TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x15 Destiny
1x16 Legendary [season finale]

Films

The Present (2014)
[#113a in 100 Films in a Year 2016]
Magnificent animated short. Watch it online here.

this week on 100 Films

3 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


The Boxer from Shantung (1972)

displays a greater focus on plot and character than is perhaps typical for a Shaw Bros movie, but doesn’t exactly stint on action either — the sequences are a little more spread out than usual, and it results in a just-over-two-hours runtime that isn’t typical for these films. Fortunately, it’s an engrossing enough story that this isn’t a problem, even if the narrative has a rise-and-fall kind of shape that is fairly familiar in the gangster genre.

Read more here.


The Descendants (2011)

Though marred by heavy-handed voice-over exposition (it baffles me that it won a Best Screenplay Oscar), it’s lifted by strong performances from the daughters (Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller) and Clooney, inverting his usual confident demeanour.

Read more here.


Independence Day (Special Edition) (1996/1998)

This was the first time I’d watched Independence Day's extended Special Edition cut, and I’d advise not bothering. It adds around 8½ minutes of new material, but the scenes don’t add all that much, and some of them are so awkwardly rammed in that it’s almost irritating

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)

Our Hero: The Bride, aka Black Mamba, aka [bleep], is a deadly assassin out for revenge against the gang of former associates who tried to murder her, in particular their leader, Dave. No, wait, that’s not right. What was his name? Anyway…

Read more here.


Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

The film's best quality is probably its humorous dialogue... Downey Jr is hilarious, of course, but even he's outmatched by Val Kilmer as sarky investigator Gay Perry. Even more impressively, love interest Michelle Monaghan holds her own against them both. The plot may be so confusing it's easily forgotten, but the whodunnit reveal is beside the point when the journey there is so entertaining.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Collection Count

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

Nowt to report this week. More next week? Probably not... but you never know.

Number of titles in collection: 1,874 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,208 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 666 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 4,787 [no change]
Number of films in collection: 2,057 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

The Bank Job (2008)
[#113 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Films

Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future (1973)
[#112 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

aka Иван Васильевич меняет профессию
aka Ivan Vasilyevich menyayet professiyu
aka Ivan Vasilievich Changes Profession

TV

Game of Thrones
6x09 Battle of the Bastards
Wow.

TV

Upstart Crow
1x06 The Quality of Mercy [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Barry Lyndon (1975)
[#111 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2016 #6

this week on 100 Films

It's that time of the month at 100 Films in a Year: the TV review! Spoiler-free coverage of Game of Thrones, Preacher, and more...




As well as that, the blog's raison d'être continued with 4 brand-new reviews...


Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969)

Why is this film notable? In fact, is it notable? Well, it was voted in to The 50 Greatest Cartoons by some of 1,000 animation professionals, so there’s clearly something there... Maybe it’s the subversiveness that makes it significant? It comes from an era when that must have been a factor, surely — there’s a certain Monty Python-ness to it, and it was made the same year Flying Circus first aired.

Read more here.


Deadpool (2016)

it’s a pretty standard superhero origin plot. But the devil is in the details, and it’s how Deadpool tells its story that matters — the narrative is just a framework on which to hang the gags. The immediate point of comparison on a superhero comedy is surely Kick-Ass, and it doesn’t take deep analysis to see that Deadpool isn’t as subversive as that movie. Where Kick-Ass comments on, at times even deconstructs, the superhero genre, Deadpool takes its rules as a given and throws a shedload of humour on top of it. Is that a problem? It depends what you’re looking for.

Read more here.


Hercules (Extended Cut) (2014)

The answer to the question, “Hey, remember Brett Ratner? Whatever happened to him?”, Hercules stars Dwayne Johnson in full The Rock mode as the eponymous demigod. In this comic book adaptation, we’re introduced to Hercules at a point in his life after the famous labours but before he’d passed into legend, when he’s just a mercenary… or maybe he’s always just been a mercenary, and the legends are a tall tale to help him and his band of warriors sell their wares.

Read more here.


