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The Private Life Of Sherlock Holmes

Underrated Billy Wilder movie revived at the NFT

11’09″01—September 11

Eleven short films about 9/11 from 11 directors, including Sean Penn and Ken Loach

Chicago

Dynamic version of the Fosse/Ebb/Kander musical

Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets

Serpents, spiders and a decent script add up to a spellbinding sequel

Monday Morning

Dull mid-life crisis yarn

Manic Street Preachers—Forever Delayed

While serving as a complete visual history of the Manics from their early days as glammed-up rock'n'roll agitators—with Richey-to their currently more statesmanlike demeanour, Forever Delayed also shows how perfectly video has suited their mix of music and protest. Live performance and increasingly sophisticated films and storyboarding are shot through with urgent messages, slogans, cut-and-paste docu footage and literary reference as the hits roll on.

Sound And Vision

Definitive collection of Thin White Duke's pop videos

The Caretaker

Clive Donner's 1963 version of Harold Pinter's debut is a faithful, relatively unaltered record of a trio of stunning stage performances from Alan Bates, Robert Shaw and particularly Donald Pleasence (as the splenetic tramp who takes advantage of the mentally crippled Shaw). Four decades on, you can see Mamet's starting point in the furious inarticulateness of Pinter's characters, each trapped in an unobtainable dream.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Ang Lee's soulful swordfest is out on visually refined Superbit release with wispy hair shots and flashing blades all shimmer-free. Yet Lee's masterfully melancholic movie—with Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh as the unrequited martial arts lovers, Matrix choreographer Yuen Wo-Ping providing the aerial ballet, and high-kicking upstart Zhang Ziyi providing the feminist subtext—could work wonders in any format.

Back To The Future Trilogy Box Set

Time-travellers Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd shunt between the 1950s, the future and the old Wild West in a customised DeLorean sports car, trailing paradoxes in their wake as they attempt not to interfere with history. Zemeckis and Gale's lovingly crafted trilogy remains enormously enjoyable, and curiously now makes one feel nostalgic for the '80s.
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