Film of the Week: The Spy Who Dumped Me

The Spy Who Dumped Me had a mixture of what has been done before, and an original take on the genre. Countless films have the plot where a character discovers someone close to them is a secret agent of some sort, and so this film needed to do something different to keep that plot fresh. What drives this film forward isn’t entirely down to the mission Audrey Stockton (Mila Kunis) and Morgan Freeman (Kate McKinnon) gets dragged into a mission to destroy a flash drive, but instead the strong friendship the two characters have between them. In each scene, despite the desperate times, they prove just how good a friends they really are, but getting along.

There’s usually a moment about three-quarters through the film where the characters are tested, they fight, they break up but discover they need each other. Those scenes are the final push for developing those characters, but in this film, they don’t fall out once. They remain as good friends as they started out as; by the end, their friendship has grown even stronger. I was waiting for the inevitable fight between them, but it never happened. There were a few dire situations which normally leads to that fight – but keeping them as friends was a good decision, and as a result kept the film entertaining.

The film overall wasn’t filled with laugh out loud moments, and of course two complete novices in spy work overpowering professionals is a staple among these types of films and was therefore to be expected, but The Spy Who Dumped Me built around that template and due to keeping the characters as strong friends, allowed for original humour which kept me watching, wondering how they were going to overcome whoever was behind the operation of retrieving the flash drive. I was pleased to reach the end, for all the right reasons, as the twist at the end concerning Augrey’s former boyfriend was completely unexpected. It’s common for these types of films to have the two romantic interests grow stronger afterward, but not having that happen was a fresh take.

I was expecting the same standard template most films in this genre follow, so having something different was surprising. I would recommend this film, but it isn’t necessarily a family friendly one. The humour can be crude, there’s plenty of swear words, and the violence, whilst fleeting, is a little intense in some areas, but all of these scenes are cleverly overshadowed by Audrey’s and Morgan’s friendship, which does generate most of the humour, even in some of the worst situations.

Mila’s and Kate’s onscreen chemistry was the perfect match for this film. Much like The Hitman’s Bodyguard, where the plot is basic and clichéd, but the chemistry between the two lead characters and the actors playing them were genuine – they were having fun playing their roles. I saw that in The Spy Who Dumped Me. Everyone was having fun making this film, which translated into the necessary vibes so we, the audience, would enjoy watching.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Mum's Monday: Rocky Balboa

30 years after Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) had his first fight, he is back, he is coming out of retirement.

At the start of this film it is heart-warming to see that Rocky seems to be an animal lover, a caring, devoted father, still recognised as someone famous, a successful, kind employer at his restaurant, a devoted husband to his late wife and a good friend.

It all sounds good, Rocky seems a little too perfect, they lay it all on thick. For an hour and a half film I just wander when the ‘Rocky coming out of retirement’ starts.

The film takes a while to set up the point of this film and then all of a sudden, without warning ‘Boxing’ comes into play and the pace of the film quickens.

At first the scenes at the dog pound, there seems no point to them, but there is a lot that is said to build up the ‘Rocky returning to fighting’ part.

A little harsh but we find out why Rocky wants to return to the ring, or does he? Yes, after a pep talk, we get a clearer picture.

There are a lot of inspirational speeches in the script of this film. We can take notice from them and use them in our own lives.

And after all the negativity, let the training begin. It is good to see all the negativity being overcome in the end.

I hate the part where it is shown that people think, just because you are old that you need some fighting advice or that you could be an easy target. They forget with age comes wisdom. I wouldn’t under- estimate Rocky.

The fight scenes are well done; they were as I expected going to be a dramatic fight anyway, but the way they were filmed made it even more so.

It is sensational how Rocky draws on a lifetime of experiences to get him through the fight. Although the end of the fight is a bit of an anti-climax. It shows the best outcome, Rocky still has it and no one is laughing. It is good to show a different end to a contest rather than everyone winning.

The end of the film is really heart-warning and in-keeping with the character of Rocky.

This is a clever film, based on a computer simulator. It is a strong reason for a comeback film for Rocky Balboa.

Jerry's Journal: Playing Hide and Seek

In the mornings, when I'm getting ready for work and in the shower, Jerry likes to dive underneath the bed covers. Sometimes he doesn't wait there, but instead hears the shower clicking off and sits outside the bathroom door until I come out. Other times, Jerry remains underneath the covers until I come and find him, after which he's all excited that I had found him. 

I don't have a picture to showcase him hiding, due to a complication with uploading pictures to this blog today, which also explains why this post is late.

The Written Podcast: Films Surpassing £1billion

As of writing this, 37 films have successfully broken the £1billion milestone at the box office. The list is inevitably going to continue growing. One film that’s an absolutely surety to be a part of the list is Avengers: Endgame. Avengers: Infinity War broke £2billion, which only four managed to do. Grossing that amount of money is an incredible achievement, there’s no doubt about that. James Cameron stands alone as he’s made two film, Titanic, and Avatar, become the highest crossing films of all time. Titanic remained at number one since 1997, only to be beaten by Avatar in 2009. Both are still the top two highest crossing films, with Avatar even nearing the monumental £3billion milestone.

