this week on 100 Films

Just one new post this week at 100 Films in a Year, and it wasn't even about films. It's another premature TV review, primarily to cover the series finale of Game of Thrones, but with a few other things too...





More next Sunday.

TV

Grantchester
4x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

Line of Duty
5x03 Episode 3
5x04 Episode 4
[Watch both episodes (again) on iPlayer.]

Who Dares Wins
11x07 (26/5/18 edition)

TV

Line of Duty
5x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Who Dares Wins
12x01 (4/5/19 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Line of Duty
5x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Thronecast
8x06 The End is Coming
8x07 The Iron Throne [series finale]

The Twilight Zone
1x30 A Stop at Willoughby
3x26 Little Girl Lost

Articles

Bullock’s Last Stand: Timothy Olyphant on Deadwood: The Movie and David Milch
by Alan Sepinwall (from Rolling Stone)
If you're a fan of Deadwood, this is a must-read. Candid, honest, insightful, affectionate.

TV

The Twilight Zone
3x03 The Shelter

Films

The Girl in the Spider's Web (2018)
[#90 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x06 The Iron Throne [series finale]

TV

Eurovision Song Contest: Tel Aviv 2019
Watched this 24 hours late, because I forgot to set it to record and iPlayer wasn't letting me "watch from start". Didn't think it was a great year, sadly -- the song quality wasn't as good as normal (yeah, I know, it's Eurovision, but even still). Some of the interval stuff was good, at least.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Cosmopolis (2012)
[#89 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

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


BlacKkKlansman (2018)

“A black man infiltrates the KKK.” Sounds like the setup for a joke, doesn’t it? Or possibly some outrageous blaxploitation movie. But it’s something that actually happened... Although the premise sounds comical, the fact it’s a true story concerning an organisation as inhumane and pernicious as the KKK made me worried the film would be serious, grim, and heavy-going. In actuality, it’s lively, funny, and fast-paced.

Read more here.


Bumblebee (2018)

The “a girl and her robot” angle is what the film was sold on, combined with the ’80s setting to suggest a throwback to movies of that era. I quite like it as a concept — it’s certainly a change of pace from the increasingly overblown city-destroying world-saving antics of the earlier films — but it’s the execution that disappointed me. It takes too long to get it up and running, spinning its wheels on Charlie getting Bumblebee started, on comedic interludes with her family, on establishing a wannabe-love-interest... There’s altogether too much time spent on the military and Decepticons hunting ‘Bee, too, especially considering it amounts to little that’s meaningful.

Read more here.


The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

perhaps making the plot 50% a straightforward quest-against-time narrative and 50% impenetrable philosophy lectures wasn’t the best idea, but the action sequences are still absolutely stunning. And, actually, if you bother to engage with the film on its own level, there’s some interesting stuff here.

Read more here.


The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

I used to think Revolutions was better than Reloaded, mainly because at least it brought everything to an end and didn’t have that confusing stuff with the Architect. But reflecting on the sequels now, I have to agree with the consensus that this isn’t as good — there’s nothing that matches the highway sequence for entertainment value, and, actually, the lack of overt philosophising is almost to its detriment.

Read more here.


Upgrade (2018)

On one level, it's a straightforward sci-fi action-thriller, following the hero's investigation as it leads him to some shady figures who have near-future tech of their own, and then they fight. While that may seem simplistic, it’s full of neat little touches, particular in the action’s choreography — it almost begs a rewatch just to see everything that’s going on in the frantic fight scenes.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Ghosts
1x04 Free Pass
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

Just one new addition this week. It's looking like it'll be a quiet couple of weeks ahead, too... but then you never know when some sale or bargain might catch my eye...

Number of titles in collection: 2,226 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,095 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 26 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,758 [up 2]
Number of films: 2,550 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 667 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #19

Widows (2018)
[#88 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Articles

I don't often share articles anymore, but today I happened to read 3 particularly good ones, all tied to Game of Thrones and its fans...

The anger of Game of Thrones fans is part of the game
by Mary McNamara (from the Los Angeles Times)
One of the best pieces I've seen defending the series' recent episodes.

'Fan' Is Becoming A Four-Letter Word
by Matt Singer (from Screen Crush)
On how the notion of being a fan of something has changed in recent times -- it used to mean you like something, now it almost means you hate it.

