LYNCHIAN RHAPSODY

Today is my favourite Movie director’s birthday, David Lynch. Not only has he made an indelible stamp on Cinema he’s also excelled at subversion on The small screen with the ground breaking Twin Peaks Season 1 & 2 and his magnum opus Twin Peaks The return.

The term Lynchian has entered the cinematic language and the talented people he has worked with says a lot about the esteem in which he is held. He has worked with a plethora of acting talent.

Established big names like Antony Hopkins, John Gielgud, Anne Bancroft, Max Von Sydow, Patrick Stewart, Sissy Spacek, William Hurt, Sian Philips and Jürgen Prochnow and Jeremy Irons.

Independent actors like Jack Nance, Brad Dourif, Isabella Rossellini, Willem Defoe, Grace Zabriski, Harry Dean Stanton, Patricia Arquette and Bill Pullman.

Musicians like David Bowie, Sting, Billy Ray Cyrus, Marilyn Manson, Henry Rollins, Chris Isaac and Julee Cruise.

Wildcards like Nicolas Cage, Mink Stole, David Patrick, Richard Pryor, Gary Busey and Crispin Glover.

Lynch’s work is as loved as it is loathed. Many critics simply say that they don’t understand his work. For me having to understand something does not preclude liking it; I don’t really understand Rothko’s paintings but I like them.

One thing that has to be said is that he is an uncompromising film maker. I love his work as i feel I am entering a singularly unique world when I watch it. He is a renaissance man as he is a talented painter , writer and now it seems, Weather-caster.

I’ve placed his films in some sort of order of preference which is hard as it’s a bit like selecting a favourite child. If you've never entered Lynch's world you may want to grab a cup of damn fine coffee, a piece of Cherry pie and find one of these to take you into a parallel universe.

1. Mulholland Drive
2. Lost Highway
3. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me
4. Blue Velvet
5. Eraserhead
6. The Elephant Man
7. Wild At Heart
8. Dune
9. The Straight Story
10. Inland Empire

ALWAYS B SCROLLING?

 

In lieu of cinema's being open I have been watching a good few films on Netflix and Amazon and rather than going for the sort of thing I would ordinarily go to see on the big screen I have been dipping my toe into B Move territory. These films are generally around an hour and a half, are high on concept and feature both actors that are little known and a smattering of big names. Given that scrolling for the perfect film can become a repetitive strain sometimes it's good just to pay your money and take your choice.

Heres a rundown of the good the bad and the ugly;

• Songbird-Set in a Covid-23 future of complete lockdown this is an efficient race against the clock thriller that promises more, but enjoyable none the less
• Spree-The age of social media is put under the microscope in this frantic satire featuring multiple viewpoints.
• Ava-Standard female assassin stuff that wants to be Atomic Blonde but is more like Point Of No Return
• American Mary-Body Horror slow burner with a great deal of imagination, promising from all concerned
• 10 X 10-British cast, American accents, good concept but disappointing third act
• The Night Eats The World-Superior Zombie movie set in an isolated Paris apartment.
• The Wall
• Child Of God-Method, Method, Method in this meandering modern western
• Lifechanger- Much like Fallen this film is quite ingenious and does well on such a tight budget
• Orphan-Again a great concept but hampered by a 'by the numbers horror format'
• Sputnik-Very good Alien on earth movies from Russia. Well acted and executed
• Arizona- Wants to be a Coen Brothers film but a good cast fail to deliver 
• Arkansas-Above average Neo-Noir Crime drama
• White Boy Rick-Underrated biopic about a remarkable real life story set in the "white trash" drug world
• Adult Life Skills-Doctor Who on quirky form im this film that has a great deal of charm
• Blue Ruin-Superb dark side of America drama
• Saint Judy-Feel good Erin Brokovitch lite
• Bad Day For the Cut-Gritty Irish revenge thriller, well worth a watch

The world of the B movie offers much, the films are usually shorter which means not having to dedicate too much time on a risk but for every Frog there is a Prince. I grew up in the era of B movies and this was always a great opportunity to try something sight unseen before the main event. That's part pf the enjoyment of cinema for me. Discovering hidden gems and even getting something out of stinkers.

