The Guilty (1947)
[#67 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Thursday, 27 October 2022
Wednesday, 26 October 2022
Sunday, 23 October 2022
TV
Doctor Who
39x09 The Power of the Doctor [BBC Centenary special]
Posted about this on Twitter and condensed most of those thoughts on Letterboxd, so go there if you want my opinion (but note, it's very spoilery).
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
39x09 The Power of the Doctor [BBC Centenary special]
Posted about this on Twitter and condensed most of those thoughts on Letterboxd, so go there if you want my opinion (but note, it's very spoilery).
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
this week on 100Films.co.uk
4 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
2022 | Weeks 27–28
More next Sunday.
2022 | Weeks 27–28
Featuring...Read more here.
- Johnny Gunman (1957)
- A Better Tomorrow (1986)
- Mifune: The Last Samurai (2015)
- The Lost Daughter (2021)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 22 October 2022
TV
Have I Got News for You
64x02 (30/9/2022 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended episode (again) on iPlayer.]
Mock the Week
21x05 (21/10/2022 edition)
The last-ever episode! But it's not a "series finale" because there's some kind of two-part "look back" to come.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
64x02 (30/9/2022 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended episode (again) on iPlayer.]
Mock the Week
21x05 (21/10/2022 edition)
The last-ever episode! But it's not a "series finale" because there's some kind of two-part "look back" to come.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A bunch of brand-new titles that were meant to arrive this week got delayed until next week, or even next month... but never fear, because a load of other stuff turned up! Mostly that can be broken down into two groups: another big order from the US (consisting of five 4K titles (two of them upgrades) and three regular Blus), and a handful of titles from Arrow's Shocktober sale (which would've included two box sets, but one of those didn't turn up as quickly as expected either).
All-in-all, that makes for 11 new titles, with 15 films between them, across 22 discs. Which actually totals up as follows...
Number of titles in collection: 2,951 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,908 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 208 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,296 [up 20]
Number of films: 3,536 [up 13]
Number of additional cuts: 287 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,434 [up 12]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
And if all that wasn't enough, this week it's time for a slightly-delayed (i.e. it should've been here last week) running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
520 days, 23 hours, and 21 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 18 hours, and 26 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
A bunch of brand-new titles that were meant to arrive this week got delayed until next week, or even next month... but never fear, because a load of other stuff turned up! Mostly that can be broken down into two groups: another big order from the US (consisting of five 4K titles (two of them upgrades) and three regular Blus), and a handful of titles from Arrow's Shocktober sale (which would've included two box sets, but one of those didn't turn up as quickly as expected either).
All-in-all, that makes for 11 new titles, with 15 films between them, across 22 discs. Which actually totals up as follows...
Number of titles in collection: 2,951 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,908 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 208 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,296 [up 20]
Number of films: 3,536 [up 13]
Number of additional cuts: 287 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,434 [up 12]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
And if all that wasn't enough, this week it's time for a slightly-delayed (i.e. it should've been here last week) running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
520 days, 23 hours, and 21 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 18 hours, and 26 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 21 October 2022
TV
Friday Night Live
Really enjoyed that. Wouldn't mind C4 bringing it back properly.
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]
Newscast
(21/10/2022 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Ros Atkins on the Week
1x01 Resignation of Liz Truss
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Really enjoyed that. Wouldn't mind C4 bringing it back properly.
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]
Newscast
(21/10/2022 edition)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Ros Atkins on the Week
1x01 Resignation of Liz Truss
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Wednesday, 19 October 2022
TV
Have I Got News for You
64x03 (7/10/2022 edition; extended repeat)
64x04 (14/10/2022 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
64x03 (7/10/2022 edition; extended repeat)
64x04 (14/10/2022 edition; extended repeat)
[Watch the extended episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Monday, 17 October 2022
Sunday, 16 October 2022
Saturday, 15 October 2022
Films
The Two Faces of January (2014)
[2nd watch]
[#62 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
I originally counted my rewatch of Encanto as #62, but that arguably throws up some conflicts with my rules (I've already counted Encanto once, when I watched it the first time). So, as this is another October rewatch that can qualify, it seems sensible just to count this instead.
Walk the Line (2005)
[2nd watch]
[#63 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Not seen this since it was in the cinema, even though I've owned the DVD probably since it came out. It qualifies as this month's DVD watch, too... even though I didn't actually watch my copy (I was away from home and watched someone else's)... and it's in HD on Disney+, so even if I had been home, I probably wouldn't have watched my DVD. Kinda defeats the purpose of the DVD category (to watch more of my DVDs), but the rules don't actually specify it has to be my copy that gets watched (though it is kinda heavily implied), so...
[2nd watch]
[#62 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
I originally counted my rewatch of Encanto as #62, but that arguably throws up some conflicts with my rules (I've already counted Encanto once, when I watched it the first time). So, as this is another October rewatch that can qualify, it seems sensible just to count this instead.
Walk the Line (2005)
[2nd watch]
[#63 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Not seen this since it was in the cinema, even though I've owned the DVD probably since it came out. It qualifies as this month's DVD watch, too... even though I didn't actually watch my copy (I was away from home and watched someone else's)... and it's in HD on Disney+, so even if I had been home, I probably wouldn't have watched my DVD. Kinda defeats the purpose of the DVD category (to watch more of my DVDs), but the rules don't actually specify it has to be my copy that gets watched (though it is kinda heavily implied), so...
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Another big haul this week, primarily made up of an order from Indicator's sale. I picked up seven titles therein, although I also snagged an empty Hammer Volume Two box — I already owned two of the titles that go in it, and two of the seven I ordered were the other two. So, of course, that does slightly funny things to this week's totals (I never really know if those "funny things" show up in the end results, but I certainly have to think about them when computing the numbers).
Also this week: the reward from a Kickstarter I backed a year-and-a-half ago; two Masters of Cinema titles, one new (officially out Monday), one on offer (which has ended); and an Arrow release I picked up secondhand (to make sure I got the booklet) because 88 Films are releasing its sort-of-follow-up later this month, so I thought I ought to have both.
Number of titles in collection: 2,942 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,899 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,276 [up 13]
Number of films: 3,523 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 286 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
This week should also have been the monthly running time update, but with so much going on I just haven't had time to work it out. Next week instead, then, faithful reader.
Another big haul this week, primarily made up of an order from Indicator's sale. I picked up seven titles therein, although I also snagged an empty Hammer Volume Two box — I already owned two of the titles that go in it, and two of the seven I ordered were the other two. So, of course, that does slightly funny things to this week's totals (I never really know if those "funny things" show up in the end results, but I certainly have to think about them when computing the numbers).
Also this week: the reward from a Kickstarter I backed a year-and-a-half ago; two Masters of Cinema titles, one new (officially out Monday), one on offer (which has ended); and an Arrow release I picked up secondhand (to make sure I got the booklet) because 88 Films are releasing its sort-of-follow-up later this month, so I thought I ought to have both.
Number of titles in collection: 2,942 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,899 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,276 [up 13]
Number of films: 3,523 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 286 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
This week should also have been the monthly running time update, but with so much going on I just haven't had time to work it out. Next week instead, then, faithful reader.
Thursday, 13 October 2022
Monday, 10 October 2022
Comics
Wasted Space #1 by Michael Moreci & Hayden Sherman
It's been over eight years since I last read a single issue of a comic, back in the days when I collected them. I stopped buying because they weren't getting read — I know roughly how many I had still unread at the end, but I'm not going to say because it's insane.
