Antigone (1986 TV Film)

 "When the state becomes one man, it ceases to be a state."

And so we come to the third and final iteration of Don Taylor's translations of Sophocles' Theban plays, made for the BBC in 1986. I was vaguely aware of Antigone by reputation, but this is the first time I've experienced the play. It packs quite a punch, to put it mildly.

The production retains the form of classical Athenian theatre, as with its predecessors, hence the slightly odd sight of the Chorus, with a number of very familiar British character actors speaking in unison. The costuming works well, evoking a dictatorship in the modern age, appropriately for the autocratic hubris of Creon who, this being classical Greek theatre, awaits his certain nemesis.

As with other plays, the visually dramatic moments (especially the deaths) happen offstage, with most of the drama consisting of an utterly enthralling dialogue of ideas. The premise is well-known- Antigone insists on giving her brother a proper burial despite Creon's newly enacted law making this a capital offence. And Creon is allowed to make some valid points- Antigone's brother was not only fighting against Thebes but wanted to destroy it and enslave its inhabitants, so Creon is entitled to feel aggrieved.

Yet his arrogance, his sheer insistence on his absolute power, is devastating and way over the top: at one point he tells the soldier who reports the illicit burial to either find the culprit or be tortured to death, which is a bit harsh! And the way he speaks to his son again shows such tyrannical hubris.

 In the cosmology in play here, the laws of the gods may not be overridden by the laws of men (yes, men- the dialogue makes the inevitable misogyny very, very clear!), and the arrogant Creon is doomed. His final downfall is almost as terrible as that of Oedipus.

The staging is, yes, a little flat, but that's the nature of the beast. Above all, the play is carried by extraordinary performances from Juliet Stevenson and John Shrapnel, who truly excel in a production that is devastatingly effective.

Batman: The Animated Series- Day of the Samurai

 "Sayonara, Batman!"

I wasn't expecting a sequel to Night of the Ninja, to put it mildly. But this follow-up, set in Japan, with Bruce interacting with a present day Sensei Yoru, nicely deepens the world-building, which The Animated Series tends to be very good at. I like the subtle hints that the Sensei may know Bruce's secret... and, let's face it, the fact that Batman is openly operating in Japan during Bruce's visit is a dead giveaway. Secret identities are a dead giveaway.

It's a nice little tale, based on the concept of an ancient, forbidden martial art that includes a fatal touch. Naturally, of course, the only copy of this secret is hidden in a mountain cave and the Sensei is the last person who knows the secret, conveniently enough. But the story works well, right up to the dramatic final conflict beneath an erupting volcano, and the clever revelation as to how Batman survives.

It's unusual to see an episode set in Japan... but this really works.

Twin Peaks: Wounds and Scars

 "I guess the world's just caught up to us..."

Inevitably, Harry is deeply affected by Josie's death in a way we've never seen him before. But he gets his moment of reflection (and catharsis) with Coop, and I assume he'll be back to normal next time.

Soooo much happens, though. The Log Lady reveals that, when she was seven and in the forest, she had a similar experience to Cooper and the Major, receiving a tattoo on her leg. Cooper and Pete struggle with the stalemate game against Earle... it's impossible to play so as no pieces are taken, so people will die. Earle, meanwhile, is angry at the stalemate game, and the fact that Cooper is clearly being helped... so he delivers his own move in a particularly creepy and scary manner. This is brilliant stuff.

So is the sparring between Ben Horne and Catherine, towards the end, just before the inevitable farce (the scene involves Dick, after all) with the pine marten. Like most episodes, there are lots of plotlines moving forwards, there are the guest celebrity appearances we've come to see of late (Heather Graham appears as Norma's sister) and there are a selection of entertaining set pieces. And, as ever, it's utterly compelling. Five episodes to go, and I've absolutely no idea how this will end.

Leo as bullied butler figure, though.... brr!

Dexter: It's Alive!

 "Don't forget, tell the universe what you need..."

So Angel, after recovering from his stabbing, is into all this cosmic ordering nonsense that Noel Edmonds (not an individual I'd expected to be mentioning in relation to Dexter!) was into at probably the same time. Oh dear. But he also feels totally comfortable around Dexter at all times, as does everyone... except, of course, Doakes who, let us recall, is right and will not be hornswoggled. Some kind of clash is coming.

And, indeed, being watched by Doakes is doing far more than cramping Dexter's style- it's limiting his opportunities to kill. So is the fact that Deb, unable to sleep in a house alone, is staying with him. And, in not killing, he's losing his mojo somewhat. In bed, at work, pertaining to... donuts. And, forebodingly (I'm not sure whether that was a word, but it is now!) his only "successful" killing is of a macabre, blind, voodoo serial killer (not a phrase I particularly expected to type) who.... curses him. And, whether by this or not, he's cursed.

Because his next attempted killing goes wrong in every way, just as in other areas of his life. And, worse, the sacks of body parts of his victims have been found. And, after Paul dies in prison, Rita now has cause to start to question the nature of the man she's with. Still have no sympathy for Paul though. The worst person in this show, and that's saying something.

There's more, though. Maria LaGuerta and the new lieutenant... connecting? Then there's Deb clearly not coping as well, deep down, with her experiences last season as might be apparent on the surface. as we see a few times, and will no doubt see more and more….

This is a VERY exciting start to a very interesting second season. They’ve adapted the novel, so where to go next…?

P.R.O.B.E: The Zero Imperative

 "This is a hospital, Miss Shaw. Not Scooby-Doo."

It says a lot about me was that tonight's viewing was a choice between a 1980s BBC TV production of Sophocles' Antigone and this, a straight-to-video Doctor Who spin-off from the wilderness years. My geek side just won out against my pretentious git side... this time!

Thing is, though, this may not be Sophocles but it's a very impressive script from a young Mark Gatiss, a tale of dark, otherworldly forces, possession and family tragedy that is perfectly paced, well characterised and unfolds in a deeply satisfying way, with revelation after revelation. Bill Baggs' direction, too, is impressive, using stylistic camerawork to cover what must have been a tiny budget.

The dialogue is great, as is Caroline John as Liz Shaw, now running her own outfit investigating supernatural weirdness in contrast to "another acronymic organisation from my salad days"- love the pipe.

Nevertheless... although Jon Pertwee, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy (especially towards the end) are all great, I tend to feel that the inclusion of so many former Doctors (although I love Sylv's "Trust me, I'm a Doctor") perhaps undermines Caroline John in what's supposed to be a starring role. Still, that isn't the script's fault, and the overall impression is of a compelling thriller that, very wisely, leads with mood and character as opposed to anything too expensive-looking....

The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling

 

I found this novel to be... fine. Admittedly the ending is very well done indeed, but I'm nit inclined to use any superlatives. It was good, that's all. Which is... not how I was expecting to feel after reading a novel which is not only one of the most famous works of alternate history ever written but also an absolute pioneer of the Steampunk here.

Might this, though, be an example of the "Citizen Kane problem"? Said film pioneered so much in the way of cinematic technique yet, in a world where such technique has long been commonplace, the film looks unremarkable? Could this be the case here?

There is a plot, yes, or rather a few broadly linked narratives. Yet the plot is merely a pretext for the real point- the worldbuilding. I cannot comment on its riffing of Benjamin Disraeli's "Sibyl", but I can certainly be impressed and, indeed, dazzled by the cleverness and complexity of the alternate history that is built here. We have Babbage, Byron, Keats, Ada Lovelace as sort of Victorian versions of Steve Jobs and Woj.

Victorian mores, too, social and sexual, are well sketched, alongside a convincingly Victorian kind of radicalism.

In 2025, though, a world beginning to fear the possible consequences of AI, the ending of the novel is enough to make one shudder. We can, perhaps, be grateful that Charles Babbage did not in reality build his Difference Engine.

Squid Game: It's Not Your Fault

 "Everyone here is a player..."

Before I get on to the episode, I have a bone to pick with Netflix as a hard of hearing person who prefers to watch in Korean with English subtitles: the VIPs speak English, and there are no subtitles available unless you're watching it dubbed. Not cool, Netflix.

However, this gripe aside, this is a powerful and moving episode, as those in-between games often are. Plot threads are advanced- suspicions increase surrounding Captain Park; Jun-ho locates the island where he was shot; No-eul arranges her exit; Min-su gets his satisfying revenge against his tormentor in drug withdrawal. 

But the real meat of this episode is the character stuff between Jun-Hee, Mrs Jang and Ji-hun. Mrs Jang, fresh from killing her son, focuses on looking after Jun-lee and the baby, helping the new mother and begging everyone, fruitlessly, not to vote for the games to continue. Then there's her deep and fascinating conversation with Ji-hun, begging him to look after the baby (which the baby's father is notably disinclined to do). And then, shockingly, after she confides her guilt about her son, she dies by suicide. And Ji-hun decides to look after Jun-lee and the baby, giving him a sense of purpose and bringing him out of depression.

Meanwhile we have the VIPs, rather over-the-top in manner and utterly, gleefully amoral, as a kind of Greek chorus. It is they who suggest the baby be considered a player, having to take part in the game... which is particularly evil. Ji-hun is positively heroic... but another player, right at the end, most certainly is not.

This episode may not quite match the last one, but it's bloody good.

