Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 10)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 10)

Gremlins

A strange creature is given to a young man for christmas with some provisions, do not get it wet, do not feed it after midnight and keep it out of the light. Naturally all three occur and the results are violent, aggressive yet mischievous creatures who go on a rampage in the small town.

The Nine Lives Of Christmas

Fireman Zachary Stone protects a homeless cat called "Ambrose" and try as he might it seems that these two are meant for eachother. His girlfriend however is not so keen but he meets a veterinary student (Marilee White) who has her own cat and well over the week a relationship develops.

The Nine Kittens Of Christmas

Seven years after the first movie we find that Zachary and Marilee broke up, she now has a veterinary practise in Florida and Zachery is not a Captain in the local fire service. Marilee returns to town (sans her boyfriend) only to find herself knee deep in kittens after they were abandoned at the fire station. Ambrose once again plays his part in bringing these two people together.

The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett

 

The Shepherd's Crown by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So here we are once again with the final novel of the Discworld series and I doubt I would be able to add anything new and insightful with Terrys final work, I've read quite a few of the reviews and opinion pieces myself and this novel isn't going to be used to sell anyone on the series so we can quietly step away without disturbing anyone. The story, well Discworld started with the witches and thus it ends with the witches, the circular narrative is not uncommon within the Discworld and it fits very well in the telling of change both for good and bad.
I will say I enjoyed the novel immensely being a fan of the Tiffany Aching books and while we all know this isn't the story Terry would have written if he was in his prime it still feels right and wraps so much up and gives us the feeling that all is well with the Discworld, ot at least as well as can be expected. I wasn't really surprised that aspects of the story continued to hit me with quite an emotional blow and maybe that indicates how long I have been invested in the Discworld, certain characters and the writing of Terry Pratchett but the turtle moves and all things end.
The Shepherd's Crown in worthy of the best of Discworld, although you will get more out of it if you are invested in the Witches subseries or the Tiffany Aching story but as a wrap to a wonderful adventure Terry continued to do us proud.

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Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett

 

Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The time has arrived for the idea of the Steam Engine to come to fruition on the Discworld (well this is the second time, the first the boat blew up and all involved thought sod this). However armed with cutting edge mathematics Dick Simnel the son of a Smith who died when his steam engine blew up has harnessed the power of Steam and invents the first reliable engine and the first train. Travelling to Ankh-Morpork Dick Simnel makes contact with Harry King for new financing and naturally the Patrician gets involved and he brings in Moist von Lipwig to coordinate matters. The grand undertaking which began with the Clacks, the Post Office, Banking and now transport is well underway mainly it seems to get fresh seafood from Quirm to the city before it turns.
However as with all new ideas there are those who are against them, sometimes their reasons are logical and valid but other times the source of their anger is just a tool to focus range and hatred and the latter is the case as those Deep Down Dwarves who feel betrayed by their King and the Koom Valley Accords attack clacks towers and now the burgeoning rail network.
Once again we have Terry playing heavily into the disenfranchised as the Goblins play a major part in the story, we know they are adept at Clacks technology but they truly come into their own with steam engines and the railways. The building of the railways and associated endeavours as seen through the eyes of many a familiar character is charming and countered by the far darker narrative of the Dwarf political situation again making sure we get to see familiar names alongside those new ones who alas for the obvious reason have only this novel to shine.
Raising Stream was an enjoyable read, the Goblins really come to the fore in this novel with strong support from Moist, Harry and the Patrician although Drumknott was a delight every time he made an appearance but as the final City specific Discworld novel I can't give it five stars, good but not great.

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Snuff by Terry Pratchett

 

Snuff by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sam Vimes and his family take a trip to the ancestral home of the Ramkin family where Sam has to adjust to being lord of the manor despite even now still in his soul being a normal everyday working man. His spider-sense (so to speak) is tingling though, something is not quite right and when he is offered information he finds himself accused of murder but there are far more darker crimes and deeds being done and Sam may not be in his actual jurisdiction then well the stubbornness of Sam and the power of the Lord come to the fore and slavery, murder, kidnapping and corruption are only the start. Meanwhile back in the city as taxation becomes more important the revenue on tobacco is vital and as always smuggling and tax dodging are a by product and are focused on my the Watch. In Snuff we get a continuation of the long established undesirables becoming part of the pack narrative that Terry has always been a proponent of, in this case the Goblins who are considered vermin by many are far more intelligent and worthy as Vimes finds out and as they cry out of Justice well they were asking the right man. Overall this is a dark story, in the same vein as Night Watch but without the city to wrap it all together but I still loved Vimes and Willikins is always a delight and well the action aspect of the novel worked very well as well as young Sam finally getting to see the elephant.

