Archive for the 'Eureka! Masters of Cinema' Category
April 19th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Between 1920 and 1929, Buster Keaton created a peerless run of feature films that established him as “arguably the greatest actor-director in the history of the movies”. Collected here are three further films from that era; The Navigator, Seven Chances and Battling Butler. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present all three films from stunning 4K restorations in their UK debuts on Blu-ray. The Navigator (1924, dir. Buster Keaton & Donald Crisp) Wealthy Rollo Treadway (Keaton) suddenly decides to propose to his neighbor across the street, Betsy O’Brien (Kathryn McGuire. Keaton was unhappy with the audience response to Sherlock Jr. , and endeavored to make a follow-up that was both exciting and successful. The result was the biggest hit of Keaton’s career. Seven Chances (1925, dir. Buster Keaton) Jimmy Shannon (Keaton) learns he is to inherit seven million dollars, with a catch. He will only get the money if he is married by 7pm on his 27th birthday, which happens to be that same day! Battling Butler (1926, dir. Buster Keaton) A rich, spoiled dandy (Keaton) pretends to be a champion boxer, “Battling Butler”, to impress the family of the girl he loves. When the real Butler shows up, he decided to humiliate the imposter by having him fight the “Alabama Murderer” ! Continue reading ‘Buster Keaton: 3 Films Volume 2 [Masters of Cinema] (Blu-ray Review)’
April 15th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Illicit passion, greed, robbery, and murder collide in Criss Cross, a classic film noir suspense tale from a true master of the genre, Robert Siodmak (The Killers). Steve Thompson (Burt Lancaster Novecento, Birdman of Alcatraz) is a hardworking armoured car driver with a fatal attraction to his ex-wife Anna (Yvonne DeCarlo The Munsters), who’s now married to notorious hoodlum Slim Dundee (Dan Duryea Winchester 73). Unable to stay away from her, Steve has a secret tryst with Anna … only to be discovered by Dundee. To cover up their affair, Steve convinces Dundee that he only met with Anna to get Dundee’s help in robbing an upcoming payroll shipment he will be driving. The hood falls for the ruse, which triggers a series of harrowing events that ultimately lead to violence and death. From a new 4K restoration, The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present this essential film noir in its UK debut on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘‘Criss Cross’ [Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray June 22, 2020!’
March 30th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
In this visually arresting action drama from acclaimed director Johnnie To (Mad Detective, Election), legendary Judo fighter Szeto Bo (Louis Koo; Flash Point, The Legend of Zu) unexpectedly gave up the sport and now lives the life of an alcoholic gambler who runs a pub. However, cocky Judo newcomer Tony (Aaron Kwok) wants to challenge him, while old foe Kong (Tony Leung Ka Fai, Ashes of Time) demands Szeto to finish the match that never took place, Soon Szeto s pub becomes the ultimate arena where the greatest Judo fighters challenge one another. Filled with brutal, no-holds-barred Judo fight scenes, Throw Down is director To s ultra-stylish homage to the great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, and is an emotional tale of one man s determination to rediscover himself and win at all costs. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Throw Down in its UK debut from a 4K restoration. Continue reading ‘‘Throw Down’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray May 18, 2020!’
March 26th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
From Sergio Corbucci, the legendary director of Django, Navajo Joe, The Great Silence, Companeros and The Mercenary comes The Specialists (Gli Specialisti, aka Drop Them or I ll Shoot) , a thrilling spaghetti western starring French music and film great Johnny Hallyday (The Man on the Train, Détective, Vengeance). Notorious gunfighter Hud Dixon (Hallyday) arrives in Blackstone, a town where his brother was wrongfully accused of robbing a bank and lynched for it. As Hud seeks revenge, he starts to discover the truth behind the stolen loot, and has to contend with an idealistic sheriff, a beautiful and seductive female banker, a corrupt businessman and a one-armed Mexican bandit, who was once his friend.Also starring Gastone Moschin (The Conformist, Caliber 9), Françoise Fabian (Belle de Jour, My Night at Maud s), and gorgeously filmed by Dario Di Palma (The Seduction of Mimi, The Oldest Profession), Eureka Classics is proud to present Gli Specialisti on Blu-ray from a new 4K restoration. Continue reading ‘‘The Specialists’ [Eureka Classics] on Blu-ray May 18, 2020!’