And finally, a bit of humour...

Game Of Thrones Showrunners Disappointed With How Quality Of Fans Has Dropped Off Over Past Couple Seasons
(from the Onion)

Films

Dracula (1931)
[#87 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
Blindspot 2019 #5

TV

Thronecast
8x05 The Bells

The Twilight Zone
4x16 On Thursday We Leave For Home

Films

BlacKkKlansman (2018)
[#86 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Films

Cleopatra (1970)
[#85 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x05 The Bells

Films

Ghostbusters II (1989)
[3rd or so watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #18, after rewatching the first one in January. One of my earliest memories is watching this on a rented VHS when I must've been 4 or 5 years old, and being scared shitless by the painting that comes to life. I thought this might be the first time I've watched it since then, but I did remember tonnes of it, so either I'm wrong (probably) or it had a big impact on tiny little me (well, clearly it did at least a bit!) Anyway, it's not a patch on the classic first one, but it has its moments and is mostly good fun.

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
[#84 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Films

Bumblebee (2018)
[#83 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

I turned my monthly TV review into a fortnightly one on 100 Films in a Year this week, to cover the latest episodes of Game of Thrones (and a few other things)...





There were 5 new film reviews, too...


Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

Making a sequel to what’s regarded as one of, if not the, greatest action (and Christmas) movies of all time is basically a hiding to nothing — however good your work, if it’s not a stone-cold classic too then it’s a relative failure. Nonetheless, there are those who’d argue this second sequel to Die Hard is practically as good as the first one, and they’d practically be right.

Read more here.


The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017)

With a daft-ish title and promotional campaign that definitely amped up the comedy, you might be surprised to learn that this started life as a drama. Yep, apparently so. Then, a few weeks prior to filming, the script underwent a “frantic” two-week rewrite to be remixed into a comedy. The end result is kind of a mixed bag, which, all things considered, makes sense.

Read more here.


Holmes & Watson (2018)

It’s hard to believe this was a professionally-produced, studio-released movie given the lack of technical skills on display, including atrocious dubbing, sloppy editing, and even shots that are out of focus. It’s so poor that Netflix, who seem to purchase any scraps the major studios decide to throw their way, turned down the chance to buy it (so they do have some standards!)

Read more here.


Knocked Up (2007)

being too long was the film's biggest problem, in my opinion — chop out 20, even 30 minutes (heck, do it properly and get rid of more, even) and I reckon it’d be better. It’s also a bit needlessly crude, I guess, but I’ve seen far worse and less funny examples of that. It makes up for it by how well-handled the more dramatic parts are. Overall, I liked it a lot more than I expected I would.

Read more here.


The Meg 3D (2018)

it’s a movie about a giant prehistoric shark being unleashed and attacking humans, and Jason Statham has to fight it. That’s all. It delivered on that in spades for me and I had a great time with it. And I guess tied to that pulpiness, if you have the option and enjoy the effect, I thought it looked fantastic in 3D.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)
[#82 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
American re-edit of the original Godzilla (see 2019 #71). Plus the audio commentary on Criterion's Blu-ray release.

Collection Count

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

After a flurry of UHD additions in February and a gradual increase in March, it's been all quiet on that front throughout April. Now, here are two more: a new release (Bumblebee, out Monday) and a bargain (the X-Men trilogy, which I picked up for just £15!)

Number of titles in collection: 2,225 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,094 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 26 [up 2]

Number of discs in collection: 5,756 [up 9]
Number of films: 2,549 [up 4]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 667 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Zatoichi Goes to the Fire Festival (1970)
[#80 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Zombieland (2009)
[#81 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

The Twilight Zone
1x16 The Hitch-Hiker
2x29 The Obsolete Man [season finale]

Films

Everybody Wants Some!! (2016)
[#79 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Ghosts
1x03 Happy Death Day
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Thronecast
8x04 The Last of the Starks

The Twilight Zone
5x06 Living Doll

Films

Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006)
[#78 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

The Twilight Zone
2x06 Eye of the Beholder
2x07 Nick of Time

Films

Jaws 2 (1978)
[#76 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The Meg 3D (2018)
[#77 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x04 The Last of the Starks

Films

Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)
[#75 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
[3rd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #17. It wasn't deliberate, but it is quite neat that I've had another month-long pause between these.

this week on 100 Films

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





Also this week, there were 2 new reviews...


