tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79899913828246417582024-03-14T06:38:23.468+00:00The Weapon X Labsporadic movie reviews and general newswayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.comBlogger372125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-40987662140691856342016-06-30T15:41:00.003+01:002016-06-30T15:41:37.493+01:00The Stakelander: The unknown movie sequel<br />
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5 years ago, I was introduced to the talents of Jim Mickle and Nick Damici through the excellent Stake Land. It was a gut wrenching journey though a vampire infested apocalyptic landscape where people were just as dangerous as the zombie like vampires. For viewers of the TV show, The Walking Dead, this is now familiar territory. But 5 years ago, it wasn't so well used a concept. There were strong scenes of infantcide, and implied rape, in which we saw an 80s favourite; Kelly McGillis in a very different role from her most famous, as that of Charlie in Top Gun. The film had a noir aspect to it with the narration from Connor Paolo' character Martin. It felt a fresh movie big budgeted than the estimated $650K that it reportedly cost.<br />
So, inexplicably, we find that a secret sequel has been made with no fanfare until now. Similarly to Phantasm Ravager, the fifth in the Phantasm series, no prior announcement was made until production was completed. In the age of the internet, this is unusual and welcome. You couldn't do with this with just any movie, of course, but Stake Land, like Phantasm, has it's fair share of fans.<br />
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The characters of "Mister" and Martin were well written and well acted by the leads. The supporting cast were also memorable. It was great to see vampires true to their origins and not anaemic types that we saw (or avoided) in the Twilight saga.<br />
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The name Stakelander conjures up memories of Highlander, which celebrates it's 30th anniversary soon. Highlander spawned a TV show and I understood that a treatment for a Stake Land TV show was circulating. This treatment may well have been the beginning of a continuation that has now been released as a TV movie premiere. SyFy have co-financed it as a "SyFy Original". As little is known about it (It hasn't got an entry on imdb, as I write) it's difficult to guess at what format it will be released in first; TV, disc or VOD.<br />
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The Press:<br />
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Dark Sky Films, Glass Eye Pix and Syfy today announced the completion of production on <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">THE STAKELANDER</strong>, the eagerly anticipated follow-up to the acclaimed action horror hit Stake Land. The film, based on an original screenplay by Nick Damici, wrapped shooting in Saskatchewan this past week. Damici and co-star Connor Paolo reprise their Stake Land roles in the new film, which was directed by the team of Dan Berk and Robert Olsen of Last Pictures, creators of the 2015 thriller <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Body</strong>.</div>
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Damici, co-writer and star of <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">We Are What We Are</strong> and <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Cold in July</strong>, returns in the role of Mister and Connor Paolo (<strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Mystic River</strong>, TV's <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Revenge</strong>) is back as Martin in a new adventure set a few years after the events in Stake Land, in which mankind must struggle to survive in the wake of a vampire apocalypse. Also starring are Laura Abramsen (<strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Basic Human Needs</strong>), AC Peterson (<strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Shooter</strong>), Bonnie Dennison (<strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Beneath</strong>), Kristina Hughes (<strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Green River</strong>) and Steven Williams (TV's <strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Supernatural</strong>).</div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>Dark Sky Films, Glass Eye Pix and Syfy today announced the completion of production on THE STAKELANDER, the eagerly anticipated follow-up to the acclaimed action horror hit Stake Land. The film, based on an original screenplay by Nick Damici, wrapped shooting in Saskatchewan this past week. Damici and co-star Connor Paolo reprise their Stake Land roles in the new film, which was directed by the team of Dan Berk and Robert Olsen of Last Pictures, creators of the 2015 thriller Body.</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>Damici, co-writer and star of We Are What We Are and Cold in July, returns in the role of Mister and Connor Paolo (Mystic River, TV's Revenge) is back as Martin in a new adventure set a few years after the events in Stake Land, in which mankind must struggle to survive in the wake of a vampire apocalypse. Also starring are Laura Abramsen (Basic Human Needs), AC Peterson (Shooter), Bonnie Dennison (Beneath), Kristina Hughes (Green River) and Steven Williams (TV's Supernatural).</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>THE STAKELANDER was produced by Peter Phok and Larry Fessenden of Glass Eye Pix, Greg Newman of Dark Sky Films and co-produced by the Syfy Channel, where the film will premiere as a Syfy Original, as well as Mark Montague of Berkserker Entertainment. Chadd Harbold of Last Pictures supported as Associate Producer. The film marks the latest collaboration between Dark Sky Films and Glass Eye Pix, the production teams that have brought audiences countless successful elevated genre films, including Stake Land, The House of the Devil, The Innkeepers and Late Phases, among others. </i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>When his home of New Eden is destroyed by a revitalized Brotherhood and its new Vamp leader, Martin finds himself alone in the badlands of America with only the distant memory of his mentor and legendary vampire hunter, Mister, to guide him. Roaming the wilderness of a steadily decaying country, Martin goes in search of the one man who can help him get revenge. Once reunited, Mister and Martin prepare to battle a now-ravenous Brotherhood and its monstrous overlord. But it'll take more than the two of them to take down this terrifying new threat, and with more than just their lives now at risk, the stakes are higher than ever before. </i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>Producer Greg Newman said: "Jim Mickle's Stake Land has long been an audience favorite. The film was embraced by fans across the world and we are thrilled to see Nick Damici reprise his role of Mister, the master Vamp hunter."</i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "pt" serif , serif;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b><i>Producer Peter Phok said: "It has been so rewarding to bring such energetic and intelligent talents in Dan and Robert to further the story of Martin and Mister in the world of Stake Land. Filming this world in Saskatchewan, offered a multitude of breathtaking vast landscapes along with tremendous resources provided through Creative Saskatchewan and the providences' local union crew who were affable, professional, and incredibly hard working. We also found a number of strong local performers, who we are proud to have cast into The Stakelander."</i></b></span></span></div>
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<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-63700198247720021322016-06-17T16:11:00.000+01:002016-06-17T20:29:12.710+01:00Album Review: Cycle of Life by Ghost Community<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Some of the best albums take you on a journey; not necessarily based around a concept but take you on a journey of self-discovery. This is one such album. If you're into Prog Rock, cock rock, or Justin Bieber, (maybe not the latter, but "hey!" it's not for me to judge what you listen to) there's something here for you.<br />
Forgive me if you're expecting an album review full of platitudes about time signatures, chord changes and vocal dexterity - that's not going to happen here, after all, I'm not a music reviewer. This is about how the album makes me feel, and the content.<br />
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I'd drafted something in my head, a week or so back. I didn't get around to writing it until now and I wonder if "fate" intervened; because the last few days have been horrible. Nothing nasty has happened to me, but it feels like it has. I feel like I've lost someone close to me. A dark cloud has cast it's shadow over the land, perhaps the world. It's always been there in the form of famine, war, injustice and so on. I haven't dodged the bullets of loss over my life, just earlier this year losing what I class as a close friend. But these last few days have focused my attention on our journey more than ever, and then I found I hadn't written my thoughts on this album. (If you're sticking with this, I do get to a point).<br />
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Cycle of Life was written through a maelstrom of adversity, you can hear it but not necessarily feel it because this is an album of hope; and if we ever needed an album of hope, it's right now. In the West, we're on the brink of a meltdown and people need to come together and fight it. I don't mean with violence and I certainly don't mean through religion, which is partly to blame for the mess that we're in, but by recognising that we as a whole have the ability to change the world.<br />
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Cycle of Life is about community, hence the name of the band; Ghost Community. From the website:<br />
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Every single day, we see, communicate with and experience many “ghosts”, all of whom make up our very small world. As we go about our business in our daily lives, we cross paths with individuals who exist merely as voices at the end of a digital connection. We travel the country and the globe passing though borders, and making eye contact with their gatekeepers – and yet these moments are fleeting and all too soon forgotten.</div>
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We take up our positions on a stage and perform for a sea of smiling faces, faces that belong to people who travel far and wide, passionately supporting our every move, and yet we never really get to know them. With the advent of the Internet and the ever increasing prominence of social media channels, we impart information to and share details with hundreds if not thousands of strangers every day, feeling connected to them despite never having met in the “real” world.</div>
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This planet that we frequent – and which has become our collective home – is affected by many incredibly powerful, invisible factors that work together continuously to keep us alive. Those subtle, often hidden mechanisms determine how we live our lives and bring us all together. In a fast moving world we sometimes forget the one thing that truly holds everything together: people. These people are the “ghosts” that make up our community.</div>
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Without each other, what do we have?</div>
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This is the Ghost Community. This is our community. This is your community.</div>
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In it, we all stand together.</div>
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If you ever saw Donnie Darko and remember the strange tentacle like connections that went from person to person, that's a little like how I see it. We need to work together. It's simple but hugely difficult to put into reality. Anyway, the album:<br />
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Track 1 - Rise Up<br />
I first heard/saw this on You Tube and it blew me away, because even before the recent funk, it resonated. Musically, it's the sort of Rock that I love, not simple but melodic, energetic and rich lyrically. It opens the album with a mission statement; This is who we are, and what we are about. Simon Rogers guitar really shines through at about the 3 minute 57 mark, and reminds me of Steven Wilson's guitar work in Porcupine Tree. There are traces of Matt Cohen's musical DNA throughout. If you're familiar with his previous work in other bands, you won't be disappointed. That's not to say that the rest of the band are just automatons, churning out dictated music; far from it. Each player has his own identity and that is clear in this song, as an introduction of sorts to them all.<br />
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Track 2 - Mirror Lakes<br />
Beginning with a strong acoustic guitar sound, this song reminds me a little of the band I.Q. John Paul's vocals are reminiscent of the best Prog Rock vocalists and never disappoints. Roger's guitar riff reminds me a bit of Iron Maiden; never a bad thing.<br />
The lyric "You say you wanted to find me, I wasn't hiding." reminds me of the times people say that they meant to contact me but haven't and then make themselves feel better by saying that I was difficult to get hold of.<br />
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A quieter track but peppered with melodic instrumental breaks. Simon Roger's guitar solo elevates the track at 4 minutes 06.<br />
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The track ends with a more angry set of lyrics "Who do you think you are?" Who indeed.<br />
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It must have been tempting to put this on the album as Track Number 1. I'm glad they didn't, it would have came across as a bit cheesy and wouldn't have made the album feel like that journey that I alluded to earlier on in this piece.<br />
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"Welcome to the Ghost Community. This is where all the pieces come together"<br />
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"We're all in this together"....<br />
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Track 3 - Anything & Everything<br />
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This track harks back to Matt Cohen's past projects with a familiar sound to it "Time could be behind you...". This is a track that I believe will stand out more in the live medium, at gigs. It twists and turns and will sound great! Nothing against the studio version, I just can't wait to hear it live. Jake's drumming is strong throughout the album but I think it stands out more for me in this track. He's always been very good and this album is no exception. Marillion fans might nod at some echoes of familiarity at 6 minutes, 46.<br />
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Track 4 - Blue December Morning<br />
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A song that resonates with any of us who are thinking about our mortality past 40 years old: The things we go through, the experiences we go through, as we journey though time. (Although I would have been able to relate to this at age 18, too). "How Can I be on my own..." - That feeling of being alone yet there are hundreds of people on my Facebook friends list. It's strange isn't it?<br />
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A quieter track but peppered with melodic instrumental breaks. Simon Roger's guitar solo elevates the track at 4 minutes 06.<br />
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The track ends with a more angry set of lyrics "Who do you think you are?" Who indeed.<br />
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Track 5 - Ghost Community<br />
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Unusually, not the title track but the name of the band. After all, this is what the band is about, what they stand for and what their mission statement is.<br />
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It begins like a Dead Can Dance track (never a bad thing) - an organ sound with initially acapella vocals. What strikes me about the album and it's shown in this track, particularly, is that the band share almost equal time. It's difficult for me to pick out significant contributions, which adds to the mission statement. Obviously, there are instrumental breaks as I've mentioned but GC is a track where, for the most part, the band are in powerful unison.<br />
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Having said that, Moray's keyboards play a larger part in emphasis in this track. I applaud the choices of keyboard sound on this album that never get in the way of the track as they do on some Prog albums, or used too little in others.<br />
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It must have been tempting to put this on the album as Track Number 1. I'm glad they didn't, it would have came across as a bit cheesy and wouldn't have made the album feel like that journey that I alluded to earlier on in this piece.<br />