Anyway, I read this one because they're Kickstarting a complete collection of the series, which piqued my interest ("Philip K. Dick in a blender with Preacher"? C'mon!), and they're offering the first issue for free online as a taster. But if you're interested, get a wriggle on: at time of posting, the Kickstarter only had 32 hours left.
It's been over eight years since I last read a single issue of a comic, back in the days when I collected them. I stopped buying because they weren't getting read — I know roughly how many I had still unread at the end, but I'm not going to say because it's insane.
Anyway, I read this one because they're Kickstarting a complete collection of the series, which piqued my interest ("Philip K. Dick in a blender with Preacher"? C'mon!), and they're offering the first issue for free online as a taster. But if you're interested, get a wriggle on: at time of posting, the Kickstarter only had 32 hours left.
Sunday, 9 October 2022
TV
Scouting for Toys
1x08 Mr Timpo
[Watch the series (again) on UKTV Play.]
Strictly Come Dancing
20x05 Week 3 (aka Movies Week)
20x06 Week 3 Results
Just dropping in for Movies Week, as I often do.
[Watch these episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
1x08 Mr Timpo
[Watch the series (again) on UKTV Play.]
Strictly Come Dancing
20x05 Week 3 (aka Movies Week)
20x06 Week 3 Results
Just dropping in for Movies Week, as I often do.
[Watch these episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Saturday, 8 October 2022
Films
Encanto (2021)
[2nd watch]
[#62 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
I think this is going to count as #62. What gives me pause is that it was also #28, but that was a different viewing. My rules say a film can't count multiple times, but what I really mean is I can't count it multiple times from a single viewing — a rewatch (counted in the Rewatch category) is different, right? That's my current thinking, anyway.
The Infernal Cauldron (1903)
The One-Man Band (1900)
Watched a couple of Georges Méliès shorts on YouTube. I only did it to tick them off a list on Letterboxd, really (and, in the case of the second, to check if I'd seen it before. I don't think I had; not in full, anyway), but they're incredible pieces of work — still entertaining, 120 years after they were created.
[2nd watch]
[#62 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
I think this is going to count as #62. What gives me pause is that it was also #28, but that was a different viewing. My rules say a film can't count multiple times, but what I really mean is I can't count it multiple times from a single viewing — a rewatch (counted in the Rewatch category) is different, right? That's my current thinking, anyway.
The Infernal Cauldron (1903)
The One-Man Band (1900)
Watched a couple of Georges Méliès shorts on YouTube. I only did it to tick them off a list on Letterboxd, really (and, in the case of the second, to check if I'd seen it before. I don't think I had; not in full, anyway), but they're incredible pieces of work — still entertaining, 120 years after they were created.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Just two packages of Blu-rays turned up this week, but ooh, there's all sorts going on across them. For one thing, one contained four titles and the other five — so that's two weeks' worth at the average rate I mentioned last time. However, three of the latter were Blu-ray upgrades of titles I owned on DVD, and one of the former was a BD-to-BD upgrade, so the net total is only five additions.
Various other stats went up and down as titles were subtracted and added, though the end result of it all looks calm: five new titles, with five films, on five discs.
Number of titles in collection: 2,934 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [down 3]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,891 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,263 [up 5]
Number of films: 3,512 [up 5]
Number of additional cuts: 284 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Just two packages of Blu-rays turned up this week, but ooh, there's all sorts going on across them. For one thing, one contained four titles and the other five — so that's two weeks' worth at the average rate I mentioned last time. However, three of the latter were Blu-ray upgrades of titles I owned on DVD, and one of the former was a BD-to-BD upgrade, so the net total is only five additions.
Various other stats went up and down as titles were subtracted and added, though the end result of it all looks calm: five new titles, with five films, on five discs.
Number of titles in collection: 2,934 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,043 [down 3]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,891 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,263 [up 5]
Number of films: 3,512 [up 5]
Number of additional cuts: 284 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 7 October 2022
Thursday, 6 October 2022
Monday, 3 October 2022
Sunday, 2 October 2022
this week on 100Films.co.uk
No new reviews to share from 100Films.co.uk this week, but as a new month began there was the usual monthly review...
Plus the roundup of films I failed to watch...
More next Sunday.
Plus the roundup of films I failed to watch...
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 1 October 2022
TV
How I Met Your Father
1x04 Dirrty Thirty
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
30x02 Episode 2
Richard Osman's House of Games
6x02 Week 1: Tuesday
6x03 Week 1: Wednesday
6x04 Week 1: Thursday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Shetland
7x02 Episode 2
7x03 Episode 3
7x04 Episode 4
[Watch series 7 (again) on iPlayer.]
1x04 Dirrty Thirty
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
30x02 Episode 2
Richard Osman's House of Games
6x02 Week 1: Tuesday
6x03 Week 1: Wednesday
6x04 Week 1: Thursday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Shetland
7x02 Episode 2
7x03 Episode 3
7x04 Episode 4
[Watch series 7 (again) on iPlayer.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Considering my collection grew by 240 titles last year, I guess five titles in one week is more-or-less average (the actual average is 4.6, so it does round up to five, but only just).
Two of them were new releases this week, because there's always stuff I want coming out nowadays; and to underline that point, another one is a new release from next week; while the other two were... well, not new. Although, one of them only came out a couple of weeks ago; but, in my mind, if I don't preorder it or get it in release week, it's no longer a "new release". (And the fourth title came out three years and one month ago, so that's not new by anyone's standards.)
Number of titles in collection: 2,929 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,883 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,258 [up 8]
Number of films: 3,507 [up 7]
Number of additional cuts: 284 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Considering my collection grew by 240 titles last year, I guess five titles in one week is more-or-less average (the actual average is 4.6, so it does round up to five, but only just).
Two of them were new releases this week, because there's always stuff I want coming out nowadays; and to underline that point, another one is a new release from next week; while the other two were... well, not new. Although, one of them only came out a couple of weeks ago; but, in my mind, if I don't preorder it or get it in release week, it's no longer a "new release". (And the fourth title came out three years and one month ago, so that's not new by anyone's standards.)
Number of titles in collection: 2,929 [up 5]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,883 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 203 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,258 [up 8]
Number of films: 3,507 [up 7]
Number of additional cuts: 284 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 30 September 2022
TV
How I Met Your Father
1x03 The Fixer
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x25 Episode 25
6x01 Week 1: Monday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x04 Red Hot
Shetland
7x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
1x03 The Fixer
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x25 Episode 25
6x01 Week 1: Monday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x04 Red Hot
Shetland
7x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Thursday, 29 September 2022
TV
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
30x01 Episode 1
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x24 Episode 24
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
30x01 Episode 1
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x24 Episode 24
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Sunday, 25 September 2022
Saturday, 24 September 2022
Games
Return to Monkey Island
And that's the end! A good ending too, I thought. I can immediately see it'll be controversial with some people, but I don't think we should really have expected anything too different (not that I'm saying we should've guessed this, exactly, but it seems in-keeping). Plus, when put alongside The Matrix Resurrections, I feel like there are finally some legacy sequels giving me the kind of things I've long wanted a legacy sequel to attempt. Love that.
Wish I knew exactly how long the game had taken me. It's my own fault for going back and replaying segments before I'd finished it through once! I got to the end in just under 15 hours, per Steam, but that includes replaying the very end three times, not to mention all the earlier replaying.
