Don't Lose Your Head (1967)

 "That's all very well, but that would never have happened under a Royalist government."

We're entering a stretch that represents the absolute pinnacle of Carry On. This, and the next couple of films or so, are the peak. It is, or so we're led to believe, all downhill, starting very soon. I'll keep an open mind, naturally, but let''s enjoy this purple patch while it lasts. And let's appreciate the irony that two of the films in this period, starting with this one, strictly speaking didn't have the "Carry On" prefix.

This film is bloody good, though. I've seenit many times over the years, but not for a while. And it didn't disappoint either this time or before. It's a simple premise: just riff off The Scarlet Pimpernel and pit Sid James' Sir Rodney Ffing ("Effing, with two f's") against Kenneth Williams as the inevitably named citizen camembert. Add in Charles Hawtrey as the Dic de Pomme Frities, and you have a filmthat cannot fail.

Add in a couple of contemporary references "It's the one thing the English are good at, striking", but otherwise just let the cast be themselves as we know the formula right now... and we end up with a film that never gets stale.

The deliberately, cheerfully crap jokes are a joy too. The Duc and Duchesse de la Plume de ma Tante. "I'm Camembert. I'm the big cheese". "But then, you've always had magnificent balls, and I wouldn't miss one of them". In fact, these gloriously awful puns are indubitably the best bit.

This is easily the best instalment up to this point. Can they top this one?

Futureworld (1976)

 "Nothing can go wrong..."

Sequels are rarely better than the original, right? I mean, I tend to think this statement olds even with The Godfather. But this... well, it may be an exception.

Yes, the plot is simple- the same corporarion from Westworld have regrouped and now seem to be set on world conquest via duplicating world leaders, the implication being that robot duplicates have already taken over the company. It a solid premise, if not exactly original... although the point that humans will despoil the planet if left unchecked is certainly well made.

But it's not the premise but the execution that makes this sequel not only an underappreciated gem but a much better film than its predecessor. The direction is a triumph,with lots of arty touches but not too many for this type of film. Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner (especially) are absolutely superb as Chuck and Tracy. Not only do the characters come across as both likeable and very real, their romantic chemistry is perfect.

And the whole thing sizzles with wit and character, which add an extra dimension of both depth and fun to every scene, from Harry playing poker with "Clark" to the many amused jokes at how many of the park's guests just basically want to have sex with robots, which we all know is what would actually happen. But the film doesn't shine away from the philosophical implications of its premise either.

It is, perhaps, a little cheeky to make such a big deal of Yul Brynner for what is essentially just a cameo, but that is literally the only criticism I can make. And the entire dream sequence is superb. As is the film.

Stigma

 "It's the old religion. I read about it in a book."

Hmm. It has its moments but... I'm not sure about this one.

It's 1977. The year I was born. Up to now the BBC's Ghost Stories for Christmas strand had focused on adaptations of old ghost stories, chiefly those of M.R. James. This time, we get a contemporary take.

It's eerie that the first contemporary ghost story should showcase the year of my birth so powerfully.The cars, the fashions, the sound of an old rotary phone ringing, news of the Voyager missions on the radio... and, of course, contemporary 1970s horror tropes- folk horror, complete with stone circle, and the poltergeist trope, complete with creepy teenage girl.

It'a very simple, straighforward half hour, with few twists and turns until the very end, and even that could be predicted. Yes, the atmosphere is there- it's Lawrence Gordon Clark, after all- and the relatively unknown case is very good, Kate Binchy in particular. But it's all a bit... by the numbers, if well made.

Oh, and if you're scared of blood... give this one a miss. You couldn't make this today.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: Light

 "The King of France gave me gloves. He didn't want to marry me..."

Wow. And with that... I'm broken.

The genius of this real piece of televisual splendour is that... well, wew know what happens. This is documented histoiry. We know how and when Thomas Cromwell dies. There's no suspense here, but suspense is not the point. There is only character, and emotion.

There is Cromnwell's true stoicism, as he runs rings round his interlocutors while knowing he is nevertheless doomed. Oh, he's accused of arrogance, getting above himself, wanting to marry Mary, othersuch absurdities... and heresy, of which he is guilty by the standards of the age, rejecting the Pope only for a very Enflish Catholicism. Yet above all, I think, it's his impatience for the grinding of due process, his manipulation of events, that he is damned. And so, as he says, he will be followed by slower men, and England will suffer.]

He is clear-minded, cautioning his friends to stay apart and not seem to be plotting. He insists that Gregory denounce him for his own safety, as would any father in his position. Yet his calm does not mean absence of feeling, as Mark Rylance shows us with sublime subtlety. Some peoople are vlatile, but those of us whonare calm and composed have feelings too, and Cromwell has his demons... and yet one, at least, is healed. He feels himself reconciled with Wolsey's ghost, and his final plrea for forgiveness before his beheading, are clearly aimed at his former master, a lovely touch. And, as a parallel, his own protege Rafe has the most love for his own master.

And so it ends, and so does he. The ending is devatating. Liuke Anne Boleyn, he finds dignity before the blade takes his life, all as the king prepares to wed yet again...

Sublime television.

The Signalman

 "You! Down below!"

By 1976, it seems, the BBC had decided to move the focus of their Ghost Stories for Christmas annual tradition away from the tales of M.R. James, this time adapting a short story from the later career of Charles Dickens. The visual style and atmosphere, nevertheless, are just as eerie and just as full of foreboding. The change of authorial style is, oddly enough, not strongly felt as the visual tropes of Lawrence Gordon Clark's direction encompass us... eerie silences, creepy yet subtle use of sound, light, voice and facial expressions to evoke unease within these liminal spaces.

I won't repeat the plot, but the whole things is a subtle yet very rreal building up of tension as we are ledft in no doubt, albeit quietly, that dread approaches and that this world, in the depths of the night, is no place for reason. The twist at the end, and the horrifying supernatural sight, are well and truly earned. And the unease has an interestingly philosophical timbre to it- this Victorian signalman is thoughtful and nuanced.

Denholm Elliott, as though it needs saying, is superb. This is as good as any of its immediate predecessors and, indeed, one of the best such stories made by the BBC. M.R. James does not have a monopoly...

Better Call Saul: Bad Choice Road

 "How about a day without drama?"

Oh boy. What an episode.

Kim is, of course, the focus of our sense of mounting dread and, naturally, the episode itself. But let's do a tour of the other plates that are spinning during this penultimate episode of the season...

Jimmy and Mike finally get out of the desert and can begin to recover... but Jimmy is not so battle hardened as Mike, who can afford to be philosophical, true stoic that he literally is. Jimmy is physically worse for wear (although he has Kim, ooooh he has Kim...) but more; he hobviously has PTSD following his experiences.

Gus, chilling as ever, is debriefed by Mike, works out exactly what's going on, and gets back to his usual chillingly amoral ten-dimensional chess, played with typical cold intensity by the sublime Giancarlo Esposito. Mike may sympathise with Nacho's wish to get out of this cartel life, but to Gus, Nacho is just another pawn. Once you become a "friend of the cartel", you don't get out... are you listening, Kim?

But Kim... oh, so many bad decisions. Shockingly, she gives up her job so she can focus on her pro bono workm much less well paid. This is... unwise, and ties her even more to Jimmy's criminally adjacent, "friend of the cartel" life. The final scene, with Lalo demanding andswers from Jimmy, is a masterpiece of tension, with Kim very much present, involved... and showing real guts in resolving the situation.

But she's in, now, irrevocably. Her decision to quit her main job wasd, ironically, so she could focus on work with which she feels much more ethically comfortable rsather than driving old men off their land... but she's driven into the hands of Jimmy, who may not like getting his hands dirty but has zero morals as long as he isn't personally close to the bloodshed.

Oh Kim. I'm now certain. Her downfall will not just be the ruin of a genuinely good person. The moment has come: I'm certain that we're going to see her die. Itr's her only possible trajectory.

Better Call Saul is not Jimmy's tragedy. It's Kim's.

Erik the Viking (1989)

 "Stay calm. This is not happening."

Oh dear. What went wrong here? We begin with a moderately well-scripted Pythonesque little scene about, er, rape (yes, quite), and then we seem to descend into quite the mess.

And yet... it's written and directed by Terry Jones, he of Monty Python fame, certainly someone with comic talent, many glimpses of which are seen here- it's a bad film, yes, and don't get me started on the dragon, but there are funny concepts and funny lines. Jones, of course, knows his mediaeval history, and there are references and in-jokes aplenty, many of which go over my head. There's a theme of belief that runs throughout- Harald the Missionary refuses to believe in the aspects of Norse myth that surround him, and cannot see them. The King of High Brazil and his subjects refuse to believe that their land is sinking beneath the waves. And Erik falsely believed that he is wearing an invisible cloak.

There are other little bits of cleverness. The Norse gods are played by children. And yet... overall, it falls flat. There's a clear plot, pretty much, but it all falls flat. This tries to be a Monty Python and the Holy Grail or a Time Bandits but... it isn't.

Then there's the performances. Jones himself is excellent, as is John Cleese as the delightfully evil Halfdan the Black. But so many of the cast fail to shine. And I suspect this offers us a clue: Terry Jones is a damn good writer and performer, and I don't think the script is at all the problem here... but he's just not a good enough director to helm a big blockbuster, at least on his own.

