Random musings on a variety of things...because I don't feel like doing multiple posts

1. The Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Made for Television movie : An Adventure Across Space and Time exceeded expectations. It's a touching film about the making of a television series back in the 1960s, in Great Britain with the BBC or ITV (I wasn't quite sure which and not sure it matters.)[ETA: Apparently this was a big deal, the executive producer of tv series such as The Avengers (the Emma Peel spy series, not the Marvel comic book or the cooler version) was brought in from ITV to recreate his success at the BBC and do similar programming. ] The story centers on William Hartnett, an aging British Character actor who has been relegated to supporting roles in military television series and films. He is charmed into agreeing to play the title role in a half-hour science fiction television series aimed at children and the young male demographic - which apparently was as attractive and difficult to acquire back then, and in Britain no less, as it is now. Actually the pitch for "Doctor Who" reminds me a little bit of Marvel's pitch for Marvel:Agents of Shield - an action-adventure children's show that appeals to both kids and the male demo.
Except I think the BBC did a better job back in the 1960s. They focused on the writing and casting, and less on the special effects. In fact, their sets were notoriously bad. As the much-aggrieved director states - that set is smaller than a broom closet, and it gets easily overheated, plus the fire alarm system is so delicate - the sprinklers will go off without warning. Which they did - right in the middle of filming. Yet the series, against all odds, was charming and took off. (That's not a spoiler - since this is the 50th Anniversary Special, by the way.)( Read more... )

2. According to Entertainment Weekly, which isn't exactly the most reliable source in the universe, Sweden in lieu of the MPAA rating system has adopted the Bechdel rating system for films - ie. does the film have at least two women characters, do they meet, and do they have a conversation that has zip to do with the male character or romantic love interest. If this is true? I don't know about you, but I'm starting to want to move to Sweden. [ETA: Apparently EW really isn't that reliable - in reality it's just one small theater in Sweden that's doing this. But hey, that wouldn't make as interesting a blurb, now would it? EW does love to exaggerate...]

In other news on MPAA ratings - which again, according to Entertainment Weekly, represents Middle-America Parents - an R rating is based on how many times the word "fuck" is used in a film or the use of sexually derived swear words. If it is used twice - the film gets an R rating. However, if it is not used at all - but buildings are blown-up, people are dismembered or tortured, and lots of people killed in a brutal fashion - that gets a PG-13 rating. Because apparently parents in Middle America do not care if their teenagers or kids over the age of 13 watch a lot of explicit violence on the television and in the movies. But, whoa...no words like fuck or sex scenes please.

This conversation came up when the MPAA trounced the Judi Dench/Steven Coogan heartwarming drama about an Irish Woman hunting her long lost son with an R rating (Philomena) - because they used the word "fuck" twice. While "The Dark Knight Rises" - possibly amongst the most violent films I've seen, was handed a PG-13 rating. Remember this is the film - which had a gunman fire on an unsuspecting audience when it premiered in Colorado in 2012. Now, as a parent, which film would you take your kids too? The heartwarming saga with Judi Dench, or the violent Batman film?

Sorry to say the filmmakers couldn't get the MPAA to budge on the subject. Because surveys of households in Middle America state that most parents do not want the word "fuck" in a PG-13 film, but hey - killing people isn't a problem. [ETA: Update, apparently they did get them to budge and Philomena won it's PG-13 rating upon appeal.]

I don't know about you? But this just makes me want to move to Sweden even more. Maybe I can retire there?

3. James Marsters has finally written his Spike comic book. First a caveat, while I was admittedly a Spike fan, I've since lost all interest in the character and the actor. I've finally moved on. ( Read more... )

Doctor Who - 50 th Anniversary Episode: The Day of the Doctor...Review/Meta

Well, that was a pleasant surprise. I honestly didn't know what to expect, except that my lj flist's tastes are syncing rather well with mine at the moment. All the reviews on my correspondence list were...exemplary.

But with Doctor Who...mileage tends to vary. So you never know.

Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor

This was written by Stephen Moffat ( vague spoiler )

Before going into spoilers...this was rather funny and introspective. It delved into the character of Doctor Who, while at the same time examining the larger theme of playing God with the universe and the ramifications of doing that. It also examined the history of the series and referenced in various ways all the incarnations of the Doctor and how each actor influenced the series in different ways. And also, referenced the women who accompanied him on his journeys and how they've tended to act as his conscience, debating the aggressive decisions he's made and proposing another way. Which is an interesting commentary on British imperialism and war mongering. But Doctor Who much like its US counterpart, Star Trek, commented on political themes within the guise of science fiction.

This was a wonderful episode of the series, which pulled together many threads and commented on the Doctor's journey, while providing closure to other threads. It also, and this surprised me, veered sharply away from romance or romantic emotion, and focused more on other issues. Plus it was quite humorous in places. David Tennant and Matt Smith have excellent chemistry. And Billie Piper is not quite what you'd expect and rather good in her cameo.

( spoilers )

Overall rating? A+ Quite enjoyable and highly recommended.