DVD Review: Young Soul Rebels (1991)

Young Soul Rebels as a film I steered cleared of when it was released back in the early 90s. Yes, it ticked a few interesting boxes - soul music, a mixing pot of youth cultures at a turbulent time in British history, a decent plot on the face of it - but the critics were harsh and to be honest, they're rarely too wide of the mark. Saying that, time can often by kind to movies - is it the case here? Well, yes and no.

Directed by Isaac Julien and set in the summer of 1977, Young Soul Rebels focuses on two friends and pirate radio DJs (Chris and Caz, played by Valentine Nonyela and Mo Sesay respectively), one straight, one gay and both with ambitions as soul DJs, although not necessarily in the same direction. But the story kicks off in a park - whilst listening to the radio show, a young gay black man called TJ is murdered by a stranger, his radio cassette player stolen and dumped. The police are on the hunt for the killer, a hunt that will eventually take them (wrongly) to Chris.

DVD Review: Christiane F. (1981)

If the government wanted to save a few quid on its anti-drug campaigns, it could simply place a bulk order of the newly-reissued Christiane F. DVD and show it to every impressionable teen in the country. Trust me, it would work far better than any number of clever ad campaigns.

I first encountered the movie some years back, renting it on the basis of a Berlin-era Bowie soundtrack. To say it shocked was an understatement, but because it's so shocking, Christiane F. is probably the finest movie about drugs ever made. Why? Well, in some ways, Christiane F. is a typical inner-city tale - arriving in a new town, broken home, wanted to to be hip, wanting to be popular and wanting to belong. But because it's so typical, it's all the more real.

Cult Clip: House / Hausu (1977)

This is probably the most bizarre movie trailer you'll ever see - House (Hausu) is described as 'like watching an episode of Scooby Doo on acid'. Although after watching the trailer, I don't think even that description does the movie justice.

This cult gem from Japan will be available on DVD in early 2010 as part of the Masters of Cinema series. In the meantime, 'enjoy' the clip...

DVD Review: Ghost Story (1974)

Some years ago, as a small child, I had an unhealthy habit of staying up and watching the late night horror flicks, usually a 30s Hollywood-made Dracula film or some old Hammer re-run, neither of which were particularly frightening even for someone of my tender years. But on one occasion, Stephen Weeks' Ghost Story was the weekend's midnight movie. I didn't sleep for days and the images from it stuck in my mind from that day until...well, until now.

For years, I didn't even know what the movie was called, I just recalled a movie set in the 1920s with a 'scary doll' and an asylum, which happened to be enough to dig it out of Google. Sadly, at the time, the response was pretty much 'not in print', 'lost gem', 'misunderstood' and 'maybe someone should reissue this. Well, someone has - Nucleus Films - as a rather tasty two-disc set that finally does justice to this mid-70s gem.

Journey To The Unknown (1968/1969)

I’m sure everyone reading this article has a mental list of favourite TV shows they can return to time and time again, and enjoy just as they did when they first saw them. The easy availability of whole TV series on DVD (a rarity on VHS tape, unless they were wildly successful) or on the many digital, cable or satellite channels means that we can see them all over again. But there are some that never seem to be given an airing by any of the TV channels, that have not appeared on any recorded medium and which we fear may have been victims of the Grim Wiper. I thought that Journey To The Unknown may have fallen prey to the latter, to the best of my knowledge and belief, it was already in the first two. I am delighted to report that I was wrong.

‘JTTU’ was a tense, mysterious show that had a different story to tell each episode, usually about ordinary people who stray into an extraordinary situation or meet a very unusual person. The ‘Unknown’ referred to in the title was the human mind, and its reactions to these strange experiences. Made by our friends at Hammer, and shot on film in the late 60’s, its British locations and actors, with the star role going to an American actor each time, ensure it will be of great interest to lovers of that delirious decade.

The Flipside Presents... Witchcraft Night at the NFT

Apologies for the poor picture, a lack of stills is an indication of how rare the movies showing at The Flipside Presents... Witchcraft Night at the NFT really are.

