Matthew Perry (1969-2023)

Celebrity deaths are frequent but as the old adage goes there are only two things certain in life - death and taxes. Well there should be a third one and that is friends. In any walk of life, they will come into your life perhaps fleetingly or cement themselves in your ether, or they may leave just as quickly as they arrive due to circumstances beyond your control in this weird spectrum of life.

These friends may be people you grow to cherish or resent depending upon the attachment you have, or they may be people you do care about due to what they mean to you. The latter applies to celebrities and sportspeople - you grow this unhealthy at times attachment to a person you may never meet in person for fear of having your expectations broken. You watch a show religiously and the character the person depicts may become your favourite person and when that show ends you give that actor the benefit of the doubt and hope they can strike gold again.

For all six members of the Warner Bros television show, Friends, which first aired in September 1994, nobody could have forseen the universal popularity of a simple premise of a show of six people (three men, three women) who live in each other's pockets constantly. A sitcom of simplicity that grew into a juggernaut of world domination and changed the lives of all six fairly unknown (though Courtney Cox had done film work) into household names and the most recognisable six-person group since the Chicago Bulls.

Everybody has their favourite Friend, be it dipsy Phoebe, hunky Joey or lovesick Ross, but for me and many my favourite was Chandler Bing, portrayed by Matthew Perry. Chandler was handsome, clever and most importantly the funniest most sarcastic character ever committed to screen. Before Chandler arrived on our screens, we had witty people - perhaps Seinfeld and Frasier Crane - but this was a character whose sarcasm hid so much trauma underneath the surface, and a deflection mechanism to combat his hopelessness with women that it was no surprise he ended up falling for someone who already knew him pretty well.

His sarcastic streak was something, this writer, as a teenager when the show began was something I aspired to - that zeal to hit a one-liner, to be the funniest guy in the room but also the nicest guy in the room. Be honest sometimes to your detriment and be left dancing alone by the end of the night, but be somebody that people can rely upon when needed and valued. I saw so much of me in Chandler growing up as I navigated my own strange 

Perry though was a different breed of actor. Growing up in Canada, he was an established tennis player at junior level with aspirations for the pro tour before the acting bug got him and the road to stardom began. Perry had an ease about his performance that was reminiscent of say Cary Grant or James Stewart, he made it look easy in his delivery and style from those early season bowling shirt combo he along with Rachael and her hair-do became to me a fashion icon. And the best chemistry he had on the show was not with his screen wife, Courtney Cox, but with Matt Le Blanc as room-mate Joey. Their partnership and love for each other was an integral part of the show's stratospheric success, you need only look at the episode where they swap apartments with Monica and Rachael, the same episode that announces Phoebe's pregnancy (Lisa Kudrow's real-life pregnancy utilised for effect), a great episode 'The One With The Embryos' (Season 4, Episode 12)

Which makes the tumultuous middle years of the series when he succumb to pain medication abuse and painkiller addiction all the more sad. Perry became someone you worried for as much as a real-life friend, so to see him during the Friends Reunion looking a bit dishevelled and not half as witty as in previous years was all such a shame.

As with all the other cast members, the reach for film stardom did not come easy, he starred opposite Bruce Willis in The Whole Nine Yards; a hit-man comedy which was a box-office hit and yet the films dried up. His best film performance was in Fools Rush In, where opposite Selma Hayek he had some decent chemistry as Alex Whitman and his everyman appeal was played to the fore, yes he is a bit Bing-lite but the film is quite good if you have ever seen it.

After Friends finished in 2004, he starred in Aaron Sorkin's Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, which sadly only ran for one series but showed his ability to skate between comedy and drama. His timing as always was so spot on and yet as he found out, people could only see him as Chandler.

He wrote his autobiography and that was heralded for its openness and truth, and his retelling of being unable to remember three years of the series due to his addiction problems. The abuse sadly has taken a hold on him seemingly and has cut short a life that was not lived fully. 

Another talented individual has left us too early, could I be anymore sad? Yes I can. 

Half Eaten By Dogs - The Serfs

 

New album by thrilling Ohio trio via Trouble in Mind Records

In a world where pristine pop rules the mainstream - think Harry and Taylor - the trio from Cincinnati, Ohio of Dylan McCartney (vocals, guitar, bass), Dakota Carlyle (electronica, bass) and Andie Luman (vocals, synth), have curated a musical maelstrom of sound and wonder that is both thrilling to listen to and difficult to pigeon hole.

