Friday, 3 March 2017

Thursday, 2 March 2017

TV

Arrow
5x13 Spectre of the Gun
"This week on a very special episode of Arrow..."

Peaky Blinders
1x03 Episode 3

Wednesday, 1 March 2017

TV

Death in Paradise
6x08 Episode 8 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Logan (2017)
[#30 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Tuesday, 28 February 2017

TV

Peaky Blinders
1x02 Episode 2

Room 101
6x04 Episode 4
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Monday, 27 February 2017

TV

The 89th Annual Academy Awards
aka the Oscars. Can't beat that ending for drama though, eh? And the whole ceremony had been pretty darn good before that, too. Best Oscars ever!

Peaky Blinders
1x01 Episode 1
Finally making a start on this. Definitely has potential.

Saturday, 25 February 2017

TV

Let It Shine
1x10 The Final [series finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

Despite what I said last week, there was still something new to add this week. Next week... who knows?

Also this week: the monthly running time update.

Number of titles in collection: 1,941 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,191 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 750 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 4,993 [up 1]
Number of films: 2,147 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 7,634 [no change]
Number of short films: 516 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
369 days, 13 hours, and 43 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 12 hours, and 35 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

Thursday, 23 February 2017

Wednesday, 22 February 2017

Tuesday, 21 February 2017

Monday, 20 February 2017

Sunday, 19 February 2017

Films

Dances with Wolves: Special Edition (1990/1991)
[#26 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Blindspot 2017 #2

this week on 100 Films

It's that time of the month again: when 100 Films in a Year looks back at what telly I've watched recently...





Also this week, I launched a series of posts celebrating 10 years of 100 Films. Here are the first two...




Finally, there were 3 brand-new reviews posted...


In a Valley of Violence (2016)
The spirit of the Spaghetti Western is alive and well in writer-director Ti West’s shoot ’em up; though where they once took inspiration from samurai movies, now Mr West has his sights set on modern-day gun-fu movies — specifically, here he retrofits John Wick into a familiar Old West narrative.
Read more here.


Love & Friendship (2016)
Kate Beckinsale is phenomenal — funny, dry, biting, witty, but also conveying that Susan is making it all up as she goes, despite pretending to be in control. The other standout is Tom Bennett as the dimwitted Sir James Martin. His knowledge of the commandments and opinion of peas are particularly delightful.
Read more here.


Mad Max: Fury Road - Black & Chrome Edition (2015/2016)
“Why do you need to buy it again? Why not just turn down the colour on your TV?” Well, you could, and you’d get an approximation of the effect; but if you have an appreciation for the fine details of film photography and colouring, that doesn’t cut it. The Black & Chrome version isn’t just the existing colour turned off — other things have been tweaked to heighten the experience
Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Saturday, 18 February 2017

Films

21 Jump Street (2012)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2017 #2
+ all the Blu-ray's special features, including half-an-hour of deleted scenes.

San Andreas (2015)
[#24 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie (2015)
[#25 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]
aka just The Peanuts Movie

Collection Count

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

Accidentally went on a bit of a spending spree this week, so there's a few new additions in spite of no new releases. Consequently expect things to be a little quieter for the next few weeks!

Number of titles in collection: 1,940 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,191 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 749 [up 5]

Number of discs in collection: 4,992 [up 12]
Number of films: 2,146 [up 7]
Number of TV episodes: 7,634 [up 12]
Number of short films: 516 [up 8]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Thursday, 16 February 2017

TV

24: Legacy
1x01 12:00PM - 1:00PM
The more things change, the more they stay the same: Jack Bauer may be gone, and all the on screen text has swishy modifications, including the famous clock, and said text is now blue rather than golden yellow, but in every other respect this is the same old 24.

Elementary
5x10 Pick Your Poison

Wednesday, 15 February 2017

TV

Arrow
5x11 Second Chances

Death in Paradise
6x06 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Not Going Out
8x03 Car
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Tuesday, 14 February 2017

Sunday, 12 February 2017

TV

The British Academy Film Awards 2017
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Insert Name Here
2x06 Steve [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Mad Max: Fury Road - Black & Chrome Edition (2015/2016)
[#19a in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Fury Road was #142 in 100 Films 2015, which I watched in October 2015. This is the black & white re-grade of the film.

this week on 100 Films

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


It Follows (2014)
It’s always fun when you come across a divisive movie — “which camp are you in?” It Follows is one of those. Some say it’s an instant horror classic, others that it’s slow, boring, unscary, and can’t even follow its own rules. I’m not qualified enough as a horror viewer to claim the former, but nor do I hold with the latter.
Read more here.


The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Humphrey Bogart is private dick and consummate bullshitter Sam Spade in this (re-)adaptation of Dashiell Hammett’s novel, considered the first major film noir.
Read more here.


Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)
I kind of didn’t want to like Me and Earl and the Dying Girl because I didn’t want to fall into the obvious trap of “this movie totally gets me because I love Criterion editions too!” But I thought it worked in spite of those pandering affectations. Or maybe I just couldn’t resist them on a subconscious level? In some respects it doesn’t matter how it achieved it: the film wanted to make me feel a certain way, and I did feel that way — success.
Read more here.


Tale of Tales (2015)
If you can stomach the contents, there’s a quality cast, and the locations, production design, and cinematography are simply gorgeous.
Read more here.


Also this week, I was given the Mystery Blogger Award. You can read more about that here:



More next Sunday.

Saturday, 11 February 2017

TV

Let It Shine
1x06 Episode 6
1x07 Episode 6 Results
[Watch Episode 6 and the results (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

Six shiny new additions this week, all of them Blu-rays, but two of them DVD upgrades.

Number of titles in collection: 1,935 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,191 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 744 [up 6]

Number of discs in collection: 4,980 [up 5]
Number of films: 2,139 [up 5]
Number of TV episodes: 7,622 [no change]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 10 February 2017

Thursday, 9 February 2017

Wednesday, 8 February 2017

TV

The Flash
3x10 Borrowing Problems From the Future

Pointless
16x36 1,000th Episode
Turns out the last time I watched regular Pointless was 3½ years ago -- for the 500th episode.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Hell or High Water (2016)
[#19 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Tuesday, 7 February 2017

TV

Elementary
5x06 Ill Tidings

The Missing
2x08 The Mountain [season finale]

Articles

Exclusive insights into The Missing series 2: What was cut, and one huge twist that almost didn't happen
by Morgan Jeffery (from Digital Spy)
As I finished the series tonight, I was able to read this piece I'd had saved for nearly two months. Very interesting.

Monday, 6 February 2017

Sunday, 5 February 2017

TV

The Missing
2x06 Saint John

Films

It Follows (2014)
[#17 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

+ the Blu-ray's very meagre special features, and, in a spectacularly rare occurrence, the audio commentary. Sadly, it wasn't a good one.

this week on 100 Films

A new month started this week, so it was time to look back at the old one over on 100 Films in a Year...





Plus, there were 3 brand-new reviews...


London Has Fallen (2016)
It does just about pass muster as a brains-off actioner, in the truest sense of the term: you’ll need to switch your brain off to endure the rampant xenophobia and American flag-waving. God, I bet Trump loves this movie.
Read more here.


Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016)
Miss Peregrine seems to have received a rather muted response, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It might be best to qualify that by reiterating that it’s playing with a lot of things I enjoy — “X-Men by way of Tim Burton” sounds fantastic to me, and that’s not a bad definition of this movie.
Read more here.


The Tale of Zatoichi Continues (1962)
The consensus seems to be that The Tale of Zatoichi Continues is a faster-paced and more action-packed movie than its predecessor, which is obviously to some viewers’ taste... However, I thought it lacked the artistry of the first film. It’s very focused on plot rather than digging into character, which is especially problematic when it comes to a subplot about a rogue who turns out to be Ichi’s brother.
Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Saturday, 4 February 2017

TV

Let It Shine
1x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,931 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,193 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 738 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 4,975 [up 3]
Number of films: 2,134 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 7,622 [no change]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 3 February 2017

Thursday, 2 February 2017

Wednesday, 1 February 2017

Tuesday, 31 January 2017

Monday, 30 January 2017

Sunday, 29 January 2017

TV

Insert Name Here
2x04 Ben
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

The Missing
2x02 The Turtle and the Stick

this week on 100 Films

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


Bridesmaids (2011)
Despite a rough start, there are some very, very funny parts later on; but, unexpectedly, it also works pretty well in more character-focused sections. You’re not going to mistake this for an emotional drama, but there’s more investment in the characters than you might anticipate given the cast and crew’s pedigree.
Read more here.


Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
The affable characters are quite delightful to get to know even as they’re getting to know each other, and there are some magical sequences. Plus it’s all beautifully designed and animated, as you’d expect from Studio Ghibli
Read more here.


iBoy (2017)
Where it comes unstuck is the tone. How many superhero films are going to feature gang rape? Well, somewhat appropriately, I guess the Netflix ones might. But the disjunct between iBoy’s daft premise and the grim world of inner city gangs (there are more acts of shocking violence) is a difficult one to negotiate.
Read more here.


Into the Wild (2007)
The true story of Christopher McCandless, who abandoned regular life after college to go hitchhiking and become one with nature or something, then accidentally killed himself by being a pretentious wanker.
Read more here.


The Pianist (2002)
It may not poke at your emotions quite so readily as, say, Schindler’s List, but that’s because Polanski and screenwriter Ronald Harwood dodge histrionics or an operatic envisioning of events. Instead this feels like a grounded relation of the facts, with everyday heroism (and cruelty) the order of the day — but, of course, there’s nothing “everyday” about it.
Read more here.


