Kids Return (1996)

Kids Return (1996)

Dir. Takeshi Kitano

Told mostly in flashback, it's the story of two high school friends, Shinji and Masaru (Masanobu Andô and Ken Kaneko, respectively), who occasionally go to school but spend very little time in actual class.

The tutors have given up on them, seeing them as either directionless morons or little more than petty thieves in training. In time, the duo would probably agree... but a single event gives perspective that leads to insight.

Often in Kitano films the secondary characters are just as interesting as the primaries, but in Kids Return some of the lesser characters actually stole the show, being arguably even more interesting than the two main ones and I'd love to have seen their sub-stories expanded and further explored.

Oddly, even though it's but a tiny portion of the film insofar as the total running time goes, I was affected more by the scenes set in the present than in flashback.

Neverwhere (1996)

Neverwhere (1996)

Dir. Dewi Humphreys | 6 episodes, approx 30 minutes each.

Richard Mayhew (Gary Bakewell) is a nice-guy Scotsman who lives and works in London. His fiancée is an asshole. His friends are assholes. If Richard could meet the criteria that he believes constitutes success, then in time he'd become just another city asshole, too.

But instead he meets Door (Laura Fraser), a young woman in need of the kind of help that he in his privileged position is able to offer.

Richard becomes aware of London Below, an underworld with its own laws, both societal and physical, that coexist with the London Above.

The two worlds can interact from time to time, but must inevitably return to their own individual aspects. If Richard is to help himself, then he must continue to help Door, and that means stepping into an unknown world of underground passageways, weird happenings, and (not very menacing) cut-throat assassins.

Superman: The Animated Series (1996-2000)

Superman: TAS (1996-2000)

Dirs. Various | 54 episodes (split over 3 seasons), approx 22 mins each [1]

Conceived and produced by many of the same creative team that made Batman: TAS (1992–95) so good, Superman's animated series looked familiar but also different.

Metropolis is much brighter than Gotham, with a different kind of art deco influence, one more inspired by Streamline Moderne. 

Giving each city its own visual identity is a positive change, but the less textured aesthetic of Metropolis looks unintentionally cheap and sparse by comparison.

Likewise, and the first indication that what you're watching might be a step down in quality, the opening credits, which are a montage of episode scenes in roughly chronological order, feel tawdry and lazy compared to the dramatic excellence of Batman's. Superman's are spoilery, too, for anyone who's not seen the series before. And subjectively speaking, Shirley Walker's accompanying theme music is also less memorable.

Bad Influence! (1992-96)

Bad Influence! (1992-96)

4 Series | 57 episodes total, approx 20 minutes each.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: TV Series (1995-96)

Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995-96)

Dirs. Hideaki Anno / Masayuki / Kazuya Tsurumaki | 26 episodes, approx 23 mins each

Fourteen-year-old Shinji Ikari arrives in the futuristic Tokyo-3, having been summoned there by a father that he's not seen in over three years.

Shinji's abandonment issues and his father's overbearing (though often silent) judging of the boy's measure puts an excruciating amount of stress upon the youth's inexperienced shoulders.

The emotional tearing that develops from the conflicting hatred of his estranged father and the simultaneous craving for his approval and love is a major defining attribute of the teenager.

But if that wasn't enough to deal with, Shinji is required to take on a task that would challenge even a hardened combat veteran, with nothing less than the fate of humanity on the line if he fails.

It's a situation that puts him directly in his father's line of sight, and increases the fear of failure and sense of worthlessness that the boy nurtures.

WitchCraft (1996)

WitchCraft (1996)

Author: James Robinson | Illustrators: Peter Snejbjerg / Michael Zulli / Steve Yeowell | Page Count: 135

"The fires of madness burn at a gentle heat, stoked by grandiose delusion."

The Hecate, also known as Maid, Mother, and Crone are three aspects of the same ancient Greek deity. Likewise, the three individual issues collected in the book represent three different eras, each one more aged than the last, structurally mimicking a part of the content.