Ice Age (2002)

I first and last saw it sometime shortly after its original release, but all I could remember was enjoying it well enough. Well, all that is probably because it’s not as good as the best of Pixar or DreamWorks. It’s amenable enough, but it lacks the sharpness of concept, dialogue, character, and story that makes those movies truly memorable. I can see why I remember liking it but couldn’t recall much else.

Read more here.


Snowpiercer (2013)

it’s a pretty out-there, not-at-all-plausible premise, but just go with it and the film has rewards aplenty. If you want to get intellectual, the train’s societal structure and how it’s maintained offers an allegorical commentary about class divides and the interdependence of the oppressed and the oppressors. But if that sounds a bit heavy, the film wraps it up in a pulse-pounding action thriller, dressed up further with mysterious backstories ripe for exposing and an array of memorable performances

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

The Eyes of Orson Welles (2018)
[#74 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Collection Count

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

As mentioned last week, a big pile of new additions here: 10 titles in total, with one being a 2D-to-3D upgrade. Across them there are 15 news discs and 10 new films. Also 10 shorts, landing that total on 667 -- ironically, it was a horror movie that tipped it over from 666.

Number of titles in collection: 2,223 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,092 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 24 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,747 [up 15]
Number of films: 2,545 [up 10]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 667 [up 10]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Thronecast
8x03 The Long Night

Films

The Secret Life of Pets 3D (2016)
[#73 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Films

Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
[#72 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2019 #5

Godzilla (1954)
[#71 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Columbo
1x01 Murder by the Book
No, not a new series I'm embarking on watching -- it just so happens this 'first' episode (it's actually the second or third, depending how you look at it) was an early work by a young director called Steven Spielberg.

TV

Mark Kermode's Secrets of Cinema
1x08 Disaster Movies [special]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Help (2011)
[#70 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x03 The Long Night
+ all the making-of videos on HBO's website, in particular the 40-minute The Game Revealed featurette which covers the whole episode.

Articles

Arya’s big moment sets up the Game of Thrones ending we deserve
by Dan Selcke (from Winter is Coming)

There's been a looooot of commentary about this week's Game of Thrones (there always is, of course, but this was a particularly big one), and some of the more ridiculous points are refuted in this article, which I more or less agree with entirely.

Films

Mortal Engines 3D (2018)
[#69 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
[#68 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

Time for another TV roundup this week on 100 Films in a Year...





Plus 2 new film reviews were published, including a particularly big one...


Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Within its three hours and one minute running time, Endgame encompasses and represents almost all of the tendencies of other MCU movies — for both good and ill. This is not a perfect movie, and this will not be a 5-star review, which I’m saying upfront because massive spoilers may follow. There’s not much to discuss about the film if we limit ourselves to what’s been revealed in trailers and promos, because they’ve purposely kept almost the entire movie a secret, so I’m just going to talk freely.

Read more here.


Baywatch: Extended Cut (2017)

I actually thought it was fun. Big, dumb, daft fun. And that’s what I think it’s meant to be, so, really, what’s the problem? It’s not clever and it’s not subtle, but why would you expect it to be? Okay, fair enough: maybe you flat-out don’t enjoy this kind of movie. That’s fine. But for anyone who chooses to watch it with realistic expectations about the kind of film it will be, it delivers what you’d expect in reasonably good fashion.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Collection Count

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

A couple of new additions this week. I was expecting it to be a load, but one large package didn't turn up in time, so next week's will be pretty humungous instead.

Number of titles in collection: 2,214 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,083 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 24 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,732 [up 4]
Number of films: 2,535 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 657 [up 1]

It's also time for the monthly running time update...

Total running time of collection (approx.):
420 days, 10 hours, and 58 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 6 hours, and 35 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Have I Got News For You
57x03 (19/4/2019 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Avengers: Endgame (2019)
[#67 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Articles

Non-Review Review: Avengers – Endgame
by Darren Mooney (from The m0vie blog)

There are tonnes of reviews of the fourth Avengers movie out there right now, obviously, but this lengthy one has some good insights into what the film fails at. But do be aware, there are spoilers herein.

