Don’t Look Down

If you’re into classic rock music, there may be no better film to watch than Richard Curtis’ 2009 motion picture Pirate Radio (sometimes referred to as The Boat That Rocked), as it provides the viewer with an epic soundtrack as well as a rich retrospective look back at the chaotic era that was the 1960s. Loosely based on a true story, Curtis (who also wrote the screenplay) tells the tale of a group of rogue DJs who anchor in the waters off of Britain (in the North Sea, to be exact), playing rock `n roll music to the masses, much to the chagrin of the classical music loving establishment – wonderfully illustrating the turbulent clashes of chaos found in the 1960s.

The vampire has become over-used in recent years, making the market feel over-saturated. It has become increasingly difficult to find a way to depict something creative and new within the sub-genre, while not departing from all that is intriguing about the creature. One film that expertly pays tribute to ‘creatures of the night’ while concocting a unique and comedic vision is the 2014 mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows.

I have recently been hyping several modern westerns (including the 2005 Australian flick The Proposition and the 2015 horror crossover Bone Tomahawk) that have created unique visions that pay homage while adding something new to the historic genre. Another film that fits the mould is the 2015 motion picture Slow West. The meandering tale (written and directed by first timer John Maclean) follows the young, hopeful Jay Cavendish (Kodi Smit-McPhee – The Road) as he journeys westward,

When one thinks about Marilyn Monroe’s acting career, they would likely imagine her performing in a light musical comedy in the vein of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, How to Marry a Millionaire, The Seven Year Itch or Some Like It Hot. Yet, an early Monroe performance that may catch some off guard is when she plays Nell Forbes in the 1952 film-noirish drama Don’t Bother to Knock. Set entirely in a posh New York City hotel, bar singer Lyn Lesley (Anne Bancroft) has broken it off, by letter, with her beau Jed Towers (Richard Widmark), reasoning that he is too cold and does not have the heart for a long term relationship. The man arrives, booking a room in the hotel, hoping that he will win her back.

I have always been fascinated by the concept of the double, also known as the doppelganger in both film and literature. There is something about the device, that is often used in gothic tales, that makes for a wonderfully suspenseful thriller. Perhaps it is my early fascination with the works of Edgar Allen Poe that have influenced my interest in the subject matter, or perhaps it is the fact that I have been told by others that I have multiple doppelgangers, in any case, a film that uses this classic idea is the 2013 motion picture Enemy.