Robin Hood

Robin Hood 2010

• Director: Ridley Scott
• Based on book: no
• Cast: Russel Crowe, Cate Blanchett, William Hurt, Max Von Sydow, Oscar Isaac, Mark Strong, Danny Huston, Eileen Atkins, Mark Addy, Matthew Macfadyen, Scott Grimes, Kevin Durand, Léa Seydoux
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Russell Crowe – Winter’s Tale, Man of Steel, Les Misérables, A Good Year, A Beautiful Mind, Gladiator
• Cate Blanchett – Cinderella, The Hobbit etc, Hanna, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Elizabeth the Golden Age, I’m Not There, Hot Fuzz, Notes on a Scandal, Babel, Little Fish, The Aviator, Coffee & Cigarettes, The Shipping News, The Gift, The Man Who Cried, Elizabeth
• William Hurt – Humans, Winter’s Tale, Into the Wild, A History of Violence, Sunshine, Smoke, The Accidental Tourist
• Max Von Sydow – Star Wars the Force Awakens, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Shutter Island, Awakenings, Ingenjör Andrées luftfärd, Voyage of the Damned, The Exorcist, Utvandrarna, Invandrarna, Nybyggarna, Vargtimmen
• Oscar Isaac – Star Wars the Last Jedi, X Men Apocalypse, Star Wars the Force Awakens, Ex Machina, Inside Llewyn Davis
• Mark Strong – Before I Go to Sleep, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Sherlock Holmes, Young Victoria, Stardust, Sunshine, Sunshine (the other one), Fever Pitch
• Danny Huston - Wonder Woman, Children of Men, The Constant Gardener, The Aviator, 21 Grams
• Eileen Atkins – Vicious, Beautiful Creatures, Last Chance Harvey, Cold Mountain, The Hours, Gosford Park, David Copperfield, Titus Andronicus, The Dresser
• Mark Addy - Doctor Who, A Knight’s Tale, The Full Monty
• Matthew Macfadyen – The Pillars of the Earth, Frost/Nixon, Pride and Prejudice
• Léa Seydoux - Spectre
• Why?  Came in a box with Gladiator
• Seen:  Once before. Now 24 November 2019 

Robin Hood before he was Robin Hood. Good idea. It should have been a good film with that director and that cast. Frankly, it’s boring. It’s all muddled with lots of intrigues and nasty villains. I am really not entertained by long and bloody battle scenes. The good parts are few and far between in this far too long film. Shorter would have helped.

Not Ridley Scott’s finest, nor the cast’s.

2 * of 5

PS If you’re interested in King John, read Shakespeare’s version. If you have the impression that Richard Lionheart was an admirable king, read The Wrathful Traveller – The Merlin Chronicles Volume 2 by Rhuddem Gwelin https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wrathful-Traveller-Merlin-Chronicles/dp/9188713369/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+wrathful+traveller&qid=1574689337&s=books&sr=1-1. You might change your mind.

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert 1994

• Director: Stephen Elliot
• Based on book: no
• Cast: Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, Terence Stamp, Bill Hunter
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Hugo Weaving – Mortal Engines, Strangerland, The Hobbit etc, Cloud Atlas, V for Vendetta, Little Fish, Lord of the Rings etc, Matrix etc, The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert
• Guy Pearce – Genius, Prometheus, The King’s Speech, The Road, Factory Girl, A Slipping-Down Life
• Terence Stamp – Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, Song for Marion, Valkyria, Wanted, Full Frontal, Star Wars, The Limey, Superman, Far from the Madding Crowd, The Collector, Billy Bud
• Bill Hunter – Australia, Muriel’s Wedding, Strictly Ballroom, Gallipoli, Ned Kelly
• Why?  Liked it the first time
• Seen:  Once before. Now 17 November 2019

 Bernadette (Stamp), an aging transsexual grieving the death of a young husband, Tick/Mitzi (Weaving), upset by hostile audiences in the drag queen venue where he performs, and Adam/Felicia (Pearce), young and full of himself, head off for a lucrative gig in Alice Springs in a used bus they call Priscilla Queen of the Desert.

Is the Outback really ready for these three drag/drama queens? No. They laugh off the hostility, ridicule and violence but it still hurts. Together in the bus they bitch bitterly, laugh hysterically at vulgar jokes and get lost in the middle of nowhere. And Nowhere in Australia is very big.

The story is sweet, the three leads leave me speechless with admiration – can that really be Hugo Weaving?! (it’s just a coincidence that we just watched Mortal Engines with a much older Weaving on Friday) – and the costumes, each one more dreadful than the next, are hilarious and deserve their Oscar. And has there ever been a better scene than the one with these three ultra-disco-clad drag queens doing ‘I Will Survive’ in the Australian desert night accompanied by digeridoo and applauding (if sceptical) Indigenous fans? 