TV

Ghosts
1x01 Who Do You Think You Are?
1x02 Gorilla War
[Watch episodes one and two (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Captain Marvel (2019)
[#66 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x02 A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

Thronecast
8x01 Winterfell
8x02 A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
Eesh, both episodes of this post-GoT show were pretty terrible, just in different ways -- the first with guests going off on their own barely-relevant tangents, the second like getting blood from a stone. Based on the Twitter reaction it's not normally this awkward, so maybe I'll stick with future episodes nonetheless.

Travel Man
8x02 48 Hours in Porto
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

University Challenge
2018/19 Episode 37 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

this week on 100 Films

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


Teen Titans Go! To the Movies (2018)

Although ostensibly a children’s series, and therefore presumably a children’s movie, this is actually full of gags and references aimed at older viewers, without resorting to cheap double entendres or the like designed to fly over kids’ heads, but instead focusing on the wider universe of superhero movies

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Collection Count

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

In the polar opposite of last week's busy-ness, this week has precisely nothing to report. Next week might be the same, though will at least have the monthly running time update.

Number of titles in collection: 2,212 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,081 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 24 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,728 [no change]
Number of films: 2,533 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 656 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

The Graham Norton Show
25x03 (19/4/19 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015)
[#65 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Podcasts

David Tennant Does a Podcast with…
3 Jodie Whittaker

Films

Ice Age (2002)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #16

Films

Click (2006)
[#64 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Game of Thrones
8x01 Winterfell

Films

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
[#63 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
Blindspot 2019 #4

TV

Game of Thrones: The Story So Far
With the eighth and final season starting later tonight, some two years on from the last season, I thought Sky's 90-minute recap of seasons one to seven might be useful.

Films

Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)
[#62 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

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


It Comes at Night (2017)

Described by Kim Newman in his Empire review as “existing between a Sundance and a FrightFest film”, which is a neat way of putting “arthouse horror”, this went down very poorly with many viewers, seemingly because it was mis-sold by its trailers. As someone who went in pretty much cold, however, I thought it was very good.

Read more here.


Samaritan Zatoichi (1968)

if you don’t worry about logical character behaviour too much, there’s an awful lot to enjoy in Samaritan Zatoichi. Such niggles hold it back from being amongst the series’ very best instalments, but there’s much else to recommend it, including likeable supporting characters, great fight scenes, and various other memorable set pieces.

Read more here.


The Silence (2019)

A horror movie in which the world is under attack from creatures who hunt and kill via sound, and we follow a family who attempts to survive by hiding in a remote farmhouse, aided by the fact they’ve all learnt sign language to communicate with their deaf teenage daughter. If you’re thinking “wait a minute, that’s a description of A Quiet Place,” you’re right. It’s also a wholly accurate summary of this new Netflix film. [In fact,] The Silence is based on a novel published in 2015, and filming began in September 2017... But while it’s not The Silence’s fault that A Quiet Place beat it to the punch, it is the film’s own fault that it’s not very good.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Deadwood
3x12 Tell Him Something Pretty [series finale]

Is it still a "series finale" if they make another instalment 13 years later? (Deep philosophical question, that.)

I also listened to the commentary by series creator/mastermind David Milch, which is disappointingly bitty. I guess these were recorded back in the mid ‘00s, when DVDs had been around a while but maybe people still weren’t fully familiar with commentaries... maybe? I dunno. It's just that I’ve not listened to a great many audio commentaries, all told, but the ones on this show are among the weakest I’ve heard. And that’s a shame, because I’m sure these are all intelligent people who could’ve offered some real insight, it just seems they needed better prompting. “You don’t have to talk about just what’s on screen in front of you” would’ve been a good bit of advice for many of them. Also: nearly every fucking track mentions that Richardson was initially an extra who got promoted to an actual character.

One thing, though, that’s both neat and depressing: Milch talks about one or two intentions for future plot lines, but also at one point says, “we’ll get to that in the two-hour films.” I've always heard rumours about Deadwood concluding with two or three feature-length TV movies, but it seems clear they really believed that would happen. Of course, for whatever reason, it didn’t. At least we’ve got the belated movie finally coming next month, which, though ten or more years late, will hopefully be at least somewhat akin to what Milch had planned all along.

