Merlin
1x01 The Dragon's Call
Not to be confused with the excellent Sam Neill-starring miniseries from 1998 (my God, has it really been so long?!), this is the BBC's revamped 'Young Merlin' series. Perhaps it should've been called Camelot? (Actually, that's just a flat-out bad suggestion. Why can't it be set in some distinctively-named hometown of the young Merlin, hm?) Anyhow, it was pretty good. Shows promise.
The Riches
2x01 The Last Temptation of Wayne
Ah The Riches -- still as utterly barmy as ever, trying to recover from the utterly loopy finale of the first season. I swear the writers must make this up as they go along, just writing and writing and writing until they reach the page count for an episode, then ending it and going right on to the next. Still, it's more or less cancelled (its status is still officially up in the air, but it's been a long time since season two aired in America) so there's only six more episodes of story to go. I bet it ends on a cliffhanger though... (Also, for anyone who clicks on my episode name links -- look how much TV.com's changed! Weird...)
Saturday, 20 September 2008
Articles
Alasdair Dewar - Part 2
(from doctorwhotoys.net)
See me mention part one here.
Silent Shakespeare by Nicci Gerrard
(from the Silent Shakespeare DVD booklet)
(from doctorwhotoys.net)
See me mention part one here.
Silent Shakespeare by Nicci Gerrard
(from the Silent Shakespeare DVD booklet)
Friday, 19 September 2008
TV
Dexter
2x11 Left Turn Ahead
2x12 The British Invasion [season finale]
And that's that -- all neatly wrapped up, I think. But I shan't say too much, because the finale doesn't even air in the UK til Sunday. Hehehe.
Ricky Gervais: Fame
No doubt edited by Channel 4 to squeeze it into a 65-minute slot. Still, pretty funny.
The Tudors
2x08 Lady in Waiting
2x11 Left Turn Ahead
2x12 The British Invasion [season finale]
And that's that -- all neatly wrapped up, I think. But I shan't say too much, because the finale doesn't even air in the UK til Sunday. Hehehe.
Ricky Gervais: Fame
No doubt edited by Channel 4 to squeeze it into a 65-minute slot. Still, pretty funny.
The Tudors
2x08 Lady in Waiting
Articles
The Big Picture
(from BBC News)
"Celebrities including The X Factor judges, Madonna, David and Victoria Beckham and Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have been transformed into Lego people to mark the 30th birthday of the toy figures."
David Hare on how the BBC killed the TV play by David Hare
(from Times Online)
It's somewhat ironic to start talking about there being no plays on TV just as the BBC go and air three of them, but Hare has a point nonetheless and it makes for interesting reading.
Doctor Who's secrets revealed, by Russell T. Davies
and
The Next Doctor
(from Times Online)
Surprisingly long excerpts from Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale, a new book by Russell T Davies and DWM set reporter Benjamin Cook. Very interesting, especially to Who fans (the Dennis Hopper rumours were based on fact!), but be warned that part two contains some major 2008 Christmas Special spoilers. This is one thing that intrigues me about the book, actually -- it covers the period up to pre-production/production on that special, but is published next week! Surely the Great Big Who Secrecy Machine can't allow too much to be revealed, but if not much is revealed it might feel a bit... empty? At least the book begins by covering the 2007 Special (The One With Kylie), so it's not like we're missing out on any "how a Christmas Special is different" bits. Still, I expect I'll find myself getting this on Christmas morning... then skipping to the 2008 Special bits before it's on that evening!
Lumley Threatens To Quit Britain
(from WENN)
"Actress Joanna Lumley has threatened to... hand back her British passport and become an Indian national if... former Nepalese Gurkha soldiers lose their battle to stay in the country. She says, "There is something wrong here... If this should go wrong for the Gurkhas I'm prepared to hand back my British passport and I'll take up Indian nationality. I was born in India; I had to pay to belong to this country. I was a British subject but not a citizen. If they despise them so much then they can despise me."" Top news story today on WENN; can't spot it on BBC News though. Tsk.
Spielberg, Jackson Can't Get Budget OK For Tintin
(from Studio Briefing)
Oh dear oh dear...
Tennant's Hamlet play sells out
(from BBC News)
Sounds like old news? This is about the London leg of the play, which sold out in under three hours! "Around 270 people queued up outside the Novello Theatre to buy tickets and several people camped overnight. Some 6,000 tickets were bought for the show, which starts in December, but on-the-day tickets will be made available." No doubt to long, overnight queues for every performance.
