So, in keeping with the fast pace of modern life, it appears we have blinked and 2013 has turned into 2014.
Some years in history leave a bigger mark than others, whether its events of historical or cultural significance that stand out bigger than others. It is certain that 2013 will go down as a big year for a number of people, with a lot taking place that the future will look at as surprisingly significant.
At the very least, 2013 will go down as a more eventual start than 2012, which took a while to get going. The year had barely blinked into life when Britain's news channels were crying foul at the horse meat scandal.
This was mainly played by many for its comedic potential - top marks go to university students that dressed as a pantomime horse and loudly shouted "WHERE'S MY MUM?!?!?!" in the frozen food aisle - but it also provided plenty of thought and comment on food standards.
With banking and political figures taking hits since the start of the global recession in 2007, this duly increased the scope of doubt and agitation at major players in public life. Grumblings had been loud and vocal with the tax-dodging affairs of various banks and high street presences like Vodafone and Starbucks, but this exacerbated the misery and it was only going to get louder as 2013 went on.
January got plenty of mileage out of horse meat but just as it seemed to run out of steam, February provided a whirlwind of stories for media mileage.
Roughly in order, things began in the middle of February when North Korea commenced further nuclear testing. For a nation already ostracised by everyone, this was a bold move. It duly allowed North Korean supreme leader Kim Jung-Un a chance for some fairly by-the-numbers rhetoric about "crushing our neighbours in a sea of holy fire". More or less.
Only a few days later and television news suddenly turned apocalyptic. Mercifully, it was nothing to do with the North Koreans lobbing nukes, which turned out to be a damp squib as expected. Instead, similarly astonishing scenes from Siberia were broadcast of a meteor plummeting from the sky into the ground outside a town, causing scenes of destruction.
February continued another bad year for British politicans, with the UK losing its triple-A credit score. Chancellor George Osborne had an awful year in 2012, ranging from being booed at the Paralympic Games to getting in trouble for trying to dodge the first class fare on trains, and this was duly the icing on the cake of a terrible time of it.
Things improved a little for him when the UK avoided a triple-dip recession, which he duly claimed as a victory in December, but with growth slow at best and still struggling outside London, its questionable how much of a victory it is for people that don't work in banks.
British politics had another terrible year, with the credibility of mainstream politicians continuing its seemingly unstoppable erosion. But while the Tories were the main party to get a kicking in 2012, this time it was Labour who took it in the neck the most. Political sniping, problems with unions and the like meant Ed Miliband's third year in charge was not a comfortable one, and at times it led to the Tories getting an easy ride despite their increasingly ugly polices.
The Liberal Democrats had an easier time of it, but only because they really have now hit rock bottom and nobody cares anymore. The main story for them in 2013 turned out to be the jail term of former cabinet minister Chris Huhne and his ex-wife Vicky Pyrce, who were jailed for a myriad of stupid incidents.
Political apathy led to the rise of UKIP, who were big winners in May's local elections but its questionable how much of an impact, if any, Nigel Farage's party can make. If anything, as the year wore on, the bubble seemed to burst and UKIP began to slide back out of the pitcure.
February hadn't even ended when one of the surprise stories of the year emerged, with the sudden news of the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI - the first pope to voluntarily resign from poping in just under 720 years.
This was particularly interesting given the continuation of the litany of scandals the Catholic Church has found itself pursued by in the early part of the 21st century, and has dealt with poorly. The resignation was officially put down to "ill health" but some people cried conspiracy following 2012's Vatileaks Scandal in Italy, which accused the Catholic Church of corruption and blackmailing.
After a few weeks deliberating, the Vatican people bought in their new Pope, as Pope Francis I took control in early March. This has led to the creation a whole new image for the Church, which has been a lot more human-looking since the Argentine took office, much to the displeasure of the right-wing religious zealots on Fox News.
April saw tragedy strike America, when explosions injured over 260 people at the Boston Marathon. This was duly followed by a manhunt across half of Boston, perhaps not helped by repeatedly inaccurate speculation passing as news on CNN.
Across the Atlantic, Britain took to mourning the death of Margaret Thatcher in a very divided way. This perhaps was in keeping with the character, who divided the nation in spectacular fashion when she was leader - a split that has perhaps never fully healed.
While the media and (most of) the South East took to mourning and eulogising the one-time Prime Minister, the North of England opted to dust off the champagne bottles and begin celebrating. This drew plenty of self-righteous opposition fury and similarly self-righteous defending of these actions. In truth, this divisive celebration felt appropriate for a politician who was loved and hated in equal measure, and who is not really accepted north of Nottingham.
The funeral, by contrast, passed by relatively event-free as the woman was laid to rest to a crowd of well-wishers and PR-hungry Tories.
May was a month of finales for football, with a number of players making their big exit. David Beckham, Michael Owen, Paul Scholes and Jamie Carragher were four of the big players who all ended their stints as sport stars. But no departure captured the public imagination quite like the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson.The Manchester United manager called it a day after 26 years at Old Trafford, and signed off in the traditional style - with a Premiership trophy added to his collection.
How Man U fans wish it didn't end now, given that David Moyes has begun life roughly with a number of defeats against opponents United were beating comfortably and regularly in previous seasons.
The 2013-14 football season, when it began again, is so far proving to be refreshingly unpredictable. While it was easy to predict the ebb and flow at times at the end of the previous year, a whirlwind of managerial changes, new players and more trust in team's attacks means that its been harder to predict results, but its proving more fascinating to watch.
The month ended in much more bleak fashion, when a British soldier was killed in South East London by a man with an axe. With the trial ongoing, reporting on the sorry saga is tricky, but it was certainly a hugely unpleasant sight to see and hear about, and a sight reported in huge detail following a cavalcade of video footage. Three brave women who confronted the killers certainly deserved commendation.
June saw the internet shit hit the fan big time. CIA intelligence contractor Edward Snowden leaked news of the depressingly-huge array of intricate spying techniques. Revelations from this continued in their thousands of files throughout the rest of 2013, along with associated issues including the detention of David Miranda for carrying the files on his laptop on a flight to South America, and the pointless interrogation of Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger by MPs who seemed to be reading a script provided by the Daily Mail.
In terms of the revelations themselves, it is worrying just how far they go in eroding liberties. But its equally bizarre just how little surprised people are, given that it could well be their Facebook, Twitter, Google, Skype and other accounts being monitored.
There have been films that are based on the premise of constant surveillance, and the idea of it has certainly been given legs by various familiar online concepts, such as cookies, Google advertising and even something as humble as your search browser remembering your search history.
Even so, its questionable how much of this spy hardware is actually beneficial to the war on terror. The National Security Agency in the USA admitted it only caught one terror suspect, and its questionable at best if terrorists use Facebook to plan atrocities.
June also saw another huge surprise, as a British tennis player finally won the men's singles tournament at Wimbledon for the first time in 77 years. Andy Murray had come so close to victory in the same field in summer 2012, although he did win Olympic Gold and the US Open later that year. But this time around, the Scotsman secured the victory that Britain had been hoping for.
British sporting happiness would also continue that summer with a win for the British & Irish Lions in Australia, in one of the team's biggest ever wins, and a second successive Brit winner of the Tour de France in the form of Chris Froome. There was also another Ashes victory over Australia, although this would later backfire in a return series Down Under that the Aussies have already won after 3 tests.
Britain had another go at this celebration lark in July, as the world decided the imminent arrival of a new Royal Baby was worth flying thousands of journalist to London and queuing in a strong and surprise heatwave, and providing hour on hour of inane dispatches.
Eventually, Prince George was born on July 22nd, and will undoubtedly not become the first Royal that grows up to live on a council estate with 16 children.
August saw the headlines eventually come to be dominated by one very stupid thing. There had been a minor musical storm over Robin Thicke's Blurred Lines, which would eventually be the year's highest selling individual song despite its extremely questionable lyrical content and the lawsuit from Marvin Gaye's estate about copying his musical style. But at the MTV Video Music Awards at the end of the month, the song's notoriety reached peak exposure thanks to Miley Cyrus, a skin-coloured latex bikini and the "twerk".
This proved to be one of the year's dodgiest and dumbest moments, with acres of trees chopped down for comment on how Miley's influence is harming the new generation. As well as that, it also was a prime example of how much news values have changed, considering it happened on the same weekend as a harrowing chemical weapons attack in Syria yet dominated Twitter and other new-news media for a few days.
The crisis in Syria has been going on since 2011, and has now surpassed the 1,000 days mark. August ended with the shocking news of a massive chemical weapon attack and calls for yet another Middle Eastern war.
But the calls for once were not felt unanimous. While the Americans and French were practically loading the bombers, others felt not so sure it was a good idea considering the recent track record for Middle East intervention has resulted in the destruction of Iraq's political system and a 10-year long conflict in Afghanistan that seems to be ending with the Taliban returning to power.
With these kind of recent failures playing on their minds, the British government surprised everyone by voting not to engage in a conflict. Even more surprisingly, a Russia-led attempt at a peace summit and getting Syrian President Al-Assad to give up all and any chemical weapons he owned.
Similarly peaceful deals were brokered in Iran, which points to hope under the new Iranian President. But the Syria deal was still not playing well with the American leaders that had moved their fingers towards the triggers.
A miserable time for Obama was then further exacerbated in October, when a Republican Party that had spent most of the year blocking all his reforms decided the bet way to fight his signature healthcare policy was a government shutdown after a failure to agree financial policy for 2014.
Ultimately, this backfired more on the Republicans, who ended up giving in and essentially gaining nothing. Not that Obama could toast victory, given that his Obamacare site - the thing the whole charade was centered on - has yet to work properly, with the site subject to repeated glitches and faults in its roll-out.
In Britain, dissatisfaction with politicians was still carrying on. It reached a surreal point in November, when Russell Brand attempted to position himself as a political figurehead and the voice and leader of a revolution.
With faint predictability - this is Britain, after all - he was duly scorned by other comedians and by political figures. But this is as much telling of how little pop culture is willing to go about politicians. For every satire like The Thick of It or The Daily Show, you're more likely to get standalone comedies and dramas about the everyday matter as much.
Brand is probably not going to be the head of any revolution, but its hard to say at face value that he was not reflecting the fact people are increasingly unhappy and annoyed at the political system.
As the year was ending, the news began to get increasingly bleak. September saw the unbelievable horror of the raiding of a shopping centre in Africa by Somalian terrorists, who executed dozens of people, while November was begun with a typhoon in the Philippines, and shocking scenes of cities reduced to rubble.
The Philippines disaster was among a number of horrible natural disasters to take place in 2013, in a year that is now seeing climate change returning to a point of mainstream discussion. Meanwhile, the media in the UK missed the mark badly on their coverage of the Nairobi mall massacre by claiming it was masterminded by the widow of a 7/7 bomber, only for it to be revealed she'd had no involvement.
November and December in the West were dominated by drug stories, which was oddly fitting for a year where marijuana became more and more legal in America. The criminal lawsuit around former aides to Charles Saatchi and Nigella Lawson became a bafflingly huge news topic following revelations that Lawson took coke to cope with her violent husband, while drugs also bought Canadian politics to surprise prominence after Toronto Mayor Rob Ford was caught doing crack, among other increasingly bizarre antics.
Attempts to purchase crack and crystal meth also bought shame to Co-operative Bank chief Paul Flowers at a time his bank was failing. This saga is hardly one to put trust back into the banking system, which still has a poor reputation following the 2008 financial collapse.
Drugs had also provided the basis of one of the unlikeliest TV phenomenons of recent years, as the acclaimed drug-based drama Breaking Bad finished in 2013. This bought to an end to the adventures of school teacher turned drug kingpin Walter White. It also marked a year when streaming became more popular, with the exclusive deal to show Breaking Bad one of the things that made Netflix a major player in TV.
Television had another unusual year, with fading old baggy shows long past their prime cluttering the schedule. The X Factor continued to soldier one despite fewer and fewer people caring, while The Voice was practically dead on arrival. More recently, Homeland continued its plummet from grace, with a show once described as Barack Obama's favourite programme becoming universally despised after its 3rd season climax.
November saw the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, with the legendary sci-fi hobo in a blue box engaging in an epic adventure that finally filled in some of the gaps between the 8th and 9th Doctors (or is Christopher Eccleston now technically the 10th Doctor?)
It also set up the Christmas special, which will see Matt Smith leave after almost 4 years in the TARDIS. His departure was only confirmed by a leaked e-mail by careless BBC staff, but he will be replaced by Peter Capaldi. The Scot does have potential to be an interesting helmsman, but will sadly not be likely bringing over some of the moods that defined his most famous role as foul-mouthed spin doctor Malcolm Tucker.
Meanwhile, the drug that is technology continued its latest attempts at trying to advance the cause of human kind one expensive and some might say needless innovation at a time. While Apple and Android continued their war of minimally advanced smartphones - this time on the shelves rather than in the courts - in November, Sony and Microsoft launched the Playstation 4 and the XBox One next-gen gaming consoles. The gaming press and general reception has given PS4 a slight advantage, but with neither title's game launches that good, it means it'll take time for a console wars winner to emerge.
Particular proof of the minimal advance is FIFA 14, which isn't quite fully revolutionised. The version that has made it to PS4 has some incredible detail on replays and in cut scenes. But in terms of gameplay, it feels to have made a step backwards from FIFA 13 and the actual main play graphics look no better than the PS3 version of the same game. FIFA 15 may bring an improvement but until then, who knows.
Other entertainment forms struggled. The stellar success of Iron Man 3 and Despicable Me 2 hid the fact 2013 was not as strong a year for cinemas. The likes of Oblivion, World War Z, Man of Steel and Pacific Rim were all much hyped but flattered to deceive at the box office, while comedies such as The World's End and Anchorman 2 were funny but not the home run that their advance reputation suggested.
The music industry stayed in its usual state of flux, with EDM pop acts beginning to lose their lustre. The much anticipated Lady Gaga album turned out to be an uninteresting dud, while the move to disco-inspiration proved to be the winning formula for the much reviled Robin Thicke and the almost-universally adored Daft Punk.
It appears that Beyonce is set to eclipse all in the pop world before her, with the star's surprise album earning rave reviews. Meanwhile, rock enjoyed an odd year, with established acts like Queens of the Stone Age, Arctic Monkeys and Kings of Leon enjoying good album sales but few breakout stars truly emerging.
December then saw the death of Nelson Mandela. The South African President was an inspiration to many figures and his death was a time for the world to mourn the passing of one of the 20th century's most iconic individuals.
This was marked by a funeral week which included a public memorial service at the Soccer City stadium that held the 2010 World Cup Final. Such a venue proved more bizarre moments, with a handshake between Obama and the Cuban President Raul Castro providing attention, along with the odd sight of Obama, David Cameron and the Danish Prime Minister going for a selfie.
All in all, it helped to contribute to the end of a surreal and confusing year in news. 2013 will be marked out for a number of momentous events, and the deaths of some of the 20th century's most iconic political figures. It remains to be seen what 2014 will provide, and this year promises to provide yet more momentous events.
All we can do now is wait for them to happen.
Monday, 23 December 2013
Saturday, 21 December 2013
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues - Film Review
It is hard to think of a place that has escaped usage of a promotional outlet for this movie.
A litany of real life US news broadcasts, various late-night entertainment shows, duets with Robin Thicke and One Direction, promotions with Tango and Ben & Jerry's, "Great Odin's Raven"-brand Scotch, and even announcements on Virgin Trains services have borne the face, voice and lines from one of the film world's most infamous characters.
In the discussion on the attempts to promote the brand, the makers discussed they wanted saturation. Based in the face of such overwhelming Ron Burgundy promotion, its hard to evade it.
The world of Anchorman 2 is certainly different at first to the world Anchorman 1 created. It begins a few years after the panda birth that ended Ron's time in San Diego local news and sent him to the big time.
Ron (Will Ferrell) and his wife Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are now big-time anchors for a New York news station. Ron's hero Mack Tannen (Harrison Ford) summons them to his office after a seemingly strong broadcast to announce Veronica as his replacement, and dismisses Ron for his continually poor behaviour.
The resulting friction is enough for Ron to walk out on Veronica and their son Walter (Judah Nelson), and he later re-appears in San Diego fired from the Seaworld centre and botching a suicide attempt. But after this, a corner turns when an agent looks to hire him for the 24-hour Global News Network.
Ron eventually agrees and runs about recruiting the old news gang. Champ (David Koechner) is now in charge of a fried chicken/bat restaurant, Brian (Paul Rudd) is now a celebrity cat photographer and Brick (Steve Carrell) inexplicably shows up at his own funeral convinced he's dead.
Newsteam reassembled, they crash their way back to New York City to find they're in the 2am slot on GNN's launch day. Things then get worse when a fight with GNN primetime anchor Jack Lime (James Marsden) ends in a bet over ratings, with Ron vowing to give up journalism if he loses.
This is the point where the film attempts to be something more than a vehicle for its laugh rate. The first part of the film is content to make a mixture of jokes - some land, some fail, most provide a wry smile at least, but at this point, the film attempts to curate itself as satire of modern news.
Ferrell has form with attempts at satire, having previously attempted goes the loss of Christmas spirit (Elf), corporate finance sharks (The Other Guys), political corruption (The Campaign) and George W. Bush (the one-man Broadway show You're Welcome America). But this feels a lot more closer to its subject because it takes the structure of the first movie and gives it a huger, albeit excessively exaggerated, scope to mirror the failings of the real world news.
Its also no denying that there's a few pot shots in turn for the US networks, with the boss an obvious stab at Rupert Murdoch and a number of views of CNN and Fox News - both much-maligned targets, not least by John Stewart.
