Halloween [1978] (5 Stars)

It's time for my Halloween tradition. This is the film I watch every year on October 31st. Or should I say 31st October? In England it's usual to put the day first, but over the years I've grown used to the American order. I usually avoid Americanisms, but I've never claimed to be consistent.

Incidentally, I actually watched this film after midnight on November 1st. There was too much going on for me to watch it on Halloween itself. I've backdated my review to 11:59 pm on October 31st.

Yesterday was the first time my grandson Oliver ever went trick-or-treating. He went out with his father, my son-in-law. He said he would only go walking, not knock on any doors. It's not something that's done a lot in Germany. But then he saw some teenagers collecting sweets, so he plucked up courage. Oliver got some sweets on the way, but not very many. Not many families were prepared. Maybe next year.

This is me in my first and only Halloween costume, way back in 2014. No, I didn't go trick-or-treating, I just threatened beautiful young women. Unfortunately, I wasn't very good at it. Look how the woman is grinning. She knew me too well. I'm the most harmless man alive.

I didn't encourage Oliver to wear the costume. He picked it himself. A good choice. Serial killing must be in the Hood genes. Oh wait! Didn't I just say I was harmless?

Before anyone says anything, I'm ashamed that my room (where Oliver was standing) looks so dirty. I never pay attention when I walk in and out. I'll sweep the floor tomorrow. I promise.

Success Rate:  + 213.4

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Checker Tobi und die Reise zu den fliegenden Flüssen (4 Stars)

Oliver is on holiday this week, so he has a lot of time on his hands to watch films. I'm proud of him. Today he decided to watch the second Checker Tobi film. The second and last, I hasten to add, because Tobias Krell died of cancer in 2023, less than six months after completing the film.

The film's title means "Checker Tobi and the journey to the flying rivers". That certainly sounds enigmatic. It follows the pattern of the previous film. It's just as far fetched, but who cares?

Tobi receives a parcel from a woman who was his neighbour as a child. It's a locked wooden box. Should he break it open? That would be cheating. There's also a photo of Tobi with a girl when they were both six, shortly before her family moved away. Her name was Marina, and she was wearing a necklace with a key on it. Could it be possible that she still has the key 30 years later?

Marina is currently living in Vietnam. Yes, after all these years she's still wearing the key round her neck, and it opens the box. There's a piece of paper with a task for Tobi. After visiting a cave in Vietnam which is the biggest cave in the world, they travel to Mongolia, first to the capital and then the desert. From there they travel to Brazil and the Amazon rain forests. Tobi witnesses how large areas in the forest are being cut down.

The climate preservation messages are laid on thick, but it's still a good film.

Checker Tobi und das Geheimnis unseres Planeten (4 Stars)

This is a curious film. It's a spinoff of a children's nature discovery children on television, "Checker Tobi", which ran for 167 episodes until the main character, Tobias Krell, died of cancer. I've never watched the television shows, but as I understand it, in each episode Checker Tobi, as he calls himself, examines something, pretending to know nothing about it, then discovering it in front of the viewers.

The film is called "Checker Tobi and the Secret of our Planet". A full length feature film needs more to make it interesting, but it has to adhere to the premise of the series.

Tobi is given a scroll with the enigmatic words:

Look into the heart of the Earth,

Awaken the eight-legged bear,

Read the memory of the world,

Collect the most precious treasure of India,

And you will unravel the secret of our planet.

Tobi travels around the world, meeting real life people who are playing themselves. Tobi asks them questions that can help him on his way.

He travels to Vanuatu to look into volcanoes. He examines ice in Greenland that's been frozen for thousands of years. In Tasmania he examines tardigrades, also known as water bears, the world's most resilient creatures. They were released into space from the International Space Station, and after nine days they were found to still be alive. They're the only creatures known to be able to survive the vacuum of space. In Mumbai, India, he comes to the conclusion that nothing is as valuable as water.

It's difficult to judge the film. If you sit and analyse it, how does he know where to go next? There's little logic to the steps taken. But it's a beautiful film, with spectacular scenery from different parts of the world. I enjoyed it. Oliver enjoyed it even more.

Woodwalkers (4 Stars)

This film is based on a series of books written by the German author Katja Brandis. So far she's written 24 Woodwalkers books, out of a total of 70 books since 1996. Checking a few books at random, it seems they have an average of 300 pages each. That's relatively short, by today's standards, but it's still a lot of books.