March 10th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
After enjoying fantastic success with Fritz Lang s two-part “Indian Epic” in 1959, German producer Artur Brauner signed the great director to direct one more film. The result would be the picture that, in closing the saga he began nearly forty years earlier, brought Lang s career full-circle, and would come to represent his final celluloid testament by extension: his final film masterpiece. The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse [Die 1000 Augen des Dr. Mabuse] finds that diabolical Weimar name resurfacing in the Cold War era, linked to a new methodology of murder and mayhem. Seances, assassinations, and Nazi-engineered surveillance tech all abound in Lang s paranoid, and ultimate, filmic labyrinth. One of the great and cherished “last films” in the history of cinema, The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse provides a stylistic glimpse into the 1960s works on such subjects as sex-crime, youth-culture, and LSD that Lang would unfortunately never come to realize. Nonetheless, Lang s final film remains an explosive, and definitive, closing statement. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Fritz Lang s final film on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘‘The Thousand Eyes Of Dr. Mabuse’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray May 11, 2020!’
March 5th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
One of the most important cinematic achievements in Hong Kong cinema, Tsui Hark’s Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain birthed the modern-day special effects industry in Hong Kong, and influenced filmmakers around the world, including John Carpenter (who credited the film as the inspiration for Big Trouble in Little China). Featuring an all-star cast led by Yuen Biao (Wheels on Meals, Project A) as young soldier Dik Ming-kei, currently caught in a war between two rival armies during Tang Dynasty. Taking sanctuary in a cave within the ominous Zu Mountain, he becomes entangled in a battle with supernatural forces beyond his comprehension. Featuring breath-taking art design, stunning cinematography, and ground-breaking special effects, Eureka Classics is extremely proud to present Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain from a brand new 2K restoration making its worldwide debut on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘‘Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain’ [Eureka Classics] on Blu-ray April 20, 2020!’
February 25th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Winner of the Special Jury Prize at Cannes, Kwaidan features four nightmarish tales adapted from Lafcadio Hearn’s classic Japanese ghost stories about mortals caught up in forces beyond their comprehension when the supernatural world intervenes in their lives: “The Black Hair”, “The Woman of the Snow”, “Hoichi the Earless”, and “In a Cup of Tea”. Breathtakingly photographed entirely on hand-painted sets, the film is an abstract wash of luminescent colours from another world. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present the complete 183-minute original Japanese cut of Masaki Kobayashi s masterpiece on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK. Continue reading ‘‘Kwaidan’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray April 27, 2020!’
February 24th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Struggling through a seemingly endless creative rut, hard-partying and Los-Angeles-based artist Dezzy Donahue (Dora Madison, Friday Night Lights) can’t stop the resulting bad streak of problems, including unpaid rent and professional stagnation. In an effort to combat her tough luck, Dezzy throws caution to the wind, indulges in heavy drugs and rages her nights away. Her kinda/sorta boyfriend, Clive, is concerned while her debauchery-minded friend Courtney and her enigmatic hubby Ronnie keep feeding Dezzy s darkest urges. Gradually, though, the party starts to end, and in its place, Dezzy finds herself thirsting for blood and suffering from terrifying visions. Having never been one for moderation or self-control, she’s unable to resist her newfound dangerous impulses. And that’s very bad news for everyone in her life, all of whom are filled with the red liquid she now so desperately craves. Continue reading ‘Bliss [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] (Blu-ray Review)’
February 24th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Set in a remote Buddhist monastery in 16th Century China, Raining in the Mountain deals with a power struggle that ensues when the Abbot of the Three Treasures Temple announces his imminent retirement. The ageing Abbot invites three outsiders to advise him on the critical choice of appointing his successor: Esquire Wen, a wealthy patron of the monastery, General Wang, commander-in-chief of the local military, and Wu Wai, a respected lay Buddhist master. Within the monastery, several disciples aspiring to the position begin to collude individually with Esquire Wen and General Wang. But these two invited advisers have come with seditious intent, scheming to obtain the priceless scroll housed in the monastery: the scriptural text of “The Mahayana Sutra, ” hand-copied by Tripitaka. Meanwhile, convicted criminal Chiu Ming has arrived at the monastery to atone as a monk. He is assigned to safeguard the scroll at the house of scriptures, and encounters thieving rivals White Fox who poses as Esquire Wen s concubine and General Wang s fearsome Lieutenant Chang, who originally framed Chiu Ming for the crime he did not commit. Selected as one of the Best 100 Chinese Motion Pictures by the Hong Kong Film Awards in 2005, The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present King Hu’s Raining in the Mountain on Blu-ray and DVD for the first time in the UK, from a new 2K restoration completed in 2018 by the Taiwan Film Institute. Continue reading ‘Raining In The Mountain [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] (Blu-ray Review)’
