“Julian! Come in, have a seat. First of all, Mr Fellowes, let me just say that everyone here at ITV is such a fan of the series four scripts. All this stuff on rural economics and tenant farming? Just golden. And the taxation bill storyline? Wowee. There is one thing though. We’d like to do something to really shake things up. Put Downton back on the front pages, so to speak....
The Infinite Man can’t resist some staples of comedy, but for it to work it needs to – and does – address the creepy and desperate behaviour of its protagonist. If anything, it lacks the courage of conviction to see it through, with a more profound statement possible instead of the halfway house ending it settles on. Genre conventions are difficult to shift, but at least it manages to present us with a convincing relationship and likeable oddballs....
One of the terran military’s tactics against the Formics involves the training of adolescent troops to fight on our planet’s behalf – their youthful minds being more adept at controlling complex space-faring battleships. One such trainee is Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield), a slight yet forceful young lad who hopes to gain the approval of his father by becoming a military success. In what could be described as a struggle to sell what is a fairly dark fable about war and empathy, Ender’s Game has been pitched as a “Harry Potter meets Star Wars” PG-13 bit of fantasy fun (this is, in fact, the line seen on the film’s television advertising in the UK)....
Back when we did interviews for Star Trek Into Darkness a few weeks’ back, we got to have a chat with Damon Lindelof. He kindly agreed to answer a very spoiler-ific question, on the proviso that we held it back until after the film had been released wisely around the world. Which it now has. Hence, this article. If you have, though, then you’ll know just what we’re about to talk about....
MTV made a low budget bet on Yo! MTV Raps at a time when rap music struggled to get airtime on popular radio. The show almost immediately made waves across the world. It featured a mix of music videos, live performances, and guest appearances by the likes of Notorious B.I.G., Eric B & Rakim, Run DMC, NWA, A Tribe Called Quest, and Tupac to name just a few. As it was put in the Yo!...
If I had made any predictions about where the 2nd Mass would head after their victory against the Espheni in Boston, I definitely wouldn’t have guessed they’d be separated and reliving the days of Nazi Germany, complete with ghettos and re-education centers. And don’t get me wrong – it’s entertaining. But why reinvent the show so completely? The biggest shot to the gut is the loss of the Volm, who have abandoned the humans they just finished rescuing with an irritatingly abstract excuse: war on another front somewhere else in the galaxy....
2.6 Rhinoceros As with any creative decision, there are positive and negative aspects to the approach, but ultimately, it’s a valid view and a valid decision for Hawley to make. I thought about this a lot while watching Rhinoceros, an episode that created several opportunities to reflect on it. The self-contained element (or semi self-contained, in this case, where distinct seasons are linked) adds a sense of jeopardy to the lives of characters who won’t be returning next year in any case....
3.3 The Law Of Non-Contradiction Erstwhile on Fargo, the writers signalled their intention to eschew the expectations of a (broadly) realistic period crime saga by introducing a flying saucer at a critical point in the story. Bold move. Even bolder to leave the spinning spacecraft as something that only existed on the very fringe of the narrative, a potentially colossal event that was used as little more than ornament. It was equally audacious, and perhaps even more effective, to devote several sections of this week’s episode to a series of sweet natured animated sequences featuring the philosophical quest of a good natured android named Minsky....
It’s sad, but that’s life. One of the things that let me knew that George and I weren’t destined to be happy together was when I read that he’d put Indy IV on hold, after rejecting a script from Frank Darabont. It felt like a bad decision at the time, and it still does now. I’m so over the whole Lucas thing that, until last night, I hadn’t even seen Indy IV; and nothing I’d read about it made me want to, particularly....
From Dusk Till Dawn prolonged the suspense a bit more this week, while helping to make our Ranger friend look a little more bad ass. It starts with everyone going into the bar, though Seth has a little altercation with the guy up front and breaks his node. Once they’re inside Seth, Scott, Kate and Jacob (mostly Seth really) start doing confessions along with shots around a table. Jacob tries to keep his kids in line, though only God knows why at this point....
