Win Horror Beneath On DVD Courtesy Of Arrow Films

600 feet below ground, no light, no air no one to trust starring Jeff Fahey (Machete, Lost) claustrophobic Beneath is out today 20th April on DVD. We have joined forces with our friends at Arrow Films to offer our readers  a chance to win 1 of 2 DVDs up for grabs.

A crew of miners become trapped 600 feet below the surface after the ground above them collapses. As the air grows increasingly toxic and time begins to run out, they slowly descend into madness and start to turn on each another.

To Win a copy of Beneath on DVD please answer the following question...

Q.Name the upcoming Antonio Banderas film also based on real life events with gold& Copper Miners were trapped underground for 69 days?

Deadline is Sunday  12th May 2015 (23:59pm),If you haven’t done already Like us and stay with us at our Facebook page (if you are already liking us just share this post on twitter and facebook). Must be 18  or older to enter.

1.The competition is not opened to employees, family, friends of Cinehouse, The Peoples Movies,Arrow Films, Arrow Video . All Rights Reserved Pictures.18 years or older to enter 3.Failure to include any information required to enter could result in your entry been void.  4.automated entries are not allowed and will be disqualified, which could result you been banned, DO NOT INCLUDE telephone numbers as for security reason your entry will be deleted.5.If you are friend or like us at facebook for every competition you enter you get double entry, but you must stay friend/like us all the time,or future entries maybe considered one entry if you are liking us share the post on facebook and re-tweet the post.6.The Peoples Movies, Cinehouse takes no responsibility for delayed, lost, stolen prizes 7.Prizes may take from days to a few months for delivery which is out of our control so please do not complain 8.The winning entries will be picked at random and contacted by email for postal details and will be announced via facebook, sometimes we are unable to confirm winners. Uk & Irish entries only

UK Competitions and Prize Draws at UKwins
Loquax Competitions
Free Competitions
ThePrizeFinder – UK Competitions

MUBI Selects - Friday 17th April 2015

The long hard slog of the week is now over, it's  the weekend again  its time for relaxation, wind down after the hard slog of the week.Refuel your brain with sophistication and MUBI Selects.

In our latest weekly 'Mubi Selects' we've teamed with MUBI the purveyors of great cinema online curating a great selection of cult, classic, independent, and award-winning movies. It's an international community discovering wonderful intelligent thought provoking films MUBI is your passport to those great films.

MUBI unleash great new films every week and in our MUBI Selects we've picked  a selection of those great movies  help you enjoy that lazy weekend you desire...

C.R.A.Z.Y (2005)| Jean Marc Vallee

When a filmmaker wins an Oscar for first time, we sometimes we forget they made films before the winning one, like Jean Marc Vallee after Oscar Glory with Dallas Buyers Club.He is one of Canada's finest filmmakers and C.R.A.Z.Y is one of his fun vibrant films, one of coming of age blessed with a great soundtrack. We love Bowie give you an idea when the film is set, a tale of a young man searching for love and happiness finding yourself in a new decade of rock'n'roll.


The Brute (1953)| Luis Buñuel

Buñuel was a master of style from surreal experimental films from his early days to his later days of art films that where twisted and wildly satirical.One thing he was so good at was delivering a powerful vision of social commentary one of guile and femme fatale clash. No one escaped  Buñuel  eyes he delivered them a lesson in life. The Brute is a story of a young man who has made a career of evicting poor people but falls madly in love with a young girl, but he has one problem she lives with her father whom lives in the building he wants to demolish.


Tin Drum (1979)| Volker Schlöndorff’

Regarded by some German's answer to Jodorowsky Volker Schlöndorff delivers a nightmarish often surreal vision of Nazi Germany through the eyes of a child.Günter Grass novel story of innocence of a young boy forced to grow up as the chaos of war unearths in front of him.disturbing, dark, subversive  but also emotional and funny.


Amélie(2015)| Jean-Pierre Jeunet

When it comes to World cinema films having success worldwide are a rarity and Jean-Pierre Jeunet's whimsical tale Amélie is one of those rare films.A magical fable of Parisian, Kaleidoscopic tale of gorgeous cinematography that has been picked straight out of a Renoir painting. It was the film that launched Audrey Tatou as she plays a young woman who takes it upon herself to improve life for her neighbours. This is an heart warming story with a leading actress who is nothing but magnetic and the reason 14 years ago the editor started his crush on Tatou!