Batman: The Animated Series- Moon of the Wolf

 "Thinking of acquiring a new pet, Master Bruce?"

This episode- a straightforward tale with a one-off villain, doesn't seem to be well-regarded. Perhaps that's understandable: fans don't want one-off villains, they want the rogues' gallery. Plus this episode, quite noticeably, gives most of the screen time to the guest characters and relatively little to the Batman, although we get more development of Batman's relations with Alfred, Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock.

And yet... I rather like this clever little script from Len Wein, about a werewolf on the surface but, in reality, about someone who gains fame and fortune from using drugs to achieve success at sport, only to end up controlled and used by the provider of the drug. The ending is very nicely done- it's left open whether or not Milo will ever face justice, there being very little evidence, while Anthony Romulus (nice bit of nominative determinism there) is ruined. One thinks of the likes of Florence Griffiths-Joyner...

This episode has a real subtext and is about something. And art, even if it doesn't claim to be great art, should be appreciated for such things.

Dexter: Born Free

"You know, hypothermia can easily sneak up on you."

"So can hypochondria..."

Despite a couple of plot holes that, I confess, had to be pointed out to me, this is an excellent, clever and nuanced season finale, providing real closure and pointing towards next season.

Dexter has to try and save Deb from... well, I'll still call him Rudy... while avoiding the suspicions of Doakes, as Rita resists the attempts of Paul to turn her against Dexter, seemingly unsuccessfully. Yet at the end, she finds the shoe, which is a very blatant "to be continued".

Doakes, though... the more I watch Dexter, the clearer it becomes how clever the set-up of the show is, how it makes the viewer complicit, and how essential Doakes is to that. Because the show is pretty much in Dexter's POV, every episode starting with a monologue, and his monologue continuing throughout. Yet Dexter is a monster, not someone we should be rooting for. Doakes is the character that exists to occasionally remind us of that, and have us internally rebuke ourselves. Because, while Doakes may function as an antagonist... he's right, in all that he says and does. Indeed, the one exception, his shooting of a member of the Tonton Macoute, is motivated by a social conscience, quite the contrast with Dexter. It looks as though the animosity with Doakes will really be ramped up next season...

There's also a twist in the LaGuerta storyline. She's been demoted, but there are hints that the new Lieutenant may not be entirely on the Captain's side. Another thread for next season.

But... damn, it all wraps up so neatly, in terms of both Rudy and Dexter's past. Rudy being Dexter's brother was a twist I really didn't see coming, and adds depth to the parallels between them. There are clever twists- Deb saving Dexter from suspicion, and Dexter's bait-and-switch trap for Rudy. Above all, perhaps, the way the visuals of the flashbacks are done. The final monologue, and Dexter's daydreaming. This finale may not be perfect, but it delivers, and satisfies.

Black Flag- Damaged (1981)

This is a very odd debut album for Black Flag. Oh, of course, it's an excellent collection of songs, despite the occasional tiresome exhortation to teetotalism with songs such as "TV Party" (banger though it may be) and "Six Pack"- I, for one, will most certainly be enjoying a bottle of red tonight, and I'd urge you to do the same. And Henry Rollins too...

But yes, a good number of classics on here- "Gimme Gimme Gimme" leading the pack. And yet... by this point, we'd heard many of them before, with earlier singers, and most of these songs had been around a while- 1981 really was awfully late for Black Flag's first album, showcasing a style that they'd sort of already moved beyond by this point.

Then there's Henry Rollins. Not the most technically brilliant singer (Freddie Mercury he is not, to state the bleeding obvious), but this is punk, and he's a magnificent, charismatic frontman- the fact that he's bloody good at stand-up says a lot. He's great. But... many of these songs weren't written for a singer of his style, and it shows.

Still, despite those caveats, this just IS a great collection of songs. Much as this album would've been better if it had been recorded a little earlier, it's undeniably a classic.

Update

 Don't worry, things will get back to normal! The delay is that I had a bit of blood spurt from my artery a couple of weeks ago and I'm waiting for the scar to heal enough that I can comfortably write without worrying about reopening the damn thing- and, when I'm blogging films or telly, I write it all down by pen. Hopefully not too long now...

Update

Life is happening (nothing to worry about!) so any blog posts will be thin on the ground this week. Back to normal from the weekend though.

Dexter: Truth Be Told

 "That ain't no little thing..."

Wow. That was quite the penultimate episode, setting everything up for an explosive finale.

There are other plot threads- LaGuerta seemingly losing her power play with the Captain and vowing his revenge, the recovered Angel finally coming to terms with the fact that his marriage is over, and an interesting resolution to the Paul story- Rita's son is not taking his father's absence well, and Dexter is right that the kids need to know that he deserves to be in prison (and he does, despite Dexter's little subterfuge!), much as Rita may not like it. And her solution is perfect: visit Paul and make him tell the truth to the kids or never see them again. Nicely done.

But, well, the main event is all about the setting up of Dexter vs Rudy, as events play out with grim inevitability. The witness from last episode is killed, the first time we see, in person, how he operates. Brr. And the wheels turn inexorably until he has Deb in his clutches, cruelly breaking her heart after proposing to her, using her as bait... and Dexter works out the truth, but too late.

And then there's the mystery of what happened to Dexter's mother, with Harry ordering the records destroyed. Something tells me that Rudy knows something, and we'll find out next episode. Let's see.

One prediction, though- Deb won't die. Because this hint of a thing between her and Doakes, with Rudy out of the picture, is setting things up nicely for friction next season, with Doakes very much having Dexter's number- especially noticing his reaction to the revelation that Angel is going to live.

The Beatles- Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

This is a really difficult album to review in 2025. With this more than any other Beatles album, historical context (especially when it comes to the technology, means everything. And likely goes much of the way towards explaining why, after traditionally topping those lists of best ever rock albums, it's now started to be eclipsed by other Beatles albums.

As a collection of songs, this is extraordinary. We have "She's Leaving Home"; "A Day in the Life"; "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds". Even deep cuts like "Fixing a Hole" and "Good Morning, Good Morning" are capable of burrowing their way into your brain. And yet... strictly as a collection of songs, is it really better than Revolver or Abbey Road, what with filler songs like "When I'm Sixty-Four" or "Lovely Rita, Meter Maid"? I'd say not. But that isn't the point.

A few years ago, I read of younger listeners criticising Abbey Road for what they saw as an awkward gap in the middle, not understanding that this was because of the need to change the record to Side 2! Context is everything. And this album, despite some earlier achievements with Revolver in particular, utterly revolutionised what a band could do in a studio, especially without the need to reproduce those studio effects live. In 1967, the soundscapes of "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite" and "A Day in the Life" would have utterly wowed people, whereas these days we take those studio effects for granted.

So yes, perhaps it is correct to use hindsight and judge this as a collection of songs- certainly great, but not quite the Beatles' best. But we would do well also to remember how utterly innovative this album was in shaping what could be achieved within a studio.

Dexter: Seeing Red

 "It's your wet dream in there..."

Yet another great episode this week as we get closer to the finale, as the story of Rita's despicable ex (using children as weapons to manipulate your former spouse is one of the most evil things you can do, and let's just say I have reasons for feeling that way) and the main plot of the Ice Truck Killer continues, with Rudy manipulating a clueless Dexter... and a crime that really conjures up past memories for Dexter; how come Rudy knows so much about him?

Rudy is in full control throughout, despite his ostensible faux pas with Deb (incidentally, Doakes definitely likes her), getting Dexter under his control while driving a wedge between him and Deb, although with the latter definitely being Dexter's fault too. And the crime- all the missing blood from earlier crimes deposited into one hotel room- has such repercussions, partly in its effect on the ongoing feud between LaGuerta and the Captain in proving the suspect in custody to be a mere fantasist, but also in its awakening a deeply buried memory for Dexter- of witnessing his birth mother's death. And I'm sure that much will be revealed over the coming season over what exactly happened.

Also, we have Angel starting to come to terms with his divorce at last... only to find a lead in the case that causes Rudy to try and kill him. The crime was interrupted, but will he survive...? This episode is just quite simply crammed with stuff.

And, most shockingly perhaps, as Paul goes too far in his persecution of Rita, Dexter feels able to bend the rules... after all, Harry did so with him in lying about his birth father. So yes, he doesn't kill Paul but rather ensures him life without parole by injecting with heroin... but, despite what Dexter thinks, the code of Harry has been bent for the first time. And, I'm sure, not the last.

Excellent stuff, yet again.

Metallica- ... And Justice for All (1988)

This album is strangely overlooked, having been released between Master of Puppets and the Black Album, both of which get much more attention. And that's odd, because it contains "One", the only song on the album that truly ranks as one of the band's best known. "One" is, of course, a truly great song about something truly horrific, at one the band's first music video and the reason why Metallica ended up owning the rights to the film version of Johnny Get Your Gun.

Yet, that one song aside... this album is strangely unloved. The first album with the painful absence of Cliff Burton, the first with Jason Newsted desperately trying to fill his shoes... and, by all accounts, being given a rather hard time. And, while remastered versions now abound, the album is rather oddly mixed.

