Articles + Quotes on Film & TV

 The aforementioned film's title had a change for Australian audiences (SAS - Rise of the Black Swans) but to avoid confusion, I'm using the original title for this review. I'm still not sure what part of the original wasn't suitable - is this another Burger King/Hungry Jacks scenario? Hard to say. Anyway, onto the film itself. I did not have high expectations for it at all. While other genres have moved on in the years and (for the most part) grown more clever and modern, action thriller is one that seems to plod alongside, seemingly a melange of guns and shouting, with a couple of diamonds in the rough, making it a proper struggle to find a good one that stands the test of time. This one, was actually a lot better than I gave it credit for and was pleasantly surprised. Sam Heughan, Tom Hopper, Andy Serkis, Ruby Rose, Hannah John-Kamen and Tom Wilkinson lead the charge and bring a great deal of electric energy to the film.  It's based on an Andy McNab novel, which

 It's nice that even with two and half minute long trailers, a film can still surprise you. And keep you guessing. Which is precisely what happened with this newest turn of bringing one of the better villains to the screen and giving us her own backstory, complete with lots of attitude and the best outfits. And quite possibly the best film soundtrack since the Guardians of the Galaxy films. And I'm going to say it, Emma Stone's portrayal of Cruella is better than what she did in La La Land. The only recognisable part of Ms Stone, is her well known energy that she brings to every role but in this, it's up a notch. I imagine the joy of bringing a villain to life added a few levels of fun - the rest is pure sass, class and rebellion all in one slightly off kilter character that keeps you going back for more. Superb supporting cast, Emma Thompson leads the others in a fun and crazy ride with some proper crew at the helm to make sure the cartwheels don't spin off complet

 Something that has become increasingly clear, that when the great pendulum swung in one fell swoop in popular movies, from camp to gritty, the movie makers forgot something rather important. Humour. True, there are moments of comic relief in Marvel films and DC and they are quite funny. No arguments here. One could make the argument that Robert Downey Jr's main purpose was to provide the levity when everyone else was in a brooding stare. But there is a difference between a few moments of levity and imbuing each of the characters with heart and a sense of humour. And that is important, especially with a character like Superman. Sure, he has the weight of the world on his shoulders and that's all well and good. But if he's just a strong guy working hard to prop up a few buildings full of people and rescuing cats up trees, then they've missed something crucial. And the basis for Superman, of course, being Clark Kent, means giving that character a real smile and the abilit

 Anyone who has studied English literature at any point in their life will know this one. Red means danger, green new life, blue sadness and so on. But there is one colour that usually gets skipped over.  And that is purple. Once upon a time, purple denoted royalty. It was an expensive fabric dye, reserved even back in the day for those who could afford it.  Now, though, it is attached to anything malignant, evil and wrong. Any time there is a vile potion meant to corrupt anyone remotely near it, it's purple. Power Rangers 90's movie, the main plot by the resident baddie was rendering the parents in the local town infected - by a purple goop. Same with Despicable Me 2, Hercules (Disney), Penguins and most recently, the big villain of this decade - Thanos. And let's not forget Madam Mim in The Sword in the stone, Ursula in The Little Mermaid, Yzma in The Emperor's New Clothes, and the list goes on. And on. It's a strange transformation for one colour to go through, b

 There is a part of Dalton Trumbo's acceptance speech (when he was awarded the Laurel Award by the Writer's Guild of America) that I thought about after I watched this film. Mr Trumbo, like others in America, was for a time blacklisted by the House on un-American activities committee and by the major producers of the period who went along with the government, the committee's agenda.  "The blacklist was a time of evil and that no one on either side, who survived it, came through untouched by evil. Caught in a situation that had passed beyond the control of mere individuals, each person reacted as his nature, his needs, his convictions and his particular circumstances compelled him to. There was bad faith and good. Honesty and dishonesty. Courage and cowardice. Selflessness and opportunism. Wisdom and stupidity. Good and bad on both sides. And almost every individual involved, no matter where he stood, combined some or all of these antithetical qualities, in his own pers