Why not give up on those expensive chain coffees once a while, to enjoy the weekend and every day great films at MUBI? click below to get more info on the other fantastic films on offer...

MUBI Selects - Friday 10th April 2015

It's the weekend again which only mean its time for relaxation, wind down after the hard slog of the week.Refuel your brain with sophistication and MUBI Selects.

In our latest weekly 'Mubi Selects' we've teamed with MUBI the purveyors of great cinema online curating a great selection of cult, classic, independent, and award-winning movies. It's an international community discovering wonderful intelligent thought provoking films MUBI is your passport to those great films.

MUBI unleash great new films every week and in our MUBI Selects we've picked  a selection of those great movies  help you enjoy that lazy weekend you desire...

Cold Fish (2015)| Sion Sono

"Be Man (or woman)!" welcome to the macabre world of Japanese auteur Sion Sono, a cold calculated dive into dysfunctional families, sociopathic serial killers and a man at breaking point. Expect the unexpected when dealing with Sono films what may start as a tropical fish owener been taking over by a local fish entrepeneur slowly becomes something more.In the words of MUNI themseleves Cold Fish is “grand gestures, narrative hyperboles, positively vulgar symbolism—apocalypse 24/7… Full-throttle hysteria splashed with choice colours in eye-poppingly garish hues.” This is one for Saturday late night accompanied by your favourite adult beverage.


Comic Book Confidential (1989) | Ron Mann

Roy Mann's Altman documentary is currently doing the rounds at selected UK Cinemas we go back 26 years to his pulpy documentary on quintessential element of American pop and counter-culture. Wacky Baccy, comic books as Man examines the underrated art of comic books, the pulpy media that now sources the most popular genres on our big screens today. It may not have many names that are in the industry today but an nostalgic look back at the industry which the artists and write where the celebs rather than the stories and characters they created.


Cherry Blossoms (2008) | Doris Dörrie

When you learn film theory at University or college you learn about the great masters of cinema and Doris Dörrie's film is inspired by the masterful Yasujiro Ozu.We all get old one day that is why our elders tells us to grab life by horns embrace it, however rarely do we a film about growing old. Cherry Blossoms is that film a moving tale that delivers with clarity and compassion a story of a griefing husband who loses his wife to a terminal illness. When she's gone he realises he did not sournd her with a lot of affection, sometimes the realisation comes too late but in her final days he cherishes her dreams. It's also a story to remind you not to forget about yourself in grieving times.


Involuntary (2008) | Rube Ostlund

Opening today in UK Cinemas Ruben Ostlund's Force Majeure what better way to kick off the weekend by looking back to one of his earlier films, a cunningly comedic film set in Sweden nearly Summer minor indiscretions and misbehavior abound, Leffe is been a prankster showing off, a teacher doesn't know how to draw the line when dealing with fellow teachers. Teenage girls take sexy pictures but one ends up drunk found by a stranger. It's a film that will hit the bone with many people at how mundane this film is, a humourous look at how our Nordic cousins attempt to deal with everyday situations.



Why not give up on those expensive chain coffees once a while, to enjoy the weekend and every day great films at MUBI? click below to get more info on the other fantastic films on offer...

Blu-ray Review - Massacre Gun (1967)

Genre:
Crime, World Cinema
Distributor:
Arrow Video
BD Release Date:
6th April 2015 (UK)
Director:
Yasuharu Hasebe
Cast:
Jô Shishido, Tatsuya Fuji, Ryôji Hayama, Takashi Kanda,
Buy:Massacre Gun [Dual Format Blu-ray + DVD]
Massacre Gun is a Japanese Yakuza crime thriller and stars the actor most associated with the genre - to western audiences at least - Jô Shishido. Shishido is also noted for being one of the first actors known to have plastic surgery but it was to enlarge his cheeks back in the ‘50s. Massacre Gun is similar in style to Seijun Suzuki’s films but lacks the distinctive pop-art surrealism that is on show in his films.