An interesting failure, then, and with nuggets to be found. But a failure nonetheless.

The Pink Panther (1963)

 "You do the walking and I'll do the drinking."

Yes, I know, forty-seven and have only just seen this... 

Anyway, it's fascinating to see the actual film behind the Pink Panther cartoon and that seminal Henry Mancini tune that we all know so well; these things in themselves are a seminal achievement, as is the opening titles. It's all very well shot. But... well, asa comedy, it's a curate's egg.

Of course, as with the original curate's egg, parts of it are excellent. This isn't a comedy of verbal jokes, exactly, but the script is particularly witty in its sexually charged conversations between David Niven's Sir Charles (and his nephew George to some extent) and both Simone Clouseau and the Princess. This is top quality flirting and there's a lot of it.

Plus the setting- the Swiss Alps and Rome- is visually arresting, and the plot is enormous fun. But, well... we need to talk about Inspector Clouseau. I mean, Peter Sellers plays the part very well, and it's not that I don't enjoy slapstick comedy or farce. But the character isn't that funny. Oh, I do enjoy the extended sequence in the hotel room with Simon where both Sir Charles and George hide from him. But all the falling over and bumping into things just gets tired very quickly.

Still, a film doesn't have to be the greatest ever example of its genre to be good. This is no Life of Brian, but it is, at least, quite funny, and the flirting scenes are genuinely brilliant. Iwasn't blown away... but I enjoyed the film. And that's what matters.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: The Mirror

 "You have few friends, Cromwell..."

This episode, as are so many others, is a materpiece in how it shows us the slow bursting of Cromwell's bubble, power and favour slipping away from him. Yes, the final couple of minutes are enormously shocking, even if you know your history, but the whole thing is masterfully structured.

There are, of course, big events swirling outside of Cromwell's control. The events of Henry meeting, and didliking, Anne of Cleves are just as we know from history, but the wider European context is emphasised, with its ironies. An alliance with the German princes is necessary precisely because the alliance between France and Charles V threatens England- yet, as soon as the king is married, England's ambassador to Spain (none other than Sir Thomas Wyatt, whose greatest poem is, of course, about Henry's terrifying, bloody and murderous capricioiusness) drives a wedge between them. The German alliance, and Henry's unhappy marriage, is no longer needed.

Worse, Cromwell's feud with the Duke of Norfolk is deepened, as the chancery which prays for Norfolk's ancestors is dissolved. And Norfolk, it seems, has been hiding conciliatory messages from France. And then there are the ongoing rumours about Cromwell and Mary, Cromwell yet again preventing her marriage...

And the king grows ever colder. And ever closer to Norfolk's niece.

There's so much nuance here. Cromwell's demons appear in flashback, and he now speaks to Wolsey's absent ghost. This is an episode of wonder. We really shouldn't be shocked by the ending, which really should be predictable. It says so much that we are.

Number 13

 "Well, I'm sure I don't intend to disappear..."

So we here we havethe second of the BBC's 2000s revival of their Ghost Stories for Christmas. For the secind year in a row it's an M.R. James adaptation, and for the second year in a row it features Watson himself, David Burke, in a major role.

It's a very CGI'd Victorian cathedral town, and an Oxford don, a Professor Anderson, sets out to study some recently discovered manuscripts for the cathedral authorities. Hilariously, there's a lot of lampshading the fact that he seems doomed early on. He's just that little bit arrogant and aloof. He seeks for knowledge. He pooh poohs superstition. He scoffs at the mention that his predecessors have suddenly disappeared (without paying!) and utters the above quote.

And... as with many hotels, his place of abode has no Room 13, except... sometimes it does. And there are voices at night of confessions from the witch trials of 1647. It's all very ominous...

SPOILERS!

And yes, a twist... Professor Anderson's fate is (just!) averted,and the evil creature from the dark past seemingly destroyed by means of a humble axe. We have, for most of the story, a very textbook M.R. James structure, but subverted at the end.

All in all, then, a quality production, and all the more for the low budget and no-star cast.

Batman: The Animated Series- It's Never Too Late

 "All your power and money has bought you is an empire of misery."

Another excellent episode here. It's interesting once again how there's an ambiguity in the setting- the cars and clothes and tommy guns evoking the 1940s while the drugs evoke contemporary times. It's also good to see how the Animated Series follows not only Batman's usual rogues gallery bus also the same mob bosses- once again we see Boss Thorne.

And yet this is a touching and effective story about how one mob boss, with his empire of hard drugs, can yet be reformed. It's an episode full of flashbacks and clever twists and turns- most notably involving Father Michael- and superbly constructed in such a way that it earns its payoff. It's also fascinating to see Batman not just using his brute force and detective skills but also psychology.

I do wonder if or when we'll see Boss Thorne again- or whether Two-Face will ultimately get him...?

A View from a Hill

 "I can't explain it..."

I confess I've never read any M.R. James, just as I've never read and H.P. Lovecraft or Robert E. Howard- I suppose, like many people, and without thinking about it, I tend to gravitate towards novels without considering short stories. I really ought to correct that.

I mention this to excuse the fact that I've now seen a good half dozen or so of his stories as adaptred on the BBC as Ghost Stories for Christmas. And I'm beginning to detect a pattern to many of them- a distant, unholynevil from the past ensnares a curious scholar with temptations of knowledge, slowly luring him to his doom. It's a simple formula, and one that can be easily repeated without going stale.

This story fits the template exactly. Young and awkward academic Dr Fanshawe visits a friendly local squire, stoically philosophical about his financially straitened existence, in order to catalogue some archaeological relics. But what whe finds are some unusual binoculars which tempt him slowly, inexorably, gentle BBC jump scare by gentle BBC jump scare, to the gallows.

It's superb, of course. Well directed, with the entire cast excelling. It's fun to see David Burke as the sinister butler trope, but it's Mark Letheren who truly excels as the shy, solitary Dr Fanshawe.

Overall, good stuff. And yes- I will indeed be watching several such stories between now and Christmas Day.

Batman: The Animated Series- Two-Face, Part II

 "Chance is everything. Whether you're born or not. Whether you live or die. Whather you're good or bad. It's all arbitrary."

After our first "Previously On" moment, we skip forwardsix months and see Two-Facewell into his prgramme of harassing Boss Thorne. We get to see how he looks and behaves... and he's a fascinating, riveting character, far more so than anything I've read from the comics and at last giving us a worthy screen version of the character.

This is a fascinating character study of Harvey Dent, at the centre of which is a debate between and Grave, his former fiancee, on whether or not life is all down to chance. Yet this is also an episode about the guilt of Bruce Wayne, haunted by nightmares about his failure to save not only Dent but also his parents.The characterisation of this series is suddenly on another level.

And we end on a hopeful note. Two-Face is still very much presented as Harvey Dent here.

Incidentally, I continue to be fascinated on how the setting is deliberately a conflation of the '40s- card, fashions,tommy guns- and the contemporary, with beepersand female detectives. Episode after episode, it's a design choice that really works.

The Treasure of Abbot Thomas

 "Christianity isa ratiional system of belief, Peter."

Once again we have one of the BBC's once annual Christmas ghost stories based on various short stories by M.R. James, this one from 1974. And my God, it's superb. This is the BBC, so the early Victorian period with its bonnets and mutton chops is evoked to perfection. The deliberately slow pace gives us tension of a kind that the television of recent decades cannot provide.

And at the centre of it all is a masterfdul performance from Michael Bryant as the calm, rational, scientific Revd Dr. Justin Somerton, an Oxford don of the very old school, dismissive of superstition- he puts short shrift to a couple of seance mongers-

He is, at first, far too rational to be taken in by the enthusiastic young Peter'd enthusiasm for the buried treasure on a 15th century abbot, rumoured to be an alchemist carried away by the Devil. Yet events ptroceed fascinatingly and inexorably to his temptation and doom, the Abbot and all things supernatural seen only in yerrifying glimpses.

Of all the M'R. James adaptations of the '70s... this may well be the best I've seen so far.

Lot No. 249

 "Your filthy Egyptian tricks won't answer here in England!"

I must have missed this, last year's offering from the excellent Mark Gatiss in his highly impressive run of Christmas Ghost Stories on BBC 4. I'll be blogging his offering for this year closer to Christmas, as well as a number of older such stories, but watching this little gem tonight was an absolute joy.

I'd never read, or indeed heatd of, the original short story by Arthur Conan Doyle which seems to have been highly influential in shaping the Eyptian mummy subgenre of horror, but Gatiss really evokes the Victorian setting here, and has it oozing with atmosphere. Kit Harington is superb as Smith, our lead, but it's Freddie Fox, chewing the scenery with aplomb, who steals the show as the sinister and dastardly Bellingham.

Gatiss has a real ear for the dialogue of the time, which adds a great deal of verisimilitude. He can't, of course, resist the temptation of including a certain irresistible cameo but, well, the cameo is irresistible, after all. And I like the subtle dialogue link to the Elephant Man.

