Saturday, 28 July 2012
The Dark Knight Rises Spoiler Discussion
There's also the unedited version of our chat, which was cut down because it was far too long, but if you enjoyed the edited version, we have more opinions and laughs here.
Thursday, 26 July 2012
Doctor Who Review: The Vampires of Venice
Last time: Amy tries it on with the Doctor. Now,
we have the first episode with her fiancée, Rory as a companion. Can their
relationship be fixed? How will this story deal with that? Well… the Doctor is
in a cake, cracks a joke, takes them on holiday, gets them in danger, then Rory
embraces the adventure and the whole Amy almost cheating thing is never really
brought up properly. Which is the same with most aspects of this story, there
are ideas, interesting ideas, but no real pay-off.
Aspect 1: Rory joins the crew. I like Rory. But here he just acts like Mickey Smith from the ‘Rose’ era. And I liked Mickey too, but really in this episode Rory does bring a lot to the table. He gets annoyed with the Doctor, he gets mistreated by Amy and then at the end he does something brave and everything before is forgotten. He just isn’t very interesting. But he is fun, because Arthur Darvill is a fun guy to watch.
Aspect 2: The Doctor is dangerous. Rory brings this up, that the Doctor makes people a danger to themselves. This is explored well… in series 6. Here it’s just kind of brought up then forgotten about.
Aspect 3: Venice. This story is set in Venice of the past, but except for period costumes it could be anytime, and except for some very unconvincing CGI, it could be any place. The Venice setting is not used very well.
Aspect 4: Vampires. They really aren’t threatening. I can’t pin down quite why, maybe it’s the fact this episodes tone is all over the place, but the vampires aren’t scary. Or maybe it’s the fact that they all get killed in about 5 minutes and never really hurt anyone. I liked the fish people and the explanation of why they appeared to be vampires. But then, in this episode it might as well have been a story about fish people because while they drink blood and don’t like the sun, they don’t seem very vampire-y.
Aspect 5: Characters. There’s a man whose daughter is taken into the vampire house. They are obviously only there for the plot, because as soon as their need to drive the story onwards is gone, then they die. The vampire people have motives and personalities too, but they are kind of tossed aside as well.
So, you’d expect that I would hate this story with all these things it does wrong. But… These aren’t things it does wrong; these are just things it doesn’t do right. Let me explain. The End of Time failed because it was a bunch of bad ideas that weren’t executed well and it wasn’t very fun either. The Beast Below failed because it was a bunch of good ideas that were terribly executed and it really was boring as all hell. This story however is saved from such hatred as those, by the fact that it has good ideas, and while they’re not explored or executed very well, it’s a lot of fun. It’s stupid fun, it’s fun that your brain won’t get very much out of, but it is fun to watch. And it’s very hard to work out why. I think it’s because everyone in it is having such a good time and while the plot might not be great, the script is pretty entertaining. Add in a fast pace and some nice direction, and you’ve got a success.
So, while I seem to have moaned most of the way through this, I actually quite like this episode. It’s not one you’ll remember, or particularly want to watch again very much, but it’s a good enough laugh for 45 minutes. It won’t overstay it’s welcome, and while you may forget it soon after it’s finished, while you are watching it, you’re going to have a pretty good time.
3/5
Aspect 1: Rory joins the crew. I like Rory. But here he just acts like Mickey Smith from the ‘Rose’ era. And I liked Mickey too, but really in this episode Rory does bring a lot to the table. He gets annoyed with the Doctor, he gets mistreated by Amy and then at the end he does something brave and everything before is forgotten. He just isn’t very interesting. But he is fun, because Arthur Darvill is a fun guy to watch.
Aspect 2: The Doctor is dangerous. Rory brings this up, that the Doctor makes people a danger to themselves. This is explored well… in series 6. Here it’s just kind of brought up then forgotten about.
Aspect 3: Venice. This story is set in Venice of the past, but except for period costumes it could be anytime, and except for some very unconvincing CGI, it could be any place. The Venice setting is not used very well.
Aspect 4: Vampires. They really aren’t threatening. I can’t pin down quite why, maybe it’s the fact this episodes tone is all over the place, but the vampires aren’t scary. Or maybe it’s the fact that they all get killed in about 5 minutes and never really hurt anyone. I liked the fish people and the explanation of why they appeared to be vampires. But then, in this episode it might as well have been a story about fish people because while they drink blood and don’t like the sun, they don’t seem very vampire-y.
Aspect 5: Characters. There’s a man whose daughter is taken into the vampire house. They are obviously only there for the plot, because as soon as their need to drive the story onwards is gone, then they die. The vampire people have motives and personalities too, but they are kind of tossed aside as well.
So, you’d expect that I would hate this story with all these things it does wrong. But… These aren’t things it does wrong; these are just things it doesn’t do right. Let me explain. The End of Time failed because it was a bunch of bad ideas that weren’t executed well and it wasn’t very fun either. The Beast Below failed because it was a bunch of good ideas that were terribly executed and it really was boring as all hell. This story however is saved from such hatred as those, by the fact that it has good ideas, and while they’re not explored or executed very well, it’s a lot of fun. It’s stupid fun, it’s fun that your brain won’t get very much out of, but it is fun to watch. And it’s very hard to work out why. I think it’s because everyone in it is having such a good time and while the plot might not be great, the script is pretty entertaining. Add in a fast pace and some nice direction, and you’ve got a success.
