Melissa George is the Australian actress that will play Margaux in the movie.

Can you see it?

Melissa George

]]> http://poursomegravyonme.co.uk/2009/11/12/in-treatment-week-5/ Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:41:17 +0000 sherby57 http://poursomegravyonme.co.uk/2009/11/12/in-treatment-week-5/

I’ve not written about In Treatment since the first week, so it’s time I wrote a catch up post.  I was inspired to do this when I left a 400 word comment on Unpopcult’s review of week 5 and I thought it would be a waste not to try and turn it in to a post.

In Treatment is a 5-nights-a week, HBO drama currently airing in the UK on Sky Arts 1.  The most recent complete week that I’ve seen was Week 5, so that’s what I’m going to concentrate on.  The series centres around therapist Dr Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne) and his relations with his clients.  Each night of the week features a different patient.

To begin with, each plot strand seemed to be unrelated, but, as time has gone on, they have slowly become entwined.  Considering that it mainly consists of some people talking in a room it’s an incredibly gripping, and, at times, exciting series.

With so many episodes, the quality inevitably varies, although they maintain an overall high standard.  The emphasis in each strand shifts, week by week, in order to tell a long novelistic story and, quite often, last week’s strongest strand becomes the weakest, and vice versa.

Monday – Laura (Melissa George)

Laura has become the central focus to the series.  It started with her confessing her love for Paul (known as erotic transference in the trade), but, as the weeks passed, we also learned Paul is actually in love with her too.  It’s not entirely clear why Paul is in love with Laura – sure, she’s 25 years his junior, gorgeous and keeps telling him how much she wants to have sex with him – but doesn’t Paul want more than that?  Facetiousness aside, they’ve not made the reasons clear why Paul has completely lost his head over her.  There are some clues, such as the disintegration of his marriage, but, so far, Laura hasn’t proved to be that lovable.  In his own therapy session, the previous week, Paul did say how intelligent, funny, good story-teller etc etc that Laura was, but that hasn’t really come across in the sessions that we’ve seen with her.   The series is incredibly layered and subtle, so I’m sure that my concerns will be addressed before too long.

Tuesday – Alex (Blair Underwood)

Alex started as a bullish fighter-pilot struggling to deal with having killed civilians, but, with the on-set of an affair with Laura, the strand has taken on a darker edge.  This week’s episode was very powerful as Alex pushed Paul to breaking point by revealing that he had been spying on him and divulging details of his wife’s affair.  I did find it all  kind of strange though (perhaps it was supposed to seem that way).  Alex was definitely very creepy, and seemed almost possessed, but part of me just didn’t believe that he would really have dug up all that information.  I’m hoping that this week will shine a bit more light on it all.

Wednesday – Sophie (Mia Wasikowska)

Sophie’s strand seems to be the least connected to the others, but it is no worse for that.  I do wonder if her story will eventually link to all the others or if it will continue to be stand-alone.  Either way, Mia Wasikowska is exceptional in the role and her rapport with Gabriel Byrne is a joy to behold.  I guess what it brings to the overall picture is that it shows Paul at his most caring when he can at other times seem a bit cold.

Thursday – Jake and Amy (Josh Charles & Embeth Davidtz)

Thursdays have always felt a little bit like filler on In Treatment and Jake & Amy, a husband and wife undergoing couples therapy, have never quite rung true.  Like Sophie their story isn’t tied directly to the overall plot, but you can draw parallels between their marriage and Paul’s own troubled one.   The plot really picked up this week and, in something of a reversal, we saw Amy become very unemotional while Jake showed his true desperation to save their marriage.  It was actually very moving and they both finally seemed like real people.

Friday – Gina (Dianne Wiest)

Friday’s episodes are especially fascinating as Paul visits his own therapist Gina.  Their relationship is quite complicated and there is past bad blood between them.  This means that there is so much smoke and mirrors in their conversations that it’s difficult to know exactly what they are really saying to each other.  We see first hand that Paul blatantly lies when recounting some events and so it brings in to question everything that is said by every character in the series.

This week they were joined by Kate, Paul’s wife, who has recently admitted to having an affair.  Despite stating that they were already blurring the lines of acceptable behaviour for therapy, Gina brought up Laura and made Paul explain the situation.  Did she do this as a good piece of therapy or in order to get one over on Paul?  The other big theme in this episode was the comparison between Kate’s physical betrayal and Paul’s emotional one.  Kate was allowed to be very indignant about Paul’s feelings for Laura, but it’s hard to feel too sorry for her considering she’s just come back from a holiday with another man.  I felt that, to an extent, they were allowing Kate to take the moral high ground and it didn’t really wash with me.  Everything seems to have fallen apart for Paul and I’m intrigued to see where the series goes next.

In Treatment is the rarest of beasts – a complex, adult drama serial.  My only criticism is that having  five episodes every week is forcing me to be very creative when managing my Sky planner.

Melissa George, famosa por estrelar séries como ‘Alias’ e ‘In Treatment’ – as duas personagens, coincidentemente, se chamavam Laura -, vai participar de pelo menos dois episódios de ‘Lie to Me’ da Fox.

George interpretará Clara Martin, a esposa jovem de um bilionário assassinado. Após ser exonerada do crime, ela toma controle de todo o dinheiro do falecido.

