Films

Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
[#115 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]
+ the only special feature, a 25-minute featurette titled Road to Justice League, which is broadly promotional in tone and therefore not particularly insightful. A full-on Snyder commentary would've been nice.

TV

Doctor Who
Doctors Assemble
This 15-minute mini-adventure was produced for the Doctor Who watchalong events back in the first lockdown, in May last year. I didn't notice it at the time, but somehow came across it today. It's quite fun. I wrote a few more thoughts on Letterboxd.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]

Films

Testament of Youth (2014)
[#114 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Podcasts

Toby Hadoke's Who's Round
59 Russell T Davies Part 3
99 Russell T Davies Part 4
124 Russell T Davies Part 5
[Listen via Big Finish.]

Films

Defending Your Life (1991)
[#113 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]
+ the half-hour interview of writer/director/star Albert Brooks by critic Robert Weide on the Criterion Blu-ray

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

I was going to say it had been a fairly quiet month for my collection, but then I realised I had nine titles turn up in a single week just a fortnight ago — that's a fairly large pile for a single week by almost any standard. But around that, there were zero additions the week before it and just one last week, and this week there's only two. Still, that's a fairly steady amount, all things considered.

I'm reflecting on the whole month like this because it's that time again: the monthly running time update. Exciting days.

Number of titles in collection: 2,603 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,073 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,530 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 102 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 6,600 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,030 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 221 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,075 [no change]
Number of short films: 867 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
477 days, 22 hours, and 56 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 9 hours, and 15 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Have I Got News For You
61x08 (28/5/21 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Tom Allen's Quizness
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

Podcasts

Toby Hadoke's Who's Round
50 Russell T Davies Part 1
54 Russell T Davies Part 2
I could listen to RTD talk about Doctor Who for hours... which is good, because this multi-part interview (it's spread across seven episodes) lasts over 3½ hours in total.
[Listen to Part 1 and Part 2 via Big Finish.]

TV

Simon Bird: Debrief
Wrote a bit of a review on Letterboxd.
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

TV

Eurovision Song Contest: Rotterdam 2021
Watching the next day, just like last time (i.e. two years ago), because I wasn't able to watch it live and iPlayer takes forever to put such a long, live show up after broadcast. It's not the same as being able to follow along on Twitter, but oh well. Anyway, I thought it was mostly a good final this year — a surprisingly strong lineup of songs — although the eventual winner was one of the few underwhelming ones, which was a shame.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid
[Watch it (again) on Netflix.]

Films

Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959)
[#112 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

this week on 100 Films

1 new review was published to 100 Films in a Year this week...


Psycho Goreman (2020)

Those who grew up on that stuff may get the biggest kick out of the film, but that doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t delight its gonzo joys. I won’t be surprised if Psycho Goreman has a bright future ahead as a new cult staple.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

Official Secrets (2019)
[#111 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

Just a single addition this week: Zack Snyder's Justice League on 4K. Maybe now I'll finally get round to watching it...

Number of titles in collection: 2,601 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,073 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,528 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 102 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 6,598 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,028 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 221 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,075 [no change]
Number of short films: 867 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Crank (2006)
[#110 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

No, there hasn't been some mistake: this is my first "cultural experience" of the week. I just started a new job, see, and I haven't got my new schedule down quite yet to keep doing things I enjoy. Hopefully, more films, TV, books, and all the rest, to come regularly from now onwards.

Films

Good Boys (2019)
[#109 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

this week on 100 Films

4 new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week...


Devil's Cargo (1948)

It all unfolds as a surprisingly decent little mystery — no great head-scratcher, but it offers enough twists and turns to keep it lively. The conclusion may stretch credibility, and our hero more chances upon the identity of the killer than actually deduces it, but it suffices for a short B-movie.

Read more here.


Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

Where the first film was a riff on something like Assault on Precinct 13, this sequel turns its attention to another John Carpenter classic, clearly trying to be a version of Escape from New York... It’s a perfectly serviceable storyline, and I have no problem with movies broadly borrowing storylines and whatnot in homage to other flicks. The problem is, Apocalypse is an awfully written and produced film.