And after that, I played for another two hours to hit the final few achievements I missed. A big chunk of that was hunting around for the last few trivia cards; another was that I had to replay a whole swathe of the game because I didn't have any appropriately-placed savegames to quickly pull off something. One of the downsides to the game only allowing 8 save points (plus that, for this particular accomplishment, you need to do something in Part 2 or 3 that doesn't pay off until Part 5, meaning I had to replay the end of Part 3 and all of Part 4; but I initially realised that a little way into Part 4, so if I'd had more savegames I could've just repeated a little bit then instead of a whole part later. Hey ho).
So, I've got 38 out of the 39 achievements. The only one I'm missing is a speed run (completed in under 2 hours). I've never seen the point in speed running point-and-click adventures — story and humour are the goal of the genre, not racing through the puzzles as fast as possible. But as it's the only one I'm missing... and you can do it on Casual Mode, which I haven't played... Maybe...
And that's the end! A good ending too, I thought. I can immediately see it'll be controversial with some people, but I don't think we should really have expected anything too different (not that I'm saying we should've guessed this, exactly, but it seems in-keeping). Plus, when put alongside The Matrix Resurrections, I feel like there are finally some legacy sequels giving me the kind of things I've long wanted a legacy sequel to attempt. Love that.
Wish I knew exactly how long the game had taken me. It's my own fault for going back and replaying segments before I'd finished it through once! I got to the end in just under 15 hours, per Steam, but that includes replaying the very end three times, not to mention all the earlier replaying.
And after that, I played for another two hours to hit the final few achievements I missed. A big chunk of that was hunting around for the last few trivia cards; another was that I had to replay a whole swathe of the game because I didn't have any appropriately-placed savegames to quickly pull off something. One of the downsides to the game only allowing 8 save points (plus that, for this particular accomplishment, you need to do something in Part 2 or 3 that doesn't pay off until Part 5, meaning I had to replay the end of Part 3 and all of Part 4; but I initially realised that a little way into Part 4, so if I'd had more savegames I could've just repeated a little bit then instead of a whole part later. Hey ho).
So, I've got 38 out of the 39 achievements. The only one I'm missing is a speed run (completed in under 2 hours). I've never seen the point in speed running point-and-click adventures — story and humour are the goal of the genre, not racing through the puzzles as fast as possible. But as it's the only one I'm missing... and you can do it on Casual Mode, which I haven't played... Maybe...
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
It is a quieter one this week, with only two new additions — both new releases, though not sharing a date: one is from this week; the other has arrived early from the week after next. Fun times.
Number of titles in collection: 2,924 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,878 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 201 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,250 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,500 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 281 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
It is a quieter one this week, with only two new additions — both new releases, though not sharing a date: one is from this week; the other has arrived early from the week after next. Fun times.
Number of titles in collection: 2,924 [up 2]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,878 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 201 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,250 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,500 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 281 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 23 September 2022
Games
Return to Monkey Island
Apparently I somehow managed to play 4 hours today. It didn't feel like it! I'm sure that's testament to the quality of the game. Also that I did it across three or four bursts, rather than one or two big chunks (like on Tuesday).
Also also, this isn't the amount of time I've spent playing through the story: as a record of that the time is 'off' because I've repeated a few bits in order to hit some achievements. So, it's certainly an accurate count of how long I've spent playing the game, but not of how long it will have taken me to get through the main narrative.
For today, I leave it at the start of Part V — the final part! I guess it'll all be over tomorrow. Exciting, but also sad.
Apparently I somehow managed to play 4 hours today. It didn't feel like it! I'm sure that's testament to the quality of the game. Also that I did it across three or four bursts, rather than one or two big chunks (like on Tuesday).
Also also, this isn't the amount of time I've spent playing through the story: as a record of that the time is 'off' because I've repeated a few bits in order to hit some achievements. So, it's certainly an accurate count of how long I've spent playing the game, but not of how long it will have taken me to get through the main narrative.
For today, I leave it at the start of Part V — the final part! I guess it'll all be over tomorrow. Exciting, but also sad.
Thursday, 22 September 2022
Games
Return to Monkey Island
Another hour-and-a-half today brings me to almost 10 hours of playtime. Truly, it's flown by — based on my other recent gaming experiences, this doesn't feel like I've been playing for that long (even compared to solid-gold classics like the original couple of Monkey Islands). It really is superb.
Not sure how much is left, though. Feels like there must be a fair bit to go, but also like I'm getting towards the end (I'm in Part IV and I'm pretty sure Part V is the climax). I'll be sad when it's over...
Another hour-and-a-half today brings me to almost 10 hours of playtime. Truly, it's flown by — based on my other recent gaming experiences, this doesn't feel like I've been playing for that long (even compared to solid-gold classics like the original couple of Monkey Islands). It really is superb.
Not sure how much is left, though. Feels like there must be a fair bit to go, but also like I'm getting towards the end (I'm in Part IV and I'm pretty sure Part V is the climax). I'll be sad when it's over...
Video
Radiance: An Interview with Fran Simeoni
by Man v Film on YouTube
This is a fantastic interview with the founder of Radiance, the new boutique Blu-ray label, about their opening slate of ten films. Of those titles, there were quite a few (okay, most) that I'd never even heard of, so this is a superb introduction — now I want almost all of 'em (my poor wallet!)
Plus, some discussion about the label's birth and plans for its future. All really interesting stuff.
by Man v Film on YouTube
This is a fantastic interview with the founder of Radiance, the new boutique Blu-ray label, about their opening slate of ten films. Of those titles, there were quite a few (okay, most) that I'd never even heard of, so this is a superb introduction — now I want almost all of 'em (my poor wallet!)
Plus, some discussion about the label's birth and plans for its future. All really interesting stuff.
Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Games
Return to Monkey Island
Almost another 3 hours of playtime today. I was going to try to limit myself to something like 1 hour a day, so as not to rush through it too fast, but I find it hard to resist... So good.
Almost another 3 hours of playtime today. I was going to try to limit myself to something like 1 hour a day, so as not to rush through it too fast, but I find it hard to resist... So good.
Tuesday, 20 September 2022
Films
Broken Blossoms (1919)
[#59 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
And that finally completes the Decades portion of my New 100 Films Challenge. It started off as the easiest category to do (almost any film I watched counted — I completed 58% of it in January alone), but as it went on it became a bit harder. Turns out I don't watch many films from the 1950s (that took until May), and even fewer from the 1910s — which I knew, and is the kind of reason the category exists.
On the bright side, the very next film I watch that doesn't fit into another category can be a Wildcard for this one, because any film released in "a decade" counts!
[#59 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
And that finally completes the Decades portion of my New 100 Films Challenge. It started off as the easiest category to do (almost any film I watched counted — I completed 58% of it in January alone), but as it went on it became a bit harder. Turns out I don't watch many films from the 1950s (that took until May), and even fewer from the 1910s — which I knew, and is the kind of reason the category exists.
On the bright side, the very next film I watch that doesn't fit into another category can be a Wildcard for this one, because any film released in "a decade" counts!
Games
Return to Monkey Island
Regular readers (are there any?) will know how much I've been anticipating this. It came out yesterday, but I was too busy with statey funes to play it. But I'd booked today off work in preparation, and so I spent about 5½ hours on it today — plus a bit more time reading some stuff on Twitter and forums to help mop up a couple of achievements I'd missed (I've got 13 out of 39 on my first day!)