4 ½ * of 5

Joe Strummer - the Future Is Unwritten

Joe Strummer – The Future is Unwrittem

• Director: Julien Temple
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: no cast as such, just a lot of interviews
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• See above
• Why?  The Clash
• Seen:  16 November 2019

 It starts with news reports of Joe Strummer’s death in 2002 (how can it be so long ago?). Then back to his childhood. He was born in Turkey and moved around the globe with his diplomat father, mother and brother. When he grew older, he was sent to school in Britain (clips of the film If to show what it was like.) He visited his parents in various African countries on holidays. News clips of the 60’s form the background. A lot of it is narrated by Strummer himself, but also friends, now and then, who all make it clear that he was wild, adventurous, talented and impossible to live with. There’s a lot of music (well, duh) and 70’s history and politics (well, duh).

Punk arrives. The Clash is created. Joe Strummer abandons his old life and his old friends.

London Calling. The Clash go global and start falling apart. Drugs, conflicts, ego trips, same old, same old. Exit the Clash. Ten years pass before Joe Strummer has reinvented himself and got that new self together.

It seems to be an honest portrait, not shying away from Strummer’s darker, less admirable sides, while showing his genius and importance to music with a good measure of respect and affection.

Unfortunately, it’s like most celebrity documentaries – chaotic with jumps back and forth in time, short clips of interviews with all and sundry (even Johnny Depp) but it is very interesting. We listened to the first half of London Calling today. The second half awaits us tomorrow.

4 * of 5

Mortal Engines

Mortal Engines 2018

• Director: Christian Rivers
• Based on novel by Philip Reeve
• Cast: Hera Hilmar, Robert Sheehan, Hugo Weaving, Jihae, Ronan Raferty, Leila George, Patrick Malahide, Colin Salmon, Regé-Jean Page
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Robert Sheehan - Fortitude
• Hugo Weaving – Strangerland, The Hobbit etc, Cloud Atlas, V for Vendetta, Little Fish, Lord of the Rings etc, Matrix etc, The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert
• Patrick Malahide – Brideshead Revisited, Extras, Billy Elliot, The World Is Not Enough, Long Kiss Goodnight, Middlemarch
• Colin Salmon – Merlin, Doctor Who, Die Another Day, The World Is Not Enough, Tomorrow Never Dies
• Why?  Curious
• Seen:  15 November 2019

 In the far future after the near destruction of the planet and humanity, predator cities have arisen. They eat smaller cities and towns. The city of London is powerful and ruthless in devouring everything in its path. It is run by Thaddeus Valentine (Weaving) and Magnus Crome (Malahide). Young apprentice historian Tom (Sheehan) is all for it. He’s in love with Valentine’s daughter Katherine (George) and then he meets Hester (Hilmar) when she tries to assassinate Valentine. With good reason.

The concept is bizarre and while reading the book this week I wondered how on earth they would film it.

Surprisingly successfully, it turns out. The city and flying things are astounding. The story is condensed but it retains the essence. The cast was well chosen, especially Sheehan and Hilmar.

The book’s unexpectedly grim ending bothered me. This ending isn’t quite so grim. Maybe a little too non-grim but I almost prefer it, sweetness notwithstanding.

4 * of 5

I Wanna Hold Your Hand

I Wanna Hold Your Hand 1978

• Director: Robert Zemeckis
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: Nancy Allen, Bobby Di Cicco, Marc McClure, Susan Kendall Newman, Theresa Saldana, Wendie Jo Sperber, Eddie Deezen
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Nancy Allen – Robocop 1, 2 & 3
• Why?  Ex-Beatles maniac
• Seen:  10 November 2019

 February 1964. The Beatles live on the Ed Sullivan Show. Oh, how I remember! What a nostalgia trip. Well, I wasn’t in New York, so I didn’t have a chance to sneak into the Beatles’ hotel room, or get tickets to the show, like these girls.

It’s A Hard Day’s Night from the fans’ point of view. A clever idea. The only problem is that it doesn’t have the Beatles in it. Somewhat entertaining, it also has a nasty undertone with prostitution, blackmail, cocky male chauvinism and sadistic parents, all in noisy slapstick. It could have been so much better!

If you like the Beatles, see A Hard Day’s Night instead.

  

1 ½ * of 5

A Limousine the Colour of Midsummer's Eve

A Limousine the Colour of Midsummer’s Eve 1981 (Limuzins Janu nakts krasa)

• Director: Janus Streics
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: Lilita Berzina, Olga Drege, Uldis Dumpis
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• None of them
• Why?  Gift from our dear friend in Riga, AZ
• Seen:  9 November 2019

 Erik’s old aunt Mirta (Berzina) has won a car on the lottery. She lives alone on a farm outside of Riga and she can’t drive. Erik (Dumpis), his wife Dagnija (Drege) and son come to help her, though they are not close. They discover that the aunt’s neighbours are very good friends. A fierce rivalry ensues, city slickers vs country bumpkins. More long-lost relatives arrive. Everyone wants to inherit the car.