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I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett

 

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I Shall Wear Midnight takes this series up another notch but for me it lost some of the joy that I took from the first three novels. That may not be an issue for many and it's by no means a deal breaker when it comes to the series rather a realisation that this may be working from some just not for me. That said we get Tiffany now clearly established as the Witch of The Chalk and respected in other regions but as her former "friend" Ronald is to be wed the speculation on choices made come to the fore. Of course as things start to go wrong and in some cases very very wrong beginning with the death of the Baron (Roland's Father) the locals begin to turn and echoes of the past (when witches were hunted and killed) surface among her people. A trip to Ankh-Morpork, advice from many a fellow witch and the realisation that this is a fight Tiffany has to face herself as a centuries old creature full of malevolence infects those around her.
As part of the Tiffany Aching series the story works but it loses a star from me just because there is a little unwelcomed effort required to get to the next novel in the series.

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Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 9)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 9)

It's A Wonderful Life

One of the all time classics which surprisingly didn't initially perform well at the US box office but found its way into the hearts and souls of the people through television. James Stewart is perfection in the movie and Lionel Barrymore was spectacular as the two actors played opposing forces in this small American town.

Jingle All The Way

A first time watch for me as it never appealed but I gave it a go and while it is stupid and very much a 90's flick there are plenty of laughs to be had even if this is well below what Arnold is capable of. Oh and young Jake Lord can actually act, who knew.

The Long Kiss Goodnight

Geena Davis plays a run of the mill suburban wife and mother but with no memory of her past prior to eight years previously. A car accident initiates the slow trickle of her past which brings forth secret agents, assassins and a lowly PI (Samuel L. Jackson) who provides some clues to who she really is.

Donovan's Reef

A John Wayne christmas movie you say, yes indeed this comedy is set in December and the story is told through to christmas day. A romcom with a surprising cast and some dated (but not terribly so) ideas about class and status and the complexities of romance. 

Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 8)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 8)

Under the Mistletoe

Under the Mistletoe stars Michael Shanks as Kevin Harrison and Jaime Ray Newman as Susan Chandler. Susan lost her husband in a car accident the year before and her son Jonathan (Burkely Duffield) claims that the ghost or spirit of his father has returned and talks to him, his snotty and smack worthy attitude combined with financial pressures has the first christmas without her husband becoming a bit of nightmare.

Klaus

An absolute delight when it premiered on Netflix a few years ago and the more traditional animation still holds up backed with some good voice acting riding on the back of a very beautiful story.

Bad Santa

Willie (Billy Bob Thornton) is one half of the Mall/Store heist gang who play a Santa and an Elf to case the target and then rob them on christmas eve. His partner in crime Marcus (Tony Cox) plays the sharp tongued Elf who is not only the brains behind the operation but continually has to pull his partners proverbial nuts out of the fire. After seven successful years of this annual crime splurge the duo are working at a mall outside of Phoenix and their paths cross with a handful of characters who will be their downfall or maybe salvation.

Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett

 

Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was only my second time reading Unseen Academicals and beyond the very basic premise I really had forgotten everything about the main narrative and it was like reading a new Discworld novel. I'm not sure why this novel got lost in the mix so to speak while others around it were being regularly taken off the shelf because the story of the disenfranchised finding a place for themselves and ultimately gaining acceptance is not unknown in Terry's writing. The football center piece was inspired as was every aspect that orbited the idea and it was certainly easy to picture the semi-legal footy as described and by extension the new modern (or is that traditional) variant that was introduced by the Patrician with the help of Unseen University with liberal intoxicants. The subplot of the Dwarf fashion house and lessening of cultural constraints was intriguing and of course we know from our world sport and pop culture often make no sense in society but hold such an important part. Overall not my favourite novel but it certainly has some interesting things to say with the usual Pratchett flair.

