How to save the FA Cup

 

The third round of the FA Cup is traditionally one of the great weekends in the sporting calendar. A great way to start a new year where giant killings can occur as equally as cricket scores on the football pitch take place.

However, the third round of the 2014/15 edition of the world's most famous cup competition had a somewhat poor showing on all fronts. Poorly attending matches, poor match ups and predictable television coverage meant that the magic of the cup is again put into question. Who to blame though?

Can you blame Premier League sides from ringing the changes after four league matches in quick succession over the Christmas period with many playing on New Year's Day and then again two or three days later.

Do you blame the clubs who scheduled their games on Sunday or a Monday in the case of Burnley v Tottenham that was so poorly attended they closed a major stand as pictures will attest to.

Do you blame the television companies for picking obvious big name teams no matter who they were playing.  Yes it was a repeat of the final in May, but did we really need to see an all Premier League tie in  Arsenal v Hull on a tea-time Sunday night slot when Wimbledon v Liverpool or Everton v West Ham would have been more appealing. Why did the BBC who have first choice pass over Yeovil v Manchester United, admittedly they clawed for the 1988 repeat yet the scheduling of that game on Monday night did no favours.

Wimbledon v Liverpool was a showpiece event, but for Steven Gerrard would have garnered the giant killing the competition so desperately needed. Yet the BBC who have put the main round proper draws on Monday night to increase awareness and attention decided to screen the draw live from Wimbledon in the main clubhouse, thus belittling the draw from the professional and formal occasion it deserves to that resembling a church raffle.

Why pass over the chance to screen Sheffield United away at QPR, a known cup entity in Nigel Clough's side from Yorkshire versus Harry Redknapp's strugglers. Many knew Redknapp would play a reserve side and focus on Premier League survival, gifting the Blades another top flight cup scalp.  Perhaps United are guilty of their own success, they are on televison twice later this month playing Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-final of the Capital One Cup, so maybe schedulers felt why give them anymore exposure than they are already getting. Yet United held up their part of the deal by eliminating QPR easily in a 3-0 victory, chance missed for programmers.

My biggest gripe is the positioning of replays for the competition. The tournament's history has been flooded with great memories in replays down the years but this is a knockout competition, lets make it knockout competition, one game to a finish on the day with extra time and penalties.  As much as we hate them, penalty shoot-outs bring added drama to proceedings and for all those travelling fans and home supporters who have to fork out so much for their ticket post Christmas; I feel the bonus of seeing a final result will instigate a renewed interest and fervour in proceedings. This alteration will save our eardrums from the constant moaning of managers about fixture congestion and fatigued players

The argument will be that lower league sides will relish the opportunity of drawing the first match to get a bigger share of gate money in the replay.  Yet those games are replayed in midweek, an immediate precursor of lower attendances and if there are not many replays will more than likely get screened on commercial broadcasters; the teams split the gate money anyway during cup games so as much as it was great for Cambridge to draw Man United at home in the fourth round, do not be fooled into thinking Cambridge would not mind an away draw at Old Trafford with all those receipts coming their way. The television fee for the tie will help swallow that pill for certain.

A resolution to the problem of teams missing out on big away days and also the big clubs always being drawn at home, would be to follow the Davis Cup method of drawing.  In that tennis competition, the home nation take turns in playing host due to the long gaps in playing opponents.  For instance, Great Britain had to play away at Italy last year as they hosted the Azzurri the last time they were drawn together many years previously.  A similar sort of method in football would mix it up and avoid such issues as Arsenal playing at home in every round as they did last season and remove the big boys from their comfort zones; and once the draw is done throw more intrigue into the competition.

These are merely ideas and this writer does not envisage anything changing drastically but changes must occur if the competition is going to keep its allure for years to come.  The FA itself needs to be stronger and not allow games to be played over five days as we had in this round and restrict it to Saturday to Monday play only; otherwise the competition will fall even further down the pecking order of priorities behind the race for Top four and the need for Premier League survival.

