The Kingdom is the most technologically advanced hospital in Denmark, a gleaming bastion of medical science. A rash of uncanny occurrences, however, begins to weaken the staff’s faith in science–a phantom ambulance pulls in every night, but disappears; voices echo in the elevator shaft; and a pregnant doctor’s fetus seems to be developing much faster than is natural. At the goading of a spiritualist patient, some employees work to let supernatural forces rest.Read More »
Cottafavi’s adaptation of Aeschylus’ play.
Michael Billington wrote:
The Persians is the oldest surviving work of Western drama. First performed at the City Dionysia in 472 BC, The Persians takes a nuanced approach to the matter of war and conquest. It was a direct inspiration for the French national anthem, ‘La Marseillaise’. Percy Shelley’s drama Hellas was written in response to it. It’s the only play from the classical era that deals with historical events rather than mythological ones. In short, The Persians is a fascinating play and Aeschylus’ handling of war is worthy of closer inspection and analysis.Read More »
Idiot (2003)
The thrilling drama based on the world’s greatest masterpiece by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Half-sane Prince Myshkin returns from Swiss psycho-clinic to face the glamorous world of St Petersburg. Here vice, money and extortion rule. Myshkin finds himself in the whirlpool of intrigue. He inherits an enormous fortune, acquires affections of the vicious Nastassya Filippovna and the beautiful young Aglaya. Scandal, murder and incredible love affair follow. Plunge into the atmosphere of the 19th century St Petersburg created by the impressive authentic costumes and sceneries in the most expensive TV-project in RussiaRead More »
Although Jack Rosenthal’s television plays are peppered with Jewish characters and passing references drawn from the writer’s Jewish roots, only three bring the subject centre stage: The Evacuees (BBC, tx. 5/3/1975), Bye, Bye, Baby (Channel 4, tx. 3/11/1992) and Bar Mitzvah Boy.
Unlike The Evacuees, Bar Mitzvah Boy is not autobiographical, and Rosenthal even played down its Jewishness in a Radio Times interview prior to its first broadcast by stressing the universality of its central theme: “When I was young and reading comics there were always men heroes, actually aged about 15, who were playing football for England or winning wars single-handed. I used to think that when I’m a man I’ll be like that, never indecisive or frightened, but there suddenly comes a point of disillusionment when you realise it is a fallacy”.Read More »
Transmitted on 13th October 1965 at 9.05 p.m. on BBC 1 as part of the Wednesday Play series. Repeated on 6th July 1966 on BBC1
The play is a fictionalised account of the relationship between Charles Dodgson and Alice Liddell. It cleverly integrates events, conversations and chance remarks into the narrative which later become part of the “Alice” books but more than anything it’s a touching story of unrequited love where frustration and innocence co-exist but never quite resolve their conflict. It was later remade as the film ‘Dreamchild’.Read More »
Four secret agents investigate a series of mysterious fires in a small town in Edo-era Japan. This is an episode of the TV Series “Oedo Sochi-mo,” which follows the same group of secret agents as they solve a variety of mysteries.Read More »
Based on the mid-eighteenth century novel by Cao Xueqin, the third version (previous version was 38 episodes) of “A Dream in Red Mansions” (aka Dream of the Red Chamber) is known by many to be the ultimate and best adaptation of the story either on TV or film. It is a story about the tragic love of Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu, and the prosperity and decline of the four notable feudal ruling-class families of Jia, Shi, Wang, and Xue. Daiyu is a beautiful and talented girl, but prone to ill health. Baoyu, nonetheless, falls for her over the years and puts up with her sensitivity and ill-tempered personality. They, along with their family-favored and tactful cousin Xue Baochai, reside in the Grand View Garden. The garden was built to honor the visit of Baoyu’s sister, Imperial Consort Jia Yuanchun. Her installment marked the height of the families’ status, prosperity and power. This story also gives praise to the work and revolts of the many servants and nurses in the Grand View Garden. With its beautiful scenery, solid cast ensemble, haunting and superb music score and elegant songs, “A Dream in Red Mansions” remains one of the most beloved and popular Chinese TV-series to date.Read More »
Based on a mystery by Taiwanese-Japanese author Chin Shun-shin. After two elderly men in Yokohama quarrel over a Yang dynasty artifact, one of the men turns up dead with mysterious claw marks across his face. A detective takes up the case, and uncovers secrets dating back to war crimes committed during Japan’s invasion of China in WWII.Read More »
Der Prozeß. Eine Darstellung des Majdanek-Verfahrens in Düsseldorf
Teil 1: Anklage
Teil 2: Beweisaufnahme
Teil 3: Urteile
In über 8jähriger Arbeit entstand der Film DER PROZESS über die juristische Aufbereitung der Nazi Verbrechen im Konzentrationslager Majdanek. Es war das erste große Arbeits- und Todeslager, das von den Russen befreit wurde. Innerhalb von drei Jahren wurden dort mindestens 250 000 Menschen umgebracht: erschossen, vergast, erschlagen.Read More »