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Netflix’s ‘Space Force’ – Woke, Progressive and Pointless
There’s an awful lot of projection going on in the Netflix comedy “Space Force.”
Steve Carell’s deeply unfunny trolling of President Donald Trump’s space efforts mocks military spending over and again. Shooting comedic fish in a barrel, eh?
So… how much did this disaster set Netflix back?
Carell’s salary alone was reportedly $10 million for co-writing, co-creating and starring in this mess. The show itself likely cost more, with lavish production design and a killer cast which couldn’t have come cheaply.
Sometimes you have to break the bank to help humanity, as Carell’s character semi-wisely argues in one “Space Force” exchange.Other times you get “Ishtar,†“Heaven’s Gate†or, regrettably, “Space Force.â€
(Note: This critic watched four of the show’s first 10 episodes.)
Carell, re-teaming with “The Office†creator Greg Daniels, plays the man tasked with leading an unseen POTUS’s Space Force mission. The show never actually mentions Trump by name, but it’s obvious who the target is.
He’s like Voldemort in Hollywood -- his name cannot be spoken!
Carell’s Mark Naird is a four-star general in way over his head with the new mission. Or is he? Much of the time General Naird is as dumb as Lt. Frank Drebin of “Police Squad.â€
Until he’s not. You can practically see the switch being thrown on Carell’s character. Homer Simpson dumb to Alex P. Keaton smart.
Arguably the biggest problem is how the show doesn’t understand the main character. He’s alternately idiotic and sweet, a doting, overmatched dad and a simpleton who think dogs can fix complex space equipment.
The latter may be the most expensive, CGI-laden gag ever made for a TV project, and the laugh-to-cash ratio is embarrassingly small.
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General Naird must juggle a smarmy rival (the sublime Noah Emmerich), cost-conscious Congressmen, PR pressures and more. Plus, he’s essentially a single dad to a grating, entitled teen (Diana Silvers) because his wife is rotting in jail for a good long while.
That’s the great Lisa Kudrow stuck in the slammer to sling tired prison jokes and riff on cultural appropriation. Why is she in jail? Oh, the show keeps it a secret! Why make her character a jailbird in the first place? That’s a secret, too, because it’s nonsensical and bears little comic fruit.
The best we can say about “Space Force†is that John Malkovich gets oodles of screen time as Dr. Adrian Mallory. He’s the scientific thorn in General Naird’s side, a reminder how this administration treats science like an unwanted rash.
Only the Mallory-Naird connection evolves beyond that talking point, and Malkovich is irresistible in the part.
Woke Culture is throttling comedy in 2020, something even Malkovich himself admitted recently. Case in point: About every eight to 10 minutes we get a gag meant to appease progressive viewers. Consider:
- A gag tying gun sales to mass shootings
- Dern that climate change threat!
- Don’t bring up my gender, thunders Jane Lynch in a micro-cameo
- Silvers’ character mocking the South
- A God-fearing politician, likely from a Southern Red State, believes the Earth is flat
You wanna score lazy ideological points? Have at it. Can we make the show itself worth a darn at the same time?
Need more?
Early on we’re told POTUS is verrrrry friendly with Russia. It’s as if the recent Russia collusion hoax revelations never happened -- the show was probably in the can at the time. There’s no excuse for missing the stink bomb that was the Mueller Report, though.
Yes, Hollywood is still shrieking, “Russia, Russia, Russia†despite facts, logic and reason.
The “Space Force†characters often tweak real life Beltway players. Ben Schwartz’ social media savvy soul riffs on Anthony Scaramucci’s name. He plays F. Tony Scarapiducci. Get it? And then there’s Rep. Anabela Ysidro-Campos (Ginger Gonzaga), our AOC stand-in. Only her initials are AYC.
Get it? How much did that gag cost?
Hollywood hasn’t lobbed a single jab at the absurdly overmatched politician in two years. “Space Force†is no different so far. Wonder why? Wonder no more!
