How I Met Your Mother
7x23 The Magician's Code Part 1
The title had no apparent relevance to the episode and there was no it's-halfway-through-the-finale cliffhanger. What?
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
London 2012 Olympics
Day Four
Today's viewing: mixed results in the swimming and tennis, plus (expected) disappointment in gymnastics. Still no gold medals, but that should change tomorrow. Should...
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Films
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 Trailer
Exciting stuff, even if they can't use the right spelling of "Knight" in the official trailer!
The Final Destination (2009)
[#61 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Skyfall US & International Trailers
Finally, a full-length trailer for Bond 23... and we get two! Fundamentally similar, but with different shots and structure in places. Either way, looks fantastic to me. Can't wait.
Exciting stuff, even if they can't use the right spelling of "Knight" in the official trailer!
The Final Destination (2009)
[#61 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Skyfall US & International Trailers
Finally, a full-length trailer for Bond 23... and we get two! Fundamentally similar, but with different shots and structure in places. Either way, looks fantastic to me. Can't wait.
Articles
An Olympic Fencer Refuses To Leave The Floor After Getting Screwed
by Kevin Lincoln (from BuzzFeed)
Quite a story, this. Really, you have to read it for yourself.
by Kevin Lincoln (from BuzzFeed)
Quite a story, this. Really, you have to read it for yourself.
Monday, 30 July 2012
TV
London 2012 Olympics
Day Three
Close attention to the aquatic centre today, where there was disappointment for Britain in both the diving and swimming. Good efforts by all, but no medals.
And tennis again, of course.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Day Three
Close attention to the aquatic centre today, where there was disappointment for Britain in both the diving and swimming. Good efforts by all, but no medals.
And tennis again, of course.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Articles
An unexpected journey
by Peter Jackson
Jackson announces his two-part adaptation of The Hobbit will now be a trilogy in this beautifully-written statement.
by Peter Jackson
Jackson announces his two-part adaptation of The Hobbit will now be a trilogy in this beautifully-written statement.
Sunday, 29 July 2012
TV
London 2012 Olympics
Day Two
Mainly tennis again, even if lots of it was rained off (proper Wimbledon!), but also Team GB's first medal at the end of the women's road race and some success (including Rebecca Addlington's bronze, of course) in the swimming.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Day Two
Mainly tennis again, even if lots of it was rained off (proper Wimbledon!), but also Team GB's first medal at the end of the women's road race and some success (including Rebecca Addlington's bronze, of course) in the swimming.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Comics
Batman #11 by Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo
The epic Court of Owls storyline comes to a close with a stonking big fight and a debrief-ish chat between Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson.
It's a pretty exciting finale, but the downside comes in a number of plot threads left dangling. I suppose that's the nature of serialised never-ending comics -- the Court are a great villain, but to create a truly memorable, enduring enemy in this medium, they have to be able to resurface and pose a threat again and again. That's what Snyder leaves us with here: a collection of possible answers, but none of them definite, so they can always be returned to. Not wholly satisfying, then.
The final part of backup strip The Fall of the House of Wayne (written by Snyder & James Tynion IV, drawn by Rafael Albuquerque) is also a kind of epilogue to the main story. I didn't get as much out of it as I did last issue's, again because it's deliberately inconclusive.
"Great but not perfect," might be the best summary of this ending. It'd be a great story to see on film, actually, because it's atmospheric and exciting, playing on all of Batman's various strengths as a franchise, but an adaptation would surely have the cojones to round it off, to make it a self-contained experience. It would be better for it.
The epic Court of Owls storyline comes to a close with a stonking big fight and a debrief-ish chat between Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson.
It's a pretty exciting finale, but the downside comes in a number of plot threads left dangling. I suppose that's the nature of serialised never-ending comics -- the Court are a great villain, but to create a truly memorable, enduring enemy in this medium, they have to be able to resurface and pose a threat again and again. That's what Snyder leaves us with here: a collection of possible answers, but none of them definite, so they can always be returned to. Not wholly satisfying, then.
The final part of backup strip The Fall of the House of Wayne (written by Snyder & James Tynion IV, drawn by Rafael Albuquerque) is also a kind of epilogue to the main story. I didn't get as much out of it as I did last issue's, again because it's deliberately inconclusive.
"Great but not perfect," might be the best summary of this ending. It'd be a great story to see on film, actually, because it's atmospheric and exciting, playing on all of Batman's various strengths as a franchise, but an adaptation would surely have the cojones to round it off, to make it a self-contained experience. It would be better for it.
this week on 100 Films
Two brand-new reviews were posted to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
The Saint in New York (1938)
Also new-to-new-blog this week were...
M (1931)
Fritz Lang's proto-noir serial killer thriller. It's an exceptional film and I encourage you to see it wholeheartedly.
Wallander: Before the Frost and other stories
Reviews of the Swedish Wallander movies Before the Frost, Mastermind, The Secret, and The Revenge.
More next Sunday.
Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)
the story is built on slow suspense and mystery: who is Komoko? What happened to him? How does Macreedy know? And what does Macreedy want? Sturges happily lets this mull and build over the best part of an hour, before suddenly darting past the reveals as if they’re unimportant. I’m not saying they need to be sign-posted with dramatic camera angles, weighty overacting and thudding “dun-dun-DUN!” music, but they’re shoved in here as if they’re immaterial; a bit of bookkeeping before the all-action climax.Read more here.
The Saint in New York (1938)
As the Saint, Louis Hayward makes for an appealing hero. He’s cocksure, a James Bond character, so justifiably confident of his own abilities and plan that he has every right to believe he’ll be OK. (Indeed, this is certainly readable as a proto-Bond movie.) The downside is there’s no sense of jeopardy or danger, which I suppose is a shortcoming; but instead there’s a kind of comic inevitability to the villains believing they could ever beat the Saint.Read more here.
Also new-to-new-blog this week were...
M (1931)
Fritz Lang's proto-noir serial killer thriller. It's an exceptional film and I encourage you to see it wholeheartedly.
Wallander: Before the Frost and other stories
Reviews of the Swedish Wallander movies Before the Frost, Mastermind, The Secret, and The Revenge.
More next Sunday.
TV
London 2012 Olympics
Day One
Day One, and I've already watched more coverage than I expected! Tennis, of course, but also some of the cycling, fencing, swimming and volleyball. Discovering random stuff -- I suppose that's half the point.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Starlings
1x03 Episode Three
Day One
Day One, and I've already watched more coverage than I expected! Tennis, of course, but also some of the cycling, fencing, swimming and volleyball. Discovering random stuff -- I suppose that's half the point.
[Watch loads of live coverage from the BBC.]
Starlings
1x03 Episode Three
Saturday, 28 July 2012
Articles
Christopher Nolan’s goodbye letter to the Batman franchise
(from Batman-News.com)
Taken from The Art and Making of The Dark Knight Trilogy.
Plus various articles on the Olympics...
Media reaction to London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony
(from BBC News)
A summary of media reaction from at home and abroad. I particularly like the Washington Post's thoughts:
NBC's opening ceremony mess: the top six cringeworthy moments
by Paul Harris (from the Guardian)
Sounds like the US coverage of the Olympics opening ceremony was offensively bad. Here are the low-lights.
Olympics ceremony: 27m UK viewers watched opening
(from BBC News)
Opening ceremony a celebration -- of protest and dissent
by Alex Wolff (from London 2012 at SI.com)
A good piece by a US journalist on what the ceremony really represented.
(from Batman-News.com)
Taken from The Art and Making of The Dark Knight Trilogy.
Plus various articles on the Olympics...
Media reaction to London 2012 Olympic opening ceremony
(from BBC News)
A summary of media reaction from at home and abroad. I particularly like the Washington Post's thoughts:
If the opening ceremonies of the London Games sometimes seemed like the world's biggest inside joke, the message from Britain resonated loud and clear: We may not always be your cup of tea, but you know - and so often love - our culture nonetheless.
