2/2 Pt. 2 does require a magnetic Falstaff, which Anthony Quayle provides in spades, and two convincing Kings, especially in Hal's ascension to Henry V, which requires much of David Gwillim. Fortunately he, and his satisfyingly grungy syphilitic father as played by Jon Finch are more than up to it
If you've been following my journey through the #BBCTelevisionShakespeare, it will come as no surprise that next up is 2 Henry IV (and you'll never guess what the next one is). A carefully constructed companion to part one, with all the plus points I noted there 1/2
letterboxd.com/film/henry-i...
So, we fired Thelin because after a cup win he presided over a tailspin of league results.
We've replaced him with a manager who, after a cup win has presided over a tailspin of league results.
I'm not seeing the logic here.
#Aberdeen
#AberdeenFC
Do you think you'd be up for a game against Aberdeen? Might be our only hope...
This Wednesday's Bairns deals with the everlasting cup replays of fond memory, before becoming somewhat distracted by #RockFollies
Featuring the greatest photo cation I've yet come up with, if I do say so myself, and a nostalgic look at the works of #DonovanSmith which only I will understand.
As always, the overall Criterion Challenge is here for those who still want to join in:
It's cinema as artifice as much as cinema as art, but it always works for me, even the ones most people seem to dislike. Anyway, this was the list I had to choose from; My recommendation if you haven't seen it would be the magnificent Portrait of a Lady on Fire: www.criterion.com/current/top-...
#CriterionChallenge 11 was to pick something from the list I'm going to link in the next post. This led me to one of the few #WesAnderson films I had never seen, the magnificently bonkers Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. You either love him or you don't; I do.
letterboxd.com/film/the-lif... 1/3
50 years ago today, exactly one league game was played in Scotland, but to make up for it, there were multiple cup competitions going on. Which future star player was describes as a 'will-o'-the-wisp', and just who was Jumbo?
#SpringCup50
... because it's shot in tight close-up, giving the tavern a feel of your local pub, and the battlefield a sense of real and immediate danger. No weak performances, and delightful to see the much put-upon Richard Bucket, aka Clive Swift holding his own as the elder Percy, Earl of Worcester.
#BBCTelevision #Shakespeare move into the second season with #HenryIV part 1. Featuring the same cast as #RichardII plus Anthony Quayle's fulsome and seemingly about to keel over from high blood pressure Falstaff. Very much in the house style, it works 1/2
letterboxd.com/film/henry-i...
The resurgence of Dundee United is somewhat overshadowed by Celtic's links with the East German marvel which was the Trabant. Also , a peer of the realm fell in the gutter. Only in your handy guide to 1976 at Bairns o' the Revolution:
open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
The challenge is, as always, still available for anyone who wants to join in - 52 films from the Criterion Collection to be watched by the end of the year:
letterboxd.com/benvsthemovi...
Some of the acting is of its time to be sure, but Travolta is believably on edge through the whole thing, and carries the whole thing with some style. The cinematography is striking in its use of overhead shots, and one scene in particular stands out for the way the camera spins dizzily around 2/3
#CriterionChallenge 10 was to watch a randomly generated spine number. 562 came up, which is Brian de Palma's 1981 paranoid thriller Blow Out. One of those films I probably watched while at university, although I only vaguely remember it; it was genuinely gripping.
letterboxd.com/film/blow-out/
Huge news! archive.news.gov.bc.ca/releases/new...
We're about to replace Pacific Standard Time with a new time zone all of our own called, er, #PacificTime. This will bring clarity and simplicity to everyone in BC, especially those who have no idea how to change time zones on all their devices.
OK, it’s not quite #Sundance, but our own #SaltSpring Film Festival is packed with great films and thought-provoking experiences. Only time for a half day this year; we’ll plan better for next year.
Non-zero chance that song and band were AI generated.
Here's the twist: they don't exist
Fifty years ago this weekend, two teams were out in front in the Scottish Premier Division. Bet you can't guess which two.
OK, bet you can. Also featuring the division which ended with a bunch of games left over. You couldn't make it up, unlike this headline
open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
...oddly inactive for large parts. It might have been more honest to call it 'The Tragedie of Cardinal Wolsey', although he dies offstage. Anyway, I shan't be in a hurry to revisit despite its sumptuous visuals and splendid cast, including this week's 'hey!' moment, Roger Lloyd-Pack as 2nd Gentleman
It is, of course, not entirely by #Shakespeare (and there are parts where you can plainly tell), and it is to a certain extent Tudor propaganda - or, perhaps more fairly, Royal propaganda. The christening of Elizabeth at the end is the most egregious example, but it makes its title character...
#BBCTelevisionShakespeare part 6 is #HenryVIII which is the first I did not know at all (this is not strictly true, because I must have sat through it on first broadcast, but it did not live long in the memory). It's..uneven, let's say, but there are reasons for that
letterboxd.com/film/henry-v...
As always, your invitation to the challenge is here: 52 films, one from each entry in the list, watch them by December 31st; otherwise, no rules.
letterboxd.com/benvsthemovi...
Latest #CriterionChallenge was 1990s. To avoid rewatches and also cross one off my other list, I chose #KiyoshiKurosawa's extraordinary, unsettling and 'Se7en'-inflected 'Cure'. Might be the best film I've watched this year; it's certainly still firmly in my head
letterboxd.com/film/cure/
A grim battle of tactics, a surprise friendly, a very expensive new computer, and an expensive night out. In 1976 prices, of course:
open.substack.com/pub/bairnsot...
2/2 I do know that the live acapella recording of 'Road to Aberdeen' on one of her compilations features yours truly and party (silently) in the audience. The three live albums I'm definitely in the audience of? Saxon, Blackfoot and Nanci Griffith...
Saw her two or three times in the nineties - once at the Royal Albert Hall with Emmylou Harris guesting; she was always a dazzling performer and had that huge room in the palm of her hand from first minute to last. I think it was one of her shows which had Lucinda Williams as support 1/2
#NowPlaying #NanciGriffith It’s clearly Live Album Monday; this is a recently acquired vinyl version of an album I’ve owned in multiple formats over the years. Proof, if needed, that great live performances aren’t just about power chords and wig-out solos
#NowPlaying #LiveAtLeeds Really? I thought they were from London. Original and best - although I have another live album on the way which is totally different but I may just love it more