(from BBC News)
"Celebrities including The X Factor judges, Madonna, David and Victoria Beckham and Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have been transformed into Lego people to mark the 30th birthday of the toy figures."
David Hare on how the BBC killed the TV play by David Hare
(from Times Online)
It's somewhat ironic to start talking about there being no plays on TV just as the BBC go and air three of them, but Hare has a point nonetheless and it makes for interesting reading.
Doctor Who's secrets revealed, by Russell T. Davies
and
The Next Doctor
(from Times Online)
Surprisingly long excerpts from Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale, a new book by Russell T Davies and DWM set reporter Benjamin Cook. Very interesting, especially to Who fans (the Dennis Hopper rumours were based on fact!), but be warned that part two contains some major 2008 Christmas Special spoilers. This is one thing that intrigues me about the book, actually -- it covers the period up to pre-production/production on that special, but is published next week! Surely the Great Big Who Secrecy Machine can't allow too much to be revealed, but if not much is revealed it might feel a bit... empty? At least the book begins by covering the 2007 Special (The One With Kylie), so it's not like we're missing out on any "how a Christmas Special is different" bits. Still, I expect I'll find myself getting this on Christmas morning... then skipping to the 2008 Special bits before it's on that evening!
Lumley Threatens To Quit Britain
(from WENN)
"Actress Joanna Lumley has threatened to... hand back her British passport and become an Indian national if... former Nepalese Gurkha soldiers lose their battle to stay in the country. She says, "There is something wrong here... If this should go wrong for the Gurkhas I'm prepared to hand back my British passport and I'll take up Indian nationality. I was born in India; I had to pay to belong to this country. I was a British subject but not a citizen. If they despise them so much then they can despise me."" Top news story today on WENN; can't spot it on BBC News though. Tsk.
Spielberg, Jackson Can't Get Budget OK For Tintin
(from Studio Briefing)
Oh dear oh dear...
Tennant's Hamlet play sells out
(from BBC News)
Sounds like old news? This is about the London leg of the play, which sold out in under three hours! "Around 270 people queued up outside the Novello Theatre to buy tickets and several people camped overnight. Some 6,000 tickets were bought for the show, which starts in December, but on-the-day tickets will be made available." No doubt to long, overnight queues for every performance.
Music: "Another Way to Die"
Another Way to Die (song) by Jack White & Alicia Keys
The new Bond theme had its debut play on BBC Radio 1 this morning (news story). I have mixed feelings -- some bits are great, others mediocre, but it certainly sounds Bondian and should be great over the opening titles. I suspect it will grow on me.
If you're in a legal mood, you can listen to an official 40-second preview here; or you can track down the full song by listening to today's Jo Whiley show from the iPlayer (available until Thursday 25th). You'll need to fast forward to around 55 minutes in, and it's played after clips from Paul McCartney & Wings' Live and Let Die and a-ha's The Living Daylights (great themes both), and Whiley's variable (i.e. sometimes incorrect) opinions on previous themes.
On the radio broadcast, and on that news story, they share viewer opinions -- typically for the BBC, they seem to focus especially on the negative comments. British fans are very good at that.
The new Bond theme had its debut play on BBC Radio 1 this morning (news story). I have mixed feelings -- some bits are great, others mediocre, but it certainly sounds Bondian and should be great over the opening titles. I suspect it will grow on me.
If you're in a legal mood, you can listen to an official 40-second preview here; or you can track down the full song by listening to today's Jo Whiley show from the iPlayer (available until Thursday 25th). You'll need to fast forward to around 55 minutes in, and it's played after clips from Paul McCartney & Wings' Live and Let Die and a-ha's The Living Daylights (great themes both), and Whiley's variable (i.e. sometimes incorrect) opinions on previous themes.
On the radio broadcast, and on that news story, they share viewer opinions -- typically for the BBC, they seem to focus especially on the negative comments. British fans are very good at that.
Thursday, 18 September 2008
TV
8 Out of 10 Cats
7x03 (18/9/08 edition)
Dexter
2x09 Resistance is Futile
2x10 There's Something About Harry
Dexter's second season heads into its final third. It's gone by far too fast -- even though I've been trying to ration the episodes to one at a time (ep9's ending was too good to resist) -- which is entirely down to me no longer being able to get FX so downloading the episodes and churning through them in under two weeks! (As opposed to the twelve it would take when broadcast, which is how I watched season one.) It's its own fault -- it's just too damn good to put down.
