tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72010199563919688492024-03-13T13:50:43.190+00:00Michael's Musingsmgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.comBlogger364125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-15464092574579623942020-01-21T17:34:00.001+00:002020-01-21T17:34:53.258+00:00Shimada, Soji: Murder in the Crowded House.A closed room mystery in an isolated Japanese mansion on the island of Hokkaido in which the house<br />
which has been deliberately built crookedly plays a special part. The owner has invited a number of<br />
guests to spend Christmas with him and his daughter but the chauffeur of one of them fails to appear<br />
the next morning. He is found inside his locked room dead with no external evidence of any intruder<br />
(It being Christmas there is a lot of snow). Further deaths follow with the guests held in isolation by<br />
the local police who are mystified by the events. A renowned private sleuth is sent to solve the case<br />
which he does. The book is very slow-moving with the denouement and explanation of how the<br />
crimes were committed taking some forty pages where the 'classic' detective tales of the 1920s to<br />
1950s of took less than a page. Certain parts of the elaborate set-up did need extended explanation<br />
though. Really only for the true addict of this type of crime novel.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-41474542944160348842020-01-21T17:22:00.001+00:002020-01-21T17:22:02.835+00:00Carrisi, Donato: The WhispererI finished this excellent novel some time ago but failed to comment on it at the time. The work has had a world wide success and I consider this to be well-deserved. Moving relatively leisurely with<br />
occasional detours from the main plot (which turn out in part to be back story), the book deals with<br />
he work of a policewoman who is a specialist in finding missing girls. She is attached to a special<br />
force which is dealing with an unusual circumstance - a number of arms arranged in a circle in a<br />
clearing. The arms are all of girls in the childhood and are of varying ages of detachment. The<br />
woman is accepted somewhat reluctantly by the team which has been established for some time. The pace of the novel allows for character development of all the involved police which makes it a<br />
chanage from so many works where all but the lead characters tend to be ciphers. I know I read<br />
this when it was first issued as a paperback some years ago but found it more than satisfying a read<br />
the second time around.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-69142408622543780042019-11-12T22:34:00.002+00:002019-11-12T22:44:13.987+00:00London Film Festival 2019JOJO RABBIT was our first film. Set in the dying days of World War II, Jojo is an inept member of the Hitler Youth whose best friend is an imaginary Adolf Hitler, an hilarious performance by the director,Taika Waititi. He discovers that his mother, played by the ever-delectable Scarlett Johansson, is hiding a young Jewish girl. While part of him feels he should expose her, he realises what this would do to his mother and gradually becomes a friend of the girl. Their time together contrasts with the time in the outside world though this is farcically portrayed until almost the end when the fighting arrives; Johansson is hanged for distributing pacific leaflets and the town all but destroyed with Jojo captured but set free. The closing scene with the Jewish girl is touching and true.<br />
HAPPY BIRTHDAY is set at a celebration of Catherine Deneuve's birthday en famille. The discordant family has a wayward son trying to make a film of the event with a new girl friend in tow, a prodigal daughter who turns up with a lot of problems which she unloads during the film and a long-suffering older son who tries to keep things even - played by the director, Cedric Kahn who keeps out of the spotlight. Over the top at times and reminiscent of some other French family dramas, well played by all.<br />
ONLY THE ANIMALS is another French thriller about a missing woman whose car is found abandoned in a snowdrift, two warrring farmers one of whom finds her and keeps her hidden even though she dies while the other is duped by an African conman who convinces him online that he is sending funds to a beautiful young girl so that she can return to France. The timeline of the film is anything but straightforward which is probably why I am having trouble now, a month later, remembering just who did what to whom. Set, apart from the African interlude, in a bleak wintry countryside, it is beautifully photographed and satifactorily acted.<br />
THE DUDE IN ME is a Korean comedy with a CEO gangster finds he has changed bodies with a nerdy student following an accident. The student becomes super confident but his life is complicated by the fact that his mother and the gangster were once in love. Following several slapstick moments, a further accident reverses the body change with a happy ever after ending.<br />
Takashi Miike's FIRST LOVE was the last film we saw. A love story of sorts between a boxer dying from a brain tumour and a girl sold into prostitution to pay off her father's debts. More subdued for<br />
much of the time than many of Miike's films, it allows for the development of the two lovers before<br />
the inevitable explosion of violence.<br />
For once we seem to have made good choices even though the films differ a lot from each other<br />