Erebus: Into The Unknown

Out in selected cinemas on 9th January and available DVD/VOD from 12th January, Erebus: Into the Unknown tells the true story of the men who came face to face with one of the world’s worst aviation disasters and became part of one of the most extraordinary police operations in history.

On November 28th 1979, a jet with 257 passengers went missing during a sightseeing tour over Antarctica. Within hours eleven ordinary police officers were called to duty to face the formidable Mount Erebus. But as the police recovered the victims an investigation team tried to uncover the mystery of how a jet could fly into a mountain in broad daylight, did the airline have a secret they tried to bury?

Directed by Charlotte Purdy, who cleverly mixes the format of documentary and factual cinema, she uses face to face interviews with key men from the search and rescue team - Stuart Leighton, Greg Gilpin, Mark Penn and leader Robert Mitchell. Mitchell led the team from the ground while the three other gentlemen along with other policeman, mountaineers and volunteers led the investigation of the crash site to save bodies.  Of the 257 passengers, 214 bodies were brought home for burial, this remains the highest percentage return from an aviation disaster.

 

The film makes clear though that due to the cold climate there was a greater chance of reclaiming more bodies, however, the harsh reality of the elements come to the fore in the recreated scenes and the testimonies of the heroes.

Leighton was 22 when he went to Antarctica, and you can still see the fear in his eyes when he recounts the memories.  Gilpin was fearful of never seeing his two daughters again, while Penn was the gun ho individual who saw it as a great opportunity for his career.  Many people reacted to things differently, even when facing the same challenge of constant daylight, huge emotional turmoil and the chattering of birds that keep you awake.

Purdy does take moments to reflect upon the beauty of the surroundings by having characters sit and look upon the landscape and juxtapose the devastation of the crash site with the beauty of the snow, there is some poetic lyricism somewhere out in the wilderness.

However, the methods used in the middle of nowhere by Mitchell and co-ordinated by Gilpin led to those same methods to be used in crash sites from there on. The work led to some answers for the bereaved families and the discovery of the pilot's log led to the realisation of the wrong co-ordinates being relayed.  

Hence, this could be considered the first big business cover up of an aviation disaster.  And in this day and age of airplanes missing and more answers required for more bereaving families, this film could offer hope to those related to the crashes involving Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 and Air Asia QZ8501.

EREBUS: INTO THE UNKNOWN is in cinemas 9 January and DVD/On Demand 12 January

The cinemas the film will be showing in are the Genesis Cinema, Mile End and Lowen Cinema, Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire

In praise of...Steven Gerrard

End of an Era
With the sad news of Steven Gerrard choosing to leave his only club Liverpool at the end of this his 17th season, it is another indicator of a player not being able to end his career on his terms. Unlike his team mate, Jamie Carragher who chose to call it a day by not wanting to play for anyone else; Gerrard still feels he can play a part at some level of football. The initial intention is that this means he is heading for the pasture of MLS in America like Thierry Henry and Robbie Keane, however, could he do what Frank Lampard did and come back to the Premier League on a loan move which ultimately upsets more people yet still maintains his desire to play at a high level.

What does it mean for Gerrard? Already this season, you have seen Gerrard slowing down or unable to play the two games a week needed for a Champions League outfit. At the start of the season, he was playing his number four or deep lying midfielder allowing him to spray passes to sprinting forwards. Yet due to transfer dealings and player injuries, Gerrard has had no outlet for his creative input. His best game this season came in early December away at Leicester where he played as a number 10 behind the front man of Rickie Lambet. His link up play was good and his cut and thrust led to chances aplenty. 

Perhaps, Brendan Rodgers cannot find a position for him or the fact that Rodgers dropped him regularly meant Gerrard could not commit to a club where he could not start every game, yet maybe Gerrard needed to accept the advancing of time.  His legs were effectively shot at the World Cup after the gruelling culmination of a potential championship season.  The image of Gerrard slipping and handing possession to Demba Ba to score for Chelsea at the Kop End will be an indelible image yet should not be considered the only reason Liverpool did not win Gerrard's only league title.