Ip Man 3 (2015)

Early bouts are not bad, though surprisingly underwhelming, but things really pick up later on. An elevator fight between Ip and a Thai boxer is the absolute high point, an incredible close-quarters action scene that spills out into a stairwell, but Donnie Yen vs Mike Tyson is a very good sequence also, and the climax ain’t half bad.

Read more here.


Finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Josie and the Pussycats (2001)

‘Product placement’ is when companies pay for their products to be featured in a film. I’m clarifying this because it’s important to know that Josie spoofs (rather than features) product placement relentlessly... The great irony of the film’s critical reception is that this spoofing of product placement is kinda on-the-nose, and yet swathes of oh-so-clever critics completely missed that. Rotten Tomatoes even use half of their Critical Consensus summary to say that “the constant appearance of product placement seems rather hypocritical.” Point, missed.

Read more here.


Jurassic Park (1993)

For a certain generation, Star Wars is undeniably the defining cinematic experience. For a more recent one, I guess it’s Harry Potter or something. In between, you have my lot — and as became quite clear with the unexpectedly phenomenal response to Jurassic World this time last year, we have Jurassic Park. It was the first film I ever saw at the cinema, and much of it has been lodged in my memory every since. That it’s beloved shouldn’t be such a surprise, really: it was huge back in 1993, and is one of only ten films that can lay claim to ever having been The Highest Grossing Movie Of All Time.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Have I Got News For You
51x08 (27/5/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Fantastic Four (2015)
[#110 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

After a busy few weeks, just one newbie this time.

Number of titles in collection: 1,874 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,208 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 666 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 4,787 [up 2]
Number of films in collection: 2,057 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Steve Jobs (2015)
[#109 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Films

Ip Man 3 (2015)
[#108 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Preacher
1x03 The Possibilities
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

Films

Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969)
[#107a in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Game of Thrones
6x08 No One

TV

Arrow
4x23 Schism [season finale]

Upstart Crow
1x05 What Bloody Man is That?
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Deadpool (2016)
[#107 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

4 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)

Top villain Jürgen Prochnow is so underused one wonders why he’s even in the film — Brigitte Nielsen’s more striking henchwoman could’ve been brains as well as brawn. Either way, they’re the character equivalent of a MacGuffin: this is all about Murphy

Read more here.


Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)

according to director John Landis, [Eddie Murphy] envious of the careers of Denzel Washington and Wesley Snipes, who were starring in straight action movies. Consequently, Murphy was keen to downplay the film’s comedy — much to its detriment, of course, as it’s Murphy’s comedy that makes this series work.

Read more here.


A Boy and His Dog (1975)

It’s a film fuelled by weirdness, left-field ideas, and a controversial tragicomic ending. It’s a “not for everyone” kind of film that, I must confess, I found hard to properly engage with

Read more here.


The Revenant (2015)

it’s like an old-fashioned blockbuster — the kind of thing you’d’ve seen in the 1950s (epic revenge Western) or 1970s (bleak revenge Western) as among the year’s biggest movies — crossed with a slow-paced, scenery-loving, meditative arthouse piece. If it’s about anything (beyond, y’know, the plot), it’s surely about nature — both the amazing vastness of natural spaces, but also the brutality of survival.

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


The Incredibles (2004)

Even before the present glut of big-screen super-heroics, Pixar were in on the game with this affectionate genre entry. Writer-director Brad Bird mixes together classical superhero antics with elements of 1960s spy-fi to create a retro world of optimistic heroics and larger-than-life villainy — at odds with the dark-and-serious tone of so many superhero movies of the past 17+ years, but all the more memorable for it.

Read more here.


Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

I know we’re all supposed to love Raiders most, but I think Last Crusade is actually my favourite Indy movie. [It has] plenty of the requisite derring-do, an almost Bondian globetrotting storyline, and a high-stakes climax, complete with gruesome death for the villain. Spielberg once said it was his favourite Indy movie too, so I’m in good company.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

Spy (Extended Cut) (2015)
[#106 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

One new addition this week, which is actually a new release out on Monday (yay HMV!) It is time for the running time update, though, so there's exciting then.