This is a Latvian classic, voted many times as the most popular Latvian film ever. It is amusing at times with interesting glimpses into Soviet Latvian history.

But oi, oi, oi, it reminds me painfully of our three years living in rural Sweden in the 70s. I really really really hated living in rural Sweden in the 70s. And I really don’t like rural slapstick films. So it’s difficult to take this one to my heart. It also reminds me of Wes Anderson’s films, also not my favourites. Just not my cup of tea. I do like the cat, however, and the little kid in red. And the title.

2 * of 5

Molly's Game

Molly’s Game

• Director: Aaron Sorkin
• Based on the book by Molly Bloom
• Cast: Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Jessica Chastain – Snow White Huntsmen Winter’s War, The Martian, Interstellar, The Help, The Tree of Life, Coriolanus, Veronica Mars
• Idris Elba – The Mountain Between Us, Pacific Rim, Prometheus, Thor, 28 Weeks Later, The Wire, Crocodile Shoes, Absolutely Fabulous
• Kevin Costner – Man of Steel, Swing Vote, Rumour Has It, The Postman, A Perfect World, Bodyguard. JFK, Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, Dances with Wolves, Field of Dreams, Bull Durham, Silverado, Stacy’s Knights
• Michael Cera – Scott Pilgrim vs the World, Juno, Veronica Mars
• Why?  Idris Elba
• Seen:  8 November 2019 

Fourth place in the Olympics is the worst thing that can happen in the sports world, according to Molly Bloom, who at the age of twenty crashes to end her skiing career. Twelve years later she is awakened by the FBI who arrest her for running illegal gambling.

We follow her road to that point. Rich celebrities who gamble. Flash forward to her lawyer Charlie (Elba), who doesn’t want to take her on because of her connections to the Russian mafia. Which she denies. He takes her on anyway.

Sorry, boring subject. Gambling, Russian mafia, big money, courtroom trials. Boring. Can Chastain and Elba save it?

Well, no. Chastain’s character is completely unlikeable (though she does it well) and Elba’s role is far too small. It’s just barely interesting enough to keep watching. These are really dreadful rich people. Why should we care?

There are enough interesting aspects, Chastain is good, and Elba is always good, so it’s not a complete flop, though I had so much looked forward to a serious drama. Oh well,

2 ½ * of 5

Before You Go

Before You Go

• Director: Lewis Gilbert
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: Julie Walters, Joanne Whalley, Victoria Hamilton, Patricia Hodge, John Hannah, Tom Wilkinson
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Julie Walters – Mamma Mia 1&2, The Hollow Crown Henry IV Parts One and Two, Henry V, Harry Potter 1-8, Becoming Jane, Driving Lessons, Wah-Wah, Calendar Girls, Billy Elliot, Titanic Tow, Intimate Relations, Prick Up Your Ears, Educating Rita
• Joanne Whalley – Wolf Hall, Flood, Dance with a Stranger
• Victoria Hamilton – Babyfather, The Merchant of Venice, Pride and Prejudice
• Patrica Hodge – Hustle, Morse
• John Hannah – Sliding Doors, Four Weddings and a Funeral
• Tom Wilkinson– The Lone Ranger, Hotel Marigold, Valkyria, Michael Clayton, Batman Begins, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Shakespeare in Love, Wilde, The Full Monty, Smilla’s Sense of Snow, Prince of Jylland
• Why?  Julie Walters
• Seen:  3 November 2019 

Theresa (Walters) is summoned to the hospital with her husband Frank (Wilkinson) to be told that her mother has died. Her two younger sisters Mary (Whalley) and Catherine (Hamilton) meet her at their childhood home, a stunning place on the Isle of Man.

‘Someone dies, people drink whisky. It’s normal,’ says Mary, a doctor. Catherine buys golden high heels and smokes pot to cope. Theresa vacuums obsessively. Mary has hallucinations of her mother’s ghost. Theresa does yoga chanting health food recipes. Catherine says, ‘I can’t cry. I didn’t like her.’

Three sisters. A dead mother. Conflicts and conflicting memories. They’re all a mess. That’s it.

It’s a bit funny, a lot weird, and not always as entertaining as I had expected. Mary, with her useless married lover (Hannah) and secret past, isn’t as interesting as she should be. Walters is, as always, amazing and Hamilton is a treat as the flaky youngest sister.

