Guinevere (1994)
[#209 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Monday, 14 September 2020
Sunday, 13 September 2020
Films
The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005)
[#207 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
For the Love of Spock (2016)
[#208 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
[#207 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
For the Love of Spock (2016)
[#208 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Music
A Curious Thing by Amy Macdonald
Life in a Beautiful Light by Amy Macdonald
I can't post listen counts for these older Amy MacDonald albums, because for some reason iTunes has lost that information; but it has been over seven years since I listened to any of them. They all feel very familiar, though, because they were listened to a lot and they're good. (Next up: the one I only just bought.)
Life in a Beautiful Light by Amy Macdonald
I can't post listen counts for these older Amy MacDonald albums, because for some reason iTunes has lost that information; but it has been over seven years since I listened to any of them. They all feel very familiar, though, because they were listened to a lot and they're good. (Next up: the one I only just bought.)
this week on 100 Films
8 new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week...
Before Midnight (2013)
Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
Le Mans ’66 (2019) (2019)
Love on a Leash (2011)
Memories of Murder (2003)
The 100-Week Roundup XI
More next Sunday.
Before Midnight (2013)
The first two films are marked by an unreserved romanticism. Midnight is notably different, abandoning that lovey-dovey-ness and replacing it with a powerful examination of the tension in a long-term relationship. In some respects, it’s all the better for it. That’s in no way a criticism of the previous films, but it’s realistic that, as time goes on, people change. They can’t be young-spirited and full of the joys of first love forever.Read more here.
Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
the crazy story of how a director of surrealist Mexican art-films came this close to making an epic space opera out of one of the most acclaimed science-fiction novels ever written, but, in his failure, accidentally helped give birth to Star Wars (sort of), Alien (indirectly), and possibly the entire history of screen science-fiction that did actually get made in the ensuing 40 years. Sounds like a bit of a stretch? Um, well, yeah… but that doesn’t stop some of this documentary’s contributors from asserting it, and they do kind of have evidence.Read more here.
Le Mans ’66 (2019) (2019)
It might look like a film for car nuts, and I’m sure they’ll get a lot out of it... but the rest of us are by no means left out, thanks to involving characters and exciting race scenes, even if some plot beats border on clichéd. Le Mans ’66 may not reinvent the wheel, but it works hard at refining it.Read more here.
Love on a Leash (2011)
how do you rate a film like this? As an exercise in moviemaking, it’s a 1. The storyline is borderline nonsensical; it’s shot like an amateur using a camcorder for the first time; the sound mix is so unfinished I’m not sure it was ever started… And yet it’s constantly enjoyable, partly through a “so bad it’s good” hilarity (see the aforementioned terrible filmmaking), but also for the barminess with which it conducts itself, the relentless forward momentum of the storyline leading us in unpredictable narrative directions.Read more here.
Memories of Murder (2003)
Loosely based on the true story of Korea’s first serial murders, and taking a procedural approach to the crime thriller genre, Memories of Murder invites comparison to David Fincher’s Zodiac for its methodical, realistic narrative style and plot that follows obsessed investigators chasing unsolved murders in the past. Zodiac is one of my favourite films, so it’s a tall order to be pitched against it. Fortunately, Memories of Murder is strong enough to withstand the comparison.Read more here.
The 100-Week Roundup XI
Featuring...Read more here.
- Compulsion
- Courage Under Fire
- Heathers
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 12 September 2020
Films
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon (2019)
[#205 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Vice (2018)
[#206 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
With this, I've finally seen every Oscar Best Picture nominee from the last five years. Next stop: the last ten years (got ten more films to see before I've managed that, though).
[#205 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Vice (2018)
[#206 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
With this, I've finally seen every Oscar Best Picture nominee from the last five years. Next stop: the last ten years (got ten more films to see before I've managed that, though).
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Just two new additions this week, one a BD-to-4K upgrade, so it looks like just one. There's a few things currently in the post though, which should arrive just in time for next week's monthly running time update.
Number of titles in collection: 2,442 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,089 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,353 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 72 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 6,278 [up 2]
Number of films: 2,759 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 185 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,958 [no change]
Number of short films: 762 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Just two new additions this week, one a BD-to-4K upgrade, so it looks like just one. There's a few things currently in the post though, which should arrive just in time for next week's monthly running time update.
Number of titles in collection: 2,442 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,089 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,353 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 72 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 6,278 [up 2]
Number of films: 2,759 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 185 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,958 [no change]
Number of short films: 762 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 11 September 2020
Fiction
The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
6 The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual
Another of the top-ranked Holmes stories. Not my favourite, but it has its clever points.
6 The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual
Another of the top-ranked Holmes stories. Not my favourite, but it has its clever points.
Thursday, 10 September 2020
Films
All About Eve (1950)
[#204 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
As part of Blindspot 2020, a leftover from WDYMYHS 2019.