Ron's attempt at winning the ratings war is telling people what they want to hear, which leads to sensationalist and absurd news stories at the expense of actual news. But this proves to be success - his project sees huge ratings, he wins the bet, sees his team's formula bumped into a primetime slot and sees a scramble of rival channels to make it his.
The weakest sequence of the film sees Ron fall in love with network chief Linda Jackson (Maegan Good), which leads to a series of uncomfortable and unnecessary race-based humour. This is a weird counterpoint to Brick falling in love with a similarly dim-witted co-worker Chani (Kristen Wiig), which provides some lovably odd moments.
Very much like in the first movie, Brick is a whirlwind of confusing and often astounding lines that often deliver in spades. But his simple presence also provides a poignant moment in the film's trajectory, as Ron shouts at Brick, which leads to an argument that ends in the newsteam deserting Ron and his fame-enhanced ego.
This soon reaches the end of the road, and within months, Ron is a recluse living alone with his dog Baxter in a lighthouse. But soon he has rehabilitated thanks to surgery and the revival of his relationship with Veronica and the long-overdue creation of one with Walter.
This is the strange touch as the film is another comedy attempting a serious narrative about its main hero. But it also incorporates a lot of references to film number one. This is not least near the end, where the legendary Newsteam Fight sequence is expanded exponentially and massively, including a shedload of celebrity cameos and the classically inexplicable acquirement of assorted weapons.
The laughs are not the fresh-out-the-box laughter that number one was. But it feel more an even distribution of amusing laughter, with some bigger gags scattered around when needs be. These usually involve Brick, with the comedic potential of Champ and Brian both fizzling out by the end.
This is not quite legendary, but those who buy into the hype will get enough entertainment and there is plenty that captures enough of the spirit of the first film to sustain amusement in the fate of all the characters. At the end of the day, that should be enough to justify the sequel.
3.5/5
A litany of real life US news broadcasts, various late-night entertainment shows, duets with Robin Thicke and One Direction, promotions with Tango and Ben & Jerry's, "Great Odin's Raven"-brand Scotch, and even announcements on Virgin Trains services have borne the face, voice and lines from one of the film world's most infamous characters.
In the discussion on the attempts to promote the brand, the makers discussed they wanted saturation. Based in the face of such overwhelming Ron Burgundy promotion, its hard to evade it.
The world of Anchorman 2 is certainly different at first to the world Anchorman 1 created. It begins a few years after the panda birth that ended Ron's time in San Diego local news and sent him to the big time.
Ron (Will Ferrell) and his wife Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) are now big-time anchors for a New York news station. Ron's hero Mack Tannen (Harrison Ford) summons them to his office after a seemingly strong broadcast to announce Veronica as his replacement, and dismisses Ron for his continually poor behaviour.
The resulting friction is enough for Ron to walk out on Veronica and their son Walter (Judah Nelson), and he later re-appears in San Diego fired from the Seaworld centre and botching a suicide attempt. But after this, a corner turns when an agent looks to hire him for the 24-hour Global News Network.
Ron eventually agrees and runs about recruiting the old news gang. Champ (David Koechner) is now in charge of a fried chicken/bat restaurant, Brian (Paul Rudd) is now a celebrity cat photographer and Brick (Steve Carrell) inexplicably shows up at his own funeral convinced he's dead.
Newsteam reassembled, they crash their way back to New York City to find they're in the 2am slot on GNN's launch day. Things then get worse when a fight with GNN primetime anchor Jack Lime (James Marsden) ends in a bet over ratings, with Ron vowing to give up journalism if he loses.
This is the point where the film attempts to be something more than a vehicle for its laugh rate. The first part of the film is content to make a mixture of jokes - some land, some fail, most provide a wry smile at least, but at this point, the film attempts to curate itself as satire of modern news.
Ferrell has form with attempts at satire, having previously attempted goes the loss of Christmas spirit (Elf), corporate finance sharks (The Other Guys), political corruption (The Campaign) and George W. Bush (the one-man Broadway show You're Welcome America). But this feels a lot more closer to its subject because it takes the structure of the first movie and gives it a huger, albeit excessively exaggerated, scope to mirror the failings of the real world news.
Its also no denying that there's a few pot shots in turn for the US networks, with the boss an obvious stab at Rupert Murdoch and a number of views of CNN and Fox News - both much-maligned targets, not least by John Stewart.
Ron's attempt at winning the ratings war is telling people what they want to hear, which leads to sensationalist and absurd news stories at the expense of actual news. But this proves to be success - his project sees huge ratings, he wins the bet, sees his team's formula bumped into a primetime slot and sees a scramble of rival channels to make it his.
The weakest sequence of the film sees Ron fall in love with network chief Linda Jackson (Maegan Good), which leads to a series of uncomfortable and unnecessary race-based humour. This is a weird counterpoint to Brick falling in love with a similarly dim-witted co-worker Chani (Kristen Wiig), which provides some lovably odd moments.
Very much like in the first movie, Brick is a whirlwind of confusing and often astounding lines that often deliver in spades. But his simple presence also provides a poignant moment in the film's trajectory, as Ron shouts at Brick, which leads to an argument that ends in the newsteam deserting Ron and his fame-enhanced ego.
This soon reaches the end of the road, and within months, Ron is a recluse living alone with his dog Baxter in a lighthouse. But soon he has rehabilitated thanks to surgery and the revival of his relationship with Veronica and the long-overdue creation of one with Walter.
This is the strange touch as the film is another comedy attempting a serious narrative about its main hero. But it also incorporates a lot of references to film number one. This is not least near the end, where the legendary Newsteam Fight sequence is expanded exponentially and massively, including a shedload of celebrity cameos and the classically inexplicable acquirement of assorted weapons.
The laughs are not the fresh-out-the-box laughter that number one was. But it feel more an even distribution of amusing laughter, with some bigger gags scattered around when needs be. These usually involve Brick, with the comedic potential of Champ and Brian both fizzling out by the end.
This is not quite legendary, but those who buy into the hype will get enough entertainment and there is plenty that captures enough of the spirit of the first film to sustain amusement in the fate of all the characters. At the end of the day, that should be enough to justify the sequel.
3.5/5
Friday, 6 December 2013
South Park: A Song of Ass and Fire Trilogy Review
Season 17 has so far not been the most memorable season for South Park.
A number of undercooked ideas ranging from crossbreeding Yo Gabba Gabba with Miley Cyrus to the halfway-house idea of Kyle being Gandhi in suffering Cartman's farts have dominated most of the series.
Yet somehow, they've pulled a cohesive trilogy among their best efforts in the last few series.
Three episode arcs seem to allow more time for concepts, ideas and stories to breathe than a bog-standard 21 minute episode, and the marriage of Game of Thrones, Black Friday, the Xbox One and PS4 launches and all sorts of other throwaway gags would've been very tricky to squeeze into one episode.
Its a lot of conceptual stuff as well for people who aren't as well-versed in the works of George R. R. Martin, or foreign viewers like us Brits not well acquainted with Black Friday.
Its certainly a brutal US tradition, which sees the day after Thanksgiving devoted to massive reductions in prices at shops. This year was as brutal as ever, with the headline-grabbing incident being a woman tasered in a fight in a Philadelphia shopping mall, as well as shootings, stabbings, pepper spray attacks, mayhem, riots and the like.
In a decade where the increasing commercialism of society has come under fire at more time than any other, this is consumerism in its most brutal and shocking form. Its even more disconcerting that, rather than fully animating it, footage from real Black Friday brawls is used in and amongst the animated battles.
The first two episodes set up the preparations for war. This part is a good set-up, as it establishes the tribe of boys wanting their new consoles and divides them up into two teams united under the flag of one console each - the XBox One army, led by Cartman, and the PS4 Army, led by Stan. There's the divide of them spoken through the shortcomings of each console, and the attempt to assemble teams that can brave the Black Friday bloodshed to get the new gaming console.
The teams are also decked out in the wizard clothing from the much-delayed South Park: Stick of Truth game, which has hit several snags in its long and winding production. In fact, its not out until March next year, having previously had a launch date of December 2012.
There's even a snarky line from the Wizard King Cartman on how a pre-ordering is basically "just committing to paying for something that some assholes in California haven't even finished working on yet." Coincidentally the game pre-order is still on Amazon, for those who fancy committing to paying the South Park Studios for a game yet to be finished.
Anyway, the first part sets up the stakes. There's the mall security staff, including Randy and his attempts to get bargains from the inside, while Butters voices his agitation of Game of Thrones' obsession with penises, and the dividing faction's hopes of the bargains are under threat from people who want the lovably un-PC "Stop Touching Me Elmo" doll.
The set-pieces and humour are impressively crafted, and for GoT fans there is plenty of fun references and use to direct it towards satire.
This continues for part two, which begins with a narration from the now-Princess Kenny is so daft its almost believable, in a similar way to Idris Elba's speech on "cancelling the apocalypse" from Pacific Rim.
Equally bizarre is the recurring skit of the Betrayal Garden, which somehow manages to deliver both on its promise on changing the stakes as in the real thing and amusing gags as Cartman and a man from his bedroom exchange barbs.
The more glacial pace of this episode is better than the "cram-it-all-in", as it helps keep the story building, introduces more elements - Bill Gates' brutal murder of the sole voice of reason aka the Microsoft CEO, George R. R. Martin's penis obsession, Princess Kenny - that keeps things in a bizarre whirlwind of character introduction but still keeping it interesting and funny.
Then, things get even more insane when Princess Kenny is given the full-on anime treatment for one scene near the end of A Song of Ass and Fire and even more during 3rd and final segment Titties and Dragons.
This is not excluding the first episode with a full choir fully blowing up the penis obsession into "Weiner Party!" to the tune and rhythm of the actual Game of Thrones theme tune, in front of an increasingly pissed off Butters and an unwell Scott Malkenson, who have been kept prisoner while George R. R. Martin piles it on.
It maybe overkill for some but for a show largely touted as "sex, blood and dragons" with a lot of emphasis on the former, its fairly accurate. It also allows for the expert "the pizzas are coming and they're gonna be huge!" reference that passes for dragons.
But even so, the wiener stuff is dialled down. Its condensed use in Part 3 is in keeping with the mood and works a lot better in a smaller package (yeah yeah).
The climax is then given a set up early on when the boys decide to work together and hire the Red Robin burger restaurant for a wedding, evoking the Red Wedding concept. However, its not quite the infamous Red Wedding Massacre that Game of Thrones infamously pulled off.
There's no massacre here. But there is a realisation and a set up for the titanic battle between Bill Gates and Sony CEO Kazuo Harai, which is built up on Stan's moment of zen - that this war is just manufactured to whip up hysteria and advertising, and the kids decided they should finish their war themselves. Gates even said as much after killing the voice of reason in Part 2.
In keeping with this bizarre moment, it came after the series of betrayals had culminated in the end of Stan and Kyle, after Kyle made Stan take the fall for Cartman making good on his promise of taking a shit in the Betrayal Garden after another confrontation with the old man.
This was mistaken identity after Randy had somehow become Head of Mall Black Friday Security following a number of deaths. This allowed for a number of great lines about dispensing with characters just as we'd made heavy emotional investment.
It also created more comic betrayal as mall bargain increased - 96% off means a PS4 is $16, or about £10 if we did a similar concept. Plus it allowed a hugely comic scene similar to the White Walkers or for the Walking Dead, as hordes of shoppers awaited to be let in.
After the hordes entered - chopping off George R. R. Martin's weiner in the process - it ended up with the boys alone surrounded by rivers of blood, corpses and loose Stop Touching Me Elmo dolls, all to finally get their hands on XBox One's.
Probably no surprise given the Microsoft console sponsored the middle episode, but even more of a surprise was the realisation that, like in love, the thrill was more in the chase than having the object of desire.
It ended with the most devious double-cross plug, saying "All we need to play is stuff like this stick!" before a cheeky plug for that much-delayed game.
It suitably bought the curtain down a myriad of humorous layers and was a delightful way to end. Maybe South Park should do 3-parters more often if they're always this good...
4.5/5
A number of undercooked ideas ranging from crossbreeding Yo Gabba Gabba with Miley Cyrus to the halfway-house idea of Kyle being Gandhi in suffering Cartman's farts have dominated most of the series.
Yet somehow, they've pulled a cohesive trilogy among their best efforts in the last few series.
Three episode arcs seem to allow more time for concepts, ideas and stories to breathe than a bog-standard 21 minute episode, and the marriage of Game of Thrones, Black Friday, the Xbox One and PS4 launches and all sorts of other throwaway gags would've been very tricky to squeeze into one episode.
Its a lot of conceptual stuff as well for people who aren't as well-versed in the works of George R. R. Martin, or foreign viewers like us Brits not well acquainted with Black Friday.
Its certainly a brutal US tradition, which sees the day after Thanksgiving devoted to massive reductions in prices at shops. This year was as brutal as ever, with the headline-grabbing incident being a woman tasered in a fight in a Philadelphia shopping mall, as well as shootings, stabbings, pepper spray attacks, mayhem, riots and the like.
In a decade where the increasing commercialism of society has come under fire at more time than any other, this is consumerism in its most brutal and shocking form. Its even more disconcerting that, rather than fully animating it, footage from real Black Friday brawls is used in and amongst the animated battles.
The first two episodes set up the preparations for war. This part is a good set-up, as it establishes the tribe of boys wanting their new consoles and divides them up into two teams united under the flag of one console each - the XBox One army, led by Cartman, and the PS4 Army, led by Stan. There's the divide of them spoken through the shortcomings of each console, and the attempt to assemble teams that can brave the Black Friday bloodshed to get the new gaming console.
The teams are also decked out in the wizard clothing from the much-delayed South Park: Stick of Truth game, which has hit several snags in its long and winding production. In fact, its not out until March next year, having previously had a launch date of December 2012.
There's even a snarky line from the Wizard King Cartman on how a pre-ordering is basically "just committing to paying for something that some assholes in California haven't even finished working on yet." Coincidentally the game pre-order is still on Amazon, for those who fancy committing to paying the South Park Studios for a game yet to be finished.
Anyway, the first part sets up the stakes. There's the mall security staff, including Randy and his attempts to get bargains from the inside, while Butters voices his agitation of Game of Thrones' obsession with penises, and the dividing faction's hopes of the bargains are under threat from people who want the lovably un-PC "Stop Touching Me Elmo" doll.
The set-pieces and humour are impressively crafted, and for GoT fans there is plenty of fun references and use to direct it towards satire.
This continues for part two, which begins with a narration from the now-Princess Kenny is so daft its almost believable, in a similar way to Idris Elba's speech on "cancelling the apocalypse" from Pacific Rim.
Equally bizarre is the recurring skit of the Betrayal Garden, which somehow manages to deliver both on its promise on changing the stakes as in the real thing and amusing gags as Cartman and a man from his bedroom exchange barbs.
The more glacial pace of this episode is better than the "cram-it-all-in", as it helps keep the story building, introduces more elements - Bill Gates' brutal murder of the sole voice of reason aka the Microsoft CEO, George R. R. Martin's penis obsession, Princess Kenny - that keeps things in a bizarre whirlwind of character introduction but still keeping it interesting and funny.
Then, things get even more insane when Princess Kenny is given the full-on anime treatment for one scene near the end of A Song of Ass and Fire and even more during 3rd and final segment Titties and Dragons.
This is not excluding the first episode with a full choir fully blowing up the penis obsession into "Weiner Party!" to the tune and rhythm of the actual Game of Thrones theme tune, in front of an increasingly pissed off Butters and an unwell Scott Malkenson, who have been kept prisoner while George R. R. Martin piles it on.
It maybe overkill for some but for a show largely touted as "sex, blood and dragons" with a lot of emphasis on the former, its fairly accurate. It also allows for the expert "the pizzas are coming and they're gonna be huge!" reference that passes for dragons.
But even so, the wiener stuff is dialled down. Its condensed use in Part 3 is in keeping with the mood and works a lot better in a smaller package (yeah yeah).
The climax is then given a set up early on when the boys decide to work together and hire the Red Robin burger restaurant for a wedding, evoking the Red Wedding concept. However, its not quite the infamous Red Wedding Massacre that Game of Thrones infamously pulled off.
There's no massacre here. But there is a realisation and a set up for the titanic battle between Bill Gates and Sony CEO Kazuo Harai, which is built up on Stan's moment of zen - that this war is just manufactured to whip up hysteria and advertising, and the kids decided they should finish their war themselves. Gates even said as much after killing the voice of reason in Part 2.
In keeping with this bizarre moment, it came after the series of betrayals had culminated in the end of Stan and Kyle, after Kyle made Stan take the fall for Cartman making good on his promise of taking a shit in the Betrayal Garden after another confrontation with the old man.
This was mistaken identity after Randy had somehow become Head of Mall Black Friday Security following a number of deaths. This allowed for a number of great lines about dispensing with characters just as we'd made heavy emotional investment.
It also created more comic betrayal as mall bargain increased - 96% off means a PS4 is $16, or about £10 if we did a similar concept. Plus it allowed a hugely comic scene similar to the White Walkers or for the Walking Dead, as hordes of shoppers awaited to be let in.
After the hordes entered - chopping off George R. R. Martin's weiner in the process - it ended up with the boys alone surrounded by rivers of blood, corpses and loose Stop Touching Me Elmo dolls, all to finally get their hands on XBox One's.
Probably no surprise given the Microsoft console sponsored the middle episode, but even more of a surprise was the realisation that, like in love, the thrill was more in the chase than having the object of desire.
It ended with the most devious double-cross plug, saying "All we need to play is stuff like this stick!" before a cheeky plug for that much-delayed game.
