A Tangled Web - Ken Lussey

Brand new Contemporary novel by Ken Lussey out 15th November

Prolific Scottish based author, Ken Lussey, returns with his second contemporary set novel of the calendar year. Starring his new creation, Callum Anderson, a Metropolitan Police officer, whose life has taken a strange turn and finds himself out of familiar water in the Scottish Highlands.

Callum is investigating the mysterious death of Iain Mackay, husband to Dr. Jenny, whose disappearance was first mentioned in the first novel The High Road. Callum is getting more firmly cemented into his new surroundings and in being quite taken with Jenny as a new romantic avenue to pursue.

The first book that introduced Callum had a bit more emotional baggage to navigate as he had to overcome the end of his marriage in London and separation from his twin sons, yet we followed his navigation of finding a new lease of life and purpose in the Scottish landscapes. 

This second novel, shows our protagonist as more an investigator than a policeman, delving into the dodgy dealings of Iain before his unseemly end in a lay-by. Fans of the television series Shetland will notice and wonder how such nefarious things can follow a man around small towns.

Yet for this reader, Lussey remains a capable and prestigious talent of maintaining narrative hold of the proceedings, never wavering in terms of pace and thrust of the cut that finds our lead characters in worrying moments of peril.

Lussey again weaves in historical facts of long lost locations (Drumbeg Castle) and paints wonderful pictures of lovely landscapes Callum and Jenny encounter. At times it can feel like tourist information but Lussey writes with such a passion for the history and feel of a place it does not feel like exposition and not at all unnecessary.

Written with such a verve and intelligence that it is commendable he can write with such authority and assuredness release upon release. Another great addition to his catalogue, if not completely matching previous heights, of which he has set a very high standard though.

A Tangled Web is release from Arachnid Press on all formats from 15th November.

My thanks to them for the review opportunity.

The Rich - Rachel Lynch

 

New standalone novel by thriller writer Rachel Lynch

For fans of Doctor Foster and The Only Way is Essex; this new contemporary work by Cumbrian set author Rachel Lynch, who has previously given us the series of  DI Kelly Porter novels by Canelo Crime, is a standalone novel set in the rich and luxurious lifestyles of the well to do of Cambridge, East Anglia.

A plot revolving around the rich and wealthy who seemingly have all the same hang-ups as normal people but the unfortunate problem of money and big houses to hide behind.

Set amidst the warm summer that England is experiencing more frequently, the central thrust of the narrative is based around the disappearance and then discovery of the missing Monica, trophy wife to Tony Thorpe whose slovenly nature is unbecoming to all who encounter him. 

This is a story with quite an involving plot of details and characters, a lot of people to be introduced to in a short book length of 322 pages which is both a gift and problem for the reader. So begins this quick cutting narrative as with the use of short chapters written from the that character's viewpoint we get glimpses to the multitude of characters; for me this is where I had difficulty with the book in that there was perhaps too many people to invest in at once. 

There is Dr Alex the main female protagonist, a psychologist who is keeper of the elite's dirty secrets. Carrie lives a pristine life but is unhappy. Henry likes to sleep with wives of men he works for. Grace, perhaps the most interesting character, a fitness trainer/influencer whose perfect image hides dark secrets of her own.  As the body of Monica is revealed, Dr Alex knows that anybody is capable of murder if pushed too much. 

This is not a total criticism, as said previously the Grace part of the novel is the most delicately handled of the story, the influencer struggling with the influence she pervades and the pressure of self-image and self-esteem is so prevalent to our culture of today.

This reader could see the influence of such works as The Slap, that cross-cultural dissection of modern Australian society based around the conduct of one person and the branches of impact that causes. As here, when one person's passing can have an impact on many and the different levels of trauma and anguish each experiences.

A thrilling trashy getaway vacation read by a talented author who has written something different from the comfort of their detective serial reads. Yet, all in all, it is a shot that just misses the bullseye.

The Rich is out from Canelo in all formats from Thursday 9th November.

My thanks to Canelo for the review copy.

Parachute - Raindance Review

Debut directorial feature by Brittany Snow 

Brittany Snow, American female actress who starred in Pitch Perfect won the Audience Award at SXSW for her directorial debut, Parachute. An original film about addiction and self-abuse.

Riley (Courtney Eaton - Yellowjackets) is a well to do young woman, who we first meet when leaving rehab for her bulimia and addiction to Instagram. She does not like the woman she sees when comparing herself to every girl on social media, when to the naked eye she is a young and attractive woman. At a party shortly after her release, she meets Ethan (Thomas Mann) who is genuine and kind to her plight providing support for her.