The story of Massacre Gun is fairly standard crime film stuff; it’s about a turf war between rival gangs after Kuroda (Jô Shishido) is forced to kill his lover. He teams up with his brothers who have also been wronged by the mob to escalate their retaliation. It’s surprisingly violent for a Japanese film from the ‘60s- after all, this was the year of Bonnie &Clyde.

The director of Massacre Gun is Yasuharu Hasebe who was an assistant to Suzuki early on his career. He would later become notorious for extremely problematic “pink films”, which often had violent rape scenes. Despite his later forays into this kind of “filmmaking” Massacre Gun is a extremely stylist film which a groovy 60s jazz score and an air of noir melancholy that is only in some of the darker ends of American noir.

The climax is a shoot out on a deserted highway that would have Tarantino jizzing so hard his eyes would pop out of their sockets. It’s a more straightforward film than Suzuki’s work due to it’s narrative precision that is almost like Sam Fuller in style, very blunt no nonsense filmmaking at it’s finest. Kazue Nagatsuka is responsible for the cinematograpy who photographed a lot of Suzuki’s film so the overall look is reminiscent just without the surreal angles, lighting and production design.

Arrow Video is always reliable when it comes to special features and this is no exception. The two main features are an interview with Jô Shishido and lengthy interview with historian Tony Rayns who does a lengthy history of the studio behind the film Nikkatsu. Rayns will be doing a similar piece but the upcoming release of Retaliation but a focus on the work of Yasuharu Hasebe.

★★★★
Ian Schultz

Blu-ray Review - Rude Boy (1980)

Genre:
Music, Drama
Distributor:
Fabulous Films
Rating: 18
BD Release Date:
6th April 2015 (UK)
Director:
David Mingay, Jack Hazan
Cast:
Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon, Topper Headon, Ray Gange
Buy:The Clash - Rude Boy: Collectors Edition [Blu-ray]
Rude Boy is a fascinating document of its time: it’s a fake documentary about a kid named Ray Gange (who is played by, well - Ray Gange), and he’s a young punk who becomes a roadie for The Clash. The film’s reputation over the years has been mixed to say the least, and The Clash famously boycotted it and got badges made with “I don't want Rude Boy Clash Film” on them. It does, however, have many virtues as a document of a band on the verge of mega stardom and of late ‘70s Britain.

Ray - like so many young punks at the time, is an uneducated and naïve kid who develops a passion for punk music, but despite the leftist views of punk he doesn’t really get it. Ray spouts anti-left wing nonsense and is sympathetic at times towards the fascist National Front. The Clash’s front-man Joe Strummer is in a great scene in which he tries to explain to him why the left is better than the right. It’s an interesting coming of age film that is almost reminiscent of the Robert Bresson’s The Devil, Probably in the sense that it’s a about a young man drifting through life with different ideologies, never truly finding the answer he is looking for.

The film’s obvious highlight is the footage of The Clash which is really them at their peak before they left to become huge in the States. The footage dates around the time of their first album and around the time they started recording their most famous album London Calling - it ends with a song from it, ‘Rudie Can’t Fail’. The live concert footage, with the possible exception of the So It Goes footage for Granada television, is the best document of The Clash in a live environment and all the energy and urgency is on show.

Despite overall enjoying the experience, Ray Gange regrets a lot of what the filmmakers did. They tried to force situations in the film, and all the political stuff was apparently the director’s decisions - he just went along with it. The film infamously has a blowjob scene in a bathroom which is unnecessary and simply there for shock-value and to show how much of a dick the character of Ray Gange is.

Despite many virtues, it’s terribly flawed in so many ways; there is a bizarre unconnected subplot about a black kid who gets arrested and goes nowhere, for example, but I guess it’s there to try and show that white middle class kids shouting about revolution can make it (The Clash) whereas blacks are still stuck where they are. It’s naïve, stupid and really misses the point of The Clash, but ultimately it just makes the film drag.

The film’s length is ridiculous: it’s over two hours long, and the aforementioned subplot should have been left in a skip somewhere outside of Slough. Realistically, 100 minutes would have been a better length, combined with a tighter edit or perhaps just the concert film that The Clash wanted instead. It’s still a very captivating film, however, and the Ray Gange kid - despite playing a total dick - is strangely charismatic on screen.