Number of titles in collection: 1,873 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,208 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 665 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 4,785 [up 1]
Number of films in collection: 2,056 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

And that running time update...

Total running time of collection (approx.):
349 days, 18 hours, and 25 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 10 hours, and 11 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Beverly Hills Cop III (1994)
[#105 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x14 River of Time

Gilmore Girls
7x14 Farewell, My Pet

Preacher
1x02 See
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

Talking Preacher
1x01 Talking Preacher on Pilot
Spin-off talk show. Rather than going weekly, as some of AMC's other such programmes do, the next episode will be after the finale. Shame.
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

TV

The Flash
2x23 The Race of His Life [season finale]

Gilmore Girls
7x13 I'd Rather Be in Philadelphia

Films

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010)
[#104 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Arrow
4x22 Lost in the Flood

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x13 Leviathan

The Flash
2x22 Invincible

Game of Thrones
6x07 The Broken Man

Gilmore Girls
7x12 To Whom It May Concern

Films

Josie and the Pussycats (2001)
[3rd watch]

TV

Arrow
4x21 Monument Point

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x12 Last Refuge

Upstart Crow
1x04 Love is Not Love
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Revenant (2015)
[#103 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

It was a new month at 100 Films in a Year this week (as well as everywhere else, obviously), meaning it was time to look back at the last one:




Other than that, 3 brand-new reviews were published...


The Assassin (2015)

far from your typical martial arts film, and so will appeal to a different kind of viewer. Hou has said it’s more about the spirit and deeper meanings of martial arts than it is the physical combat, and I can only presume that’s true. Besides looking very pretty, and presenting a (barely explained) adjustment in the mentality of one character, it’s difficult to know what to take away from it.

Read more here.


Quigley Down Under (1990)

Tom Selleck is Quigley, who has the ability to shoot things at implausibly long distances, and whose hair has the ability to stay implausibly coiffed even after days abandoned in the outback. He’s been employed by Alan Rickman, who we know is the villain because this was released in 1990.

Read more here.


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)

The Turtles’ personalities are pretty one-note, but not unfaithful to the original — the franchise started life as a spoof of things like Daredevil, after all, not a realistic character drama. That said, turning Mike into basically a turtle version of Michael Bay — i.e. he’s focused on lusting after Megan Fox and occasionally causing explosions — is a little cringe-y.

Read more here.


Finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Groundhog Day (1993)

Best Supporting Character: Now, don’t you tell me you don’t remember Ned because he’d sure as heckfire remember you. Ned Ryerson. Needlenose Ned. Ned the Head. From Case Western High. Ned Ryerson, did the whistling belly-button trick at the high school talent show? Bing! Ned Ryerson, got the shingles real bad senior year, almost didn’t graduate? Bing, again. Ned Ryerson, dated Phil’s sister Mary Pat a couple times until Phil told him not to anymore? Ned Ryerson? Bing!

Read more here.


Highlander (1986)

Connor MacLeod is an immortal, a race of men living in secret among the rest of us, who must one day come together for the Gathering, after which there can be only one immortal left standing. That time comes in New York, 1985, as hulking savage the Kurgan hunts down the remaining immortals so that he can be the only one, and use the power that imbues to dominate the world. MacLeod is the only man in his way. Who will win? After all, there can be only— yeah, okay, you get it.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Gilmore Girls
7x11 Santa's Secret Stuff

Films

Independence Day (Special Edition) (1996/1998)
[#102a in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

This is about the third time I've seen Independence Day, but the first I've seen the extended Special Edition version.

Collection Count

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

It was going to be just two additions this week, but a bunch of stuff turned up this morning. Four brand-new titles, one like-for-like DVD-to-Blu-ray upgrade, but one title alone accounts for over half the discs and almost half the films.

Number of titles in collection: 1,872 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,208 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 664 [up 5]

Number of discs in collection: 4,784 [up 7]
Number of films in collection: 2,055 [up 5]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Cop Car (2015)
[#102 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Articles

I don't do an Articles posts for months (years?), then two interesting ones come along at once...