with the first two benefitting from star casts. On balance, I think Jojo Rabbit takes first prize.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-84698885310334285992019-11-12T17:50:00.001+00:002019-11-12T17:50:16.367+00:00Connolly, John: The WhisperersA Charlie Parker thriller finds him involved with a group of ex-soldiers running a smuggling operation between Maine and Canada. They also have antique artefacts that they stole while in Iraq<br />
some of which are central to this story. Parker is hired to investigate an apparent suicide of one of<br />
the soldiers returned from Iraq and he discovers that his subject is not the only one to have died. He<br />
is discovered by the gang while investigating a disused house and comes close to death as a result but, understandably in the overall context, he manages to get away and discovers that he is definitely<br />
dealing with something more than human. Reluctantly allying with The Collector whose path he has<br />
crossed more than once previously, he is able to bring matters to a conclusion of sorts. Well up to<br />
the standard expect of John Connolly, this one has rather more of a supernatural element to go with<br />
the more usual activity. mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-22235703963827240352019-11-06T17:44:00.001+00:002019-11-06T17:44:35.263+00:00Frightfest 2019We limited ourselves to only four films this year. On the opening night we saw 'Come to Daddy'<br />
which stars Elijah Wood with Stephen McHattie and Martin Donovan in supporting roles, the latter<br />
two being the reason for our choice. Wood plays a failed actor visiting an isolated coastal house<br />
where his father has unexpectedly invited him. He lies about his achievement though it becomes<br />
obvious that his father knows that he is not at all a success and relations between them become more<br />
and mor violent. Various twists in the narrative (you have to accept that Wood cannot recognise his<br />
father) result in killings before a downbeat ending. Could have been a lot better.<br />
The next day we saw 'Dachra' mainly because it is a Tunisian film. College friends go off into the<br />
wilds to complete an assignment, helping a trader to fix his vehicle on the way. However, he turns<br />
up at the settlement in the wood that they are visiting and seems to be the leader there. They find that their vehicle is also in need of repair but this requires a part which is promised but does not<br />
arrive. There is an attempt to set a scary atmosphere which does not quite work until one of the students goes for help but is attacked and killed by a fellow student leaving the only female alone<br />
and in danger. My recollection after over two months is somewhat more positive than the first impression I had: I did not find it at all scary or particularly well made but I now can see it was an<br />
attempt at low-key horror. The same day we saw "'Cut Off', a German thriller with the lead actor<br />
playing acoroner who finds a capsule in a badly mutilated corpse which has inside it a phone number<br />
and his daughter's name. The action moves from the German mainland to Heligoland and there are<br />
several twists in what is perhaps not quite a Frightfest film - it would be equally at home at the London Film Festival. Quite enjoyable without really ringing any bells. Leaving the weekend films<br />
alone, we went on Bank Holiday Monday to see 'Satanic Panic' which was a silly bit of nonsense. A<br />
girl recovering from cancer ekes out a living by delivering pizzas and takes a late order to an isolated<br />
mansion in the hope of getting well-tipped. The problem is that a Satanic sect is looking for a<br />
virgin to sacrifice and she fits the bill. The film does descend into somewhat farcical and bloody mayhem which puts it in the guilty pleasure not to be repeated file.<br />
<br />mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-13734209561946690432019-11-02T16:57:00.003+00:002019-11-02T16:57:44.647+00:00Talbot, Hake: Rim of the PitAnother book that I have read based on a reference to it (I can't recall where), this is set in a wintry New England wilderness, thus being a sort of open-air closed room mystery. Published in 1944, the book is pleasant enough but rather stilted. The lead is an adventurer who has a flirtatious relationship with the stepdaughter of the women who is murdered. The plot is straightforward though littered with red herrings. I was left wondering why the recommendation that led me to the<br />
book. There is nothing wrong with it but, equally, nothing out of the ordinary which makes it one of<br />
many amateur detective type novels of the 1920/1940 decades.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-14454995973139563372019-11-02T12:29:00.000+00:002019-11-02T12:29:04.563+00:00Herron, Mick: Slow HorsesHaving read a review of the latest work by this author, I was curious to find out if the praise is justified. A spy novel set in London featuring Jackson Lamb as the head of a crew of misfits who have been banished from the main office on Regent's Park to Slough House (the title of the novel is both a play on this and a reference to the supposed limited intelligence of the members). Faced with the task of finding a kidnapped boy who is to be beheaded on live TV by those holding him captive, the team go through various attempts to trace and save him before their eventual success. Well-written and well-paced, laced with humour, the book does tempt me to read more.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-27935734168097743212019-11-02T12:20:00.001+00:002019-11-02T12:20:53.084+00:00Fowler, Christoper: Wild ChamberAnother Bryant and May novel which is well up to standard. The Peculiar Crimes Unit has been under threat of closure for some time with this book continuing its precarious existence. As ever, the eccentric interests of Arthur Bryant are material in the eventual solving of the murder at the heart of<br />
