Get Carter

Continuing on my theme of catching up on older films, last night I watched GetCarter (1971). There is a remake starring Sylvester Stallone from 2000, but I know nothing about it.

So we have Michael Caine as the titular Jack Carter, a violent gangster who returns to Newcastle (where he was born) from London (where he works) to find out why his brother died. Things quickly gets really sticky for everyone. That is the plot in a nutshell.

What makes this movie so good is the incredible atmosphere. The grimy gloom of an industrial city in the early seventies is fascinating. The sense of Doom is palpable from the first scene and it doesn't get any better for anyone.

What struck me as particularly interesting is the way it not only is filmed, but how the story is told. The movie wastes no time on explanations what so ever, it just jumps straight in. These days films are more likely to start at the beginning, and then go step by step, but not Get Carter. Straight into things and on with the show. It was a bit confusing at first, but before long I was fully invested in the story.

What concerns the cinematography, it is really weird at times. There is a poker game at one point in the film, and during that scene there are three conversations going on at once. To make things worse, more than half the screen is covered by the back of someones head. This “half screening“ goes on for a while and then it's back to normal, and it really left me scratching my head. Apparently it was due to sound issues, but it's still a remarkably odd scene. Nothing else get's quite that weird, but there are many odd angles.

Quentin Tarantino has said that this was the movie that inspired him to become a director, and apart form this, it is also lauded as the “godfather” of British crime cinema. I can certainly see why.

This is a bleak, cruel and violent movie, though there is hardly any blood in it. It's worth keeping in mind that the main protagonist, Carter, is a villain. He does bad things all the time, every time, and it doesn't shy away from this. It should be said that it contains an unusual amount of sex, particularly for it's time, and back then it was heavily censored. Be warned there, if that's not your thing. Or if you want to watch a movie with your granny.

Ultimately, this is a movie I should have watched ages ago, and I'm likely to have to watch it again. It's unflinching attitude on all fronts makes it easy to miss things, like why his brother died. It's not quite a “blink and you miss it” situation, but it's not far from …

If you haven't seen it, do so. Really, go watch it. It truly is worth it, and until we see each other again, have a great week!

At Close Range

Sometimes I come across a movie that I want to see, but then don't for various reasons. Sometimes years can go by before things come together and I finally get to see it.

One such film is At Close Range (1986), starring Christopher Walken, Sean Penn, Chris Penn and a host of others. Keep your eyes out for a very young Kiefer Sutherland.

The movie is set in 1978, and is based on real events, which is pretty disturbing. Walken is the leader of a small gang of successful thieves in rural Pennsylvania. He is estranged from his two teenage sons (the Penn brothers), but the older (Sean) gets involved in his fathers crime due to a need to make money, and then things spiral out of control. You see, Walken is both violent and paranoid, and that's dangerous when combined.

That's pretty much all I can say without spoiling the film, and that would be a terrible shame, because I really liked it.

I have seen Walken in many films over the years, and he always delivers a memorable performance. At Close Range is no exception. He goes from charming but creepy to absolutely terrifying very quickly, and yet his character is always believable.

The Penn brothers are also very good, and it's a rare treat to see two actual brothers play on screen brothers. It doesn't get more authentic than that. As a fun twist, their real mother is playing their grandmother as well.

Based on what I knew, or rather thought I knew about this movie, I was pretty surprised. The pacing is slow, but it works, and it doesn't get boring. The soundtrack is apparently famous, and it is good, but left me personally a bit unimpressed. It works though. The whole film reeks of the 70's as it should.

I absolutely recommend this film. If you haven't seen it, go do so. Until then, have a great week!

Preacher

When I heard that the graphic novel Preacher (1995-2000) was being made into a TV show, my first reaction was “no way”.

The comic deals with blasphemy, profanity, religion, death on a massive scale and quite a lot of sex. These things aren't always easy to put on TV, so naturally I was skeptical.

However, I decided to give it a fair chance and I'm glad I did. I have watched the first season apart from the season finale. I was going to wait until said finale was over but it's Monday and I need content, so here we go.

First off, if you haven't read the comic, you'll be fine, just watch it. If you have read it and you like it, put your expectations on the shelf for the duration. The show is good, no question about it, but there are some big changes, and I don't mean that Tulip is white and blonde in the comic, and black in the show, but the fact that the entire story structure is changed rather drastically.

This in itself is not a problem, it's just a different way to tell a similar story. If they make more seasons, I look forward to see where they're going. I get the feeling that this is just a build up, but time will tell.

The show is well made, and the actors are all good, they really are. They stick pretty closely to what the comic does and that's a relief. The sets are great, you really get the feel for the dusty part of Texas, no complaints.

There are some changes though, and I can't say which ones due to spoilers, that I think are a bit pointless. Mostly minor things, but I really don't get why they would be done differently from the comic. Things like a side characters mannerisms or a characters reason for doing something, things that seem to be changed just to change them.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, that if you are a fan of the comic, don't be put off, give the show a chance.

Until next time, have a great week!

Hot facts

Today, as I sit here in the July heat with my brain quietly melting, I want to bring you more fascinating facts.

1. When Winston Churchill visited the U.S. during the prohibition, his doctor gave him a prescription for alcohol. The quantity is indefinite, it said.
2. Prehistory officially became history in 2600 BC with the invention of the library.
3. The wingspan of a Boeing 747 is longer than the Wright brothers' first flight.
4. Biting your nails is essentially good for your immune system.
5. The Romans would occasionally use condemned criminals in stage plays, this way the character could die for real.
6. The most credentialed person in history, Michael Nicholson, has 22 masters degrees, 3 specialist degrees and one doctoral degree.
7. A finger with nerve damage doesn't wrinkle in water.
8. Unless you can prove that you are an illusionist, it is illegal to own a rabbit in Queensland, Australia.
9. Police in ancient Egypt had not only trained police dogs, but also trained police baboons.
10. A group of giraffes is called a tower.

