Sunday 30 October 2016

Hunted Review Episode 1

Channel 4's cutting edge docu-drama has returned for its second season and so have my reviews.

Ten fugitives have to go on the run across the UK for 28 days.  All fugitives have to start in Birmingham and from there they can use any means of evasion to escape capture, as long as they stay in the UK and don't break the law.  Last year we saw teams hitchhiking, going rural and cycling on Britain's canal network.  They have access to £250, which they can withdraw from a bank account at any time.  They are accompanied by a covert camera operator and if they evade capture, then they will win £100,000.

Leading the hunters is ex-Scotland detective Chief Becksley, not unlike Tom Thorne of John luther.  His deputy is Ben Owen who trained as a sniper before joining the military intelligence.  Supporting them are a wide range of counterintelligence experts, investigative psychologists, police officers and ethical hackers.

This episode focused on 3 groups of fugitives:

The first is the instantly likeable Nick Cummings.  At first glance, Nick seems like your stereotypical bumbling Englishman.  At second glance, he still looks like this, but completely inept.  However, he is my early favourite to win.

For 17 years, Nick has been a house-husband to his GP wife.  He decided to go on the run, due to how he feels guilty that he doesn't provide any value to their relation ship.  And I find this adorable.  He also wants prove to his teenage son that he is more than a stay-at-home dad.

Nick started weakly.  Whilst the other fugitives scrambled into their getaway cars Nick bumbled through Birmingham like he was looking for somewhere to enjoy his cucumber sandwiches and cup of tea,  Laden with bags, he finally reached his bike and cycled onto the canal, although he didn't know whether this was the Worster or Grand Union Canal.  Having caught Nick on CCTV, the Hunters thought they had an easy win.  However, Nick had trick up his sleeve.  Every so often along the canal, he would change his clothes.  Cycling along the canal isn't a bad idea, it worked for Season 1 winners, butt he Hunters saw right through Nick's disguise and dispatched teams to intercept him.  Yet amazingly, Nick unwittingly gave them the slip by coming off the towpath and getting lost in Birmingham City Centre.  And getting lost in Birmingham City Centre.  This is why he's my favourite.  If John Luther, oops I mean Peter Becksley and Co, can be beaten by a bumbling Englishman, this would be just brilliant.  It would also be a little worrying too.

Fugitive: Nick Cummings

Time on the Run: 5 Days

Status: At Large

The second group are childhood friends Anna May (Office Administrator) and Elizabeth Garnett (Stockbroker's Asisant.) The girls are both in their twenties and have spent their life hiking through the Yorkshire Dales, so the Hunter s have were worried about them.

And rightly so.  The girls started strongly by adopting a proven tactic, hitch-hiking from truck-stops.  However, as it's been used before, the Hunters knew to prepare for it by handing out wanted posters in truck stops.  In a great encounter, Anna and Elizabeth's getaway driver warned them about the posters and said they could have gotten into a car with an MI5 agent.  He wasn't, but this also made the girls wisen up and decide to stop hitch-hiking to break their pattern.

But the Hunter's powers don't just stop at wanted posters, they can do almost anything to catch a fugitive.  For example, the Hunters paid a visit to Anna's parents, who were obligated to talk tot hem, which is different from last year.  Anna's parents then put on a bad roleplay to throw the Hunters of their daughter's scent.  Of course I don't them for doing so, but this definitely raised the Hunters' suspicion.

Anna's parents also had to surrender her mobile phone and laptop etc, which is again different from last year.  In season 1, the fugitives were under no obligation to surrender their electronics.  A lot of them took their phones and laptops with them.  This time round, I don't see what is actually stopping the fugitives from taking their electronics with them or just throwing them into the local canal.

Fugitives: Anna May and Elizabeth Garnett

Time on the run: 5 days

Status: At large

The final group were ex-soldiers Jeremy Scarrett and Kirk Bowett.  As well as being soldiers, they're also amputees with Jeremy having a false leg and Kirk missing part of his arm.  I can't help but think that an amputated arm is going to make you stand out.  As soldiers trained in escape and evasion, you would expect them to do well and they started well, at least.

From Birmingham, they contacted their inner circle of army veterans to provide them with shelter in a shooting range.  This meant that they were rural and away from the CCTV that the Hunters can use to find the fugitives.  Of course the Hunters had a number of tools at their disposal.  The first one was interrogating their get-away driver and families who did their best to cover for them.  Yet just like Anna's parents, they weren't very convincing.  Of course I'm not blaming them, but again they definitely raised the Hunter's suspicion.  I think that if you were to go on the run, then you cannot trust anyone even your loved ones.  You have to lie to them for their own safety.  That way if they are questioned by the authorities, then they can say what they think is the truth, but is actually a red Herring.  This would be far better than just saying "I don't know," which is bound to be suspicious.

The Hunters then took all of Kirk's and Jeremy's electronics and hacked into them.  From here, they found a list of contacts and their long-term plan, to stay in a safe-house in Blackpool.  In Sam Wollaston's Review, he criticised the pair for their "cyber naivety," which I would agree with.  If you're going to go on the run, then you can't leave behind a digital trail.  Certainly don't email your long-term plans to yourself, which is what Kirk did.  And be careful about what you post on social media.  From hacking into Kirk's Facebook, they found that he is a massive family man.  More than this, he has a baby son who was going to turn 1 whilst he was on the run.

He then jeopardised the whole mission by arranging to bring his family out to see him.  The risk paid off as the Hunters weren't able to take advantage of this, but this was not a risk worth taking.  In season 1, what tripped up so many of the fugitives was calling home.  Just don't call home.  By doing so you're putting your family on the front-lines.  The Hunters can bug their phones and be led straight to the fugitives.

Kirk and Jeremy then made the same mistake that caught out the legend Ricky Martin last year.  They got over-confident.  They decided to travel to Blackpool to hide with one of their friends.  Thinking they were safe, they had a wander around town and got lunch in broad day-light at a curry-house.  However, because the Hunters had hacked into Kirk's electronics, they knew that he and Jeremy were heading to Blackpool and sent out a team to intercept them.  But then as Sam Wollaston identifies, the Hunters make an elementary mistake.  They send a team into the restaurant to see whether Kirk and Jeremy are there.  They spot them and then instead of going in for the kill, they then leave the restaurant and this is where things get confusing.

