Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Brave New World (Sky)

I read the book 40 odd years ago as part of my English Literature course. Can't remember much of it, but recall enough to make some sense of this series, which is based on the book (from what I can recall and saw, I suspect its only loosely based on the book).

I thought it was entertaining in places - and after two episodes I thought it was going to be special. But it kind of lost its way really, which was a shame. I don't think there was enough (any?) real explanation of the world they are living in - if one hadn't read the book I think it wouldn't make much sense.

The overall series lacked any real depth (the story centred on three key characters) but there was no real sense of who was directing this highly controlled society from above - there was no real sense of menace. And, a bit like Westworld I got the feeling the writers were more intent on patting themselves on the back about how clever they were being, than on actually explaining to the audience what was going on.

The ending clearly left open for a second series though don't know if that is planned.

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Watched a three part series called Being Beethoven (BBC iplayer).

An excellent documentary that brought out just what a complex, tortured, and lonely sole this genius was. If you love Beethoven's music then I recommend this. One of the talking heads put it very well; Beethoven was never lucky in love and she said she thanks all those women that rejected him because in doing so, it enabled him to focus his energy on the music he gave us.

Listening again (after an absence of some years) to his 5th Symphony. Stonking. Absolutely incredible [&o]

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Le Mans 66

Wasn't hugely interested in watching this (sports cars (apart from those beasts from the mid-eighties) aren't really my thing), but then thought why not - I'll give it a go....

Really pleased I did. Matt Damon (playing American former driver and designer Carroll Shelby) and Christian Bale (playing British driver Ken Miles) were excellent together and the story - albeit which took some liberties with real life - was nicely paced and for the most part nicely told. The only real downer for me was that they resorted to showing the tragic Lorenzo Bandini as something of a caricature - a silent, snarling presence in the 'enemy' Ferrari. Story telling should have moved on from that sort of nonsense. Didn't detract too much from the film though.

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Doctor Sleep

A sort of sequel to The Shining, focussing on Danny's life post the horrors of the Outlook Hotel.

Nothing to compare with the original of course, but not a bad film at all. I liked the fact that they tried - and generally succeeded - in recreating the looks of Nicholson, Duvall, Crothers and Stone when showing a few flashbacks.


The Grady twins from the original....

ORIGINAL: Chickenboy

ORIGINAL: warspite1

Doctor Sleep

A sort of sequel to The Shining, focussing on Danny's life post the horrors of the Outlook Hotel.

Nothing to compare with the original of course, but not a bad film at all. I liked the fact that they tried - and generally succeeded - in recreating the looks of Nicholson, Duvall, Crothers and Stone when showing a few flashbacks.


The Grady twins from the original....

I read Doctor Sleep a few years ago and thought it a serviceable sequel to the original superlativeThe Shining. Similarly with the movies-DS was entirely serviceable, but not the nightmare fuel that was the original. A "B-" to a previous solid "A".

ETA: Haven't you ever been tempted to 'correct' the little Warspites? And when their mother interfered with your duty, wouldn't you 'correct' her too?

ORIGINAL: RFalvo69



As a chess player since when I was a kid (I even won a couple of local tournaments when I was in high-school) I appreciate a lot the care that is given in portraying accurately the game of chess. All the terminology and what you can see of the matches are correct (I wonder if they used the transcription of real matches to simulate this).

Being able to play chess "blind" in your mind is not the supernatural ability implied by the story. Actually, being able to "see" a position after five moves (or more) is a required basic skill if you want to win even your neighborhood tournament. Two competent chess players can play a game without a board and this is even considered a form of training. Then there are some phenomenons who are able to play fifteen or even twenty games "blind" [X(]; their minds must be a series of drawers that they are able to open and close at will...

Edit: If you are curious about chess there is a movie around, "Pawn Sacrifice", about Bobby Fischer's descent into schizophrenia with the shadow of his match with Boris Spassky looming on it. For those not in the knowing, chess in the 1950-60s was considered a Soviet domain, with all the greatest players coming from Soviet Union; when in 1972 the challenger for the World title finally was an American, for some weeks the Cold War was fought on a chess board in Reykjavik, and this enormous pressure took a heavy toll on Fischer's already creaky mind; this movie, however, while well done, is heavily dramatised: Fischer, later in his life, basically lost his mind, but at Reykjavik he was still considered "very eccentric" and not yet at the levels of paranoia shown in the movie; still a good watch tho.

ORIGINAL: timmyab

I watched 'The death of Stalin' last night. Loved it. Jason Isaacs playing Zhukov stole the show, I was howling [:D]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiJ-0cjMD60

ORIGINAL: Zorch

ORIGINAL: timmyab

I watched 'The death of Stalin' last night. Loved it. Jason Isaacs playing Zhukov stole the show, I was howling [:D]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiJ-0cjMD60

+1 It's outrageous, preposterous, and more than a little bit true. No wonder Putin banned it.
Most of Zhukov's best lines can't be repeated here [:D]