I suspect the budget for this was tiny, but it certainly doesn't look it. The BBC can do Victoriana with one arm tied behind its metaphorical back and darkness works wonders. But ultimately it's the script and the performances that make this a thing of beauty.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: Jenneke

 "You're going to bring them down? The oldest and richest familes in the land?"

"Like skittles!"

It's redundant, by now, for me to point out that any given episode of Wolf Hall, this one most certainly included, is a televisual masterpiece. But I seem to have done so anyway. Yes, big things are happening- the birth of a son for the king, the tragic, negligent death of Jane, the peace between King Francis and Charles V and the dangers posed to England. And yet this series ais about Thomas Cromwell, and this is where his position starts to slip.

Oh, he finds happiness in Jenneke, the lovely daughter of whom he's just learned... yet he is loving, good, tender and fatherly, a good man. In stark contrast to the things which Dorothea said to him, things that have truly shaken to him and, as we often see, haunt his nightmares. He doubts himself, wonders if he betrayed Wolsey after all, knowingly or not, and confesses himself "undone".

Jane's death upsets him deeply, more so than his tyrant king, play-acting at mourning. And Stephen Gardiner is back, with the ear of the king, pushing him against "heresy". Cromwell, baring his soul to Archbishop Cranmer, begins to despair that all he's done to bring Protestantism to England may perhaps be for naught. And Gardiner (Alex Jennings a worthy successor to Mark Gatiss) is an insidious foe, one in the ascendant.

He is getting nowhere with the Poles. He clashes with the Duke of Norfolk, ironically in defence of Wolsey and the old ways. His influence with Mary is diminished. 

All hope rests in an alliance with the German princes, and a new bride from Cleves. We know the history here, of course. Yet this episode gives us a much deeper context in which Cromwell is already losing ground.

As Cromwell's vaunted ambassador to Charles V, Thomas Wyatt, would say... circa regna tonat.

Better Call Saul: Bagman

 "The alternator's shot. Literally."

Wow.

You kbow, when Vince Gilligan himself writes and directs that you're getting a treat, and probably an unusual one. And crikey, we did.

The plot is simple- Lalo gets Jimmy to be the bagman in discreetly collecting his $7,000,000 bail from a discreet desert rendezvous, but he's ambushed by ne'er-do-wells and nearly robbed and killed. But Mike, watching from afar, efficiently saves him, kills the baddies, and eventually leads a desperate, fish-out-f-water Jimmy, to safety.

But it's about the nuances. The directorial touches here are frequently magnificent. The suspense is frequently exquisite. Yet, as ever, it's all about the characters. Lalo manipulating Jimmy into doing the fateful job in the first place. Jimmy demanding a $100k fee, something he may regret. The power imbalance between Jimmy and the scarily calm Lalo.

Then there's Mike's little speech about how he keeps on doing all this- for his granddaughter. And the episode's main point- Kim is now irrevocably involved in Jimmy's underground stuff. She's also the wife we don't see in Breaking Bad. She's... going to die, isn't she? I'm certain. The show isn't even trying to hide it.

Saul is getting involved in things far beyond him. And it's not just him who will be hurt in the process. This is utterly gripping, suspenseful television, even by BCS standards, but it's Kim it leaves me thinking of.

Quantum of Solace (2008)

 "Bond, if you could avoid killing every possible lead, it would be appreciated."

Finally I've caught up in my Bond marathon. I saw this film at the cinema in 2008, but I haven't seen anything since. All things Bond from this point forward are new territory for me. 

As for this one, though... it surprised me. Oh, I'm not saying it's one of the better Bond films because it certainly isn't. It deserves praise for it's non-excessive run time, but it has flaws. The many action set pieces are entertaining but don't come remotely close to equalling those of Casino Royale. Olga Kurylenko impresses as Camille, a character with depth who earns Bond's respect, while Gemma Arterton is also good as Strawberry Fields(!) who, as tradition dictates, falls for Bond, but ends up dying with a touch of the grand guignol. And yet...

The villain, the plot, the scheme- to engineer a coup in Bolivia and profit from control of the nation's water- lacks a certain excitement. Bond is cut loose from MI6 and on the run, albeit with M's role being ambiguous.. but how many times have we seen this? Compared to its predecessor, this film ends up seeming lacklustre by comparison.

And yet...none of that makes it a bad film, just a flawed one. And, on this second viewing,hot on the heels of seeing Casino Royale, I can see what they may have been trying to do. Yes, Daniel Craig's Bond lacks the flippant charm of his predecessors, but the character has depth. The fim sees him working through his feelings about Vesper, finally forgiving her (and himself), as urged by Matheson's dying words, and we end with him finally getting revenge.

And, across both films together, a shadowy organisation is set up- no spoilers, please, but perhaps SPECTRE?

All of this may well be going somewhere. If so, this film may be more quietly impressive than it appears on first glance.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: Defiance

 "In the north parts, they use your name to terrify their children..."

Oh my. There's soooo much going on here. Yet the overall trajectory is clear: Henry's court is always a place of peril, both geographically and conceptually, and for Cromwell, this may be the beginning of his slow end.

For the king, he keeps failing to get Reginald Pole. Those rumours about him wanting to marry the Lady Mary just won't go away. And the schemes he is forced to use, because of the king, are beginning to affect others' opinions of him. Most obviously, the Lincolnshire rebels, who see him as a literal antichrist... but there is mistrust and misunderstanding everywhere. The ending of last episode sort of broke Cromwell emotionally, and suddenly he is alive to how he is seen.

Those jibes from Lady Rochford (possibly my favourite character) hit harder. Bess mistakenly believes she is to marry the father, not the son, and even Gregory suspects Thomas of designs on his wife. Ouch.

The King continues to be scary and volatile. Chapuys continues to be a fun character, the ultimate player of ten dimensional chess. But the atmosphere is, if such a thing were possible, all the more dangerous. Even Jane, in the things she begs for, risks angering the king. If she were not with child, well... it's clear that her reputation as Henry's favourite wife owes not to any real affection on his part but what she gave him in her death. Poor woman. But I get ahead of myself.

We end with a bombshell: Cromwell has an illegitimate daughter. Yet the peril seems so much more...

Superlative telly. As if it needed saying.

Batman: The Animated Series- Two-Face, Part I

 "I'm more worried about the mental scars..."

Our first two parter, and... the series seems to be stepping up a gear. This is seriously impressive stuff. It was clever to have us know Harvey Dent from earlier in the series: everything in this episode feels earned, which only deepens the feelings of real tragedy.

This seems to be much deeper than the Two-Face origins- admittedly 1970s and earlier- with which I'm earlier.We have Dent as an incorruptible but intense District Attorney, but he has pre-existing demons. Boss Thorne, from the comics, is present and correct, but this episode plus front and centre the stgmas around mental health which were very much a thing in the '90s ('40s?), with Harvey enduring the stress of an election campaign to boot. It's a potent mix and very well realised.

The tragedy at the end packs a punch- Dent's disfugurement, no fault of his own, and his mental health issues have cost him his career, and now his fiancee.

And so, for the first time, we end on a cliffhanger and plunge into part two with a real sense of quality.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: Obedience

 "I created him..."

And the second episode turns out to be even better than the first, which is saying a lot. In fact, let us not mince words: yes, it looks fantastic and the acting is first rate. But this is an absolute masterpiece of televisual scriptwriting- and makes it clear that I need to read the original novels as it seems likely that Hilary Mantel may indeed be a genius.

This is a masterpiece of form and feeling. In showing us the deadly danger of Henry's court, where anyone can sudenly be judicially murdered at the whim of a capricious tyrant, we have a series of examples. Firstly, there is Lady Margaret and her affair and, indeed, marriage (without the king's permission) to Thomas, one of the younger, pooer Howards. Meg is soon made by Cromwell and her friend, in an extraordinary scene, to realise just how much trouble she's in... but Thomas stands to lose everything.

For this is a world in which it is treason to imagine the death of the king. To marry the king's niece is to maneouvre oneself closer to the throne, and this smacks of dangerous ambition.

Yet soon Cromwell himself faces the same danger, as absurd yet potentially damaging rumours start to spead of his wishing to marry the Lady Mary. The aggression with which he treats Chapuys here leaves us in no doubt that he realises fully the dangers of his situation.

And then we have poor Jane Seymour, having to endure the sexual attentions of that bloated, smelly man. She confesses to not enjoying said attentions, and worries that, without taking sexual pleasure, she will not conceive a son. What lies unspoken, horribly, is that, without a son, she will be yet another Anne Boleyn, fated for the block.

Finally, we have the devastating conclusion, as Cromwell shakily says all the wrong things to Wolsey's daughter, slowly realising exactly how he is seen... and may have been seen, at the end, by his beloved Wolsey himself.

Oh, the things one must sacrifice for the king. And he will always demand more and more...

Batman: The Animated Series- Be a Clown

 "If it wasn't risky, I wouldn't enjoy it."

I suppose, on the basic level, this is a by-the-numbers and very typical Joker episode, for said villain has now appeared three times and I'm perhaps in a position to gauge what's "normal". Mark Hamill is, as ever, splendid. The creepy abandoned amusement park- often seen in Batman in various media since the '70s- is nicely used, and there are lots of excellent set pireces. Interestingly, some of them are riffs on Harry Houdini- not only are the clothes and cars reminiscent of the 1940s, the same is true of the pop culture references here.