There are many factors involved in making Titanic the highest crossing film for 12 years straight, but one of the most notable is the ground breaking special effects. Titanic reaches levels of epic never before seen – and ages incredibly well. It’s a film so incredible, it deserved a re-release on the 100^th anniversary of the sinking of the real Titanic. Sure, it portrayed a fictional story on board, but the level of detail involved in the sinking hit people’s hearts across the world. It’s a masterpiece that deserved to be number 1.

And then came along Avatar, another film directed by James Cameron, and immediately shattered Titanic’s record. Again, there are many factors into why it became such a monumental hit, but one of the main reasons was the pioneering special effects. In fact, it has been documented that James Cameron couldn’t make the film until the technology caught up with his vision. James Cameron didn’t tone down his vision when discovering what technology was available and made the film anyway, he literally waited years. That’s dedication. The staggering special effects was the first of its kind. The end result was once again a masterpiece. Over time, however, as the technology used in the film has become more and more readily available, people started seeing Avatar’s story more and more instead of the special effects, and soon the film was criticised for being mundane and almost clichéd. The mind-blowing special effects overshadowed the story so much, it didn’t matter if it was clichéd or not. Avatar is still number 1.

It should be noted that if you adjust the final box office records in accordance with inflation over the years, then Gone with the Wind is the highest grossing film of all time. As of writing this, Gone with the Wind has surpassed the £3billion mark, nearing £4billion. Avatar being a close second, but it’s doubtful it’ll surpassed Gone with the Wind’s reign any time soon.

37 films have surpassed £1billion. It’s practically becoming a regular factor within Hollywood now. With the number of films breaking that record, it shouldn’t take away from the achievement. Anyone should be jumping with joy if their film they’ve spend months, maybe years, putting everything they have into making a film they’re extremely passionate about, smashing through the £1billion barrier. Who wouldn’t be? I certainly would.

With Titanic and Avatar, one of the most notable factors is the special effects. The grandness of both films had never been seen before. Titanic is nearly 3 hours long, yet people were willing to watch it. Avatar opened up opportunities for other directors and film studios to advance their film making abilities. Two big films having two big reasons why they’ve broken through the barrier no one ever believed would be broken. Since Titanic broke that barrier, 36 other films have followed suit.

How come all 36 films have achieved that goal? Transformers: Dark of the Moon has been critically panned by critics – compared to Titanic and Avatar, there’s nothing ground breaking about the special effects and the story is hardly even there at the best of times. Sure, it’s an action epic, but what does that film have which allowed it to gross over £1billion? Minions is another puzzler. Minions is a dreadful film – a spin off from the Despicable Me trilogy, it’s only purpose I can see is to pander toward the marketing which flooded every shop across the country, disallowing you to turn in a direction and be Minion free. The story is lacklustre and the jokes are clichéd, yet it surpassed £1billion. Going by the logic previous displayed when reaching that achievement, Minions is on the same level as Titanic and Avatar. How does that make any sense? It doesn’t.

Minions broke £1billion purely because they were the best part about the Despicable Me trilogy. They were unique characters with original comedy. The infrequent appearance throughout the parent trilogy hooked people in, and what felt like literally every company saw how much we enjoyed seeing the Minions in Despicable Me, we couldn’t escape from it. Everything had a minion on it. And then a film came along that purely focused on them, what could go wrong. Families flocked to see the film, because adults and children alike enjoyed the unique comedy the minions displayed. Unfortunately, the minions only work in small dosages, but the damage had already been done. The film had hit £1billion before word could spread about its terribleness -  but despite that, children still wanted to see it, and of course parents weren’t going to say no. People had too much of a good thing, but it still became a huge hit.

Frozen became a huge hit, probably because of the story, but we all know it was because of the songs, especially that one – now infamous song everybody has done a cover off because it was popular. Once again, every company put Frozen on their products, and once again marketing allowed it to become the next film to surpass what was only seen as an achievement only the outstanding, ground breaking films received.

Nowadays, the list is being populated by comic book films, specifically films from the MCU. In order of their placement on the list, from top to bottom – Avengers: Infinity War, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Black Panther, and Iron Man 3, Captain America: Civil War – all of which are on the list. Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man: Far From Home; I’m expecting all three to hit the list as well. It took a lot of effort to make the MCU what it is today. Marvel didn’t make Iron Man expecting to gross £1billion, nor did they make Avengers with that in mind, they focused on making the best film possible, building up respect of us fans, and now we are the ones propelling Marvel’s films up the list. Not them, we are.

What can we conclude from this? There’s no way anyone would say Minions is on par with Titanic or Avatar, nor are they going to say Transformer: Age of Extinction is ground breaking and outstanding from the rest, of course not. There are many factors when it comes to making a film a massive hit, but the most notable was the special effects and grandness – but nowadays as the technology that was once considered futuristic now becoming mainstream – giving the filmmakers and companies more opportunities to play with, those other factors that once played a small part in making the film surpass £1billion are now more apparent than before.