It suitably bought the curtain down a myriad of humorous layers and was a delightful way to end. Maybe South Park should do 3-parters more often if they're always this good...
4.5/5
Friday, 29 November 2013
Can Newcastle Maintain Consistency?
For once, November has actually gone quite well for Newcastle United.
The last few seasons have almost been derailed by poor November's. Last season saw a cataclysmic loss of form in November that saw the rug pulled from under the feet of what had seemed to be a reasonable mid-table campaign, while two seasons back, no wins in November was an ultimate contributor to the sacking of Chris Hughton. Even in the 5th place campaign of 2011-12, the team only managed one win in the Bonfire Night month.
So far, three wins in three is a promising November. Equally impressive was the calibre of the opponents for two of these wins, with the team seeing off both Chelsea and Spurs in impressive and committed team displays.
But arguably as important as those three points were three points over Norwich City, which is an important step towards potential consistency given the season has already yielded defeats to Hull City (at home) and Sunderland.
Three points against teams that are likelier to be towards the bottom end of the Premier League are important if you want to stick ahead of them.
Last season the three teams that finished below Newcastle in the Premier League all got at least three points off the Toon Army, while only three teams in the bottom half failed to get a win off Newcastle last season (QPR, Villa and Norwich). Form like this is an indication things will not go in any way well.
What's interesting is the similarity between the two campaigns, with surprisingly similar statistics. 19 goals conceded ahead of the last game of November is similar to the 18 conceded so far this season.
A more clinical eye for goal - 18 to last season's 13 - has helped out. The only real hammering so far this season was the defeat by Manchester City, with the other defeats all being by a one goal margin.
Indeed, the statistics are surprisingly close between last season and the current one. It just so happens to be the month where divergence occurs. Last November saw the season begin to go downhill, with a run of miserable defeats against West Ham, Swansea, Southampton and Stoke turning a reasonable if underwhelming campaign into a relegation battle.
Part of the change in luck was due to Newcastle's horrifically poor luck with injuries. The only key players not to get long term injuries last season were the out-of-form Cheick Tiote, Jonas Gutierrez and Papiss Cisse, and Demba Ba before his move to Chelsea.
But it also appears as though Pardew now has a tactic that works. It also is interesting that the formation works best when previous key options like Hatem Ben Arfa and Cisse are out of the team, with the three wins all seeing the team begin without all of them.
Last season, it seemed Pardew struggled to figure out the right system to place his team into. The similarity of Cisse and Ba meant a partnership between the two was unlikely, while Pardew never seemed to figure out what to do with Ben Arfa.
Evidently, he still doesn't, given HBA now largely occupies a bench role. Not a bad impact sub to have given his major contributions already this season in victories over Fulham and Aston Villa, but still a sub.
Yoann Gouffran is now employed, and to good effect on the left flank as a cover for the surging runs of Davide Santon. But the Frenchman is turning into a key player, with goals against Chelsea and Norwich and an assist at Spurs.
Its questionable if Moussa Sissoko is really a right-winger but for now he seems to have a decent go in the position. Meanwhile, up-top is one Loic Remy, and the French firecracker striker is in top form right now.
Eight goals means Remy is currently behind only Sergio Aguero and Liverpool's Suarez-Sturridge pairing in the scoring charts. The important of the loan signing from QPR cannot be overestimated - Gouffran with 4 and 2 each for Ben Arfa and Yohan Cabaye is the nearest to the player.
It is up to the riding the summer transfer madhouse and the alleged Director of Football to secure his permanent place, but for now his goals are proving a valuable contribution.
Tim Krul is also returning in some valuable displays, which is also much needed after a few poor performances in 2012-13 (something he was not alone for).
His magnificent display pretty much kept Spurs out at White Hart Lane, and vital stops have also yielded further points.
With players and tactics lining up in good harmony, it means that a good consistent run has emerged since the awful derby defeat.
The aim of the game now is to continue something approaching consistency. Further three points against West Bromwich Albion will be a good starting point on this road. The odds however are good for once, with WBA having thrown away victories late on against Chelsea and Villa recently, although a Peter Odemwingie-inspired victory in 2011 means nothing can be taken for granted.
But it appears as though the Toon Army might be approaching something involving consistency and sanity for once. Let us pray it continues...
The last few seasons have almost been derailed by poor November's. Last season saw a cataclysmic loss of form in November that saw the rug pulled from under the feet of what had seemed to be a reasonable mid-table campaign, while two seasons back, no wins in November was an ultimate contributor to the sacking of Chris Hughton. Even in the 5th place campaign of 2011-12, the team only managed one win in the Bonfire Night month.
So far, three wins in three is a promising November. Equally impressive was the calibre of the opponents for two of these wins, with the team seeing off both Chelsea and Spurs in impressive and committed team displays.
But arguably as important as those three points were three points over Norwich City, which is an important step towards potential consistency given the season has already yielded defeats to Hull City (at home) and Sunderland.
Three points against teams that are likelier to be towards the bottom end of the Premier League are important if you want to stick ahead of them.
Last season the three teams that finished below Newcastle in the Premier League all got at least three points off the Toon Army, while only three teams in the bottom half failed to get a win off Newcastle last season (QPR, Villa and Norwich). Form like this is an indication things will not go in any way well.
What's interesting is the similarity between the two campaigns, with surprisingly similar statistics. 19 goals conceded ahead of the last game of November is similar to the 18 conceded so far this season.
A more clinical eye for goal - 18 to last season's 13 - has helped out. The only real hammering so far this season was the defeat by Manchester City, with the other defeats all being by a one goal margin.
Indeed, the statistics are surprisingly close between last season and the current one. It just so happens to be the month where divergence occurs. Last November saw the season begin to go downhill, with a run of miserable defeats against West Ham, Swansea, Southampton and Stoke turning a reasonable if underwhelming campaign into a relegation battle.
Part of the change in luck was due to Newcastle's horrifically poor luck with injuries. The only key players not to get long term injuries last season were the out-of-form Cheick Tiote, Jonas Gutierrez and Papiss Cisse, and Demba Ba before his move to Chelsea.
But it also appears as though Pardew now has a tactic that works. It also is interesting that the formation works best when previous key options like Hatem Ben Arfa and Cisse are out of the team, with the three wins all seeing the team begin without all of them.
Last season, it seemed Pardew struggled to figure out the right system to place his team into. The similarity of Cisse and Ba meant a partnership between the two was unlikely, while Pardew never seemed to figure out what to do with Ben Arfa.
Evidently, he still doesn't, given HBA now largely occupies a bench role. Not a bad impact sub to have given his major contributions already this season in victories over Fulham and Aston Villa, but still a sub.
Yoann Gouffran is now employed, and to good effect on the left flank as a cover for the surging runs of Davide Santon. But the Frenchman is turning into a key player, with goals against Chelsea and Norwich and an assist at Spurs.
Its questionable if Moussa Sissoko is really a right-winger but for now he seems to have a decent go in the position. Meanwhile, up-top is one Loic Remy, and the French firecracker striker is in top form right now.
Eight goals means Remy is currently behind only Sergio Aguero and Liverpool's Suarez-Sturridge pairing in the scoring charts. The important of the loan signing from QPR cannot be overestimated - Gouffran with 4 and 2 each for Ben Arfa and Yohan Cabaye is the nearest to the player.
It is up to the riding the summer transfer madhouse and the alleged Director of Football to secure his permanent place, but for now his goals are proving a valuable contribution.
Tim Krul is also returning in some valuable displays, which is also much needed after a few poor performances in 2012-13 (something he was not alone for).
His magnificent display pretty much kept Spurs out at White Hart Lane, and vital stops have also yielded further points.
With players and tactics lining up in good harmony, it means that a good consistent run has emerged since the awful derby defeat.
The aim of the game now is to continue something approaching consistency. Further three points against West Bromwich Albion will be a good starting point on this road. The odds however are good for once, with WBA having thrown away victories late on against Chelsea and Villa recently, although a Peter Odemwingie-inspired victory in 2011 means nothing can be taken for granted.
But it appears as though the Toon Army might be approaching something involving consistency and sanity for once. Let us pray it continues...
Wednesday, 27 November 2013
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - Film Review
*CAUTION: This contains a variety of spoilers for The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. People that wish to see it but haven't already shouldn't read ahead if they do not want to spoil it.*
Its safe to say anticipation has been building up for the adaptation of the second book in the Hunger Games franchise.
The advertising campaign has certainly been relentless, with the bow, arrow and face of heroine Katinss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) poking out of buses, giant billboards, television commercials, online advert spaces and baffling promo tie-ins with Subway sandwiches for most of the last few weeks. But this has spun the brand recognition following the huge success that was the original movie, which has given the original a franchise to build on.
The first film was slightly toned down from the relentlessly brutal novel about a future North American nation called Panem, where the kids from its 12 districts are sent into an arena to fight until the death, and for their rulers' amusement in the titular Hunger Games. But it was still a gripping and unsettling piece of film that delivered a superb adaptation of the book.
Three Hunger Games books were written by Suzanne Collins, and the cast involved in this project are already making preparations to film the first part of final level Mockingjay, which will see the film released in exactly one year's time.
But to get there of course, this is the important step towards there. We begin this a few months after the end of the original Hunger Games film, which sees Katinss and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) back home in District 12 after surviving the Games in the first film.
They only survived by pulling a trick with nightlock berries and taking advantage of a soft touch game controller that refused to allow them both to die. But although the citizens of the Capitol enjoyed the show, the Capitol's leaders did not so much - no previous Hunger Games has ended with twin victors, and this defiance of the rules of the games has inspired dissatisfied revolutionaries in the districts of Panem.
President Snow of the Capitol (Donald Sutherland) personally visits Katniss to inform her that this cannot lead to revolution and civil war, and so she and Peeta must convince him that they actually are lovers rather than using it as a skit to win the games.
The aim to convince has been faltered by a loss of contact between the two victors, while Katniss seems torn between her fellow victory Peeta and her best friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth). This film certainly gives more light on the "Gale or Peeta" debate fans of the first film seemed to dementedly chew over, which is a change given that the first film given that it - by and large - opted to overlook it for the most part.
Like the first film, the opening few scenes are in the forest with Katniss and Gale. But the thematic shift is indicated from the off, with the scenes in the eerily impressive frost and snow.
The frostiness between Katniss and Peeta has to be shoved aside because, as previously noted, President Snow wants them to convince as lovers and the avenue for this is on the Victory Tour, where they have to go for a parade around the nation. This tour gives an immediate insight to the problem, as an off-key speech leads to executions and a full blown riot after the District 11 natives attempted to show solidarity with the victors.
It all leads to a staged-marriage - if you're going to be in a stage marriage for life, might as well start now - and then a full-blown parade at the President's Mansion, with an opulent feast and vomiting drinks to clear full stomachs - something that disgusts natives of the malnourished District 12.
Following on from this, Snow is unconvinced by their love. With fights and riots ensuing, the devious Snow and his new right-hand man Plutarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) decide to make Katniss' life a misery. Increased suppression of the natives sees Gale getting a heavy lashing from the new Peacekeeper's whips, which leaves Katniss' attempt to be a hero ending in a lash across the cheek and on a final warning.
And all this before the nightmare to follow. Unlike the conventional competition, the 75th Hunger Games will be a super-Hunger Games where existing victors will be sent in. This means Katinss is given a guaranteed return to the venue, and so to is Peeta, who volunteers ahead of their mentor Haymitch (Woody Harrelson).
This leads to a reprise of the first movie's build-up, including the ever perky Ceaser Flickermann (Stanley Tucci) and the impressive stylings of Cinna (Lenny Kravitz), who meets an unjust end for his revolutionary fashions.
Cinna's assault and (almost certain) death doesn't help Katinss' state of mind given its the last thing before she is chucked into the lake that forms the basis of the new jungle arena.
Katniss is certainly an intriguingly complex character. Like in the books, there's a myriad of layers to her character, interchanging confidence, survivalism, protector of her family, complete wreck, vengeful and fearful. This is as much the strength of the novel that it has a compellingly unpredictable protagonist. Its equally impressive that, in Lawrence, the film makers have found an actress capable of conveying these emotions - sometimes even simultaneously.
As well as Lawrence, the first film was aided by a wide-ranging cast that provided the nuts and bolts to the story. The majority remain here, for good measure. Haymitch and Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) again do well in a sort of good cop-bad cop routine as Katinss and Peeta's mentors, while a whirlwind of additional tributes are given room to shine. Leading this are new allies Finnick (Sam Claffin) and Johanna (Jena Malone), who give hint at potential for the enlarged role they are likely to receive in the next film.
Just like the first, it also plays into a range of themes. The first book came from the conundrum of the blurring between war and entertainment on media, the motive of entertainment as a distraction from the humdrum of modern society and the elevation of reality TV stars in the global consciousness. Couple this to the dystopia themes of totalitarianism, suppression and deprivation, and attempts to extinguish the spark of a potential revolution, it continues a uniquely apocalyptic piece that neatly flows and sticks together.
Yet despite its wealth of cast members and themes, it seems determined to show off all of them, and as a result of this the film feels a lot longer than the first one, even accounting for the additional 15 minutes of running time. The novel version of Catching Fire was dominated by a slow burn, which gradually shifted through the gears to an almighty series of fizzes and bangs at the end. Although it retains the key beats of the book and the dark atmosphere, the dark build-up contributes to the feeling of a slower narrative.
Nevertheless, it retains the first book where it is to expand the narrative. These skits give Snow most of his airtime, and also contribute to a few additional joining the dots that the first-person style of the book doesn't fill in.
It runs at times concurrent with when they are thrown in the deep end into the arena, full of mutant monkeys, blood rain, poisonous fog, tidal waves, lightning trees and - of course - Career tributes that want them dead.
Following the navigation of this is a series of revelations that point to a surprise climax and a suspense moment that sets up the finely balanced equilibrium for the final part.
Its not quite the short sharp series of shocks that fuelled the first film but as a continuation, it is a good continuation of that debut and a fine adaptation of the second novel in its own right. It certainly sets up the narrative for the third and final book.
So... same time next year?
4/5
Its safe to say anticipation has been building up for the adaptation of the second book in the Hunger Games franchise.
The advertising campaign has certainly been relentless, with the bow, arrow and face of heroine Katinss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) poking out of buses, giant billboards, television commercials, online advert spaces and baffling promo tie-ins with Subway sandwiches for most of the last few weeks. But this has spun the brand recognition following the huge success that was the original movie, which has given the original a franchise to build on.
The first film was slightly toned down from the relentlessly brutal novel about a future North American nation called Panem, where the kids from its 12 districts are sent into an arena to fight until the death, and for their rulers' amusement in the titular Hunger Games. But it was still a gripping and unsettling piece of film that delivered a superb adaptation of the book.
Three Hunger Games books were written by Suzanne Collins, and the cast involved in this project are already making preparations to film the first part of final level Mockingjay, which will see the film released in exactly one year's time.
But to get there of course, this is the important step towards there. We begin this a few months after the end of the original Hunger Games film, which sees Katinss and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) back home in District 12 after surviving the Games in the first film.
They only survived by pulling a trick with nightlock berries and taking advantage of a soft touch game controller that refused to allow them both to die. But although the citizens of the Capitol enjoyed the show, the Capitol's leaders did not so much - no previous Hunger Games has ended with twin victors, and this defiance of the rules of the games has inspired dissatisfied revolutionaries in the districts of Panem.
President Snow of the Capitol (Donald Sutherland) personally visits Katniss to inform her that this cannot lead to revolution and civil war, and so she and Peeta must convince him that they actually are lovers rather than using it as a skit to win the games.
The aim to convince has been faltered by a loss of contact between the two victors, while Katniss seems torn between her fellow victory Peeta and her best friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth). This film certainly gives more light on the "Gale or Peeta" debate fans of the first film seemed to dementedly chew over, which is a change given that the first film given that it - by and large - opted to overlook it for the most part.
Like the first film, the opening few scenes are in the forest with Katniss and Gale. But the thematic shift is indicated from the off, with the scenes in the eerily impressive frost and snow.
The frostiness between Katniss and Peeta has to be shoved aside because, as previously noted, President Snow wants them to convince as lovers and the avenue for this is on the Victory Tour, where they have to go for a parade around the nation. This tour gives an immediate insight to the problem, as an off-key speech leads to executions and a full blown riot after the District 11 natives attempted to show solidarity with the victors.
It all leads to a staged-marriage - if you're going to be in a stage marriage for life, might as well start now - and then a full-blown parade at the President's Mansion, with an opulent feast and vomiting drinks to clear full stomachs - something that disgusts natives of the malnourished District 12.
Following on from this, Snow is unconvinced by their love. With fights and riots ensuing, the devious Snow and his new right-hand man Plutarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) decide to make Katniss' life a misery. Increased suppression of the natives sees Gale getting a heavy lashing from the new Peacekeeper's whips, which leaves Katniss' attempt to be a hero ending in a lash across the cheek and on a final warning.
And all this before the nightmare to follow. Unlike the conventional competition, the 75th Hunger Games will be a super-Hunger Games where existing victors will be sent in. This means Katinss is given a guaranteed return to the venue, and so to is Peeta, who volunteers ahead of their mentor Haymitch (Woody Harrelson).
This leads to a reprise of the first movie's build-up, including the ever perky Ceaser Flickermann (Stanley Tucci) and the impressive stylings of Cinna (Lenny Kravitz), who meets an unjust end for his revolutionary fashions.
Cinna's assault and (almost certain) death doesn't help Katinss' state of mind given its the last thing before she is chucked into the lake that forms the basis of the new jungle arena.
