Page 1 of What I watched this week (w/e Sunday 12th February)

On DVD:

Scanners - With the familiar Cronenberg themes of disease/special abilities, identity, corporate power and psychological power, Scanners is a tightly made thriller with a terrific performance by Michael Ironside. :D

It's a Wonderful Life - The only film that can be reliably counted on to bring me to tears is a brilliant piece of film making by Frank Capra, with a great performance by Jimmy Stewart, whose portrayal of George Bailey prevents the film from ever becoming over sentimental. :D

Broken Flowers - Bill Murray has the deadpan act off to a tee and, whilst I'd love to see him return to a Caddyshack/Groundhog Day performance, I think I could watch him sit in a chair doing nothing for hours. :D

A Matter of Life and Death - Like Black Narcissus, this Pressburger/Powell collaboration is a joy to watch with a great central performance by David Niven as an airman whose very existence is being debated in a celestial court. :D

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp - Like films such as Citizen Kane and Sunset Blvd., this begins at the end and, through a wonderful transition shot in a Turkish bath, moves back several decades as 'Colonel Blimp' has returned from the Boer War and proceeds to participate in the two World Wars, struggling to alter his principles as times and styles of warfare change; another success by Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell. :D

The Thief of Bagdad - Not the Pressburger/Powell version of the story, this was directed by, and starred Douglas Fairbanks and is a superb silent film with some well devised visual effects. Fairbanks is perfect as the titular thief but the film struggles to sustain its' 2 ½ hour running time. :)

Survivors - This 1975 BBC TV series is set after a 'plague' has decimated the British population and the struggles of the few remaining survivors (most of whom are very nicely spoken middle class people!) to rebuild a shattered society. In 1975, when MAD (and the events depicted in Survivors) were a possibility, this probably had a high degree of realism but times have changed but it is still interesting from a historical point of view and worth watching if only for the genuine 1970s fashions (yellow flares and knitted purple tanktops). :)

Sunset Blvd. - The film that was so close to the truth that L. B. Mayer and Billy Wilder had a stand-up argument about its' subject matter is a triumph of cinema and all aspects of it are perfect, from Wilder's script and direction to the acting of William Holden, Gloria Swanson and Erich von Stroheim. :D

Ivan the Terrible (parts 1 and 2) - Often quoted on critics' 'ten best' lists, Sergei Eisenstein's two part film about the life of Tsar Ivan IV is a cinematic masterpiece which succeeds, despite the slightly OTT acting, due to Eisenstein's inspired direction in which he barely moves the camera and relies on sharp editing to move the audience's POV. Part 1 is slightly more accessible but Part 2 (which earned Stalin's considerable displeasure, considering more a film about him than about Ivan IV) is the technically superior and the Technicolor dinner scene is a great ending to a great film. :D

Wild Strawberries - One of Ingmar Bergman's best three films concerns an elderly doctor, on his way to a celebration of fifty years as a doctor in Lund, where he qualified. He travels with his daughter in law, meets strangers and dreams/hallucinates which leads him to believe that his life (which is drawing to a close) has not been well spent and has left him a cold, distant and empty man. Wild Strawberries is hardly the most cheery of films but a triumph of film making nevertheless. :D

Napoleon Dynamite - I don't care that none of the characters are fully developed and that a few of the scenes do not fire properly for Napoleon Dynamite is a joy to watch with a relaxed and engaging tone, wonderful dialogue and John Heder dancing to Jamiroquai's 'Canned Heat'. :D

Singin' in the Rain - The greatest musical ever made and one of the finest ever films - a triumph. :D


At the cinema:

Walk the Line - I knew absolutely nothing about Johnny Cash other than he wore black and sung 'Ring of Fire' yet found this biopic to be a thoroughly compelling portrait of a man with superb performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. This will definitely be a strong contender for the major awards at the Oscars. :D


Television

Coffy - A seminal blaxpoitation film from writer/director Jack Hill and blaxpoitation icon Pam Grier; it's not the most refined of films yet is well made and acted with a score that Tarantino 'borrowed' parts of for Jackie Brown. :)

