Aww, but he was so sweet and his heart was in the right place.
What are you watching on TV? Page 2,075
Quote: Hercules Grytpype Thynne @ 7th February 2016, 11:55 PM GMTJust in case somebody hasn't seen it yet, I won't spoil it, but there was a lot of death and "things" turned out OK in the end.
Cannot agree with you about Pierre - I thought he was a wonderful character.Anyway, I thought the whole thing was absolutely brilliant - the cinematography, the sets, costumes, acting etc etc superb and I thoroughly enjoyed the whole story.
AND thank heavens the music was good and not obtrusive for a change!!
100% agree.
A real joy.
I'm really into Location, Location, Location (or shouldn't that be Location, squared?) at the moment.
Gotham - Rise of the Villains on Channel 5.
Quote: TheBlueNun @ 8th February 2016, 4:59 PM GMTI'm really into Location, Location, Location (or shouldn't that be Location, squared?) at the moment.
>_< Went off that years ago.
Quote: TheBlueNun @ 8th February 2016, 4:59 PM GMTI'm really into Location, Location, Location (or shouldn't that be Location, squared?) at the moment.
Not Cubed???
Michael Portillo's Great American Railroad Journeys.
Normally only watch his series when he covers the British rail network (didn't watch any of the Continental ones that were on last year), but made an exception here and they are proving to be most enlightening and enjoyable.
My Afternoons With Margueritte
Time for a ramble. I was a bit restless the other day and was switching from channel to channel. Couldn't find anything that appealed other than something in French with subtitles. I thought at first I'd give it ten minutes or so as it was attractively filmed - French settings, nice use of colour etc - and then I realised it featured Gerard Depardieu. It isn't possible to criticise him as an actor whatever other baggage that accompanies him. Very watchable. He's a Richard Burton or even an Oliver Reed in many ways. Fairly recently he was dragged off a plane for urinating in the aisle. That sort of thing. He is also bizarrely a close friend of Putin or so people say.
Anyhow, some 20 minutes later I'm still with it. It's sort of mad as well as interesting. Funny in places, sad in others. It is very, very French - full of existential angst - and with some very dark undercurrents. There are bits that are reminiscent of the work of David Lynch or the Coen Brothers. What really appeals is the interplay between him and an old woman on a park bench. He's a bit simple. She's intelligent. They feed pigeons and she reads him extracts from Camus. The chemistry between the two actors is stunning and she is very moving.
Suddenly I'm thinking that I've seen the film years ago. It's a very distinct vibe. So when might that have been? I used to hire videos in the mid 1990s. He would have been in his 40s then. His character appears to be in that sort of age bracket. Maybe I hired it out at that time. That's my thinking. Then about 45 minutes in to the film, he is saying that the woman in the park is 95 and I just think "oh that's ridiculous, it spoils it". It was easy to think she could have been 85 but if it was really intended she should be 95 then they should have had someone of that age or made the actress more plausible by being more like that age. The film itself also confusingly has time shifts.
The film ends and on the credits it says "made in 2010". That completely throws me and I think it must have been reissued. None of the timing makes any sense. I then Google Depardieu and find out that he is 69 so he would have been 64 then and not in his mid-40s. And then I start reading the reviews on "Rotten Tomatoes" etc and the consistent theme is that it was indeed made in 2010. Incredibly, the actress rather than being 85 or even 95 was apparently 97 when it was made which is unbelievable given the weight of her performance. By all accounts, Gisele Casadesus for that is her name is a national treasure in France and is still alive, continuing to make films since 2010, at the age of 101. Apparently she was born in the 14th hour on the 14 June 1914.
I have now become mildly obsessed with the Casadesus family. Gisele is an honorary member of the Sociétaires of the Comédie-Française, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and has the Grand-Croix of the National Order of Merit. Her career spans more than 80 years and she has appeared in more than a dozen films since turning 90. She was married to Lucien Pascal, born Lucien Probst, a well-known French actor, for over 70 years. Their offspring are all arty - conductors, composers, sculptors etc - and significant people in their own right. And her father Henri who on the surface was an establishment conductor and composer was in truth something of a maverick. His most famous concerto was presented by him for many years as his discovery of an unknown composition by JC Bach. Allegedly, he produced a lot of fake documents to substantiate the claim and the great and the good believed it even though he had written the thing himself.
Every aspect of it then is slightly strange and nothing less than fascinating. The film has been described by some as the nearest the French have come to a Forrest Gump. Which I can see and I suppose it just might be part of the reason why it had a feeling of familiarity. The timings still don't ring true to me. I just can't believe that Depardieu was 64 when the film was made and Casadesus was 97 but I have to believe it as that was the case.
How to Die: Simon's Choice
"The dramatic and poignant story of one man facing the heart wrenching decision of whether to end his life at a suicide clinic after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease."
I thought this was going to be another Dignitas doc. like the one Terry Pratchett did a few years back on the chap who was part of the Smedley canned goods family, but decided to give it a look.
What a terrible, terrible degenerative problem is motor neurone disease that this man Simon suffered from. I didn't realise how awful it was, and this time a clinic was used in Basel.
Most moving and thought provoking.
Top of the Pops from 1981.
Don't Bucks Fizz look young although Chery always looked gorgeous. She just looked like she was enjoying herself rather than posing.
Also Colin Blunstone who I've seen a few times in recent years and Duran Duran with their first hit Planet Earth which I actually bought at the time.
Brian Ferry from a particular angle reminded me of a certain Mr Sunshine.
Room 101.
Gosh! A limited edition Emmerdale coffee mug when you enrol with Gala Bingo.
Got twitchy fingers now as that could be worth a fortune in the next millennium.
[quote name="Chappers" post="1148829" date="11th February 2016, 7:49 PM GMT"
Also Colin Blunstone who I've seen a few times in recent years
[/quote]
Ooh, might have to search that one out on iPlayer, amazing and underrated vocalist. '81 must have been 'What Becomes of the Broken Hearted' I guess?
Quote: radiat10n @ 14th February 2016, 12:04 AM GMT[quote name="Chappers" post="1148829" date="11th February 2016, 7:49 PM GMT"
Also Colin Blunstone who I've seen a few times in recent years
Ooh, might have to search that one out on iPlayer, amazing and underrated vocalist. '81 must have been 'What Becomes of the Broken Hearted' I guess?
[/quote]
It was - a Stiff record with Dave Stewart (Not the Eurythmics one) - although of course he was the voice of the Zombies and had several great solo singles too.
BAFTAs, if only to watch Stephen Fry in full flow, and he was right (causing controversy) to describe the woman who ironically got the Costume design award turning up looking like a "bag lady". >_<