God, the Devil and Bob
1x13 Bob Gets Involved [series finale]
And it's over. A shame.
Mock the Week
6x11 (18/9/08 edition)
Thunderbirds IR Trailer
Seems that, back in 2005, Carlton tried to do a new version of Thunderbirds as a puppets/CGI combo thingy, with new puppet & ship designs. Scott Tracy looks freaky. While some of it's moderately impressive, the use of puppets and CGI is more than a little jarring -- it looks like a spruced-up old series, not a brand new one -- and some of the dialogue is appalling. "Scott, pull up, it's too risky! The whole place is gonna blow in 10 seconds!" "Good -- I only need 9." Good? Good? It's not good. Anyway, I'm sure there's room for a decent Thunderbirds remake (the desire from critics for the crappy movie to be any good shows that), but I doubt this would've been it either. Oh well.
7x03 (18/9/08 edition)
Dexter
2x09 Resistance is Futile
2x10 There's Something About Harry
Dexter's second season heads into its final third. It's gone by far too fast -- even though I've been trying to ration the episodes to one at a time (ep9's ending was too good to resist) -- which is entirely down to me no longer being able to get FX so downloading the episodes and churning through them in under two weeks! (As opposed to the twelve it would take when broadcast, which is how I watched season one.) It's its own fault -- it's just too damn good to put down.
God, the Devil and Bob
1x13 Bob Gets Involved [series finale]
And it's over. A shame.
Mock the Week
6x11 (18/9/08 edition)
Thunderbirds IR Trailer
Seems that, back in 2005, Carlton tried to do a new version of Thunderbirds as a puppets/CGI combo thingy, with new puppet & ship designs. Scott Tracy looks freaky. While some of it's moderately impressive, the use of puppets and CGI is more than a little jarring -- it looks like a spruced-up old series, not a brand new one -- and some of the dialogue is appalling. "Scott, pull up, it's too risky! The whole place is gonna blow in 10 seconds!" "Good -- I only need 9." Good? Good? It's not good. Anyway, I'm sure there's room for a decent Thunderbirds remake (the desire from critics for the crappy movie to be any good shows that), but I doubt this would've been it either. Oh well.
Magazines: DWM #400
Doctor Who Magazine #400
DWM hits the big four-oh-oh. At 29 years old, it's surely one of -- if not the -- longest running TV-tie-in magazines ever?
It's a good issue too: Russell T Davies' Production Notes have little to say about the forthcoming specials, but there are dribs & drabs of news about them (the first will be at Easter, for example, and it would seem the Christmas 2009 special is by RTD, not Steven Moffat).
There are two centre piece articles. The first is The Sheer Brilliance of Doctor Who, named after the BBC continuity announcer's introduction to The Fires of Pompeii. As you might guess, it's all about why Who's so great. It also includes a wonderful short feature which I shall now describe: way back in 1999, DWM got five TV professionals to speculate on how the show might return. Nine years on, they've all worked on the revival -- Paul Cornell, Mark Gatiss, Gareth Roberts... and Steven Moffat and RTD themselves. It was always one of my favourite DWM features, and it's very amusing seeming their reflections on their predictions. Roberts is spookily spot-on...
The other key feature is Four Hundred DWMs!, whose subject is again eminently guessable -- it picks out key moments, articles, etc, from the past 400 issues. Side-boxes provide entertaining asides (appropriately enough). My favourites are the "12 Things We'd Never Heard Of When..." blobs, which list things that didn't exist or hadn't been heard of in the years issues 1, 100, 200 and 300 were published. They emphasise just how long DWM's been going, and how much the world has changed -- for example, #200/1993 includes "Harry Potter", "Oasis", "DVDs" and "The Internet", while #300/2001 includes "The iPod" and "9/11". The others include suitably major world changes and cultural events too, as well as amusingly specific Who references (just to go spoiling it -- "Adric", "Eric Saward", "The Cloister Bell", "The Valeyard", "Melanie Bush", "Andrew Cartmel", "Bernice Summerfield", "The Humanian Era", "Big Finish", and "Raxacoricofallapatorius" all feature, as well as other Who-related general ones).