Hi @AOC 👋 I play aYc on @realspaceforce on @Netflix, a show made by kind, smart people like you! It’s an honor to play even a satirical version of you, & if you see it, I hope it makes you giggle. Grateful 4 this excuse to say thanks 4 all your work…especially now. #bffs? 🚀👯â€Â♀ï¸Â
— Ginger Gonzaga ✨ (@gingerthejester) May 29, 2020
The show’s concept, as the creators admitted but backtracked from, is all about mocking Trump’s space ambitions. It doesn’t end there. The show routinely brings up “POTUS†in an unflattering light, from Twitter misspellings to unrealistic “boots on the Moon†rhetoric.
Episode 4 drags “FLOTUS†into the hilarity, as the First Lady’s team demands it design the Space Force uniform. The show can’t even get this satirical nugget right. Melania Trump has been a mostly hands off First Lady, focusing on kind messaging and her “Be Best†campaign. Plus, she’s a veteran model with style and elegance to burn -- even if no fashion magazine will let her show it.
Again, if the comic subplot had any laughs it wouldn’t matter what you think of her or her husband.
Adding insult to so much injury is what may be Fred Willard’s last screen appearance. The comic legend, looking frail and trembling, is given a few dementia gags to embody as General Naird’s father in episode one.
Make. It. Stop.
Twice in the first four episodes General Naird breaks into song. The show’s trailer made one of those moments winning and wise. Not here.
Likely most of “Space Force,†the moments are embarrassing, humorless and dumb.
The post Netflix’s ‘Space Force’ – Woke, Progressive and Pointless appeared first on Hollywood in Toto.
source https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/netflix-space-force-review/
10 Best New French Extremity Films For The Curious (Ranked by IMDb)
Inevitably, horror film buffs will go in search of the worst of the worst. From the late 90s through the current times, a film movement has been takingthe horror underground violently by storm. Known as the "New French Extremity," films under this umbrella are notable for their visceral scenes of explicit sex, gore, torture, uncomfortable topics, and a myriad of disorienting techniques designed to make the viewer uncomfortable.
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However, just because a film is extreme does not guarantee it's quality, and the sheer number of films classified in the movement can make it overwhelming to the curious film nerd. Here are 10 movies from the "New French Extremity" movement that are prime for initiation into this dark side of horror.
10 Romance/Romance X (5.3)
This 1999 film explores BDSM in a way that would make fans of Fifty Shades of Grey outright blush. A candid and emotionally complex portrait of a woman's sexual exploration, Catherine Breillat's film is tame, in some regards, when compared to some of the other titles in the movement. That being said, Romance is far from mainstream.
Much of the film's success stems from a truly fearless performance from lead actress Caroline Ducey. Scenes of nudity and consensual bondage pepper the film's more contemplative moments in which Ducey's character silently tries to work out what it is she wants from her romantic life.
9 Trouble Every Day (6.0)
Claire Denis is one of France's most celebrated indie filmmakers. This film from 2001 represents her attempt at a horror film. True to her own style, as well as the traditions of the "New French Extremity," Trouble Every Day is certainly not an easy watch.
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Combining a passionate love affair and a story of cannibalism, the film is bizarre and detached in a way that alienates the viewer. Underground rebel Vincent Gallo turns in a typically neurotic performance as an American man on honeymoon with ulterior motives. Twilight, this is not.
8 Frontier(s) (6.2)
Frontier(s), directed by Xavier Gens, is the story of the world's worst hotel. On their way out of a politically tumultuous Paris, a group of Arab 20-somethings decides to stop at an inn run by a family of nazis.
Released in the United States with an NC-17 rating in 2008, the film garnered mixed reviews. Its material is elevated beyond the typical formula with the addition of some fairly astute social commentary. A nightmare for the modern times, more relevant now than ever, Frontier(s) is an uncompromising polemic against xenophobia.
