Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics (2013)

Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics (2013)

Author: Mark Kermode  |  Page Count: 272

'In a perfect world, film criticism would not be a series of rapid responses fixed for ever [...], but would rather be a slowly evolving debate in which nothing is certain and everything is up for grabs.'

I haven't read Mark Kermode's previous books yet, but nor was I unfamiliar with the London-born film critic, having seen him pop up on numerous film-related shows on British TV, most notably on the BBC 2 arts programme The Culture Show. His reviews were the main reason I programmed my VHS to record the show when I wasn't at home.

Kermode's views on film were the ones that most closely matched my own, and I began to believe that if he liked something then there was a very good chance that I would too. It's a feeling that has lessened in recent years, but my respect for him and his role hasn't diminished in the slightest.

.hack//Infection //Mutation //Outbreak //Quarantine (2002-03)

.hack//Infection, etc. (2002-03)

Genre: RPG  |  Players: 1  |  Developer: CyberConnect2

To clarify the confusing titling, there are four games in the series, each telling part of a lengthy story and each with the .hack// prefix. The games in order are: Vol 01 .hack//Infection | Vol 02 .hack//Mutation | Vol 03 .hack//Outbreak | Vol 04 .hack//Quarantine.

They're a traditional JRPG but resemble an MMORPG that remains one hundred percent offline. The story goes something like this: a popular MMORPG known as The World has caused a small number of players to fall into a coma. The game's creators attempt to hush the situation, but the scandal still breaks.

Despite the danger, a young boy named Kite selflessly enters the game to help his friend Orca, one of the coma victims. Kite believes the answer to the mystery lies within The World itself. He's a hero but doesn't know it yet; it's up to you to guide him to his destiny.

The Godfather Trilogy (1972-1990)

The Godfather (1972)

Dir. Francis Ford Coppola

Even though Mumble Brando sounds like a man with a gob full of marbles, his diction literally governs the first part of Coppola's Mafia trilogy.

The Godfather's words linger, influencing scenes he isn't even a part of. His voice whispers innocuous assurances while his persona threatens: all who come seeking Don Vito's aid leave thinking themselves fortuitous but each one leaves bent to his will, crippled by a future repayment favour.

The remainder of the film is electrically charged by Al Pacino and James Caan. For both men the Corleone name opens doors and closes coffin lids.

Dir. Coppola is self-indulgent in the first half hour but assuredly precise with the story and with his direction once things really kick off.

Doctor Who: Peter Cushing (1965-66)

Doctor Who: Peter Cushing (1965-66)

Non-canon Doctor | 2 films, approx 83 mins each.

01. Director Gordon Flemyng's Doctor Who and the Daleks (1965) is the first feature-length outing for the time-hopping Time Lord, Doctor Who. Except, he's not a Time Lord yet because his Gallifreyan origins had yet to be invented or explored in 1965.

Peter Cushing stars as the titular traveller, his version of which is a dithering grandpa-type that I suspect may have been a high-school physics teacher at one point in his life, because how else could he build an actual working time machine in his spare room?

The script is based on a seven-part TV serial by Terry Nation and starring First Doctor William Hartnell, simply titled The Daleks in home media releases. [1]

Bound (2016)

Bound (2016)

Genre: Platform / Art Game  |  Players: 1  |  Developer: Plastic

I avoid video game sales charts because they tend to paint a bleak picture of the hobby. Truly innovative games occasionally break though the COD and FIFA lines but they never stay around for long, and within a few weeks they're usually gone. It's not a situation unique to games - movies and music charts are the same. The companies that can afford to spend millions on advertising reap the biggest returns. The little guy gets stomped on. It's the old story, retold year after year.

But there's a flip side, a small number of people who dare to risk hard-earned cash on something new and different that carries a risk factor because they believe that fresh experiences are more precious than any value placed on currency. I count myself amongst their numbers, which brings me to Bound.

Lady Windermere's Fan (1892)

Lady Windermere's Fan (1892)

Author: Oscar Wilde  |  Page Count: 152*

"It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious."

The events in Oscar's play about a 'Good Woman’ occur over a twenty-four hour period in Victorian London. It's a short work, divided into four Acts: the time spent by Lady Windermere and her husband before a coming of age birthday ball hosted by the couple; the party itself; the aftermath; and the resolutions of the following morning/afternoon. That's ample time for drama and scandal to erupt.

The ball is attended by a select gentry, but strip away the mannered social standings and tailored suits and it's like every party everywhere, filled with two-faced gossip, hypocrisy, nonchalance, indignation and unwarranted observations by caustic people who would chide a speaker for doing the same. The self-indulgent concerns of rich-folks could've been a real bore if not for Oscar's piercing wit to spice it up; he made the verbal meanderings of dull people seem exciting. Under attack are the conventions of marriage, among other things.

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Season 2 (1988-89)

Star Trek: TNG: Season 2 (1988-89)

22 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

Season Two took the formula that had been suitably refined by the end of Season One and shook it up a little. Not straight away, the majority of it follows the same safely laid path, but as it nears the end a dangerous element that upsets the equilibrium is introduced. The Federation's sense of superiority (that they'd never openly admit to having) is challenged and, much to Picard's disdain, ideologies need adjusted. It's no longer just about exploration.

There were some new additions to the crew roster. Two of them are significant for different reasons, although technically they can both be called healers.

The first is Commander Katherine Pulaski who replaced Beverly Crusher as the ship's Chief Medical Officer. Pulaski appears to be modelled on TOS's Dr Leonard McCoy, but they never go so far as to have her say McCoy's most often quoted line.