Jay is a troubled teenager. He was adopted after being found walking wild in the mountains of Wyoming. He loves his new parents, but he can't make friends and doesn't fit in at school. He has a secret that he daren't tell anyone, not even his parents: he can transform himself into a puma. After being expelled from every school he visits, he's offered a scholarship to a private school. It seems he hasn't been keeping his secret. The school's owner knows that Jay is a puma. He explains that it's actually the other way round: Jay is a puma who can change himself into a human.

Every child in the school is some sort of animal. It's the perfect place for Jay, who discovers that his real name before being adopted was Carag. He shares a room with a bison called Brandon, and he develops a crush on a girl called Holly, who can transform into a squirrel.

Things aren't perfect in Jay's new life. The school is organising protests against the local forest being cut down. That's good, isn't it? It would be good, except the school owner is prepared to kill the workers to protect the forest.

I greatly enjoyed the film, but I'm disappointed to say that Oliver wasn't so enthusiastic. He sat for most of the film looking bored. Other children reacted differently. There were girls sitting next to us, probably about eleven, and they kept laughing at the slightest touches of humour. It isn't really a funny film, but they burst into laughter at any hints of humour.

I've been told that it's the first film in a trilogy. Only three films for 24 books? Let's see how successful the films are. There might be more on the way.

Prince of Persia (3 Stars)

This is one of Gemma Arterton's American films that she made early in her career. She's now said that she'll never make films in America again, after feeling ashamed of the quality of "Hansel and Gretel Witchhunters". She felt it was a poor film, even though it was successful at the box office. I shan't argue with her, even though I disagree with her decision. She's more interested in producing artistic films than in making a lot of money. I respect her for that.

Interestingly enough, I recently received a comment from an anonymous reader telling me I should watch more good films. He gave me a few examples of directors I should watch, while telling me to stay away from Adam Sandler and Marvel movies. I totally disagreed with what he wrote and the way he wrote it. I'll watch any film in any genre, whether it's a Hollywood blockbuster or an obscure independent film, as long as I enjoy it.

There's a certain snobbishness among film fans who claim to know which films are better than others. Maybe they're people who've been to film schools, or maybe they're just people who read certain highbrow magazines. The wisest words I've heard on the subject are from the German director/producer Wolf C. Hartwig. Whether or not you like his films, you have to agree that he knew what he was talking about. He claimed that the measure of a good film is that it's a film people want to see. Not everyone, of course. There are different tastes. But if a film makes money, it's a good film. In an interview he singled out Rainer Werner Fassbinder, who was also named by the anonymous reader in his comment. To paraphrase his words, Wolf C. Hartwig said that people say Fassbinder made good films, but nobody wanted to watch them, which makes them bad films.

I've watched a lot of Fassbinder's films. I was in the middle of working my way through two box sets when I started writing my blog in 2010. You can find reviews of the last few films I watched. I bought the (relatively expensive) box sets because people had told me his films were good. I watched them with an open mind, and I didn't like them. I'll never watch them again.

Don't let anyone tell you you shouldn't watch a film because it's bad. Watch it for yourself. Make up your own mind. If a lot of people like the film, you can say it's a good film. If you like a film that few others like, you might have to grudgingly accept that it's not such a good film, but if you personally like it, don't let everyone else put you off. If you're a Fassbinder fan, go ahead and enjoy his films, but don't try to tell people the films are good.

Success Rate:  + 0.2

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Wine: WZG Original Lemberger

After my disappointment with the WZG Original Trollinger last week I bought a bottle of Eberbach-Schäfer Trollinger. I've drunk it quite often since I first reviewed it five years ago, and it's still my favourite Trollinger.

But now to the WZG Original Lemberger in the picture. This is a dry but fruity wine. It's everything a Lemberger should be. It might even be the equal of the Eberbach-Schäfer Lemberger which I've drunk a few times, though I don't enjoy it as much as the Lemberger that Eberbach-Schäfer markets as "Romeo". I'm constantly on the hunt for the perfect wine, but I keep returning to the wines I already know.

What I'm trying to say is that the WZG Original Lemberger is a good wine, but I doubt I'll buy it again. I was tempted by the special offer in the supermarket this week, but the regular price is more expensive than other wines which I enjoy more.