Katniss is certainly an intriguingly complex character. Like in the books, there's a myriad of layers to her character, interchanging confidence, survivalism, protector of her family, complete wreck, vengeful and fearful. This is as much the strength of the novel that it has a compellingly unpredictable protagonist. Its equally impressive that, in Lawrence, the film makers have found an actress capable of conveying these emotions - sometimes even simultaneously.
As well as Lawrence, the first film was aided by a wide-ranging cast that provided the nuts and bolts to the story. The majority remain here, for good measure. Haymitch and Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) again do well in a sort of good cop-bad cop routine as Katinss and Peeta's mentors, while a whirlwind of additional tributes are given room to shine. Leading this are new allies Finnick (Sam Claffin) and Johanna (Jena Malone), who give hint at potential for the enlarged role they are likely to receive in the next film.
Just like the first, it also plays into a range of themes. The first book came from the conundrum of the blurring between war and entertainment on media, the motive of entertainment as a distraction from the humdrum of modern society and the elevation of reality TV stars in the global consciousness. Couple this to the dystopia themes of totalitarianism, suppression and deprivation, and attempts to extinguish the spark of a potential revolution, it continues a uniquely apocalyptic piece that neatly flows and sticks together.
Yet despite its wealth of cast members and themes, it seems determined to show off all of them, and as a result of this the film feels a lot longer than the first one, even accounting for the additional 15 minutes of running time. The novel version of Catching Fire was dominated by a slow burn, which gradually shifted through the gears to an almighty series of fizzes and bangs at the end. Although it retains the key beats of the book and the dark atmosphere, the dark build-up contributes to the feeling of a slower narrative.
Nevertheless, it retains the first book where it is to expand the narrative. These skits give Snow most of his airtime, and also contribute to a few additional joining the dots that the first-person style of the book doesn't fill in.
It runs at times concurrent with when they are thrown in the deep end into the arena, full of mutant monkeys, blood rain, poisonous fog, tidal waves, lightning trees and - of course - Career tributes that want them dead.
Following the navigation of this is a series of revelations that point to a surprise climax and a suspense moment that sets up the finely balanced equilibrium for the final part.
Its not quite the short sharp series of shocks that fuelled the first film but as a continuation, it is a good continuation of that debut and a fine adaptation of the second novel in its own right. It certainly sets up the narrative for the third and final book.
So... same time next year?
4/5
Tuesday, 5 November 2013
The Killers: Direct Hits - Album Review
Its fair to say The Killers have had a fairly successful time in the ten years since their first UK shows some ten years or so ago.
Its almost surreal to see the evolution. Way back in September 2003, The Killers were a small band of Las Vegas indie rockers with a handful of tunes, some dreams and aspirations as they landed in England for their first ever shows.
Now, in 2013, they are a stadium-straddling band armed to the teeth with hits. Their return to these shores included a 13 date sell-out UK tour, all sort of headline festival shows and, biggest of all, a sell-out show to over 70,000 at Wembley Stadium.
Yet things did seem easier back in those heady days when Mr. Brightside was the anthem for those in the know rather than the stadium indie crowd. The band are going back on hiatus, with two members clearly tired after the Battle Born World Tour, which has taken the band to length and breadth of the globe several times over.
The band's hiatus was confirmed by Brandon Flowers himself, with the singer announcing he will spend 2014 recording his second solo record - the follow up to 2010's Flamingo.
Its as yet unknown if drummer Ronnie Vannucci will follow up with his own second solo LP, but its likely that these, a live DVD and the memories will tie people over until The Killers' fifth album appears, most likely in 2016.
The Killers have also decided a way to tie things over is to do a greatest hits compilation.
Its debatable how necessary it is - most fans will still have copies of their albums, and all the tunes on here.
For a newcomer, on the other hand, its certainly one hell of a way to introduce yourself. Track One is Mr. Brightside, which remains as pure a pop-rock earworm as it did when it first appeared way back in the 2000s.
Still the hits fall like confetti. Somebody Told Me, Smile Like You Mean It and All These Things That I've Done are delightful confections from Hot Fuss, and then it gives way to the power of Sam's Town-era hits like When You Were Young.
The first real sign of anything resembling a drop is when The Way It Was appears - a reasonable song on record not quite as good as the live version, or as some of its compatriots on the album. But even before then there's the stone-cold brilliance of songs like Human, Spaceman and Runaways to keep things rocking.
But its not the inclusion of this that's the problem, and nor is it the inclusion of two brand new songs that aren't quite the tone-cold knockouts at the front of the disc.
Shot at the Night is certainly a powerful song after repeat listens. It benefits as much from its power hook of a chorus, built up on synthesisers and spindly guitars, but at first the cut doesn't measure up.
The song is produced by M83's Anthony Gonzalez, and there are certainly elements of the M83 mega-hit Midnight City lurking in this song. But it is lacking a certain... something.
Meanwhile, Just Another Girl - the final tune on the normal edition, although three extra songs lurk on a special edition - is a puzzle. An interesting puzzle at that one, mind.
The song is a strangely calibrated tune that crosses various lines between country, rock and pop and its certainly a nice cocktail musically. But lyrically, it really does not go anywhere beyond a full-on straight-up tale, and it doesn't feel quite right.
Anyway, the new ones are decent enough, if not quite the A-list tunes.
But that's not the problem with Direct Hits. The main problem is quite simply the question: "Is it strictly necessary?"
If you have the albums already, you can just download the new songs and have this record already.
Its an impressive documentation of a career that has proceeded at electric pace, but as a necessary must-own for Killers fans, maybe not so much.
Personally, bring on the Battle Born Tour DVD instead.
3.5/5
Its almost surreal to see the evolution. Way back in September 2003, The Killers were a small band of Las Vegas indie rockers with a handful of tunes, some dreams and aspirations as they landed in England for their first ever shows.
Now, in 2013, they are a stadium-straddling band armed to the teeth with hits. Their return to these shores included a 13 date sell-out UK tour, all sort of headline festival shows and, biggest of all, a sell-out show to over 70,000 at Wembley Stadium.
Yet things did seem easier back in those heady days when Mr. Brightside was the anthem for those in the know rather than the stadium indie crowd. The band are going back on hiatus, with two members clearly tired after the Battle Born World Tour, which has taken the band to length and breadth of the globe several times over.
The band's hiatus was confirmed by Brandon Flowers himself, with the singer announcing he will spend 2014 recording his second solo record - the follow up to 2010's Flamingo.
Its as yet unknown if drummer Ronnie Vannucci will follow up with his own second solo LP, but its likely that these, a live DVD and the memories will tie people over until The Killers' fifth album appears, most likely in 2016.
The Killers have also decided a way to tie things over is to do a greatest hits compilation.
Its debatable how necessary it is - most fans will still have copies of their albums, and all the tunes on here.
For a newcomer, on the other hand, its certainly one hell of a way to introduce yourself. Track One is Mr. Brightside, which remains as pure a pop-rock earworm as it did when it first appeared way back in the 2000s.
Still the hits fall like confetti. Somebody Told Me, Smile Like You Mean It and All These Things That I've Done are delightful confections from Hot Fuss, and then it gives way to the power of Sam's Town-era hits like When You Were Young.
The first real sign of anything resembling a drop is when The Way It Was appears - a reasonable song on record not quite as good as the live version, or as some of its compatriots on the album. But even before then there's the stone-cold brilliance of songs like Human, Spaceman and Runaways to keep things rocking.
But its not the inclusion of this that's the problem, and nor is it the inclusion of two brand new songs that aren't quite the tone-cold knockouts at the front of the disc.
Shot at the Night is certainly a powerful song after repeat listens. It benefits as much from its power hook of a chorus, built up on synthesisers and spindly guitars, but at first the cut doesn't measure up.
The song is produced by M83's Anthony Gonzalez, and there are certainly elements of the M83 mega-hit Midnight City lurking in this song. But it is lacking a certain... something.
Meanwhile, Just Another Girl - the final tune on the normal edition, although three extra songs lurk on a special edition - is a puzzle. An interesting puzzle at that one, mind.
The song is a strangely calibrated tune that crosses various lines between country, rock and pop and its certainly a nice cocktail musically. But lyrically, it really does not go anywhere beyond a full-on straight-up tale, and it doesn't feel quite right.
Anyway, the new ones are decent enough, if not quite the A-list tunes.
But that's not the problem with Direct Hits. The main problem is quite simply the question: "Is it strictly necessary?"
If you have the albums already, you can just download the new songs and have this record already.
Its an impressive documentation of a career that has proceeded at electric pace, but as a necessary must-own for Killers fans, maybe not so much.
Personally, bring on the Battle Born Tour DVD instead.
3.5/5
Wednesday, 30 October 2013
Thor: The Dark World - Film Review
*CAUTION: The following review contains spoilers of Thor: The Dark World. If you have yet to see the film and wish to do so, either proceed with caution or avoid reading.*
Comic book fans have always argued about the merits of Marvel and DC Comics, but in recent years, Marvel's film structure has given it an advantage in that world.
Beyond Batman, DC seem to struggle. Green Lantern was an absolute disaster, while Superman hasn't set the world alight with his two recent reboots and now needs Batman to enliven the upcoming sequel to Man of Steel.
While there is time to improve, Marvel has stolen a march. Commercially, the intertwined structure of individual Avengers movies leading into the central group films has created an entire world that people will be entranced to see.
2013 seems set to see a Marvel-Disney production again top the highest grossing films list, with Iron Man 3 in the lead.
The group are well into Phase Two, on how they attempt to follow up 2012's superhero bunfight Avengers Assemble.
Now comes the test - do they have more to their locker than Iron Man and superhero combo films?
The original Thor was a reasonable film, which saw Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) fight it out in the one New Mexico town yet to be visited by Roswell conspiracy theorists and Breaking Bad fans.
The sequel could work as a reasonable enough continuation to this without the story arc of the Avengers in the middle.
It certainly continues with the central Thor-v-Loki dynamic. Not that this is a bad thing - both are highly accomplished actors that play to their character's respective strengths, and Loki certainly remains a delightfully loose cannon.
Some critics weren't impressed additional Loki scenes were inserted, but there's worse things that could derail this film.
One of the problems is its happiness to hop between genres. At various points it could be a superhero-based rom-com between Thor and Jane Foster, at others standard superhero, while also throwing in sci-fi, fantasy, Norse literature, comedy, tragedy and a hell of a lot of other genres, and it is an odd one to try and make them stick.
One of the problems this film has is the intense amount of jargon, which can be confusion even for those following the thread through the various media. The start sees us introduced to the Dark Elves, the Aether and the battle at the last cosmic alignment of the Nine Realms.
To cut a long story short, the Dark Elves, led by Malakith (Christopher Eccleston), tried to use the Aether to bring the universe back to darkness, but was quashed in battle by the Asgardians and a troupe of them duly fled into suspended animation until the reactivation of the indestructible Aether.
As is seemingly custom with films like this, there are further spouts of information throughout the production. Though tiring, they do provide a funny moment when Stan Lee plays crochity grandpa at the scientist proud of his monologue. Plus they do ultimately explain the purpose I guess.
After the intro, we're introduced back to Loki, who is in trouble for his antics during the Avengers and is duly sent to the dungeons, while Thor goes darting off elsewhere to go win a battle he arrived late for.
Yet Thor is restless for his date for a reunion with Jane, who is trying the dating game with Richard (Chris O'Dowd) in London.
But there's a few interruptions to this date, when her colleagues point her to a strange scenario elsewhere in an industrial area of the city where the laws of physics appear to have gone on hiatus.
This leads to the main plot of the film, where we find the realms overlapping and Jane inadvertently crosses over to the specific area of the realm where the Aether has been stored for around 5,000 years.
The Aether's activation possesses her, which is evident when a concerned Thor - who hasn't called Jane in the 2 years since the original, hence a double slap in the face - arrives to see the Aether expel a black and red cloud from Jane outward to some Metropolitan Police officers.
Thor brings Jane back to Asgard so they can figure out what the hell is going on, but it has the unfortunate side-effect of (eventually) attracting the Dark Elves to Asgard, and with one of their number escaping the dungeons, the end result is not a pretty sight.
This leads to the covert and treasonous escape to the original dark world, an initial showdown there, a further escape back to London and then a further showdown in London.
The showdown sees the usual CGI thing of buildings going boom. Although London is spared the fate it got in GI Joe Retribution where the megaweapon flattened it, there is still pieces of destruction.
Greenwich Maritime Observatory gets the main spotlight of destruction - some leylines things meant the borough is the epicentre of the realms colliding.
But there's other scenes around the city, some of which standard, such as cars landing on the roof of St. Pauls' Cathedral, while some is amusing - Thor and Malekief sliding down the side of the Gherkin is quite something.
Of the most interesting - and hilarious - sequences seeing Thor land on the platform at Charing Cross tube station, and having to get the Northern Line back to the battle, with a woman even apologising for bumping into Thor on the train.
It would have been a typically British superhero movie if the universe had ended due to delays on the Tube.
Saying that, its not exactly a revolutionary superhero movie but that was par for the course. Its not setting out to change the way we think of films - its simply to entertain and to build the Marvel Film universe. For that, it does, and provides us another invitation to see these ever entertaining characters.
It's a good enough addition to the cannon for Marvel's increasing repertoire and its a decent continuation of the story so far. But it just so happens not to be the greatest installment so far - its merely serving its function to mildly entertain, and it does just enough for that.
Still, all this will be forgotten if Avengers: Age Of Ultron turns out to be a stonker...
3.5/5
Comic book fans have always argued about the merits of Marvel and DC Comics, but in recent years, Marvel's film structure has given it an advantage in that world.
Beyond Batman, DC seem to struggle. Green Lantern was an absolute disaster, while Superman hasn't set the world alight with his two recent reboots and now needs Batman to enliven the upcoming sequel to Man of Steel.
While there is time to improve, Marvel has stolen a march. Commercially, the intertwined structure of individual Avengers movies leading into the central group films has created an entire world that people will be entranced to see.
2013 seems set to see a Marvel-Disney production again top the highest grossing films list, with Iron Man 3 in the lead.
The group are well into Phase Two, on how they attempt to follow up 2012's superhero bunfight Avengers Assemble.
Now comes the test - do they have more to their locker than Iron Man and superhero combo films?
The original Thor was a reasonable film, which saw Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) fight it out in the one New Mexico town yet to be visited by Roswell conspiracy theorists and Breaking Bad fans.
The sequel could work as a reasonable enough continuation to this without the story arc of the Avengers in the middle.
It certainly continues with the central Thor-v-Loki dynamic. Not that this is a bad thing - both are highly accomplished actors that play to their character's respective strengths, and Loki certainly remains a delightfully loose cannon.
Some critics weren't impressed additional Loki scenes were inserted, but there's worse things that could derail this film.
One of the problems is its happiness to hop between genres. At various points it could be a superhero-based rom-com between Thor and Jane Foster, at others standard superhero, while also throwing in sci-fi, fantasy, Norse literature, comedy, tragedy and a hell of a lot of other genres, and it is an odd one to try and make them stick.
One of the problems this film has is the intense amount of jargon, which can be confusion even for those following the thread through the various media. The start sees us introduced to the Dark Elves, the Aether and the battle at the last cosmic alignment of the Nine Realms.
To cut a long story short, the Dark Elves, led by Malakith (Christopher Eccleston), tried to use the Aether to bring the universe back to darkness, but was quashed in battle by the Asgardians and a troupe of them duly fled into suspended animation until the reactivation of the indestructible Aether.
As is seemingly custom with films like this, there are further spouts of information throughout the production. Though tiring, they do provide a funny moment when Stan Lee plays crochity grandpa at the scientist proud of his monologue. Plus they do ultimately explain the purpose I guess.
After the intro, we're introduced back to Loki, who is in trouble for his antics during the Avengers and is duly sent to the dungeons, while Thor goes darting off elsewhere to go win a battle he arrived late for.
Yet Thor is restless for his date for a reunion with Jane, who is trying the dating game with Richard (Chris O'Dowd) in London.
But there's a few interruptions to this date, when her colleagues point her to a strange scenario elsewhere in an industrial area of the city where the laws of physics appear to have gone on hiatus.
This leads to the main plot of the film, where we find the realms overlapping and Jane inadvertently crosses over to the specific area of the realm where the Aether has been stored for around 5,000 years.
The Aether's activation possesses her, which is evident when a concerned Thor - who hasn't called Jane in the 2 years since the original, hence a double slap in the face - arrives to see the Aether expel a black and red cloud from Jane outward to some Metropolitan Police officers.
Thor brings Jane back to Asgard so they can figure out what the hell is going on, but it has the unfortunate side-effect of (eventually) attracting the Dark Elves to Asgard, and with one of their number escaping the dungeons, the end result is not a pretty sight.
This leads to the covert and treasonous escape to the original dark world, an initial showdown there, a further escape back to London and then a further showdown in London.
The showdown sees the usual CGI thing of buildings going boom. Although London is spared the fate it got in GI Joe Retribution where the megaweapon flattened it, there is still pieces of destruction.
Greenwich Maritime Observatory gets the main spotlight of destruction - some leylines things meant the borough is the epicentre of the realms colliding.
But there's other scenes around the city, some of which standard, such as cars landing on the roof of St. Pauls' Cathedral, while some is amusing - Thor and Malekief sliding down the side of the Gherkin is quite something.
Of the most interesting - and hilarious - sequences seeing Thor land on the platform at Charing Cross tube station, and having to get the Northern Line back to the battle, with a woman even apologising for bumping into Thor on the train.
It would have been a typically British superhero movie if the universe had ended due to delays on the Tube.