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"Welcome to the Ghost Community. This is where all the pieces come together"<br />
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"We're all in this together"....<br />
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Track 6 - Cycle of Life<br />
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And so to the title track of the album; a 15 minute, 46 second epic.<br />
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Beginning with a nice synth and heartbeat, it goes into a quote about the Cycle of Life before developing into the song proper. Matt's bass has a strong presence in this track early on and kind of reminds me of Maiden without being Maiden, if that makes sense. Once again, Moray's keyboards are exciting, melodic and push the track forwards.<br />
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"It takes a second to change a life"<br />
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15 minutes and 46 seconds of this track fly by.<br />
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Despite my thoughts on the album this is not the musical equivalent of a Tolle style self-help book nor is it preachy and overbearing. It's a solid Rock album that I genuinely believe will haunt the top spots in many Rock fans Top 5 lists for 2016. It's exciting, melodic and inspiring.<br />
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Ghost Community doesn't need busting with this storming debut!<br />
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10/10<br />
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Look for live dates sometime in the future.<br />
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http://ghostcommunity.co.uk/gigs/<br />
<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-84462442983060522542014-10-14T21:53:00.003+01:002014-10-14T21:53:38.155+01:00The Walking Dead Season 5: Have we seen Neagan?I reckon all of you that have seen "No Sanctuary" Episode One of Season 5, have been blown away. What an exciting season premiere! There are plenty of reviews online, so I'm not going to get into that.<br />
What I will give is more kudos to the cast for outstanding performances, especially Andrew Lincoln, Melissa McBride, Chad L Coleman, and the kid that plays Judith. Also, Bear McCreary's score not only provides the voice to the fear in the episode but once again adds the humanity and emotion to the proceedings. The piece playing when the group meet up with Carol, Tyreese, and Judith was heartbreaking.<br />
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Instead of a review, I'm going to suggest that we've seen the first glimpse of a hot Walking Dead comic book character; Neagan.<br />
Just before the final credits we go back to "Then" before the cannibals became sick, twisted fucks. A guy opens a storage container door and picks out a girl, presumably for his pleasure and that of his colleagues.<br />
In the credits, the character is described as Terminus Guard, from what I can gather, and played by Nelson Bonilla. I could be wrong. Even in HD, we don't get a look at the actor long enough, but I think that this character could be Neagan, who is one crazy badass in the comic book and kills off a major character in a gruesome, grisly, and upsetting way.<br />
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Why? Well, in recent interviews, key TWD personnel have been saying that the TV series will be following the comic book more closely. By that I think they mean using key characters and some locations. It's been hinted that Neagan will appear sooner rather than later, despite Robert Kirkman's protestations.<br />
I guess we'll see....wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-40245340173485643042014-09-20T12:36:00.001+01:002014-09-20T12:36:41.124+01:00Crowdfunding: Cul-de-Sac<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="box-sizing: border-box;">1. A street, lane, etc., closed at one end; blind alley; dead-end street.</span><i style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">2. Any situation in which </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">further progress is impossible.</span></i></span></blockquote>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 16px;">A truly terrifying 'monster in the house' (found footage) movie based within 'Sackbury Pitch'- an ancient old English forest sheltering the remains of an iron age hill fort dating back to the Iceni tribes, Queen Boadicea's invasion of Camulodunum and foreboding tales of the malevolent 'spirit of the wood '.</b></div>
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Check out a new found footage movie trailer but with an Evil Dead style vibe. The rough trailer gives a good indication as what to expect. If you'd like to see it made and help with the director's vision, have a look at the Indiegogo page:<a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/cul-de-sac-horror-movie">Cul-de-Sac</a><br />
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Starring the excellent character actor Frank Jakeman, it shows much promise and it would be great to see it at a FrightFest event.wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-36839800134965769272014-09-19T22:53:00.000+01:002014-09-19T22:55:10.678+01:00Movie Review: The Equalizer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11289" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11288" style="font-size: 11pt;">When The Equalizer was announced, as a project, I wasn’t exactly surprised. The majority of Hollywood action movies fall into two categories; Super heroes and the recycled ideas from yesteryear. When it was announced that Denzel Washington was to play Robert McCall, directed by Antoine Fuqua (a favourite director of mine) my interest meter rose to “excited”.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv3207287626MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11355" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; padding: 0px;">
<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11354" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11353" style="font-size: 11pt;">I have to say that the trailer didn’t do much for me as a fan of the TV show. I say “fan” as an overused word, when in fact I just liked it. The elements that thrilled me, in my late teens, involved the supporting characters Mickey Kostmayer (The always excellent Keith Szarabajka), Robert Lansing’s Control, and later on, Jimmy played by another dependable character actor, Mark Margolis. The helped give McCall depth, which was necessary as Edward Woodward played McCall very straight and disciplined. His performance was mistakenly described as “wooden” on occasion, which was untrue. Woodward was a very warm human being and to be that character required him to act very differently to his nature. I can’t say the show was ground breaking but it had charm and was possibly the first popular TV show to have an older action hero as its main character. I can probably be corrected on that. It also ran into trouble for being violent. It was a product of it’s time during which New York was suffering pre-Giuliani. It was no surprise that The Punisher comic book was about to become popular during this period because he was doing what fellow New Yorkers were afraid to, stand up against the criminal elements.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11357" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11356" style="font-size: 11pt;">The tone of The Equalizer was quite vengeful. I recall an episode where a woman is strapped to a bomb. McCall rescues her and seemingly the perpetrator is escaping. The woman says to McCall:</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">“He’s getting away.”</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11361" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11360" style="font-size: 11pt;">McCall replies “No, he’s not” as he frees her from being tied to a chair. We hear an explosion as the criminal gets blown to bits from a car explosion that McCall has rigged.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11364" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11363" style="font-size: 11pt;">For most of the series, I liked the fact that you didn’t quite know exactly what McCall did for the CIA. That aspect has been carefully preserved in the film.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11368" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11367" style="font-size: 11pt;">The trailer made the film look like just another action film but branded with the name of a TV show, yet I did like the way in which McCall guessed how much time it would take to beat the living shit out of the bad guys. I should have had more faith in Fuqua, because the film itself is thrilling.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11372" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11371" style="font-size: 11pt;">It opens quietly and atmospherically as we’re introduced to McCall. Here is a man who lives in a Spartan apartment and has become a creature of habit. He has a job in a hardware store and at nights goes to read a book in the same coffee shop. He lives life by ritual; evident in the way he sits in the same place, unwraps a napkin of cutlery, takes out all but the spoon and tends to a cup of tea. Also a regular of the coffee shop is cute teenager “Teri”. Like most teenagers, she likes things that are bad for her and McCall sometimes brings her cake from the birthday celebrations at his workplace. She becomes drawn to him because she sees in his eyes her own feelings of loss. They strike up a guarded friendship and begin talking during their visits to the place. He’s well aware of what she does, but doesn’t judge her or even mention it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We’re treated to scenes establishing how well liked McCall is at work. He takes fellow worker, Ralphie (played by relative newcomer to movies; Johnny Skourtis) under his wing, as he’s training to be a security guard. These establishing scenes work well, as it’s easy to write a part in a revenge thriller and make the protagonist too dark and unlikeable.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">When McCall learns that Teri has been brutally treated by her pimp, he utilises his skills to face the pimp and his entourage and violently end their operation. By doing so, he incurs the wrath of the Russian mob who send their best enforcer to Boston , to investigate. This puts all the people that McCall cares about in danger, leading to a bloody inevitable climax. In between this, we see McCall helping out families against corrupt cops making this feel like the origin of the TV character, which the final dénouement pays off.</span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">For many years, I saw Denzel Washington as a “serious” actor who appeared to take roles in more high brow or cerebral projects like Glory, Much Ado About Nothing, The Pelican Brief, and Philadelphia (to name but a few). Lately, he’s proven himself to be a powerhouse of an action star. The Book of Eli is a good example, where he performed in widescreen action shots with little or no edits. His performance as Robert McCall is no disappointment. He truly nails the part of an ex-CIA operative atoning for the past.</span></span></b></h1>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 23px;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">Chloë Grace Moretz has already proven herself to be an energetic, and exciting actress in projects like Kick-Ass. She puts in a believable performance that harks back to Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver, although a bit older. Fuqua is careful not to over sexualise Moretz but keeping it obvious as to what profession she’s in. Moretz gives a sensous performance without it being dirty or explicit. She’s sympathetic and we can see why McCall is motivated to seek revenge for her. We’re put into the mind of McCall whereby she is seen as being in a bad place at the wrong, and is capable of so much more, given </span></span><span style="color: navy;"><span style="font-size: 15px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">the</span></span><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 23px;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;"> opportunity.</span></span></span></h1>
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<b><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">Martin Csokas plays the Russian enforcer, Teddy. Csokas puts in a physical performance that struck me as a more controlled version of Stansfield, in Luc Besson’s Leon . Whilst Gary Oldman went just a little too near the mark of OTT (to be fair he played Stansfield as he was; a drug addled psycho) Csokas plays Teddy as quietly menacing before launching into an ultra violent assault on an Irish mobster. Compare that scene to another where he murders a young woman. Incidentally, the cinematography is chilling in the latter scene and recalls Hitchcock’s Rear Window with the viewer as the observer. I was also reminded slightly of Argento’s Tenebrae where the camera travels up an apartment wall, peeking in windows. Csokas has probably been in more projects than you would initially realise. He was recently in Amazing Spider-Man 2 as Dr Kafka, and Sin City 2 as Ivan Kravec.</span></span></b></h1>
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<b><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px;">Bill Pullman and Melissa Leo put in appearances as two retired operatives that McCall visits to gain some information. In my view, this scene is instrumental in setting up a sequel. Otherwise, it seems slightly out of place in as far as the design is concerned. It serves to fill some background but raises more questions than answers, which is why I suspect that the Plummers might appear in a potential Equalizer 2; a movie I thought was greenlit but Fuqua was cagey about, saying that it will depend upon the success of this one. Given that both Washington and Fuqua are to work on The Magnificent Seven, it won’t be soon. Fuqua told us that when approached about the new version of the classic Western, Washington was only interested in what horse he would ride and the guns he would be given: Shrewd man.</span></span></b></h1>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">In my view, Fuqua is earning his place amongst directors like Scorsese, and Michael Mann. His attention to detail and artful use of the camera elevate his movies. The casting of his movies is always excellent, which helps. Harry Gregson-Williams rises to the occasion in this movie, making good use of the quiet moments by giving us a theme that implies the buried grief that McCall has. Gregson-Williams is one of the few composers in big budget movies that is capable of creating thematic sequences that are memorable after the film has finished and make me want to buy the score.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The screenplay by Richard Wenk (The Mechanic, 16 Blocks) is minimal and effective. By minimal I mean that we don’t get long laborious scenes of exposition. Fuqua fills in the gaps neatly through visual cues that give us what we need to know. Far too many movies bog down pacing by over plotting. There are no issues like that in The Equalizer. Of course, if you need, or have got used, to be drip fed information about a character, you’re going to be disappointed.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv3207287626MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11416" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; padding: 0px;">
<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11418" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11417" style="font-size: 11pt;">For a film based upon an eighties TV show, the movie has a 70s thriller vibe with 80s style editing. Mauro Fiore, who also worked on Fuqua’s Training Day, shows why he gets repeat work with the Director. The movie is stylish without becoming over stylised. I compare one of Washington ’s previous movies Man on Fire. I was irritated with Tony Scott’s ADHD style direction which spoilt a decent revenge flick. The Equalizer marries the stylish (McCall’s “Equalizer-vision when he analyses his opponents) to the more workman like hand-held camera work (subtly used to generate tension during scenes when McCall is being hunted by Russian heavies). Fuqua knows what lens, what camera to use for any given scene and it helps the movie along with being distracted. In the after screening Q&A, Fuqua points this out when questioned on what advice he would give budding filmmakers.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv3207287626MsoNormal" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11398" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; padding: 0px;">