The individual chapters tell their own story while also being a part of the same larger story. Each has its own prologue wherein we’re privy to the Hecate's thoughts and hopes for what eventually follows.

It begins with a brutal act of violence against a young priestess whom the Hecate show favour to. Her aspect and that of her tormentor are reincarnated over and over throughout the ages so that she can meet him again and again, until she’s able to sate the Hecate's need for bloody revenge. The witches aren't going anywhere; their longevity means that they can play the waiting game for as long as it takes.

The Beastmaster: Films (1982-96)

The Beastmaster (1982)

Dir. Don Coscarelli

Many of the elements that made a successful sword and sorcery movie in the 80s are in place, including a wicked high priest (Rip Torn) who uses magic and religion to keep a position of power, a banishment, a trio of scrying hags with a dangerous prophecy, a cool bladed weapon or two, a peaceful village burned to the ground, and a sympathetic hero on a quest for revenge / redemption, but The Beastmaster isn't the genre classic that as a youth I used to think it was.

It's still mostly entertaining, however, with a neat ingredient that separates it from the pack, namely the hero's ability to communicate with animals like some kind of barbarian Dolittle. Inevitably, he makes friends and allies as he journeys toward his ultimate goal, but the most memorable of them all are arguably the smallest ones.

Star Trek: The Return (1996)

Star Trek: The Return (1996)

Authors: William Shatner / Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens  | Page Count: 371

'For a silent moment after, even the rain stopped. When it began again, it felt gentle. Warm. Slow as tears.'

Like The Ashes of Eden (1995) did before it, The Return opens on Veridian III and continues the story of the Star Trek: Generations (1994) film. It's not a flashback narrative this time, though, it's the real deal, an actual continuation of current events.

It engineers a ridiculous scenario that brings together aspects and crew of TOS, TNG and DS9 for a ret-conning adventure that's thick with melodrama and action movie clichés. Some of the connections made are mind-blowing and may have fans either happy-clapping or furiously fighting. Either way, some of the reveals in the last quarter are extremely memorable. It's unfortunate that a large portion of the remainder of the book is such a damned chore to get through.

Star Trek VIII: First Contact (1996)

Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

Dir. Jonathan Frakes

The Borg, having had a rather dramatic redesign to make them look a lot more menacing than they did in the weekly TNG series, attempt to bring the entire Federation to its knees once and for all.

Naturally, the Federation take up arms and fight back. The majority of the fleet is deployed to stop the aggressors, but the Borg have a Plan B.

First Contact is Picard (Patrick Stewart) and  Data's (Brent Spiner) story, everyone else is just along for the ride. That suits me; those two stalwart characters are my all time favourites.

More than just duty, for Picard it's personal. They invaded his ship in Season 02 (episode 16), and they invaded him in Season 03 (episode 26); so he'll fight to the bitter end to protect what's his.

Following in the footsteps of Leonard Nimoy and The Shat, actor Jonathan Frakes is a Trek actor turned Trek director; it was his first feature film, although he'd directed episodes of TNG, DS9, and VOY previously, so he wasn't new to the gig.

Species Design (1996)

Species Design (1996)

Author + Illustrator: H.R. Giger | Page Count: 86

"I cast worms in silicon […] Instead, in the film, reddish brown computer-generated sausages burst out (but very quickly, to hide the computerised embarrassment)."

A large format coffee table book (approximately the size of a vinyl LP) that doesn't fit on any of my shitty Argos flat-pack shelving. Grrrr.

Inside its pages are a number of the Swiss artist's illustrations. It's primarily early stage concept sketches that rarely get released to the public, most of which are black ink on paper.

Giger's sketches have an almost obsessively hurried appearance. Seeing what he'd envisioned for the creature, that didn't make it into the film, is perhaps the only notable reason to purchase.

American Gothic (1995–96)

American Gothic (1995–96)

22 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

Welcome to Trinity, South Carolina, home to ten-year-old Caleb Temple (Lucas Black) and his sixteen-year-old sister Merlyn (Sarah Paulson).