Kirk and Jeremy spotted the Hunters and weren't sure what to do.  Their camera operator also spotted them and had to crouch under the table, which I found quite funny.  I'm also wondering how the covert camera operators actually film what's happening.  Obviously they can't use spy cameras as they're too bad quality, but they can't use film cameras either, as they'd be too conspicuous.  Anyway, I'm not entirely sure what happened in the ending.  One of the soldiers slips out of the back of the restaurant, but the other one randomly decides to stay.  Perhaps they were splitting up to maximise their chances or one of them wanted to create a diversion for the other to get away.  But what happened? I really have no idea.  However, judging from the trailer for next week, it looks like they both got away.

Sam Wollaston elaborated about the incompetency of these Hunters and I would agree with them.  It's obvious that these fugitives especially Kirk and Jeremy who should be strong, are quite inept in escape and evasion, but the Hunters are even more inept at catching them.  I still don't know why the Hunters didn't go in for the kill.  Please if you know what happened then please, please, please, clear things up in the comments below.

Fugitives: Jeremy and Kirk

Time on the run:

Top tips for going on the run

1.  DON'T CONTACT HOME

2. Don't leave a digital trail.

3.  Lie to your loved ones for their own safety.

4. Don't stay in one place for too long.  No place is safe.  Only safer.

5.  Don't become overconfident

Who are you favourites to win? And don't leave your plans and tips for going on the run in the comments below.  Who knows who's watching?

Saturday 29 October 2016

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Review

Read my review of Braveheart

Number 90 on the top 1000 films of all time is one of Jim Carrey's more dramatic roles in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) is a shy, socially awkward man living in New York City.  He quickly meets and begins a relationship with the free-spirited and extroverted Clementine Kruczyniski. (Kate Winslet) However, when Joel finds out that Clementine underwent a special treatment with a firm called Lacuna to have her memories of him removed, he decides to go through the same surgery.  That is until he decides for better or worse that he wants to remember everything about Clementine.  Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood and Tom Wilkinson all star in supporting roles.

This was an interesting film for me, engaging with the themes of love, loss and memory.  What it truly means to love and remember someone.  Is it really better to have lost and loved than to have never loved at all? This film is deeply psychological with much of it taken place in Joel's mind, as it explores his memories and hopes.  For this reason, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is deeply abstract.  Much of the camerawork and editing is creative and viewing this film is an experience in itself.  Camera trickery is used to demonstrate Joel's fight against having his memories erased.  For example, in flashbacks to Joel's childhood, there are instances of forced perspective to show childlike he really is.

Although Joel's narrative is at the centre of the film, there are a few interrelated subplots with the employees of Lacuna, which I think played well opposite the main conflict of the film.  For example, Elijah Wood plays Patrick, one of Lacuna's technicians in charge of Joel's treatment, takes advantage of this situation to get closer to Clementine.  Just like Joel, Patrick is also looking for love, but both characters go about it in different ways.  Patrick is manipulative, pitiful and quite pathetic in how he tries to seduce Clementine.

The other subplot revolves around the other technician Stan, (Mark Ruffalo) Lacuna's receptionist Mary (Kirsten Dunst) and Lacuna's Director Howard (Tom Wilkinson.) It is revealed that whilst Mary and Stan have a good relationship, she has had an affair with Howard before having her memory erased when Howard' wife found out.  I think these subplots worked well, as they brought the film back into the real world.  At times, I did think it strayed a little bit too far into the confusing and the abstract, and these subplots helped to ground it more.  Also, I love Tom Wilkinson whatever he's in.

As Jim Carrey is primarily known as a comedian, I wasn't too sure what to expect from him in a dramatic role.  I've seen him in more comedic roles e.g the Riddler in Batman Forever, Stanley Ipkiss in the Mask and Count Olaf in a Series of Unfortunate Events, and I felt that he was a little over the top in most of these performances.  Having said that, I thought he was brilliant in the more serious role of Truman Burbank in The Truman Show.  Carrey didn't disappoint in this role,   He was understated and poignant.  He didn't play the role with his usual exuberance, but rather a subtle and quiet power.  All credit to him for dialling it back in.

Saturday 22 October 2016

The Returned Episode 8 The Returned Review

So my one of my favourite TV series, with its rich story-telling, complicated characters and gorgeous cinematography has finally come to an end.  Was it a satisfactory conclusion? Yes.  Was it a perfect one? Guess it depends on what you're looking for in a conclusion.  Compared to last year, the ending of season 2 was far quieter, more reflective and felt like an extended denouement, giving the characters proper endings and tying up most of the storylines.  I say most, as there were plenty of things that were left unanswered.

Firstly, let's start with the flashback kicking off this episode.  As per usual it is from 35 years ago with Lucy going into Milan's pub and blagging her way into getting a job with him.  This scene is a complete mirror of Lucy's introduction in the first season and how she ends up working with Toni in the Lake Pub.  It also marks Milan and Lucy's first encounter.

Back in the present day, Lucy is having a crisis after the Horde lose faith and abandon her.  Her spirits are only uplifted when a police officer with an infantile crush on her gives her baby Nathan.  Nathan appears to be some type of catalysing factor to restoring Lucy's authority as the Horde are ready to follow her again.  What's so special about Nathan? I guess the fact that he was born from two dead parents for one thing.

But before we go too far into the Horde's narrative, I want to jump to another leader who has lost his authority: Pierre.  Last episode, we saw that Pierre was part of Milan's death sect: The Circle, but he decides against killing himself at the last moment.  In the 35 years that have followed, Pierre has been racked by guilt which he has attempted to compensate for by running the Helping Hand shelter and recreating a death sect of his own.  However, he runs into problems when the captured Audrey kills and eats her mother before being shot dead herself.  Pierre's followers leave him and he himself is confronted by Berg, Etienne and Victor (more on them later) who direct him to Milan.  Interestingly, Milan seems to have undergone some enlightenment and abandoned his previous beliefs.  But this isn't enough to stop Pierre from committing suicide.  Milan then goes to join Toni in the Horde.