Venom: The Last Dance (3½ Stars)

A new Marvel film, so I had to go to the cinema. I'm a Marvel addict. I was disappointed with the second Venom film, and I was scared that "The Last Dance" would be even worse, but I went anyway.

Maybe it's better, but only slightly better. The story in general is more serious, but there's still too much comedy in the interaction between Eddie Brock and the symbiote. Whose idea was it to make them a comedy duo? And why does the symbiote keep coming half out like a sock puppet? It looks ridiculous. In this film an excuse is given, but it's a weak excuse. A powerful being called Knull is searching for a codex (whatever that is) which is carried by the symbiote. It's only visible when Eddie and the symbiote are fully connected. I know, it really is a poor excuse.

No more spoilers. All I'll say is that there's an after-credits scene, but you have to wait a long time for it. In the cinema today some of the people waited, but the credits were so long that they grew impatient and walked out. When the after-credits scene finally came, only three people, including me, were sitting watching it. 

Wine: WZG Original Trollinger

My intention today was to review the WZG Original Trollinger by comparing it with the standard WZG Trollinger. Technically the standard bottle on the right is the original wine, which confuses matters. It wasn't until I sat down to start writing that I realised I've never written about the standard Trollinger. I haven't drunk it for years. I usually have a bottle in the kitchen for use as cooking wine, but I don't consider drinking it.

Yesterday I drank a glass of the WZG Original Trollinger and found it pleasant, though slightly acidic. Today, realising I had a bottle in the kitchen, I grabbed the standard WZG Trollinger for comparison. I must have looked like a fool. I had a glass of wine in each hand, sipping alternately.

The difference was much less than I expected. The Original wine is very slightly milder, as I recognise when I drink the two wines side by side, but if someone poured me a glass tomorrow I wouldn't be able to tell which one I'm drinking. According to tables I've found online, the Original Trollinger has residual sugar (Restsüße) of 12.8 grams per liter, whereas the standard Trollinger has residual sugar of 15 grams per liter. Does this difference come from different fermentation procedures? I don't know. All I know is that the standard wine should taste slightly sweeter, but I can't tell the difference.

I don't think I'll return to either wine, apart from continuing to use the standard Trollinger for cooking. I prefer the Eberbach-Schäfer Trollinger.

Smile 2 (4½ Stars)

I wasn't very impressed by the first Smile film, but after seeing a trailer for "Smile 2" repeatedly at the Stuttgart Fantasy Film Festival I couldn't resist going to see it in the cinema. I'm glad I did. I find it much better. There's an outstanding performance by Naomi Scott as the pop singer Skye Riley, who's a pastiche of several contemporary pop singers. She has similarities with Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus, without being a direct copy of either of them. Maybe she's closer to Taylor Swift. Skye is generic enough for every viewer to see his own favourite singer in her.

A year before the events in the film Skye was involved in a car accident. She's come out of it with horrific scars on her chest and back. That would end the career of most pop stars, but Skye is determined to make a comeback, wearing costumes that cover the scars.

At least Skye's legs are unmarked. They couldn't have been covered.

While attempting to buy painkillers from an illegal source, the dealer kills himself in front of her while smiling. This is the pattern from the first film. A demon attaches itself to someone and makes him kill himself in front of a witness. Then the demon is attached to the witness, who is made to kill himself a week later. As if this weren't enough, the witness is tormented for the whole week, made to see things that aren't there. This is Skye's fate. She's told that the only way for the curse to end is if she's killed by a third person, but she hopes she can find another way out.

The film is terrifying. The suspense drew me in from beginning to end. Now I'm already hoping for a third film.

100 Streets (4 Stars)

In this film Gemma Arterton stars alongside Idris Elba, one of my favourite actors. They're the best known actors in the film, but there are others who are just as important to the stories. I said stories, not story. That wasn't an error. The film tells three unrelated stories in parallel. The characters meet each other, but their stories don't interlock.

When I last watched "100 Streets" I didn't understand it. The film's tag line, "Anyone can take a wrong turn", doesn't give a clue. It connects all three stories. All three stories are the results of bad things that a person did in the past, but it still doesn't explain what the director wants to say. The three families that we see are on different levels of society, but they all live within a one square mile area in London. Max and Emily are a wealthy upper middle class couple; George and Kathy are a lower middle class couple; Kingsley (who lives with his mother) is working class or lower. Is there an official category for people who don't work and live from crime?