7 Them (6.4)
Short, brutal, and full of incredible tension, Them was released in 2006 to warm reception from horror critics. The story of the 74-minute long ride is simple -- a couple is terrorized throughout the night by a group of unseen attackers.
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A brisk and lean trip through a nerve-wracking game of cat-and-mouse, the film contains a seriously cruel final scene that provides a perfect exhibition of the "New French Extremity" penchant for bleak endings. One of the best entries in the "evil kids" subgenre, Them is a great way to enter the world of these hellish films.
6 High Tension (6.8)
Perhaps one of the most widely known of the NFE films, Alexandre Aja's twisted thriller launched the director a relatively successful Hollywood film career. Combining gritty action, home intrusion, and psychological horror, the subversive film became infamous for its extreme violence, which garnered it an NC-17 rating from the MPAA.
Telling the tale of two girls visiting family members at a large manor, the night soon turns into an all-out bloodbath with a killer twist at the end. A cocktail of many defining elements of the "New French Extremity" movement, High Tension remains an excellent entry point into the genre.
5 Inside (6.8)
Featuring one of the great screen villainesses in horror, with Beatrice Dalle's "La Femme," Inside is one of the subgenre's scariest offerings. A taut home invasion thriller with a feminine twist, the film is relentlessly brutal in its depiction of a woman's quest to steal another woman's baby from her womb.
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The violence in the film is truly hard to watch, particularly in the film's bloody final act. An intruder thriller unlike any you've seen before, Inside is well-worth your time and attention -- if you can stomach it, that is.
4 Martyrs (7.1)
A gorefest with big ideas and questions beneath the surface, Martyrs is on the more cerebral side of the movement's spectrum. Simultaneously a bloody revenge drama and theological discourse on martyrdom, the film manages to deftly balance its cross-genre elements into a slick and truly disturbing package.
As the narrative gets sicker and sicker as the runtime progresses, the film slowly transforms into a highly original take on the concept of life beyond death. Stylish, gross, beautiful, and horrific, Martyrs is one of the "New French Extremity's" most cohesive offerings.
3 Caché (7.3)
Notable provocateur Michael Haneke's 2007 paranoia thriller is Hitchcock by way of the "New French Extremism" style. An intense meta-thriller about surveillance, media, and society's fascination with violence, Caché is one of the director's best-realized visions.
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What begins as a surreal mystery soon becomes something deeper and more malicious, as the tapes the couple are getting begin to reveal a terrible secret from the husband's childhood. Brilliantly structured and layered with bleak ideas about truth and responsibility, Caché is one of the movement's deepest entries.
2 Enter The Void (7.3)
Ask anyone who loves these types of film to name their favorite director, and chances are they might respond "Gaspar Noe." One of the most beloved and reviled filmmakers to come out of France in decades, Noe made a name for himself with his brand of freewheeling cinematography documenting some of the grimmest stories this side of Sade.
Perhaps his most experimental film is 2009's psychedelic opus, Enter The Void. Truly a film unlike any other, the film documents a soul's journey through neon Tokyo as his life swirls around him. Dark, thrilling, beautiful, and controversial, Enter The Void is one hell of a trip.
1 Irreversible (7.4)
Without a doubt one of the most infamous films of all time, Gaspar Noe's Irreversible is the film that cemented him as the bad-boy of the "New French Extremist" movement. A film that plays out in reverse, Irreversible tells the story of a night on the town from the pits of a hellish nightmare.
Noe's camera has rarely been more chaotic and the images he chooses to show us are traumatic. The film's 'centerpiece' is a one-take sexual assault, the event that jumpstarts the rest of the film's narrative, which has caused innumerable walk-outs and premature turn-offs. Unrelenting and powerful, Irreversible is the definitive film of the "New French Extreme" movement.