From Must-See TV To Peak TV: 20 Years Of Covering Television
by Alan Sepinwall (from HitFix)

US TV critic Alan Sepinwall has now been reviewing television for 20 years (how did you guess?), so took that as an opportunity to reflect on how much has changed in the medium since 1996. Short answer: a helluva lot. Long answer: read the article, it's good.


What A Co-Director Does On A Pixar Movie? Finding Dory Director Andrew Stanton Explains
by Peter Sciretta (from /Film)

It's a credit you can always seen on Pixar films, but, as they're one of the few places you do see it, it's not widely known what it actually means. Well, here's an explanation, from the horse's mouth.

Films

Return of the One-Armed Swordsman (1969)
[#101 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Game of Thrones
6x06 Blood of My Blood

Have I Got News For You
51x07 (20/5/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Upstart Crow
1x03 The Apparel Proclaims the Man
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Arrow
4x20 Genesis

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x11 The Magnificent Eight

Elementary
4x24 A Difference in Kind [season finale]

The Flash
2x21 The Runaway Dinosaur

Gilmore Girls
7x10 Merry Fisticuffs

Films

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
[#100 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2016 #5

Comics

Boys' Night by Max Landis & AP Quach

This comic -- about a middle-aged Mickey Mouse & friends hanging out, getting drunk, like real middle-aged guys -- was recommended somewhere a couple of days ago as an example of why Max Landis is worthwhile, and... well, it's fine... but I don't get what's so great about it. Hey ho.

this week on 100 Films

3 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


Hamlet (1964)

A black-and-white, two-and-a-half hour Shakespeare adaptation in subtitled Russian? No, wait, come back! Actually, don’t bother, because if you’re turned off by any or all of that description then, yeah, this isn’t for you. If you don’t object, however, then you’ll find a film that the likes of Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir John Gielgud, and Sir Kenneth Branagh have hailed as the greatest film adaptation of arguably the Bard’s most revered play.

Read more here.


SuperBob (2015)

begins as a faux-documentary; a film being made about Bob and his life, which makes sense because who wouldn’t be interested in a documentary on the world’s only superhero? For us real-life viewers, though, it’s a form that feels a little tired at this point — I involuntarily groaned out loud when I realised that’s where it was going. Stick with it, though, because the conceit is all but dropped fairly early on, and the film begins to develop in nice directions.

Read more here.


X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)

With so many characters to deal with, the film becomes a little overburdened with subplots. It’s trying to be a trilogy-former for the remnants of the First Class cast... but it’s also trying to introduce the new-old gang of X-Men, and establish their characters to head-up future movies; and it also has to deal with establishing its villain and his plans. It’s a big ask, and while director Bryan Singer and screenwriter Simon Kinberg do manage to keep all the plates spinning and achieve something with most of them... some plot threads do feel perfunctory

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


GoldenEye (1995)

Pierce Brosnan is Bond, James Bond, for the first time. After the almost-franchise-killing seriousness of Timothy Dalton, Brosnan nails Bond for the nostalgic ’90s: a dash of Sean Connery’s grit, a dash of Roger Moore’s raised-eyebrow humour, a whole lot of suaveness. For a while, the old “Connery or Moore?” question became “Connery, Moore or Brosnan?”

Read more here.


Gone with the Wind (1939)

It’s an epic in the truest sense of the word, with a story spanning many years and many miles, passing by historical events in the process. However, at it’s core it’s the story of a tumultuous romance between two people, who may love each other or may hate each other, but who, with their unique, selfish, manipulative perspectives, are surely perfect for each other.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

The Assassin (2015)
[#99 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

There's a tasty pile of new additions this week...

Number of titles in collection: 1,868 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,209 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 659 [up 6]

Number of discs in collection: 4,777 [up 12]
Number of films in collection: 2,050 [up 14]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [up 1]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Magazines

Doctor Who Magazine #500

Awesome double-magazine 500th issue, including a very candid interview with Steven Moffat, with snippets like this.

