"Groundhog Day" on BLU RAY – A Review Of The 1993 Harold Ramis Movie…

Here is a link to Amazon UK to get this BLU RAY issue at the best price:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001JI0IEU

"…Chance Of Departure Today – 100%!" – Groundhog Day on BLU RAY

Phil Connors is the Weatherman for Channel 9 out of Pittsburgh (WPBH). Under serious duress - he’s been farmed out for four years in a row to the small town of Punxsutawney in Western Pennsylvania (Weather Capitol of the World Since 1877). He’s there to see another namesake predict the snow front coming in over the mountains even better than he can. Because every February 2nd 'Punxsutawney Phil The Groundhog' pops out of his tree trunk - and in front of the gathered townspeople and American media - tells The Mayor whether or not there will be 6 more weeks of Winter or an early Spring. And legendarily - the furry little Beaver-like creature is never wrong. Phil Connors (as you can imagine) couldn’t be more pleased about this prestigious career gig.

And this year deadpan Phil has a crew of two in tow – both believing him to be a shallow, self-centred, wisecracking smartass who doesn’t care about the town, its people or even the fun they’re having – and they’d be right. Assistant Rita (Andie McDowell) and cameraman Larry (Chris Elliott) think Phil is a prick - and with every cynical jab and jibe he proves them correct – over and over again.

So on arrival Phil discounts Rita’s obvious interest in him – and stays in The Pennsylvania Hotel in town instead. He rises at six a.m. the following morning to the sound of two local DJ’s doing a Groundhog Day comedy routine to the music of "I Got You Babe" by Sonny and Cher. Phil does the tedious gig with the varmit and the microphone and the camera – meets a man from the past he can’t stand (a stunning turn by Stephen Tobolowsky as Ned Ryerson) – gets locked into the town by a freak snow storm - and goes back to his hotel hoping to forget about the whole godawful schmaltzy thing.

But the next morning Phil wakes up at six a.m. to the same song and the same DJs corny puns. He looks out the window and it’s not snowing – Phil is reliving the same day – all over again. At first Phil is freaked - but of course no one believes him. Then as each day goes by and exactly the same things happen – he begins to twig he can predict the reactions of everyone – including the lovely Rita - who needs to be won over with gallantry, humanity and a liberal reading of Romantic French Poetry. Phil also begins to realize that if he makes a mistake talking to Rita in the town’s Tip Top Café – he can come back the next day and say the right thing. That will impress. Or better still – plug the local babes for info in the morning – then come back the following afternoon and use it to his dating advantage. Soon he’s doing this with everyone in town.

But as time goes by – he also learns the other positive of living in a modern day setting for "It's A Wonderful Life" – he can do good. So every new day Phil saves a child who falls from a tree – jacks the tyre of a group of old ladies who break down in a car – saves a man who chokes on a piece of steak in a restaurant – gives an old timer who is freezing to death outside bowls of soup… He even learns to ice-sculpt and play the piano really well. But unfortunately despite his best bedroom lines – his efforts to get his lovely assistant into the sack end up with him getting his face slapped by Rita – a lot. But of course as the days become weeks then months even years – he learns depression and loss - and that even suicide/killing himself in various interesting ways won’t get him off the hook or out of the endless repetitive cycle. But perhaps love might…

The part of Phil the Weatherman had initially been offered to Tom Hanks who rightly turned it down and Danny Rubin’s story began in the middle of the cycle (co-writes with Ramis changed all that). But what makes ‘Groundhog Day’ work is the witty and clever time warp moments and the casting of the one-and-only Bill Murray in the lead role - machine-gunning out those great one-liners like only he can (title of this review). Murray’s face is also a secret weapon unto itself – as is the gorgeous luminescence of Andie McDowell who seemed to spark amazing chemistry with her leading men (Gerard Depardieu in "Green Card" and Hugh Grant in "Four Weddings And A Funeral" are just two). But it’s Murray who nails it - slapstick cruel one moment – sweat as a Pumpkin Pie the next. Other actors could say, "Who can describe the television excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather…" but would it be as funny?

The BLU RAY picture is TRULY GORGEOUS – defaulted to 1.85:1 Full Aspect – it looks incredible almost all of the time. Dancing on the podium to Ray Charles as the snow falls – talking to Andie McDowell as they eat cream cakes – drinks at the bar as he tries not to be a twat and say something crass… Apart from the occasional grain in the credits (as the George Clinton song plays) and during the blizzard – it’s beautifully restored and enhances every scene.

