Hitchcock takes on Leon Uris’ novel Topaz in this film adaptation of the same name. It’s not quite on the level of a Tom Clancy techno-thriller, but the subject material, centring around the Cuban Missile Crisis and a Russian spy ring within the French intelligence community is pretty engaging stuff. Unfortunately, for me, it ended…
Tag: cold war
Torn Curtain (1966) – Alfred Hitchcock
Paul Newman and Julie Andrews star in this thriller from director Alfred Hitchcock. And while the Master of Suspense is still a fantastic director, this one isn’t quite as thrill-packed as the poster would suggest. Which is not to say it isn’t enjoyable, the leads are wonderful, and it’s a very enjoyable story, it’s just…
Star Trek: The Romulan Way (1987) – Diane Duane and Peter Morwood
Before I return to my quest for the Dark Tower, I decided to take a journey with some of the characters from Star Trek: The Original Series in the next book from the Pocket Book collection of novels. The Romulan Way is a novel I remember owning when it first came out in paperback, and…
Doctor Who (Matt Smith) – Cold War, and Hide
The Doctor (Smith) and Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman) get a Cold War adventure in this tale written by Mark Gatiss. The episode aired on 13 April, 2013. The Time Lord and his Companion find themselves on a Soviet submarine commanded by Captain Zukhov (Liam Cunningham), his lieutenant, Stepashin (Tobias Menzies) and an Ultravox loving scientist, Grisenko…
The Shape of Water (2017) – Guillermo del Toro
del Toro’s latest film, The Shape of Water is very much a fairy tale for adults, as well as sharing a kinship with the horror films of the 1950s, specifically, 1954’s The Creature From the Black Lagoon (as well as to Abe Sapien as seen in del Toro’s own Hellboy series). But in this film,…
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1965) – Martin Ritt
Richard Burton turns in a solid, and believable performance in this adaptation of John le Carre’s classic thriller novel. The Spy Who Came in From the Cold is the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Dr. Strangelove. Burton is Alec Leamas, a spy in charge…
Quantum Leap (1991) – Heart of a Champion, and Nuclear Family
Sam is one part of a wrestling team, when he leaps into Terry Sammis in Heart of a Champion. With an airdate of 8 May, 1991, Sam finds himself in all manner of trouble in this script by Tommy Thompson. It’s 23 July, 1955 and Terry and his brother Ronny (Jerry Bossard) are professional wrestlers,…
Star Trek: The Original Series (1966) -The Conscience of the King and Balance of Terror
Captain’s Log: Stardate 2817.6 The Conscience of the King, taken from a line in Hamlet (the series has a wonderful relationship with the Bard), was a bit of a murder mystery that didn’t quite engage with me when I was younger, but has grown on me since. Written by Barry Trivers, this had an original…
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) – Nicholas Meyer
It’s time for one final cruise with the original crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise, as I continue my journeys with the Sci-Fi Chronicles book. This time around the Klingons are in trouble, when one of their moons, Praxis, which was one of their key energy reserves, blows up. Unable to maintain the cost of…
Toronto After Dark: The Machine (2013) – Caradog W. James
Sci-Fi night at Toronto After Dark, graciously hosted at Scotiabank Theatre this year, continued with a late night screening of the UK science fiction flick, The Machine, starring Toby Stephens, Caity Lotz, and Denis Lawson. Using Blade Runner, Terminator and the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica as its launching point, a number of the festival organizers were chatting…
Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013) – J.J. Abrams
This is a summer blockbuster first and foremost. Since Trek made the leap to the bug screen, they’ve had to eschew some of the material that inherently made Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek what is was when it was a weekly television show. After The Motion Picture, which I still love, the series began to shift…
Doctor Who S07E10 – Cold War
Mark Gatiss reintroduces the ice warriors of Mars to the world of Doctor Who as The Doctor (Matt Smith) and Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman) find themselves aboard a Soviet Sub in 1983. This is probably the strongest of the stories since Clara became The Doctor’s companion, although David Warner seems completely wasted in his ole…