A primeira participação da atriz será no décimo primeiro episódio, ainda sem data de exibição programada.

Here is Kiele Sanchez as Stella Oleson (Melissa George in the first film) looking bloody and holding a big knife.

AICN had the photo from the sequel. No vampires in sight so far, but at least there is no snow.

Earlier this month saw the release of Triangle, a Christopher Smith directed thriller starring Melissa George, for which we designed the titles. Still showing at cinemas across the country, catch it while you can!

Coming up November 16th is Harry Brown, starring Michael Caine. We worked closely with director Daniel Barber, on both front and end title design- (no roller!). A really (small &) simple idea which works beautifully on the big screen.

Barrow es un pequeño pueblo al norte de Alaska, donde el sol no se pone durante la friolera de un mes, haciendo del lugar un restaurante de comida rápida para la plaga de vampiros que merodea por los alrededores. Éste es el prometedor punto de partida de “30 days of night“, película que comparte título en castellano (de ahí el cambio) con la curiosa “Frostbitten”.

“30 días de oscuridad” está inspirada en el cómic de Steve Niles y parecía ser una digna película de vampiros, muy por encima de lo que viene produciendo Sam Raimi (me remito a “Boogeyman” o “El grito”) últimamente. Pero, a pesar de que los tres son copulativos: ser, estar y parecer son verbos muy distintos entre sí. Resulta intrigante que el director David Slade pase de hacer algo tan interesante como “Hard Candy”, que apela al terror psicológico sin necesidad de derramar una gota de sangre, a esta hemorragia de escenas gratuitas y salpicada de sustos fáciles. Supongo que la pela es la pela.

Vale que son ideas diferentes y, por extensión, también lo es su planteamiento, sin embargo, no deja de tener coña adivinar que la trituradora que vemos al principio está puesta ahí a caso hecho, porque alguien tiene que acabar dentro obligatoriamente. Slade pone las cartas sobre la mesa, apoyándose en una fotografía que es lo más destacable del film, y logra mantener el ritmo hasta bien entrado el segundo acto, el cual no tarda en tomar los derroteros propios de un survival, explorado ya en infinidad de cintas habitualmente regentadas por muertos vivientes.

Como adaptación, es bastante fidedigna y suprime alguna que otra subtrama innecesaria, dotando a la pareja principal de mayor dimensión que en las viñetas. El guaperas Josh Hartnett cumple de sobras, aunque no termina de dar el perfil de sheriff, y Melissa George se está labrando toda una carrera dentro del género tras “Turistas” y “La morada del miedo“. Los chupasangres capitaneados por Danny Huston no salen mucho mejor parados y me atrevería a decir que los dibujados por Ben Templesmith son más carismáticos, pese a que el maquillaje está tan logrado que incluso tenemos a la réplica femenina de Marilyn Manson. Los demás personajes aparecen y desaparecen a su antojo, como en el caso del compañero de Hartnett, al igual que el tiempo pasa de cualquier manera. Me hubiese gustado ver al abuelo después de los créditos, preguntando por su esposa, a lo “Jóvenes ocultos”.

Por desgracia, el sentido del humor no abunda en los gélidos parajes de Barrow. Otra de tantas películas que pudieron haber sido y no fueron.

16ª Participación para el concurso del DVD de Payasos Asesinos (Killer Klowns from Outer Space), reseña escrita por Manu Riquelme.

Starring: Melissa George, Michael Dorman, Liam Hemsworth, Rachael Carpani, Henry Nixon

Director: Christopher Smith

Writer: Christopher Smith

Cinematography: Robert Humphreys

Original Score: Christian Henson

Running Time: 99 Mins.

You will be unsurprised to learn that Triangle derives its title from the bermuda triangle, that legendary area of the ocean where many ships have been lost and strange occurances have…occured! Given Triangle features both a capsized yacht amidst a storm and a ghostly looking cruise liner that drifts into the stranded group of largely unknown, bar “star” Melissa George, actors path’s the similarities to such legend only appear to grow. But, like the film as a whole, the refernces are never made clear. Is this supposed to be what happens in the Bermuda Triangle? We never know because the infamous area itself is nevermentioned, that the yacht the group set sail on is called the Triangle is seemingly significant at first and then at once it is never explained either.

Make no mistake I do not expect every plot point sign-posted for me, heck, if every film did so we would experience a endless flurry of boring and obvious films, but if you write a script that wants to be as prolific as Memento, Fight Club or The Sixth Sense (which it is apparent Traingle aims to follow in the footsteps of) your pay of of concept must make sense upon the denouement, otherwise all that has come before is proven largely a total waste of time. Which is sadly what director Christopher Smith has achieved. 

His third feature following the gruesome yet tightly plotted Severence and Creep, Triangle proves his undoing, there is no escaping the blame for Smith both directed and wrote this dross. It starts intruguingly enough, with ex Home & Away actress Melissa George proving an excellent choice given that she looks stunning, yet possesses enough acting talent to convey the look of utter confusion the plot requires at times and the knowing flipside to that. Essentially she is required to take on a trio of roles, but not, now I would obviously refrain from spoilers in reviews but given none of it makes sense in the end it really doesn’t matter.

