TV

Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes
1x03 Under Fire [series finale]

Edinburgh Nights
2019 Episode 2 (of 3)
2019 Episode 3 (of 3)
[Watch episodes two and three (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes
1x01 The Loneliness of the Long Distance Walker
1x02 A Stripe for Frazer

Live at the Apollo
Pride Part 2 (of 2)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)
[#120 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Peaky Blinders
4x06 The Company [season finale]
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

Films

Viceroy's House (2017)
[#119 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

My TV column at 100 Films in a Year used to be pretty consistent, but I've kind of given up on that and just post it whenever now -- and, this month, that "whenever" was today...





Also this week, 5 new film reviews...


Aquaman (2018)

the plotting is mostly sub-Game of Thrones fantasy gobbledegook, attached to an Indiana Jones-inspired quest plot that sends this sea-based superhero to the Saharan desert. That’s just one reason the film stretches out to a mind-boggling 143 minutes (aka almost two-and-a-half hours). It does feel like several movies stitched together; like someone couldn’t quite decide whether they wanted to do “medieval fantasy but under the sea” or “a globetrotting Indiana Jones adventure”, so just did both at the same time.

Read more here.


Rampage (2018)

I don’t really care about all the video game-y stuff. I’m here because it’s a The Rock movie, and I tend to find his stuff pretty entertaining nowadays (as do many others — I bet he’s a bigger part of that $428 million than “based on a video game” is), and it’s about an ape, a wolf, and a crocodile who get mutated into giants and set about destroying Chicago. I mean, who doesn’t want to see that? (Yes, I know: well-adjusted adults who actually grew up.)

Read more here.


Free Love Freeway: A Final Roundup from Quentin Tarantino’s Sixties Movie Marathon

Featuring:
- Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
- Cactus Flower
- Easy Rider

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Edinburgh Nights
2019 Episode 1 (of 3)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Historical Roasts
1x03 Anne Frank
[Watch it (again) on Netflix.]

Peaky Blinders
4x05 The Duel
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

Pointless Celebrities
11x22 Special 3
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Susan Calman's Fringe Benefits
1x03 Episode 3 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

No new additions this week. I thought the UHD of Apocalypse Now: Final Cut might've turned up early, but they went and pushed the UK release date back a couple of weeks. Still, it's time for the monthly running time update, which at least has the last few weeks' purchases to tot up.

Number of titles in collection: 2,247 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,116 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 32 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,843 [no change]
Number of films: 2,584 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
427 days, 21 hours, and 28 minutes.
(Up 21 hours and 18 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Susan Calman's Fringe Benefits
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Peaky Blinders
4x04 Dangerous
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

University Challenge
2019/20 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Peaky Blinders
4x03 Blackbird
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

Susan Calman's Fringe Benefits
1x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Peaky Blinders
4x02 Heathens
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

Years and Years
Part 6 (of 6)
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Peaky Blinders
4x01 The Noose
[Watch seasons 1-4 (again) on iPlayer or Netflix.]

Years and Years
Part 5 (of 6)
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Years and Years
Part 4 (of 6)
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Zatoichi at Large (1972)
[#118 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

A series of roundups brought 10 new reviews to 100 Films in a Year this week...


2-Star Review Roundup

Featuring:
- Phantasm
- National Lampoon's Vacation
- Step Brothers

Read more here.


Quentin Tarantino's Swinging Sixties Movie Marathon Review Roundup

Featuring:
- Model Shop
- Getting Straight

Read more here.


Quentin Tarantino's Swinging Sixties Movie Marathon Roundup: Spy-Fi

Featuring:
- Hammerhead
- The Wrecking Crew
- Battle of the Coral Sea

Read more here.


Quentin Tarantino's Swinging Sixties Movie Marathon Roundup: Westerns

Featuring:
- Arizona Raiders
- Gunman's Walk

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Mrs Brown's Boys
1x02 Mammy's Secret
1x03 Mammy's Merchandise

Collection Count

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

There was going to be one small addition this week, but then Indicator's Marlene Dietrich & Josef von Sternberg box set turned up (along with another title I'd ordered at the same time), almost two weeks before its release date (it's not due 'til the 26th). That's the advantage of pre-ordering direct from the label!

