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Reviews
Never Never (2000)
Lets You Be The Judge...
The other commentator asks why TV Drama always portrays life in Britain as grim? Well most of it doesn't however sometimes the subject matter requires it and this is one such occasion.
Essentially this drama starts as an exploration of debt and the people most often in debt - the poor. But it grows into so much more over both parts.
Before I go on in a past life I briefly worked for a "Home Improvements" company who used all the sales "techniques" so expertly demonstrated (quite disturbingly actually) by John Simm.
John Parlour (Simm) is an agent for RS Manors a credit come catalogue company who specialise in lending to people who normal creditors wouldn't touch with a barge pole- Low income, unemployed etc. Even when they cant afford the repayments they simply extend another line of credit to cover the one in arrears.
Jo Weller (Sophie Okonedo)is one of his best (i.e. most indebted) customers, whom he also has a bit of a shine for- a sentiment not missed on Jo.
Things however turn nasty when Jo finds herself penniless and John just this once decides he cant lend to her anymore. Desperate Jo plots with her brother to have John robbed after he has collected his money from his clients. As a result of the assault - which almost costs John his life - he now finds himself in the position of his clients penniless and jobless and moving from a flash penthouse to one of the flats in the same poverty hole as Jo.
John reforms his ways and immediately takes interest in the fledgling credit union encouraged by his former enemy the Community Support Officer who realises the Union needs John's wits and charisma if it is to succeed.
Succeed it does and all goes well until John begins to question Jo's motives leading her to reveal her secret to him. This coupled with the re-emergence of John's ego and ambition threatens all they have since shared together.
Ultimately we end up almost where we started with John now king of a greatly expanded Credit Union having driven off the other founding members and Jo coming cap in hand to him for an emergency loan.
However the goodness in Marchants script is that it makes no judgement in its resolution, John is not portrayed as evil or bad as his credit union is still a million times better than RS Manors. Equally Jo simply decides to stand up for what she wants too. The decision as to who is right or wrong is up to us the viewer.
This two part drama is highly recommended, its expertly written and directed with a lot of nice humour for a serious script. John Simm and Sophie Okonedo are brilliant in the lead roles and the supporting cast are also given their moments to shine. At times it feels more like a fly on the wall documentary than a drama such is the honesty of the execution.
It is only let down by the niggling failure to resolve John's battle with his former employers RS Manors. Aside from that this is a credit to all involved.
State of Play (2003)
Brilliant. Edge of Your Seat Stuff
I missed this on original transmission (what was I doing in 2003?) but had heard so much about it from Life on Mars fans that I finally got round to buying it on DVD recently. Oh how wished I'd seen it before now.
Its tight, fast paced, beautifully directed and filmed. All of the primary and supporting cast are excellent but special credit must go to the ever outstanding John Simm plus Kelly MacDonald and David Morrisey. The thought of Brad Pitt playing John's role in the Hollywood remake makes me laugh and cry in equal measure and not in a healthy way!! What's particularly brilliant is all the characters are three dimensional and believable. As has been said no cocky maverick reporters, no kick-ass post feminist female reporter with a chip on her shoulder. Just a group of professionals who find themselves through Cal's personal connections on the biggest story of their lives. Credit for that lies in excellent writing from Paul Abbot.
The story starts and concludes on the apparent suicide of the personal assistant of the Chairman of The Energy Select Commitee, Stephen Collins (Morrisey), whom it transpires were having an affair.
By accident and due to an unrelated story his friend and leading Herald reporter Cal (Simm) discovers evidence that her death may not have been suicide. From there the story snowballs until the highest reaches of the Government are implicated in a series of griping twists each one leaving you slightly more stunned than the last.
Some people have said the concluding episode is a let-down but I must disagree. It actually makes a great deal of sense in the context of the story because the one thing they can't find in the whole story is that clue that leads to her murder. None of the key players in the conspiracy are able to shed light on it.
The revelation as to how she actually died is extremely well played. Its dropped in casually and its not until you realise what has disturbed Cal so much, that it dawns on you that casual drunken outburst is the biggest twist of them all.
Its this revelation that makes the ending so powerful because it isn't happy. Cal has published the greatest story of his life, but its the one he least expected or dared imagine could be true in his worst nightmare. State of Play is ultimately a story of betrayal.
State of Play would be worth watching just for the ever brilliant John Simm (Brad, you'll need to give the best performance of your life to be half as good), the fact its six of the best hours of television I've seen just sweetens the deal. Watch it, Buy it. SEE IT.