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Making Money by Terry Pratchett

 

Making Money by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Making Money is a sequel to Going Postal with many of the characters returning and once again it is Moist that takes centre stage. Having succeeded beyond all measure with returning the Post Office to its former glory he is tasked in a roundabout way with overhauling the banking system of the city if not the entire discworld. Moist not only has to handle the current banks predatory shareholders but also the introduction of paper money and the revelation someone out there knows his criminal past.
Making Money didn't quite reach the peaks of Going Postal but it does come close, Moist is a great character and the situations Terry wrote for him were entertaining as were the methods he choose to deal with them. Wind up sex toys, golems, fake Vetenaris and clowns are all thrown into the mix with excellent results and provide the reader with a grand story of the Discworld.

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Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 7)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 7)

Serendipity

A favoured romcom watched mainly during christmas as I tend to think of it as fitting for this time of year. John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale are perfectly cast as two people fated for eachother but only at the right time and the movie has great supporting actors.

Scrooged

A retelling of the famous novel with Bill Murray playing the "Scrooge" character as a major network tv executive driven by the need for power and fame and neglecting those around him. One of his best performances and again a great supporting cast.

A Christmas Mystery

A century ago Santa's magical jingle bells fall off his sleigh and brought prosperity to the town of Pleasant Bay where they were found. Three days before the "ringing of the bells" ceremony they are stolen and and the prosperity of the town falters. The custodian of the museum is arrested but his young son and neighbours daughter investigate the mystery in the time honoured tradition.

Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 6)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 6)

Die Hard

You can't really go wrong with this high action, suspenseful movie set in a LA tower block on Christmas Eve. A lone New York cop is pitted against a dozen well armed bad guys and Bruce Willis delivered perhaps one of his best theatrical performances of his career. Oh, Alan Rickman comes pretty darn close to stealing the show.

The Bishop's Wife

Cary Grant, David Niven and Loretta Young bring to life the story of an Angel sent to provide guidance to a Bishop whose family is suffering as he struggles to fund the building of a cathedral. Sounds a little dull but the acting is spectacular and the movie full of warmth and humour.

Hogfather

A TV adaptation of the Terry Pratchett Discworld novel doesn't do too bad a job of bringing the book to the small screen. Granted it's not as good as the novel but there's plenty there for someone to enjoy who is not familiar with the writings and while the visuals were never state of the art they don't look too bad even now and you can not fault the majority of the performances. 

Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett

 

Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Tiffany Aching has moved on from the Witch Miss Level and is now training with Miss Treason who runs her steading in a very different manner than Tiffany is used to, skulls and other forms of "boffo" play their parts. One night Miss Treason takes Tiffany into the woods to witness a "dance" and Tiff is unable to prevent herself from joining in and within the spectacle she "meets" someone or something. Thus the world changes but it takes a while for people to notice, snowflakes in the shape of Tiffany are a dead give away and a very hard and long winter is another as the young witch finds herself dealing with elementals and gods while making sure her people and just as importantly the flocks are kept safe. Tiffany also gets to know Nanny Og during this time of her life and yes it was very good for her, no one even Granny herself can be truly themselves without a little nudge or help as it turns out.
Wintersmith once again delivers with the next stage in the life of Tiffany Aching and it would be easy to assume this was blatant audience manipulation (YA media was profitable) but the fact that I find this so entertaining proves just how good Terry was at writing great characters and creating epic adventures for them.

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Thud! by Terry Pratchett

 

Thud! by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The long established animosity between the Dwarves and the Trolls often "celebrated" by refighting the legendary "Koom Valley" battle every few decades is once again hitting its peak and Ankh-Morpork is smack bang in the middle of things. The watch are tasked with keeping the peace but after the death of a respected Dwarf supposedly by a Troll the city is on edge, Carrot (being a Dwarf where it counts) leads the investigation and it soon becomes apparent that the deep down Dwarves recently arrived in the city have more on the agenda then being arbiters of all things Dwarfdome.
Thud! is wonderfully jam packed with Troll and Dwarf lore and the narrative is complex, fast paced and never misses a beat which limits what I can say beyond the basic beginnings of the story. We have a lot of City Watch interactions and Vimes is once again the center of things and supported by new and existing characters the latter often given a lit bit more page time. The ultimate result is a compelling mystery with the usual Pratchett observations and humour and while I haven't rated it as high as other Discworld books it is an excellent novel.

