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Tuesday 18 December 2018

What's new on the Box this Christmas?

No, I'm not back...and I know it's coming up to a year since my last post, And a rather trying year it's been, although I'll not bore you with the details. I'm not back to the healthy and hearty PPP of yore, but I am much improved and try to stay positive.

However since it has been something of a tradition for me to jeer at films scheduled for the Christmas fortnight on the British terrestrial channels, I can not let 2018 go unscathed. Each year becomes more and more of a disappointment for an insatiable devourer of movies like me and I really love (not) the fact that the Radio Times double Christmas issue is described as "Legendary". Bah, humbug!

Of the dozens of movies scheduled on the five terrestrial channels (let's forget about the Freeview and Sky satellite channels for the moment), the vast majority are repeats with the focus on animations of recent years. Let's plonk the kiddies in front of the TV so they can watch "Frozen" for the umpteenth time. Of course there is not a single foreign-language film or a silent amongst those on offer...and very very few from the '50s or '60s (more on this below) nor perish the thought absolutely anything from cinema's 'golden era' of the '30s and '40s.

Anyhow, let's have a look at the terrestrial premieres and assume that others have not already tasted these at the cinema or on disc or on a satellite channel. I'll confess now there are only three -- repeat three -- that yours truly has not seen and two of these I could live without ever viewing. Among the best new films for the kids (and those young-at-heart adults like myself) are Zootropolis (BBC1 on the 24th), the highly-recommended live Jungle Book (BBC1 on the 25th), The BFG (BBC1 on Boxing Day), Kung Fu Panda 3 (again BBC1 on the 27th), and the pick of the bunch Inside Out (BBC1 on New Year's Day).

Of the non-kiddie premieres, I can only recommend The Revenant (BBC2 on the First) and Ant-Man (BBC1 on the 29th). My take-it-or-leave it premieres for the grown-ups include the seasonal horror Krampus (Channel 5 on the 23rd), Anchorman 2 (Channel 4 on the 29th), Star Wars VII (ITV on the 30th), and The Finest Hours (BBC2 on the First). The leading dud amongst the other premieres is Absolutely Fab-The Movie (BBC1 on New Year's Eve). Other "maybes" include The Night Before (Channel Four on the 24th) and the very silly Sausage Party (Channel 5 on Boxing Day).

So what else is there to watch? Well there are the various versions of A Christmas Carol. Forget about Jim Carrey, Albert Finney, George C Scott, and even the lovely Bill Murray; the best Scrooge by far (accept no substitutes) is Alastair Sim who can be found on lowly Channel 5 on Christmas eve. If you really need a second version, my choice would be The Muppet Christmas Carol (Channel 4 on Christmas Day). Then if you scour the schedules you can unearth a few older movies -- some even in black and white: the horror! -- which are always worth re-watching including Rear Window, Guys and Dolls, The Dirty Dozen, The Titfield Thunderbolt, The Happiest Days of Your Life, and a sprinkling of World War II movies which are not to my taste. If you factor the Freeview channels into the equation you could locate Holiday Inn, Brief Encounter, and Red River.

And me??? Well I've not seen most of the daily premieres on Sky 301 although, there's little there that excites me.  At least there's the joy of Neil Brand's three-part The Sound of Movie Musicals on BBC4 which started last Friday and continues this Friday and on the 28th. That will be my escape from the diet of largely pap in the Radio Times 'Legendary' issue.

No idea when I shall return...but I do wish you all the joy of the holiday season and my sincere wishes for a productive, prosperous, and peaceful 2019.
,  

Sunday 21 January 2018

The End of the Road...Maybe

They say that all good things come to an end...and so this may be my last blog entry. Or perhaps it will prove to be a rest stop on a continuing long journey.

After many years of robust health it seems I am not as well as I might have hoped and must now embark on a series of procedures which may sap my usual strength and enthusiasm. I shall of course continue to watch as many films as time and inclination allow. They will remain my beacons of hope that one day I can continue their celebration.

For now, bless us all...

Sunday 14 January 2018

Fallen by the Wayside

Sky Cinema does screen a lot of rubbish in its mission to provide a "new" premiere every day (that's redundant since 'premiere' means showing for the first time anyhow), but occasionally -- apart from their showcase movies on a Friday -- they unearth some well-made and interesting films that never made it 'big'. Some of these never received a UK release or just disappeared from the cinemas after a so-so weekend -- and sometimes they are more interesting than their blockbuster cousins.

I watched two such films in the last week. First up was "The Book of Henry" (2017) which I've learned was a major flop in the U.S. and which probably never made it to this country. It was an involving and ultimately very moving gem. Single mum Naomi Watts has two sons. The elder, pre-teen Henry, is an out-and-out genius who quietly provides for his mother by brilliantly dabbling in the stock market and who regularly offers her sage advice; the younger is just an ordinary little boy, who deeply loves his mother and his brother. Unfortunately Henry soon succumbs to a brain  tumour. He is played by Jaeden Lieberher, who subsequently played Stuttering Bill in the recent horror hit of Stephen King's "It". The youngster is Jacob Tremblay, previously Brie Larsen's locked-up son Jack in "The Room" (2015) and now playing Julia Roberts' facially-deformed son in "The Wonder". Both are consummate little actors.