NBC's opening ceremony mess: the top six cringeworthy moments
by Paul Harris (from the Guardian)
Sounds like the US coverage of the Olympics opening ceremony was offensively bad. Here are the low-lights.
Olympics ceremony: 27m UK viewers watched opening
(from BBC News)
The UK's TV audience for the Olympic opening ceremony peaked at 26.9m... The average viewing figure for Friday's four-hour show was 22.4m, making it the UK's 13th most watched programme ever.
The programme also had an 82% share - almost twice that of the previous high for an Olympic opening ceremony, in Barcelona in 1992.
Opening ceremony a celebration -- of protest and dissent
by Alex Wolff (from London 2012 at SI.com)
A good piece by a US journalist on what the ceremony really represented.
Friday, 27 July 2012
TV
London 2012 Olympics
Opening Ceremony Countdown
Opening Ceremony
[Watch the countdown and ceremony (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Parents
1x04 Episode Four
Opening Ceremony Countdown
Opening Ceremony
[Watch the countdown and ceremony (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Parents
1x04 Episode Four
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
This week, I finally got the Doctor Who: Revisitations 3 box set (as it came down in price, briefly). I already had all of the stories in the set, so they disappear as the box set replaces them, which means a couple of numbers are down. New special features disc, and the complete Batman Beyond (cheap thanks to Amazon.com), mean a couple are up too though. Shiny.
Number of titles in collection: 1,506 [down 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,162 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 344 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 3,734 [up 11]
Number of films in collection: 1,590 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,618 [up 52]
See you next week, faithful reader.
This week, I finally got the Doctor Who: Revisitations 3 box set (as it came down in price, briefly). I already had all of the stories in the set, so they disappear as the box set replaces them, which means a couple of numbers are down. New special features disc, and the complete Batman Beyond (cheap thanks to Amazon.com), mean a couple are up too though. Shiny.
Number of titles in collection: 1,506 [down 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,162 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 344 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 3,734 [up 11]
Number of films in collection: 1,590 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,618 [up 52]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Thursday, 26 July 2012
TV
Absolutely Fabulous
6x03 Olympics [special]
The last of Ab Fab's three new specials. The first two were surprisingly good, but this one was pretty weak I thought. Shame.
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
The Newsroom
1x03 The 112th Congress
Suburgatory
1x02 The Barbecue
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x12 The Final [series finale]
Thank God Rory didn't win! How he made it this far is mystery enough.
Hopefully that's the end of Holden as a presenter too. Tonight's sample of her style: "Well… that's it, that. Is. It. We… have… our… performances, we are all done. All they can do now, they've done everything they can to convince you at home. They should be crowned the king of kings and… only one of them can get that dream role in Jesus Christ Superstar their fate is completely in your hands." Sigh.
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
6x03 Olympics [special]
The last of Ab Fab's three new specials. The first two were surprisingly good, but this one was pretty weak I thought. Shame.
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
The Newsroom
1x03 The 112th Congress
Suburgatory
1x02 The Barbecue
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x12 The Final [series finale]
Thank God Rory didn't win! How he made it this far is mystery enough.
Hopefully that's the end of Holden as a presenter too. Tonight's sample of her style: "Well… that's it, that. Is. It. We… have… our… performances, we are all done. All they can do now, they've done everything they can to convince you at home. They should be crowned the king of kings and… only one of them can get that dream role in Jesus Christ Superstar their fate is completely in your hands." Sigh.
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Wednesday, 25 July 2012
TV
Mock the Week
11x06 (19/7/12 edition) [mid-season finale]
The usual mid-series best-ofs and outtakes. Mock the Week returns in... um... The Future.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
A Short History of Everything Else
1x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
Rob Rouse wasn't funny once and Grace Dent is always annoying. Bit of a damp squib for a final episode, then.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x11 The Semi-Final
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
11x06 (19/7/12 edition) [mid-season finale]
The usual mid-series best-ofs and outtakes. Mock the Week returns in... um... The Future.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
A Short History of Everything Else
1x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
Rob Rouse wasn't funny once and Grace Dent is always annoying. Bit of a damp squib for a final episode, then.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x11 The Semi-Final
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Articles
Box Office Curios
(from the ghost of 82)
"Huge hit" Prometheus has made $300m. "Massive flop" John Carter made $283m. Obviously there are issues of budget size in the stories of their relative success (Carter cost nearly twice as much as Prometheus, before marketing), but maybe the press (and fans) should think a little more carefully about their rhetoric.
Fifty spoiler-heavy questions for The Dark Knight Rises
(from Ultra Culture)
I calculate these questions to be precisely 26% answered by the film itself (or with a little bit of your own thought), 28% genuine things worth asking, and 46% deliberately silly. And I allowed the middle one the benefit of the doubt more than once too.
(from the ghost of 82)
"Huge hit" Prometheus has made $300m. "Massive flop" John Carter made $283m. Obviously there are issues of budget size in the stories of their relative success (Carter cost nearly twice as much as Prometheus, before marketing), but maybe the press (and fans) should think a little more carefully about their rhetoric.
Fifty spoiler-heavy questions for The Dark Knight Rises
(from Ultra Culture)
I calculate these questions to be precisely 26% answered by the film itself (or with a little bit of your own thought), 28% genuine things worth asking, and 46% deliberately silly. And I allowed the middle one the benefit of the doubt more than once too.
Tuesday, 24 July 2012
Films
M (British version) (1931/1932)
[#58a in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
The Saint in New York (1938)
[#59 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
The first film in the Saint series, which BBC Two are currently showing in a completely jumbled up order.
[#58a in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
The Saint in New York (1938)
[#59 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
The first film in the Saint series, which BBC Two are currently showing in a completely jumbled up order.
Articles
15 Things That Bothered Us About The Dark Knight Rises
(from /Film)
There may be some worthwhile points in here, but a lot of it can be solved by applying a little brainpower or artistic licence. Normally I advocate ignoring the comments section on popular websites, but there's a few good counterpoints in there -- particularly the top comment, by markedward, which is pretty much a necessary riposte.
COMICS: Grant Morrison To Leave Action Comics And Batman Incorporated
by Josh Wilding (from ComicBookMovie.com)
Unless they get someone really good on Action, that's me done with it -- I was considering leaving it behind anyhow, but now I think I'll stick it out to the end of Morrison's run. Be interesting to see if they hand Incorporated (which Morrison created) on to someone else, or just wrap it up. There are certainly more than enough Batman books on the stands right now, but then they sell so of course they keep them going!
(from /Film)
There may be some worthwhile points in here, but a lot of it can be solved by applying a little brainpower or artistic licence. Normally I advocate ignoring the comments section on popular websites, but there's a few good counterpoints in there -- particularly the top comment, by markedward, which is pretty much a necessary riposte.
COMICS: Grant Morrison To Leave Action Comics And Batman Incorporated
by Josh Wilding (from ComicBookMovie.com)
Unless they get someone really good on Action, that's me done with it -- I was considering leaving it behind anyhow, but now I think I'll stick it out to the end of Morrison's run. Be interesting to see if they hand Incorporated (which Morrison created) on to someone else, or just wrap it up. There are certainly more than enough Batman books on the stands right now, but then they sell so of course they keep them going!
Monday, 23 July 2012
TV
MythBusters
7x08 Thermite vs. Ice
7x12 Knock Your Socks Off!
These episodes: one of the most awesome explosions ever in the first (lots of thermite + lots of ice); the most ridiculous-but-amusing 'myth' I've seen tested: is it possible to literally blow your socks off?
And finally, "It's unsafe to leave loaded guns in exploded rooms." MythBusters: essential consumer advice.
