TV/Movies Megathread

[Eddie Teach]

The Blacklist has gone full retard with last week's episode. 

Is it still 2013? 

[The Brain]

Started watching a three part documentary 'What makes a murderer' looking into the biological, environmental and psychological influence on people who murder.

First up Britain's longest serving murderer, his crime carried out in 1975.

"So John you have this label of a murder, how does that feel for you?"

Murderer "I'm quite resentful of that label ...... "

At this point I feel I should turn it off, but I shall persevere.

I'm guessing the notion of human choice isn't going to figure large in the investigation.

Have an hour in, the brain expert says:

"So it's the genes that load the gun and the enviroment that pulls the trigger."

I think I'll give up now.

I resent that.

[Sheilbh]

Really interesting choice by The Crown (and why it is, despite the fun, insidious royalist propaganda) that they didn't really cover 1974 which is probably the time when this monarch/palace actually exercised most political power.

I also think the coup plot was interestingly positioned. They focused on the late 60s Mountbatten meeting and whipped up his role a bit. But it's interesting that they chose to ignore the mid-70s which was the point when things looked a lot more threatening. The army had "exercises" at Heathrow allegedly as a rehearsal for operations against the IRA, but no elected official was aware that these would be happening and Marcia Williams (and other in government) thought it was rehearsal for a coup. They were practicing seizing transport infrastructure.

Since then people from the intelligence services have said they were lobbying for the military to seize power (with Mountbatten as figurehead) and the military were considering it. Plus this was when James Angleton was at his peak of paranoia and reporting that to the UK services. Similarly we now know that after decades of official denials MI5 had bugs in Downing Street just as Wilson suspected (they were ordered installed by MacMillan, but apparently future prime ministers weren't told about them).

Wilson never thought there was a potential coup or serious plot against him in the 60s. He was convinced there was in the mid-70s. It's an odd choice to swap that round.

And there may not have been a proper plot - I remember the history of MI5 (which is pretty good) calls it more of a conspiracy of individuals in different institutions with simlar opinions, so probably not the sort of group that could have pulled off a coup. And Wilson was definitely getting more paranoid in the 70s, but also the world was more threatening: miners strike, Yom Kippur and the oil shock, soaring inflation etc. There was a sense, I think particularly but not just in the UK, that the whole Western system was edging close to the edge in the 70s. You don't really get any of that sense from the series which I think is a shame (also seems like a missed opportunity from a narrative perspective).

[Legbiter]

Since then people from the intelligence services have said they were lobbying for the military to seize power (with Mountbatten as figurehead) and the military were considering it. Plus this was when James Angleton was at his peak of paranoia and reporting that to the UK services. Similarly we now know that after decades of official denials MI5 had bugs in Downing Street just as Wilson suspected (they were ordered installed by MacMillan, but apparently future prime ministers weren't told about them).

Wilson never thought there was a potential coup or serious plot against him in the 60s. He was convinced there was in the mid-70s. It's an odd choice to swap that round.

Fascinating. I did not know this.

[The Brain]

300: Rise of an Empire. Thesticoles works his abs off to save Greece. At least there's a bad girl and some [spoiler]angry sex[/spoiler].

[The Brain]

Castlevania (AKA Endless Exposition), season 1. My understanding is that the low-framerate animation is an artistic choice these days, and I don't care very much for it.

[Admiral Yi]

Anyone ever pay for a movie on youtube?  I was looking at Rogue One, and I get the choice of renting 3.99 HD and 2.99 SD.  What does that mean?

[Josephus]

Anyone ever pay for a movie on youtube?  I was looking at Rogue One, and I get the choice of renting 3.99 HD and 2.99 SD.  What does that mean?

High Definition or Standard Definition.

Shell out the extra dollar, or whatever currency you use.

[Admiral Yi]

How do you say thank you in Maltonian?  I need to prepare for the new overlord.

[Josephus]

How do you say thank you in Maltonian?  I need to prepare for the new overlord.

They say "grazzi"

[Admiral Yi]

They say "grazzi"

That's not much fun.  I need something more exotic sounding.  How about a good curse?

Rogue 1 was fun enough.  I had to chuckle at the scene with the choppy thing they lifted from Galaxy Quest. 

[Josquius]

I saw Joker. First time in the cinema for a while.
It was pretty good. I like how they pulled off the gritty 80s setting.
I get massive deja Vue from it. Has this project being worked on for a while?
I like how it's essentially ken loach in the USA but with a popular license.

[celedhring]

Watchmen is awesome. I was kinda getting worried that the racial storyline and the themes/storyline from the comic felt really separate from each other, but they are kinda bringing them together now, and it works.

[Josephus]

They say "grazzi"

That's not much fun.  I need something more exotic sounding.  How about a good curse?

Fox il-liba t'ommok.

[celedhring]

I saw Joker. First time in the cinema for a while.
It was pretty good. I like how they pulled off the gritty 80s setting.
I get massive deja Vue from it. Has this project being worked on for a while?
I like how it's essentially ken loach in the USA but with a popular license.

Yeah, it was called "Martin Scorsese's 1970s filmography".