criterionforum.org

knives wrote:It's kind of sad to see him graduate from Second Run.I doubt anyone will do his films as good.

Our third volume of films by the renowned British documentary filmmaker Marc Isaacs brings together two films chronicling very different perspectives on the nature of love, respect and devotion. With these films Isaacs continues to seek out places where a complete palette of humanity can be found.

Heartrending and hilarious in ways that only the love life of an 11-year-old can be, Someday My Prince Will Come (2005) is rare in its willingness to accept kids on their own terms. Narrated in rhyming voice-over by its subject, Laura-Anne, as she embarks on a quest to find a 'prince'. Along the way, we're reminded of the tumultuous nature of young love and offered an unvarnished look at the social life of a small British coastal village.

Philip and His Seven Wives (2006), a film made for the BBC’s prestigious Storyville strand, tells the fascinating story of a former Rabbi’s attempt to create a new Godly family.

Believing he communicated directly with God, messianic rabbi Philip Sharpe says he learned he was a former Hebrew King, and as a Jewish patriarch he is entitled to seven wives. Isaacs’s captivating and intimate documentary visits Philip and his wives at their unconventional home in a quiet suburb, where daily life revolves around devotion to the Torah and obedience to the head of the house.

Second Run are delighted to present these two important documentary works on home video for the first time anywhere - and which include all new and exclusive follow-up pieces on both films, plus a brand new filmed interview with filmmaker Marc Isaacs.

"Veritable odd-couple Philip and His Seven Wives and Someday My Prince Will Come make for a perfectly complementary double-bill"

"Isaacs is working in the best British documentary tradition of prolonged exposure to his subjects, allowing the texture of everyday lives to be caught in full, hopes and fears, tears and laughter"

"In this pair of gentle, thoughtful films... Marc Isaacs displays his customary empathy and throat-catching intimacy he conjures with his subjects."

A comprehensive collection of the films of Marc Isaacs, presented in a 2-Disc Blu-ray Limited Edition Box Set together with a newly-published 80-page book ‘The Human Element’.

Recognised as one of the foremost documentary filmmakers of his generation, Marc Isaacs creates intimate portraits fuelled by insight, compassion and humour. His empathetic and deeply moving documentaries explore the extraordinary world of the everyday, presenting a unique vision of modern Britain.

This Limited Edition 2-disc Blu-ray Box Set includes the following films:

Disc 1

Lift (2001)
Travellers (2002)
Calais: The Last Border (2003)
All White in Barking (2008)
Men of the City (2009)

Shorts

The Old Man and His Bed (2011)
Outsiders (2014)
Touched by Murder (2016)
When Night Falls (2016)

Disc 2

Someday My Prince Will Come (2005)
Philip and His Seven Wives (2006)
Outside the Court (2011)
The Road - A Story of Life and Death (2013)

Out of Time Installation:

Sisters (2017)
Moments of Silence (2017)
Notes on Bangladesh (2017)
Rainy Days (2017)

Special Edition Features:

• ‘The Human Element - From Lift to The Road’: an 80-page book featuring new writing by Marc Isaacs on his filmmaking processes, reflections by collaborators including editor David Charap, composer Michel Duvoisin and producer Rachel Wexler, and essays on the films by Nick Bradshaw, Graeme Hobbs, Noel Megahey and Laura Rascaroli.
• Presented from new digital transfers of original materials, approved by the director.
• Filmed interviews with Marc Isaacs and Nick Fraser, former Commissioning Editor of BBC Storyville.
• 2017 updates to the films Someday My Prince Will Come and Philip and His Seven Wives.