I also watched a featurette exclusive to the complete series box set, The Meaning of Endings: David Milch on the Conclusion of Deadwood, in which Milch offers a bit more insight than on his commentary, I guess thanks to it being filmed with a bit more distance. He’s meant to be discussing some of the plot lines he'd intended for the fourth season, but instead winds up musing on the value or otherwise of endings as defining a work of art’s purpose and value. Very Milch.

And outside of the world of Deadwood...

The Twilight Zone
2x28 Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up?
5x03 Nightmare at 20,000 Feet

Films

Rampage 3D (2018)
[#61 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Zatoichi Meets Yojimbo (1970)
[#60 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Collection Count

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

Six new additions this week -- it was going to be just two, then a flurry of orders arrived in double-quick time this morning. Half of them imports too, most of those for the sake of 3D. First up, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse from Australia (for 3D); then, The Hunger Games box set from Germany (for #3 and #4 in 3D; also, it contains a bunch of box set-exclusive extras that didn't appear on the UK releases that I already own); and while I was getting the latter, Strange Days (I've had my eye on it for a while, and this saved on postage). The three UK titles are Aquaman (in 3D, of course) and a couple of Masters of Cinema titles thanks to their 2-for-£25 offer.

Number of titles in collection: 2,212 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,081 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 24 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,728 [up 16]
Number of films: 2,533 [up 9]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 656 [up 2]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Deadwood
3x11 The Catbird Seat

Films

Game Night (2018)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #15. It's been almost 11 months since I first watched this and I've been meaning to rewatch it ever since! If anything it's even better on a second viewing. I also watched the Blu-rays meagre selection of special features, which just left me wanting more. Shame.

TV

Deadwood
3x10 A Constant Throb

+ the commentary on episode nine by actress Robin Weigert. This is the only one where it’s one actor commentating solo, which seemed odd, and indeed it wasn't meant to be: intended co-commentators Kim Dickens and Powers Boothe were missing due to jury duty and a job, respectively. The result is a bit of a patchy track, as with so many of these Deadwood commentaries, but when Weigert does pipe up she’s sometimes insightful.

Films

Amour (2012)
[#59 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
3x09 Amateur Night

Films

The Purge: Anarchy (2014)
[#57 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The Silence (2019)
[#58 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
3x08 Leviathan Smiles

Films

Early Man (2018)
[#56 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
3x07 Unauthorized Cinnamon

Films

Aquaman 3D (2018)
[#55 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
3x06 A Rich Find

The Twilight Zone
3x08 It's a Good Life

this week on 100 Films

A new month began this week (right back at the start, remember?), meaning it was time to look back at the last one on 100 Films in a Year...





Plus, 2 new reviews were published this week...


Cotton Wool (2017)

there are around 243,000 carers under the age of 19 in England and Wales alone, with 22,000 of those under the age of nine. Writer-director Nicholas Connor’s short film seeks to highlight this issue — it’s quite shocking how many young lives are affected by the need to look after other family members because there’s no one else to do it. But the short is also “inspired by their courage”, and so it strikes an optimistic tone about the power of love and the value of family, rather than spending too much time in condemnation of a system that leaves these youngsters largely unsupported.

Read more here.


Resident Evil (2002)

Writer-director Paul W.S. Anderson took inspiration from early John Carpenter movies to create a lean action/thriller/horror flick, which drives the viewer from set piece to set piece with quickly-sketched characterisation (or, in many cases, none at all) and a mysterious backstory to be uncovered. It’s no masterpiece, but it’s a solid 90-minutes-and-change genre fix.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Deadwood
3x05 A Two-Headed Beast
+ the commentary by actors W. Earl Brown, Sean Bridgers, and Jim Beaver, which is one of the better ones, insightful but also chatty and entertaining.

Films

A Good Year (2006)
[#54 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
[3rd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #14. Continuing the trilogy after an unintentional month-long pause. I don't intend to wait so long until I rewatch the third one... but you never know.

Collection Count

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

A whopping 11 new titles this month! How come? Well, Zoom had an excellent 3D Blu-ray clearance sale on, which I used to pick up the last three Resident Evil movies dirt cheap; and, alongside that, I decided to complete my set and upgrade the first three to Blu-ray (I've had them on DVD since, well, DVD was a thing). I also got one other title in that 3D sale (it was two-for-X job).