February 11th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Perhaps one of the most underrated of the collaborations between director John Ford and star John Wayne, Rio Grande manages to be both a conclusion and a new beginning for this most iconic of actor-filmmaker collaborators. The film is the final entry in Ford and Wayne’s “Cavalry Trilogy, ” following their hits Fort Apache (1948) and She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949). Yet it also marks the first of five appearances Wayne made with actress Maureen O’Hara, three of which were directed by Ford. Wayne is Lt. Col. Kirby Yorke, attached to the Texas frontier in 1879 to protect settlers from attacks by Apaches. When Yorke’s son a West Point flunkee turned Army private is assigned to his father’s regiment, tensions flare upon the arrival of Yorke’s estranged wife Kathleen (O’Hara), who wants their teenaged son out of Yorke’s unit. After Apaches attack, the stakes of Yorke’s mission escalate, and he must journey to Mexico where the Apaches are hiding out. With his son and two old recruits (Ford/Wayne regulars Ben Johnson and Harry Carey Jr.) as accompaniment, Yorke faces his toughest battle. Continue reading ‘‘Rio Grande’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray & DVD April 6, 2020!’
January 29th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Adapted directly from the play by Eugene O Neill (considered the Nobel laureate s magnum opus), Long Day’s Journey into Night is a four-act study of addiction and recrimination that the playwright claimed was written “in tears and blood”. Taking place over a single, fateful day in the summer of 1912, the Tyrone family (modelled after O’Neill’s own) confront their bitter failings and long-held resentments. Patriarch James (Ralph Richardson) is a renowned stage actor who s never forgotten his squalid Irish childhood, and has forsaken artistic ambition for commercial success. His wife Mary (Katharine Hepburn) has developed a morphine addiction, his eldest son Jamie (Jason Robards, Jr. ) is a violent alcoholic and failed actor, and his youngest (and clearly favoured) son Edmund (Dean Stockwell) is a nervous young man in poor health. All of them have something painful to say, and their silence is even worse. Continue reading ‘‘Long Day’s Journey into Night’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray & DVD March 16, 2020!’
January 22nd, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
A jazz trumpeter tries to woo a fellow musician in mourning for her dead lover, and sets up a band in an attempt to bring them closer together. Covering a quarter-century of American “syncopated” music (ragtime, jazz, swing, blues, and boogie boogie), Syncopation features music from the turn of the 20th century through prohibition, the Great Depression, and the outbreak of WWII. Featuring jazz greats Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, Gene Krupa, Harry James, and more. Presented from a stunning 2K restoration and available for the first time in the UK on home video, Eureka Classics presents William Dieterle s Syncopation in a special Dual-Format edition. Continue reading ‘‘Syncopation’ [Eureka Classics] on Blu-ray & DVD March 16, 2020!’
January 17th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Eureka Entertainment to release BUSTER KEATON: 3 FILMS (Volume 2), a further collection of essential films from the true genius of silent comedy available for the first time on Blu-ray in the UK from 4K restorations. Presented as part of The Masters of Cinema Series from 30 March 2020, with a Limited Edition 60-page Perfect Bound Collector’s Book and Limited Edition Hardbound Slipcase [3000 copies ONLY]. Between 1920 and 1929, Buster Keaton created a peerless run of feature films that established him as “arguably the greatest actor-director in the history of the movies”. Collected here are three further films from that era; The Navigator, Seven Chances and Battling Butler. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present all three films from stunning 4K restorations in their UK debuts on Blu-ray. Continue reading ‘Buster Keaton: 3 Films (Volume 2) [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] (The Navigator, Seven Chances, Battling Butler) on Blu-ray March 30, 2020!’
January 9th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Denmark 2025. One year after a major bomb attack in Copenhagen radicalisation around the country has intensified and ethnic tensions are running high. The next parliamentary election is near, and the extremely nationalist political leader Martin Nordahl is set for a landslide victory. 19-year-old Zakaria gets involved in a radical organisation, where he forms a bond with Ali. The two men cannot agree with the current state of the country, which is turning on its own citizens because of their migration background, and decide to act. However, they are both just tools in the hands of people with power. As the men try to make their mark, their brotherhood will be tested and their actions will have grave consequences on their lives. Continue reading ‘‘Sons of Denmark’ [Montage Pictures] on Blu-ray & DVD February 17, 2020!’
