The Day of the Triffids (2009)

I wanted to like The Day of the Triffids, I really did. It looked fantastic, and the effects were amazing for a television two-parter, but... The script wasn't really up to much, and, apart from the wonderful Eddie Izzard's evil (but motivation-less) bad guy, there were no characters I cared much about. 

Joely Richardson was quite good, although she spent a lot of time talking absolute bullshit on the radio or making gasping noises as she escaped from somewhere yet again. Dougray Scott is a charisma-free zone, and I couldn't warm to him in the slightest - in his narration he just sounded bored. Vanessa Redgrave was wasted in a superflous sub-plot that served to pad out a second part that needed more space for its conclusion, and Brian Cox wasn't much better served in his extended cameo. And just what was Jason Priestly's Coker supposed to be doing? He got whipped in the eye by a Triffid at one point, poision clearly clouded his eye, but no more mention was made of it. 

The latter is just one of the dangling plot points: What happened to Coker? What happened to Vanessa Redgrave's naughty nun? How did everyone keep escaping? How did Eddie Izzard survive a plane crash? And most importantly of all - how exactly did squirting Triffid poision in the eyes of the leads help them to just waltz straight passed the massed throngs of killer plants to safety? This last question was key, but no attempt at an explanation was even attempted - I think we were supposed to take Dougray Scott's irritating, repetitive flashbacks as an excuse for the resolution - it didn't help in the slightest. I found myself looking at the clock, seeing they had only 10 minutes left to save the world from Triffid attacks and thinking 'they'd better come up with something quick!' It turns out the best the write could do was an unexplained squirt in the eye followed by a bit of preposterous flim-flam narration about everyone moving to the Isle of Wight, with no suggestion that they could or did kill off the Triffids! How's that for an ending to the conundrum of the Triffids? The characters did absolutely nothing to save the world, they just lived on an island and ignored the problem. This sort of bleak ending may have worked in 28 Days Later, but I actually gave a crap then. 

On the plus side, the Triffids themselves were well designed and creepy. I'm ready to accept that they could move, were different sexes and ate meat, but how did they see where they were going? And how exactly did Vanessa Redgrave's community survive being attacked? Through offering sacrifices to the Triffids? That doesn't seem likely given that understanding the nature of sacrifice would require just that - understanding - the Triffids didn't seem to be blessed with anything other than the urge to kill. 

Given a few more episodes to play with, to allow dangling plotlines to resolve, questions to go answered and characterisation to take place, this would have been good, as it was, it passed the time. And Eddie Izzard was great.

Christmas TV (2009)

Another Christmas, another collection of Xmas TV specials. Here's a run-down of what I watched around the big day this year:

On Christmas Eve there wasn't a lot on, but I was rather excited about Victoria Wood's Midlife Christmas as there's not been a Victoria Wood comedy show on TV in years! It was a mildly amusing affair, never reaching the heights of the As Seen on TV series, and I think it would've been better as a series of different sketches instead of dragging out the Lark Pies to Cranchesterford parody. I was bemused by the gay postman character in this parody, and also by the gay vicar - what was Victoria Wood trying to say? Was she trying to just be inclusive? Neither character sat well with me. Maybe I didn't enjoy it because I'm not in midlife? The best bit was the updated classic song at the end, The Ballad of Barry and Freda (Let's Do It), and any scene with Julie Walters in it.

Our Christmas Day viewing began with Top of the Pops Christmas. Christmas is often synonymous with a sense of disappointment, and what could be more disappointing than having to watch Reggie Yates and the talent-vacuum that is Fearne (I'm feeling bored as I type this) Cotton for the chance to see a bit of music on BBC1. It was quite a good line up this year, a mix of dirge and decent tunes - the later covered by The Saturdays, La Roux, and the fact the X-Factor wasn't number 1. The crap was made up of Robbie Williams and the dodgy dance act Diversity - the first time I've seen them, and they really are poor. 

After TOTP we stood for The Queen, well ok we stayed seated, but I like watching Her Majesty's annual broadcast. I don't know why. I like the royals, maybe that's it? 

The Gruffalo, although supposedly a family/kids treat for Xmas was actually rather enjoyable. Since I'm 25 the book passed me by, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The plot was a lovely, poetic tale, and the animation was wonderfully bright and bold - it looked quite different to Pixar, for example, without coming off as a cheap, kids-TV series. The voice cast were great too, even James Corden suited his role as the mouse. This was a pleasant surprise that I had no expectations of before watching, so perhaps that's the best way to approach these Xmas shows.

There was a LOT of expectation over the Xmas Doctor Who, the penultimate episode to feature David Tennant as the eponymous Doctor. After a beginning in which the Master escaped through the use of some unintelligible mumbo-jumbo that I'm not entirely convinced by, I allowed my disbelief to suspend itself almost to breaking point! The rest of the episode was top notch - the X-ray skeleton-like effects used on John Simm's the Master were scary, June Whitfield was delightful, and Bernard Cribbins continues to be the heart of the show, weirdly enough. The climax, with the Master having created a genuine Master race was thrilling! I just hope that the concluding part on New Year's Day will resolve everything satisfactorily, as Doctor Who has the habit of setting up an amazing evil before defeating it incredibly swiftly and/or conveniently. We'll see. 

During the making and eating of chicken sandwiches we watched the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas. I wouldn't have watched this if I hadn't somehow got into the non-festive edition 3 or 4 weeks ago - I even watched the entire 2009 finale last week. I've usually been against these populist reality shows, but I realised that there was actually a lot of skill and humour involved in Strictly and I enjoyed the shows I've seen. The Christmas programme was as camp as, well, the proverbial, and a nice time to spend while having tea.

The Royle Family special turned out to be hilarious and pitch perfect, as the recent specials have tended to be. Moving outside of the Royle's living room has done wonders for the series, allowing Caroline Ahern to expand her explorations of this very British family to a caravan holiday in the Pearl of Prestatyn this year. We cringed as the Royle's sang along to the theme tune to The One Show, as we do exactly the same thing! Although we then tend to switch off. This was one of the highlights of Christmas Day's offerings, the cast are all just fantastic, and it was great to see the return of Ralf Little and Jessica Hynes to the show. I can't wait for the next special! 