Once Upon a Time
1x13 What Happened to Frederick
Pointless
6x39 (7/5/12 edition)
Twenty Twelve
2x06 Inclusivity Day
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
7x08 Thermite vs. Ice
7x12 Knock Your Socks Off!
These episodes: one of the most awesome explosions ever in the first (lots of thermite + lots of ice); the most ridiculous-but-amusing 'myth' I've seen tested: is it possible to literally blow your socks off?
And finally, "It's unsafe to leave loaded guns in exploded rooms." MythBusters: essential consumer advice.
Once Upon a Time
1x13 What Happened to Frederick
Pointless
6x39 (7/5/12 edition)
Twenty Twelve
2x06 Inclusivity Day
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Sunday, 22 July 2012
TV
Once Upon a Time
1x12 Skin Deep
This week, OUaT recasts Beauty and the Beast with Rumplestiltskin as the Beast. And as with everything this series does, it's very much based on the Disney version.
Can't escape it's regular penchant for low-level awfulness, though: the Mayor/Queen persuades Mr Gold to reveal he knows his own real identity by bribing him with a stolen item, but because he knows his real identity he also knows all he has to do is say "please" and she'll do whatever he wants, so why doesn't he just say "give it back please" and be done? If you're going to have rules, stick to them -- especially when you've reminded us of them by using it several times in the episode already!
Suburgatory
1x01 Pilot
New-to-the-UK sitcom about a single father and his daughter who move from New York to the suburbs. It's actually quite good.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x09 Episode Nine
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
1x12 Skin Deep
This week, OUaT recasts Beauty and the Beast with Rumplestiltskin as the Beast. And as with everything this series does, it's very much based on the Disney version.
Can't escape it's regular penchant for low-level awfulness, though: the Mayor/Queen persuades Mr Gold to reveal he knows his own real identity by bribing him with a stolen item, but because he knows his real identity he also knows all he has to do is say "please" and she'll do whatever he wants, so why doesn't he just say "give it back please" and be done? If you're going to have rules, stick to them -- especially when you've reminded us of them by using it several times in the episode already!
Suburgatory
1x01 Pilot
New-to-the-UK sitcom about a single father and his daughter who move from New York to the suburbs. It's actually quite good.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x09 Episode Nine
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
this week on 100 Films
This week has seen 100 Films in a Year go a bit Batman crazy in anticipation of the release of The Dark Knight Rises, including both new reviews and old ones re-posted to the new blog.
The headline piece, now, is my spoiler-free initial thoughts on The Dark Knight Rises. Other than that, click through for reviews of...
The Batman Series
Featuring new reviews of Batman (1989), Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman & Robin, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.
Batman (1966)
Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)
Batman: Year One (2011)
The Dark Knight (2008)
My original review from 2008.
The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience (2008)
My thoughts on seeing The Dark Knight in its intended IMAX format back in 2008, sadly something I won't be able to repeat for The Dark Knight Rises.
More next Sunday, including new-to-new-blog reviews of M and four Wallander films going up later today.
The headline piece, now, is my spoiler-free initial thoughts on The Dark Knight Rises. Other than that, click through for reviews of...
The Batman Series
Featuring new reviews of Batman (1989), Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman & Robin, Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.
Batman (1966)
Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)
Batman: Year One (2011)
The Dark Knight (2008)
My original review from 2008.
The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience (2008)
My thoughts on seeing The Dark Knight in its intended IMAX format back in 2008, sadly something I won't be able to repeat for The Dark Knight Rises.
More next Sunday, including new-to-new-blog reviews of M and four Wallander films going up later today.
Saturday, 21 July 2012
TV
Wallander [British]
3x02 The Dogs of Riga
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x03 A Diplomatic Incident
3x02 The Dogs of Riga
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x03 A Diplomatic Incident
Articles
The Dickensian Aspects of The Dark Knight Rises
by Forrest Wickman (from Brow Beat at Slate)
This is spoilery, but if you've seen the film it's worth a read.
by Forrest Wickman (from Brow Beat at Slate)
This is spoilery, but if you've seen the film it's worth a read.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Number of titles in collection: 1,507 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,163 [up 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 344 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 3,723 [up 4]
Number of films in collection: 1,590 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,566 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Number of titles in collection: 1,507 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,163 [up 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 344 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 3,723 [up 4]
Number of films in collection: 1,590 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,566 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 20 July 2012
TV
The Graham Norton Show
11x03 (27/4/12 edition)
Oh yeah, I may be three months behind, but I'm still watching it.
How I Met Your Mother
7x22 Good Crazy
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
The Newsroom
1x02 News Night 2.0
This is beginning to feel really quite silly, but fun. It feels like tonally it should be going for The West Wing, but has wound up as Studio 60 by way of something altogether cheaper (the women are all histrionic and relationship-obsessed, for example).
Superstar
1x08 Episode 8
"We're back tomorrow with two elimimiminations! Two! TWO!" Is Amanda Holden the worst presenter of a (relatively) major TV series ever?
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
11x03 (27/4/12 edition)
Oh yeah, I may be three months behind, but I'm still watching it.
How I Met Your Mother
7x22 Good Crazy
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
The Newsroom
1x02 News Night 2.0
This is beginning to feel really quite silly, but fun. It feels like tonally it should be going for The West Wing, but has wound up as Studio 60 by way of something altogether cheaper (the women are all histrionic and relationship-obsessed, for example).
Superstar
1x08 Episode 8
"We're back tomorrow with two elimimiminations! Two! TWO!" Is Amanda Holden the worst presenter of a (relatively) major TV series ever?
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Films
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
[#58 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Fantastic. My full spoiler-free initial thoughts are here.
[#58 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Fantastic. My full spoiler-free initial thoughts are here.
Thursday, 19 July 2012
TV
Parents
1x03 Episode Three
Well that was... surprisingly better.
Superstar
1x07 Episode Seven
Amanda Holden is an incredibly laughable presenter. "Do not call after lines have closed (surprised face) or your vote will not be counted! (frowny face) And you may still be charged!" It's literally like she's trying to tell it to a two-year-old.
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
1x03 Episode Three
Well that was... surprisingly better.
Superstar
1x07 Episode Seven
Amanda Holden is an incredibly laughable presenter. "Do not call after lines have closed (surprised face) or your vote will not be counted! (frowny face) And you may still be charged!" It's literally like she's trying to tell it to a two-year-old.
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Films
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)[#57 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Just time enough to drop this in to my schedule of Batman viewing. If you don't know, it's a theatrically-released spin-off from the acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series animated series, which Those In The Know have long hailed as one of the best Bat-films of any kind.
And by golly, they're right! It's bloody brilliant. Not sure where I'd place it in the overall scheme of Batman movies, but then that's always hard because they have such different styles anyway. Though I don't think it's far from the truth to say it has one of the absolute best, most complex storylines for the character of Bruce Wayne -- certainly better than anything in the Burton films, better than Batman Forever, and more original than the familiar vengeance arc offered in Begins. The nearest similarity may be parts of the Bruce-Rachel story in The Dark Knight and its (apparent) continued effect in The Dark Knight Rises. But even then, this may have the edge.
Add to that stunning design and animation, including multiple barnstorming action sequences, and it all adds up to fantastic entertainment. And for an American animation, it's stunningly mature/adult/grown-up, while also remaining kid-friendly. Outstanding.
Non-Fiction
Holy Franchise, Batman! by Gary Collinson
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - Batman on hiatus (1997-2003) (pages 120-124)
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - Aborted spin-offs (pages 169-175)
Part 2: Animated Batman - The Dark Knight in the DC Animated Universe - Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) (pages 189-191)
Part 2: Animated Batman - The further animated adventures of the Caped Crusader - The Batman vs Dracula: The Animated Movie (2005) (pages 217-219)
Part 3: Batman of the Future (pages 242-244) [the end]
I am nothing if not thorough in listing exactly what I've read.