There's also an interview with RTD, In the Midnight Hour, which I'm off to read now. It mentions his forthcoming very-good-looking book, Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale -- more about that in tomorrow's Articles column, probably. There's World of Adventures!, a preview of the forthcoming second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures (ooh, everything's forthcoming and previewed!); and Why DWM Made Me The Fan I Am, which I think is another of those interminable single-page "a fan's diary"-style columns they have these days. Ugh.
Amongst the other articles, I actually read the preview of The Forever Trap, the second audiobook-only story (read by Catherine Tate this time); the Extras section of the review of The War Machines DVD ("Powsht Offish Taah"); reviews of The Doctor Who Storybook 2009 (it feels too self-promotional that this is Pick of the Month), the Sonic Screwdriver Pen Set and Interactive Sonic & Laser Screwdriver Set toys; and the brief concluding interview, Who On Earth Is... David Tennant, which contains the following priceless exchange:
Tennant: "Shakespeare's all right, but he's lacking on spaceships."
DWM: "Shakespeare never won a BAFTA."
Tennant: "Well, that's my point. Shakespeare never won the Dennis Potter Award, so he can't be that good."
And to round it off, there're a massive six competitions! Usually it's two stuffed in a quarter-page box, but no, there's two whole pages on them here. Amongst the usual CD and DVDs prizes there's a print of DWM's four-cover spectacular from issue 398, and a chance to visit the set of Who! Good luck to anyone bold enough to enter.
Oh, and there's a double-sided poster -- Tennant on one side, all 400+ covers on the other. Spot where you began! (I'm #239.)
DWM hits the big four-oh-oh. At 29 years old, it's surely one of -- if not the -- longest running TV-tie-in magazines ever?
It's a good issue too: Russell T Davies' Production Notes have little to say about the forthcoming specials, but there are dribs & drabs of news about them (the first will be at Easter, for example, and it would seem the Christmas 2009 special is by RTD, not Steven Moffat).
There are two centre piece articles. The first is The Sheer Brilliance of Doctor Who, named after the BBC continuity announcer's introduction to The Fires of Pompeii. As you might guess, it's all about why Who's so great. It also includes a wonderful short feature which I shall now describe: way back in 1999, DWM got five TV professionals to speculate on how the show might return. Nine years on, they've all worked on the revival -- Paul Cornell, Mark Gatiss, Gareth Roberts... and Steven Moffat and RTD themselves. It was always one of my favourite DWM features, and it's very amusing seeming their reflections on their predictions. Roberts is spookily spot-on...
The other key feature is Four Hundred DWMs!, whose subject is again eminently guessable -- it picks out key moments, articles, etc, from the past 400 issues. Side-boxes provide entertaining asides (appropriately enough). My favourites are the "12 Things We'd Never Heard Of When..." blobs, which list things that didn't exist or hadn't been heard of in the years issues 1, 100, 200 and 300 were published. They emphasise just how long DWM's been going, and how much the world has changed -- for example, #200/1993 includes "Harry Potter", "Oasis", "DVDs" and "The Internet", while #300/2001 includes "The iPod" and "9/11". The others include suitably major world changes and cultural events too, as well as amusingly specific Who references (just to go spoiling it -- "Adric", "Eric Saward", "The Cloister Bell", "The Valeyard", "Melanie Bush", "Andrew Cartmel", "Bernice Summerfield", "The Humanian Era", "Big Finish", and "Raxacoricofallapatorius" all feature, as well as other Who-related general ones).
There's also an interview with RTD, In the Midnight Hour, which I'm off to read now. It mentions his forthcoming very-good-looking book, Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale -- more about that in tomorrow's Articles column, probably. There's World of Adventures!, a preview of the forthcoming second series of The Sarah Jane Adventures (ooh, everything's forthcoming and previewed!); and Why DWM Made Me The Fan I Am, which I think is another of those interminable single-page "a fan's diary"-style columns they have these days. Ugh.
Amongst the other articles, I actually read the preview of The Forever Trap, the second audiobook-only story (read by Catherine Tate this time); the Extras section of the review of The War Machines DVD ("Powsht Offish Taah"); reviews of The Doctor Who Storybook 2009 (it feels too self-promotional that this is Pick of the Month), the Sonic Screwdriver Pen Set and Interactive Sonic & Laser Screwdriver Set toys; and the brief concluding interview, Who On Earth Is... David Tennant, which contains the following priceless exchange:
Tennant: "Shakespeare's all right, but he's lacking on spaceships."