Following a non-festive Gavin & Stacey (which I'll cover when the series ends) we stayed awake for Catherine Tate: Nan's Christmas Carol. I wasn't sure what to expect, as I found the Catherine Tate Show tailed off as it went along over its 3 series, but again I was pleasantly surprised at how funny and well-plotted this special was. And it really was a special - Catherine Tate was a joy to watch (as she was in Doctor Who, earlier in the evening) and the ghosts that visited Nan were hilarious - Ben Miller as an inept ghost of Xmas past, Roger Lloyd Pack as a non-scary ghost of Xmas yet to come, and the best of all, an uber-camp, uber-Scottish turn from David Tennant (whose never off the screens this year) as the ghost of Xmas present. An absolute cracker!

And finally, after a day of watching BBC1, on Boxing Day we watched Harry Hill's TV Burp Review of the Year on ITV1. Maybe not quite as comprehensive, offensive or funny as Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe Review of the Year, it was still essential viewing. And the only programme worth viewing on ITV1 all Xmas - no wonder the BBC won the ratings war. I think the very worst programme ever made was shown on ITV1 on Boxing Day - Ant & Dec's Christmas Show. I didn't watch it, and I wouldn't, even at gunpoint, for the guests included: Piers Morgan, Amanda Holden, Robbie Williams, and I'm sure there was someone else, but my brain is crying out for mercy at having to think about this dross. 

There are a few more shows to look forward to our the Xmas / New Year period, including the concluding parts of Doctor Who and Cranford, the Outnumbered special, and Hamlet, but they're for another day and another post or two.

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

Since 'tis the season and all that we watched the non-more festive The Muppet Christmas Carol today. Naturally I've seen it  before, and it's only now after reading the entry on Wikipedia that I realised I wasn't going mad. I remembered a ballad that was sung by the young Scrooge and his fiancé from the last time I watched it (on video), but there was no such scene here (on DVD)! Turns out the song was chopped from the theatrical release, put back into the video release, and then chopped out of the (Region 2 ) DVD again! Humbug!

Anyway, that aside, I enjoyed the movie lots. Watching it as an adult I was surprised as to how much this version of the story adheres to Dickens' original, right down to quotes from the text. Impressive from something that could have been just a collection of half-arsed Christmas Carol cliches as several versions I've seen are guilty of. There's much to enjoy here - the Muppets are as hilarious as ever, and Michael Caine is genuinely moving in his portrayal of Scrooge. I think it's a brave move for the film's makers to sideline such Muppet greats as Miss Piggy and Fozzie to supporting roles and concentrate so much on the human Scrooge. The three 'new' Muppets who appear as the ghosts of Christmas past, present and yet to come are effective, especially the latter, a terrifyingly mute vision in black. 

This movie ranks up there with the greats - The Great Muppet Caper, Muppet Treasure Island, and It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie! I can't wait for Christmas day, for more Muppet-filled fun when Andrew opens his presents...!

True Blood: Season 1 (2008)

Last night Spooks ended its 8th series, while True Blood's 1st season came to a conclusion - with another cliff-hanger! Hopefully, since the USA got the 2nd season this year, Channel 4 might get round to showing it sooner rather than later? Wishful thinking I suppose.

I'd heard about True Blood months before it came to terrestrial TV in the UK, mostly because I'd seen many shots of Ryan Kwanten wearing, well, bugger all! So naturally, I was curious about the show, and more so when I learned it was a HBO production. That explained the copious nudity too. 

After an initial slow-burn of 2 or 3 episodes, which seemed to leave plotting at the expense of exposition by way of explaining this show's vampire lore. That's not to say that the first few episodes were boring, just that by contrast, the rest of the season featuring more exciting incidents and plotting. It made sense to set out what happens to vampires in True Blood as opposed to, say, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Here the vampires are a lot bloodier, more 'realistic' (if possible), and as a few episodes later proved, a lot messier when killed. 

I like that True Blood doesn't just confine it's supernatural leanings to vampires, and includes a telepath and a shapeshifter - the revelation that Sam, who I'd assumed was the obvious killer, can turn into a dog was handled brilliantly and made for some great comic moments with Sookie. It's impossible not to see the parallels that are made between vampires and how they're treated by human society and the way the experiences of gay society and the prejudices it faces. This isn't a new parallel, but it's explored a lot more in True Blood than in anything I've seen before, I guess since Alan Ball, the creator, is gay himself. It's a shame that the stand out gay character in season 1, Lafayette, is a bit underused though. 

Andrew gave up watching True Blood with me as he'd had enough of vampires on TV and movies lately, and I can understand what he means, they do seem to be everywhere. True Blood is more than just a vampire show though, as with many HBO dramas the setting (like the wild west in Deadwood, or funeral home in Six Feet Under) serves as a jumping off point for explorations of the complex characters and their relationships. I found Tara's relationship with her alcoholic mother more intriguing than Sookie and Bill's 'romance', and the former had no real supernatural elements (turns out the exorcism was fake). Actually, I found Bill to be a bit of a bland vampire, because as Angelus proves, vamps are much more interesting when they're evil.

I'm keen to see the 2nd season of True Blood now, even if just to find out where exactly Lafayette has got to - and what made Sookie and Tara scream so much when they saw the body in Andy's car?!

Spooks: Series 8 (2009)

I think I can confidently say that Spooks is the best drama that the BBC currently produces. And now I've got to wait a whole damn year to find out what has happened to Ros and Lucas! Aargh! Nearly every year Spooks does this to me, leaves me with a massive cliff-hanger and then waits months (during which time I've usually forgotten the circumstances of the last episode) to resolve it. But I keep going back every series, it's like a drug! 

Last series, when they killed off the beautiful Adam (Rupert Penry-Jones) I thought Spooks would never be the same. Hermione Norris' Ros, a stone-cold bitch in earlier series, turned out to be an icy, dry-humoured revelation when she took over from Adam, and she's easily the best thing about the show, although Harry Pierce (Peter Firth), stalwart head of MI5 since series 1 runs a very close second. Spooks has a difficult job when it kills of it's leads when it comes to filling their shoes - it took me a little while to warm to Richard Armiage's Lucas North, but now he's as integral to the show as Malcolm. Oh wait - Malcolm retired earlier this series!! Actually I've not missed him as much as I thought I would, probably because I'm distracted by his replacement's beautiful eyes. Tariq (Shazad Latiff) was introduced quickly and it's testament to the writing on Spooks that he feels like he's been there for years. Ruth (Nicola Walker) came back this year too, for more frustrated flirting with Harry, and I guess to replace poor Jo (Miranda Raison) who never really reached her potential as a spy - she should have been chief of section some day! 