That's all I can muster up for this time. Until we meet again, have a warm and wonderful week!

The Charnel House Trilogy

A couple of months ago I saw a review of a game called The Charnel HouseTrilogy on Youtube. I'm not a huge fan of point and click games, but this one caught my attention, and didn't want to let go. So, during the Steam Summer Sale, I picked it up for next to nothing. To be fair, it's not expensive at normal price either, it's about five bucks.

The Charnel House Trilogy is a horror game, like the title suggests, but it avoids things like jump scares and cheap gore. Nothing in this wonderful title is left to chance, and it shows, it is truly well crafted. I builds up the atmosphere and the mystery without constantly hitting you over the head with cliches. Quiet moments are allowed when appropriate.

The puzzles are easy for the most part. I myself am not a great puzzle solver so that came as a pleasant surprise. One could argue that they are so easy that they are almost unnecessary, but they serve to bring you in closer. Besides, without them it would be a walking simulator.

Graphically it's good, though not amazing. But it doesn't have to be either. As a point and click horror/adventure game, you don't expect or indeed need, graphics that strain your GPU to the limit. The sound is good too, and a special mention needs to be made concerning the voice work. The game is fully voiced, and at first I thought it was a bit lackluster, but that's because I've come to expect over the top voice acting in games like this. Here it's more subdued, and I think that's a good thing.

It should be pointed out that although it's a trilogy, the whole game is about two hours long. I have in the past criticized games for being too short, but this is not a triple-A game that costs $60-70, it's an indy title that costs $5. Besides, because it is short, you have an easier time finishing the whole thing in one sitting, and retaining the whole story. Here, it is a good thing.

I went into this expecting an OK time, and ended up having a great time. So, if you are in the mood for a horror title that's heavy on creepy atmosphere and a good story rather than buckets of gore and jump scares galore, then The Charnel House Trilogy might be for you. It certainly was for me.

That's it for this time folks, so until Monday next, have a great week!

Crimes in paradise

Last Saturday evening, my wife and I decided to watch the new season of X-Files, but gave up after two episodes. We're going to keep watching just in case it was our own mood that was incompatible, but neither of us were impressed at all. I'll probably do a separate post on this subject when I've either watched the whole new season or given up for good.

Today I want to talk about what we ended up watching instead. We decided to give the new version of Hawaii 5-0.

The original, which I have never seen, ran from 1968 – 1980 and was at the time not only the longest running law enforcement show but the first cop show to span over a decade. It has since been joined by, and in some cases outdone by, shows like Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU and NCIS.

Even if, like me, you've never seen the original, you have in fact most likely been affected by it. This is the show that created the famous line: Book 'em Danno, which has become a classic catchphrase. The term 5-0 (pronounced five-oh) has since become synonymous with police throughout the US. In fact, when I was watching The Wire, I had to look up why the drug dealers were yelling 5-0 to warn each other that the police were on the way. It's all due to this show.

OK, enough history. What my wife and I wanted was a show that has action, style and good writing, but isn't too dark. These days it seems every show has to be so very Grim-dark, and it get's annoying after a while. I love Grim-dark, but enough is enough. Luckily enough, the new Hawaii

5-0 was exactly what we wanted.

Like the title says, it's set in Hawaii, and the 5-0 comes from Hawaii being the 50^th state in the union. The show oozes so called scenery porn, gorgeous landscapes and that blue ocean. Where a show set in, say, New York would show street scenes to solidify the setting, you get beautiful vistas instead. The actors are good, which they should be seeing as they are all veterans of shows and films like The Shield, Battlestar Galactica, Lost and the Oceans 11-13 movies.

The writing is in my opinion excellent. Snappy, witty but not too over the top. Beyond this, the show has heart, it's serious yet lighthearted enough to feel relaxing when the Grim-dark becomes too oppressive.

I feel I should point out the guest stars as well, Norman Reedus and Peter Stormare all within four episodes. Not too shabby.

We watched the four first episodes eagerly, and I'm looking forward to watching more. I can absolutely see why someone wouldn't like it, but I urge you to give it a shot, if you come across it.

That's it for this time, until we meet again, have a beautiful week!

What does it mean?

It's July, and that means I'm busy trying to cobble together 30.000 words for camp nanowrimo.

But as always, it's also Monday, and that means Eccentric Spheres gets a new update. In the spirit of creative writing, here are some words most English speakers might not be too familiar with:

Absquatulate - to leave abruptly

Boffola - a joke that gets a loud laugh

Chad - the piece of paper that is left when using a hole punch

Degust - to eat slowly in order to really enjoy the taste

Eucatastrophe - a happy ending

Fugacious - fleeting or transient

Gnathic - to do with the jaw

Humdudgeon - imaginary illness

Incunabula - books printed before 1501

Jentacular - having to do with breakfast

Keek - to sneak a peek

Logomachy - an argument about words

Minacious - scary or threatening

Noyade - execution by drowning

Otalgia - earache

Peterman - a person who opens and robs safes

Quire - 24 sheets of paper

Rubiginious - rust colored

Sesquipedalian - a person who uses excessively long words

Toplofty - an arrogant person

Umbriferous - shady

Vicinal - adjacent or next to

Winklepicker - 1950's style shoe with pointy toe

Xertz - to gulp down greedily

Yarborough - a hand of cards with no card above a nine in value

Zetetic - proceeding by inquiry or investigation

There you go, a whole list of words you probably didn't know. At least I didn't.

Until we see each other again next time, have a great week!