Doctor Who (David Tennant) – Doomsday and The Runaway Bride

It’s time. The second series of the reinvigorated Doctor Who comes to a close this week, as things pick up exactly where the previous episode ended. Doomsday aired on 8 July, 2006 and was penned by showrunner Russell T. Davies. The Doctor (Tennant) and Rose (Billie Piper) find themselves in what will become known as…

Stalag 17 (1953) – Billy Wilder

This is a film I had been eager to see, and was glad to see it come up under the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book as a recommendation following my viewing of The Great Escape. My eagerness to see it was twofold, I like Billy Wilder’s work, and Stalag 17 is the…

Quantum Leap (1993) – The Beast Within and The Leap Between the States

Sam (Scott Bakula) finds himself in rural Washington state on 6 November, 1972. Despite the fact that he is mistaken for bigfoot in the episode’s opener, we soon learn he’s a Vietnam vet, named Henry, who has been living in the woods. The Beast Within was written by John D’Aquino, who previously played Frank in…

Star Trek: The Original Series (1968) – Plato’s Stepchildren and Wink of an Eye

Captain’s log: stardate 5784.2 Plato’s Stepchildren first screened on 22 November, 1968 and was written by Meyer Dolinsky. The episode is of historical note because of the first American broadcast interracial kiss when Captain Kirk (William Shatner) kisses Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols). Beyond that, the story is rather basic. The Enterprise is summoned to a…

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) – Roger Spottiswoode

Pierce Brosnan’s second outing as Ian Fleming’s James Bond, 007, is the final recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following a screening of Goldfinger, and I quite happily make the argument that this may be Brosnan’s best outing in his four Bond films. From the opening White Knight sequence, to…

A Corner in Wheat (1909) – D.W. Griffith

As I continue digging further into DK Book’s The Movie Book, I move onto the work of D.W. Griffith. I had previously reviewed his epic film, Intolerance, and have moved onto his key works. Listed first is A Corner in Wheat, a short from 1909. This film is as stunningly relevant today as it was…

Live and Let Die (1973) – Guy Hamilton

007 is back, and he’s the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book. Roger Moore debuts as secret agent James Bond in this 1973 update of Ian Fleming’s character. It also delves a little into blaxploitation, and features one of my favourite Bond Girls, Jane Seymour as Solitaire. Marrying drugs…