Showing posts with label William Fichtner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label William Fichtner. Show all posts

Tuesday, 1 February 2011

A-Z #24: Black Hawk Down

You can pick up hundreds of DVD's for a buck each - it doesn't matter. Its never about quantity, its about quality. A-Z is my way of going through my collection, from A-Z, and justifying why I own the films...


#24 - Black Hawk Down 

Why did I buy it?

I did not watch this at the cinema - one of those films which was under my radar at a time in my life whereby my radar for film and cinema was not as wide as it is now. I only watched it on a whim as a recommendation - if I recall correctly, it was Rhys at Uni. Upon that first watch I was hooked and had intended to buy it early on - in retrospect, I should have bought whichever version was cheapest and available. Instead I waited for the sweet triple-disc package was released and prided myself on the sweet version of Black Hawk Down.

Why do I still own it?

This is Ridley Scott at his best - I think it is right up there with Alien and Blade Runner. Every shot is a work of art - as the troops storm into Mogadishu and the helicopter crashes down. Personally I adore the birds-eye-view shots on the streets as the troops walk down one street ... and the terrorists plough down a parrallel street. The cast is flawless - Orlando Bloom in his best role (whoa! and he's gone...), Ewan Mcgregor, Eric Bana, William Fichter, the security-guard from 24, amongst many, many others. I am deliberately leaving out Josh Hartnett. His teen heartthrob credentials make him a loser in this film.

Remember - you can always email The Simon and Jo Film Show directly using this email: simonandjoshow@gmail.com
We are also on Twitter  and Facebook.

Large Association of Movie Blogs

Friday, 21 January 2011

A-Z #16: Armageddon

You can pick up hundreds of DVD's for a buck each - it doesn't matter. Its never about quantity, its about quality. A-Z is my way of going through my collection, from A-Z, and justifying why I own the films...




#16 - Armageddon 

Why did I buy it?

Now this gets tough. I bought it partly because I liked it a little ... but moreso because, at the time, it was a sweet special edition. This is not such a big factor anymore. I remember Armageddon being one of the first films out on DVD and, more importantly, it was released months before anyone could get it on video. In hindsight, not the best purchase.

Why do I still own it?

A combination of things. Firstly, I always worry that my film collection is elitest - ignoring the big-budget blockbusters and this is an example of a blockbuster that I appreciated and hold in my collection... with some small quantity of pride (not much). Secondly, Andrew Collins of the Radio Times, back in 2006, put together a list of 25 film all film buffs should have watched. I recall the 9-hour holocaust film Shoah was on the list alongside some more dubious films... one of which was Armageddon. The list was choosing the prime examples of cinema and Armageddon is an example of ridiulous, pro-America, completely-unrealistic but completely high budget blockbuster filmmaking ... that succeeded. It is definately a film that is close to being sold on... but those two points keep it hangin' on.

Remember - you can always email The Simon and Jo Film Show directly using this email: simonandjoshow@gmail.com
We are also on Twitter  and Facebook.

Large Association of Movie Blogs