Rambles about the wonderful world of wrestling.
The Dressmaker is a mess of a film. It wildly dives from comedy to melodrama back to comedy (but this time with a darker tinge) and perches all of that on top of a classic Western revenge story. Yes, it as mental as that sounds. So why the hell do I love it?
The first time I saw Bring Me the Horizon they were supporting Machine Head and were treated with something just a bit short of disdain.  Yet those snotty punks gave as good as they got and that got my attention.  In the years since a lot has changed and as they walked onto stage at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange it was clear that this crowd adores them.
Continue reading “Bring Me the Horizon w/ Neck Deep and PVRIS, Edinburgh Corn Exchange”
Making a film about the recently deceased can be difficult. It can easily descend into a cynical cash grab, taking advantage of people’s sudden need to honour a dead person they didn’t care about much when they were alive.  These biopics are often long, dull and sentimental as they desperately spread their legs towards the Oscars in an attempt to gain critical acclaim. Steve Jobs somehow manages to dodge this problem. Directed by Danny Boyle and scripted by Aaron Sorkin it avoids the clichés of the biopic genre and creates something genuinely interesting.
I am fed up of moaning about WWE. Â The amount of wrestling I watch on a weekly basis fluctuates wildly and yet the amount of complaining I do about the WWE is consistently high. Â I’ve had enough. Â So from now on I’m not going to bother. Â With ICW and NXT, the two other shows I watch regularly, I have more than enough good things to critique. Â However, that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop talking about WWE. Â I love it too much to do that. Â So instead, it is time to focus on the positives.
The Hunger Games franchise has been a revelation for young-adult cinema.  Dark and intelligent, it has taken issues like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and propaganda and put them on-screen for millions of teenagers around the world.  It’s also proven for any idiots out there that still believe otherwise, that a female character can lead an action series and still make shitloads of money.  With The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, that all comes to an end, as we find out whether Francis Lawrence can overcome the weakest book in the series to give us a satisfying conclusion.
Continue reading “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (2015)”
Putting two people in a cabin, dropping them into the woods and then turning it into a film worth seeing in 2015 is a hard job.  The cabin in the wood genre has been done to death and unless you are offering up a comic or intelligent alternative, the odds are any attempt to get it out there will end up dropping straight onto DVD.  The Hallow is far too good for such a fate.  Directed by first-time director and horror fanatic Corin Hardy, it is a creepy monster film that points towards one hell of  future.
As a general rule, I am all for being a bit controversial. Â I like art forms (be it music, wrestling, literature or film) that push the boat out and shock. Â However, I do think there is a line and I think WWE may have crossed it in the final segment on RAW this week.
The Lady in the Van is an unusual film.  On one hand, it’s a warm, funny and very British film that will make you laugh and leave you with a smile on your face.  On the other, it’s a slightly darker affair.  Stuffed with self-reflection and an annoying central character.  Sadly, director Nicholas Hytner struggles to have the two co-exist.
The build to ICW’s show at the SECC has been a long one.  The biggest British wrestling event since the 80’s, it all seemed a bit improbable and fans and performers alike seemed to share the feeling that it was a bit of a dream.  This couldn’t actually be happening, could it?  Well, it did and on Sunday the 15th of November ICW took the SECC by storm and showed the world that this is where they deserve to be.
My musical education took off when I discovered the Metal Hammer Podcast. Â It was the show that kindled my love of hardcore and introduced me to a whole host of bands that I still love today. Â When it ended, I was genuinely gutted. Â It was a weekly insight into heavy music provided by a group of guys who knew what they were talking about. Â Therefore, I was rather chuffed when Terry Bezer and Stephen Hill, who were both on the aforementioned podcast, started That’s Not Metal. Â A new podcast which is looking to fill the gap the death of that show left in my life.
Ramblings About Wrestling 