And yet... if we consider the songs themselves, they're as good as any collection of songs that Metallica did in the '80s. "Blackened", the title track, "Harvester of Sorrow". This is the last album the band would make with their trademark long songs with a Sabbath-esque structure and all those superbly done transitions before adapting their style towards shorter and simpler songs. And... it deserves more love!

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

 

I read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell many moons ago, before this blog was ever conceived of. I won't say too much, as I'm quite likely to reread it at some point, and inevitably blog it, but suffice to say that it made a huge impression on me. Sadly, Susanna Clarke hasn't written much- I understand for health reasons- but a few years ago she graced us with Piranesi, and I understand a third novel is underway. Let there be much rejoicing.

This novel is shorter, less epic in length than its predecessor. Yet it is nevertheless a triumph, quite as good as everybody says it is. We begin with our eponymous narrator, living in a seemingly endless and seemingly impossible labyrinthine structure which is, for him, the world entire.

The novel is a wonderful puzzle, unwinding at the perfect pace to enthral us. It is complex, beguiling, yet in no way a difficult read. The puzzle, and the resolution, are not only deeply satisfying but deeply so.

And yet, there's an emotional heart to this. The narrator is innocent, good, intelligent yet naïve and as we slowly come to discover, much sinned against, a painful realisation for him. While this book is, yes, a puzzle, it has a heart. And it also has, I think, a subtext. That there are dangerous, manipulative individuals out there, most of them men, and that we succumb to their dubious charms at our peril...

Green Day- Dookie (1994)

 

It's a little odd, with thirty years of distance, to look back at what was a rather formative album of my teenage years.

Yes, I know it wasn't Green Day's first album, or their second, but it's their major label debut (and "selling out" to major labels was much agonised over back then- how times change) and so the album most of us heard first. And... looking back, it made a huge impact. Grunge was in its death throes (despite much good stuff to come) and Californian punk, spearheaded by Rancid, the Offspring and especially Green Day, felt like the ideal replacement. For a few years (after earlier bands like X, the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, Agent Orange etc had been awesome but not quite mainstream), Californian punk ruled the roost.

And... well, then came Blink 182 and all that pop punk crap, mixing punk with chart pop, literally the least punk thing ever. And... yes, in hindsight, in a certain light this album might seem like a bit of a harbinger of that, full of the laddish angst of a trio of still very young men. Yet, unlike anything Blink 182 ever did, it's awesome. There's not a single bit of filler on here and, even if we ignore the singles, we have songs like "She", "Sassafrass Roots" and "F.O.D."

With thirty years of hindsight, then... an even better debut that it would have seemed at the time.

Update

 No TV or film blog posts for a few days... broke a glass while washing up and blood spurted out of an artery in my thumb. It took ages of pressing on it, but I'm fine. It's hard to write, though, with a plaster on the tip of one's thumb, without pressing on the affected area!

Normal blogging will resume once I'm confident that it's healed sufficiently for me to be able to write my notes as I view.

I may still blog the novel I'm reading rather quickly, however, or albums, which don't need me to write. We shall see!

Squid Game: The Starry Night

 "Hang on in there just a bit longer...."

Wow. What an episode.

We begin with No-eul showing a ruthlessness that many of the players in the game of hide and seek do not- and the rest of the episode is dedicated entirely to said game. 

My only slight criticism here is that the point is that anyone could die (and does die!) in the games... except Ji-hun, whose plot armour is impervious. He spends the episode being simply unable, mostly decent chap (though terrible father) that he is, to kill anyone. But we know he has to survive, and so it's inevitable that he ends up killing in self-defence. And his deeply felt guilt... yeah, we get the point. Let's not push that too much further, shall we?

It's an interesting dilemma: how to most effectively use the only player with plot armour, and for whom there can be no real tension...?

Ji-hun aside, though... this episode is devastating.

Myung-gi, with his sense, and Nam-gyu, with his total lack of conscience, make a gruesomely efficient team, working out the best strategy- collaborate and jointly kill two people. But Nam-gyu- it bloody would be him- also works out that it's in their overall interests to keep on killing, reducing the opposition on both teams to their long term advantage. Wow. Fortune favours the sociopath, it seems. I'm sure he'll get his delicious comeuppance.

Speaking of comeuppances, Seon-nyeo, that cynical quack, gets hers. Good. As a direct contrast to this, we have the solidarity of Jun-hee (who of course goes into labour at the worst possible moment), the old Geum-ja and the heroic Hyun-ju, who gets a heroic, selfless death here. Yes, one may raise an eyebrow at the only trans character being killed... but it's a very heroic, noble death, saving the two other ladies with whom, pointedly, she bonded while they were all in the ladies' loo.

Geum-ja, though... oh! Her tragedy, inevitable though it begins to seem by the end, hits hard.

As does the episode. Wow.

The City & the City by China Mieville

Cliché though it is to say, this novel blew my mind. It is, in the best possible Borgesian way, an absolute mindfuck.  At first it seems to be a standard, if vaguely weird, little murder mystery, but with the odd word like "crosshatched" or "grosstopical" thrown in. But then the good Inspector Borlu receives a certain phone call, and we suddenly get something of an idea of what's going on.

I won't spoil anything here. I often do in this blog, but the slow reveal of the weird reality is this novel's big genius thing, and spoiling things really, really would be a crime. Spoilers are things that, shall we say, one cannot unsee.

Let's just say that the opening words of the novel, "I could not see..." take on a very different meaning once the fundamental principles are revealed.

There's so much to praise here. This is generally seen as weird fantasy, but the presence of fantasy elements is, very carefully, never overt. Breach are sort of implied to have supernatural powers, but a certain line is never crossed.

Most admirable, though, is how the concept of the novel is carried through, played with, explored and treated with consistency. Importantly, the backstory as to how Beszel and Ul Qoma are how they are is hinted at but not dwelt on. The lack of a full explanation is a feature, not a bug.

Perhaps the ending could have packed more of a punch, but that's outweighed by the sheer genius of the worldbuilding here. I'm certainly going to explore more works by China Mieville after this.

Naked Lunch (1991)

 "It's a Kafka high. You feel like a bug."

When I was in my late teens and early twenties, I got into the habit of reading novels that were seen as a bit counter-culture, a bit alternative, a bit offbeat. Hunter S. Thompson, Jack Kerouac, that sort of thing. And, for some reason, I ended up reading a lot of William S. Burroughs including, yes, Naked Lunch. And that isn't exactly an experience I can recommend. Let's just say it's a novel you can only read when you're young...!

This film, though? Oh, the novel and David Cronenberg were made for each other. So much body horror, and not just the (deliciously realised) Mugwumps. No, we have sentient, spymaster typewriters which are highly sexed, which ejaculate and which, er, stand to attention when excited. Because of course we do. This is the perfect canvas for Cronenberg to do his thing.

The film is visually exquisite, as one might expect. Yet the highlight may be Peter Weller's monologue recounting that surreal anal-related sequence from the novel. He truly carries the film in a suitably deadpan performance, believable as Burroughs himself, the still point beside whom all the gloriously surreal stuff makes a weird kind of sense.

No, this isn't a straight adaptation of a novel that is, straightforwardly, unfilmable, with its complex, bonkers plot and even more complex, bonkers subtext... and written by an author who was a heavy user of certain substances. Yet, albeit with the addition of certain elements from Burroughs' life (the notorious "William Tell" act especially), it comes surprisingly close.

Absolutely peak Cronenberg. A film that achieves the impossible, and does so with aplomb.

Batman: The Animated Series- Tyger, Tyger

 "Your father was a test tube..."

Meh.

I mean, the story sort of works. A rich mad scientist has an island off Gotham where he goes all Dr Moreau and performs genetic experiments. He kidnaps Selina Kyle, turns her into a literal Catwoman, Batman has to rescue her, there exists a highly convenient antidote, there's the obligatory tragic Quasimodo/King Kong figure. Lots of these tropes are highly predictable, but there's nothing wrong with this.

But, well, where are they going with the character of Selina Kyle? She's sort of reformed- although she is at least tempted to free the tiger from the zoo at the start- so what to do with the character now? Simply using her as a damsel in distress is... not great. The series needs to think very hard at this point about what to do with the character.

I suppose it's good to see Kirk Langstrom again, just advising Batman- this sort of thing helps flesh out the setting, which is good. But otherwise... not exactly the best episode.

Twin Peaks: The Condemned Woman

 "You'll have to excuse me. the chef tried to stab Jerry."

I love the way the above quote isn't even followed up on, and is just an excuse for Ben to leave so that Audrey and mysterious newcomer Jack Wheeler can have their deliciously nuanced conversation, circling around each other. She doesn't like him. But...

Still, to state the bleeding obvious, this is Josie's episode. And what a horrible last few hours for her, after days of being bullied and humiliated by Catherine. Poor Josie. The dilemma of prison or "belonging" to Eckhart. The finality of the end- her shooting her tormentor, her death, Harry's heartbreak.

Other things happen. Windom Earle luring Shelley, Donna and Audrey to a few seats away from him. The tense game of chess by newspaper- and Pete as chess expert. Hank going to jail, Nadine dumping Ed, Ed proposing to Norma, and Norma dumping Hank in a uniquely Twin Peaks love quadrangle. Ben continuing to plot against Catherine as he schemes to revive the fortunes of his family.