<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11397" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11396" style="font-size: 11pt;">The action, when it comes, is hard and fast. There are plenty of action set pieces to enjoy. Before this gets to seem like a Neal/Fuqua love in, I do have only one small gripe that I can relay without spoiling the plot. Given that the movie’s action sequences, for the most part involve up close and personal violent fights between McCall and the antagonists, one big explosion is a bit out of place. I guess it’s necessary but it jars with the rest of the movie, for me. Like I said, a minor issue that didn’t affect my enjoyment of the movie. This is definitely in my Top Ten of 2014 movies.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11394" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1411161962544_11393" style="font-size: 11pt;">I managed to thank Fuqua for delivering a “Hard R” rated movie, and I meant it with no sycophantic attitude. It’s great to see a violent thriller aimed at adults for a change and not embracing the PG-13 money spinner. With this in mind, I hope people do go and see it so that The Equalizer 2 gets made. There’s more story to tell.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Antoine Fuqua during the after screening Q&A</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Thanks to www.DenofGeek.com for hosting the screening, and to Sony Pictures.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The movie will be shown in UK cinemas from </span></span><span style="font-size: 15px;">the</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Segoe UI, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> 26/09/2014.</span></span></span></div>
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wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-27880911660136443322014-06-29T16:46:00.000+01:002014-06-29T16:53:11.662+01:00Movie Review: Cold In July<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RuK4JZGzG_A/U7AusUe5k1I/AAAAAAAABjI/BXv5olhhCQE/s1600/photo-2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RuK4JZGzG_A/U7AusUe5k1I/AAAAAAAABjI/BXv5olhhCQE/s1600/photo-2.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Directed By</b> Jim Mickle<br />
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<b>Written By</b> Nick Damici, Jim Mickle (screenplay adapted from a Joe R Lansdale novel)<br />
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<b>Starring</b> Michael C Hall, Sam Shepard, Don Johnson, Wyatt Russell<br />
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<b><u>Synopsis (from imdb.com)</u></b><br />
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When a protective father meets a murderous ex-con, both need to deviate from the path they are on as they soon find themselves entangled in a downwards spiral of lies and violence while having to confront their own inner psyche.<br />
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<b><u>A bit of background</u></b><br />
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I've never made a secret of the fact that I'm a massive <b>Miami Vice</b> fan. So, when I heard that Don Johnson was going to guest on Graham Norton's UK chat show, I thought I'd catch it. I was interested in what Don was going to say about <b>Cold in July</b> (let's face it he was there to promote it). Just as it seemed that Don was going to talk about the <b>Miami Vice</b> years, Cheryl Cole interrupted by saying "<i>Cuuuld in Joo-lie, there must hav coom over ere</i>" or similar. Don lost his thread and whatever he was going to say got lost. Thanks Cheryl, after all it's all about you isn't it.<br />
So, after that disappointment, I was primed to see a screening of Cold in July, with the Director doing a Q&A. I was hoping perhaps Don being in the country might mean a surprise visit but sadly it was not to be.<br />
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<b><u>Review</u></b><br />
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This was always going to be a Perfect Storm, for me; a mix of Jim Mickle directing a <b>Joe R Lansdale </b>story, starring favourites of mine; <b>Don Johnson</b>, <b>Michael C Hall</b> and <b>Nick Damici</b> and scored by <b>Jeff Grace</b>. I'm a fan of all of them for different reasons. I sat there, thinking "Please don't suck". I can safely say that <b>Cold In July</b> doesn't suck. It's not the masterpiece that <b>Stake Land</b> was (I love that movie and I reviewed it <a href="http://www.flash-bang-movie-reviews.com/stake_land.html">here</a>) but it's a potential movie of the year for me, so far.<br />
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What struck me immediately, was that the opening scene was so <b>John Carpenter</b>. I wondered if Mickle had asked the man to do him a favour and take over directing reigns. Of course, he hadn't and it's no slight to Mickle that I reference Carpenter. It's a <i>clear</i> homage; a love letter to that era. The electronic score, by <b>Jeff Grace</b> evokes the Carpenter/Howarth collaboration that produced such iconic scores to <b>Halloween</b>, <b>Escape From New York</b> and <b>Dark Star</b>, yet has an identity all of it's own. Grace takes a theme that initially is a driving techno track and in the right places, repeats the theme with a gentle piano version that is very effective.<br />
Some of the shots emulate Carpenter's style, from <b>Halloween</b>. The night shoot is so good and refined that it could have been carried out by <b>Dean Cundey</b>. When the title arrives on screen it even appears to have the same font that Carpenter favoured for most of his movies. There is also a few nods to <b>Dario Argento</b>, with the use of colour and camera movement.<br />
Mickle's previous background in Horror movies will explain many of the tense scenes that follow those conventions, even down to the manhunt towards the end.<br />
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The movie begins with an intruder in Hall's house. To say much more than that might spoil the film. <b>Cold in July</b> is one of the few Lansdale novels that I haven't read. Generally, I stuck to his genre books (From Zombie Westerns to Drive Ins besieged by alien monsters) and the Hap and Leonard series (something Mickle is adapting to television, with a pilot due to be submitted this Fall). I went in without knowing the plot and the viewing benefitted from that.<br />
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In typical Noir fashion, an event opens up a whole can of bad worms, as the triumvirate of Hall, Shephard and Johnson find a common cause and a foe to vanquish.<br />
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Don Coscarelli showed that it was possible to film a low budget adaptation of Lansdale's novel whilst retaining the voice of Lansdale. Well, it was easy because on both occasions, Lansdale did adapt his own screenplays and this is the only minor gripe of mine; that Lansdale's voice wasn't quite as pronounced. This isn't a major failing and more of an nit pick on my part.<br />
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As one of my fellow viewers remarked on, at the Q&A, what Mickle does brilliantly is portray the last year of the 80s with reverence and accuracy. There are things that you'll laugh at; Hall's mullet, Johnson's car phone, but Mickle invites you to laugh without sarcasm. With the car phone, Mickle and Damici's screenplay cleverly references mobile phone signal issues that we still suffer today.<br />
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Having just seen 8 seasons of <b>Dexter</b>, I can say that at no point did I think "there's Dexter". Hall plays a not entirely sympathetic character who reacts to a situation and then finds himself discovering an ugly side to his character that has to tap into, to protect his family.<br />
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When <b>Don Johnson</b> arrives, the tone of the movie shifts and becomes a little lighter. His gravitas is perfectly in place, and similar to his participation in <b>Robert Rodriguez</b>'s TV adaptation of <b>From Dusk til Dawn</b>.<br />
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I've read that some found it difficult to empathise with the characters. For me, the characters become drawn together to get rid of a sickness that pervades their community. We don't see the bigger picture, we just see how the Dixie Mafia has influenced behaviour and encouraged it. There's no need to tell that bigger story.<br />
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Fans of <b>Blood Simple</b>, and <b>Fargo</b>, will enjoy this story. It follows a similar path to bloody and violent revenge thrillers, too.<br />
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The final scenes evoke memories of <b>John Flynn</b>'s <b>Rolling Thunder</b>, <b>John Woo</b>'s <b>A Better Tomorrow 2</b> with it's Peckinpah style violent gun battle.<br />
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<b><u>Verdict</u></b><br />
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With <b>Transformers 4</b> about to dominate the World Box Office, it's refreshing that a movie like this actually got a cinema release, whoever limited. I would have expected this to go straight on to disc. I hope this shows great faith in a director and writer whose careers on the up. I also hope that with <b>The Equalizer</b> receiving a "Hard R" certificate in the US, film studios recognise that movies that appeal to adults can still be made without editing them to a PG-13. Whilst I understand the economics of doing this, cinema is competing with increasingly violent TV shows like <b>Banshee</b>, <b>Game of Thrones</b> and <b>The Walking Dead</b>. With this in mind, I look forward to seeing the show based on Joe R Lansdale's Hap and Leonard stories. Good times in the Southern US will continue on screen.<br />
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<b>Cold in July</b> is currently on release.<br />
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A big thanks to FrightFest for putting on the screening and the Q&A. Tickets have just gone on sale for their annual London Film Festival. Find out how to buy tickets <a href="http://www.frightfest.co.uk/">here</a>.wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-63972260044893741212014-05-31T19:18:00.000+01:002014-05-31T19:18:16.781+01:00Movie Review: X-Men: Days of Future Past<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fmwU77FrSeg/U4ob6UiZ_7I/AAAAAAAABi4/Nl7lLDFHA8Q/s1600/x-men-days-of-future-past-poster-sans-texte-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fmwU77FrSeg/U4ob6UiZ_7I/AAAAAAAABi4/Nl7lLDFHA8Q/s1600/x-men-days-of-future-past-poster-sans-texte-7.jpg" height="320" width="215" /></a></div>
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<div class="body undoreset" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26339" style="background-color: white; display: table; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; padding-left: 0px; padding-top: 12px; width: auto; word-break: break-word; word-wrap: break-word;">
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26335" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26334" style="font-size: 11pt;">It’d be very easy for me to compare the comic book two parter, originally published in Uncanny X-Men 141/142 (Volume one, of course). After all, it’s one of my favourite stories. But, the movie stands on its own and is more of a sequel to First Class than the previous X-Men movies.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26460" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26459" style="font-size: 11pt;">That said, as this is a feature review, I will just mention the cool bits of the original story. What draws you immediately to the comic books are the covers. Uncanny X-Men has had some of the best covers and also some of the worst; the X-Babies comes to mind. The Days of Future Past delivered on the tag lines. Issue 141 is my all time favourite X-Men cover, with an older looking Kitty Pryde, and Wolverine (wearing a fur lined flight jacket) standing in front of a wanted poster, illuminated by a search light, that includes mutant and “normal” superheroes pictures, with either “Apprehended” on the face, or “Slain”. The second issue, 151, shows Wolverine being blasted by a Sentinel energy beam, with a tagline that says; “This Issue everybody dies!” Grim stuff.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26464" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26463" style="font-size: 11pt;">The opening images of hundreds of bodies being discarded into pits, showing the extent of a Genocidal policy is another Singer representation of a World War 2 atrocity that has even more resonance now, with extreme Right-wing views getting more support. With the ever increasing developments in A.I. and the potential for it to run amok, this story is still timely. Imagine 20 foot robots hunting down immigrants. It’s not difficult to do. In America alone they could be used along the Mexican border.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26468" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26467" style="font-size: 11pt;">The threat of the Sentinels, and the damage that they’ve caused, is conveyed very quickly in the opening act. Future X-Men, including Blink and Bishop are protecting Professor X, and Magneto (the old timers, basically) and working out ways to outwit the Sentinels. But, their days are numbered. It’s clear that the Sentinels are learning and adapting too damn quickly. Converting their current strategy, of sending people back in time to work out how to avoid the robots, it’s decided to use Wolverine for a much longer trip in order to change their future. Dodgy time travel theory aside, it makes sense for Wolverine to travel back in time, instead of another character due to his healing factor. Logan is also the most popular and interesting character for this to happen to. What follows are opportunities for humour, peppered along the way, such as his “first” meeting with Hank McCoy.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26472" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26471" style="font-size: 11pt;">Peter Dinklage is one of my favourite character actors alive today. I first noticed his skill, as an actor in Nip/Tuck. Then, like everyone else, I enjoyed his performance as Tyrion Lannister, in Game of Thrones. In this he plays Bolivar Trask, the creator of the Sentinel program and (unknowingly) the cause of such a bleak future. Like William Stryker, Trask thinks he’s saving humanity but he goes about it in such a misguided amoral way; carving up mutants on lab tables is not a benevolent way of addressing the matter. Nor is creating an army of killer robots. So, Mystique takes it upon herself to stop him. Logan is out to stop her. What follows is an entertaining and slightly thought provoking movie. I say “slightly” because the audience is sophisticated enough, now, for it. Back in 1981, the comic book story caused a fan boy stir.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Later in the movie, the future X-Men are dispatched in quite grisly ways. Whilst there’s no blood, that I could see, the brutal efficiency in the way the super-sentinels stab, spike, tear and decapitate is a little disturbing if you’ve seen the characters in the three movies.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Highlights for me included the Quicksilver sequence, which was just as innovative as the Nightcrawler scene was in X2 , where he invaded the White House. I liked the comedic moments with Logan but was disappointed at a limited battle with Sentinels. His claws did not get a work out. The movie was more a sequel to First Class than I initially suspected. Both McAvoy and Fassbender put in strong performances; McAvoy spitting out “I don’t want your future!” and Fassbender with his pained cry about how he didn’t do something that I’m not going to spoil. Logan takes a bit of a back seat. Just as he’s about to get all feral, he’s taken out of the picture. It reminded me of the Fox animated series, from the early 90s. Every time, Wolverine was about to get violent, they’d take him out of the story with a laser blast or something.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26501" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26500" style="font-size: 11pt;">I’ve seen comments about continuity, but there’s always been a problem with that. The obvious example being X-Men Origins, with the Director refusing to acknowledge stylistic references from X-1 and 2 despite the movie being a prequel. Continuity goes wrong in comic book form, too, so my advice is to ignore that aspect of Days of Future Past and enjoy it for what it is; an attempt to right some previous wrongs (in Last Stand, that is).</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26497" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26496" style="font-size: 11pt;">Days of Future Past was always a cautionary tale, with an explicit message about what can happen if the wrong decision is made. The film doesn’t shy away from this but to its credit it does exactly what comic books do. For those who want an action film, although there’s a wait for a big battle, there are battles beforehand, you get it. If you want something deeper than a blockbusting action flick then you can look deeper and find nuances of character that show that many of the main characters are going through some exploration of what it means to be who they are. The dilemma facing people is that of might over mental ability, at times.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26494" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1401538116230_26493" style="font-size: 11pt;">Is this the best X-Men movie yet? I’m undecided as I love X2. Only repeated viewings of a, hopefully extended, Blu-ray release will tell that.</span></span></div>
