Month: December 2016

Film Review – SAFE HOUSE (2012)

Safe House (2012; USA/South Africa/Japan; Colour; 115m) ∗∗∗  d. Daniel Espinosa; w. David Guggenheim; ph. Oliver Wood; m. Ramin Djawadi.  Cast: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Vera Farmiga, Brendan Gleeson, Sam Shepard, Rubén Blades, Nora Arnezeder, Robert Patrick, Liam Cunningham, Joel Kinnaman, Fares Fares. A young CIA agent is tasked with looking after a fugitive in…

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Film Review – THE CALL (2013)

Call, The (2013; USA; Colour; 91m) ∗∗½  d. Brad Anderson; w. Richard D’Ovidio, Nicole D’Ovidio, Jon Bokenkamp; ph. Tom Yatsko; m. John Debney.  Cast: Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin, Morris Chestnut, Michael Eklund, David Otunga, Michael Imperioli, Justina Machado, José Zúñiga, Roma Maffia, Evie Thompson, Denise Dowse, Ella Rae Peck, Jenna Lamia, Ross Gallo, Tara Platt….

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TV Review – DOCTOR WHO: THE RETURN OF DOCTOR MYSTERIO (2016)

Doctor Who: The Return of Doctor Mysterio Season: X15 Story: 1 (107) | 1 x 60m | Production Code: 10.1 Broadcast: 25 December 2016 Rating: ∗∗∗ Writer: Steven Moffat Director: Ed Bazalgette Executive Producer: Steven Moffat, Brian Minchin Producer: Peter Bennett Script Editor: Nick Lambon; Director of Photography: Ashley Rowe; Music: Murray Gold; Production Designer: Michael…

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Film Review – ALIAS SMITH AND JONES (1970)

Alias Smith and Jones (TV) (1971; USA; Colour; 73m) ∗∗∗½  d. Gene Levitt; w. Glen A. Larson, Douglas Heyes; ph. John M. Stephens; m. Billy Goldenberg.  Cast: Pete Duel, Ben Murphy, Forrest Tucker, Susan Saint James, James Drury, Jeanette Nolan, Earl Holliman, Dennis Fimple, Bill Fletcher, John Russell, Charles Dierkop, Bill McKinney, Sid Haig. A…

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Site makeover for 2017

First off, Season’s Greetings to all who happen upon my website. I have given the site a makeover for 2017, having decided to road test Word Press’ new template. Also, in my Guide to Shaft I have added visual title headers to each book and movie entry along with some new images. Through 2017, I…

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Film Review – DAY OF THE OUTLAW (1959)

Day of the Outlaw (1959; USA; B&W; 92m) ∗∗∗∗  d. André De Toth; w. Philip Yordan; ph. Russell Harlan; m. Alexander Courage.  Cast: Robert Ryan, Burl Ives, Tina Louise, Alan Marshal, Venetia Stevenson, David Nelson, Nehemiah Persoff, Jack Lambert, Frank DeKova, Lance Fuller, Elisha Cook Jr., Dabbs Greer, Betsy Jones-Moreland, Helen Westcott, Donald Elson. Cowboys…

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Film Review – THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE (1973)

Friends of Eddie Coyle, The (1973; USA; Colour; 102m) ∗∗∗½  d. Peter Yates; w. Paul Monash; ph. Victor J. Kemper; m. David Grusin.  Cast: Robert Mitchum, Peter Boyle, Richard Jordan, Steven Keats, Alex Rocco, Mitchell Ryan, Joe Santos. After his last crime has him looking at a long prison sentence for repeat offenses, a low-level…

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Book Review – RATHER BE THE DEVIL (2016) by Ian Rankin

RATHER BE THE DEVIL by IAN RANKIN (2016, Orion, 310pp) ∗∗∗½ Blurb: For John Rebus, forty years may have passed, but the death of beautiful, promiscuous Maria Turquand still preys on his mind. Murdered in her hotel room on the night a famous rock star and his entourage were staying there, Maria’s killer has never been found. Meanwhile,…

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Shaft’s 2016

Last year saw the long-awaited return to the printed page of John Shaft in the form of David F. Walker’s 6-part comic book prequel to the Ernest Tidyman novels, Shaft: A Complicated Man. The book was a superb re-introduction of the character in a story which added depth to Tidyman’s creation and was loaded with…

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