Defending Your Life is a comedy, but this doesn’t mean it should be taken lightly. A vision of the afterlife that ponders the nature of existence and what the sum of all our days might finally amount to, it suggests there is a fate even worse than death: never having truly lived. Daniel Miller (Albert […]
Neverland and Back: ‘Hook’ (1991)
All little boys grow up, except one. Steven Spielberg’s Hook asks what would happen if the world’s most famous eternal child not only became a man, but a husband and father too. The answer is an intriguing, if not always satisfying foray into the Peter Pan mythos. Peter Banning (Robin Williams) is a middle-aged, workaholic […]
A Trip Into ‘The Twilight Zone’
Submitted for your approval, The Twilight Zone, a science-fiction/fantasy/horror anthology series created by Rod Serling that first aired in 1959—and remains one of the most influential television shows ever made. Over the course of five seasons and 156 episodes, Serling—who was also the show’s executive producer and head writer—presented […]
The Measure of Love: ‘Pandora and the Flying Dutchman’ (1951)
This post is part of The James Mason Blogathon, hosted by Maddy Loves Her Classic Films. See the other posts here. Pandora and the Flying Dutchman is set in Spain in the 1930s. Much of it takes place by the sea. Its lead characters are the embodiment of a Dutch maritime legend and a woman […]
A Very English Haunting: ‘Blithe Spirit’ (1945)
This post is part of the David Lean blogathon, hosted by Maddy Loves Her Classic Films. See the other posts here. When the ouija board made its commercial debut in the 1890s it was marketed as a parlour game. Charles Condomine takes a similarly playful approach to the supernatural in Blithe Spirit and unleashes havoc. […]
Songs of Enchantment: ‘The Tales of Hoffmann’ (1951)
The Tales of Hoffmann exists in defiance of the commonplace. Steeped in magic, bright with beauty, it explodes like a flare, dazzling you with colour and sound. You emerge dazed and longing to see it all over again. Only Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger could have made it. In the 1940s and ‘50s Powell and […]
The Girl with Dark Eyes: ‘Portrait of Jennie’ (1948)
Portrait of Jennie is a dream. Or rather, it seems to spring from that narrow space between sleeping and waking, where the wisps of dreams still cling to you and blend seamlessly with reality. You don’t really watch this film; you drift along with it. Struggling artist Eben Adams (Joseph Cotten) is alone and lonely, […]
Arabian Nights (and Days): ‘The Thief of Bagdad’ (1940)
Hands up, what was the last good fantasy film you saw? I mean a movie which truly thrilled you, transported you to another world and filled you with endless wonder. Was it The Lord of the Rings trilogy? Stardust? How about the Chronicles of Narnia or (some) instalments of the Harry Potter franchise? Fantasy is […]