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| Escape into Night (1972) DVD box art |
This Static Age’s spotlight goes to Escape into Night (1972), the British
mini-series (6 episodes in total) that were made by ATV and broadcasted by ITV.
Based on Catherine Storr’s ‘Marianne Dreams’ (1958) novel it is about a young
girl named Marianne (Vikki Chambers, who went on to have a successful career in
television) whose dreams become reality and the two dimensions blur with each
other. The series were shot in color, but unfortunately the masters were lost (as
was the case with a lot of British television of the era) and what we have here
is the black and white TV recordings, but even with those the series really
shine and make for a great fantasy show.
And now, let’s
switch our focus towards some recent series…
Narcos - Season 3
The 3rd
(and final) season of Netflix’s Narcos
(2015 – 2017) takes us to a post-Escobar Columbia, where the crime rate and
cocaine peddling is as high as ever, only this time both dictated by new
illicit kingpins, the same ones that worked with authorities to bring down the
aforementioned arch-villain, only for power to change hands. Based on the true
story of Latin American drug wars that spread their wings throughout U.S. and
Europe, this final season is well-done and as factual as possible. There is a
scene in a beauty parlor in New York that is a work of art.
The sole season
of Netflix’s mini-series The Imperfects
(2022) is about three pill-popping teenagers with special abilities that go
after the scientists who turned them into flesh-eating monsters after using
them for an experiment. Fun and teenage horror for the masses that
unfortunately failed to find a wide audience.
1899 - Season 1
The sole season
of Netflix’s 1899 (2022) tells the
story of several immigrants from various countries who upon traveling in the
sea, come across another ship that is surrounded by mystery. Set on an era when
travelling was something important that you had to dress up for – a privilege reserved
only for the rich, while the poor were working non-stop abroad in order to
deliver – these mini-series immediately and from the first of its mere eight
episodes makes you believe that you are watching an important piece of
television. And so much is true I think, as it is well-shot, suspenseful and
thrilling; not to mention several twists during the last few episodes that you
won’t be able to see them coming.
And now, please
allow me a word on some recent mainstream film releases…
Director David
F. Sandberg’s Shazam! Fury of the Gods
(2023) is featuring the unlikeable Zachari Levi on the titular role and has the
outstanding distinction of being the worse DC feature in recent history. Part
of the second half that includes some of Greek mythology’s beasts unleashed is
trying to look interesting, but it is too little, too late.
Director Peyton
Reed’s thoroughly entertaining Ant-Man
and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) pairs the titular superhero (Paul Rudd)
and his daughter (Kathryn Newton) against super-villain Kang the Conqueror
(Jonathan Majors), all within the Quantum Realm. Having actors of the caliber
of Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfieffer in supporting roles in a Marvel sequel
tells a lot about how fandom has taken over Hollywood and comic book films have
transcendent from nerd culture to the mainstream, essentially saving cinema by
becoming pretty much the sole vehicles for blockbuster entertainment.
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Triangle of Sadness (2022)
Written and
directed by Ruben Ostlund, Triangle of
Sadness (2022) is an international co-production that became a Cannes
International Film Festival sensation and it won the event’s prestigious Palme
d’Or award. It is about a young couple (a fashion model and an influencer) who
embark on a luxurious yacht cruise for the ultra rich, in which a variety of
humorous and disastrous situations will ensue, resulting in one of the best
dark comedies we’ve seen in ages. This is a commentary and a satire on the
endless class war and a very intelligent one at that.
And finally I
enriched my bookshelf with the following additions…
Frightgest Guide 6: Vampire Movies (2022, FAB Press, Surrey, England, U.K.) penned by Nathaniel Thompson
is another welcome volume to the acclaimed festival’s series of guide books
that are lavishly illustrated and better suited for newcomers rather than the
initiated. A brief introduction on the vampire cinema is followed by several
reviews (a mere paragraph each), but it is all done with so much affection that
you can’t help yourself but be entertained, even if the overall experience
offers little new information.
Speak about
going out with a bang! Cinema Sewer
Volume Eight (2022, FAB Press, Surrey, England, U.K.), edited by Robin
Bougie is the final installment in the compendium series that pack issues of
the same-titled fanzine with bonus material, and as usual we get a wide mix of
horror, exploitation, cult, and porn film reviews, along with stunning gutter
drawings! Bougie knows classic porn and loves classic fanzine aesthetics, so
Cinema Sewer will be missed, but I am sure he wanted to leave it while it was
on top and I look forward to his future endeavors.
Published in
2022 (PS Publishing, Hornsea, U.K.), the latest book in Electric Dreamhouse’s
ongoing Midnight Movie Monographs
series has Ashley M. Donnelly & Philip L. Simpson tackling the many
versions of Manhunter (1986) and
studying deeply every aspect of the film; it’s a short and fascinating read.
Highly political
but also genre-aware, the cinema of Elio Petri is criminally understudied in
English language bibliography (and understandably so as most of his output’s
arguments are much too related to Italian politics to engage international
audiences), something that renowned author Roberto Curti aims to change with
his massive and thorough tome Elio Petri:
Investigation of a Filmmaker (2021, McFarland, North Carolina, U.S.A.),
which excellently works both as a biography of the author and a critical
analysis of his films, while also providing the necessary historical context.
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