In an interview yesterday with the Black Comic Lords YouTube channel, David F. Walker was asked about the possibility of further Shaft output (see from 1:51:42 to 1:53:24). Unfortunately, David said the prospect of new material from him featuring Shaft being released “doesn’t look promising.” He does not own the publishing rights to the character,…
Month: March 2025
UK Monthly Film Review March 2025 (Vol 3 No. 27) issue now available
Volume 3, Number 27 of the UK Monthly Film Review is now available in PDF format. This issue includes UK film releases from 1 to 28 March 2025. Films included in this issue are: All Happy Families; The Alto Knights; Black Bag; Bloody Axe Wound; Damaged; Day of the Fight; End of the Rope; The…
The Last Shaft at 50
50 years ago today, the last of Ernest Tidyman’s seven Shaft novels, appropriately titled The Last Shaft, was published in hardback by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in the UK – the book was never published in the US. A UK paperback, via Corgi, followed two years later. The book would represent the last original material to…
Film Review – A MATTER OF WIFE… AND DEATH (TV) (1975)
MATTER OF WIFE… AND DEATH, A (1975, USA, 74m, PG) **½ Crime, Drama, Mystery dist. National Broadcasting Company (NBC); pr co. Robert M. Weitman Productions / Columbia Pictures Television; d. Marvin J. Chomsky; w. Don Ingalls (based on characters created by Barry Beckerman); pr. Robert Weitman; ph. Emmett Bergholz (Colour | 1.33:1); m. Richard Shores;…
Film Review – BLACK BAG (2025)
BLACK BAG (2025, UK, 94m, 15) ***½ Thriller dist. Focus Features (USA), Universal Pictures (UK); pr co. Focus Features / Casey Silver Productions; d. Steven Soderbergh; w. David Koepp; pr. Gregory Jacobs, Casey Silver; ph. Steven Soderbergh (Colour | 2.39:1); m. David Holmes; ed. Steven Soderbergh (as Mary Ann Bernard); pd. Philip Messina; ad. Adam…
Film Review – FIERCE CREATURES (1997)
FIERCE CREATURES (1997, UK, 93m, 12) *** Comedy dist. United International Pictures (UIP); pr co. Fish Productions / Jersey Films / Universal Pictures; d. Fred Schepisi, Robert Young; w. John Cleese, Iain Johnstone (based on an idea titled “The Fierce Animal Policy” by Terry Jones & Michael Palin); pr. John Cleese, Michael Shamberg; ph. Ian…
‘The Harry O Viewing Companion’ is out today
The Harry O Viewing Companion has been released today by our publishers McFarland & Co. From the filming of the pilot episodes in 1972 to the show’s cancellation in 1976, the book offers a comprehensive history of each step in the show’s development. Informed by archival material, including the series’ creator Howard Rodman’s papers, it…
Film Review – VILLAIN (1971)
VILLAIN (1971, UK, 98m, 18) *** Crime, Drama, Thriller dist. Anglo-EMI Film Distributors (UK), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (USA); pr co. Anglo-EMI / Kastner-Ladd-Kanter / Atlantic United Productions; d. Michael Tuchner; w. Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais, Al Lettieri (based on the novel “The Burden of Proof” by James Barlow); pr. Jay Kanter, Alan Ladd Jr.; ph….
Film Review – CALENDAR GIRLS (2003)
CALENDAR GIRLS (2003, UK/USA, 108m, 12) ***½ Comedy, Drama dist. Buena Vista International; pr co. Touchstone Pictures / Harbour Pictures / Buena Vista International; d. Nigel Cole; w. Juliette Towhidi, Tim Firth; pr. Nick Barton, Suzanne Mackie; ph. Ashley Rowe (Colour | 2.35:1); m. Patrick Doyle; ed. Michael Parker; pd. Martin Childs; ad. Mark Raggett….
TV Review Round-up – UNFORGOTTEN: SERIES 6 (2025) & BERGERAC (2025)
UNFORGOTTEN (2025, UK, 6 x 45m) **** Crime, Drama. Mystery dist. ITV; pr co. Mainstreet Pictures; d. Andy Wilson; w. Chris Lang (series created by Chris Lang); pr. Carmel Maloney; ph. James Aspinall (colour | 2.00:1); m. Michael Price; ed. Mark Davis; pd. Jan Walker; ad. Maryam Mojtabavi Cast: Sanjeev Bhaskar (DI Sunil ‘Sunny’ Khan),…