From the album opener, 'Order Imposing Sentence', this is a long player that is distinctive in tone and is happy to wear a multitude of influences on its sleeve from Depeche Mode in the post-Vince Clarke days before the stratospheric late 1980s run they enjoyed to that of Suicide. Its more like surf rock but howling at the moon as they ride the crest of the wave.

'Spectral Analysis' samples Air's 'Sexy Boy' as if it is a transmission from a by-gone era or another dimension and yet there is a thrust and drive to the album that should be applauded. This trio is sticking to its guns and shooting for the moon.

'Electric Like An Eel' has this pounding sound that is unrelenting and yet is infectious and bouncy; it is this constant contradiction and juxtaposition of genres taking place that is seemingly unsettling to a listener but also keeps them on their toes, unsurprisingly this was a single release of the album.

This refreshing album is great to hear and reminded this listener of new sounds discovered such as FACS and Activity - that unnerving distortive sonic soundscapes being created.

It does strike me that this is a band who are on the cusp of bigger and better things to come, and while this album is their third album it smacks of maturity and a keen sense of what direction they want to be going in. 

The simplest way to state this album is that it is electronica just not as you know it infused with punk goodness and thrashing guitars.

Half Eaten by Dogs is out on Friday 27th October via Trouble in Mind Records

My thanks to One Beat PR for the review opportunity.

Beyond Utopia

 Brand new documentary released by Dogwoof on Friday 27th October

This new documentary directed and edited by Madeline Gavin, is sobering and equally heart-breaking. It delves into the recollections of North Korean's who have taken the brave step to leave the totalitarian regime and seek a new life over the border in either China or South Korea.

The regime of North Korea goes to great lengths to paint a picture that all is rosy in their country, one newspaper, one television channel, one dictator leadership, and the lengths to keep the population in the country with barbed wires and the bullying tactics of the police force through this feedback is startling to the viewer. The crossing across the Yalu River is daunting and petrifying, using footage by those seeking refuge which makes this as thrilling as any found-footage film as we witness first hand the struggles.

The film follows the efforts benevolent pastor Kim can sometimes get double digit requests for people wanting to move and he obtains footage of apartments in North Korea, built with no lifts and they use wood for cooking and heating. Two stories run parallel one is the five person family Ro who give up everything to seek freedom and reunite with family in Seoul, South Korea and the other a mother Soyeon Lee awaiting the news of her son escape attempt. 

You see elders and youngsters fighting back tears as they recall the journey to get to safety, how they are taught that the western world and America are the most evil people in the world and yet the majority of North Koreans live in poverty and squalor.

The realisation upon most of the evacuees' faces as they learn of the true depiction of the Kim regime is refreshing, and how in this world which has a whole heap of problems to deal with constantly, anyone born must have the will to move where they wish. North Korea denies their citizens that basic liberty and then lie to them to make them think this is as good as it gets. Those who soldier on to China or Thailand learn the truth.

An eye-opening document that the whole world should see and by focusing on the people and not the politics makes the documentary both brave and frightening and most importantly accessible to the plight suffered.

Beyond Utopia is out from Dogwoof in selected UK/Ireland cinemas from Friday 27th October

Typist Artist Pirate King

 

New Carol Morley film based upon Audrey Amiss released by Modern Films on Friday 27th October 2023

Carol Morley is one of Britain's most creative film-makers and yet she remains for the most part unknown to the mainstream film watching public. From her debut feature, she has navigated a career of unique features building upon real life stories, autobiographical content and the role of women in modern society. This is not a filmmaker looking to the past to explain the now, this is the here and now, best to understand it as best you could.

Her influence for the new feature is the similarly unknown avant-garde artist, Audrey Amiss (Monica Dolan) whose diaries inspired Morley's film. Incorporating the tropes of the road trip genre as Amiss seeks recognition for her career, she convinces her psychiatric nurse Sandra Panza (Kelly Macdonald) to escort her back to where it all began with many a diversion in place.

Amiss documented her experience of the world and how she saw it through the prism of her own self-proclaimed lunacy; this is a road trip between an eccentric and a reluctant chauffeur.

What is so pleasing about the this film - apart from obviously passing the Bechel Test - is that you get two top notch performances at the helm of the film. Dolan, so often the ensemble player and erstwhile supporter, is given free rein to go for glory and she sinks her teeth into the role of Amiss with aplomb and relish. From the outset, she plays her as a firebrand and rebel and yet one who has been misunderstood for much of her adult life and artistic career.