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - Batman on hiatus (1997-2003) (pages 120-124)
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - Aborted spin-offs (pages 169-175)
Part 2: Animated Batman - The Dark Knight in the DC Animated Universe - Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) (pages 189-191)
Part 2: Animated Batman - The further animated adventures of the Caped Crusader - The Batman vs Dracula: The Animated Movie (2005) (pages 217-219)
Part 3: Batman of the Future (pages 242-244) [the end]
I am nothing if not thorough in listing exactly what I've read.
Wednesday, 18 July 2012
TV
Parents
1x02 Episode Two
I have a suspicion this is going to get increasingly dire rather than any better.
Superstar
1x06 Episode Six
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
1x02 Episode Two
I have a suspicion this is going to get increasingly dire rather than any better.
Superstar
1x06 Episode Six
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Films
The Dark Knight (2008)[3rd watch]
I was, oddly, a little nervous sitting down to watch TDK for the first time in four years. I'd had such an incredible experience viewing it in the cinema (twice) and, by not watching it since, it had built up some kind of aura in my mind. But I dismissed such silliness and damn well got on with it.
It's interesting watching this directly after Begins. While Nolan's first film isn't even close to being as all-out fantasy as the earlier entries, it errs more in that direction than this one, in my opinion. Begins has a kind of fantastical warmth to it, alongside the more urban-realism aspects. I say "warmth" probably because of the sepia/brown hues of the sequences set in the Narrows and so on. The Dark Knight, by comparison, is set in the cold grey-blue steel world of skyscrapers and the modern metropolis, inspired by towering architecture in its visual style and by epic crime-thrillers in its plotting.
Begins is, at heart, still a superhero action-adventure; Dark Knight is a crime thriller that happens to take place in a world with superheroes. Does that make it inherently better? No. But it does make it more unusual for the genre. And as Nolan & co pull off the crime thriller style and feel so damn well, it flat out makes it a great film.
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
Films
Batman Begins (2005)[3rd watch]
As I've decided to cover this Bat-series re-watch on 100 Films now I'll say some more about this film there (on Friday, I should imagine), but now I want to make a comment about the way it uses Gotham City.
Primarily, I think it's important to note what a fine job Nolan does of making Gotham City another character in the film. All of the Batman films have done this to some degree -- it was Burton's stated aim to make Gotham "the third character" in his first effort -- but by giving the city recognisable landmarks, districts, a true sense of history and on-going interrelations, it feels like a real place. And those recognisable landmarks continue into The Dark Knight (the split-level roads, the Narrows and it's bridges, even if the vital-to-the-plot elevated railway completely disappears between films), cementing the importance of this cityscape.
I do hope this continues into The Dark Knight Rises. I've already read one review that said they should've named the final film Gotham City, so I'm optimistic.
Articles
Review of The Dark Knight Rises by Nev Pierce (from Empire)
and
Review: The Dark Knight Rises closes out Nolan's trilogy with brains and bombast by Drew McWeeny (from Motion Captured at HitFix)
A pair of great, spoiler-free reviews of the new Batman film. Really looking forward to this, so much so that I've booked a ticket and it'll be my first cinema trip in over a year. And now I intend to avoid reading too many (or any) further reviews, just in case.
In other TDKR news:
The Dark Knight Rises -- This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things
by Matt Atchity (from Rotten Tomatoes)
With reviews coming in, Rotten Tomatoes has gone insane... kinda literally. Not the site itself, but it's users/commentators, which has led the site to take some action. Official statement-y thing here should give you an idea what's been going on, but I first read about it somewhere else so in case my foreknowledge led me to think this was more thorough than it is, what you need to know was there were a raft of positive reviews and a single negative one, which attracted thousands (I do believe it was literally thousands) of comments, most of them abusive stuff from people who hadn't even seen the film.
And then some 'real' critic posted a negative comment linking to something that wasn't a review because he hadn't even seen the film. It was something to do with making a point about how no RT commentators even bother to click through and read the whole review, but it seems this wasn't appreciated by RT's management. Not necessarily wrongly.
and
Review: The Dark Knight Rises closes out Nolan's trilogy with brains and bombast by Drew McWeeny (from Motion Captured at HitFix)
A pair of great, spoiler-free reviews of the new Batman film. Really looking forward to this, so much so that I've booked a ticket and it'll be my first cinema trip in over a year. And now I intend to avoid reading too many (or any) further reviews, just in case.
In other TDKR news:
The Dark Knight Rises -- This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things
by Matt Atchity (from Rotten Tomatoes)
With reviews coming in, Rotten Tomatoes has gone insane... kinda literally. Not the site itself, but it's users/commentators, which has led the site to take some action. Official statement-y thing here should give you an idea what's been going on, but I first read about it somewhere else so in case my foreknowledge led me to think this was more thorough than it is, what you need to know was there were a raft of positive reviews and a single negative one, which attracted thousands (I do believe it was literally thousands) of comments, most of them abusive stuff from people who hadn't even seen the film.
And then some 'real' critic posted a negative comment linking to something that wasn't a review because he hadn't even seen the film. It was something to do with making a point about how no RT commentators even bother to click through and read the whole review, but it seems this wasn't appreciated by RT's management. Not necessarily wrongly.
Dark Knight Girl Rises With The Dragon Tattoo
Trailer footage for The Dark Knight Rises set to Immigrant Song from The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trailer?
More awesome than it sounds, and it sounds awesome.
More awesome than it sounds, and it sounds awesome.
Monday, 16 July 2012
TV
A Short History of Everything Else
1x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x04 The Superstar Studio
Amanda Holden wasn't... actually as bad as I thought she'd be. I mean, she's not great -- she's no Graham -- but still, she can read out loud, so...
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
1x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x04 The Superstar Studio
Amanda Holden wasn't... actually as bad as I thought she'd be. I mean, she's not great -- she's no Graham -- but still, she can read out loud, so...
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Films
Batman & Robin (1997)[2nd watch]
Believe it or not, Batman & Robin isn't a complete disaster. Relatively significant screen time is given to a subplot involving Alfred being very ill. Thanks to the general warmth of feeling felt toward the character, plus the acting abilities of Michael Gough and George Clooney, this storyline deserves to be part of a far better film.
Also, the realisation of Gotham is impressive. Mixing gigantic sets, model work and CGI, Schumacher and co crafted a towering fantasy landscape straight out of the comic's wilder imaginings. The neon colouring may not be to everyone's taste, but this is an animated-series-style Gotham writ in live-action.
The rest of the film is an irredeemable mess, however. I'll write more on 100 Films in a few days, but one thing I hate is a foul new look for the Batmobile -- though the DVD featurette on the film's vehicles almost makes you appreciate it. The behind-the-scenes version is much more impressive than what we see in the film.
Non-Fiction
Holy Franchise, Batman! by Gary Collinson
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - The Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Era (pages 63-119)
Subtitled Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Silver Screen, this new book covers all the on-screen incarnations of the Dark Knight to date. As you can see, I'm basically reading along with my viewing (retrospectively, anyway), to perhaps inform the mini-reviews I'll post on 100 Films later this week.
Part 1: Live-Action Batman - The Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Era (pages 63-119)
Subtitled Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Silver Screen, this new book covers all the on-screen incarnations of the Dark Knight to date. As you can see, I'm basically reading along with my viewing (retrospectively, anyway), to perhaps inform the mini-reviews I'll post on 100 Films later this week.
Sunday, 15 July 2012
TV
Parents
1x01 Episode One
Well that was... mediocre.
Starlings
1x01 Episode One
Or, as the title card would have it, "STarLINGS". Or perhaps "sTarLINGs", who can say. It's kind of like Stella, but not quite as good.
Superstar
1x03 Mallorca
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x02 Official Secrets
1x01 Episode One
Well that was... mediocre.