Spooks always keeps me gripped from start to finish - even when I've no idea what's going on, which can be frustratingly often! I love the preposterousness of some of the situations and dialogue, and can't help a small chuckle every week when Harry declares that if they don't solve this week's disaster the UK will be a third world country, or there will be World War III! Of course it's ridiculous that this same handful of characters can save Britain from ruin so often, but it's hard to care about such inaccuracies when the stories and the characters are this good. Where Spooks wins out over other dramas is that none of the characters are safe - lead characters can be killed off in any episode, deaths are not just saved for episode finales as Jo and Adam would tell you. Well they would, if they hadn't been shot and blown up, respectively. This means that when the spies are put in harms way, you genuinely fear for them - unlike in The X-Files for example, where you know Mulder isn't going to die mid-way through a season (well, bad example, 'cos he died a couple of times, and had a funeral mid-way through season 8, but anyway...). 

I hope that if they ever decide to get rid of Harry that Spooks will end then too, because all though it has survived many a cast change over the years, Spooks without Harry would be like Ugly Betty without Betty or Ashes to Ashes without Gene Hunt. It's going to be a long wait to find out whether Ros and Lucas are still alive... And I'd better not find out that Harry was killed in that explosion or I'll have to give up watching. 

Screenwipe Review of the Year (2009)

As promised at the end of my last post the last show I watched was Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe Review of the Year on the BBC's iplayer. It was a hilarious round up of the weird and weirder bits of telly that have mostly found their way into Charlie's Screenburn column this year. Most of the shows I've never seen, and for good reason - a lot were either from ITV1/2 or the depths of the digital channels, and I'm a snob when it comes to both. I think ITV puts out some truly awful programming, which the 'general public' seems to love, eg Britain's Got Talent, The X-Factor, I'm a Non-Entity Get Me Out Of Here. I'd rather stick pins in my eyes than sit through these. There's only a small number of watchable ITV shows, with Harry Hill's TV Burp at the top of the list. Anyway, Charlie has a great way of deconstructing these shows with a healthy dose of cynicism that I can appreciate. 

Rather than review a review show, I thought I'd take the chance to think about what I look for and like in the TV shows, movies, etc that I've experienced this year. I've thought about it, and in writing these reviews for my blog I keep returning to familiar touchstones. 

So these are the things that most of the cultural stimulus I observe/experience share:

1. Humour - hard to define but integral to most of my viewing pleasure
2. Heart - I want to care for characters, to feel something while I watch
3. Intelligence - I don't like to be insulted, I want to be made to think
4. Involvement - linked to heart and intelligence, I don't like to be a passive viewer, hence the blog I suppose
5. Hotties - I appreciate an attractive guy or two to satisfy my shallower side
6. Homos - gay themes and characters intrigue me and I like it when they're part of the experience

Those factors are often what drive me when I'm finding something new to watch (or read), whether it be a comedy or a drama, science fiction or animation. Not everything I experience involves the above aspects, but the more a show/movie has, the more I like it. For example: Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives are massive favourites of mine, and they easily fit into every single category above. 

I'm thinking about doing my own review of 2009, but I always think it's a bit premature to do one in December, after all, the year's not over yet and, judging by the Radio Times, there should be a few gems to come over the Xmas period.

Comedy panel shows in 2009

I’m a fan of a comedy panel show or two, as the list of those I’ve watched this year illustrates. I love to laugh, and due to the dearth of really good (new) sitcoms on TV the best place to find something to tickle my funny bone is usually to be found in the format of a panel show, whether dedicated to current events, music, polls, TV, or trivia. All of the shows below share the ability to have me laughing out loud, and there can be no greater joy than that I reckon. I can’t review everything about these series, as the joy of them is often transient due to the topical nature of the panel show, but here’s what I like about each:

Have I Got [A Bit More] News For You (Series 37 & 38)

I always try to watch the extended edition – I like the fluffed lines and the extra material, it all adds to the experience, although sometimes a tighter show can be an improvement it’s not often the case. It’s amazing how long the show has been running, and it has the occasional dip in quality, but these last two series have been great. Paul Merton and Ian Hislop complement each other nicely – Paul with his out-there observations and Ian with his rants about politicians or obliviousness to popular culture have me in stitches. The guest presenters format works well too, for the most part, although there hasn’t been a Bruce Forsyth or a Boris Johnson this time to really shake things up and provide something extra special. I enjoy the topical aspect of HIGNFY, and I learn a lot from it, but I think they get most of their stories right out of The Week magazine, which I read!

Never Mind the Buzzcocks (Series 23)

Another panel show oldie, unlike HIGNFY, Buzzcocks is rather patchy, particularly in this recent series now that Simon Amstell has left presenting duties to a random selection of guest presenters. The first show started the series on a poor note with James Cordern in the host’s chair. Now I like Gavin & Stacey, but Cordern on his own is just not funny. Thankfully the series improved with Claudia Winkleman and Frankie Boyle presenting, yet I don’t think it’s as good as it once was. Phill Jupitus is always reliable, however too much time each show is devoted to Noel Fielding and his bizarre sense of humour. And by bizarre I mean, hit and miss. Come back, Bill Bailey! The Doctor Who special is freshest in my mind – what was Catherine Tate on?? She was hilarious though. Buzzcocks needs better musical guests too, and more emphasis on the quiz, less on the crappy guests. Or perhaps it needs to end before it all goes to crap the way They Think It’s All Over did.

8 Out of 10 Cats (Series 8)

This is one of the few non-BBC panel shows I bother with, and it’s only really good when it’s not on at the same time as HIGNFY or Mock the Week as they tend to cover the same stories! Sean Locke is the best thing about Cats, and he always has been, although I’ve grown to like Jimmy Carr a lot more over the series. Jason Mansford I can take or leave. Cats is one of the few shows where I don’t mind if I miss the odd one or two, perhaps I wouldn’t like it as much if Sean Locke was somewhere else on TV, like doing another series of 15 Storeys High.