This new Blu-Ray looks shockingly good for a low budget British film from the late ‘70s; the print shows very little signs of dirt or grain. The live footage already just kicked you in the stomach in previous versions but it almost puts you right in the midst of the crowd. The disc includes interviews with Ray Gange who talks about his reservations of the film, the road manger Johnny Green and the two directors who come off as middle class twats. Like previous DVD editions, it has "Just play the The Clash" feature, a lot of deleted footage and some great earlier footage of them live in Munich in 1977.

★★★1/2
Ian Schultz

Win Eduardo Sánchez's EXISTS On DVD

To celebrate the release of Exists - on DVD 6th April 2015 - we have a DVD copy to giveaway courtesy of Entertainment One.

The creator of The Blair Witch Project, Eduardo Sánchez, returns to found-footage horror, the sub-genre he defined back in ’99 and proves he can still terrify audiences with his masterful ability and technique to create high levels of suspense.

This time around, Sánchez turns the lens on America’s favourite monster – Bigfoot, and as Exists’ gang of doomed road-trippers is about to discover, this Sasquatch is the most terrifying incarnation ever seen on screen.

Exists is available to order on Amazon today: http://amzn.to/1ClKAKu

When a group of friends head into the remote Texas woods for a weekend of non-stop partying, their car hits a huge mysterious animal, which quickly disappears back into the darkness.

But as the gang arrives at an isolated cabin, one of them realizes that the woods are home to a bloodthirsty Bigfoot, and it’s only a matter of time before he seeks them out.

Soon enough, their weekend trip turns into a terrifying ordeal of survival of the fittest.



To Win Exists on DVD please answer the following question...

Q.What U.S Film Festival Did Blair Witch Project Make it's Name at that which set it on the road to becoming a worldwide success?

Deadline is Sunday 26th April  2015 (23:59pm),If you haven’t done already Like us and stay with us at our Facebook page (if you are already liking us just share this post on twitter and facebook). Must be 15  or older to enter.

1.The competition is not opened to employees, family, friends of The Peoples Movies, cinehouse, ,Entertainment One 15 years or older to enter 3.Failure to include any information required to enter could result in your entry been void.  4.automated entries are not allowed and will be disqualified, which could result you been banned, DO NOT INCLUDE telephone numbers as for security reason your entry will be deleted.5.If you are friend or like us at facebook for every competition you enter you get double entry, but you must stay friend/like us all the time,or future entries maybe considered one entry if you are liking us share the post on facebook and re-tweet the post.6.The Peoples Movies, Cinehouse takes no responsibility for delayed, lost, stolen prizes 7.Prizes may take from days to a few months for delivery which is out of our control so please do not complain 8.The winning entries will be picked at random and contacted by email for postal details and will be announced via facebook, sometimes we are unable to confirm winners. Uk & Irish entries only

UK Competitions and Prize Draws at UKwins
Loquax Competitions
Free Competitions
ThePrizeFinder – UK Competitions

DVD Review - The Atticus Institute (2015)

Genre:
Horror
Distributor:
Universal Pictures UK
Rating: 15
Release Date:
27th February 2015 (Glasgow Film Festival)
23rd March 2015 (UK DVD)
Director:
Chris Sparling
Cast:
William Mapother, Julian Acosta, Anne Betancourt,Sharon Maughan
Buy:The Atticus Institute [DVD] [2014]
In 1976 the Atticus institute of Pennsylvania bore witness to the only apparent case of possession certified by the US government and for the past 40 years no definitive account of what happened has been released. It sounds as average as it is. Chris Sparling’s horror mockumentary The Atticus Institute is indeed commendable for editing and performance, yet disappointing for its cheap scares, tired story, and non-existent characters.

The whole ‘found footage’ thing has garnered a pretty dubious reputation after, what can only be referred to as, a commercial shake-down. Everyone’s been using it for a good few years now and unlike most horror sub-genres, found footage appears one of the trickiest to sell in conjunction with an original idea. Most of the most memorable handheld moments of late come in the form of cameo techniques in standard features. So technically Atticus is, for all intents and purposes, a very grave film but also a very dull one.

The fact it is spooky is testament to the actors involved. William Mapother and John Rubinstein lead a collection of terrific character actors who help lend some much needed gravitas to proceedings. Atticus reminds us how unnerving it is to be told a story by another person, to feel the fear through their reactions, but it also reminds us of everything that’s uninspired or boring about the format, and genre, at whole unfortunately. Thundering sound and jump scares are the easiest way to evoke reaction and it’s a shame they are so overused because Sparling has actually crafted a well-shot docu-horror you can really buy into.