DWM: "Shakespeare never won a BAFTA."
Tennant: "Well, that's my point. Shakespeare never won the Dennis Potter Award, so he can't be that good."
And to round it off, there're a massive six competitions! Usually it's two stuffed in a quarter-page box, but no, there's two whole pages on them here. Amongst the usual CD and DVDs prizes there's a print of DWM's four-cover spectacular from issue 398, and a chance to visit the set of Who! Good luck to anyone bold enough to enter.
Oh, and there's a double-sided poster -- Tennant on one side, all 400+ covers on the other. Spot where you began! (I'm #239.)
Wednesday, 17 September 2008
Music
The Cosmos Rocks by Queen + Paul Rodgers
Finally, it has arrived -- and it's brilliant. Hurrah! Packed with variety in a way only Queen seem to know how to do -- especially these days, when the first-listen of a new album often sounds like the same track played 10 times on loop. Stand out tracks for me (after one listen, mind) were:
Cosmos Rockin' -- a great opener; should've been the single, if you ask me
Time to Shine
Small
Call Me -- very different to the rest (a comment that could be used for several songs, but none more so than this)
Say It's Not True -- released as a free single last year, it's still a great song. That's just picking five from 14, mind, as I could also have mentioned Warboys, We Believe, Some Things That Glitter, C-lebrity, and Surf's Up... School's Out! The weakest moment, I thought, was track 3, Still Burnin'. It's by no means a bad song, but it suffers from poor placement -- too similar in theme to track 1, it would've been more effective as the final or penultimate track.
Still, these are minor gripes with an otherwise wonderful piece of work. Hurray!
Finally, it has arrived -- and it's brilliant. Hurrah! Packed with variety in a way only Queen seem to know how to do -- especially these days, when the first-listen of a new album often sounds like the same track played 10 times on loop. Stand out tracks for me (after one listen, mind) were:
Still, these are minor gripes with an otherwise wonderful piece of work. Hurray!
Articles
Alasdair Dewar Interview
(from doctorwhotoys.net)
"Exclusive Interview with Alasdair Dewar, Product Development Director of Character Group Plc, Maker of Doctor Who Action Figures". Clearly conducted via email too, but it does have some very interesting bits.
Fowl Author to Pen New Hitchhiker’s Guide Book by Dave Golder
(from SFX)
"Douglas Adams’s widow, Jane Belson, has given her blessing for Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer to write a sixth Hitchhiker’s novel, 16 years after Mostly Harmless [the 5th, and to date final, book in the trilogy] was published." Titled And Another Thing..., it's due out in October 2009.
Fox tackles contemporary Dwarfs by Nellie Andreeva
(from THR.com)
"Fox is developing a contemporary take on the classic Walt Disney tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs... Tentatively titled Georgia and the Seven Associates, the hourlong dramedy... is tonally described as The Devil Wears Prada meets Taxi set in Los Angeles' legal circles. It centers on Georgia Burnett, a young lawyer who is banished from a top law firm run by her stepmother and forced to team up with seven quirky lawyers at a storefront legal office... The associates at the firm will have the personalities of the Seven Dwarfs. For instance, Doc is an ambulance chaser who carries neck braces in his trunk, and Sleepy is a bike messenger who parties at night and naps in the office. Some of the legal cases will be modernized fairy tales, like one about three people whose homes were taken away by Wolf Corp. However, 'the tone we are looking to do is grounded, and the humor comes out of the characters,' Brancato said." A 'grounded' tone, with those characters and that idea? Good luck!
Thunderbirds (UK BD) in September by Dave Foster
(from DVD Times)
Ethnic discrimination on Thunderbirds cover! Well, kinda. Thanks to some kind of cock-up, thepuppets Tracy brothers of International Rescue are being threatened not by the evil Hood, but by their cook, Kyrano. 'Best Cover Image Mess-Up Ever'? Quite possibly.
(from doctorwhotoys.net)
"Exclusive Interview with Alasdair Dewar, Product Development Director of Character Group Plc, Maker of Doctor Who Action Figures". Clearly conducted via email too, but it does have some very interesting bits.