Mock the Week (Series 7)

The focus of Mock the Week is heavily on comedy, and it’s really just an excuse to let some of the best, and newest, stand ups to do their thing. The quiz show element takes a back seat as Dara O’Briain awards points for the funniest performers rather than right answers. Dara himself is fantastic, Hugh Dennis has the occasional sparkle, and Andy Parsons cracks me (and seemingly the studio audience) up with his manner before he even opens his mouth. I’m less keen on Russell Howard who I think of as the class clown who’s always trying to get attention with his funny voices and quirky/irritating comedy stylings. My favourite is usually the miserabilist that is Frankie Boyle, although lately he’s been a bit over exposed, what with his appearances on Buzzcocks, Would I Lie To You and You Have Been Watching, to name just those I can remember. Next series there will be no Frankie though – hopefully they won’t get smug-faced Michael MacIntyre to fill his place. Frankie’s very-very-very close to the bone observations have me cringing or in open-mouthed awe at what he gets away with, before eliciting laughs. I do believe there’s no subject that should be off limits to comedy, and Frankie tests those limits almost to breaking point! I think they should cut the panel down to 2 on each team next series and rotate Russell Howard out, and then the weekly guests get more of a chance to get a word in. There have been many great guests on Mock the Week, but I can never remember their names.

QI (Series F & G) 
I can’t believe QI is already up to G, and that there are still 19 series left to go! At this rate I’ll be in my mid-40’s when they get to Z, and I don’t like to think how old Stephen Fry and Alan Davies will be! QI is one of the few shows (and HIGNFY is another) that informs as much as it entertains, it doesn’t dumb down and revels in its intelligence. It also manages to get some fantastic guests and shows a different side to them, allowing them to show off their knowledge. Some of my favourites are Sean Locke, Bill Bailey, Jo Brand, Rob Brydon, Sandi Toksvig, Ben Miller and the late, great Linda Smith. I’m always astounded at the knowledge that Stephen Fry can retain, and I’m never sure if he’s reading his answers from the cue cards or whether he’s drawing on his own vast stores of information.

Would I Lie To You? (Series 3)

Now that Rob Brydon is presenting Would I Lie To You it has swiftly become one of my favourite comedy shows on TV. It’s basically Call My Bluff, but the lies are more far ranging than definitions of words. David Mitchell makes this show unmissable with his curmudgeonly manner and tendency to get rather excited about certain issues. Lee Mack’s great too, I especially like it when he’s given preposterous lies to run with. They’ve had some random but good guests, such as Ken Livingston, Reginald D. Hunter, and the panel-show stalwart, Jamelia, who I adore on these series.

You Have Been Watching (Series 1)

I’m not sure if this is a panel show really, but Charlie Brooker’s sort-of-quiz on some of the weirdest TV on the box has most of the ingredients, including a trio of celebrity guests. I’m a big fan of Charlie Brooker and he’s been on a few of the above shows lately too. My first encounter with his masterful wit was his Screenburn column in The Guardian. Unfortunately I’ve not seen many of his BBC4 Screenwipe series, what I have seen has been just fantastic. He deservedly won a best newcomer award at the Comedy Awards this year and I can’t wait for the next series – first there’s a Screenwipe special to catch on iPlayer.

Pet Shop Boys: Pandemonium Tour (MEN, Manchester)

For only my 5^th arena concert in my 25 years (after Kylie, Will & Gareth, and Girls Aloud twice) we braved the snow, ice and slush between Leeds and Manchester to see the Pet Shop Boys at the MEN last Sunday.

After a run of gigs/concerts at smaller venues (Frankmusik, Alphabeat, Alesha Dixon, VV Brown) it was easy to forget how huge an MEN concert is. The Pet Shop Boys did an excellent job of filling the place with a great number of tracks from their current album, Yes, and their back catalogue.

I only own Pop Art, their greatest hits, so I’m not an expert on the duo, but Andrew has Yes and their Christmas EP so I knew quite a few of their most recent tracks. I find with a lot of PSB songs that I can only recognise them from the chorus as the intros I find difficult to differentiate. That’s not say I think all their songs sound the same, just that I’d be rubbish at the Intros round on Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

There were many songs I knew – Heart, Se A Vida E, Always on My Mind, Go West, Suburbia, etc – and many I didn’t which must have been older album tracks and B-sides. I wasn’t that keen on the Madness cover, My Guy, as I don’t know the song at all, but the surprise extra Xmas encore was great – It Doesn’t Often Snow at Christmas – an ironic choice of title given the state of the country at the moment.  

1. Heart
2. Did You See Me Coming?
3. Can you forgive her?/Pandemonium
4. Love etc.
5. Building A Wall
6. Go West
7. Two Divided By Zero
8. Why Don't We Live Together?
9. New York City Boy
10. Always On My Mind
11. Closer to Heaven/Left to My Own Devices
12. Do I Have To?
13. Kings Cross
14. The Way It Used To Be
15. Jealousy
16. Suburbia
17. What Have I Done To Deserve This?
18. All Over The World
19. Se A Vida É
20. Viva La Vida / Domino Dancing
21. It's A Sin

22. Being Boring
23. My Girl (Madness cover)
24. West End Girls

25. It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas

Neil Tennant was in fine form, his not-quite-singing voice managing to fill the arena, and Chris Lowe was enigmatically silent in charge of the music. Come to think of it, this is one of the few shows I’ve seen this year without a live band on stage. 4 dancers provided most of the spectacle and an intriguing set made up of white cardboard boxes. Initially the boxes were stacked to form two large walls, and then these were eventually pulled down and men in white coats rebuilt the sets during breaks in the songs, and then whatever was built was utilised by the dancers as podiums or to reflect the songs. The dancers’ costumes occasionally reflected the box motif when they came out wearing skin tight spandex-looking outfits with boxes bulging inside them at the calf and arm, topped off with a box on the head. The white boxes of the set also aided in the effects created through the lighting of the stage, with films projected on to them.

For the Xmas encore, the dancers came on dressed as Xmas trees and ‘snow’ was released into the crowd. This last song left me feeling very festive and very happy with the whole show.

Hung: Season 1 (2009)

Tucked away on More4 I found Hung, a new HBO series about a basketball coach who becomes a male prostitute to make a living. Now, normally I just need to know that something comes from HBO to convince me to give it a go, but when the title of the show refers directly to one of my favourite things(!) I couldn't say no!

Despite the fact the show is titled after Ray's (Thomas Jane) rather large appendage, there was no male frontal nudity, and a bit too much female nudity! That's not really a criticism, just an observation. I guess that if Thomas Jane isn't as hung as his character then there's not much they can do... Anyway, I need to get out of the gutter and say what I thought of the show (incidentally typing 'hung' into Google image search isn't the best idea...).

