Film 71: "Time Bandits"

Had a chance to put on a film just before the 20s/30s weekend away. Still not looking very hopeful, but I'm giving it the old college try.

Synoahpsis:

Imagine that when the "Supreme Being" created the world, with the help of his motley crew of greedy, somewhat violent dwarves, some places were not quite finished. In the fabric of the universe, there are quite a few holes, and when those greedy few got a hold of the map to all of them, they figure they can make quite a nice living using the map to steal treasure from all over time and space.

On the run from the Supreme Being, the bandits crash through the bedroom of Kevin, a young boy whose parents pay much more attention to the TV than to him. Kevin gets pulled into the world of their anachronic purloinary, meeting characters like Robin Hood, Napoleon and some sort of King in Greece along the way. Also, there's some evil dude stuck in a fortress who doesn't want to be, so something happens there as well.

The best bit:

I hate to spoil anything, so look away if you don't want to hear about how Kevin's parents, in the closing scene of the film, touch a bit of the blown-up evil guy and immediately explode themselves into a million pieces. Ooops. Well, that bit anyway.

Marks out of 10:

Really goofy, pretty silly, but very well put together for what it was. I think this would be fantastic to watch with some younger kids, some silly teenagers or some goofy friends who like this sort of thing. Definitely worth a watch. 7.9

Film 70: The Pink Panther Series, 1963-78 (1 of 6 reviewed)

Well, it's not looking good for the film lovers out there, but I'm pressing on... despite Kate's comfortable lead in the 90s. Who knew anyone could read that fast?

Lovefilm has sent me these in the wrong order, so I'm actually starting with the last one, but they'll still be posted chronologically later on.

Synoahpsis: "Revenge of the Pink Panther"

Peter Sellers returns in his last appearance in the lead role. Believed to be dead in a hail-of-gunfire-induced, flaming car wreck assassination attempt, Chief Inspector Clouseau returns in the frenchy slapstick adventure to investigate the Hong Kong dealings of an international drug ring calling itself the "French Connection". Allowing the enemy to believe he is dead (instead of Rossou, the wandering, bank-robbing transvestite what stole his car from a bus stop), Clouseau and Cato hunt down the baddies, fall down quite a bit, and probably save the day!

(I'll let you watch it and find out whether they save the day or not... spoilers).

The best bit

I suppose I thought there were some funny lines here and there... particularly when the fireworks factory was going up in flames in the midst of a cop-gangster gun battle; I just can't remember what they were.

Marks out of 10:

I can see why it would make for a watchable family comedy way back in the day, but the slapstick is really cringeworthy... even for my scrubs-loving taste. Once you got past the funny accents, which I agree were hilarious, there wasn't much here. 3.0

Book 92: All Creatures Great and Small, by James Herriot

All Creatures Great and Small is an omnibus, and I'm pretty sure I've read at least some of what it contains in the past. I recall reading Herriot whilst staying at my grandparents' house, feeling ever so slightly naughty because I just took the books from the shelves and read them without asking anybody. As a child I rather enjoyed them, and reading Herriot now I find the tales of life as a veterinary surgeon in the Yorkshire Dales quite pleasant. The stories, taken from real life, are gently entertaining and sometimes amusing. The young vet has to deal with tricky medical situations, know-it-all farmers and eccentric old ladies with preposterously pampered pets. But even more frustrating than these is the tendency of Siegfried, Herriot's forceful yet likeable boss, to give persistently conflicting (and always exasperatingly patient) advice. Whilst I won't be rushing out to acquire yet more tomes by the same author, I did enjoy this volume (which, at two-and-a-half books in one, took quite a while to read).

Book 91: A Children's Treasury of Milligan

I sometimes find Spike Milligan's poetry mildly amusing and enjoy the wordplay. I quite liked some of the poems at the start of this book. For example

Rain
There are holes in the sky
Where the rain gets in,
But they're ever so small
That's why rain is thin.