Now the first of my grumbles.  This episode does little to nothing to tie up Toni and Serge's storyline.  Toni becomes part of the Horde, whilst Serge goes back to the underpass to slowly decay to serve penitence for his crimes.  Whilst I like this idea, it does raise problems for me.  Firstly, the pair of them barely feature in this episode, but secondly, why doesn't the Horde want Serge to join them? We've seen before that they are eager to have every single returnee join them, but they don't seem to care about Serge.  Both characters should have received a longer goodbye.  In some ways I think that Esther was their goodbye episode.

Two other characters who don't join the Horde are Simon and Adele, who as Gwilym Mumford of the Guardian identifies, receives the most confusing, head-scratching goodbye.  They head into the caves in the forest and there are taken by this mysterious returnee to the other side where they are younger and in their wedding clothes.  The obvious subtext is that they've been given a chance to start again.  The two have always been dedicated to each other and now they have an opportunity to live their lives.  Although, as Mumford rightly points out, it is very strange that they completely forget about their baby son Nathan, despite how desperate they were to rescue him from the clutches of Lucy, last week.  Little is mentioned of their daughter Chloe, either.

However, Chloe is in the safe hands of the Segurret family, whom behind a certain pair of characters I'll come to afterwards, are one of the driving forces behind this show.  By having Camille come back to life, we see how the implications and consequences of this can tear the family unit apart.  Sure you could argue we see the same thing with Adele, Simon and Chloe, but their narrative very much focuses on Adele and Simon's relationship with Chloe being not more than a plot device.  Anyway, after the Segurret family and Chloe escape from the police station, they attempt to drive Camille out of the town, when who they run into but Pierre's minion Frederic.  Frederic continues to show off his stupidity by shooting Camille and then being shot by Claire (again, interesting gender reversal, here.) It is also reveal that the lesions that have been appearing on the Returned are signs that they have to return to the Horde, which is what Camille opts to do upon her return.  What follows is a very emotional goodbye between her and her family especially her sister Lena, before Camille joins Virgil and the Horde.  In this moment, I think she grows up a little.  Initially, I disliked Camille because of how she encapsulated stereotypical teenage angst and moodiness, but I've warmed to her and I like how she so willingly accepted her situation.

One thing I didn't like was how Berg and Etienne's narrative ended.  Although this is because I don't think that Berg's character worked.  His narrative was all over the place.  Firstly, he was introduced as a dam-building expert, but then teams up with Jerome to access the dead part of town, before finally joining his father Etienne, last episode.  And then this episode, Etienne chooses to leave him in favour of the Horde.  This goodbye held no emotional weight for me, as we've not had any chance to see Berg and Etienne together.  Whilst having your father tell you to forget him can be a crippling blow, I just didn't feel anything.  I think their relationship could have been explored in much more detail.

Finally, we have come to Victor and Julie who are very much at the centre of everything.  Firstly, let's discuss the second flashback of the episode, where we see Victor returning for the umpteenth time in his father's home.  The two of them live happily for 35 years until Victor's father suffers a heart attack and collapses.  The terrified Victor prays for him to come back to life, but he inadvertently goes too far and awakens the first wave of the Returned including Camille and Simon.  Whether this also includes Serge, Lucy and Mrs Costa, who knows? After Victor's actions, he leaves his home and finds Julie at the bus stop, thus linking back to his first appearance in the show.  But the important thing is that we finally got an explanation for why the Returned returned and I think it's a credible one.  We know that Victor has immense power and it was his fear of alone that brought the others back to life.  Although this doesn't quite explain what revived the second wave of returnees.

Two visions have been consistently haunting Victor- one of Julie jumping into the sinkhole and killing herself and another of her happy on a beach with a child that isn't him.  But back in the here and now, Victor rescues Julie from Pierre's dungeon and the two of them attempt to escape town.  However, they don't get far, before Lucy appears and says that Victor needs to go with them to lead the Horde.  Knowing that Julie will die if she goes with him, Victor says goodbye once and for all and allows Lucy to lead him to the Horde who are by the sinkhole.  Amongst the Horde are Milan, Toni, Camille, Virgil, Morganne, Esther, Etienne and Mrs and Mr Costa.  Just like in Victor's vision, Lucy says that it is up to him to save them.  Whilst Lucy adopted the role of leader, it was always meant as Victor, although it isn't made particularly clear what they expect him to do.  Although one thing Victor cannot do is allow baby Nathan to come with them, as he is too much like him.  What does this mean? Let me know what you think below.

This is when Julie appears.  We've seen that before Victor she had absolutely nothing to live for and Victor has given her a new lease to life.  Without Victor, she doesn't want to live and so, just like in Victor's vision, she kills herself by jumping into the sinkhole.  This is when Etienne tells Victor that he has the power to change things if he really wants.  And this is what he does.  He closes his eyes and when he next opens them, the Horde are gone, the sink-hole is filled with water and Julie is alive.  Some time later, we then see Victor's second vision also coming true.  Julie is on the beach with Ophelie, but Victor becomes the little boy he sees Julie with.  Whilst it was great to see the two of them have a happy ending, I'm a bit confused that the Horde would allow Victor to choose Julie and himself over them, considering how much they were relying on him to lead them to salvation.

Finally, we come to the final shot of the season and potentially the whole series.  Lucy, who has obviously not disappeared with the rest of the Returned, leaving baby Nathan on the doorsteps of a house.  Why? Of course it isn't explained nor is the significance of Nathan or why Lucy wanted him so much.  But I can't help but think that this is perhaps what happened to Victor.  Maybe he was an orphan who has never felt like he belonged anywhere.  Mumford also drew connections between Victor and Nathan, speculating that maybe Nathan will become the next Victor, setting the whole chain of events into motion once again.

Some questions I'd love your opinions and thoughts on.

1. What is Victor's backstory? I've speculated a little bit about it, but I'd love to hear your theories.

2.  On that note, what about Lucy's? We know a little bit, that she appeared in town out of nowhere and was murdered by Milan, but beyond that she's a bit of a mystery.

3. And again, what about Simon? We know that he committed suicide but his backstory has never been properly explored.  Under what circumstances did he kill himself?

