Silent Sunday: Poor Cow

Peterloo

Today marks the 199th anniversary of the Peterloo massacre and the official launch of the artwork of Mike Leigh's forthcoming film by one of its stars, Christine Bottomley. It has been announced too that the film will, fittingly, receive its premiere at Home in Manchester in October) and that Mike Leigh has called for the events of Peterloo to be taught in schools.

And quite right too. It appalls me that our education system is, like so much of society, is weighted in favour of the establishment and the status quo. Even here in the north west, I don't actually recall ever learning about Peterloo at school. As a result, its shameful the blank looks and confusion that the word receives. We are the generations who have been taught about our 'betters', of kings and queens, but never about the rich history of dissent or of the working classes and it needs to stop. Like the political climate itself, things need to change.

Of course it's no surprise that Peterloo hasn't been taught in schools. The truth of Peterloo is dangerous, highlighting as it does, the blame that must be laid squarely at the door of the establishment. The fact that, 199 years on, it still isn't being spoken about in schools should set alarm bells ringing: what will the generations to come learn about us almost two hundred years from now - will they be taught about Hillsborough, about the miners' strike, the Iraq war and Grenfell?

Alan Rickman Is The Equalizer

Hitting UK cinemas this week is The Equalizer 2 the sequel to Antoine Fuqua's 2014 big screen reboot of the classic 1980s TV series that was a firm favourite show of mine. Once again, Denzel Washington stars as the former secret agent turned avenging angel, bringing his own unique brand of justice to mean streets of America.

I've discussed both my love of the original series starring the great Edward Woodward before and the near decade-long development hell the big screen spin off has endured here and here and, as you'll know (or see from those posts) my original hope for an Equalizer movie was for Ciaran Hinds  to step into Woodward's shoes. For me, it was a no brainer; Hinds had the same gravitas and had played the role of 'the cleaner' in Spielberg's Munich in such a manner that hinted at his potential for the role. Plus, we'd seen how his friend and fellow Irishman Liam Neeson had performed as an aging action man in Taken. However, Hinds clearly wasn't a big enough Hollywood name, and Sean Bean, Timothy Dalton, Russell Crowe and Neeson himself were all at one time or another touted or attached to the project before Washington was announced.

Washington's McCall is a far cry from Woodward's. There's a darkness to the character that makes his character morally ambiguous and sometimes hard to separate from the villains he goes after. This is an interesting approach, but I personally felt it was overdone in Fuqua's film (and I don't expect it to be toned down in the sequel either) I wondered then, if there was a way to marry together both this darker persona and the more quintessential characterisation from the TV series. I was reminded of a chat in the pub with mates back in the early-mid 00s when the news that Hollywood planned a remake and one friend suggested Malcolm McDowell for McCall. An interesting idea I'm sure you'd agree, but could McDowell really pull off a good guy role after so many anarchic and villainous turns. Thinking about it again this past week I immediately hit upon the idea of an alternative universe (I love alt universe film ideas) where Hollywood pursued the both original British nature of the protagonist as well as the original series concept of The Equalizer, along with the darker, more ruthless streak that Washington's cinematic offering has given us, all via an actor who had a reputation for playing bad guys but could convince as heroes too - and I came up with Alan Rickman. 

Here's some fan posters I conjured up using Rickman's likeness and the typeface of The Equalizer movies...

Can you imagine if Rickman had played The Equalizer perhaps for the first time circa 2008/09 say? How good would that have been?

Silent Sunday: SE.T.TLE

Girls With Guns

'The Girl Who Makes Jane Russell Look Like A Boy'

The late Anita Ekberg once more

Bumday

Two versions of a film poster for Jane Birkin's 1975 sex comedy, Catherine & Co, in which she plays a prostitute who learns business from her clients before breaking out on her own. Obviously poster number one is the 'anything goes' version whilst two affords Birkin some modesty!

I wonder which came first?

One thing I do know, Jane Birkin has a lovely bum

Great Scot

Irvine Welsh and his creations, the cast of Trainspotting

Bogie

Just some great shots from the photoshoot for 1941's High Sierra 

Out On Blue Six : The Seekers

End Transmission

Girls With Guns

This poster for Frank Miller Sin City sequel, Sin City : A Dame To Kill For is officially too hot.

Well of course it is, it's Eva Green!

Seriously though, it's been banned by the MPAA. Because of, and I quote, 'nudity - curve of under breast and dark nipple/areola circle visible through sheer gown'

Oh dear!

Kes

Kes poster by Nick Rhodes.

Beautiful isn't it?

The Reckless Club

I don't know who is responsible for this wonderful mock up/art work so apologies that I haven't credited. But rest assured, it's superb!

Bumday

1965's Winter A-Go-Go; A suitably themed bumday post given the current Winter Olympics!

Not enough bum for you? Oh ok...

Girls With Guns

The gorgeous 2nd Mrs Peter Cook, Judy Huxtable, in the wonderful 60s movie The Touchables

Bumday

The young Helen Mirren flashing her bum in the 1969 Michael Powell Australian set film, Age Of Consent.

Girls With Guns

Dominique Wilms La Mome Vert De Gris (aka The Greyish Green Dame aka Poison Ivy) 1953

Dom Hemingway

I may have to drag my arse down to the local cinema for this

For a Withnail fan like myself it's just a blast to see Richard E Grant being wild again! And the producer of Sexy Beast returning to the London underworld genre. Good times!

That's The Way It Crumbles

I'm currently reading Emily Lloyd's autobiography, Wish I Was There. 

It's a brilliant and honest read about her sudden fame at the age of just 16 (catapulted to fame thanks to David Leland's Wish You Were Here)and her troubled life plagued by mental health problems and a history of sexual abuse that eventually damaged her career.

As a child of the 80s, Emily Lloyd was HUGE to my generation and reading the book (I'm just under half way through having started it yesterday evening) I was reminded of her second movie, her first in the US, 1989's Cookie, a comedy in which Lloyd plays mobster Peter Falk's daughter, It was directed by Susan Seidelman (Desperately Seeking Susan - similar poster yes?) 

In her book Lloyd describes her working relationship with Falk as difficult. A method actor, the Columbo star was very hard to engage with and seemed frustrated by the then 17 year old Lloyd's energy (as well as perhaps her then undiagnosed OCD and mental health issues) In one scene he snatched at her head and slapped her across the face, completely unscripted and for real. Lloyd retaliated in kind, slapping him back with a firm rebuke that 'You do not hit an actress!'

So 80s - Emily Lloyd, a trad. trailer voice over man and Kylie's 'I Should Be So Lucky'!

Rochelle, Rochelle

Rochelle, Rochelle; 'A young girl's strange erotic journey from Milan to Minsk' was a fictional film (and later Broadway musical) and recurring joke in Seinfeld. 

Now those clever people at Next Movie have released a collection of fake movie posters based on the fictitious films referenced through Seinfeld's nine season run. They're the work of freelance artist who goes by the name Old Red Jalopy

Check out the full gallery here seinfeld-movie-posters