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I am slow this year, or slow so far.
XXVIII: The Station Agent (Thomas McCarthy, 2003)
From the maker of The Visitor, a film I seem to like more in retrospect than the quibbles at the time. Here we have three people of various repressions - Finbar McBride (Peter Dinklage), a person of restricted height, who has inherited the station, ditzy Olivia Harris (Patricia Clarkson) who has lost a child and Joe Oramas (Bobby Cannavale) who runs the hot dog stand on behalf of his sick father. Whilst Finbar just wants to be left to get on with his life, Joe is busy trying to become his friend and to match make, whilst Olivia shows concern and then retreats.
This is a comedy with some dark undertones, a character study, and I had somehow thought it was made in foreign. It resists the temptation to have Finbar be the catalyst for everyone in the community being cured, whilst showing he has begun to make a small difference to individuals. Well worth a look.
XXIX: Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976)
This film begins where imagination ends.
Is that meant to sell it?
In the 23rd century, everyone lives a decadent life under domes, and for every baby that is born, someone must die. Everyone who reaches 30 must enter the carrousal (sic) and hope for rebirth or face death; occasionally people run, and have to be tracked down by Sandmen like Logan (Michael York). As the unseen authorities are aware of a place called Sanctuary outside the dome, Logan is sent to find the place and destroy it.
This seems to be a world with no history - there's no sense of how everyone got there, nor of how an old man had survived on his own out in the wild with nothing but cats for company. The special effects are a bit ropey and the whole experience a little flat. There's been a remake in the works for donkey's years; I'm not holding my breath.
XXX: Diamonds are Forever (Guy Hamilton, 1971)
Hamilton's second Bond of four, and Connery's first return to the role after Lazenby's one outing (which I happen to like). It begins with some business about SPECTRE villain Blofeld (Charles Grey), then Bond is sent of the trail of diamond smuggling, a trail where people keep ending up murdered. The trail leads to Los Vegas and reclusive millionaire Willard White, as well as a US government lab and an oil rig off the coast of California.
Maybe it is because I spent about three weeks watching this off and on, or because it's dated, but this felt very slow. There are a couple of neat gags such as a faked moonlanding, and the recurring assassins Mr Kidd and Mr Wint are shown holding hands in one shot, but it never quite does it for me. But then I'm not a huge Bond fan.
Totals: 30 - Cinema: 8; DVD: 20; Television: 2
XXVIII: The Station Agent (Thomas McCarthy, 2003)
From the maker of The Visitor, a film I seem to like more in retrospect than the quibbles at the time. Here we have three people of various repressions - Finbar McBride (Peter Dinklage), a person of restricted height, who has inherited the station, ditzy Olivia Harris (Patricia Clarkson) who has lost a child and Joe Oramas (Bobby Cannavale) who runs the hot dog stand on behalf of his sick father. Whilst Finbar just wants to be left to get on with his life, Joe is busy trying to become his friend and to match make, whilst Olivia shows concern and then retreats.
This is a comedy with some dark undertones, a character study, and I had somehow thought it was made in foreign. It resists the temptation to have Finbar be the catalyst for everyone in the community being cured, whilst showing he has begun to make a small difference to individuals. Well worth a look.
XXIX: Logan's Run (Michael Anderson, 1976)
This film begins where imagination ends.
Is that meant to sell it?
In the 23rd century, everyone lives a decadent life under domes, and for every baby that is born, someone must die. Everyone who reaches 30 must enter the carrousal (sic) and hope for rebirth or face death; occasionally people run, and have to be tracked down by Sandmen like Logan (Michael York). As the unseen authorities are aware of a place called Sanctuary outside the dome, Logan is sent to find the place and destroy it.
This seems to be a world with no history - there's no sense of how everyone got there, nor of how an old man had survived on his own out in the wild with nothing but cats for company. The special effects are a bit ropey and the whole experience a little flat. There's been a remake in the works for donkey's years; I'm not holding my breath.
XXX: Diamonds are Forever (Guy Hamilton, 1971)
Hamilton's second Bond of four, and Connery's first return to the role after Lazenby's one outing (which I happen to like). It begins with some business about SPECTRE villain Blofeld (Charles Grey), then Bond is sent of the trail of diamond smuggling, a trail where people keep ending up murdered. The trail leads to Los Vegas and reclusive millionaire Willard White, as well as a US government lab and an oil rig off the coast of California.
Maybe it is because I spent about three weeks watching this off and on, or because it's dated, but this felt very slow. There are a couple of neat gags such as a faked moonlanding, and the recurring assassins Mr Kidd and Mr Wint are shown holding hands in one shot, but it never quite does it for me. But then I'm not a huge Bond fan.
Totals: 30 - Cinema: 8; DVD: 20; Television: 2