The date is Saturday 31st October from 18:20 at NFT1 at the BFI Southbank, the movies on show being:
 
Secret Rites (1971)
Don’t miss this ultra rare witchcraft documentary by notorious British exploitation veteran Derek Ford.  Hairdresser Penny is curious about paganism and meets Alex Saunders, the infamous ‘King of Witches’, for a pint at her local.  She is soon initiated – undergoing the mysterious rites of the First Degree – and attends a pagan wedding, complete with groovy post-ceremony ‘free expressive dance’.  Saunders, dressed as Anubis, then leads his circle in the climatic Egyptian Rites of Ra.  Obscure prog band The Spindle provide the evocative and intense soundtrack to this quirky but respectful film.

Can You Dig It? Black Action Films 1969-1975

Soul Jazz is always worth keeping an eye on for some interesting tunes, but movie fans are getting in on the act with Can You Dig It? Black Action Films 1969-1975, which is out today.

Available as a two CD set or limited edition double album set, it charts the rise of black action flicks from the late 60s onwards, throwing in a 100-page booklet, a limited-edition mini-film poster, cards and stickers. There's some very cool soul and funk on-board too, from the likes of James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Willie Hutch and Roy Ayers, helped along by some big arrangement from Quincy Jones, Johnny Pate and JJ Johnson.

Want to see the tracklisting? Check it out over the page. or buy via Amazon now for £9.88. The two vinyl releases are available from Soul Jazz itself, more details here.

Find out more at the Amazon website

Win The Avengers Series One and Two DVD boxset

As we reported earlier, not everything has survived, but the remaining episodes of the first series of The Avengers, along with the second series, have been reissued on an eight-disc DVD boxset, courtesy of Optimum - and we have one of these superb boxes to give away.

Just two and a half first series episodes survive, but thankfully all of series 2 is still around, all fully restored (for the first time) and of course with Patrick Macnee playing Steed, Honor Blackman doing the partner thing as Catherine/Cathy Gale. The entire eight-disc set has a running time of 1,520 minutes, augmented by extras including a 132-page book covering series one, a series one scrapbook, scripts, materials, stills, promotional brochures, audio commentaries and an Honor Blackman interview - most of that new for this release.

It's available from this week (5th October 2009) and priced around £79.99, but if you want one for nothing, we have a box to give away. Just follow the link to the competiton page on our Modculture site.

Enter The Avengers DVD boxset competition at Modculture

DVD Review: Awaydays (2009)

Awaydays was one of those books that became a huge cult hit in the late 90s, primarily via word of mouth and through people who don't usually read (if you know what I mean). The movie version (by all accounts) has been in the offing more or less since the book launched, but didn't really get the go-ahead until Control made its mark at the box office. So was it worth the wait? Well, yes it was, with one or two reservations.

if you haven't read the book (why not?), Awaydays isn't the 'footie thug fiction' you might be expecting. Yes, football violence is at the centre of Awaydays' universe, but it's about much more than that. Set in the pivotal year of 1979 (the year of the Conservatives return to power, the tail-end of punk, the dawn of post punk, the arrival of the mod revival, the arrival of the casual etc etc), it covers football, gang culture, music, relationships and quite simply, growing up in a working class town, specifically on Merseyside - and specifically focusing on a young lad called (Paul) Carty.

The Avengers series one and two get new DVD reissue

Sadly, not everything has survived, but the remaining episodes of the first series of The Avengers, along with the second series, are about to get a DVD reissue, courtesy of Optimum.

Just two and a half first series episodes survive, but thankfully all of series 2 is still around, all fully restored (for the first time) and of course with Patrick Macnee playing Steed, Honor Blackman doing the partner thing as Catherine/Cathy Gale. The entire eight-disc set has a running time of 1,520 minutes, augmented by extras including a 132-page book covering series one, a series one scrapbook, scripts, materials, stills, promotional brochures, audio commentaries and an Honor Blackman interview - most of that new for this release.