I would've played even more, but I don't want to rush it too much — Monkey Island games hardly come along often; this is one to savour. But it's so good, so much fun, that I don't know how much I'll be able to draw it out. I already want to go play it some more...
Regular readers (are there any?) will know how much I've been anticipating this. It came out yesterday, but I was too busy with statey funes to play it. But I'd booked today off work in preparation, and so I spent about 5½ hours on it today — plus a bit more time reading some stuff on Twitter and forums to help mop up a couple of achievements I'd missed (I've got 13 out of 39 on my first day!)
I would've played even more, but I don't want to rush it too much — Monkey Island games hardly come along often; this is one to savour. But it's so good, so much fun, that I don't know how much I'll be able to draw it out. I already want to go play it some more...
Monday, 19 September 2022
Sunday, 18 September 2022
Saturday, 17 September 2022
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
I was going to call this week a quiet one, but I've ended up with five new additions — although, by my recent standerds, it is a quieter one.
They should have divided neatly into two pairs: a couple of UK Criterion releases from the current offer everyone's got on, and a couple of new releases that aren't due out until Monday but arrived early. But then a fifth turned up unexpectedly: Eureka's box set of the Police Story trilogy in 4K, which isn't due out until the 26th. Exciting! That one replaces my old 1080p set of Police Story 1&2, so the number of titles still only goes up by four.
Also of note: one of those 4K titles is my 200th! Already?! I really should watch more of them...
Number of titles in collection: 2,922 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,876 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 201 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,248 [up 6]
Number of films: 3,498 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 281 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [up 5]
Also this week, it's time for the monthly running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
518 days, 4 hours, and 55 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 8 hours, and 6 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
I was going to call this week a quiet one, but I've ended up with five new additions — although, by my recent standerds, it is a quieter one.
They should have divided neatly into two pairs: a couple of UK Criterion releases from the current offer everyone's got on, and a couple of new releases that aren't due out until Monday but arrived early. But then a fifth turned up unexpectedly: Eureka's box set of the Police Story trilogy in 4K, which isn't due out until the 26th. Exciting! That one replaces my old 1080p set of Police Story 1&2, so the number of titles still only goes up by four.
Also of note: one of those 4K titles is my 200th! Already?! I really should watch more of them...
Number of titles in collection: 2,922 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,876 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 201 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,248 [up 6]
Number of films: 3,498 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 281 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,007 [up 5]
Also this week, it's time for the monthly running time update...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
518 days, 4 hours, and 55 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 8 hours, and 6 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 16 September 2022
Wednesday, 14 September 2022
Articles
Ron Gilbert and Dave Grossman talk Return to Monkey Island
by elTee & Marius (from The International House of Mojo)
The much-anticipated third/sixth Monkey Island game is out on Monday (good thing there's nothing else going on that day), so here's a fairly extensive interview with its two primary designers, conducted by one of the foremost MI fan sites — i.e. it asks all the kinds of things long-term fans want to know. Super.
by elTee & Marius (from The International House of Mojo)
The much-anticipated third/sixth Monkey Island game is out on Monday (good thing there's nothing else going on that day), so here's a fairly extensive interview with its two primary designers, conducted by one of the foremost MI fan sites — i.e. it asks all the kinds of things long-term fans want to know. Super.
Sunday, 11 September 2022
TV
The 1% Club
1x07 Episode 7
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
BBC News
6+ hours of a hearse (and entourage) driving through Scotland? That seemed to be what most of the coverage was today. Suffice to say, I didn't watch anything like all of it. Feeling suitably weaned off ahead of returning to work tomorrow.
1x07 Episode 7
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
BBC News
6+ hours of a hearse (and entourage) driving through Scotland? That seemed to be what most of the coverage was today. Suffice to say, I didn't watch anything like all of it. Feeling suitably weaned off ahead of returning to work tomorrow.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
5 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
2022 | Week 26
More next Sunday.
2022 | Week 26
Featuring...Read more here.
- The Flying Deuces (1939)
- Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood (2022)
- My Name Is Julia Ross (1945)
- Ambulance (2022)
- Easy A (2010)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 10 September 2022
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
TV dominates this week — and causes my DVD count to actually go up, too! That's because I bought two "complete series" DVD sets from Network: the 1950s Adventures of Sir Lancelot (starring Doctor Who's William Russell) and Gerry Anderson's Space Precinct. Between them that's 11 discs and 54 episodes of TV. But my DVD count only goes up by one, because I also upgraded Robin of Sherwood from DVD to Blu-ray. Plus, there was a new animated Doctor Who release, just to push things up a little further.
Not that the films were slacking either, with four new movie-centric releases, with multiple films, discs, alternate cuts and so on across them. In fact, the only category that doesn't increase this week is short films, which is a shame. Also, it kinda depends how you count it: one of the titles I bought was Indicator's Robin Hood at Hammer double feature, which also includes a Children's Film Foundation short as an extra. Except that "short" runs 61 minutes, which makes it a feature in my book. So there.
Number of titles in collection: 2,918 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [up 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,872 [up 7]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 199 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,242 [up 19]
Number of films: 3,492 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 278 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [up 60]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
TV dominates this week — and causes my DVD count to actually go up, too! That's because I bought two "complete series" DVD sets from Network: the 1950s Adventures of Sir Lancelot (starring Doctor Who's William Russell) and Gerry Anderson's Space Precinct. Between them that's 11 discs and 54 episodes of TV. But my DVD count only goes up by one, because I also upgraded Robin of Sherwood from DVD to Blu-ray. Plus, there was a new animated Doctor Who release, just to push things up a little further.
Not that the films were slacking either, with four new movie-centric releases, with multiple films, discs, alternate cuts and so on across them. In fact, the only category that doesn't increase this week is short films, which is a shame. Also, it kinda depends how you count it: one of the titles I bought was Indicator's Robin Hood at Hammer double feature, which also includes a Children's Film Foundation short as an extra. Except that "short" runs 61 minutes, which makes it a feature in my book. So there.
Number of titles in collection: 2,918 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,046 [up 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,872 [up 7]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 199 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,242 [up 19]
Number of films: 3,492 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 278 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,422 [up 60]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 9 September 2022
TV
BBC News
Had the news on all day... while doing other stuff, obviously — that much non-stop often-repetitious coverage wouldn't be good for you; but there's enough going on at a time like this to merit it. Perhaps the most important moment was the King's address, and then this evening there was:
A Tribute to Her Majesty the Queen
The big special of prerecorded interviews that we all knew existed, as it does for many a major figure, regularly updated to cover later events and more recent significant figures (in this case, including Boris Johnson). It did a rather good job of surveying the entirety of the Queen's life, including not (totally) whitewashing the controversies. And if you want a fuller version, well, there's always The Crown...
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Had the news on all day... while doing other stuff, obviously — that much non-stop often-repetitious coverage wouldn't be good for you; but there's enough going on at a time like this to merit it. Perhaps the most important moment was the King's address, and then this evening there was:
A Tribute to Her Majesty the Queen
The big special of prerecorded interviews that we all knew existed, as it does for many a major figure, regularly updated to cover later events and more recent significant figures (in this case, including Boris Johnson). It did a rather good job of surveying the entirety of the Queen's life, including not (totally) whitewashing the controversies. And if you want a fuller version, well, there's always The Crown...
