howardgoode Reviews

Witness (1985)

Witness screenplay bears many parallels with the classic western Shane

[27 March 2020]

Were the screenwriters of Witness influenced by Shane..or is it just coincidence? Watching the film recently there were several key scenes that bear comparison with probably the greatest of westerns The boy Samuel is curious about the gun carried by John Book and is stopped and warned in time about how dangerous guns are....reminiscent of Joey quizzing Alan Ladd's character about his gun and pleading with him to show him how to shoot. Shane helps out the homesteaders with work on their piece of land... Relinquishing his buckskins for farming clothes...Book wears borrowed clothes instead of his city suit. The symbolic barn raising scene with its stirring music reminds one strongly of the tree stump scene in Shane...the common theme of working together to achieve a common end. When Book goes to town with the Amish and is baited by some locals... who he hits out at one thinks of Shane going into town with the homesteaders and standing up to the bar room bullies. Ultimately Book saves the Amish from the gunmen but like Shane he goes back to his own world after a charged and meaningful farewell with Rachel and the boy. Finally he drives away....just as Shane rode away into the mountains Is it also coincidence that one of the bad guys name is Schaeffer.? Jack Schaeffer of course wrote Shane.

Poirot: One, Two, Buckle My Shoe (1992) Season 4, Episode 3

goof...?

[9/10 · 31 July 2019]

Poirot in his kitchen appears to be standing at a very modern stainless steel sink...with mixer taps...? A bit to modern for the times..!!?

Public Eye: The Comedian's Graveyard (1969) Season 4, Episode 6

the ghost of hi-de-hi ???

[9/10 · 14 June 2019]

This is a great series....many memories of watching these in the late 60s early 70s.....powercuts and all.... Has anyone else noticed Leslie Dwyer here playing almost exactly (in costume and character) the precursor to his irascible character in hi-de- hi a decade or so later! Spooky!

Line of Duty (2012–2021)

line of duty.....format inspired by docu-dramas screened on true entertainment?

[8/10 · 5 May 2019]

Just watched the final episode of the 2019 series and sensed something familiar about the format....then the captions appeared describing what happened to some of the characters and what they 'went on to do'....then I realised why it seemed familiar.....think the writers drew inspiration for these fictional programmes from some American docu-dramas based (in their case on real life events)...these have been screened in recent years on true entertainment....under the title...'in the line of duty'.....sound familiar?....one of the best being ...the FBI murders...starring David Soul....made around 1990...a gripping account of two real ex forces buddies who turned to crime...partly for excitement it seems... robbed banks and ultimately died in a graphic (and very well dramatised and prolonged) shoot out boxed in by several cars with multiple FBI agents involved who sustained heavy casualties before overcoming only two protoganists...(it is chiefly memorable as Platt. played by David Soul.... sustained multiple gunshot wounds but remarkably was still able to function and nearly began to drive away from the scene before being fatally wounded......this incident is now studied by FBI training schools as to how to deal with incidents of this type......we are told in narration style at the end of the programme....followed by details of what happened to these (real) people in later life.......the similarity with the BBC series in style is remarkable....... Line of Duty is good fiction drama....but probably inspired by even more remarkable dramatisation of REAL events. H Goode

The Medusa Touch (1978)

atmospheric and compelling horror/thriller

[8/10 · 12 February 2019]

Have just watched TMT (screened on talking pictures) for the first time in many years....like other reviewers...remember it from thirty or more years ago....an effective and chilling little psychological thriller that lingers in the mind....all performances are good but of course Burton's compelling performance as Morlar (although not on screen that long) carries the film........however one question on plot remains with me....on several occasions in Morlars notes he mentions 'L'. No sign of 'L ' and further oblique references to 'L'.....L seems important but ultimately I got to the end of the film and realised that no explanation of 'L' was ultimately forthcoming!!.......(or did I miss something here?) any explanation welcome! A satisfying entertainment though in most respects and good to see Lee Remick who sadly passed away much too young. Howard Goode.

Mary Poppins (1964)

trivia

[24 December 2018]

Marvellous film and made long before computer special effects....have always wondered in the scene with David Tomlinson grumpy at breakfast...when the Admirals cannon sounds the white statue bust rocks precariously on its plinth but miraculously stays put!.....a happy accident...or the result of many takes!?....

Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951)

A Little Appreciated Surrealist Minor Classic

[8/10 · 4 November 2018]

Mention Pandora and the Flying Dutchman to a modern audience and you will be met with blank looks...To a public who thrive on Terminator 4,5,6,etc I suspect this film would be completely unknown.Good reason then for enjoying it (and it's type of film) quietly, while letting the rest get on with Hollywood's more obvious offerings. Unfortunately we don't have actors of the quality of James Mason anymore whose presence here is completely convincing as the otherwordly Dutchman of the title. The photography, clever placing of prop statues on moonlit beaches and raised camera angles viewing the coastal location in a surrealist style all help to create the fantasy illusion that echoes the art of the time....(Dali) etc. More than anything the film works precisely because it was made then.....if it was remade today it simply wouldn't work the people aren't around anymore who would make it work in the 'digital' age. Incidentally the 'voiceover'narration works very well..(as it also did in the maligned original version of Blade Runner....now never shown) In all a great film with a haunting quality....not as well known as it should be.

Poirot: Hickory Dickory Dock (1995) Season 6, Episode 2

anachronism

[3 November 2018]

Small goof near the climax someone is seen removing a light bulb in silhouette..the bulb is then shown prominently in front of shot....but it appears to be a modern possibly halogen glass filament type...in 1936 ?

Inspector George Gently: Gently with the Women (2015) Season 7, Episode 1

goof......use of modern term not in use in the 1960s

[18 October 2018]

Bacchus lines include the use of the American phrase...."train station"...instead of railway station which was not in use in 1960s Britain (and still sounds naff "Americana") today.....even though it is now in common use....same mistake is made in 1930s set Miss Marple...

Inspector George Gently: The Lost Child (2012) Season 5, Episode 3

Query County Durham filming locations?

[8/10 · 20 September 2018]

Very good suspenseful episode...but was the chase of the cyclist with satchel filmed by the warren house inn on Dartmoor?...looked very like it..a long way from Durham!