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Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 5)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 5)

The Santa Clause

This seasonal movie probably shouldn't work as there are certainly some dark elements lurking below the narrative but Tim Allen excels as the reluctant Santa Clause who has to deal with life, his son and work problems as he struggles to accept he is Santa.

The Santa Clause 2

Tim Allen returns as Santa in a much lighter and funnier story as he is tasked to find a Mrs Clause who turns out to be played by the gorgeous Elizabeth Mitchell.

Going Postal by Terry Pratchett

 

Going Postal by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I've read Going Postal so many times it's certainly attained the rank of one of my favourite Discworld novels let alone one of the best from Terry Pratchett. The story if fairly straight forward as Moist Von Lipwig aka Albert Spangler is sentenced to death for fraud and other financial crimes however Lord Vetinari never wastes a resource. As the "Clacks" run by The Grand Trunk fails to serve the good of the city Moist is given the job of resurrecting the Post Office a task he at first has no real interest in but soon realises that he can make a lot of legal profit and skim some of the top and the bottom as he goes along. What Moist failed to realise is how invested he would become with the people and the city and finds himself the unwitting champion of the citizenry.
As Terry is prone to do you will certainly see many clear links to the world today and many more fairly subtle ones, the Discworld is a mirror to our own and yet it never fails to entertain and enlighten while just making pause and think. This novel can easily be read as a standalone tale of the Discworld but many of the characters appear in the later Making Money and become part of the fabric of this wonderful world Terry left us.

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A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett

 

A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett is the second novel that features Tiffany Aching, in this novel she leaves her home to become an apprentice to a witch named Miss Level. Unbeknownst to Tiffany a creature created at the dawn of time is tracking her, drawn by her power it is more dangerous to her thanks to Tiffany's inexperience. Some of the feegles follow their "hag" but are too late to save her from being taken and the reign of terror begins, witches even young ones with all the brakes off are after all a force of nature. As the Witch Trials approach and Granny Weatherwax on the case maybe just maybe everyone will get through this with their shambles more or less intact.
A Hat Full of Sky was an excellent second novel enabling the character of Tiffany to grow and mature naturally and ramping up the threats she has to face not only in the magic world but in the human world as well. Easier to recommend but than most of the Discworld novels are especially for the younger reader the subset of the Discworld is aimed at.

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Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett

 

Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Borogravia a country that has been mentioned a few times in earlier novels comes to the fore after the Clacks Towers are destroyed during their conflict with neighbouring Zlobenia. Ankh-Morpork is part of a military force made up of numerous nations (most of which fought Borogravia before) and have secured a major foothold. Borogravia a nation always at war with someone is now struggling to feed itself and quite literally the young blood of its people has been drained, the last recruiting parties bringing forth no new soldiers all except one and this is their story.
Polly Perks the daughter of a publican disguises herself as a young man and enlists in an effort to find her older brother, along with him/her come a collection of individuals including a Vampire, a Troll and an Igor and led by Sergeant Jackrum they head to the front. Samuel "The Butcher" Vimes (well that's propaganda for you) is in overall command of the forces aligned against Borogravia and he can see that the country is dying and their obsession with conflict and worship of a "dead" God and a probably dead Duchess is a quick road to ruin but the Zlobenian leaders want a victory and only the Monstrous Regiment are in a position to change the destiny of a whole country even the region.
It was only on rereading the Discworld series once again that I realised how often Borogravia and its God were mentioned, not sure how planned it all was but it worked out pretty good. The story is highly entertaining and within the drama and humour serious questions are asked about the military, religion, gender roles and many other things including the power of the press and propaganda to shape a narrative. The novel does standalone with the Discworld and more power to it for that, it is a favourite of mine if I just want to grab a book of the shelf and lose myself in an adventure.