Like his contemporary, Frank Lampard, Gerrard needs to find a space and role in a team going forward where he can be creative and integral to the team performance. How ironic that on the day Gerrard made his decision, Lampard was scoring his fifth goal of the season for Manchester City with his first touch when coming on as a substitute with 20 minutes remaining in a 2-2 draw with Sunderland. Lampard had the last word. Gerrard did score two penalties for Liverpool in a disappointing home 2-2 draw with Leicester. Apart from those two goals, Gerrard's impact was minimal and deflating.

Whereas, Lampard has the engine and fitness to run all day, Lampard seems enthused by the idea to become a veritable super sub as he showed when scoring against Chelsea earlier in the season. Gerrard's modus operandi is having an influence on the game from the outset means it may take longer for him to realise and adjust. Based on form alone this season, would Gerrard start for any team in the top six should he become available. And would he want to play for anyone else. Can you imagine Gerrard playing for either Manchester side or even Arsenal?

In a sport where money is no object seemingly, the price of loyalty has diminished and the opportunity for any player to depart or leave the scene on his own terms has vanished. Unlike Ledley King who had to retire due to injury as a one club man, the loyal servant of football like Carragher or Paul Scholes has gone.  

If Gerrard had lifted the Premier League trophy in May instead of Vincent Kompany it may well have given him the perfect ending to a glittering career. Instead, Gerrard becomes that very typical modern footballer, a talent who has become a nomad. That is no way for any talent to end. With no direction or clue of the journey that he has navigated so proudly ending.

In the Heart of the Sea - new trailer

Following on from my November preview of In the Heart of the Sea I am pleased to share with you today the brand new trailer for the film set for a worldwide release on March 13th in cinemas and IMAX.

Directed by Ron Howard and starring Chris Hemsworth who worked together on Rush, the film based on Nathaniel Philbrick’s best-selling book about the dramatic true journey of the Essex.
In the winter of 1820, the New England whaling ship Essex was assaulted by something no one could believe: a whale of mammoth size and will, and an almost human sense of vengeance.  The real-life maritime disaster would inspire Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick.  But that told only half the story.  

 

In the Heart of the Sea reveals the encounter’s harrowing aftermath, as the ship’s surviving crew is pushed to their limits and forced to do the unthinkable to stay alive.  Braving storms, starvation, panic and despair, the men will call into question their deepest beliefs, from the value of their lives to the morality of their trade, as their captain searches for direction on the open sea and his first mate still seeks to bring the great whale down.

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The Missing

The BBC drama The Missing starring James Nesbitt and Frances O'Connor garners a DVD release on 26th December from RLJ Entertainment.

The show gained a huge following when it aired through October to December 2014 on BBC One, gripping the nation with its tale about the abduction of a young British boy when in France from his parents during an idyllic vacation.

Written by brothers, Harry and Jack Williams and directed by Tom Shankland, the series successfully told the dual narrative as we had two timelines of the initial abduction in 2006 along with the re-opening of the case in the present day. The 2006 storyline shows the beginning of the grip the abduction of Oliver Hughes will have on his father Tom (played superbly by Nesbitt) and the eventual breakdown of the marriage to Emily, with O'Connor playing the desperation and despair to perfection.

While the series is ultimately something to remember for its acting with uniformly brilliant performances across the board, the writing at times does let the show down and the eventual denouement is one of lacklustre and frustration.

This is indicative of series in general, it draws an audience in but then does not know how to credibly render and end the series by giving a narrative a convincing finale without becoming sentimental or hokum.  The sort of story in real life does not usually have a happy ending, but for the characters you wish only a sense of closure and not the sight of Nesbitt marauding through Eastern Europe in constant anguish in attempt to chase away his demons.

This is not to dispel from the overall quality of the production, the differing tones of filming between the light and breezy 2006 and the colder, more sombre present day cinematography as if the past is but a dream for Emily and Tony.

