Doctor Who (Patrick Troughton) – The Underwater Menace

  The first Patrick Troughton story that has film intact so I can finally see Doctor number two in action!! Geoffrey Orme wrote this four part story that aired from 14 January to 4 February, 1967. Returning to Earth, the TARDIS arrives on a volcanic island, where the Doctor (Troughton), Jamie (Frazer Hines), Polly (Anneke…

Fan Expo 2014

  It’s that time of year! Geekery abounds, the stars show up, costumes come out and there is a lot of fun to be had. Sprawling across both buildings of the Metro Toronto Convention Center, Fan Expo has grown and this is a big year, as many previous and beloved guests are coming back for…

Clash of the Titans (1981) – Desmond Davis

  Now this is the way you do a Greek mythology epic, with heart, fun and some top-notch stop motion effects. There is more emotion and character in a single armature movement in this film, than in the whole of the pixelated version of the 21st century! I was so happy to be able to…

Magnum, P.I. (1981) – Missing In Action & Lest We Forget

  Thomas (Tom Selleck) takes on lost loves, broken hearts, and the military in this week’s two episodes. And while the theme isn’t in place yet (it doesn’t take over from the current them until Season 1 Episode 12 (next week)), it is woven throughout the episodes at this point. The first episode Missing In…

The Normal Heart (2014) – Ryan Murphy

  There’s a complete naturalness to everything Mark Ruffalo does on-screen, and he brings that to the brilliant Emmy-nominated The Normal Heart, available today on Blu-Ray and DVD from HBO. I’ve been a fan of Ruffalo’s for a while, and I simply love how he throws himself completely into each role, and the way he…

Arabian Nights (1974) – Pier Paolo Pasolini

  This recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book for The Thief of Bagdad, ending up just being an odd watch. The story itself is a loose framework to share other, romantic and erotic tales, based on ancient tales from the Middle East. The central plot follows Nur-E-Din (Franco Merli), a…

The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) – Orson Welles

  This is the first time I’d seen this one, and honestly, it was the first time I’d ever heard of it. That being said, I quite liked this film by Welles, which serves as one of the recommended follow-up titles to my viewing of Citizen Kane from the Great Movies – 100 Years of…

Doctor Who (Patrick Troughton) – The Highlanders

  The Doctor (Troughton) finds himself in 18th Century Scotland in the midst of the Battle of Culloden in this week’s trip in the TARDIS. The Highlanders, the last, purely historical story to be featured in the series was written by Elwyn Jones and Gerry Davis. This four-parter aired from 17 December 1966 through to…

Jason and the Argonauts (1963) – Don Chaffey

  Ray Harryhausen brings his stop-motion magic, and Bernard Hermann brings his musical touch to this film that retells the story of the famed Greek hero in this next recommendation from The Thief of Bagdad in the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book. Todd Armstrong is Jason, a hero prophesied to become the king…