NEXT: 10 Unbearably Suspenseful Movies Most Can't Watch More Than Once
source https://screenrant.com/best-new-french-extremity-films-imdb/
Friends: Chandler's 15 Most Hilarious Pick-Up Lines That Are So Bad They're Good
Chandler Bing remains a relatable icon in TV lore today, despite having appeared in a series that concluded in 2004. Time really had little effect on Chandler's infamous antics, jokes, and all-around awkwardness, as he is often considered one of the most timeless elements of friends.
Many fans identified with Chandler and that is still true to this day. There's nothing like representation for the underrepresented, and when Friends was airing, introverts weren't typically main characters, especially not on sitcoms.
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Chandler was the source of many hilarious storylines on Friends, due to his awkwardness, sarcasm, and notorious inability to flirt. Chandler Bing was no Joey Tribbiani, so let's take a look at some of his most hilariously bad pick-up lines.
Updated May 31st, 2020 by Meg Pelliccio: When it comes to Friends, Chandler was undoubtedly the comedy king in pretty much everything he did, whether he meant to be funny or not. In keeping with this character trait, his pick-up lines are often hilarious, or so awkward that they become funny. It's hard to imagine anyone actually using these lines in real life, or at least using them successfully.
With ten seasons to its name, Friends has plenty of cringe-worthy Chandler jokes for fans to enjoy, but hispick-up lines remain some of the funniest quotes out there.
15 "Well, maybe you can get in on a beauty scholarship."
In season three, one of the episodes that feature a hilarious flashback to the 80s, we see Ross making out with a classmate called Adrienne, which goes against the pact he had with Chandler. Annoyed at discovering this and seeking revenge, Chandler decides to hit on Rachel as he knows Ross cares for her.
After striking up a conversation with Rachel and listening to her complain about the possibility of not getting into college, Chandler says "Well, maybe you can get in on a beauty scholarship." Rachel responds with "What a line!" and she's not wrong.
14 "Excuse me, I seem to have dropped my ball."
In season three, episode six titled "The One With the Flashback," we see that Chandler and Rachel encountered each other when she was engaged to Barry. Chandler overhears Rachel telling her friends that she needs one last fling with the first man she sees before she settles down with Barry and so Chandler, for some reason, thinks his best bet is to fling his snooker ball her way and swagger over.
He greets her with the line, "Excuse me, I seem to have dropped my ball" as if that will suddenly make her rip his clothes off. Of course, this pick-up line is unsuccessful and just leads to an awkward moment shortly afterward when Monica introduces him to Rachel.
13 "Well, come here. I'm very happy we're going to have all the sex."
In season five, episode 14 we see Phoebe and Chandler trying to seduce each other in an attempt to see who will chicken out first and admit that Chandler is in a relationship with Monica. This hilarious episode sees both characters cranking up their flirting routines in an effort to break one another.
Rather awkwardly, one of the seduction lines that Chandler chooses to use is, "Well, come here. I'm very happy we're going to have all the sex." Unsurprisingly, this line doesn't work and Phoebe ends up being the one to break Chandler.
12 "So ah, did ya, did-did-did ya fall high?"
In season three, episode 14 titled "The One With Phoebe's Ex-Partner" Chandler is queuing for the men's restroom and is annoyed at the length of time the person is taking inside. As the occupant starts to emerge, Chandler irritatedly asks "Jeez man, did you fall..." before noticing it is a beautiful woman.
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Thinking on his feet, Chandler does his best to change the question into a pick-up line and stutters out, "So ah, did ya, did-did-did ya fall high?" While it doesn't seem like a great line, it must have worked as he and the woman, named Ginger, go on to date for a brief time.
11 "I have kissed over four women."
In an unforgettable two-parter season six episode titled "The One That Could Have Been", audiences get to see how different the beloved Friends' gang's lives would be had a number of things had been different at the beginning, such as Rachel never running out on Barry, Monica never losing weight, and Ross staying married to Carol.
In this alternate universe episode, Monica and Chandler are not dating but appear to harbor secret feelings for each other. In a satisfying, adorable conclusion, the beloved Friends couple does end up together in this two-parter episode, but not before Chandler awkwardly flirts with Monica, saying things such as, "Well, I have kissed over four women."
