The Chronicles of Narnia: Live Action Films (2005-10)

The Chronicles of Narnia: Live Action Films

Dirs. Andrew Adamson (Films I + II) / Michael Apted (Film III)

01. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005). Aside from a few minor changes and a couple of newly written action scenes — because it's Hollywood and they just can't help themselves — the WMG + Disney version of C.S. Lewis' beloved children's novel is better than I expected it to be.

The first third is excellent, including each of the young actors. Lucy (Georgie Henley) is particularly good, in that she successfully embodies the sense of wonder that a child should feel after finding another world in the back of an old wardrobe.

Things only really begin to slide when the talking CGI animals appear. The great lion Aslan should have a splendour that eclipses all else, but his being rendered in boring CGI most of the time means that he might as well not be there at all.

The unnecessary use of such across the board is a stain on what I feel is otherwise the best filmed version of the novel, to date.

Supernatural: Season 05 (2010)

Supernatural: Season 05 (2010)

22 episodes, approx 42 mins each.

It's advisable to skip the recaps that precede each episode of Supernatural because the footage used is more often than not a spoiler for which character(s) will appear, which ruins any carefully plotted surprise reveal that may be present, but given that it's been five years since I finished Season 04, it was a necessary evil that I watch them... and yes, it spoiled the surprise almost every time.

The theme for Season 05 is Apocalypse, which follows on from how the previous year ended. In context, that relates mostly to the prophecies of the 'end times' that have been divined from the Revelations part of the Christian Bible; i.e., the non-boring chapter. If Sam and Dean can't put a stop to the coming storm, the world will go all to hell.

Blood into Wine (2010)

Blood into Wine (2010)

Dirs. Ryan Page + Christopher Pomerenke

A documentary about wine making, specifically the Caduceus brand wine produced by Maynard James Keenan and Eric Glomski on a vineyard in Arizona, of all places. I don't like wine, but I do like documentaries, so I gave it a try and enjoyed the majority of it.

Glomski's knowledge of geology and cultivation was thoroughly engaging, as were his feelings about our relationship with the natural world.

Maynard James Keenan, for those that don't recognise the name, is a singer / songwriter, most notably of Tool and A Perfect Circle. His contribution is equally as interesting, structured as a kind of creative journey with some deeply personal interludes. Not one for media-whoring, he doesn't succumb to ego, and doesn't come across as a typical 'Rock Star' asshole. [1]

Daimajin Kanon (2010)

Daimajin Kanon (2010)

26 episodes, approx 24 minutes each.

A Japanese tokusatsu show that has the usual explosive combat scenes scattered throughout, but the masked heroes aren't the main focus of the narrative. Instead, the story revolves around a pretty, young University student, Misaki Kanon (Yuka Rikuna), who moves to Tokyo in the hope of becoming a successful lyricist and singer.

To survive in a harsh environment, one needs to adopt an equally harsh attitude. For Misaki, the city is that environment. Her usual sensitive, fragile personality will be eaten alive if she doesn't do something uncharacteristic to protect it.

If you've watched any amount of Japanese animation, then you'll likely have encountered a similar set-up, but Misaki isn't as simpering as the full-blown animated stereotype typically is.

The ups and downs can be predicable and there are times when she could be accused of making a mountain out of a molehill, but the setbacks and departures from the daily routine add to the overall story when you consider her role in each one. Character growth needs challenges, irrespective of whether they're real or imagined.

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Manga (2010-14)

Episode 001: Section 9 (2010)

Author + Illustrator: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 248

"[W]e've determined the contents of the brain are fake. So where's the real one?"

A number of cyborg Geishas have taken clients hostage, among them a high-ranking government official who at the time of his capture was engaging in some odd activities with the pretend ladies.

The Prime Minister summons the country's best counter-terrorist unit: Public Security Section 9. Led by the cybernetically enhanced Major Kusanagi, the team are called upon to not only resolve the situation, but to find out who's behind it, and why.

It's a manga adaptation of an anime TV series that was inspired by a film adaptation of a manga. If you're familiar with all of those things, then the book might be of interest to you, but know that it's the entire first episode of the GitS SAC anime in manga form - it's almost verbatim, except for some minor changes in the action scenes that don't alter the main storyline one bit. It's arguably less fun than watching the anime, so is probably best recommended for super-fans or folks who prefer manga, only.