But really, this episode is all about poor Josie, and the real, agonised despair of her final hours. Poor girl.

Batman: The Animated Series- Joker's Wild

 "It's an homage to me! I'm kind of sorry I have to blow it up..."

This episode is really rather good. For a start, the plot (SPOILERS!) is clever: a bankrupt billionaire gives his resort a Joker theme so that said Clown Prince of Crime will take offence and destroy it, allowing the naughty billionaire to pocket the insurance money and avoid ruin. It's clever, has a nice twist, and is a perfect little twenty-two minute mystery.

But, more than that, it's the real joy of seeing Mark Hamill's Joker, who by this point is easily the best villain in the Animated Series, by far. He gets all the best lines ("Why can't he ever stay dead?"), sets a gloriously bonkers blackjack-themed deathtrap for the Batman, and just hogs your attention throughout. This Joker is a delight.

But there's more, as the Gotham of this version of Batman continues to be fleshed out and given texture- more of Summer Gleeson, more development of Arkham Asylum, with consistent staff members- and the Joker's fun little spat with Poison Ivy.

Two thirds into the first season or thereabouts, and it's increasingly looking like the finished article.

Dexter: Father Knows Best

 "Oh, good. Dancing..."

So much fascinating stuff in this episode, and it's all layered. To start with, Dexter suddenly and randomly inherits a house from his birth dad... a birth dad whom Harry had told him was dead. Cue flashbacks and intrigue; DNA proves that this man is his birth dad, so why did Harry lie? We get some fascinating friction between him and Deb here, with Dexter blatantly having no idea how to react to his sister being upset. Yet we also find out that this man had a hidden dark past... is this birth dad the origin of Dexter's dark side? I hope we eventually learn more about all this.

But Dexter's birth dad is only dead, of course, because Rudy murdered him... and it's fascinating seeing Rudy and Dexter interact, Dexter having no idea that Rudy is the Ice Truck Killer and is not only playing mind games with him but using his poor sister. A sociopath with much better social skills... or perhaps a dark empath?

Then we have Doakes who, being an American cop, shoots a man in cold blood. And yet there's moral complexity: Doakes was in Haiti, and he's seen this man commit atrocities as part of the Ton Ton Macoute... and so LaGuerta covers it up. Police corruption, certainly... but moral shades of grey. And it's fascinating how Angel, trying to do the right thing, drops Doakes in it... but Doakes respects that, and refuses to tolerate Angel being mocked as a snitch. This is the complex morality of not being a psychopath...

But then we have the end, and Paul who, against stiff competition, is easily the most morally disgusting character on the show. Surely Dexter has to kill him?

And yet... that's the clever thing. We find ourselves hoping for that, but then we remember that dexter is a monster, and vigilantism has no place in a civilised society. Ah, that moral complexity again!

Dexter: Shrink Wrap

 "Can we go inside? I'm kind of wet... DON'T!"

Wow. That was QUITE the bombshell at the end of a truly extraordinary episode, perhaps the best yet. The vibes were very much that the innocent and adorable Deb was going to get her heart broken by this man she's falling so hard for... but I was expecting that he'd turn out to be a bounder and a cad, not literally the Ice Truck Killer!

Speaking of bounders and cads, Rita's ex Paul continues to behave like the very worst kind of controlling ex. It says a lot that, in a show crammed to the rafters with serial killers, he's the character you hate the most. Still, let's look on the bright side: with Dexter around, he's not exactly behaving in ways conducive to his survival. But... well, can't Rita just report him for all this boundary pushing with the court order? I suppose I wouldn't know how it works in America.

This episode's "case of the week" is particularly disturbing- a sociopathic yet insightful shrink (a dark empath, perhaps?) who persuades successful yet vulnerable women to shoot themselves, which is well bloody dark. It's fun watching him and Dexter spar... and he genuinely helps Dexter to navigate the problem of having sex with Rita without revealing his true self to her, something he genuinely fears... yet, of course, a happy and post-coital Rita continues to think he's Mr Perfect.

There are layers to this, though. What Dexter struggled with, the actual Ice Truck Killer accomplished with ease, making Deb start to fall in love with him partly via some really good sex...

Then, as well as two actual serial killers, we have a self-confessed wannabe serial killer, whose lies LaGuerta quite sees through... yet again via unorthodox means. And proceeds to play her power games against her boss.

So much character stuff this episodes, and so many parallels between the various carefully balanced subplots. This is VERY good writing.

The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)

 "It's my funeral. You're just along for the ride..."

Well, I'll never think of chess in quite the same way again.

The concept seems simple. Thomas Crown, an awfully rich man, carries out a bank heist for kicks. Vicki, an insurance investigator, knows damn well he's the culprit but has to prove it by getting close to him... ending up in love with him and in quite the dilemma.

Despite the clockwork efficency of the heist itself, which is fascinating to behold, and the directorial flair that we see throughout, this is ALL about the chemistry between our two leads, upon which the film absolutely relies. And yes, Steve McQueen does his Steve McQueen thing with aplomb. But Faye Dunaway OWNS this film with a nuanced and delicious performance as a very clever, witty, predatory woman. In a world that likes to portray sex as something that men do to women, and in which female libido is still subtly frowned upon, even today, in a world that is more misogynistic than we like to think, she isn't afraid of being sexual... and getting what SHE wants.

And the end is awfully clever, as she realises not only that Crown got away but that his hopes for her had been real, and she could have spent the rest of her life in luxury with a man she fancies rotten.

Then again, would such a life ever have satisfied her...?

This song may be all about the intense sexual chemistry between these two, and little more. There's no depth, no message, no morality- Crown is a spoiled rich man getting his kicks, hardly a Robin Hood. But the film works, just through sheer plot structure and, yes, the incredible Faye Dunaway, who elevates this film to so much more than it should have been.

Oedipus at Colonus (1986 TV Film)

 "Only the gods escape the penalties of age and death. Time undermines everything. Nothing can stop the inevitable process of decay."

Blimey, is Sophocles always this bleak?

This is my second taste of his writing, and yet again in the form of a BBC televised play from 1986, translated and directed by Don Taylor. The production really works, with a strong cast (many well-known faces in the chorus!) and a very misty setting, stage-like yet using the medium of television to bring out mood. Anthony Quayle and Juliet Stevenson, in particular, excel as Oedipus and Antigone.

The contrast with Oedipus the King is marked. This play is far less overtly dramatic, far more talky and philosophical... and clearly the writing of a very old man, whose body is failing and who knows, as Oedipus does, that the end is far away. Indeed, he may well have been over 90 when he wrote this play, a rare happening for all of literature, let alone the Athens of the 5th century BC. Yet there's a constant emphasis on the inevitability of decay, entropy, decline: all things end, and always with sadness.

Yes, Oedipus dies painlessly, seemingly blessed by the gods, and able to bless Athens, the city that gave sanctuary to this refugee, and wisely so. We need more of Theseus in this world, and far less Nigel Farage.

Yet there is tragedy. His daughters are left bereft.... although, at least, Theseus offers her safe passage back to Thebes, where Antigone has promised a proper burial for her brother. I'm sure that will go fine. And Oedipus is now in the underworld, living the half existence of the dead. So yes, there is some catharsis, some closure. But only some. Suffering can be relieved, but only so much.

This is extraordinary. But oh, it's bleak!

Twin Peaks: Slaves and Masters

 "The only things I know in Hungarian are paprika and goulash..."

This episode is especially well directed... by none other than Diane Keaton. Yes, that Diane Keaton...

This feels very much like an episode that's there to tie up all these rather odd little mid-season plot threads before the season enters the final stretch. Ben's madness arc climaxes and abruptly ends.... essentially, because Audrey is too clever to allow Jerry to exploit his madness. The sub-plot with James being framed by Evelyn and Malcolm seems, by the end of the episode, to have met a sudden end- mainly via Donna's intervention.

Then we have the disturbing scenes of Earle abusing Leo ("Domestic violence. Well, I am partial to that."), Catherine seemingly about to, rather evilly, just hand poor Josie over to the sinister Eckhart after making her serve them both as maid. Ouch. One can see where the episode's title comes from, while feeling rather more sorry for Josie than for Leo.

Then we have the rather delicious scene of Nadine casually finding Ed in bed with Norma, lots of random owls, and more intrigue in the battle of wits between Earle and Cooper. It's a good enough episode, although... is it me but, for an episode of Twin Peaks, the weirdness level seems a bit lower than usual!

Batman: The Animated Series- If You're So Smart, Why Aren't You Rich?

 "How much is a good night's sleep worth?"

It was the 1960s Batman TV series that really popularised the Riddler as a villain, with only a couple of appearances in the comics at that point, so it's appropriate that this episode should feel, structurally, much like said TV series. Robin is in it. Our heroes confront the villain and his henchmen early on, are defeated, and come back later to save the day. There's even a deathtrap, albeit not for our heroes.

Yet the mood is very much par for the Animated Series, an aesthetic of creepy amusement parks at night and shadowy figures in murky rooms. And we get a version of the Riddler's traditional origin story, the creation his former employers are ripping him off for being a computer game in this version. I like that. I also like that, yes, Mockridge is saved... but, with the Riddler getting away, he may be rich but now lives in fear. He's rich, yes, but not smart.