Starlings
1x01 Episode One
Or, as the title card would have it, "STarLINGS". Or perhaps "sTarLINGs", who can say. It's kind of like Stella, but not quite as good.
Superstar
1x03 Mallorca
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x02 Official Secrets
Films
Batman Forever (1995)[4th or so watch]
Three observations I personally hadn't made before:
1) everyone goes on about how the pre-Begins Batman films dealt with the villains and ignored Bruce Wayne. That's true of Burton's pair, but this one spends a ton of time with Bruce (a lot of that's about Robin, but it's about Robin in relation to Bruce). The one who's hard done by is Harvey Dent/Two-Face, who gets relatively little screen time and most of it is spent as a cackling halfwit sidekick to the Riddler. Not befitting the character at all.
But 2) talking of Two-Face, wow does Tommy Lee Jones over-act furiously! Perhaps that's not news, but crikey it's so unlike anything else I've ever seen him in.
And 3) I swear Elliot Goldenthal's score referenced the music of the '60s Adam West series on several occasions. Which, considering the overall tone of the film, feels entirely possible. (I watched the featurette on the BD about the music but they didn't mention it, sadly.)
this week on 100 Films
I didn't get round to writing and posting either Green Lantern or Cowboys & Aliens (both of which have premiered on Sky Movies recently, and I've seen 'n' everything), so it's just one new review again this week...
Devil (2010)
Also, because of problems with my old blog, I've decided not to continue posting full reviews there, at least for the time being. Just in case you wondered where those links had gone.
More next Sunday.
Devil (2010)
Devil launched a series of films dubbed “The Night Chronicles”... as I recall the idea is they were a series of low-key/low-budget horror-thrillers conceived by M. Night Shyamalan (he has a Story and Producer credit here) but helmed by others... Funny thing is, this is better than anything Shyamalan has done in a long time.Read more on my new blog.
Also, because of problems with my old blog, I've decided not to continue posting full reviews there, at least for the time being. Just in case you wondered where those links had gone.
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 14 July 2012
TV
The Cube
5x07 Gold Medallist Special
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
How I Met Your Mother
7x21 Now We're Even
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Wallander [British]
3x01 An Event in Autumn
2½ years since the last British Wallander, Kenneth Branagh's more-prone-to-tears interpretation of the Swedish detective is back, this time with an adaptation of a short story. There are only so many novels for them to do, so clearly they're branching out before they run out. It's good stuff still though.
(Saying that, according to Branagh in this article, he hopes for another series adapting the two remaining full-length novels and then leave it at that. Hopefully they'll be able to do that much, then.)
(Also, it's coming up to two years since I last watched any of the longest-running Swedish Wallander! God, time flies.)
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
5x07 Gold Medallist Special
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]
How I Met Your Mother
7x21 Now We're Even
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Wallander [British]
3x01 An Event in Autumn
2½ years since the last British Wallander, Kenneth Branagh's more-prone-to-tears interpretation of the Swedish detective is back, this time with an adaptation of a short story. There are only so many novels for them to do, so clearly they're branching out before they run out. It's good stuff still though.
(Saying that, according to Branagh in this article, he hopes for another series adapting the two remaining full-length novels and then leave it at that. Hopefully they'll be able to do that much, then.)
(Also, it's coming up to two years since I last watched any of the longest-running Swedish Wallander! God, time flies.)
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Articles
Game of Thrones reveals new cast members for Season 3!
by Lauren Davis (from io9)
Including a tonne of people reading for British viewers to proclaim, "oh, it's him/her from... oh y'know... that thing..."
Clive Russell, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ellie Kendrick, Paul Kaye, Mackenzie Crook, Tara Fitzgerald, Tobias Menzies, Anton Lesser -- if you don't know the name you'll probably know the face. Plus someone who I think was in Hollyoaks, someone who I think played Matilda on stage, some people I don't recognise at all even after Googling their face, and none other than Dame Diana Rigg(!)
Game of Thrones may have a cast bigger than the population of a small country, but at least you'll recognise them.
by Lauren Davis (from io9)
Including a tonne of people reading for British viewers to proclaim, "oh, it's him/her from... oh y'know... that thing..."
Clive Russell, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ellie Kendrick, Paul Kaye, Mackenzie Crook, Tara Fitzgerald, Tobias Menzies, Anton Lesser -- if you don't know the name you'll probably know the face. Plus someone who I think was in Hollyoaks, someone who I think played Matilda on stage, some people I don't recognise at all even after Googling their face, and none other than Dame Diana Rigg(!)
Game of Thrones may have a cast bigger than the population of a small country, but at least you'll recognise them.
Friday, 13 July 2012
TV
The Newsroom
1x01 We Just Decided To
Seems to have been quite a lot of criticism of this in the press, but I really enjoyed it. Took a while to get going certainly, and there were flaws in other areas too, but overall I thought it worked. If it can build up the good bits and pull back on the bad over the next few episodes, it'll be great.
Mock the Week
11x05 (12/7/12 edition)
Last week it was episode 100, week before that they'd actually made a Monsoon Poultry Hospital DVD, this time Andy Murray's in the audience -- they seem to be rolling out the special this series.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
1x01 We Just Decided To
Seems to have been quite a lot of criticism of this in the press, but I really enjoyed it. Took a while to get going certainly, and there were flaws in other areas too, but overall I thought it worked. If it can build up the good bits and pull back on the bad over the next few episodes, it'll be great.
Mock the Week
11x05 (12/7/12 edition)
Last week it was episode 100, week before that they'd actually made a Monsoon Poultry Hospital DVD, this time Andy Murray's in the audience -- they seem to be rolling out the special this series.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Articles
Famous Five set for a TV comeback
(from ScreenTerrier)
This has all kinds of intriguing written all over it, from the premise (modern girl travels back in time to join '50s gang -- way to get modern kids on board) to the format ("allowing channels to run it as a 13x45 minute or 26x22 minute series").
(from ScreenTerrier)
This has all kinds of intriguing written all over it, from the premise (modern girl travels back in time to join '50s gang -- way to get modern kids on board) to the format ("allowing channels to run it as a 13x45 minute or 26x22 minute series").
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
This week, everything that was meant to turn up last week arrives -- and more! And almost all of them DVDs too. Can't remember the last time I bought so many DVDs (as opposed to Blu-rays), especially when they're all films and several of them from the past decade (I still get plenty of classic TV on DVD).
So I sail past 1,500 and on to... a number slightly bigger than 1,500. Shame really, because this week also sees the monthly running time update, and wouldn't it have been nice to have that at a round number like 1,500? Ah well, never mind.
Number of titles in collection: 1,504 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,161 [up 5]
Of which Blu-rays: 343 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 3,719 [up 6]
Number of films in collection: 1,587 [up 5]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,566 [down 13]
Also this week, I came across a glaring error in my list, where I discovered I'd credited a single-film BD as having 2 films and 13 episodes of TV. The fact I didn't notice this before concerns me that my current explanation (2:13 is also the film's running time, so I think I'd accidentally duplicated it) is a coincidence and somewhere I've listed something else (or somethings else) incorrectly. But I'll just have to go with what I know and have adjusted the numbers accordingly.
With that said, here's the always-exciting running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
267 days, 6 hours, and 13 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 4 hours, and 16 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
This week, everything that was meant to turn up last week arrives -- and more! And almost all of them DVDs too. Can't remember the last time I bought so many DVDs (as opposed to Blu-rays), especially when they're all films and several of them from the past decade (I still get plenty of classic TV on DVD).
So I sail past 1,500 and on to... a number slightly bigger than 1,500. Shame really, because this week also sees the monthly running time update, and wouldn't it have been nice to have that at a round number like 1,500? Ah well, never mind.
