Lawrence Chan

Not every record that s released can be a hit, but - hit or not - every record released is still a memory for someone. In The Forgotten 45s 1957-1959 we are remembering the records that deserved to be a UK hit but, for whatever reason, were not. Packed with singles by hit-makers of the calibre of Gene Vincent, Alma Cogan, Frankie Lymon, Lonnie Donegan, Brenda Lee and Dion, as well as US acts hoping to extend their success beyond the domestic market, this 3CD set devotes one disc to each year from 1957 to 1959, and will be followed by a companion set covering the years 1960-1962. Reflecting the musical preferences of the era, the featured styles run the gamut of R&B, doo wop, rock & roll, country, skiffle and mainstream pop. Considered alongside hits-of-the-year compilations, like Fantastic Voyage s exhaustive British Hit Parade series, The Forgotten 45s offers a fascinating parallel narrative. Artists, labels and other pundits could reasonably have expected these recording to be UK hit singles, but they were denied that success. The reason may be apparent with hindsight: the timely release of a rival version, or the listening public starting to fall out of love with the artist, or their style of music. But other misses are harder to fathom, and of course it is this unpredictability that goes a long way to explain our fascination with hit records. If you were one of the few that bought one or more of these tracks back in the day, then you already know the enjoyment you derived from them, and you can sit back and let the memories come flooding back. If you are only now discovering the music of a bygone age, then The Forgotten 45s offers an intriguing, different dimension to your journey.

As rumors circulate that the long-disappeared Indian gang boss known as Black Molly is about to return to the underworld, Tactical Unit officers Sam (Simon Yam) and May (Maggie Shiu) are prepared to tackle the ensuing troubles. Molly's right-hand man Velu decides to quit the gang after serving a prison term, but his former partner Sonu feels betrayed, and vows to kill him. Meanwhile, Sonu is driven down the path of no return when he gets assigned the job of assassinating Chief Inspector Chan, Sam and May's superior…

Progress in understanding skin diseases has been aided enormously by the use of tissues derived from animals, by studying normal processes in animals, and by the development of animal models. The cellular activities in animals and humans are remarkably similar and the actual pathological process of an inflammatory skin disease can only be accurately observed and analyzed in a living animal model, and not in any in vitro model system. These factors have led to the regular use of animal tissues and models to allow the disease processes to be studied at a much greater depth.

Ex-cop and cage fighter Luke Wright (Jason Statham) unintentionally wins a fixed fight, angering Emile Docheski (Sándor Técsy), head of the Russian mafia. As punishment, Docheski's son Vassily (Joseph Sikora) and his men kill Wright's pregnant wife, then promise to kill anyone to whom he speaks regularly. Luke leaves his life behind, becoming a homeless tramp.

Bob Dylan's song "Lovesick" could describe every film Wong Kar-Wai has made since 1988's As Tears Go By. My Blueberry Nights, his first English-language feature, continues the Hong Kong helmer's fixation with the concept. Grammy-winning vocalist Norah Jones plays downhearted New Yorker Elizabeth. When her boyfriend takes up with another woman, she drowns her sorrows in the hand-crafted pie served up by sympathetic café proprietor Jeremy (Jude Law in a charming turn). Lizzie appreciates the support, but decides her best plan of attack is to leave town, so she hops a bus to Memphis, where she waitresses while serving as a sounding board for alcoholic police officer Arnie (David Strathairn), who pines for estranged wife Sue Lynne (Rachel Weisz). Later, Lizzie tries her luck in Vegas, where she joins forces with professional poker player Leslie (a brassy Natalie Portman). During her journey, Lizzie sends Jeremy postcards; through her wistful words, he finds himself falling in love. With Ry Cooder's plaintive score (bolstered by tunes from Jones and special guest Chan "Cat Power" Marshall) and golden-hued camera work from Darius Khondji (replacing regular cinematographer Christopher Doyle), My Blueberry Nights reaches for the elegiac tone of Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas as much as Wong's own Chungking Express. It's an odd combination that doesn't always work–the banal dialogue isn't up to the director's usual standards–but lovesickness has rarely been rendered more vividly.