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wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-30794937750317935072014-05-10T23:36:00.000+01:002014-05-10T23:36:19.996+01:00The Chronicles of Wayfarer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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News coming soon...wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-70890362592570604422014-04-09T18:58:00.000+01:002014-04-09T18:58:37.872+01:00CD Review: Lucid by Matt Stevens<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div class="yiv4799180827MsoNormal" id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9790" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 36pt; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9789" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9788" style="font-size: 11pt;">I recall some years back actually queuing up for a gig. It was a K-Scope night at the Union Chapel and once again, Matt Stevens was handing out flyers encouraging people to listen to his music. I’d seen him support artists before, but I was struck by his tenacity, if you will, exuberance at continually working hard to self-promote. He did a superlative job and with the help of social media and word of mouth, news did get around and Matt’s popularity increased exponentially. I recall seeing him at The Borderline, as a support and he deserved a bigger crowd. As I sat, watching his amazing guitar work, he brought to mind a big bear of a Prog Mariachi-fast and furious, but with the contrast of being an exceptionally personable guy.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9812" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9811" style="font-size: 11pt;">I’ll avoid going into Matt’s biography, because I reckon you’re probably reading this because I’ve advertised it amongst my friends on Facebook, so you're one of the FB crowd instead of someone googling a review of Lucid and arriving here randomly. I’m not a music reviewer; I’ll leave that to my peers who deservedly get published on official music websites and in Rock publications, but I will proffer an opinion.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv4799180827MsoNormal" id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9809" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 36pt; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9808" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9807" style="font-size: 11pt;">Matt has proven to be highly creative when constructing guitar-based tracks. What he does brilliantly, and it shows on this album, is that he eschews the trappings that guitarists normally get into when releasing instrumental albums-you know, the sort of album that is a showcase for the individual’s talent as an artist, but is hugely self-indulgent and praised by only the most sycophantic of fans-and gets on with entertaining tracks that showcase the light and shade that he is capable of. Influences from his own work are clear in some tracks, but this is not a solo album that we’ve heard before. Fuzzy, dirty noise that you’d expect to here on a Fierce and the Dead track thrust through the track Unsettled, and is Jimi Hendrix after 15 pints of Doom Bar. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Echoes of previous solo work turn up in the tracks Flow, The Other Side, KEA and A Boy. Track 6 Coulrophobia appears, to me, to be influenced by Steven Wilson. It has that quality about it. Far from being a derogatory statement, I think it shows the evolution of Matt Stevens as a musician; in that he’s saturating in music that he enjoys and giving it that Stevens identity.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv4799180827MsoNormal" id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9837" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 36pt; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9836" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9835" style="font-size: 11pt;">If I had one criticism, it’s from a Prog fan’s perspective. Some tracks are just too damn short. Exhibit A: the title track, Lucid. This is a fine track and it feels like a ruined orgasm when it ends. It ends too soon; there’s no payoff for me. I hope Matt releases a longer version, to give a more satisfying experience. The Bridge, of course, cannot be criticised for this.</span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9839" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9838" style="font-size: 11pt;">Guest stars such as Jem Godfrey, Pat Mastelotto, and Stuart Marshall help to give the album a dimension that it deserves. The bass work by Lorenzo Feliciati and Charlie Cawood is particularly effective.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv4799180827MsoNormal" id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9863" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 36pt; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9865" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9864" style="font-size: 11pt;">If this is your first Matt Stevens album, I recommend hunting down his previous work. Lucid is so good that they might seem like demo recordings. Whilst that description sounds unfair, as the quality of Ghost, and Relic (for example) is very good, it serves to illustrate and chart the evolution of this clever guitarist. I’m excited to see what exposure Stevens gets from this album. I’m hoping that it opens more doors to collaboration.</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv4799180827MsoNormal" id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9856" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', 'Segoe UI', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin-left: 36pt; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9855" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_1_1397060387051_9854" style="font-size: 11pt;">Praise should also go to Esoteric Antenna, for putting their money where their mouth is and producing a memorable album that has immense replay value. With strong albums by The War on Drugs, and John Wesley already commanding my attention for album of the year, it should say much that Lucid now joins that battle, in my head, for the top spot. This is another good year for music, as it’s only April. Forthcoming albums include the new one from Opeth, IQ, and Tim Bowness. We’re spoilt rotten!</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Lucid can be bought from good record shops (try finding one) or all good </span></span><span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">inter web stockists. I recommend Burning Shed:</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.burningshed.com/store/mattstevens/"><span style="color: red;">https://www.burningshed.com/store/mattstevens/</span></a></div>
wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-71461542823601567012013-06-27T19:59:00.003+01:002013-06-27T19:59:58.370+01:00SHINEBACK - RISE UP FORGOTTEN, RETURN DESTROYED<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jv3aUSygSKo/UcyJ-SmOTfI/AAAAAAAABbs/BPFR81EzaMk/s1600/pact.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jv3aUSygSKo/UcyJ-SmOTfI/AAAAAAAABbs/BPFR81EzaMk/s320/pact.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="color: red;">A Plea to My Musician friends: Please stop recording such great albums!</span></b><br /><br /><span style="color: orange;">So, this week began with Kodaline's album. It's nice. It's a bit superficial and I thought it might be more of a grower. Too late, Poltergeist's album took over my IPod. Think of a 90s Britpop version of Krautrock and that comes slightly near to what this instrumental album is like. Then, thanks to an FB friend, I discovered Pearl Handled Revolver. Intrigued by the band name, I looked them up and like the fusion of blues rock with a singer that sounds like Lemmy with throat cancer. The bummer? They're playing London's Borderline tonight! Sometimes, fate is a cruel mistress. However, an album dropped on the mat that trumps the lot; Shineback's Rise Up Forgotten, Return Destroyed; let's just call it Shineback's album ;)<br /><br />I don't do music reviews (I don't do movie reviews anymore which is another sad story). I'm not great at reviewing albums as I have no technical musical ability to speak of but I can relate how an album makes me feel. If you want a proper music review, see my friend Chris McGarel. He is the music journalist of our time. Don't just take my word for it. Actually, you'll have to as I can't be arsed to look up a link.<br /><br />So, Shineback's album. I loved Tinyfish - a tiny prog band with exceptional talent, not those little fishes that nibble the dead skin from your feet in booths stuck in the middle of malls. That's Creepy. No, Tinyfish was fronted (as in they had a lead singer) by Simon Godfrey. I was hoping that Shineback would have ended up being pants so that I couldn't rave on about it. It would somehow seem disloyal to Tinyfish, but...bugger, the kid went and made a hugely enjoyable album.<br /><br />I expected more of the same that I'd heard through the Tinyfish material. What I got was a similar pleasant "WTF?" that reminded me of listening to Devin Townsend's Epicloud for the first time (you know, how can an album be so over produced but still very good? Epicloud dis that). I was a bit floored by Simon's direction. It's a bit like DBA - pop prog. Except...it's not really prog (we could argue this, as it has a ten minute track that can easily fall into the P bracket). At least with DBA, it was spot the Yes moment, or The Buggles. With Shineback, the lyrical format resembles Tinyfish, but anything else - forget it.<br /><br />This is an album that prog loving Fathers can listen to, without fear that their kids are going to whinge. You could pretend that it's the new Justin Bieber album but that would be a stretch. It does go a bit Blade Runner on track 14 which is never a bad thing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: orange;">It has some top quality guest stars on it including Matt Stevens.<br /><br />Shineback gets a whopping, but not incredulous 10/10 from me!</span><br />
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<span style="color: orange;">Buy the album here: <a href="http://themerchdesk.com/shop/index.php?route=product/category&path=136_147">http://themerchdesk.com/shop/index.php?route=product/category&path=136_147</a></span><br />
<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-18426871712124646962013-03-19T18:36:00.000+00:002013-03-19T18:36:23.203+00:00Movie News: Vendetta, starring Danny Dyer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_y1pHWUCo1o/UUivhIFPAQI/AAAAAAAABII/fyrxw9L7u-s/s1600/image.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_y1pHWUCo1o/UUivhIFPAQI/AAAAAAAABII/fyrxw9L7u-s/s320/image.png" width="276" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Richwater Films present<br />
A Jonathan</span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"> Sothcott </span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Production of<br />A Stephen Reynolds Film</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic';">DANNY DYER<br />In<br />VENDETTA</span></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Josef Altin, Roxanne McKee, Alistair Petrie, Nick Nevern, Bruce Payne,<br />Emma Samms, Tony Denham, Simona Bhrlikova<br />with Ricci Harnett and Vincent Regan</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Produced by Jonathan</span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"> Sothcott</span><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a2c4c9;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Written & Directed by Stephen Reynolds</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 16pt;">Production begins on VENDETTA</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Principal photography has begun in London on Richwater Films’ <b><i>Vendetta</i></b> starring <b>Danny Dyer</b>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Produced by <b>Jonathan Sothcott</b> (White Collar Hooligan, Fall Of The Essex Boys) and written and directed by<b>Stephen Reynolds</b> (The
Fall Of The Essex Boys) Vendetta is a hard-hitting vigilante action
thriller set in a world where the only response to incomprehensible
violence is an ‘eye for an eye’.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Dyer
features as a former SAS soldier and interrogation officer Jimmy
Vickers, who uses his combat skills to track down a feral gang who have
brutally murdered his parents in a terrifying home invasion. With police
closing in and his old unit on his trail, he has to evade capture long
enough to complete his gruesome crusade.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Vendetta</span></i></b><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"> marks
a return to form for Dyer, who is best known for his starring roles in
movies such as The Football Factory, The Business and Outlaw.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Producer <b>Jonathan Sothcott</b> explained
“audiences love Danny, he’s kind of like a 21st Century Michael Caine
for my generation, but they love seeing him in a certain type of film
and that’s something gritty, urban and violent. We felt it was about
time for a really tough vigilante movie in the style of ‘Death Wish’ and
‘Harry Brown’ and Danny was the only choice. London can be a horrible
place these days, with gangs of lads running riot, and lives are
affected on a daily basis. I think anyone who has been wronged and not
seen traditional justice has thought about taking the law into their own
hands, even if it was just for a second. Imagine if a crack SAS soldier
with all the associated skills that go with that decided to take
revenge. It’s a terrifying prospect but it will make a great movie.”</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><i><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;">Vendetta</span></i></b><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"> also stars <b>Vincent Regan</b> (Clash of the Titans), <b>Bruce Payne</b> (Passenger 57), <b>Roxanne Mckee</b> (Game of Thrones), <b>Josef Altin</b> (Game of Thrones), <b>Nick Nevern</b> (The Sweeney), <b>Emma Samms</b> and <b>Tamaryn Payne</b>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="font-family: 'Century Gothic'; font-size: 10pt;"><b><span style="color: black;">More information can be found on the official website: <a href="http://www.vendettathemovie.co.uk/">http://www.vendettathemovie.co.uk/</a></span></b> </span></span></div>
wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-11432859189013842692013-03-19T18:30:00.001+00:002013-03-19T18:30:42.336+00:00Coming Soon: Rob Zombie's Lords of Salem<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1iFMBtHShKk/UUit7k1NhbI/AAAAAAAABIA/wnwmIYaQSV8/s1600/The_Lords_of_Salem_poster_jpg_480x480_q93.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1iFMBtHShKk/UUit7k1NhbI/AAAAAAAABIA/wnwmIYaQSV8/s320/The_Lords_of_Salem_poster_jpg_480x480_q93.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">The Lords of Salem
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Opens in UK cinemas 19 Apr 2013</span></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">From the producers of “Paranormal Activity” and “Insidious” comes
writer-director Rob Zombie’s most highly anticipated shocker to date – a
brilliantly envisioned and haunting tale of witchcraft and Satanism.</span></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>What's it all about? </i></span></span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></b></span><br /><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A former drug user, Heidi is now clean and works as a rock DJ at the
local radio station along with fellow DJs, Herman Whitey Salvador and
Herman Jackson. Following one of their regular evening shows, Heidi
receives a square wooden box containing a vinyl record, the only
indication as to its origin is a note proclaiming “A gift from the
Lords”. Assuming it is merely a PR stunt by an ambitious band, Heidi
gives the record a spin and immediately begins to experience bizarre
flashbacks to a past, long-forgotten trauma triggered by the haunting
sounds contained on the record.</span></span></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What does Fangoria say about it?</span></span></b></i><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i> </i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></span><br /><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">“A psychological horror treat that burrows into the brain and tickles
with ideas. This is satanic horror done right, carefully twisting the
knife until the big finale without sacrificing scares along the way.”