[#204 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
As part of Blindspot 2020, a leftover from WDYMYHS 2019.
Wednesday, 9 September 2020
Music
This Is the Life by Amy Macdonald
Amy Macdonald has a new album on the way; and, like the Killers recently, this made me realise I'd never bought her last one, and hadn't listened to any of it for years. So, similar to the Killers, here I go again, relistening to the back catalogue before getting to the unheard ones.
Amy Macdonald has a new album on the way; and, like the Killers recently, this made me realise I'd never bought her last one, and hadn't listened to any of it for years. So, similar to the Killers, here I go again, relistening to the back catalogue before getting to the unheard ones.
Tuesday, 8 September 2020
Films
Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2020 #38. On my mind, with the new Dune trailer out tomorrow(!)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2020 #38. On my mind, with the new Dune trailer out tomorrow(!)
Monday, 7 September 2020
Sunday, 6 September 2020
Films
Anand (1971)
[#201 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Ikiru (1952)
[#202 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
As part of Blindspot 2020, a leftover from WDYMYHS 2019.
+ Alex Cox’s 15-minute introduction on the BFI DVD, over half of which is a Kurosawa biography rather than specifically about the film
Apropos of nothing, these are both films about men dealing with a terminal cancer diagnosis. (After watching Anand I read that it was partly inspired by Ikiru, so that planted the seed of choosing to watch the latter.)
[#201 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
Ikiru (1952)
[#202 in 100 Films in a Year 2020]
As part of Blindspot 2020, a leftover from WDYMYHS 2019.
+ Alex Cox’s 15-minute introduction on the BFI DVD, over half of which is a Kurosawa biography rather than specifically about the film
Apropos of nothing, these are both films about men dealing with a terminal cancer diagnosis. (After watching Anand I read that it was partly inspired by Ikiru, so that planted the seed of choosing to watch the latter.)
Music
Imploding the Mirage by the Killers
I've not read any full reviews, but I get the impression this has been the Killers' best-received album for years, and I'd agree -- even though I've only listened to the last two recently, and they did grow on me, I instantly enjoyed this a lot more than either of those. I'm not entirely sure about standout tracks yet, but my initial favourites are My God, Caution, Lightning Fields, and the title track.
I've not read any full reviews, but I get the impression this has been the Killers' best-received album for years, and I'd agree -- even though I've only listened to the last two recently, and they did grow on me, I instantly enjoyed this a lot more than either of those. I'm not entirely sure about standout tracks yet, but my initial favourites are My God, Caution, Lightning Fields, and the title track.
this week on 100 Films
The big news at 100 Films in a Year this week was a special announcement...
In regular business, a new month began this week, so it was time to look back at the old one...
There was also a new TV column, packed to bursting...
And there were even 4 new film reviews, too...
The 100-Week Roundup X
More next Sunday.
In regular business, a new month began this week, so it was time to look back at the old one...
There was also a new TV column, packed to bursting...
And there were even 4 new film reviews, too...
The 100-Week Roundup X
Featuring...Read more here.
- Lost in the Space
- Skyline
- April and the Extraordinary World
- I Kill Giants
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 5 September 2020
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Except that, for the first time in over three months, there's nothing to report! I'm sure it'll pick up again before I know it...
Number of titles in collection: 2,441 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,089 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,352 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 71 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 6,276 [no change]
Number of films: 2,758 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 185 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,958 [no change]
Number of short films: 762 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Except that, for the first time in over three months, there's nothing to report! I'm sure it'll pick up again before I know it...
Number of titles in collection: 2,441 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,089 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,352 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 71 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 6,276 [no change]
Number of films: 2,758 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 185 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,958 [no change]
Number of short films: 762 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 4 September 2020
TV
Cobra Kai
1x01 Ace Degenerate
1x02 Strike First
1x03 Esqueleto
1x04 Cobra Kai Never Dies
1x05 Counterbalance
When I sat down to start this, I didn’t intend to watch half the first season in one sitting, but turns out it’s pretty addictive. It helps that the episodes are short, really feeding the “just one more” feeling. In fact, because they’re around 25 minutes each, this still only totals a bit over 2 hours of viewing — like a double-bill of a usual streaming drama.
[Watch seasons 1&2 (again) on Netflix.]
1x01 Ace Degenerate
1x02 Strike First
1x03 Esqueleto
1x04 Cobra Kai Never Dies
1x05 Counterbalance
When I sat down to start this, I didn’t intend to watch half the first season in one sitting, but turns out it’s pretty addictive. It helps that the episodes are short, really feeding the “just one more” feeling. In fact, because they’re around 25 minutes each, this still only totals a bit over 2 hours of viewing — like a double-bill of a usual streaming drama.
[Watch seasons 1&2 (again) on Netflix.]
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