It is three weeks since I commenced to write that I had experienced more films and TV since last reporting than first appreciated hence deciding to add a separate writing to the 2483 although I had spent the day preparing for the already reported trip to Scarborough for the top of the table clash between Durham and Yorkshire at two overnights and working out car parking issues as well as out locations.
I have also been to Derby and back to watch Durham whereas when I commenced this writing I was still on my way to Scarborough reflecting on the weeks ahead.
I mentioned that I proposed to pack and set off as soon as I could with the registration time is 3pm, returning after the third day in order to attend the 20 20 games between England’s ladies in the morning and the men in afternoon against Australia and then with only the Sunday to prepare I am off Brighton, a mistake, while Durham play Sussex at home although I will return a day early in order to try and catch the last day of the game. Then It is Derby for the championship game there although following the results of the final day of 40 40 games I may go early staying at Nottingham on the Monday evening if their semi final against Somerset is to be played on the Monday evening. The alternative date us Saturday which I may also consider depending on the availability of accommodation at a good price. As reported I came back from Scarborough at tea on the third day anticipating a draw onoy for the team to have a glorious win which was followed with a second glorious three day win against Sussex, immediately followed by a day of hard rain throughout yesterday
I decided against going to the Riverside for the last game in the competition being played by Durham against Surrey and where I was advised there would be opportunity to experience both levels of the main pavilion extension for the first time, mainly because members who have paid for the five year subscription could bring up to six non members for free. Durham had an ordinary start but then amazingly Smith and Muchall scored an extraordinary epic last quarter doubling the total with Smith 120 not out from 79 balls and Muchall 52 from 54 with 275 for 5 from their 40 over and then dismissing Surrey who gave some of their youngsters the chance for 142 from only 30 overs. The match counted for nothing but was a good workout before Yorkshire. As I anticipated Durham would have had to have won all their last three games to have been able to progress to the quarterfinals when in fact they would have had a home tie edging Notts who would have also gained the fourth team spot. I will watch the two games on TV commencing with Glamorgan who I hope will win against Hampshire who are at home.
Danny Evans a struggling British tennis player rated around 175 among professionals has beaten in straight sets the 12 seeded player in the US open earlier today 26th August 2013 and Laura Robson also won her first round math in two straight sets while still recovering from her recent injury. Both also won their next games but lost in the third round. Andy Murray was thrashed in the quarterfinals leaving the prospects of a Nadal - Djorkovic final
The British Football season is well underway with the first three games played and an extraordinary transfer frenzy in which Gareth Baele became the most expensive player ever with a fee of 100 million euros and personal payments said to be £300000 a week or over £15 million a year. Sunderland under De Canio has bought new players in quantity something they seem to have done for the past decade hoping for a mix that will work. They lost to Fulham at home on the first day, managed a draw and then lost so with only one point in they are second bottom with West Brom while promotion victors Cardiff have fared better with an historic win at home against Manchester City and so with also a draw they are mid table along with Newcastle who failed to score in the greater part of their three games but managed to win against Fulham with two late goals after being thrashed by Man City in their first game. Liverpool have had a great start and head the table with three out of three wins with Chelsea 7 points and Man City, Arsenal, Stoke and Tottenham with six followed by Manchester United without Alex Ferguson on 4 heading the group which includes Newcastle. I am away in Sussex when Sunderland and Newcastle have home ties in the third round of the League Cup with Newcastle entertaining Leeds. England a good win in the latest World Cup Qualifier at Wembley but the next game is crucial when they play Ukraine away, one point behind and played 7 out of the ten in this part of the competition. Win this and they should win the group outright with home games to follow against the weaker clubs of Poland and Montenegro. A draw would also be OK.
As the Rugby League regular season draws to a close Huddersfield look like gaining the title from Warrington who now face a season without a trophy unless they will the top of the league challenge Cup something they have failed to do despite all their other recent success. Newcastle Falcons retuned to the premier League of Rugby without much confidence having lost their best player and losing at home to Bath a home without scoring last night. The final round of the Diamond League top flight in Athletics came to an end without British success and without the appearance of Mo Farrah who is to run in the Great North Run next Sunday. Weather permitting I shall be there. So after the sporting catch up I am ready to remember the first batch of films
I have discovered that I am yet to write my reactions to the film Prometheus, which was rightly regarded as a major blockbuster release in 2012 as a prequel to the Alien film series.
