Pistache
Book
The work pistache (pis-tash) means a friendly spoof or parody of another's work. [Derivation...
Three of a Kind
David Copperfield, Kim Fuller, Lenny Henry and Tracey Ullman
Book
Highlights from the classic BBC TV comedy sketch show starring Lenny Henry, Tracey Ullman and David...
Fifty Spades of Grey
Book
Finally, a book for all of us blokes who just don't get what all this Fifty Shades malarkey is all...
On Further Reflection: 60 Years of Writings
Book
Actor, doctor, TV presenter, film director, opera director, sculptor - Sir Jonathan Miller's careers...
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated Chicken Run (2000) in Movies
Jul 23, 2020
The plot: Award-winning DreamWorks animation from the Aardman team, telling the story of a band of chickens doomed to a life of egg-laying on a Yorkshire chicken farm. When a flamboyant American rooster arrives on the scene, the hens hope he can teach them to fly to freedom. However, when a chicken-pie making machine is installed, their need becomes urgent and they must devise other means of escape.
Its a excellent film. It has humor, adventure, darkness and most of all chickens. Lots of them. A must see if you haven't already.
Nova Express
Book
The most ferociously political and prophetic book of the Cut-Up Trilogy, Nova Express fires the...
Cold Comfort Farm
7.5
Rate It
Book
A hilarious and merciless parody of rural melodramas and one of the best-loved comic novels of all...
Awix (3310 KP) rated War on Everyone (2017) in Movies
Mar 6, 2018
One of those movies which seems to be trying ridiculously hard to go over the top, but with an absolutely straight face: the main characters aren't just corrupt, they're absurdly corrupt, and the plot at times seems to be intentionally provocative and also absurd (the story relocates all the way to Iceland at one point, but only for about five minutes). It's so in-your-face extreme in some of its attitudes and jokes that it's quite hard to engage with as a story for much of the time. But McDonagh is too good a director to make an entirely bad movie and there are some impressive moments and sequences along the way. But still a strange and difficult-to-figure-out movie.
David McK (3425 KP) rated Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) in Movies
Dec 31, 2019 (Updated Apr 28, 2020)
It's fair to say that this has permeated popular culture: the bullwhip, the hat, the fear of snakes are all intrinsic to the character and heavily copied over the years (Tomb Raider, anyone? The Uncharted series?), with even TVs The Simpsons doing a parody of the opening tomb robbing scene with Homer chasing Bart and ending up rolling down the stairs.
There's almost too many iconic scenes (and quotes) to count: that tomb robber bit at the start, the fed-up Indy shooting the sword-wielder in Cairo (initially storyboarded as a full on sword fight, except the actors all got sick), the Well of Souls sequence, the escape, "It's not the years, honey, it's the mileage", the opening of the Ark by the Nazis and the final warehouse scene, to name but a few!