Now it's clicked. I get it. The film is about existential nihilism. Life has no purpose. As Kingsley puts it, "Shit happens". The amateur actor Terence expresses it more eloquently. He points at a gravestone and says that a person's life is only the dash on a gravestone between the two years.

That might sound depressing, but has existentialism ever been uplifting?

There's another theme that's shown in the interactions of the people. When we meet a person, whether it's once or regularly, we only see a small portion of his life. It's not about keeping secrets. Any person has compartments in his life. Think of your own life:

* You have a family with a wife and children.

* You have a place of work.

* You have hobbies.

Your wife doesn't see you at your place of work. She might or might not see you at a club, for instance a table tennis club.

Your work colleagues have a very limited overview of your life.

You might have more than one hobby, for instance playing table tennis and listening to rock music. Your friends from one club might be surprised if they bump into you at the other club. "So you do this as well?"

But the main point of the film is to show the randomness of life. George and Kathy have been trying in vain to have a baby for almost 20 years. Emily leaves her husband, and then finds out that her husband has made her pregnant. One man dies, while another man who wants to die is persuaded that living is better. It's all random. Nobody can make plans, because he doesn't know what will happen next. You can be crossing the road when you're hit by a taxi cab. One person's life ends, while the life of another person (the taxi driver) changes completely.

The film was an unprecedented flop. It has the lowest success rate of any film I've reviewed. But I like it, and I can recommend it to my readers.

Success Rate:  - 10628.2

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Tamara Drewe (4 Stars)

Over the next few days I intend to watch a few films starring Gemma Arterton. I wouldn't go as far as to call it a marathon. I've just picked five films that I haven't watched for a long time. The discs are already lying on the desk next to my computer. There are also a few films that I haven't been able to buy, but they're available on streaming services. I'd buy them if I could. Gemma is currently my favourite actress, and I'll buy any film she appears in, whatever the genre.

"Tamara Drewe" is a romantic comedy, but only just. It's told in episodes, divided into the four seasons, summer to spring. Tamara, played by Gemma, is a young woman who returns to the village where she grew up to sell her mother's house. It should have been a short stay, but she falls in love. Once. Twice. Three times. Men can't resist her, and she can't resist them. Who will she be with when the film's over? It's easy to guess. Romantic comedies are always predictable.

The film is equally a coming of age drama about the 15-year-old schoolgirl Jody. She's also looking for love, but Tamara offers her hard competition.

It's a beautiful film with magnificent scenery and remarkable actors. I doubt many of my readers would like it because nothing happens. Not much, anyway. The comedy is subtle, enough to make you smile but not laugh out loud.

If you're curious about gratuitous nudity, this is the most you'll see.

Success Rate:  - 0.5

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Jennifer's Body (3 Stars)

"Jennifer's Body" was shown as the feature for this month's Weird Wednesday. After some hesitation I decided to go to the cinema. I already have it on DVD, but the last time I watched it, 12 years ago, I didn't give it a very good review. Maybe I've changed my mind over the years.

Click here to read the plot summary.

The film is neither sexy nor scary. Gratuitous nudity would have improved the film. A few jump scares would also have helped. That wouldn't have made it a great film, but it would have made it worth watching. It's forgettable.

After the film a woman wearing a beautiful T-shirt stood up to talk about the film's feminist message. Unfortunately I only heard the first 20 minutes, because I had to leave to catch my last bus. She started by asking the audience if "Jennifer's Body" passed the Bechdel Test. The answer was Yes, but the test isn't decisive in proving that a film has a feminist message. She put too much value in the test results.

In case any of my readers don't know the Bechdel Test: Does a film contain a conversation between two named women which isn't about a man?

The woman in the Scum T-Shirt continued by talking about revenge. She said that a woman is empowered when she carries out revenge. That's a good point. This is the only feminist element that I can see in the film.

At this point I had to leave. I wish I'd heard the woman's name. She's someone I'd like to talk to. She sounded like an intelligent woman.

But I still don't enjoy the film. Feminist or not.

Success Rate:  + 0.0

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The Girl with all the Gifts (5 Stars)

This is a film that takes place in England in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse. The only survivors are in army camps dotted around the country. The word zombie isn't used in the film. The infected humans are called hungries. Somehow it doesn't sound right to talk about a hungry apocalypse.

