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Whose Line Is It Anyway - Series 1 And 2 [1988]

starring: Clive Anderson, Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochrie, Richard Vranch, Greg Proops
directed by: Chris Bould, Geraldine Dowd, John F.D. Northover, Paul O'Dell

Release Date February 25, 2008
sure this is a great DVD - but when the hell is series 3 and 4 coming out?????!

CD-Charts Position 2
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Frankenstein [1931]

starring: Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff, John Boles, Edward Van Sloan
directed by: James Whale

Release Date November 01, 2005
James Whale's 1931 film of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is one of those `museum piece' movies that are still regarded as all-time greats, especially by more senior critics, but which can prove to be a bit of a slog for today's audiences. Of course, the movie was a trend-setter in more ways than one, and features one of cinema's all-time finest performances from Boris Karloff as the tragic Frankenstein Monster, whilst Whale's straight-faced direction, the splendid sets, the awesome make-up, and Colin Clive's hysterical turn as Henry also contribute to the movie's overall effect.
Unfortunately, the effect of the film is lessened by the generally mediocre scripting and several below-average supporting performances. Mae Clarke is weak as Henry's ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks [1985]

starring: Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Terry Molloy, Alexei Sayle, Eleanor Bron
directed by: Graeme Harper

Release Date July 11, 2005
I never saw this adventure when it was on telly. And due to very poor quality DVD's I've still not seen it. I've now had four copies of this series from Amazon and other suppliers, and all of the discs have a fault which means thay can't play past chapter 2 of the first episode. And it's not just my DVD player, I've tried each disc on three players, and none of them work. Conclusion - there is a fault with this series that makes it unplayable.

CD-Charts Position 4
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Classic Frankenstein Triple - Frankenstein/Bride Of Frankenstein/House Of Frankenstein

starring: Basil Rathbone, Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, Mae Clarke, Colin Clive
directed by: Rowland V. Lee, James Whale

Release Date June 04, 2007
Tried all over the place to get the 2 disc Frankenstein/Bride of Frankenstein, and eventually gave up and ordered this instead. Bit of a risk this, because the 2-disc extras looked so good, and they aren't mentioned in the product details, but happily, when it arrived, it included the same extras as that edition. I suppose you wouldn't expect Universal to do completely new pressings, but it's nice to find out they haven't. Obviously, "Son of Frankenstein" (and "Ghost of Frankenstein" for that matter) would have been preferable to "House of Frankenstein" in such a set, but then if I wanted all the Universal stuff I'd be going for the Universal Monsters Legacy set anyway. All-in-all, a good way to get hold of the original, and arguably the best, two Frankenstein movies.

CD-Charts Position 5
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The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes [1970]

starring: Robert Stephens, Christopher Lee, Colin Blakely, Geneviève Page, Tamara Toumanova
directed by: Billy Wilder

Release Date June 07, 2004
A marvellously crafted and witty take on the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes for all fans of his. It is a slanted, almost subversive reading of him, giving us a real man, with real vices and defects, and a real sense of humour, and gives us a far from stodgy Dr. Watson, much more a real friend of his than in other versions. This is all intended to give us something new, something quite tantalising, and something quite rewarding. It utterly succeeds in this, and throws in an adventure dripping in that dark Victorian quality all Holmes adventures have. It is clearly made by a huge fan of his, and Wilder revels at the chance of giving Sherlock's mysterious brother a prominent role. Stephens as Holmes is sensational. The screenplay is sparklingly good, and the story itself ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 6
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The Bride Of Frankenstein [1935]

starring: Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson, Ernest Thesiger
directed by: James Whale

Release Date November 01, 2005
Bride of Frankenstein is one, if not THE best, Universal horror movie made in their golden era of the 1930's. A direct sequel to Frankenstein, but in nearly every way a better movie. This is a much more artistic work. Sure there is still some hammy acting and the not so special effects are, by comparison to today laughable.

However, as a movie, this has many things that most modern horror films lack. The cinematography is marvellous. There are dozens of moments in the film where I wished I could have stopped the DVD and taken a copy of the image on the screen. No more so than near the end when the bride appears. The lighting in this scene combined with the photography produces a marvellous almost surreal effect. It also has a few moments of great pathos, most noteably when ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
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The English Patient [1997]

starring: Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Kristin Scott Thomas, Naveen Andrews
directed by: Anthony Minghella

Release Date January 08, 2001
I can see what they were trying to do when they made this film. The scenery and cinematography are lovely, and the makers were clearly trying to catch some of the romance and beauty of a bygone era. To a degree they succeeded but sadly on a visual basis only. The storyline is weak and strains credibility, and the characters are wooden and lifeless, with the central character played by Ralph Fiennes being one of the most boring character of the whole film - in fact he was so borinig that I can't even remember the character's name. Overall I am amazed how such a conspiculously expensive and lavish production manages to be so utterly dull.

CD-Charts Position 8
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Frankenstein/Bride Of Frankenstein [1931]

starring: Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, John Boles
directed by: James Whale

Release Date October 11, 2004
This is the original film version of the Mary Shelly book "Frankenstein", and in spite of it somewhat simplistic dramaturgy, it should be a must for all fans of monster movies or classical cinematography. The effects and make up are, for their time, excellent. There are some plot changes, shifting the moral of the story somewhat, compared to the original story. Where Shelly's moral was very contemporary, even today, namely that man should not temper with the natural order of things, emphasizing the dangers of ability without humility, the movie's moral is more along the lines of "if you're going to play God, make sure you get a qualified assistant"...

CD-Charts Position 9
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When The Boat Comes In - Series 4

starring: James Bolam, Mel Martin, Judy Loe, Lois Baxter, Roger Avon
directed by: David Reynolds, Jonathan Alwyn, David Askey, Vere Lorrimer

Release Date October 11, 2004
I never got to watch this series when it was on as I was to young to remember much about it, but I must say I was so glad that I rented it, I can highly recomend it for a good few weeks veiwing, I am really sad that I have come to the end of the series, james bolem plays an outstanding character, i was not keen on him before but now think what a great actor he is,
A great family series with laughter, sadness, and hope.
I thought it would be very dated to watch as it is an old series, but it was A1 from start to finish.
HIGHLY RECOMENDED.

CD-Charts Position 10
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Whose Line is it Anyway?: The Original British Series - The Complete Seasons 1 & 2 [1988] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

starring: Clive Anderson, Ryan Stiles, Colin Mochrie, Josie Lawrence, Michael McShane
directed by: Chris Bould, Geraldine Dowd, John F.D. Northover, Paul O'Dell

Release Date March 27, 2007
I'm not one to write such a brief review, but honestly, giving this product one star simply because it's region one is somewhat excessive. The Whose Line Cast, much more extensive in this early British version than in the American one, is on top form throughout as they pretty much were for the entire show's 17 season run across two countries. It's worth buying a multi-region DVD player for it alone. However if you don't already have one or don't want to buy one, this same set in a different form is coming out for region 2 soon enough.