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Thursday, 8 September 2022
Tuesday, 6 September 2022
TV
Have I Got News for You
64x00 Have I Got News for Boris: A Special Tribute
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
64x00 Have I Got News for Boris: A Special Tribute
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Sunday, 4 September 2022
TV
House of the Dragon
1x02 The Rogue Prince
Mystery Science Theater 3000
13x07 Gamera vs Jiger
They’ve mentioned repeatedly on the post-episode-premiere Q&As how hard the writers found this one, due to having to riff an entire movie with no leeway to cut for time or repetition (which they do on all the other films they cover), and I feel like that comes across in the final episode. There are some great riffs (the songs; the running gag about the little girl’s bloodthirstiness), but also longer-than-usual periods of silence and some stuff that was a bit too esoteric. By no means a disaster, but not among the best the season has had to offer.
1x02 The Rogue Prince
Mystery Science Theater 3000
13x07 Gamera vs Jiger
They’ve mentioned repeatedly on the post-episode-premiere Q&As how hard the writers found this one, due to having to riff an entire movie with no leeway to cut for time or repetition (which they do on all the other films they cover), and I feel like that comes across in the final episode. There are some great riffs (the songs; the running gag about the little girl’s bloodthirstiness), but also longer-than-usual periods of silence and some stuff that was a bit too esoteric. By no means a disaster, but not among the best the season has had to offer.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
You may have noticed that a new month began halfway through this week, and so there was the usual pair of lookbacks on 100Films.co.uk.
First, at the month as a whole...
Then, at all the films I didn't watch...
No new reviews, though. Hopefully there'll be some more of those next Sunday.
First, at the month as a whole...
Then, at all the films I didn't watch...
No new reviews, though. Hopefully there'll be some more of those next Sunday.
Saturday, 3 September 2022
TV
The 1% Club
1x06 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Sam Morril: Same Time Tomorrow
Never heard of this guy before I saw a bit from this show retweeted. Immediately watched the whole thing. Laughed a lot. Well done, algorithm.
[Watch it (again) on Netflix.]
1x06 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Sam Morril: Same Time Tomorrow
Never heard of this guy before I saw a bit from this show retweeted. Immediately watched the whole thing. Laughed a lot. Well done, algorithm.
[Watch it (again) on Netflix.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A few new additions this week, all new releases. Nothing really unusual or remarkale to report, to be honest.
Number of titles in collection: 2,910 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,045 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,865 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 198 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,223 [up 5]
Number of films: 3,486 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 277 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,362 [up 12]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
A few new additions this week, all new releases. Nothing really unusual or remarkale to report, to be honest.
Number of titles in collection: 2,910 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,045 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,865 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 198 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,223 [up 5]
Number of films: 3,486 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 277 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,362 [up 12]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 2 September 2022
Thursday, 1 September 2022
Music
Will of the People
by Muse
Fuck me, I loved this. Muse's best album for years, and perhaps their most consistent ever — I can't remember the last time, if ever, I actually really liked every single track on a Muse album. I've already listened to it multiple times, which is more than I can say for some of the middling tracks on their last few albums (remembering that time I realised I'd only listened to The 2nd Law in full once in the six years since its release).
by Muse
Fuck me, I loved this. Muse's best album for years, and perhaps their most consistent ever — I can't remember the last time, if ever, I actually really liked every single track on a Muse album. I've already listened to it multiple times, which is more than I can say for some of the middling tracks on their last few albums (remembering that time I realised I'd only listened to The 2nd Law in full once in the six years since its release).
Wednesday, 31 August 2022
Tuesday, 30 August 2022
Films
Mona Lisa (1986)
[#53 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
"What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...?" 2022 #7
[#53 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
"What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...?" 2022 #7
Monday, 29 August 2022
TV
House of the Dragon
1x01 The Heirs of the Dragon
Alright, here we go: Game of Thrones 2.0 — heck, it's even got the same theme music! Well, you can't improve on perfection so why even try, I guess.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x23 Episode 23
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x03 In the Line of Fire
1x01 The Heirs of the Dragon
Alright, here we go: Game of Thrones 2.0 — heck, it's even got the same theme music! Well, you can't improve on perfection so why even try, I guess.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x23 Episode 23
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x03 In the Line of Fire
Sunday, 28 August 2022
TV
How I Met Your Father
1x02 FOMO
Life After Life
Part 4 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x21 Episode 21
4x22 Episode 22
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x02 Five Minutes
1x02 FOMO
Life After Life
Part 4 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x21 Episode 21
4x22 Episode 22
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x02 Five Minutes
Saturday, 27 August 2022
TV
Life After Life
Part 3 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x19 Episode 19
4x20 Episode 20
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Part 3 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x19 Episode 19
4x20 Episode 20
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Films
Love & Friendship (2016)
[2nd watch]
Repeat Performance (1947)
[#52 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
[2nd watch]
Repeat Performance (1947)
[#52 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Three new titles this week, including an extensive box set... but two are DVD-to-BD upgrades where the BD closely mirrors the DVD (the aforementioned box set is Masters of Cinema's collection of Buster Keaton shorts, both versions of which contain 32 short films across 4 discs), and the third is a BD-to-4K upgrade, so you won't see much change in the stats below.
Number of titles in collection: 2,907 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,045 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,862 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 198 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,218 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,483 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 275 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Three new titles this week, including an extensive box set... but two are DVD-to-BD upgrades where the BD closely mirrors the DVD (the aforementioned box set is Masters of Cinema's collection of Buster Keaton shorts, both versions of which contain 32 short films across 4 discs), and the third is a BD-to-4K upgrade, so you won't see much change in the stats below.
Number of titles in collection: 2,907 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,045 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,862 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 198 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,218 [up 2]
Number of films: 3,483 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 275 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,002 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 26 August 2022
TV
How I Met Your Father
1x01 Pilot
Life After Life
Part 2 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x18 Episode 18
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
1x01 Pilot
Life After Life
Part 2 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x18 Episode 18
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Thursday, 25 August 2022
TV
Grantchester
6x08 Episode 8 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Life After Life
Part 1 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x17 Episode 17
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x01 Life and Death
6x08 Episode 8 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Life After Life
Part 1 (of 4)
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x17 Episode 17
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
The Rookie
4x01 Life and Death
Wednesday, 24 August 2022
TV
Agatha Raisin
4x04 There Goes the Bride [season finale]
Grantchester
6x07 Episode 7
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x16 Episode 16
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
4x04 There Goes the Bride [season finale]
Grantchester
6x07 Episode 7
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x16 Episode 16
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Sunday, 21 August 2022
TV
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Jackbox Showdown... Crow vs Servo
13x03 Beyond Atlantis Post-Premiere Q&A
Wasn't sure I was awake enough for a film late last night, but instead wound up watching all two hours of the replay of the Jackbox Showdown livestream special. Oh well. It's quite fun, but would've been more fun to join in live (I wasn't able to when it happened, unfortunately).
And talking of watching replays, this evening I finished off those premiere Q&As... except for the ones on episodes I haven't watched. It's nice there are more to look forward to.
[Watch the Jackbox Showdown event (for free) on the Gizmoplex.]
Jackbox Showdown... Crow vs Servo
13x03 Beyond Atlantis Post-Premiere Q&A
Wasn't sure I was awake enough for a film late last night, but instead wound up watching all two hours of the replay of the Jackbox Showdown livestream special. Oh well. It's quite fun, but would've been more fun to join in live (I wasn't able to when it happened, unfortunately).