There's a surprising slight bias to puzzles as opposed to riddles, perhaps, but this is an entertaining little episode, the little puzzles in the maze being enormous fun. I suppose we'll just have to see if the Riddler as a character has any legs beyond this origin story, 

Squid Game: Keys and Knives

 "Let the new game begin..."

And so we enter the final six episodes, a little later than intended... but here we go. I'm glad we got the "previously on", but this follows directly after the dramatic end of Season Two- Gi-hun is traumatised, stunned, unable to move (well, he's handcuffed) and everyone still alive is back in the game... with the prize money now increased because of all the deaths, and all the corpses hung in full view of the players in advance of the first game. Lovely.

Elsewhere, suspicions are beginning to be aroused about Captain Park, who is in close contact with Front Man. No-eul plans proceed apace, ruthlessly and contemptuously wrapping up the organ harvesting operation and giving a blood transfusion. We O negatives are clearly all right proper badasses...

Sub-plots unfold, but there's also much anticipation of the next game, to play out in the next episode. Hide and seek, where the hiders MUST kill a seeker within thirty minutes, and the hiders must survive that long, or escape. And naturally, the script plays the most evil possible mind games with the viewer in whom it chooses to be on which side.

Most interestingly, though, the traumatised Gi-hun is one of the seekers. Can he possibly kill? Regardless, I'm glad to be finally watching this final season. This is a damn good start.

The Sign of Four: Sherlock Holmes' Greatest Case (1932)

 "In such embarrassing matters as fainting women, I must defer to you!"

Let's just come out and say it: this is a truly terrible film. Stilted direction, awful acting all round (except for the ever-reliable Miles Malleson), no incidental music, an action-filled final act that manages to be desperately dull.

Homes and Watson don't even appear until more than twenty minutes into what is only a seventy-three minute film. The first twenty-odd minutes give us Jonathan Small's backstory, the tale of the treasure, the Sholtos and why Mary Morstan is the rightful heiress... why?! This completely removes all elements of mystery and the deductive process from the film, which is sort of the key selling point for Sherlock Holmes, surely?

And yet, it's a fascinating time capsule. It's 1932, and no attempt is made to set the film in the past. But I suppose this makes sense. In 1932, the time of Conan Doyle's original stories was not yet "period": it was within living memory, the novel of The Sign of the Four being barely forty years old. Plot-wise, India was still under British rule, so the story just about works.

Then there's all the moments that remind us how long ago 1932 was. The reference to tiger hunting. Mary fainting. Mary telling Watson that "I think I'll have a good cry." But no... these things still don't make this awful film worth watching. Today, this blog is performing a public service: I've endured this film so you don't have to. And never again...

Andor: Jedha, Kyber, Erso

 "Do you ever sleep well?"

"No..."

So that's it. Andor is over, and we move immediately to Rogue One.

Much of the episode consists of the gradual process of the Rebellion's leaders coming to accept that the intelligence brought back by Kleya and Cassian is worth investigating, before setting up Cassian on the mission that will be followed up in Rogue One, with his inevitable death. Hence, as he walks to his ship, on what we know to be his final mission, we see that precognitive lady from a few episodes ago, looking at him...

There's more going on than that, though. There's the culture clash between the fierce independence that Luthen represented and the increasingly organised and disciplined rebellion that is developing... and Kleya will have to adapt from the former existence to the latter. At least she'll do so with Vel as a friend.

For the Empire, meanwhile... well, things have a long way to go until they fall apart. But the centre is, perhaps, just that little bit harder to hold. We see the disgraced Paratagaz, allowed to shoot himself instead of face arrest. And we see Dedra, in her prison cell, crying...

Then, finally, we see Bix, with... a baby. Surely not...?

The perfect way to end what turned out to be an even better season than the first. Andor is the best thing to come out of Star Wars for a long, long time.

Batman: The Animated Series- Heart of Steel, Part II

 "I'm getting too old for this kind of thing."

Part two continues the story in the vein we'd expect, and it's a very topical one in 2025, with the AI apocalypse clearly imminent: today, Chat GPT. Tomorrow, Skynet. And it's all cleverly done, with Mr Rossum revealed to have started all this for the very human reason of mourning his daughter, but the machines taking over... literally. I wish I knew more about R.U.R., the original play: no doubt there are references that go over my head.

It's not just Jim who gets a robot duplicate this time: Mayor Hill, even Bullock. Yet it's not Batman who gets the suspicion something's wrong- it's Barbara Gordon, who knows that that is not her father. She also does some rather effective investigating, and may even save Batman's life at the end. One might almost think, given her evident relish for this sort of thing, that she might be auditioning for the role of another flying rodent themed nocturnal crimefighter...

A satisfying conclusion to a highly effective two-parter, and a great showcasing of Barbara Gordon.

Dexter: Circle of Friends

 "I have a dark side too".

The quote above comes from a fascinating scene between Dexter and Rita. A major plot thread is Rita's abusive ex ignoring the court order and using the kids as a weapon against Rita... and, let's just say, I really hate that kind of behaviour. So it's good to see Rita- with Dexter's solid support- laying down the law.

And yet... she responds to Dexter's claim with a laugh and an easy insistence that he would never hurt anyone. And, yeah, obviously there's dramatic irony there. Dexter is a serial killer. Yet... in a sense, isn't she right? He'd certainly never hurt her, or anyone she cares about. People are complicated, and we present different faces to different parts of our lives.

The other main plot thread is, well, a tale of two serial killers. Jeremy, who Dexter let off recently, has killed again. And, just as Dexter is about to deal with him, Doakes suddenly arrests his target and, in a somewhat awkward plot contrivance, fails to see Dexter. It's interesting to see how Dexter acts, though- taking risks and offering advice. Fruitlessly, of course, in the end.

Then there's the arrest of the supposed Ice Truck Killer and... yeah, we know this is a red herring. Wants the notoriety, confesses, but we can trust Dexter's instincts- vindicated at the end- that this isn't him. Besides, it's just too early in the season for this revelation to be real, if I can be a bit meta for a moment.

Still... what is this bloke's agenda? The season is getting very interesting. Good stuff. Excellent character stuff, too, for Deb, and Doakes getting Dexter's measure yet again.

Oppenheimer (2023)

 "You are an American Prometheus."

This is, of course, a superb film. I was expecting it to be exactly that, given its reputation, its cast and the fact that it's a Christopher Nolan film. It's a triumph. Yet, in many ways, it's also not really what one might expect.

This is, I suppose, broadly comparable to Lawrence of Arabia. It's a three hour epic (I'm not one for long films, but both films just fly by) based on the biography of one man in the context of his time, with lots of big themes to chew on. 

And this... isn't really the sort of film that Christopher Nolan has ever made before. Oh, there's a certain non-linear narrative structure ("fission" and "fusion"), but there's none of the clever structural trickery of a Tenet or an Inception. Instead, Nolan's directorial flair is used to illustrate theme and character, often showing us Oppenheimer's own imaginings of a nuclear blast.

The themes are huge. This American Prometheus has unleashed the power of the atom, with all that implies for the safety of the world. We also deal with the unfortunate consequences of having been in any way Communism-adjacent in one's past, and meet so many huge figures of the twentieth century during the course of the film. Yet the film, in its very structure based on two enquiries, one in the colourful past and the other in the monochrome "present" of 1959, focuses on both Oppenheimer himself and the mercurial Lewis Strauss, with both Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr giving extraordinary performances, both of them literally Oscar-winning.

Deeply clever. A massive blockbuster. Really cleaned up at the Oscars. Simultaneously popular and acclaimed, something that just doesn't happen in these post-COVID times where, let's face it, cinema as an institution seems to be in slow but real decline. But, while films like this remain possible, perhaps there's some degree of hope.

Andor: Who Else Knows?

 "No. I want the names I don't know."

It's feeling more and more like Rogue One. Lots of Krennic. Cassian is with K-2SO, while the rebels are established on Yavin, becoming increasingly disciplined, leaving behind the late Luthen and the now-desperate Kleya. The episode, ending on a cliffhanger- Kleya is in hiding, so will Cassian or the Imperials get to her first? And yet, in the episode's standout scene, it becomes clear that Kleya realises she is doomed, and there's no place for her on Yavin. All that's left is to tell Cassian the vital information about the Death Star before she dies.

Meanwhile, there's the theme of whether or not to follow orders. The Rebels are increasingly disciplined and hierarchical, and Cassian and his accomplices are defying orders in rescuing Kleya... yet she genuinely does have vital information. Meanwhile, Dedra has been cutting corners and breaking rules, also in genuine pursuit of the Imperial cause. But fascism won't tolerate mavericks. I suspect her fate will not be good.

Not to forget, of course, that this is all a bloody tense thriller. The episode ends with Cassian and Kleya still on Coruscant, hunted, and just one episode to go...

Twin Peaks: Double Play

 "I will return. Until that time, I will be in the shadows until you need me."

Relatively speaking, I suppose, Twin Peaks is undergoing a bit of a lull. Yet we still have so much cool stuff going on. Cooper's explanation of the backstory behind the "genius" Windom Earle, and how he ties in with Coop's lost love. The slasher movie type jump scares as the recovered Leo menaces Shelley. Leo, in the woods, ending up in a cabin with Earle. And the owls.. oh, the owls!