The film is set in the future in 2089 when archaeologists discover an ancient map in Scotland which matches others found in other locations of ancient culture where there is no evident link. This leads to the conclusion that the maps indicate the origin of other world visitors providing information to be followed when earth technology became sufficiently advanced. The suggestion is that the visitors created humanity and a mission to investigate is privately financed and led by the Chief Executive of the organisation who with the rest of the crew go into the condition of statis during the four years of the voyage controlled by an android who at the appropriate time brings them back.
Unbeknown to the archaeologists and other crew members the elderly and dying sponsor has also come on the trip giving instructions to the CEO who is his daughter and controlling the android in the hope fo finding a way of regeneration.
The first discovery is that an “originator” being still exists in a condition of statis in a space ship and who is resurrected by the new arrivals.
The second is that this is not the home planet but a forward military base of the creature .
The third is that purpose of the resurrected creature is to return to earth and destroy the progeny of their creation, although why is not known.
The fourth is this advance bases was itself attack and the creatures almost all eliminated by another creature, the aliens of the Alien films, creatures that enter and take over the human body and that the Android has deliberately infected one of the archaeologist couple who dies horrible but before he has sex with his partner who believed to be sterile suddenly finds herself pregnant and realising what is happening performs a surgical abortion to rid herself of one of these embryonic horrible creatures.
With everyone else dead one way or the other, she manages to survive and we see her setting off not for earth but to the home planet of the originators to try and find out why they created humanity and then wanted to end it.
I viewed this Ridley Scott film in 3D on Sky TV and regretted not experiencing in theatre, Naomi Repace plays the heroine with Charlize Theron the CEO daughter and Michael Fassbinder as the Archaeologist partner. The film is well constructed and presented with the characters and situations credible. I will look out for the next edition.
I remember little to nothing of the first of two Tom Cruise films with the first, Treasure Guards made for TV 2011 and also featuring an archaeologist, played by Anna Friel who uncovers an ancient parchment in a Jordan excavation buried in an ancient Temple and which is thought to reveal the location of the Seal of Soloman which according to legend was given to King Soloman by God. The film is of the Indian Jones genre and is not surprising that when news of the discovery emerges various interests, including her father and other more dark interests get into pursuit which leads to many dangers before the mystery is unravelled. I remember it was engaging if somewhat predicable fun with supernatural twists. I will leave the second Cruise, a much darker and more serious film, Jack Reacher until later.
Next another science fiction film which like Prometheus is set in the future, five years earlier 100 years after 1984, a date chosen by design. Total Recall with Colin Farrell Kate Beckinsale and Bill Nighy is remake of the 1990 film with starred Arni, and Sharon Stone in which Schwarzenegger commutes between Earth and Mars,
In the latest version the earth world has been devastated by global war leaving only two habitable areas Britain which appears to be a thriving contemporary society of the wealthy and centre of government and the Colony based on Australia and the two are connected not by flight through air and space but a rocket type of cylinder travel through the core of the earth, One of the commuting factory workers between “worlds” learns of an enterprise capable of give you memory implants which give you a different and sought after identity, and in this this instance that of secret agent.
The programme only works if the character provides an honest account of themselves and background but in this instance the programme is stopped because it identifies that the subject was in fact a former spy who had been given a government version of the programme to provide his present identity as a factory worker.
The government alerted by the programme’s operation send forces to eliminate all those connected to the programme provider in addition tot he subject and when the worker escapes and returns to his wife, she immediately tried to kill him.
He learns that she is not wife but a government agent living with him since his memory change only six weeks before. Who is he and why must he now be killed? Especially as the woman he believed to be his wife now leads to manhunt to capture and kill him.
