"A Complete History of the Notorious Death Machine."01 January 1996History, Factual50 mins
The Guillotine examines the fascinating and bizarre history of the "national razor" that started out strictly for execution and then became a source of entertainment and amusement. In Scotland they called it "the Maiden," in England "the Halifax Gibbet," and in France "the Machine," "the Widow," and "the Guillotine." It existed for hundreds of years, but found its home in France during the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror when nearly 20,000 men, women and children died beneath its blade. Through dramatic reenactments and archival documentation of famous executions, the program explores the early technology of the guillotine and its bloodstained career throughout Europe.
In 18th century France, the Chevalier de Fronsac and his Native American friend Mani are sent by the King to the Gevaudan province to investigate the killings of hundreds by a mysterious beast.
Danton and Robespierre were close friends and fought together in the French Revolution, but by 1793 Robespierre was France's ruler, determined to wipe out opposition with a series of mass executions that became known as the Reign of Terror.
A history of the French Revolution beginning from the decision of the king to convene the Etats-Generaux in 1789 in order to deal with France's debt problem.
Paris, France, during the First World War. While thousands of soldiers die every day on the battlefields, Henri Landru, a seemingly respectable furniture dealer, married and father of four children, relentlessly feeds his own sinister factory of death.
Executed for defying society in 1782, Ophelia Danube is offered a path through time to find her lover again - if malevolent forces don’t stop her first.
Three researchers work on a paleontological project focusing on two dinosaurs: one fictional, the one created by special effects genius Ray Harryhausen for the film The Valley of Gwangi (1969); the other real, the Concavenator corcovatus, whose remains were discovered in 2003 at the Las Hoyas site, in the province of Cuenca (Spain), very close to where the filming took place.
Popular movie trailers from 1996
These some of the most viewed trailers for movies released in 1996:
Comprised of a series of bizarre and unrelated episodes, this absurd Italian comedy earned the inglorious honor of being the film with the most audience walkouts at the 1996 Venice Film Festival.
Filmmaker Ernesto Rimoch looks at the potent combination of love and ambition in this film about a couple who's so happy their daughter is marrying into a rich clan that they throw the best wedding ever, even if they can't afford it.
After kidnapping a father and his two kids, the Gecko brothers head south to a seedy Mexican bar to hide out in safety, unaware of its notorious clientele.
When Hydro-Québec announced its intention to proceed with the enormous James Bay II hydroelectric project, the 15,000 Cree who live in the region decided to stand up to the giant utility.
When Ethan Hunt, the leader of a crack espionage team whose perilous operation has gone awry with no explanation, discovers that a mole has penetrated the CIA, he's surprised to learn that he's the prime suspect.
A doctor and his wife move to a new city where they plan to start a new life. However, trouble strikes in the form of a police inspector who gets completely obsessed with the doctor's wife.
Fearful that the Russians would continue their lead in the space race and be the first to put a man on the moon, NASA felt an enormous pressure to push the Apollo Program forward as quickly as possible, though they knew that pushing too hard could lead to the ultimate disaster.
A young man makes ends meet by selling camotes in his small providence town, has zero luck getting with the ladies, and is too broke to afford the hookers of the town.