The home life of the Temple children is far from happy, meaning young Caleb's had to grow up fast. He may be only ten but he's a lot more savvy than most kids his age, which is a good thing because his future is murky. Events will force Caleb to take a path that can lead to either of two destinations, and that's only if he can fight the conflict that rages within him. His older sister will try to protect him, but she's got problems of her own; you could say she's got the worst problem anyone can have.

One other person has a hand in Caleb's fate: Sheriff Lucas Buck (Gary Cole). Lucas is friend to everyone and no one. He'll give you what you want but there'll be a price to pay further down the line.

The Sandman: Volume X (1996)

The Wake (1996)

Author: Neil Gaiman | Illustrators: Michael Zulli / Charles Vess / Bryan Talbot / John Ridgway | Page Count: 185

"Even in this half-assed medieval Milton Keynes there's got to be somewhere a man can get a pint of beer."

Volume X of X in the Sandman saga is a quiet, reflective piece wherein Gaiman says goodbye to the enduring characters that he created and the stories that he felt fit to tell; it's a bitter-sweet reading experience.

Like I said previously, I feel that Volume IX: The Kindly Ones (1996) is the true end to the series, and The Wake is merely an epilogue. However, it's notable for giving us the second thing that a man in a tavern promised the Dream King twenty years previous; the first was way back in Volume III: Dream Country (1991). Yes, that guy; and the gift given is perfect in every way.

The book is split into two distinct parts: a three issue farewell that wraps up the Endless story, and three stand-alone works that serve to tie up loose ends of some of the more long-lived secondary characters. The sense of loss and of inevitable new beginnings permeates every aspect of the work.

The Sandman: Volume IX (1996)

The Kindly Ones (1996)

Author: Neil Gaiman | Illustrators: Kevin Nowlan / Marc Hempel / Glyn Dillon / Charles Vess / Dean Ornston / Teddy Kristiansen / Richard Case | Page Count: 352

"It was then that Delirium noticed that she had absent-mindedly turned into a hundred and eleven perfect, tiny multicoloured fish. Each fish sang a different song."

Volume IX of X in the Sandman saga is the largest volume of the series, containing one thirteen-part story and a short fourteenth piece that acts as a prologue.

All good things must come to an end, and the The Kindly Ones is it. There's a Volume X, but Vol IX is arguably the real end of the series, and it doesn't disappoint.

It gathers together threads from all previous volumes and weaves them into a blanket of deep synchronicity; my advice would be to not even think about reading it unless you've read Volumes I, II, IV, V and VII. Up until now Morpheus was the thing that most of the characters had in common, but that begins to change.

Crash (1996)

Crash (1996)

Dir. David Cronenberg

Open marriage couple James and Catherine Ballard (James Spader and Deborah Kara Unger) have an active but unrewarding sex life together. A series of unplanned events introduce and lure the duo into a bizarre subculture of people who fetishise car crashes. The activities undertaken are consensual within the group, but their hidden world is hazardous to our world.

Reading the J.G. Ballard novel (1973) upon which Crash is based wasn't much fun for me, but it was essential to understanding the otherwise impenetrable aspects of the film. Somehow Cronenberg translated the insipid moments into filmic intensity.

He distorts the traditional role of the viewer by putting us too close for comfort, turning viewer into voyeur - a position of distanced participation. It's uncomfortable and I believe the main reason that most people shy away from even discussing the film in public. It's a shame, because it's a powerful work with some outstanding acting, but it'll take a very open-minded person to see past the taboo wall.

From Dusk Till Dawn: Film Trilogy (1996-99)

From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

Dir. Robert Rodriguez

Two criminals on the run take a few hostages and head for Mexico. Seth Gecko (George Clooney) is smooth and calm under pressure. His brother Richie (Quentin Tarantino) is a trigger-happy prick who needs protecting from his own impulses.

