Martin Campbell seems to be a hit or miss director, and you have to wonder if it’s his choice of projects. I love his work with the Bond franchise, and I quite enjoyed his take on Zorro. But I also remember how much I hated Vertical Limit and (of course) Green Lantern. Pairing him up…
Tag: accent
Terror by Night (1946) – Roy William Neill
Terror by Night is the penultimate adventure of Basil Rathbone’s and Nigel Bruce’s Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. It lifts elements from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s works, The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle, The Adventure of the Empty House, The Disappearance of Lady Carfax, and The Sign of Four, but is predominantly an original story….
TIFF 25: The Wizard of the Kremlin dir. Olivier Assayas
Director Olivier Assayas with novelist Emmanuel Carrere adapted Giuliano da Empoli’s novel that shows the machinations of political evil at work. While a work of fiction, it does tie in with actual events, and the lead character, Vadim Baranov, played by Paul Dano, seems to be more than a little similar to Vladislav Surkov. Dano…
Get Smart (1965) – Mr. Big, Diplomat’s Daughter, and School Days
In the 1960s, spies were everywhere! They were in novels, comics, on the big screen, and had spread to television. Created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, Get Smart debuted on 18 September, 1965 and introduced us to CONTROL’s agent 86, Maxwell Smart (Don Adams). Filled with goofy gadgets, like the shoe phone, Smart is…
Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1942) – Roy William Neill
Holmes (Basil Rathbone) and Watson (Nigel Bruce) continue their own efforts against the Third Reich in this 1942 film that is loosely based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Adventure of the Dancing Men story. I say loosely, but it’s really only the code that comes into play. Holmes gets to put his disguises to…
Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror (1942) – John Rawlins
Nazis, I hate these guys. Basil Rathbone’s Sherlock Holmes leaves behind the trappings of the 19th century for this 1940s adventure, based loosely on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s tale His Last Bow. A radio broadcast from Germany is threatening destruction on England, and it gleefully predicts and calls out each moment of destruction with eerie…
Hellboy (2019) – Neil Marshall
The Hellboy reboot isn’t great. A sloppy narrative and really bad visual effects keep this one from being a really enjoyable take on the classic Mike Mignola character. That being said there are a couple of good things about it. If anyone was going to take over the role after Ron Perlman, I think David…
Guns Akimbo (2019) – Jason Howden
Frenetic. Kinetic. and often hilarious, Guns Akimbo is an ultra-violent, gory action comedy starring Daniel Radcliffe and Samara Weaving. Radcliffe, trotting out an American accent for the role, plays Miles. He professionally baits online trolls but when he finds an online fight club that has thousands of viewers across the web, he may have stumbled…
Farscape (1999) – Through the Looking Glass, and A Bug’s Life
When Moya overhears the discussion of her passengers about perhaps leaving her and her unborn child, the leviathan with Pilot’s (voiced by Lani John Tupu) guidance triggers a starburst, and gets them stuck. Through the Looking Glass was written by David Kemper and was first aired on 10 September, 1999. Moya seems to be split…
The Saint (1997) – Phillip Noyce
Val Kilmer absolutely owns the role of Simon Templar in this big-screen adaptation of the classic novels and 60s television show. And while the film isn’t as strong as it could have been, Kilmer is nicely on point, and shares some wonderful chemistry with his co-star, Elizabeth Shue. Simon is a high-profile thief that can…
The Mind Reels 