Number of titles in collection: 2,247 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,116 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 32 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,843 [up 9]
Number of films: 2,584 [up 8]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Battle of the Coral Sea (1959)
[#116 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
[#117 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The last two films in Tarantino's Sixties film season. For some reason Battle of the Coral Sea wasn't shown as part of Sony Movie Channel's initial airing last week, but when movies4men repeated the series this week it was included. (It's a solid war movie, but no huge loss to those who missed it.)

TV

Years and Years
Part 2 (of 6)
Part 3 (of 6)
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Wrecking Crew (1968)
[#115 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

The 8th film I've watched from Tarantino's Sixties marathon, and one of the worst, sadly.

Films

Cactus Flower (1969)
[#113 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Easy Rider (1969)
[#114 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Two more instalments in Tarantino's Sixties marathon. Cactus Flower is definitely one of the better ones so far.

TV

Agatha Raisin
2x03 The Curious Curate [season finale]

Years and Years
Part 1 (of 6)
[Watch the whole series (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

Hammerhead (1968)
[#112 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Back into Tarantino's Sixties marathon with this mediocre Bond knockoff.

TV

Lucifer
3x03 Mr. and Mrs. Mazikeen Smith
[Watch season 3 (again) on Prime Video.]

Films

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)
[#111 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Grantchester
4x06 Episode 6 [season finale]

Lucifer
3x01 They're Back, Aren't They?
3x02 The One with the Baby Carrot
[Watch season 3 (again) on Prime Video.]

Who Dares Wins
11x09 (14/7/18 edition)

Films

Road to Zanzibar (1941)
[#110 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

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


Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman (1971)

The tragedy extends as far as the ending, which is both frustrating and poignant. “If we’d understood each other’s words, we wouldn’t have had to fight,” says each of the men… except, er, they did have a way to understand each other, thanks to the bilingual boy. Have a sword fight first, ask questions later, I guess. But anyway, it’s frustrating because they didn’t need to fight (they were both good guys!), but it’s poignant because their basic natures, compounded by misunderstandings, meant they did fight — and because they fought, one of them had to die. It’s a damn good fight, mind

Read more here.


Live by Night (2016)

Affleck is a decent director, and, actually, a quite like him as an actor too… in the right kind of roles. I’m not sure he’s got the range necessary for this part, however. His character is a conflicted, contradictory man — he genuinely has a good heart, but he’s often prepared to put it aside to do bad things; but, at other times, that moral compass gets the better of him. It’s a tricky line to tread and make believable, and Affleck’s performance is too monotone to convincingly portray it.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Unforgotten
3x01 Episode 1
3x02 Episode 2
3x03 Episode 3
3x04 Episode 4
3x05 Episode 5
3x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
Didn't realise it'd been a whole year since this was on! Time flies. Still a great show.

Collection Count

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

Three new additions, thanks to a sale. I really am trying to cut back, honest.

Number of titles in collection: 2,244 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,113 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 32 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,834 [up 5]
Number of films: 2,576 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Grantchester
4x05 Episode 5

Films

Gunman's Walk (1958)
[#109 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Fourth film in the UK broadcast of Tarantino's Sixties marathon, and my favourite so far. (I'm going away for a few days, so this will likely be the last of these I watch 'til next week.)

TV

Agatha Raisin
2x02 The Fairies of Fryfam

Films

Arizona Raiders (1965)
[#108 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Third film in the UK broadcast of Tarantino's Sixties marathon.

TV

Agatha Raisin
2x01 The Wizard of Evesham

Films

Getting Straight (1970)
[#107 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Second film in that Tarantino marathon. (It's actually the 6th, as per the introduction, but we're getting them in a jumbled order in the UK for some reason... possibly to hide the fact they're only screening nine of his ten picks, possibly just because someone wasn't paying attention and scheduled them willy-nilly.)

Films

Model Shop (1969)
[#106 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Introduced by Quentin Tarantino, in conversation with film expert Kim Morgan, as part of a series of films (dubbed the "Swinging Sixties Movie Marathon") that have been selected by QT because they have some bearing on his latest movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which is out in the UK next week. There's another instalment on the Sony Movie Channel every night this week, with two on Saturday and Sunday. (This is a package they've sold worldwide, which contains ten films, but we're only getting nine in the UK, I presume for rights reasons.)

TV

Beecham House
1x05 Episode 5
1x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
[Watch episodes five and six (again) on the ITV Hub.]

University Challenge
2019/20 Episode 4
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Favourite (2018)
[#105 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

A new month began on Thursday, so it was once again time for 100 Films in a Year to look back at the month that was...