the book. I read this some moths ago, hence the limited review (which will be the case with some of the ones that follow.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-33721163755746413932018-12-26T12:30:00.003+00:002018-12-26T12:41:21.066+00:00Dickson Carr, John: The Hollow ManThis is one of the classic locked-room mysteries of detective fiction first published here in 1935. The<br />
action takes place in and around the Russell Square area of Bloomsbury in London even though the<br />
author was American. In fact, many of his works are set in England. This particular one features<br />
Dr Gideon Fell, one of Carr's two main protagonists, eccentric, large and highly intelligent, a great<br />
friend with Inspector Hadley of Scotland Yard. The latter is called to the scene of the crime while<br />
visiting Fell who accompanies him on his investigation. Despite the acclaim which the novel has<br />
received, I found it a little on the tedious side with overmuch elaboration of the possible explanations<br />
that are offered, particularly a rather long exposition by Fell of different ways of purportedly undetectable murders. The solution is ingenious and unexpected though I confess I am not one of<br />
those who claim to know who the murderer is almost before the corpse is cold!mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-16188425475066964552018-12-26T12:27:00.003+00:002018-12-26T12:27:35.279+00:00Mozart: Die Zauberflote at La MonnaieI have several dvd recordings of 'Die Zauberflote' from celebrated opera houses such as The Met in<br />
New York and La Scala, Milan. I have never reviewed any of them or any other opera I have recorded but this one is special.<br />
Staged at La Monnaie (Die Munt in Flemish) in Brussels between 25 and 27 September 2018, this is<br />
in some ways a stripped down performance. There is minimal scenery and a competent cast though<br />
Sabine Devieilhe is introduced in the programme note as a leading performer of the Queen of the Night' role. What makes this so different from all other versions is the addition of 10 amateur non-singers. In a moving sequence, five blind women recite their personal histories, one after the other with a matter of fact tone whether their blindness has been<br />
from birth, later illness or accident. This is followed by five men relating their experiences as victims of fire which has disfigured their bodies and faces though not grotesquely so. There is then<br />
interaction between them with the blind women feeling the naked upper bodies of the men in what<br />
is decidedly non-erotic fashion. Even with these sequences and earlier actions on stage, the length<br />
of the opera is less than that of some I have and much the same as others. Not having the language<br />
skills to follow why what happened did happen in relation to the normal unfolding of the opera (the broadcast was on ARTE German channel), I found the inclusion very moving as I am sure those who<br />
saw the live performances did.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-47774516822292750852018-11-21T09:07:00.000+00:002018-11-21T17:27:26.719+00:00London Film Festival 2018As in previous years, we made a modest selection from the many films being shown, each year<br />
bringing more than before.<br />
Our first selection on Friday 12 October was 'They'll Love Me When I'm Dead', a documentary<br />
about Orson Welles' attempts to finance and make 'The Other Side of the World' which remained<br />
unfinished at his death though there is now a final cut being shown. An interesting though somewhat<br />
disjointed depiction of his efforts to raise funds to complete the film which starred John Huston as<br />
the director whose last day on earth was the subject matter of the film. Susan Strasberg plays an<br />
acerbic critic (possibly modelled on Pauline Kael, with cameos from numerous directors and a larger<br />
role for Peter Bogdanovich. Welles' then current companion, Oja Kodar, is also prominent. With<br />
its reliance on footage shot at the time, there is not quite the coherence expected in documentaries<br />
but what is there tells the story effectively and leave one wondering whether the film, if finished by<br />
Welles himself, would have lived up to his earlier masterpieces.<br />
The following day we saw the latest Coen Brothers film, 'The Ballad of Buster Scruggs', an episodic<br />
film in six parts, the underlying theme being death. The framing is the use of the eponymous book<br />
of tales whose pages intersperse the sections. The first and title tale has Tim Brook Nelson as a<br />
famed gunslinging singer who gets his come-uppance after some lively and humorous moments.<br />
'Near Algodones' has James Franco trying to rob and bank and paying the penalty, again humorously<br />
done. 'Meal Ticket' has Liam Neeson as a travelling showman with a legless and armless reciter of<br />
Shakespeare and other works which went on too long and was singularly unfunny. "' All Gold Canyon' tells of a prospector who finds gold, is attacked but kills his attacker. Zoe Kazan in 'The<br />
Girl who Got Rattled' is travelling on a wagon train with her brother who is killed by Red Indians;<br />
she stays with the wagon train and accepts a proposal of marriage from one of the wagon masters<br />
only for her to meet the same fate as her brother. The final episode, ' The Mortal Remains' has<br />
a varied set of passengers in a stagecoach which is obviously bound for Purgatory or worse. As<br />