With the director’s past form in mind, it is to his credit that he has chosen to tackle something a little more cerebral, there is very little violence to be found for the gore-hounds expecting something akin to his previous work and there are no cheap shocks, the flip-side of this means the pace is very slow-burning, not a lot happens. While I was admittedly gripped in the first half hour during the build up, I found myself bored in the med-section and wishing for a pay-off that would make all the plodding plotting and elaborate set-up worthwhile, but alas while some ends are tied up, the overall feeling I was left with was not so much, was that it? But more what was that all for?

VERDICT

Traingle is a somewhat brave attempt at something more cerebral for director Smith, an intriguing opening that eventually loses any goodwill I had for all that follows and crucially  failing to put across the killer payoff it so badly needed.

“You enter a place you have never been, everything you see you have seen before”.

Triangle starring Melissa George best known for here part as Angel in Home and Away during the 1990’s is one of those films where all the best bits are shown in the trailer and the trailer would be good enough for the average viewer.

October is a time where it doesn’t take much to make a horror movie do well. But Triangle needed just that bit more put into it.  A bunch of friends go on a boat trip, during a story their boat sinks, they board an abandoned ship. They die. That’s it!

The film tells the all time message that no matter what you do you cannot change the past. That is the only way to describe the extremely repetitive drama.

If you are expecting to be on the edge of your seats and covering your eyes to hide images of a serial killer then you are not going to the right movie.

George is possibly the best known of the small cast and puts up a good performance. From the moment her character appears you can tell something is just not quite right. Appearing distant and depressed her character gives you the sense that something’s up. However this act continues throughout the film and by the end becomes very irritating and I just wanted to shake her to get some life into her.

Other cast members include Emma Lung as Heather, Rachel Carpani as Sally and Michael Dorman as Greg non of whom bring much to the movie.

There are times when you think how stupid can people be, boarding a ship where no one is onboard. This however makes you think something good will come. Perhaps a troop of pirates will hack them all up and eat them for supper. Right? No think again!

There are times in this movie where you may be tempted to leave the theatre. If this happens do not give it a second thought. If you leave you will miss nothing other than the repetitiveness of the scenes being replayed over and over.

Overall verdict – extremely disappointing.

On the job with Ellen Dubin as Jeri Slate in The Collector. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

She has helped expose alien conspiracies, risked her life to battle forest fires and even reigned as the Pope, all fictionally, of course. So who better than actress Ellen Dubin to take on the forces of darkness in the Canadian-made supernatural TV drama The Collector. As reporter Jeri Slate, she takes a keen interest in Morgan Pym, a onetime German monk who, centuries ago, made a deal with The Devil to collect the souls of others in exchange for 10 years with his one true love. In the present day, he spends 48 hours with each of his employer’s intended “victims,” helping them seek redemption. If they fail to do so, that person’s soul ends up going to Hell. Coincidentally, it was Dubin’s work in another Sci-Fi/Fantasy series that helped her get the role of Jeri Slate.

“I’d done a guest-spot on an episode of a show called First Wave, and the producer of that, Larry Sugar, also produced The Collector,” says the actress. “He remembered my ‘quiet strength,’ I think is what he said, from that episode, so when I read for The Collector I sort of had a leg up already because of that performance. You never know when one Sci-Fi show will lead to another one. I was doing a TV movie-of-the-week playing a firefighter and I auditioned for the Jeri Slate role during my lunch hour. I went in with soot and dirt all over my face and wearing a firefighter-type outfit. Larry asked me to do a crying scene for him, so I did, and then I left and subsequently ended up booking the job.

“Sometimes I guess it helps when you’re working on one project and you audition for another one because you don’t have time to think or get nervous or stressed out. My only worry was about making it back on time to shoot my first scene for this movie-of-the-week.”

Behind-the-scenes with The Collector's Chris Kramer (Morgan Pym) and Ellen Dubin. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

The actress makes her debut in The Collector in the first season opener, The Rapper, in which Morgan (Chris Kramer) must convince his client, a rap star (Adrian Holmes), that his past 10 years of success carries a steep price tag. Besides being a print journalist, Jeri Slate is also a widow and the single parent of an autistic son, Gabriel (Aidan Drummond). Juggling her character’s personal and professional lives provided Dubin with a variety of acting challenges.

“A number of my character’s scenes were done talking on the telephone, and those are always challenging when you have to do a lot of solo acting,” she notes. “I also worked a great deal with Aidan Drummond, a wonderful young actor who played Jeri’s son. I watched him grow from six years old to eight, and while I obviously couldn’t replace his real mom, I became his on-set mom. I’m not a parent in real life, but I am quite maternal, so I always felt very protective of Aidan and I think it came across in our work. He has a great sense of humor and the two of us humored each other,” jokes Dubin.

“In our first episode there was so much excitement with the cast and crew as far as starting something fresh. There’s the rush of adrenaline that carries you through the work of meeting new people and creating onscreen chemistry as well as relationships with characters, some that you’ve supposedly known for a long time. The first scene we shot was outside and it was one of those walks and talks that you see on many TV shows. I just recall being so nervous about making sure I could remember my lines and walk and talk at the same time,” laughs the actress.

