Rambles about the wonderful world of wrestling.
In this review I am going to attempt to spoil as little as possible about Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, I’ve considered the ways to do this and in all honesty I think the simplest way is to avoid details of the plot entirely. I like to think I can still give an opinion on it without ever describing it in detail. Why? Because there are some films that it is better to go into without any knowledge at all and because Nolan himself is well known to like it that way and who am I to argue.
Films that look at the modern state of the media are hardly rare in this day and age. With the UK having gone through phone tapping and the US having just as many problems themselves, the media is rife for a kicking, but few films have done so in the stylish, dark and twisted way that Nightcrawler does. It’s the directorial debut from Dan Gilroy, who also wrote the script, which suggests that he may well be a film maker to watch in the years to come.
Horror in 2014 is a strange genre. Modern films seem to fall into two categories. Every now and then you get something smart and interesting, for example the great You’re Next, which took traditional horror tropes and twisted them in a dark and amusing way. However, more often than not we are left by Paranormal Activity inspired cattle-prod cinema. Horror movies that rely mainly on the idea of being quiet for a while, before making the audience jump with a big bang. Into this fray now enters The Babadook, a movie written and directed by the possibly twisted mind of Jennifer Kent.
It’s been a mixed year for animated films. On one hand we have had the brilliant Lego Movie and the wonderfully dirty Box Trolls. On the other hand, there has been a lot of crap. Films like The Postman Pat movie seemed to fail on nearly every level. The latest fighter to enter the fray is The Book of Life, a film, which at least on paper due to the involvement (as a producer) of Guillermo Del Toro, looks set to be a prize fighter.
Any listeners to Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo’s weekly film show, Wittertainment as it has affectionately become known, will be aware of a long running joke about films that aren’t actually about what they appear to be about. The classic example of this, at least in Mark Kermode’s opinion, is Jaws, which he proclaims is not about the shark, but actually about infidelity. The most recent addition to this ‘genre’ is ’71, a film set in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, but which despite this, is really not about the Troubles themselves.
Side projects and supergroups are nothing new in the world of rock and roll. Whether it be Velvet Revolver or Them Crooked Vultures, we have seen a fair few of them over the years and it doesn’t seem like a trend that is likely to stop anytime soon. Yet, the sad fact is, a lot of these bands tend to be a bit crap. For every great release there is a lot of Rock Star Supernova and quite frankly we could all use a bit less of that. So what makes a good side project or a great super group? How do bands like Down, go from being on the sidelines, to being the main concern for many of their members.
The Scottish Premier League has long been a bit of a joke, listen to any football podcast and you will hear constant jibes at the quality north of the border. Now, I have to be honest, this has never bothered me. The SPL is pish and if it wasn’t for my overriding affection for Aberdeen, I doubt I’d give a damn. I don’t watch Scottish football if Aberdeen aren’t involved and, until the last couple of years, their involvement actually tended to make me more miserable. However, this season is possibly shaping up to be one of the most interesting in recent years, even without one half of the gruesome twosome being involved.
The idea of the impossible to adapt book, seems to be dying. With films like Life of Pi seeing great success, Hollywood hasdiscovered that the books they are supposed to be unable to do anything with, are actually doing pretty damn well. The latest novel to get that treatment, is Gone Girl, written by Gillian Flynn, who has personally adapted it and directed by the brilliant, David Fincher.
So last night, Bound for Glory took place, the supposed jewel in TNA’s PPV calendar and very much their answer to Wrestlemania. Yet, this year, it didn’t feel special. In fact it barely registered on the Richter scale. Unlike my usual look at wrestling events, I am not planning on going through this one match by match, but instead by having a look at exactly where I think TNA went wrong with BFG, this year round.
Anyone who is a fan of Outnumbered, will know that writers Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkins have recently released a movie, What We Did On Our Holiday, staring David Tennant, Rosamund Pike and Billy Connolly. Unsurprisingly, it will continue to use the same techniques, (ie. unscripted children interacting with scripted adults) that Outnumbered utilised so well. Yet, since its release it has received mixed reviews, with many choosing to focus on a particularly dark twist, which the movie makes coming into the final act, as a reason for it’s issues, as it contrasts with the tone of what has come before. However, is that actually an issue? Or was Hamilton and Jenkins decision, actually a brave one? (I should mention this will be spoiler free, in case anyone is worried.)
Ramblings About Wrestling 