with most such films, the episodes are of varying quality, length and content with the first being<br />
definitely the most amusing and the Liam Neeson segment the most tedious.<br />
Our next visit took us back to the South Bank to see 'Lights of Old Broadway', a charming silent<br />
film from 1925. Marion Davis plays twins separated at birth, one raised by a wealthy family, the<br />
other in an Irish shanty area of New York. The latter has most of the screen time and Davis again<br />
shows how good she was at both comedy and drama. The climax of the film is a colour sequence<br />
showing the inauguration of electric lighting with Davis helping to save the day when the lights<br />
fail to work.<br />
Then a long day with two films of which the first was the remake of 'Suspiria'. Very long and very<br />
glossily produced, this was a great disappointment. Chloe Grace Moretz in a brief opening sequence<br />
was probably the best thing in it, Tilda Swinton's triple parts being something of a gimmick. The film's location has been moved to 1970s Berlin which makes one wonder why a cutting edge dance<br />
academy would appear in skimpy costumes spoilt by the granny pants noticeably on show. A<br />
sequence with a dancer being contorted and broken by unseen forces in time with the music from the<br />
practice dance next door is effective but, this apart, there was no tension nor any thrills. The later<br />
film was 'The Man Who Killed Don Quixote', the one Terry Gilliam had tried to make for decades<br />
losing Jean Rochefort and John Hurt along the way. Adam Driver is a director making a film of<br />
Don Quixote following up an earlier short black and white version set in the same location. Quixote<br />
is played by Jonathan Pryce and, as one would expect, he is the best thing in what is something of a<br />
mess of a film. Further viewing may change my mind about it and I can see it becoming a cult<br />
favourite.<br />
'The Favourite' is a well-acted potential box-office hit about the lesbian activities of Queen Anne,<br />
played by Olivia Coleman with Rachel Weisz playing Sarah Churchill whose favours lose out to<br />
thos of her conniving cousin, Emma Stone. This is an enjoyable film which could be looked on as<br />
an historical rom-com with a difference. The male roles provide excellent support but the joy of<br />
the film is a quick interchanges between the three leading ladies.<br />
Our final visit took us to see 'Shadow', a Chinese martial arts film in which Zhang Yimou again shows his cinematic mastery. The story of adjoining kingdoms, Pei and Jing, in an uneasy peace broken by the Pei Great Commander who objects to his nation's subservience to Jing, turns on the<br />
fact that he is actually a shadow of the real leader, a role often held in ancient China to avert the<br />
assassination of the true ruler. In some ways this is irrelevant as the delights of the film are the<br />
gloriously filmed scenery and the brilliantly filmed fighting. Wth the latter, the highlight is possibly<br />
the use of umbrella-like weapons with the spokes opening out as deadly swords while, in one sequence they are used like mobile one person tanks careering down a muddy street with the soldier<br />
sitting on the inside having little control over where he is going. I think this was the film of the<br />
Festival for me.<br />
<br />
mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-74354652666132319732018-10-16T15:09:00.001+01:002018-10-16T15:09:15.474+01:00Frightfest 2018Having failed to make my comments immediately after the Frightfest weekend, I have been less than<br />
speedy in dealing with this. We saw only fewer films this year apart from the year at Shepherd's Bush.<br />
24 August Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich. A nazi-style puppet is found in his dead brother's<br />
room by a man who has returned home after a divorce. He decides to sell it at a small town convention which is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the infamous Andre Toulon murders. His<br />
boss and the girl next door go with him to the convention where the spirit of Toulon somehow brings<br />
both his and other puppets to life. The puppets embark on a killing spree which leads to lots of<br />
bloody mayhem until the lead actor works out that he has to deal with Toulon's malevolent spirit.<br />
Enjoyable hokum with no real merit.<br />
24 August The Most Assassinated Woman In The World. Paula Maxa was the headline star of the<br />
Grand Guignol Theatre in Paris during the 1930s. She was graphically murdered more than 10,000<br />
times in over 60 different ways. This fictional tale based on her life there is atmospheric and<br />
evocative. It combines real life murder and its investigation with the stage happenings in a very<br />
real way. The acting is sound and the cinematography excellent.<br />
25 August The LaPlace's Demon refers to a mathematical theory that if someone knew the precise<br />
loaction and movement of every atom in the universe they could predict everything down to the<br />
smallest detail. A group of scientists are invited to a remote island where the host who only appears<br />
on video asks them to prove the theory. He tells them they have become a part of his experiment<br />
which requires them to work it out before being killed - which they are, one by one. A very moody<br />
Italian drama which failed to hold my attention.<br />
26 August The Man Who Killed Hitler and then Bigfoot. Sam Elliot plays an unsung hero who<br />
decades before, assassinated Hitler in an undercover operation that was so secret that no records<br />