And it was also the time of the month when I turn my attention to the small screen...





And there was 1 new film review, too...


FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992)

it's pretty heavy on the environmental messaging. I seem to remember that was all viewed as being kinda-loony eco stuff back when the film came out. Now, of course, acceptance of those views is much wider, and what the film has to say seems a little obvious. Though we’re still destroying the planet, so I guess we’ve not learned that much in the three decades since.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

Dumbo (2019)
[#104 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Collection Count

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

This week’s additions are a new release in 3D and a DVD-to-UHD upgrade. The latter is Black Hawk Down, which apparently didn’t even look that great on Blu-ray, while the 4K release is stunning, so leaping from DVD to 4K should provide a very nice improvement indeed. (Not that I’ve watched the DVD since about 2002...)

Number of titles in collection: 2,241 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,131 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,110 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 32 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 5,829 [up 3]
Number of films: 2,573 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x08 Murderous Marriage [season finale; 2nd watch]

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x06 The Day the Floods Came [2nd watch]
1x07 Witch of Wyckhadden [2nd watch]

Beecham House
1x04 Episode 4
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x05 The Vicious Vet [2nd watch]

The Twilight Zone
1x09 Perchance to Dream
3x14 Five Characters in Search of an Exit

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x04 The Potted Gardener [2nd watch]

Year of the Rabbit
1x06 Episode 6 [season finale]
I hope this comes back for a second series -- it was great fun, and it ended on a tantalising tease for more.
[Watch the entire series (again) on All 4.]

TV

Have I Got News For You
56x06 (9/11/18 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended version (again) on iPlayer.]

How to Break into the Elite
Not necessarily what it sounds like. Rather than some kind of twisted self-help guide, it was an insightful look at how big a (negative) role class still places in the hiring practices of wealthy companies.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

The Twilight Zone
1x07 The Lonely

University Challenge
2019/20 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Year of the Rabbit
1x04 Episode 4
1x05 Episode 5
[Watch the entire series (again) on All 4.]

Films

The Lion King (2019)
[#103 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

Sherlock Jr. (1924)
[#102 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2019 #7
+ a featurette about the movie's filming locations, which also included interesting info about how some shots were achieved.

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x02 Hell's Bells [2nd watch]
1x03 The Wellspring of Death [2nd watch]

this week on 100 Films

After my holidays, I also returned to 100 Films in a Year this week...


Il blogger prodigo

Buongiorno, dear readers — the prodigal blogger has returned! (“Prodigal” being a word I’ve here misused, as I’m sure many of us do, thanks to that Biblical story. Though as it actually means “spending money freely and recklessly”, anyone who’s seen the size of my unwatched DVD and Blu-ray collection might consider it fitting after all.)

Read more here.


And posted 4 new reviews, in one handy post...


Review Roundup

Featuring...
- American Assassin
- Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie
- Wild Strawberries
- Yes Man

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x01 Walkers of Dembley [2nd watch]

The Twilight Zone
2x15 The Invaders

Films

Die Another Day (2002)
[4th or so watch]
Rewatchathon 2019 #21. I wasn't sure if I should count this -- I didn't join it until a little way in, and there were parts I only half watched. But I counted Skyfall under similar circumstances last year, so here it is.

Fiction

I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison
Delusion for a Dragon Slayer

Collection Count

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

Just one new addition this week, but it's my first 3D + 4K Ultra HD combo pack, so that's exciting. I wish they'd do more of those. It's also time for the monthly running time update, though that's only noteworthy for its smallness: it's the lowest month-on-month increase in 9 months.

Number of titles in collection: 2,240 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,132 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,108 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 31 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 5,826 [up 3]
Number of films: 2,571 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
427 days and 10 minutes.
(Up 16 hours and 11 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x00 The Quiche of Death [2nd watch]
With series 2 finally having aired in the UK, we're doing a bit of a catch-up before watching it.

The Twilight Zone
2x26 Shadow Play
After an unintentional break (I last watched an episode over 2 months ago), I'm resuming my potted viewing of the best-regarded episodes of this seminal sci-fi anthology.

TV

Peston
5x27 (24/7/2019 edition)
Apparently it was an "historic day" (that's what the newscasters kept saying, anyway), so I ended up watching a bunch of news coverage and topping it off with ITV's political discussion show.
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

Year of the Rabbit
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch the entire series (again) on All 4.]