Wuthering Heights (2011)
Andrea Arnold’s earthy, plausible take on Emily Brontë’s beloved novel won’t be to all tastes — particularly anyone after an epic romance feel — but its sparse dialogue, Malickian attention to nature, and oppressive mood make for a benumbing work of cinematic art.
Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Saturday, 28 January 2017

TV

Let It Shine
1x04 Episode 4
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

iBoy (2017)
[#11 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Collection Count

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

As promised, a whole host of additions this week -- just in time for the running time update! In the mix we have new Blu-rays, new DVDs, DVD-to-Blu-ray upgrades, and a whole season of TV, making updates across the board. Huzzah!

Number of titles in collection: 1,930 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,193 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 737 [up 7]

Number of discs in collection: 4,972 [up 9]
Number of films: 2,132 [up 7]
Number of TV episodes: 7,622 [up 20]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
368 days, 1 hour, and 8 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 14 hours, and 31 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 27 January 2017

TV

The Missing
2x01 Come Home

Room 101
6x01 Episode 1
Seems I stopped watching Room 101 halfway through the last series. Not sure why. Weird.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Enemy of the State (1998)
[2nd watch]

Rewatchathon 2017 #1

Thursday, 26 January 2017

TV

Elementary
5x04 Henny Penny the Sky is Falling
The 100th episode. An appropriate subplot for the occasion; not so much the title...

Not Going Out
8x01 Romance
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Wednesday, 25 January 2017

TV

Arrow
5x09 What We Leave Behind

Films

The Conversation (1974)
[#10 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Blindspot 2017 #1

+ the alternate ending from the original screenplay, included among the Blu-ray's special features.

Tuesday, 24 January 2017

TV

Death in Paradise
6x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Insert Name Here
2x03 Mary
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Charlie Bartlett (2007)
[#9 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Sunday, 22 January 2017

TV

Let It Shine
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Eye in the Sky (2015)
[#8 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

this week on 100 Films

It was time for my monthly TV review over at 100 Films in a Year, with a bumper-sized crop of things to cover in-depth...





As well as that, I published 3 brand-new film reviews...


Donald Trump’s The Art of the Deal: The Movie (2016)
Considering its pedigree, it should come as no surprise that The Art of the Deal: The Movie plays like a very long, out of control sketch. Just like all sketch comedy, some jokes land better than others, and just like most sketch comedy, it begins to outstay its welcome by the end.
Read more here.


Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)
the animation is genuinely stunning — beautiful to look at, as well as being technically audacious and consequently impressive. Some of it is so grand that several times I forgot that most of what we’re seeing on screen was built for real and animated by hand over several years. I say “most” because it is augmented with CGI [which] doesn’t detract from the technical workmanship on display. That included the largest stop-motion puppet ever built [of which] there’s a behind-the-scenes glimpse during the end credits that is breathtaking.
Read more here.


Raising Arizona (1987)
before now all I could have told you about Raising Arizona is that “it has the longest pre-titles ever (except it doesn’t)”. Well, that and it stars Nic Cage and was directed by the Coen brothers. But now I’ve watched it and, three months after the fact, …that’s still almost all I can tell you. I also remember there was a kinda-cool semi-fantastical thing going on with, like, a demon biker or something. Oh, and it’s quite funny.
Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Saturday, 21 January 2017

Films

Into the Wild (2007)
[#7 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2017 #1

Fiction

A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Dismal Dinner by Lemony Snicket

So, while reading some stuff about Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events, one of the lists of stuff they could adapt mentioned this in passing. Being the only ASoUE work I'd not heard of, I looked it up. Turns out it's just a short 'story' that was given away with kids' snacks as part of the promotion for the 2004 film, and you can even read it all online here. Which I did. It was as pointless as its provenance suggests, but hey-ho, that's free gifts with kids' snacks for you.

Collection Count

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

Nothing to report this week, but there's plenty on order so I imagine things will get lively soon.

Number of titles in collection: 1,924 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,194 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 730 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 4,963 [no change]
Number of films: 2,125 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 7,602 [no change]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 20 January 2017

Thursday, 19 January 2017

Sunday, 15 January 2017

TV

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 10 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

DC's Legends of Tomorrow
2x07 Invasion!
Concluding the crossover.

Sherlock
4x03 The Final Problem [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)
[#5 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

+ all of the Blu-ray's special features.

this week on 100 Films

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


Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
The most recent feature from the director of the very-different-to-each-other What We Do in the Shadows and Thor: Ragnarok, this very-different-again adventure-comedy-drama was a surprise hit in its native New Zealand, then around the rest of the world, before it wound up as Empire magazine’s pick for the best film of 2016.
Read more here.