Titanic put a lot of marketing into its film, but it wasn’t the main reason why it became the hit it still is. Minions isn’t anywhere near Titanic’s grandness, but it was the marketing that made it the huge hit it.

Also, it should be noted, the prices of tickets at the cinema are constantly increasing. I remember when it only cost me £6.99 for a ticket, whereas the Cineworld Unlimited Card was only £7.99 per month. Now, a Cineworld ticket for an adult costs £11.20, and the Cineworld Unlimited Card costs £17.90 per month. That’s a staggering increase, and cannot be shoved to one side when analysing the reasons behind more and more films hitting £1billion. Just a thought.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Film of the Week: Slenderman

We’ve read the Creepypasta, and the subsequent stories to expand the lore, we’ve played the games; it was inevitable a film would come along. The most popular creepypasta character on the internet, Slenderman proves to be just as scary as it was when first introduced. Starting out as an internet competition to create paranormal images, “Victor Surge” went one step further and added lore subsequently putting context to the image. From that point forward, it has developed into an internet phenomenon.

As a horror film, Slenderman is disturbingly scary, but not for the right reasons. It does it’s to scare us through atmospheric moments, expanding upon Slenderman’s notable mysterious figure who hides in the shadows. The sound effects do help boost the effect, and there are a few added features such as the room bending and twisting, but that’s all the film has to offer. Once you’re over the initial first incident between the characters and slenderman, any subsequent “meetings” are the same as before, rendering them dull.

The character of Slenderman offers a unique story for the horror genre, yet unfortunately all we’ve been given is a clichéd story with unoriginal jump scares. The concept and fictional entity that is Slenderman offers the filmmakers the opportunity to make it one of the scariest horror film ever, but the many controversies surrounding the film during production prevented that from happening.

The only notable good points about this movie is the acting and the occasionally good special effects when emphasising Slenderman’s powers. Other than that, despite being released by a big company such as Sony, it’s reeks with amateurish horror with a big enough budget to have some uniqueness.

The continuity throughout is terrible. There’s more that we don’t know why it’s happening than we actually see on screen. There may be a few instances of good transitions between scenes, but those are rare – the rest of the time, we’re presented with nothing but poor storytelling. It tries to pander toward those who already know the fictional character than those who don’t, which automatically cuts out any form of exposition, just going from one jump scare to another, which by the third or fourth disturbing effect had become boring. Any and all attempts at explaining was fleeting and hard to fully understand, therefore rendering us even more confused that we already are, therefore whilst trying to catch up and piece together what’s happening from one scene to the next, we’re taking our focus from the film itself.

In amongst all of that, however, there is a vague representation of what the filmmakers were envisioning. Maybe if they hadn’t of used the character Slenderman, the film would’ve been better. They would’ve had to rework and tweak pretty much every scene, but using a different fictional character – preferably an original one – the film would have been what this one was trying to portray.

I do not recommend this film in any way.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Mum's Monday: Stan and Ollie

The start of this film goes right in, when they are at their height of fame, which is a very good place to start. We all are aware of Laurel and Hardy and their rise to fame, if not all of their films or shorts.

Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly play the parts brilliantly. When I first heard about this film and Steve Coogan was going to play Stan Laurel, my first thought was ‘I know him as a long dark haired actor/comedian and not I could picture him playing Stan Laurel, but he pulls the part off phenomenally well. When I heard that John C. Reilly was going to play Oliver Hardy I didn’t know anything about him so had to have watched the film before I could comment. Now I have seen the film he again pulls the part off just as well as Steve Coogan.

The story is well timed, as it is set sixteen years later as their fame is on a downward spiral in Stan and Ollie’s lives and as they embark on their British tour. It is heart-warming and it shows that they were human, they argued and fell out with each other just as two people spending so much time together inevitably would.

There is an amusing part when they arrive at a hotel in Newcastle as part of the tour. Ollie walked in with his small case and Stan is left to bring in all the rest of the luggage. This is the start of the references to how they were on their films and in their shorts. There is even a reference to how a scene in the ‘Music Box’ plays out at a railway station, it is cleverly done, well timed and set up perfectly.

One part I didn’t understand and we never find out how Ollie knew about the new film. I suppose it just goes to show how well they knew each other.

They made a great double act, even though one could be described as ‘Hard Boiled’ and the other as ‘Nuts’. It worked and so does this film.

There is a second reference to the ‘Music Box’ film in the film when a character is describing the plot and the steps in it. Stan says ‘We were there’. And so have I and so can you be as the steps are situated on N Vendome St, Los Angeles California USA. I did think ‘We all know Stan and Ollie were there but I wander if Steve Coogan has actually been to. I may have been somewhere he hasn’t as he only referenced it as Stan Laurel. What I do know is the ‘Music Box steps’ is the most iconic place I have ever been to and remains so to this day.

You can’t really miss them as there is a sign and a plaque on the steps. Also if walk up only a few flights and turn round you can see the edge of the central reservation in the road, which you recognise from a scene in the ‘Music Box’ film. It has changed a bit in that it is built up and there are now trees that have grown, but the area layout is still there.

