Do Toys/Cartoons and Action movies mix?

I went along to my local cinema last Thursday to kill some time and thought I'd give the new GI Joe movie a look. I'm happy to report that there is no change to what has become the standard Toys/Cartoon to Action movie mix of medium strength action, medium strength story line and medium strength.... well everything. I get the impression that the director and production crew said 'That'll do' a lot when they made the movie. It's not bad, and some of the mistakes made in production are hilarious but my moaning and sarcasm asides it’s actually an entertaining movie that manages to sneak past ‘Mediocre’ camp (home to GI Joe, Rise of the Cobra and the first 2 Transformers movies) and into the home base of ‘Enjoyable Movies’, likely bunked besides Transformers 3. This however brings me to the point of this week’s blog. Does the world of Cartoon heroes and toy action figures really work in movies? It depends, we know that Batman and Spiderman have been turned into excellent movie franchises but they were made by people with a passion for movies, the production of GI Joe was driven by suits in an office following a business model which can be summed up as follows:

Step 1 – Pick popular children’s franchise

Step 2 - Get a crayon and a napkin and write a script based on chosen franchise

Step 3 - bring Make believe heroes to life by casting with popular culture stars (Dwayne “can you smell what the rock is cooking” Johnson is the ideal selection)

Step 4 – Cast Beautiful women for Dads and their teenage sons

Step 5 – Produce roughly 5 gazillion action toys/ lunch boxes/ t-shirts etc and one poorly made movie tie in video game to sell when the film releases

Step 6 – Release film with a massive fan fair

Step 7 – Reap the profits of roughly 5 gazillion action toys/ lunch boxes/ t-shirts etc and one poorly made movie tie in video game

It doesn’t speak to me of the passion that Spielberg put into ET or Jurassic Park or the dedication Cameroon and his production team had to show to complete Titanic. The truth is, this is a money making machine that’s targeted at our Children, the films are getting better (although I hear rumours of a Transformer and GI Joe tie in, it could be great but most likely you should pray it’s just a rumour) but until Christopher Nolan or another person of equal talent, passion and dedication to movie making comes along these movies are going to be missed opportunities. It’s a shame because I think, given a descent script, the cast would really shine out. There is some real talent in this film.

So, Do Toys/Cartoons and Action movies mix? Yes if the production is driven by people in suits in a room with a spread sheet, no if production is driven by someone who cares about good entertainment. Fingers crossed for Transformers 4 then.

See Ya.

Fun in the Skys and on the radio waves

Hi all, if you've never heard of a show called Cabin Pressure before then I wouldn't be surprised, It's a radio show written by a very talented chap named John Finnemore who has also written or been involved extensively in writing  That Mitchell and Webb Look, Dead Ringers, Safety Catch, The Now Show and The Unbelievable Truth, that is if Wikipedia is accurate (Sorry Mr Finnemore if its not). It' s about a small charter airline company and the hilarious situations the four main characters (with some excellent small part characters like Hercules Shipwright played by the talented Anthony Head) get themselves into and out of.

Back to the point (or first point I want to make) on this Blog, Cabin Pressure is the funniest Sitcom currently available on any media. That's not debatable that's simple fact.

Now I understand that many people (not that there are many people reading my blog) will immediately start arguing that their are many many great Sitcoms on the TV and I obviously have the IQ of egg plant but let me explain my point here. Cabin Pressure is a radio show that is as funny as any televised Sitcom currently being shown on any network I've seen, that includes classics like 'Only Fools and Horses' and 'Allo Allo'. Televised Sitcoms tend to rely as much on the visual elements available to them for their laughs as they do on well written scripts, not all I admit but a large number of the gags in televised sitcoms are visual gags. Cabin Pressure is, in my opinion, funnier then any modern sitcom I've watched on the TV and achieves this without anyone being able to see the cast, their reactions or expressions. That is down to damn good writing and an excellent cast and Cabin Pressure has a very talented cast including a chap called Benedict Cumberbatch, (I wonder, out of all the people not acquainted with Cabin Pressure,  who was expecting that name to come up)?