A family portrait - Jeri and her son Gabriel (Aiden Drummond). Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

“If I’m not mistaken, we didn’t actually shoot the episode that aired first. We did, I believe, either episode three or six, and by doing that, you get to create a certain tone. So by the time you shoot episode one, viewers watch it and go, ‘Oh, OK, they [the characters] sort of have their sea-legs already.’ So I think that was such a smart thing for the producers to do.”

Having been around for a while, Morgan knows how to handle himself when people start asking questions about him and his otherworldly dealings. At the same time, Jeri Slate is certainly no cub reporter and is determined to unravel the mystery surrounding him. This creates an interesting dynamic between the two.

“My character and Chris Kramer’s are caught up in a game of cat and mouse,” explains Dubin. “The audience doesn’t know exactly what their relationship is, and I still get letters asking, ‘Were they lovers, or did they hate one another?’ They weren’t lovers, but sometimes in a show where your characters are adversarial, it comes across as sensual and sexual because of the tension between them. In The Collector, though, it wasn’t meant to be that way at all because there were other women in the show that were Morgan’s love interests.

Ellen Dubin, Aidan Drummond and Chris Kramer. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

“Having said that, I find playing adversarial roles fascinating, and it just sort of happened with me and Chris. We both have a mischievous quality to our acting, which sparked our onscreen chemistry, and I think audiences responded to that. They seemed to enjoy watching our characters hitting that [proverbial] ball back and forth over the net. There’s a mystery to that relationship, and one that is intrinsic to the show’s overall plot. What’s with these two? Are they linked to the past? Is she reading his mind? Is he reading her mind? What do they truly know about each other? The fact that it wasn’t black and white between Jeri and Morgan is what really contributed to the viewers liking to see them together.”

When asked if she has a favorite episode from the first season of The Collector, one immediately comes to Dubin’s mind. “It’s The Medium, directed by Holly Dale and guest-starring Teryl Rothery [Dr. Janet Fraiser] from Stargate SG-1,” she says. “Teryl plays a medium and the story focuses a lot on peoples’ deaths and connections to the past. I thought it was really well-done, especially with regard to what other people yearned for and their lost loves as well as Jeri’s dead husband Danny’s relationship with their child. You actually saw some of my character’s vulnerability when she’s looking at old pictures of her husband, played by Andrew Jackson, and, again, the audience is wondering what’s up with him and Gabriel. Chris Kramer and I also have a neat confrontational scene about the supernatural in that episode, so it’s definitely my favorite.”

After months of trying to figure out just who Morgan Pym is, Jeri Slate’s curiosity about him intensifies, and understandably so, in the second season of The Collector. “Every time Morgan is in the room something weird happens,” notes Dubin, “so the hairs on the back of my character’s neck are on end and you begin to see the relationship between the two of them further develop. She’s starting to get close to the truth that something is not right with him and that we’re dealing with darker issues in terms of the supernatural. Jeri doesn’t know if it’s The Devil, Hell or what exactly; she can’t put her finger on it.

Jeri Slate follows up another lead on just who Morgan Pym really is. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

“The relationship between Jeri and her little boy changes as well in the second season. Gabriel is becoming a little bit undone. He’s autistic, but that doesn’t have anything to do with it. You see him spending a lot of time alone looking thorough his mother’s papers and old newspaper clippings. Gabriel is doing some odd things that most kids wouldn’t be doing, unless they were ‘possessed.’ As a result of all this, Jeri is becoming undone, too. She’s a strong woman in terms of knowing what she wants and going after it, but she begins acting a little nutty. Jeri starts to neglect her motherly duties and becomes possessed – excuse the pun – pretty much 24/7 by what’s going on with Morgan.”

The game of cat and mouse between Jeri and Morgan takes on a new dimension in season two’s The Campaign Manager, which presented Dubin with the opportunity to really sink her teeth into the story. “First of all, the episode was challenging because a good portion of it was filmed outside and we were dealing with weather issues,” recalls the actress.

“In this story I’m constantly chasing Chris Kramer’s character and getting very close to the fact that there’s something really not right with this man. Jeri is starting to realize that Morgan may have ties to The Devil, and the two of them have this long and slippery chase scene during a cold and rainy Vancouver day. It’s a very interesting story about politics as well as religion and what people will do to make that deal with The Devil and have a fabulous life for 10 years before things start to become undone.

A shot from "The Campaign Manager." Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

“So everyone is going a little crazy, and the episode was an important one for me because I was nominated for a Canadian Gemini award, which is the equivalent of a U.S. Emmy. My character has a big emotional story arc from absolute sorrow to, ‘I’ve got to get to the bottom of this.’ Jeri becomes very driven and will stop at nothing to get to the truth that she’s been searching for.”

Although her character’s story arc came to an end in season two of The Collector, Dubin went on to appear in the show’s third and final year. “You see me playing versions of my character in a kind of virtual reality flashback episode,” she says. “Then I play another major character in season three. It’s actually quite brilliant on the parts of Jon Cooksey and Ali Matheson [series creators/writers/executive producers] as well as the other producers of the show when it comes to what they wrote for me in season three. Just when you think it’s all over, it’s not.

