Scene 14: A Review of Medieval Lives

So, a couple of things, first of all this blog post is very late and I am sorry, but I have been very busy. Secondly, I have just realised that I managed to skip from post eight to ten in my scene numbering system, so technically this is post thirteen! 


Last weekend I watched the entire series of called Terry Jones' Medieval Lives hosted, obviously, by the former Python Terry Jones. 

It was an excellent series, I think, for several reasons. First of all it had a good series premises/structure, which was to take a stereotype of the medieval era, such as the Monk or the Knight, and then challenge the viewers preconceptions. Taking each role in this way gave each episode a strong focus, and at the same time meant Terry Jones could then use the lives of each character to explore the aspects of the medieval world related to them - for example when he looked at the Philosopher he also explored the general medieval attitude to science. 

Secondly, the series was played with a good balance of visual fun and actual historical information. Terry Jones' dresses as each role for the beginning introduction to each episode, and his dressed-up antics are then used as cut aways during later scenes. There are also cut aways using animated medieval pictures that move in jerky cut out movements - giving the programme a little bit Monty Python-esque feel. 

However, at the same time Terry Jones does know what he is talking about, yes there is humour in his presenting style, but he also come across as someone who knows his subject, and he is interested in it. 

On the whole I found the series a very accessible way to learn about the period. The only minor complaint being that I thought one or two of the cutaways seemed a bit quick and a bit unnecessary. 

For those of you studying media/film/tv I'd like to mention another medieval documentary, called Inside the Medieval Mind, that I have now started watching, which makes a good comparison point for Medieval Lives in terms of what each documentary is aiming at in terms of style and audience. 

Inside the Medieval Mind, though I have only seen five minutes of it so far, is obviously aimed at a more adult audience, and comes across as serious and dramatic. The cutaway footage used is tinted in darker shades, there are shots of threatening skies and shadows are used several times. Meanwhile the approach of Medieval Lives of course is one of fun, and therefore more suitable for a family. It has a light-hearted approach, without loss of information. 


In summary, a good example of a fun, family-friendly documentary that does teach you something. 

Scene 13: A Big Audio Finish

I have noticed recently that, so far, I have been concentrating on the film industry on this blog. So, I'm going to try and include some more variety. After all this blog is meant to include film, television and audio. 


Out of those three I think radio gets most overlooked, especially radio drama. Which is why I am going to mention the excellent production company Big Finish,  who produce CDs, downloads and books, and who's new website went live a few days ago - check it out here: Big Finish


I came across them through my interest in the BBC drama/sci-fi series Doctor Who, which is included in their range. Their audio dramas are new epsidoes, or plays, and spin-offs of sci-fi series, most of which went off air some time ago, using original actors from the shows. 


Their range includes Doctor Who and its spin-offs, Blake's 7, their own version of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Highlander, Sapphire and Steel, Stargate, the recent BBC series of Robin Hood and a range of audio books. 

Their range also includes an old series that might become big again soon - the supernatural soap-opera Dark Shadows. They have been doing audio books and full cast dramas set in the Dark Shadows world a while, and now a new Dark Shadows film by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp is coming out. 

This is what I like about Big Finish, they have given several series new life and new scope, so fans have had the opportunity to listen to new adventures of finished series, with the original actors playing their original parts. They also come across as fans of the programmes themselves, and you feel that the shows are in good hands.  If you like sci-fi then I recommend you check them out! 

Scene 12: The Pirates! in an Adventure with Film

I've just been to see the new Aardman film Pirates! in an Adventure with Scientists (or Pirates! Band of Misfits if you're in America), and without giving anything way, I have to say it was really good. 

I really like stop-animation films, there is something about stop-animation, the way the characters move, their facial expressions that's so just charming. 


This film in particular was very sweet. It had the traditional underdog betrays friends over fame plot, but it was done well. It also had an amazing voice cast from Hugh Grant, David Tennant and Martin Freeman with appearances from Lenny Henry and by the looks of the end credits, a cameo from  Mr Peter Lord of Aardman himself! 


The film isn't as laugh out loud funny as I expected, and plot is a familiar one, though that ironically enough, is to be expected - after all you can't have a miserable ending in a feel good film can you? 


However, that doesn't really matter because the message is still just as important and  because the film is still a fun ride, with a cast of characters I enjoyed watching. 


The film also, in my opinion, has a warmth and sweetness to  it - the crew are sort of genuine and  slightly innocence characters, especially in the case of the Albino Pirate, and have an unfailing loyalty to the Captain. The scene where they sit waiting for the Pirate Captain on Ham Night reminded me of a family waiting for a missing member before they could eat - and in many ways the ship's crew is one big supportive family, and that really endured them to me. 