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wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-88917823042467381412013-03-03T14:56:00.000+00:002013-03-03T14:56:15.470+00:00News Story: Bieber Bashed by Barnsley<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-msEIlAQBkdA/UTNjsf4-42I/AAAAAAAABHo/PVoC_DZ-FHc/s1600/162648955.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-msEIlAQBkdA/UTNjsf4-42I/AAAAAAAABHo/PVoC_DZ-FHc/s320/162648955.jpg" width="301" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In shock news last week, (<a href="http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/news/a461682/justin-bieber-wears-gas-mask-out-and-about-in-london-pictures.html">http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/news/a461682/justin-bieber-wears-gas-mask-out-and-about-in-london-pictures.html</a>) Justin Bieber was accused of copying what was a soon to be revealed secret costume element of the world famous Marillion fan group "The Parrotheads". Andreas Barnsley Woodrow accused Bieber of stealing the idea and then flaunting it all over London. The gas mask look was due to be part of a surprise costume idea to celebrate the Marillion album, Radiation, or R10, to 30,000 fans (including those sneaking in) in Holland this coming weekend.<br />Woodrow is no stranger to controversy. He has been accused of stealing costume ideas before. Brent Smithers, well renowned English/Scottish/Irish/Italian/Actually we really don't quite know where he's from, writer for "I C U" security magazine and Twitter acount, had this to say:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />"It wouldn't surprise me if Woodrow nicked this off Bieber. Woodrow stole my idea of bringing inflatables to gigs years ago. I like to wave an inflatable Strat in the air at gigs, so does he. But he always has to go one better."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />Woodrow is currently hiding out ahead of this weekend's Marillion gathering, citing that he will not be drinking and will be keeping a "low profile".<br />Meanwhile, Bieber who is President of the Making Sure Music is Mundane group is upset that his birthday didn't go according to plan. Close friends said that they didn't know who Corey Haim was. How were they to know that Bieber was going in Fancy Dress?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/news/a461682/justin-bieber-wears-gas-mask-out-and-about-in-london-pictures.html">http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/news/a461682/justin-bieber-wears-gas-mask-out-and-about-in-london-pictures.html</a></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5l8YEA_BQbQ/UTNkaCzas8I/AAAAAAAABHw/dQF_zJ7wpHY/s1600/wenn20177923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5l8YEA_BQbQ/UTNkaCzas8I/AAAAAAAABHw/dQF_zJ7wpHY/s320/wenn20177923.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-71996224921439643622013-01-05T11:24:00.000+00:002013-01-05T11:24:31.203+00:00Music: Mr MoonJune Recommends Vol 1<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4785" style="color: #3a352a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 1.3em; margin-left: 0; margin-right: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-top: 3px; padding: 0; vertical-align: top;">
<i> <span style="color: red;">Everyone likes something free, let's be honest, <b>especially music</b> but not all of us are happy to illegally download, so when an offer like this comes along to sample some refreshingly different music, it's well worth having a look at. I downloaded the previous comp that Leonardo provided and it was an interesting mix. Sure, I didn't get on with all of it but most of it appealed. If the genres match with your taste in music, experiment for a dollar! I'll let Mr MoonJune himself explain it all from his newsletter: </span></i></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6UnqXmJgPCI/UOgNFhXJNWI/AAAAAAAABHI/0vTNjxkB4pE/s1600/1048352825-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6UnqXmJgPCI/UOgNFhXJNWI/AAAAAAAABHI/0vTNjxkB4pE/s320/1048352825-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4785" style="color: #3a352a; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin-bottom: 1.3em; margin-left: 0; margin-right: 0; margin-top: 0; padding-top: 3px; padding: 0; vertical-align: top;">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4785" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">After the great success of the "<a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-e801a017e5d9f996fc8f2209073c9d3a-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4784" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">MoonJune Compilation: $1 and then $2 min. donation for 60 tunes</a>"
promotion launched in November of 2012, I'm now ready to offer another
selection of extraordinary sounds. Over the years I have received more
than 1,500 albums from artists all around the world soliciting a CD
release, trying to find a proper 'home' for their projects. I've done my
best to answer every single solicitation, and to listen to every single
album, although I must admit that some of the listening was done in
'fast-forward mode.' I suggested to some of the artists that they
approach other labels that might be more appropriate for their music, or
that they self-release their albums, and some, simoly I couldn't afford
and they are now on bigger labels.</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4795" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">"<a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-cbcf5103e095d2456f422995cc44a483-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4794" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mr. MoonJune Recommends - Volume 1</a>"
will be the first in a series of 25-track compilations drawn from these
submissions plus few tunes from few of my friends, legendary musicians.
It features one track from each CD that over the past few years I have
wanted, even yearned, to release on <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-1ce340c3df6d998eb6b3e61bb560cca9-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">MoonJune</a>
but couldn't for a variety of reasons: lack of time, the fact that the
label can only release a limited number of albums per year, I'm busy on
tour with a band, or involved with my other two businesses. Except for a
few musicians who are known to fans of progressive music, most of these
artists are only known in their own country or region, and some not
even in their own city; however, they are all musicians whom I respect
and whose music I dig.</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4796" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">The
whole purpose of this compilation is to expose these musicians'
recently recorded music to the constantly growing MoonJune audience, and
also to pay due respect to their artistry. Each track comes with
complete information about the artist and the album from which the tune
was selected, and most importantly a direct link to the artists' sites
where those albums can be purchased. "<a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-cbcf5103e095d2456f422995cc44a483-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mr. MoonJune Recommends - Volume 1</a>"
features the music of legends, special friends I've known for many
years, others I've met and heard on my travels, and artists recommended
by knowledgeable peers, whose impressive albums I'm introducing through
this compilation, including the following:</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><ul id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4798" style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 0; margin-right: 0; margin-top: 0; padding: 0;">
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4797" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">I've traveled worldwide and shared friendship and exceptional live music with <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-fdc9c62dc7c2f6ae00870eec60b27eed-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Chad Wackerman</a>, <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-93e15285444447e289108c0b97b377c6-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Jan Akkerman</a>, the late Elton Dean, <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-408d57e1f4cacd31d40dc669c0cbf929-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Beppe Crovella</a>, and the musicians they've been involved with across the globe, many of whom are featured here.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4799" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Some musicians, such as <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-27cb7ee4382e92893bb059fda2ad939a-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Beledo</a>, the Uruguayan master guitarist based in NYC, with whom I've been good friends for years.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4800" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Some musicians I've friended on my innumerous travels like <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-b550398a2fcf19bec8db92508842d3c6-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Ernesto Holman</a> from Santiago de Chile, and <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-250d0f30415046efeaebdca30dded032-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">John Sund</a> from Copenhagen or they came to visit me in NYC, like Daniele Cavalca from <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-3759c470bb71253d6526f830f6d33743-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Claudio Scolari</a>'s projects.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4801" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Personal discoveries such as the Swedish "mystery" band <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-4cc51f2530aaf7cb6b088873fcdad1e7-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Nude Fox Ensemble</a>; a Serbian axeman based in Barcelona, <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-82a9e925a17c9c2ae356c783a2f6070e-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Dusan Jevtovic</a>; and <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-eb4f6bccfdd390a92d2870e7cf496afc-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">El Trio</a>, a power trio from an unexpected tropical latitude, the Dominican Republic.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4802" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">A few fantastic guitarists suggested by my reviewer friends, such as <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-b4b40dcb544c2b0746b0ae440348f5ff-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mustafa Dönmez</a> from Turkey and his band Atmosfer, <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-60da397607c9cbd797f6b96f0c36b2b6-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Michel Sajrawy</a> a Palestinian from Israel, and <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-aa530128d078ee5903ef074fdaa19df5-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mark Wingfield</a> from the UK.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4803" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Two phenomenal UK-based musicians, the Swiss guitarist <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-4afd1013b699b83ff0a39588ea61c75b-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Nicolas Meier</a> and the Israeli drummer <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-eca811521f7981342bd3bf9180c632b1-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Asaf Sirkis</a>, who were suggested to me by my friend the legendary Bill Bruford.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4804" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">I had known of Welsh jazz pianist <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-b911158f5ee0b21b8df6a94cd9901e1c-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Geoff Eales</a>,
but it was thanks to my longtime friends Roy Babbington (ex-Soft
Machine and now with Soft Machine Legacy) and Mark Fletcher (Phil
Miller, Elton Dean) that I finally got in touch with Geoff.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4805" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;"><a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-f3469fc5a805251d1ab7fe79d42795ea-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">October Equus</a> from Spain and guitar fusionist from Luxembourg <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-eefd01ab8c4518f677b5d4daa7a54add-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Claude Pauly</a>, whom I discovered thanks to the great buzz about them on the Internet.</span></li>
<li style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1.5em; list-style: square inside none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #93c47d;">Finally, one of my absolutely favorite bands on <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-7e2d35ee9d493c26b6945bcce4ce334b-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">MoonJune</a>, <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-83de8b4f11aa2d27fcb6d31e38056667-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Marbin</a>.