Films

Toy Story 4 (2019)
[#101 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

University Challenge
2019/20 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Ghosts
1x05 Moonah Ston
1x06 Getting Out [season finale]
[Watch Moonah Ston and Getting Out (again) on iPlayer.]

University Challenge
2019/20 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Year of the Rabbit
1x01 Episode 1
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch the entire series (again) on All 4.]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week... well, not last week, because (as I mentioned) I've just been on holiday. But I came back to a small pile of Blu-rays that were released while I was away, so here are the numbers for the past fortnight.

Although the numbers below make it look like I added one new title (with a slightly-weird number of discs, films and TV episodes), it's a bit more complicated than that. Firstly, there's a new classic Doctor Who Blu-ray set, which unfortunately doesn't replace a single DVD (yet) because every story this season has at least one special feature removed (to be included on a future box set... hopefully. Hence why I'm holding on to the DVDs for the time being). There's also a "complete series" Blu-ray (Hellsing Ultimate), which replaces two previous volume releases and in the process completes the series (the previous two releases contained episodes one to eight; this has episodes one to ten). And, finally, one straightforward new Blu-ray release, which is where the film comes in.

Number of titles in collection: 2,239 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,132 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,107 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 30 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,823 [up 9]
Number of films: 2,570 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 8,637 [up 28]
Number of short films: 671 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Fiction

I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison
I Have No Mouth & I Must Scream
Big Sam Was My Friend
Eyes of Dust
World of the Myth
Lonelyache

Post Captain by Patrick O'Brian
Chapter 1
The 2003 film Master and Commander was based on the Aubrey–Maturin series by Patrick O'Brian, of which this is the second instalment. I greatly enjoyed the film when I finally saw it in 2012 (over 7 years ago! Jeez), so the idea of reading the novels has always been at the back of my mind. Normally I'd start with the first, but this one was available to me, so I thought I'd read a chapter or two and see how I got on. Well, they're quite long chapters (just 14 across this 470-something page book), and the first was enough to convince me that, actually, I don't really get on with it. Oh well.

Fiction

Veronica Mars: Mr. Kiss and Tell by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Chapters 41-45 [the end]

I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream by Harlan Ellison
Echoes of Screams, 1983
Introduction
Foreword
A collection of short stories, although this is just the intro to the 1983 edition and the two intros to the original 1967 edition. Maybe tomorrow I'll read some of the actual stories...

Fiction

Veronica Mars: Mr. Kiss and Tell by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Chapters 23-40

Articles

Veronica Mars Team Talks Leaning Into Noir Mystery for Hulu Series
by Danielle Turchiano (from Variety)

Creator/writer Rob Thomas and producer/star Kristen Bell talk about reviving VM again. More interesting and insightful than the usual publicity puff-piece (e.g. Thomas talks about some of the things they wanted but couldn't have for this season).

Fiction

Veronica Mars: Mr. Kiss and Tell by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Prologue
Chapters 1-22

The first Veronica Mars novel was a pretty standalone case -- it had callbacks and connections to the series, but most were minor or incidental, showing an awareness of the franchise's history rather than a dependance on it (although one part made some very significant additions to the Mars mythology). But this second book feels like almost a direct sequel to the movie: it begins by kicking off subplots that deal with storylines left hanging from the film, namely the fallout from Weevil being framed and Keith attempting to prove the sheriff's corruption (which led to his car accident in the film); plus Logan and Veronica being back in a relationship is a much more significant element in this novel, too.

It’s also filled with even more callbacks to the TV series: the main case has a victim who’s a minor character from a couple of episodes, and it’s later revealed that she’s connected to an entirely different minor character from the TV series. It’s kind of realistic that in a small town you’d end up bumping into the same people, but surely Neptune isn’t that small...

Creator Rob Thomas has always said the novels were canon, something he's reiterated in the run-up to the fourth season; but whereas they probably could've got away with ignoring the first novel and no one would've known (i.e. by just not mentioning its additions one way or the other), it feels like the events shaping up in this one (I'm only halfway through) are more likely to have a baring on the new season.

And, indeed, from what I've read, it's already been confirmed that new characters and plot developments from this novel are part of the new TV episodes. Well, at least it keeps the novels worthwhile; more than "some nice fan fiction".

Fiction

Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Chapters 30-39 [the end]

I enjoyed that a lot. It captured the tone and style of the series (and movie) really well, with some fan service (returning characters, references to old plot lines, etc) but not so much as to sink the experience. Looking forward to the second one, and already sad they only did two (why they stopped there, I don't know).

