Thor Ragnarok the immensely enjoyable third solo adventure of the Marvel hero comes home on blu-ray and DVD today, and continues to build on the Marvel Cinematic Universe while also bringing in something new to the adventure… A huge sense of humour and fun. Chris Hemsworth as the titular god shows that he can manage…
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1992) – Rascals, and A Fistful of Datas
Captain’s log: stardate 46235.7 Airing on 31 October, 1992, Rascals was written by Allison Hock from a story by Ward Botsford, Diana Dru Botsford and Michael Piller. So hey, it’s been a few episodes since we did a kid-centric story, so how about we do one, this time with a transporter accident thrown in for…
Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001) – Chris Columbus
The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my return to the family genre and my screening of The Fellowship of the Ring is another franchise that captured hearts and imaginations. Looking back, as I rewatch this film, there is no way that this movie could fail. It’s based…
The Princess Bride (1987) – Rob Reiner
The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of The Fellowship of the Ring is this fantastic adaptation by William Goldman of his highly enjoyable novel, The Princess Bride. Director Rob Reiner gathers a fantastic cast that includes Peter Falk, Fred Savage, Robin Wright, Cary Elwes, Mandy…
Doctor Who (Peter Capaldi) – Time Heist, and The Caretaker
Steven Moffat and Steve Thompson pen this caper episode that first aired on 20 September, 2014. The Doctor (Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) receive a strange phone call and then find themselves in a highly secure bank with their memories wiped. They are recruited to rob a bank that is supposed to be impregnable. Will…
The NeverEnding Story (1984) – Wolfgang Petersen
The first recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of The Fellowship of the Ring is Wolfgang Petersen’s 1984 adaptation of only a small part of Micheal Ende’s fantasy novel, The NeverEnding Story. It has been more than thirty years since I watched this one, so I was…
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1992) – Schisms, and True Q
Captain’s log: stardate 46154.2 Airing on 19 October, 1992, this one has always been a favourite, and is a bit creepy. Written by Brannon Braga from a story by Jean Louise Matthias and Ronald Wilkerson. Riker (Jonathan Frakes) is suffering from insomnia, but he soon learns he is not the only one, and the crew…
The Adventures of Indiana Jones (1992/1993) – Spring Break Adventure
Sean Patrick Flanery takes over the role of Indiana Jones from Corey Carrier this week with this television movie that first aired on 17 October, 1999. Cobbled together from two episodes, Princeton February, 1916 and Mexico March 1916, Flanery proves himself suitable to the role, and the stories take on a depth that was missing…
Children of Dune (1976) – Frank Herbert
Thus week, I returned to the desert planet of Arrakis, also known as Dune. The third book in the series picks up some nine to ten years after the last novel, Dune Messiah. The last novel ended with Paul Atreides, Maud’Dib, wandering into the deep desert in the Fremen tradition of discarding the old and…
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1992) – Man of the People, and Relics
Captain’s log: stardate 46071.6 Frank Abatemarco wrote this rather lacklustre episode that should have allowed Marina Sirtis a chance to shine a bit, but instead we’re given another episode that is not only recognisable, but also incredibly predictable. First airing on 3 October, 1992, all this episode did for me was make me want to…
The Mind Reels 