The Editor (Astron-6, 2014) DVD Review

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“Don't worry, we'll catch the killer that killed her.” Canadian film-making collective Astron-6 (Father's Day) return with their own curious take on the Italian genre films of the 1970s and 1980s, particularly the giallo film, with The Editor. Harnessing the bold colour splashes of Mario Bava, the shock gore geysers of Lucio Fulci, and the twisted narrative mystery of gialli icons Dario Argento and Ernesto Gastaldi, Astron-6 have donned black leather gloves and some impressively luxuriant moustaches for their own eroticised killer thriller...

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RoboCop (2014) - a quick review...

What's it about?
Remake of Paul Verhoeven's 1987 sci-fi action classic, remoulding the tale of Alex Murphy - a Detroit policeman who, after a vicious attack and on death's door, is transformed by a robotics corporation into a man/machine crime fighting hybrid.
Who would I recognise in it?
Joel Kinnaman, Michael Keaton, Gary Oldman, Abbie Cornish, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael K. Williams, Jackie Earle Haley, Jay Baruchel, and more.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
When will Hollywood realise that remaking beloved and iconic classics is never going to work? It's a fool's errand that is only going to generate angry fans of the existing film/franchise, and an inferior product. At worst you'll end up with a bomb that is creatively bankrupt and tarnishes the good name of the original. At best - in the rarest of cases - you might actually come up with something worthwhile which still doesn't match (let alone surpass) what came before. This unasked-for remake of RoboCop (so beloved that the citizens of Detroit petitioned for - and won - a statue of Peter Weller's original RoboCop for their city), sits somewhere in-between...

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Triple Bill Mini Musings: Gaunt Gyllenhaal, Gone Godzilla, and Gross Gags...

Nightcrawler:
What's it about?
Lou Bloom, a jobless petty thief with a strict learning/work ethic, finds his strange calling when he witnesses a team of 'stringers' (guys with video cameras who record crime scenes etc for news broadcast) doing their work. Muscling his way into the business and learning as he goes, Lou finds an ally with news director Nina who takes a shine to his abilities. However, chasing the perfect footage - before anyone else gets it - leads him down a dangerous path.
Who would I recognise in it?
Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Bill Paxton, Riz Ahmed.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Gaunt and wide-eyed, Gyllenhaal plays Lou Bloom with such determination that he disappears inside the character; no wonder there were many rumblings when he didn't get nominated for an Oscar. The film sinks us into a bizarre world that takes us behind the scenes of grizzly - even thrilling - crime/accident scene news footage, and does so with such a sense of style and drive that you begin to question the malleability of your own morality. The director put it best when he said that the movie was about a talented man being rewarded for his skills by a society that should really be punishing him for those same skills. This is a world that is at the same time familiar and alien, presented in such a way that is both troubling and exhilarating. Despite all of Lou's faults you can't help but admire his clearly focused sense of drive and ability to achieve his goals. Great.

Click "READ MORE" below for Godzilla 2014, and A Million Ways To Die In The West...

Ethical Theory (2014)

A three part series of short educational films covering Meta-Ethics, Kantian Ethics, and Situation Ethics.

In many ways this was the toughest series to edit in a while. The challenge was to visualise complex philosophical theories - which are relatively straight forward to explain on the page in words - but which are very tricky to illustrate. However, we succeeded, and this time we also used specially commissioned artwork to help us bring these complex ideas to life.

Below you will find more information about the series, including video clips for each film.

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Flavours of the Month: December 2014...

Tis the season to be merry, get wellied-in and watch the telly ... festivities, Blu-Rays galore, and a new obsession.

Click "READ MORE" below for the looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of my December 2014...

Flavours of the Month: November 2014...

Zombies and nasties and reporters galore, rocking and writing and editing and more ... just some of the flavours of my November 2014...

Click "READ MORE" below for the full run down of what the looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of my month have been...

Flavours of the Month: October 2014...

Gangsters, jokesters, rockers, zombies, and celebrities ... just some of the flavours of my October 2014.

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Flavours of the Month: September 2014...

Jaw dropping WW2 television drama, neo-giallo style, transgressive fiction, surgery, and Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag have been some of this month's flavours.

Click "READ MORE" below for the looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of my September 2014...

Flavours of the Month: August 2014...

Dark conspiracies, comedic priests, talking dogs, sardonic comedians, hard-boiled cops, and underground zombies ... just a few of the things that have been flavouring my August 2014 ... read on to see what else.

Click "READ MORE" below for the looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of the past four weeks...

Flavours of the Month: July 2014...

July 2014 has been dominated by GTA V's electro sounds, hard boiled detectives, and crime busting coppers. Horror rockers, horror soundtracks, and horror flicks - plus plenty more.

Click "READ MORE" below for this month's looks, sounds, vibes & flavours...

"The Racket" at the Portsmouth International Film Festival...

"The Racket" (on which I was Editor and Script Consultant) is appearing at the 2014 Portsmouth International Film Festival 2014 (9th to 11th July) and it has received two nominations!

Best War Film & Best Editing in a Documentary Short

View the full list of nominations here.

Find out more information about The Racket here.

Flavours of the Month: June 2014...

LOOKS:

South Park Season 16 - seasons 15 and 16 definitely had some dud episodes in their mix, but as I said last month, re-watching these shows on their own terms (rather than with the expectation that you have, perhaps unfairly, when new episodes air) does bring a new sparkle that you didn't see the first time around. One of my favourite episodes from season 16, and the series in general, is the Halloween episode in which Randy buys the local Blockbuster rental store and everything goes a bit 'Shining'.