Jerry's Journal: What Have You Brought Me Now?

First of all, I do apologise for the blurriness of the pictures, but they do convey enough to know what's going on, and of course, it's cute seeing Jerry so curious.

Dad brought himself a telescope, but Jerry being his adorable-self, wanted to know what it was. I'm not sure if he wanted to help open the box like he does with presents, or he just wants to figure out what that strange object is in front of him, with a smell he's never come across before - or both. 

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

The Written Podcast: A Different Pocket

If you’re like me, you have set pockets for your belongings, both in coats and bags alike. You don’t get a new coat and assign a certain pocket to your phone or wallet or keys, it is a natural selection. When you’re heading out, you put your new coat on, grab your phone, wallet and keys, and just put them in a pocket each. There’s no thinking process happening, that pocket is selected out of random.

However, when you’re repeating the process of getting ready, putting your coat on and grabbing your belongings, that random process doesn’t happen again. Instead, your wallet goes in the right side inside pocket, your phone goes in your left side outside pocket, and your keys go inside your left side inside pocket. That’s how that arrangement will happen every single time you wear that coat.

When I’m wearing my big winter long coat, my phone always lives inside the right side outside pocket. My wallet always lives inside my left side outside pocket, and my car keys lives in the side pocket on my bag. However, when at work, it’ll look silly to be wearing a long coat, so I switch the company jacket. I place my phone beside my computer, and my wallet inside my bag. That’s where all three remain throughout the day, and by the end when I switch back to my long coat, my wallet and phone are reinserted back into their rightful pockets.

When they are in those pockets, they cannot be lost. Whenever the phone rings, it’s in my right side outside pocket and I grab it instantly. Whenever I’m in a shop and need to pay for something, my wallet is in my left side outside pocket and I grab it instantly. When I need to unlock my car, my keys are in the small pouch attached to my bag and I grab them instantly. There’s no wasting time searching for them, they are always where they’re meant to be.

The random process of selecting a pocket for the first time isn’t always a pro, but can be a con as well. We’re not thinking when selecting our pockets, so we don’t think every time after, because we’re confident our belongings will be where they’re meant to be, and they always are… except when they aren’t. Occasionally, because we’re not thinking – and usually happens when we’re rushing around – we put our belongings in a different pocket. But we believe we’ve put them in the same pocket we always do.

When rushing around, of course you don’t want to forget anything. When you’ve grabbed your essentials, that’s it, you’re out of there. We don’t consciously check if our phone is in that pocket, we only know we’ve got it on our person. We don’t need to think about putting it in that pocket, because it’s always in there when we need it. So, when it comes to needing your phone, and you put your hand in that pocket only to discover your phone is not in there, instead of remaining calm and checking the other pockets, the first thing we do is panic. In that moment we discover your phone is not in that pocket, the immediate response is you’ve lost it. Except you know for a fact you picked it up when leaving, so where the heck could it have gone. You’ve lost your phone. The same happens with anything that has a naturally selected pocket. Wallet’s in the front pocket of your bag instead of the back, and instead of checking the front pocket, you start panicking and believe you’ve lost it. There may be a lot of money in that wallet, you need to cancel your credit cards and debit cards, order another one, muddle through until you get a new wallet, some cash together, wait for the new credit and debit cards to arrive through post… oh, wait, it’s in your front pocket… panic over. Move on.

I believed I lost my phone when leaving work. Due to being ill, last week was long and difficult. The mornings were a drag and I hardly slept. The only two things I thought about throughout last week was work and sleep. Due to hardly eating, I was suffering from lack of energy, and my hydration was running low due to not drinking enough to put back what I’ve lost via blowing my nose – disgusting I know.

On Thursday, wearing the official jacket when at work, I had one of those days where I was required to move away from my computer more than I was actually at it, so I decided to put my phone within my right hand side outside pocket, and zipped it up. That’s where it remained the entire day. I hadn’t had much use of it other than just checking up on things at lunch in the kitchen. When the end of the day finally arrived, my boss wanted a quick getaway due to needing to get to the gym on time – which is perfectly acceptable, but required us to have a speedy few moments of everyone getting themselves ready.

I threw my long coat over my arms, and put my notebooks within my right side outside pocket, making sure the clasp was snapped together. The official company jacket laid neatly over my arm, and my car keys in my hand. We all left. The boss locked the door and sped off in his car. As he was fighting through the traffic, I stopped dead in my tracks as I realised my phone was not in my long coat’s right side outside pocket, only my notebooks. Oh dear.

I remembered having my phone in the kitchen at work, so I went straight there first just in case I left on the side. I didn’t have any use of my phone the entire afternoon so I had no need to notice it wasn’t in my present company. It wasn’t there. Oh dear, oh dear. I asked the receptionist and no phone had been turned in. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

The office was completely locked, but someone other than my boss would have a key, so I wandered back in and asked for someone to unlock the door. They gave me specific instructions to where a spare key was kept, which I found instantly and stepped back inside the office… only to discover my phone was not there… now I was getting rather panicky.