“I like eclectic, offbeat types of stories and in this case they made really good use of my talents. I mean, yes, this is a supernatural drama, but there is also a Law & Order quality to my character in terms of her being real. Jeri is not whacked-out and over-the-top. This is a very real woman experiencing real situations and being a single mother in a real world, even though supernatural things are occurring. But in season three you see a different edge to her and in some cases a more comedic side, too.”

Jeri and her son Gabriel share a quiet moment. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

The Collector may have ended production, but thanks to it being aired in 65 countries, Dubin still receives fan mail about her work in it. “I hear from fans in places like Serbia, China, Japan, there’s even a Russian fan club for the show,” enthuses the actress. “Some people don’t know it was cancelled, so they ask me about season four and what’s going on with my character. I like having fans in other countries because it reminds you of the power of television. It’s not just a North American thing. It’s wonderful to hear different viewpoints, and yet there are a lot of universal aspects of the show that appeal to everyone.”

Like her Jeri Slate character, Dubin does not like to sit still for very long when it comes to her work. The actress recently completed shooting another TV movie-of-the-week, Second Chances (a.k.a. Lesson of Fear), starring opposite Melissa George (Alias), and is about to start filming a new web-based series called The Resolve. Dubin also just finished doing voiceovers for a major video war game in which she plays multiple roles.

“There are some great women characters in this game, and I modelled two of mine after Eartha Kitt and Julie Newmar [Catwoman] in the old Batman TV series and gave them a purr-like quality,” she says. “They’re members of this tribe, and the other voice I did was closer to Cate Blanchett’s character [Galadriel] from The Lord of the Rings. So I went from a sort of dark and sexy purr to more of an ethereal, dreamy, mysterious type of character.

Ellen Dubin is all decked out for the Gemini Awards. Photo copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc.

“It was a real privilege to work on something like this. It’s a big game and my first foray into the world of voiceovers for video games. It’s a very tough market to break into in Los Angeles, so I was thrilled to be a part of it and I look forward to being able to talk about the game when it comes out in 2011. So I’ve recently had the chance to play three very different women, all of whom are strong ladies in their own right, which is pretty cool.”

Season two of The Collector was released earlier this week in Canada (Region 1 – US compatible) and can be ordered on-line from Amazon.ca. It can also be purchased at the Canadian branches of the following retail outlets – Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Future Shop, HMV, Indigo and London Drugs.

Steve Eramo

As noted above, all photos courtesy of and copyright of Wanstrom and Assoc., so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

30 Days of Night (2007)

30 Days of Night, superficially a horror film but truly an action/suspense to the bone, is based on an outstanding comic book miniseries with the same title. It is directed by David Slade, who brought us the surprisingly suspenseful and unique Ellen Page vehicle Hard Candy. Although 30 Days of Night is a different type of film, the same all encompassing suspense permeates and Slade is once again very fortunate to have some of the best young actors around today as part of his cast.

Melissa George and Josh Harnett

The film takes place in the isolated village of Barrow, Alaska where the sun annually disappears for 30 days straight. As the sun sets for the last time in a month, the town Sheriff, Eben (Josh Hartnett), increasingly gets busier and busier over the course of a few hours. Some peculiar vandalism occurs and some sled dogs are killed. He investigates and soon stumbles upon a bizarre drifter (Ben Foster) who becomes the film’s “crazy old man” cliché character who warns of the town’s fate. Although Foster is of course young, that cliché may very well be intentional as it probably goes all the way back to the Renfield character in Dracula. Foster’s character is definitely the Renfield of this film, so perhaps he brings the formula full-circle. Anyway, the townie characters are for the most part likeable and that makes it even more exciting when a ruthless posse of vampires shows up and wreaks havoc on men, women, and children alike. No punches are pulled as we see Sheriff Eben do his very best to protect the few folks who remain holed up in some old guy’s attic.

The aftermath of the film's most horrific scene, effectively using its isolated and unique setting.

The film has solid performances from Hartnett and Melissa George and I guess they help to anchor the marketing end and make this very good movie some well earned money. However, others are far better. Ben Foster convinces this viewer that his performance in 3:10 to Yuma was the real deal. I think we may be looking at a great actor on the verge of stardom. Danny Huston, who plays the lead vampire Marlow, contained an amazingly eerie and chaotic emptiness just enough to keep a layer of vulnerability to his host exterior, which was probably a nice businessman out of Anchorage. He is a great villain.

Danny Huston is great as the film's lead vampire

The real winner in 30 Days of Night though is the village of Barrow and its tundra setting. It represents the northern most settlement in the United States but from what I hear the town wasn’t portrayed accurately, nor was the film shot on location. That’s somewhat forgivable because as it turns out 30 Days of Night has a very unique feel and it is a nice looking production overall, especially compared to most horror films. The sound effects and music were great and some of the aerial shots that Slade creates are unforgettable. It’s like Near Dark meets John Carpenter’s The Thing, but I would wager a guess and say that Slade is not a hardcore horror movie buff and despite the aforementioned comparison his film is unique for the genre. The genre in general is way too derivative and most horror filmmakers are far too celebratory of their peers. It’s like a clubhouse sometimes and the regurgitating of each other’s ideas is as expected as giving each other a secret handshake. Slade seems influenced from better films than those of this somewhat tainted genre and his movie is much better for it. He did his own thing and now horror filmmakers can steal from him.