Saturday Night and Sunday Morning - Albert Finney is terrific in the lead as a man who works and lives for the weekend, with little regard for those who threaten to interfere with his fun. Unlike many films, this treats the working class with respect and does not patronise or mock them; its' lasting appeal is reflected in the decision of the Arctic Monkeys to name their debut album after one of the film's best lines. :D

Friday Fight Night - Scott Dann is a great value for money fighter and his clash with Larry Sharpe was no exception with a tremendous sixth round in which Dann was hurt before putting Sharpe away with a lovely upper cut in the ninth. Lee Haskins was the highlight of the undercard, with a measured display of power punching against (seemingly) overmatched Anthony Mathias, who came to the ring with a good record but was quickly out of his depth. :)

France vs. Ireland - The game of the tournament so far; France came out and put Ireland to the sword before taking their foot off the gas and allowing Ireland right back into it with some terrific attacking rugby. :D

Italy vs. England - Italy have improved out of sight since they joined this competition and now have a forward pack to rival any in Europe and a stoic defence that denied England time and time again before succumbing at the very end of the game. :)

Wales vs. Scotland - Scotland's fate was largely sealed when Scott Murray was (rightly) sent off at the end of the first quarter but they hung around to more than make a contest of it but Wales ran out worthy winners with some of the same flair they showed last season. :)

Africa Screams! - Spoofing Tarzan films as well as King Kong, Abbot and Costello's adventures in Africa are funny in parts with some good set pieces but it feels more like a collection of sets than a flowing narrative. :¦

Pro Bowl - Report to follow tomorrow!
The Pro Bowl is always good fun so it was a shame that it rained during the first quarter, which made passing difficult. Sky also lost coverage during the second quarter but that meant that there was time for a discussion about the possibility/probability of Wembley hosting a regular season game. :D


Downloads

24 507 - Another excellent episode - this season is shaping up nicely. :D

Lost 211-213 - With 3 episodes focusing on Jack, Charlie and then Sawyer, I would have liked to have seen slightly more of the 'Others' and Michael; still excellent though. :)



My Top 20 Horror Movies ---- My DVD Collection
Do the chickens have large talons?

This item was edited on Monday, 13th February 2006, 17:52

Quote:
Broken Flowers - Bill Murray has the deadpan act off to a tee and, whilst I'd love to see him return to a Caddyshack/Groundhog Day performance, I think I could watch him sit in a chair doing nothing for hours.
Seriously? I found the style incredibly tedious, and overall very unrewarding. I`m suprised you thought so highly of it; what could have potentially been a greater film appeared to be stuck too far up its own arse. It`s hardly bad, but Bill Murray is just proving that he can sleepwalk through these roles, with the almost as bad `Lost in Translation` seeming to have steered him in the direction of being a `serious` actor.

Thought I`d catch up on the Sky + movies I taped.

Metallica Some Kind of Monster - Lars Ulrich is a total nob, if I was James Hatfield I`d of booted him out of the band a long time ago.
What was the point of Lars seeing Dave Mustaine apart from rubbing his nose in it. The only person I felt sorry for was Jason Newsted, he really was the victim of the bands ego, and I thought the rest of the band were w***ers when they laughed at Jason no longer being an icon in that back patting MTV show.

Catwoman - The less said the better.

Exorcist IV - see above.

Cotton Comes to Harlem - An okay film with a few humerous scenes the only thing I didn`t like was the way that white people were treated like idiots, a trend that Bill Cosby carried through the 80s onwards.

DVD

Serenity
Excellent Sci Fi, the best of 2005, forget Sith this is the real deal, the dialogue is fantastic, the characters are excellent as ever, it`s a shame the Sheppard didn`t really get much of a role, but other than that a total shocker a real take no prisoner type of movie.
The special effects even though CGI were very well done, Serenity was everything Star Wars was afraid to be, and that is a damn good Science Fiction action adventure.

floyd

This item was edited on Monday, 13th February 2006, 08:37

Quote:
What was the point of Lars seeing Dave Mustaine apart from rubbing his nose in it. The only person I felt sorry for was Jason Newsted, he really was the victim of the bands ego, and I thought the rest of the band were w***ers when they laughed at Jason no longer being an icon in that back patting MTV show.

Dave Mustaine may see his band as inferior, but Megadeth have always been a stronger, more consistent metal tour-de-force. I saw the new line-up (ex- Iced Earth) last year and they were a sonic juggernaut.

