Don’t you just love those little surprises?  When you pick up a couple of dvd’s and have no real expectations of the film and actually find real gems

Here’s some recommended viewing:  Click links for trailer if reading in an email.

 

 

 

The Boat that rocked 

Hands up who remembers Pirate radio?  You do?  Congratulations – you’re old like me  This movie seriously rocked and it’s a hoot from beginning to end and poignant as well.  I grew up with Pirate radio.  Yes, indeed.  Radio Hauraki originally formed as a pirate station and operated illegally from 1966-1970 in the Hauraki Gulf, Auckland New Zealand, the only offshore radio station ever to broadcast in the southern hemisphere, in a famous and historic story that saw the loss of one life.  Read more here.

So watching this movie actually was more than just a fun romp for me.  It brought back incredible memories of a time when Radio Hauraki would suddenly go off the air, sometimes to avoid authorities and then others when disaster struck as you can read here  we all cried, we were in shock, not just for the loss of life, the loss of music.  Doesn’t sound like much of big deal does it when we have radio 24/7 but back then we didn’t.  Wonderful music was banned left, right and centre and if it hadn’t been for these pirate radio stations we wouldn’t have the great radio stations we have today or the music.  

There would be much rejoicing in our household when Radio Hauraki would come back on air.  It was an amazing and liberating time.  The sixties was a time of turmoil, change, the Vietnam war, brilliant music, the list goes on.  It was also a time of great spirit and heart and I’ve yet to see an era quite like it.

The Boat that rocked – well rocked! And if nothing else the soundtrack is brilliant!

Here’s some of what SMH.com.au had to say about the film:

‘IN THE mid-1960s, Britain was swinging but its radio stations were not. Still working to the staunchly moralistic guidelines set down by its founder, Lord Reith, the BBC was declining to get excited by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and the other bands galvanising pop fans all over the country.

It rationed them to just a few hours of rock’n'roll a week. And so, pirate radio was born, with a mission to fill the gap. Anchored in the North Sea, beyond the reach of the country’s draconian broadcasting laws, pirate radio ships began blasting out the forbidden sounds 24 hours a day.’

Little Murder

I really, really liked this film.  It was a great surprise and didn’t expect it to be quite as thrilling as it was.  The setting of course was magick and captured the spirit of New Orleans beautifully.

(thanks to aceshowbiz.com for this synopsis)

‘Set in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and centers on a disgraced detective (Lucas) who gets an unexpected shot at redemption when the ghost of a beautiful cellist solicits his help in finding her killer.’ Starring: Josh Lucas, Terence Howard, Lake Bell and Deborah Ann Woll.

Hereafter

Not a big fan of Clint Eastwood as director but his latest film I found intriguing and much more satisfying than I expected.

(thanks to www.screenrant.com for synopsis/review)

‘Instead of a Sixth Sense clone, the film is a hard-hitting character drama centered around life’s greatest mystery: death. It does this by offering a variety of perspectives on the subject: a near death experience, a lingering grief, and a complicated “gift.” Even at the age of 80, Eastwood carefully manages three story threads – piecing together a somber but empowering film that finds a solid balance between servicing the characters and the filmmaker’s message.’

AT THE MOVIES:

‘Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol.’

Surprise, surprise.  Well it was for me.  I was a huge fan of the original television series that graced our screens from 1966-1973 but the Mission Impossible I and II I found so appalling I wouldn’t even go out the door for the third instalment – so why did I bother with Ghost Protocol?  Simple: Simon Pegg Yes, I’m that shallow…seriously, he was wonderful including the rest of the cast – yes, even Tom Cruise *sigh*

The film was wonderful, engaging, entertaining, and fun!

Here’s some of what Philip French from the observer had to say:

‘This is the best movie in the franchise since Brian de Palma launched it in 1996, and the director is Brad Bird, an animator by training, who made Pixar’s Ratatouille and The Incredibles. Here he has a budget large enough and an Imax screen wide enough to allow him to do anything he fancies. In consequence the movie is visually remarkable as it tries to keep up with the frenetic activities of secret agent Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise accepting an impossible mission for the fourth time) and his new trio of likable operatives: beautiful, resourceful Paula Patton, pawky computer wizard Simon Pegg and constantly fretting analyst Jeremy Renner.’

And while we’re talking about movies check out Jason Nahrung’s latest blog post where he reviews a couple of great television shows that picked up some Golden Globes at the 69^th annual event on 16 January 2012.

Midnight rambler looking forward to seeing ‘Homeland’ screen on Channel 10 – 22 January, 2012.  

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