Polish Directors - Roman Polanski

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Polish Directors - Roman Polanski

Bitter Moon Roman Polanski Roman Polanski's story of two different couples whose wild dreams, fantasies and realities collide on a cruise to Istanbul in a tense game of sexual one-upmanship and menage-a-trois features Hugh Grant, Emmanuelle Seigner, Peter Coyote and Kristin Scott Thomas in a film that's been described as "Love Boat meets Last Tango in Paris." In English. France/Britain, 1992, 139 mins. DVD $37.95

Chinatown Roman Polanski Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway star in Roman Polanski's finely crafted, atmospheric film--the classic movie that brought film noir into its darkest territory yet. What begins as a routine matrimonial snoop job for an average gumshoe mushrooms into a murderous regional and personal scandal told with incredible style, surprises and a gripping narrative line. Outstanding performances by all, including John Huston as Dunaway's father and a cameo by Polanski as a great little sleaze. Includes interviews with Roman Polanski, Robert Towne and Robert Evans. The DVD is letterboxed, closed captioned, Dolby Digital, with restored English mono and French mono soundtracks, includes original theatrical trailer. In English. USA, 1974, 131 mins. DVD $37.95

Death and the Maiden Roman Polanski Sigourney Weaver, Ben Kingsley and Stuart Wilson are featured in this adaptation of Ariel Dorfman's acclaimed play. A woman finally has the opportunity to see justice done for the wrong she suffered. She will go to any extreme--after all, her life was destroyed. It's a knockout psychological thriller. In English. France, 1995, 103 mins. DVD $37.95

Fearless Vampire Killers Roman Polanski Or Pardon Me, Your Teeth Are in My Neck. Roman Polanski directs (and appears in) this cult oddity, a vampire-film spoof that manages both horror and humor. The story involves a professor and his bumbling assistant, who set out to track down a coven of Transylvanian vampires. Tremendous fun, with a mixture of titillation, tease, kitsch, and terror, filled with gorgeous set design and beautiful cinematography, that thankfully can now be seen in its original widescreen format. One amusing bit involves a recent Jewish bite victim facing a cross: "Boy, do you have the wrong vampire!". Cast includes Jack MacGowran, Sharon Tate, Alfie Bass and Terry Downes. The DVD is widescreen and letterboxed, and includes French and Spanish subtitles and a French language track. In English. USA, 1967, 124 mins. DVD $37.95

Frantic
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski directs this thriller set in Paris, which finds Harrison Ford more than reasonably concerned when his wife Betty Buckley disappears. A Hitchcock-like plot involves switched luggage and a fetching young courier played by Emmanuelle Seigner. Great scenery and rooftop suspense. USA, 1987, 120 mins.
DVD
$37.95  

Knife in the Water (with Murder, Teeth Smile, Break Up the Dance, Two Men and a Wardrobe, The Lamp, When Angels Fall, The Fat and the Lean, and Mammals) Roman Polanski Roman Polanski's debut feature film is an incisive study of three people spending a casual weekend on their yacht. A young man, who joined the couple as a hitchhiker, gradually interferes uncomfortably into the couple's lives, and in a brilliant depiction of inter-personal tensions, tests their marriage. Winner of Best Film at the 1963 British Academy Awards and an International Film Critic Award at the 1962 Venice Film Festival. The DVD is a two-DVD Criterion Collection Edition, and includes a nwq high-definition digital transfer, a video interview with director Roman Polanski and co-screenwriter, Jerzy Skolimowski; a collection of Roman Polanski's short films from 1957-1962, including: Murder, Teeth Smile, Break Up the Dance, Two Men and a Wardrobe, The Lamp, When Angels Fall, The Fat and the Lean, and Mammals; a collection of rare publicity and production stills, and English subtitle translation by Roman Polanski. Poland, 1960, 90 mins. DVD $59.95

Macbeth Roman Polanski Roman Polanski's highly controversial version of Shakespeare's Macbeth stars Jon Finch as Macbeth in a graphically violent interpretation that struck some as entirely appropriate and others as rather excessive. Whatever one's reaction, there's no denying Polanski's visual command here. Many critics saw the director's bloody vision as a cathartic exercise in the aftermath of the horrific murder of his wife, Sharon Tate, in 1969. In English. Great Britain, 1971, 141 mins. DVD $44.95