Fargo - this limited-run 10 episode story from FX and MGM has been a real gold mine. I was unsure how it would work upon first hearing they'd taken the Coen brother's movie and turned it, somehow, into a television show, but after the first couple of episodes I was hooked and it just kept getting better. It wasn't really an adaptation at all, it was a spiritual successor. Unpredictable, truly stunning, filled with characters that you genuinely care about (or fear), and all written by Noah Hawley with such an easy flair and eye for gentle dark humour that he makes it seem effortless. Clearly a lot of thought and craft went into all aspects of making this show and it paid off in spades. A bright shining highlight for 2014 television drama.

Click "READ MORE" below for the other flavours of this month...

Flavours of the Month: May 2014...

LOOKS:

Twin Peaks - finishing off season two. There were about eight episodes after the reveal of Laura Palmer's killer where the show went off the rails and didn't have a new main story and threat to pick up the ball. Various subplots and side stories didn't really work, so for those iffy episodes only parts of them are working. It stopped being strange, it got safe and even a bit plain. That said, in the last few episodes it swung right back up again and found the groove for a grand finale. Good news too about the imminent release of 90 minutes worth of deleted scenes from Fire Walk With Me.

South Park Season 13, 14 and 15 - when South Park hits a home run, it really goes all out, but then you end up (unfairly) expecting every episode to be like the one where the Internet goes down, or the Facebook episode, or the World of Warcraft episode etc. However, watching these episodes for a second time on their own terms really frees them of any first-watch expectations you originally had. What was a tad underwhelming the first time becomes a rather good run of episodes with some forgotten gems hidden away.

Click "READ MORE" below for the other looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of my May 2014...

Flavours of the Month: April 2014...

LOOKS:

Lost Season 6 - and so ends the return trip to the island. The final season did feel a bit over-long, and certain elements didn't tie-up quite as well as they should have, but ultimately I was still impressed by how the show ended.

The Trip To Italy - a second series of the delightfully entertaining comedy starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon as slightly askew versions of themselves. It's a welcome return, although a subplot about infidelity does, to me at least, sit a little uneasily with the generally jovial tone of the show. We'll see how that particular thread plays out over the remaining episodes.

South Park Season 10, 11, and 12

Mad Men Season 7 - the final season, annoyingly split over two years. The Walking Dead and Breaking Bad are more my kind of thing, but even still, I'm a big fan of this show. Three episodes deep - so far so good. A year-long mid-season break is going to be a pain though, just like with the final season of BB.

Click "READ MORE" below for the other looks, sounds, vibes & flavours...

Flavours of the Month: March 2014...

LOOKS:

The League of Gentlemen (DVD commentaries)

Gravity (Blu-Ray) - it's definitely not a horror film, but it's the scariest movie I've seen in years. An astonishing technical and directorial achievement that features a gripping central performance by Bullock.

8MM - apparently screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker (Se7en) disowned the movie after it was watered down and had the tone somewhat lightened, but even still, it's a pretty grim thriller that's simultaneously quite compelling. Part of that post-Se7en vibe in 90s filmmaking where everything got very dark and brooding (also see End of Days).

True Detective - familiar elements given a unique spin. A superb piece of dramatic work with two exceptional lead performances at the heart of it. Lyrical, poetic, and exceedingly dark. An iconic piece of television drama. Let's hope they can recapture that same spirit with a brand new cast and storyline for season two.

Click "READ MORE" below for more looks, sounds, vibes & flavours...

Racket & Writing...

Good news! "The Racket" has received two nominations from the St. Tropez International Film Festival!

Best Director of a Documentary & Best Producer of a Documentary Film.

Follow this LINK to visit their website and see the 2014 nominations list.

Click "READ MORE" below for an update on the novelisation of "Sleb"...

Flavours of the Month: February 2014...

LOOKS:

Top Gear Series 21

Lost Season 3 - the second tour through Lost continues. Season 3 is arguably stronger than the second season with a tighter narrative and a more compelling cast of additional characters. The scope of the island expanded, the mysteries grew deeper (while also giving more meat to chew on), and one of my favourite characters became a regular - Desmond.

The Money Pit (DVD) - one of those flicks I used to watch constantly as a kid (I was obsessed with all the house falling apart hijinks), but now I'm able to appreciate the wider story and certain jokes that flew over my head all those years ago.


Click "READ MORE" below for more looks, sounds, vibes & flavours...

Flavours of the Month: January 2014...

LOOKS:

Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee Season 3 - Jerry Seinfeld's web show that does what it says on the tin in a pleasant, humorous, and laid back manner. A couple of the new episodes have been a bit 'meh', but if you don't know of/take to the comedian one week then that's inevitable, but most others have been great.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Extended Edition Blu-Ray) - 5 discs, 3 hours of movie, 9 hours of extra features, blimey! It took a couple of weeks to crack through it all, but it's a treasure trove of behind-the-scenes information (which also helps better define the thirteen dwarves). The Lord of the Rings was better, but you can't help but allow yourself to be consumed by the world of Middle Earth.

Shameless Screen Entertainment Sexploitation 'Triple Sinema Bill' Boxset - a triple dose of Euro-sauce in the forms of Love Goddess of the Cannibals, Satan's Baby Doll, and The Beast In Space; click the titles for full DVD reviews of each.

Click "READ MORE" below for more looks, sounds, vibes & flavours of my January 2014...