Saying that, its not exactly a revolutionary superhero movie but that was par for the course. Its not setting out to change the way we think of films - its simply to entertain and to build the Marvel Film universe. For that, it does, and provides us another invitation to see these ever entertaining characters.
It's a good enough addition to the cannon for Marvel's increasing repertoire and its a decent continuation of the story so far. But it just so happens not to be the greatest installment so far - its merely serving its function to mildly entertain, and it does just enough for that.
Still, all this will be forgotten if Avengers: Age Of Ultron turns out to be a stonker...
3.5/5
Thursday, 10 October 2013
South Park: World War Zimmerman Review
How do you comment on a controversial and far-reaching issue?
Comedians often get it in the neck when they take on sensitive issues and are perceived of not taking them seriously, although humour can nevertheless be the right way to take on the issue as it can help raise awareness.
Tackling these issues can also make a reputation. Over the years, South Park has cultivated a reputation as a go-to programme for raising points about serious issues by way of humour.
World War Zimmerman is an interesting case in point. Referencing the astounding acquittal by Florida of George Zimmerman for the murder of Trayvon Martin and crossing it with hit-and-miss blockbuster World War Z is, at face value, either misguided or asking for trouble. This comes before comments that South Park was late to the Zimmerman discussion that followed his acquittal in early July.
Yet South Park possesses one weapon that can make such an unholy fusion workable - Eric Theodore Cartman.
Cartman is a strange and wild nexus in which to view the world. He is also possibly one of television's only characters to whom the idea of people angry at the Zimmerman verdict can legitimately replace the zombies to his Brad Pitt in World War Z is not only plausible but justifiable for his anger.
Cartman in this is basically a similar mindset to 24 hour news channels. The channels seemed so certain the verdict would incite riots and in this he is creating these spaces using the film reference as a starting point, to impressive effect.
It's particularly amusing when Cartman is on full-blown WWZ referencing, starting with a cutesy-wutesy family all talking in Cartman's voice and right down to a straight lift of the opening scene where angry people try and riot against him, before forming the full on mountain similar to the zombie mountain scenes in the film.
The little things on his way through his nutty journey are amusing, whether its Butters beatboxing, Cartman going "this is a Tesla? Fuck... alright hit your prissy pedal!" or his inexplicable ability to cause multiple plane crashes.
The central rivalry between him and Token is the main driving force and is grounded, essentially in something in-keeping with Cartman's alarmingly racist character. But it is impressive after his first plane crash where he tells the pilot what he's doing and the pilot thinks "what?" moments before he ends up dying.
Its all highly dodgy but nevertheless amusing.
Nevertheless, this is not the most convincing that South Park has tackled political issues, albeit still better than the sadly underwhelming take on the NSA a few weeks back.
The offensive nature of the whole shebang is scarcely believable and an insight it maybe into some people's psyche, it just doesn't feel as convincing a moment of satire. It more or less feels like a typical adventure into Cartman's ever reaching psyche.
Its also a strange point it raises when Zimmerman is enlisted to try and kill Token for the US government before accidentally shooting Cartman in black face, which leads to Zimmerman being sentenced to the electric chair.
Then, to rub in the sense of envelope pushing a little more, Cartman fully enacts the Zimmerman thing by saying Token encroached on his space and that justified shooting him. Luckily, Token is not murdered - it would cost a good character so I'm glad they didn't
The heart of the Zimmerman matter is that the Neighbourhood Watch man admitted chasing and shooting a black teenager armed with nothing more dangerous than a bag of Skittles. At face value, this should be a jail sentence, and the ethical conundrums largely tries to avoid the simple fact that he killed him, which in most places would go for murder regardless of any self-defence or SBH laws.
The conclusion that "if he had shot a white boy he would've fried" is one left-leaning media has taken, although the conclusion a black guy shooting a white would've fried has done the more vocal rounds.
But the re-enactment of the same case using Cartman and Token is an oddly fitting conclusion, as is Mr. Mackay just saying both had blame. At the end of it, in this way, Cartman shot Token and the idea Token can have any wrongs is ridiculous.
Yet people have nevertheless opted to continue the argument, with various references to the real case.
Some people will hate this episode because of the timing. After all, it is less than three months since Zimmerman's trial reached its verdict, although I have seen commenters saying it has come out "too late".
The politics of such an episode will also cause a split, as not everybody will share the viewpoint - this is a natural element of political programming.
As a piece of entertainment, its typical of the season so far - some stuff lands very well, some is just bizarre - albeit not as much as the cable company's nipple obsession last week - and some doesn't work.
Its an amusing and solid 22 minutes but the laughs come mainly from the little things and the "Wow... they're doing this/that?!?" factor rather than any insightful truth that nobody had figured out before.
3.5/5
Comedians often get it in the neck when they take on sensitive issues and are perceived of not taking them seriously, although humour can nevertheless be the right way to take on the issue as it can help raise awareness.
Tackling these issues can also make a reputation. Over the years, South Park has cultivated a reputation as a go-to programme for raising points about serious issues by way of humour.
World War Zimmerman is an interesting case in point. Referencing the astounding acquittal by Florida of George Zimmerman for the murder of Trayvon Martin and crossing it with hit-and-miss blockbuster World War Z is, at face value, either misguided or asking for trouble. This comes before comments that South Park was late to the Zimmerman discussion that followed his acquittal in early July.
Yet South Park possesses one weapon that can make such an unholy fusion workable - Eric Theodore Cartman.
Cartman is a strange and wild nexus in which to view the world. He is also possibly one of television's only characters to whom the idea of people angry at the Zimmerman verdict can legitimately replace the zombies to his Brad Pitt in World War Z is not only plausible but justifiable for his anger.
Cartman in this is basically a similar mindset to 24 hour news channels. The channels seemed so certain the verdict would incite riots and in this he is creating these spaces using the film reference as a starting point, to impressive effect.
It's particularly amusing when Cartman is on full-blown WWZ referencing, starting with a cutesy-wutesy family all talking in Cartman's voice and right down to a straight lift of the opening scene where angry people try and riot against him, before forming the full on mountain similar to the zombie mountain scenes in the film.
The little things on his way through his nutty journey are amusing, whether its Butters beatboxing, Cartman going "this is a Tesla? Fuck... alright hit your prissy pedal!" or his inexplicable ability to cause multiple plane crashes.
The central rivalry between him and Token is the main driving force and is grounded, essentially in something in-keeping with Cartman's alarmingly racist character. But it is impressive after his first plane crash where he tells the pilot what he's doing and the pilot thinks "what?" moments before he ends up dying.
Its all highly dodgy but nevertheless amusing.
Nevertheless, this is not the most convincing that South Park has tackled political issues, albeit still better than the sadly underwhelming take on the NSA a few weeks back.
The offensive nature of the whole shebang is scarcely believable and an insight it maybe into some people's psyche, it just doesn't feel as convincing a moment of satire. It more or less feels like a typical adventure into Cartman's ever reaching psyche.
Its also a strange point it raises when Zimmerman is enlisted to try and kill Token for the US government before accidentally shooting Cartman in black face, which leads to Zimmerman being sentenced to the electric chair.
Then, to rub in the sense of envelope pushing a little more, Cartman fully enacts the Zimmerman thing by saying Token encroached on his space and that justified shooting him. Luckily, Token is not murdered - it would cost a good character so I'm glad they didn't
The heart of the Zimmerman matter is that the Neighbourhood Watch man admitted chasing and shooting a black teenager armed with nothing more dangerous than a bag of Skittles. At face value, this should be a jail sentence, and the ethical conundrums largely tries to avoid the simple fact that he killed him, which in most places would go for murder regardless of any self-defence or SBH laws.
The conclusion that "if he had shot a white boy he would've fried" is one left-leaning media has taken, although the conclusion a black guy shooting a white would've fried has done the more vocal rounds.
But the re-enactment of the same case using Cartman and Token is an oddly fitting conclusion, as is Mr. Mackay just saying both had blame. At the end of it, in this way, Cartman shot Token and the idea Token can have any wrongs is ridiculous.
Yet people have nevertheless opted to continue the argument, with various references to the real case.
Some people will hate this episode because of the timing. After all, it is less than three months since Zimmerman's trial reached its verdict, although I have seen commenters saying it has come out "too late".
The politics of such an episode will also cause a split, as not everybody will share the viewpoint - this is a natural element of political programming.
As a piece of entertainment, its typical of the season so far - some stuff lands very well, some is just bizarre - albeit not as much as the cable company's nipple obsession last week - and some doesn't work.
Its an amusing and solid 22 minutes but the laughs come mainly from the little things and the "Wow... they're doing this/that?!?" factor rather than any insightful truth that nobody had figured out before.
3.5/5
Wednesday, 9 October 2013
How Hard Can Spoiler Evasion Be?
The spoiler is one of those most irritating and annoying things.
It's always the same scene - you're halfway through something you're loving and then someone who has either already seen it or just Googled what happens imparts to you a huge development you had not forseen.
One of the more recent visualisations came in The Big Bang Theory when Sheldon told Leonard various spoilers from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, which he was reading for the first time at the time. This duly leads to Leonard moving out to live with Penny, who imparts another similarly big spoiler.
Some people argued "why Harry Potter?" but using a more recent spoiler would have undoubtedly pissed some people off. Not that it worked as a number of people apparently wrote to the US network CBS complaining they were spoiled the end of the book/film. This was accentuated by a spoiler of The Walking Dead, which was also added at the end of a then-recent episode.
Film buffs seem to accept spoilers as a part of life but how hard is it to avoid them?
It's a strange psychological bent at the best of times. The desire to know for some - i.e. me - means that when you are aware there's something big on the horizon of media you are enjoying, you want to jump to the end.
This is something that can be felt at the moment. The highly anticipated finale of US television drama Breaking Bad was aired last Sunday, with a climactic finale. For those on time.
Personally, I had first heard of Breaking Bad when the first season was reviewed in music magazine Q in late 2009/early 2010, but found the premise amusing and confusing. A few weeks ago, I bought season one on a limb and loved it. I'm now at the start of season four and one thing that does impress is that, each time it appears to exhaust a certain plot point, it creates newer, bolder horizons.
But with the access to sites discussing and disseminating what happened, it is easier than ever to stumble across spoilers and ruin the big finale for yourself.
In a way, its also easy to find out what happens in the immediate future. Part of this is down to hearsay - people have said the current season four is the season's biggest season.
This is, in one respect, an evolution of the spoilering process. In the old days, if you wanted to spoil things, you would either ask someone who had seen it what had gone done or stumbled across a stranger. The scene in the Simpsons where Homer loudly shouts "I can't believe Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's dad" in front of a queue waiting to see The Empire Strikes Back for the first time is probably similar to what happened to a fair amount of people in cinemas up and down the land until the invention of the internet.
Nowadays, with one click, you can find a website with synopsis, analysis and comment on every last detail of every episode. This has already yielded spoilers for seasons of Breaking Bad as I progressed through the various seasons of the show, although so far this clicking finger hasn't strayed onto the big finale. Yet.
Not for want of trying. The eagerness to discover information extends to a temptation to go foraging for information, which would be a stupid move because it would undermine viewing time and the point in wanting to view episodes.
There's always a desire amongst people to gain knowledge of information and wanting to know as much as you can about any given subject.
This however has to be controlled because sometimes, it can be a good idea to keep things in suspense for some things. In the case of films and TV programmes, that would be a good thing because it helps the feeling you are legitimately watching something new rather than re-treading a road everyone else has long explored.
It's always the same scene - you're halfway through something you're loving and then someone who has either already seen it or just Googled what happens imparts to you a huge development you had not forseen.
One of the more recent visualisations came in The Big Bang Theory when Sheldon told Leonard various spoilers from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, which he was reading for the first time at the time. This duly leads to Leonard moving out to live with Penny, who imparts another similarly big spoiler.
Some people argued "why Harry Potter?" but using a more recent spoiler would have undoubtedly pissed some people off. Not that it worked as a number of people apparently wrote to the US network CBS complaining they were spoiled the end of the book/film. This was accentuated by a spoiler of The Walking Dead, which was also added at the end of a then-recent episode.
Film buffs seem to accept spoilers as a part of life but how hard is it to avoid them?
It's a strange psychological bent at the best of times. The desire to know for some - i.e. me - means that when you are aware there's something big on the horizon of media you are enjoying, you want to jump to the end.
This is something that can be felt at the moment. The highly anticipated finale of US television drama Breaking Bad was aired last Sunday, with a climactic finale. For those on time.
Personally, I had first heard of Breaking Bad when the first season was reviewed in music magazine Q in late 2009/early 2010, but found the premise amusing and confusing. A few weeks ago, I bought season one on a limb and loved it. I'm now at the start of season four and one thing that does impress is that, each time it appears to exhaust a certain plot point, it creates newer, bolder horizons.
But with the access to sites discussing and disseminating what happened, it is easier than ever to stumble across spoilers and ruin the big finale for yourself.
In a way, its also easy to find out what happens in the immediate future. Part of this is down to hearsay - people have said the current season four is the season's biggest season.
This is, in one respect, an evolution of the spoilering process. In the old days, if you wanted to spoil things, you would either ask someone who had seen it what had gone done or stumbled across a stranger. The scene in the Simpsons where Homer loudly shouts "I can't believe Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's dad" in front of a queue waiting to see The Empire Strikes Back for the first time is probably similar to what happened to a fair amount of people in cinemas up and down the land until the invention of the internet.
Nowadays, with one click, you can find a website with synopsis, analysis and comment on every last detail of every episode. This has already yielded spoilers for seasons of Breaking Bad as I progressed through the various seasons of the show, although so far this clicking finger hasn't strayed onto the big finale. Yet.
Not for want of trying. The eagerness to discover information extends to a temptation to go foraging for information, which would be a stupid move because it would undermine viewing time and the point in wanting to view episodes.
There's always a desire amongst people to gain knowledge of information and wanting to know as much as you can about any given subject.
This however has to be controlled because sometimes, it can be a good idea to keep things in suspense for some things. In the case of films and TV programmes, that would be a good thing because it helps the feeling you are legitimately watching something new rather than re-treading a road everyone else has long explored.
Friday, 4 October 2013
So Much For Cautious Optimism...
So... yes... cautious optimism for Newcastle United. Whoever thought that would happen?
Three weeks ago, a victory for Newcastle at Aston Villa that saw the club deliver an impressive performance to see off the Birmingham side. One of the club's most solid defensive performances was allied to an impressively concise attacking display.
Granted, it was helped by a terrible Villa display that rarely had the fizz of their other displays - most notably their recent victory over Manchester City - but it looked as if Newcastle had turned a corner.
What happened next has followed a depressingly familiar pattern.
Yet another home defeat by Hull City was followed up with by a desperately poor showing in the first half at Everton. Sadly, an improved second half display was not able to yield a comeback victory, but people who were at the game said it wouldn't have been a deserved result in any case.
It all appears to have led to yet more doom and gloom for black and white stripe wearers. The usual conspiracy theories JFK - Joe Fucking Kinnear - is about to return are back, as are other rumours. Chief among them was the surprise rumour Alan Pardew had attempted to resign after the Everton game, although these were denied.
It seemed unlikely Pardew - one of football's proudest men - would walk away. But after the testing mess of 2012-13, this season had to go a lot better.
Perhaps it could have been a good idea to strengthen a weak defence. After conceding a club-record number of goals in a Premier League season, an extra full back was a requirement. This was exacerbated by the departures of Danny Simpson and James Perch, while Ryan Taylor's season long injury thins the numbers further.
Instead, the only legitimate options are many people's pick for the two weakest links. Mathieu Debuchy and Davide Santon are the two full backs but both attack way more than they defend, which often leaves the flanks excessively exposed to counter attacks.
Debuchy in particular has copped criticism, with his poor positioning exposed for two of Hull's three goals in the recent defeat and his defending generally seen as the weakest link. Fans have largely been on a downer following after he conceded a few penalties after signing
But at least he showed some signs of improvement at Goodison Park, with analysis showing him as one of the few Newcastle players to play anything approaching well in the game.
The defender copping the most flack was Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, who in the space of a year has gone from being captain of the French champions in the UEFA Champions League to being part of a defence barely capable of avoiding the Championship.
Amazingly, it took Mike Williamson to stabilise the defence for the second half. Williamson was a big punching bag for fans last season after a catalogue of belief-defying blunders, but a commanding aerial performance from the Portsmouth defender hinted he might not be finished yet.
It raises questions after the club's defence has continued where it left off. Although it has managed two Premier League clean sheets - more than this stage last season, and more than table toppers Arsenal - the potential for catastrophic failure remains high.
Fans just don't know what, if anything, is the best combination. Each combination of the four centre backs (Fabricio Coloccini and Steven Taylor, as well as Williamson and Yanga-Mbiwa) seems to have one good game followed by at least four bad ones.
Although the team improved, it wasn't enough for what would've been an unlikely comeback.
As a result, a lot of improvement has to be done. But the fixture list is hardly ideal for such a moment, with games against Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs all coming up. And this is before a Capital One Cup tie against Manchester City and the possibility of Chris Hughton's remodelled Norwich City nicking a victory at St. James'.
But its the Tyne-Wear Derby on October 27th that promises to decide much of the team's direction for the campaign. Derbies have previously dictated momentum for the Toon, with the 1-0 victory in August 2011 at the Stadium of Light arguably the foundation for the unbeaten run at the start of the 2011-12 season.
Conversely, the humiliation against the Black Cats in April has seen the team in an almost-universal downhill direction since. Only 3 wins in 11 Premier League matches since that dark day is a terrible return, although Sunderland's record of just 1 win in the post-Derby time period makes for equally grim record.