Fowl Author to Pen New Hitchhiker’s Guide Book by Dave Golder
(from SFX)
"Douglas Adams’s widow, Jane Belson, has given her blessing for Artemis Fowl author Eoin Colfer to write a sixth Hitchhiker’s novel, 16 years after Mostly Harmless [the 5th, and to date final, book in the trilogy] was published." Titled And Another Thing..., it's due out in October 2009.
Fox tackles contemporary Dwarfs by Nellie Andreeva
(from THR.com)
"Fox is developing a contemporary take on the classic Walt Disney tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs... Tentatively titled Georgia and the Seven Associates, the hourlong dramedy... is tonally described as The Devil Wears Prada meets Taxi set in Los Angeles' legal circles. It centers on Georgia Burnett, a young lawyer who is banished from a top law firm run by her stepmother and forced to team up with seven quirky lawyers at a storefront legal office... The associates at the firm will have the personalities of the Seven Dwarfs. For instance, Doc is an ambulance chaser who carries neck braces in his trunk, and Sleepy is a bike messenger who parties at night and naps in the office. Some of the legal cases will be modernized fairy tales, like one about three people whose homes were taken away by Wolf Corp. However, 'the tone we are looking to do is grounded, and the humor comes out of the characters,' Brancato said." A 'grounded' tone, with those characters and that idea? Good luck!
Thunderbirds (UK BD) in September by Dave Foster
(from DVD Times)
Ethnic discrimination on Thunderbirds cover! Well, kinda. Thanks to some kind of cock-up, the
Tuesday, 16 September 2008
Articles
And in the end... by Mat Snow
(from Mojo #179, p.70)
Mojo have heard some of the long-awaited Beatles remasters, three years (and counting) in the works. But they're nearly ready! I've never paid money for anything by the Beatles, so now (and by "now" I mean "when these are released") may be the time.
Born Again by Mark Blake
(from Mojo #179, p.82-95)
Long feature, marking the release of Queen's new album, that features remaining band members Brian May and Roger Taylor looking back at the group's late-'70s disco-influenced reinvention.
The Caped Cuss-Ader by Dareh Gregorian and Rebecca Rosenberg
(from New York Post)
First heard this story the other day, but this pun-packed title was too good not to mention. For those who missed it, DC Comics released issue 10 of All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder (it's a title and a half, ain't it?) with swear words uncensored. And this is America, of course, where "damn" is controversial. They've tried to have all copies destroyed (to be replaced with an appropriately censored version), but naturally not everyone's complied -- copies are going for as much as $250 on eBay. Holy instant collector's item Batman! (Sorry.)
Che It Isn't So by Page Six
(from New York Post)
This blog seems to have wound up following the story of Steven Soderbergh's Che -- I'm not entirely sure how, or why, but there you go. As I've already reported, the film will see a limited cinema release later this year; but the latest addition to that development goes thusly: it's "going almost straight to video. Soderbergh refused to cut the 4-hour-and-22-minute biopic... Given that the audience at the Cannes Film Festival was underwhelmed, no one wanted to give the epic a theatrical release. [But IFC] will release it in theaters in New York and LA just long enough to qualify for the Academy Awards, and make it available simultaneously "on demand." Che will later be available on video at Blockbuster." Just at Blockbuster? Or is that just One Of Those Turns Of Phrase. Also, the persistence of the term "video" -- of course, it technically doesn't just mean VHS, but that's still what comes to mind.
Review of Journey to the Far Side of the Sun DVD by James Gray
(from DVD Times)
"neatly bridges the gap between the two phases of [Gerry] Anderson's career. His first foray into live action cinema came about after the relative flop of his last two Supermarionation series... but while the film might star Roy Thinnes and Herbert Lom rather than Troy Tempest and Scott Tracy it is very recognisably a production from the same stable... Much like Space: 1999 several years later, its biggest flaw is [an] aloof detachment which means that, together with a script not as disciplined as it should be, this is a film very easy to admire for its visual style but almost impossible to like."
Straight Shooter by Mark Blake
(from Mojo #179, p.95)
A surprisingly detailed side piece about the genesis of Queen + Paul Rodgers, and what it was like creating The Cosmos Rocks. (My copy didn't arrive today. I'm annoyed.)
(from Mojo #179, p.70)
Mojo have heard some of the long-awaited Beatles remasters, three years (and counting) in the works. But they're nearly ready! I've never paid money for anything by the Beatles, so now (and by "now" I mean "when these are released") may be the time.
