| | Duchess DVD (1 Customer Review)
| Category | Dramas DVDs, Romance Movies, Biography Videos, True Story, Love Triangles, Period Piece, Historical, Infidelity | | Starring | Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling, Dominic Cooper, Hayley Atwell, Simon McBurney, Aidan McArdle, John Shrapnel | | Director | Saul Dibb | | Composer | Rachel Portman | | Costume Designer | Michael O'Connor | | Director of Photography | Gyula Pados | | Executive Producer | David M. Thompson, Christine Langan, Francois Ivernel, Cameron McCracken, Amanda Foreman, Carolyn Marks-Blackwood | | Producer | Michael Kuhn, Gabrielle Tana | | Screenwriter | Jeffrey Hatcher, Anders Thomas Jensen, Saul Dibb | | Source Writer | Amanda Foreman |
Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes star in this $13 million-grossing movie about the Duchess of Devonshire, who marries into one of Britain's most powerful families. Extras include featurettes and costume diary. After PRIDE AND PREJUDICE and ATONEMENT, Keira Knightley continues her reign as the queen of the period film with this 18th-century costume drama. The corset-clad actress stars as Georgiana Spenser, the Duchess of Devonshire. With her marriage to the duke (Ralph Fiennes), Georgiana achieves an impressive level of fame as Britons follow both her clothing style and her political advice. But even celebrity and wealth can't act as a salve in her marriage to the boring, boorish duke. When he begins to flaunt his affairs, Georgiana is tempted to return to a teenage crush, Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper of THE HISTORY BOYS), to the anger of her husband and her mother (Charlotte Rampling, SWIMMING POOL).
Fiennes's portrayal of the duke ranks roughly with his Lord Voldemort on a scale of beastly behavior, but the acclaimed actor manages to give him a level of humanity that far surpasses what he deserves. THE DUCHESS focuses on the lack of power possessed by Georgiana and, in fact, all women of her time, and the duke is the primary agent of her suppression. As she has done with other period films from the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN series to KING ARTHUR, Knightley brings spirit to the role, as well as a regal carriage that perfectly fits the detailed costumes by Michael O'Connor. Fans of history-based drama--Georgiana was real-life royalty who is found in the genealogy of Princess Diana--will find much to like in this film, which boasts impressive locations, lush costumes, and forbidden love.
Duchess Reviews: "[Fiennes] develops a beautiful, wordless vocabulary of hurt, frustration, sadism, lust...and unanalyzed pain for his Duke....The actor creates particulars of time, space, class, and personality with one crook of a finger, one twist of a wrist." -- Grade: B-- Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly "THE DUCHESS is a handsome historical film, impeccably mounted....It is about hard realists, constrained in a stifling system and using whatever weapons they can command. It is rather fascinating on that level..."-- Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times "Knightley, who's in virtually every scene...rises to the challenge with more skill and emotional range than she's hitherto been given credit for."-- Philip Kemp, Sight and Sound 3 stars out of 4 -- "[T]he film belongs to Knightley. There's a fire in her eyes that won't be extinguished, and it keeps us in her corner....It's Knightley who makes THE DUCHESS a royal treat."-- Peter Travers, Rolling Stone 4 stars out of 5 -- "The cast and period are immaculately turned out, and events roll at an assured, stately pace..."-- Simon Crook, Empire "[T]he film, impeccably shot by cinematographer Gyula Pados on location in a variety of British stately homes, is as handsomely mounted and beautifully costumes as anything you could as for."-- Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times "[E]ntertainingly and sumptuously told....The cinematography is stunning, with gorgeous costumes and a sweeping score. All of this is capped by compelling key performances."-- Claudia Puig, USA Today Duchess | List Price | $19.99 (You save $4.80) | | Studio | Paramount Home Entertainment | | Orig Year | 2008 | | All Time Sales Rank |  23981  | | CD Universe Part number | 7802281 | | Catalog number | 353194 | | Discs | 1 | | Release Date | Dec 27, 2008 | | Rating | PG-13 (MPAA) | | Rating Reason | for sexual content, brief nudity and thematic material. | | Additional Info | Widescreen; Dubbed; Subtitled | | Movie Details | Color; Widescreen; Dubbed; Subtitled; Sensormatic |