Yes, there's an annoying kid. But the point here, I think, is to introduce us properly to Mayor Hamilton Hill- bad father, selfish and ambitious climber, useless obstacle and busybody, and blinkered about the Batman. And that introduction is well done as we now know and disapprove of him.

The Joker as clown, though? Brr. But I do begin to worry if the character, while well portrayed, is coming across as pretty one note? We shall see.

Casino Royale (2006)

 "That last hand nearly killed me..."

I'm doing lots of different film marathons where I blog each film in order, in some cases veeeeery slowly, something I'm actually quite proud of. Because my blogging of the Bond films is gleefully slow, at a snail's pace, having started in 2015. Yet it proceeds inexorably on. 

Casino Royale, though... yes, it'a little too long and bloated, as blockbuster films from the present century inevitably are, but objectively it's very good indeed. I enjoiyed it. I'll be honest, though: while there's much to admire I found it dragged at times on this viewing, but perhaps for reasons which are not entirely the film's fault.

Daniel Craig is superlatively good as a more nuanced Bond, one with much more interiority, but still absolutely the Bond we know. And, of course, he gets a real character arc here, more so than since On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

Importantly, though- and the word is much overused, but it's literally so here, although the continuing presence of Judi Dench as M does make one wonder. Bond begins the film earning his promotion to 00 status, in delightfully artily shot scenes. The Bond theme is not heard until the end. Bond has yet to think of a name for his dry martini, shaken, not stirred.... (crikey, spirits are complicated. I stick to real ale and wine) and,of course, there's the last line of the film.

Yet much of the film is a very well done tromance between Bond and Vesper, starting out sparring and eventually falling in love with her, resigning and proposing to spend her life with her. Of course, we know what happened to Trace well back then:Vresper's death is no shock. But the manner and circumstances of her death are truly heartbreaking. No wonder Bond, I assume, will harden his heart and be wary of attachments from now on.

There's lots of action, loads of set pieces, and all with a more realistic tone, devoid of the slight excess of gadgets we've seen in the recent past... although, that scene...? Ouch.

So yes, the film is a little overlong, but very, very good. And yet, so much screen time is devoted to playing poker and... well, this is just me, but I find gambling so very boring. Not that I'm in any way puritanical... it's just dull.

I accept, though, that this is just a matter of taste. Overall, this is a highly effective and affecting relaunch.

Hard Target (1993)

 "How does it feel to be hunted?"

Before I go anything further, something has to be said.

That mullet is not acceptable.

There.

Aside from that lamentable lapse, however, John Woo gives us a well shot and solidly scripted action film with excellent set pieces aplenty, the highlight probably being our protagonist literally standing on the saddle of a moving motorcycle as he sprays his limitless supply of bullets at various expendable baddies.

The concept is interesting- shadowy, cynical baddies recruit homeless military veterans for rich paying clients to hunt and kill, with Jean-Claude Van Damme's Chance getting mixed up in it all. The setting- New Orleans and the surrounding bayou- also adds a lot of flavour. And, while this is hardly a film oozing with subtext, there's a nice bit of commentary on how we ignore and dehumanise homeless people.

Van Damme, shall we say, is probably never going to win an Oscar, decent though he is, although he can certainly kick. But the film lives and breathes by its hugely charismatic baddie, with the superb Lance Henriksen chewing the scenery in the best possible way. His performance is a real highlight.

But, well, the whole thing is just so fun and entertaining, especially the last third of the film,in the bayou, as the final hunt plays out. Yes, Chance and his friends have absurd quantities of plot armour. Yes, Chance shoots a truly absurd quantity of anonymous henchmen with a single shot. But...isn't that part of the fun?

Go on. Switch your brain off and give it a go. You know you want to.

Wolf Hall- The Mirror and the Light: Wreckage

 "I do not understand you, Cromwell. Why are you not afraid? You should be afraid."

It's been... yeah, many, many years. Use the search function if you'd like to see my reviews of the earlier series, adapting Hilary Mantel's first two novels- I did; I certainly needed my memory refreshing. So much life has happened for me since then....

This first episode is extraordinarily powerful. Story, stript, acting, look, direction- all are superb in depicting the sheer peril of politics where the tyrant at the centre of it all is a highly intelligent, scarily volatile and utterly caprucious monster such as Henry VIII, a tyrant of truly terrifying proportions.

As per The Private Life of Henry VIII, a film which, oddly enough, I saw only weeks ago, we begin with the horrifying juxtaposition of Anne Boleyn walking to the scaffold as Henry prepares to marry Jane Seymour the same day. This sequence alone, beautifully shot, says everything. Horrifyingly, Anne keeps looking up, to the windows of the Tower, imagining that there may be hope...

Yet much of the episode concerns the fascinating and deadly games of power. Cromwell may be at the centte of all yet, as Chapuys amusedly pointds out, he is utterly dependent on the King, with no one to save him should he falter. No wonder he is carefully writing a book on how to handle the King.

The King, at this point, seems even worse than before, seemingly contemplating the execution of his own daughter for refusing to sign the oath, yet turning on a sixpence at the end to embrace his cowed child. As for Cromwell himself... he plays such a dangerous game. At one point, when Henry seems to turn fully against Mary, he himself even acknowledges that things certainly appear bleak.

I'm going to enjoy this series so very much- telly at its best.

Batman: The Animated Series- Forgotten

 "Maybe I'll lose my memory and wake up a milliuonaire too."

Surprisingly, this is the third episode in a row without any of Batman's rogue's gallery: indeed, if I'm right, we've only seen the Joker (twice); Poison Ivy, the Scarecrow and Man-Bat, and Harvey Dent is, at this point... one faced.

Yet I'm enjoying these one offs, and this one is no exception- partly, yes, because of the fun of seeing a very nervous Alfred in the Batwing, but also because this is Alfred trying to rescue an amnesiac Bruce. Bruce's uncanny dreams are well done, too.

This one is dark, though: people who won't be missed are kidnapped and put on a chain gang, mining for ore, being put into a sweatbox if they annoy their captors. We never leaern the backstory, but I suppose we don't have to: terrible things can happen at night to the homeless and, indeed, the unwary.

And so we have the satisfying climax as Batman deals with the baddies. But yes indeed... not many of those who endure such horrors will wake up rich the following day.

The Sweeney: Cover Story

 "I think that fish fancies me".

Hmm. Good dialogue, good acting, and it all looks great- not surprising for an episode directed by the great Douglas Camfield. But... for the first time with The Sweeney, I'm not sure about this one.

It's not that the chemistry between John Thaw and Prunella Gee isn't there. It's not that their relationship isn't believable, or that the dilemma isn't real- she genuinely is mysterious: is she in league with this week's villains? And yet... well, the is she / isn't she is driven up to a point of real suspense as the rubbish tip, et, tip she leads them on turns out to be false. But the revelation that she's kosher is just... fairly flat, nothing to it. And her disappearance- leaving because Jack loves his job more thsan her- is the most horrible cliche.

Which isa pity. Great script, characterisation... but the plot just fundamentally doesn't satisfy. Good job, then, that we've got all this '70s-ness to entertain us, the world of half a century ago when journalists mattered.

I'm sure this one is just a blip.

Better Call Saul: JMM

 "No rings. Okey dokey..."

After last episode's deeply dishearening last line, we begin the last line with the world'd least romantic wedding ever, presided over by a very bored and disengaged judge. No rings, no wedding guests, witnesses who are not exactly friends, no celebration... and let's say the two new spouses are not exactly equally invested. Poor Kim. This is the wedding she gets... and this is the wedding she gets. Even worse, she really should know what she's marrying, and gets more reminders later when she realises Jimmy- no, Saul- is being forced to get Lalo out on bail and is quite happy to use this to get money. Oh, Kim...

She isn't in Breaking Bad, of course. I fear for her. Perhaps a fate even worse than ruin awaits. And she's a good, decent person.

Interestingly. Kim, the other lawyers and Kevin all reconcile, after a little brutal honesty on both sides, in a situation of genuine mutual respect. No Jimmy here: these people are all grown-ups.... and that makes the situation worse. Kim is decent, professional, respected. As Kevin says, she could do a LOT better.

Mike is a grown-up too- we see him doing the patient hard work of making amends to his family, and successfully. But the ongoing cold war between Gus and Lalo, with Nacho and his dad in the middle, is getting increasingly complex. Lalo's engaged Jimmy to get him out on bail so he can skedaddle... so why is Mike, on Gus's behalf, handing him the means to do so on a plate? Gus has reason to be furious at Lalo: I suspect the latter is not long for this world, and Gus has plans to kill Lalo in ways thst won't start a "war". The discussions with Lydia and Gus' desperate old German friend is fascinating, pointing ahead to the Madrigal stuff but hinting at quite a long history. Giancarlo Esposito continues to play Gus with such exquisite nuance.

Yet it feels very much as though big things are being set up. Despite this, the episode is as gripping as ever.

Code of Silence (1985)

 "Just like the cops. Just like the Comachos. Nobody talks. Omerta."

