Tag Archives: TV

Fargo Season 2: Tall Tale Made in Weirdness

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Sam S-P

The following piece contains spoilers for Season 2 of FARGO. The first season of the TV companion piece to the Coen Brothers’ classic movie had me completely and utterly hooked. I felt sure no-one could hope to measure up to … Continue reading →

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Review: An Inspector Calls (2015)

Posted on September 20, 2015 by Sam S-P

This review contains spoilers for JB Priestley’s 1945 play, as well as subsequent film and TV adaptations. For the most part, the BBC’s TV adaptation of JB Priestley’s classic AN INSPECTOR CALLS, broadcast last weekend, is polished, if conventional. The … Continue reading →

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“Enough about me, let’s talk about me…”: When Actors Play Themselves (Sort-of)

Posted on August 20, 2015 by Sam S-P

What’s an actor to do when your star persona becomes a joke? You embrace it of course, and let the audience know that you’re in on the gag. It can be incredibly self-indulgent if mishandled, but if pitched just right … Continue reading →

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The Grey and the Greyer: Heroes and Villains on Netflix’s Daredevil

Posted on April 18, 2015 by Sam S-P

I know in the past I’ve defended Mark Steven Johnson’s much-derided Ben Affleck-led DAREDEVIL, but even I’ll admit it looks pretty ropey compared to Marvel’s latest forrey onto the small screen. It will surprise nobody to learn that Marvel/Netflix’s Daredevil … Continue reading →

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“Stories of Imagination Tend to Upset Those Without One” (RIP Sir Terry Pratchett)

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Sam S-P

AT LAST, SIR TERRY, WE MUST WALK TOGETHER. Terry took Death’s arm and followed him through the doors and on to the black desert under the endless night. The End. The above was posted last Thursday on Terry Pratchett’s Twitter … Continue reading →

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Radio 1 Rescores Drive: Spoiling Through Experimentation

Posted on November 9, 2014 by Sam S-P

DRIVE is, at this moment in time, my favourite film of the last ten years. Nicolas Winding Refn’s neo-noir completely and utterly blew me away, and its superlative, moody electro soundtrack was a big part of why it worked so … Continue reading →

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Penny Dreadful’s Frankenstein: Faithful and Thoughtful

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Sam S-P

The following article contains spoilers for Episodes 1 and 2 of Showtime’s new television series PENNY DREADFUL, and for a 196-year-old novel. I’ll admit I’m a sucker for slightly trashy pseudo-historical romps on TV – THE TUDORS, DRACULA and now … Continue reading →

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Breaking Bad: A Very Filmic Television Experience

Posted on October 3, 2013 by Sam S-P

BREAKING BAD has now come to a glorious end, and it really was a television marvel. The show, about a cancer-stricken chemistry teacher cooking crystal meth to secure his family’s future, was thematically layered, beautifully performed, perfectly paced, artfully filmed and … Continue reading →

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