It’s a British Summer, which means two things: football and Big Brother on a never ending loop. So, unless you’re a football fan or enjoy watching freak shows, then there’s not much to watch at this moment in time. So in Special Edition # 5 let Laurence Boyce point you in the right direction of some of the very best DVD’s available to buy, rent or borrow at the moment. W…

It's holiday time and Special Edition has been away and topping up it's tan. Now it's come back, got its holiday photos developed and returned to a darkened room to watch the very best DVD's that have been released recently. So if the oppressive heat is making life outside uncomfortable, switch on the air conditioning and let Special Edition # 7 tell you what to pop in you DVD pla…

Films based on a comic book will always attract two forms of criticism. Firstly there’ll be those who judge the inherent quality of the film. Then there’ll be those who’ll judge the film and its fidelity to the original source material. For a perfect of example of this then you need look no further than V For Vendetta. Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s original graphic novel h…

Back in March during the battle between The Hurt Locker and Avatar at the Oscars, much-loved political theorist Zizek waded in with a comparative review of the politics of the two films. His conclusion was that James Cameron's film had been the best attack on the military-industrial complex and US corporate hegemony. Kathryn Bigelow, on the other hand, he argued, legitimised the Iraqi invasion…

Everyone who says that there are no decent films being made in the UK are dead wrong. There are plenty of decent movies made in the UK. It's just that no-one really gets the chance to see them. With UK distributors consistently playing it safe, there's a raft of excellent stuff that - apart from an occasional screening at a film festival - that's gathering dust on a shelf. But t…

Fundamentalist atheism is as old as religion, and possibly time. Back in a less liberal era, the 16th century, the playwright Christopher Marlowe got into trouble for trashing religion as a translator of the classical author Ovid ("God is a name, no substance, feared in vain"), as well as in his own stuff ("I count religion but a childish toy "). US comedian Bill M…

In this fine appraisal of his oeuvre, Heylin looks at the director's failure to capitalise on the promise of Citizen Kane. In this fine appraisal of his oeuvre, Heylin looks at the director's failure to capitalise on the promise of Citizen Kane. Welles' own uncompromising attitude didn't help his later projects, such as The Magnificent Ambersons and A Touch of Evil, but neith…

  Making and Marketing Hobbyist DVDs The explosion in pro camcorder sales says there are a lot of people out there with video shooting kit that will produce professional results, many of them focused on traditional markets like film and television, but when it is not shooting that carefully constructed documentary, or between film assignments, how can your camcorder earn its keep…

Welcome to Page to Screen # 1, Laurence Boyce’s newest column that takes a look at some of the best books related to cinema, TV and anything else that fits into our broad remit. From serious academic tomes to graphic novels, weighty reference material to film tie-ins there’ll be something here for everyone to feast your eyes on when not actually in the cinema. The honour of th…

Laurence Boyce has a lot to catch up on as he’s been under water for the last couple of weeks. Nope, he’s not been on a fun diving holiday. He’s been in the city of Hull, which – for those of you who haven’t been following the news – has the kind of weather that would make Noah very happy. He wrings himself out and removes the damp from his DVD player to find t…

I did not get sent a review disc, but saw this one in Morrisons on Sunday in a two for one offer on Disney films. There weren't many classics, but picked up Ratatouille which I could watch a fair few more times yet, and Wall*E. It's not just that I like to be able to watch it on TV but I have a vague idea that if I had grandkids one day it'd be great to be able to show them the box.. 'what, you h…

Laurence Boyce brings you an eclectic selection of some of the best DVD releases available over the coming weeks. If you like Cubans, Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, Anime and Francis Bacon then you’re in for a treat … and you probably also have weird things on your walls. Soy Cuba (I Am Cuba) (Mr Bongo Films) is, simply put, one of the best films ever made. Made in 1964, it’s ta…

Do you want some DVDs? Then you've come to the right place squire as I have Special Edition # 46 all ready and waiting with some tremendously fun new films to see you through the days. This time around we've got violence, corruption and a half shark and half octopus. As you do.  Danny Trejo plays a man whose family have killed and whose beloved town has been corrupted out of all recognition. Kno…