With no interest in characterisation, Atticus swings from moment to moment, feeling like a ramshackle collection of turns as opposed to any kind of journey. Not bothering to reveal the source of the terror or give adequate back-story, the film doesn’t really throw up another option for us to invest in, except its original promise that something will happen.

★★
Scott Clark

GFF 2015 Review - 88 (2014)

Genre:
Thriller
Screened:
2015 Glasgow Film Festival
Film 4 Frightfest Glasgow
Rating: 18
Director:
April Mullen
Cast:
Katharine Isabelle, Christopher Lloyd, Tim Doiron, Michael Ironside
A young woman (Katharine Isabelle) wakes up in a diner with no idea who or where she is and after finding a gun in her backpack, she staggers from hint to hint in order to track down and kill the man who killed her lover. It’s a great idea and it looks fresh too, but April Mullen’s 88 is a complicated feature.

Unlike Stuart Simpson’s garage femsploitation trip Monstro!, 88 doesn’t give itself fully to silly ideas and pulpy lineage. Mullen appears wary of what outright camp can do to audience involvement in a solid story, but isn’t sure how far to push it. The story starts off pretty perfectly, nuanced and intriguing, Isabelle props the film up on her startlingly honest performance before switching to badass and hooking us in for a good time. Only, as the film starts to bend over backwards to accommodate its convoluted path, it becomes increasingly confusing.

88 isn’t interested in telling us its story in a linear way, but it’s also not that bothered about keeping us involved in the intricacies of its plot. Instead we’re emotionally hijacked by a superficial relationship and quietly asked to care for a typically handsome and dull love. Think of 88 as Romeo and Juliet meets Momento on the highway of bad taste. The fetishisation of milk, Isabelle’s often insane dialogue, and that red dress aren’t problems until the film starts taking itself too seriously. There’s fun to be had but some of the really heart-breaking scenes with Isabelle are boisterously undermined by how blasé and ridiculous the script demands her to be. Mullen herself pops up as an eccentric arms dealer, but it comes across as far too try-hard. When the film wastes time on dumb details, but can’t put together a convincing shoot-out, there needs to be a readdress of focus.

Isabelle grabs our attention and wrestles it into a firm headlock, her slinky femme fatale pissing a path through supermarkets, shooting her way through bowling alleys, and generally giving us more bang for our buck than we could ever have asked for. Christopher Lloyd seems somewhat out of place as possessive pimp Cyrus, never going for hammy, instead meeting Isabelle halfway for oddly touching character drama. 88 scribe Tim Doiron pops up as sidekick Ty but his zany dialogue and irritating performance are a surplus woe, adding unrequired childishness to an already silly film. Michael Ironside appears up for a fantastic wee turn as a sympathetic cop and one can’t help but feel his storyline, and potential further involvement, could have been more interesting than the chosen path.

88 has frankly mad use of flashback that won’t be for everyone, but at its heart there’s a fun tale of revenge and memory loss fronted by an impressive scream queen. There’s something being held back in the punch, something that could have made things a little more solid, but Mullen’s road movie is still a blast.

★★★
Scott Clark

MUBI Selects - Friday 3rd April 2015

It's time to relax as the Easter weekend  has arrived 2(or 3) days of relaxation, it's time for bliss and  chill out after the hard slog of the week.It's time to refuel your brain with sophistication and MUBI Selects.

In our latest weekly 'Mubi Selects' we've teamed with MUBI the purveyors of great cinema online curating a great selection of cult, classic, independent, and award-winning movies. It's an international community discovering wonderful intelligent thought provoking films MUBI is your passport to those great films.

MUBI unleash great new films every week and in our MUBI Selects we've picked  a selection of those great movies  help you enjoy that lazy weekend you desire...

Code 46 (2003) | Michael Winterbottom

Winterbottom has been an unpredictable filmmaker since day one, you don't know what version will turn up and that's what makes him an exciting director. Code 46 maybe been called an 'Futuristic Brief Ecounter', the dystopian totalitarian society that hits the bone. The love story is simple a story one that is doomed thanks genetic incompatibility.A cold story backed by a mesmerizing performance by Samantha Morton.


