and is based on two years of intensive research and interviews with detectives and the key trial witness. Produced in consultation with the murdered children s relatives. Starring Maxine Peak (Shameless) and Sean Harris (24 Hour Party People).System Requirements:Running Time: 140 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/BBC UPC: 030306786896 Manufacturer No: DVD7868

State of Mind

Reeling from the discovery of her husband's infidelity, Grace Hazlett (Niamh Cusack) juggles life as a single mother with her casework as a criminal psychologist. In the midst of her turmoil, she is asked to determine the guilt or innocence of Julian Latimer (Andrew Lincoln), a man who killed his wife but claims to have no memory of the crime. As Grace explores the validity of his story, she sees her betrayal mirrored at every turn. Stripped of objectivity, Grace finds both her judgment and her life in danger.

Prime Suspect 1

Helen Mirren's Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison, the only female DCI on an old boy's club London homicide squad, is like a phantom lurking around the edges of the action while the men rush through their latest murder case, joshing and winking in the kind of male camaraderie the cop genre has celebrated for decades. When DCI Shefford dies of a sudden heart attack, Tennison demands to take over. Despite her superintendent's resistance ("Give her this case and she'll start expecting more."), she becomes the squad's first woman to head a murder investigation. Scrutinized at every moment by her superior officers, Tennison is faced with a case that spirals out from a single murder to a serial spree, a second-in-command who undermines her authority and her investigation at every turn, a team resistant to taking orders from a woman, and a private life unraveling due to her professional diligence. Lynda La Plant's script is a compelling thriller riddled with ambiguity that turns dead ends, blind alleys, and the mundane legwork of real-life cops into fascinating details. Mirren commands the role of Tennison with authority, intelligence, and a touch of overachieving desperation. Superb performances, excellent writing, and understated direction make this BBC miniseries one of the most involving mysteries in years. Look for future British stars Ralph Fiennes and Tom Wilkinson in supporting roles. --Sean Axmaker

The Forsyte Saga [Region 2]