Propelled forward with the raw exuberance of the music and characters within the dance music scene of Brazil's favelas, rarely is a documentary so sexy, foul-mouthed and downright fun. Refreshingly void of narration or authorial presence, ‘Favela on Blast' drops you in at the deep end of Rio's ‘Funk Carioca' scene, relying only on personal accounts from the D.J's, M.C's and characters within it…

Will Self, I think, once blamed Hollywood in part for the current 'war on terror' because its depiction in epics such as Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter of good and evil as black and white absolutes leads the audience to simplify incredibly complex situations. Even Star Wars  – where Obi Wan rebuked Anakin's Bush-like 'you're either with us or against us…

 There's a real air of independence with Special Edition # 17 as there’s no Hollywood blockbusters in sight. Instead there are movies from across the world, which show the real diversity of things available to movie goers nowadays. Whether it’s French horror, some classic documentaries or a curious Sci-Fi film then Laurence Boyce is here to show you can find just abo…

The London Film Festival opens tonight with a screening of Never Let Me Go, an adaptation of the 2005 Kazuo Ishiguro novel, starring Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley and Andrew Garfield. The screenplay was written by Alex Garland, and the movie directed by Mark (One Hour Photo) Romanek. The story takes place in an alternate England, where medical research has solved most illnesses, and the averag…

  CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEAD You've heard about it, Chris Morris' jihad comedy, making terrorism funny and all that. How does he do it? Well the Dad's Army influence is certainly there: the comedy is in the power play and false grandeur of some deluded blokes who want to show the world what for. Four young men with very similar accents to those of the lead characters here managed just t…

Where did the summer go eh? About two days of sunshine and the rest of it grey and miserable. As always, thank goodness for the joys of the shiny discs which provide us with so much entertainment and edification. In Special Edition # 26, Laurence Boyce has a bumper selection of DVDs for you to enjoy in the latest column with feast of films, TV shows and shorts for you to devour over the coming…

  HDV Filmmaking by Chad Fahs An Authoritative Guide to the Brave New World of HDV 470 pages Thomson Course Technology $49.99 High definition video is the latest technology to enable filmmakers to capture the best possible image at lowest cost. Because it shares tape transport with DV format, it is often see as the next step up, but this is not DV, it is a very differen…

If Grizzly Man was too scary, but you still haven't had your Dr.Doolittle fix, this documentary might be the one for you.   Director: JUDY IRVING Starring: MARK BITTNER, JUDY IRVING, LOADS OF PARROTS Unemployed 'dharma bum', Mark Bittner, has become the modern-day 'St Francis of San Francisco', by tending to the squawking parrot population. The director, Irving, dia…

It seems as though there are two films in Oliver Stone's W., fighting to separate themselves from each other. There is the story of George W. Bush (Josh Brolin), the president who took his country to war in 2003. Then there is Dubya, the son in awe of his father, George H. W. Bush (James Cromwell); who feels rivalry with his little brother Jeb (Jason Ritter); and who sees politics as the family…

There were no accidents. Nothing blew up. So, unless I spontaneously combust in the middle of writing this column, then it seems we can go ahead with Special Edition # 25. Yay. And, yes, we’re on number 25. Laurence Boyce would have got some mugs specially produced but who needs merchandise when – as always – there are a multitude of delightful DVDs for your perusal. Thi…

Close Up 01 is the first in a series of annual books from Wallflower Press, each containing three individual studies that are linked by their detailed explorations of the decisions that are made in both film and television, such as camera position, editing and sound. Whilst to some this would seem somewhat rather obvious, those who are steeped in film academia will known that many theories in f…

Whether it’s the fountain where Anita Ekberg frolicked in La Dolce Vita, the scuzzy convenience store where Dante wasn’t even supposed to be that day in Clerks or the hotel where Jack Nicholson went a little bit bonkers in The Shining, there are plenty of movie locations that remain a source of pilgrimage for holiday makers, movie buffs and – on occasion – completely bar…