The partnership of Dolan and Macdonald is key to the film's success and how it will translate to the mainstream, how refreshing to see a film led by two females and in Macdonald returning from Hollywood, willing to play second fiddle to Dolan's lead. The medium shot set-up of the two head on as they drive on their road trip is indicative of this partnership in a moving vehicle, the fondness for the two initially frosty is slowly one where warmth grows similar to that of Jimmy and the Duke in Midnight Run. 

NB (I as a male writer realises this is stupid to write and compare this to an all-male bond when the ultimate companion to this film would be Thelma and Louise surely, where both women's roles alter from the film's beginning and find themselves upon the journey.)

As they drive around, the everyday people they encounter become conduits or people from her past who Amiss use to vent her frustrations with her misgivings and incidents. The constant conflict and unease Amiss creates could be unnerving were it not for the performance of Dolan who incorporates equal rage and equal vulnerability.

The story untangles as more about Audrey's past culminating in the admission that she suffered a major fall when she was 19 leading to her mental health issues and the estrangement between her and her sister Dorothy (Gina McKee) who is the ultimate goal of the journey.

Interspersed with pictures/drawings from Amiss' extensive archive and featuring music she would have wholeheartedly approved of upon the soundtrack, this is a call to arms of a film questioning roles of female artists in general and the biases we may have towards those with mental health issues, everyone is capable of something and that the support they receive is what matters. 

A winning formula with strains of British film-making history from the absurdity of Audrey hitting upon an Anglo-Saxon v Viking re-enactment which smacks of Monty Python to the influence of Ken Russell in the melding of an artist's life with dramatisation, this is a film shot with a softness and a kindness to the crippling nature of mental health, Morley should be applauded for this film that is sympathetic and energetic to a character she is quite fond of.

This is a film that should be commended and enjoyed by a wider audience.

TYPIST ARTIST PIRATE KING is released in UK/Ireland cinemas on Friday 27th October.

OUR RIVER...OUR SKY

 Out Friday 20th October on limited release, a new film by Maysoon Pachachi

Distributed by Tull Stories and produced by the BFI and the National Lottery, Pachachi is a Baghdad born, British raised female director who has returned to her roots to create an intertwining narrative about the individuals who live within the cloud that pervades them in Baghdad in the days leading up to the death of former leader Saddam Hussein.

This is a period of deep transition for the whole region as the rule of Saddam is coming to an end, the various characters we encounter are going through changes themselves and others are still seeking answers for solace amidst the surrounding madness.

The veritable lead Sara (Darina Al Joundi) is the well meaning woman who pervades everybody and she is mostly worried for the future of her daughter Reema (Zainab Joda), for instance how is she going to get to school if the driver has been shot and she gets asked questions is she Sunni or Shia, Sara's response is, 'You are Iraqi'.

Shot beautifully by Jonathan Bloom in actual locations, the film is a wonderful and stirring embodiment of the human spirit. The power with which these characters have to go about their every day business is commendable as bombs go off so unexpectedly and without warning. 

However, the notion of an intertwining story was perhaps not the best means to tell this story. If the film had focused solely on Sara and her family with the periphery characters intruding upon her life may have served the story better. The film is an achievement in being made and yet it could have been so far-reaching and universal if the script was a bit tighter.

It reminded this viewer of a film called Heights (2005) by Chris Terrio, a 24 hour film set in New York again when five characters lives collide and remember that film failed to nail the drama despite having good actors at its disposal. In this instance, the film was unable to nail the message despite the drama and performance being present.

Released by Tull Stories, the film is memorable for existing and yet the final image of the film following news of Saddam's death is one of less of optimism but the fact that the cloud that they live under may never totally rescind - the pessimism is there for all to see. And following recent atrocities in a not too distant location from Baghdad in the last few weeks, we are no nearer to peace in the Middle East which makes this film all the more poignant.

OUR RIVER...OUR SKY is out on limited release in UK/Ireland from 20th October

My thanks to AR-PR for the review link.

PAX & THE MISSING HEAD

 

New YA book from David Barker PAX AND THE MISSING HEAD out via Tiny Tree Books 19th October

This reader, has followed David Barker's career since he returned to writing following a career change from economics to literature. He wrote a series of espionage thrillers with adults at the helm involving the threat of water levels to the world and this was pre-pandemic and Greta Thunberg bringing notions of climate change awareness to the reader that others might be wary of.

However, Barker has again changed course, now writing for young adults. In the first of a new series, this is the tale of Pax, virtually a slave in a dystopian future London that is encased by a new London wall, draconian rule is enforced yet Pax is a young man of initiative and industry who yearns to be an engineer and not dwell in the nefarious mines forever.

