The Amazing Maurice (unrated)

This is a post that I almost didn't write. I saw this film in the cinema today, but I thought it appropriate to ignore it. It would have been the first film I've watched since September 2010 that I haven't told my readers about. But I'll own up. Here's the post.

Since December I've been going to the cinema with my grandson Oliver almost every Sunday. If there's a children's film he hasn't seen yet, I go to watch it with him. Today the film was "The Amazing Maurice". The problem is that I didn't sleep well last night. It happens. I was tired when I went to the cinema, and even more tired when I sat down.

I didn't actually fall asleep, but my eyes kept falling shut and my concentration wandered. I couldn't follow the film. It seemed like a complicated plot, and I couldn't keep up. A fat cat, rats in fancy clothing, evil rat catchers and good rat catchers. It didn't make sense.

When I got home I read a synopsis of the plot. I thought I could cheat by basing my review on the synopsis. No. The synopsis shocked me. There was so much in it that I didn't remember. So I'll be honest. I sat in the cinema for 94 minutes, and all I can remember is a few snippets of dialogue and some slapstick comedy. Laugh at me if you will. I deserve it.

All I can do is promise to watch the film when it's available on a streaming service. I want to see what I missed.

St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold (4 Stars)

"Girls are far more intelligent than boys".

That must be true. It's in the newspapers.

I had to get that out of the way before I start the review.

This is a sequel to "St. Trinian's", made two years earlier in 2007. Since the first film things have moved on. The new girl, Annabelle Fritton, has become the head girl. The previous head girl, Kelly Jones, has joined MI7, a British spy organisation so secret that not even MI6 knows it exists.

Unfortunately Kelly Jones only appears in a short portion of the film, when Annabelle asks for her help. That's a shame, but I admit that I'm biased. I can never get enough of Gemma Arterton.

The film's biggest fault is that it's even less saucy than the first film. It presents the pure chaos of wild schoolgirls, but there are only the slightest hints of sexuality. Where's Frankie Howerd when we need him? The film's greatest strength is David Tennant. I don't think I've ever seen him in any role where his presence doesn't elevate the quality of an otherwise mediocre film.

This is what Liverpool Station in London looked like before the Coronavirus lockdown. Those were the good old days. I'd be dancing in the middle of them. How many of you can spot Jodie Whittaker in the picture? It's easy if you've seen the film, but almost impossible if you haven't.

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Mary Queen of Scots (4 Stars)

My knowledge of English (and Scottish) history is poor. All I knew about Queen Mary of Scotland before watching this film is that she was the mother of King James, the man who united England and Scotland. After watching the film I read summaries of her life online. That's not enough to make me an expert, but at least I know more now than I did before.

Mary became Queen of Scotland when she was six days old. She lived in France while others governed Scotland on her behalf. When she was 15 she married Francis II and became Queen of France, but she lost this title when he died three years later. Aged 18, she returned to Scotland to claim her kingdom from the current regent, her half-brother James. That's where the film begins.

It was a time of political and religious upheaval. Protestantism was rising in Scotland, but Mary was a Catholic. She tried to make peace by saying that everyone was free to follow whatever religion they wanted, but that wasn't good enough for the Protestants, because they considered Catholicism evil.

Mary also considered herself the rightful Queen of England, although after looking at the royal family tree I don't understand what the basis for this claim was. Queen Elisabeth was her cousin. She insisted on being named as heir in the case of Elisabeth's death, which was rejected by the English noblemen. England was completely Protestant at this time. Elisabeth tried to make Mary marry an English nobleman who was under her influence, but Mary refused and married another English nobleman.

The English nobility made several unsuccessful attempts to get rid of Mary by supporting Scottish rebellions. Mary remarried and had a son, James. She reached an agreement with Elisabeth that if Elisabeth had a child that child would become King of England, otherwise James would become King.

Eventually, after the assassination of her second husband, the Protestant fanatic John Knox stirred up the people, and she had to run for her life. Her one-year-old son James became King in her place. She met Elisabeth, who offered her asylum in England. For 19 years she lived in comfort, but with no freedom to go where she wanted. Then false charges were brought against her that she was planning to assassinate Queen Elisabeth, and she was executed. In 1603 James became King of England, at the age of 36.

The film has excellent performances by Saoirse Ronan as Mary and David Tennant as the religious fanatic John Knox. Margot Robbie's acting is very subdued and unemotional, but that's appropriate for a portrayal of Queen Elisabeth. This is a beautiful film throughout, though tragic in its outcome.