Doctor Who: The Sound of Drums (2007)
Russell T Davies MASTERpiece
So this is *it*. The Greatest episode of Doctor Who I have ever seen.
Its the sheer scale of the story that's just incredible, never has the Doctor been so vulnerable and never (for all the brilliant funny moments) has it ever been quite so dark and the situation seemed so helpless.
John Simm simply steals the entire series as The Master, who has become Prime Minister of Britain under the name of Harold Saxon. He is every bit the mirror of David Tennants Doctor (as the Master should be) complete with human companion Lucy (only he did the dirty and married his - poor Rose Martha...).
After their brief encounter in Utopia, where the Doctor's universe literally ends before him, we find ourselves back on Earth in 2008. From the second our heroes arrive its clear the situation is already lost. The Master is controlling the country and is just 24 hours from his big show in front of the world. He is having the time of his life.
Some accuse Russell T Davies of dumbing the Master down by making him so jovial and outrageous failing to realise that if the Master is as happy as he is here then its very very BAD news indeed.
The episode is essentially a cat n' mouse chase between the Doctor and the Master but in reality that is exactly what the Master wants. He could have them arrested and killed at any point in this episode, but where is the fun in that for him? He is deliberately chasing the Doctor deeper into a trap because he wants him there for his final performance.
What a show it is: First up a seemingly innocent "monster of the week" episode comes back to haunt the Doctor- The Lazuras Experiment- which we now learn was the brainchild of The Master, all so he could create a weapon to incapacitate the Doctor.
Then he tears a whole in the universe (the best CGI yet) unleashing a race called the Toclafane whose real identity is as yet unknown -the name is actually an invention of the Master's. They immediately set about murdering 600 million people on the Master's instruction.
Its a scene that is both awesome in its scale and funny in a perverted way. The whole thing is done to the sound of Rogue Trader's "Voodoo Child" a personal favourite of The Master who boogies at the window in a manner befitting a sexual deviant as he watches the destruction below. Meanwhile his wife jigs along awkwardly like true air head.
In short never has it been so tense, so dramatic, so funny and so action packed as this. I had the same feeling watching this as I did watching the first part of Star Trek's Best of Both Worlds- the realisation that my favourite series had just produced its best hour of television yet.
If I could rate it 20/10 I would but I cant so its a big fat 10 from me.
Casino Royale (2006)
Absolutely Brilliant
First of all I'm not a huge Bond fan, i've seen all the movies and enjoy them as good old blockbuster fare.
This movie is different though, its a complete change of tone and style for the Bond movies, its harder, edgier, sexier and much more violent. Its Bond re-imagined for a whole new generation of movie goers and in that sense is every bit as revolutionary as Dr No all those years ago.
As for the lead role itself all I will say is those who campaigned for Daniel Craig to be axed from the role repent now for you were wrong. Craig IS James Bond there is not a second of screen time where your not convinced he is "THE MAN".
Role on Bond 22.
Get Fresh (1986)
First Contact confirmed ITV 9.25 Saturday Mornings...
Ignoring the post above, which oddly enough is the same word for word from another show, here is a quick guide to Get Fresh.
Ever since 1976 the BBC and ITV have been locked in a bitter ratings war in of all places Saturday mornings.
While other countries fill the schedules with cartoons and repeats the BBC and ITV have invested large sums of money in big entertainment shows featuring music, the odd cartoon, games, competitions and celebrity guests ranging from soap actors all the way to Queen, Elton John, Duran Duran, Madonna even Mrs Thatcher when she was Prime Minister and members of our Royal family.
Get Fresh was just one in the line of these shows but it was arguably the most unpredictable and anarchic of the lot.
The Host was Gilbert the Alien (green, spotty with an endless stream of snot) who was the pilot of the space ship Millennium Dustbin, along with his two human friends Gaz Top and Charlotte Hindle he would land the ship in a different town each week for two hours of live television.
There were two stars of the show however. Gilbert, who voiced by Phil Cornwell would stream out an endless babble of innuendo and meaningless garbage which often had barbed insults towards the guests.
The other being the Millennium Dustbin itself, which even if you see it now still looks an incredibly sophisticated set.
Sadly in recent years the quality of these shows have gone down markedly as have their ratings. The creative spark that once fuelled Saturday morning TV and led to shows like Get Fresh and its sister programme No. 73 has long been extinguished in favour of cheap by the numbers tat.