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