This is, surprisingly, the first time I've ever seen or blogged a film starring Chuck Norris, he of all the jokes about how he;s hard as nails... and also of some extremely dodgy political views: bet he voted for the tiny handed orange fascist. I suppose I was expecting some kind of cheesy B movie... but that's not what I got.

Norris' films, this one very much included, tend to be relatively obscure compared to those of his peers Sly and Arnie. Yet Code of Silence is actually a pretty damn good '80s action film. Yes, Norris plays a hard-as-nails character, but not without nuance. He can certainly act. Andrew Davis gives us a stylishly directed thriller with fights, car chases and set pieces before, showing off the Chicago setting superbly.

Yet the plot, character and themes elevate this a little above that,despite the very '80s incidental music and the silly robot,about which the less said than the better. We have a "war" between the local Mafia family and the local Colombian meth lot, both with their own code of silence. Yet into this mix we also have a mildly corrupt police force who protect one of their own who kills a suspect in cold blood, their own code of silence.

Having Norris play a truly incorruptible cop who refuses to goalong with this, therefore meaning he's on his own and his fellow cops won't back him up, is powerful. The plot is clever, satisfying and generally a cut above what one might expect, while the thrills are very much present. An unexpected gem.

The Gorgon (1964)

 "It never ceases to amaze me that the most noble work of God, the human brain, is the most revolting to the human eye.

It's been a while since I've blogged a Hammer horror- partly, I admit, because a lot of the remaining ones are sequels that have to be acquired and seen in the right order, but partly because, well, there are only so many left. 

Still, this is one of the more well-known ones that I hadn't hitherto seen, and it has a stellar cast, from Christopher Lee as the intellectual hero with, er interesting hair to Patrick Troughton as a Prussian policeinspector complete with spiked helmet. But the realstand-out performance is from Barbara Shelley who, despite the many charismatic figures on screen, carries this film.

There's a very nice twist towards the end, and a nicely done red herring. The effects for the Gorgon herself are... well, a bit pants, which is a shame, because the plot is clever and the conclusion highly effective and satisfying aside from that... although surely Professor Meisner ends the film about to be arrested for the apparent murders of Carla and Paul?

It's a melodrama, of course, with all that implies... but that's Hammer for you. With the one excaption of the gorgon itself the film looks superb, the script is captivating and clever, and the cast is one of true Hammer royalty. This is truly one of the highlight's of Hammer's most fertile period in the mid-'60s. Hugely enjoyable.

Agatha All Along: Maiden Mother Crone

 "I do tend to... kill my coven members."

I suppose, in terms of bare plot, and certainly in comparison to recent episodes, what happens in this finale is quite simplle. We see a pregnant Agatha in the 1750s with her son Nicholas Scratch, wandering around killing witches to survive. Yet Death was supposed to take Nicky at birth. She grants Agatha what turns out to be six extra years, but in the end (and, as a parent, on balance I agree) it's more heartbreaking to lose a child of six than a newborn you had never known.

So this is the truth of what happened in the past... although how Agatha came to become Death's lover (like Thanos!) is not explored. Yet, perhaps not surprisingly after last episode... the Witch's Road was a lie, born ofva song she devised for Nicky and turned into a myth intended only as a trap for her witch victims. Agatha was as surprised as anyone when this time the Road appeared... but it was all Billy.

So that's it. Otherwise it's all character- Agatha bonding with her son in 18th century colonial America while cheerfully being a serial killer of witches. How Billy reminds her of her son, hence the fondness. How she would have killed all the witches anyway... but Jen (the only actual comics character!) survives... is she now  going to meet "Ted"?

Not, perhaps, the greatest finale ever, but I enjoyed it. And, as Joss Whedon once did in Buffy, it's brave and iteresting of Jac Schaeffer to allow the penultimate episode the true mantle of finale.

Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

 "Because I'm Marvel Jesus. Or Spock. Hard to say..."

I knew this was going to be enormous fun, and oooooh, it was. Both the stars are superb, and sooooo many cameos, many of them hidden behind Deadpool masks. I'm not going to talk about the plot because irt's bonkers: I mean (SPOILER ALERT) Deadpool and Wolverine, having saved Deadpool's universe for good, get to survive certain death by anti-matter because, er, they were holding hands to Madonna. That's the kind of cheerfully deliberate middle finger at plot logic we're looking at here. I mean, did you expect anything different?

So we have a rogue element of the TVA trying to recruit Wade to the MCU, while saying a fond farewell to the old Fox mutany universe- I loved that bit in the closing credits. The Big Bad (Emma Corfrin is great) Is Professor X's evil sister, and her goons are the likes of Pyro, Toad and Juggernaut. There's a hilarious appearance by Chris Evans, surely Captain America until he cries "flame on!" and an equally hilarious version of Gambit with Channing Tatum, pulling no punches at how ridiculous the character is.

And ahh, all those Deadpools. Love the unfortunate death of Nicepool, and yes... I did indeed notice the "Welshpool" visual joke.

Naturally we get hard-hitting, fourth wall breaking comments on the MCU, that Deadpool is not coming to the MCU at a good time, and his criticism of the Multiverse Saga. But there's far more than that. The 20th Century Fox logo is there in the void. Wesley Snipes' Blade gets to insist that "There's only ever been one Blade, and there's only ever gonna be one Blade", a delightful little comment on behind-the-scenes discord. Oh, and "Paul Rudd finally aged".

This film is, basically, not about the plot at all. It's just there to be hugely entertaining, and to throw cameos and in-jokes at us... and it works! I love the various alt Wolverines, from the comic book accurate short king to Patch to the Siege Perilous era crucified Wolverine. I love the Henry Cavill cameo and the little rib at DC. And of course Colossus loves The Great British Bake Off.

Basically, best Marvel film ever. And now I'm going to check out all the many Easter eggs I no doubt missed...

Better Call Saul: Wexler v Goodman

 "Because it's cold pizza fondled by community actors..."

For the first time, the pre-credits shows a small episode from Kim's childhood: she refuses to get intothe car with her mother, who's been drinking, and bloody well sticking to her principles, even back then. Not hard to see what the subtext is here. Kim has her strong moral principles. We know that. But alas, she seems to be in love with Jimmy for some reason, and I'm sticking to my own guns: Jimmy will be her ruin and her downfall.

Bizarrely, we then see a young Kevin in an old Mesa Verde commercial, zand get a long montage of Jimmy trying to film stuff in his plot against Mesa Verde, getting stuck in to the writing, the directing, anything but lawyering... and along comes Kim. She wants out, unnerved by Rich's suspicions. It's gone too farand she's even willing togive some of her own money to the old man so there can be compromise. And... Jimmy agrees, so that's that, right? I mean, it's not as though he's the unscrupulous type, right...?

We then shift to Nacho who, like Kim, won't be in Breaking Bad. But with him, I suspect, we're looking at literal death. He simply lives too dangerously, inforning Gus and Mike of what Lalo is up to... and wow, as ever, Gus isquite the presence. It looks as though we'll see a lot of Mike and Nacho together from this point. Lalo may appeal to Mike's morals... but, of course, Gus owns Mike. We're so far into Better Call Saul at this point that the nuances between all the characters are utter perfection.

And so cue another series of scenes where we get to see how Mike operates, this time manipulating a librarian and the local police into dropping Lalo right in it... ending in what looks like Lalo's arrest. Nut this, I suspect, is a mere opening skirmish. I note that Lalo has a pet lawyer... although, of course, on this occasion, I use the word "lawyer" in its loosest possible sense.

Still, yes, there's an interlude of Jimmy being an utter **** to Howard but, as the episode comes to an end, it looks as though Kim's going to get her was with Mesa Verde... and then Jimmy REALLY goes for the kill, harassing Mesa Verde to the max, and Kim is furious, very visibly so, to be thrown under the bus like this. This threatens to have dire consequences for her, despite her very visible and real anger.

Kevin, incidentally, has a very clearidea of exactly what Jimmy is, and he certainly isn't a lawyer.

Finally, we have the confrontation. Kim really laying into Jimmy and there's a sense that even he may now realise that he may have gone too far. Is this it? Kim is beginning to sound like he might dump him, as she should have done long ago....

"Maybe we get married".

Oh Kim....

Obviously, this is televisual perfection. Yet again.

The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933)

 "

I wasn't surprised to see that this film is very, very good- the director and the star meant that would always be likely. What did surprise me, however, is how funny it is- and how relatively frank about sex- in a humourous way, yes, but this is hardly picture postcard humour.

Charles Laughton is, of course, definitive as Henry, with both his performance and the acript showing him as merry yet dangerously capricious. Intelligent, cultured, yet the ultimate spoiled brat, self-indulgent and able to turn on a sixpence.

Yet the film plays this largely for black humour, downplaying religious matters entirely, as well as foreign affairs... although Henry is made to say that "If those French and Germans don't stop killing each other then Europe will be in ruins"- hard not to see as a comment on the Europe of 1933, a decade and a half after the Great War and with Hiller yet to burn down the Reichstag.

I laughed out loud as the opening blurb dismissed Catherine of Aragon as being of "no particular interest", the opening scenes set on the day both of Anne Boleyn's execution and Jane Seymour's wedding to Henry, leaving us in no doubt whatsoever what a callous man he is, with scenes of Anne bravely facing her last couple of hours juxtaposed with Henry and Jane being frivolous... and Henry cynically sees Jane as a "stupid woman".