Number of titles in collection: 1,504 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,161 [up 5]
Of which Blu-rays: 343 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 3,719 [up 6]
Number of films in collection: 1,587 [up 5]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,566 [down 13]
Also this week, I came across a glaring error in my list, where I discovered I'd credited a single-film BD as having 2 films and 13 episodes of TV. The fact I didn't notice this before concerns me that my current explanation (2:13 is also the film's running time, so I think I'd accidentally duplicated it) is a coincidence and somewhere I've listed something else (or somethings else) incorrectly. But I'll just have to go with what I know and have adjusted the numbers accordingly.
With that said, here's the always-exciting running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
267 days, 6 hours, and 13 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 4 hours, and 16 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Thursday, 12 July 2012
TV
Once Upon a Time
1x11 Fruit of the Poisonous Tree
Pointless
6x38 (4/5/12 edition)
Twenty Twelve
2x05 Catastrophisation
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
1x11 Fruit of the Poisonous Tree
Pointless
6x38 (4/5/12 edition)
Twenty Twelve
2x05 Catastrophisation
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Articles
Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror is handed second series
by Alex Fletcher (from Digital Spy)
Very pleased about this. Enjoyed the first series and I think there should always be room for thought-provoking boundary-pushing sci-fi on TV. And anthology series too, which are also few and far between but an excellent form.
by Alex Fletcher (from Digital Spy)
Very pleased about this. Enjoyed the first series and I think there should always be room for thought-provoking boundary-pushing sci-fi on TV. And anthology series too, which are also few and far between but an excellent form.
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
TV
Once Upon a Time
1x10 7:15 A.M.
They have all the fairytale characters speaking cod-historical fantasy dialogue, then one asks, "are you OK?" Must try harder.
Pointless Celebrities
2x06 (26/5/12 edition)
1x10 7:15 A.M.
They have all the fairytale characters speaking cod-historical fantasy dialogue, then one asks, "are you OK?" Must try harder.
Pointless Celebrities
2x06 (26/5/12 edition)
Tuesday, 10 July 2012
TV
A Short History of Everything Else
1x04 Episode 4
Why does anyone ever book Roisin Conaty? She's not funny and seems to be quite incredibly dense.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x01 Auditions
1x02 Superstar Island Auditions
Andrew Lloyd Webber tries to find his own personal Jesus, as it were.
[Watch episodes one and two (again) on ITV Player.]
1x04 Episode 4
Why does anyone ever book Roisin Conaty? She's not funny and seems to be quite incredibly dense.
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Superstar
1x01 Auditions
1x02 Superstar Island Auditions
Andrew Lloyd Webber tries to find his own personal Jesus, as it were.
[Watch episodes one and two (again) on ITV Player.]
Films
Batman Returns (1992)[4th or so watch]
Tim Burton's first Batman film is great, no doubt, but Returns is a much better film in so many ways. The direction, writing, acting, action and effects are all slicker. They spent over twice as much money on it and it really shows. Plus they have exactly the same running time (to the very minute), but Batman feels surprisingly small scale and Returns feels epic.
Watched today, Batman feels Old now, whereas Returns… it's from '92, of course it doesn't feel New -- but it feels more like newer films, in a good way. Easily the franchise's best effort until at least Begins, possibly until Dark Knight, perhaps even of all (I've not seen Nolan's two for a long time, so we'll see when I get to them).
Passchendaele (2008)
[#55 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
Monday, 9 July 2012
TV
Dexter
5x10 In the Beginning
5x11 Hop a Freighter
5x12 The Big One [season finale]
Episode 10 ended with too much exciting unresolvededness to stop, and then 11 felt more like the first half of a finale than its own episode (honestly, that ending… it felt like they made a double-length episode with various possible break points halfway through and just went with the place nearest the middle).
Anyway, the season as a whole I enjoyed. Like I said some time before, it's probably not the very best Dexter's had to offer, but it's not below its usual standard either. Though I agree with critics that Lumen's exit wasn't wholly plausible and could perhaps have been handled better.
I've not heard fab things about season six... but then, same for this one, so we'll see.
Episodes
2x09 Episode 9 [season finale]
Good ending. Hope we get a third series.
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
5x10 In the Beginning
5x11 Hop a Freighter
5x12 The Big One [season finale]
Episode 10 ended with too much exciting unresolvededness to stop, and then 11 felt more like the first half of a finale than its own episode (honestly, that ending… it felt like they made a double-length episode with various possible break points halfway through and just went with the place nearest the middle).
Anyway, the season as a whole I enjoyed. Like I said some time before, it's probably not the very best Dexter's had to offer, but it's not below its usual standard either. Though I agree with critics that Lumen's exit wasn't wholly plausible and could perhaps have been handled better.
I've not heard fab things about season six... but then, same for this one, so we'll see.
Episodes
2x09 Episode 9 [season finale]
Good ending. Hope we get a third series.
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]
Films
Batman (1989)[4th or so watch]
I realised yesterday that I haven't watched a Batman film since the Adam West one three years ago, and I haven't watched one of the modern (i.e. Tim Burton and later) ones since I saw The Dark Knight in cinemas! With my curiosity piqued, I worked out that I probably haven't watched the others (i.e. Batman, Returns, Forever, and Robin, Begins) since 2006. That's like forever.
So, with the final part of Nolan's Bat trilogy less than two weeks away, I thought, "what better time to re-watch them all?" So I intend to.
Main thought after this one is how weird it is watching it in the wake of Nolan's films. This used to be the dark and serious take on superheroes, treating them in a more grown-up fashion. Now, it looks positively comic book-y. Sure, it's a bit grown-up -- there's elements of psychology and adult relationships, not just Boy's Own Adventure -- but the level of heightened reality and camp... nothing like comic book adaptations now.
Also, you forget just how true it was that the earlier Batman films focussed more on the villains than the hero. Batman's in the first scene, but that's it for a while, and it takes Bruce Wayne ages to appear. The story follows Jack Napier/the Joker and a pair of journalists, primarily Vicki Vale, though (again) I think it's easy to forget how prominent her partner (Alexander Knox, played by Robert Wuhl) is. The film puts a little more emphasis on Wayne/Batman later on, but for a hefty chunk it's not really about him at all. You can really see why Nolan & co thought that was a seam waiting to be tapped when it came to Begins.
(Incidentally, I first saw Batman when I was a kid, so I have no idea how many times I've actually seen it. Same goes for Returns (same situation) and Forever (which I saw in the cinema, but don't really know how many times I may've watched it on TV, etc). All of these numbers are, therefore, a guesstimate.)
Sunday, 8 July 2012
TV
Wimbledon 2012
Andy Murray, the first Brit in the men's final for 76 years... and he lost to Roger Federer. Thank God.
[Watch the men's final, and many other matches, on iPlayer.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x01 Man Overboard
Andy Murray, the first Brit in the men's final for 76 years... and he lost to Roger Federer. Thank God.
[Watch the men's final, and many other matches, on iPlayer.]
Yes, Prime Minister
2x01 Man Overboard
Articles
The Judge Dredd Movie Trilogy, As Loosely Planned By Writer Alex Garland
by Brendon Connelly (from Bleeding Cool)
They know roughly what they'll do for sequels to Dredd, and that sounds exciting. This is an important point to take away, for those of us hoping we'll get more:
These things are never 100% -- it could flop at the US box office but do incredibly well round the world, say, and if you're making a profit in most markets then a sequel is still a good idea. Plus there's always DVD/Blu-ray, which can be huge for a film like this: Kick-Ass 'only' made $96m at the worldwide box office, but it's done more like $250m with home ent included. (I believe Dredd cost a little more than Kick-Ass, but they're in the same ballpark.)
by Brendon Connelly (from Bleeding Cool)
They know roughly what they'll do for sequels to Dredd, and that sounds exciting. This is an important point to take away, for those of us hoping we'll get more:
Putting a number on it is always a bit approximate, but Garland said that $50 million box office from Dredd in the US would be enough to get a sequel in motion.