4.  What happened to poor Audrey? The last we saw of her, she was still chained to the wall in Pierre's dungeon.  Has she just been left there to decay or will she continously die and return? Either way, she has to be the unluckiest character in the history of this show.

5. Who was the mysterious returnee who led Simon and Adele to the other side of the cave?

6. What is the significance of baby Nathan and of that ending in particular?

7. What happened to the Horde? Did they go into the afterlife? Or do you agree with Mumford's idea that they became the water in the sinkhole? I think this is a good idea; we've already seen that there's a strong connection between water and the Returned.

8.  Lastly, what did you make of the ending? Did you like it? Why or why not? I'd love to know.

Sunday 16 October 2016

Braveheart Review

They may take our lives, but they may never take our FREEDOM!


Yes I know.  How could I have lived 21 years without seeing the masterpiece that is Braveheart? Don't worry, as of October 15th, I have now watched the 89th film on the top 1000 films of all time.

Braveheart focuses on the historical figure of William Wallace (Mel Gibson) a 13th century Scottish warrior who led the Scots in the First Scottish War of Independence against King Edward "Longshanks" (Patrick Mcgoohan gave a great performance of the cruel ruler) of England, after Wallace's wife is executed by the English.

After I watch films, I tend to read about them on IMDB and it was on IMDB that I learnt that Braveheart is less than historically accurate, despite being based on a number of real-life events.  Although, I don't think that this is a problem.  Sure there were a number of historical inconsistencies, but there weren't any big enough to detract from the entertainment value of the film.  It doesn't claim to be a documentary, but an epic war-drama and on that front I think it works well.  

Firstly, I'd like to address the film's three hour long run-time.  3 hours is a long time for any film and rarely have I watched a three hour film and not gotten bored or been praying for it to end: with The Godfather being an exception.  However, I think that Braveheart was paced very well.  Unlike other three hour films, where I've watched them in two halves, I watched Braveheart in one sitting.  I felt engaged throughout and the thought of turning it off and watching the rest in the morning never crossed my mind.

There's no doubt that Braveheart is a tragedy and if you know how things worked out for the real-life William Wallace (not well,) this makes it even more tragic.  William Wallace was undoubtedly a tragic hero and his devotion to his cause still rings true today, especially with all of the modern-day wars of independence.  Gibson portrays Wallace as an emblem of stoic masculinity going to war to avenge his murdered wife and then to gain freedom for his country.  His journey is one that is chartered well with his motivations clearly established early and his development into a darker, more uncompromising character was great to watch.  Wallace is an empathetic hero and the dedication he shows to his country is enough to instil patriotic feelings in anyone.

However, Wallace isn't alone in his journey.  He is surrounded by a number of his lieutenants who all serve not only as comic relief but also to showcase the loyalty that these men show each other.  His four lieutenants include his childhood best friend Hamish (Brendan Gleeson) Hamish's father Elder Campbell (James Cosmo) the mad Irishman Stephen (David O'Hara) and Morrison (Tommy Flanagan) whose wife was the first victim of Primae Noctis.  Whilst Hamish's father and Morrison sadly, but rightly die in battle, Hamish and Stephen survive until the end.  It was heart-breaking to watch them see Wallace's torture and execution and not be able to do anything about it.

As a war film, Braveheart works well.  The battle sequences are brilliantly choreographed and are understandably brutal.  War by its very nature is violent and for it to be portrayed in any other way would be insulting to those who fought in it.  A criticism I had of the last film I reviewed: Taxi Driver was that there was too much tension-building and not enough pay-out.  The same can't be said for Braveheart.  I think that the battle sequences were entertaining and satisfactory payloads to all of the tension-building.

Filmed on location in Scotland, but also partially in Ireland, the cinematography is gorgeous with the rugged landscape adding in another element to the film.  Finally, I have to discuss the great soundtrack.  Composed by James Horner and the London Symphony Orchestra, the main theme tune is uplifting, sad, moving and patriotic all at the same time.  It is used throughout during the film adding a great power to some of the film's most crucial sequences.  


So as I said before, if you're looking for an accurate historical retelling, Braveheart probably isn't the film for you.  It makes fast and loose with a lot of the details of the time, so if you want something closer to the truth, then try reading The Actes and Deidis of the Illustre and Vallyeant Campioun Schir William Wallace' (aka 'The Wallace'), by a minstrel known as Blind Harry, which was Randall Wallace's main inspiration in writing this film.  Watch this film for an entertaining, moving story about a man who wanted nothing more than for his country to have freedom.

The Returned Episode 7 Etienne Review

The flashback kicking off this episode is one of the darkest yet.  35 years ago, but 10 months after the dam burst, we see the Circle, that Milan has spoken off before.  It is a religious sect led by Milan whose members include Simon's parents, a young Pierre and the mysterious man who has been helping Claire.  For me it strongly reminded me of religious sects like The People's Temple.  Milan takes on a Jim Jones-esque role and tells everyone they must die to be saved.  Meanwhile, the police raid Milan's cabin and find a group of children including Serge, Toni and baby Simon ready to be poisoned.  When return to the Circle, all but three of them are dead: Milan, the mysterious man who is the eponymous Etienne and Pierre.  Milan kills Etienne, Pierre kills Milan but then decides not to kill himself.  He runs away from the murder-site, to reveal that none other than Victor is watching.

I'm still trying to figure Victor out, as I think that he must have some religious symbolism.  As one of The Returned's key themes is religion, maybe Victor is a prophet of sorts, like Jeremiah or Ezekiel.  Let me know your thoughts on this.  Gwilym Mumford of the Guardian also picked up on these metaphors by speculating, after a later encounter between Victor and Milan, that he is a god-like figure who gets to decides who lives and dies.  Considering that Victor has been responsible for a few deaths already, I think Mumford's theory has some weight.  What do you think?

But back to the Circle, it was really interesting to see a young Pierre fail in following through on his pledge.  I think this goes a long way to showing his present-day motivations.  In the modern-day, he has picked up where Milan has left off gathering his own group of followers and continuing to torture poor Audrey.  Boy, she's really drawn the short straw, has she.  Anyway, I think now Pierre is completely acting out of guilt.  He failed to follow through earlier and is now trying to make up for it.  He's certainly brainwashed the young Frederic into working for him.

