new t2 trainspotting poster

A new poster for T2 Trainspotting.

Still can't wait!

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t2 trainspotting trailer

I can't wait for this film to be out. T2 Trainspotting, the follow up from Trainspotting, one of the most iconic films of the 1990's. The trailer looks great (I suppose that's the whole point of it), and if the actual film is half as good as promised by this, l will be a happy man.
I, like many people , loved the original film, l was a huge fan of the book by Irvine Welsh (plus his others), and immersed myself in the soundtrack of the film.
This is all especially great, as l didn't even realise the cast had got back together to film it, so the trailer was a huge (and extremely pleasant) surprise.
Let's get Christmas over with and BRING IT ON!!
Out on January 27th 2017.



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surprised by the exorcist

I haven't started watching the new TV series of The Exorcist yet, as l'm recording them with a view to watching them all in one sitting. I did however, watch the film version of The Exorcist again recently, and saw something that surprised me - a demonic face appearing for a split second behind Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn). I've seen the film on many an occasion, got the video, DVD, and expanded DVD (with scary extras), but have never noticed this before.
I guess l must have been distracted during my other viewings, drunk, or hiding with terror behind the settee.
Either that or l need my eyes testing.

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driving fast - claude lelouch's rendevous

I know that l sometimes drive too fast, as evidenced by the fact that I've just had two speeding notices against me in the last month, so for one of them l will have to attend a speed awareness course in Northallerton in November, and for the other, accept the three points and fine.
However, l have nothing on this.
Claude Lelouch's underground film from 1976, Rendevous (C'etait un Renz-vous), in which he filmed an extremely high speed drive through the streets of early morning Paris.
It's obviously dangerous, but ultimately, pretty mesmerizing, and makes my driving look pedestrian.



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frank - the movie

I haven't posted about movies or books for a while, but one of the recent films l enjoyed was the 2014 one by Lenny Abrahamson - 'Frank', which was loosely based on Frank Sidebottom and other outsider artists such as Roky Erickson, Syd Barrett etc.
It's never going to be one of my top ten movies of all time, but Michael Fassbender was superb in the title role, despite wearing the Frank head for most of the scenes, and the story itself was strangely riveting, at least to my warped sensibilities.
What l really loved though, was the music, of which, there follows a couple of examples.
Very weird, yet catchy and (in the last case) very moving. You will have to watch the film first to get the full emotional impact.
The first clip is from when the newbie to the group (Domhnall Gleeson), first meets and goes on stage with them (at their managers request).





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hoagy carmichael - song bonanza!

While watching the Keith Richards TV Takeover on BBC4 this weekend, he showed a clip of Hoagy Carmichael, and related the tale of speaking to him on the telephone (much to Keith's delight). As l am also a fan, here's four  of Hoagy's songs, including some lesser known ones.
Enjoy!

Am I Blue



Barnacle Bill The Sailor



My Resistance is low



The Monkey Song



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captain america's birthplace gets changed

This is a sketch of the Captain America statue that is about to be placed in Brooklyn, New York's Prospect Park, with the inscription 'I'm just a kid from Brooklyn'.
The trouble is, he was actually (according to the comics and his co-creator, Jack Kirby) born in Manhattan's Lower East Side, the son of Irish immigrants. Supposedly this is so films fans can identify with it, rather than the comic fans, which to me, is the wrong way round.
This is one of the reasons why, although some of the superhero films are pretty good, it drives me up the wall when they change the stories, so best not to get me started on the Spider-Man movies (again). I'm not even sure whether l should risk the 'Captain America - Civil War' film, as l really enjoyed the comic version, and don't want to taint my memory of that.
Time for a lie down before l get too worked up.

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serge van de put art and the jungle book original artwork

                                         
                                              This looks like Mr Parrot first thing in the morning


Serge Van De Put is a Belgium artists who works with recycled materials such as old rubber tyres.
All well and right on, but forget about the recycled part, his artworks are superb, my favourite being  The Gorillas series, which kind of remind me (in some kind of twisted subconscious way) of Baloo the bear from The Jungle Book.

Talking of The Jungle Book.....here's some of the original artwork from that modern day masterpiece.

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there's a storm a coming - richard hawley

I've been catching up on 'You Me, And The Apocalypse' on Sky recently, and without giving anything away, 'There's A Storm A Coming' by Richard Hawley was used at the end of a recent episode, to great effect, fitting the dramatic conclusion of the particular storyline perfectly.
It was also featured in the recent version of 'Brighton Rock', and l nearly posted about the song after seeing that, but never got around to it (things to do, fish to fry etc).
Myself and a friend (Powlie - l'm thinking of you) argue all the time about who first introduced the other to Richard Hawley (obviously l introduced him), and Cole's Corner is still one of my favourite albums, so to hear Mr Hawley enhancing my movie watching experience, is obviously an added bonus for me.
To make up for my tardiness, here's two versions of the song, one live, and one from the Brighton Rock soundtrack, which features the heavier version l (and film makers) am so enamoured with.
It builds up after about 2.30m.
Superb stuff - expect to hear it in lots of adverts soon.