We also have some comic relief sub-plots, with the Black Widow and Little Nicky, to lighten the tone. But so much is happening... Pete learns that Andrew is alive, Josie doesn't know, and Josie is bait for Eckhart, who has just arrived in Twin Peaks... and he's David Warner!

Then there's the revelation that James was always going to be set up for the abusive husband's murder. The magnificent weirdness of literally everything Major Briggs says. Ben Horne continuing to be completely hatstand... although it's notable that, in 1991, it was not yet beyond the pale to support the South in the American Civil War because, you know, yes it was literally about slavery and only slavery.

The season is treading water a bit- 22 episodes always was too many- but I'm still having fun.

Batman: The Animated Series- Heart of Steel, Part I

 "Sounds as if the human race could be quite expendable."

This episode is really very impressive indeed. Not only is a strong start to what promises to be a gripping two-parter but, for an episode made in 1992, its concerns about AI are surprisingly contemporary... but then, are such concerns really that new? Humans have been worried about being supplanted by intelligent machines ever since Karel Capek wrote the play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots), back in 1920, expressing fears of a robot revolution and coining the word "robot" itself into the bargain.

So yeah, I raised an eyebrow when we encountered a character called Rossum...

We begin as a young lady leaves a briefcase in the lobby of Wayne Enterprises, which bizarrely turns into a kind of metal spider, carrying out its pre-planned tasks in a way that immediately made me think of those AI drones that Ukraine is using against the Russians, a truly terrifying technology... yeah, thank you, Putin, for opening Pandora's Box there. I hope the next AI assassin drone gets you.

Anyway, it's all very good. We get Barbara Gordon, android duplicates and a creepy A.I boss computer. We get an obvious femme fatale who Bruce allows to discover the Batcave and his secret identity (oops!) despite being suspicious from the off. Let's see where this goes, but so far I'm liking it.

Andor: Make It Stop

 "Am I your daughter now?"

Not for the first time... wow.

Ever since that speech last season, it's been foreshadowed that Luthen knows he'll never live to see the promised land, to get the glory and the acclaim and the medals, even if the Empire is defeated. And recently, as we've seen, it's been getting harder and harder to keep the façade. Luthen was always going to get caught eventually. Even the framing of the "previously on" makes it clear that this episode is to see it happen.

And it's suitably dramatic. Jung reveals how the net is closing in on both Luthen and himself, and that the Empire is building a huge new weapon (and yes, we, the viewers, know damn well what it is), which is what Ghorman and many other things were really about. And Kleya will doubtless impart that knowledge.

But not Luthen. At last we get the confrontation scene between him and Dedra. He's doomed, but he's managed to set up a Rebellion on Yavin. Horrifyingly, he attempts suicide to ensure he can't be interrogated, and Dedra- who's overstepped the mark one too many times here- panickingly gets him some medical attention.

We get flashbacks. Luthen was once a soldier who deserted, disgusted by the atrocities he'd been expected to perform... and Kleya was a captive child whom he freed and raised in his own inimitable way, mentoring her in the arts of resistance. 

So yes, it's exciting seeing Kleya do her action stuff to get to Luthen and let him safely die... but it's really about the tears, and how she kisses the forehead of the man who raised her. This is tense, exciting, emotional, brilliant stuff. Again, wow.

And... no Cassian at all.

Dexter: Return to Sender

 "I realise now my days are numbered..."

Wow. This is a fascinating episode. The premise is simple- the Ice Cream Truck Killer ensures that one of Dexter's victims from last episode is found, meaning that he has to squirm through the episode at the seeming certainty that he'll be caught.

And this conceit shows us Dexter, and the show, from a fresh perspective. This time he's genuinely rattled, having real nightmares- shot in delightfully dreamlike fashion, reminiscent of the title sequence. Michael C. Hall really is excellent here, showing us a side of Dexter Morgan that we haven't seen before, but which makes total sense.

The resolution is nicely done, too- Dexter's rival isn't necessarily trying to ruin him, but is testing him, and not for the first time. It's going to be VERY interesting when, as I hope they do, the two serial killers meet. What does the Ice Cream Killer make of his rival?

Yet Dexter fails one test here: in order to save himself, he has to be a bad brother to Deb- again, not for the first time, as the flashbacks show. And he has a realisation: its not a case of if he's caught, but when. And... good! Dexter is a fascinating character study, but he's a monster, no better than any of his victims, and we must never forget that.

Excellent though all this is, there are other character points worth noting. LaGuerta's strong bond with the little boy; she and Deb perhaps starting to reconcile a little; Deb getting on well with Doakes' family- are the two of them eventually going to become an unlikely couple? And, yes, Rita's ex getting released from gaol- and Rita putting her foot down splendidly about custody. Ironically, is this Dexter's positive influence?

Regardless, he's a monster. As this excellent episode never lets us forget.

Oedipus the King (1986 TV Film)

 "Judge no man's life until he's dead!"

This is the first of three TV films made for the BBC, in 1986, of Sophocles' "Theban Plays", all both translated and directed by Don Taylor, known to this blog for being recently noted as a director in Dead of Night. The Theban plays are an odd beast, really. They were never intended as a sequence, all are quite unconnected, so this isn't like Aeschylus' Oresteia, a slightly earlier BBC version of which I blogged a while ago.

Anyway, there's a certain inherent awkwardness about this particular play, isn't there? More than any other Ancient Greek play, we all know the plot; we come pre-spoiled. And, well, it's icky. About as icky as plots come.

So the first half of the play consists of the slow unravelling of a mystery which, for us viewers, is already known. The total lack of dramatic irony is less of a problem than might be expected, though. The process of unravelling what happened- relying rather more on hearsay and soothsayers than anything we moderns may regard as proper policing- is entertaining. And we get to know Michael Pennington's assured and kingly Oedipus, confident in his own wisdom and cursing the criminal, with no idea of the sheer horror that is to befall him. Claire Bloom is superb as Jocasta, at first sceptical and then consumed with horror and denial of a truth too awful to contemplate. The great John Gielgud gets a nice little cameo.

But it's the last few scenes where things get unexpectedly intense. Because the words hammer home that Oedipus was always doomed, he never did have any agency. None of this is his fault: he did all he could to avoid the terrible prophecy. Yet fulfil it he did, and he must suffer. As the chorus says 'Ignorance made you happy; the truth has made you blind'. She here he is, a blind beggar, doomed to exile and misery, all waiting for him from the moment he was born. And it gets even worse, with Oedipus really doubling down on his own degradation, wishing he could lose his hearing as well as his sight and, perhaps worst of all, making it clear that he expects to remain blind in the underworld.

And the way this production, purposely stagy though it is, reveals Oedipus' blindness is... effective to say the least.

Yeah... that's dark. Is Sophocles always this dark? The next two plays will be interesting...

Metropolis (1927)

 "The mediator between brain and hands must be the heart..."

I've been resisting watching the fully restored print of this film for some time. Not because I wasn't keen to see it, but because, well, when you're choosing which film to watch, the one with the three hour run time might, in the moment, seem off-puttingly long. But I've seen it now, and my mind is reeling. The film is, in some ways, not one might expect from a science fiction classic, but its aesthetics and its themes are very much of the Weimar Republic, after hyperinflation but before the Wall Street Crash.

One thing must be addressed, though: the writer, Thea von Harbou, would later co-operate with the Nazis, whereas Fritz Lang would divorce her, leave Germany, taking his magnificent monocle with him. I don't think this can be said to taint the film at all, quite frankly. Von Harbou's Nazi ties can be seen as quite passive, she had an Indian husband... and no one in 1927 could have known what was to come, Hitler being seen as a bit of a Farage figure. But... yeah, let's be a bit more wary of those Farageists, shall we?

The look of the film is incredible. One could make the obvious observation that this is Fritz Lang doing German Expressionist cinema, but this 1927 vision of the future is fascinating. An age of Modernism, a future Metropolis that looks VERY Le Corbusier. And the plot revolves entirely around the extremities of social class. Realism is nowhere to be seen. Acting is deliberately expressive, and characters are vehicles for the film's ideas rather than three dimensional people- said as observation, not criticism. It's just that sort of film.

Hence the shuffling misery of the underclass being quite obviously choreographed, and the exaggerated leisure pursuits of the wealthy young men. The work, which we see Freder voluntarily undertake for a shift, reminding me of the myth of Sisyphus. The long, lingering visual shots which are what makes this fairly simple film, in which relatively little happens, so very long. Yet it doesn't drag: the visuals are the point.

There is religious imagery here aplenty- the Tower of Babel, apocalyptic stuff from the Book of Revelation, but this is really there to serve what is very much a political rather than religious subtext: the immense gap between rich and poor, the intense inequality. As Freder says to his father early on, there is a risk of revolution, and this in a Germany where Bavaria had relatively recently erupted into Communist revolt. Yet, in the frightening violence of the mob, we also see the potential horrors of populism, of Fascism.

The film is a triumph of visual cinema, but also a fascinating political artifact of its time, eschewing realism for a type of satire that almost reminds me of Voltaire's Candide or Zadig. Not one for the casual viewer, but a true cinematic masterpiece.

