Collision (2009)

A very compelling series from Anthony Horowitz, the man who created Foyle's War. It follows two investigators that are trying to piece together what happened in a multiple car pileup on the A12 south of London. The show jumps around chronologically to show what the participants in the crash were doing immediately prior to and in the days following the crash. Not surprisingly, many of the crash-survivors were up to no good. Some of it strains credibility, but the acting is terrific and I cannot wait for the conclusion this Sunday.

The Prisoner (2009)

I reviewed this pretty-lame series for Slant Magazine. Check out my review here.

Poetry Monday: We Met at the End of the Party

An autumnal poem from my favorite poet:

We Met at the End of the Party

We met at the end of the party
When most of the drinks were dead
And all the glasses dirty:
“Have this that’s left,” you said.
We walked through the last of summer,
When shadows reached long and blue
Across days that were growing shorter:
You said: “There’s autumn too.”
Always for you what’s finished
Is nothing, and what survives
Cancels the failed, the famished,
As if we had fresh lives
From that night on, and just living
Could make me unaware
Of June, and the guests arriving,
And I not there.

-- Philip Larkin

Mogambo (1953)

I saw this as a teenager and it had a big impact on me. Probably because Clark Gable got to choose between Grace Kelly and Ava Gardner. Caught this again last night and it held up. It's not one of John Ford's best movies but it's really good. A solid character drama with great scenery of Africa (some of the stock images make it seem pretty dated), and I am totally in love with the character of Honey Bear Kelly as played by Gardner. She's an incredibly multi-faceted woman: sophisticated, childish, warm-hearted, bitchy, and she makes it all work. She also wears pearls on safari.

Pirate Radio (2009)

Three-quarters of a very funny, rollicking comedy, then one-quarter of crap. Reminds me of just about every Richard Curtis movie. Still, I'll keep going because the good parts are v. v. good. There are about seven hilarious characters in this film. Personal favorites: Bill Nighy, brilliant as always, and Rhys Darby as the least popular DJ on the boat. Oh, and Nick Frost was great, and Kennneth Branagh showed how good he is at comedy, again. I could go on and on.

Ten Best Lobby Cards

They don't make lobby cards anymore, which is probably fine. They were principally a way to show certain scenes from the movie on the theatre-wall, and now the internet can do that. Here at my ten favorites--most are title cards, but some show specific moments from the film they were advertising.

Hunger (2008)

A very good performance from Michael Fassbender as IRA hunger-striker Bobby Sands in a movie that was an ordeal to sit through. It was made by an artist--Steve McQueen--who worked awfully hard to be unconventional. Sometimes it worked, especially the way that visuals stood in for words, and sometimes I just wanted to be told what was going on. Michael Fassbender looked like he came pretty close to starving himself to death for the role.