Read more here.


The 100-Week Roundup XXXII

Featuring...
- The Saint (2017)
- Hairspray (1988)

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Murder, They Hope
1x03 Dales of the Unexpected [season finale]
Best one of the series. The run definitely picked up as it went along (even over just three episodes) — I hope there's more.

Films

The Aeronauts (2019)
[#108 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Drop Zone (1994)
[#107 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

After dropping to 0 last week, it's back up to 60 this week. Not 60 new titles, obviously (that would be insane), but between new releases and a couple of cut-price bargains, there's a hefty load of new additions to report: nine titles with 15 films across.

Number of titles in collection: 2,600 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,073 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,527 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 101 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 6,596 [up 15]
Number of films: 3,027 [up 15]
Number of additional cuts: 221 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,075 [no change]
Number of short films: 867 [up 13]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)
[#105 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Stuart Little (1999)
[#106 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Films

Spontaneous (2020)
[#104 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

TV

Murder, They Hope
1x02 Evil Under the Bun

Films

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
[4th or so watch]
Rewatchathon 2021 #16
Continuing my Indiana Jones rewatch. This is actually my first time seeing it fully uncut: in 1984, the UK release was edited to get a PG from the BBFC, and that version persisted even until the DVD release — the Blu-ray was the first version to be uncut here. Conventional wisdom has always held it to be the worst film, at least of the original trilogy, although it's had vocal fans for years. I'm sure I saw it less often than Raiders or Last Crusade when I was a kid; it definitely stuck in my mind less.

Films

Twister (1996)
[#103 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Films

Strange Confession (1945)
[#102 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]
The fifth Inner Sanctum Mystery.
+ commentary by authors and film experts C. Courtney Joyner and Peter Atkins.

this week on 100 Films

5 new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week...


The Secret Life of Pets 1&2

[The first] mostly reheats, remixes, and recombines stuff you’ve seen done in other movies, but it manages just enough charm to tick over as entertaining rather than irritatingly derivative. [The second] is a step down, but it has its moments

Read more here.


The 100-Week Roundup XXXI

Featuring...
- Cosmopolis
- The Kennel Murder Case
- Widows

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

MST3K: The Return of the Final Countdown
So, I popped on this telethon finale for the MST3K Kickstarter just to see if anything interesting was going on with it… and ended up having enough fun that I stuck with it for the whole five-hour shebang. It's all available to replay, though I suspect it's less fun not watching live — I mean, you can't join in with the Jackbox game, for one thing.

Murder, They Hope
1x01 The Bunny Trap
First episode of a spinoff/continuation series (whatever you wanna call it) from the TV movie trilogy of Murder on the Blackpool Express, Death on the Tyne, and Dial M for Middlesbrough. I thought the hour format might tighten things up a bit, but if anything it feels even less focused and more ridiculous. Maybe future episodes will be better.

Films

I Care a Lot (2020)
[#101 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

For once, there's absolutely nothing to report this week! But there's already more stuff in the post, so it won't be this way for long...

Number of titles in collection: 2,591 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,073 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,518 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 101 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 6,581 [no change]
Number of films: 3,012 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 221 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,075 [no change]
Number of short films: 854 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Mystery Science Theater 3000
11x02 Cry Wilderness

“I’m afraid this movie might not be very good...”

So, I said I'd jump ahead to better-regarded episodes, but it turned out I didn't have to jump at all: Cry Wilderness seems to be widely regarded as the best episode of MST3K: The Return (aka season 11), and it also happens to be episode 2, so I haven't had to watch anything out of sequence. Hurrah! Unlike the first episode, this one hits the ground running and maintains a pretty consistent level from there. It was enough to convince me to back the Kickstarter.