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Purchase Duchess Movie To buy, Click on price to add to cart | Illusionist DVD (2006) Widescreen; Dubbed; Subtitled
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In 1900 Vienna, a magician named Eisenheim the Illusionist is mystifying audiences with a remarkable magic act that is seemingly too good to believe. Chief Inspector Uhl, who is in the pocket of Crown Prince Leopold--and considers himself somewhat of an amateur conjurer--becomes obsessed with Eisenheim; Uhl is not only desperate to find out the secrets behind Eisenheim's tricks but also worried that the master magician might pose a threat to the crown prince's nefarious plans. In addition, Eisenheim is quickly growing close to Duchess Sophie von Teschen, his childhood love, who is engaged to Leopold. As Eisenheim's act becomes even more amazing--including apparently raising the spirits of the dead--he enrages the crown prince even further, leading to deception and murder. Edward Norton (FIGHT CLUB), who studied magic with Ricky Jay (THE SPANISH PRISONER) in preparing for the role, is terrific as Eisenheim, an enigmatic showman hiding a dark side. The excellent supporting cast features fine performances by Rufus Sewell (A KNIGHT'S TALE) as the evil, conniving Leopold; Jessica Biel (7TH HEAVEN) as the beautiful Sophie; and Paul Giamatti (SIDEWAYS) as the perceptive but bumbling Uhl. Written and directed by Neil Burger (INTERVIEW WITH THE ASSASSIN), THE ILLUSIONIST, which is based on a short story by Pulitzer Prizewinner Steven Millhauser, is a complex tale filled with mystery and awe. The compelling score was composed by minimalist musician Philip Glass and conducted by Michael Reisman.
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| | Assassination Of Jesse James DVD (2007)
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Based on the 1983 novel by Ron Hansen, THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD captivatingly depicts the final few months of the legendary Jesse James's life. He was 34, and his days of ruthless robbing had dwindled, yet his fearsome reputation continued to swell. With an abundance of nickel-books retelling his brutal gun-slinging adventures, James (portrayed by Brad Pitt, in one his most convincing and moving roles) had become a symbolic hero for many Americans, and a dazzling tabloid icon for the 19th-century media. A particular young man seduced by the wonderment of James, the shifty Robert Ford (a breakthrough performance by Casey Affleck), wormed his way in as a James groupie, in the hopes of snagging a coveted spot alongside his brother Charley (played by the always affable Sam Rockwell) as one of the bandit's cronies. Ford, fiercely insecure and painfully aware that he would never be taken seriously by James (who, ever-plagued by paranoia and skepticism, found Ford's earnest obsession a bit unsettling), grew increasingly angry with his idol, leading to a destructive path that ultimately ended in the anticlimactic death of Jesse James--and brought the treacherous Robert Ford the notoriety he had always wanted.
Although this film takes place in the late 1800's, its eerie relevance to modern-day celebrity-obsession scandals is astounding, and adds a fresh scope to what could be viewed as just another cinematic western. Director Andrew Dominick (CHOPPER) furthers the film from its genre by banishing clichéd bullet-infested showdown scenes, instead embracing the relationships and interactions of the outlaws, and creates a mood of brooding and contemplation with exceptional camera angles and lighting. His intensely sophisticated approach to filmmaking illustrates the darkest corners of the characters, and insightfully provides a deeper, heartfelt portrayal revealing what the men might have been like behind their masks.
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On a sultry summer day in 1935, an upper-class British family prepares for a dinner party at their country estate. The players: Briony Tallis (newcomer Saoirse Ronan), a precocious preteen writer; her older sister, Cecilia (Keira Knightley), Cambridge graduate and femme fatale; Robbie Turner (James McEvoy), the housekeeper's mensch-y son, who carries a torch for Cecilia; and various visitors and family members. A series of misperceptions, fueled by the summer heat and Briony's childish hurts and fevered imagination, lead to a dramatic false accusation that lands Robbie in jail. We meet all three characters five years later in the thick of World War II, as foot soldier Robbie prepares for the Dunkirk evacuation and the two estranged sisters train as nurses in London.
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