The last time we saw Frederic was just after he and Lucho shot "dead" Mrs Costa, a price that Lucho paid for by jumping out a window.  Something that Victor influenced him into doing.  Mrs Costa is taken to the local hospital, but more on her later.  Victor's story is the more interesting one.  He's taken to the army base, where he is questioned, but gives nothing away.  This is also the same base, where Milan is held.  After Victor has another of his hallucinations where he sees two separate Julie-related visions.  One where she is sitting happily on a beach with a strange boy and another where she is shot dead by Milan.  Victor confronts Milan about his vision, but the deluded Milan insists that he only saves people, he doesn't hurt them.  This is when the police captain and Milan face off.  Off screen something, presumably, Victor, happens to cause the policeman have a psychotic break.  He kills one soldier and prepares to kill more, when he hallucinates them as soldiers, before he is killed himself.  The next thing we see is Victor leaving the army base, alone.  What happened to Milan? Let me know your theories.

However, Victor, isn't the only returnee in the base.  There is also Adele, whom everyone seems to have forgotten is one of the Returned.  Still hallucinating Thomas, she is locked in the base for questioning.  Meanwhile, Simon who is tired of waiting takes Chloe to rescue Adele.  What happens to Simon? It's not shown, but Chloe finds her way back to her mother.  And int he panic caused by the police captain's breakdown, the pair escape.  Well, Chloe does, but Adele goes to retrieve Nathan who is gone, presumably taken by Lucy.

Chloe is taken in by the Segurret family.  In the last episode, we saw Jerome and Berg making it to the dead side of town where they are reunited with Claire, Lena and Camille.  The Horde are on the move and Chloe chooses her family over them and more importantly Virgil.  However, Berg recognising Etienne in the Horde decides to follow them.  Meanwhile, the Segurrets trying to escape from the town, but are picked up by the army who have infiltrated it.  This is how they end up in the army base with Adele.  Nothing else of consequence really happens, except at the end where the Segurrets escape with Chloe.  I'm not sure if anyone else noticed, but when the Segurrets tumble across the dead soldier, it is Jerome who take shis torch, but Claire who takes his gun. Nice reversal of gender roles there.

Back in the forest, Lucy is leading the Horde to the sinkhole, but her grip over them is slipping.  Virgil calls her out on how she is leading these people into ruin, but Lucy she insists that she has to lead them there to prevent the Horde from becoming like the creatures in the caves.  For me this was  a neat idea.  It showcases a transformation of the dead.  Take Esteban as a case in point, he was once a regular returnee like Camille, but upon learning about his parents' suicide, he becomes another silent member of the Horde.  Is it possible that the less that The Returned have to live for, the more likely it is, they'll up as revenants endlessly wandering the earth in purgatory.  Scary thought, right?

Earlier I had associated some religious symbolism to Victor and I'm starting to do the same with Lucy.  Due to how she is always wearing a white dress, I think that she's an angel of death of sorts.  She has certainly the dead for long enough.  But as already discussed, she is losing her authority.  Even her former lover Morganne is refusing to listen to her.

We finally find out about the relationship between Etienne and Berg.  They are father and son.  Berg has returned to town to find out what has happened to his father.  In a flashback, it is revealed that Etienne was the architect who designed the dam that burst.  Victor then arrives at Etienne's house out of the darkness and warns him not to build the dam as hundreds will die.  As we know, Etienne refuses to listen.  The dam is built.  It bursts, floods the town killing hundreds.  I also think that this was a good way of highlighting Etienne's motivations.  He dies in the Circle to save serve penance for his sins.  What do you guys think? Did Etienne deserve to die for what he did?

Lastly, we come to Julie and Mrs Costa.  By sheer coincidence, Mrs Costa is taken to the same hospital where Julie is hiding.  And it is revealed that Julie is harbouring feels for Ofelie.  Just as the two appear to be working thing out, a scream goes out and Ms Costa comes back to life on the autopsy table.  In a private encounter, Mrs Costa informs Julie how she and Victor were for looking for her, when they were confronted by Lucho and Frederic who had been sent by Pierre at the Helping Hand.  Mistakenly thinking that PIerre is holding Victor prisoner, Julie goes to rescue him, but instead walks straight into Pierre's clutches, and he confines her to the same dungeon where Audrey and Sandrine are being held.

I'm quite glad that Julie's left the hospital - I confessed last week that I had thought her storyline had stagnated so it was good to see her taking some action.

Next week is the finale of season 2 and the season finale overall, as because as far as I know, they are not making a third series.  Last season ended with a confrontation between the dead and the living. This year could be something a bit more complicated.

Some questions which I would like your thoughts on.

1. What does Victor symbolise? Do you agree with my 'prophet' theory or Mumford's 'god' theory?

2. What about Lucy? Thoughts on my angel of death 'theory?'

3. Did Etienne deserve to die for the destruction of the dam?

4.  Where was Serge and Toni in all this?

Taxi Driver Review

You talkin' to me? You talkin' to me?

Number 88 on the top 1000 films of all time is the film that made Martin Scorsesee's and Robert De Niro's careers: the neo-noir, vigilante thriller Taxi Driver.

Robert De Niro plays Travis Bickle, a psychologically damaged Vietnam veteran living in the crime-ridden New York.  To cope with his chronic insomnia, he takes a job as a taxi driver working night, where he bears witness to the petty crime and prostitution that controls the city.  He then decides to moonlight as a vigilante so he can clean up the city.  Part of this cleaning-up process involves rescuing the under-age prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster) from the clutches of her pimp Sport (Harvey Keitel.)

This film works brilliantly as a piece of social commentary.  It's no secret that veterans, not just of VIetnam, but of any war, didn't always receive the special treatment that they deserved upon returning home.  A lot of them returned home with PTSD and some sadly killed themselves.  Although Taxi Driver doesn't explicitly focus on the Vietnam War, its effects are felt throughout.


Travis is only 26, but he feels alone and isolated in his society.  Unable to sleep, he spends a lot of his time in porn theatres and journalling.  These were both great devices to portraying Travis' alienation and his narration added a great energy to the film.