And talking of watching replays, this evening I finished off those premiere Q&As... except for the ones on episodes I haven't watched. It's nice there are more to look forward to.
[Watch the Jackbox Showdown event (for free) on the Gizmoplex.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Five new titles this week, including a DVD-to-BD upgrade that barely leaves a mark in the below (just -1 DVD and +1 BD), and what would have been a DVD-to-4K upgrade, but for some reason they couldn't get the rights to a cast & crew commentary, so I'm keeping the DVD with it on (at least for the time being).
Also this week, the number of shorts in my collection passes the 1,000 mark. I dread to think how few of them I've actually watched. The majority are spread around film releases as special features — the odd one or two here or there; early works by the director of the feature title, or archive shorts with a connection to the feature (the BFI are particularly fond of doing that, but there's also a lot on Indicator's noir box sets, plus Warner's releases of classic movies) — which makes it hard for me to ever really dig into them.
Number of titles in collection: 2,907 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,047 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,860 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 197 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,216 [up 7]
Number of films: 3,483 [up 4]
Number of additional cuts: 275 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,002 [up 3]
Also also, it's time for the monthly running time update. The ever-flowing drip-drip-drip of new titles into my collection has this month produced the following increase...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
515 days, 16 hours, and 49 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 4 hours, and 39 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Five new titles this week, including a DVD-to-BD upgrade that barely leaves a mark in the below (just -1 DVD and +1 BD), and what would have been a DVD-to-4K upgrade, but for some reason they couldn't get the rights to a cast & crew commentary, so I'm keeping the DVD with it on (at least for the time being).
Also this week, the number of shorts in my collection passes the 1,000 mark. I dread to think how few of them I've actually watched. The majority are spread around film releases as special features — the odd one or two here or there; early works by the director of the feature title, or archive shorts with a connection to the feature (the BFI are particularly fond of doing that, but there's also a lot on Indicator's noir box sets, plus Warner's releases of classic movies) — which makes it hard for me to ever really dig into them.
Number of titles in collection: 2,907 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,047 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,860 [up 5]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 197 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,216 [up 7]
Number of films: 3,483 [up 4]
Number of additional cuts: 275 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,002 [up 3]
Also also, it's time for the monthly running time update. The ever-flowing drip-drip-drip of new titles into my collection has this month produced the following increase...
Total running time of collection (approx.):
515 days, 16 hours, and 49 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 4 hours, and 39 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
5 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
Paris, Texas (1984)
2022 | Weeks 24–25
More next Sunday.
Paris, Texas (1984)
to keep calling it “Lynchian” is to do Wenders’ work a disservice, because it’s not a copy — indeed, in 1984 Lynch was releasing his Dune, and had yet to embark on most of the films that define “Lynchian” for us. An alternate comparison might be the Coen brothers: it’s of a piece with their heightened worlds and semi-outlandish stories. But this was released the same year as their debut, Blood Simple, so, again, it’s not exactly a fair comparison. Or if it is fair, it’s backwards: if anyone influenced anyone, it would be Lynch and the Coens drawing on Wenders.Read more here.
2022 | Weeks 24–25
Featuring...Read more here.
- The Ghost Writer (2010)
- Escape in the Fog (1945)
- Pretty in Pink (1986)
- House of Gucci (2021)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 20 August 2022
TV
Mystery Science Theater 3000
13x06 Demon Squad
13x02 Robot Wars Post-Premiere Q&A
Keeping up my pace of only watching one new MST3K per month, apparently (I thought it had been longer than that and I was even more behind than I am, to be honest. Still need to catch up, though: episode 8 premiered last night). This one seems to have gone down well with fans, although I suspect that has more to do with the return of Joel as host than the episode itself. I didn't think it was bad — a few riffs even had me laughing out loud — but not that inspired overall.
Afterwards, I finally got round to going back to episode 2 and watching the Q&A from its (second) premiere (as I did with episode 1). I quite enjoy these chaotic live Zoom-chat-esque post-shows, so I'll keep watching them — I've got episode 3's to catch up on, plus all the future premieres, of course.
13x06 Demon Squad
13x02 Robot Wars Post-Premiere Q&A
Keeping up my pace of only watching one new MST3K per month, apparently (I thought it had been longer than that and I was even more behind than I am, to be honest. Still need to catch up, though: episode 8 premiered last night). This one seems to have gone down well with fans, although I suspect that has more to do with the return of Joel as host than the episode itself. I didn't think it was bad — a few riffs even had me laughing out loud — but not that inspired overall.
Afterwards, I finally got round to going back to episode 2 and watching the Q&A from its (second) premiere (as I did with episode 1). I quite enjoy these chaotic live Zoom-chat-esque post-shows, so I'll keep watching them — I've got episode 3's to catch up on, plus all the future premieres, of course.
Thursday, 18 August 2022
Games
Deponia
Just under another hour's play, bringing me to exactly 7½ hours, and the game's completed. Despite what I was saying yesterday, it did feel like the game was nearing the end, and a look at the table of contents for the walkthrough I’d been using (or “trying not to use”, as much as I could resist) suggested I was right. It doesn't really surprise me — as I said, it felt like the story was nearing the end, and the playtime seems about standard for point-and-click games.
But it means there are a bunch of achievements that I've somehow missed. I thought I’d played the game pretty thoroughly (I’m the kind of person that talks to every character, chooses every dialogue option, looks at everything I can look at, etc), so I’m not sure what I’ve overlooked. Adventure games aren't (usually) the kind of thing you can go back over again and again to score faster times or collect more stars or kill more bad guys or whatever other stuff other types of games have as achievements, so I can't work out what I've missed. I wonder if they're listed online anywhere else...
Anyway, I enjoyed the game overall, even in spite of a few buggy bits and some iffy translations (I think it was made in Germany, and the English dialogue is almost there but has a few bits that suggest it wasn't written (nor polished) by someone whose first language is English). Which is good, because it doesn't really feel like the story is actually over — and there are three more games in the series.
Edit: I found the achievements listed elsewhere. I'd forgotten there are things like minigames that maybe I skipped, but if you don't skip them you get an achievement; and other things you can get an achievement for getting it right first time, whereas I took several goes. And the final achievement involves playing the whole game again but with all dialogue replaced with the word "droggeljug". Yeah, I'm not doing that.
Just under another hour's play, bringing me to exactly 7½ hours, and the game's completed. Despite what I was saying yesterday, it did feel like the game was nearing the end, and a look at the table of contents for the walkthrough I’d been using (or “trying not to use”, as much as I could resist) suggested I was right. It doesn't really surprise me — as I said, it felt like the story was nearing the end, and the playtime seems about standard for point-and-click games.
But it means there are a bunch of achievements that I've somehow missed. I thought I’d played the game pretty thoroughly (I’m the kind of person that talks to every character, chooses every dialogue option, looks at everything I can look at, etc), so I’m not sure what I’ve overlooked. Adventure games aren't (usually) the kind of thing you can go back over again and again to score faster times or collect more stars or kill more bad guys or whatever other stuff other types of games have as achievements, so I can't work out what I've missed. I wonder if they're listed online anywhere else...
Anyway, I enjoyed the game overall, even in spite of a few buggy bits and some iffy translations (I think it was made in Germany, and the English dialogue is almost there but has a few bits that suggest it wasn't written (nor polished) by someone whose first language is English). Which is good, because it doesn't really feel like the story is actually over — and there are three more games in the series.