Fiction

Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham
Prologue
Chapters 1-29

Finally getting round to the novels before the TV series returns.

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 9
Epilogue [the end]

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 8 16-24

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 8 1-15

The section with the gays in the ‘80s do go on a bit. You get the feeling Hensher was rather enjoying writing about a world he was in, possibly a world he was nostalgic for, even with its flaws, and so he got carried away. It’s not even unlikeable, it’s just that much of it seems like a humongous aside.

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 6
Book 7

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 4 6-13
Book 5

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 2 5-11
Book 3
Book 4 1-5

Fiction

The Emperor Waltz by Philip Hensher
Book 1
Book 2 1-4

this week on 100 Films

It was nearly a whole week ago now, I know, but a new month did begin this week, and so 100 Films in a Year looked back at the last one — lightweight though it was...





And 5 new reviews were published this past week, too...


The Girl in the Spider's Web (2018)

Where the first three Dragon Tattoo stories were all fundamentally crime thrillers, this opens up the storytelling world into much more fanciful realms. It’s a bit like they’ve tried to make Lisbeth Salander a kind of freelance female James Bond, using her l33t h4x0r skillz to stop evil cyber-terrorists. It also helps that she’s pretty handy on a motorbike and with a gun. How? Just because. Unfortunately, an element of ‘just because’ powers too much of the film, with fundamental flaws in even its basic setup

Read more here.


The Karate Kid (2010)

From reading other viewer reviews, I get the impression a lot of people dislike it just because they’re nostalgic for the original or because they’re annoyed by Jaden Smith’s parents trying to make him a movie star. But if you remove those external contexts, the film offers a decent storyline and some strong performances — it’s Jackie Chan, c’mon!

Read more here.


Shaft (2019)

Where Jackson’s Shaft was once a cool dude kicking ass and taking names (or whatever it is cool dude PIs did in the early ’00s), here they’ve turned him into a bit of a throwback dinosaur, spouting politically incorrect opinions with every other line of dialogue... At times it’s like someone adapted one of those facile “millennials are to blame for everything” articles into a movie; or at least copy-pasted it into Shaft Sr’s dialogue.

Read more here.


Witness (1985)

the film could descend into a culture-clash comedy — the big city cop chafing against historical rural life — but, while that clash is certainly in play, it’s not milked for laughs. Rather, the film is about Book experiencing a way of life so different to his own, and it changing his perspective on the world. Indeed, with the focus it gives to Amish ways, the film almost seems like it wanted to be a documentary about that community as much as a story.

Read more here.


Zatoichi Goes to the Fire Festival (1970)

Sex has been a factor of Zatoichi films before, but I’m not sure any other is as consumed by it as this one. It starts with a mistress auction and teases of nudity; the mystery ronin’s quest is to kill everyone who slept with his wife, which he thinks includes Ichi; the major set-piece is a fight in a bathhouse between Ichi and an army of assassins, all of whom are stark naked; Ichi spends an evening with five prostitutes; the villains decide the best way to kill our hero is with a honey trap (who winds up genuinely falling for Ichi, of course); there’s the roadhouse owners we randomly come across, who are casually perverse… and that’s all before the one-hour mark. Though if you’re expecting to see flashes of flesh, the nude scenes feature almost Austin Powers-level endeavours to make sure nothing explicit is shown.

Read more here.


More next Sunday, perhaps, depending on my holiday.

Holiday

As you read this, I am leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again... except I do know: it's Saturday 20th.

Until then, updates may be sporadic and/or delayed, if there's even anything to write about.

TV

Beecham House
1x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]

Films

The Killer (1989)
[#100 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]
Blindspot 2019 #6. Later than expected for both #100 and Blindspot #6, but here we are!

TV

Summer of Rockets
Part 6 (of 6)
[Watch the entire series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Glastonbury 2019
Kylie Minogue
Well, the Sunday afternoon BBC One show was billed as Kyle, but it began with Jeff Goldblum and ended with a fair old chunk of Miley Cyrus, so them too.
[Watch these sets, and many more (again), on iPlayer.]

Films

Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman (1971)
[#99 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

TV

Glastonbury 2019
Sigrid
The Cure
Plus bits & bobs of all sorts of other stuff, mainly based on what the Beeb decided to pad their main-channel shows with, but I did dip into Kylie’s set a few times.
[Watch these sets, and many more (again), on iPlayer.]