Films

Cinema Paradiso (1988)
[#100 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]
Blindspot 2021 #5
I watched the shorter theatrical cut, because that's the one in 4K UHD on Arrow's release. Also, while the 50-minutes-longer Director's Cut does have its fans, there seems to be a consensus that the shorter cut is better.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
[5th or so watch]
Rewatchathon 2021 #15
I've been meaning to rewatch the Indiana Jones movies for ages (I've owned the Blu-ray set for 8½ years now and never watched it), but I've finally been spurred on by them hitting 4K next month (as I said: watching those discs I bought almost a decade ago before I inevitably buy the new ones!) I have no idea how many times I've seen Raiders — the above count is a total punt.

TV

Mystery Science Theater 3000
11x01 Reptilicus

“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark... and it’s this movie!”

With a new MST3K Kickstarter underway, I figured I should finally watch episode(s) from the last one, (a) because I should've got round to them ages ago, and (b) to see if I want to back this new Kickstarter. This one... left me unsure. You see, I always really like the idea of MST3K in theory, but I feel like whenever I actually watch it I’m less convinced. There’s a sense of “throw anything at the wall and hope some of it sticks” about the jokes, rather than the constant barrage of zingers that you’d ideally find. But some of it does stick, so...

Anyway, apparently this is one of the weaker episodes of the revival season, so I might jump ahead to some I've heard are better, to let it put its best foot forward.

Films

An American Pickle (2020)
[#99 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

TV

Not Going Out
11x05 War [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

The Rookie
3x04 Sabotage

Films

Baby Done (2020)
[#98 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Carefree (1938)
[#97 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

TV

Line of Duty
6x06 Episode 6
6x07 Episode 7 [season finale]
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

Richard Osman's House of Games
3x84 Episode 84
3x85 Episode 85
[Watch these episodes (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2021 #14

this week on 100 Films

Another month gone, another monthly review over at 100 Films in a Year...





Also this week, there was 1 new film review...


Nomadland (2020)

at times the film arguably slips into documentary: most of the supporting cast are real people, playing themselves or versions thereof, so when these people Fern encounters tell their stories, it not only feels real, it is real. There’s a lot of sadness — in the events that have brought people to this place, and in the struggle to live this lifestyle — but a lot of happiness in what it’s given them, too. The net result is a dignified, deeply humane portrait of people who we might describe with negative words like “homeless” or “dispossessed”, but who in reality are free, in their way. It makes for a powerful, quietly moving experience.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

This week's biggest release, in just about every sense, is Arrow's 4K box set of Battle Royale, which includes the sequel on regular Blu-ray. I already own Arrow's previous Blu-ray release of BR from over a decade ago, and shamefully have never watched it. This new set should replace that, but the old one has a couple of physical extras that have gone walkabout from the new edition, and it's rather nice in and of itself, so I'm loathe to part with it. I also own both films on DVD and I really should get rid of them now; indeed, I'm not sure why I didn't just get rid of my DVD of the first film last time. It's going now. But my DVD of the second edition comes in a limited edition tin, and so, as a limited edition in fancy packaging, I am once again loathe to say goodbye to it. Sometimes I think I need help...

Speaking of which, I gave in and bought the pretty Curzon Artificial Eye Bong Joon-Ho box set a lot of people have been chatting about. This is now the third edition of Parasite I own, and the second editions for Parasite: Black & White, The Host, and Snowpiercer. That leaves three films in the set I don't have, although none have special features, which bugs me, especially as two of them (Mother and Memories of Murder) have been released in English-friendly editions with extras. Why the hell did I buy it, then? Well, three films I don't own at all isn't that bad a hit rate; this edition of Parasite does have a couple of extras I don't own elsewise; and the transfer of Memories of Murder has a better colour palette than the Criterion edition... although I'd still like to pick that up sometime for its special features.

Yeah, maybe I do need help...

Number of titles in collection: 2,591 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,073 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,518 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 101 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 6,581 [up 12]
Number of films: 3,012 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 221 [up 4]
Number of TV episodes: 9,075 [down 5]
Number of short films: 854 [no change]

Oh, and after all that, it's also time for the monthly running time update...

Total running time of collection (approx.):
476 days, 13 hours, and 41 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 17 hours, and 8 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Line of Duty
6x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Awful Truth (1937)
[#95 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]

Page Eight (2011)
[#96 in 100 Films in a Year 2021]