WOW #30
Frankenstein, Once Upon A Time In Space, Down Cemetery Road
One minute it was Halloween, the next the (commercial) world seemingly decided unanimously that it was Christmas. I drove past B&Q on the 1st November as they started putting out the Christmas trees! Poor old November, you get Bonfire Night and then that’s it, Christmas has spread well beyond it’s own month of December! It’s too much, too soon in my opinion and I say this as a big Christmas fan. I will be savouring all the days of November as I embark on a fundraising challenge for Macmillan to walk 100km before the end of the month with my dog Sunny. Come rain or shine, we’ll be out there! Wish us luck!
So here are some very unchristmassy, November highlights for you to watch and enjoy: a beautiful retelling of a classic tale, the real star wars and a worthy successor to Slow Horses.
The WOW Instagram continues to grow and is full of daily updates to keep you updated in between newsletters. Please to give it a follow!
Frankenstein
Netflix are putting their biggest, and possibly strongest group of contenders forward for awards success this year. The list includes: The House of Dynamite from Kathryn Bigelow, Novelle Vague from Richard Linklater, Train Dreams starring Joel Edgerton and perhaps their biggest hope, Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein. He has spoken openly about wanting to make his own version of Mary Shelley’s classic for many years but it wasn’t until Netflix came along (with the much-needed funds and the promise of a limited cinematic release) that his dream became a reality.
Frankenstein is the latest in a spectacular catalogue of his fantastical works, notably: Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape Of Water and Pinocchio. Del Toro has become a modern master in conjuring up beautifully dark, cinematic fairytales. I was lucky enough to watch this on the big screen with my father, whose own love of films has played a big part in my lifelong affection for cinema and it continues to be a favourite past time of ours to discuss what we’ve been watching together. Sorry to sound like a broken record, but do see this on the biggest screen you can possible, it is a visual spectacle which deserves so much more than a humble laptop screen can offer.
I haven’t seen many different versions of this over 200 year old tale, however the one that has stayed with me most clearly was the National Theatre’s production where Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller took it in turns to play both Dr Frankenstein and 'The Monster’. An inspired idea with incredible performances from both actors. Guillermo Del Toro’s version is equally as innovative in this filmic adaptation, truly focused on the question: Who is the real monster of the story?
If you’re a bit squeamish, you may need to look away at times, I definitely did! In spite of this, it is a strikingly beautiful film. The gothic palette is a dazzling blend of period aesthetics with splashes of aggressive colours and textures. The intricate costumes worn by Mia Goth look like they could have come straight from a Parisian haute couture runway. Her character, Elizabeth is perhaps the most humane of the small ensemble which is in stark contrast with her mystical appearance. Oscar Isaac who plays Dr Frankenstein commands a convincing English accent and keeps his performance just on the right side of plausible madness. Christoph Waltz is on typically exquisite form, as is a brief but memorable performance from Charles Dance as Frankenstein’s father.
The casting of Jacob Elordi who is a real rising star of Hollywood, you may be familiar with his performances in Saltburn and the TV series Euphoria, is the genius stroke for me. Knowing that there is a handsome, young man underneath all the make-up and prosthetics, which are strangely beautiful in their anatomical design, is a sharp juxtaposition with the idea of the monster. He is after all the reconstruction (in this version) of the many parts of soldiers who died on the Napoleonic battlefields. Is it not the idea of bringing these pieces together to regenerate as one new life that is grotesque, not the resulting creation? You’ll have to watch yourselves to draw your own conclusions.
In cinemas now, on Netflix from 7th November
Once Upon A Time In Space
I was pretty surprised when the topic of the latest in the ‘Once Upon A Time In…’ documentary series was announced as space. This is because it would be following on from the absolute must watch previous two iterations: first came the Iraq series and then Northern Ireland (both of which are still available to watch on BBC iPlayer). So the subject of space seemed to be taking the anthology in a very different direction. However, I should never have feared with director James Bluemel at the helm once again, he has found the human stories at the heart of these hugely complicated subjects and what could be more complex than that of space?
To keep the narrative focused, the four episode series focuses on specific moments in the history of the ‘Space Race’, beginning with the pioneers who took the first flights on the Space Shuttle, the (literal) fall of the Russian space station Mir, the bullish rise of the International Space Station and finally how the conflicts on earth impacted the small group of humans who were living above it. The series follows the same award-winning formula of combining meticulously curated archive material alongside contemporary interviews with the people who were there to tell the true stories that go beyond the headlines.
I did not expect to get emotional listening to some of the few people who have actually ventured into space (fewer than 700 total) recounting their experiences. It is not something I would ever like to do, I am fine down here thank you very much, even if Elon & Jeff & Richard are determined to fly us all off to Mars and start again. It used to take a very unique kind of person to want to and then qualify to be able to go into space, as they refer to it, you need to have ‘the right stuff’. The toll it took on their loved ones, the multitude of emotions of those left down here on earth is evident in their interviews.
The mastery of this series, is how it transforms the stories of space exploration which might seem about as extraordinary as it gets to relate to and explain the most of human experiences. The first episode explores how gender and racial barriers were broken down in space travel long before the many that still remain in place across the globe. Hearing how the ISS was created in such a way that the Americans and the Russians had to work together in order for it to function is a peacekeeping principle that could, and perhaps should be applied far and wide. Bluemel has effectively used the themes involved in space travel as a gateway to explore issues here on earth; this is so much more than a documentary series about Space.
All four episodes are available to watch now on BBC iPlayer
Down Cemetery Road
Another epic series of Slow Horses has come to an end but fear not! Not only was there an exciting trailer for the next series as soon as it finished, one of the many reasons why I love Slow Horses so much, you never have to wait long for another one but also what proceeded that came the first two episodes of Down Cemetery Road. I have been eagerly anticipating this ever since it was announced that none other than all round legend and national treasure, Emma Thompson would be starring alongside the incredibly talented Ruth Wilson in a new series from the writer of the aforementioned Slow Horses, Mick Herron.
Down Cemetery Road is title of the first of four books in the Zoë Boehm series by Herron which he wrote before the Slough House series (meaning there is plenty more where this came from). The titular character of Zoë Boehm, a private detective based in Oxford is played by Thompson. She has a unique set of people skills, not dissimilar to those of Jackson Lamb with a marginally better personal hygiene regime. However, at least for the first two episodes, she only dazzles on screen and handful of times. It is her co-star Ruth Wilson who takes the lead at the beginning.
Wilson plays the initially timid art restorer Sarah, who decides to take matters into her own hands after a mysterious explosion takes place in a house on her street interrupting (or saving her) from an awkwardly painful dinner party with her husband’s obnoxious work client. She literally stumbles across the ramshackle Private Detective agency run by Zoë’s husband Joe and realises rather quickly she has pulled at a thread that is starting to unravel with terrible consequences.
If you like to binge watch things, this might be one to save up the episodes for because boy are there some brilliant cliffhangers! I am already desperate to find out what happens in the next one. However, it is a longer run than Slow Horses, with 8 episodes in total so you’ll be waiting until the 10th December to watch them all in one go. The tone is similar to that of Slow Horses, mixing thrilling action with laugh out loud comedy; special shout out to Adeel Akhtar who offers spectacular light relief throughout. Oxford always provides a visually pleasing backdrop when featured as the setting on screen and Ruth Wilson puts some impressive pedal to the metal on her faithful bicycle. I have no idea where it is going, but feel confident with those working on and off screen that this will not disappoint.
New episodes released every Wednesday on Apple TV