Films

Shaft (2019)
[#98 in 100 Films in a Year 2019]

this week on 100 Films

Time for a TV review this week at 100 Films in a Year...





Plus, 3 new films reviews...


Shaft (2000)

This is almost 20 years old now (obviously), and yet all the white privilege bullshit that drives its story makes it feel like it could’ve been made yesterday. (Why are you so enable to evolve societally, America?) Other than that apparently-eternal timeliness, it’s a pretty standard kinda thriller, with most of its charm coming via an array of likeable performances.

Read more here.


Stalker (1979)

Described by the blurb on its Criterion Collection Blu-ray release as “a metaphysical journey through an enigmatic post-apocalyptic landscape”, Stalker is… probably that… I guess…?

Read more here.


True Romance (1993)

Directed by Tony Scott from Quentin Tarantino’s first screenplay, this is pretty much everything you’d expect from an early Quentin Tarantino screenplay directed by Tony Scott... I’m a fan of both men’s work, so of course it was up my alley. I don’t think it’s the best from either of them, but mixing together the distinct styles of two such trend-setting iconoclasts does produce a unique blend.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Glastonbury 2019
The Killers
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Collection Count

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

As mentioned last week, there are a few more additions this week (3 releases with 9 feature films across 12 discs, plus 1 BD-to-UHD upgrade that added 1 disc), just in time for the monthly running time update.

Number of titles in collection: 2,238 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,132 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,106 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 30 [up 1]

Number of discs in collection: 5,814 [up 13]
Number of films: 2,569 [up 9]
Number of TV episodes: 8,609 [no change]
Number of short films: 671 [up 2]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
426 days, 7 hours, and 59 minutes.
(Up 4 days, 17 hours, and 7 minutes from last month.)

That's my biggest monthly increase this year by far... although there were a couple even bigger in 2018, never mind in previous years, so it's not one for the all-time record books.

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Glastonbury 2019
Stormzy
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Summer of Rockets
Part 5 (of 6)
[Watch the entire series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Summer of Rockets
Part 3 (of 6)
Part 4 (of 6)
[Watch the entire series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Summer of Rockets
Part 1 (of 6)
Part 2 (of 6)
[Watch the entire series (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Beecham House
1x01 Episode 1
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch episodes one and two (again) on the ITV Hub.]

TV

The Truth About...
Getting Fit
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

this week on 100 Films

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


The Happytime Murders (2018)

there are some legitimately funny bits along the way, often found among the riffs on the puppet thing (for example: one of the victims is drowned, and before bagging the body they ring him out). Unfortunately it isn’t funny as often as it should be, too often relying on worn or lacklustre humour. I mean, it tries to run with the old playground favourite “idiots say what?” as a running gag. It also leans on puppets being lewd and crude as the extent of the gag, which simply isn’t that funny in itself, partly because it isn’t as original as the film seems to think it is.

Read more here.


Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)

Before Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle there was Zathura, which is sort of a sequel to Jumanji… but more of a spin-off, I guess… well, really it’s a completely unrelated movie with the exact same plot... But this game is about space, so it’s completely different, obviously... I did enjoy it — in some respects, more than I enjoyed Jumanji when I rewatched that recently — but it also doesn’t feel as polished and complete as its predecessor

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Opera

La damnation de Faust
at Glyndebourne

Collection Count

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

Only one new addition this week, but there are already several box sets in the post and more releases due to dispatch imminently, so there should be a bump next week just in time for the monthly running time update.

Number of titles in collection: 2,235 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 1,132 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,103 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 29 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 5,801 [up 1]
Number of films: 2,560 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 8,609 [no change]
Number of short films: 669 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

The Graham Norton Show
25x12 (21/6/19 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Articles

CGI art with a heart: How Toy Story started a revolution in cinema
by Robbie Collin (from the Telegraph)

A good reminder of the impact and importance of the original Toy Story.

TV

Have I Got News For You
57x09 (31/5/2019 edition) [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Killing Eve
2x06 I Hope You Like Missionary!
2x07 Wide Awake
2x08 You're Mine [season finale]
[Watch every episode (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Killing Eve
2x04 Desperate Times
2x05 Smell Ya Later
[Watch every episode (again) on iPlayer.]

TV

Killing Eve
2x02 Nice and Neat
2x03 The Hungry Caterpillar
[Watch every episode (again) on iPlayer.]