Film on blot.blog

Weeknotes – 1747 of 4175

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sun, 30 Mar 2025 12:44:00 +0100

Hi all 👋 Hope you had a good week.

I’m still getting into the swing of writing these weeknotes, so I’ve missed the past two weeks. I’m realising that I shouldn’t wait until the end of the week to write it. I should just add to it each day.

Anyway, here’s what I’ve been thinking, learning and writing these part three weeks.

🏡 Life Update

My biggest highlight recently was getting to feed baby lambs at Herrings Green Activity Farm. Delightful. Aside from having some farm animals, it’s also a cracking owl sanctuary. My main takeaway is that eagles are scary and owls are spooky.

'James Bond to be made by Amazon as British creators step back'

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 17:08:05 +0000

The Times:

Creative control of the James Bond film franchise is to become an all-American affair after long-time rights holders Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson announced they were stepping down and handing the reins to Amazon MGM Studios.

I think this is bad news, despite them remaining ‘co-owners’ of the franchise.

It always seemed that ‘Bond’ as a franchise and all it represents was largely held together by the dedication of Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson – they were more than mere rights holders. They understood Bond, and I’m sure stopped many attempts to ‘modernise’ it.

Film Review: The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sat, 11 May 2024 19:44:45 +0100

I’m a big fan of Guy Ritchie’s films. His first two, “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch”, are the business. Even as he’s gone more Hollywood over the years, his work always maintains that unique Ritchie touch – the clever dialogue, the inventive filming style. His Sherlock Holmes felt fresh and modern, despite the period setting. And “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” was a blast. Even when he slightly misses the mark, like with “King Arthur: Legend of the Sword” or “Wrath of Man” (a poor man’s “Heat”), there’s still enough Ritchie magic to make them worth a watch. His “Aladdin” was okayish too. Really, “Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre” is his only true dud (even the title is bad).

Little Links & Notes 8: Writing Hacks and the Pain of Existence

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sat, 13 Apr 2024 10:51:06 +0000

Hi all 👋 Long time no see. Hope you’re having a good Sunday. I’m back with the eighth instalment of Little Links & Notes. Enjoy, and have a good week.

“How I Went From Writing 2,000 Words a Day to 10,000 Words a Day” (Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association – Rachel Aaron °).

You don’t have to be a writer to enjoy this article on how this person used a “Knowledge, Time, Enthusiasm” triangle to improve her daily writing output.

Movie Review: Your Christmas Or Mine? (2022)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 14:49:51 +0000

Through a transport and communication mishap, a couple accidentally spend Christmas at the others’ family home. One family is cold but rich. The other warm but less rich. That’s the premise.

I was annoyed at first when the couple got ‘split up’. How can you have a romantic comedy without them being together‽ But I got over that and I warmed to this film. It took quite a while to find its feet, but once it did it had just enough charm to keep me interested and satisfied. And whilst the ending doesn’t quite land this was still a worthwhile watch. Well, judge for yourself. If you’re totally against romantic, cheesy film that give this one a skip. But I can tolerate even middling examples of that category, so for me it was worthwhile.

Legs Look Weird

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 17:02:59 +0000

Jerry Seinfield has talked about how there’s something about certain jokes that for whatever reason get deep inside of you and you think about them all the time.

Lines from movies can be like that too. And there’s a line in the Hangover where Alan is asked to put some trousers on because his legs look “weird” and “freaky”.

And I must think about that line weekly. It really speaks to me. Because for me nearly all legs look weird somehow.

Review: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 13:54:21 +0000

I’m drinking coffee in bed. The rain is pouring down outside, as Storm Eunice ° gives out its death rattle. And I’m watching Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.

I have an interesting relationship with it. When I saw it in the cinema for the first time I’d heard it was fantastic, so went in with very high hopes, and found it pretty awful. Just dull and mostly confusing.

But then a year or so later when I rewatched it at home, I found it rather fantastic. Totally engaging and well put together. A thoughtful masterpiece.

Stealing the word "Freedom"

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sat, 12 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Isn’t it interesting how fascists always steal the word “freedom”?

I think about this line from The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) a lot for some reason.

See at the moment the Freedom Convoy.

Review: The Power of the Dog (2021)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 03 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: The Power of the Dog (2021). I hate westerns. But luckily this isn’t your typical one. Firstly, it’s shot in New Zealand which gives it a different feel and look - and there’s some stunning scenery shots. Secondly, there’s not a single gun fight. In fact, I’m not sure I even saw a gun in the entire film. So no, this isn’t your typical western. This is a story about masculinity, isolation and secrets - that happens to have a western backdrop.