Nothing much happens in Hung really, other than Ray's daily struggle to get by, to rebuild his house and father his children. Then there's Tanya (Jane Adams), Ray's less-than-sucessful partner and pimp in their Happiness Consultants / male escort business. The show is very 2009 as it's set in Detroit, Michigan, a city I've read about a lot in Time recently as being one of the places hardest hit by the recession - a city where jobs are being lost, and people are moving out at an alarming rate. It's understandable that Ray would consider any means necessary to keep a roof over his head - although he lives in a tent at the bottom of his garden since his home burnt down. 

Hung is more drama than comedy, although there are plenty of wry chuckles to be had, mostly from Tanya's abilities as a pimp, and I've read criticism of the show that nothing much happens. But I think there's still a lot to enjoy about the show, mostly in the relationships between the characters and their quest to find happiness. The series is much more concerned with the emotions of its characters than it is in any easy 'client-of-the-week' episodic formula, which I guess is another reason this is an HBO show and not a primetime network series. I've enjoyed this unassuming little series and the things it has to say about modern day America and I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for it's return in the digital wastelands next year. 

Merlin: Series 2 (2009)

Yet another series has recently come to an end on TV, this time is was the Saturday tea-time treat that is Merlin. Building on the foundations of the good-but-could-be-better first series, this time around Merlin felt like a much more entertaining, confident show. The acting was better, and the stories were more interesting, leading to developing characters and arcs, such as Arthur's falling for Gwen and Morgana's disillusionment with Uther.

Chief among the best parts of Merlin the series' growth is the blossoming of Colin Morgan as Merlin himself, he's just so good. His easy relationship with Bradley James' hunky Prince Arthur provides most of the humour and heart of the entire series. Theirs is the love story I want to see develop, not Arthur and Gwen's! There's such great banter between the two characters, and more than a little homo-erotic tension - and I know this isn't just wishful thinking as others have said the same thing. I particularly like the frequent excuses Arthur has to get his top off in Merlin's presence, and then there was that great scene when Merlin was hiding under Arthur's bed.

The problem with Arthur and Merlin's love story is that it's more believable and interesting than the necessary romance between the prince and Gwen, his future queen. I think the main fault here is that Gwen gets so little to do other than hand things to Morgana that she's vastly underwritten - it's hard to see what Arthur sees in her. Uther suffers a similar character flaw in that he mainly exists to denounce those who practice magic and to put people to death for the same reason. He's terminally grumpy - the few moments Anthony Head gets to lighten Uther's character are not enough. Why waste such a fantastic actor?

Luckily Richard Wilson is not wasted in his role as Merlin's mentor, Gaius. Aside from the Merlin-Arthur dynamic, the Gaius-Merlin relationship is both funny and touching, and Wilson shows that he can do dramatic as well as comedy. He's an expert with a raised eyebrow too! Morgana was under-used in the first series, and she was only occasionally the focus of series two's episodes, but towards the end she really made an impact as she chose her path, leading to Merlin's shocking action when he poisoned her.

Rounding out the regular cast - sort of - is the dragon. A strange character, as voiced by John Hurt, he spent all series 2 helping Merlin save Arthur (and Camelot) only to launch an attack on the place when Merlin was forced to free him in the last episode. Odd. I was expecting one of the main cast to die in the last episode, but it turned out that (although Morgana was magicked off somewhere to be tended to by her evil sister) the only death was Merlin's father, who managed about 10 minutes of screen time before snuffing it on the blade of a random knight. A bit disappointing, but it obviously gave Merlin the dramatic impetus to carry on and defeat the dragon.

Another slight disappointment with this series is that Merlin has not yet come out to Arthur. In terms of magic I mean. Hopefully next series Merlin will have the courage to let Arthur in on his secret without the prince reacting too badly. We'll see. The best episodes this year involved high comedy elements - notably the 2-parter with Sarah Parrish as a hideous demon disguised as a human who married Uther. Next year I want more of this, and more Arthur-Merlin bonding please!

Beautiful People: Series 2 (2009)

Last night Beautiful People ended it's second series with such a wonderful episode, packed with poignant moments and hilarity. I will be very sad if the show doesn't get a third series - I want to spend more time with Simon Doonan and his crazy family. 

Beautiful People seems to have slipped onto TV screens without much fanfare, which says a lot for how progressive society must be becoming for this is a show that has 2 gay teenagers at its heart. I couldn't imagine such a premise being allowed to pass unnoticed 10 years ago, perhaps sooner. Unlike Ugly Betty, who's teenage Justin is flamboyant, but not a confirmed homosexuality, Beautiful People's Simon (and to a larger extent his friend Kylie) is Camp with a capital C. And in this series we finally see young 14-year old Simon push open the closet door and come out to his Mum in a letter. It's odd that he needed to come out really, yet there's much that can be taken for granted in a parent's blinkered approach to their own children. The moment when Debbie read her son's letter, as he was finally beginning to accept himself and make a move on his new school friend, touched me greatly. 

It's not the first time I've identified with Simon - the first episode of Beautiful People last year featured a 13-year old boy in 1997, a fan of the Spice Girls and a friend of Dorothy - and I instantly fell in love with the programme because that WAS me in 1997. I was that age, I had that Spice Girls pencil case, although I wasn't as far along in my burgeoning sexuality as Simon seemed to be. I certainly wasn't (and never have been) that camp. There were episodes with Victoria Beckham dolls, and this year with Eurovision which I took to my heart and identified with in a big way. 

Of course, I don't identify with Simon's Reading-based family of nutters - I don't have a blind Asian aunty with a dog named Mummy, for example! The cast around Simon (who is played so winningly by Luke Ward-Wilkinson) are just as adorable and mental. His mother, Debbie, is just fantastic, and her rivalry with Reba, Kylie's mum, is one of the series' best running jokes. 

Sometimes the episodes don't hang together right - there's something there I can't put my finger on, whether it's the writing or the editing or what, that makes the occasional episode feel a bit sub-par, but when everything comes together the shows are gems. This series featured excellent cameos for Dana International, Elaine Paige and Dannii Minogue that didn't always make sense (I'm looking at you Dannii), yet that didn't stop me enjoying them. 