I was instantly enamored of the two stunning, brave Israeli youngsters,
guitarist Dani Rabin and saxophonist Danny Markovich, when I saw them
perform as a duo in their Chicago base two years ago; they were signed
to <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-7e2d35ee9d493c26b6945bcce4ce334b-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">MoonJune</a> that same night!</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">All the featured music represents in some way the philosophy of <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-fda52c06b1804c759005076505ca7835-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">MoonJune Records</a>
- progressive music exploring the boundaries of jazz, rock, avant,
ethno, and the unknown - and anything in between. In the world we live
in, with its oversaturated music market, rapidly disappearing record
stores, and a record business that ignores real musicianship, and with
fewer and fewer outlets where quality progressive music can be exposed,
it's becoming more and more difficult for artists to be noticed unless
they have a well-known legacy or they tour frequently and intensively,
which many are unable to do.</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">This
compilation (the first of many) is my tribute to these musicians and
contribution to their cause. I hope that all who download and listen to
this remarkable music can appreciate the artistry of these musicians and
their determination to keep great music alive. Note that the tunes
chosen for this compilation do not necessarily represent the best tracks
from the featured CDs; they're purely my personal choice.</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">Enjoy
<br />
Yours in Music
</span>
<span style="color: #93c47d;"><em style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal;">Leonardo Pavkovic</em>
</span>
<span style="color: #93c47d;"><a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-22ab3e53b2096fa245b2b8358c06e23f-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">Mr. MoonJune</a></span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4846" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">(Note:
this compilation does not include any artists from Indonesia. Because
they deserve a very special chapter of their own, a special 25-track
compilation of Indonesian progressive jazz-fusion will be launched in
February.)</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4845" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">The
whole compilation has over three hrs of music and iis priced at only $1
(or more - whatever you would like to or can afford to pay) for 25
tunes. The tracks are downloadable in any (or all) of the following
formats: MP3 320, FLAC, MP3 VBR (V0), AAC, Ogg Vorbis, or ALAC. If that
list leaves you scratching your head, you probably want the default, MP3
320, which will play back beautifully in iTunes, Windows Media Player,
your iPod, etc.</span></div>
<span style="color: #93c47d;">
</span><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_4847" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.5em; margin: 0px 0px 1.3em; padding: 3px 0px 0px; vertical-align: top;">
<span style="color: #93c47d;">More info on downloading procedure: <a href="https://go.madmimi.com/redirects/1357338237-1430326f0e63993526ebbb0f76778754-2c0c8d6?pa=319694427831534316" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">bandcamp.com/faq_downloading</a></span></div>
wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-81864067549581609012013-01-05T11:12:00.001+00:002013-01-05T11:13:47.886+00:00Review: Big Finish Audio's Doctor Who Story: Dark Eyes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jgOaM7fgTkc/UOgJqfYnuJI/AAAAAAAABGw/uBLF4XbjoIc/s1600/Dark-Eyes2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jgOaM7fgTkc/UOgJqfYnuJI/AAAAAAAABGw/uBLF4XbjoIc/s320/Dark-Eyes2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3895">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3894" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3893" style="font-size: 11pt;">I wasn’t interested in audio plays. The first one that
I listened to, and did enjoy was an adaptation of Stephen King’s The
Mist. It boasted “3D sound!” and did sound very effective. Many
years later I took a punt on the reboot of Blake’s 7. Despite a good
cast, it was a horrible update of a much loved TV show. It put me off exploring
the world of audio adventures.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3930">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3931">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3933" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3932" style="font-size: 11pt;">So, skip to the present day. I’ve had a surge of
interest in Doctor Who. I’ve been a fan since I can remember but as the
50<sup>th</sup> Anniversary got nearer I decided to watch as much Doctor Who as
possible. I was very disappointed that some of the best stories were lost and
decided to listen to the BBC Audio soundtracks. I was wary of doing this but
found myself thoroughly enjoying them. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3931">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3936">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3935" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3934" style="font-size: 11pt;">Going slightly away from the focus on the audio, in 1996 I
watched the TV movie that was expected to be the pilot of a new BBC America TV
show. Thank the maker, in hindsight, this never happened. The production values
were superb. Finally, we got to see the inside of the TARDIS that really sold
us on the concept of “bigger on the inside”. Trouble is, the story
leaved a lot to be desired. First off, we have The Master tried on Skaro, by
Daleks, before being transmuted into some kind of gooey slug (a forerunner to
Patient Zero perhaps?) and allowed to be transported by The Doctor. Yes, the
Daleks that are little more than psychotic alien squids in a powerful
exo-robot. What made matters worse was a romance with his companion (God forbid!)
and the laziness in the writing by saying that the Doctor is half-human. So
that’s why he spent so much time on Earth: roll<span style="font-size: x-small;">e</span>yes.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3939">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3938" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3937" style="font-size: 11pt;">So whilst the movie wasn’t that good, McGann made a
very watchable Doctor. The fact that he only got to make this 90 minute film
was a great crime. Fans, like myself, wanted Paul McGann to be able to continue
as the Eighth Doctor.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3939">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3942">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3941" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3940" style="font-size: 11pt;">I saw a picture advertising Dark Eyes, with the Eighth
Doctors new look, designed by WETA. It piqued my interest and I ordered the box
set. I then ordered the last two CDs from Season 4 to find out what made the
Eighth a darker character.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3943">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3946">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3945" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3944" style="font-size: 11pt;">Dark Eyes picks up the Eighth’s story after In Death.
The Doctor has lost much in a battle with the Daleks. It has caused him to feel
a great deal and with this loss, become angry at himself and the universe. He
pushes the TARDIS into taking him to the end of everything. He’s
intercepted by a fellow Timelord who offers him a job that he promises will
give him hope. This plunges the Doctor into an adventure where nothing is what
it seems.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3947">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3950">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3949" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3948" style="font-size: 11pt;">As usual, the cast are excellent voice actors, conveying the
story without tedious exposition and unnecessary narration. The new companion
is typically strong and unafraid to speak her mind. Her accent is a bit Father
Ted and some might get irritated at her pronunciation of “The Daa-leks”
and calling the TARDIS “The TARDY-BOX”. It didn’t bother me
and I found her to be an interesting character and a fitting replacement for
the no-nonsense Lucie Miller.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3951">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3954">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3953" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3952" style="font-size: 11pt;">McGann performs energetically and enthusiastically, who's clearly
into the plot and enjoying himself. Nicholas Briggs, once again, is a
revelation…of Dalek voices. There’s a brilliant WTF moment that I
won’t spoil but, trust me, you’ve never heard Daleks sound like
this before. I’ve always admired Brigg’s voicework. Citing two
examples in the Ninth’s episode “Dalek” and the recent “Asylum
of the Daleks”. In the latter, Briggs effectively conveys Oswin’s
emotion and anguish through the modulator.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3955">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3958">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3957" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3956" style="font-size: 11pt;">There are some cool additions to continuity such as the
explanation of why the sonic screwdriver is much more than it used to be <span style="font-size: x-small;">(during Classic continuity) </span>and
how events in Dark Eyes may fit in with the Great Time War, that is an
off-screen battle in the back story of the Ninth Doctor. Briggs and McGann show
us how the Eighth Doctor became the “Oncoming Storm”. </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3959">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">
</span><div class="yiv617625148MsoNormal" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3983">
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3982" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1357382291326_3981" style="font-size: 11pt;">All of this, more than ever, makes me wish that Steven
Moffat would include McGann in a 50<sup>th</sup> anniversary. McGann has proven
himself to be a genuine Doctor and not a one film wonder. I would like to see,
at the very least, a scene referencing the Time War and showing the
Eighth’s regeneration into Eccleston. If RTD isn’t involved it
probably won<span style="font-size: x-small;">'t</span> happen.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: navy; font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"> </span></span></span></div>
wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-61183963629892143692012-08-06T11:28:00.001+01:002012-08-06T11:28:36.154+01:00Movie Preview: Sinister<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4nRSsN-i-EE/UB-bpQzs0zI/AAAAAAAABGM/LprJwTfZ2c0/s1600/Sinister_Quad_Final.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4nRSsN-i-EE/UB-bpQzs0zI/AAAAAAAABGM/LprJwTfZ2c0/s320/Sinister_Quad_Final.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
SINISTER is the terrifying new horror from the producer of INSIDIOUS
and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY and the writer-director of THE EXORCISM OF EMILY
ROSE.</div>
<div style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
Struggling true crime novelist, Ellison (ETHAN HAWKE), becomes too
close to his latest gruesome story when he discovers a box of mysterious
and brutal home movies in his attic.</div>
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Find out more at the movie's Facebook page: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/SinisterUK"> http://www.facebook.com/SinisterUK</a></div>
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<span style="color: red;">Sinister will scare audiences in the UK, from October 5th</span></div>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-17560371677870369802012-07-14T11:08:00.001+01:002012-07-14T11:08:16.349+01:00Movie Preview: The Wolverine - Casting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TGmO9etsiCk/UAFC_kD3qsI/AAAAAAAABFs/rYFVZAR4EKs/s1600/jessica_biel03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TGmO9etsiCk/UAFC_kD3qsI/AAAAAAAABFs/rYFVZAR4EKs/s320/jessica_biel03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bxUpaKH2Dd8/UAFDBRg60pI/AAAAAAAABF0/FkFut9rcPow/s1600/wolverineviper_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bxUpaKH2Dd8/UAFDBRg60pI/AAAAAAAABF0/FkFut9rcPow/s320/wolverineviper_02.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Jessica Biel has been cast as the villainous Viper in the 2013 release The Wolverine. A stand alone film, it tells the story of Logan's time in Japan. The story is allegedly based upon Frank Miller's excellent, ground-breaking story. Now, whilst Jessica Biel is popular and attractive, I've never found her to be exciting on screen. She comes across as bland and uninteresting in the roles I've seen her. She sucked the life out of The A-Team, which was overall an entertaining movie. Who would I have cast? Well, my credibility will probably go out of the window but Megan Fox springs to mind. She showed the qualities needed for Viper in the horror movie Jennifer's Body. Check out the image below. Megan can easily play vampish, which is what Viper is all about.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qsFVSBMvkWI/UAFEqHuZxgI/AAAAAAAABF8/FjKZ6rEC8Y4/s1600/megan_fox_1920_1200_jul112009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qsFVSBMvkWI/UAFEqHuZxgI/AAAAAAAABF8/FjKZ6rEC8Y4/s320/megan_fox_1920_1200_jul112009.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Casting Jessica Biel in this is typically unimaginative and sterile, after the news of Lee, Tee and Sanada being cast earlier in the wekk. See the DH story for details: </span><a href="http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/24363/lee-tee-sanada-join-the-wolverine" style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/24363/lee-tee-sanada-join-the-wolverine</a><br />
<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-6392627387437314212012-07-14T10:51:00.000+01:002012-07-14T10:51:10.264+01:00DVD Reviews: House of the Devil/Cabin Fever 2<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_90vPWX4-bx0/S3Q6afzrkUI/AAAAAAAAAfo/M96B-3C2Xjw/s1600-h/house-of-the-devil-poster-707269.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437034877032304962" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_90vPWX4-bx0/S3Q6afzrkUI/AAAAAAAAAfo/M96B-3C2Xjw/s320/house-of-the-devil-poster-707269.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 320px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 216px;" /></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_90vPWX4-bx0/S3Q6U5prLYI/AAAAAAAAAfg/TI3VCRLJfWc/s1600-h/2m451y0.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437034780890443138" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_90vPWX4-bx0/S3Q6U5prLYI/AAAAAAAAAfg/TI3VCRLJfWc/s320/2m451y0.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 215px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Not so much reviews as comments, to be honest.</span><br />
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House of the Devil/Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever – A Ti West Too Much?</div>
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Whilst the movie was far from perfect, I enjoyed Ti West’s movie “The Roost”. It was a different take on the zombie drama at a time when low budget living dead movies were being churned out as quickly as Katie Price churns out publicity grabbing anecdotes.</div>
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House of the Devil appears to be garnering high praise for its ability to emulate 80s style horror movies and I have to ask why? Nothing much happens in the movie. Yes, stylistically, it has a great retro feel to it, but that’s no good if the plot is paper thin and the pacing laborious. Some of the build up is interesting but my patience wore thin after an hour. The conversation between Tom Noonan’s Mr Ulman and Jocelyn Donahue’s Samantha is stilted and unbelievable, when it should be far more tense. After the film ended I felt like I had watched 90 minutes of a girl wandering around a house. There are admirable attempts at referencing Hitchcock and Argento. The tension that is created by the question of wether or not the woman is actually in the house as Samantha wanders around is quite palpable and then ruined by the truly awful, badly thought out scene with the Walkman.</div>