10 "Gum would be perfection."
In an iconic season one episode titled, "The One With The Blackout", Chandler infamously finds himself trapped in an ATM vestibule with Victoria's Secret model, Jill Goodacre. This episode is unforgettable and hilarious for many reasons, namely Ross' incident with a rogue cat and a musical number of sorts from the gang, but easily the most notable part of this episode was Chandler's predicament.
He handles being stranded in a blackout with a beautiful woman in a way that only Chandler would, by being awkward and quiet most of the night. When he turns down Jill Goodacre's offer of gum, Chandler immediately regrets it, and reiterates, saying, "gum would be perfection."
9 "I'm hopeless and awkward and desperate for love!"
In season three, Chandler infamously dates Janice and quickly becomes scared of the commitment that this relationship entails since he has a lifelong fear of commitment. After Joey encourages him to face his fear, Chandler goes to the other extreme and asks Janice to move in with him, who in turn, freaks out about this new stage of commitment.
This sets Chandler off on a rampage, in which he begins to act ridiculously, and although it's hilarious, this episode really speaks to just how deep-rooted Chandler's relationship issues were. In a last-ditch effort to convince Janice not to leave him, Chandler yells out, "I'm hopeless and awkward and desperate for love!"
8 "Hi... Ok, next word."
In the season one episode, "The One With The Butt", the gang attends a performance of the musical Freud!, in which Joey is playing the lead. The play is predictably awful, but Chandler considers himself lucky as he ends up meeting a beautiful woman named Aurora.
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He hesitantly approaches her, and in an attempt to have a conversation, says this, "Hi... Ok, next word. Chandler is my name." This awkward line is so adorable it's easy to see why he and Aurora get together. Too bad it doesn't work out.
7 "Would you like to go out with me sometime? Thank you. Good night."
In the same episode with Aurora, Chandler decides to follow up on his awkward introduction by asking the beautiful woman out on a date. The hilarious part is that he quickly asks her, then thanks her and then makes his goodbyes in quick succession before trying to make his escape.
Strangely, this tactic seems to work as Aurora calls him back and agrees to go on a date with him. Is this pick-up line worth trying? Maybe, but maybe not.
6 "Do you know me, or are you just really good at this game?"
In season two, Friends aired a two-part episode titled, "The One After The Superbowl", because the episode(s) literally aired directly after NBC's broadcast of the Super Bowl XXX. The episode(s) are mainly about Ross tracking down Marcel, his pet monkey, but there is also some signature Chandler awkwardness thrown in.
Ross finds that Marcel is in New York filming Outbreak 2: The Virus Takes Manhattan, and the gang heads to the set, where Chandler reunites with his childhood classmate, Susie Moss. Though we later find out that she has ulterior motives, Susie begins flirting with Chandler, and his first response is simply, "Do you know me, or are you just really good at this game?"
5 "We swallow our feelings, even if it means we're unhappy forever."
Joey starts dating Kathy early on in season four, and Chandler begins to have feelings for her. He tries to hide this for a few episodes, but of course, ends up failing spectacularly. In the self-explanatory episode seven, "The One Where Chandler Crosses The Line", Chandler and Kathy get closer, causing Chandler to immediately regret his actions because he has betrayed his best friend.
Chandler turns Kathy down, saying, "We swallow our feelings forever, even if it means we're unhappy forever. Sound good?"
4 "This was great. I'll give you a call. We should do it again!"
In the season three episode, "The One With The Dollhouse", Chandler finds himself in an unusual situation when it's revealed that Rachel's boss, Joanna, has feelings for him. Chandler agrees to go out with her, but this soon backfires when he learns that Joanna is a "big, dull, dud!"