Born Again by Mark Blake
(from Mojo #179, p.82-95)
Long feature, marking the release of Queen's new album, that features remaining band members Brian May and Roger Taylor looking back at the group's late-'70s disco-influenced reinvention.
The Caped Cuss-Ader by Dareh Gregorian and Rebecca Rosenberg
(from New York Post)
First heard this story the other day, but this pun-packed title was too good not to mention. For those who missed it, DC Comics released issue 10 of All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder (it's a title and a half, ain't it?) with swear words uncensored. And this is America, of course, where "damn" is controversial. They've tried to have all copies destroyed (to be replaced with an appropriately censored version), but naturally not everyone's complied -- copies are going for as much as $250 on eBay. Holy instant collector's item Batman! (Sorry.)
Che It Isn't So by Page Six
(from New York Post)
This blog seems to have wound up following the story of Steven Soderbergh's Che -- I'm not entirely sure how, or why, but there you go. As I've already reported, the film will see a limited cinema release later this year; but the latest addition to that development goes thusly: it's "going almost straight to video. Soderbergh refused to cut the 4-hour-and-22-minute biopic... Given that the audience at the Cannes Film Festival was underwhelmed, no one wanted to give the epic a theatrical release. [But IFC] will release it in theaters in New York and LA just long enough to qualify for the Academy Awards, and make it available simultaneously "on demand." Che will later be available on video at Blockbuster." Just at Blockbuster? Or is that just One Of Those Turns Of Phrase. Also, the persistence of the term "video" -- of course, it technically doesn't just mean VHS, but that's still what comes to mind.
Review of Journey to the Far Side of the Sun DVD by James Gray
(from DVD Times)
"neatly bridges the gap between the two phases of [Gerry] Anderson's career. His first foray into live action cinema came about after the relative flop of his last two Supermarionation series... but while the film might star Roy Thinnes and Herbert Lom rather than Troy Tempest and Scott Tracy it is very recognisably a production from the same stable... Much like Space: 1999 several years later, its biggest flaw is [an] aloof detachment which means that, together with a script not as disciplined as it should be, this is a film very easy to admire for its visual style but almost impossible to like."
Straight Shooter by Mark Blake
(from Mojo #179, p.95)
A surprisingly detailed side piece about the genesis of Queen + Paul Rodgers, and what it was like creating The Cosmos Rocks. (My copy didn't arrive today. I'm annoyed.)
Websites
Supermarionation entry on Wikipedia
"Not to be confused with Super Mario Land."
'Super Mario Nation', you see!
I don't usually descend to Internet-originated acronyms on this site, but as this is the Websites column... lmao!
"Not to be confused with Super Mario Land."
'Super Mario Nation', you see!
I don't usually descend to Internet-originated acronyms on this site, but as this is the Websites column... lmao!
Music
Normally I'd carry these over to Tuesday's entry, but that will surely be dominated by The Cosmos Rocks, so here they are in an unusual inbetweeny post instead.
James Bond Theme (Casino Royale Trailer Version) by Pfeifer Broz. Music [many listens]
I've only had this track two-and-a-half weeks, but it's already my 9th most played song of all time on iTunes -- and I'm obsessively thorough with keeping those play counts up-to-date, so that means something (well, to me).
Runaway (song) by Queen + Paul Rodgers
It doesn't really sound specifically like Queen -- with the exception of Brian May's guitar, which is always recognisable -- but, regardless, it's an utterly fantastic cover. Recommended. (This song is currently available exclusively through iTunes.)
Summer in the City cover versions (originally by the Lovin' Spoonful)
Another great song, which I've acquired a selection of covers of, by:
Los Challengers -- Latin-Rock-y, and great. Probably my favourite.
Pierre Belmonde -- instrumental on panpipes. Seriously.
Subt Lemon -- kinda punkier. But, like, modern punky.
TEA -- '70s cover (of the '60s original). Rock-y. They're all pretty good, in my opinion.
(Click the artist's name for an iTunes link.)
James Bond Theme (Casino Royale Trailer Version) by Pfeifer Broz. Music [many listens]
I've only had this track two-and-a-half weeks, but it's already my 9th most played song of all time on iTunes -- and I'm obsessively thorough with keeping those play counts up-to-date, so that means something (well, to me).