Yes, they're definitely zombies, aren't they? Whatever they're called. They're hungry for human flesh. They're not slow like traditional zombies. They run after humans and eat mouthfuls of flesh. Any human who survives turns into another hungry within minutes of being bitten.

When hungries can't find food, they go into a sleep-like trance, standing motionless on their feet. This happens a lot, because more than 99% of the population has become hungries. There aren't enough humans left to eat.

The film begins in an army base somewhere in the south of England. Research is being done into finding a cure. It's been discovered that second generation hungries are halfway between human and hungry. They're hungry for human flesh, but they have normal intelligence. They're children who were born to women who were pregnant when they were first bitten. The scientists at the base believe that by examining these children they can find a cure. It's a long shot, but they have to start somewhere.

Helen Justineau (Gemma Arterton) is the teacher responsible for educating the young hungry hybrids. Her favourite pupil is Melanie, the girl in the title. She knows that children are regularly being taken to be dissected, but she doesn't do anything about it until Melanie is selected. She breaks into the laboratory to free Melanie. Normally disciplinary action would follow, but at this moment the hungries overrun the base, and Helen has to flee with Melanie and a few soldiers.

I don't usually like zombie films, but this isn't a zombie film, it's a hungry film. Apart from which, it stars Gemma Arterton, who's been my favourite actress ever since Leelee Sobieski retired. The film is a perfect mix of action and thoughtful scenes.

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The Eternals (1 Star)

Great actors. Awful film.

The sign of an obsessive collector is that he buys things he doesn't like in order to complete a set. That's what I do with the Marvel films. I hated this film the first time I saw it in the cinema. I liked it even less when I saw it streamed on Disney Plus. But I had to have it on my shelf next to all my other Marvel films.

I bought it in July 2022, but the Blu-ray has been lying unwatched on my shelf ever since. Today I finally plucked up the courage. I had great difficulty watching it all the way through. If it had been a non-Marvel film, I would have turned it off within an hour.

There have been on-off rumours about a sequel. Please, no! Let's forget that this abysmal team ever appeared in a film.

Watching the film today was self-inflicted torture. I shan't watch it again. I promise.

Success Rate:  - 0.3

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Wine: WZG Original Schwarzriesling

First of all, a personal message. October 13th is the anniversary of my father's death in 1983. It was 41 years ago, but it still seems like yesterday. He was a difficult person to live with, incapable of showing emotions, but beneath his hard shell I recognised that he was a good man. While I lived in Birmingham I used to visit his grave every year on the anniversary. Since moving to Germany I've only managed to be in England once on this date, but I've managed to visit the grave occasionally on different dates. Wherever I am, October 13th is always an emotional date for me.

Now to the wine. This is a bottle that was given me as a birthday present by my son-in-law, but I only opened it a few days ago. It's a wine made by the Stuttgart wine cooperative, the Württembergische Weingärtner-Zentralgenossenschaft. The abbreviation is WZG. Shouldn't it be WWZG? I shan't argue with them.

Most WZG wines are bottled with labels that don't identify them on the front, making them look like generic wines. However, they also have an "Original" line of wine, slightly more expensive, which makes me suspect they have better quality. I've searched online in vain to find a description of the differences. The word original doesn't say anything at all.

Schwarzriesling is one of the most common grapes grown in Württemberg, after Trollinger and Lemberger. I can't say which is the best of the three. It all depends on your taste. All I can say is that I was surprised when I opened the bottle three days ago. The first impression was that the wine was sour. Yuck! But my palate adjusted to it quickly, and the second sip was pleasantly mild. I've never known a wine change its taste so rapidly. The second day I had the same experience. The first sip tasted sour, after which it became pleasant.

It's a good wine. I'm determined to try the other wines in the Original line. My local supermarket stocks them all.

The Wild Robot (5 Stars)

Based on the trailers, this is a film I've been waiting to see for months. It's classed as a children's film, but that description doesn't do it justice. I'd prefer to say that it's a film for the whole family, including children.

The film is based on a book with the same name by the author Peter Brown. A robot designed for household chores is washed ashore after a shipwreck. The robot identifies as female, which is logical. She should have become a maid. The robot, called Roz, finds herself on a small island inhabited only by animals. She wanders around looking for a mission to fulfil. She's been programmed to serve, but there's nobody to tell her what to do. She learns the languages of the animals around her, but she still receives no instructions.