Intersecting with Travis' storyline is Iris' narrative.  I really lived this, as I felt that it was reflection of Travis' own storyarc.  Both characters have been through traumatic events and are completely lost in who they are.  To deal with their alienation, they both turn to external outlets: driving a taxi and prostitution.  But more than that, Iris, is one of the major catalysing factors in Travis' transformation.  Saving her allows him to be a hero again and break out of his alienation.

Although this film is rated as one of the greatest of all time, there were occasions where I felt a little disappointed.  Other than the film's climax, which was so bloody that Scorsesee had to desaturate the reds to get the film an R-rating, there aren't too many pay offs.  There is plenty of tension-building and allusions to violence, but not a lot of this materialised.  Rather the tension was defused with banal talking scenes, which for me made this film lacklustre and anti-climactic.

Wednesday 12 October 2016

The Returned Episode 6 Esther Review

SPOILERS

That's it.  I'm calling it now.  Pierre is definitely the bad guy of the series.  Although he barely features in this episode, his presence is felt throughout.  We soon find out that he has been torturing Audrey whom he sees not as a returned human, but as some type of demon.  He is torturing her to find out where the other Returnees are.  Meanwhile Audrey's mother Sandrine who refuses to acknowledge her daughter's return, until she sees the pain that Pierre is putting her through and decides to help her.  What happens next? We'll find out next week.

Pierre's reach extends even further when he sends Frederic and Lucho to track down Victor and Mrs Costa who are hiding in Julie's apartment.  Although this episode is named after "Esther," whom we'll get to later, Victor took centre stage in this episode.  Frederic and Lucho demands that Victor and Mrs Costa go with them back to the Helping Hand.  Unsurprisingly they're ignored and Lucho in a fit of panic "kills" Mrs Costa.  However, Lucho pays for his mistake when Victor "influences" him to jump out of a window thus killing himself.  For me this was a scary moment in a quieter episode.  It reminded us of how powerful Victor is and why everyone seemed scared of him.  Although, I did have to question Pierre's judgement here.  We've seen before that Frederic and Lucho aren't the brightest so why exactly did Pierre send THEM to track down Victor and Mrs Costa? Surely there must have been more suitable choices.

But anyway, Victor is also at the centre of some of the biggest revelations of this episode.  Firstly, centring around Esther, one of Serge's victims.  Starting the episode we get a flashback from ten years ago where we see Victor warning Esther not to go into the tunnel, but he is too late to stop her from being murdered by Serge.  So if we think of the timeline hitherto, we know that Victor has been a "Returnee" for 4-5 years, we know that he caused the bus crash that killed Camille and Audrey, but now we find out that he has been "around" for at least ten years.  Although, one does have to wonder, what has Victor been doing for ten years? 

The second revelation is perhaps the most telling.  Julie, who is still hiding in the hospital, visits Victor's bedridden father, who reveals that Victor isn't actually his son.  Victor was adopted; as we see in a flashback, he wanders in out of the night in the Lewanski's household, much like how he entered Julie's life.  Just what is the deal with this kid? Where is he from? How did he die? Just how long has he been in his "undead state." It seems to be at least 35 years.

And as a last mystery, what is the meaning of Victor's hallucinations? Why is he seeing Julie jump into the sinkhole? Why does Lucy ask him to help "us?" 

So now that we've finished on the "Victor" discussion, as I said he features heavily in this episode, but before we move onto something else, there was one problem I did have with this episode.  Julie.  Whilst it was interesting learning more about Victor's past, I'm sadly getting quite annoyed with her storyline.  I wish she was doing something a bit more than just standing around in a hospital.  For me the strongest parts of the show has been her relationship with Victor, and now that the two have been separated, I find Julie's sections very lacklustre.

Onto the eponymous character of this episode; Esther.  As we've already discussed, she is one of Serge's previous victims who has returned to him.  To make amends, Toni says that they must return her to her family, but she would rather go back to the tunnel where Serge killed her.  Toni demands that Serge asks for forgiveness and once again we see Serge's remorseful side.  I don't want to make it seem like I'm justifying Serge's actions, but he is definitely a pitiable character.  I've always thought that a mental issue or his nasty father Milan has been the cause of his murderous tendencies, rather than any malevolent thoughts.

Meanwhile, Milan has been discovered and rescued from his watery grave where he "returns" once again.  All he says is "I lost her.  I love her.  I never told her." Gwilym Mumford of the Guardian speculated that he was talking about Lucy, which I think makes sense.  Maybe Milan made advances towards Lucy.  She rejected him and instead went for a younger Morganne.  Milan killed them both in revenge, under the pretence of "saving them."

Milan isn't the only character to return in this episode; there is also the former police captain and Adele's husband Thomas.  The missing policeman's body is discovered and he appears to Adele in a ghostly apparition.  She goes to see his body, but instead he warns her about Simon saying that he is the one who killed him.  Again this makes sense considering Simon's jealousy before.

Mumford points out that Adele has good reason not to trust Simon, as he identifies Lucy's comment that "no one could hurt Adele like he did," during a confrontation between the two at the church.  Simon is stopped short from choking Lucy by Morganne and another of her goons.  Mumford also raises the good point that out of all of the returnees, Simon is the only one whose backstory hasn't been properly explored.  Just why did he commit suicide? If he really did care about Adele, then why did he commit suicide?

Lastly, we go to Camille's narrative.  Anyone else find it interesting despite how Camille, being the first character to be introduced in the show and supposedly the protagonist has been completely superseded by Victor.  Judging from this episode, Victor is much more important to the grand scheme of things than Camille.  Although what the grand scheme things actually is, I'm not quite sure.  Anyway, Claire discovers Virgil and Camille together and demands that he leave threatening him with a knife.  Next thing we know we see her attacking herself influenced by the undead Virgil.  In a later moment, Camille reveals to Lena that this isn't the first time Claire has tried to hurt herself.  It wasn't the Horde that beat her unconscious but herself.  She instead hallucinated the Horde attacking her.  

Meanwhile, we see Berg and Jerome trying to sneak into the town by going through the woods.  On their way, they find another sinkhole like the one at the dam and also spy on Virgil helping another group of returnees.  Why is he helping them? Let me know what you think.  When Berg and Jerome eventually reach Camille and the others, they have a touching reunion, before mounting their escape.  However, this is stopped cold by the Horde.

