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Hatched (2021)
Old idea, poorly executed
OK, I liked the fact that it appeared to be set in Britain and was set in an English country house like the old 1970s Tom Baker Doctor Who episodes, where alien invasions never got beyond the main gates. But that is as far as it goes.
The CGI was low budget, but serviceable in places. The storyline and dialogue was nonsensical throughout. Virtually nothing made sense. Why do people not run when they see a dinosaur, or even close a door? Why did the Police send the army? Why did the army shoot and kill one of our heroes for no good reason? Why could they not find their 'jeeps'? Why is the little girl called 'Mark'?
The film has all the cliches. A car that won't start (randomly, when it was actually driving!). A lady who gets her foot stuck in a branch whilst running through a forest and can't get it out. How many times has that happened to you?
The acting ranged from amateur dramatics to downright awful. Prize for the worst performance goes to Nicole Nabi. She barely uttered a convincing word, and I found her performance so bad it was comical. Did somebody really think she could act?
I could go on with the inconsistencies, but it isn't worth it. You'll get the idea.
Oh yes, and eventhe ending makes no sense. And I don't mean three eggs appearing when one had been removed. I mean that you don't show eggs hatching at the end of a film unless you have killed off the dinosaurs. It simply is not a shock ending when all the dinosaurs are still running around!
A Haunting at the Rectory (2015)
Abysmal movie.
This film has multiple issues.
Firstly the idea that it is a horror film. It is actually a period drama about a love triangle. Random horror moments are interspersed in the film that have nothing to do with the plot and are never in any way explained. It is literally a love story which pauses every so often to have a so-called horror moment, then just continues as if the moment didn't happen. It really just beggars belief.
Then there is the acting. The guy playing the handyman is stilted, with an accent I can't place. The actor playing the reverend is completely wooden and just not believable. Amateur dramatics is the best description. The female actress is the best of the three and I cannot work out if her poor performance is a result of the bad script and direction or because she is not a good actress. She is the only one of the three that I give the benefit of the doubt to.
The direction, lighting, effects (what there are of them) and storyline are all terrible. This film cannot use the excuse of being "low budget" because there are some remarkably good low budget films. This film is either made by people who don't care or who are trying but do not have the abilities to make a film that is vaguely professional.
A completely amateurish and misleadingly marketed film. Avoid.
Now Voyager (1985)
Unusual fantasy film accompanying Barry Gibb album
This is a really unusal musical experiment. Music videos had taken off by the early 1980s and Barry Gibb, who had embraced music videos as a member of British band the Bee Gees very early in the development of the genre, decided to take a different direction, by creating music videos for 9 of the 11 songs on his Now Voyager album. Linking the songs together in a dramatic and unsettling narrative, this is nothing short of intriguing. The storyline goes that Barry Gibb is a selfish guy whose life is fast paced and he has no time for anybody. When his car careers off a bridge into a river, Gibb is taken to a surreal world, where Michael Hordern gives him various lessons in life. To say any more would spoil the story.
Whilst the film is somewhat uneven, it is a great showcase for Barry's music. And the videos and linking sections are imaginative, well produced, and feature some well-known actors, such as Maryam d'Abo.
It is a shame that the album and video did not do well commercially, as it really broke new ground, both musically and with its merging of pop videos into a film narrative. Oddly, Barry had great success in the years immediately before this project, writing and producing complete albums for some of music's biggest names. He would, of course, continue with great success after releasing Now Voyager, both as a writer and producer of albums for other artists and as a mamber of the Bee Gees, who would continue to record albums until the death of Maurice Gibb in 2003. Barry would also have a late-career resurgence as a solo artist, with his albums topping the charts around the world, so he eventually succeeded in what he set out to achievewith this project, but it took him almost 35 years to achieve really big commercial success as a solo artist.
If anybody has an interest in Barry, the Bee Gees, the development of the music video, or just wants a trip to a fantasy world where nothing is what it seems, this is a great way to spend an hour or so.
Coasting (1990)
One of the best TV dramas
Conceived as a replacement to Minder when Dennis Waterman left, and produced by Minder's former executive producer Verity Lambert (of Doctor Who fame), this is an exceptionally well put together series. Brilliantly written, with some genuinely moving story lines, it was actually well ahead of Minder of this period in terms of script quality, and on a par in production quality. It was helped no end by some very engaging leads, particularly James Purefoy, who had his TV debut here, and Sandy Hendrickse (The Office) as the love interest.
It also benefited from its Blackpool locations, which made it stand out from the crowd.
Sadly there was only one season of this excellent comedy drama, and it has never been repeated on terrestrial TV. It did get a repeat on satellite channel Granada Plus in the 1990s, but this can be ignored as it was heavily edited. In fact, in episode 3, they actually edited out a key scene which made the denouement meaningless!
I hope this can be repeated or released on DVD (but not the Granada Plus version!!!).