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lionel messi reacts to the new cristiano ronaldo movie

Lionel Messi keeps his cool and reacts to the new Cristiano Ronaldo movie






Yes l know it's a spoof!

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look who's back (er ist weider da)

I'm waiting for my ebay delivery of  the book version of 'Er Ist Weider Da' (Look who's back) by Timur Vermes , and while eagerly hanging around my letter box for it, have been checking out the trailers of the film, which look pretty good.
l guess l may have to catch it on DVD or Sky, as l can't see any local cinemas putting it on, but  hopefully l may be proven wrong (and it's not often l say that).
Hitler has returned to face the modern age, and he's not a happy man.
Who say's the Germans haven't got a sense of humour?



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god song - gavin clark and toydrum

Featured in 'This is England 1990', one of the best songs l have ever had the good fortune to hear - God song, by Gavin Clark, on the soon to be released Toydrum album 'Evangelist'.
It's more than a pity that Gavin Clark is no longer around to reap the plaudits, but he's left a fine body of work to delve into.

Here's his splendid version of The Smiths 'Please please let me get what l want', from the end of an earlier 'This is England' (when he was in Clayhill).
He sure knew how to emote.



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polish movie posters

I never tire of seeing old Movie posters, let alone the Polish ones, and here are some of the reasons why. Strange and different from the usual UK and USA versions.
These ones were taken from here, so if you want to find out the titles of the films, visit the site, where a few more can be seen.

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the titanic - pathe news and charles lightoller

As l am a bit of a saddo, l have been watching a load of old Pathe News films, which used to be shown years ago before the main feature films in UK cinemas.
One interesting item (to me at least) featured the sinking of The Titanic, and film of the survivors.
I know the story has been endlessly told, and has been the subject of countless books, films and articles, but let's face it, it was such an amazing event, that may have been considered slightly too far fetched if it was pitched as fiction, and it is still a fascinating story.
The Pathe film is below, and the photograph above?
It is the last known photograph of the ship before it sank.
Just imagine being on the ship and then surviving, especially if you did it the Charles Lightoller way, staying on the ship till the bitter end, then diving off it, being sucked under a couple of times, and then shot back to the surface, ending up on an upturned lifeboat, and being the last man to board RMS Carpathia, the rescue ship.
Not only that, he also rescued soldiers during the Dunkirk evacuation.
The Titanic story just gives and gives.



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the thing (1982) - john carpenter's storyboards

John Carpenter's movie 'The Thing', freaked me out years ago (and still does to a degree), when the (spoiler alert!!!) exploded head turns into a spider like creature.
Above are some of the storyboards from that sequence, and the complete set can be found at my comic blog (here), or at the main site of The Thing, along with many other of the movie's storyboards.

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the day the earth stood still (1951)

I was watching 'The Day The Earth Stood Still' today.  A 'classic' movie from 1951, featuring the Christ like Klaatu and his companion, Gort. A film that clearly affected some musicians of a certain age, as there are a few references to it over the years. One of the most famous is Ringo Starr's 'Goodnight Vienna' lp, which features the spaceship, Ringo and Gort (not Klaatu, as most people think).

There was also a Canadian band that were called Klaatu, who released a 1976 album that sounded a bit like the Beatles, sparking rumours that it was an unreleased, or possible new product from the fab four themselves.  It's also the album that The Carpenters got 'Calling Occupants from Interplanetary Craft' from. God, my head is filled with so much crap it's unbelievable.

As for the film itself, the acting leaves a bit to be desired, the effects are pretty crap, and the ending is pretty sudden, but l still enjoyed it, despite many things annoying me about it as well, such as the lack of onlookers or interested parties when the spaceship is being guarded (by two soldiers!), but especially the clearly visible wires helping to hold up Helen when she is being carried by Gort.

Ah well, these are some of the sacrifices you make if you watch old films. The suspension of belief switch has to be turned right up to 10.

Remember kids - Klaatu Barada Nikto!

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batman fights dracula, and dragula, queen of darkness.

Rather sadly, a film l will probably never see.  Batman fights Dracula, a rather strange looking Filipino offering that is now considered lost.
I know it will probably be crap, but l can imagine it being soooooo buttock clenchingly bad, it will be hilarious.
I also think Adam West (and his costume) must have been unavailable at the time of shooting.

On a related note, here's a comic strip that not many have seen - Dragula,Queen of Darkness (from here).  Originally featured in National Lampoon 1971.
Enjoy

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