While fleeing from a grizzly bear, Roz accidentally destroys a goose's nest. Only one egg remains intact. On birth the gosling recognises Roz as her mother. This is the task that Roz was looking for. She adopts the goose and brings him up with the help of a fox called Fink.

Childish? Yes, but the film contains many elements that will appeal to adults. There are hints about the importance of wildlife conservation. The film is heart-warming, and I walked out of the cinema feeling happy. Any film that can do that to me is worth watching.

Joker Folie à Deux (5 Stars)

I didn't think it was necessary to make a second film about the Joker. The first film said it all. Joaquin Phoenix was only prepared to make a sequel if it went in a different direction. That's what I saw today. Maybe the film was too different for critics and the audience, but it's exactly the film that Joaquin wanted to make.

Arthur Fleck, the Joker, is in prison for almost all of the film. Long sequences take part as a courtroom drama. On the whole, courtroom dramas are boring, but this problem was solved by interspersed musical numbers. Some were dreams, while others simply happened without explanation. I've read reviews that say the music was out of place. I disagree entirely. The music gives the film its strength. They also say there's not enough action. They don't get it. It was never intended to be an action film.

DC has further distanced itself from the film. There's no DC logo at the beginning of the film. I find this appropriate. The Joker in the film isn't the same character that we know from the comics or the Batman films. The comics are just a rough inspiration for the film. In the comics the Joker is a master criminal; in the film he's just a confused psychotic man.

The film is still in the cinemas, but initial predictions suggest it will be a box office flop. That would be a tragedy. Joaquin Phoenix won an Oscar for his performance in the first film, and he's just as outstanding in "Folie à Deux". Lady Gaga is an incredible actress, as always. Brendan Gleeson, one of my favourite actors, is brilliant as the abusive hospital orderly Jackie Sullivan. In my opinion, this is a film that everyone needs to see. Hurry, while it's still in the cinemas.

The Marvels (3½ Stars)

I've finally bought "The Marvels" on Blu-ray. After all, I buy every Marvel film on disc. I was disappointed when I saw it in the cinema, but I made an effort to like it today. I made a conscious decision to see the good in it.

A large part of the problems isn't the film itself, it's the way it's been framed. Marvel fans are already used to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films being interconnected, so they have to watch some of the previous films to know what's happening. To me that's acceptable. But "The Marvels" takes it a step further. Important characters were introduced in the mini-series "Ms. Marvel", and background information was given in the mini-series "Secret Invasion". Both of these series were broadcast on Disney Plus. Is it acceptable to expect people to subscribe to a streaming service before going to the cinema? No way! That's probably the main reason for the poor box office figures.

Okay, I'm one of the lucky people who subscribes to Disney Plus. I've got over that hurdle. I can understand the film. So do I like it?

Another problem is that something else is missing. There's an untold story that's often mentioned in "The Marvels", but we've never seen it on screen, not even in flashbacks. At some point in the past, Captain Marvel destroyed the Kree's Supreme Intelligence, leading to a civil war and ecological disasters. She's now called the Annihilator. This would have been an exciting film, if it had ever been made. And it wouldn't have needed any Disney mini-series to prop it up.

The new leader of the Kree is Dar-Benn. Wasn't she a man in the comics? It's also weird that she carries the staff of Ronan the Accuser. In the comics the Accusers were senior officials, acting as judges and executioners, but they weren't the rulers. Or maybe this apparent blunder can be explained as a result of the Kree civil war.

Captain Marvel is now accompanied by two other women, variations of herself. They're Monica Rambeau (who refuses to carry a Marvel-ish name) and Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel from the Disney series). They're linked to one another by some pseudo-scientific cosmic occurrence that I doubt even the scriptwriters understood. I can see where it's coming from: the male Captain Marvel used to swap places with Rick Jones. In a vaguely similar way Captain Marvel and the Mini-Marvels swap places whenever they use their powers. Incidentally, the exchange with Rick Jones was powered by the nega bands that Captain Marvel wore in the comics. In the film they're incorrectly called quantum bands. The quantum bands in the comics are also Kree artefacts, but something different.