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Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 4)

 Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 4)

The Christmas Lodge

One of my regular seasonal movies starring Michael Shanks and Erin Karpluk with additional faces from the BC acting pool as seen on Stargate. It has some religious leanings but brief enough not to be considered one of the "propaganda" movies you see these days. All in all a warm movie with some good characters and a happy ending.

The Muppet Christmas Carol

Henson Productions at their best as they take the classic tale and merge live action/muppets in a musical drama/comedy interpretation. Michael Caine is magnificent.

The Christmas Chronicles

Kurt Russell plays Santa in this Netflix movie and does it with style. An entertaining family movie which has quickly become a classic.

Christmas Movie 2022 (Part 3)

Christmas Movie 2022 (Part 3)

Every Christmas Has a Story

A huge fan of Colin Ferguson who never fails to deliver great performances and as the put upon producer and former boyfriend of Lori Loughlin's character (Kate) leads to some good chemistry and drama plus lots of comedy.

Happiest Season

Harper (Mackenzie Davis) the pride and joy of ambitious and conservative parents returns home with her girlfriend (Abby) played by Kristen Stewart who believes Harper has come out. This is not the case and Abby agrees to pretend to be her straight roommate, things go badly when the extended family gathers together and many more secrets are revealed.

A stellar cast and a surprisingly entertaining movie.

WALL·E

WALL·E
Criterion

With the advent of 4K Blu-ray releases I had hoped that I wouldn't be double dipping or going nuts replacing my Blu-ray movies, in terms of the latter I think I've done well, 1080p HD on Blu-ray looks very nice upscaled and at times processed by my OLED panel. However with a Criterion release of a classic Disney property I pretty much through in the towel and had to have it, doesn't hurt there are no region issues on 4k discs either.

This release contains a brand new transfer making full use of Criterion's ability to maximise quality using the tools available to them and there is an abundance of extras which if you have the time will more than satisfy. 

The Digital Bits Review

Criterion

Overall a must have if you are a fan of Pixar but I would also like to see many more UK Criterion Blu-rays, we fall behind quite a bit compared to the US releases.

Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 2)

Christmas Movies 2022 Part 2

The Christmas Train

A very well cast made for tv movie about the travelers on a 4 day train journey to the west coast of the US on the week before christmas. A very clever story with a few twists which ranks it as a must watch every year for me.

The Lemon Drop Kid

Bob Hope plays the Lemon Drop Kid a small time hustler who gets into debt to a mob boss, he has less than a month to pay back $10000 or he won't see Christmas Day. Cue little old ladies, charity Santa's and a love interest. A fun movie from the old days.

Christmas Movies 2022 (Part 1)

 Christmas Movies 2022 Part 1

Truth be told my christmas movie viewing for this new season started last month thanks to the deluge of content coming out of North America, not overall good movies but perfectly acceptable and sometimes there are gems to be found. However officially my watchathon began today (Dec 4th) and mainly consists of the movies I consider worth watching every year or worth another look which allows for the non-theatrical "tv" movies.

So what have I watched today?

Trapped In Paradise

A comedy crime caper sent in the small town of Paradise which is visited by three brothers who plan to rob the local bank. Afterwards failing to flee the town the brothers experience the kindness and hospitality of the townsfolk while being chased by the FBI. 

While You Were Sleeping

Sandra Bullock and Bill Pullman deliver a wonderful feel good movie in this comedic seasonal movie as a mixup in an ICU ward has Sandra (Lucy) believed to be the fiance of a man in coma. Embraced by his family she experiences all that was missing in her life including romance.

Christmas Homecoming

A wounded soldier (Michael Shanks) carrying the guilt of lost comrades finds friendship with the still mourning widow (Julie Benz) of a dead soldier when he rents a room from her. Together they heal each other and bring the spirit of the season to those around them.

Christmas Magic

A struggling restaurateur (Paul McGillion) and single parent meets Carrie (Lindy Booth) a newly minted Angel. Her former talents as an event planner are put to good use in an effort to make his restaurant a success but in the three weeks they spend together friendship and more develops.