He is, again, callous as Jane dies in childbirth, caring only for his baby son. Yet the film focuses on the contrast between Anne of Cleves, who plays the game cleverly and ends up divorced, alive and rich... and the true tragic focus of the film, Katherine Howard, whose eagerness to court the king and have a crown eventually results in being trapped into a marriage to an old man, followed by her inevitable doom. These moments are dark, although it is not dwelt upon here that young Kate was only nineteen.

A superb, witty, funny, dark and tragic script all in one, and a strong overall cast with Charles Laughton giving the performance of his life. This is one of the triumphs of early historical sound cinema.

Stargate (1994)

 "There can be only one Ra..."

I've never seen any of the subsequent telly series, but I have seen this film before, back in the '90s, hiring it from the local video shop. I enjoyed it then... and I absolutely adore it now.

I'm told there were all sorts of behind-the-scenes headaches for the film, it wasn't expected to do well, and it was a massive surprise when it turned out to be a huge hit. Yet it's simply very good, a very '90s twist on Erik Von Daniken with Egyptian gods as ancient aliens, with a superb and well-placed plot, a brilliant series of concepts and very strong central performances from James Spader and Kurt Russell. 

The visuals, the aesthetics of the gods are awesome. The first sight of Horus is well-shot and effective- and it's a surprise to find him being played by a young Djimon Hounsou. The pyramids, the three moons in the sky... the visuals are as good as the plot.

The whole thing is very much plot-driven, and the conceit of seeing everything through the eyes of Daniel Jackson works well, as we are introduced to the backstory of the Stargate at a point where the authorities are on board and plans already laid.

Yet there is humanity too. Both Daniel and Colonel O'Neill are three-dimensional, flawed but ultimately good people, and the people enslaved by the "gods" manage to seem like real and likeable people despite speaking an unknown language. And the ending is deeply satisfying.

This is simply a great concept, executed superby. That's why it's a great film.

Agatha All Along: Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End

 "So, Agatha's ex is death".

"That also makes sense..."

Wow. So much happens here in forty-odd minutes. Agatha All Along has been a slow burn, but these last episodes, with all the cleverly set up reveals, have been incredible.

So Rio (reference to the River Styx or summat?) literally is Death: we see Alice meeting her at the moment of death, incredulous that she should die now, upon the lifting of the curse, in a scene very reminiscent of similar scenes in Sandman, although we don't talk about Neil Gaiman these days. We also see some very cool subtle skull effects on her face, which is nicely done.

But wow.I mean, Agatha passes the last trialon the Witch's Road- just- but this is almost an afterthought. We discover that it was Agatha who bound Jennifer, and she is thus able to rather dramatically unbind herself. It's hinted that Agatha did not do the terible things to her son Nicky that everyone supposes, but istaking on the opprobrium to avoid something worse- for next episode, no doubt.

Then we have the episode-long  see-sawing of whether or not Agatha will betray Billy. She doesn't, she does... and then she doesn't, seemingly dying for him.

Yet the end- so clever, with all the elements of the Rosad being within Billy's bedroom- seems to hint that bigger and even more fundamental reveals are to come. Wow.

One more to go...

Batman: The Animated Series- P.O.V.

 "I guess Batman must have gotten a second wind after Detective Bullock dragged him out, because he was in rare form!"

I'm increasingly enjoying not only the subtle '40s style of this series but the fact that the titles being shown on screen is clearly intended to evoke movie serialds. There's a lot of clever stylistic touches thatI'm increasingly coming to appreciate, and the animation continueas to be superb.

But... Batman: The Animated Series does Rashomon. In twenty minutes. And it's superb.

I love how Bullock's low level dodginess is contrasted with the earnestness of Montoya and her fellow rookie but, more than that, with the depiction of Batman as he appears to these overawed young cops. At first I wondered whether Batman would get to speak at all but, of course, he does, as he and Montoyatake down the baddies together.

I simply love the mood of this episode- very noir. This is, let's admit it, not a good day- the next American president is going to be a terrifying fascist, not good for Ukraine and by extension Europe, for the climate emergency, for the very notion of the "West", for decency or, indeed, the freedom of the orange fascist's own country. But good art has its consolations and so, in its small way, is the case here.

Agatha All Along: Death's Hand in Mine

 "We can be culturally offended later..."

Yeah, I know. They're all dressed like famous witches from popular culture- Wicked Witch of the West, Maleficent, etc... but they do have the tendency to be the Disney versions, don't they? Gosh, I wonder why that is.

Grumbling about the corporate cultural appropriation of folk culture aside, this episode is a thing of genius from the beginning to that wonderful and highly appropriate Jim Croce song at the end, as Lilia's entire life goes full circle. The little apparent lapses from Lilia suddenly make sense as we follow the conversation from her own, very timey-wimey perspective. It's so sad: she only gets to find fulfilment and purpose just before she dies. But wow, what a triumph, what a character and what a tour de force from Patti LuPone.

Also... Rio is literally Death? As in Thanos' lover Death? And... she's Agatha's ex? Wow. We get a lot of minor answers here- Lilia cast the sigil- but that's quite the reveal. What's her angle, and is she going to be showing up in all sorts of other contexts?

Overall, though, this is near perfection. The superb sets. the gleefully cliched trial. And the funny, tragic and incredibly clever script. Wow.

Raw Deal (1986)

 "You should not drink and bake."

…Or, indeed, shoot and drive. Please, any drivers reading this: keep your eyes on the road (or quarry). Engaging in a gun battle with the goons of an entire Mafia family can impair your driving concentration, even if, like Mark here, you also come armed with prodigious quantities of plot armour.

I must be close as dammit to having blogged all the '80s Arnie action movies, so here's another one. And it's good, it's fun, like all movies of this ilk. It isn't the greatest action film of all time, but it doesn't have to be. The action set pieces are great. Sam Wanamaker is also great as a Chicago Mafia boss, and Robert Davi is exceptionally good, as ever, as Max. But Arnie, in his first real role with lots of proper dialogue, just oozes so much charisma.

The film really showcases Chicago as a city, too, as all the suspense and action takes place. Admittedly the final scene is very Saturday morning cartoon, and the film nicely reminds us that two bottles of champagne in one sitting is perhaps not great for one's sex life. But then, of course, the plot mustn't allow Mark to sleep with the rather lovely Monique, lest he commit adultery with his rather unpleasant, cake throwing wife.

Still, the flaws of this film are all partr of the fun. Highly recommended if you just want to switch off your brain and watch some '80s action with car chases and shooting galore.

The Wild Robot (2024)

 "I do not have the programming to be a mother."

"No one does. We just make it up."

Little Miss Llamastrangler and I toddled off to the cinema so very pleasingly nearby to watch this film today, and a good time was had by both nine year old and forty-seven year old, the main thing. It is, of course, quite the time-jerker. but it's also interesting in more than the obviousways.

The quote sums up the main subtext, of course: the conceit of a robot accidentally ending up as mother to a little gosling allows it to be a metaphor for the reality of parenting- there's n manual, every child is different and not what the books say, you do a lot of improvising and hoping for the best.

And yet... for all the anthromorphism of robots and animals here, the humans, decadent in their robotised sci-fi society, are not shown as "people". We see them only as a decadent other, surrendering their agency to the robots who live their lives for them. For slavery- and that's what this is- is fundamentally decadent. history shows us this. Slave societies have no further reason to advance, or progress. Sooner or later, they will be out-competed.

Yet the animals of the island are free... and they do progress. To them, the robot is not a slave but a beloved friend and member of their community. And so they seem to slowly learn to live together and forswear rugged, predatory individualism.

But, pretension aside, this is a wonderfully animated, richly emotional film... and yes, I cried when she told him that she loved him. Wonderful stuff.

Batman: The Animated Series- The Under-Dwellers

 "Leprechauns and Batmen. What's Gotham coming to?"

For the first time we have a new villain and no Batman lore other than Bruce himself and Alfred, still the mildly sarky early '90s version of the character- I'm still very much enjoying the banter between the two of them.

This is all a bit Dickensian, a bit Fagin, with a creepy "Sewer King", forcing ragged children to steal for him while using the rather enormous sewer gators to intimidate them. It's all rather unpleasant, if the real horror is sensibly downplayed, but it's a nice little tale, very well and subtly told. Michael Pataki, one of those Hollywood character actors who pops up everywhere, does a good job.

Are we going to get more episodes not so focused on the lore, then? This one certainly worked. I'm here for it.

I'm also continuing to enjoythe stylised Animation- of its time, yes, with obvious Japanese influence, but it quite rightl leads into the Tim Burton Gotham aesthetic, and that's how Gotham should look. I also continue to enjoy the clever ambiguity as to time period, with modern features mixed in with very 1940s-looking cars and fashions.

Several episodes in, and we're still slowly exploring what this series can do. I'm impressed.

Agatha All Along: Familiar by My Side

 "Don't you dare feel guilty about your talent!"

And this is where we realise how clever Agatha All Along is, I've no doubt much cleverer than I've grasped,. This episode is, yes, a flashback, to the Teen's background. But it's so awfully clever that we see all thosesame scenes between him and Agatha in the first episode, but this time as part of his narrative.