He discovers he had a telephone link embedded in his hand which leads him to discover a recorded message about himself and the apartment he owned. He removes the telephone to avoid being traced. He is helped to get to his apart where he finds he can play the piano and this leads to another recorded message about his true identity ? He was a lading agent working for the deputy leader of the state control who defects the resistance group seeking independence for the Australian colony. His capture led to the memory transfer but not his death, moreover he remembers a plot to invade the colony with robotic police troops to clear areas of people to provide more living space for the free people of Britain state. There is a way to stop the invasion but he needs the help of the resistance leader played by Bill Nighy. However the astute watchers will know that given the basic premise of the film it is impossible to establish what is true and what has been implanted.
There is then a convoluted series of incidents about who is good who is bad who is friend and who is foe and what is implanted memory and what has been real and remains real. There is confusion between dream, memory, fantasy and for one remain confused about the conclusion to the story except that he and his woman friend appear to survive, the invasion if it was ever taking place appears to be stopped and some of those who appear baddies are killed. The film is played straight with intended political, social and philosophical questioning above my pay grade, as they say.
I am impressed with the film Cuba seen on TV, despite the usual avuncular performance of Connery as a soldier of fortune hired by the Batista government to advise on combating the march of Castro. The film captured he atmosphere of a country where almost all the people apart from those wedded to the corrupt and criminal regime supported the revolution and where those participating in this haven for the mafia were progressing their exit plans. The complication for Connery which the film more that a historical reconstruction is that he finds the love of his life had married the son of the leading cigar and rum manufacturer who was something of playboy tending to bed whoever appeared willing in the enterprises he controlled separately from his father who had quickly come to appreciate that it was his daughter in law with commercial good sense. There are good laughs bordering on farce which retain credibility. Denholm Elliot plays another “aviator” of fortune who tries to leave the Island with a plane crammed with Havana cigars.
Connery finds that he ahs not role to play other than to watch Castro take over and his employers free and it is the former love that decides it is time to junk her husband and reattached herself to Connery but only as an encore deciding her place is to stay in her homeland and work for the people through the revolution. Connery leaves a wiser man.
Against expectation I also enjoyed the first translation of the Jack Reacher books to the cinema screen. The film stars Tom Cruise as Reacher and he also was one of the film producers. The film is based on Lee Miller first book one
Cruse plays Reacher a former US intelligence officer who has freed himself from the life but quickly appears in touch and connected to what happens when a former colleague is arrested for what appears the random killing of several people. Reacher is then hired/used by the person appointed to defend the accused who does not remember what happened but feels responsible given the evidence presented again him.
The film opened with a man driving a van into the top of a multi story car park and paces a coin in the parking machine then goes to the roof area across a river towards a park where he takes aim with a sniper riffle with a number of people in the park, a man who a bench, a jogger and then commences to shoot those he viewed through the sights.
The plot is open to lost of questions, particularly that the police so quickly able to identify the location of the car park and that the particular coin used with the print of the former US army sharp shooter as well as the van was in his possession. The man remains silent but then writes down Get Jack Reacher. The young woman assigned to defend the former army man is the daughter the District Attorney to finds reasons why he should not be executed in what appears to everyone an open and shut case. The alleged perpetrator is brutally attacked into a coma when in custody by other prisoners and with no subsequent memory he accepts the evidence against him,
Reacher is not convinced first that the location used by the alleged assassin was the actual one, preferring another, implying that the man has been framed, especially via the coin the use of which does not make rational sense. He investigates the lives of the victims and ‘reaches’ the conclusion that one of those shot was intended and the others use to give the impression of someone going berserk. He also traces the accused to a gun club shooting range owner by a former marine who after Reacher proves his own skill is prepared to help and confirms the suspicion that the behaviour of the alleged accused does not fit what is known of him and he agrees to help.
The villain is identified as a Russian heading a front business whose experience in a Gulag has hardened and who employs ruthless henchman who proves a match for Reacher but who breaks him in the end after the lawyer is kidnapped with a senior police officer double dealing in the pay of the villain. She is rescued and the film reveals that Reacher owes the alleged perpetrator a debt in relation to something unexplained which happened when they served together. The way the film ended I concluded there would be one more sequels unaware that the film was based on a series of adventure novels, The film was in the category of OK. There are so many more films and TV programmes and shows to cover I will have to continue separately. This was finished writing only on September 12 and uploaded
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