The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film for my screening of The Searchers is another Ford/Wayne classic, Fort Apache. A sprawling western, the film not only boasts the talents of John Wayne, but those of Henry Fonda, Shirley Temple and Pedro Armendariz (who I always enjoyed n From Russia With…
Quantum Leap (1991) – Dreams and A Single Drop of Rain
Deborah Pratt writes the first episode up for review this week, Dreams. It aired on 13 November, 1991, and finds Sam (Scott Bakula) on 28 February, 1979. Sam has leaped into a police detective, Jack Stone, who is working a murder case, but is also suffering from some terrible flashbacks. These trace memories are throwing…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1967) – Mirror, Mirror and The Apple
Captain’s log: stardate unknown. The iconic episode, Mirror, Mirror is up first this week. Written by Jerome Bixby, this episode first aired on 6 October, 1967. The story is a lot of fun, Kirk (William Shatner) and a landing party, including Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Scotty (James Doohan) and McCoy (DeForest Kelley) are victims of a…
So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish (1984) – Douglas Adams
So I felt it was time to check in with the gang from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy again, and dove into book four of the trilogy. This one seems a bit shorter than the previous tale, and to my chagrin, Ford Prefect is barely in it, Marvin makes only an appearance, and Zaphod…
The Twilight Zone (1959) – Judgement Night, And When the Sky Was Opened and What You Need
Paramount Pictures continues my guided tour of the Twilight Zone this week as I explore The Complete Series on Blu-Ray. Rod Serling is back in fine form with the first episode up for review, Judgement Night. With an original airdate of 4 December, 1959, this episode is smart, well-penned, as revelations are made about Carl…
Stagecoach (1939) – John Ford
The first recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film is the 1939 John Ford/John Wayne classic, Stagecoach. Wayne plays the Ringo Kid, and he and a number of fellow travellers including Dallas (Claire Trevor) and Lucy Mallory (Louise Platt), a drunk doctor Josiah Boone (Thomas Mitchell), and a dangerous gambler, Hatfield (John…
The Postman (1997) – Kevin Costner
It’s time to return to the Sci-Fi Chronicles book as we journey to the far distant year of 2013!! The Postman, directed by Costner, and starring Kevin Costner, feels like another attempt to turn himself into a hero in the post apocalyptic world. Based on the novel by David Brin, the epic film, it’s three…
Doctor Who (Sylvester McCoy) – Ghost Light
A spooky house, strange wait staff, secrets, monsters, aliens… Ghost Light is a lot of fun, and the Doctor (McCoy) and Ace (Sophie Aldred) have a heck of a time, as the Companion confronts a bit of her past. Written by Marc Platt, and encapsulated in a tightly paced and enjoyable three parts, Ghost Light…
The Searchers (1956) – John Ford
John Ford and John Wayne. When it comes to westerns there are few names better, and they are my next stop in the Action section of the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book. Confederate soldier, Ethan (Wayne) returns to his family’s homestead in Texas after the end of the Civil War, where he…
Quantum Leap (1991) – Raped and The Wrong Stuff
Sam (Scott Bakula) finds himself in a very dark situation when he becomes a rape victim in the first episode up this week. Raped was written by Beverly Bridges and had an original airdate of 20 October, 1991. Sam has leaped into Katie McBain. It’s 20 June, 1980. As Katie, he presses charges against his…
The Mind Reels 