of it exist. Decades later he is approached to find and kill Bigfoot which is the carrier of a deadly<br />
disease that could wipe out mankind. After a leisurely build-up showing his regular quiet life, he<br />
agrees and does hunt Bigfoot down. Elliot is, as ever, first-rate and the elegiac tone of the film<br />
makes for anything but a scaring film: it is almost a gentle evocation of life in the Canadian wilds.<br />
We might have seen more films but a determination not to overload the weekend coupled with the<br />
necessary omission of some possibles because of their timing, e.g. `Gaspar Noe's 'Climax' which<br />
closed the weekend, kept our viewing to these four. The last was by far the best of the four, the<br />
first the worst though an enjoyable worst, the second the most stylish and the third possibly one<br />
that I am under-rating.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-11286295235179415812018-10-03T10:38:00.001+01:002018-10-03T10:38:25.173+01:00Black, Benjamin: The Black-Eyed BlondeWritten by John Banville under the pen-name he uses for thrillers, this is one of several attempts to<br />
update Raymond Chandler by continuing the Philip Marlowe story. Marlowe has a new client, the<br />
blonde of the title, who wants him to find her former lover, Nico Peterson. This is just the start as<br />
he tangles with hoodlums and gang bosses as well as bedding his client. An old friend who was<br />
obliged to relocate in Mexico to escape prosecution is also involved. After being beaten up more<br />
than once ( this does raise the question of why he is not simply killed though this would end the<br />
book), Marlowe works things out with the denouement seeing his old friend who is the real<br />
villain killed and the blonde taken into custody. Black captures the world-weariness that came to<br />
pervade the Chandler books and does turn some Chandleresque phrases effectively. Well written<br />
as would be expected of the author and a fine salute to the originals.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-23765195791080514752018-07-13T12:27:00.001+01:002018-07-13T12:27:42.353+01:00Fuller, Samuel: BrainquakeI had not known that Samuel Fuller had been a novelist in the 1930s before turning to film after the<br />
Second World War. He then returned to writing novels later in life and this 'lost' novel was written<br />
at the start of the 1990s. In some ways this is a classic noir with a beautiful woman leading a man<br />
astray but it is rather more than that. The opening with a baby shooting its father startles and is an<br />
unusual introduction to the two main characters. Paul who suffers from blackouts, hence the title<br />
of 'Brainquake' witnesses the shooting from the park bench where he has been in the habit of<br />
watching the beautiful woman who is the baby's mother. He is a bagman while she, unbeknownst<br />
to him, is having an affair with the dead man's brother. He has been delivering flowers to her which<br />
he bought himself and, on one delivery, saves the baby's life which leads to an apparently idyllic and<br />
passionate affair. This is against the bagman 'code' but he ignores this, steals a large delivery and<br />
flies, with his love, Michelle, and the baby to France. She was raised there and is able to find refuge<br />
with an old friend. The mob, however, are after them with a Father Flanagan, their main enforcer<br />
soon on their trail. There are, however, many twists before the final chapter. The writing is not<br />
as spare and taut as that of some writers of noir but the additional words fill in the background an<br />
the characters to make this a really fine example of the genre.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-55731599700107841492018-06-20T16:45:00.000+01:002018-06-20T16:45:10.062+01:00Fforde, Jasper: Shades of GreySet in an unspecified future on a planet where one's colour designation, which is set by the<br />
colours one is able to see, determines one's rank in life though upward and downward<br />
mobility is possible by marriage. The story tells of a Red, Eddie Russett, who accompanies<br />
his father to what is supposed to be a locum position in an area of the planet well away from<br />
the civilised centre. Here he meets and falls in love with a Grey called Jane who is rebellious<br />
and anything but friendly at first. However, a series of events including his volunteering for<br />
what is expected to be a deadly expedition changes this. This is a definitely eccentric world<br />
with deadly trees, a self-mending road which absorbs anything left on the surface and a<br />
single rather un-roadworthy van. Quite enjoyable though I missed a lot of the satire, I am<br />
sure. it has made me interested in reading the two sequels should they still be available.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-33438856483720198462018-06-20T16:29:00.001+01:002018-06-20T16:29:52.953+01:00Izzo, Jean-Claude: Total ChaosThis is another book that I bought some years ago but have only just found the time to read.<br />
It is the first book of the writer's Marseilles trilogy which the introductory eulogy describes<br />
as Mediterranean noir. The difference from other crime novels considered as noirs is that<br />
it deals more with the general background of organised crime rather than the standard<br />
concentration on a single event and its ramifications. It is certainly different from most<br />
crime novels, written in the first person singular by the police detective protagonist. There<br />