The Ninth Gate Roman Polanski Although it could be described as a horror film (and certainly was advertised as such), this finely crafted Roman Polanski film is closer in spirit to The Maltese Falcon than Rosemary's Baby. Based on one of several plotlines in Arturo Prez-Reverte's novel The Club Dumas, the film stars Johnny Depp as a cynical and corrupt rare books dealer who is hired by a wealthy collector (Frank Langella) to locate the last remaining copies of a book that may hold the power to summon the Devil himself. A dark, comic detective story with a wild, supernatural finish, it may not rank with the director's best work, but it is a smart and amusing diversion. DVD is letterboxed, 5.1 Dolby Digital, and includes director's commentary, satanic drawings gallery, behind-the-scenes segment and more. In English. USA/France, 1999, 133 mins. DVD $44.95

The Pianist (Polanski) Roman Polanski Nominated for seven Academy Awards and winner of three, including best actor for Adrien Brody and best director for Roman Polanski, The Pianist is a harrowing and emotional look at one man's struggle to survive in the Polish ghetto during the Holocaust. The true story of Jewish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman, this epic film is a powerful testament to the resiliency of the human spirit. "One of the very few nondocumentary films about Jewish life and death under the Nazis that can be called definitive" (A.O. Scott, New York Times). The DVD is letterboxed, and closed-captioned, and includes French & Spanish subtitles and language tracks, production notes, a bonus featurette, the theatrical trailer and more. In English. Great Britain/France/Poland/Germany, 2002, 148 mins. DVD $37.95

Repulsion Roman Polanski Polanski's first English-language film, a chilling study of madness, stars Catherine Deneuve as a jealously sadistic schizophrenic, terrified of sex. Full of memorable sequences, such as Deneuve's delusions of rape as she sees plaster turn into a clawing hand and walls cracking or overhears the moans of her sister making love. With Yvonne Furneaux and John Fraser. French with English subtitles. Great Britain, 1965, 105 mins. DVD $37.95

Rosemary's Baby Roman Polanski Roman Polanski's film of Ira Levin's thriller is a true horror masterpiece. Polanski's innovative direction avoids many of the genre's cliches, with many of the film's most frightening scenes taking place in brightly lit interiors and a slowly building nightmare quality replacing easy shocks. There is also a rich streak of humor in the film, particularly from Best Supporting Actress Oscar-winner Ruth Gordon as the eccentric agent of Satan who leads young bride Mia Farrow to unexpected motherhood. The great cast includes John Cassavetes, Maurice Evans, Ralph Bellamy and Elisha Cook, Jr. The DVD is letterboxed, closed-captioned, and includes "making of" segment; retrospective interviews with Roman Polanski, production designer Richard Sylbert, and former Paramount executive Robert Evans. In English. USA, 1968, 136 mins. DVD $37.95

The Tenant Roman Polanski Like Repulsion, this is a journey through the distorted realm of the human mind. Writer-director Roman Polanski himself plays Trelkovsky, a nebbish file clerk who moves into an apartment where the previous tenant committed suicide. He becomes deeply paranoid, certain that the other tenants are trying to drive him to the same fate. "The end result is somewhere between Franz Kafka and William Castle..." (Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader). With Isabelle Adjani, Shelley Winters, Lila Kedrova, and Melvyn Douglas. The DVD is letterboxed, closed-captioned, and includes a French language track and the theatrical trailer. In English. France/USA, 1976, 126 mins. DVD $37.95

Tess Roman Polanski Winner of three Academy Awards, Polanski's interpretation of Thomas Hardy's novel is a beautiful and timeless masterwork destined to be a classic. Nastassia Kinski stars as Tess against the backdrop of a morally rigid Victorian England. The stunning cinematography is unforgettable. This letterboxed special edition DVD includes Tess: From Novel to Screen, Filming Tess, and Tess: The Experience featurettes; with optional English, Spanish, and French subtitles. English dialog. France/Great Britain, 1980, 170 mins. DVD $44.95