Twin Peaks: Checkmate

 "Is this for the soul? My soul?"

Soooo much happens this episode. But, then again, this is Twin Peaks- when does it not?

So the Major starts to tell of what little he remembers, and ponders revealing things that are "classified", until air force types come and take him away. Clearly something to be picked up later in the season- the forest, owls, the White Lodge...UFOs?

Harry deputises Coop as a cop, a nice touch- the FBI investigation plot proceeds, but at least our hero can now have some proper agency. There's some comedy Clouseau stuff as Dick and Andy try to investigate Nicky's parentage. There's love triangle stuff between Nadine, the boy she fancies and Ed, and also between Norma, Hank and Ed, made extra complex by Nadine's sudden comical super strength. There's Ben's continued slide into madness, perhaps averted when Catherine, bizarrely and in spite of everything, decides she wants him after all. Still hate her for being nasty to Josie though.

Then there's the weirdness with James and his abused Mrs Robinson... but what's going on with her and her "brother"? Is James being used? Then there are the terrifying scenes with Leo apparently compos mentis and terrorising the abandoned Shelley. There's the set piece action sequence, complete with Jean Renault's death, Coop's nobility, and some stuff with Denise that... has not aged well.

And then we have that final scene with the fire and the corpse... wow. Not the best episode- the season does feel, entertaining at the moment, but is perhaps treading water right now- but the ending...!

Andor: Welcome to the Rebellion

 "The death of truth is the ultimate victory of evil."

Mon Mothma's speech is, of course, magnificent, pointing the finger at the Empire and in particular at Emperor Palpatine for the unprovoked massacre at Ghorman. But the parallels with what's going on in the world are obvious. Genocide. Vicious culture war propaganda. An attack on the very concept of objective truth itself. In Trump, in Putin, in Orban, we have Palpatines of our own.

The bulk of this episode is an exciting, actioned filled sequence with Cassian getting Mon Mothma out of the Senate and safely to Yavin after breaking all her bridges with her speech. And it's gripping, naturally, a real extended set piece. But it's really about the unreadiness and splits between the rebels. Bail Organa has to stay on Corustcand as Yavin isn't ready. There's a traitor in amongst his agents. Meanwhile, one of Mon's most trusted confidants is working for Luthen, which she sees as betrayal. And there are two rival extraction attempts. It's all such a mess... but Cassian succeeds, in the end.

And then, heartbreak. Cassian wants to give it up for a peaceful life with Bix, the love of his life. So... she leaves him. Not because she doesn't want to be with him, but because she's putting the Rebellion above her own happiness. Wow. That packs a massive emotional punch. Especially as... well, we've seen Rogue One. We know they'll never see each other again.

And so does the episode as a whole. This second half of the season, so far, is on fire.

Batman: The Animated Series- The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne

 "Leave your message at the sound of the shriek..."

So we meet Dr. Hugo Strange, another member of Batman's traditional rogues' gallery, although perhaps one of the more obscure ones in recent decades, more a Killer Moth or a Gentleman Ghost than a Joker or a Tw-Face. Interesting, though, that we're getting some of the more minor and perhaps old-fashioned villains than, say, the Riddler.

I know relatively little of Hugo Strange except that he knows Batman to be Bruce Wayne and... yeah, this episode is fun and all, but it makes very little sense if one gives it any thought, and not only because the idea of mind reading futuristic tech getting recorded via videotape is hilarious in 2025. I mean, Strange auctioning Batman's secret identity to the highest bidder is hilarious for a start. The fact that the Joker, Two-Face and the Penguin (is the latter really established as a significant villain in the Animated Series by this point?) just passively go along with Strange until Batman tricks them is just silly- these are chaotic individuals who won't just behave as the plot wants them to.

And then, at the end, when Batman apparently meets Bruce Wayne... and it's just Dick with a mask and some stilts?

This episode is very, very silly. It's basically not very good. But it certainly isn't boring...

Dexter: Love American Style

 "She doesn't know yet, but I don't have the next level..."

The way the theme of this episode is handled is very well done here- love is not something Dexter can ever understand but, after Harry's training as shown in the flashbacks, Dexter, by "acting" seems to be pretty good at it as far as Rita is concerned. Throughout the episode she likes him more and more... and he's fortunate in not having to, er, return last episode's favour.

Others are less successful. Most notably Angel, whose strained relationship with his separated wife is revealed to Dexter... and things at Dexter's home are almost revealed to Angel. What will eventually come of this? Chekhov's Gun and all that...

Then there's Rita's poor maid, who's lost her beloved fiancé to... well, we're coming to them. Then there's the poor Mr. Tucci, forever deformed but happy to be alive. Deb using her feminine wiles on him is an important plot beat here: after distinctly failing to impress Doakes for most of the episode, she has a lozenge-related breakthrough that leads to a semi-breakthrough... and has her prostitute friend pleasure Mr Tucci. And, if the lady is willing, why not? Mr Tucci, while perhaps not a lucky man, is not unlucky with the opposite sex here.

And then we have the killing of the week, as Dexter goes after a people trafficker who extorts and murders... and we get the big twist: it's him and his wife, and they love each other. To Dexter's shock, people like him are capable of love...

And then the final twist: cutting corners slightly, Dexter is seen...

This is a compelling, fascinating and eventful episode. The season feels as though it's in full swing...

Batman: The Animated Series- Cat Scratch Fever

 "You're hot."

"Now you notice!"

Another Catwoman episode, and it's interesting to see where they're going with her- good at heart, and motivated by her social conscience for good or ill. Sentenced only to five years' probation, she stands to lose her liberty for a long, long time if she get's convicted again. Will this last, with the Sword of Damocles hovering over her head.

The Batman-Selina-Bruce ironic love triangle is well done again, played for banter and humour rather than too much pathos, which could have become tiresome. It'll be interesting to see where the Animated Series takes Selina Kyle: I hope we'll be seeing a lot more of her. But is this trajectory for the character sustainable in the long run, I wonder?

More good world building for Daggett, too, one of Gotham's stable of untouchable mob bosses. His scheme this week is particularly nasty- start a deadly plague, having established a monopoly on the cure. On a similar vein, I wonder whether Daggett will ever see any kind of consequences for his behaviour?

A solid episode, good if not great. But fascinating in terms of where the now fully established Animated Series seems to be heading.

Twin Peaks: The Black Widow

 "I'm sorry, am I being obscure?"

I've no idea where any of this is going, or indeed what's going on, and I'm totally fine with that. Twin Peaks is not there to be understood, merely to give us dreamlike impressions, like a Dali painting. It is, I suppose, oddly Freudian in the way that much modernist art and literature was...

But that is, of course, just my impression. It's subjective. Barthes, Death of the Author and all that. In the case of David Lynch, sadly, literally so.

So we have Major Briggs' boss earnestly asking Cooper whether there were any owls around at the time of the disappearance. There's Dougie's sudden death on the night of his wedding, his bride's apparent history of similar incidents, and her uncanny powers over men, to Lucy's horror. One doesn't expect to hear extensive quoting from Romeo and Juliet in Twin Peaks...

Then there's Dick's growing suspicion that Little Nicky may literally be the Devil. There's Major Brigg's sudden reappearance, to the sight and sound of violent thunder. There's Nadine's almost superhuman abilities. It's all so splendidly weird.

Then there's the fun of Cooper and Denise investigating how and why he was framed, which all seems to be linked to the ever-nefarious Jacques Renault...

I'm loving this, if anything, even more since Laura's murder was solved.

Andor: Who Are You?

 "Rebellions are built on hope."

Wow. There was only one way this episode was going to go- the Empire manufacturing a riot on Ghorman to justify the "crackdown", straight from the fascist playbook- but seeing things unfold, slowly and inevitably, was brutal. This episode is just extraordinary.

It all unfolds in slow motion. The demonstration. The careful escalation of imperial policing. The cynical use of a sniper to fire on the Empire's own troops. And then the use firstly of Stormtroopers and then of unstoppable droids that simply hurl demonstrators into the air. The effect is one of real horror. And... yeah, all while disturbing things are happening in the USA right now, except their Palpatine is much more orange and much less intelligent.

Then there's the tragedy of Syril and Dedra. Syril always was, despite the career advancement, a pawn. And the moment where he confronts (and, implicitly, dumps) Dedra for her amoral and appalling behaviour carries so much power. His death in the riot is almost an afterthought, the last words he ever hears being Cassian's "Who are you?".

Denise Gough is superb as she portrays Dedra's utter despair at the end. She's done so much, made such terrible moral sacrifices... and for what?  

The final shot is of Syril's mum, inconsolable. She may not have been the best mother, but in the end she was in many ways right.

Again... wow.

The Lady in the Van (2015)

 "You wouldn't get Harold Pinter pushing a van down the street."

I remember reading, some decades ago, some mention of the tragic and eccentric Miss Mary Sheppard, as she certainly wasn't called, in the memoirs of Alan Bennett. rather more recently, we lost the superlative Maggie Smith. So it's high time that I saw, and blogged, this film.