Given that there is so much choice on streaming platforms you can find yourself searching for a substantial length of time. Next time you are undecided, why not take a chance on a lesser known title? You never know, you might like it

SMOOTH PROGRESS

Pete Green's Fleetwood Mac, Eno's Roxy Music, Peter Gabriel's Genesis, they all metamorphosised into smooth pop acts. That's the general consensus, that their creative juices dried up when pivotal members of the band were no longer there, but I beg to differ when it comes to Roxy Music and Fleetwod Mac. I actually prefer their later incarnations.

Stalwart Prog rocker's could argue  a decline in the case of Genesis and it would be a good argument (unless your'e Patrick Bateman) as they reached their post Gabriel peak immediately with  the excellent Trick Of The Tail. Phil Collins' solo output has been consigned to the bargain bin of naffness and certainly you could argue that his songwriting erred on the side of Chris DeBurgh.

So let's look at Roxy Music and Fleetwood Mac as purveyors of smooth smart popular music.

Stranded was the first post Eno Roxy Music album and it is a triumph kicking off with the anthemic Street Life and featuring the melancholic masterpiece A Song For Europe the following albums all hinted at the Era defining Avalon and showed a great deal of finesse as opposed to the sometimes jarring earlier material. Some say bland but I say smooth and alluring. A fitting swan song for this most interesting of bands.

As for Fleetwood Mac, the 60's and early 70's saw them cement their reputation but it wasn't until Rumours that they had a huge mainstream hit which must have allowed for the experimentation of Tusk, but its Tango In The Night that is their peak with such immaculately delivered tracks as Big Love and Sara. This sound was being listened to by those who had invested in decent Hi Fi and the production stands the test of time.

Of course I'm not dismissing The Green Manalishi (With The Two Pronged Crown) or Virginia Plain I'm just saying that Bands can develop both ways. A band can start out with simpler arrangements and become more complex so why not start of with complexity and streamline your art? Besides which, when has popularity when it comes to popular music been a bad thing?

CELLULOID LOCKDOWN

Lockdown I

Lockdown II

Lockdown III

SENSE AND INSENSITIVITY

 

 Oi! Where's your mask?

I’m not saying that the government haven't  cocked things up with their handling of the pandemic; they have. But after Lockdown Episode One I went back to work, which involves travelling across London. I saw many many people oblivious to Government advice/instructions. Not conspiracist’s trying to make a misguided point, just bleedin’ ignorance. People that don’t understand what 2 metres is or how to wear a mask properly. Basically people who couldn’t care less. 

As we do not live in a country where a police presence or the military on the streets is part of a cultural awareness, we’ve had to rely on the common sense of the great british public but without public guardians, who were dispensed of in the eighties, there is no one to question the behaviours. Shop assistants and bus drivers probably feel that they are not paid enough to risk being abused or assaulted if they refer non compliers to the rules.

During Lockdown 2 : Electric Boogaloo I had a mixed work pattern which meant travelling twice a week across London and to my dismay there were still large numbers of people blithely not adhering to guidance. Thankfully a bike and British Rail provided travelling sanctuary.

Now we are in Lockdown III I am confined to the environs of North London and I have to say that I am seeing far more people following the guidance and not being so selfish. Could it be that the penny has dropped or is it that different parts of London think differently? Who knows, but here's the thing; people are and have been dying and a little bit of unselfish thought could help to stop further people from dying. a bit of sensitivity for those that are struggling.

It's getting boring now, this situation that we have been in for what seems like an age, and I would hope that the Great British Public can show what we have shown countless times in the past; Common sense and a spirit of unity. 

 That's more like it!

DISTINGUISHED COMPETITION

I spoke about my appreciation of Marvel comics the other day and how my early exposure to them helped ignite my love of reading. Their stories and characters were a great escape from trying circumstances in my younger years. Thing is that you can't really talk about Marvel without talking about DC (the Distinguished Competition as Stan Lee referred to them).

DC have always had the blue chip characters in Superman & Batman, and to a lesser extent Wonder Woman. Characters that most people know or have heard of.

The thing about Superman for me was that I found the character, well, boring. He could do anything and basically could not be harmed, except by Kryptonite, which I think was probably introduced to bring in a bit of jeopardy. Superman was too much of a Goody Two Shoes for me. I did enjoy the fanciful stories generally involving his girlfriend Lois Lane and his pal Jimmy Olsen.