RELATED: Friends: 10 Life Lessons That Are Still Applicable Today
Of course, instead of confronting Joanna, Chandler attempts to simply and quietly remove himself from the situation. Rachel insists that he just tell Joanna that he doesn't want to see her, which he does, but immediately follows it up with "This was great. I'll give you a call. We should do it again sometime!"
3 "It's Gaelic for 'thy turkey is done'."
When Chandler is put on the spot, he typically reacts by spouting something nonsensical and often very humorous. In the same episode in which Chandler meets, dates, and dumps Joanna, he also delivers this hilarious pick-up line of sorts.
Rachel introduces Chandler to Joanna and on hearing his name, Joanna comments, "Bing - that's a great name", to which Chandler responds, "Thanks. It's Gaelic for "thy turkey is done." You know what they say - if you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?
2 "H-hey!"
Arguably one of Chandler's most memorable and hilarious attempted pick-up lines was when he first met Kathy and began flirting with her before he knew that she was with Joey. Kathy first appeared in season four, episode five titled "The One With Joey's New Girlfriend".
Chandler asks Kathy her name, and when she tells him, he asks, "Kathy with a C, or a K?" She responds, "K", to which Chandler quips, "H-hey!" Well, if that doesn't start a romantic connection then what will?
1 "Thanks, I grow it myself."
There is another great flirtatious line from the season four episode, "The One Where Chandler Crosses The Line". Chandler and Kathy engage in some awkward banter while she cuts his hair. To fill the tense silence, Kathy comments, "You have really great hair."
Chandler hilariously responds, "Thanks, I grow it myself." Though it sounds like the ultimate dad joke, this adorable line increases Kathy's affection for the loveable jokester and shortly afterward we see the two connecting on a romantic level.
NEXT: Friends: 10 Big Mistakes That Phoebe Did That We Can Learn From
source https://screenrant.com/friends-chandler-hilarious-pick-up-lines-best/
FACING DEMONS (SAVE ME TOO)
When 'Save Me' was broadcast on Sky Atlantic two years ago, it set a high bar for other UK dramas made by the channel.
Created by its lead actor Lennie James, the hard hitting child abduction drama waded into some very dark themes.
And under the direction of Nick Murphy, it attracted some serious acting talent from both sides of the Irish Sea.
(SPOILER ALERT!!!)
At the end of 'Save Me', James' estranged dad Nelly found himself at an auction attended by paedophiles trying to win back his missing teenage daughter, Indeyarna Donaldson-Holness' Jody McGory.
Beaten up after bidding way above his limit, Nelly still managed to break into a warehouse where she might be held - only to discover Olive Gray's teenager Grace chained inside a caravan.
At the start of 'Save Me Too', Nelly Rowe is still looking for Jody and is sitting 17 months later in a car in his trademark yellow puffa jacket with blood on his knuckles.
With episodes penned by Daniel Fajemisin-Duncan, Marion Smith and Emer Kenny, 'Save Me Too' from the off follows a less linear narrative than its predecessor.
We go back and forth in time, seeing Nelly and Thomas Coombes' Goz earlier in the day tailing the car of Lesley Manville's disgraced upper middle class wife Jennifer Charles.
She is living with the shame of her husband is Adrian Edmondson's creepy Gideon Charles having been tried for paedophilia.
Shocked to see Nelly in a supermarket, she is coaxed into having a cup of coffee with him - believing he might offer a sympathetic ear.
What Nelly really wants is to extract names and telephone numbers from her of Gideon's associates - even pretending Goz, who is waiting outside the cafe, is a tabloid journalist to pressurise her.
When Nelly tracks Gideon down on the back of one piece of information, the paedophile panics and decides to flee with the help of his wife.
Nelly nevertheless is determined to do whatever it takes to secure more information to help recover Jody.
James and his writers go back in time once more to the trial of Gideon Charles, which Nelly, attends in the public gallery with his ex, Jody's mum Suranne Jones' Clare and her husband, Barry Ward's Barry.
Grace is the main prosecution witness but is unhappy about having to live through the trauma of testifying about the sexual abuse she suffered at the hands of Gideon and his associates.