Ivan Vasilievich: Back to the Future (1973)
maybe it’s a kind of Stockholm syndrome, but I ended up rather enjoying it. It’s not genius, but it’s a fairly amusing farce once it gets going. Very of its time as an early-’70s mainstream-style silly comedy, but what’s wrong with being of your time?
Read more here.


Ninja Scroll (1993)
One of the films credited with helping to popularise anime in the West in the wake of Akira (reportedly it has had a greater and more enduring impact in the US than in Japan), Ninja Scroll is a fast-paced fantastical action flick full of gratuitous swordplay, gratuitous gore, and gratuitous nudity.
Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Saturday, 14 January 2017

TV

Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life
Part 2 Spring

Let It Shine
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

A Series of Unfortunate Events
1x01 A Bad Beginning Part One
1x02 A Bad Beginning Part Two

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,924 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,194 [up 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 730 [up 4]

Number of discs in collection: 4,963 [up 11]
Number of films: 2,125 [up 4]
Number of TV episodes: 7,602 [up 23]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 13 January 2017

Films

Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
[#4 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Ninja Scroll (1993)
[#3 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]
+ the first half-ish of the audio commentary.

Thursday, 12 January 2017

TV

Arrow
5x08 Invasion!
Part 2 (aka 3) of the crossover. Also Arrow's 100th episode, so it's handy they had those aliens to provide a way to bring back lots of dead characters.

Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life
Part 1 Winter

Wednesday, 11 January 2017

Tuesday, 10 January 2017

TV

Death in Paradise
6x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

The Flash
3x08 Invasion!
Four-episode crossover ep.2 (because apparently ep.1's content was all of one scene that they repeat here).

Paul O'Grady: For the Love of Dogs
at Christmas [2016]
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

Films

Anomalisa (2015)
[#2 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Monday, 9 January 2017

TV

Arrow
5x07 Vigilante

Elementary
5x01 Folie a Deux
You can never have enough Sherlock Holmes on the telly, I guess.

this week on 100 Films

No new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, but there was a bunch of other stuff going on.

First: wrapping up 2016...


My Top 5 Most-Read New Posts in 2016
…and why I think they made the cut.
Read more here.


2016: The Full List
the usual array of factual analysis of my viewing (lists! statistics! yay statistics!)
Read more here.


The Best & Worst of 2016
it’s now time to consider the quality of that viewing: which films were the worst? Which the best? And what did I miss?
Read more here.


Then, announcing some plans of 2017...


Blindspot 2017
In case you’re unfamiliar with the concept of Blindspot, it’s where you pick 12 films you’ve never seen but feel you should have and resolve to watch one per month over the course of the year.
Read more here.


What Do You Mean You Haven’t Seen…? 2017
So what differentiates my WDYMYHS selection? Well, to mark my 10th blogiversary I’ve attempted to identify the films from the last ten years that I really should have seen.
Read more here.


Rewatchathon 2017
This year I’m adding a new component to my annual goal: in addition to watching at least 100 films I’ve never seen before, I decided to set a target to rewatch more.
Read more here.


Reviews next Sunday, I should imagine.

Sunday, 8 January 2017

TV

The Flash
3x07 Killer Frost
This episode should've been called Hugs, the amount they couldn't stop embracing each other. That or Painfully Obvious Reveal That Everyone Saw Coming.

Sherlock
4x02 The Lying Detective
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Saturday, 7 January 2017

TV

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 9 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Let It Shine
1x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Green Room (2015)
[#1 in 100 Films in a Year 2017]

Year #11, here we go...

Collection Count

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

After a busy couple of weeks, a quiet one: just one new box set replacing a couple of older releases (hence why "titles" goes down but "discs" goes up).

Number of titles in collection: 1,919 [down 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,193 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 726 [down 2]

Number of discs in collection: 4,952 [up 1]
Number of films: 2,121 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 7,579 [no change]
Number of short films: 508 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Friday, 6 January 2017

TV

Arrow
5x06 So It Begins

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 8 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Thursday, 5 January 2017

TV

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 7 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

The Flash
3x06 Shade

Vicious
3x00 A Year [series finale]
Vicious was always a very strange series, and this double-length finale is no exception.
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

Wednesday, 4 January 2017

TV

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 6 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Dara O Briain: Crowd Tickler Live
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Tuesday, 3 January 2017

TV

Celebrity Mastermind
2016/2017 Episode 5 (of 10)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Outnumbered
6x00 Christmas Special
On the one hand, this messes up my lovely "complete series" DVD box set. On the other hand, it's really funny. Hurray for new Outnumbered!
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Monday, 2 January 2017

TV

Junior Bake Off
4x14 The Final Day One
4x15 The Final Day Two [series finale]
[Watch The Final Day One and Day Two (again) on iPlayer.]

QI
14x09 Noel (XL edition)
Still going with the Christmas telly...
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]