I must admit to being the tiniest bit envious of (a) 14-year old Simon and (b) teenage gays watching Beautiful People because (a) Simon got his shit together over his sexuality earlier than me, and because (b) I never had a show like Beautiful People to give me any sort of guidance when I was 14. I suppose I had Queer as Folk a couple of years later, but that made the gay life seem a hell of a lot scarier! 

I'm off now to pray to Dana International for a third series!

The Chain of Curiosity (Sandi Toksvig, 2009)

I've just finished Sandi Toksvig's The Chain of Curiosity, a collection of the great Danish wit's columns from the Sunday Telegraph that I got for free with my points from The Book People. I've seen Ms Toksvig on TV here and there and I've always been fond of her acute sense of humour and head for trivia - she's especially good on QI. In fact, there were a couple of things I've read that have appeared on the current series of QI, funnily enough. 

I enjoyed this collection, and I zipped through it pretty quickly, which I always feel is the mark of a good book (although I'm taking my time with my current fiction choice at the moment, but that's only because The Chain of Curiosity was so moreish). Sandi's columns - all running to 3 easily digestible pages in the book are humours looks at whatever event is happening that day, in history or to the writer. Several times I found myself laughing out loud and then reading passages out to Andrew. As a humourous book, it succeeds, and as a trivia book it's just as good, I'd recommend it to anyone with an appreciation of language and the world around us in general.

The Thick Of It: Series 3 (2009)

I haven’t seen Series 1 or 2 of The Thick Of It, but I did catch the 2 specials, and In the Loop (2009), the sort-of movie spin-off and one of the best comedies of the year, so I made sure I didn’t let Series 3 pass me by.

I know it’s a cliché to call the show a British version of The West Wing (one of my top 5 TV series ever), and in some ways The Thick Of It is similar, but it’s really a different beast. The programmes share the same wit and intelligence but Thick has the edge when it comes to satire with a capital Fuck! There was no one like Malcolm Tucker in Yes Minister either.

The dexterity that Peter Capaldi (mostly) and the writers display with their breath-taking explorations of the English language turn sweary insults into art forms. I’ve particularly enjoyed Rebecca Front’s introduction into this series as the new minister for DoSAC, she’s great at giving Malcolm as good as she gets, and equally good at running away to avoid conflict!

I do hope that the real government and civil service is not run in the shambolic manner that Thick depicts. I fear it is though. The series surprised me by making Malcolm into a more human and sympathetic character as it went on, showing his vulnerable side as he’s forced out of the government.

Come the January sales I’ll be hunting down Series 1 and 2 (confusing released as just Series 1) on DVD!

Arrested Development: Season 1 (2003-04)

I first caught Arrested Development some way into the second season on BBC2 a few years ago, having heard nothing whatsoever about it before. It turned out to be one of the funniest, off-the-wall comedies I’ve ever seen. So I got myself all 3 seasons on DVD and I’ve only managed to watch the first season, twice, since then! The shame.

Arrested Development’s style is unlike any other US sitcom I’ve seen, it’s choppily edited, location shot and employs a flash-forward/backward technique to tell non-linear stories that I’ve only seen since in Family Guy. Full of jokes based on the clueless nature of the large Bluth family at the centre of the show, its idiotic characters are not hideous, but neither are they particularly lovable! Every character has their peculiarities, and each is selfish in their own special way.

My favourite character (although this is liable to change as with my faves in Ugly Betty and Desperate Housewives) is Tobias – and it’s only on a second watch of the season that I’ve realised he’s not in every episode – boo! His obliviousness to the many, many gay innuendos he makes are genius, as is his failed acting career. Everyone else is almost as great – Lucille the family matriarch has an acid-tongue; imprisoned George Sr. is deliciously sardonic; Michael’s attempts to bond with his son are cringe-worthy, as is George Michael’s hopeless crush on his cousin; Buster is charmingly inept and attached to his mother; Gob is just generally stupid, and a magician to boot; Maeby is a devious child, playing her parents off against each other; and Lindsay is a spoilt socialite desperate to prove her worth.

The support cast and guest stars are just as fantastic – my particular favourites are Henry Winkler (the Fonze!) as the sexually-ambiguous and inept Bluth-family lawyer and Buster’s replacement mother-figure and girlfiend, Lucille 2 played (with more wit and comic ability that I knew she possessed) by Liza Minnelli. Lucille 1 adopts a Korean boy, named Annyong  (Korean for ‘hello’), making for some hilarious rivalries with Buster. Julia Louis-Dreyfus is marvellous as pretending-to-be-blind lawyer Maggie Lizer.

I particularly like the way Arrested Development doesn’t treat its audience like idiots – the jokes and plots are not all necessarily spelled out, some involve paying attention to background activity or seemingly innocuous snippets of dialogue. For example, there are clues scattered around season one that George Sr. has been doing deals with Saddam Hussein before all is revealed in the final episode, such as MADDAS stamped on crates, etc.

Maybe season 2 of Arrested Development will fill the comedy void left by Miranda!

Miranda: Series 1 (2009)

Miranda has been the surprise comedy gem of the year. I’ve seen Miranda Hart on TV a few times, and I’ve always enjoyed her infectious enthusiasm, so I gave her sitcom a shot – it’s not often I bother with pre-watershed so called ‘family’ comedies in this day and age, they’re usually invariable lame and desperately unfunny. Miranda is the antidote to all that.

Although the storylines are a bit creaky and obvious, the way Miranda throws herself into any situation with gusto, usually ending in a comedy pratfall, and then gives a sly wink to the camera never fails to make me smile. It’s the breaking of the fourth wall and addressing the audience that makes Miranda something special. Most of the jokes come at Miranda’s expense, and involve either he height or her social awkwardness, or the absurdities of real life situations. Nearly every one of the 6 episodes generated a real belly laugh for me – LOL indeed.

The support cast are a bit hit and miss – Sarah Hadland’s Stevie, Miranda’s friend, was a bit weak in places I though, but her recurring joke of donning a Heather Small mask (and voice) to sing/ask Miranda ‘What have you done today to make you feel proud?’ amused me a lot. Tom Ellis’s Gary, Miranda’s unrequited love interest, was possibly the best written of the other cast. The unsuccessful wooing of Gary provided many funny moments, and also a few touching ones, especially in the last episode when Miranda managed to tell Gary, articulately, how she felt about him, to stop him leaving the country, and he confessed to feeling the same. And then it was revealed that this was all in Miranda’s head, and she managed to fluff the real moment she asked him to stay. It made my heart ache for them both!