It's a movie of two uneven halves. For a while it's an edgy crime flick with some Tarantino-penned dialogue. It doesn't go anywhere particularly interesting, but there's at least the feeling that it might.

The latter part of the film, however, has no such aspirations. Instead, it goes all out to please fans of a very different genre.

I'll say no more, to avoid further spoilers, but the direction it takes will either float your goat or it won't. My goat was thoroughly sunk, but credit to the creators for trying something so outrageously divergent.

Tremors: Films (1990— )

Tremors: Films (1990 - 2018)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Season 5 (1996–97)

Star Trek: DS9: Season 5 (1996–97)

26 episodes, approx 44 minutes each

Looking back, quite a lot of significant events and reveals happened in S5, but not all of them are in episodes that I'd call completely memorable. Along the way we learn more about some of the primary cast members, and a few of the secondary ones get more screen time than they'd had previously.

The threat of the Dominion/Founders builds, with both the Vorta and the Jem'Hadar on the front line.

A trio of old faces make a return, separately, and stay around for differing amounts of time. Interestingly, all three influence Sisko's moods, with one of them being a lot more direct than the other two.

As before, the best episodes are the ones that revolve around either Odo or Garak, or is that just my bias showing? Yes, they're two of my favourites. But let's not forget the Chief, who also gets a lot to do.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Season 4 (1995–96)

Star Trek: DS9: Season 4 (1995–96)

26 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

S4 kicked off with another two-parter, the fan-favourite The Way of the Warrior, which saw a new regular crew member join the existing family. It's a character that was new to DS9 but not to Trek.

Unusually, after his timely and eventful introduction he isn't used much for the next few episodes. It's a situation that I rather enjoyed because it meant that he wasn't brought in with the intention of upstaging anyone else. He was treated as just another crew member, equal in stature and screen-time.

Also of note, at least to me, is that Sisko finally looks just like he does on the box art that was used for all seven seasons. He shaves his head and, like some kind of reverse Samson, turns into a stronger character.

There's a saying amongst DIY enthusiasts that if you have a roll of gaffer tape and a can of WD-40 then you can mend 90% of anything. Which brings me to one of my favourite DS9 crew members, the underappreciated miracle-worker that is Chief O'Brien (Colm Meaney). The Chief can mend 90% of everything with just his hands, but give him a hyperspanner, an ODN recoupler and enough time and he'll hit the 99.9% mark.

Doctor Who: Paul McGann (1996)

Doctor Who: Paul McGann (1996)

The Eighth Doctor | TV Movie, approx 89 mins.

Doctor Who: The Movie (1996) was a joint production between Britain and America that was intended to kick-start a US approved version of the long-running UK TV show.

It's set in San Francisco (but filmed in Canada) and stars Paul McGann in the lead role, dressed like he's just stepped off the set of a Victorian era George Pal movie. But besides the famous title music and iconic TARDIS exterior, he's the only aspect of the production that feels like it belongs.

The shift in style to a more 'serious drama' and a misguided pandering to the perceived target audience meant the show was stripped of almost everything that made the original TV venture interesting in the first place.

Diabolos Rising: Blood, Vampirism, Sadism (1996)

Diabolos Rising: Blood, Vampirism, Sadism (1996)

Dir. David Palser

Within a larger framework of esoteric and religious imagery cut together at seizure-inducing levels, an attempt was made to give each song its own aura. It doesn't always work but was a commendable idea.

The first is the least interesting unless you have strong feelings about Mika Luttinen's moustache.

The video for Ilsa is as you'd expect.

There's one that reminded me of Hellraiser III (1992).

The most unusual is perhaps the gothic period piece that never quite manages to convince; wedged between the sensory overload like it is means it feels like a visitor who arrived at the party a few decades too early.

The final entry had the potential to end with something visually hypnotic and emotionally lasting, but they chose not to go that route. It's as if they'd simply run out of ideas by that stage. Nevertheless, regardless of highs and lows and missed opportunities, that it exists at all is something to be praised.