TV

24: Live Another Day
9x04 2:00PM - 3:00PM

TV

24: Live Another Day
9x03 1:00PM - 2:00PM

Friday Night Dinner
4x04 The Pyjamas
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

Miranda
3x03 The Dinner Party [3rd watch]

TV

24: Live Another Day
9x01 11:00AM - 12:00PM
9x02 12:00PM - 1:00PM
With the new spin-off on the horizon, finally getting round to the last go-round of the original-flavour series: this "event series" (rather than a full season 9, at least officially) from 2014 (which is when I finally got round to watching season 8!) Despite the supposed distance, it's very much the same 24 it was towards the end of its regular run.

Miranda
3x02 What a Surprise [2nd watch]

Films

Enemy (2013)
[#136 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Friday Night Dinner
4x03 Congratulations
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

Miranda
3x01 It Was Panning [3rd watch]

Films

Charlie Wilson's War (2007)
[#135 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Cowboy Bebop
1x19 Wild Horses
1x20 Pierrot Le Fou

Miranda
2x06 The Perfect Christmas [season finale; 3rd watch]

this week on 100 Films

A whopping 7 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week! They were...


Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)

it’s dark, and to do it justice the makers needed to make it R-rated [and] they’ve done just that. So here we have a very faithful adaptation of the graphic novel… but it’s a bit short, so there’s a 28-minute prologue stuck on the front. Designed to ameliorate some of the issues people have with the original book, it’s actually only made things worse, containing brand-new controversial elements all of its own. Oh dear.

Read more here.


Blackhat (2015)

The great Michael Mann, who once helmed genre-defining crime movies with expertly-directed sequences, here delivers a movie that looks like an amateur cheapie by a film student who’s watched too many Paul Greengrass movies without learning anything meaningful from them.

Read more here.


Brooklyn (2015)

Guiding us through this, the film’s heart in every respect, is Saoirse Ronan’s leading performance. I will watch Ronan in essentially anything at this point, both because she seems to choose good material and because, even when she doesn’t, she’s great in it. This is probably her first really mature performance, convincing as a somewhat shy young woman who makes her way out into the world, in the process realising all the confidence she should have in herself.

Read more here.


Chappie (2015)

Neill Blomkamp seems to be on M. Night Shyamalan’s career path: a massively-praised Oscar-nominated breakthrough genre movie, followed by a series of increasingly maligned follow-ups.

Read more here.


Lucy (2014)

After years producing movies in the Taken stable, Luc Besson directs one himself. Unfortunately it’s a poor effort — not a bad movie, exactly, but a deeply silly one.

Read more here.


Pan (2015)

this is an exciting and enjoyable fantasy adventure, best commended for its inventive, well-realised visuals and colourful design, which when it really clicks can be quite incredible. I suppose that might not be enough to overcome a familiar plot for some viewers, but it eases the way in this particular example.

Read more here.


The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2015)

It’s easy to dismiss films like this as twee vehicles chasing the so-called ‘grey pound’, but, in this instance at least, that would do it a disservice. When a film is as amusing and emotional as this one, while also exploring an increasingly relevant aspect of life... then its audience should reach far wider than the age bracket of its principal characters.

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Mission: Impossible II (2000)

M:i-2, as we used to call it, is pretty much everyone’s least-favourite Mission movie, a place only cemented by the two excellent instalments that have been released during this blog’s lifetime. To be honest, I’ve never really been sure why. It’s very much a John Woo movie, all overblown action and melodramatic stakes, and I’d be tempted to say that turns people off were it not for the love Face/Off receives. Personally I like his style

Read more here.


Moulin Rouge! (2001)

These days there are plenty of musicals appearing on the big screen, and they’re often contending for the top gongs come awards season. This wasn’t the case back in 2001 — Moulin Rouge, divisive as it is, changed all that. Baz Luhrmann’s injection of modern MTV style gave the genre a kick up the arse, which isn’t necessarily to the taste of classic musical fans but certainly brought the genre renewed mainstream attention.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

Films

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984)
[#134 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,877 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,202 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 675 [up 3]

Number of discs in collection: 4,825 [up 3]
Number of films in collection: 2,070 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,308 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

Films

Armageddon (1998)
[#133 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Preacher
1x09 Finish the Song
1x10 Call and Response [season finale]
[Watch Finish the Song and Call and Response (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

Talking Preacher
1x02 Talking Preacher on Call and Response [season finale]
Considering how much there could be to say about adapting Preacher for TV (why they made all the changes they made, the thought processes involved in making those decisions, etc), this is incredibly lightweight. I mean, I guess it's kind of designed to be, but a proper in-depth discussion would be great. Maybe there'll be something on the Blu-ray...
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

Films

Road Games (1981)
[#132 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Preacher
1x07 He Gone
1x08 El Valero
[Watch He Gone and El Valero (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

TV

Miranda
2x05 Just Act Normal [3rd watch]

Films

The Good Dinosaur (2015)
[#130 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Pride (2014)
[#131 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

It's been August for exactly a week today, which means my look back at July on 100 Films in a Year may seem old news but... well, maybe it is, but it's still time to post it here:




In other news, 4 brand-new reviews were published this week...


Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Ultimate Edition (2016)

As someone who genuinely enjoyed Batman v Superman’s theatrical cut, it’s hard to say how much better the Ultimate Edition is for viewers who were less convinced. However, I do think it’s a question of “how much better” rather than “is it better”, because this is certainly a superior version of the film — the fact it’s now over three hours long notwithstanding. The new cut won’t ‘fix’ the movie for viewers who object to the inherent tone and style of the piece, but if you’re open to that, this cut does improves the storytelling and character arcs for a smoother experience overall.

Read more here.


Big Eyes (2014)

It’s certainly a bizarre tale, and given even more of an otherworldly edge in Burton’s hands. He’s reined in here compared to his more fantastical leaps, but even when he does the real world it’s not quite our world (see also: Ed Wood). Nonetheless, it makes what could have been a slight tale more interesting than it would’ve been as a straight-up clean-cut biopic

Read more here.


The Lobster (2015)

the kind of odd movie that critics adore (90% on Rotten Tomatoes) and then, I always feel, spend some of their time looking down their noses at regular folk who don’t get it. In my experience, you have a 50/50 chance of such movies actually being any good. For me, The Lobster straddles that divide.

Read more here.


Sicario (2015)

Any viewers seeking simple action thrills will not be satisfied with the sequences offered here, but the way the scenes rely on suspense rather than bullet choreography makes for a supremely tense movie; one that can grip you like a vice and only occasionally let up, letting you catch your breath before it doubles down.

Read more here.


Finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


The Matrix (1999)

There are some movies where their significance almost outstrips the ability to judge them independently — Citizen Kane, for the most obvious example. I don’t know if The Matrix now appears that way to newcomers, but it could, because it’s hard to understate the impact it had on action/sci-fi movies (and other media) for the next decade or more.

Read more here.


Minority Report (2002)

it mixes exciting, propulsive plot and action sequences with thematic concerns that use science-fiction ideas to explore real-world issues, both tangible (the prevalence of state control and policing) and metaphysical (free will vs determinism). It makes for a rounded, thrilling movie.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Miranda
2x04 A New Low [2nd watch]

Films

Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)
[#129 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

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

Three additions this week more than double the number of new titles since the last running time update -- yep, it's that time of the month again.

Number of titles in collection: 1,874 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,202 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 672 [up 3]

Number of discs in collection: 4,822 [up 11]
Number of films in collection: 2,067 [up 7]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,308 [up 2]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
353 days, 14 hours, and 29 minutes.
(Up 13 hours and 52 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.