After a cross-examination in the witness box goes disastrously, she storms out of the courtroom and goes to ground, causing the case to collapse.
Weeks later, she returns with Nelly spiriting her upstairs to the flat above his local The Palm Tree, run by his friend Susan Lynch's Stace.
However events take a darker turn the following morning when Nadine Marshall's DS Shola O'Halloran turns up at The Palm Tree where Nelly and his mates have been sleeping after his 50th birthday celebrations to reveal Gideon Charles has been murdered.
The police are especially interested in Nelly's whereabouts on the previous day.
'Save Me Too' finds Nelly forging a close bond with Grace as he tries to find some morsel of information that could lead to the whereabouts of Jody.
But it also sees Stephen Graham's fragile Melon trying to sustain his relationship with Alice May Feetham's pregnant Bernie and wrestling with his murky past.
While Nelly obsessively chases any lead, Jones' Clare McGory is coming to terms with her grief for Jody and the likelihood that her daughter may be dead.
Camilla Beeput's Zita shares a bed with Nelly who takes her young son, Kassidy Anderson's Samson to school but soon becomes uneasy about the arrival of Grace in their lives.
Goz panics when Nelly bounces him into providing an alibi for the day when Gideon was murdered - a concern that is shared by his partner, Alisha Bailey's Heather.
Jason Flemyng's cross dresser Tam remains as supportive as ever - even taking Clare to a medium in the hope that it can provide some piece of mind about Jody.
As in the first series, James and the writers are not afraid to plunge into some very disturbing territory and it is Nelly's tendency to take huge risks in pursuit of the truth that makes every episode feel like a jittery but compelling high wire act.
Well written, intelligently directed by Jim Loach and grippingly acted, 'Save Me Too' is every bit as good as its previous series.
Lennie James remains the heart and soul of the show and is just wonderful as a desperate man who is often too clever for his own good.
As before, every member of the cast, including Kerry Godliman as another of Nelly's exes Teens, is on song.
But if there is one quibble, it is that Jones, Ward, Graham, Lynch and Flemyng are so good that you cannot help but feel they are a little underused.
With a bit more to do than some of her colleagues, Beeput is excellent as the no nonsense Zita.
Gray also injects a nervous energy into the show as the volatile and very damaged Grace.
Marshall and Coombes rise to the occasion too, while Edmonson is impressively slimy as Gideon.
Manville, not surprisingly, is a terrific addition to the cast as Gideon Charles' damaged wife and like Jones, Graham, Lynch and Flemyng, you find yourself wishing there was more for her to do.
While Jim Loach is on board to direct three of the episodes, ultimately it is the quality of the writing is 'Save Me Too's' greatest asset - providing a solid foundation for the cast to work from.
Each episode lands a heavy emotional punch and the cast devour and savour every piece of dialogue.
You suspect James and his writers will have no difficulty asking the cast to return for a third series.
And it seems viewers have an appetite for ot as well, with over 3.1 million downloads on Sky's streaming services during April.
By the time 'Save Me Too' reaches its crescendo, there are still too many questions still to be resolved.
It seems only fair that Nelly and his yellow puffa jacket get at least one more outing again.
('Save Me Too' was broadcast on Sky Atlantic from April 1-May 6, 2020)
source https://loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2020/05/facing-demons-save-me-too.html
On Location: The door from Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy
Even by his own macabre standards, Alfred Hitchcock surpassed himself in his penultimate feature, Frenzy. Marking a sense of homecoming for the director, the film’s dark London setting renders the film as one of his most shocking and unforgiving. There’s a disturbing sense of recognition throughout due in part to Hitchcock’s use of some very recognisable locations, albeit when central London was a place of markets and industry. The very character of the city comes to haunt Frenzy, as if its sheer grimy opulence and messiness aids the vicious crimes committed by its chief villain.