Audio is English 5.1 True HD, Czech 5.1, Hungarian 5.1, Italian 5.1 True HD, Polish 5.1 VO and Russian 5.1 VO. Subtitles are Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, English UK, Finnish, Greek, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Polish Romanian, Slovene, Swedish, Turkish and English SDH.

Extras include – Audio Commentary With Director Harold Ramis, A Different Day Featurette (A discussion with Harold Ramis on the movie and its legacy), The Weight Of Time (a discussion with writer Danny Rubin), The Story Of Groundhogs, A Real Life Look At Marmots, Deleted Scenes, and Needle Nose Ned’s Picture In Picture Track (BLU RAY exclusive).

I suppose in the hands of another Director this material could have been more cynically portrayed – darker even – but Ramis likes people too much for that to happen. There’s now even a plaque on Main Street Woodstock in Illinois (where they filmed the town sequences) dedicated to “Ned’s Corner” where Phil Collins meets Ned Ryerson every day and reacts differently to him. Residents brought out heaters to warm the freezing cast – Bill Murray bought and distributed 500 Danish Pastries to the onlookers. Sometimes a movie is like that – it’s just good – and makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside…even becomes a cult…

So remember – if a talking American marmot tells you what Sunday’s weather is going to be like for that crucial date with the lady of your dreams – I’d listen - lest you want sore cheek bones and no sex for the rest of eternity...

PS: Although it doesn’t say so on anywhere on the outer artwork – this ‘UK’ BLU RAY release is part of the “Sony Collectors Series”. Here are the other titles – all of which are numbered on the spine - and come in generic ‘slipcases’ with a blue band on top and a gold stripe set against a white card sleeve:

1. Taxi Driver (35th Anniversary Edition) (1976)

2. The Bridge On The River Kwai (Collectors Edition) (1957)

3. Stand By Me (25th Anniversary Edition) (1986)

4. Gandhi (2 Disc Special Edition) (1982)

5. Easy Rider (Special Edition) (1969)

6. Midnight Express  (Special Edition) (1978)

7. Boyz N The Hood (20th Anniversary Edition) (1991)

8. Das Boot (2 Disc Director’s Cut) (1981)

9. The Guns Of Navarone (50th Anniversary Edition) (1961)

10. Close Encounters Of The Third Kind (2 Disc Special Edition) (1977)

11. Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb (Special Edition) (1964)

12. Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (Special Edition) (2000)

13. The Caine Mutiny (Special Edition) (1954)

14. Lawrence Of Arabia (50th Anniversary Edition) (1962)

15. Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Special Edition) (1993)

16. Groundhog Day (Special Edition) (1993)

17. Glory (Special Edition) (1990) [see REVIEW for "Mastered In 4K" release]

18. From Here To Eternity (Anniversary Edition) (1953)

19. The Remains Of The Day (Anniversary Edition) (1993) [see REVIEW]

"The Blind Side" on BLU RAY – A Review Of The 2009 John Lee Hancock Movie…

Here is a link to Amazon UK to get this BLU RAY for under a fiver:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B004HYFUIW

"…Anything Is Possible…" – The Blind Side on BLU RAY

Separated as a child from his older brother Marcus and raised by a drug-addicted mother with 11 other kids in tow (his father was entirely absent) – 16-year old Michael Oher barely registered on public records. He’d been in and out of foster homes since the age of 7 and with a below average IQ of 80 and school grades barely scraping zero – the American education system also considered him to be simple as well as useless. And few in the Hurt Village area where he lived (notorious Housing Projects in North Memphis) fended for him – let alone made it into their twenties alive.

One day a school football coach is approached in his offices by Oher’s then black stepfather Big Tony the Mechanic (Michael is sleeping in his house on the sofa). Tony wants a place for his small son and 'Big Mike' at Wingate Christian School in Texas. When Coach Cotton looks out the window - he sees Big Mike (played to perfection by Quinton Aaron)- a grizzly-bear black teenager playing hoops like he was born to. But more than taken with Mike’s athletic skills – Coach Cotton is moved (great work from Roy McKinnon). He decides right there and then to persuade a reluctant school panel to give this massive teenager a second chance.

They agree - but then feel they may have made a mistake - as Michael appears incapable of learning - and his sole contribution to an exam paper is to draw a sailboat on the back page with a singular child in it – lost at sea. But one teacher Mrs. Boswell (beautifully played by Kim Dickens) believes there’s intelligence in Mike - if only she can find a way to get it out and up his grades (thereby keeping his place in the program)…

Also in Wingate School are S.J. and Collins Tuohy – the 7-year old son and 16-year cheerleader daughter of Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy (Tim McGraw and Sandra Bullock) – wealthy owners of 86 Taco Bell food outlets. They are a faith-based white family with little to worry about monetarily but genuine in their beliefs (dialogue above).