Much though Alex Jennings is magnificent in totally inhabiting Alan Bennett while also giving us not merely an impression but an actual performance, Maggie Smith is indeed utterly incredible here, in a role that perfectly fits her talents- a humorous figure, yes, but one who will, by the film, come to evoke such pathos. Not exactly likeable- but endearing, nonetheless.

Yes, as befitting a script by Alan Bennett, this film is about so much. The very English timidity that can lead one to reluctantly allow an imperiously haughty homeless old lady to live in a van on one's property. How easily one can become a carer without really intending to, or realising it. That very English issue of class- Miss Sheppard is from loftier origins than the nevertheless Oxford educated Alan Bennett, son of a Leeds butcher, yet he is now a feted playwright living in fashionable Camden whereas she is homeless- plays out in all its nuances, most deliciously as Bennett's mother avoids contact with her son's unwanted guest because "With her being educated, I wouldn't know what to say."

This isn't a film for those who like action- very little, I suppose, happens, and even the mystery of Miss Sheppard's past is not over-emphasised. This is a quietly philosophical, meditative film that is, above all, about the ethics of using real peoples' lives for one's writing, and I for one found it most enjoyable.

Gamera vs. Barugon (1966)

 "If you doubt that, then you doubt the gods!"

I love how Kaiju films always showcase the charming Japanese habits of always giving names to the massive radioactive monsters that periodically lay waste to their bigger cities:

"Oh no! It's Bob the flame-emitting tyrannosaurus rex!"

"But look! Here comes Kevin the laser beam-equipped triceratops!"

It's taken me a while to get to this second film in the franchise, but this is such a gloriously silly B movie, and is giving me the impression that the Godzilla films will end up looking positively serious by comparison and I, for one, have zero problem with this. Well, beyond a bit of a wince at the Japanese extras in blackface in the Papua New Guinea scenes- it was a very different time. And the fact that one of the main characters is a Japanese veteran of the Second World War, no doubt up to no good.

The opening bit is delightfully bonkers. Gamera is sent straight back to Earth (to Japan- what were the chances?) by a random meteorite. We then turn to a bizarre exploration plot where a load of men go on a quest for an opal which, delightfully, turns out to be an egg which hatches into Barugon, with added radiation. And Barugon has the power to, er, emit rainbows of doom. Yes, really.

We get lots of great retro effects as the two monsters fight, cause destruction and all the usual stuff. The obvious model tanks that are de rigeur for the genre are very much present and correct. And we have all sorts of splendidly bonkers plans to destroy Barugon before, inevitably, it's Gamera to the rescue.

If you're in the mood to switch your brain off for ninety odd minutes then this is a particularly fun way to do it. Top B movie hi-jinks.

Twin Peaks: Masked Ball

 "Let a smile be your umbrella!

It's fascinating to see the season continue to branch out after the Laura Palmer mystery is solved- was the second season supposed to last only as long as the first season did, with the rest of the season added on? Because, I have to say, it sort of feels like that... but absolutely not in a bad way.

The Major's disappearance isn't dwelt on, but I like Hawk's bit about the White Lodge and the Black Lodge. Then there's the subplot with poor Josie, as we learn about her past, only for her to be cruelly entrapped into being Catherine's maid... and then, the cliffhanger, her husband is not only alive but in league with Catherine and using his own wife as bait!

Then there's James, whose motorbike riding is always accompanied by rock 'n' roll, meeting a femme fatale in a bar. There's more school antics with Nadine, a very surreal wedding, and more passive aggressive rivalry between Dick and Andy, which Andy seems to be winning by niceness. I'm loving the mixture of the weird and the comedic with, for now, more emphasis on a lightness of tone. Although Ben Horne, for one, isn't having a good time in this episode.

Indeed, even the investigation into Agent Cooper, a seeming frame attempt, goes into the direction of a trans investigator played by none other than David Duchovny with some very 1990 attitudes to LGBT plus issues, albeit with no nasty culture war bigotry. Yeah... it feels so recent, but it was a different time!

Batman: The Animated Series- Night of the Ninja

 "Defeat can be more instructive than victory..."

This is a nice little episode with what I suspect is a one-off villain, but a decent one nonetheless. Kyodai Ken is a rival of Bruce's from his days training in Japan, out for revenge, blaming Bruce for his self-inflicted disgrace. It feels right that Batman: The Animated Series should have a ninja episode, and all the ninja stuff is fun.

Also interesting is a bit of character development- Bruce's habit of not confiding in others and suffering alone is brought up by Alfred and Dick... although, given how essential he is to saving Bruce's bacon twice during this episode, it's very convenient for the plot that this should be one of those episodes featuring Robin.

It's also fun to have a bit more of a spotlight on Summer Gleeson, a persistent reporter who has mostly just been a bit of background flavour. Bruce being handicapped by not being able to be seen to fight too well by her is a nice idea, well handled.

Perhaps not an "important" episode. But a good one nonetheless.

Andor: Messenger

 "He's a messenger. There's some place he needs to be."

The moment epitomises by the quote is truly chilling to all those of us who have seen Rogue One. It's as though, via the Force, fate somehow exists, at least for certain individuals, and Cassian is one of them. Yes, there's some minor drama in that Cassian expresses scepticism about the Force healer and Bix can't help believing... but we, the viewers, know that Cassian is on an unavoidable journey to sacrifice and death.

As is Ghorman. Another year has passed, and the Empire has fine tuned its narrative of "terrorist acts", ready to justify its cynical destruction of Ghorman via propaganda. This thread has been woven very well indeed throughout the series (there are some very obvious real world examples!), and now a visibly nervous Dedra has to put the final stages of the plan into action. And Syril, despite her obvious affection for him, is kept in the dark, a pawn. No doubt this will go well and they will both live to enjoy their "reward"...

The Rebellion is now slowly growing at the base at Yavin which we know from the films. Yet there's starting to be a bit of a crack within the Rebellion, between Luthen and Yavin, which is interesting. So, when Cassian and Wilmon head to Ghorman to try to kill Dedra, this immediately causes conflict wit the Yavin hierarchy and Vel. Power seems to be shifting away from Luthen, perhaps?

Things are getting closer to the world of the original trilogy, yet the mood is one of deep foreboding. I'm absolutely fascinated to see where this is all going.

Dexter: Let's Give the Boy a Hand

 "People think it's fun to pretend you're a monster. Me, I spend my life pretending that I'm not."

Again, the flashbacks to Dexter's childhood, with Harry teaching him how to pretend and wear a mask so he looks normal, is contrasted with the scenes in the present, where masks abound, and not only because it's Halloween.

Hence Dexter solves a problem for Rita with a highly annoying neighbour, after which she, er, gets down on her knees to express her gratitude, shall we say- a big step for her, and showing how safe she feels with him. He wears his mask well, and is even good with the kids. And this is the result. Yet, although at first he seems to be trying to go through the motions... is he realising, to his surprise, that he's enjoying it?

Doakes, meanwhile, is in danger after last episode's hi-jinks, ending up kidnapped, roughed up... and rescued. He was bait all along. A mask he doesn't even realise he's wearing. 

And yet not everyone is wearing a mask. The killer thinks he sees Dexter for who he is, leaving freshly amputated bits of poor Tucci for Dexter to find. It's a game, and feels almost like a particularly twisted episode of Sherlock.

And this is awkward for LaGuerta, who has just been on the telly fingering Tucci as the killer. She's lucky to get away with it as far as Tucci's grateful mother is concerned, especially as Tucci is finally rescued with no thanks to her... although Deb, in claiming the credit allowed her by her brother, is wearing a metaphorical mask of sorts.

But the real climax sees the killer misjudge Dexter. The trap is supposed to lure Dexter in to kill Tucci... and he doesn't, because he's internalised the code of Harry. Dexter may be a monster, but he and the killer are not the same. Harry taught him not only to wear masks... but fundamentally changed who he was. Still a monster, but one with principles.

A fascinating, and deliciously structured, bit of telly. 

The Lost Boys (1987)

 "Read the TV guide, you don't need a TV!"

I know: where have I been all these years, ten years old in 1987 yet the first time I saw The Lost Boys was last night. At least I've seen it now,

As a story... the film is good. I wouldn't use a stronger word than "good": this is a fairly bog standard Hollywood blockbuster plot, but it's done well enough. And, given the youth of much of the cast, it's well performed. Dianne Wiest particularly excels as the sweet, overstressed Lucy, a character who feels very real, And Barnard Hughes is superb as Grandpa, Greek chorus and by far the coolest character in spite of all the very cool youth culture stuff.

And there's a lot of the latter. The main theme song is a banger in its own right: yes, Marilyn Manson's cover is better- his covers invariably are- but we don't talk about him nowadays. We get Echo and the Bunnymen covering People Are Strange. The vampires live in an abandoned underground hotel with a massive poster of Jim Morrison on the wall. All this stuff has a lot to do with why this film became such a cult classic, I feel.

And yet, I think, despite the rather satisfying resolution, the film is raised above its good-but-not-great script by its visuals. It has a very late '80s goth aesthetic. The vampires and the scenes surrounding them look great. And you can never go wrong with showing amusement rides at night to evoke a sense of the eerie.

A film with a merely decent script, then, but one elevated above that by visuals and coolness. And this is also a fascinating glimpse of vampires in pop culture in the '80s- a possible influence on both Anne Rice and Joss Whedon?