My rating is 4 out of 5 stars.

Triangle courtesy of Empire. When Jess sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong. Her suspicions are realized when the yacht hits a storm and the group is forced to board a passing ocean liner to get to safety, a ship Jess is convinced she’s been on before. The ship appears deserted, the clock on board has stopped, but they are not alone… Someone is intent on hunting them down, one by one. And Jess unknowingly holds the key to end the terror

FlashForward: Channel 5 (Recorded 5th Oct Watched 8th Oct)

Episode 2 –  This week’s episode had a bit of a poor start; some kids played an unconvincing game of ‘blackout’, one of the kids was unconvincingly bullied for not joining in, and then the parents of that kid unconvincingly dealt with the aftermath.  Luckily, things picked up a bit, and they had at least the good grace to address early on the fact that our heroes are the self appointed world experts on the  ’blackout’, despite working in a FBI sub-office.   After last week praising the vigilance of the agent that managed to spot the one person who didn’t black out, this week I’d like to commend the FBI web developers, who knocked up the world’s most complicated web-site in a few hours.  And, a special mention must go out to whoever managed to get the authorisation for the ‘millions of dollars’ in funding needed to set it up, as their superior somehow hadn’t noticed that it had been spent.  Maybe I’m just being picky.

Like early episodes of Heroes, I think I’m watching for the intriguing set-up and not how the programme is being executed; it may be the clunkiest script I’ve heard for a long time, and their love of hammering a point home by endless repetition of earlier scenes is bordering on OCD.  There is also the deeply troubling question of why nobody seems that bothered by it all, and, given we’re in America, where are all the religious  fanatics?  Now I’m definitely just being picky.

Despite its obvious flaws, it’s still interesting enough to keep me watching. For now.

Emma: BBC HD (R 5th Oct W 8th Oct)

I’m determined that one day I’ll watch one of the BBCs acclaimed costume dramas in it’s entirety and not just give up after 10 minutes of the first episode. That day, however, is not today.  Believe it or not, I’ve actually read some Jane Austen novels and quite enjoyed them. I just can’t seem to bear it when they turn up on the telly.  Shouldn’t it be the other way around?

It’s Only a Theory: BBC4 (R 7th Oct W 8th Oct)

This is a new series in which highly-qualified experts submit a theory to a panel, which consists of Andy Hamilton, Reginald D. Hunter and a guest (this week, Clare Balding).  After some amusing cross-examination, the panel then decide whether or not the theory is approved or rejected.  On the face of it, this seems to be exactly the same format as Dave Gorman’s Genius, but with theories instead of inventions.  Whilst they are very similar, the big difference is that IOAT is actually quite serious and the theories are genuinely interesting; this week’s were, ‘the first 1000 year old human has already been born’ and ‘we’re in danger of  turning sadness in to an sickness’.  The appeal of the show is helped by the wit of unlikely duo, Hamilton and Hunter.  Yes, it’s another variation on the comedy panel show, but it’s also one where you might actually learn something to go along with your laughs.

In Treatment: Sky Arts 1 (R 5th, 6th & 7th Oct W 8th Oct)

I had mixed feelings going in to this; it’s made by HBO and is highly acclaimed, but I didn’t know if I had the stomach for watching a five nights a week drama about a therapist talking to his clients.

I watched the opening three half-hour episodes back-to-back, and each starred Gabriel Byrne as Dr Paul Weston.  The first episode sees Laura  (Melissa George) describe the events of events of a drunken night out  and ultimately confessing her unrequited love for Weston.  The second saw Alex (Blair Underwood), an über-confident fighter pilot, who slowly begins to reveal his inner turmoil over a mission which resulted in the  death of children. Episode three was the story of suicidal teen, Sophie (Mia Wasikowska).

Just watching two people have a conversation for half an hour, in a single room, shouldn’t be as interesting as this is.  The acting is uniformly superb, but special mention must be made for Byrne who spends much of the show just listening; he goes to show what a skill listening is for an actor.  Acting alone doesn’t make a show, and the scripts really shine through.  It’s really compelling  television and each strand feels like it’s slowly being opened out as we learn more about each of the patients and their therapist. I’m exciting to see where this is going to go over the next 9 weeks, and how the writers are going to sustain the momentum built in these opening episodes.  Don’t be put off by the concept, you should definitely watch this.

Stargate Universe: Sky One (R 6th Oct W 8th Oct)

I’ve never followed any of the Stargate franchises and may well not have bothered this time if it wasn’t for the inclusion of Robert Carlyle as its star.  I’ve seen bits of other Stargate episodes, but I had no real preconceptions going in to this, so I just tried to sit back and enjoy the ride.  I watched the two opening episodes, which are part of a 3 part opener, and it’s pretty good, but feels like we’re still establishing the premise.  And the premise is this; some military and scientists, who are part of the Stargate program, escape an enemy attack by taking a one-way ride to an ancient spaceship that is billions of light years away from earth.  The current plot is almost entirely concerned with their attempts to get the decrepit life support system working, and when they, presumably, get that working, then I don’t know where it’s going.  At the moment it feels like it lies somewhere between Voyager and Battlestar Galactica.  Hopefully, they will err towards the latter in terms of plot and quality.