Films

X-Men: Apocalypse (2016)
[#98 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Preacher
1x01 Pilot
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

TV

Game of Thrones
6x05 The Door
Hodor.

TV

The Flash
2x20 Rupture

Gilmore Girls
7x09 Knit, People, Knit!

Films

Just Friends (2005)
[#97 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

First up on 100 Films in a Year this week, it's the monthly TV review -- including coverage of David Tennant's Big Finish Doctor Whos...




Back to films: 3 reviews were published this week...


300: Rise of an Empire (2014)

In every respect — from the clunky structure, to the leaden dialogue, to the poor performances, to the cheap visuals, to the fake CGI — this doesn’t feel like the $110 million blockbuster it is, but like a direct-to-Syfy TV movie.

Read more here.


The Fighter (2010)

I don’t normally care for boxing movies (I even gave the sainted Raging Bull just 3 stars), but I rather enjoyed this. Perhaps that’s because it’s about the familial drama as much as it is pugilism, but then the same could be said of Bull, so who knows — maybe I’m just becoming inured to the sport. Heck, I even found myself invested in the outcome during the climactic bout.

Read more here.


Warrior (2011)

It’s a constant surprise to me that Warrior is on the IMDb Top 250 — and in a very secure 146th place, too — for two reasons: firstly because I’m not sure I’d ever heard anyone actually talk about it, except in passing as part of “the rise of Tom Hardy”-type passages; and secondly because, from the outside, it doesn’t look like a very Top 250-y kind of film... Having chosen to watch it in part to assuage that confusion, I still find its placement just as baffling.

Read more here.


And finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Gladiator (2000)

Memorable Quote: “My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions and loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.” — Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor Marcus Aurelius; father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife.

Read more here.


The Godfather (1972)

Has it really been almost eight years since the IMDb Top 250’s unshakeable #1 was usurped? The Godfather sat pretty at the top of that user-voted ranking for the best part of nine years, its balance between critically-acclaimed filmmaking finesse and quotable gangster machinations almost perfectly calibrated for that website’s prevailing demographic. (It’s since settled at #2, hardly a failure.)

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x10 Progeny

Elementary
4x23 The Invisible Hand

Films

Hamlet (1964)
[#96 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]
aka Gamlet, or Гамлет
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

Nothing to report this week, but next should see at least four additions.

Number of titles in collection: 1,862 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,209 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 653 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 4,765 [no change]
Number of films in collection: 2,036 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 472 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Arrow
4x19 Canary Cry

Gilmore Girls
7x08 Introducing Lorelai Planetarium

Have I Got News For You
51x06 (13/5/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Audio Drama

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures
1x03 Death and the Queen [season finale]
Read my opinion on all three Big Finish 10th Doctor adventures in the 100 Films monthly TV round-up, here.

Audio Drama

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures
1x02 Time Reaver
Less good than the first story, but a decent adventure nonetheless.

TV

The Flash
2x19 Back to Normal

Game of Thrones
6x04 Book of the Stranger

Gilmore Girls
7x07 French Twist

Audio Drama

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor Adventures
1x01 Technophobia
Tennant returns! Off to a strong start. (I'll write more in 100 Films' monthly TV update on Thursday.)

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x09 Left Behind

Upstart Crow
1x02 The Play's the Thing
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Arrow
4x18 Eleven-Fifty-Nine

Elementary
4x22 Turn It Upside Down

Gilmore Girls
7x06 Go, Bulldogs!

Films

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
[#95 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

4 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


Calvary (2014)

Calvary may in fact be a great film, if only I could put my finger on what I think it’s really trying to get at, which remains frustratingly out of my reach, at least for now. However, I will say it’s a very good one, and anyone who likes a character-driven drama scattered with dark but hilarious humour would do well to seek it out.

Read more here.


