
An elderly couple move into an old, supposedly haunted abandoned house. A young girl comes to live with the pair as a companion for the wife. However, soon the girl is possessed by the spirit of another girl, a wealthy woman who had once lived in the house but who had been murdered there.
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Tag Archives: UK
Le violon rouge / The Red Violin (1998) François Girard, Carlo Cecchi, Jean-Luc Bideau, Christoph Koncz, Drama, Romance, Mystery

Spans 300 years in the life of one famed musical instrument that winds up in present-day Montreal on the auction block. Crafted by the Italian master Bussotti (Cecchi) in 1681, the red violin derives its unusual color from the human blood mixed into the finish. With this legacy, the violin travels to Austria, England, China, and Canada, leaving both beauty and tragedy in its wake.
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Confessions of a Driving Instructor (1976) Norman Cohen, Robin Askwith, Anthony Booth, Sheila White, Comedy, Erotic

Best Of The Confessions Films.. This is more of the same in this series of four films starring Robin Askwith as Timothy Lea. In this film, he becomes a driving instructor (the opening sequence in how he becomes one is predictable but funny) and works for Sid (Anthony Booth), his brother in law. There is lots of nudity (even a Scottish Pipe Band gets stripped!), but this film benefits from supporting roles, most notably Irene Handl as Miss Slenderpants, vying to finally get her license after 43 tries and Liz Fraser, still sexy and fun. This is a check your brains at the door sex comedy, but to me its the best of the four, since it doesn’t rely only on the sexual escapades. Films like this were hugely popular then, so it was successful. Its not bad.
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Doctor Faustus (1967) Richard Burton, Nevill Coghill, Elizabeth Taylor, Andreas Teuber, Drama, Horror, Mystery

Faustus is a scholar at the University of Wittenberg when he earns his doctorate degree. His insatiable appetite for knowledge and power leads him to employ necromancy to conjure Mephistopheles out of hell. He bargains away his soul to Lucifer in exchange for living 24 years during which Mephistopheles will be his slave. Faustus signs the pact in his own blood and Mephistopheles reveals the works of the devil to Faustus.
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Confessions of a Window Cleaner (1974) Val Guest, Robin Askwith, Anthony Booth, Sheila White, Comedy, Erotic

Young Timmy starts as a window cleaner in the little company of his brother. Soon he learns that some female customers expect additional service. Young and curious as he is, he reluctantly accepts the juicy duty. However his heart belongs to Liz, who demands the highest commitment until she lets him go all the way.
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Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1973) Terence Fisher, Peter Cushing, Shane Briant, Madeline Smith, Horror

Last of the Hammer Frankenstein films, this one deals with the Baron hiding out in an insane asylum, so that he may continue his experiments with reanimating the dead, along with inmate Dr. Helder, who has been institutionalized for conducting such experiments.
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Villain (1971) Michael Tuchner, Richard Burton, Ian McShane, Nigel Davenport, Crime, Drama, Thriller

Murderous, sadistic London gang leader Vic Dakin, a mother-obsessed homosexual modeled on real-life gangster Ronnie Kray, is worried about potential stool pigeons that may bring down his criminal empire. The brutal Vic cuts the throat of one bloke who has been a little too loose-lipped, afraid that his gossiping may turn into a grand operatic performance for the coppers. Vic, who enjoys playing at rough trade with his sidekick Wolfe, plans a payroll robbery and directs the blackmailing of Members of Parliament with a taste for unorthodox sex. Scotland Yard Police Inspector Matthews, playing Javert to Vic’s Jean Valjean, is moving in on him and the gang. Gang-member Edgar is hospitalized for an ulcer, and Inspector Matthews might be able to make him sing. Will Edgar spill the beans to the coppers before Vic can silence him?
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Lower City / Cidade Baixa (2005) Sérgio Machado, Alice Braga, Wagner Moura, Lázaro Ramos, Art-house, Drama

Lifelong friends Deco and Naldinho, who own a small steaming boat in Bahia, meet strip-dancer Karinna. Both men fall for her and their friendship is deeply shattered.
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Sweeney 2 (1978) Tom Clegg, John Thaw, Dennis Waterman, Denholm Elliott, Action, Crime, Drama

Second cinematic spin-off from the popular 70’s police series. Regan & Carter head a Flying Squad investigation into a series of bank raids by a team of well-armed villains who are flying in from the continent.
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The Night Digger / The Road Builder (1971) Alastair Reid, Patricia Neal, Pamela Brown, Nicholas Clay, Horror, Thriller

Effective psychological love story with a macabre twist not found in the original Joy Cowley novel. The dreary existence of middle- aged spinster Maura Prince takes an unexpected turn with the arrival of young handyman Billy Jarvis, but there is more to Billy than meets the eye. This well-crafted film, full of sexual tension and Gothic flavor, was Patricia Neal’s second after her return to acting, her real-life stroke worked deftly into the story by then-husband Roald Dahl.
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