Andrew Arthur Matthews

Watching yet another Vietnam war film that attempts to bolster the image of the God fearing American soldiers doing their country proud . Accept as we and the world knows the arrogant US forces not only had been ignominious kicked out of Korea but it was to happen again in Vietnam. This is such a sickly, syrupy sentimental version of the Vietnam experience it pales into comparison with say the Deerhunter , Saving Private Ryan , 4 th July and the Nam film to end all Nam fills the brilliant Apocalypse Now . This is garbage

We Were Soldiers

Whilst I can watch Dunbar all day long he does very little ‘ acting’ but rather raise his eyebrows, look quizzically and be a one dimensional player. Yes all the tropes are there with the grumpy boss , the jazz aspect and the troubled man who carries the weight of the deaths of his family. So nothing new , nor original , pleasant locations and it’s plod , plod and plod on . Having said all this I enjoyed both series and shall be watching the next

Ridley

2 likes

Well my first thought was ‘ why even bother ‘ ??? So it’s not a bad film as it’s based on a classic thriller from British Queen of Crime ; Agatha Christie but IMO add precious little to the Albert Finney version who for me plays the Belgian detective closer to Christie’s written character. So like the previous film version this one I’d packed with acting talent, all wasted of course, and to my eyes the CGI scenes that are of the speeding train etc are of poor quality and unconvincing. Why anyone would put up the money to fund this functional but unexciting version is beyond me. So it’s harmless fun and I am so grateful I didn’t spend my old age pension on watching at my local cinema

Murder on the Orient Express

Well if you are looking for a mindless , un cohesive , behind energy romp with absolutely stereotypical wooden performances from first class and underused actors this is the ideal film for you . Unlike its namesake’ Guns of Navarone ‘ this poor cash -in - film has none of the tension , jeopardy or momentum to carry the story line forward . Notice the token black character presumably to tick off a box somewhere Utter rubbish!

Force 10 from Navarone

Just watched my first and last episode of ELLIS on Channel 5 and although far and away better than most of their poor quality dramas ; usually with Jill Halfpenny in them ! I love crime / spy dramas so needed to see what Ellis was about and as I suspected it was the same old same old procedural cop story with the same old tropes . The lead character wanders around with a face like a wet weekend and really there was nothing about this show that made me want to watch any more . Dull fare from C5

Ellis

3 likes

Oh dear , yet another remake of a well regarded crime series from the 1970’s and yet another that really doesn’t have any of the qualities the original displayed . The original Sweeny had the superb John Thaw and the less superb Dennis Waterman that had a good , entertaining and credible dynamic . This awful remake has the grunting , unintelligible ( most of the time ) and one dimensional Ray Winstone. Unfortunately Winston displays none of the depth of character that Thaw did and he just does his usual’ Ray Winston ‘ hard man stuff. Alas the excellent supporting cast are totally wasted in this production that plays up the violence, shoot outs , scenic London views and the like in place of an interesting screenplay . Avoid this rubbish at all costs

The Sweeney

What a fabulous album and an absolute blast to , err , blast through my sound system! Can’t fault anything about this offering from the Rolling Stones who return to their roots with a selection of unfamiliar blues songs and all the better for that . This is a band playing fast and loose with tight arrangements, no overdubs ( I believe ) crisp time keeping from the ever dependable Charlie Watts with Eric Clapton guesting in two tracks . Jagger impresses with his command of the harmonica and the the Don Was production has a bright vibrant live and ‘ dirty ‘ sound which is immensely pleasing. Ok you may not be interested in the Stones catalogue but this album is strong enough to stand on its own and just enjoyed for what you hear . Blue & Lonesome is a good listen and IMO stands up as a wonderful tribute to the past blues masters by musicians whose very existence was formed by those very men .

Blue & Lonesome

1 like

Whitstable Pearl

2 likes

In my opinion Al Stewart is one of the finest singer songwriters in England definitely and probably in the world ! Very much an English approach to the music with his excellent songs usually of an auto biographical nature . He always surrounded himself with the very best musicians available and I have been fortunate to have enjoyed his live shows over the years . Stewart has the ability to never repeat himself with similar sounding songs and each one tells its own particular story. I do believe Al Stewart has never made a poor album and for those unfamiliar with his work I do urge them to seek out his music

Modern Times

Joan

1 like