At this rate, this game could well decide which team is in for a painful struggle. Although form and logic seems to suggest the Toon should win against a Sunderland team devoid of inspiration and luck, we cannot count chickens.
Its a brutal and testing time for Magpies fans. Victory at Cardiff on Saturday - a harder ask than it looks, as Manchester City found out - is essential ahead of this run or else it could be a long and tough autumn for Magpies fans.
Three weeks ago, a victory for Newcastle at Aston Villa that saw the club deliver an impressive performance to see off the Birmingham side. One of the club's most solid defensive performances was allied to an impressively concise attacking display.
Granted, it was helped by a terrible Villa display that rarely had the fizz of their other displays - most notably their recent victory over Manchester City - but it looked as if Newcastle had turned a corner.
What happened next has followed a depressingly familiar pattern.
Yet another home defeat by Hull City was followed up with by a desperately poor showing in the first half at Everton. Sadly, an improved second half display was not able to yield a comeback victory, but people who were at the game said it wouldn't have been a deserved result in any case.
It all appears to have led to yet more doom and gloom for black and white stripe wearers. The usual conspiracy theories JFK - Joe Fucking Kinnear - is about to return are back, as are other rumours. Chief among them was the surprise rumour Alan Pardew had attempted to resign after the Everton game, although these were denied.
It seemed unlikely Pardew - one of football's proudest men - would walk away. But after the testing mess of 2012-13, this season had to go a lot better.
Perhaps it could have been a good idea to strengthen a weak defence. After conceding a club-record number of goals in a Premier League season, an extra full back was a requirement. This was exacerbated by the departures of Danny Simpson and James Perch, while Ryan Taylor's season long injury thins the numbers further.
Instead, the only legitimate options are many people's pick for the two weakest links. Mathieu Debuchy and Davide Santon are the two full backs but both attack way more than they defend, which often leaves the flanks excessively exposed to counter attacks.
Debuchy in particular has copped criticism, with his poor positioning exposed for two of Hull's three goals in the recent defeat and his defending generally seen as the weakest link. Fans have largely been on a downer following after he conceded a few penalties after signing
But at least he showed some signs of improvement at Goodison Park, with analysis showing him as one of the few Newcastle players to play anything approaching well in the game.
The defender copping the most flack was Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, who in the space of a year has gone from being captain of the French champions in the UEFA Champions League to being part of a defence barely capable of avoiding the Championship.
Amazingly, it took Mike Williamson to stabilise the defence for the second half. Williamson was a big punching bag for fans last season after a catalogue of belief-defying blunders, but a commanding aerial performance from the Portsmouth defender hinted he might not be finished yet.
It raises questions after the club's defence has continued where it left off. Although it has managed two Premier League clean sheets - more than this stage last season, and more than table toppers Arsenal - the potential for catastrophic failure remains high.
Fans just don't know what, if anything, is the best combination. Each combination of the four centre backs (Fabricio Coloccini and Steven Taylor, as well as Williamson and Yanga-Mbiwa) seems to have one good game followed by at least four bad ones.
Although the team improved, it wasn't enough for what would've been an unlikely comeback.
As a result, a lot of improvement has to be done. But the fixture list is hardly ideal for such a moment, with games against Liverpool, Chelsea and Spurs all coming up. And this is before a Capital One Cup tie against Manchester City and the possibility of Chris Hughton's remodelled Norwich City nicking a victory at St. James'.
But its the Tyne-Wear Derby on October 27th that promises to decide much of the team's direction for the campaign. Derbies have previously dictated momentum for the Toon, with the 1-0 victory in August 2011 at the Stadium of Light arguably the foundation for the unbeaten run at the start of the 2011-12 season.
Conversely, the humiliation against the Black Cats in April has seen the team in an almost-universal downhill direction since. Only 3 wins in 11 Premier League matches since that dark day is a terrible return, although Sunderland's record of just 1 win in the post-Derby time period makes for equally grim record.
At this rate, this game could well decide which team is in for a painful struggle. Although form and logic seems to suggest the Toon should win against a Sunderland team devoid of inspiration and luck, we cannot count chickens.
Its a brutal and testing time for Magpies fans. Victory at Cardiff on Saturday - a harder ask than it looks, as Manchester City found out - is essential ahead of this run or else it could be a long and tough autumn for Magpies fans.
Saturday, 21 September 2013
Cautious Optimism At Last?
Last time Newcastle prepared to welcome Hull City for a Premier League clash, the preparations were under an entire sky of storm clouds.
August ended with the resignation of Kevin Keegan after Dennis Wise's free reign over transfer dealings saw him replace James Milner with Uruguayan midfielder Nacho Gonzalez and Spanish striker Xisco.
The international break allowed feelings of resentment towards Newcastle owner Mike Ashley to stew and build up into a huge crescendo for the first game after the resignation. Protests against Ashley were made before, during and after the game.
Chief among them was a giant "COCKNEY MAFIA OUT" banner directed at the board, which some fans think led to player distraction in the run up to Hull City's second goal.
A dark mood for Toon fans was made worse when a bare bones squad handed Hull their first Premier League away win and midfielder Danny Guthrie ended chances of a comeback by being sent off for a pointless kick on Tiger Craig Fagan.
Hull eventually finished 2008-09 all of a single point above Newcastle, which sent the Toon and their unwanted owner down.
The trajectories of Hull and Newcastle since then have taken differing paths, with Newcastle running away with the 2009-10 Championship while Hull were slinking out of the top flight.
Last season saw Hull just slide under the sliding door Indiana Jones-style into the Premier League, while Newcastle were just about able to evade falling in the other direction.
But despite a surprisingly quiet summer at St James' Park, optimism is higher this time. While Ashley is still around - and still largely loathed - September 2013 feels like a happier place than September 2008.
Chief among this is the fact that the squad appears more solidly assembled this time around.
Alan Pardew came in for heavy criticism for some of his squad and tactical decisions in the 2012-13 campaign. Perhaps guided by injuries and availability, he seems to have stumbled across a new formation to use for this new season.
It is just as well as things didn't have such an optimistic touch at half-time in the clubs 3rd game of the season against Fulham. Although the team had actually began troubling the goalkeeper in the game against the Cottagers, there was little to indicate the team could actually score.
This followed up two dreadful afternoons for the Black and Whites, with all of one shot on target in an opening day mauling by Manchester City followed up by a dour goalless draw with West Ham one week later.
Luckily, tactical modifications allowed the team to play with a hint of attacking freedom against the Cottagers. On another day, the Toon could have put five past Fulham and could well have done had the posts, crossbars, goalkeeper, posts and terrible finishing.
The modifications saw a change in system, with subs Yohan Cabaye, Loic Remy and Yoann Gouffran supporting Hatem Ben Arfa. Before then, Papiss Cisse and Shola Ameobi cut frustrated figures in a system that struggled to provide service.
It had been worse against West Ham in the Toon's first opening encounter, which saw the team manage zero shots on target - although Gouffran somehow managed to miss an open goal - but it took a change to shake the team out of similar problems against them.
The modification eventually yielded reward. But as well as reward it also hinted at a possible future change to the system, with players given markedly different roles to the ones they didn't seem comfortable in last year.
All of this was shown last weekend at Villa Park, where the team put in a more solid performance to neuter a Villa team that showed remarkably little of what handed them plaudits following their opening three.
The team's performance did well, with the centre backs doing well to stop Christian Benteke from being as effective as he has been, and the full backs coping alright with the twin wide threats of Gabby Agbonlahor and Andreas Weimann.
The midfield also looked more solid, which is not a good argument for Cheick Tiote and Jonas Gutierrez's first choice places from last season. Vurnon Anita and Moussa Sissoko did very well to break up Villa's midfield - although they were helped by an off-colour Villa trio - and a foundation for Yohan Cabaye to support the forward three.
It wasn't a perfect performance at Villa. There is still work to be done on Papiss Cisse, who has not scored since April 7th - last minute goal against Fulham at SJP - and has not really looked like scoring in the meantime.
The final third ball was also a little suspect at times, with Newcastle's most productive moves coming from runs by Hatem Ben Arfa. It helped Villa full back Antonio Luna was remarkably unable to cope with the Newcastle number 10, but Ben Arfa was a very potent threat.
Final third balls from other players, however, were not as soildly productive. Cabaye in particular got a couple wrong, although his lack of match fitness in the wake of petty and needless strike action may not have helped.
Nevertheless, the game provided reasons to be cheerful. Chief among them is the fact Pardew has rediscovered tactics that the team do well with, and was also able to calculate when to make the right subs. The arrival of Gouffran will be highlighted as he replaced the tiring Remy to score the winning goal, but well calculated as well were the arrivals of Tiote and Sammy Ameobi.
The former's combative presence was able to help continue the stifling tactic on Newcastle's midfield, while Ameobi's arrival was able to help the team keep the ball in the Villa half when it was needed.
With the team finally seeming promise, today's game with the Tigers could be further springboard.
Steve Bruce's record at St. James' Park is not the best, with just one win as a visiting manager - with Birmingham City in 2003 - and his last appearance in their away dugout saw his Sunderland team handed a 5-1 trouncing in the Tyne-Wear Derby.
Nevertheless, his Tigers team will not be easy opponents. They were close to following Cardiff City to an upset against Manchester City and their promotion to the Premier League in 2012-13 was built on firm defensive foundations.
However, if the trend of improving performances after opening day humiliation in Manchester continues, then it bodes well for this afternoon's outing. It also reinforces the fact that things are steadily improving for the Magpies.
August ended with the resignation of Kevin Keegan after Dennis Wise's free reign over transfer dealings saw him replace James Milner with Uruguayan midfielder Nacho Gonzalez and Spanish striker Xisco.
The international break allowed feelings of resentment towards Newcastle owner Mike Ashley to stew and build up into a huge crescendo for the first game after the resignation. Protests against Ashley were made before, during and after the game.
Chief among them was a giant "COCKNEY MAFIA OUT" banner directed at the board, which some fans think led to player distraction in the run up to Hull City's second goal.
A dark mood for Toon fans was made worse when a bare bones squad handed Hull their first Premier League away win and midfielder Danny Guthrie ended chances of a comeback by being sent off for a pointless kick on Tiger Craig Fagan.
Hull eventually finished 2008-09 all of a single point above Newcastle, which sent the Toon and their unwanted owner down.
The trajectories of Hull and Newcastle since then have taken differing paths, with Newcastle running away with the 2009-10 Championship while Hull were slinking out of the top flight.
Last season saw Hull just slide under the sliding door Indiana Jones-style into the Premier League, while Newcastle were just about able to evade falling in the other direction.
But despite a surprisingly quiet summer at St James' Park, optimism is higher this time. While Ashley is still around - and still largely loathed - September 2013 feels like a happier place than September 2008.
Chief among this is the fact that the squad appears more solidly assembled this time around.
Alan Pardew came in for heavy criticism for some of his squad and tactical decisions in the 2012-13 campaign. Perhaps guided by injuries and availability, he seems to have stumbled across a new formation to use for this new season.
It is just as well as things didn't have such an optimistic touch at half-time in the clubs 3rd game of the season against Fulham. Although the team had actually began troubling the goalkeeper in the game against the Cottagers, there was little to indicate the team could actually score.
This followed up two dreadful afternoons for the Black and Whites, with all of one shot on target in an opening day mauling by Manchester City followed up by a dour goalless draw with West Ham one week later.
Luckily, tactical modifications allowed the team to play with a hint of attacking freedom against the Cottagers. On another day, the Toon could have put five past Fulham and could well have done had the posts, crossbars, goalkeeper, posts and terrible finishing.
The modifications saw a change in system, with subs Yohan Cabaye, Loic Remy and Yoann Gouffran supporting Hatem Ben Arfa. Before then, Papiss Cisse and Shola Ameobi cut frustrated figures in a system that struggled to provide service.
It had been worse against West Ham in the Toon's first opening encounter, which saw the team manage zero shots on target - although Gouffran somehow managed to miss an open goal - but it took a change to shake the team out of similar problems against them.
The modification eventually yielded reward. But as well as reward it also hinted at a possible future change to the system, with players given markedly different roles to the ones they didn't seem comfortable in last year.
All of this was shown last weekend at Villa Park, where the team put in a more solid performance to neuter a Villa team that showed remarkably little of what handed them plaudits following their opening three.
The team's performance did well, with the centre backs doing well to stop Christian Benteke from being as effective as he has been, and the full backs coping alright with the twin wide threats of Gabby Agbonlahor and Andreas Weimann.
The midfield also looked more solid, which is not a good argument for Cheick Tiote and Jonas Gutierrez's first choice places from last season. Vurnon Anita and Moussa Sissoko did very well to break up Villa's midfield - although they were helped by an off-colour Villa trio - and a foundation for Yohan Cabaye to support the forward three.
It wasn't a perfect performance at Villa. There is still work to be done on Papiss Cisse, who has not scored since April 7th - last minute goal against Fulham at SJP - and has not really looked like scoring in the meantime.
The final third ball was also a little suspect at times, with Newcastle's most productive moves coming from runs by Hatem Ben Arfa. It helped Villa full back Antonio Luna was remarkably unable to cope with the Newcastle number 10, but Ben Arfa was a very potent threat.
Final third balls from other players, however, were not as soildly productive. Cabaye in particular got a couple wrong, although his lack of match fitness in the wake of petty and needless strike action may not have helped.
Nevertheless, the game provided reasons to be cheerful. Chief among them is the fact Pardew has rediscovered tactics that the team do well with, and was also able to calculate when to make the right subs. The arrival of Gouffran will be highlighted as he replaced the tiring Remy to score the winning goal, but well calculated as well were the arrivals of Tiote and Sammy Ameobi.
The former's combative presence was able to help continue the stifling tactic on Newcastle's midfield, while Ameobi's arrival was able to help the team keep the ball in the Villa half when it was needed.
With the team finally seeming promise, today's game with the Tigers could be further springboard.
Steve Bruce's record at St. James' Park is not the best, with just one win as a visiting manager - with Birmingham City in 2003 - and his last appearance in their away dugout saw his Sunderland team handed a 5-1 trouncing in the Tyne-Wear Derby.
Nevertheless, his Tigers team will not be easy opponents. They were close to following Cardiff City to an upset against Manchester City and their promotion to the Premier League in 2012-13 was built on firm defensive foundations.
However, if the trend of improving performances after opening day humiliation in Manchester continues, then it bodes well for this afternoon's outing. It also reinforces the fact that things are steadily improving for the Magpies.
Tuesday, 10 September 2013
Luxury Footballer
The pressure on anyone in football when they make a huge money deal is clear to see at the best of times.
It's hard not to notice Gareth Bale has been the subject of one of the biggest. Last week - on transfer deadline day, no less - he finally made the jump from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid.
A whopping jump it was too, with the Welsh winger costing the Spaniards an £85.3M transfer fee and about £300,000 in wages for his six year contract.
His former club were certainly unwilling to budge for anything less. Head coach Andre Villas-Boas frequently said the club's star man was not for sale and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was certainly determined to hold on in the wake of speculation that seemed to be relentless.
The saga only really began any momentum when Bale missed Spurs' first three games with various injuries. They did secure victories in their first two but were surprisingly unconvincing in their North London Derby defeat by Arsenal.
Arsenal then provided another kick in the teeth for their north London neighbours, as it turns out Bale meant Real attacking midfielder Mesut Özil was able to move to the Emirates Stadium. This was surprising given that the Germain international has been one of the club's key players in recent seasons, but Özil made a huge £42.5M move anyway.
Interestingly, support has favoured the departed player. Cristiano Ronaldo was one of the high profile Madrid players to voice his opposition to the sale of Özil, while other European football figures including Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas, German national team manager Joachim Low and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp all voicing their surprise at the deals.
The surprising ease in which Özil was shoved out of the Real Madrid exit door is something. Real players certainly do not think Özil should have gone. But its also arguable Real Madrid didn't need Bale anyway.
As well as Özil, the club had Ronaldo, Angel di Maria, Isco, Kaka and Luka Modric as options. While Kaka left on deadline day to re-turn to AC Milan after an unhappy spell at the club, it is arguable the other options would have been enough for the Spanish giants.
Its arguable Real would have been better looking out for a striker, with Frenchman Karim Benzema and youngster Álvaro Morata their only real choices.
Now they have Bale they need to work out what to do with him. It is highly unlikely Ronaldo will fancy shifting from his preferred wide left position to accommodate Bale, so he'll need to go somewhere else.
Ancelotti's assistant coach has said Bale is not a guaranteed starter. Its likely, however, that the big cash means there could be some push to get him to play, as there famously was when Andriy Shevchenko joined Chelsea for £30M.
The speculation seems to hint Angel di Maria is the one to make way but him and Isco have made good starts so dropping either would be a strange one to justify.
Bale is seen as a possible commercial deal, with the Welsh winger already a cover star on the new FIFA 14 computer game and having had his face plastered all over New York's Times Square as part of NBC's Premier League broadcasting campaign.
With Real reportedly around 600million Euros in debt, this sort of commercial pulling power would come in very handy.
A lot of people seem to think the Bale deal was a statement of intent, with the club having been beaten to Brazil hotshot Neymar by Barcelona.
It is certainly a deal that stands out considering a summer that has seen many Spanish league stars leave for England, Italy and France.
Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla - three of the next biggest teams in Spain - have sold stars, while Malaga and Real Sociedad have seen their best players picked off by Real Madrid among others.
Spanish football's financial situation is precarious, with most of the league having to sell to by. In all, a record £450M+ in player sales was registered by Spanish clubs in summer 2013, with only Barcelona not seeing at least one big name leave the club.