Back in the main service area, the team manager suggested phoning my phone, just in case it had slipped anywhere in my bag and I just hadn’t noticed it. Makes sense, so he rung my phone and ultimately discovered it still in the company jacket’s right side outside pocket with the zip done up. Oh.

It was an embarrassing moment. Comical – we all laughed, but ultimately not my brightest moment

It’s crazy how our mind works during those moments. It automatically jumps to the worst conclusion instead of rationally thinking. We’re so constantly fixed with having set pockets, and 99% being right, whenever that 1% strikes, it does shock the system. Our keys are rather important – we wouldn’t get home. Our phones are rather important – it’s practically our lives, most information we carry around is on our phones. Our wallets and purses are rather important – that’s our bank accounts in there. Losing any one of the three can be incredibly impactful to our lives, that the belief we have lost them comes instantly as the thought of how it’s going to affect us clouds any perception of rational thinking.

It doesn’t have to be our phones or keys or money we have assigned pockets for – but even if we believe we’ve lost something we’d like to keep, it’s still disappointing.

If you haven’t felt relief before, you certainly will when you find your belongings in another pocket. An entire struggle lifts off your shoulders – you can carry on with your life as normal, happy with the fact you haven’t lost anything.

Until it happens again…

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Film of the Week: Unfriended – Dark Web

The first film, Unfriended, was a unique take on the found-footage genre, as the entirety of the film was shown on someone’s desktop computer, and all the other characters appeared through Skype. It’s a horror movie, about the ghost of someone the characters wronged, come back to haunt them, and take revenge, and successfully takes out each and every one of them. The setting was unique, but the majority of the film was them shouting at one another. It wasn’t scary for a ghost story but how the story was told on the desktop, through multiple software applications – kept it fresh and unpredictable.

I had no idea a sequel was in the works or even out, but when I saw it on Amazon Prime Video, it sparked my curiosity and I watched it. Much the same as the first, it was told on someone’s desktop computer, but unlike the previous, this isn’t a ghost story, but one about a group of hackers from the dark web having targeted a group of friends, played out their own “game night”. Due to having no paranormal phenomena involved, but purely living people, the film is actually better than the previous. The first wasn’t at all predictable due to the way the story was told, but when the phenomena started to happen, it was clichéd. With living people only, playing mind games with others, it reaches a whole other level of unpredictability, and at times, when the hackers interacted with the unfortunate group of friends, I genuinely was on the edge of my seat, hoping the hackers would be outperformed, but learning very early on that they were several steps ahead from the very beginning.

With the concept already explored in the first, the filmmakers knew what they were doing, and therefore upped their performance as well, by including many more software apps to defeat those who the audience knew weren’t going to come close to tipping the scales. Just when you think the hackers might lose, they had a way to make sure all evidence of their acts were erased, almost instantly.

Also, there wasn’t as much raw shouting as before, but instead had a lot more emotion involved. The actors portrayed each devastating blow suffered from the hacker’s attacks with enough emphasis to make the audience feel the effects, too. Those hackers never held back their punches. Those hackers knew exactly what they were doing, and utilised their knowledge to keep the unfortunate group guessing. The characters themselves were smart and intelligent, every day people, and the actors played that perfectly.

Unfriended – Dark Web is what this take on the found-footage genre should have been the first time round. The first film had blatant frays around the edges, indicating it was an experimental concept. Now the filmmakers knew what they were doing, they polished off the rough parts and played to their strengths from the first – keeping the tone of the film the same, but ultimately a different film from the first, making it a good sequel. It’s not often sequels are recognised as being on par with the first, and rarer still to be better, but Unfriended – Dark Web is better than the first. It is what the first should have been.

With how sudden this one appeared, I doubt I would have any knowledge of a third, if ever they decide to make it, but if I do happen to find the third on Amazon Prime Video, I’ll be happy to set aside the time to watch it, because now the filmmakers know what they’re doing and the concept has been fully established, and technology is ever increasing and more and more software applications are getting exceptionally more versatile; it’ll be interesting to see what happens next.

I do recommend this film if you’re a fan of the found-footage genre.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Mum's Monday: Convoy

At the start of this film it high-lights how dangerous a large vehicle on the road be and how reckless it is to not wear pants. It is good to see that justice is done, in the way of a stern warning only. A police man is only a man after all.

It is brilliant the description Rubber Duck (Kris Kristofferson) gives to the police man in the unmarked police car ‘A bear in a plain brown wrapper’. It turns out to be Lyle Wallace (Ernest Borgnine), he is not so lenient but is also a crooked cop, it seems Rubber Duck and Lyle have history.

Not only is Lyle bent he is also evil, just because someone hasn’t got any money in their pocket he thinks he can arrest them for ‘Vagrancy’, luckily Rubber Duck saves the day and the action, resulting in the convoy begins.

The fight scenes however, are amusing to watch the slow motion adds to the comedy aspect, although I don’t think the people making the film were going for comedy as such. Although the music over the fight scenes could suggest otherwise.