Batman on the other hand seemed more realistic and I imagined him in the world of Marvel with Chicago replacing Gotham and Falcone forming an alliance with the Kingpin.

Wonder Woman was all about the divine Lynda Carter playing WW on TV as I found the comic book version somewhat drab.

Mind you, perhaps DC's greatest strength has always been it's array of Supernatural/Horror characters. They seem to have attracted the best writers and the most inventive artists and are an untaped source for the DC cinematic universe, which unlike Marvel's slate of films has not really delivered since the halcyon days of Superman The Movie.

DC also boasts it's Vertigo imprint which gave us what, for me, is one of the greatest contributions to sequential art storytelling 100 Bullets. DC also gave us the seminal Watchmen and The Darl Knight Returns. But these came when I was no longer a kid and seemed to fit in with my getting older as the form got older.

Both Marvel and DC, as the dominant publishers of comics, have a vast catalogue and I guess which company one prefers is just a matter of personal taste. I think the best of both speak for themselves and they have allowed many people to be influenced to start the diverse independent Comic Book scene.

The irony is that while the big two are multi million dollar companies, with entertainment and resort interests, now in many ways the independent scene has overtaken them in terms of relevance and creativity. What's clear is that the world has changed considerably since I was a nipper and therefore the Comic book world has changed accordingly. What I might find a bit jaded now about the output of Marvel & DC is there to be discovered by new readers and hopefully inspire them to read, create and open their minds.

I'll end this post with a quote from perhaps DC's greatest achievement Watchmen written by Alan Moore: 

"We gaze continually at the world and it grows dull in our perceptions. Yet seen from another's vantage point, as if new, it may still take the breath away"-Dr Manhattan

WHERE'S THE BASS?

 

The Radio is a place where we can engage our brains if we chose to or flex our imagination muscles. Conversation, education and elucidation are all there freely accessible  It's also a place to listen to music. Chose the right station and you can hear great music both old and new. 

Then there is the sort of radio that seeps into ones earholes via shops and other public places. The sort of radio that seems to consist of high pitched caterwauling and so called rappers of limited talent on top of a compressed musical backdrop that can be created at home on the above average laptop. It's produced for those awful iPhone headphones, Laptop speakers and the speakers on Samsung mobile phones.

The likes of Robbie Shakespeare, Bernard Edwards, Jah Wobble, Chris Squire, Patrice Rushen, John Entwistle, Mick Karn, Fred Thomas, Peter Hook, Mark King and Gail Ann Dorsey would be surplus to requirement in this new music landscape as Bass seems to have been made redundant.

High frequency is the new god of popular music it seems. Electronically altered vocalists rule the roost and deep tones have been banished. The bleed from cheap headphones is a buzzing wasp. The cars that blare music loudly (and it seems a self evident rule the volume of said music is commensurate with the lack in quality) produce the sound of a factory lathe at 78 rpm and Bass is the casualty of modern popular music.

Pop music is and has always been important and is in no way the poor man of music; look at its contribution to all sorts of things from politics to racism. It's just that now Popular music  lacks depth both musically and metaphorically it seems less important than it has ever been, and it is like those pesky wasps in the summer; irritating and pointless 

SLOW TV FOR DANGEROUS DAYS

Reality TV? awful isn't it?. The thing is that reality TV morphed into a scripted pseudo reality, a route for civilians to become Z List Celebrities. The real reality is documentary in form and there are many excellent examples being made on all platforms.

What Reality TV, in essence, is now Art & Craft TV. From The Pottery Showdown to the Repair Shop via Masterchef we are now entertained by people being creative with their hands; now there's a concept for you. Jeff Ross and his Painting is an oasis of calm that has been rediscovered and is an antidote to the manufactured drama of the fare on ITV2 and The Reality Channels. George Clarke and his  Amazing Spaces features diverse people using their imagination as does Escape To The Chateau and they share an enthusiasm for working with ones hands.

Easy to be cynical about this new Art & Craft TV movement, and of course, there's money being made, but what's inescapable is that these programmes show us people actually making stuff.

This renaissance reminds me of Vision On, Out Of Town and How, of Jack Hargreaves, Tony Hart and Fred Dineage. These shows represent simpler times in challenging times and I find most of them highly therapeutic. 