So, while I seem to have moaned most of the way through this, I actually quite like this episode. It’s not one you’ll remember, or particularly want to watch again very much, but it’s a good enough laugh for 45 minutes. It won’t overstay it’s welcome, and while you may forget it soon after it’s finished, while you are watching it, you’re going to have a pretty good time.
3/5
Saturday, 21 July 2012
Review: The Dark Knight Rise/The Lorax
THE LORAX
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
This particular review was as spoiler-free as I could get it, but if anyone actually cares enough, I might do a spoiler review so I can discuss what I thought of the ending, etc. But at this point I don't really want to ruin it for anyone.
Wednesday, 18 July 2012
Review: Magic Mike/Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
MAGIC MIKE
SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
Doctor Who Review: Nightmare of Eden
A complaint that’s leveled at many old school Doctor Who stories is that they look cheap. With some it’s that time has passed and effects now are better than they were back then. Unfortunately in some cases such as this week’s offering Nightmare of Eden, it looks cheap now, and it always has. This story is one from the Fourth Doctor, Tom Baker; you know the one, long scarf, big teeth and curls, with his Time Lady companion Romana and the robot dog K-9. The question is, can they and the plot save this story which is generally not looked upon kindly by fans?
First, good things. Tom Baker is brilliant and is clearly having a good time. Lalla Ward as Romana is also great and she and Tom Baker have great chemistry together. And K-9 is always quite fun, although this is a story from the period when the writers had got a bit fed up of him, so he doesn’t get too much to do. All in all the main leads are having a fun time and giving us an entertaining performance to watch. The plot, well the plot is pretty inventive and gives a new spin on some old concepts. To sum it up, a star liner and another spaceship have a collision in space, and the Doctor must separate the ships. On the liner, there is a machine that contains small portions of land from different planet, but is unstable; it’s like an electric zoo. There are wild alien beasts roaming the ship. And to top it all off someone is smuggling drugs. The show doesn’t normally deal with issues like drugs and while it doesn’t delve into any detail, it’s an interesting idea, the Doctor against drug smugglers. The zoo is an idea from a much earlier episode, but here it’s used as part of the plot, instead of the entire plot and so we can look over the reuse of the idea, because it’s such a creative one. The ship materializing inside another is a clever sci-fi idea and draws the viewer in as the first big event before the other mysteries develop. And the wild aliens interests because that’s strangely not something you see a lot in Who, they’re normally intelligent. Basically what my point is that there are a lot of interesting ideas here, some cleverly adding to old and some new for the show entirely and script wise these are handled very well.
Now on to the problems with the story. The supporting cast is more mixed in quality. The captain is good. The pilot of the other ship is good. And everyone else is, kind of bland. None of them seem to have much personality. Except a mad scientist, who would be good, except he has a rather distracting German accent. There are some space police introduced at the end of episode two, and they are very generic and don’t add anything to the story. The plot has a couple of problems nearing the end as certain ideas are left at the wayside and the monsters are not very well used. There is a really stupid scene in episode 4, which if you watch this, you’ll know when you get to it. And of course there are the problems I mentioned at the start. This below is a picture of one of the monsters. It doesn’t look scary. It look like it might be if money was spent, but at the moment, no. Also the whole story is recorded in the studio and the sets are not very impressive. I personally like some of the design, but that doesn’t stop it from looking very cheap. And this really brings the story down which is a shame. Overall, this could have been a really good story; it has lots of good ideas, a good script and is a lot of fun. But it’s brought down by cheap sets and bland guest actors. This doesn’t ruin it, and I’d still give it a positive recommendation, but it’s a shame, because this could have been one of the best, but the BBC just never really gave it a chance. However, it’s a fun story and you should still check it out.
3/5
First, good things. Tom Baker is brilliant and is clearly having a good time. Lalla Ward as Romana is also great and she and Tom Baker have great chemistry together. And K-9 is always quite fun, although this is a story from the period when the writers had got a bit fed up of him, so he doesn’t get too much to do. All in all the main leads are having a fun time and giving us an entertaining performance to watch. The plot, well the plot is pretty inventive and gives a new spin on some old concepts. To sum it up, a star liner and another spaceship have a collision in space, and the Doctor must separate the ships. On the liner, there is a machine that contains small portions of land from different planet, but is unstable; it’s like an electric zoo. There are wild alien beasts roaming the ship. And to top it all off someone is smuggling drugs. The show doesn’t normally deal with issues like drugs and while it doesn’t delve into any detail, it’s an interesting idea, the Doctor against drug smugglers. The zoo is an idea from a much earlier episode, but here it’s used as part of the plot, instead of the entire plot and so we can look over the reuse of the idea, because it’s such a creative one. The ship materializing inside another is a clever sci-fi idea and draws the viewer in as the first big event before the other mysteries develop. And the wild aliens interests because that’s strangely not something you see a lot in Who, they’re normally intelligent. Basically what my point is that there are a lot of interesting ideas here, some cleverly adding to old and some new for the show entirely and script wise these are handled very well.