And the whole flashback is so well handled. We follow William Kaplan, an ordinary teen, living in Westview,  just having had his Bar Mitzvah... and that night he suffers a permanent amnesia. It's hinted throughout that another personality has taken over, nicely laying seeds. He and his boyfriend (Eddie is a very nice kid indeed).

The conspiracy theorist chap reminded me of Clive from Rose in Doctor Who, albeit giving off much stronger nutter vibes... the irony being that everything he's saying is true.And (Easter egg) in a certain light he looks a bit like Quicksilver...

So... Teen, whose words we finally see and hear without the sigil, is Billy Maximoff, and he's looking for his brother, as Agatha so entertainingly works out. It seems the rest of the coven are dead?

The whole episode looks great, delivers bombshells that have really been earned, and both of its two leads are extraordinary. This just keeps getting better and better.

Agatha All Along: Darkest Hour / Wake Thy Power

 "We have to ouija."

"It's not a verb!"

At first, this seems like yet another test on the Road and just another episode in what we supposedc to be the series format... but no: this episode pulls the rug out from us and does it superbly. Despite the splendidly meta riffing on broomsticks at the start, with everyone hating how they're both a terrible cliche anda symbol of female domesticity (good point), the humour is much less foregrounded here, despite Agatha's initial witty efforts. Insyead things get surprisingly dark.

The ouija scenes (P-U-N-I-S-H A-G-A-T-H-A) are bloody terrifying... and so is Agatha's mother. But we're reminded that, witty and entertaining protagonist though she is, and capable of what she thinks to be maternal love, is not actually a very nice person simply becaudse she's the main character. She's done terrible things, and is by no means a reformed character.

... Indeed, Teen aside, she has no actual friends among the coven, as we soon discover. All of them are quite happy to let Agatha be punished, and survive.

And then unexpected things happen. Alice dies! Teen turns against Agatha... and all of them. We discover who he is... and he's not Agatha's son, but someone else's entirely.

Wow. Nicely done. Agatha All Along continues to toy with out naive exoectations at every turn of what we may think we're watching.

Army of Darkness (1992)

 "I may be bad, but I feel... good!"

It's October, so time for another suitably Halloween-ish film... although I seem to be in a rather silly mood. 

I'm aware that I'm part way through an enormous number of cinematic horror franchises, but in my defence there are rather a lot of them. Still, it feels good to finally complete Sam Raimi's superb Evil Dead trilogy. 

The film is, of course, hilarious. We know what we're getting- slapstick humour and the parody that the horror genre, with its innate artificiality, so naturally attracts. Once again, Bruce Campbell's performance utterly nails the comedy. Quite rightly historical accuracy is cheerfully ignored in favour of a vague Hollywood version of the Middle Ages. And everything just looks great.

There are so many highlights, not the least of which is the magnificent rudeness of Ash himself. But there are so many set pieces. The evil little mini-mes. The magic words being a nod to The Day the Earth Stood Still. Bad Ash. The three Necronomicons. The gloriously evil ending, riffing on Planet of the Apes... why didn't Ash just stay in 1300? He could have been a somebody!

But yes, the final battle, with all those Harryhausen style stop motion skeletons... that was exquisite. And so was the film, and indeed the whole trilogy.

Agatha All Along: If I Can't Reach You / Let My Song Teach You

 "You don't have to know a person's name to know who they are..."

I've enjoyed Agatha All Along up until now, but this episode is another level. It's superb. Suddenly this is feeling like first class television drama. We've got to know the characters, now we get the deeper drama... alongside the wit we've come to expect. And it all looks amazing, too.

Agatha's callousness about Sharon is hilarious. As it the fact that a new green witch has to be summoned, and it's Rio. Oops. Yet she and Agatha have a truly fascinating and nuances dynamic- lovers, arch enemies, something very deep indeed.

The A story here is Alice and her generational curse, all very cleverly plotted and unveiled. Perfectly, the curse is expunged through rock 'n' roll. A song, as a protection spell... a superb twist.

And then there's the hints as to the teen's identity: is he Agatha's son? Her upset at him being hurt suggests she feels he might be, but Rio says not. The sigil confuses things, but apparently a sigil isvdestroyed once it's no longer needed. I love the ideas in this show.

We also get hints as to Rio's backstory... Agatha is her "scar" and made her hurt someone? Oh, and why does Lilia seem perfectly lucid most of the time but occasionally forget things? So much is going on. I'm loving this.

The Lord of the Rings- The Rings of Power: Shadow and Flame

 "You are their prisoner, Sauron. Lord of the rings..."

I know, this is two blog posts in succession and both on the same show. But I wanted to get this season of The Rings of Power finished. And wow, what a dramativ finale. So much happens, and so much is set up. It's a wild ride.

We begin with the confrontation between the Durins, both father and son, as the King continues to mine, despite the risk of awakening what the subtitles reveal to be indeed the Balrog. His heroic death is nicely done- unexpected, shocking yet appropriate. Durin, I assume, is now king... but it seems his succession is not uncontested? The dwarvesare at last able to assist in the siege, but does civil war await them?

Equally dramatic is the confrontation between the Stranger and the Dark Wizard, who seemingly seeks not to join Sauron but to supplant him. Yet he responds to the Stranger's refusal to join him by destroying the Stoors' village, meaning that they, like the Harfoots, must wander. Yet there's a twist; Bombadil intended him to choose friendship, so he gets his staff after all... and his namre. This, again, is very nicely done. No wonder Gandalf is so fond of Hobbits.

At Numenor things get even worse. Pharazon declares all followers of the Valarto be traitors, and we end the episode with poor, blind Mirielin chains. Yet she orders Elendil to leave, and "reclaim your lordship". Isildur, meanwhile, and the displaced southlanders, also learn of the new regime and its harshness. Yet I sense Numenor, at this point, is irreversibly bound to sink between the waves. Isildur's future lies in Gondor... ad, I'm sure, with Estrid, taken though she is.

Celebrimbor's death, tortured tro death by Sauron, is indeed grimly horrible. He may have been at fault, an eager dupe, but he didn't deserve this. Charles Edwards, though, is again extraordinary.

Adar's death, a horrible twist, also shocks- betrayed by his own Uruks who turn instead to Sauron. He is, perhaps, as tragic an eff as Celebrimbor, noble in his way,and on the cusp of allying with Galadiel.

His flaw was love. He loved ad cared for his orc... and yet they spurned their loving father for an evil master, because evil is what they are. That, to put it mildly, is dark.

Galadriel's combt with Sauron is epic, although perhaps it goes on too long. We end with her barely alive... and, I trust, confined to Lothlorien if she wishes to live?

An extraordiunary episode. And, after a mixed first season... this season has been extraordinary.

The Lord of the Rings- The Rings of Power: Doomed to Die

"Forgive me..."

"Win!"

More than seventy minutes for this penultimate episode, and there's not a Man, Wizard or Harfoot to be seen. It's all an epic chronicle of the siege of Eregion, with all its twists, turns and impressive CGI hill troll(!)... and we end on a very bleak note, with Adar triumphant, and Arondir seemingly dead.

And the dwarves, despite Durin's promise, cannot come to the elves' aid, lest Durin's ring-addled father continue to mine and awaken the beast beneath- the Balrog? The show likes doing these kinds of impossible dilemmas, but they're effective. Can Elrond's friendship with Durin survive? Surely this will cause the enmity between elvesand dwarves; I'd assume so.

The parlet between Elrond and Adar is nicely done too, with Elrond refusing Adar's terms even at the apparent cost of Galadriel's life... and that parting kiss. For this show, usually all about the epic scale and not the humanfor once we have a lot of effective character drama here.

Most horrifying of all, though, is the full force gaslighting of Celebrimbor by Sauron. Yes, he wins, sort of, by entrusting the nine rings to an escaping Galadriel, but what he suffers is truly horrid. Charles Edwards is simply extraordinary here.

The Rings of Power has at times been inconsistent, but this extra-long episode is a trimph of both visuals- it looks amazing, cinematic- and storytelling. I have high hopes for the finale.

Better Call Saul: Dedicado a Max

 "You never told me that he was a side sitter!"

Another gripping episode this time, one that may well spell doom for Kim. Of course, Jimmy's antics trying to impede the seizure of Old Man Acker's house provide the main amusement this time round, but rather av lot happens.

Interestingly, once more we havean A plot and a B plot, with many characters- chrefly Nocho and Lalo- not appearing for the time being. The B plot is Mike, who is in rock bottom receiving medical care across the border... provided by Gus, thus indebting Mike to him.Gradually, throughoutbthe episode, Mike realises, with increasing injury to his pride, that Gus does indeed own him... and the moment where Gus puts the phone down with a terse "not now" is a brutal reminder of that.

Even so, Gus's interactions with Mike at the end make sense- Mike was indeed washed up, without purpose, drinking heavily and starting to alienate himself frpm a family whom he hasn't even told where he is. Much though he hates to admit it, he may well need Gus. It's just that, well, we know where this leads.