Cabin Pressure is definitely worth your time, anything that can be as funny as 'The Big Bang Theory', the 'IT Crowd' or classic 'Fools' without the visual element is just comedy gold and I implore you to order a copy of the show. Cabin Pressure has reached series 4 and all are available to buy. I've got them on Audible which you can use to listen to various books and published radios shows on your PC, Tablet or Smartphone and at around £10 (between £9 and £13 per series based on prices for 14/03/2013) its great value for money.

The second point I would like to raise isn't a point but a question, why hasn't Cabin Pressure been turned into a televised Sitcom? Mr Finnemore, if you ever read this could you please tell me?

Many thanks for reading, if you have anything you would like to feedback I'm always happy to hear.

M

The end of an era

I remember watching ‘Return of the Jedi’ and thinking.... I wanted to be a Jedi Knight, well I was only 10 at the time. I do, however, remember sitting in a cinema at Lakeside watching the end of  'The LOTR - Return of the King' and I sharply recall this sense of emptiness I had after the film, I spent years waiting in anticipation for the first film, then a year for the second and finally a year for the third. I remember that I couldn’t wait to see the last film when I left the cinema after watching ‘The Two Towers’ and then, after ‘LOTR-ROK’ it was all over. It wasn’t that the film ended badly, not at all but, I had got used to the anticipation and looking forward to the next instalment, it was the excitement and frustration at the wait for the next episode that was gone, that need to find out what happens next. Without that I was left a little sad. Now as I write this blog (the follow on from the ‘Beginning of the End’) I feel that same feeling of empty sadness that another era has come to an end. I’ve read and re-read the final book of the Wheel of Time and I’ve listened to the audio book. The last book is nothing short of sensational, with a fast pace that barely lets up from beginning to end, moments of wonder, revelation and sadness ‘A Memory of Light’ is a fantastic ending to a series that has span 3 decades. It’s not perfect, I have my complaints (the death of certain characters does, to me, feels remarkably pointless in the book) and I wish the revelation of who killed Asmodean was a little more obvious. I did figure it out in the end however. These are very small flies in an otherwise extraordinary bottle of ointment. Brandon Sanderson has done Robert Jordans legacy proud. Now all I have to do is find something else to look forward too. If JJ Abrams is directing the next ‘Star Wars’ movies, then maybe I’ve found it.

I’ve wanted to start writing my own Blog for some time, since I’ve never done this before I’m curious to see how this goes. Before I begin I’ll tell you a little about myself, I’m 31, a single father with a passion for movies, books, games, theme parks and travel. Since these are the things I love the most (excluding my son whom obviously I love above all else) these are the things I will write about, I’m also an amateur author, so I may post a few examples of my work over time.

Any way, back to the Beginning of the End, I’ve waited 12 years to do what I’m about to do. Some have waited longer, others less but I think any who have followed the work of Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson will feel the same as I do. Tarmon Gia’don has finally arrived - thank the light – and I, against all odds, will get to read the conclusion to the ‘Wheel of Time’ novels.

The 14^th book of the ‘Wheel of Time’ has arrived on my doorstep, when I heard that Robert Jordan had passed away I had the selfish thought that I would never read the end of this wonderful and epic set of novels, I then thought that the world had lost a great entertainer since, via his books, this was his gift to the world. I’m ashamed to admit that this was the order to my thoughts (and in the unlikely event that any who knew Mr Jordan read this, I apologies for that). When I heard that Robert Jordan spent his last months trying to finish the books I realised that this man had been so unselfish, ask yourself what you would do in the last months of your life? What a wonderful and generous man Robert Jordan was, thinking of his fans in this way.

I will not forget to mention Brandon Sanderson, he’s done an amazing job in taking Robert Jordans notes and work and finishing these books. I think I speak on behalf of all the WOT fans when I say, Thanks.

That’s it, I can’t wait any longer. I’m going to go and finish this epic journey and I’ll let you know my thoughts when I’m done, please don’t think I will simply tell you the book was awesome just because I’m a fan, I haven’t liked all the books in the series so I will be honest with my views and any who are interested can debate with me over these. See you on the over side.

Dovie’andi se tovya sagain