Leigh Anne Tuohy is a Southern Lady – all tight skirts, sunglasses in her hair, perfect make-up and possessed of a non-nonsense practicality aligned with a will of iron few will tackle (she mutters "well all right…" all the time). But beneath all that steely mettle is a heart of gold – a woman who practices her Christianity - rather than just spend time with it on a Sunday. To Leigh Anne giving is as natural as speaking – and colour is not an issue.

Slowly Leigh Anne begins to notice her vivacious but tiny son S.J. gravitate towards the protective frame of Big Mike – a gentle giant with no malice in him and a handy ability to forget the past. One night walking back from the Coin-Op Laundry where Mike washes and dries one of only two teeshirts he owns (he’s been made homeless yet again) – Leigh Anne is driving with her family in tow and spots Mike walking in the freezing night air in flimsy clothing. He seems lost and even defenceless. She makes a decision to give him a place to stay that night – the opulent Tuohy home. And so it begins – a loving relationship that will eventually see him become a member of the family and Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy become his legal guardians.

But then Mike begins to realize that when it comes to American Football – his 98% Protective Instincts (the only test he ever scored highly on) make him the perfect Left Tackle – the man who protects the Quarter Back. Soon huge clubs (six legendary football coaches make cameo appearances) are noticing his extraordinary natural ability to block anything that threatens his ‘family’ (the team) and soon he is learning at school too. But it could all be derailed by the Social Services people who feel Leigh Anne may have set Big Mike up all along so that he would play for their beloved team 'Ole Miss' (Mississippi). Soon he is back at the drug-infested Projects and then the Coin-Op – confused and hurting…

What gives "The Blind Side" a beating heart is that it’s beautifully played by all – especially Sandra Bullock and Quinton Aaron. There's a danger that it all descends into a rich-white-woman’s plaything – a patronizing project she’s taken on – it’s not like that. Bullock is fabulous in the role (and deserved her Oscar) while Aaron’s dignity in the face of ridicule and pain is filled with a grace that is still, peaceful and intensely moving.

The BLU RAY picture is GORGEOUS – defaulted to Full Aspect – it looks incredible all of the time. In fact at times you can see just a little ‘too much’ makeup. Audio is English 5.1 Dolby Digital, Castilian Spanish 5.1, German 5.1 and English 2.0 Audio Descriptive Service. Subtitles are English, Castilian Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, German, Norwegian and Swedish. Extras exclusive to BLU RAY are - Sidelines: Conversations On The Blind Side, The Story Of Big Quinton, Michael Oher Exclusive and Acting Coaches: Behind The Blind Side.

As Michael studies for an exam – he’s given the academic task by his teachers (who have come to believe in him) of appraising "The Charge Of The Light Brigade" poem by Alfred Tennyson. Michael surmises that you - "Hope For Courage, But Try For Honour…"

By the time the end credits roll - with real footage of Michael Oher joining The Ravens for the NFL Draft of 2009 as Team Member 74 - and then onto stills of him and his adopted Tuohy family – the tears are flowing and your warmth towards these fabulous people is genuine.

The true story of MICHAEL OHER is extraordinary - and John Lee Hancock’s wonderful film "The Blind Side" does his redemptive life-path proper justice.

An emotional touch down…and how…

"Blazing Saddles" on BLU RAY – A Review Of Mel Brooks’ 1974 Comedic Masterpiece…

Here is a link to Amazon UK to get this BLU RAY at the best price

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00BMVCVSK

"…Damn Near Lost A $400 Hand Cart!" – Blazing Saddles on BLU RAY

I can vividly remember seeing "Blazing Saddles" at the cinema in Dublin in 1974. Even as the credits rolled - the entire audience was screaming – helpless with laughter as bullwhip-cracks accompany a truly cheesy yee-haw song crammed with cornball lyrics like "...Conquer bad guys near and far…Bart was his name!"

But then as scene after scene unfolded and we began to realize this latest Mel Brooks caper was a pisstake on racism using the Wild West idiom - we also sat there in utter astonishment - and even excitement. Here was a film breaking down barriers – tackling taboos and monsters - but using comedy to do it (like Chaplin did with "The Dictator").