Harry Hill’s TV Burp: ITV1 (R 10th Oct W 10th Oct)

It’s a welcome return for the show the remains the exception to the rule that ITV don’t do comedy.  I was worried during the first half that it had lost its touch, but the second half really picked up and was hilarious.It’s perfect Saturday evening entertainment.

Lie To Me: Sky One (R 8th Oct W 10th Oct)

It’s not been that long since the first season finished its run, and this season 2 opener was a welcome return.  It’s the story of Dr Cal Lightman (Tim Roth), a ‘human lie-detector’, and his team of related experts.  They’re regularly sub-contracted by various US law enforcement agencies to solve their crimes for them.

It’s not the kind of show that I normally like; I generally steer away from police procedurals and there’s no real overall storyline running through the series.  Credit to the writers and cast then that they have made essentially an episodic cop show that isn’t completely vacant.  A large part of its appeal lies in the casting of Roth who commands every scene in which he takes part; it’s worth watching just for him.

Click here for a zip file containing all the images from this post. If the thumbnails below don’t load, click here for an index.

Five films we recently recorded and then stayed up too late checking out.

What film insomnia sometimes feels like.

For the movie addict, DVR’s are the enemy of sleep. With their easy to use onscreen plot summaries and simple recording features, it’s nothing to set something to record, day or night, and come back to it when you’ve got the time. Besides the premium networks, Fox Movie Channel, American Movie Classics, and the incomparable Turner Classic Movies all show dozens of films a week, most of them – to us, anyway – too tempting not to hit the jolly, candy-like record button.

We’ve recently checked out these five films, going over them in multiple sittings and then browsing the web for background information to give their virtues and faults some (often much-needed) context. A few of them are markedly better than others, while one or two are just about at their proper level as a late-late-LATE feature. But, we realize every old film is probably somebody’s favorite, and the opinions below are just our own.

FM (1978): Long on style and short on character development, this loose dramedy is a pleasant enough romp about disc jockeys at a freewheelin’, free-format Los Angeles radio station, one seemingly a million miles away from both the disco and punk revolutions. The rambling plot sometimes tries too hard to embrace Robert Altman’s formlessness via legendary cinematographer John A. Alonzo’s (Chinatown) direction, while too many characters clutter up the proceedings. Cleavon Little and Martin Mull do impress, however, as jockeys using their star power mostly to get laid. Thoughts before turning off the light: A missed opportunity to make a true cult classic, unfocused and trying too much at once to settle on a tone or meaning. Like the vanished AOR format it celebrates, it’s only fun until something comes on you don’t care for.

Music Within (2007): A feel-good, true-story movie that wants you to like it, and you want to, too, except it doesn’t quite come together like it should, despite a hell of a lot of advantages. Ron Livingston (Band of Brothers) stars as Richard Pimentel, who overcame a strained childhood with a schizophrenic mother and then almost total deafness sustained during the Vietnam War to crusade for disabled persons’ rights. The film follows Pimentel as he gives up a safe corporate job to follow his dream and talent of public speaking, as well as his long friendship with a writer almost completely debilitated by cerebral palsy (Michael Sheen). Thoughts before turning off the light: Too many cliched scenes and too much underwritten dialogue spoils a great story. Though it’s not exactly the case, in retrospect two-thirds of the film seemed to take place in musical montage. Pimentel, for all his accomplishments, probably deserves a better tribute. Livingston is almost always better than the films in which he appears.

Thieves Highway (1949): When his truck-driver father is crippled by a crooked San Francisco fruit merchant (Lee J. Cobb), war veteran Nick Garcos (Richard Conte) drives a truckload of apples up the pre-freeway California coast to get even. Gorgeously directed by noir master Jule Dassin (The Naked City) and tautly written by A.I. Bezzerides, adapting his own gritty novel. The performances are all flawless, especially Valentina Cortese as a hooker put into Garcos’ line of fire and Millard Mitchell as the doomed trucker trying to do right by the Garcos family. Thoughts before turning off the light: Criterion deserves props for including this film in its catalog; the chase sequence was riveting.

A Woman’s Secret (1949): A singer with a burned-out throat (Maureen O’Hara) stands accused of shooting her more successful, though far more uncouth, protege (Gloria Grahame). Her piano player lover (Melvyn Douglas) sets out to prove her innocence, instigating a series of flashbacks. Director Nicholas Ray (Rebel Without A Cause) does the best he can with the potboiler material, though there’s a going-through-the-motions feeling throughout. Grahame, always disdainful of her singing voice, lip-syncs her musical numbers. (The film’s production brought about Ray and Grahame’s disastrous marriage). Thoughts before turning off the light: Were it made today, this sleek little b-movie would be a centerpiece of any ratings period for the Lifetime Movie Network, or even a comeback project for Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony.

