Dear Mark
I just finished reading your book 'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex' and I really enjoyed it. There were many things I agreed with you about, and a few things I didn't.
In no particular order here they are:
1) I really like the Lake House. I didn't know it was based on a probably far superior foreign edition, so I took it on face value and really liked it. But then I really like time travel stories, and I also really like Keanu Reeves. I can't understand why people find him so dumb and wooden. I think he's pretty convincing (please see Speed and the Matrix).
2) I feel exactly the same as you with regards to going abroad (or in fact anywhere). Most places I've been to, I went because my wife thought it would be a good idea. Although I feel out of my comfort zone when I'm in a foreign country, I do normally get a lot out of the experience. Also, it's nice to listen to foreigners talking, as it's a lot more difficult to get wound up by other people's opinions, if you can't understand them. French people for example, always sound very exotic, even if they're just talking about nipping out to buy some sugar.
3) You are pretty darned scathing about Michael Bay. I agree the Transformer films (I've only seen the first one) are absolute garbage, but I did really enjoy The Rock and Armageddon. Sometimes I don't want to think about stuff while I'm in the cinema, and the good guys being in orange jumpsuits and the bad guy being an asteroid helps to keep things nice and simple. Also, there's a lot of humour in both, which makes it less dreary than it might otherwise be. Oh, and some good actors.
4) I agree with what you said about film reviewing being very subjective, and also that the person that you are when you go see a certain film can really influence whether and how you enjoy it. This has been true of most of the films I've seen in my life. For example, when my wife and I found ourselves in central London on her 40th birthday looking for something to do in the evening, we thought we'd go to the Odeon Leicester Square as a treat. But it was £15 to get in, and all they were showing was In the Valley of Elah, which I didn't really fancy anyway. At those prices I'd have expected to sit next to Tommy Lee Jones himself. I might even have insisted that he stump up the cost of the refreshments.
Anyway, completely by accident, we ended up finding the Prince Charles Cinema, which happened to be showing 'Once'. And it was only 2 quid each! We saw this instead, and we loved it. I particularly liked it that the ending wasn't all Hollywoodised and they didn't end up living happily ever after (at least not together). At least some of the enjoyment derived from the film, was the unexpectedness (and cheapness) of it all.
5) I agree with you that there is very little choice at the Multiplex. They often seem to have the same 2 or 3 big films showing in about 9 of the screens, and the rest of them are showing Vince Vaughns, Adam Sandlers or Kate Hudsons, films which are usually so bad (Wedding Crashers for example) that you can feel the minutes of your life positively being flushed down the toilet as you watch. When you're wading through a turdfield like that it's a shame the lights aren't on, or you could while away the 90 minutes going through some coffin brochures, to minimise the admin for your relatives after you're gone.
6) I agree that 3-D is a complete waste of time. I saw Avatar in it, and totally fell asleep (the love story sucks), I've accidentally seen a couple of other films in 3-D because when I arrived at the cinema, it wasn't showing in 2-D. To paraphrase Jim Royle (who said widescreen is 'the same shite only wider'), I would like to advance the argument that '3-D is 'the same shite only nearer'.
I used to live in a caravan when I was younger (it's a long story, something to do with my dad dying) and I watched 'Some Like it Hot' and also 'Call Northside 777' on a teeny tiny black and white TV, which we used to run off a car battery. As the battery ran out of charge, the picture used to get smaller. But I can assure you, that even sitting in a caravan being bereaved and watching old black and white movies on a shrinking screen powered by a car battery was better than 'Avatar' in 3D. Because those two shrinking black and whitey's held my attention, something Avatar totally failed to do. I'm not saying I could have done any better. I couldn't have knocked up something as good as that in my back garden, with a few tins of blue paint, a couple of trees and some tall people. I'm sure it was technically very difficult. But it's stories I'm interested in, not technology.
7) Finally, I also write film reviews sometimes, and in nature, they probably resemble more closely the ones you used to do as a child. I doubt they have all of your five elements in. Mostly it's still just about me. what I thought, and how I felt at the time. Sometimes, you wouldn't have the faintest idea what the film was about, from one of my reviews. But I love doing them, and one of the best bits is I usually make myself laugh. As I often say, frequently after I've had a row with my wife, and we're not speaking, 'you're never lonely if you can make yourself laugh'.
So, in summary, thanks for the book, and keep doing the reviews. Although I don't agree with you on everything, I like your honesty and enthusiasm. Also, sometimes your reviews prevent me wasting time and money at the local multiplex seeing American romantic comedies, which has to be a good thing.
By the way, my local independent cinema is the Arc in Stockton. I've seen some right garbage there, but also some real gems like Another Earth and Sound it Out. So, if you're ever up here seeing a film, get in touch. You can come round for tea.