Edit: I found the achievements listed elsewhere. I'd forgotten there are things like minigames that maybe I skipped, but if you don't skip them you get an achievement; and other things you can get an achievement for getting it right first time, whereas I took several goes. And the final achievement involves playing the whole game again but with all dialogue replaced with the word "droggeljug". Yeah, I'm not doing that.
Wednesday, 17 August 2022
Games
Deponia
An hour and 25 minutes today, slightly contradicting what I said yesterday. Well, part of that was me trying desperately not to use the walkthrough when I got stuck... but I eventually gave in. Most of the time, when I do, the solution is so obscure that I'm not surprised I didn't work it out, so I don't feel too bad. (And sometimes, I think I should've tried harder first.)
Also, I now have 58% of achievements. If they're evenly spaced (which they might not be) then I've still got quite a bit of the game to go. That said, these can't all be linear achievements, because these most recent ones are "uncommon", with only 14–17% of players achieving them; but there are some I haven't got with commonness ratings up to 34%. They're all 'secret' so I have no idea what they entail, but presumably it's not just reaching unmissable points in the game (which, in a narrative point-and-click game like Deponia, I assumed they would be). Hmm...
An hour and 25 minutes today, slightly contradicting what I said yesterday. Well, part of that was me trying desperately not to use the walkthrough when I got stuck... but I eventually gave in. Most of the time, when I do, the solution is so obscure that I'm not surprised I didn't work it out, so I don't feel too bad. (And sometimes, I think I should've tried harder first.)
Also, I now have 58% of achievements. If they're evenly spaced (which they might not be) then I've still got quite a bit of the game to go. That said, these can't all be linear achievements, because these most recent ones are "uncommon", with only 14–17% of players achieving them; but there are some I haven't got with commonness ratings up to 34%. They're all 'secret' so I have no idea what they entail, but presumably it's not just reaching unmissable points in the game (which, in a narrative point-and-click game like Deponia, I assumed they would be). Hmm...
Tuesday, 16 August 2022
Monday, 15 August 2022
Sunday, 14 August 2022
Games
Deponia
With TV I list episodes; with books I list chapters; films I watch the whole sitting in one go, so that's fine... but what about games? I know I've just been posting the title up til now, but I'm not playing the whole thing in one go (at least, not so far), so I feel like I need more demarkation. That's partly why I started keeping track of my playtime in the earlier Monkey Islands. And, actually, playing these newer games through GOG, it keeps track of my playtime automatically (I believe Steam does the same thing), so maybe I should start listing that?
Well, I'm up to 2 hours 43 minutes so far. No idea how far through that gets me, other than that I've got 21% of the game's achievements — if that's an indicator of progress, the rest should take a little over 10 hours. We'll see... As for the game itself, I admit that today I finally resorted to a walkthrough for a couple of puzzles. Life's too short to spend ages wandering around the same locations with the same items in my inventory waiting for a brainwave (that's what we used to do Back In The Day, of course, but nowadays... nah. Especially when I've got dozens of other games lined up waiting for me to get to them).
With TV I list episodes; with books I list chapters; films I watch the whole sitting in one go, so that's fine... but what about games? I know I've just been posting the title up til now, but I'm not playing the whole thing in one go (at least, not so far), so I feel like I need more demarkation. That's partly why I started keeping track of my playtime in the earlier Monkey Islands. And, actually, playing these newer games through GOG, it keeps track of my playtime automatically (I believe Steam does the same thing), so maybe I should start listing that?
Well, I'm up to 2 hours 43 minutes so far. No idea how far through that gets me, other than that I've got 21% of the game's achievements — if that's an indicator of progress, the rest should take a little over 10 hours. We'll see... As for the game itself, I admit that today I finally resorted to a walkthrough for a couple of puzzles. Life's too short to spend ages wandering around the same locations with the same items in my inventory waiting for a brainwave (that's what we used to do Back In The Day, of course, but nowadays... nah. Especially when I've got dozens of other games lined up waiting for me to get to them).
Saturday, 13 August 2022
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
My total titles crosses the 2,900 mark this week — will I get to 3,000 by the end of the year? Well, last year I added 240 titles to my tally, which is an average of 20 per month, and there are 4½ months of the year left, which works out at 90 titles. Ooh, so close! Of course, I'm sure the increase wasn't neatly spread throughout the year — maybe the end is normally even busier? I could work it out at such a granular level, but that might ruin the surprise. I know that I've had multiple very large weeks this year already, but whether that means I'll slow down towards the end or surge forth to even higher heights, only time will tell...
Number of titles in collection: 2,903 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,855 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 196 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,209 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,479 [up 9]
Number of additional cuts: 274 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [up 14]
Number of short films: 999 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
My total titles crosses the 2,900 mark this week — will I get to 3,000 by the end of the year? Well, last year I added 240 titles to my tally, which is an average of 20 per month, and there are 4½ months of the year left, which works out at 90 titles. Ooh, so close! Of course, I'm sure the increase wasn't neatly spread throughout the year — maybe the end is normally even busier? I could work it out at such a granular level, but that might ruin the surprise. I know that I've had multiple very large weeks this year already, but whether that means I'll slow down towards the end or surge forth to even higher heights, only time will tell...
Number of titles in collection: 2,903 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,855 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 196 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,209 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,479 [up 9]
Number of additional cuts: 274 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,350 [up 14]
Number of short films: 999 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 12 August 2022
Films
Batman: Dead End (2003)
[2nd watch]
[#51 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
This "Batman vs Predator" fan film was ever so popular Back In The Day, and for some reason came up on Twitter this afternoon, so I watched it — I wasn't sure I'd actually ever seen it, but once it got going it all came back. Mad that it's nearly 20 years old. It holds up really well too, which you might not expect — it's not just "good for an amateur production in the early '00s", it's genuinely well made. No wonder it caused such a stir all those years ago.
[2nd watch]
[#51 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
This "Batman vs Predator" fan film was ever so popular Back In The Day, and for some reason came up on Twitter this afternoon, so I watched it — I wasn't sure I'd actually ever seen it, but once it got going it all came back. Mad that it's nearly 20 years old. It holds up really well too, which you might not expect — it's not just "good for an amateur production in the early '00s", it's genuinely well made. No wonder it caused such a stir all those years ago.
Games
Deponia
Decided to go for something a bit more modern for my next point-and-click adventure (it's ten years old, but that's "modern" by my standards). Also, there are three sequels to this, so if I enjoy it my list of games to play will get even longer (next time they're on sale, anyway). Only played for about half-an-hour, but it's off to a decent start — the cartoon visuals are pleasant, and the puzzles are logical without being ludicrously easy. Nothing too taxing yet, but then I have only just started.
Decided to go for something a bit more modern for my next point-and-click adventure (it's ten years old, but that's "modern" by my standards). Also, there are three sequels to this, so if I enjoy it my list of games to play will get even longer (next time they're on sale, anyway). Only played for about half-an-hour, but it's off to a decent start — the cartoon visuals are pleasant, and the puzzles are logical without being ludicrously easy. Nothing too taxing yet, but then I have only just started.
Thursday, 11 August 2022
Films
Tintin and the Lake of Sharks (1972)
[#50 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Normally for foreign language films I use the title as seen on the copy I watched, but my DVD copy of this has for some reason chosen to call it Tintin and the Mystery of Shark Lake, whereas the title above — a more accurate translation of the original, Tintin et le lac aux requins — is much more commonly used online.