Reprise (2006) | Joachim Trier

The directorial feature debut for Joachim Trier (nephew of  Lars Von Trier) a film that gained critical acclaim around the festival circuit. Joachim has developed a style which is satirical drenched in realism , truly poetic blessed with  beautifully framed cinematography. Reprise is call to arms for all ambitious writers struggling in a fun character study of the writers and the pitfuls they face.


F For Fake (1973) | Orson Welles

"Are you watching carefully?" Orson Welles who he was and what he did needs no explanation he was a legend in hos own right, a film auteur on every level. F For Fake showcases Welles as the perfect master of ceremonies. Welles is a magician and the journey he takes us on is like the magic's slight of hand , part documentary, part essay, a playful journey that exposes the fakers. Let the legend that's Orson Welles frauds, fakes, and hoaxes.


Let Me In (2010) | Matt Reeves

Last Week we selected Let The Right One In and like many great European/Non English films they get the now expected Hollywood remake.Skeptics jump on every inevitable remakes however Reeves created a version that's comfortably adapted into American way of life , the South West to be precise.Let Me In is an story of a bullied young boy  who befriends a young girl who becomes his neighbour and just happens to be a vampire


Why not give up on those expensive chain coffoees once a wee, toenjoy the weekend and every day great films at MUBI? click below to get more info on the other fantastic films on offer...

Blu-ray Review - Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

Genre:
Drama, Film Noir
Distributor:
Arrow Academy
Rating: PG
BD Release Date:
30th March 2015 (UK)
Aspect Ratio:
16:9 - 1.66:1
Run Time:
96 minutes
Director:
Alexander Mackendrick
Cast:
Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, Susan Harrison
Buy:Sweet Smell of Success [Blu-ray]

“Don't do anything I wouldn't do! That gives you a lot of leeway...” sums up the world in which you are in in The Sweet Smell of Success. It’s a world of pure amorality to the extreme; very few characters ever on screen are as crooked as Burt Lancaster’s J.J Hunsecker and Tony Curtis’ Sidney Falco. The film remains, nearly 60 years after it’s release, one of the most cynical of all noirs and shows the dark underbelly and dog- eat- dog nature of America.

Sidney is a press agent and hasn’t been able to get Hunsecker to write about any of his clients because of his failure to break-up the relationship between Hunsucker’s sister and her jazz musician boyfriend. Sidney becomes increasingly desperate to pay the favour for his chance of fortune, going to depraved lengths. As with most noirs, and especially noirs at the tail end of the classic era, it all ends horribly wrong for everyone involved.

The film comes alive when you have the two powerhouse performances from Lancaster and Curtis on screen. I’ve never been a big fan of Tony Curtis; Some like it Hot is a fun farce albeit an overrated one (Billy Wilder did much better films) and I have always liked Spartacus. He has a nervous energy in The Sweet Smell of Success that works and adds charm to this character that is full of neurosis. Burt Lancaster just destroys every second he is on screen in very possibly his most impressive performance in a career of many. He speaks with such venom and is just so physically imposing it just leaps out of the screen. It’s no wonder that Lancaster came out of the circus.

The legendary cinematographer, John Wong Howe is responsible for the on-location cinematography that is some of the first I know of that really shows the speed and energy of New York City. The director, Alexander Mackendrick, was full of anxieties during the shoot, with the busy streets of New York just adding to it, which is reflected in the finished product. Mackendrick said on the subject, "We started shooting in Times Square at rush hour, and we had high-powered actors and a camera crane and police help and all the rest of it, but we didn’t have any script. We knew where we were going vaguely, but that’s all".

The Sweet Smell of Success remains one of the visceral films to come out of the golden era of film noir. It perfectly captures the depravity that big-city journalism will stoop down to if need be, and the two leads are still exciting to watch over 50 years since it’s release. The film also became a musical at one point, which is just bizarre. Despite being an initial flop it is now rightfully considered as one of the true classics of post-war American Cinema. Arrow’s release includes a documentary on Alexander Mackendrick along with an appreciation and commentary by Philip Kemp who wrote a book on Mackendrick.

★★★★★
Ian Schultz