are several amorous dalliances to round out his character in the book which deals with his<br />
relationship with two childhood friends who, unlike him, stayed on the criminal side of life.<br />
Their separate deaths provide the impetus for the book which, even with the occasional<br />
digression on the background, is pacy and interesting. The translation reads well as I<br />
suspect that the original may not have been in standard French in view of the setting.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-18160402985651516392018-06-19T22:26:00.000+01:002018-06-19T22:26:28.772+01:00Vargas, Fred: An Uncertain PlaceCommissaire Adamsberg, together with Danglard and Estalere, attends a conference in London<br />
when seventeen feet in shoes are found at the gates of Highgate Cemetery. Returning to Paris,<br />
the three are immediately involved in the violent killing of a rich old man whose body has been<br />
completely dismembered. The man's gardener is a suspect as he is the prime beneficiary but<br />
Adamsberg hides him away as he believes him innocent. Similar deaths have occured in<br />
Germany with the link being that of distant relationship to a Serbian forebear. Adamsberg<br />
goes to the ancestral village where he narrowly escapes death. His career is at risk as one of<br />
those involved is a senior magistrate who has the power to get him dismissed but he does have<br />
the help of others. The plot is very complicated but it does eventually make sense with the<br />
perpetrator finally being unmasked, again with some risk to Adamsberg. Well up to this<br />
excellent writer's standard.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-70310062655483774672018-06-19T22:11:00.000+01:002018-06-19T22:11:04.840+01:00Carroll, Jonathan: Bathing the LionFive residents of a small New England town have exactly the same dream even though one of them is<br />
many miles away on a flight to Europe. Some of them know each other, some not. The story<br />
develops almost magically as they eventually learn they have been sent to Earth from elsewhere.<br />
The plot development is anything but straightforward with a strong f surreality pervading it. Though<br />
as well written as all of Carroll's books have been, I did find this one less gripping and memorable.<br />
It has actually been a few months since I read the novel and I confess its impact has not lasted.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-81240798972270093962018-02-28T10:45:00.002+00:002018-02-28T10:45:25.512+00:00Connolly, John: The Wrath of AngelsTwo old friends out hunting in the forests of Maine come across a crashed plane in which they<br />
find a large pile of cash which they divide and are then careful with how they spend it, often<br />
anonymously giving cash to thosein need in their community. Their secret is known only to<br />
the brother of one and the daughter of another. They ask Charlie Parker to find the plane<br />
which has remained undiscovered to the present day. He agrees and finds himself involved in<br />
various event which bring in characters from previous books until the finale at the site of the<br />
plane which involves supernatural happenings. Again, the book is well written, almost too<br />
much so for a thriller, the occasional digressions tending to slow down what is already a rather<br />
leisurely exposition. Connolly is, however, skilled enough to ensure that the reader's interest<br />
is held. With books like this, I do sometimes wonder how the book is written - is there a<br />
simple abc plot which is then elaborated or is the plot developed almost chronologically with<br />
diversions occuring almost by accident.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-43156123921054415942018-02-28T10:27:00.000+00:002018-02-28T10:27:13.297+00:00Fowler, Christopher: Bryant and May Strange TideA young woman's body is found chained to a post on the banks of the River Thames in a place<br />
with very limited access. The Peculiar Crimes Unit are given the case which seems insoluble.<br />
It is discovered that the dead woman had been taking courses at a life-style clinic which seems<br />
to be above board. However, the clinic is owned by an Armenian refugee who somehow got<br />
to London and set up a new identity for himself which he changed when it suited his plans. His<br />
female partner runs the clinic and knows about his background. Bryant is technically off duty<br />
through illness as he keeps having hallucinations about the past but it turns out later in the book<br />
that he had been poisoning himself with fumes from the silver skull he kept on his desk. This<br />
discovery leads to his being cured but May is then suspected of murder, not only because he<br />
was the last known person with the murdered woman but mainly because his scarf was used to<br />
strangle her. With the usual digressions into the byways ofLondon's history, especially the<br />
more obscure elements, the story maintains a good pace until the final chapter.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-29336911303465142002018-02-28T10:07:00.003+00:002018-02-28T10:07:52.852+00:00Connolly, John: The Burning SoulSet in the small Maine town of Pastor's Bay where a 14 year old girl has been abducted, the main<br />
suspect is Randall Haight who lives alone and keeps apart from local affairs. Charlie Parker is<br />
asked by the lawyer representing him to investigate which he does even though he finds Haight a<br />
dislikeable person. He learns that Haight and another had previously killed a black girl when all<br />
were in their early teens with both the murderers being released and given new identities. In a<br />