By chance, he gains a place at a prestigious and mysterious school and from there the book follows the the template of Tom Brown Schooldays mixed with the boarding school tropes from a certain wizard storyline with a dash of science fiction tomfoolery abounding.

Barker has always been able to write with a zip and thrust to his narrative, maintaining good character arcs and believable dialogue, luckily the transition to the young adult genre has not diminished any of this quality. A book that is under 300 pages it has that same cut and dash this reader recalls from his Gold trilogy and it was a pleasure to read.

While the influences are somewhat obvious, Barker is keen to embrace with great effect those narrative motifs to enhance his own world-building which nails the landing like a drone capturing a flag. 

Aimed at the pre-teen market by the publishers, this is an enticing read for capable readers between the ages of 9-12 and is a good gateway into the world of dystopian science fiction.

PAX AND THE MISSING HEAD is out from Tiny Trees on 19th October

Follow David Barker on Twitter 

CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY

 

New 4K Restoration for little seen anti-apartheid film set in South Africa

This 1951 release was directed by Zoltan Korda (The Four Feathers), based upon the novel by Alan Paton and starring Sidney Poitier and Canada Lee, in his last film role while being photographed by Robert Krasker, who shot The Third Man, this is a welcome addition to the StudioCanal library

The film follows the story of a black priest Kumalo portrayed by Lee, who leaves the township he resides over to go to the big city, in this case Johannesburg to search for his estranged son, played by Poitier. Each step on his journey, much like Joseph Cotton's he is blindsided by sudden revelations that leave him shattered, from the discovery that his sister is a prostitute to finding his son has been charged with death for the murder of a prominent white figure in the community.

Meanwhile, back in the village white farmer Jarvis (Charles Carson) who is indifferent to the injustices of apartheid, hears of the murder of his son who was an activist combating the oppression of Black South Africans and so learns more of their struggles and begins to understand.

This is a story adapted from Alan Paton's novel of the same name, and it marks out as a key text in the unification of grief and the admonishment of the apartheid rule, two fathers dealing with the death of their sons and how this could bring peace amidst the turmoil.

Shot on location in South Africa, this is a deeply poignant political drama and it is a marked segway between two different styles of picture. The white farmer scenes are shot like the dressing room dramas that is reminiscent of Ealing Studios perhaps while the location shots of Johannesburg shows a new brevity and bravery in film-making, shooting on location makes the city a character and with illustrious actors such as Lee and Poitier being so prominent shows a production unafraid to comment on racial injustices by putting the oppressed front and centre instead of this becoming a white saviour narrative; unfortunately that would become the norm in Hollywood cinema such as Mississippi Burning or A Time To Kill but British cinema has never been afraid to voice the stories of black characters such as Horace Ove.

Extras on the Blu-Ray and DVD include an interview with Mona Z Smith - biographer of Canada Lee, archive footage of the production, a documentary on cinema under apartheid and interviews with African filmmaker Lionel Ngakane and writer Alan Paton as well as a fascinating 16 page booklet.

CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY is out 9th October on Blu-Ray/DVD from Studiocanal UK

BEWILDER - From the Eyrie

 

New album by Southampton duo Bewilder from Tiny Engines label

The duo comprise of vocalist/guitarist George Brooks and multi-instrumentalist Thom Wilkinson, whom have been performing as Bewilder for over a decade now. The LP From the Eyrie showcases a sophisticated more mature focus of the pair due to the nature of its genesis.

Demos for the songs started to appear in 2019, where the pair would send demos to each other. This had to continue during the global lockdown of 2020. For example, 'Twin Lakes' was finished in May 2020 and with the sweeping violins enwrapped in the final track, the intention was to create a full long playing album. Brooks, a long time fan of emo bands such as Jimmy Eat World and American Football, the goal was to make an album of feeling but remaining fresh and original.

Songs that are full of originality, it is somewhat befitting the film that has this warmth and good-feeling running through the sequencing is released during the late period Indian summer we are experiencing in the UK currently. While the political landscape may seem murky and unchartered, the release of music such as this from the South Coast offers hope and sunshine, as Brooks and Wilkinson channel these notions of nostalgia (as the album cover attests to) and nature. 

From album opener 'Heavy Sweater' there is a warmth from the opening arpeggios, strings soar on 'Breaking' and in 'Home' you have acoustic traditional folk. This all marks the album out as one that is a gateway to your new favourite band, and yet a duo that seemingly has so much left in the locker to explore and discover.

FROM THE EYRIE is out via Tiny Engines on all platforms from October 6th