I just finished reading your book 'The Good, the Bad and the Multiplex' and I really enjoyed it. There were many things I agreed with you about, and a few things I didn't.
In no particular order here they are:
1) I really like the Lake House. I didn't know it was based on a probably far superior foreign edition, so I took it on face value and really liked it. But then I really like time travel stories, and I also really like Keanu Reeves. I can't understand why people find him so dumb and wooden. I think he's pretty convincing (please see Speed and the Matrix).
2) I feel exactly the same as you with regards to going abroad (or in fact anywhere). Most places I've been to, I went because my wife thought it would be a good idea. Although I feel out of my comfort zone when I'm in a foreign country, I do normally get a lot out of the experience. Also, it's nice to listen to foreigners talking, as it's a lot more difficult to get wound up by other people's opinions, if you can't understand them. French people for example, always sound very exotic, even if they're just talking about nipping out to buy some sugar.
3) You are pretty darned scathing about Michael Bay. I agree the Transformer films (I've only seen the first one) are absolute garbage, but I did really enjoy The Rock and Armageddon. Sometimes I don't want to think about stuff while I'm in the cinema, and the good guys being in orange jumpsuits and the bad guy being an asteroid helps to keep things nice and simple. Also, there's a lot of humour in both, which makes it less dreary than it might otherwise be. Oh, and some good actors.
4) I agree with what you said about film reviewing being very subjective, and also that the person that you are when you go see a certain film can really influence whether and how you enjoy it. This has been true of most of the films I've seen in my life. For example, when my wife and I found ourselves in central London on her 40th birthday looking for something to do in the evening, we thought we'd go to the Odeon Leicester Square as a treat. But it was £15 to get in, and all they were showing was In the Valley of Elah, which I didn't really fancy anyway. At those prices I'd have expected to sit next to Tommy Lee Jones himself. I might even have insisted that he stump up the cost of the refreshments.
Anyway, completely by accident, we ended up finding the Prince Charles Cinema, which happened to be showing 'Once'. And it was only 2 quid each! We saw this instead, and we loved it. I particularly liked it that the ending wasn't all Hollywoodised and they didn't end up living happily ever after (at least not together). At least some of the enjoyment derived from the film, was the unexpectedness (and cheapness) of it all.
5) I agree with you that there is very little choice at the Multiplex. They often seem to have the same 2 or 3 big films showing in about 9 of the screens, and the rest of them are showing Vince Vaughns, Adam Sandlers or Kate Hudsons, films which are usually so bad (Wedding Crashers for example) that you can feel the minutes of your life positively being flushed down the toilet as you watch. When you're wading through a turdfield like that it's a shame the lights aren't on, or you could while away the 90 minutes going through some coffin brochures, to minimise the admin for your relatives after you're gone.
6) I agree that 3-D is a complete waste of time. I saw Avatar in it, and totally fell asleep (the love story sucks), I've accidentally seen a couple of other films in 3-D because when I arrived at the cinema, it wasn't showing in 2-D. To paraphrase Jim Royle (who said widescreen is 'the same shite only wider'), I would like to advance the argument that '3-D is 'the same shite only nearer'.
I used to live in a caravan when I was younger (it's a long story, something to do with my dad dying) and I watched 'Some Like it Hot' and also 'Call Northside 777' on a teeny tiny black and white TV, which we used to run off a car battery. As the battery ran out of charge, the picture used to get smaller. But I can assure you, that even sitting in a caravan being bereaved and watching old black and white movies on a shrinking screen powered by a car battery was better than 'Avatar' in 3D. Because those two shrinking black and whitey's held my attention, something Avatar totally failed to do. I'm not saying I could have done any better. I couldn't have knocked up something as good as that in my back garden, with a few tins of blue paint, a couple of trees and some tall people. I'm sure it was technically very difficult. But it's stories I'm interested in, not technology.
7) Finally, I also write film reviews sometimes, and in nature, they probably resemble more closely the ones you used to do as a child. I doubt they have all of your five elements in. Mostly it's still just about me. what I thought, and how I felt at the time. Sometimes, you wouldn't have the faintest idea what the film was about, from one of my reviews. But I love doing them, and one of the best bits is I usually make myself laugh. As I often say, frequently after I've had a row with my wife, and we're not speaking, 'you're never lonely if you can make yourself laugh'.
So, in summary, thanks for the book, and keep doing the reviews. Although I don't agree with you on everything, I like your honesty and enthusiasm. Also, sometimes your reviews prevent me wasting time and money at the local multiplex seeing American romantic comedies, which has to be a good thing.
By the way, my local independent cinema is the Arc in Stockton. I've seen some right garbage there, but also some real gems like Another Earth and Sound it Out. So, if you're ever up here seeing a film, get in touch. You can come round for tea.
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