But the real stand-out is Watts -- an excellent actress who is so often overlooked when the kudos are handed out. Ironically she is a close friend of Nicole Kidman and originally came to the States as a nanny to Kidman's adopted children, prior to breaking out in "Mulholland Drive" (2001). The further irony is that I think she's a better actress than Kidman, who while certainly adept too often comes across as full of herself and self-promoting. This possibly explains Kidman's all-star persona and her award-grabbing status, leaving the talented Watts in her shadow. Watts is supported in this film by a bravely trashed-down Sarah Silverman as her best friend and villain du jour Dean Norris as her next-door neighbour, who Henry suspects of abusing his daughter and for whose murder he has left his mother detailed instructions after his own untimely death. It's all quite a ride!

The second movie of note was "Rules Don't Apply" ostensibly a biopic of Howard Hughes and obviously a pet project for Warren Beatty, who wrote and directed the movie and took the leading role as well. However this film is far from a vanity project, since it is well-researched, well-acted by its large and relatively starry cast, and Beatty does an excellent job of getting into the persona of the eccentric billionaire. By coincidence I recently watched another Hughes biopic the 1977 TVM "The Amazing Howard Hughes" with a young Tommy Lee Jones in the lead. Now Jones was probably too young for filling the shoes of the older Hughes and Beatty was probably too old to believably play the younger Hughes, but both actors made a good fist of their roles.

The focus of the 2016 bio is however slanted to a subplot, the on-off relationship between Lily Collins as one of Hughes' 'kept' starlets, all on the payroll and promised movie stardom in never-to-be made flicks, and Alden Ehrenreich (first noticed in the Coens' "Hail Caesar!" and soon to be thrust into mega-stardom as the new Han Solo) as her chauffeur and later Hughes' confidant. The film suffers a little from its length and inclusiveness but with a supporting cast of Annette Benning, Candice Bergen, Matthew Broderick, Oliver Platt and Martin Sheen, it remains more than a good watch. It also serves to remind us that erstwhile A-list movie stars age just like the rest of us. I doubt that this movie made any dents in the US Box Office, but it's really rather well done.

Sunday 7 January 2018

The Rest of the 'big' Holiday Premieres

Since I highlighted Sky's 'big' premieres (all 2017 releases) over the New Year's weekend, I feel obliged to make a few comments about their worthiness. I assure you, these will be brief -- since while all three passed the time relatively painlessly, I very much doubt that I would choose to watch any of them a second time.

First up is the animated "Boss Baby" where the new arrival puts a spanner in the works of the cosseted 7-year old narrator and his previously doting parents. Arrived dressed in a dark grey business suit and complete with attache case, the baby knowingly voiced by Alec Baldwin is the new focus of attention. He's a baby with a mission out to stop the takeover plans of tycoon Steve Buscemi; and without his magic milk he just might be returned to the baby factory as yet another ordinary child. All pretty high-concept and pretty silly with the would-be humour pitched to the adults in the audience -- not really a kiddie's flick at all.

"The Zookeeper's Wife" is one of those worthy films about 'just' gentiles saving the lives of a  number of local Jews during World War II, the latest in a long line of such 'true' stories. Set in Poland (but for some reason filmed in Czechoslovakia) it stars Jessica Chastain as the wife of (yes) the Warsaw Zoo's boss. She does her usual top-class job (complete with a suitable accent) of bringing the character to life and is rapidly becoming the Meryl Streep of her generation.
She's surrounded by a little-known cast of foreign actors led by Johan Heldenbergh as her heroic husband, with only Daniel Bruhl (playing Hitler's pet zoologist and the villain of the piece) being a familiar face. Worthy, but marginally depressing viewing.

New Year's Day marked the premiere of "Kong - Skull Island" which features on a number of lists as among the worst releases of 2017. I wouldn't go that far since, as a popcorn picture, it was an effortless watch even if the world doesn't really need any more Kong movies. This Kong is HUGE and actually a goody ape, intent on protecting the natives on his island against the more terrifying underground creatures. However he is a 'weapon of mass destruction' when his turf is bombed by Samuel L Jackson and his military troops. I have one question: if this was an unknown, isolated, and supposedly uncharted island where did the natives come from? Jackson is after vengeance for the slaughter of his men and ultimately reaps his just desserts along with the other 'villain' John Goodman who begot the mission. Tom Hiddleston (ugh) and the normally competent Brie Larsen are the somewhat wasted romantic leads and only John C Reilly as a leftover World War II soldier stranded on the island with his now dead Japanese counterpart helps to make the nonsense more watchable. 

I did in the end find two full-length documentaries which I had not noted previously, buried in the schedules and both proved rewarding. "Leslie Howard - The Man who Gave a Damn"  (2016) was a biography of the 30's heartthrob whose plane was mysteriously shot down over Portugal in 1943, having returned from Hollywood before "Gone with the Wind" was premiered in Atlanta to help with the British war effort. I have other programmes about the actor but what made this one particularly interesting is that it was put together by the now grown man, who as a child was forced to give up his seat on the doomed flight for a VIP passenger -- thus saving his life. 

The other doc of interest was thrown into the afternoon schedules on Sky Atlantic together with a number of other movie related documentaries which had previously been shown on Sky Arts. However "Drew -- the Man behind the Poster" (2013) was in fact an unheralded premiere. It's the fascinating life history of the very likeable Drew Struzan (and I freely admit that I did not know his name previously) who created some of the most memorable movie posters of all time. He's a brilliant artist -- painting in a hyper-realistic style -- rather than an imaginative draughtsman like Saul Bass. We've all seen dozens of his fantastic works and they have stuck in our collective memory, without knowing anything about the man behind them. He has now retired since the growth of photo-shopped posters have taken over the field -- far less expensive and certainly less memorable than hand-painted ones -- but he is still painting and turning out wonderfully crafted artworks. Bless him!