This film also high-lights that if you are handcuffed to a bar stool, before you start shooting at it and the cuffs check that the top of the bar stool doesn’t just pull off. These are very funny scenes and cleverly done.

I can see that this film shows one way off getting off a charge, let, or more to the point the cop is going to borrow your car, it is fun to watch a cop drive the car he managed to acquire, it just isn’t your usual normal looking car a cop would be seen in.

The driving scenes are dramatic and it is good to see no one is injured.

There is so much dust, it is a good job trucks are as large as they are, police cars are not so big and as lucky, and since when is just pulling off the road involve rolling down the side of a hill.

It is clever to see the trucks and the music all come together as a choreographed dance routine.

It seems anyone can join the convoy and a little spiritual help is welcome and makes for a few amusing scenes, especially on the loud speaker throughout.

If you are going to set up a road block, you had better check that the truck you are trying to stop hasn’t got explosives on board. Again clearing the road makes for some dramatic but fun scenes.

It seems the convoy is now a tourist attraction in New Mexico and makes the news. Word has certainly spread.

It is amusing that you can never tell when a water truck could come to be useful.

When so many trucks get noticed someone somewhere is going to take advantage. It turns out the Governor wants votes; it is election year.

It is sad to see what happens to Mike, Spider Mike, ‘The baby maker’ (Franklyn Ajaye) the truckers and Rubber Duck are on the case. Now we have the calm before the storm as they say.

Just when you think this film is over an unexpected set of circumstances present themselves, these are dramatic and well done.

A fitting tribute, the film is over now and all Lyle can do is laugh, he knows.

In this film the way the convoy came about seems a bit flimsy to start with. However, in real life things can escalate from the simplest of things. For the film purposes it could have been a bit more dramatic, although, I could now be writing that the film is over the top and unrealistic, so the way this film and the convoy is set up is more convincing in the real world overall.

Jerry's Journal: Confused by Stairs

Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture detailing the moment he was confused by stairs. He’s been over my Grandparent’s house once before, and both times, whenever someone walk up the stairs, he watches them, trying to figure out where they’re going and once they’ve disappeared, he walks to the bottom of the stairs and sits down and wait for them to return. When they do, he gets all excited.

Before he became a member of our family, he lived in a bungalow, now he lives in a flat, and even my Grandma’s house doesn’t have stairs, only my Grandparent’s house does. When out for walks, mainly during the summer, I take him across the water’s edge, where there is the option of steps to reach the higher level, to see more of the area. He loves going up and down them, but they’re outside only. Jerry hasn’t quite gotten used to the concept of having steps indoors.

If I were to put my Grandparent’s stairs outside, he’ll confidently go up and down them all day, but indoors, he’s cutely confused. He’s baffled by them. The highest step he’s reached is the fourth, when he tested them out with his front paws – he just hasn’t learnt he can walk up and down them no differently than the ones he does outside.

Next time he's visiting, I'll try and capture that moment he's baffled, and help him up.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

The Written Podcast: Doctor Who – New Year’s Special: Resolution

Series 11 could have been better. That’s probably an unpopular opinion, but there were many factors that should have been different, or shouldn’t have been included altogether. Chris Chibnall’s approach to the new era was met with mixed opinions. He once wrote for Torchwood, and those stories are known as the worst episodes, and a couple of episodes of Doctor Who he wrote weren’t exactly met with critical acclaim. On the flip side, however, his outstanding performance being the head writer of Broadchurch allowed for some leeway when it came to doubting his leadership with Doctor Who.

It was a whole new era. New head writer, new producer, new Doctor, new companions. For the first time in the show’s history, the Doctor would be played by a woman, Jodie Whittaker, and the show would be shown on Sunday evenings instead of Saturday’s. It was the biggest change the show’s ever had since coming back in 2005, so it was understandable a fair amount of people was hesitant to accept it. Given Chibnall’s CV, there really wasn’t much to predict – he could do anything. He could do a terrible job or a sensational one. I waited patiently, eagerly awaiting the new episode of Doctor Who, series 11, episode 1, The Woman Who Fell To Earth, and I absolutely loved it. The omission of the title sequence until the end was the perfect artistic choice needed, allowing the audience be fully absorbed into the new world without any interruptions.

The first episode is usually where people make up their mind on whether they want to continue with the series, and I’m confident in saying a large chunk of those who watched the first episode stuck around to see what the rest would bring. Unfortunately, the rest of the series didn’t live up to the first episode’s performance, and a few had clunky writing, and far too much exposition instead of showing us what’s going on. I understand, with a new doctor, new head writer – new writing style, new personality. However, throughout Doctor Who since 2005, there has been one constant thing in each episode, the Doctor figures it out over time – or if he already knows the answer, plays it to his advantage to beat the enemy in the episode. Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor didn’t stop explaining what was going on. There was no mystery anymore. The episodes didn’t see the Doctor figuring out, just telling us what’s going on instantly without any prior information. Yes, the Doctor is smart, but we, the audience, aren’t finding much enjoyment with having everything put in front of us instead of letting us be a part of the mystery.