In the film, the swinging optimism that gripped the city in the previous decade has dissolved into nihilism as the streets are plagued by a spate of sex murders, the killer’s signature being strangulation by necktie. The sexual revolution combined with the patriarchy has formed a social, psychotic monstrosity.
We follow Richard (Jon Finch), a down-and-out ex-serviceman who appears at first to match the killer’s description and behaviour. When his ex-wife Brenda (Barbara Leigh-Hunt) is found dead moments after Richard was spotted visiting her, the man is forced to go on the run through the gutters of London. How long will it be before the police catch him or, more importantly, before the real killer cannot resist his urges and strikes again?
In the opening shot, Hitchcock uses London for a magnificently underhand ploy. A helicopter shot slowly follows the Thames along through Tower Bridge, the docklands of the city still looking atmospheric but the music and a postcard mark in the corner marking it as a seemingly picturesque, pleasant film.
This turns sharply and shockingly towards the actual reality of the film within moments when the body of a naked woman is found floating in the river’s murky water. The city in Hitchcock’s film is vile but also breathing and excitedly alive. Every wall seems stained, crumbling or marked, the boozers and pubs are grim and filled with greasy drinkers, and the streets are littered with rubbish and lost souls.
It’s as unforgiving a portrait of the city as cinema has ever dared produce. Within this is essentially the crux to Hitchcock’s film and Anthony Schaffer’s script too. Some of its casual, light dialogue feels incredibly disturbing in today’s light but it aids the film, not least in that so many of the men on screen express the same sort of misogyny that they only perceive as legitimately manifesting as violence via the necktie murderer. As one character knowingly suggests, “All blokes are that sort of bloke…” Malice is on every street corner.
Filming extensively around Covent Garden when it was still a functioning market, Hitchcock was, in a way, revisiting his own personal experiences. Being the son of a greengrocer, he would have undoubtedly had experience of the market and its vibrant, bustling characters. Frenzy captures its last gasp before it was eventually moved to the other side of the Thames to Nine Elms only a few years later. Being at the centre of the film allows the director to sketch and create small dramas around the area, a place of transit and working people that is a far cry away from its status today as a square of luxury branded shops and tourist friendly street performers.
One scene from the countless uses of this setting stands out, perhaps ultimately as a last hurrah for the director’s innovative eye before his decidedly average final film, Family Plot. We see the real killer about to strike again, the pathos for the viewer unbearable as Richard’s only hope and true friend Babs (Anna Massey) is unsuspectingly lured into the killer’s flat. We instantly cut to a set showing the dingy building, following the pair upstairs.
Before we can follow them further, the camera tracks back down the stairs and out of the building. For a film that has some of Hitchcock’s most relentlessly voyeuristic, gratuitous scenes of the violence towards women, the decision to not show the killing reveals an unusual but refreshing reserve on the director’s part.
The camera continues on through the set until initially out of the doorway and a cleverly angled edit on the shoulders of a passing walker cuts to the real Covent Garden location. It’s a technique Hitchcock used throughout his career, from the travelling car shots of The 39 Steps to the various cuts that weave together seamlessly in Rope. The shot here adds to the sense built throughout the film that behind London’s closed doors is a quiet but endlessly lurid potential; that dark secrets are hiding almost in plain sight, masked unnervingly well by the everyday architecture and character of the city.
The house still stands today at 3 Henrietta Street, right on the corner of Covent Garden where once a hub of Victorian publishing houses sat alongside the market. The majority of the stalls have gone and the atmosphere has changed beyond recognition but the building is exactly as it was. Next door is a branch of the celebrity favoured restaurant, The Ivy, and even the building next door is now a luxury clothes shop.
In spite of this, there’s still something eerie about the building, ultimately because the director showed the possibility of something horrific lying in wait, even behind the most earnest and respectable of facades.
With thanks toPolaroid Originals.
The post On Location: The door from Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy appeared first on Little White Lies.
source https://lwlies.com/articles/on-location-alfred-hitchcock-frenzy/
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