The acting is of a truly superior standard especially from a career-best Nesbitt who never resorts to histrionics in his performance but special praise is reserved for Tcheky Karyo as Julien Baptiste, the French detective of the original case who goes through the biggest metamorphosis physically in the series from a close to retiring detective to a man clearly shaken by all that has happened in the case, now with a limp and greyer in his hair colour the years have not been kind to him.  When Karyo speaks, he speaks wisdom and you hang on every word.

The Missing is one of those rare drama series that had you gripped from the start and but for the less than pleasing ending (when in real life cases there are few happy endings), this is a series that deserves awards come the awards season.

The Missing is out now on DVD from RLJ Entertainment

Foxcatcher - Poster breakdown

 

Hot off the heels of the three Golden Globe nominations for the film, Entertainment One UK Ltd is pleased to release the new poster for Foxcatcher above that holds that information in regards to the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor nominations for Steve Carell and Mark Ruffalo respectively.

The film is written and directed by Bennett Miller (Capote, Moneyball) and promises to be one of the best dramatic thrillers of recent years with an array of varied acting talent on display.

 

In contrast to the original quad poster, the new poster uses the same three poses of the three leading actors with Carell (the lead nomination) on the right of the poster on his own.  In contrast to the original where Carell's character John Du Pont is firmly entrenched between the two Schultz brothers.  The decision of the placement of the new poster places Du Pont on the right from the Schultz brothers indicating his difference to them and non-relation to the family bond he comes between. And the addition of more colour reminiscent of the Foxcatcher uniforms is better than the drab, greyer original quad where the mood is obviously of more deliberate tone.  The new poster makes you think this film is worth seeing for the acting alone and there might be some colour.

Foxcatcher is released in the UK on January 9th. Watch the trailer below:

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Electricity

 

After having reviewed the trailer, it was my pleasure to watch and review this new British film Electricity by director Bryn Higgins, and featuring a star making performance by former super model Agyness Deyn.

Deyn plays Lily, a small town girl who works on the seafront arcade but suffers from epilepsy, which causes her to have severe blackouts. She is a popular girl and friendly with the police constable who takes her home after her most recent episode.  The story moves to London, when Lily gains advice that her absent brother, Mikey, is alive and well in the Big Smoke. The pair were close when younger before they were split up and put into care.As Lily steps off the train at Kings Cross, she is full of that same ambition, and then promptly mugged and beaten up. 

Obviously in this day and age it is easier for Lily to go to London than it was for those angry young men of the kitchen sink, but what she finds is a scary world full of people as afflicted as her due to social constraints (homelessness) or sexual identity, the relationship with a lesbian is delicately portrayed when it could have been titilating.

The reason the tone is so thoughtful is the restrained direction of Higgins who saves his visual flair for Lily's internal attacks when we get the floating and hallucinogenic point of view camerawork; yet the most credit goes to Deyn who gives a performance not only of unexpected surprise but fulfilled potential.

Having quit the runway for the filmic red carpet, Deyn has appeared in several British flicks like Pusher, here the opportunity to bite her teeth into a role of real substance instead of objectified women in roles of lap dancer or prostitute.

Deyn herself is a working class girl from Rossendale, Lancashire who made good, so her connection to Lily is apparent and it is refreshing to see a beautiful woman portray herself and her character in such unflattering positions, such as when Lily has an episode and has urinated herself.  The little trait of always having clean underwear in her bag in case is a credit to her research in preparation for the role.

The film is built around Deyn's performance and it is a shame that the adapted screenplay by Joe Fisher based on the novel by Ray Robinson did not have the belief the performance warranted, not helped by those same characters conflicted by sexual identity, the lesbian who lets her live with her free of charge. This is London right?

Yet go see Deyn in a very convincing performance, one this writer hopes gains award attention in the new year,  and to think Deyn has had no formal acting training. In the words of Noel Gallagher, another Northerner like Deyn, 'She's Electric'

Electricity is out in Friday 12th December on a limited release from Soda Pictures.