Ms. Marvel wears one quantum band, Dar-Benn wears the other. Dar-Benn wants to unite the two bands in order to return the Kree homeworld Hala to its former glory. With only one band, she's forced to create new jump points to suck air or water from other planets and transfer it to Hala. A jump point is a portal from one point in space to another. In the comics jump points were created by the Kree thousands of years ago, but in the films their origins are vague.

The film isn't an absolute disaster. There's a lot of action, interspersed with occasional comedy. For instance, Captain Marvel is married to the leader of a planet in which all communication is carried out by singing. As soon as the Mini-Marvels talk normally, no one understands them.

"The Marvels" isn't a complete disaster like "The Eternals", but it's still the MCU film that made the biggest loss. What's embarrassing was the way the box office flop was explained. Brie Larson claimed that fans stayed away because they were misogynistic and wouldn't accept a female team. What a stupid thing to say! I doubt this was an issue for many fans. Comic book fans, especially young men, like films with sexy women. Doesn't Brie know that?

For me, the most appealing character in the film is Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan. She's such a charismatic teenager, always a pleasure to see on the screen. Brie Larson seems to have been written out of future MCU films, due to her arguments with Marvel Studios. I hope Iman will be used in future films. She has too much talent to be wasted.

I tried to like the film today. I've managed to give it an extra half star. It doesn't deserve more.

Success Rate:  - 1.1

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Wine: Rolf Willy Schwarzriesling with Samtrot

This is a wine that I've been drinking for a few months, one or two bottles a month. It's one of my favourite wines. I didn't realise until today that I've never mentioned it. It has a rich taste, with the tang of Schwarzriesling balanced by the mildness of Samtrot. Whoever thought of combining these two grapes is a genius. Schwarzriesling alone is an acquired taste, something I can't drink on a regular basis, but the combination with Samtrot is overwhelming. As I've said before, I can't claim to be an expert in wine, but I know what I like.

Surprisingly, it's not an expensive wine. It only costs six Euros at my local supermarket. I've never understood the pricing of wines. Is the price based on the work needed to produce a wine, the popularity with customers, or the quality as judged by experts? I really need to ask someone.

Harpoon Whale Watching Massacre (3 Stars)

This is an Icelandic horror film. After the ban on whale hunting in 1986, fishermen found a new way of making money. They took tourists on boat trips to watch whales. As they proudly proclaimed, Iceland is the country with the third largest number of whales, after Japan and Norway.

The film shows a mixed group of mostly obnoxious foreigners: a horny drunk Frenchman, a chauvinistic Japanese man constantly bullying his wife, an American, an Indian family and a few others I couldn't identify.

The ship's captain has an accident and is unable to steer the boat, so it sails in a random direction. The passengers are taken on board by a whale boat. Saved? Not quite. It's a family of unemployed whale hunters who want to kill everyone. Is there a reason for it? No. When did mass murderers ever need a reason for their crimes?

The DVD I watched today isn't in the original Icelandic, it's dubbed into English or German. I started by watching it with English dialogue, but it was awful. The dubbing artists sounded bored. So I switched to the German dialogue, and wow! It was like night and day. Germans take their dubbing seriously. Most German dubbing artists are experienced stage actors, so they can perform well. Why can't the English and Americans do such a good job?

"Harpoon" (shortening the title) is "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" set at sea. There's a lot of gore and senseless violence. Normally I'd like a film like this, but the problem, compared to "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", is what I mentioned above. The victims are so unpleasant that I didn't care when they were killed. Good riddance!

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Ballon (4 Stars)

In the 1990's and 2000's Germany made a lot of films about escape attempts from East Germany (the DDR) and East-West love relationships. It was a popular theme after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The stream of films has stopped now. German audiences are tired of these themes. They've heard it all before. I understand them, but I'm different. They're topics that fascinate me, and I'll watch any film about them.

The director Michael Herbig, who specialises in comedies, spent years trying to get the rights to remake the 1982 film "Night Crossing". It was a true story about a German family that fled from East Germany in a hot air balloon in 1979. Herbig enjoyed the film, but he didn't think it accurately portrayed life in the East.

In 2018 he finally made the film as an exciting drama. German critics agree that it's far superior to the original version. So this is a rare case where the remake is better than the original? Critics especially praised Herbig as a director, expressing surprise at his ability to make a film so different to his usual comedies. The only criticism of the film is that critics think he over-used music, making the film sound overly dramatic. I disagree. I find the use of music exciting and appropriate to the film's theme.