So another interesting episode with plenty of revelations especially about Victor who I think is the true protagonist of the show.  I'm looking forward to see how it winds down and how everything ends.

In the meanwhile, let me know your thoughts to the questions below.

1.  Why do you think Simon killed himself? Is it any way related to how his parents killed themselves?

2. What is the deal with Victor? Where did he come from? How long has he been a returnee?

3. Was Milan talking about Lucy?

4. Who were the people that Virgil was helping?

Sunday 2 October 2016

The Returned Episode 5 Mrs Costa

The Returned Episode 1 L'enfant

The Returned Episode 2 Milan

The Returned Episode 3 Morganne

The Returned Episode 4 Virgil

So in this episode we find out the backstory of a secondary character who has never had her time in the limelight: Mrs Costa.  As the other episodes have done, My Costa opens on a flashback to 35 years ago, but 5 months after the dam has burst.  Mrs Costa is home with her husband who is talking to Victor's mother about problems he's been having in school.  Meanwhile. Victor is drawing.  And we know that Victor's drawings are nothing but innocent.  Mrs Costa finds one of a woman in a lake with her dog standing by.  Victor says that it is her and we soon learnt hat this is drawing is actually a premonition.  After Victor and his mother leave, Mrs Costa takes her dog for a walk and drowns in the frozen lake.

In the present-day, Mrs Costa, who for whatever reason, is still living with Victor, comforts the young boy who has had a nightmare about Julie jumping from the dam.  Except it isn't a nightmare, but a premonition, and Victor wants to warn Julie.  This seemed a little odd to me, considering how coldly he rejected her last episode.  But he elects to take Mrs Costa with him over his own mother, despite Mrs Costa's objections that the Horde won't let them leave the town.  However, the Horde allow exactly that showing that Victor has some type of power over them.  What is this power? Let me know what you think?

In another part of dead-town, Virgil is playing double-agent, becoming closer to Camille, but also reporting to Lucy and Morganne who are determined to get baby Nathan back from Simon.  Yet Camille has her own problems with Esteban who becomes completely catatonic before joining the Horde.  Gwilym Mumford of the Guardian discusses in-depth about the horror and emotion in this scene and it was powerfully done.  Camille and Virgil speculate that Esteban joined the Horde because his parents committed suicide and thus he no longer has anyone tethering him to this world.  Whilst this is a logical theory, it does have one major hole: Mrs Costa.  Other than Victor, whom she's not that close with, she has no connections with anyone alive or dead- her husband rejected her upon up return.  As she is completely alone, what's stopping her from turning into one of the Horde.

Whilst Virgil is playing for both sides, it seems that Simon has chosen his family.  Having been firmly replaced by Morganne, he returns home to Adele, Chloe and baby Nathan before hiding them in the local church.  This doesn't seem the smartest considering the priest has already ratted him out once, but he claims to have changed.  However, the police still come poking their noses in, yet through some Deux Ex Machina, doesn't find Simon etc, despite Nathan's crying.  The priest is able to convince them to leave, which seems silly.  The town is in trouble is the police are so incompetent that they can't hear a crying baby in the next room.

Speaking of police, we find out a bit more about those tied to the trees in the forest.  Lucy reveals that it wasn't her or the Horde who killed and ate them, but others.  Lucy etc tried to protect them by tying them to the trees.  Who are the mysterious others who did kill the police offices? Let me know your thoughts.

One returnee who is more scared than evil is the terrified Audrey.  After escaping from the dead side of town with Simon, she seeks help from Jerome and Berg, who are still working together to unravel the mystery.  After she tells them where to find Lena and Camille, Jerome takes her to her mother.  However, her mother betrays her to Pierre who promptly takes her away.  Considering how he treated Toni, this isn't looking good for Audrey.

We pick up on Toni's narrative to find out that Serge, after rescuing from the Helping Hand, takes him back to his cabin.  However, Toni isn't there alone, as he is soon joined by 7 or 8 young pretty girls who look similarly to Lucy.  It's not long before Toni realises that these were the women who Serge murdered.  This was an interesting development ad one I'm looking forward to seeing more off.

Julie has gone to the hospital to visit Victor's father who is in a coma.  However, she also sees a wanted poster of her and so does a nurse Ophelie.  For no apparent reason, Ophelie decides to hide Julie in an abandoned section of the hospital.  I didn't like this and felt that Ophelie's motivations should have been clearer.

The episode opens on Mrs Costa and Victor and closed on them looking for Julie in her old apartment.  Victor admits that he knew they'd be allowed to leave, as this is what happened in his night and his nightmares always come true.  The final shot focuses on the submerged Milan waking up under the lake.

Some questions I would love to get your opinions on.

1. Who killed the police officers? Evil returnees? We know that there are some as they are the ones who beat Claire unconscious.

2. What's keeping Mrs Costa tethered to this world?

3. Why is Ophelie helping Julie?

4.Did anyone notice that Berg's father is the same man who rescued Claire from the Horde?

5.  How did those police officers not hear Nathan's crying?

Requiem for a Dream

Number 87 on the top 1000 films of all time is Darren Aronofsky brilliant Requiem for a Dream.

The film focuses on drug addicts and the extents that they'll to go feed their addictions.  Firstly, there's the protagonist Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto), his girlfriend Marion, (Jennifer Connelly) and his best friend Tyrone (Marlon Waylans.) All three of them are heroin addicts.  Lastly, there is Harry's mother, Sara, who becomes addicted to diet pills.

After watching this film about drug addicts, I felt like I was coming down from a drug high.  It was intense, relentless and utterly engrossing.  Darren Aronofsky's cinematic style excellently put the audience in the minds of drug addicts.  Whenever the characters were getting high, the action would be shown in a montage of close-ups and jump-cuts, giving the film an erratic feel.  On other occasions, a fish-eye lens was used to give the sense somebody was watching you, thus creating the paranoia that results from drugs.  Aronofsky also makes use of time-lapse, slow-motion and split-screen to convey what being an addict is really like.  Aronofsky's cinematography was one of this film's strongest points.