Meanwhile, animation itself is incredible, the sets are vast and atmospheric, and full of detail. The CGI sea doesn't take away from the animation either, but blends in naturally, and I think, looks better than perhaps stop-motion water would have done. As usual there are lots of little quirks in the animation to look out for, and I'll probably have to see it again to appreciate and spot them all!


In short, if you want something full of fun and warmth that will cheer you up, or you just want to see a panoramic, beautiful piece of stop-motion animation, this is the film!

Scene 11: The Music Lover, Ken Russell

Yesterday I was writing a post on my other blog A Lady of Literature, about the famous night when Byron challenged his guests to write a ghost story, when I was reminded that several films had been done about the event - including Gothic (1986), by the late director and writer Ken Russell. 

[Warning some trailers may include scenes of nudity and in the case of Gothic, above, fantasy horror.]


I surprisingly know quite a bit about Ken Russell, despite having only seen one of his films, the beautifully shot, The Rainbow (1989). 

I learnt alot about him from a cinematographer friend of mine, and then later through watching a BBC documentary, Ken Russell: A Bit of a Devil. 


Ken Russell began his film career  the culture programme Monitor at the BBC back in the early sixties, shooting short documentary films about musicans and poets, where he broke new ground and achieved recognition with his film on musican Edward Elgar. 

Russell was a great lover of music, particularly classical, and music plays a big part in many of his films, much as Mahler (1974), Lisztomania (1975) and Tommy (1975).


However he was also controversial for his nudity, sexual references. In particular his film The Devils (1971) was given an X-rating in Britain, and has only recently that film has been released on DVD by the BFI.  


Russell's most well-known film though is the Oscar-nominated Women in Love (1969), based on the DH Lawrence novel, with the famous scene of Oliver Reed and Alan Bates fighting nude infront of a fire-place. 


He also directed a tribute to the 1920's and musicals called The Boyfriend (1971) starring the model Twiggy, and a music video for Elton John. 

Sadly Ken Russell died last November, just when he had started pre-production on a new musical version of Alice in Wonderland. 


Obviously Ken Russell will not be for everyone, but nonetheless he has made a lasting impact on British film and I look forward to watching more of his movies.


For more on Ken Russell check out the BBC documentary or a rather excellent  short introduction to his films called On Ken Russell.

Scene 10: The Man with a Cigar

So, a new film about Alfred Hitchcock has started filming. It's going to be about the production of Psycho and is starring Anthony Hopkins as Hitchcock. There is a photo of him in make-up, juxtaposed against one of the real Hitchcock in a Yahoo! Movies article:


http://uk.movies.yahoo.com/first-image-of-anthony-hopkins-as-alfred-hitchcock.html


I have seen two  Hitchcock films - Spellbound (1945) with Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck  and Rebecca (1940) with Laurence Olivier. 

But it is only until recently that I have learnt about how Hitchcock used his own obsessions in his films. Two that often appeared  were the inclusion of cold blonde women who are end up being treated badly and guilt in some form. 


Certainly Spellbound has these characteristics. Ingrid Bergman is an excellent psychiatrist who believes that love is merely biology, and therefore cold. She is hassled at the beginning of the film by her colleague about her lack of emotion and want of love. He says things that nowadays would be considered inappropriate and even kisses her, though is obviously not interested in him. This in my eyes is her 'bad treatment' - this teasing by her colleagues undermines the fact she is a good psychiatrist, because she is shown as cold, serious and  unloving; that she is somehow missing something - the feminists would surely have a field day! 


Meanwhile guilt not only appears in Spellbound, but is a major part of the story. The whole film revolves around the idea of guilt complexes.


It was a good film, but I do wish the character of Dr Petersen had been treated more seriously and given a bit more respect. 

Scene 8: Shot on the Canon Ligria HF R206

Today I've been playing with my new camera, a Canon Ligria HF R206. It was bought for me so I could shoot a commericial DVD for a family member - as I hadn't got round to finding a camera myself - and I've decided  to buy it from my family and do other projects with it after I've finished the DVD, as it seems to be an excellent camcorder. 


So far I've just done a test run in AUTO mode, but the camera also has a flexible recording mode where you can use white balance, manual focus and tele-macro, among other options. All options I wanted, as I have used semi-pro before and want to learn how to control the image more manually. It also has an LCD touchscreen and comes with a stylus, which is handy as I'm not used to touchscreens - I find scrolling particularly tricky. It takes HD footage, of course, and I am very happy with the quailty of the footage I've shot so far. 


I've managed to upload some footage I took this morning. So far I've found that because I have a MacBook the only way I can get my files onto the computer is through importing them through iMovie. 


Now personally, I prefer Final Cut Pro (FCP) to iMovie, or rather I prefer Final Cut Express (FCE) as that is what I have on my MacBook, so I have found a way of exporting the footage I took this morning and put into FCE so I can use it in there.


I was going to upload a short reel of the footage but I am having problems uploading it to my blog. Once I've figured out how to fix that I shall put it up.