Look out for this from 5th October 2009, priced 'officially' at £79.99, but certain to be discounted in the Christmas run-up (it's already around £57 on Amazon for pre-order).

Find out more at the Amazon website

United Kingdom! Radical Television Drama Before and During Thatcher at the NFT

We're huge fans of gritty British TV and drama, so United Kingdom! Radical Television Drama Before and During Thatcher at the NFT sounds right up our street.

The season examines the changes in 'radical' drama from the 60s to the 80s, with part one featuring the classic Up the Junction (a rare showing anywhere), early productions of the 60s by Ken Loach, Tony Garnett, and Dennis Potter, not to mention key dramas of the 70s and 80s plus events and Q&As alongside the screenings.

It all takes places through November - full listing over the page.

BFI website

Of Dreams and Cities - Architecture and Film at the BFI

To mark the 175th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the BFI will in November 2009 present Of Dreams and Cities - Architecture and Film at BFI Southbank and in the BFI Mediatheques at BFI Southbank, QUAD in Derby and the new Cambridge Central Library.

Essentially, this is cinema where the architecture is as key as the stars, including gems like The Fountainhead (1948), Murnau’s Sunrise (1927), Manhattan (1921), Jacques Tati’s Playtime (1967) and the classic Citizen Kane (1941), along with lesser-known works and TV documentaries from the BFI National Archive.

Want the full season? See over the page.

Ghost Story (1974) finally heads to DVD as two-disc Collector's Edition

Many months ago, we ran a 'where's the DVD' feature on Stephen Weeks' Ghost Story from 1974, hoping someone somewhere would finally give this lost gem a DVD release, Well, our prayers have been answered by the excellent Nucleus Films label.

I recall this vividly from my childhood and to be honest, I've never seen it since - but the fear it put into me at that young age isn't easily forgotten. Directed by Stephen Weeks and starring Marianne Faithfull, Ghost Story is set in the 1920s, with three old schoolmates reuniting in a country mansion, haunted by an insane former resident (Faithfull), who transports them back to the horror of her Victorian world. Soundtrack by Pink Floyd collaborator Ron Geesin too, would you believe.

The new DVD version looks every bit as interesting as the movie itself, featuring a 60-minite featurette on the film, seven previously-unseem shorts by Weeks, a 1960s Chelsea Cobbler commercial, audio commentary and theatrical trailer. It lands on 19th October 2009, with Amazon already discounting it to just over £13.

Find out more about the DVD at the Amazon website

The Prisoner allnighter in Central London

How do you fancy watching every episode of the The Prisoner back-to-back on the big screen in high definition? You can if you get yourself down to The Prisoner allnighter.

It's the first time the show will be seen in high-definition and promises to be something special. Taking place at the Prince Charles Cinema, you'll get to see all 17 episodes ahead of the box set release, with the night opened by Prisoner Loudspeaker Announcer Fenella Fielding and closed by an surprise special guest. Each attendee will also receive a 1967 reproduction ITC brochure exclusive to this event and go into the draw for some unique Prisoner merchandise.

What's the catch? Well, to get a ticket, you'll need to pre-order The Prisoner Blu-ray Box Set from Network - the first 125 people that do will get a pair of tickets for the event. As far as we know, tickets aren't available elsewhere. To find out more, check out the Network site.

Network website

BBC Four does film noir

Lovers of film noir will be spoiled for choice this weekend as BBC Four serves up six classic films and a new documentary The Rules of Film Noir (Saturday 22nd, 9pm. Repeated 12.50am and Sunday 23rd, 10.35pm).

Matthew Sweet presents a celebration of the hard-boiled world of noir movie, exploring this classic genre from its earliest days around 1940, through its heyday in the bleak, cynical postwar era, to the dying days of the 1950s, when American audiences wanted a bit more certainty with their entertainment. Writers and academics such as Paul (Taxi Driver) Schrader and The Wire's George Pelecanos outline the rules to which film noir adhered, with clips aplenty from every noir you know (and a few you might not). Want to know about the movies? See over the turn.