Captain America: Civil War (2016)

As complicated as the plot sounds once you start trying to succinctly summarise it, Civil War is easy to follow as it unfurls. In fact, it’s to its credit that it can’t be readily summarised in any more detail than “Cap and Iron Man disagree; fight” without really getting into it. Screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely have followed up the political thriller of Winter Soldier with another global thriller storyline, again bringing different genre textures to the superheroics that are nonetheless present and correct.

Read more here.


The Hateful Eight (2015)

I’m not the first to observe that The Hateful Eight actually functions like a murder mystery, Agatha Christie style. It might be easy to miss because the film doesn’t begin with a murder or feature a detective, but then neither do all of Christie’s stories. Instead, there’s a long period setting up all the players and suggesting their motivations, and then eventually the proverbial does hit the metaphorical fan, after which deductions must be made.

Read more here.


The Raid 2 (2014)

outclasses its predecessor in every possible way, from the deeper and more involving story, to the jaw-dropping feats of choreography and performance, to the more assured and polished filmmaking. An instant action classic.

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Ghost in the Shell (1995)

In a future world where humans can undergo varying degrees of cyberisation, Major Motoko Kusanagi is a “full-body prosthesis augmented-cybernetic human” — only her brain is organic. Her body is a generic mass production model, so she can blend in while being a kick-ass law enforcement officer.

Read more here.


Ghostbusters (1984)

Our Villain: Gozer the Gozerian, a Sumerian god of destruction. Likes to turn his servants into supernatural hounds and allow the good guys to choose the form of their ‘destructor’ — which is how you end up having to fight a 112½-foot marshmallow man.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Eurovision Song Contest: Stockholm 2016
As the jury vote was coming to a close, I thought, "The new vote-counting method is a good idea, but it looks like we've got a year where it's not actually going to make a difference." Ha ha ha, how wrong was I? Point made, new system. Point made.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Ted 2 (Extended Edition) (2015)
[#94 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,862 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,209 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 653 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 4,765 [up 1]
Number of films in collection: 2,036 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,214 [up 3]
Number of short films in collection: 472 [no change]

Plus this week it's time for a running time update, so...

Total running time of collection (approx.):
348 days, 8 hours, and 14 minutes.
(Up 20 hours and 38 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Elementary
4x21 Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing

The Flash
2x18 Versus Zoom

Gilmore Girls
7x05 The Great Stink

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x08 Night of the Hawk

Upstart Crow
1x01 Star Crossed Lovers
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Arrow
4x17 Beacon of Hope

Gilmore Girls
7x04 'S Wonderful, 'S Marvelous

Have I Got News For You
51x05 (6/5/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Future Shock! The Story of 2000AD (2014)
[#93 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Elementary
4x20 Art Imitates Art

Game of Thrones
6x03 Oathbreaker

Gilmore Girls
7x03 Lorelai's First Cotillion

TV

Gilmore Girls
7x02 That's What You Get, Folks, For Makin' Whoopee

Person of Interest
4x21 Asylum
4x22 YHWH [season finale]
[Watch Asylum and YHWH (again) on My5.]

Films

Captain America: Civil War (2016)
[#92 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

The British Academy Television Awards 2016
Magnificently political this year!
Also, more prizes were covered in the usual Extra Time programme.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Calvary (2014)
[#91 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

Even though we're now 8 days into a new month, my review of the last for 100 Films in a Year was a little delayed -- so here, now, is my look-back at April:




Elsewise, just 1 brand-new review was published this week:


The Book of Life (2014)

A myth-like animated musical adventure based around Mexico’s Day of the Dead, most notable for its unique art style that presents gorgeous visuals throughout.

Read more here.


But my 100 Favourites series did continue with the regular 2 new posts:


The Game (1997)

I remain a little dubious about its re-watch value — not because it’s poorly made (far from it), but because the twists and reveals are such a big part of its appeal, and once you know them, you know them.

Read more here.


Gangs of New York (2002)

Although he’s a ruthless killer, and the unquestionable villain from the outset, Daniel Day-Lewis manages to render Bill a perversely charming creation, who unavoidably captivates your attention whenever he’s on screen.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

The Flash
2x17 Flash Back

Gilmore Girls
7x01 The Long Morrow

Person of Interest
4x20 Terra Incognita
[Watch it (again) on My5.]