.hack//4Koma (2010)

.hack//4Koma (2010)

Author: Koichi Sumimaru | Illustrator: Various |  Page Count: 192

"Your morals as a protagonist are being challenged, aren't they?"

A yonkoma, often shortened to 4koma, is a four-panel manga similar to the kind of thing you'd see in a Sunday newspaper, except that most yonkoma are read from top to bottom, not left to right horizontal.

The .hack yonkoma parodies Project .hack and .hack Conglomerate. The comedy is derived mostly from non-canon meetings, rivalries, awkward social situations, and typically friendly people being dicks to other characters. As such, in-jokes are definitely the order of the day, so if you're not very familiar with each person's usual demeanour, or the .hack world, in general, you'll miss most of the situational humour.

Star Trek: The Official Motion Picture Adaptation (2010)

Star Trek: The Official MP Adaptation (2010)

Authors: Mike Johnson / Tim Jones (from a script by Robert Orci + Alex Kurtzman) | Illustrators: David Messina / Claudia Balboni | Page Count: 147

"Where I'm from, when someone hits you, you hit back. How is that not logical?"

A  tattooed Romulan group in an inexplicably heavily armed mining vessel attack a Federation starship. It's during that encounter that for the 2009 reboot of Star Trek a number of important plot threads are born.

It then skips some years and enters the 'establishing character' introduction phase of the story, showing how two of its main protagonists respond to differing situations according to their individual natures.

Both are rebellious and far removed from the men we know them to become in established TOS continuity; e.g., the youthful James Kirk steals, is rude, cocky, knowingly sexist, directionless and fights in bars.

He's an arrogant prick, basically, but he's presented that way for a reason, serving as both a contrast and exhibiting a foundational attitude that can be used to gain an advantage in future exploits.

The A-Team: War Stories (2010)

The A-Team: War Stories (2010)

Authors: Chuck Dixon / Erik Burnham | Illustrators: Hugo Petrus / Casey Maloney / Guiu Vilanova / Alberto Muriel | Page Count: 104

"And, no I don't see it as unrealistic. Maybe impractical. but impractical just takes a little longer..."

Four individual stories, one for each member of The A-Team, collected together into a handy TPB. It's a prequel, so they aren't technically The A-Team herein, but the essence of each character as we'll come to know them later in their life is present and identifiable.

They're all set during the Gulf War but aren't connected in any way, and there's no crossover shenanigans, so you're free to read them in whichever order you choose.

I started with Hannibal's, then moved onto B.A, then Murdock, and finally Face. Structurally, they give each man a single objective or goal, which in three of the four cases is to retrieve/extract something from a potential war zone. The fourth is similar, except it's to procure something, an item that's almost impossible to find at short notice. Neither operation goes exactly to plan, of course, but thanks to the participants' skills and ingenuity things tend to work out in the end.

The A-Team (2010)

The A-Team (2010)

Dir. Joe Carnahan

It goes without saying that you can't replace the actors from the original TV series and hope to please everyone — people WILL be upset — so let's forego that and get on with what we actually do get from the reboot.

The introduction of each character sets the tone: fun, punchy and slightly tongue-in-cheek. As a starting point in a venture that aims to replace a much-loved team, it's genuinely okay. I'm not going to single any particular actor out and say they were unequivocally the worst, but I will say that I feel Liam Neeson as Hannibal was the most successful. He'd the air of experience and confidence that the role needed.

For a time I enjoyed the lightheartedness of it, but after it had used up all its potential it seemed as if the filmmakers had stopped caring about both the relationships of the characters and the sense of fun it had successfully established at the beginning, perhaps assuming that by then we'd have forgotten, too.

Star Trek: Spock Reflections (2010)

Star Trek: Spock Reflections (2010)

Authors: Scott + David Tipton | Illustrator: David Messina | Page Count: 104

"Your path will be one similar to mine, lieutenant. Learning how to incorporate logic into your relationships and decisions is not merely a matter of Starfleet training — it will be a lifelong journey."

