Shadowlands (VHS)
The original BBC production of this dramatic film which enters the private world of the legendary C.S. Lewis and tells the poignant, tragic story of his relationship with Joy Davidman, an American poet. Winner of two British Academy Awards and an international Emmy.NR"
Director: Norman Stone
ACTORS: Joss Ackland, Claire Bloom
The Boy Who Could Fly (DVD)
Well-received film about a teenage boy named Eric whose only method of coping with reality is to believe he can fly. With the help of his neighbor, Milly, he learns that if he wishes hard enough, anything is possible.PG"
Director: Nick Castle
ACTORS: Colleen Dewhurst, Bonnie Bedelia, Jay Underwood, Lucy Deakins, Fred Gwynne
Short Fuse (VHS)
This release collects eight short films that feature some of Hollywood`s biggest stars. Dramatic, exciting, and action-packed, the films of SHORT FUSE prove that a film needn`t be ninety minutes long to leave a lasting impact. Titles include: Upheaval (starring Frances McDormand), Fueling the Fire, The Quality of Mercy (starring Mary-Louise Parker), Inside (starring Jeremy Sisto), Bullet in the Brain (narrated by George Plimpton and starring Tom Noonan), Crank Calls, Shoot!, and Cliche. NR"
ACTORS: Frances McDormand, Mary-Louise Parker, Jeremy Sisto, Tom Noonan
Nil by Mouth (DVD)
First-time director Gary Oldman offers a gritty, profane look inside the mean streets of South London, where drug addiction, poverty and abuse hold sway. Score by Eric Clapton. Winner of the Best Actress award for Kathy Burke at the Cannes Film Festival.R"
Director: Gary Oldman
ACTORS: Kathy Burke, Ray Winstone, Charlie Creed-Miles, Edna Dore, Laila Morse
Birthday Girl (DVD)
At a London airport, shy bank clerk John (Ben Chaplin) watches passengers arriving from an international flight. He`s waiting for his mail order bride to arrive from Russia. When she finally appears, she`s not exactly what John had in mind--tall, thin, and gangly, with scruffy hair and rings around her eyes, Nadia (Nicole Kidman) seems worn, apprehensive, and tired. As he drives her home, John discovers she can`t speak a word of English, but she does smoke prodigiously. He makes repeated calls to the agency that arranged the marriage, leaving messages that a mistake has been made. But although Nadia doesn`t know any English, John soon discovers that she knows all about sex. He changes his mind about sending her back.
The opening of director Jez Butterworth`s BIRTHDAY GIRL is amusing and raunchy. But the film takes off in another direction when, on Nadia`s birthday, two boisterous Russians (exuberantly played by French actors Vincent Cassel and Matthieu Kassovitz) arrive and take over John`s home. The clever, twisting narrative that follows is, by turns, surprising, funny, and suspenseful. Chaplin`s thoughtful performance counterbalances Kidman`s troubled volatile heroine, who is not who she seems to be.R"
Director: Jez Butterworth
ACTORS: Nicole Kidman, Ben Chaplin, Vincent Cassel, Mathieu Kassovitz