3 * of 5 (Hal gives it 4*)

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

• Director: Mike Newell
• Based on the novel by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
• Cast: Lily James, Jessica Brown Findley, Tom Courtney, Michiel Huisman, Katherine Parkinson, Matthew Goode, Glen Powell, Penelope Wilton, Bronagh Gallagher
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Lily James – Mamma Mia Here We Go Again, Downton Abbey, Cinderella
• Jessica Brown Findley – Victor Frankenstein, Winter’s Tale, Downton Abbey
• Tom Courtney – Unforgotten, The Quartet, Last Orders, Whatever Happened to Harold Smith?, The Dresser, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Doctor Zhivago, The Loneliness of a Long Distance Runner
• Michiel Huisman – Orphan Black, Wild, World War Z, Young Victoria
• Katherine Parkinson – Humans, Sherlock, Kiss Ass Girls 2 St Trinian’s, The Boat that Rocked
• Matthew Goode – Downton Abbey, The Imitation Game, Dancing on the Edge, Brideshead Revisited, Copying Beethoven
• Penelope Wilton – Downton Abbey, Hotel Marigold 1&2, South Riding, Doctor Who, Shaun of the Dead, The Calendar Girls, Clockwise, King Lear, Othello
• Bronagh Gallagher – Sherlock Holmes, Tristram Shandy, Tara Road, Mary Reilly, Pulp Fiction, The Commitments
• Why? Love the book
• Seen: 2 November 2019 with Hal and YW in our read-book-see-film group      

       We all love the book. We’re worried the film won’t do it justice, but the cast bodes well.

       It must be said. The changes made are not good ones. Why couldn’t they have followed the book more closely?

       With that said, does it hold up as a film? Yes, well enough. The cast is as could as expected, though the lead (James) is more or less interchangeable with any number of pretty young women like Carey Mulligan, Jenna Coleman, Alicia Vikander – good actors all but their looks are more a disadvantage than an advantage. Wilton and Courtney are especially good. The basic story follows the book – the literary society and the occupation of the Channel Islands by the Germans during WWII. The beauty of Guernsey is a main character but, in the credits, we are told that it was ‘filmed on location in England’. England???

  

3 ½ * of 5 (We agree that we might like it more next time when the book isn’t so fresh in our memories.)

Shaun of the Dead

Shaun of the Dead 2004

• Director: Edgar Wright
• Based on novel: no
• Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy David, Dylan Moran, Rafe Spall, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton, Jessica Hynes, Martin Freeman, Tamsin Grieg, Matt Lucas (the last three about 2 seconds each)
• Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
• Simon Pegg – Star Wars the Force Awakens, Absolutely Anything, The World’s End, Hot Fuzz, Doctor Who, Black Books, 24 Hour Party People
• Nick Frost – Doctor Who, The World’s End, Attack the Block, The Boat that Rocked, Hot Fuzz, Kinky Boots, Black Books
• Kate Ashfield – United, The Kid, Late Night Shopping
• Lucy Davis – Wonder Woman, Black Books, The Office
• Dylan Moran – Good Vibrations, The Decoy Bride, Tristram Shandy, Black Books, Notting Hill
• Rafe Spall – What If, The World’s End, The Life of Pi, Prometheus, Hot Fuzz, A Good Year
• Bill Nighy – Their Finest, Hotel Marigold 1 & 2, About Time, The World’s End, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Doctor Who, The Boat that Rock, Valkyrie, Pirates of the Caribbean, Hot Fuzz, Notes on a Scandal, Gideon’s Daughter, The Constant Gardener, The Girl in the Café, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, , Love Actually, Auf Wiedersehen Pet, Kiss Me Kate
• Penelope Wilton – Downton Abbey, Hotel Marigold 1&2, South Riding, Doctor Who, The Calendar Girls, Clockwise, King Lear, Othello
• Jessica Hynes – Doctor Who, Learners, Son of Rambow, Black Books, Born Romantic, Swing Kids
• Martin Freeman – Black Panther, Shylock, Fargo, The Hobbit etc, The World’s End, Hot Fuzz, Breaking and Entering, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Office, Love Actually, Black Books
• Tamsin Grieg – Friday Night Dinner, Hotel Marigold 2, Black Books, Neverwhere
• Matt Lucas – Doctor Who, Little Britain
• Why?  Surprisingly good film
• Seen:  Once or twice before. Now the day after Halloween 2019 

Shaun (Pegg) and Liz (Ashfield) are having relationship problems and their friends David (Moran) and Di (Davis) aren’t really helping. Nor is Ed (Frost) who lives with Shaun and is an obnoxious, messy slob. Everyone hates him but Shaun, who has a dreadful job as TV shop manager, a troublesome stepdad (Nighy) and doting mother (Wilton).

Life is not great.

Meanwhile London is having a zombie epidemic.

It’s exciting, scary, laugh-out-loud funny, gory, sad, sweet, poignant and it has an amazing cast, a dozen or so of my favourite actors. Good music, too.

Don’t tell anybody but my secret ambition is to play a zombie in a zombie film. So, anyone out there planning one, contact me ASAP.

5* of 5