It seems that it’s gone from one extreme to another. Stephen Moffatt hardly explained anything and let us fill in the gaps, whereas Chris Chibnall is explaining everything, leaving no gaps for us to roam around in.

It was a good idea to only have new monsters. It was a good idea to explore history again as the show started out doing way back in 1969 – but not as many stories as I had expected, which only tells me I accidentally got caught up with that section of the hype.

When it was announced we weren’t going to get a Christmas special, but instead a New Year’s special instead because they had run out of ideas for Christmas, whilst I was disappointed there wasn’t going to be the traditional episode on Christmas day, I was also intrigued as to what they could do for New Year’s Day. It can basically be an hour long episode of normal Doctor Who without Christmas.

Resolution was promised to be a blockbuster episode, and dare I say it delivered upon that promise. It certainly was a blockbuster episode, and brought back a classic villain, the Doctor’s greatest enemies, the Daleks. This would mark the very first time Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor has faced the Dalek’s. Given series 11’s performance, I was hesitant to be excited for this episode. What would Chibnall do to the Dalek’s, and how would he write the Doctor’s interactions with them? Two question’s I hoped would be answered with a good episode.

Strangely enough, it was a blend of both the good and the bad of series 11. Chibnall didn’t just bring back the Dalek’s he brought back the show’s history, whilst adding new elements, such as the Dalek being the first to leave Skaro, ended up on Earth, got defeated. Having a Dalek being built from scrap metal made it seem even scarier than normal, because it’s a weakened Dalek not at full strength, yet is still terrifying, and truly made the Doctor scared for the first time this regeneration. The Doctor’s emotions were explored, and Jodie Whittaker’s performance was sensational. She was scared and she was angry, and Chibnall’s writing allowed the Doctor to battle with her emotions as what normally happens whenever confronted with the Daleks, even stating that, “a long time ago I learned to think like a Dalek,” which could possibly be alluding to the time war, but is a statement open to interpretation, but I would like to think it was a reference to the time war.

Having Ryan's father drop by unexpectedly and shaking up Ryan's world was well written and displayed one of the few times Ryan actually had a good script to work off. Even Graham's time with Ryan's dad was well-planned out, even from the Doctor's perspective. Even when in the middle of a battle with the Dalek, she still felt responsible and made sure Ryan and Graham had the important time together with Ryan's dad. I just hope he becomes a occurring character in series 12.

The bad points were (maybe) killing of UNIT, and a few unnecessary jokes and scenes littered throughout. Having UNIT being forced to shut down off-screen due to budget cuts was a kick in the teeth, to be honest. The organisation that’s been around since the Doctor’s third regeneration, have UNIT pop up time and time again, even be celebrated in the 50^th anniversary episode – suddenly saying it’s no longer operational left a bad taste in my mouth. I do hope Chibnall realises his mistake and brings back UNIT at full strength. It would have been epic if the Doctor had teamed up with UNIT, because then we would see the Dalek prove just how powerful it is even in the weakened it was, because we all know the Dalek would have either put up an incredible fight, or prevailed. But instead, the Dalek gets defeated by a modified microwave oven – which was a predictable outcome, to say the least and is my second bad point of the show.

Having the scene where the family notices they’ve been disconnected from the internet, the TV’s gone down and the mum realising they have to have a conversation, much to her kid’s dismay was the most forced, out of place, unnecessary scene in Doctor Who I’ve ever witnessed. It threw us out of the tension of the moment – it tried to make us laugh, but all it did was make me disappointed it was even included in the final edit.

There were one or two jokes that shouldn’t have been included, but the one which stands out the most to me was the Doctor wondering how long a rel, the Dalek’s own timeframe. It didn’t make sense on the basis of continuity, because surely, if the Doctor had learned to think like a Dalek a long time ago (and might I add that Chibnall did do a superb job capturing the Doctor thinking like a Dalek, but figuring out its plan and trying to catch up and become one step ahead) then surely she should remember how long a rel is. The moment the Doctor found out the DNA belonged to the most dangerous creature in the universe, the Dalek, she instantly began thinking like one, you could see it in her expression and mannerisms from that point forward, so making a joke about forgetting a crucial part of how a Dalek operates as its ultimate plan starts developing, was another instance of clunky writing.

Much like the entirety of series 11, Resolution could have been better. It was classic Doctor Who that we’re all familiar with, and of course there has to be a new spin on the formula now we’ve got a new Doctor, but it would have been better if it left out the unnecessary moments and focused on being what it started out as – one heck of a blockbuster, action-packed, classic Doctor Who episode, which if it wasn’t so clunky in places, probably would have been one many would’ve seen as a good starting point for those who’ve skipped series 11 because it diverted too much away from what the previous focused on.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Film of the Week: Wreck it Ralph – Ralph Breaks the Internet

It has been six years since the unique Wreck it Ralph released, diving into a new world, where we see classic and original arcade games crossing over. Ralph Breaks the Internet explores a whole new world, the internet. There’s a lot to digest at any one time, from references, Easter eggs, blatant self-promoting, and self-parodies, especially during the Disney World scene with the princesses.