Runaway (song) by Queen + Paul Rodgers
It doesn't really sound specifically like Queen -- with the exception of Brian May's guitar, which is always recognisable -- but, regardless, it's an utterly fantastic cover. Recommended. (This song is currently available exclusively through iTunes.)
Summer in the City cover versions (originally by the Lovin' Spoonful)
Another great song, which I've acquired a selection of covers of, by:
(Click the artist's name for an iTunes link.)
Monday, 15 September 2008
TV
The Children
Part 3 (of 3)
The ending was a bit of a muddle -- while I quite liked the 'how they each could have done it'/'alternate endings' bit, the desperate attempts to re-implicate everyone in the run up to the conclusion were forced and the identity of the real killer seemed unbelievable to me -- but everything else about this series was top-quality drama, with an emotionally complex plot and depressingly realistic, consistently unlikable characters. If only everything on telly could be this good... then we'd all be depressed the whole time -- I'll take my "good guys always win" dramas too, thanks.
Dexter
2x07 That Night, a Forest Grew
Gilmore Girls
5x06 Norman Mailer, I'm Pregnant!
God, the Devil and Bob
1x11 Bob's Father
Part 3 (of 3)
The ending was a bit of a muddle -- while I quite liked the 'how they each could have done it'/'alternate endings' bit, the desperate attempts to re-implicate everyone in the run up to the conclusion were forced and the identity of the real killer seemed unbelievable to me -- but everything else about this series was top-quality drama, with an emotionally complex plot and depressingly realistic, consistently unlikable characters. If only everything on telly could be this good... then we'd all be depressed the whole time -- I'll take my "good guys always win" dramas too, thanks.
Dexter
2x07 That Night, a Forest Grew
Gilmore Girls
5x06 Norman Mailer, I'm Pregnant!
God, the Devil and Bob
1x11 Bob's Father
Films
Agatha (1979)
[#62 in 100 Films in a Year 2008]
Southland Tales (2007)
[part of 100 Films in a Year 2008]
[1st half]
A dodgy rental DVD means I had to stop this halfway through, hence no number til it's done.
[#62 in 100 Films in a Year 2008]
Southland Tales (2007)
[part of 100 Films in a Year 2008]
[1st half]
A dodgy rental DVD means I had to stop this halfway through, hence no number til it's done.
Articles
George Takei marries longtime partner Brad Altman by Sandy Cohen
(from Mail.com)
Star Trek star George Takei and his partner, Brad Altman, have "agreed to live long and prosper together." *Groan* I dread to think how many articles about this have used that pun.
Little Britain Angers Gay Rights Groups
(from WENN)
Ah, the little British (ho ho!) show that could. What amuses me most is that it's a gay rights group complaining. Clearly, gays in Hollywood don't have a sense of humour -- I mean, I'm not Little Britain's biggest fan (I will give the American relocation a go though, when it turns up), but it's pretty clear it's not homophobic by any means.
(from Mail.com)
Star Trek star George Takei and his partner, Brad Altman, have "agreed to live long and prosper together." *Groan* I dread to think how many articles about this have used that pun.
Little Britain Angers Gay Rights Groups
(from WENN)
Ah, the little British (ho ho!) show that could. What amuses me most is that it's a gay rights group complaining. Clearly, gays in Hollywood don't have a sense of humour -- I mean, I'm not Little Britain's biggest fan (I will give the American relocation a go though, when it turns up), but it's pretty clear it's not homophobic by any means.
Websites
Videos from the Queen + Paul Rodgers Album Club
Primarily, an interview with the band about their new album, The Cosmos Rocks (released today; still waiting for my copy). The videos begin with a notice about the group's YouTube channel, but if anyone can actually find this please let me know.
Also revealed is that they recorded a 20-minute cover version of the excellent song Runaway, originally by Del Shannon, though decided not to put it on the album. However, thanks to Wikipedia's Runaway entry, I've discovered it's available as an iTunes exclusive -- edited to a sensible five-and-a-half minutes.
Primarily, an interview with the band about their new album, The Cosmos Rocks (released today; still waiting for my copy). The videos begin with a notice about the group's YouTube channel, but if anyone can actually find this please let me know.
Also revealed is that they recorded a 20-minute cover version of the excellent song Runaway, originally by Del Shannon, though decided not to put it on the album. However, thanks to Wikipedia's Runaway entry, I've discovered it's available as an iTunes exclusive -- edited to a sensible five-and-a-half minutes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)