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If House of the Devil failed to meet my expectations, Cabin Fever 2 was something else entirely. I liked Eli Roth’s original Cabin Fever. It didn’t know quite what film it was (serious gross out movie or horror comedy) but I liked the humour and the grisly nature of the gore. The sequel is horrendous.</div>
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Ti West has gone on record to say that he wanted to distance himself from the movie and blames other people for it. Well guess what? There is nothing redeeming about this piece of crap. I was suckered at the beginning by the return of Rider Strong and some genuinely cool camera angles, and then it all went to shit. I doubt that this was just caused by interventions and studio tampering.</div>
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The “story” follows the first film where water has been contaminated by the flesh-eating virus and shipped out in bottles. A nearby school is getting ready for prom night and the kids begin to feel the effects of the virus. There are attempts at a horror version of American Pie-style humour but it never works. If you get kicks out of watching a guy’s penis emitting pus and a stripper revealing pus marked breasts, then this is for you.</div>
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The side story with the first film’s Deputy Sheriff seems out of place, as if it belonged to outtakes from Cabin Fever 1.</div>
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The Director of these two movies, as bi-polar as they are, has a great horror movie to come, I hope. The Roost and elements of House of the Devil point in that direction. For horror gross-out comedy, look to the movie Wrong Turn 2: That film delivers.</div>
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<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-70749628068391164072012-07-14T10:49:00.001+01:002012-07-14T10:49:29.594+01:00The Evil Dead are coming....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bnxmTjsv1iQ/UAFAm8hTGXI/AAAAAAAABFk/D19tckpGWS8/s1600/AxSNTAaCAAIpHdh.jpg+large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bnxmTjsv1iQ/UAFAm8hTGXI/AAAAAAAABFk/D19tckpGWS8/s320/AxSNTAaCAAIpHdh.jpg+large.jpg" width="203" /></a></div>
<br />wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-19407985591213607412012-07-14T10:47:00.002+01:002012-07-14T10:47:50.418+01:00The Walking Dead Season 3 Preview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vMdrUm703hA/UAE_qRpyzpI/AAAAAAAABFc/0L9_w_zaue0/s1600/The-Walking-Dead-Season-3-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vMdrUm703hA/UAE_qRpyzpI/AAAAAAAABFc/0L9_w_zaue0/s320/The-Walking-Dead-Season-3-Poster.jpg" width="249" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I just love Comic-Con. Sure, it's frustrating not to be there, but cool stuff always comes from the event, and this is no exception; 4 minutes of footage! After reeling from a genuinely shocking Issue 100 of the comic book, I wasn't expecting to see a decent TWD trailer for a while but here it is. I won't break it down, just watch it.</span><br />
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<a href="http://youtu.be/ShQz68Zkb3Y" style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://youtu.be/ShQz68Zkb3Y</a>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-26548254600520551132012-07-04T20:40:00.001+01:002012-07-04T20:40:22.071+01:00Blu-Ray review: The Reptile<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OT54FV9oVv0/T_SbVAp3uxI/AAAAAAAABFQ/8gL0J499GyE/s1600/e7f129d7-07b1-468b-93c7-6c7ecaa65ebc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OT54FV9oVv0/T_SbVAp3uxI/AAAAAAAABFQ/8gL0J499GyE/s1600/e7f129d7-07b1-468b-93c7-6c7ecaa65ebc.jpg" /></a></div>
<span id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721608" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721607" style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Directed
By</b> John Gilling</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Starring</b>:
Noel Willman, Jennifer Daniel, Ray Barrett, Jacqueline Pearce</span></span></div>
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<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Synopsis</b>:<br />
</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A deadly epidemic is spreading through the remote Cornish village of
Clagmoor Heath. As darkness falls its victims arefound foaming at the
mouth with savage wounds upon their necks. After his brother becomes
another fatality, HarrySpalding travels to Clagmoor to investigate his
sibling’s mysterious death. With little help from the superstitious
locals,Harry follows a trail of macabre intrigue that leads him to the
sinister Dr Franklyn, his strange but beautiful daughterand a truly
horrific family secret. Released in 1966, The Reptile is Hammer Horror
at its most nightmarish and bizarre.</span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="color: #6aa84f;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #6aa84f; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<b> Review:</b></div>
<blockquote id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721632" style="color: #6aa84f; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The Reptile is an underrated classic and it's easy to see why. It used the same
sets as Plague of the Zombies (a practice not unique to this movie) and the
budget was smaller than most Hammer movies. If you can get over that, there's
still much to enjoy.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">The
movie jumps straight into the action as we witness an unfortunate victim of the
title creature. The strange blackened, blistering make-up is still effectively
creepy even by today's standards, especially if you have the benefit of a less
cynical imagination. With the foaming at the mouth, the scene is quite
memorable.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721631">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721630" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721629" style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Once
again, the Hammer production team looked for and got a cast full of memorable
actors to bring the story to life. From the Christopher Lloyd-esque performance
of John Laurie (Private Frazer in Dad's Army) to Michael Ripper's return from
Plague of the Zombies, as a different character.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">There's
no gore in this film and neither is there the typical Hammer scream queen with
heaving breasts, to distract us from the movie's shortcomings. I think this is
why people do notice the issues with the Reptile make-up. Also, the story
requires us to fill in some of the blanks, as we're not told
everything. This adds interest, in my view. the whole sory is a type
of “werewolf in the family” movie. Noel Willman plays Dr
Franklin as if he is self-loathing in covering up what his "daughter"
has been up to. Jacqueline Pearce shows some of the character that will come
out more during her time as Servalan in Blakes 7. she plays the part of Anna
with a tinge of pathos and sympathy so that when it is finally revealed that
she is the reptile of the title, we see a pathetic creature even though it's
nature is to kill. During the climax, Pearce gets a bit of humanity out as she
complains of the cold.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">The
dinner party is the pivotal scene as we get to see Franklin and Anna through
the eyes of Valerie and Harry Spalding. Here,
Franklin loses his temper with Anna in what
looks like a very unreasonable way. Anna betrays her closeness to the time she
spent in India
through her furious playing of the Sitar. Marne Maitland is superb as the Malay
manservance. His performance suggests that he is much more than a manservant.
His hold over the fmaily becomes more evident as the film progresses. He is an
odd antoganist but I do wonder if he is the antagonist. Similary to way in
which Plague of the Zombies appears to criticise the fauz Aristocracy riding
around, capturing women for their own pleasure.</span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote id="yui_3_2_0_5_1341422354721632" style="color: #6aa84f; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> The Reptile appears to
criticise England 's
involvement in India
and it's attitude towards local religions. At the very least it makes
observations.So is the Malay manservant a bad guy or is he just enacting
revenge for Franklin ’s part in
England ’s
colonisation and his part for going up against an established cult? It doesn't
matter as you can read what you want into it which is the strength of the
screenplay. In some ways, the Indian influence on
Franklin is reminiscent of the Sherlock
Holmes story A Sign of Four.<br />
<br />
The art department tended to suck up the budget in Hammer movies and this
is no exception. We can look back and see that they had a very
important part to play in the success of the movies. The Reptile, despite its
low budget, shows this in it’s detailed and believable sets.</span></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style="color: #6aa84f; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div>
<div class="yiv112047303MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
Like Plague of Zombies, the restoration is superb and well worth spending out
on, if you're a fan or discovering this for the first time. </span></span></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<div style="color: #6aa84f;">
<br /></div>
<span style="color: #6aa84f; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>Score</b>: 7/10</span></span><span style="color: #6aa84f;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Reptile is out now</span>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-52598642936610946812012-07-04T20:34:00.001+01:002012-07-04T20:34:42.321+01:00REC3 Coming Soon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--IO3KenR8K8/T_SabssdU7I/AAAAAAAABFI/RYMlmxpwYCU/s1600/REC3-bd-2d.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--IO3KenR8K8/T_SabssdU7I/AAAAAAAABFI/RYMlmxpwYCU/s320/REC3-bd-2d.jpeg" width="247" /></a></div>
<div id="title" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;">[REC] Genesis
</span></div>
<div id="available_on" style="color: red; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">On DVD & Blu-Ray 03 Sep 2012</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div id="key_talent">
Directed by Paco Plaza (REC 1 and 2; Romasanta: The
Werewolf Hunt) and starring Letitia Dolera (Man Push Cart; The Other
Side Of The Bed), Diego Martin (I Want You), Claire Baschet (Delicacy)
and Ismael Martinez (Carmen; Talk To Her).<br />
<br />
</div>
<strong>Synopsis:</strong><br />
<div id="synopsis">
As the families and friends of Koldo and Clara gather
outside the church in the bright Spanish sunshine just prior to the
happy couple’s wedding, it seems that nothing could possibly cast a
shadow on such a beautiful and joyous occasion. But when some of the
guests start behaving oddly during the reception, it becomes apparent
that all is not well. In no time at all, the party descends into a
hellish scene of utter carnage as partygoers begin feeding on each other
with a crazed bloodlust. Amidst the ensuing chaos, Koldo and Clara
become separated as those still in control of their human minds and
bodies seek whatever refuge they can find. Although apart, the newlyweds
know deep in their hearts that each is still alive and set out on a
desperate search for each other not fully realising that what should
have been the happiest day of their lives could prove to be their last.<br />
</div>
</div>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-4787909764350835372012-07-03T18:24:00.000+01:002012-07-03T18:24:21.249+01:00Blu-Ray Review: Plague of the Zombies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9vzz_4pT2jo/T_Mqrx0VFVI/AAAAAAAABE8/6GdCDFPETQI/s1600/bae514f9-765f-4896-8ed9-af56aff9e77d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9vzz_4pT2jo/T_Mqrx0VFVI/AAAAAAAABE8/6GdCDFPETQI/s1600/bae514f9-765f-4896-8ed9-af56aff9e77d.jpg" /></a></div>
<br style="color: #38761d;" />
<blockquote style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div>
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Directed
By</b>: John Gilling</span></span></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div>
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Starring</b>:
Andre Morell, Diane Clare, Brook Williams, Jacqueline Pearce</span></span></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin-bottom: 5pt; margin-top: 5pt;" type="cite">
<div>
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Synopsis</b>:</span></span></div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt;">Within
a remote eighteenth century Cornish
village, an evil presence lurks within the darkness of the witching
hour, a mysterious plague relentlessly taking lives at an unstoppable
rate. Unable to find the cause, Dr Peter Thompson enlists the help of
Professor James Forbes. Desperate to find an antidote
what they find instead are empty coffins with the diseased corpses
missing. Following a series of strange and frightening clues, Thompson
and Forbes are lead to a deserted mine where they discover a world of
black magic and a doomed legion of flesh eating
slaves, the walking dead.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><b>Review</b>:<br />
<br />
Part of a four picture deal with Hammer's new distributors back in 1965. The
film initially supported Dracula Prince of Darkness in a Double Bill feature.
Ironically, it's one of the most interesting Hammer film, along with my
personal favourite: Twins of Evil.<br />
<br />
The idea of Haiti
rites transplanted to a Cornish village doesn't bear a lot of scrutiny, but
it's innovative nonetheless and influenced a number of movies. The look of the
zombies gave way to movies like The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue
and the gag when the recently revived Alison is decapitated by a shovel had to
have influenced Sam Raimi when making The Evil Dead. Fulci clearly
referenced Plague at the end of City of the Living Dead, with zombies being set
on fire. The contacts that the zombies wore could have influenced the look of
the zombies in Shaun of the Dead. So, whilst the zombies in this feature aren't
cannibals, there's plenty to interest the zombie film fan.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Typically,
the producers looked to provide a decent and memorable cast. Andre Morell gives
a sterling performance as the Holmes inspired Professor James
Forbes and can be recognised as a sort of H.G. Wells inspired
character, too, perhaps even a nod to Quatermass. Morrell has a presence
and charisma that is easy to like.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="yui_3_2_0_1_13413329688131010" style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_1_13413329688131007">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_1_13413329688131004" style="font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_1_13413329688131001" style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Diane
Clare who plays his daughter Sylvia is fairly typical of the blonde woman in
peril but has enough to do to avoid being a full stereotype. Brook Williams,
who played Doctor Peter Thompson was unfortunately not given much to work with.
As discussed in the interviews, playing the good guy isn't always easy because
there's less to do. Williams did a good job of providing the movie with an
everyman character that we can relate to but the character isn't the most
interesting of the lot.Sadly, Jacqueline Pearce, who played his onscreen
wife, felt the need to point out this defiency in the accompanied featurerette.
With all the potential to talk about in the featurette, I was disappointed that
Pearce chose to berate a fellow actor. It's possible that she was led to this
point by the interviewer and the editing of the piece helps focus on it. With
no question or interviewer to reference the anaecdote, it's difficult to judge.