Review: The Alpinist (2021)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Mon, 31 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: The Alpinist (2021). This is a film about a climber. And if you liked Free Solo you’re also going to also love this one. It technically isn’t as good a film and simply doesn’t have enough footage to tell the story. But it has just as many great moments and if you liked the scary hanging-off-the-side-of-a-mountain-one-handed shots of Free Solo then there’s even more to savour and get scared by here. Seriously, some of the climbing bits are insane. This is a top-notch documentary and very much worth your time. 4/5

Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Tue, 25 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

I’m watching Hot Tub Time Machine (2010). In it a character is playing Second Life. But of course he’s not actually playing it and the production crew are just playing a video capture of the game on the laptop (that’s how it works in the movies, folks). But it would be far easier to believe the character was actually playing the game if the production crew didn’t leave up the play/pause controls on the computer!

Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021). Maybe I’m not the target audience - being neither young nor a huge fan of the original - but I found this just… okay, at best. And I was expecting so much more after hearing it was so very good and that it was directed by Jason Reitman. 4/10

The French Dispatch (2021)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: The French Dispatch (2021). Wes Anderson movies tend to leave me a little cold - and the only film of his I’ve ever really liked is The Darjeeling Limited (2007) - and this one was no different. It’s stunning looking and I really enjoyed the first third, but the rest I didn’t connect with at all. 5/10

The Watch (2012)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 20 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: The Watch (2012). Rewatch. The premise is good and there are a few giggles here and there. But overall the script just isn’t good enough. It’s fun watching an out-of-place Richard Ayoade in a big Hollywood film though. 4/10

14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible (2021)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible (2021). (Trailer). There’s a good story here, but sadly there simply isn’t enough footage to tell it properly and the film suffers as a result. This is a mountaineering documentary, but there isn’t enough actual shots of the mountaineering. You can get only get so far with a voice-over and footage of base camp. Also - like many climbing folk - the main guy has a god complex which make it a little cringy to watch at times. 5/10

Black Knight (2001)

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Movie: Black Knight (2001). Rewatch. A childhood favourite. But yeah… this isn’t that great with adult eyes. 4/10

The Mandrake Plant

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0000

So apparently the mandrake plant from Harry Potter is an actual plant. And also that just like in Harry Potter people of old would cover their ears when around them (see illustration above) for fear of condemned to hell:

In one superstition, people who pull up this root will be condemned to hell, and the mandrake root would scream and cry as it was pulled from the ground, killing anyone who heard it. Therefore, in the past, people have tied the roots to the bodies of animals and then used these animals to pull the roots from the soil. —Wikipedia citing John Gerard (1597). “Herball, Generall Historie of Plants”. Claude Moore Health Sciences Library. Archived from the original on 2012-09-01.

The actor who plays the Know-It-All kid in the Polar Express looks exactly how I'd expect him to look

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

His name is Eddie Deezen.

Watched – Week 5, 2021

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sun, 07 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

[caption id=“attachment_792” align=“alignnone” width=“1920”] The Revenant (2015)[/caption]

Film

The Revenant (2015). Rewatch. The film that Leonardo DiCaprio finally cried in, thus winning him his first leading-man Oscar. Tom Hardy over-acts, as is tradition. But this is still excellent. Emmanuel Lubezki’s cinematography is beautiful. I think it would’ve been improved with twenty minutes of the more art-house dream-like elements shaved off though. I was very impressed by Domhnall Gleeson and Will Poulter throughout. Their characters felt very real and fleshed out. 83%

The Power of Netflix

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Tue, 02 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

The landing page of Netflix is one of the most powerful influencers of common culture on earth.

If a television or film is prominently displayed on that remarkable digital billboard it will quickly and swiftly enter the cultural zeitgeist.

It can literally drag years old and forgotten content and push it onto the world stage.

I noticed this recently in the UK with “The Fall”, a mildly popular BBC TV show that aired between 2013 and 2016.

Watched – Week 4, 2021

elliot@clowes.me (Elliot Clowes) — Sun, 31 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Still from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011).

Film

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011). Rewatch. I tend to watch this every year. So when it snowed recently in England I thought it was time once again, as this film is very snowy and Swedish. My last two viewings I’ve connected with it slightly less the usual for some reason. And I wish the two main characters teamed up slightly earlier. Still it’s fantastic and my film of the week. 88%