For a kids film, the amount of information in one frame would probably fly straight over the target audience’s head. Only the adults may be able to fully understand what’s going on, whereas the kids can focus mainly on the characters. Seeing their favourite characters interact with one another, for a child who’s only ever seen the character in their solo movie, would be mind-blowing.

The title may have Ralph’s name it in twice, but this sequel mainly focuses on Vanellope, and dealing with having her game soon to be unplugged. It’s Ralph’s fault that her game is soon to be shut down, but he tries to redeem himself by helping her get a new steering wheel. They traverse the internet, exploring areas never before seen, even the dodgy areas to try and claim the money via a website to get money to buy the steering wheel from eBay.

In terms of being a sequel, it does what all good sequels do – add something new to the story, develop characters more. The unique world within the film does offer new aspects – it was a naturally good sequel.

Whilst it is primarily aimed at the kids, it is truly a family-friendly film. Adults alike can easily sit down and watch it with their children, because of the internet setting. It’s full of scenes that equally allow adults to fully understand, but also give kids a good lesson.

As it has become traditional among films nowadays, there are two end-credits scene – one half way through and one at the very end, and both are comical. One breaks the fourth wall in a spectacular way, and the other is entirely aimed at the adults, because they’ll fully understand exactly what’s going on. I didn’t see this film in the cinema, but I can only imagine people’s reactions when they saw the scene at the very end of the credits. Its quality is on par with that of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse end credit’s scene. It’s also one of those scenes that must absolutely be kept to those who have seen it, to keep those who haven’t reactions genuine.

Disney’s self-awareness, borderline parodying itself was a genius move. Although we saw the princesses in the trailers, it was inevitable we’d see much more “promotional content” throughout the film – it would have been weird if it didn’t include Disney World, and so to make it into a parody was a smart move, and upped the quality of the overall film, as it can never be seen as a blatant way of promoting themselves.

Wreck it Ralph – Ralph Breaks the Internet offers a genuinely thought-provoking insight to the internet for young viewers, and can also be seen as a reminder to us adults – some parts of the internet are not to be tampered with. It’s a massive place, everyone needs to be careful. There are two morals in this story – and subtly weaving them both throughout the movie without the notion of it being clunky gave a smooth viewing experience, allowing us to take in all what is necessary, and soak up the background also.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)

Mum's Monday: Shadowsmith by Ross MacKenzie

This book gets off to a quick start and becomes creepy very fast.

It is sad to see Kirby Simpson’s mum I hospital and I hope, one we will find out what happened to her and two that she recovers.

We do find out what happened to Kirby’s mum quite early on which is good because as I read on I can focus more on what Kirby’s new acquaintance, Amelia Pigeon has to say and do.

It seems the spiders are not the only and the least of Kirby and Amelia’s worries. We know from the beginning of the book what came through the crack/door. I am intrigued enough to read on.

If you ever wondered how people became ill, this book may give an insight into a reason, well maybe not, but it is amusing to read, not for the workman though unless he lays off the bacon.

I have in the past found out information that if you try to go to sleep you can’t and if you try and stay awake you nod off. Whether this happens every time, each one of us is different, but for the poor farmer trying to stay awake was futile when dark forces had the upper hand.

You can tell this book is for young teens when it has sentences like ‘You are brave if you are frightened but face it anyway’ and ‘Even if you don’t have friends it isn’t the end of the world, you needn’t be alone if you read a book, or like Kirby’s dad go fishing’. To interweave life lessons into a weirdly fascinating book is a fun way to teach.

You have to admire Kirby’s dad for attempting ‘Spag-bol’, but sadly fish and chips it is then. It would have been better if this book had shown his cooking to be a success though. I don’t see why a man can’t cook as well as a woman. You never know when a male has to live on his own and cook healthily for himself or better still a great opportunity to be a good role model for Kirby or anyone reading this book, especially a young male teen.

When the fortune teller said ‘Her’ there is more than one female in this book, I’m keeping an open mind at this point as I read this book.

This book shows it is difficult to gage what someone would do, or if they can hear you if you do try and tell them what you expect of them. However, just when you think all is lost Kirby and Amelia are reunited.

This story is brilliantly put together, to use the so called witches from the witch trials of the past is clever. We hear about the trials, the witches put on them and where they are buried, like un consecrated ground, but to write this story as an afterlife to all that is an excellent idea and adds another level to the past. It is still good despite being fictional, or if you believe in ghosts, could be real life.

The part where Brothers Swan and Swift visit Kirby and Mrs Coppershot is so well written and clever, that we don’t need to know what Mrs Coppershot is actually hearing or seeing, unless she is just oblivious to it anyway. We get the impression she is not getting the full picture though and that is all that is needed for the story.

As a horror story goes this is one of the creepiest, if you don’t like spiders or witches, then it turns spooky and darkly magical. It is good to see everything work out right in the end though.