rather convoluted story it turns out that the other killer has also moved to Maine, well away from<br />
the scene of the original crime. The denouement comes as a surprise but not a far-fetched one.<br />
The writing is denser than in most thrillers but none the worse for it. mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-24666674057605090272017-10-18T11:52:00.001+01:002017-10-18T11:52:19.357+01:00London Film Festival 2017GHOST STORIES: the first film seen started life as a stage play with one of the authors playing the<br />
lead role of an academic who debunks the supernatural. He is contacted by a celebrated parapsychologist who has 'disappeared' and given three cases which the latter says he has been unable<br />
to explain rationally. These cases take up the rest of the film which deals with each case in turn.<br />
The precis in the catalogue says 'it's bloody terrifying, too' which is a serious exaggeration of what<br />
we actually see. Some of the standard tropes are employed but scary the film is not - and I am one of<br />
those who will at the relevant moment hide my eyes. A poor start to the week.<br />
BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL: Takashi Miike's 100th film is based on a famous manga series which<br />
starts with a renegade samurai looking after his sister who has been traumatised into a childlike state<br />
by the death of her husband. She is caught by those hunting them and, although the samurai lays<br />
down his weapons to secure her release, she is deliberately killed: the samurai's immediate revenge<br />
results in bloody mayhem leaving him all but dead until he is given immortality by a witch. He<br />
seeks redemption by saving a young girl whose parents have been murdered by members of a<br />
fighting school which has been removing all opposition from their particular style of combat. Our<br />
hero tracks down the leaders one by one until the denouement which is even bloodier than the<br />
opening battle. Brilliantly crafted and filmed, this must be one of Miike's best. Incidental to the<br />
film was its screening in a temporary marquee in the Victoria Embankment Gardens.<br />
LITTLE VERONIKA (INNOCENCE): a 1930 Austrian silent with the fluidity that later silent films<br />
had achieved, this tells of a young girl going from her Tyrolean village to Vienna to stay with her<br />
aunt. Neither she nor her mother know that her aunt is a prostitute which makes the girl a potential<br />
addition to the brothel though her aunt does not seem to be too eager for this. She goes with her<br />
aunt to a party where she is seduced by a middle-aged man who takes her to his apartment. While<br />
she is convinced he is the love of her life, he throws her out the next morning and she returns to the<br />
Tyrol where she tries to drown herself but is saved by a friend she met again in Vienna who loves<br />
her. All's well that ends well.... The background of Viennese streets did not provide stunning views<br />
of a disappeared city, the heroine was pleasant enough but looked (and was) some ten years older<br />
than her character and the only plus is the continued existence of a film of this age.<br />
Incidental comment number two: prior to the Miike film, an email from the BFI said films would<br />
start on time and there would be no trailers. This film started some 5 minutes late though, compared<br />
with previous years, I suppose this could be considered on time.<br />
THE SHAPE OF WATER: Guillermo del Toro's offering to the Festival started 20 minutes late and there was a trailer! Sally Hawkins plays a mute woman working as a cleaner in a secret military<br />
facility where an aquatic creature from the Amazon has been brought - shades of 'The Creature From<br />
the Lagoon'. Michael Shannon is in charge and delights in torturing the creature but Hawkins is<br />
curious and makes friends with it in no small part by giving it a hard-boiled egg. Their rapport<br />
is seen by one of the project scientists who is actually a Russian spy (not that this really adds to<br />
the story though it does amplify the atmosphere). With help from a fellow cleaner and a neighbour,<br />
she gets the creature to her apartment where eventually they somehow consummate what has become<br />
love for each other. They realise the creature must return to the wild but have to wait until a nearby<br />
canal inlet is filled some days hence once the rains come. This happens but Shannon has worked<br />
out what occured which leads to a thrilling climax at the water's edge. Hawkins was excellent as<br />
were Octavia Spencer as a fellow cleaner, Richard Jenkins as her friend and neighbour and Shannon<br />
as the villain. I did not seen the point of the domestic interludes between Shannon and his family<br />
but this is a small negative to what was del Toro's best film for some time.<br />
LUCKY: 88 minutes of Harry Dean Stanton at his best playing the eponymous lead as an old retired<br />
cowboy in a small community. He gets up, exercises, goes to the town to buy milk, visits the diner<br />
and one of the bars (apparently having been banned from the other) and repeats this the next day.<br />
The value of the film lies in the spare script and the spot-on characterisation by Stanton of his role -<br />
probably playing himself in later years after 'Paris, Texas'. A nice framing is the opening shot of<br />
a turtle crawling off into the bush, its loss bewailed by its owner David Lynch, and the final shot<br />
of its return in the foreground while Stanton is gradually fading into the distance. Very much a<br />