These things are never 100% -- it could flop at the US box office but do incredibly well round the world, say, and if you're making a profit in most markets then a sequel is still a good idea. Plus there's always DVD/Blu-ray, which can be huge for a film like this: Kick-Ass 'only' made $96m at the worldwide box office, but it's done more like $250m with home ent included. (I believe Dredd cost a little more than Kick-Ass, but they're in the same ballpark.)
this week on 100 Films
One new reviews was posted to 100 Films in a Year this week...
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
As its terrestrial TV premiere was last Friday night, I also added my review of the 2009 film version of State of Play to the new blog. You can find that here.
More next Sunday.
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
Naturally there are plenty of action sequences, several of them tacked on for the sake of it. Personally I wasn’t impressed. They’re all clearly shot on digital video, several are under-lit, there’s too much Hollywood-style choppy editing, it felt like some had bits missing, others are stop-start in a way that adds up to not very much… Many of them left me confused about what was meant to be going on, not in awe of the performer’s abilities or entertained. One of them features the hero fighting a gaggle of cheap CGI deer.Read more on my new blog or my classic blog.
As its terrestrial TV premiere was last Friday night, I also added my review of the 2009 film version of State of Play to the new blog. You can find that here.
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 7 July 2012
Comics
Star Trek: The Next Generation / Doctor Who: Assimilation² #2 by Scott & David Tipton (with Tony Lee) & J.K. Woodward
This is marginally better than the awful issue one, but not by much. That showed us an adventure with the TARDIS crew in ancient Egypt, ending with them meeting the Enterprise gang in '20s San Francisco; this issue shows their perspective, having an 'adventure' on a water-covered planet before encountering the Doctor & co, in what is actually a Holodeck simulation (of course). Except their 'adventure' involves four or five pages of people discussing mining works, followed by a little bit of flooding. It's as thrilling as watching paint dry.
When the two crews get together things liven up a little, but it's all too brief. I say "brief" -- it's a 20-page comic, it's just hardly anything happens on each page. The Tiptons' dialogue is clunky, though that might just be the Trek style. Still, it doesn't wring right, often coming across like a first draft no one bothered to refine. Woodward's art is still awful, a loose mishmash of photo reference and indistinct long-shots.
With the two crews teaming up, and some mysteries that promise to be built upon (the cover for #3 features the fourth Doctor, Kirk and Spock), there's potential for this series to improve. But Woodward's art isn't going to do it any favours, and the kerfuffle over regular IDW Who scribe Tony Lee leaving the book halfway through is concerning too. I don't hold out great hope.
This is marginally better than the awful issue one, but not by much. That showed us an adventure with the TARDIS crew in ancient Egypt, ending with them meeting the Enterprise gang in '20s San Francisco; this issue shows their perspective, having an 'adventure' on a water-covered planet before encountering the Doctor & co, in what is actually a Holodeck simulation (of course). Except their 'adventure' involves four or five pages of people discussing mining works, followed by a little bit of flooding. It's as thrilling as watching paint dry.
When the two crews get together things liven up a little, but it's all too brief. I say "brief" -- it's a 20-page comic, it's just hardly anything happens on each page. The Tiptons' dialogue is clunky, though that might just be the Trek style. Still, it doesn't wring right, often coming across like a first draft no one bothered to refine. Woodward's art is still awful, a loose mishmash of photo reference and indistinct long-shots.
With the two crews teaming up, and some mysteries that promise to be built upon (the cover for #3 features the fourth Doctor, Kirk and Spock), there's potential for this series to improve. But Woodward's art isn't going to do it any favours, and the kerfuffle over regular IDW Who scribe Tony Lee leaving the book halfway through is concerning too. I don't hold out great hope.
Articles
Ron Perlman Is Hellboy Again For Make-A-Wish
by Brendon Connelly (from Bleeding Cool)
Reviews of Batman: Earth One from
ACB by John Barringer
CBR by Doug Zawisza
iFanboy by Chris Arrant
IGN by Joey Esposito
They're all very positive, and make it sound enticingly intriguing -- not something you'd expect from yet another re-telling of Batman's origin story -- which is why I've decided to dive in and buy it.
by Brendon Connelly (from Bleeding Cool)
Reviews of Batman: Earth One from
ACB by John Barringer
CBR by Doug Zawisza
iFanboy by Chris Arrant
IGN by Joey Esposito
They're all very positive, and make it sound enticingly intriguing -- not something you'd expect from yet another re-telling of Batman's origin story -- which is why I've decided to dive in and buy it.
Friday, 6 July 2012
TV
Battlestar Galactica [2004]
3x10 The Passage
How I Met Your Mother
7x20 Trilogy Time
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Mock the Week
11x04 (5/7/12 edition)
aka Episode 100. Loved the "best bits" montage.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
3x10 The Passage
How I Met Your Mother
7x20 Trilogy Time
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Mock the Week
11x04 (5/7/12 edition)
aka Episode 100. Loved the "best bits" montage.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Comics
Animal Man #7 & #8 by Jeff Lemire, Steve Pugh & Travel Foreman
I've slipped dreadfully far behind with Animal Man (#11 was out last Wednesday, and there's been an annual too), so it's about time I began to catch-up -- starting (obviously) with this two-parter.
Sadly, I didn't think it was up to the standard I remember the book having. It's too slow (taking four pages to tell something you could do with just as much depth in two) with the occasional horrendous gap in logic (you're driving along, you see a massive stampede of angry animals coming toward you, so you... get out and run the other way on foot?!) The second part is better, with some twists and a big cliffhanger, but still slight.
And there's no way this should only be rated T+.
I've slipped dreadfully far behind with Animal Man (#11 was out last Wednesday, and there's been an annual too), so it's about time I began to catch-up -- starting (obviously) with this two-parter.
Sadly, I didn't think it was up to the standard I remember the book having. It's too slow (taking four pages to tell something you could do with just as much depth in two) with the occasional horrendous gap in logic (you're driving along, you see a massive stampede of angry animals coming toward you, so you... get out and run the other way on foot?!) The second part is better, with some twists and a big cliffhanger, but still slight.
And there's no way this should only be rated T+.
Articles
10 Interesting Things From The Dark Knight Rises Press Pack
by Alasdair Stuart (from Bleeding Cool)
My favourite was about how they've done the Batcave (#9 on that list). The full, surprisingly lengthy (49 pages! Throw in a few pictures and paperback-sized formatting and you've got yourself a book!), press pack can be found here.
Dark Knight Rises: Christopher Nolan takes Batman to new place
by Geoff Boucher (from Hero Complex at the Los Angeles Times)
An in depth feature on TDKR -- and a proper newspaper-with-access-y one, not a fansite "cribbed together from old news articles and our opinions"-y one. Belying the professionalism, it was riddled with typos when I read it last night, but they may have fixed those by now.
by Alasdair Stuart (from Bleeding Cool)
My favourite was about how they've done the Batcave (#9 on that list). The full, surprisingly lengthy (49 pages! Throw in a few pictures and paperback-sized formatting and you've got yourself a book!), press pack can be found here.
Dark Knight Rises: Christopher Nolan takes Batman to new place
by Geoff Boucher (from Hero Complex at the Los Angeles Times)
An in depth feature on TDKR -- and a proper newspaper-with-access-y one, not a fansite "cribbed together from old news articles and our opinions"-y one. Belying the professionalism, it was riddled with typos when I read it last night, but they may have fixed those by now.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Last time I mentioned that "TheHut have been typically tardy in sending out a recent order for several titles." A week later and two-thirds of them are still awaiting despatch, and the other third hasn't turned up yet. That wasn't all I was expecting in the regular post either, so Royal Mail have thoroughly let me down there. They've been appalling recently.