However, I didn't enjoy the latter parts of the book so much. I guess it's Milligan's style, but really it just seems like a lot of made up nonsense words. I can understand why they'd be fun, but I'd rather make up my own and share them with my family than read someone else's published in a book. Maybe I'm just in a grumpy mood today!

Book 90: I Capture the Castle, by Dodie Smith

I was not expecting to enjoy this book but - once again - it turned out to be brilliant. I had been put off by watching a film version a few years ago; I didn't like some aspects of the plot and felt no particular reason to be drawn to the characters. This changes entirely when the story is viewed through the journal of the protagonist, seventeen-year-old Cassandra. The cover quote from J K Rowling reads "This book has one of the most charismatic narrators I've ever met", and I am certainly obliged to agree. Viewed through her eyes, the telling of the family's extreme (yet very cheerful) poverty and the near-despair of her Father ever writing again is transformed. When Scoatney, the home of the Mortmain family's landlords, is inherited by a young American, he and his brother come to England to live at the place. The intriguing story of the brothers' growing friendship with Cassandra and her sister Rose is interwoven with Cassandra's own relationships with Rose, her brother Thomas, stepmother Topaz and the enigmatic Stephen. A very compelling story, emotionally evocative, enjoyable, at times amusing and somehow true to life.

Film 69: "Strictly Ballroom"

I can't say I wanted to watch this one, but I'm glad I did. I waited till I could get Kate in the room to watch it as well... you know, so I could still claim to be manly and whatnot and not forgo man points for popping in a DVD called "Strictly Ballroom"

Synoahpsis:

Scott Hastings, a rogue, aussie ballroom dancer has a passion for dancing and a desire to perform his very unorthodox steps in a ballroom environment. Putting his own career at risk, infuriating the judges, alienating his former ballroom champion mother, and losing his long-time dancing partner, he abandons the traditional steps in favour of something new.

He teams up with Fran, a beginner who may not have the moves but has all the heart to dance the very unconventional steps with Scott, but with no support from their parents and a fierce opposition from the dancing community, do they have what it takes to become the new ballroom champions?

The best bit:

Kate and I wholeheartedly agree the best bit was clearly when Scott tries to convince Fran's dad that he is a proper ballroom dancer, and not a hinderance to her career, by dancing the Paso Doble... Scott and Fran both get a lesson on dancing from the heart.

Marks out of 10:

I did not dislike it, I'm compelled to say. It was fairly funny, and even with a predictable plot, the jokes and dancing make the film very watchable indeed. 6.2

Film 68: "Superman"

Due to Kate's persistence in making me review my recently watched films, I thought I'd better get on reviewing Superman.

Synoahpsis:

I don't know how I've managed to gain such familiarity with the entire plot of the film and whole world of Superman through secondhand allusions to the film (as well as watching one or two episodes of "Smallville"), but I felt like I was watching Superman for the hundredth time.

Basically, Superman (Kal-El) is sent to Earth by his parents when their home planet, Krypton, is on the brink of implosion. His Dad, Jor-El, an elder of Krypton, knows the planet is in peril, but is shunned by the council and placed under supervision. He still manages to launch the rocket just in time, so cool beans.

Superman arrives on earth in Nebraska or somewhere corn-filled like that and has to grow up among the humans hiding his supernatural powers fueled by Earth's sun and such like. He's taught never to interfere with humankind's history...

When a mysterious real estate investor begins buying up worthless southwestern desert land at exorbitant prices, reporter Lois Lane investigates, only to uncover the twisted plot of Lex Luthor. Can Superman save her, and the Western seaboard in time???

The best bit:

I hate to give spoilers, but the part where Superman turns time backwards by spinning around the earth in the opposite direction really really fast and changing it's rotation is just ridiculous and awesome.

Marks out of 10:

Great special effects for the time, fun plot, and good inclusion of many aspects of the Superman comicbook world in a short space of time. Fun to watch as well. 8.0