PUNK THOUGHTS

 

Was the punk scene/movement the last dance of youthful rebellion? given what came after, it may well have been the last movement that had a major influence on youth culture.

In it's wake came post punk, The Madchester scene, rave culture, Two Tone, Rock Against Racism, Girl Power, New Romantics and a "Punk" aesthetic that is used to refer to a number of things in popular culture.

Cynics say it was a manufactured performance art piece, but lets make a distinction. I'm not talking about the artistic pretentions of the Warhol influenced New York scene of Johnny Thunders, Tom Veraline, Patti Smith, Richard Hell, CBGBs and Max's Kansas. I am referring to the UK Scene.

My view is that the essential Punk band was The Sex Pistols, who in turn influenced the loosely connected likes of the Buzzcocks, The Clash, The Adverts, Generation X, Siouxsie And The Banshees, X-Ray Spex and the Damned. Yes, there were many bands that took the Ramones style as their blueprint but these acts were short lived.  If you look at some of the members of the audience present at The Pistols 1976 gigs at Manchester's Lesser Trade Hall you will see a some of the movers and shakers of what was to come.

The Sex Pistols were the light that burned twice as bright but lasted half as long. From their formation in 1975 there are many that say that it was all over by December 1976, despite the Barnstorming God Save The Queen, the Poptastically subversive Pretty Vacant and the generational touchstone of Never Mind The Bollocks being released in 1977.

Certainly with Glen Matlock's departure and the replacement of him by Sid Vicious the writing was on the wall.

What those who weren't around at the time maybe miss out on is the sheer exhilaration, excitement and power of the Sex Pistols in mid Seventies Britain. Being a teenager and hearing the Sex Pistols was inspiring and felt like something unique to us. There were those whose main criticism was that they couldn't play, or that they were yobs and enemies of the state. When you're a teenager those claims are heard with glee. Rock 'n' Roll is meant to be dangerous, teenagers love such thoughts. The look was great as well in those earlier days before the stereotypical Punk uniform and Jamie Reid's Sex Pistols artwork captured the mood perfectly.

The Clash are often given more love and it's easy to see why, but they had time to develop and expand. The Pistols were an explosion.

So many of the things that spoke to young people post '77 were based on the do it yourself idea, the ambition of youth regardless of background. This is the legacy.

The likes of PiL, The Cure, Joy Divsion and XTC have made some of the most interesting music to be produced in the UK and they owe much to Punk. The three minute thrash brigade were never going to have longevity and satellite bands that were 'Punk by association' were able to push careers forward.I won't go into the whole 'sell out' argument, after all music is a business, but there were many bands that didn't go mainstream and stayed as independent entities, Crass for example. The 'sell out' argument has always been used as a lazy way to complain about artists making a living. Most of the bands I mentioned have had pretty long careers and produced the music that they wanted to.

Like a lot of moments in time it's hard to cast an eye if you weren't there, but if you were in the right place at the right time back then it was a glorious time.

MARVELLOUS!

 

"Make Mine Marvel!" that was my comic book motto growing up. In these days of multiple comic book movie blockbusters featuring rampaging CGI and multi strand marketing opportunities I still refer back to the glory days of Marvel Comics where character development, unique art and the birth of defining characters was the motivator for my habit. I still have rose tinted spectacles when it comes to Marvel Comics.

When the films first came out it took me ages to get over the fact that I was finally seeing these characters, that I had grown up with, in the flesh as it were. The casting of these films has, by and large, been great and they have mostly managed to capture some of the original Marvel spirit but clearly a major influence is the Ultimates line that reinvented the Marvel universe for the modern era.

But back to basics. I loved the old Marvel comics, they were a fun but serious they were the Star Trek to DC's Star Wars. So many touchstones from that era that knitted this universe together. The fact that most stories happened in New York and other real cities. The Baxter Building, Yancy Street, Dr Strange's Sanctum Santorum, Avengers Mansion, Daredevil's Hell's Kitchen, The Offices of The Daily Bugle; these places felt real. 

"Avengers Assemble!" , "Flame On!", "By The Hoary Host Of Hoggoth", "It's Clobberin' Time!", "Imperious Rex!", "For Asgard!", "Hulk Smash!", these and many more were the exclamations that punctuated the action and added to each characters personality.

