TV

Castle
3x10 Last Call
[Watch it (again) on Demand 5.]

Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited
1x11 The Eleventh Doctor [final episode]

Friends
6x04 The One Where Joey Loses His Insurance [4th or so watch]
Behind that so-dull-it-sounds-like-a-spoof title lies one of Friends' funniest episodes.

Hebburn
2x02 Easy Tiger
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

Yonderland
1x01 The Chosen Mum
The Horrible Histories gang do fantasy in this new Sky1 comedy (which has almost finished on the actual telly, so I've got some catching up to do). Like so many genre series, episode one is all about setting up the premise. Still funny though, so hopefully the rest will be even better.

Films

Hanna (2011)
[#106 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]
Read my drabble review here.

DVD Extras

Special Features on Hanna

An alternate ending that was thankfully unused, and some near-pointless deleted scenes; a handful of featurettes looking at the fights, the fairytale inspirations, the music, and the military escape scene; and some promo stuff.

Plus I listened to a couple of short snippets of the commentary, which sounded interesting but also a bit quiet at times.

this week on 100 Films

The second 100 Films Advent Calendar is well and truly underway now, meaning that 7 new reviews were published this week.

First, on Channel 4 tonight at 10pm:


Hanna (2011)

There’s the genre’s typical globetrotting, fistfighting thrills; but also an allegorical coming-of-age indie drama; plus a surreal, fairytale tone that drifts across proceedings like a pleasant morning mist.

Read more here.


And the rest:


Black Death (2010)

Though not entirely devoid of gore or jumps, this is more a creeping horror; a tale of the supernatural where an uncanny mood is more important than visceral thrills. I don’t think it’s too lofty to suggest comparison to The Wicker Man rather than an historical Saw.

Read more here.


The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

There’s no shortage of ambition in the rendering on screen, but the film sadly comes up short on occasion. Despite director Michael Apted’s experienced hand on the wheel, the course strays into Syfy Channel TV movie territory at times, with a kind of cheapness that won’t please anyone

Read more here.


Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (Extended Cut) (2013)

Having heard only bad things, I expected a soul-crushing dud of Van Helsing proportions. Actually, it’s a lot of fun.

Read more here.


LEGO Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite (2013)

I’ve seen a couple of the LEGO Star Wars TV specials and found them to be quite fun, but LEGO Batman can’t reach their level. It’s not just that it’s almost four times as long as one of those, it’s that the humour it does contain doesn’t hit home in the same way. It’s often too juvenile, too “that’ll do”

Read more here.


Side by Side (2012)

a documentary on camera technology. No, wait, come back! It’s much more interesting than that sounds. Side by Side is, primarily, about the debate between those who prefer the old film ways and those who embrace the digital future...

Read more here.


Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

In an ethnically diverse and equal future, white American Kirk and white Vulcan-American Spock are commanded by white American Pike and white American Marcus to lead their crew to capture a Starfleet-targeting terrorist: John Harrison, a white Englishman

Read more here.


And one related review was new to the new blog too...


The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)

The epic final battle comes as close to rivalling Helm’s Deep as anything I can think of, albeit — in typical Narnia style — in broad daylight on a big field. It has a real story to it, with specific moves being made by each side in the name of an overall strategy, rather than just A Lot Of Good Guys charging at A Lot Of Bad Guys and hacking away ’til one side wins, the apparent battle tactic in most other such large encounters on film.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.