Films

The Raid 2 (2014)
[#90 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

Birthday haul: couple of new things, couple of upgrades. End result:

Number of titles in collection: 1,861 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,209 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 652 [up 4]

Number of discs in collection: 4,764 [up 9]
Number of films in collection: 2,036 [up 5]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,211 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 472 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x07 Marooned

Gilmore Girls
6x22 Partings [season finale]

Have I Got News For You
51x04 (29/4/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Hateful Eight (2015)
[#89 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

+ the Blu-ray's mediocre special features.

TV

Arrow
4x16 Broken Hearts

Elementary
4x19 All In

Gilmore Girls
6x21 Driving Miss Gilmore

TV

The Flash
2x16 Trajectory

Gilmore Girls
6x20 Super Cool Party People

Person of Interest
4x19 Search and Destroy
[Watch it (again) on My5.]

TV

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
1x06 Star City 2046

Game of Thrones
6x02 Home

Gilmore Girls
6x19 I Get a Sidekick Out of You

TV

Gilmore Girls
6x18 The Real Paul Anka

Person of Interest
4x18 Skip
[Watch it (again) on My5.]

TV

Gilmore Girls
6x17 I'm OK, You're OK

Have I Got News For You
51x03 (22/4/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Sword in the Stone (1963)
[2nd or so watch]

this week on 100 Films

It was 1999 Week on 100 Films in a Year this week! Read my introduction here:




As part of that, 5 brand-new reviews were published:


Election (1999)

the whole film has a conflicted idea of identification. It has you side with a teacher who wants to tear down the dreams of a bright, dedicated, enthusiastic young student. And I don’t mean it tries to get you to side with him — you do side with him. But then it proceeds to tear his whole life apart, as if in punishment for what he wanted to do; and, by extension, it punishes you for wanting him to do it.

Read more here.


The Iron Giant (1999)

The animation is stunningly well done, exhibiting exceptional fluidity and detail in its character animation, in particular. That’s in spite of the film having a reduced budget and time schedule thanks to the box office failure of previous animations by the studio — in Bird’s words, they had “one-third of the money of a Disney or DreamWorks film, and half of the production schedule”, but that meant greater production freedom

Read more here.


The Limey (1999)

The movie jumps back and forth in time — not from scene to scene, but from shot to shot. For instance, Stamp’s arrival at the home of his daughter’s friend, and the conversation that follows, is jumbled up with shots of him on the plane, driving in the city, the people his daughter was associating with, and even within the conversation itself, sometimes speech continues on the soundtrack while we watch the characters not talking, or doing something else. This isn’t a conceit Soderbergh uses for one scene, or wheels out now and then, but an overall approach.

Read more here.


Office Space (1999)

there’s sort of a wish-fulfilment thing going on here, which must partly explain its popularity. It’s a film about low-level white collar workers, stuck in unfulfilling office jobs, having to do the repetitious and sometimes stupid bidding of the higher-ups — guys who don’t actually do anything, really, but will certainly get to keep their jobs when lay-offs are needed, even as the little guys who actually do the work get the sack. Wouldn’t it be great to find yourself in a position where you could stick it to Management?

Read more here.


The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)

Throw in a couple more sex scenes (and a few less high-profile contributors) and you’d have late-night TV filler. There’s virtually no swearing and certainly no violence, but with some gratuitous boobs you’ve got a 15/R-rated flick. The film doesn’t really need such titillation to attract attention, because it’s a strong cat-and-mouse thriller in its own right. On the other hand, it doesn’t shy away from sexuality and the part that could play in such a ‘game’, so in that respect it’s more plausible than a million other neutered movies.

Read more here.


My 100 Favourites series got in on the action too, with 2 related posts:


Fight Club (1999)

Quote Most Likely To Be Used in Everyday Conversation: “You are not special. You are not a beautiful or unique snowflake. You’re the same decaying organic matter as everything else.” — Tyler Durden

Read more here.