So rather than reach a nice round 1,500 titles as I thought I would this week, there's absolutely nothing to report. Sucks.
Number of titles in collection: 1,498 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,156 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 342 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 3,713 [no change]
Number of films in collection: 1,582 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,579 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Last time I mentioned that "TheHut have been typically tardy in sending out a recent order for several titles." A week later and two-thirds of them are still awaiting despatch, and the other third hasn't turned up yet. That wasn't all I was expecting in the regular post either, so Royal Mail have thoroughly let me down there. They've been appalling recently.
So rather than reach a nice round 1,500 titles as I thought I would this week, there's absolutely nothing to report. Sucks.
Number of titles in collection: 1,498 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,156 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 342 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 3,713 [no change]
Number of films in collection: 1,582 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,579 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Thursday, 5 July 2012
Films
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
[#52 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
It's on Film4 tonight (by the time you might be reading this), so I'll try to have a review up during the day -- keep an eye out if you're interested.
[#52 in 100 Films in a Year 2012]
It's on Film4 tonight (by the time you might be reading this), so I'll try to have a review up during the day -- keep an eye out if you're interested.
Comics
Amazing Fantasy #15 (2012 reprint) by Stan Lee, Steve Ditko & Jean-Francois Beaulieu
As part of the celebration of Spider-Man's 50th anniversary, Marvel have re-printed his first ever appearance in Amazing Fantasy #15, alongside the stories from The Amazing Spider-Man #1, all with new colours by Beaulieu. Some people fundamentally object to that, but where's the arm when the original version has been collected in numerous different editions down the years?
One thing it does prove is how much comic book art has changed since the '60s. You put modern colours on an '80s, maybe even a '70s, book and it looks like it was produced yesterday; this, however, looks like an imitation of an old-fashioned style. Still cracking stories though.
As part of the celebration of Spider-Man's 50th anniversary, Marvel have re-printed his first ever appearance in Amazing Fantasy #15, alongside the stories from The Amazing Spider-Man #1, all with new colours by Beaulieu. Some people fundamentally object to that, but where's the arm when the original version has been collected in numerous different editions down the years?
One thing it does prove is how much comic book art has changed since the '60s. You put modern colours on an '80s, maybe even a '70s, book and it looks like it was produced yesterday; this, however, looks like an imitation of an old-fashioned style. Still cracking stories though.
Wednesday, 4 July 2012
TV
Dexter
5x09 Teenage Wasteland
This season keeps spinning in surprising directions. I'm loving it.
Rules of Engagement
2x03 Mr. Fix It
Random late-night comedy viewing, this time courtesy of E4. See also:
The War at Home
2x11 Out & In
Dear God this was awful. And then, every once in a while, it threw in a couple of inspired funny bits. Weird. And the storyline featured/started in this episode even got nominated for awards, so that's even weirder.
Yes, Prime Minister
1x08 One of Us [season finale]
This, on the other hand, is always excellent. (Even if it took long enough to continue watching it.)
5x09 Teenage Wasteland
This season keeps spinning in surprising directions. I'm loving it.
Rules of Engagement
2x03 Mr. Fix It
Random late-night comedy viewing, this time courtesy of E4. See also:
The War at Home
2x11 Out & In
Dear God this was awful. And then, every once in a while, it threw in a couple of inspired funny bits. Weird. And the storyline featured/started in this episode even got nominated for awards, so that's even weirder.
Yes, Prime Minister
1x08 One of Us [season finale]
This, on the other hand, is always excellent. (Even if it took long enough to continue watching it.)
Tuesday, 3 July 2012
TV
Dexter
5x08 Take It!
Structural changes abound (what I thought would be this season's on-going case, the Fuentes brothers, has been resolved... though it has longer-lasting implications; and that's a helluva cliffhanger too), but that's a good thing -- helps keep the series fresh. I know some fans objected, especially after the high-point of season four, but I think it's working. It may not be the best season ever, but the quality's still up there.
Mock the Week
10x01 (9/6/11 edition) [2nd watch]
11x03 (1/7/12 edition)
In which they discuss the Jimmy Carr thing. Was that really so recent? I know this would've been taped nearly a week ago now, but the Carr stuff feels even older.
(Series 10 episode courtesy of Dave.)
[Watch 11x03 (again) on iPlayer.]
5x08 Take It!
Structural changes abound (what I thought would be this season's on-going case, the Fuentes brothers, has been resolved... though it has longer-lasting implications; and that's a helluva cliffhanger too), but that's a good thing -- helps keep the series fresh. I know some fans objected, especially after the high-point of season four, but I think it's working. It may not be the best season ever, but the quality's still up there.
Mock the Week
10x01 (9/6/11 edition) [2nd watch]
11x03 (1/7/12 edition)
In which they discuss the Jimmy Carr thing. Was that really so recent? I know this would've been taped nearly a week ago now, but the Carr stuff feels even older.
(Series 10 episode courtesy of Dave.)
[Watch 11x03 (again) on iPlayer.]
Articles
Sky Living to screen US Sherlock rival Elementary
by Paul Jones (from Radio Times)
That doesn't bode well, does it? Do Living show anything good?
Also in that article, news that Sky have bought Green Arrow adaptation Arrow -- but that gets to air on Sky1. I thought it looked potentially interesting from the trailers, rather than another throughly cheesy/cheapy/campy Smallville, so we'll see.
by Paul Jones (from Radio Times)
That doesn't bode well, does it? Do Living show anything good?
Also in that article, news that Sky have bought Green Arrow adaptation Arrow -- but that gets to air on Sky1. I thought it looked potentially interesting from the trailers, rather than another throughly cheesy/cheapy/campy Smallville, so we'll see.
Monday, 2 July 2012
TV
MythBusters
6x05 Viewers Special 2!
A Short History of Everything Else
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
6x05 Viewers Special 2!
A Short History of Everything Else
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]
Sunday, 1 July 2012
TV
Dexter
5x07 Circle Us
I like Dexter's funny-punny titles. This isn't one. Boo. Still, good episode, and the trailer for next time looked incredible too.
Would I Lie To You?
6x09 The Unseen Bits [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
5x07 Circle Us
I like Dexter's funny-punny titles. This isn't one. Boo. Still, good episode, and the trailer for next time looked incredible too.
Would I Lie To You?
6x09 The Unseen Bits [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
this week on 100 Films
No new reviews were posted to 100 Films in a Year this week, but it's July today and so the June update is now available. Exciting times.
I also added a few old reviews to my new blog. They were...
Double Indemnity (1944)
Public Enemies (2009)
Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960)
Note that Sword of Sherwood Forest is available on iPlayer to view and download, until 1:44pm today.
More next Sunday.
I also added a few old reviews to my new blog. They were...
Double Indemnity (1944)
perhaps the archetypal film noir — unsurprising, really, when you have Raymond Chandler co-adapting a novel by James M. Cain. Present and correct are the femme fatale, dry-witted lead man, voice-over narration, shadowy photography, murder, cover-ups, investigations, twists…Read more here.
Public Enemies (2009)
Mann continues his love affair with digital video, but here he pushes it to the limit: gone is any pretence of 35mm gloss, much of the film looking ungraded and featuring the fluidity of video’s higher frame rate. Some reviewers see this as progressive, bringing an unpolished documentary realism to a period setting. Others lament the lack of polish and glamourRead more here.
Sword of Sherwood Forest (1960)
After the ‘origin story’ becoming the default setting for new versions of well-known heroes in the past few years, it’s quite nice to witness a tale that dives in assuming we know who Robin Hood, Little John, the Sheriff, and so forth, are... This allows the film to get on with its plot, such as it is — a bit of an excuse for an array of action and humour, mainly.Read more here.
Note that Sword of Sherwood Forest is available on iPlayer to view and download, until 1:44pm today.
More next Sunday.
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