Departures of Özil and Higuain have certainly not been welcomed, and Madridistas are a little underwhelmed their replacement is a winger who has only won one Carling Cup and has also only played one Champions League campaign.
Admittedly it was a great campaign for him, but it was still only one.
So, if Bale certainly wasn't feeling under pressure, this welcome to Spain is hardly a help. Something to look forward too when he returns from Wales duties and/or injury.
But now he's made it, will he be a success?
Jury's out but there's no reason why he can't make a go of it at least. If he applies himself well enough, maybe he could be the missing link Real wanted for that fabled 10th Champions League title that has eluded them since Zinedine Zidane's famous volley in Glasgow in 2002.
There's still a long way to go though. Six years to justify the extravagance begins now, and all that remains to say is good luck Gareth. He's gonna need it.
It's hard not to notice Gareth Bale has been the subject of one of the biggest. Last week - on transfer deadline day, no less - he finally made the jump from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid.
A whopping jump it was too, with the Welsh winger costing the Spaniards an £85.3M transfer fee and about £300,000 in wages for his six year contract.
His former club were certainly unwilling to budge for anything less. Head coach Andre Villas-Boas frequently said the club's star man was not for sale and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy was certainly determined to hold on in the wake of speculation that seemed to be relentless.
The saga only really began any momentum when Bale missed Spurs' first three games with various injuries. They did secure victories in their first two but were surprisingly unconvincing in their North London Derby defeat by Arsenal.
Arsenal then provided another kick in the teeth for their north London neighbours, as it turns out Bale meant Real attacking midfielder Mesut Özil was able to move to the Emirates Stadium. This was surprising given that the Germain international has been one of the club's key players in recent seasons, but Özil made a huge £42.5M move anyway.
Interestingly, support has favoured the departed player. Cristiano Ronaldo was one of the high profile Madrid players to voice his opposition to the sale of Özil, while other European football figures including Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas, German national team manager Joachim Low and Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp all voicing their surprise at the deals.
The surprising ease in which Özil was shoved out of the Real Madrid exit door is something. Real players certainly do not think Özil should have gone. But its also arguable Real Madrid didn't need Bale anyway.
As well as Özil, the club had Ronaldo, Angel di Maria, Isco, Kaka and Luka Modric as options. While Kaka left on deadline day to re-turn to AC Milan after an unhappy spell at the club, it is arguable the other options would have been enough for the Spanish giants.
Its arguable Real would have been better looking out for a striker, with Frenchman Karim Benzema and youngster Álvaro Morata their only real choices.
Now they have Bale they need to work out what to do with him. It is highly unlikely Ronaldo will fancy shifting from his preferred wide left position to accommodate Bale, so he'll need to go somewhere else.
Ancelotti's assistant coach has said Bale is not a guaranteed starter. Its likely, however, that the big cash means there could be some push to get him to play, as there famously was when Andriy Shevchenko joined Chelsea for £30M.
The speculation seems to hint Angel di Maria is the one to make way but him and Isco have made good starts so dropping either would be a strange one to justify.
Bale is seen as a possible commercial deal, with the Welsh winger already a cover star on the new FIFA 14 computer game and having had his face plastered all over New York's Times Square as part of NBC's Premier League broadcasting campaign.
With Real reportedly around 600million Euros in debt, this sort of commercial pulling power would come in very handy.
A lot of people seem to think the Bale deal was a statement of intent, with the club having been beaten to Brazil hotshot Neymar by Barcelona.
It is certainly a deal that stands out considering a summer that has seen many Spanish league stars leave for England, Italy and France.
Valencia, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla - three of the next biggest teams in Spain - have sold stars, while Malaga and Real Sociedad have seen their best players picked off by Real Madrid among others.
Spanish football's financial situation is precarious, with most of the league having to sell to by. In all, a record £450M+ in player sales was registered by Spanish clubs in summer 2013, with only Barcelona not seeing at least one big name leave the club.
Departures of Özil and Higuain have certainly not been welcomed, and Madridistas are a little underwhelmed their replacement is a winger who has only won one Carling Cup and has also only played one Champions League campaign.
Admittedly it was a great campaign for him, but it was still only one.
So, if Bale certainly wasn't feeling under pressure, this welcome to Spain is hardly a help. Something to look forward too when he returns from Wales duties and/or injury.
But now he's made it, will he be a success?
Jury's out but there's no reason why he can't make a go of it at least. If he applies himself well enough, maybe he could be the missing link Real wanted for that fabled 10th Champions League title that has eluded them since Zinedine Zidane's famous volley in Glasgow in 2002.
There's still a long way to go though. Six years to justify the extravagance begins now, and all that remains to say is good luck Gareth. He's gonna need it.
Wednesday, 4 September 2013
Arctic Monkeys - AM: Album Review
Credit where it's due for Arctic Monkeys - they're certainly willing to go beyond simply just rehashing I Bet You Look Good On The Dance Floor 12 times album-in-album-out.
Some people seem to think AM should've stuck with the sound and lyrical style they presented on their first two albums. But they deserve some credit for the bold abandon they embraced the sleazy desert riffery and country-rock love songs that make up their last two records.
Even then, Humbug and Suck It And See still had some moods and scopes reminiscent of albums one and two. By contrast, the teasers for this one indicate the band is moving further into darker, different sonic territory.
The fifth Arctic Monkeys album may have its laziest title - Alex Turner says they ripped it from the Velvet Underground's VU compilation, rather than Beady Eye's recent BE album - but certainly has been previewed with some gems.
The adventures of their new California-based world have been teased by Turner as "a Dr. Dre beat given an Ike Turner bowl cut and sent galloping across the desert on a Stratocaster". Whatever that means.
Question is - are they adventures we want to be taken on?
1. Do I Wanna Know?
Chances are you'll have heard this beast already, not least given it opened AM's recent Glastonbury setlist. It's a slower beast but full of buzzing 12-string guitars, slinky bass and wonderfully crafted lyrical riffs on "how we both know the nights were mainly made for saying things that you can't say tomorrow day". It's a stomping opener.
2. R U Mine?
Given this one came out in February 2012 you'll almost certainly have heard this one too. There is little to say about this song that hasn't been said, other than that it appears to be a little crunchier than the original single and remains a fine tune. Certainly, it's a guaranteed knockout punch for the album and it ensures its got 2/2 killer hooks.
3. One for the Road
Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme emerges for the first time on the album with a few "whoop whoops". After two big-rockers, this tune introduces more of the hip-hop inspired subtleties, as well as a return to Turner's burgeoning mental thesaurus and some of the shimmery guitar work more present in the latter half of Suck It And See. It is reminiscent of those latter SIAS tunes and is a pleasant listen which improve with further ones, but feels oddly weak in the wake of the huge opening hitters.
4. Arabella
This is probably one of the tunes Turner had in mind with his earlier description. It starts with a teasingly misleading hip-hop subtlety of a girl in "a Barbarella silver swimsuit" before it really finds the high gears with a swinging glam-rock riff that blinks its way in and out of the tune. The outro is particularly good, with the guitar's momentum increasing and sweeping the song over the line.
5. I Want It All
As AM progresses you find a few ticks - a certain chord here, a drum beat there, a falsetto atop it - repeat themselves. They're out in force here, on a tune sounding somewhere between Slade and Scissor Sisters with a foot in each camp. It's a nice fuzzy riff but its a weird sound for AM that takes adjusting too, and one that's harder to like. The delightful B-side Stop The World I Wanna Get Off With You would be better for the album.
6. No. 1 Party Anthem
Time for a sweeping direction change. After 5 tunes trying to marry heavy rock and hip-hop, this song is a wistful ballad. Led by piano, lower chords and subtle percussion, its talk of a dancefloor fling gone awry is rather relatable, with a sound to match the post-euphoric heartbreak it talks about. Its a nice and pleasant ditty and is actually pretty good.
7. Mad Sounds
Played at Glastonbury - for the audience only - was this fairly chill number. Its a sparse and subtle tune and quite a nice vibe too it. Its a pleasant tune alright, and certainly shows off Turner's skills as a vocalist - and probably Matt Helders and Nick O'Malley on the falsetto - but that one-two is certainly a momentum killer.
8. Fireside
After two chill songs the bass guitar riff is certainly something to perk up momentum. It's a slick smooth wiffle underpinning chimy acoustic guitar and keyboard that builds into a big chorus. There's something oddly epic about it, but its also a pretty good tune and certainly more of the dancy feel than the previous pairing.
9. Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?
It's custom for an Arctic Monkeys album to include at least one long song title that makes you scratch your head in confusion. Just like on their debut album, the longest song title is also the shortest of the whole record. The song is a fairly brisk strut built on a beat supplemented by fiddly guitars and falsetto backing that could be from a Destiny's Child album. Its AM the song. Its also a decent poppy tune about late night antics - again, like the debut in its own way. The video is quite something.
10. Snap Out Of It
A bit of a faster tempo than the vast majority of the record, if not quite the breakneck pace of the old songs. This one shares a few notes and moods with I Want It All, albeit with some added piano, but seems to click a lot easier than the first one did. Its not hard to imagine this one gelling quite well live.
11. Knee Socks
Advance buzz has this one lined up as "the main one with Josh Homme", which Turner described as a "return of a back scratch" after he did a tune with Queens of the Stone Age on Like Clockwork. The song is a more defined version of the album's hip-hop-rock strut until the 2:30 mark, when the falsetto takes on a mind of its own and additional vocal tracks from Homme buzz over, before reverting for the last dash. Its pretty good, albeit not the knockout touted.
12. I Wanna Be Yours
This one is different lyrically as its adapted from a John Cooper Clarke poem. The lyrics to the poem are strange one - attempting to create romance out of things like cars, electric meters, coffee pots and vacuum cleaners, with some success and some... less so. There's musical echoes of 505 from Favourite Worst Nightmare and its certainly a great arrangement that compliments the lyrics well.
There's been a fair old bit of hyperbole surrounding AM, with many fans proclaiming it as the best effort the band have created so far.
Its a pleasant listen and there's a number of songs that stand tall as truly great tunes. But its hard not to feel something's missing.
The weirdest feeling about AM is how slow it feels. Its certainly an intriguing idea to see the same band swapping their headlong punk squawks for a more subtle hip-hop-tinged rock album but it takes a fair bit to make the leap. On some tunes the leap is a success whereas on others, not so much.
Some tunes also lack the sticking power that even album songs on previous disks. Repeat listenings certainly help improve the quality of the songs - except for I Want It All - and a lot of them sound like they could be some good tunes live, but something doesn't click as easily as other albums do.
3.5/5
Some people seem to think AM should've stuck with the sound and lyrical style they presented on their first two albums. But they deserve some credit for the bold abandon they embraced the sleazy desert riffery and country-rock love songs that make up their last two records.
Even then, Humbug and Suck It And See still had some moods and scopes reminiscent of albums one and two. By contrast, the teasers for this one indicate the band is moving further into darker, different sonic territory.
The fifth Arctic Monkeys album may have its laziest title - Alex Turner says they ripped it from the Velvet Underground's VU compilation, rather than Beady Eye's recent BE album - but certainly has been previewed with some gems.
The adventures of their new California-based world have been teased by Turner as "a Dr. Dre beat given an Ike Turner bowl cut and sent galloping across the desert on a Stratocaster". Whatever that means.
Question is - are they adventures we want to be taken on?
1. Do I Wanna Know?
Chances are you'll have heard this beast already, not least given it opened AM's recent Glastonbury setlist. It's a slower beast but full of buzzing 12-string guitars, slinky bass and wonderfully crafted lyrical riffs on "how we both know the nights were mainly made for saying things that you can't say tomorrow day". It's a stomping opener.
2. R U Mine?
Given this one came out in February 2012 you'll almost certainly have heard this one too. There is little to say about this song that hasn't been said, other than that it appears to be a little crunchier than the original single and remains a fine tune. Certainly, it's a guaranteed knockout punch for the album and it ensures its got 2/2 killer hooks.
3. One for the Road
Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme emerges for the first time on the album with a few "whoop whoops". After two big-rockers, this tune introduces more of the hip-hop inspired subtleties, as well as a return to Turner's burgeoning mental thesaurus and some of the shimmery guitar work more present in the latter half of Suck It And See. It is reminiscent of those latter SIAS tunes and is a pleasant listen which improve with further ones, but feels oddly weak in the wake of the huge opening hitters.
4. Arabella
This is probably one of the tunes Turner had in mind with his earlier description. It starts with a teasingly misleading hip-hop subtlety of a girl in "a Barbarella silver swimsuit" before it really finds the high gears with a swinging glam-rock riff that blinks its way in and out of the tune. The outro is particularly good, with the guitar's momentum increasing and sweeping the song over the line.
5. I Want It All
As AM progresses you find a few ticks - a certain chord here, a drum beat there, a falsetto atop it - repeat themselves. They're out in force here, on a tune sounding somewhere between Slade and Scissor Sisters with a foot in each camp. It's a nice fuzzy riff but its a weird sound for AM that takes adjusting too, and one that's harder to like. The delightful B-side Stop The World I Wanna Get Off With You would be better for the album.
6. No. 1 Party Anthem
Time for a sweeping direction change. After 5 tunes trying to marry heavy rock and hip-hop, this song is a wistful ballad. Led by piano, lower chords and subtle percussion, its talk of a dancefloor fling gone awry is rather relatable, with a sound to match the post-euphoric heartbreak it talks about. Its a nice and pleasant ditty and is actually pretty good.
7. Mad Sounds
Played at Glastonbury - for the audience only - was this fairly chill number. Its a sparse and subtle tune and quite a nice vibe too it. Its a pleasant tune alright, and certainly shows off Turner's skills as a vocalist - and probably Matt Helders and Nick O'Malley on the falsetto - but that one-two is certainly a momentum killer.
8. Fireside
After two chill songs the bass guitar riff is certainly something to perk up momentum. It's a slick smooth wiffle underpinning chimy acoustic guitar and keyboard that builds into a big chorus. There's something oddly epic about it, but its also a pretty good tune and certainly more of the dancy feel than the previous pairing.
9. Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?
It's custom for an Arctic Monkeys album to include at least one long song title that makes you scratch your head in confusion. Just like on their debut album, the longest song title is also the shortest of the whole record. The song is a fairly brisk strut built on a beat supplemented by fiddly guitars and falsetto backing that could be from a Destiny's Child album. Its AM the song. Its also a decent poppy tune about late night antics - again, like the debut in its own way. The video is quite something.
10. Snap Out Of It
A bit of a faster tempo than the vast majority of the record, if not quite the breakneck pace of the old songs. This one shares a few notes and moods with I Want It All, albeit with some added piano, but seems to click a lot easier than the first one did. Its not hard to imagine this one gelling quite well live.
11. Knee Socks
Advance buzz has this one lined up as "the main one with Josh Homme", which Turner described as a "return of a back scratch" after he did a tune with Queens of the Stone Age on Like Clockwork. The song is a more defined version of the album's hip-hop-rock strut until the 2:30 mark, when the falsetto takes on a mind of its own and additional vocal tracks from Homme buzz over, before reverting for the last dash. Its pretty good, albeit not the knockout touted.
12. I Wanna Be Yours
This one is different lyrically as its adapted from a John Cooper Clarke poem. The lyrics to the poem are strange one - attempting to create romance out of things like cars, electric meters, coffee pots and vacuum cleaners, with some success and some... less so. There's musical echoes of 505 from Favourite Worst Nightmare and its certainly a great arrangement that compliments the lyrics well.
There's been a fair old bit of hyperbole surrounding AM, with many fans proclaiming it as the best effort the band have created so far.
Its a pleasant listen and there's a number of songs that stand tall as truly great tunes. But its hard not to feel something's missing.
The weirdest feeling about AM is how slow it feels. Its certainly an intriguing idea to see the same band swapping their headlong punk squawks for a more subtle hip-hop-tinged rock album but it takes a fair bit to make the leap. On some tunes the leap is a success whereas on others, not so much.
Some tunes also lack the sticking power that even album songs on previous disks. Repeat listenings certainly help improve the quality of the songs - except for I Want It All - and a lot of them sound like they could be some good tunes live, but something doesn't click as easily as other albums do.
3.5/5
Friday, 30 August 2013
The Book Of Mormon: Musical Review
To most British people, their biggest exposure to Mormonism is either via The Killers singer Brandon Flowers, former US Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, from a South Park episode from 2003 about them or they largely don't know it.
There are Mormons in Britain - 900 missionaries were stationed here in 2012 and there are a number of believers - but its seen as a more niche religion here then in its spiritual home in the Rocky Mountains states of America.
On a bigger scale, the Mormons are getting more exposure, albeit in a more borderline-offensive way.
The Book of Mormon is a huge all-American musical production, led by South Park masterminds Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and Avenue Q creator Robert Lopez. So far its been a storming success in the USA, sweeping up awards and repeatedly selling out its Broadway home.
Its also had a healthy start to life in London. Like in New York the critics have been (largely) appreciative, as have fans, while tickets have sold like wildfire, and its certainly hard to ignore given how much of London Undeground's advertising space is taken by promo posters.
Through the doors of Leicester Square's Prince of Wales Theatre and the play is almost another world.
The Book of Mormon begins with an introduction to our primary missionaries and the jaunty "Hello!" - a glitzy, brisk musical introduction to approved door-to-door conversion, although over here we're more used to them being Jehovah's Witnesses.
We're introduced to the two leads - the charismatic yet cocky Elder Price and the slightly backward Elder Cunningham. The latter bursts into the opening tune with the impressively timed "Hello! Would you like to change religions? I have a free book written by Jesus!"