It’s 1874 and the town of Rock Ridge is building a railroad through 200,000 acres of other people’s land and the local greedy District Attorney (a stunning turn by Harvey Corman as Hedley Lemarr) needs a way to frighten the locals so senseless – they’ll just up and leave. And one day while he’s watching hangings out his window by a one-eyed Cyclops – Hedley hits on the genius idea of making the new sheriff a black man.

Playing that part with just the right amount of inner-smirk is Cleavon Little as Bart – a smart Negro outfoxing all the rednecks as he rides into town sporting a Gold Sherriff Star, a Gucci side saddlebag and a shiny new outfit. He’s teamed up with Gene Wilder as The Wako Kid - once the fastest gunslinger in the West but now a drunk in jail. Cue an endless stream of ball-breakingly funny Wild West set pieces and fabulous one-liners about ‘nig*ers’ and hick white attitudes…

"You use your tongue prettier than a $20 whore!" Slim Pickens says after Hedley Lemarr recites a list of the worst scum ever he wants assembled for a posse. There’s a preacher at a town meeting that says of the impending doom – "We should act!" Then grabs his coat. "I'm leaving!" A bearded dusty prospector speaks 'Genuine Frontier Gibberish' you can’t understand. Slim Pickens helpfully suggests how to rid Rock Ridge of the simple folk getting in the way of the railroad - "We'll ride into town and kill every first born child!" and Hedley Lemarr replies "Too Jewish!"

Even something as simple as Cleavon standing on the town podium addressing an all-white crowd becomes loaded with black virility when he says "Excuse me while I whip this out!" and all the white women duck for cover. And then there’s Director and Co-Writer Mel Brooks as the Governor who can’t string two words together (has GOV on his jacket) and keeps lusting after his big-chested assistant (Robyn Hilton of Vixens fame). "Work! Work! Work!" he complains as he signs another dodgy Bill into law.

But best of all is the famous farting sequence where all the cowboys are sat around a campfire eating plates of beans - I remember some people in the audience very nearly suffered a coronary they laughed that hard. And equally as joyous is Alex Karras as the unstoppable MONGO –a huge monosyllabic klutz that punches horses who annoy him. And on it goes like "Airplane" – whomping you in the nuts with clever one-liners and unbelievably edgy gags - all of which lead up to a Randolph Scott joke and a very slapstick ending. Wow!

The print quality on the BLU RAY starts out very badly with a lot of heavy grain shimmering and even the occasional line down the negative. But after a short while it settles down. In truth (and rather disappointingly) - you’d have to say the picture is good rather than great. However even stretched to Full Aspect – "Blazing Saddles" still looks cool for a 1974 production. Audio is Dolby Digital: English 5.1, French 1-channel Mono and German 1-channel Mono. Subtitles are English, French and German.

Extras include: Additional Scenes, Scene-Specific Commentary by Mel Brooks, 2 Documentaries – Back In The Saddle and Intimate Portrait: Madeline Kahn (Excerpt), Black Bart: 1975 Pilot Episode Of The Proposed TV Series Spinoff and a Theatrical Trailer.

Re-watching "Blazing Saddles" on BLU RAY has been a joy. It’s easily in the top 5 funniest films ever made – still brilliantly anarchic – snotty – and fresh in a way that so many gross-out comedies of today can’t even get near.

Two black men are sent up the railway line they’ve been slaving on and sink in quicksand – Slim Pickens comes along and throws a rope. But it’s not over the two drowning Negroes - but onto the handcart (his line titles this review).

 Do yourself a rootin’ tootin’ favour – and get this fabulous piece of un-pc cinematic crudity in-between your bowlegs…tarnation and varmit!

"Paint The Ground" by THE JUNIPERS – A Review Of The 2012 Download Now On VINYL In 2014 on Sugarbush Records

Here is a link to the Download avialable on Amazon UK (go to Sugarbush Records for the LP):

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B007CQD0V6

"…Let The Feeling Flow…" – Paint The Ground by THE JUNIPERS

Initially released in 2012 as a 10-track Download only – someone in Sugarbush Records thinks "Paint The Ground" deserves another shot at stardom – and I’d say when it comes to Leicester’s Folk-Rock act THE JUNIPERS - they'd be right. 

This is a gorgeous little album – chock full of pleasing melodies – and now it’s being reissued in April 2014 with a bonus track on the VINYL LP (“Everywhere Was You” – Track 3 on Side 1). It's a limited edition of 300 copies (with a different sleeve) on Sugarbush SB600.