Galaxy Quest (1999)

Our heroes arrive in the bowels of their screen-faithful ship to find “a bunch of chompy, crushy things” impeding their path — for absolutely no reason. “We shouldn’t have to do this, it makes no logical sense, why is it here?… This episode was badly written!”

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,859 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,211 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 648 [up 2]

Number of discs in collection: 4,755 [up 4]
Number of films in collection: 2,031 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,211 [up 14]
Number of short films in collection: 472 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Gilmore Girls
6x16 Bridesmaids Revisited

Films

Pixels (2015)
[#88 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Elementary
4x18 Ready or Not

Game of Thrones
6x01 The Red Woman
It's back! A slow start to the season, but then they almost always are on Thrones -- reminding you what's happened, dealing with some of its repercussions, and positioning pieces for what comes next. I suspect considerable excitement is just around the corner...

Gilmore Girls
6x15 A Vineyard Valentine

Person of Interest
4x17 Karma
[Watch it (again) on My5.]

Films

Badlands (1973)
[#87 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Arrow
4x15 Taken

Gilmore Girls
6x14 You've Been Gilmored

Have I Got News For You
51x02 (15/4/2016 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Gilmore Girls
6x13 Friday Night's Alright for Fighting

Grantchester
2x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

this week on 100 Films

First up this week at 100 Films in a Year, my latest TV round-up:




As well, 4 brand-new reviews were published this week:


Locke (2013)

“Tom Hardy goes for a drive and makes some phone calls” is the plot of this film, which is often mislabelled as a thriller. That’s not to degrade its thrillingness, but rather to say that if you’re expecting a single-location single-character phone-based thrill-ride... you’re not going to get it. In reality, Locke is a drama about a man dealing with some woes that are both everyday and life-changing, but as a film it’s been made in an unusual and interesting manner.

Read more here.


Maleficent (2014)

a revisionist re-telling of Sleeping Beauty from the point of view of its villainess... It's an interesting idea to take an archetypal villain who's evil for evil's sake and try to give her motivation, to understand why she did terrible things. Maleficent makes a fair fist of this

Read more here.


Super 8 (2011)

Before he started star warring and between bouts of star trekking, director J.J. Abrams teamed up with producer Steven Spielberg for this homage to the kind of movies Spielberg produced in the ’80s. Those films have endured down the decades; I’m not sure Super 8 endured as far as Abrams’ next lens flare showcase... Which is a little bit of a shame because, by being Abrams’ most personal film, it may also be his best.

Read more here.


Veronica Mars (2014)

There’s no denying that this is primarily a film for fans of the TV series — well, they did fund it, after all. The best way to get the most out of the film is to have watched all 64 episodes of the show first; preferably soon before, in fact, so you can remember who all the minor characters are. However, creator-cowriter-director Rob Thomas is no fool... [It's] accessible to neophyte viewers. You might sense there’s references and whatnot that are passing you by, but everything that’s relevant is explained.

Read more here.


Finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts:


For a Few Dollars More (1965)

The Man With No Name (who this time is called Monco) is played as coolly as ever by Clint Eastwood. This time he teams up with The Man In Black — not Johnny Cash, but Colonel Douglas Mortimer. Much older than Monco, but played with equal amounts of cool by Lee Van Cleef.

Read more here.


From Russia with Love (1964)

They may not be as grandiose as the volcano-dwelling types that came later in the series, but From Russia with Love has two of Bond’s most memorable adversaries: the hard former KGB officer Rosa Klebb, with her deadly shoe (well, it sounds silly when you put it like that), and assassin Red Grant, who may not know what wine to have with fish but could certainly gut you like one. A fish, that is. Not wine. You can’t gut wine.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Gilmore Girls
6x12 Just Like Gwen and Gavin

Person of Interest
4x16 Blunt
[Watch it (again) on My5.]

Films

The Iron Giant (1999)
[#86 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2016 #4

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,857 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,211 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 646 [up 2]

Number of discs in collection: 4,751 [up 3]
Number of films in collection: 2,030 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,197 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 472 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.