Thankfully, the rest of the cast chose to talk mainly about the positive
experiences during the shoot. Pearce, herself was fine in the role of Thompson's
wife, Alice, who comes to a grisly end in the most memorable scene in the
movie.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">As
ever, the story is widely important to the enjoyment of the movie. The film is
a bit vague as to what made Hamilton bring back Voodoo rites to the village to
gain cheap labour but it doesn't really matter what his intentions are; the
story is concerned with that fact that he's doing it and doesn't care who he
kills to maintain it. It falls to Forbes to stop him. Whilst it would be a full
three years until George Romero's hard hitting game changer hit the cinemas,
Plague still has it's moments of darkness. The scene where Sylvia is beset
upon by the thugs in red jackets is tinged with a cruel implication as to what
fate could have befallen the young woman. She is "saved" by Hamilton
and given the nature of what he does later we can only assume he saved her,
either out of a misplaced sense of honor or because he needed her for his
workforce.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Two
stand out scenes are that of the dream sequence and
Alice 's second death. The dream sequence is a
zombie film lover's delight as outstretched hands burst forth from soil graves
to shuffle on to murder Peter Thompson. Despite an make-up error during the
scene, Alice 's resurrection is creepy enough on
it's own, but Forbes finds a spade to use to lop off the undead
Alice 's head. The camera
lingers on the convincing severed head, and my memories of The Evil Dead
meant that I expected to see the eyes move in the decapitated head's sockets.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Later
scenes with the zombies in the mine are also effective. The only downside is
that the zombie that scares Sylvia, earlier in the movie, when it throws
Alice 's corpse at her,
whilst issuing a cackle through it's undead lips, is easily the creepiest
zombie of the lot.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">Benard's
score gives Plague its no-nonsense attitude. The voodoo drums would be
borrowed by Fabio Frizzi for Fulci's Zombie Flesheaters, over dubbing wailing
on to the music giving it a further creepy atmosphere.Typically, for that era,
the score borders on the avant-garde but Benard keeps the score accessible and
not too abstract.</span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div class="yiv1957611072MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">This
Blu-ray presentation is fantastic. You can see how good the work has been from
the restoration comparison featurette on the disc. Extras also include</span></span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt;">: </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 12pt;">World
of Hammer episode “Mummies, Werewolves And The Living Dead” / Brand new
featurette: ‘Raising The Dead’ / Restoration comparison / Restored
trailer</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /> <b>Summary</b>:</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The restoration makes the movie look as if it had been released yesterday.
Hopefully, more Hammer movies will receive this treatment in future and I know
a couple are in the pipeline for restoring. This British Institution certainly
deserves the effort.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Score</b>: 9/10</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Plague of the Zombies was released on 18th June 2012. Grab one! </span></span></span>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-89476039369998567842012-06-21T10:43:00.000+01:002012-06-21T10:43:23.336+01:00DVD Review: You Only Live Once<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qMH4wgIm3Ck/T-LsTyQWovI/AAAAAAAABEw/nS5im5yzSUU/s1600/91FQUcudVIL._AA1500_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qMH4wgIm3Ck/T-LsTyQWovI/AAAAAAAABEw/nS5im5yzSUU/s320/91FQUcudVIL._AA1500_.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912556">
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912556">
<br /></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912556" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912555" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912554" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Directed By:</b> Fritz Lang</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912560" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912436" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912435" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912434" style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>Starring:</b> <span class="yshortcuts cs4-visible" id="lw_1340271355_0">Henry Fonda</span>, Sylvia Sidney, Barton MacLane</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912552" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912547" style="color: #e69138;">
<b><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912550" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912549" style="font-size: 11pt;">Synopsis:</span></span></b></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912546" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912545" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912544" style="font-size: 11pt;">Henry Fonda stars as ex-con, Eddie Taylor, who attempts to
settle down with Joan, played by Sylvia Sidney, after a life of petty crime. The
attempt fails as he’s accused of taking part in a brutal bank robbery.
Sentenced to death, he goes on the run with his pregnant girlfriend. </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912563" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912567" style="color: #e69138;">
<b><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912566" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912565" style="font-size: 11pt;"> Review:</span></span></b></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912567" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912566" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912565" style="font-size: 11pt;">This second American film from Fritz Lang is definitely one
of his best, despite being one of his lesser known movies. The movie begins
light in tone and grows ever more increasingly dark as the running time
progresses. It paved the way for noir filmmaking and is seen as the original “Lovers
on the Run” movie. It is said to be based upon Bonnie and
Clyde , who were gunned down a few years previously, but
the world in which Eddie and Sylvia inhabit is a lot less savoury. 75 years later,
the movie is still unsettling and deliciously ambiguous. </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912569" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912573" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912572" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912571" style="font-size: 11pt;">What’s most interesting about the movie is that it isn’t
judgemental; it shows us enough about Eddie for us to form an opinion as to
whether or not he deserves the lot that has been given to him. On the surface,
the movie could be about a man hard done by in society. On the other hand,
Eddie <i><span style="font-style: italic;">is</span></i> culpable. He’s not
a bad person but isn’t given an opportunity to rehabilitate. The world in
which the characters inhabit do not reward failure and doesn’t forgive
and forget. Everyone in Lang’s movie seems to have a criminal flaw, where
greed is much of a motivation.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912575" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912579" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912578" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912577" style="font-size: 11pt;">Although not entirely convincing, Fonda is still very good as
a young man cast aside by society and mistreated on the assumption that he’s
an overall bad person. The acting keeps the movie from spilling over into full
melodrama, like Lang’s previous movie “Fury”. Sylvia Sidney is
excellent as the person who provides the light in Eddie’s life and
potentially the reason for him to attempt to avoid being sucked into a life of
crime. The irony is that he’s pulled into it anyway, through decisions by
himself and others. Thirty years before Fonda would be criticised for playing
an out and out killer in Sergio Leone's sublime elegiac Once Upon a Time in the West, here he is playing a morally ambiguous character.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912581" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912585" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912584" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912583" style="font-size: 11pt;">This movie has been deserving of a full restoration for
years and finally we have it here.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912587" style="color: #e69138;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912589" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912595" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912594" style="font-size: 11pt;">It is a bleak story made all the more interesting by the
acting and Lang’s choices of camera angles, which at times are unusual
but showcase the director’s flair. The film benefits in a number of
scenes, from following the silent era. Some of the best shots are those where
communication is implied through looks instead of potentially inadequate
dialogue. There are many striking and iconic images to enjoy in the movie, the
style of which influenced a number of movies subsequently. If you want to watch
a master at work, pick up this latest release of You Only Live Once in all its
restored glory at all good stockists now.</span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912589" style="color: #e69138;">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912595" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912594" style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912589">
<span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912595" style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912594" style="color: navy; font-size: 11pt;"><b style="color: #e69138;">Score:</b><span style="color: #e69138;"> 8/10</span></span></span></div>
<div class="yiv1199429856MsoNormal" id="yui_3_2_0_14_1340270067912591">
<span style="color: navy; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: navy; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></span></div>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7989991382824641758.post-85377007161538240632012-06-21T10:05:00.002+01:002012-06-22T17:06:03.691+01:00Hong Kong 15 Film Festival<div style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eps8yen2VXg/T-LlNz8FLvI/AAAAAAAABEk/QaqDTTrwOSY/s1600/image001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eps8yen2VXg/T-LlNz8FLvI/AAAAAAAABEk/QaqDTTrwOSY/s320/image001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; font-weight: bold;">Hong
Kong 15 Film Festival’ announces its much anticipated programme to mark
the 15<sup>th</sup> Anniversary of the return of Hong Kong
to Chinese sovereignty</span></span></b>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">1st July marks fifteen years since Hong Kong
returned to Chinese sovereignty</span>. To commemorate this special occasion,
the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office, London, in
association with Terracotta Festival, has put together an exciting film festival
to showcase the best of current Hong Kong
films as well as to look back on the last fifteen years and beyond.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The ‘Hong Kong 15 Film Festival’ will take place at the
Odeon Covent Garden, London,
commencing 2<sup>nd</sup> July 2012 for a fortnight until 14th July. With guests
in attendance and fifteen films carefully selected, the festival will pay
tribute to the extraordinary story of this vibrant and energetic island city
through the eyes of its film-makers. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The diversity of Hong Kong cinema will
be represented through a panorama of films divided in three sections: ‘Currents’,
‘15 Years Review’ and ‘Shaw Brothers Classics’.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Festival will open with multi-award-winning drama, <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">A Simple Life</span></i></b> by
acclaimed director Ann Hui, starring Hong Kong
star Andy Lau and a comeback performance from the highly decorated Deanie Ip
who won the Best Actress at the 68th Venice International Film Festival. The
event will be attended by Roger Lee, the producer and writer whose life story
the film is based on.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Other highlights of the ‘Currents’ section include <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Life Without Principle</span></i></b>
by prolific filmmaker Johnnie To and <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The Bounty</span></i></b> by Fung Chi Chiang.</span></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Made in Hong Kong,</span></span></i></b><span lang="EN-GB">
directed by Fruit Chan, is a</span> groundbreaking film which found great local
and international acclaim for its release 15 years ago<span lang="EN-GB">. It </span>remains
an uncommon Hong Kong example of a true independent film and <span lang="EN-GB">will
open the ‘15 Year Review’section to lead the way for other highly influential
contemporary Hong Kong directors such as Pang
Ho Cheung, Andrew Lau and Alan Mak.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">‘Hong Kong 15 Film Festival’ wouldn’t even exist if
it wasn’t for the legendary Shaw Brothers Studios and, as an homage to the
most significant film production company in the history of Hong Kong Cinema, f</span></span><span lang="EN-GB">estival goers will be able to indulge in two martial arts masterpieces
on the big screen: 1967 blockbuster <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">One Armed Swordsman</span></i> </b>and one of the greatest Kung
Fu film, <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The</span></i></b>
<b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">36<sup>th</sup> Chamber
of Shaolin</span></i> </b>(1978).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Talent
attending the event will travel courtesy of Sponsor-in-Kind, Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong's flagship carrier.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% white; font-size: 12pt;">Other cultural tributes for the
occasion will take place such as the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival on Sunday
1st July in London and the screening of <b><i><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Big Blue Lake</span></i></b> at the
Cornerhouse, Manchester
on Friday 6th July.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Visit the festival website for regular Festival updates, tickets, times<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black;"><span style="background-color: black;"></span> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://hk15filmfestival.com/" target="_blank" title="blocked::http://hk15filmfestival.com/">http://hk15filmfestival.com/</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">‘Hong Kong 15 Film Festival’ full programme:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">-<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">CURRENTS:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">A Simple Life - by Ann Hui, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">Big Blue
Lake - by Jessey Tsang
Tsui-Shan, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">White Vengeance - by Daniel Lee, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Life Without Principle - by Johnnie To, 2011</span></span><span lang="EN-GB"></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">The Bounty - by </span>Fung Chi Chiang, 2012</span><span lang="EN-GB"></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">The Detective 2 - by Oxide Pang, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">East Meets West 2011 by Jeffrey Lau, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">Wu Xia - by Peter Chan, 2011</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">-<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">15 YEARS: A
REVIEW</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Made In Hong Kong- by Fruit Chan, 1997</span></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">When Beckham Met Owen - by Adam Wong, 2004</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Infernal Affairs - by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak, 2002</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sparrow - by Johnnie To, 2008</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Dream Home - by Pang Ho-cheung, 2010</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">-<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="-moz-font-feature-settings: normal; -moz-font-language-override: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span></span><span lang="EN-GB">SHAW BROTHERS
CLASSIC </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">The 36th Chamber of Shaolin - by Liu Chia-Liang, 1978</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">One Armed Swordsman - by Chang Cheh, 1967</span></span><br />
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<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;">Updated 22/06/12:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7989991382824641758" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 38px;">TERRACOTTA</strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 24px;">GET YOUR FAR EAST FIX</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong>HONG KONG</strong><strong> 15 FILM FESTIVAL</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong>2nd – 14th July</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong>Odeon Covent Garden</strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong>NEWSLETTER SPECIAL</strong></span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">Terracotta are pleased to be co-organising the ‘Hong Kong 15 Film Festival’ with the Hong Kong Economic Trade Office, London.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">The festival is
organised to mark the 15 year anniversary of the return of Hong Kong to
Chinese sovereignty through celebrating Hong Kong films and film-makers
in this existing festival.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">It is a
must-attend event for fans of world cinema, Hong Kong films, Far East
films and mainstream audiences looking for a recommendation on what’s
hot from Hong Kong right now.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">There’s plenty to
choose from, with films grouped into three sections: Currents (new
films), 15 Years Review (a look back on some significant films since the
handover), Shaw Brothers Classics (a rare double-bill treat of the
martial arts films that sparked international interest in Hong Kong
cinema).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">It’s not just a chance to watch films that are rarely shown in UK cinemas, it’s a chance to meet actors and directors too.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;"><strong>*** Stay
tuned for our announcement on which actors and directors will be
attending the festival – we have a mixture of fresh talent and old
legends to tell you about**</strong>*</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">‘Hong Kong 15 Film Festival’ will take place at Odeon Covent Garden, 135 Shaftesbury Avenue, from 2nd -14th July 2012.</span></div>
<br />
<strong><span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif; text-align: left;">Tickets are on sale now!</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva,sans-serif;">Prices: £9 (£8 concessions NUS, OAP)</span></div>wayfarerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10365313738960543182noreply@blogger.com0