I love Metallica. From Kill `Em All through to Metallica, you can`t question the talent of the band. But Some Kind Of Monster was like a window to to watch through your fingers and cringe as a once mighty band go off the boil completely. The ego-jostling was bad, the music arguably worse, but the final nail is watching ex- thrash heroes smile as Avril Lavigne covers Fuel for the teenybopper generation... *shudders*

Hello Chaps

Technically, this includes the week before, but I forgot to post.

DVD

Million Dollar Baby - Very good I thought. Wasn`t expecting it to go down the path it did, but I enjoyed it immensely.

Mystic River - Got this out after seeing MDB, and it was OK. Didn`t have as much impact on me as MDB, but it was still a well told and well performed story.

Lost in Translation - I liked this as well, just a nice chill out film (if there is such a thing), with subtle turns from both the lead turns.

Broken Flowers - Saw this after LIT, and while I liked it, I didn`t enjoy it as much as as LIT, there was nothing to connect to for me. But there is a naked chick in it...

House of Flying Daggers - Magic. Good story, good chopsocky action, Zhang Ziyi. And it looks amazing. I want to buy it and watch it again when I get my widescreen LCD.

Paycheck - Bought this from Amazon, and forgot all about it until it turned up the other day. I like it, Uma Thurman does sci-fi / weird chick quite well (I also like Gattaca a lot). Plus i`m a sci-fi fan, so the plot appealed to me. Isn`t it based on a short story by someone?

Quantum Leap, Series 1 - TV at its best. I remember watching it when I was young, on BBC2 9pm if i recall correctly. It`s been shown on TV here recently, so I decided to buy the box set. Some good episodes here, that build up the characters of Sam and Al nicely. Series 2 will be ordered soon.

Columbo, S1 - Has also been on TV of late, so decided to pick up the first series, as it was quite cheap. Only watched 1 so far, but they`re good yarns, and well, it`s Columbo doing his thing. I see the first episode there was directed by Spielberg.

TV

Rangers v Celtic - 0-1 - pure pish.

Rgds
C


*This message was brought to you by Glagnars Human Rinds*

A quiet week for me realy...

Prison Break
Finished downloading the series (so far anyhow) and watched the episodes I hadnt seen last week (12 & 13) great series and cant wait for more!

LOST S2 E13
Hopefully its gonna start picking up for the season climax, Sawyer`s episode was entertaining with a few twists and turns along the way, it will be interesting to see what happens in the next few episodes....

Team America: World Police
Fantastic, just as funny as I remember it from the cinema, dunno why its taken me so long to buy it

Final Destination 3
I liked the first 2, and my sis wanted to go see it so off to the cinema we went. Ok we all knew what to expect, some kind of incident and the survivors getting bumped off in grizzly ways, its a no brainer, BUT it did seem like all the thought was put into the deaths and none into the story, its just glorious killings strung together by a very weak story, its like watching death by numbers ..you know the `system` and that the victims are gonna be killed in order, but theres very little tension...the 2 main characters who have figured out the system thanks to looking up the events of the first film on the net just go on a trip from one victim to the next trying to warn em that they are gonna die, see them die in grizly circumstances and move onto the next one...warn em..watch em die...move to the next one etc etc .... The roller coaster sequence is very good and some of the deaths are great but overall its a disappointment after a good first film and what I thought was a better sequel

This item was edited on Monday, 13th February 2006, 20:11

Quote:
seem like all the thought was put into the deaths and none into the story

My type of slasher flick!!! 8)

floyd

DVD

Final Destination 2 - In preparation for seeing the third film in the series I thought I'd better catch up by watching this so I borrowed it from my brother. Wasn't really expecting much as I though the first film was nothing special but I was pleasantly surprised. While the characters are standard teen fodder the black humour involved in the protracted deaths was a real pleasure to watch. It's also got one of the best car crashes ever put on film and the funniest final scene I've seen in a long time. :D

Dragnet 'The Big Shoplift' 'The Big Betty' 'The Big Thief' 'The Big Little Jesus' 'The Big Trunk' 'The Big Boys' 'The Big Shoplift' 'The Big Hit and Run Killer' - More classic detective action. The characters get more room to breath the longer the series goes on with some nice interplay between Friday and his partner. And in 'The Big Boys' a very young Mr Spock makes an appearance. :)