Stylistically - think a folksy variant of The LA’s with just as many catchy tunes. A sort of English BIG STAR with perhaps a taste of MATTHEWS SOUTHERN COMFORT and even the country melodies of THE JAYHAWKS. The painted art of the front cover might make you think this is perhaps Retro Psych – it isn’t (although the swirling song structures ape that sound at times). The Junipers feel more New Folk than Psych - like a hybrid of all of the above but with the added stew of Sixties Pop like THE ASSOCIATION or even the jangle of THE BYRDS.

Beautifully produced by Gavin Monhagon (Kings Of Leon, The Editors and Ryan Adams) - the opener "Look Into My River" hooks you immediately with its guitars, flute and layered soft vocals - while “Dandelion Man” ups the happy pace to a point where you may feel an uncontrollable urge to place a dandelion in the Afro hair of a foreign student on the London Underground.

“Golden Fields In Golden Sun” is pretty but perhaps takes the hippy lyrics a step too far – but the superb “Antler Season” is a musical nugget that will surely grace a “Juno” type soundtrack any day now. “Phoebus Filled The Town” even has a Steve Hackett guitar vibe (lyrics from it title this review) - sounding not unlike “Horizons” on “Foxtrot" at times. Very tasty indeed…

On the lovely “They Lived Up In The Valley” The Junipers sing of “such a quiet family…kept things to themselves…”

Well when you succumb to this gorgeous album – like me - you won’t be keeping quiet about them or this…well done lads.

“Centaur” by ORGONE BOX – A Review Of The 2013 CD and LP Featuring Rick Corcoran...

"…Find The One You Love…"

"Centaur" by ORGONE BOX

The first thing that hits you about ORGONE BOX is the sheer musicality of the tunes – part Seventies TODD RUNDGREN part BECK part BIG STAR part JIM WHITE and even THE BEATLES circa Peppers – and that’s an impressive line-up in any man’s book.

Lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Rick Corcoran writes all the songs - and named after a device that captures energy - 1996 saw the debut album "The Orgone Box" released in Japan only (reissued elsewhere 2001). "Things That Happened Then" followed in 2002, "My Reply" in 2004 - and now a mere 9-year gap until this - "Centaur" – released December 2013 on Sugarbush Records.

It opens with the lush acoustic strums of "Anaesthesia" and its multi-layered chorus - "I'm not into psychedelia but I’ve a psychedelic mind…" The swirl of the vocals continues on "Mirrorball (What I Want To Feel)" which some added fuzz guitar that really works. "Ticket To Return" is bound to turn up in a movie soundtrack somewhere – superbly hooky and full of great lyrics about sisters worried about their nerdy brothers. But even better ends Side 1 – "Judy Over The Rainbow" – so “Revolver” in ways that Macca and Lennon would love.

Side 2 highlights feature more fuzz-swirling catchiness in the shape of "Wurld Revolz" while the acoustic strum of "Find The One" is an obvious single/radio play hit (lyrics from it title this review). There’s a gorgeous musicality to "Disposable" which will draw in Karl Wallinger/World Party fans. And it ends on the Beatlesque “Bubble” evoking the spirit of 1966 yet again to superb effect.

On the lovely “Wethouse” Corcoran sings “Loving me shouldn’t be hard to do…”

It isn’t. Fabulous stuff...and a wee bit of an undiscovered gem frankly…

"Tank Tracks" on CD by STALINS OF SOUND - A Review Of Their 2014 Album...

As the STALINS OF SOUND Lead Singer and Principal songwriter Hadi Fever screams "I cannot sleep!" throughout "Without Machine"  - you can't help but feel the band's lo-fi and short bursts of energy are what's keeping the poor boy up at night.

Their sound is BIG BLACK with Drum Machine backdrops - manic paced guitars behind DEVO-like Robotic vocals - grunge with synths. The title track is based on US Army Veteran Shawn Nelson's infamous stealing of a Patton Tank and his rumble in said machine down the motorways of San Diego in 1995. He trashed everything in sight before being shot dead by authorities (a suitably angry beat to reflect this).

"Monkey's Attack" rocks like - well like a mad monkey - while "Abominations Of Fire" smacks of too many nights drinking schnapps with Florian Schneider as he makes "Computer World".  The finishers "Truth To Power" and "Rules For Your Mouth" may appeal to those dig their Kraftwerk with a harder edge.

Not for the faint-heated - "Tank Tracks" is Noise-Punk for the liberal palette.
(Released May 2014 on Slovenly 702-144 - CD/LP/Download )