But Kim, oh Kim. It may feel like fun with here and Jimmy on opposite sides, but this is no game, whatever Jimmy may think, casually dismissing another call from Howard about a job offer we know he won't take. And... the gambit fails: Kevin simply doubles down. Worse, Rick seems to be on to Kim. She absolutely needs to back down, she's done what she can for the old man... but she doesn't.

I've been certain for a long time that Jimmy's baleful influence is going to end up ruining Kim's professional reputation. I'm increasingly worries that this may be the start of her fall.

As if it needed saying... superb bit of telly.

Relative Values by Noel Coward at the Little Theatre in Leicester

 Alas, it was the final performance when I saw the play last night, so this blog post won't be of any use in plugging any future performance, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

It's fair to say, I think, that Noel Coward hasn't been fashionable in recent decades, but there comes a point where suffiiuent time has passed such that "dated" becomes "period". Such is the case with thisfairly late Noel Coward comedy on the little nuances of social class from 1951. It an enormously entertaining and very funny play, with wit reminiscent of Oscar Wilde, but also a fascinating glimpse into attitudes from the middle of the laast century, a time that suddenly feel a lot more distant than it did a couple of decades ago.,

The cast, of course, were superb, utterly inhabiting their parts while letting the wit shine through. The set desigh was also excellent, the entire play taking part within the confines of a single room.

Alas, I cannot plug this play. But, for those who live locally, I can certainly plug the venue. This is the third play I've seen there now, all of which were brilliant.

Carry On Screaming (1966)

 "May I blow it?"

It's October. The month of Halloween. The month of ghouls and ghost and things that go bump in the night... and the next film in my slow, chronological meanderings through the Carry On series turns out to be rather appropriate. Who'd have thunk it?

Just as recent films have been genre pastiches, this time we get a glorious taste on the British horror films from the likes of Hammer and Amicus, very much in their heyday at this point. The look of the film is perfect, as are the opening titles and song. Yet, as ever, the success of this film lies in the superb performances and the gloriously crap jokes... and yes, the innuendo about the whistle is absolutely the best thing in it.

No Sid James this time, but Harry H. Corbett is a more than adequate replacement in what is more or less a starring role. Fenella Fielding, too, is a wonderful new addition with perfect timing. But best of all, as so very often, is Kenneth Williams, hamming it up in the best possible way as the dastardly Doctor Watt (Doctor Who is his uncle, apparently...!).

Everything about this film is wonderful and utterly unafraid to be silly. Charles Hawtrey gets a surprisingly small role (was his personal life more than usually chaotic at this point?), but it says a lot that the absence of the great Sid James is hardly noticeable here.

The Lord of the Rings- The Rings of Power: Where Is He?

 "Your friend or your destiny? The choice is yours."

Perhaps the finest scene in this excellent episode is the two hander between Adar and Galadriel about how Sauron manipulates. Yes so much else happens... not least Celebrimbor whinging in iambic pentameter. 

What else? We see Sauron'sincreasing manipulation of a Celebrimbor coming apart at the seams... yet not only him. Yes, Adar and Galadriel ally against him, using the elven ring and Mordoth's crown, or hoping to. Yet, as Galadriel realises, even this is exactly what Sauron wants- the thought in the viewer's mind as the siege of Eregion begins in Earnest.

Our two Harfoots begin to learn the meaning of home as peril awaits, while Tom Bombadil would have the Stranger choose a staff, a test he MUST pass . And yet, the situation parallels that of Luke now in The Empire Strikes Back, with Nori and Poppy in danger. If he leaves now, help them he could but... well. The scene is a cliche, it must be said, but it works dramatically.

Then we have Elendil, accused of treason for his loyalty to his old faith and queen, and having to face an ancient form of trial by CGI sea serpent. And... with Miriel risking her life for him so beautifully, this scene is damn good. Miriel 1, Pharazon 0, as the crowd cheers her. And it seems she and Elendil are falling in love, does it not? Even as Elendil and his daughter grow further apart.

Then there's King Durn, his greed, and the ring. Brrr. This is good stuff. Yet what lingers in the mind is the true manipulative power of Sauron, which is so very well done indeed.

Agatha All Along: Through Many Miles / Of Tricks and Trials

" He's not in the coven. And he's underage..."

Once again, this episode is filled with wit, fun, and four witch characters we're a;ready getting to know and enjoy... although, as ever, Kathryn Hahn's performance is utterly wonderful. And we get a possible hint of the format: four types of witch- divination, green, potion and whatever Agatha is- and four trials from the Road.

But, simple though the format is- a posh house, a timer, poisoned wine ("Ugh! Cheap!"), and a race against the clock for Jennifer to make a suitable potion- it's so much more than that. Each character has a weird flashback, possibly telling us something. Jen is seemingly drowned by a man in early 20th century clothing. Alice seems to be facing a curse passed through generations from mother to daughter. And... did Agatha give her son to Mephisto (first MCU mention?) for a magical book?

Oh, and who is the Teen?

Yet it all looks brilliant, and the conceit works perfectly not only in entertaining us but in making us feel that wealready know all of these characters. But... Sharon is dead? There has to be more to her, surely? Regardless, I'm loving this.

The Lord of the Rings- The Rings of Power: Halls of Stone

 "It will open with a password known only to friends..."

This episode is, perhaps, the most exciting yet to those of us who have read only The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, pointing strongly towards the future we know. We have Durin's gate of course, but we see Sauron to continue manipulating Celebrimbor to makerings not only for Dwarves but also for Men... nine rings for the kind of the nive noble realms. We know well where this is leading.

We also have hints of the doom that awaits Khadad-Dum. Oh, King Durin III may have saved his realm in the short term, but he shows signs of the greed and the ring addiction that we shall soon come to know so well,charging a "ring tax" and forcing the other sixdwarven kings to make a tribute in return for their own rings. Worst of all, he wants to dig, despite the fact that ancient evil lies beneath.

Then there's Gil-Galad's dilemma between Sauron and Adar. Adar seeking an alliance with Galadriel. And the darkness beginning to envelop Numenor. Pharazon already threatens to be a tyrant, and his son seems worse. Elendil is not having a good time, and nor are his many friends. Even his daughter has betrayed him.

And yet... despite this series being more about epic events than character, what shines here is the detail of Sauron's manipulation of the proud but gullible Celebrimbor. The Rings of Power is on fire as never before.

Agatha All Along: Circle Sewn with Fate / Unlock Thy Hidden Gate

 "Witches like you are the reason people think we poison apples, and steal children, and eat babies."

"Babies are delicious..."

This is, of course, a wnderful piece of television. Agatha is a glorious protagonist- a baddie, and unashamedly so. Witty, humorous, amoral and delightfully free wit all the meta humour.

I've no idea where this is going, of course, but it's fun. The only characters I know from the comics are Agatha herself and a version of Jennifer Kale, not that I have in fact read Steve Gerber's Man-Thing issues. I suspect the fact we (and Agatha) are censored so very diegetically as to who the teen is means he's someone we may have heard of. But otherwise this is continuity-lite. Oh, and it's an almost entirely female cast with one gay boy. This is going to annoy all the right people. Good.

This episode is a fun riff on a kind of dark fairytale structure, which is of course enormous fun... and they all get into the road just before Agatha's hooded assassins arrive. Our motley crew is now on the road, and I have no idreawhere this is going, or who or what all those animals are. But I'm proper hooked.

Elizabeth (1998)

 "It is no easy thing to be loved by the Queen. It would corrupt the heart of any man".

Before I praise this wonderful film, I'll get a few criticisms out of the way. 

So... the opening text- in a terrible font, incidentally- misspells the word "fervent"and has "halfsister" with no hyphen. And the closing text has England as "the richest and most powerful country in Europe"... er, no. Pre-industrial England, indeed pre-agricultural revolution England, was a middling country whose population was never going to be as big as a France or a Spain- England, I suppose, was more of a Netherlands or a Portugal.

Also, a lot of history is telescoped into a short time and the chronology is inevitably off. William Cecil is shown asan old man in the 1550s and dismissed early in Elizabeth's reign. Francis Walsingham is spymaster and Machiavel from day one. And did the future King Henri III of France really wear dresses and have sex with his aunt, the Queen Regent of Scotland?

And yet, I think, we have to accept this as a creative necessity. History is not easily crammed into two hours of screen time without being adjusted to fit. And this film, text aside, is magnificent.

Too often, history in cinema is shot in a dull, staid, Merchant Ivory way. Not here. Shekhar Kapur uses light, colour, claustrophobia and perspective wonderfully. We open with a truly shocking scene of three martyrs being burned at the stake, the sheer horror of it all being emphasised. Mary's court is dark and without joy, Kathy Burke giving us a Mary who has always been the underdog, and even as queen is humiliated by her neglectful husband and the nature of the cancer that kills her. She is bitter, resentful... yet cannot sign her sister's death warrant.

Elizabeth's accession is symbolised by two flashes of white light. We see the aftermath of the bloody battle in Scotland via the camera panning across the River Tweed running with blood. The look of the film is exquisite. Yet so are the performances. Cate Blanchett is, of course, a revelation, but the performances of Joseph Fiennes, Christopher Eccleston and Geoffrey Rush are equally superb.

This film is a triumph. Just try and ignore the text.