The other four also come courtesy of Zoom, this time their Criterion gift card. I missed out on the last 2-for-£25 Criterion sale because one title I really wanted wasn't in it, after which I forgot about the sale and missed it. But I noticed that title was now included in those available with Zoom's 4-for-£50 gift card, so I splashed out. Filling the other three slots was easy -- I could've done it thrice over.

So, that's how we get to a big pile of newness this week -- all sales titles. Next week: some new releases!

Number of titles in collection: 2,206 [up 7]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [down 3]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,075 [up 10]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 24 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,712 [up 12]
Number of films: 2,524 [up 7]
Number of TV episodes: 8,427 [no change]
Number of short films: 654 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Deadwood
3x04 Full Faith and Credit

Films

Creed II (2018)
[#53 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Resident Evil (2002)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #13

TV

Deadwood
3x03 True Colors

Films

The Gold Rush (1925)
[#52 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2019 #4

TV

Deadwood
3x02 I Am Not the Fine Man You Take Me For
+ the commentary on episode one by executive producers Mark Tinker (who also directed that episode) and Gregg Fienberg.

The Twilight Zone
1x08 Time Enough at Last

Films

Searching (2018)
[#51 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
3x01 Tell Your God to Ready for Blood

Films

Cotton Wool (2017)
[#50a in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Thronecast
Gameshow of Thrones
Only a fortnight to go until the final season begins! Helping tide us over, this hour-and-a-half of panel game jollity from Sky.

The Twilight Zone
1x05 Walking Distance

Films

The Howling (1981)
[#50 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Waltz with Bashir (2008)
[#49 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Deadwood
2x12 Boy-the-Earth-Talks-To [season finale]

+ the second commentary on episode 11, by Ian McShane and Paula Malcolmson, which is probably the weakest so far -- lots of pauses, hardly any information. As a set, these tracks have almost been enough to put me off ever listening to a cast commentary ever again!

Films

Paperman 3D (2012)
[#48a in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Wreck-It Ralph 3D (2012)
[2nd watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #12

this week on 100 Films

As March draws to a close, it was time for the monthly TV review at 100 Films in a Year...





Plus, there were 4 new film reviews...


Black Narcissus (1947)

It’s difficult to sum up and rate my reaction, because I feel like I missed something — not literally (I followed the plot ‘n’ that), but like I didn’t understand something about it. And yet I was engaged throughout, it’s gorgeous to look at, and the final 20 minutes are stunning on every level.

Read more here.


The Highwaymen (2019)

There’s a fair chance you know the story of Bonnie and Clyde, but what about the story of the guys who got ’em? For all the Robin Hood-esque heroism that was conveyed upon them by the media at the time and then cemented in subsequent fictional retellings, they were still murder-happy criminals. The Highwaymen sets out to do its part in rectifying this by introducing us to Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) and Maney Gault (Woody Harrelson), a pair of retired Texas Rangers who were reinstated in early 1934 to track down Bonnie and Clyde and put an end to their crime spree.

Read more here.


Skyscraper (2018)

It’s an undemanding 90-minutes-or-so of derring-do, where the scenarios are so extreme and OTT they can’t elicit much tension, but occasionally achieve a modicum of suspense nonetheless. And as so much of it is about doing things at great distances above the ground, it’s highly effective in 3D. One near-miss moment even made me gasp, so it was obviously doing something right with its sense of jeopardy.

Read more here.


You Were Never Really Here (2017)

if the combination of “genre: thriller” and “using a hammer to take out bad men” makes you think the film is about to unleash a low-budget action-fest upon your eyeballs, I refer you back to the writer-director being Lynne Ramsay and my mention of “arthouse idiosyncrasies”. I thought I’d mention this point upfront because I’ve seen others be disappointed by the lack of overt action in the film. Ramsay has instead chosen to keep most of the violence offscreen

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Deadwood
2x11 The Whores Can Come
+ the audio commentary by actors Timothy Olyphant and Anna Gunn. As ever, Olyphant is committed to offering no useful information, but the track is at least amusing at times.

Films

The Highwaymen (2019)
[#48 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]