Now on to the problems with the story. The supporting cast is more mixed in quality. The captain is good. The pilot of the other ship is good. And everyone else is, kind of bland. None of them seem to have much personality. Except a mad scientist, who would be good, except he has a rather distracting German accent. There are some space police introduced at the end of episode two, and they are very generic and don’t add anything to the story. The plot has a couple of problems nearing the end as certain ideas are left at the wayside and the monsters are not very well used. There is a really stupid scene in episode 4, which if you watch this, you’ll know when you get to it. And of course there are the problems I mentioned at the start. This below is a picture of one of the monsters. It doesn’t look scary. It look like it might be if money was spent, but at the moment, no. Also the whole story is recorded in the studio and the sets are not very impressive. I personally like some of the design, but that doesn’t stop it from looking very cheap. And this really brings the story down which is a shame. Overall, this could have been a really good story; it has lots of good ideas, a good script and is a lot of fun. But it’s brought down by cheap sets and bland guest actors. This doesn’t ruin it, and I’d still give it a positive recommendation, but it’s a shame, because this could have been one of the best, but the BBC just never really gave it a chance. However, it’s a fun story and you should still check it out.
3/5
Friday, 6 July 2012
Tuesday, 3 July 2012
Doctor Who Review: Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone
When watching the first series of Doctor Who with Matt Smith, I wasn’t all that sure. Not about him, he’d been brilliant in every episode, but just in everything. The first episode had been brilliant, but it’d been followed by two, shall we say, less than stellar stories. I wasn’t really sure what was wrong, but luckily with hindsight it was just that those weren’t great episodes rather than a major flaw in the series. But at the time I was a little worried, and then, well, and then this story came along. And it was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. So let me explain why.
Something that had been missing I thought was a connection to earlier series. So in this story we see the return of two of Steven Moffat’s greatest creations, River Song and the Weeping Angels. Now, we’ll get to the Angels later, but for now, let’s talk about River. River is bizarre in that I used to hate her. With her smug attitude her original appearance really annoyed me, but it was this story that began to show me what was going on. It showed us the plan of seeing younger Rivers and the unfolding tragedy of her loss of the Doctor. And as well as that, I just find her a hell of a lot of fun. Other connection-y things were that this episode contained a lot of references, to the old, and the classic series, a line nicked from Tom Baker, and to the future, a mention of the headless monks and how River learnt to fly the Tardis. The future references obviously aren’t apparent the first time you watch it, but once seeing season 6, it provides a lot of fun when rewatching this story with all the new knowledge you have. So I like little details like that, and I liked the jokes. This story, well at least the first half, before things take a more serious turn, is really witty, and I like the sort of clever jokes that Moffat sticks in his script.
The story is well scripted and has a good plot. In general it’s not a too complex plot, unlike some later Moffat stories, but this is definitely a good thing and allows you to have a fun and scary ride without getting confused. However it’s filled with enough interesting ideas to keep your attention and make this one hell of an entertaining story. Matt Smith is at his best, which is surprising considering this is the first episode shot with him, and he’s already got his portrayal of the Doctor down to a T, and even Karen Gillan isn’t too annoying this time, and is quite a lot of fun. I also like the supporting cast, but they don’t really have anything much to do. Another thing to note is the return of Adam Smith as director, who also directed the series’ opening episode, and he makes one hell of a good looking story. Now, there are a lot more good things to say about this episode, but I’ve always said that it’s better to just tell people enough to get them to watch something, rather than tell them every single detail and ruin it. So if you’ve seen it, you know why it’s so good and if you’ve not, then go watch it now. Unfortunately, there are a few things that bugged me. And they are entirely to do with the Weeping Angels. And my problems only come from the fact that a whole lot of new things about them have been entirely made up. If this had been their first story then fine, but it’s not, so it feels weird. Their method of killing has changed, they’ve changed from just any statue to just that specific shape, they have a whole bunch of new powers, they’re now apparently the last of their kind and they are said to be a lot more dangerous than they were last time. It just reminds me of the Daleks, because when they came back in the new series they were given too much power and made the last of their kind every time, which made the stories they were involved in very limited. So while the Angels worked here, I have an unfortunate feeling that if they turn up much more they’ll seem played out. But here, I’ll admit they were pretty scary, so I’ll give that a pass.
And of course, there’s the final scene. I don’t get it. I don’t know why it’s there or why Amy behaves that way. I would get it if it wasn’t for how Rory and her relationship is shown later. They are shown to be totally in love, so why this here? I don’t know. Although I do like the way the Doctor reacts.
Final thoughts then. This is a very well made and entertaining story. It makes you think, but not so much that you forget to have a good time, and although it has a few very minor faults they really don’t even dent the story as a whole and I’m sure it’ll go down as a classic of the new series.
5/5
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