St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold (4 Stars)

This is the second film in the rebooted St. Trinian's franchise. It takes place one year after the previous film and begins on the first day of the school year as the girl's arrive at the school. Kelly Jones, the head girl in the previous film, played by Gemma Arterton, has now left the school and joined MI7. It's a British Secret Intelligence agency that specialises in carrying out illegal operations that are in the national interest. The end justifies the means. The organisation is so secret that not even MI6 knows it exists. Kelly returns briefly to help her old school friends.

So who's the new head girl? None other than Annabelle Fritton, who joined the school in the last film. It helps being related to the headmistress.

David Tennant is the dastardly evil bad guy in this film. He does it so well. He plays Sir Piers Pomfrey, the leader of AD1, a secret organisation that is dedicated to resist feminism and keep women subjugated. "Women are for making cakes and babies", as Sir Pomfrey eloquently describes his agenda. The organisation was founded in 1559 as a reaction to Elisabeth becoming the Queen of England, and it has existed ever since. Now his path crosses with St. Trinian's, because he wants to find the gold hidden by Miss Fritton's ancestor, a notorious pirate.

David Tennant wears a purple robe for his role. That's very appropriate.

If a pompous, evil, sexist man wants to suppress womankind, there's only one solution. A gang of schoolgirls have to cut him down to size, and which schoolgirls can fight better than the bad girls of St. Trinian's?

Despite being less of a success with the public, I find this film much better than the last film. Battle of the Sexes films are always enjoyable, because we know from the beginning who will win. What I also like about this film is that it concentrates on the older schoolgirls, the sixth form girls. There are only brief scenes with the younger girls.

And guess who plays the school's oddball receptionist!

Because of its failure at the box office it's unlikely that another sequel will be made. That's a shame. It was fun while it lasted. Maybe there will be another reboot one day, with even sexier schoolgirls.

I'n curious why it was never released in America. Were there too many complaints about sexualising underage schoolgirls in the first film? If you check the bios of the cast you'll see that the fifth and sixth form girls, supposedly aged 15 to 18, were played by actresses in their twenties. The members of the pop group Girls Aloud appear in both films. They look a lot better than they sing.

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Day of the Doctor (5 Stars)

Great men are forged in fire. It is the privilege of lesser men to light the flame.

Day of the Doctor (5 Stars)

Spoilers!

TV Series: The Sarah Jane Adventures

Today I watched a few episodes from the third season of "The Sarah Jane Adventures". I have to admit feeling some sadness, because I can't look at the leading actress, Elisabeth Sladen, without remembering her untimely death. Just look at the photo of Elisabeth with David Tennant in the photo above. She may have been 63, but she looked much younger. And yet two years later she was dead. She was diagnosed with cancer in February 2011 and died in April. The only thing she could be thankful for was that it wasn't a long lingering death.

For the few people who don't know the series, the premise is that after being "abandoned" by the Doctor ex-companion Sarah Jane Smith has devoted her life to protecting the Earth from aliens. Sarah Jane is aided by her adopted son Luke and his schoolfriends Clive and Rani. In many ways "The Sarah Jane Adventures" was a series out of time. Though made in the the 21st Century (2007-2011) it was in the style of the 1970's Doctor Who episodes. How can anyone be scared of the monsters? It's too difficult to take them seriously. And yet the stories are thrilling adventures that keep viewers on the edge of their seats from beginning to end.

The series was cut short by Elisabeth Sladen's death. Only the first two episodes of the fifth season were completed. The time she spent on television, as short as it was, will keep her memory alive for generations to come.

Yet another scene from the series: the Doctor with Clive, Luke and the incredibly beautiful Rani, as played by Anjli Mohindra. Of all of the SJA cast Rani is the one I would most like to see return, maybe as a future companion. Click the picture above to see a good reason for her return.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (4 Stars)

Both the characters and the story are maturing, as I suspected when I watched the previous film in the Harry Potter series. Most noticeable to me was the introduction of swearing to the film, all spoken by Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint). I almost jumped up in shock when he told Harry to "Piss off", and he used the exclamation "Bloody Hell" several times in the rest of the film. I personally found this unpleasant, and I hope that the bad language won't get even worse in the remaining films.

The film is characterised by a darker element than the previous three films. Death is now a reality, as we see in the case of Cedric being killed only a short time after he became Harry's friend and companion. Harry, Ron and Hermione are now 14, and they are beginning to have teenage angst, not knowing who to invite to the dance. I'm enjoying the films as a series; together they're more than the sum of their parts.