chamber piece but very, very good. Started more or less on time following trailer.<br />
The PRINCE OF ADVENTURERS CASANOVA: a very long silent 1928 French film which was<br />
trying to outdo Hollywood as a spectacle. A set of episodes from Casanova's life which opens in<br />
Venice, moves to Russia and returns to Venice. With Ivan Mosjoukine in the lead, "(he) was born<br />
to play this mischievous Harlequin with the melancholy heart" the programme says but does not add<br />
that for contemporary eyes he was anything but attractive. Two colour sequences were promised<br />
but one was sepia only. A rather disappointing film despite the considerable expense which had been<br />
lavished on costumes and settings with this downbeat feeling emphasised by the fact that we had seen<br />
a slightly shorter version of the film on German television some years ago with the title only being<br />
'Casanova'. Slightly late starting after a repeat trailer for "North By Northwest'. mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-24285969870279921452017-10-18T10:34:00.001+01:002017-10-18T10:34:05.039+01:00Brookmyre, Christopher: All Fun And Games Until Somebody Loses An EyeSome time has passed since I last read this author. This book continues his mix of humour and<br />
excitement with a wider geographical range than I remember from before. A select team invades<br />
and secures a secret plant belonging to a major arms manufacturer but has done this at the request<br />
of the company to improve security. Soon after, a trusted employee goes missing after he has<br />
demonstrated a new 'miracle' weapon. The scene switches from France to Glasgow where a fit<br />
young grandmother has taken her granddaughter to a local indoor amusement park: an attempt is<br />
made to kidnap the girl but the grandmother manges to foil the attempt. She is unknowingly<br />
helped by members of the team that had raided the arms plant and then receives a phone call<br />
telling her to be at a location in France if she wants to keep her family safe. It turns out that the<br />
missing employee is her son. Various events are detailed for both mother and son as well as the<br />
security team and its somewhat enigmatic leader. The son is caught by an international 'Mr Big'<br />
who puts him up for auction, selling his knowledge to the highest bidder. The story keeps up<br />
the tension as the team which now includes the grandmother aim to rescue him.<br />
I thought there were a few times when too much incidental activity was included but the overall<br />
result was very entertaining and well worth a read of some 400 pages which seems to be the<br />
expected length for this type of novel. mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-43589401928751927662017-09-27T12:06:00.001+01:002017-09-27T12:06:37.005+01:00Frightfest 2017: Monday 28 August.'Meatball Machine Kodoku' shows that weird is alive and kicking in Japan. An alien entity<br />
invades a city and starts taking over the brains of the residents who are then turned into part<br />
machine monsters. A mild-mannered businessman is not so infected and proceeds to kill<br />
those who are and protect those who are not. A veritable splatter movie leavened with much<br />
humour.<br />
'Tragedy Girls' has two High School seniors obsessed with their profiles on social media. A<br />
serial killer in their town gives them an opportunity to expand their on-line presence despite<br />
the opposition of more established media. Having captured the actual killer, played by the<br />
estimable Kevin Durand, they keep things moving by doing the killing themselves to its<br />
culmination at the Senior Prom. Hilarious and successfully done.<br />
Final comments.<br />
A much better choice than last year with sevn of the eight films worth the effort and only one<br />
bummer though the young man sitting next to me at the screening of 'Fashionista' had seen it<br />
at the Glasgow Frightfest and thought it was really good!! Best film - 'The Villainess' with<br />
an honourable mention to both 'The Glass Coffin' and 'The Bar'; most enjoyable - a tie between<br />
'68 Kill' and 'Meatball Machine Kodoku' with the remaining two close behind.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7201019956391968849.post-38673019766119601112017-09-27T11:49:00.002+01:002017-09-27T11:49:57.444+01:00Frightfest 2017: Sunday 27 August'Mayhem' sees a promising lawyer fired through a workmate's duplicity at the same time as a<br />
virus, ID7, which makes those infected lose their inhibitions is released in the company's multi-<br />
storey building. Unable to leave he has to fight his way back up through the floors to the<br />
accompaniment of unbridled sex and comic-book violence which continues with increasing<br />
ingenuity until he reaches the top floor and the ultimate goal. Definitely not to be taken at all<br />
seriously although I suppose it could be read as a satire on the behaviour in large companies by<br />
those trying to succeed.<br />
'The Villainess' is a first-rate Korean film with a stunningly virtuoso opening sequence involving<br />
the heroine. Trained as an assassin in China, she loses her mentor but is given the chance of a<br />
new life as a government agent in South Korea where her cover is that of a theatre actress. The<br />
film does not completely follow the pattern one would expect from Hollywood films but the end<br />
finds her getting revenge but not in the way she thought. The action did sag a little at time but<br />
the set pieces were sufficiently brilliant to make up for this.mgp1449http://www.blogger.com/profile/17285042777593974820noreply@blogger.com0