Thankfully the BBC has commissioned a second series of Miranda for next year, and I can’t wait. The past 6 weeks have flown by, marked only by the weekly treat of Miranda every Monday night. I need to find another comedy to fill the gap.

Generation Kill (2008)

Having seen the first series of The Wire and enjoying it muchly, I looked forward to Generation Kill – and I liked this even more than the former, which everyone seems to think is the second coming in terms of TV series. I’ll reserve my opinion until I’ve seen the next 4 seasons.

Generation Kill is much easier to evaluate, as it’s a self-contained 7-part mini-series rather than a 5-season commitment. Watching this Iraq-based drama not long after The Hurt Locker (2009), one of the best films I’ve seen this year, I continued in my appreciation and understanding of what life must be like for the (US) armed forces serving in a 21^st century war. BBC TV’s The Occupation (2009) miniseries told a similar story from the British perspective and was equally hard-hitting and thought provoking.

It was initially a bit hard to get a handle of Generation Kill’s use of military jargon and hierarchy – most of the time I could figure out what was being talked about, but I’m still a bit confused about the different ranks each character occupied. I think the DVD box set comes with a booklet with a glossary, but as I was watching the show on TV I didn’t have that advantage!

It was also difficult working out everyone’s names – the cast was huge and because this was all-male Marine Corps battalion hairstyles were all cropped and indistinguishable. There were a few faces I recognised – Alexander Skarsgard, who is now familiar to me from True Blood, James Ransone, who I know from a very revealing turn in Ken Park (2002), and Lee Tergesen, from Oz (1997-2003) and a memorable part in Rescue Me (2005) – but most of the cast was new to me. There were many fitty fitsters among them, but it’s hard to think of these uniform-wearing guys as hotties when some of them are killing innocent civilians.

Both The Hurt Locker and Generation Kill are based on real-life accounts of life in Iraq for the armed forces, so this adds more power to the stories of the men (and it’s only men here) that are depicted. The characterisations of the marines are varied, some are bored by the war, others are itching to kill something – their whisper-voiced commander is determined to be recognised as a key player and deliberately goes out of his way to place his men where they can see action, however dangerous this may be. The series ends on an incredibly poignant scene as the ‘victorious’ men all gather round to watch footage that one of their numbers has taken of their time in Iraq. They see the fun they’ve had, and also witness the death that they have followed and has followed them along their way, and gradually they all go quiet and, one by one, leave the room. Are they disgusted by what they’ve seen? Upset by their reactions? It’s not explained, and nor should it be. Much of the power of Generation Kill comes from the subtle characterisations – there’re no soap boxes here – the writers rely on the audience to draw their own conclusions and reactions to this terrible war.

Ugly Betty: Season 3 (2008-09)

I love Ugly Betty. It's as simple as that. Along with Desperate Housewives, it's my favourite US comedy-drama that's still on TV, I look forward to each episode and it's always sad when a season ends.

Season 3 of Ugly Betty has just ended over here, while the US is currently enjoying Season 4 - why must I have to wait so long, Channel 4?! Why, it's so that Desperate Housewives can begin in January (fingers crossed!). Although I enjoyed Season 2 it was a bit too involved in Betty's romances with Henry and Gio, so it was nice that they were packed off by the end of episode 1 in Season 3 so that we could concentrate on Betty's career. When Ugly Betty does romance it can all get a bit soppy (I'm also looking at you, Connor and Molly). 

I change my mind with nearly every episode as to which regular character is my favourite. Amanda has been on fine form this season, particularly in the first half when she seemed to be around a lot more often as Betty ended up sharing her apartment with my favourite acid-tongued bitch! Hang on, that spot's taken by Marc, isn't? And Wilhemina too! I was pleased with Wilhemina's character arcs this season as she went from being an arch villain to a more rounded individual as she was softened up with her ultimately doomed romance with Connor. It was also good to see her calming down her quest to take over Meade and Mode by becoming co-editor with Daniel. Ah now, Daniel. He's actually one of the few of the main cast who's never been in my list of favourites. I don't think he's developed very well, and although Eric Mabius is easy on the eye, I don't think he's such a great actor. He was also saddled with a girlfriend, Molly, who's only character trait is that she's dying with cancer. I know that sounds harsh (it's only a TV show, remember) but really, Molly had no other side to her.

Betty's best mate Christina has always been side-lined a bit, and was even more so through Season 3 - she seemed to spend about a year pregnant and then wasn't in a lot of the episodes. It makes sense that she's left, it's just a shame Ashley Jensen wasn't better utilised. The last regular at Meade publications is Claire Meade. Every since she was introduced back in Season 1 as a semi-regular I've loved every word that comes out of her mouth. She can always be relied upon to make me laugh out loud at least once an episode. More of her please!

And then there's Betty's family. I don't think Hilda was about enough in Season 3, but when she was she was fabulous, and it was nice to see Ignacio find happiness with a lady friend, even if they had to give him a heart attack first! My favourite member of Betty's clan is her nephew Justin, played by the fantastic Mark Indelicato. As her gets older (and more camp) he just gets funnier. I ony wish the mini-arc he had at the beginning of the season, where he found a friend at school and auditioned for Billy Elliott, had been extended. Another of the under-used cast members, Justin shines in every appearance. There was a touching moment in the final episode when Marc imparted a little gay-friendly advice to Justin, in an echo of a previous season's encounter between them. Justin's sexuality has never been explicitly dealt with, and really it doesn't have to be, but it's nice when he gets these moments with Marc as it allows the latter to soften and it just leaves a warm feeling inside me. 

Of course, I mustn't forget Betty herself! America Ferrera does such a good job with Betty that I think it can be easy to forget just how good an actress she is, and how much of the show rests on her performance. That might sound silly, since the show is named after her, but with such an extended regular cast Betty could quite easily becoming a supporting character in her own show. However, Betty is the beating heart of the programme, providing so much joy and warmth. Her storylines this season were better than before as she battled her ex-nemesis (Lindsay Lohan!), joined the young editors programme, YETI, and found love with Matt, a rich former sex-addict. At season's end Betty's life looked to be working out wonderfully, until boring, much-too-muscled-for-a-geek Henry turned up again. Boo! 