And yet Riley's demons will not abate and she cannot stop looking at social media and comparing herself. She wards off good intentions of her remaining friends, yet finds a job in a murder-mystery dinner theatre where her aspirations of writing may come to fruition.

Riley has inherited her good fortune, the huge apartment and yet cannot shake off the entitled streak within her. She believes that she will be a great writer and will be beautiful to any bachelor, yet the film makes the comment that for all her attempts to avoid the lure of social media it is unavoidable and therefore her suffering will persist and dismissing Ethan's genuine feelings for someone she feels she is entitled to.

Halfway through the film you hope this is a nice love story between Riley and Ethan in the wonderful setting of New York, yet the demons return and we have to endure some hard watches for Eaton to depict some genuine dark moments. The script co-written by Snow with Becca Gleason about her own battles, is a personal project for her and she admits she knew how to shoot the film from storyboards to production. The interweaving of intimate shots of the two leads as their courtship grows is a nice touch, but by the end it becomes the focus of lost moments than forever love.

Helped by some great casting and support by known names, Joel McHale as Ethan's alcoholic father who he cannot help, Dave Bautista as Riley's new employer and Gina Rodriguez as Dr. Akerman, Riley's therapist.

Special mention also to the soundtrack and original score by Keegan DeWitt (check out his work on 2010 film Cold Weather) who weaves a great atmosphere here, along with Kristen Correll's cinematography.

Parachute was screened at the 2023 Raindance Film Festival. Hopefully it obtains a distribution deal in the near future.

KING AND COUNTRY

Brilliant new 4K restoration of anti-war film King and Country (1964) by Joseph Losey

This mostly unknown British film by acclaimed American director, Joseph Losey, is another collaboration with renowned British thespian Dirk Bogarde. Their partnership bore great riches together and this is there little film but the one that speaks the loudest in terms of relevancy to today's modern age. 

The film follows the famous anti-war narrative familiar in literature from Journey's End and Catch-22, the futility of war is apparent for all to see, and in the depiction of Private Hamp (Tom Courtenay), a deserter from the front-lines during the Great War, you have another anti-hero. 

Dirk Bogarde portrays Captain Hargreaves, a lawyer, sent to defend Hamp as he faces court-martial for desertion with the threat of execution by firing squad. Hamp just wants to go home as many wanted to do no doubt, and yet the stigmatism of cowardice is thrown around by those in command, those who are not on the front-line.

Hamp has his reasons, he volunteered on a dare, he is the only survivor of his group remaining and his wife back home has been unfaithful in his absence; and yet the political machine chooses to use Hamp as an example before another futile offensive manoeuvre in the quagmire of the first world war somewhere in France. 

The film is set for the most part in real-time, and shares a lot of cinematic DNA with Kubrick's Paths of Glory where Kirk Douglas defended deserters and the squalor and downtrodden mess of the trenches is clear to see as rain constantly falls on young men fighting for their lives and freedom in or near No Man's Land.

The new restoration gives the film a real shine and sheen to these sad sights and Bogarde plays Hargreaves in a fine line between right and just and true and sceptic. When a superior officer questions the defence of mental health, stating, 'Is he a lunatic?' it puts a black mark on all proceedings and how nearly a hundred years later, male mental health only came to fruition when men were battened down in their households during a global pandemic with little or not much to do.

'I just wanted to get away from the guns sir'

Courtenay is quite astounding in the role of Hamp (he won Best Actor in Venice that year) and this was in the purple patch of his run of performances in the Angry Young Man era from The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner and Billy Liar to this performance. His heartfelt and honest portrayal reminded this viewer of Ed Norton's debut in Primal Fear when his role depicted a fugue like state in a post-traumatic stress event.

Bogarde holds court himself as the true star of proceedings akin to a George Clooney in those days as he cross-examines witnesses such as Leo McKern as the doctor who does not notice the effects of shell shock upon Hamp. Bogarde when facing a jury who have already made their decision in terms of Hamp's verdict shows that justice can be just as ineffective as war on occasion.

Timely and timeless, this film serves as a constant reminder that the real cost of war is the loss of innocence.

Special features include an interview with Tom Courtenay about the film; an archive interview with Dirk Bogarde from 1964 and Behind the Scenes stills

King and Country is released by Studiocanal UK on Blu-ray/DVD on 6th November

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