January 6th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
Set in a remote Buddhist monastery in 16th Century China, Raining in the Mountain deals with a power struggle that ensues when the Abbot of the Three Treasures Temple announces his imminent retirement. The ageing Abbot invites three outsiders to advise him on the critical choice of appointing his successor: Esquire Wen, a wealthy patron of the monastery, General Wang, commander-in-chief of the local military, and Wu Wai, a respected lay Buddhist master. Within the monastery, several disciples aspiring to the position begin to collude individually with Esquire Wen and General Wang. But these two invited advisers have come with seditious intent, scheming to obtain the priceless scroll housed in the monastery: the scriptural text of “The Mahayana Sutra, ” hand-copied by Tripitaka. Meanwhile, convicted criminal Chiu Ming has arrived at the monastery to atone as a monk. He is assigned to safeguard the scroll at the house of scriptures, and encounters thieving rivals White Fox who poses as Esquire Wen s concubine and General Wang s fearsome Lieutenant Chang, who originally framed Chiu Ming for the crime he did not commit. Continue reading ‘‘Raining in the Mountain’ [Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray & DVD February 24, 2020!’
December 13th, 2019 by Gerard Iribe
In this visually intoxicating sequel to Valentino’s career-defining film The Sheik, the silent screen’s greatest lover portrays a cultured yet untamed young man who is lured into a thieves trap by a beautiful dancer, Yasmin (Vilma Banky). After escaping, he kidnaps the damsel and holds her captive in his desert lair, dressing her in Arabian finery and threatening to unleash his violent passion upon her. Exotic romance saturates every frame of this Orientalist epic; its sadomasochistic fantasies are acted out against the lavish set design of William Cameron Menzies (The Thief of Bagdad) and lushly photographed by George Barnes (Sadie Thompson). From a new restoration available for the first time on home video, and featuring a magnificent score by maestro Carl Davis, The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present George Fitzmaurice s The Son of the Sheik on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK in a Special Dual Format edition. Continue reading ‘‘The Son of the Sheik’ [Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray & DVD February 17, 2020!’
November 29th, 2019 by Gerard Iribe
Struggling through a seemingly endless creative rut, hard-partying and Los-Angeles-based artist Dezzy Donahue (Dora Madison, Friday Night Lights) can’t stop the resulting bad streak of problems, including unpaid rent and professional stagnation. In an effort to combat her tough luck, Dezzy throws caution to the wind, indulges in heavy drugs and rages her nights away. Her kinda/sorta boyfriend, Clive, is concerned while her debauchery-minded friend Courtney and her enigmatic hubby Ronnie keep feeding Dezzy s darkest urges. Gradually, though, the party starts to end, and in its place, Dezzy finds herself thirsting for blood and suffering from terrifying visions. Having never been one for moderation or self-control, she’s unable to resist her newfound dangerous impulses. And that’s very bad news for everyone in her life, all of whom are filled with the red liquid she now so desperately craves. Continue reading ‘‘Bliss’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray February 10, 2020!’
November 14th, 2019 by Gerard Iribe
Nuclear physicist Alvah Jesper (Cooper) is recruited by the U.S. Office of Strategic Services to become a reluctant undercover agent, traveling to Switzerland to meet with a fellow scientist regarding information on Germany’s plans to construct an atomic bomb. After this colleague is assassinated, Jesper must sneak into Italy via the underground resistance, to contact another scientist. While there, Jesper falls in love with resistance fighter Gina (Lilli Palmer, in her first Hollywood role), and the two must battle shootouts, double crosses, and narrow escapes to smuggle the scientist out of Italy. A more perfectly titled film would be difficult to imagine, as Cloak and Dagger is a consummate wartime espionage suspense picture, and an intriguing mixture of genres for Lang: part spy thriller, part romantic melodrama, and part patriotic war movie, Cloak and Dagger is another triumph among Lang’s U.S. features, and an expert exercise in genre fusion that’s ripe for rediscovery. Continue reading ‘‘Cloak and Dagger’ [Eureka! Masters of Cinema] on Blu-ray & DVD January 27, 2020!’