[#50 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Normally for foreign language films I use the title as seen on the copy I watched, but my DVD copy of this has for some reason chosen to call it Tintin and the Mystery of Shark Lake, whereas the title above — a more accurate translation of the original, Tintin et le lac aux requins — is much more commonly used online.
Wednesday, 10 August 2022
Games
Flight of the Amazon Queen
Finished, in just over 6 hours. Bit of a lacklustre ending — in a movie it would be a Big Action Climax, but that doesn't really translate to point-and-click adventure games, so it's just a couple of simple puzzles to end on. Hey-ho. It was fun overall, but not truly a classic; more a likeable imitation of better things.
Now... what next?
Finished, in just over 6 hours. Bit of a lacklustre ending — in a movie it would be a Big Action Climax, but that doesn't really translate to point-and-click adventure games, so it's just a couple of simple puzzles to end on. Hey-ho. It was fun overall, but not truly a classic; more a likeable imitation of better things.
Now... what next?
Tuesday, 9 August 2022
Podcasts
Doctor Who: Pieces of Eighth
1x05 The Eighth Doctor Action Figures
I became aware of this podcast — dedicated to media about the 8th Doctor — a while ago and have been meaning to catch up on it, but (as is typical of me and podcasts) I keep not getting round to it. But with today's announcement of a new 8th Doctor action figure set, someone on Twitter pointed towards this edition, which covers the genesis and history of the 8th Doctor in action figures (at least until mid-2021) via an interview with Alasdair Dewar of Character Options, the company who make Doctor Who toys.
[Listen to it (again) on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts.]
1x05 The Eighth Doctor Action Figures
I became aware of this podcast — dedicated to media about the 8th Doctor — a while ago and have been meaning to catch up on it, but (as is typical of me and podcasts) I keep not getting round to it. But with today's announcement of a new 8th Doctor action figure set, someone on Twitter pointed towards this edition, which covers the genesis and history of the 8th Doctor in action figures (at least until mid-2021) via an interview with Alasdair Dewar of Character Options, the company who make Doctor Who toys.
[Listen to it (again) on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts.]
Sunday, 7 August 2022
YouTube
Georgia & David Tennant's Doctor Who Quiz
Somehow stumbled across this quiz (from back in December 2020!), which was done in aid of Marie Curie, and I ended up getting sucked in to it. Well, if you've got David & Georgia Tennant, plus guest stars, testing my Doctor Who knowledge (and I do love a quiz), how could I resist? (Apparently I resisted back in December 2020. But I don't recall knowing it was happening, so...)
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Somehow stumbled across this quiz (from back in December 2020!), which was done in aid of Marie Curie, and I ended up getting sucked in to it. Well, if you've got David & Georgia Tennant, plus guest stars, testing my Doctor Who knowledge (and I do love a quiz), how could I resist? (Apparently I resisted back in December 2020. But I don't recall knowing it was happening, so...)
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
this week on 100Films.co.uk
We may now be a whole week into August, but the month did only start at the beginning of this week, and that means this 100Films.co.uk update begins with my review of last month...
Plus, the summary of films I failed to watch in July...
Additionally, there was 1 new review published this week...
Prey (2022)
More next Sunday.
Plus, the summary of films I failed to watch in July...
Additionally, there was 1 new review published this week...
Prey (2022)
Plot-wise, Prey is pretty straightforward. And therein lies a big part of its success, because what more do we want from a Predator movie than “a hero has to fight a technologically-superior Predator”? If you do want more than that, I think you’ve come to the wrong franchise. Of course, simply rehashing what’s gone before is just another path to failure, and so what Prey does is take those basic bones and dress them up with fresh settings, ideas, and perspectives.Read more here.
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 6 August 2022
DVD
Big Finish Talks Back: Paul McGann
[2nd watch]
Not quite sure what to file this as — it's not a movie; it's not TV; it's not an extra, because it's a release unto itself... It's a feature-length interview, anyway. It came out in 2002 and I guess I bought it and watched it around then — 20 years ago! — because I know I've seen it but I don't remember it. It was a nice thing to revisit, though.
Plus, a bonus short interview that adds in McGann's first Doctor Who audio companion, India Fisher, after they'd recorded their second series. A nice little time capsule.
[2nd watch]
Not quite sure what to file this as — it's not a movie; it's not TV; it's not an extra, because it's a release unto itself... It's a feature-length interview, anyway. It came out in 2002 and I guess I bought it and watched it around then — 20 years ago! — because I know I've seen it but I don't remember it. It was a nice thing to revisit, though.
Plus, a bonus short interview that adds in McGann's first Doctor Who audio companion, India Fisher, after they'd recorded their second series. A nice little time capsule.
Theatre
The Lion King
UK & Ireland Tour at Wales Millennium Centre
Finally seen this super-acclaimed and -popular show. I thought the songs added beyond the film were mostly a bit lacklustre, but the costumes and puppetry were incredible. I can see why it's a stage spectacle that's been enduringly popular for decades now.
UK & Ireland Tour at Wales Millennium Centre
Finally seen this super-acclaimed and -popular show. I thought the songs added beyond the film were mostly a bit lacklustre, but the costumes and puppetry were incredible. I can see why it's a stage spectacle that's been enduringly popular for decades now.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Five new additons this week — a quiet one, by current standards. Three new releases, too. Only one 4K, but both the older titles are 3D (one an upgrade to the 2D copy I already had).
Number of titles in collection: 2,899 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,851 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 194 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,198 [up 9]
Number of films: 3,469 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 999 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Five new additons this week — a quiet one, by current standards. Three new releases, too. Only one 4K, but both the older titles are 3D (one an upgrade to the 2D copy I already had).
Number of titles in collection: 2,899 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,851 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 194 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,198 [up 9]
Number of films: 3,469 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 999 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 5 August 2022
Thursday, 4 August 2022
Games
Flight of the Amazon Queen
I've not said much (or anything) when I've logged this, but I'm making steady progress. It's not a bad game, but it's no LucasArts classic. It's clearly inspired by Indiana Jones, but executed with some of the self-aware humour of Monkey Island, but it doesn't hit the mark as precisely as either. I guess that's what happens when you're taking off things that are already fundamentally perfect! But the most annoying thing is the voice acting — everyone speaks so slowly, probably in some effort to beat the compression of the day (the game is from the early '90s, after all), and half the lines are delivered with the emphasis in the wrong place. But I'm nitpicking, really, because overall it's a likeable dose of retro adventuring. I'm five-and-a-half hour of playtime through, so if typical playtimes are anything to go by, I've only got a couple of hours left to go.
I've not said much (or anything) when I've logged this, but I'm making steady progress. It's not a bad game, but it's no LucasArts classic. It's clearly inspired by Indiana Jones, but executed with some of the self-aware humour of Monkey Island, but it doesn't hit the mark as precisely as either. I guess that's what happens when you're taking off things that are already fundamentally perfect! But the most annoying thing is the voice acting — everyone speaks so slowly, probably in some effort to beat the compression of the day (the game is from the early '90s, after all), and half the lines are delivered with the emphasis in the wrong place. But I'm nitpicking, really, because overall it's a likeable dose of retro adventuring. I'm five-and-a-half hour of playtime through, so if typical playtimes are anything to go by, I've only got a couple of hours left to go.
Wednesday, 3 August 2022
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