What's fascinating about this film is how engrossing it is, despite how it doesn't have a plot in the traditional sense.  Whilst a conflict is introduced in the first act with the drug addicts, it isn't resolved by the film's conclusion.  That is to say, this film doesn't have a fairy-tale ending.  Things start badly and only get worse.  Furthermore, the characters don't go through any major or story-arcs or transformations.  They start the film as drug addicts and end it as drug addicts.  Sure you could argue, that this lack of transformation makes them two-dimensional, but I wouldn't agree. For so many drug addicts, like Harry, Tyrone, Marion and Sara, they end up in a hospital, prison or having to prostitute themselves.  To change this into some romanticised, fairy-tale ending would be an insult to real-life addicts and would seriously damage the film's gripping realism-another of the film's strengths.

I also really liked how Aronofsky portrayed the addicts for exactly what they were: addicts.  There was no romanticising or demonising, but rather a straight portrayal.  To do anything else would again be insulting to real-life addicts who have gone through the same journey.  Aronofsky is unflinching in what he shows the audience and rightly so.  For example, Harry's arm becomes so badly infected that it has to be amputated and Marion is forced to prostitute herself in a humiliating sex scene where she has to go "ass to ass" with another girl-all for the pleasure of her pimp who will trade her humiliation for heroin.  Many addicts go through the same pain and I think it was great that Aronofsky portrays as many facets of addiction that he could.


Lastly, I loved Sara's storyline and how it paralleled with Harry's.  Whilst her son and his friends are addicted to heroin, her drug is TV.  Having nothing else to do, she spends all day watching the charismatic talk-show host Tappy Tippons.  After receiving a phone-call telling her that she'll get to meet him on live TV, she becomes obsessed with losing weight through diet pills.  Sara's narrative is the saddest, as she is the most innocent.  Harry and his friends know what they are and don't pretend otherwise, but Sara wants nothing more than to be young again.

In a heart breaking scene between her and Harry, she explains that she has been feeling numb ever since her husband died and Harry moved away from home.  This ambition to reach her target weight has given her a new lease on life.  However, the diet pills are actually ecstasy, and as Sara becomes addicted and overdoses, she becomes increasingly delusional and psychotic.  We see her transform from a sweet old mother who wants a successful, married son, to a raving lunatic who ends up being sectioned after she has an episode in a casting agency, where she goes to chase up when she would be on TV.  To see this transformation was powerful, but horrifying to watch.  It makes you think that could be me.  Although I can't help but wonder whether the phone call in the first place was even real or all part of Sara's delusion.


However, if the film fell down anywhere, I'd say it was in the scenes with Sara in the hospital.  They just didn't feel as realistic as the rest of the film.  Sara is subjected to a range of brutal tortures/treatments from force-feeding to electric-shock therapy, of which she is too doped up to give informed consent for.  Is this realistic? Can/would doctors really administer shock therapy to a patient who obviously isn't in her right mind?

But to end positively, Sara's addiction highlighted something that is regularly glossed over in favour of heroin and ecstasy: prescription pills addiction.  Whilst it isn't on the same scale as illegal drugs, prescription pills can be just as dangerous and can ruin just as many lives.  Hell, you're always hearing stories of people killing themselves by overdosing on pills and drinking alcohol.

This film was a tour-de-force.  It was challenging and asks a lot of the viewer.  Whilst it wasn't always the easiest to follow, it was a raw and revealing look into the dark twisted world of drug addicts.  Watch it and you'll be coming down from the high for days.  Hell, I know I will.

All about Eve Review

Number 86 on the top 1000 films of all time is the 1950 All About Eve.

Margot Channing (Bette Davies) is a fading Broadway star who is about to turn 40 thus marking the end of her career.  After a performance one night, Channing meets Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter) a superfan who inserts herself into Channing's life threatening her career and personal relationships, especially with boyfriend Bill Sampson (Gary Merill) and maid Birdie (Thelma Ritter.)

In light of today's celebrity culture, this was a great film to watch.  Celebrities have absolutely no privacy nowadays.  Case in point Brangelina's divorce hitting newspapers across the world.  However, it's not just the papers that celebrities have to worry about, but also fans.  You also hear stories about fans tracking down their favourite celebrities for autographs and photos, but sometimes for more sinister purposes.  For example, Britney Spears was bombarded with lover lettersDavid Letterman had a fan who thought they were together and Selena Gomez received death threats when she started dating Justin Bieber.  Especially with the advent of the internet, celebrities are never out of the limelight and this is a film which perfectly captures on this point.

Although it seems that Eve Harrington is just a slightly overzealous fan, she soon turns into something far darker.  She tells a questionable sob story about why she loves Margot Channing so much before progressively taking over her life.  First of all she replaces Margot's dedicated maid Birdie, before slowly breaking up Margot's relationships and scheming to supplant her by training as her understudy and making her miss performances.  As such this made the film a great commentary on the idolatry of celebrities today and also the superficiality of fame.  Margot knows that her youthful looks are fading and thus she fears that she will be replaced by a younger, prettier actress and this is exactly what happens.  Margot becomes continually unhinged, as Eve starts to supercede her.


This also makes the film a great portrayal of the pressure of living in the public eye and staying relevant.  As I was saying relevant, Margot fears getting older as she knows that everyone could soon forget about her.  In a sense, this film is a little like Sunset Boulevard.  Obviously, I'm no expert, but considering that this film was released in the Golden Age of Hollywood, where studios were all rushing to make as many films as possible, it wouldn't surprise me if this was what life was like for some Hollywood starlets.  I watched this with my Dad who told me about how Alfred Hitchcock described actors as cattle who just recite lines.  Judging from this film, I think this is right.

At the film's conclusion, Eve, who is starting to become the next big thing, encounters her own superfan in her dressing room.  This was a great way to end the film, as it once again accentuates the superficiality of fame.  There's every chance that this superfan could do to Eve what she did to Margot.

My dad told me that Bette Midler was always type-cast as cynical, battle-weary characters like Margot Channing and such played this role well.  Whilst this film wasn't always the most engaging or easy to follow, there were times that I did drop off and miss a few bits, I did really like the messages behind it.  This is especially because they're so pertinent with how celebrities are idolised today.

"In the future, everyone will be famous for 15 minutes." Andy Warhol