Every hero needs a nemesis and many and varied were the antagonists that kept popping up to try and thwart our heroes. Dr Doom, J.Jonah Jameson, Kang The Conqueror, The Skrulls, Doctor Octopus, Kingpin, Namor, Mephisto, Magneto, Elektra, Electro, Mysterio. These are some of the names amongst the plethora of villains we were introduced to.

Great writing from the likes of Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Gerry Conway and Len Wein was complimented by the outstanding artwork of Stan Lee, Steve Ditko, Gene Colan, John Buscema, Herb Trimpe, Marie Severin, Gil Kane, Neal Adams, Barry Smith, Jim Steranko and a host of impressive draftsmen and women.

I guess that ones formative years are defined by the interests we have and one of mine (and still is) was Comics and Marvel comics in particular. They gave me stories of Drama, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Love, Intrigue and much more. Those comics helped me to enjoy reading and escape from my reality which at that time was something of real value.

Marvel comics will always be a major part of my growing up, and remain an interest, as important a part of popular culture as Cinema, Popular Music and Television  and those that can't see that are missing out in my view.

Thanks Marvel. Nuff Said

A 2020 CINEMA REVIEW

 

Yes, I did manage to get to the cinema in 2020 and for the most part my visits were successful. Some were spent in near empty independent cinemas amongst face mask wearing patrons and some were in new chain cinema's that had undergone face lifts. I ventured to the BFI iMax and the Prince Charles as well as my regular trips to various Everyman cinemas and Picturehouses. I am focusing on films seen at the cinema so here are my reflections on my big screen experiences last year.

• 1917 - Technically interesting but lacked personality
• The Gentlemen- Richie doing what he's best at. Witty and easily digestible
• Jojo Rabbit-A good film this, not wilfully quirky like a Wes Anderson film, more like a dark humoured Tin Drum
• Uncut Gems- Excellent, anxiety inducing tale of greed
• The Personal History Of David Copperfield- Dickens seen through a prism. A warm rendition of a classic tale
• The Holy Mountain-Seeing is believing. There is no film like Jodorowsky's The Holy Mountain. Needs to be seen with an audience and an open mind. Truly unique
• Queen & Slim-I am a big fan of the 'Lovers On The Lam" genre and this entry stands up well. A promising Director at play here.
• Bombshell- Great performances from the three female leads in this timely story ripped from the headlines.
• Parasite-Having seen it in 2019 on a flight to The Turks and Caicos i was keen to see it on the big screen. As good as the hype suggests and on a personal note I am so happy that Korean cinema finally found popular acclaim with this film, seeing as I have been banging on about it for two decades.
• The Invisible Man-Very good, better than expected. The original film 1933 version of H.G Well's classic is one of my favourites so it was good to see this modern take.
• Greed- A pretty much overlooked film starring Steve Coogan as a Peter Green type. Had some very good moments but lacked something.
• Dark Waters- A story of corporate greed told well.
• Calm With Horses- My pick of the year. great performances all round but particularly outstanding is Cosmo Jarvis. Bleak and profound, darkly tragic. Recommended
• Saint Frances-Terrific film about female relationships, growing up and independence.
• Tenet-Strong contender. Visually and sonically marvellous. Seemed to have a backlash before it was even released, which is strange. For those of us who had missed the cinema during the lockdown this was a great cinematic experience. I fear that much will be lost when viewed on the small screen.
• Saint Maud-Superb modern horror with a strong lead performance. It's mixture of the mundane and the gothic is perfectly pitched.
• Pixie- An Irish caper movie with a sense of mischief. Twisty and turny with heart.
• Akira-Seeing Akira at the BFI iMax really is an experience. This film has stood the test of time and in anime terms is hard to beat. Still original, thrilling and thought provoking 
• Mank- Good but left me feeling somewhat short changed
• Falling- Family life with it's ups and downs captured marvellously with a great turn from a cantankerous  Lance Henriksen.

As I said I have seen many films on Netflix and Amazon and perhaps this year I will keep a record. But my favourite of those streamed films  was Brandon Cronenberg's Possessor a surreal body horror thriller that leaves a lasting impression

As for this year, hopefully it won't be long until I can venture back into the magic of a dark auditorium and see some more films the way  they are meant to be seen.