The film begins halfway through the story. A hot air balloon has already been made by the family Strelzyk in Pößneck. Their first attempt at an escape fails. Their balloon crashes 100 meters short of the border. They abandon the balloon in the woods and walk home, a distance of 40 kilometers. When the balloon is found the East German secret police, the Stasi, is alerted and begins to search for the people who used it.

This is where the film's real excitement begins, underlaid by dramatic music. The Stelzyk family can't afford to give up trying to escape, because they know the Stasi is closing in on them. They have to make another attempt. They make another balloon, learning from their first failure.

Geographically speaking, it wasn't a "flight to the West". Their balloons flew due south from Thuringia to Franconia. This map should make it clear.

What characterises most of the film is the prevailing atmosphere of paranoia. I doubt the American film showed this. Wherever the Strelzyk family went, they were afraid of informers. Their neighbour who lived opposite was a senior member of the Stasi. That doesn't mean he strictly followed the party line. He asked Peter Strelzyk to adjust his television so that he could watch West German television channels, because he was a fan of "Charlie's Angels". Oh, the temptations of the wicked, wicked West!

When I have time I need to do a mini-marathon of German East-West films. Until then, I hope more will be made.

1 Day (4 Stars)

I have a weakness for musicals. There's something special about a film when the characters break into song. Most of all I like full musicals, in which all the dialog is sung, films like "Tommy" and "Evita", but I also like half musicals, in which there's only occasional singing. "1 Day" fits into the latter category.

My friends know that I don't like hip hop music, but somehow the music style fits "1 Day". You wouldn't expect the black residents of Handsworth to be singing heavy metal songs. Although I admit, I did once see a group of black youngsters sitting on the bus listening to "Du Hast" on a phone and singing along. It was surreal.

Birmingham is a segregated city. There are areas which are almost completely white, others which are almost completely black, and others which are almost completely Asian. Handsworth, which is where the film takes place, is almost completely inhabited by black people of Caribbean descent. When I lived in Birmingham I was in Small Heath, an area that was divided between Pakistanis and Somalians. They don't like one another. So much for Moslem unity, they even have separate mosques.

I know Handsworth well. I recognise most of the locations. I also recognise the locations used for filming in the city centre. "1 Day" makes me feel nostalgic. I enjoyed living in Birmingham, but I'm also glad that I'm in Germany now. I wish I had a portal so that I could walk from one country to the other any time I like.

London Road (4 Stars)

How can a film about a serial killer be a psychological thriller? It all depends on how the story is framed. We never see the killer on screen. We hear his name, and we even see the house where he lives, 79 London Road, Ipswich, but we don't see Steve Wright  himself. The film is about the residents of London Road and how they deal with murders taking place in their neighbourhood.

When the killings are first reported, there's an atmosphere of paranoia. The killer could be anyone. Teenage girls ride the bus, asking one another, "Is it him? Is it him? Is it him?" The taxi driver Mark, played by Tom Hardy, talks to his customers in a way that arouses suspicions. He tells them that he's been interested in serial killers ever since he was young, and he describes what the killer must be like: he must be 28 to 35, single or divorced and a loner. These descriptions fit Mark himself, so he's fast to add that it isn't him.

The film is a musical, and the most unique thing about it is that the lyrics weren't written. They're the transcripts of the interviews made with the residents of London Road. This gives the film a stark realism, despite everyone singing and sometimes dancing.

The next door neighbour of Steve Wright is interviewed. How would you react if you found out your next door neighbour was a killer? Admittedly, you would never have been in danger, because he only targeted prostitutes, but it would still have been unsettling. It's possible that the women were killed in his home, but Steve Wright cleverly covered his tracks. The only DNA traces were slight amounts of blood found on the back seat of his car and inside his gloves.

To this day Steve Wright has never admitted his guilt. He committed the five murders shortly after moving to Ipswich, within a space of six weeks, but he's suspected of the murders of up to 15 other women when he lived in Norwich. In May 2024 he was charged with the murder of a 17-year-old girl that took place in 1999. The other cases are still open. As I said, he was a clever man. But everyone makes a mistake eventually. If he hadn't killed the women in Ipswich, he would never have been suspected of the other murders.

Success Rate:  - 13.9

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