Being promoted as a 'follow-up' to the 'smash hit Star Trek: Countdown (2009) movie prequel' kept me from reading the Spock Reflections TPB for a long time. But it was in my possession and I thought I should at least give it a try before deciding whether to keep it or not. It tuned out there was no need for lowered expectations; the story stands apart and is genuinely quite good.

It could be considered a 'follow-up' to the previous embarrassment in that it came out afterwards, but none of what happened in Countdown has any major bearing on what you get in the newer collection.

It does, however, reference a significant portion of Spock's life before the reboot happened, so readers with knowledge of both TOS and TNG continuity will have an advantage over those without it.

The Sarah Jane Adventures: The Complete Third Season (2010)

The Sarah Jane Adventures:

The Complete Third Season (2010)

Dirs: Various | Episodes: 12 episodes, approx 27 mins each.

Bannerman Road's most famous resident continues the good fight. With the aid of an extraterrestrial super-computer housed in the attic, Sarah Jane Smith and her three young companions hold the line against all kinds of alien nasties that want to inhabit earth for various nefarious or profitable reasons.

The term 'alien' has negative connotations, so while it can be prudent to keep in mind Virgil's 'Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes,' saying, it's unwise to judge on appearances, and the idiom 'don't tar all with the same brush,' is an equally relevant one.

Events in season three go back as far as 1665 and forward to 2059, with the immediate present playing a crucial role in one of the more notable two-parters, The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (Dir. Joss Agnew), which has a very special guest star.

Nine Inch Nails: Pretty Hate Machine (1989)

NIN: Pretty Hate Machine (1989)

My introduction to NIN was a track that was featured on a UK magazine cover-mounted sampler CD. I can't recall from which magazine it came, I think it may have been a short-lived one, but I'm pretty sure the track was Last from the Broken E.P. (1992).

The same disc had a track by Therapy? from their Nurse (1992) album, and one from Pigface's Fook (1992). Seeing as how all three releases are from the same year, I think it might be safe to assume that it was '92 when I first heard NIN.

The sampler did its job. I wanted more. After buying Broken and its remix album, Fixed (both 1992), I eagerly sought out the début album, Pretty Hate Machine (1989). I acquired it on vinyl and was surprised to find that it was different from what I expected - it was more like Depeche Mode than the Industrial anger of Broken.

Clone (2010)

Clone (2010)

Dir. Benedek Fliegauf

Films that elicit powerful emotions without the use of words often linger in my mind longer than films that use dialogue for the same. It's mostly because dialogue is a mechanical process that can be as alienating as it is beautiful, whereas silence can break a heart more effectively than a callous word.

The language of Clone (aka Womb) is the language of loss. It’s the story of Rebecca and Thomas (Eva Green and Matt Smith, respectively). When left alone, the emptiness in which Rebecca exists isn't a void - it’s a birthplace waiting for life to happen.

Until then, the heavy silences and recurring symbolism that drive the narrative forward will require a viewer's complete attention.

As is often the case with challenging and controversial works, it holds a lower than deserved rating on movie sites that use aggregate scoring. Personally, I'd score it a perfect 10.

The Unwritten: Volume 02 (2010)

Inside Man (2010)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: Peter Gross | Page Count: 168

"Sometimes... even if it's a game... it's real, too. Sometimes, it's not up to you to choose."

Tom Taylor, son of the famous author Wilson Taylor, shares a name with his father's most famous creation, the boy wizard Tommy Taylor™. But, in light of recent events, some fans of the books are beginning to believe that Tom is in fact the living incarnation of his fictional counterpart, and not the other way around.

The social media websites, chat rooms and internet forums are alive with activity, discussing the possibility.

For Tom, life goes from bad to worse. There are people who want to kill him and people who want to keep him alive, but he doesn't know why that is. What does seem clear, however, is that the 'literary geography' that Wilson drummed into the boy's head is proving to be even more of a curse as the days go on.

Toy Instruments: Design, Nostalgia, Music (2010)

Toy Instruments: Design, Nostalgia, Music (2010)

Author: Eric Schneider  |  Page Count: 192

'Adorned with bizarre color schemes, always happy families and boys and girls immune to gender disharmony, the toys and the packaging create a Shangri-la sheen; albeit one that is out of tune.'