3.2 Dark Wings, Dark Words For a show that’s already running over with cast members, it seems crazy to add more people, but it seems as though Benioff and Weiss have picked some of the better personalities from the volumes of words written by George R.R. Martin, and the immediate standout, unsurprisingly, is the Queen of Thorns herself, Lady Olenna Redwyne. From her very introduction in King’s Landing, Olenna is a certified stealer of scenes thanks to Dame Diana Rigg....
This week, we’re talking about transgender and transphobia. And we’re handing you over to Daniel Langrish-Beard… I was at a staff party for the Southampton branch of TGI Fridays about 15 years ago. It was in a big hotel somewhere in the New Forest and it was our Christmas do. TGI Fridays did always seem to have great staff parties and to this one, for a change, people were allowed to bring guests....
6.2 Hostage Situation I mention this because, although the final season has plenty of time to turn things around, as of right now… hoo-boy. If I thought that the season premiere got a little too goofy (I did), I didn’t know what goofy was until I saw Hostage Situation. But it’s actually worse than that because at least the premiere was clearly trying to be funny sometimes and dramatic at others....
1.8 The Mask We all wear masks, metaphorically speaking, and that was the running theme throughout this week’s episode. ‘Who’s hiding behind what mask, and whose mask is beginning to fall?’ we were asked to consider, with some interesting results. We dug a little deeper into Ben McKenzie’s Jim Gordon this week, with his years in the army and his lust for justice leading to some delicate prodding around basic hero-analysing questions: Is Jim a good man, or a killer?...
In tonight’s episode, appropriately titled “The Demon’s Head,” we see R’as truly start to exercise his power, with Siddig having some fun with the role and giving what I think is one of the best on-screen portrayals of R’as al Ghul ever. “I’m having a great time,” Siddig said. “Bad guys are the most fun to play because they get all the best lines. They’re often the sexiest roles, so I’m really lucky to get that....
“Episode Six” spends the least amount of time yet with Detectives Miller and Carver yet. The investigation has stalled with little to no new information coming in. Miller and Carver are forced to resort to enlisting Tom to recreate Danny’s fateful nighttime skateboard hooligan binge to establish a timeline. After that, Ellie learns of Susan threatening Kathy and that the boat that was burned belonged to Owen. That’s about it for new leads....
Every night since the first episode aired last year, before going to bed I get down on my knees and pray to Brian Fuller for Hannibal sexy time. Finally, he decided to shine his benevolent creative light (which has full access to Mikkelsen’s naked body) on this viewer. Spoiler alert! Dr. Bloom finally realized that she should not be wasting her kisses on the diminutive (and frequently sweaty) Will Graham when she could have some sweet, sweet Hannibal loving....
Last week’s Elam-focused episode in hindsight was meant to be an ode to the character. I kept waiting for something or someone from Cheyenne to show up and remind me of the show I was watching, but the only mentions were Jimmy Two Squaws and Charlotte referencing outdated information about Eva and the child she surrendered. I was on guard for most of the episode, not quite looking over my shoulder, because it wasn’t the show viewers have grown accustomed to watching for three seasons: an entire chapter dedicated to Comanche Indians and a rehabilitating freed African American....
As a former stage actor, the opening scene was problematic for me because of the blocking and directing. It was one of those television and movie moments when I roll my eyes and exclaim, “Really?” I’ve often thought this season that the writers haven’t been on the same page with the story they want to develop. No city or town would grow if not for new arrivals, but the revolving door of the provisional governor and crew, and Sidney obviously meant to reveal a part of Cullen’s past feels disruptive and heavy-handed....
Hitchcock deals with an artistically important moment in America’s past; the creation of Psycho, the most popular film in its director’s career, and one of the most influential films in horror cinema. Like Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty, Hitchcock is about a strong character bravely risking their reputation to achieve their chosen goal. It’s 1959, and director Alfred Hitchcock (here played by Anthony Hopkins in heavy jowl makeup) is growing creatively restless....