Downloaded

Battlestar Galactica Season 2 Episode 16 - Not as good as the previous two episodes but a story that will have repercussions for many episodes to come. :D

Boston Legal Season 2 Episodes 13 & 14 - The series still moves between drama and comedy but not quite as well as the first season. On the plus side it's even funnier even to the point of mocking itself, towards the end of one of the episodes when Spader and Shatner usually meet for a drink Spader comments 'There you are, I've hardly seen you this episode.' :D

C.S.I. Season 6 Episode 15 - A particularly gruesome murder and the return of an old friend of Grissom's make this episode stand out. A very good, if abrupt, ending as well. :D

Eleventh Hour Episodes 3 & 4 - The end of a very good series, nice to see Patrick Stewart playing someone a little more down to earth for a change. Hope this returns for a second series. :D

The Goodies Season 1 Episode 5 - More vintage comedy fun that while not as good as I remember it is still funnier than most things on TV today. :)

In Justice Episode 6 - There's a feel good factor to this series that I think plays a big part in my enjoyment and this episode even more so than most. :D

Invasion Episode 14 - Lots of twists and turns in this episode and something that happened very early in the series has tragic repercussions. :D

Life On Mars Episode 5 - Quite possibly the most enjoyable thing on TV at the moment, I think growing up in the 70's adds to the enjoyment. :D

Lost Season 2 Episode 13 - A good Sawyer episode with an ending that caught me by surprise. :D

The Maxx Episodes 7 & 8 - This weird series keeps getting weirder. And more fun. :)

Surface Episode 15 - The epic story reaches the season finale and it's a corker. One things for sure it this returns for a second series, and I hope it does, then it will be a very different show next season. :D

Cinema

Walk The Line - What would have been a good film is made great by Joaquin Phoenix superb performance. He is totally convincing as Cash capturing the essence of the great man, Reese Witherspoon is also good but not really in the same league and I think her Oscar nomination flatters her a little. The biggest compliment I can pay it is that when I got out I went home and dug out my old Johnny Cash CD's. :D

Final Destination 3 - It was a mistake to watch number 2 before going to see it as it pales by comparison. The characters are one dimensional and none of the actors have any personality at all. This makes you long for the deaths but even here the film fails with the deaths to drawn out to have any shock value yet unlike part 2 not drawn out or clever enough to work as black humor, even the opening Rollercoaster crash is badly executed. Morgan and Wong have decided to ignore the changes made to the rules in part 2 but this just means you know the end right from the start. :(


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33939245[at]gpj.00N?1116937776">33939245[at]gpj.00N?1116937776" class="forumImage" />
`.....be nice until it`s time to not be nice`

This item was edited on Tuesday, 14th February 2006, 23:17

DVD

The Perfect Catch (aka Fever Pitch) - US take on Hornby`s Fever Pitch. Actually better than it had any right to be. You don`t need to like Baseball to enjoy this movie. The on-screen chemistry is good and Drew Barrymore does a fine turn ... :)

The Green Butchers - - this is frankly the best movie I`ve seen this year (though was made in 2003). It`s a Danish black comedy that doesn`t sound too entertaining but is just brilliant! (posted review) :D

Eno - 14 Video Paintings - - don`t know whether `watched` is the right word for these amibient vidi-paintings. I had these on VHS but as they were shot in portrait format you had to turn your set on its side to view them...these are early 80`s recordings by Eno set to some of his lovely ambient noodlings. One set is shot from his Manhattan hotel window so not much happens (ala Warhol) but they make a nice `moving picture` to leave on with the music... :)

3 x 3 Eyes - second 45 minute episode of this action-packed anime. It`s a lot of fun... :)

Nanny McPhee - yep, enjoyed this every bit as much as I did at the cinema...good wholesome fun with Firth playing his usual dithering man to great effect! :)

The Matrix - a revisit ...and it`s weird, but elements of it are already looking dated. Still an amazing movie though. Enjoyed this rewatch so much may even revisit the sequels! :D

I think that was about it... :B

Quote:
Enjoyed this rewatch so much may even revisit the sequels! ...don`t do it! For the love of God man, don`t do it!! :o