Cunningham admits toward the end of Act One he didn't even read the Book after earlier saying he frequently lies. He's a lovable character but a fairly useless missionary.
Both heroes are fish out of water in their surroundings for the mission though. Despite praying to be sent to his ideal land of Orlando, Florida, Price is sent with Cunningham all the way to Uganda.
The next few songs show the gravity of his problems. His stuff is robbed by warlords, a devastated village under the rule of General Butt Fucking-Naked, the locals are unwilling to convert - the jawdropping brilliance of "Hasa Diga Eebowai" made that perfectly clear - and the Mormon missionaries already there are unprepared to break their inflexible logic.
Uneasy and fraying as it can get, the chemistry between the two main elders is the driving force to the first part. Its standard glueing the opposites together stuff, albeit in the face of stronger adversity than others.
Not that their adversity can match those of the natives. This is merely a glitzy window into the genuine troubles some people in that area - AIDS, famine, poverty, genital mutilation-happy warlords and the like.
Its tricky to wring laughs out of a painful real world environment. Not for the want of trying - there is success when the Mormon visitors asks "Is there something missing from your life?" and one of the villagers simply looks at the house.
Clearly, our Utah heroes have their work cut out. The cynical villagers are still happy to curse their beloved holy fathers - as noted, this is possibly the only Tony Award winning show to have a song where God is literally given the middle finger treatment.
The first act is good enough but its the second act where things all slide into place, with the proper momentum, jibes and music.
The music itself is consistently impressive. Although it primarily sticks to a similar formula, it still impresses and helps carry along the dialogue. It also sounds better at the points it differentiates. The previously menointed "Hasa Diga..." is African tribal percussion and melodies, while Elder Price re-emerges for the 2nd act to "Spooky Mormon Hell Dream", which is a fantastic blend of heavy rock and musical formula.
While Price is being serenaded in his hell dream by Hitler, Genghis Khan, OJ Simpson's lawyer and giant cups of coffee, Elder Cunningham has already begun trying to indoctrinate his new African chums into Mormonism. Not that it's easy with references to Ewoks, the Starship Enterprise and trying to mould it to his audience. Not even his conscience - a mix of his dad, Darth Vader, Lt. Uhura and others - can dissuade him.
There's something weirdly lovable about Cunningham. He certainly has a lot of delightful one-lines, such as saying "the Bible's a trilogy, and the Book of Mormon is Return of the Jedi". His song with lead Ugandan character Nabulungi about baptising her is in particular quite something.
A few of his quirky additions to the Mormon story are delightful but flawed, not least when the villagers think they're actual parts of the religion and perform them to the Mission President.
One of the little things in the movie that is its best is actually in this sequence - its the mixture of horrified expressions on the Mormon missionaries as the bastardised version of their tale is told to them. A number of little things like that contributes to the laugh total but its this one that particularly impresses.
Another thing the reenactment of the Cunningham tales creates is one of the closest we get to an anti-religion stab and welcoming embrace of the point of religion simultaneously, when the last song is cued up by referring to the final song by saying of Cunningham's story; "It's just a bunch of made-up stuff, but it points to something bigger."
The production is not exclusive mocking of the faith. There is stuff to mock - most notably on "I Believe", which gets away with the hugely boderline lyric "I believe… that in 1978 God suddenly changed his mind about black people". This is in reference to the fact Mormonism used to refuse to admit them until they changed policy, most likely under public pressure despite them using that spin.
It is weird to say a musical that features the lyric "Fuck you God" can be considered even-handed on the religion yet if anything it celebrates them as much as it mocks them.
The Mormons certainly have been fairly good game with it, even with their cheeky advertising strapline "The book is always better" featured in the programme, although the ending 4th book would be a good addition to a new religion.
The cocktail of the whole thing is a lovely mixture of blasphemy, celebration, comedy, music and rhythm. Usually in the same song. Its certainly a delightful night out on Coventry Street.
4.5/5
There are Mormons in Britain - 900 missionaries were stationed here in 2012 and there are a number of believers - but its seen as a more niche religion here then in its spiritual home in the Rocky Mountains states of America.
On a bigger scale, the Mormons are getting more exposure, albeit in a more borderline-offensive way.
The Book of Mormon is a huge all-American musical production, led by South Park masterminds Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and Avenue Q creator Robert Lopez. So far its been a storming success in the USA, sweeping up awards and repeatedly selling out its Broadway home.
Its also had a healthy start to life in London. Like in New York the critics have been (largely) appreciative, as have fans, while tickets have sold like wildfire, and its certainly hard to ignore given how much of London Undeground's advertising space is taken by promo posters.
Through the doors of Leicester Square's Prince of Wales Theatre and the play is almost another world.
The Book of Mormon begins with an introduction to our primary missionaries and the jaunty "Hello!" - a glitzy, brisk musical introduction to approved door-to-door conversion, although over here we're more used to them being Jehovah's Witnesses.
We're introduced to the two leads - the charismatic yet cocky Elder Price and the slightly backward Elder Cunningham. The latter bursts into the opening tune with the impressively timed "Hello! Would you like to change religions? I have a free book written by Jesus!"
Cunningham admits toward the end of Act One he didn't even read the Book after earlier saying he frequently lies. He's a lovable character but a fairly useless missionary.
Both heroes are fish out of water in their surroundings for the mission though. Despite praying to be sent to his ideal land of Orlando, Florida, Price is sent with Cunningham all the way to Uganda.
The next few songs show the gravity of his problems. His stuff is robbed by warlords, a devastated village under the rule of General Butt Fucking-Naked, the locals are unwilling to convert - the jawdropping brilliance of "Hasa Diga Eebowai" made that perfectly clear - and the Mormon missionaries already there are unprepared to break their inflexible logic.
Uneasy and fraying as it can get, the chemistry between the two main elders is the driving force to the first part. Its standard glueing the opposites together stuff, albeit in the face of stronger adversity than others.
Not that their adversity can match those of the natives. This is merely a glitzy window into the genuine troubles some people in that area - AIDS, famine, poverty, genital mutilation-happy warlords and the like.
Its tricky to wring laughs out of a painful real world environment. Not for the want of trying - there is success when the Mormon visitors asks "Is there something missing from your life?" and one of the villagers simply looks at the house.
Clearly, our Utah heroes have their work cut out. The cynical villagers are still happy to curse their beloved holy fathers - as noted, this is possibly the only Tony Award winning show to have a song where God is literally given the middle finger treatment.
The first act is good enough but its the second act where things all slide into place, with the proper momentum, jibes and music.
The music itself is consistently impressive. Although it primarily sticks to a similar formula, it still impresses and helps carry along the dialogue. It also sounds better at the points it differentiates. The previously menointed "Hasa Diga..." is African tribal percussion and melodies, while Elder Price re-emerges for the 2nd act to "Spooky Mormon Hell Dream", which is a fantastic blend of heavy rock and musical formula.
While Price is being serenaded in his hell dream by Hitler, Genghis Khan, OJ Simpson's lawyer and giant cups of coffee, Elder Cunningham has already begun trying to indoctrinate his new African chums into Mormonism. Not that it's easy with references to Ewoks, the Starship Enterprise and trying to mould it to his audience. Not even his conscience - a mix of his dad, Darth Vader, Lt. Uhura and others - can dissuade him.
There's something weirdly lovable about Cunningham. He certainly has a lot of delightful one-lines, such as saying "the Bible's a trilogy, and the Book of Mormon is Return of the Jedi". His song with lead Ugandan character Nabulungi about baptising her is in particular quite something.
A few of his quirky additions to the Mormon story are delightful but flawed, not least when the villagers think they're actual parts of the religion and perform them to the Mission President.
One of the little things in the movie that is its best is actually in this sequence - its the mixture of horrified expressions on the Mormon missionaries as the bastardised version of their tale is told to them. A number of little things like that contributes to the laugh total but its this one that particularly impresses.
Another thing the reenactment of the Cunningham tales creates is one of the closest we get to an anti-religion stab and welcoming embrace of the point of religion simultaneously, when the last song is cued up by referring to the final song by saying of Cunningham's story; "It's just a bunch of made-up stuff, but it points to something bigger."
The production is not exclusive mocking of the faith. There is stuff to mock - most notably on "I Believe", which gets away with the hugely boderline lyric "I believe… that in 1978 God suddenly changed his mind about black people". This is in reference to the fact Mormonism used to refuse to admit them until they changed policy, most likely under public pressure despite them using that spin.
It is weird to say a musical that features the lyric "Fuck you God" can be considered even-handed on the religion yet if anything it celebrates them as much as it mocks them.
The Mormons certainly have been fairly good game with it, even with their cheeky advertising strapline "The book is always better" featured in the programme, although the ending 4th book would be a good addition to a new religion.
The cocktail of the whole thing is a lovely mixture of blasphemy, celebration, comedy, music and rhythm. Usually in the same song. Its certainly a delightful night out on Coventry Street.
4.5/5
Wednesday, 21 August 2013
Green Day at Brixton Academy - Live Review
A year ago this week, Green Day's juggernaut seemed in full and unstoppable motion.
There was the promotional circuit ahead of a wildly ambitious trilogy, including a ridiculous interview on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 show where they happily previewed more or less the entire record. They triumphed at a small gig at London's 2,000 capacity Shepherd's Bush Empire a few nights before a weekend-stealing not-so-secret set at Reading Festival.
A rehab admission and underwhelming sales figures for their albums - Tre charted at 31 - halted the momentum of the campaign, but the band nevertheless find themselves back in London ahead of a big slot at Reading Festival.
While the studio work hasn't excited as well as previous highs, Green Day remain a big draw live. They were the first act to sell 60,000 tickets at the Emirates Stadium at a show that got five-star reviews, as well as further headlining festivals across Europe.
The fact this gig sold out in eight minutes when it was announced as a warm-up show before this weekend's Reading and Leeds Festival slots is further proof the band are still a huge live draw.
They certainly get to work with eagerness. It helps a die-hard crowd took the recent trilogy to their hearts a lot easier than critics did, with new songs like opener 99 Revolutions and the surging Stop When The Red Lights Flash greeted as if they were decades-old anthems.
The best of the new songs played in these exchanges is the pulsing and urgent Let Yourself Go from Uno, which replaces the overlong Oh Love in the setlist.
Everything gets a fantastic reaction from the heaving throngs assembled under Billie Joe's nose but its the older tunes in the book that push the audience into overdrive. Know Your Enemy - the only song played from 21st Century Breakdown - is political power-punk, all surging chords, first-in-the-air melodies and an opportunity to bring one of the front row on stage, get him to sing and then get him stage-diving into the crowd.
This is before the dig into American Idiot. The 2004 success story makes its first presence with the pummeling Letterbomb, before the bombastic one-two of Holiday and Boulevard of Broken Dreams creates one long epic sing along.
The AI-onwards portion of the evening is bookended nine songs in by Wake Me Up When September Ends, which begins with just Billie Joe on his own before he is joined by the rest of the band. After this comes the oldies portion, which is usually spread across the band's 26 years.
Instead, in what could well be a taste of things to come in the Berkshire and Yorkshire mud this weekend, the band dust off their seminal pop-punk LP Dookie and unleash it in full.
Its a glorious portion of tight punk riffery and chances for the heavy crowd to get on their moshing shoes. Punctuating this are the glorious singalongs that have been mainstays of Green Day sets down the ages - Welcome To Paradise, Basket Case, She and all.
It is also impressive how the band don't let up. The instrumentation is as tight and fresh as it was when it was committed to tape some 19 years ago. It is also unwavering while Billie Joe leads the crowd in a cycle of "Heyyyyyyohs". Not that they're strictly needed given how much the crowd reciprocates hysteria to the sound bursting from the stage.
The end of Dookie is all too soon - if anything it needs All By Myself to feel complete - but it leads into the usual tricks - the storming march of Panic Song soundtracks fun with water cannons and t-shirt guns into the crowd before Billie Joe continues his seemingly-unstoppable momentum by bouncing across the stage for St. Jimmy.
Its impeccable to watch how the quality never lets up - one wonders in particular how the now-40 year old Tre Cool is able to keep his relentless pace over the 2 hours+ played for our enjoyment this evening. He is fine form, keeping to his usual mix of tight grooves and outlandish soloing, most notably on Dookie opener Burnout.
A final one-two leads to the encore, with the marathon rush of American Idiot and Jesus of Suburbia sending the crowd into one final run-through of delirious delight.
And if the Tre album track Brutal Love feels an odd end like it had previously done at June's Emirates Stadium gig, Billie Joe is soon on stage running through old favourite Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) to wrap up a delightful evening.
It certainly proved that, for all the perceptions of an 'annus horribilis' in camp Green Day, their value as a live band has not been diminished. If it's this good on Friday then Reading Festival will be in for one hell of an opening night.
4/5
Support came from Frank Turner, who only confirmed his support slot at lunchtime on the day of the gig. His set was a simple set with just him on guitar and his band's regular keyboard player Matt Nasir on mandolin. Turner seems to be doing well despite recently requiring surgery on a slipped back disc that could've ruled him out of gigs for three months.
Instead he's back on a stage he has previously sold out, and he and his fellow player delivered a well-ran acoustic run through a variety of new material and old hits, plus a surprise cover of Live and Let Die. They end with a rousing rendition of I Still Believe, which sounds fresher here then it did a year ago at the Olympic opening ceremony.
There was the promotional circuit ahead of a wildly ambitious trilogy, including a ridiculous interview on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 show where they happily previewed more or less the entire record. They triumphed at a small gig at London's 2,000 capacity Shepherd's Bush Empire a few nights before a weekend-stealing not-so-secret set at Reading Festival.
A rehab admission and underwhelming sales figures for their albums - Tre charted at 31 - halted the momentum of the campaign, but the band nevertheless find themselves back in London ahead of a big slot at Reading Festival.
While the studio work hasn't excited as well as previous highs, Green Day remain a big draw live. They were the first act to sell 60,000 tickets at the Emirates Stadium at a show that got five-star reviews, as well as further headlining festivals across Europe.
The fact this gig sold out in eight minutes when it was announced as a warm-up show before this weekend's Reading and Leeds Festival slots is further proof the band are still a huge live draw.
They certainly get to work with eagerness. It helps a die-hard crowd took the recent trilogy to their hearts a lot easier than critics did, with new songs like opener 99 Revolutions and the surging Stop When The Red Lights Flash greeted as if they were decades-old anthems.
The best of the new songs played in these exchanges is the pulsing and urgent Let Yourself Go from Uno, which replaces the overlong Oh Love in the setlist.
Everything gets a fantastic reaction from the heaving throngs assembled under Billie Joe's nose but its the older tunes in the book that push the audience into overdrive. Know Your Enemy - the only song played from 21st Century Breakdown - is political power-punk, all surging chords, first-in-the-air melodies and an opportunity to bring one of the front row on stage, get him to sing and then get him stage-diving into the crowd.
This is before the dig into American Idiot. The 2004 success story makes its first presence with the pummeling Letterbomb, before the bombastic one-two of Holiday and Boulevard of Broken Dreams creates one long epic sing along.
The AI-onwards portion of the evening is bookended nine songs in by Wake Me Up When September Ends, which begins with just Billie Joe on his own before he is joined by the rest of the band. After this comes the oldies portion, which is usually spread across the band's 26 years.
Instead, in what could well be a taste of things to come in the Berkshire and Yorkshire mud this weekend, the band dust off their seminal pop-punk LP Dookie and unleash it in full.
Its a glorious portion of tight punk riffery and chances for the heavy crowd to get on their moshing shoes. Punctuating this are the glorious singalongs that have been mainstays of Green Day sets down the ages - Welcome To Paradise, Basket Case, She and all.
It is also impressive how the band don't let up. The instrumentation is as tight and fresh as it was when it was committed to tape some 19 years ago. It is also unwavering while Billie Joe leads the crowd in a cycle of "Heyyyyyyohs". Not that they're strictly needed given how much the crowd reciprocates hysteria to the sound bursting from the stage.
The end of Dookie is all too soon - if anything it needs All By Myself to feel complete - but it leads into the usual tricks - the storming march of Panic Song soundtracks fun with water cannons and t-shirt guns into the crowd before Billie Joe continues his seemingly-unstoppable momentum by bouncing across the stage for St. Jimmy.
Its impeccable to watch how the quality never lets up - one wonders in particular how the now-40 year old Tre Cool is able to keep his relentless pace over the 2 hours+ played for our enjoyment this evening. He is fine form, keeping to his usual mix of tight grooves and outlandish soloing, most notably on Dookie opener Burnout.
A final one-two leads to the encore, with the marathon rush of American Idiot and Jesus of Suburbia sending the crowd into one final run-through of delirious delight.
And if the Tre album track Brutal Love feels an odd end like it had previously done at June's Emirates Stadium gig, Billie Joe is soon on stage running through old favourite Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) to wrap up a delightful evening.
It certainly proved that, for all the perceptions of an 'annus horribilis' in camp Green Day, their value as a live band has not been diminished. If it's this good on Friday then Reading Festival will be in for one hell of an opening night.
4/5
Support came from Frank Turner, who only confirmed his support slot at lunchtime on the day of the gig. His set was a simple set with just him on guitar and his band's regular keyboard player Matt Nasir on mandolin. Turner seems to be doing well despite recently requiring surgery on a slipped back disc that could've ruled him out of gigs for three months.
Instead he's back on a stage he has previously sold out, and he and his fellow player delivered a well-ran acoustic run through a variety of new material and old hits, plus a surprise cover of Live and Let Die. They end with a rousing rendition of I Still Believe, which sounds fresher here then it did a year ago at the Olympic opening ceremony.
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