Deterrence (1999): Set in the then near-future world of 2008, the nation’s first Jewish president (Kevin Pollak) and his staff scramble to deal with Iraqi aggression while stranded in a snowbound Colorado diner. Far from having a mandate, President Emerson is an appointed veep who came to the office through attrition, and his races, ethnic and campaign both, only complicate the rapidly escalating tension. Critic-turned-filmmaker Rod Lurie (The Contender) wrote and directed this, his debut feature, and his grasp and reach haven’t quite come together yet. Pollak is energetic, while Timothy Hutton is convincing as his pragmatic chief of staff. Thoughts before turning off the light: The ending is a total cheat, as frustrating as a lesser episode of The Twilight Zone but without the creepy ambience; Pollak’s presence is missed on the current movie landscape.

For what little it’s worth, here’s what up next in our DVR queue: The 70s sci-fi classic Westworld; The ebullient mystery Shadow of the Thin Man; Noir heavyweights Sterling Hayden and Dan Duryea facing off in Manhandled; and the early-career Marilyn Monroe suspenser Don’t Bother To Knock. Feel free to post your own recommendations below.

- Michael Kabel
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A pilot based on the feature film LA Confidential was proposed to HBO three years after the Oscar winning film debuted. The 2000 series would being back its three lead detectives, White, Exley and Vincennes as well as scheming tabloid writer Sid Hudgens of Hush Hush Magazine. And for the series we have Kiefer Sutherland playing Jack Vincennes, Josh Hopkins as Budd White, David Conrad as Exley and Pruitt Taylor Vince as Sid Hudgens.

The series was a sort of prequel to the film with Jack Vincennes just starting to go dirty and developing his sleazier motives. Ed Exley is living down his posh Beverly Hills upbringing to become a real detective (this was in the book but skipped over in the film) and Bud White is starting to suffer from flashbacks to his abusive childhood.

On liberty the series takes is Kim Basinger’s part from the movie, Lynn Bracken (Melissa George), arrives in Hollywood fresh off the bus here, where in the film it is only hinted at. Lynn also meets Bud at a party which makes the whole angle on their love affair in the film completely different here. So at some point her new boss Pierce Pratchett (Eric Roberts) will get her cut to look like Veronica Lake. Starting Lynn’s story at her origin is quite an interesting way of bringing the character into the series.

Russell Crowe’s Bud White was easily the most memorable cop in the feature film but the character has been down-graded to a smaller role in the series, as played by Josh Hopkins. He does the best he can with the part but he is easily the most forgettable character in the pilot.

The Vincennes role (Kevin Spacey in the movie) is expanded and seems to be the star of the series and now is played by Kiefer Sutherland. Vincennes seems to be fighting the good fight but the character seems morphed than that of the movie. Sutherland starred in this pilot a year before ”24″ and I really think if he would have played Bud White and Bud was as prominent here as he was in the movie then we may have never seen his Jack Bauer in 24.

David Conrad’s Exley is smarmy and course. But now accented by his lush lifestyle, he is more of a jerk in the series. But the whole rich angle did have great story potential especially with Robert Foxworth playing his father.

Other than trying to enjoy the pilot for what it was, the thing that bugged me the most was how the film was supposed to be set in the 1950s but not for a second did it feel like it. Sure we had the clothes and the old cars but the production design just left us hanging. Then there is the awful side storyline involving Ed Exley helping Marilyn Monroe find her sex tape. That Marilyn has to be the one of the worst versions I have ever seen.

It was an interesting attempt to bring the Oscar-winning movie to the screen. I guess originally it was going to be a 13-part mini-series for HBO but was turned down and then went to Fox who the killed it for the last time. If you are interested in seeing it is on the latest edition LA Confidential on DVD. The two-disc set is available on both DVD and Blu-Ray.

Pilot score: 3 out of 5.

One of my all-time favorite TV shows is “Alias”.  “Alias” was created by J.J. Abrams and it began in 2001 and ran for 5 seasons.  If you like “Lost” and “Fringe”, I think you would appreciate Abrams creative vision in this series.  All five season of “Alias” are on DVD, so if you haven’t watched the show before…definitely check it out.  You’ll totally be hooked!

Even though the show is over, the former cast of “Alias” have certainly flourished in their careers.  Jennifer Garner has a growing film career and she has her own production company.  Michael Vartan is on the TNT show “Hawthorne”.  Greg Grunberg is on NBC’s “Heroes”, and Bradley Cooper is having a breakout year with his recent summer hit “The Hangover” and many upcoming movies on the way.

Thus I created a new category on my blog called the “Alias Alumni Watch” so whenever a former cast member has something  new or noteworthy – you will be able to view all posts with “Alias” references in this new blog category.  Keep and eye out for updates made in the “Alias Alumni Watch” category in order to stay up-to-date with your former “Alias” cast members’ careers!

Melissa George

From IconsofFright.com

Bloody-Disgusting is reporting that Ben Ketai is set to direct 30 DAYS OF NIGHT: DARK DAYS, the official sequel to David Slade’s 30 DAYS OF NIGHT. Based on the original comic book sequel DARK DAYS, writer/co-creator Steve Niles also penned the script with Ketai. Ketai has experience in the 30 DAYS OF NIGHT universe having worked on the web series “30 DAYS OF NIGHT: BLOOD TRAILS” and “30 DAYS OF NIGHT: DUST TO DUST.” The character of Stella Oleson (played by Melissa George in the first film) plays a major role in the story of DARK DAYS, but according to BD will be recast for this direct-to-DVD sequel. Shooting begins tentatively in October in Vancouver.