You can't put a price on the warm, fuzzy feeling that accompanies nostalgia. It's like an all-singing, all-dancing ferret has crawled inside you (a figurative ferret, let's be clear on that). But in publishing you can put a price on a picture book designed to encapsulate and encourage the ferret.

In the case of Toy Instruments it's an extortionate one. RRP is £13.95 for a 16.5 x 16.5 cm HB book with content that's 99% pictures. I paid 99p in a clearance sale, but for what it's worth I sincerely hope that author Eric Schneider still gets his royalties.

The Unwritten: Volume 01 (2010)

Tommy Taylor and the Bogus Identity (2010)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: Peter Gross | Page Count: 144

"But the unpalatable fact is that you auditioned to play yourself and didn't get the part."

The Tommy Taylor™ books are a cultural phenomenon. Tommy is a boy wizard with a small group of friends, whose adventures have spanned thirteen books. The collective routinely save their world from the kind of villains that typically populate children's literature.

The author of the books is Wilson Taylor. It's a well-known fact that Wilson based the lead character on his own son, Tom Taylor. Consequently, Tom has grown up in the public eye. He's not a writer and had no direct input in the books, but people love him, regardless.

He attends conventions and answers questions from fans, some of whom can't separate reality from fiction.
If you're thinking along the lines of Harry Potter crossed with Christopher Robin, then you're on the right track.

But that's merely a stepping stone into a much larger ocean of unpredictability. (FTR, I've not read the Potter books; my only experience of the character is the first film and half of the second one, so I'm basing my comparison on that.)

A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss (2010)

A History of Horror with Mark Gatiss (2010)
Dirs. John Das (2 eps) | Rachel Jardine (1 ep)  |  3 episodes, approx 60 mins each.

A three-part TV documentary in which author/actor Mark Gatiss explores the evolution of horror in cinema from a biased perspective.

I don't mean that in a poisonous way; he's upfront about the focus, admitting that it's "unashamedly selective." I can relate to that.

I found myself agreeing with his choices the majority of the time, but was personally disappointed that the German Expressionist movement was completely overlooked.

There's only one film featured that I'd not seen, so I had to skip past it because there's MASSIVE spoilers every time, mostly by showing the ending of each film. If you're comfortable with that, however, then there's much to enjoy.
Click below for info on each individual episode:

Red Dead Redemption (2010)

Red Dead Redemption (2010)

Genre: Third Person Shooter / Action / Sandbox | Players: 1 / Online Multi

Developer: Rockstar San Diego

I love a good Western! When I say those words out loud it usually means I'm thinking of a classic genre film, or even a TV show, but not this time - this time it's a PS3 game.

If you were to take all that's good about the film and TV medium and mix it with biting satire and social commentary (Rockstar style), then you'd have the formula for Red Dead Redemption, which is what the acclaimed developers appear to have done.

You've maybe heard it described as Grand Theft Auto: Wild West, and while that's essentially true, they're both sandbox games sharing many features, it's also a disservice to the scope and underlying heart of RDR, which is something that GTA typically lacks.

Jonathan Creek: The Judas Tree (2010)

Jonathan Creek: The Judas Tree (2010)

Dir. David Renwick | Approx 93 minutes

The Judas Tree had Jonathan's spirited opposite, Joey Ross, return for another of the feature-length outings that kept the series sporadically alive for years after the regular weekly format ended. The unlikely duo investigate a macabre mystery involving a ghostly apparition and an unexplained death.

The Adam Klaus character is once again shoehorned into the story but it's less forced this time.

However, I did get the feeling more than once that creator/writer/director David Renwick was overcompensating for something by filling the story with multiple twists and turns, some of which ask the viewer to make some sizeable leaps of faith and logic. Perhaps the BBC's decision to chop the budget had him worried? To his credit, though, he managed to not let that aspect visibly weaken the production; it looks just as good as what he had delivered previously.

Assassin's Creed: The Ezio Trilogy (2009-11)

Assassin's Creed II (2009)  |  Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (2010)  |  Assassin's Creed: Revelations (2011)