The move that the show made from Los Angeles to New York, where Betty is actually set, made a massive difference to the show too, and the Big Apple became almost an extra member of the cast. The locations looked much more authentic than previously (because they were!) and I don't know why, but it improved the whole look of Betty's surroundings. 

Season 3 ended with several cliffhangers - Matt is now Betty's boss! Whose waiting for Wilhemina in her bedroom?! How will Justin cope at public high school?! - and I can't wait for Season 4 to show up on these shores. Until then, I've got Desperate Housewives to look forward to! And Glee, which should take care of my camp TV intake too.

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

After being bored by The Shining (1980), disturbed by A Clockwork Orange (1971) and disappointed by Dr. Strangelove (1964), it was with some trepidation that I watched Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey this afternoon.

I was intrigued as I've seen parodies in The Simpsons, Futurama, etc, and I know the music, but other than these iconic moments I had no idea what to expect in terms of plot or anything else. I was initially skeptical that there was even going to be a plot, but the movie slowly unfolds into a mystery of sorts, as you follow the mysterious black obelisk from The Dawn of Man, through to the Moon, Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite, wondering just what it is and how it connects events.

Well it turns out that there are no answers, or at least none I could glean. While a lack of answers can sometimes infuriate (though I'm used to this, being an X-Phile!), with 2001 it didn't matter. I was never bored by the movie, despite long tracts where nothing much really happens, and the lack of explanatory dialogue, or much dialogue at all really! There are only a handful of characters in the movie, one of which is the engimatic HAL 9000 computer, whose dulcet tones I was familiar with before I sat down to watch. (Incidentally, there was only 1 actor I recognised - Leonard Rossiter from Rising Damp! Bizarre).

Much of the power of 2001 comes from the beautiful cinematography, and the gorgeous music. I was put in mind of Disney's Fantasia (1940) by the use of classical music to tell a story, and the only time I got a bit antsy was during the Beyond the Infinite sequence, which went on a little too long and felt like watching a screen saver! That would be my only niggle in the whole experience of this remarkable film. I was surprised to find out after watching that it was released in 1968, it's not dated at all on the whole, except in the case of some of the costumes and furniture, and the effects are better than some CGI I've seen in recent years. 

After enjoying 2001, I won't be as reticent to give some of Kubrick's other movies a go as I was before. 

Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)

Last weekend, a couple of hours before Happy-Go-Lucky premiered on Channel 4 we watched the same movie on DVD, having bought it a few weeks earlier.

It’s the 3^rd Mike Leigh-directed feature I’ve seen, after Abigail’s Party (1977) and Topsy-Turvy (1999), both of which were excellent. I was disappointed by Happy-Go-Lucky then, as I expected something more. Sally Hawkins is excellent as the lead, Poppy, but her irrepressibly happy-go-lucky attitude begins to grate over the course of 2 hours. Initially endearing and cute, I soon became tired of her irritating persona, especially since any semblance of plot failed to materialise.

The supporting cast were more interesting, as they were allowed more than one side to their characters. I particularly liked Poppy’s flatmate, and her irate driving instructor. Some of the situations Poppy found herself in, such as attending a flamenco class, or visiting her pregnant sister, raised smiles, but they didn’t go anywhere and there was little that could be described as laugh out loud comedy, as the DVD box promised. Andrew was laughing out loud, but I clearly wasn’t in on the jokes!

I’ve got another Mike Leigh movie in my DVD collection, Vera Drake (2004), and I hope that it will be a more rewarding experience than Happy-Go Lucky, which I did like but I wouldn’t watch it again.

A Traveller's History of London (Richard Tames, 4th Edition, 2002)

After finishing the History of Europe I needed a new book to take on a weekend to London, so what better than A Traveller's Guide to London? On a trip to the capital a couple of years ago I read the appropriate Do Not Pass Go by Tim Moore, which takes a trip around London via the locations to be found on an original Monopoly board. That was a funny, interesting and novel guide to the sights and culture of London, and was more of a travelogue than a history book. 

The Traveller's Guide should perhaps be renamed. The main 4/5 of the book is a chronological history of the city. It's full of interesting facts and people, but it's all a bit 'bitty' and lacking substance. The best bit of the Guide, which could truly be called a 'Traveller's Guide' are the sections in the back of the book, which explain historical facts about The Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, London's bridges, train terminals, etc. By concentrating on specific themes/locations there is more coherence to the information, and it's easier to take it all in. 

I want to read a really good history of London, and this book was a good primer, but I'm going to have to find a more 'worthy' tome I think. It was an easy read though, so it'll be good to dip into again.

Priceless / Hors de prix (2006)

Andrew loves Audrey Tautou and we've seen her in A Very Long Engagement (2004), Coco Before Chanel (2009), and of course the magical Amélie (2001). I think she's a wonderfully gifted actress, particularly in comedies, and she has a distinctive look that is both classy and attractive in an offbeat sort of way. There's no one quite like her in Hollywood. 

On the basis that Audrey Tautou is excellent, therefore, I bought Andrew the 2006 comedy Priceless, which looked in the posters and promos like it was a modern French take on Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961). It's not though. It's utterly different, and utterly French! The plot is one I couldn't see working in a Hollywood movie - Jean (Gad Elmaleh) is a waiter who falls for Tautou's Irene, who turns out to be a con artist that finds wealthy men and bleeds them dry. Thinking that Jean is another rich picking, she flees to his arms when her latest lover throws her out. When Jean learns of her lifestyle, he joins in her game, by finding his own sugar 'mummy' to keep him in smart suits and mopeds, all the while chasing Irene to try and win her heart. 

It's an interesting concept, and when you think about it incredibly seedy! Our heroes are basically high class prostitutes, yet they're so 'French' and gorgeous with it - the movie looks simple sumptuous with the beautiful hotel locations and Tautou's wardrobe - that you forget about it and enjoy the fantasy.

While not as fantastical or imaginative as Amélie or A Very Long Engagement, and less serious than Coco Before Chanel, I enjoyed Priceless, and continue to admire Tautou's comedic ability, and the way she's not simply playing Amélie in each movie! Her co-star, Gad Elmaleh is apprently a comedian in France, and he's good, but sometimes I wasn't sure if he was being enigmatic, or just looking blank because he's not that good an actor. As this is French movie, I'm assuming it was the former! I do enjoy a French film, and this one I'd enjoy over again.