forgotten cinema - The Party Animal

hey everyone


well, like the last "forgotten cinema" piece i did on Night Hawks the term "forgotten" may be a bit excessive. as cult classics go, it's very fondly thought of and celebrated by those of us who discovered the film in the mid-80s, but it would seem there are not all that many of us to celebrate. an internet search reveals next to no information about this fine, funny film is currently online, so i feel obliged to rectify that!





i will try and keep this as spoiler-free as i can, but as i laugh as hard at it now as i did when i first saw it many years ago (probably 1985, maybe 86), it's not like knowing what goes on in it spoils seeing it in any way. for fellow fans of the film who have stumbled upon my site as a consequence of a search of this, hello, welcome and no, you are not alone in your love of this movie!

the film follows the plight of Pondo Sinatra, played by the elusive and mysterious Matthew Causey (more on him later). he's a fresh from the farm lad arriving at a college campus, and he has one major problem - as much as he wants the ladies, the ladies do not want him. the manner in which he arrived could have some bearing on that.





fate or good fortune, however, intervene, and his room-mate is the highly popular Studly (played by Tim Carhart, one of those actors you recognize but can rarely name). Studly has sympathy for the plight of Pondo, and does all that he can to teach him to be wise in the ways of women.





this includes, but is certainly not limited to, sending Pondo off to learn from the master and Studly's own guru, the voice of wisdom that is Elbow (Jerry Jones).





i guarantee you that people who know and love the film are looking at the picture above and are saying something to themselves which commences with the words "hound dog".....

...which is no bad thing, recalling the rather memorable scene in which Pondo does indeed attempt to become the hound dog!





despite the collective wisdom of such sage and noble figures, however, it seems Pondo Sinatra is jinxed and destined never to be a success with the ladies. no matter how impressive the attempts are to hook Pondo up with a lady, something always happens to ensure that Pondo's intentions of love always remain unrequited.





Studly and Elbow end up at something of a loss to explain why Pondo is such a miserable failure with the ladies, ultimately - in one of the greatest philosophical conversations ever captured on film - concluding that he must be unsuccessful now due to rampant and great success in a past life.





to somewhat break from a rundown of the film, i have to here highlight one of Pondo's attempts to impress the ladies. in one of the funniest scenes ever in the movies, Pondo takes Studly's comments about women loving drugs to heart and heads off to impress them with a barrage of blow, as it were.





if you are in the group of people who have not seen this film, take a gamble and trust me when i say the "drugs party scene" from this movie makes it well worth seeing alone!

a turning point for the fortunes of Pondo comes when he - presumably by accident - pays attention in a lecture and learns of the world of the aphrodisiac. this sets him off on a quest to create the ultimate aphrodisiac, sure that this will give him the success he craves.





he of course doesn't get it right with his first chemical creations, but it is enormous fun watching him experiment away!





does he eventually find the winning formula? does he eventually create the most powerful aphrodisiac the world has known? oh, yes....





and, in one of the scenes that impressed by good chum Spiros the most, he creates an aphrodisiac that is not, strictly speaking, limited to the rules of heterosexual attraction.....





right, i think i've given enough of the film away here! believe me, there's a good deal more to the film than i have highlighted so far!

a great deal of the charm of The Party Animal, and indeed why it's so funny, is the astonishingly high level of intellect on display in the writing. for what is essentially a "teen comedy" it makes many high-brow references that are easy to ignore for those not in the know, but wonderful and endearing for those who do.

writer/director David Beaird, someone who seems to have done only slightly more work in movies than his lead actor, clearly had Dr Faustus in mind as a premise for the structure of the story. this is never more visible than in the form of the "silent narrator" of the film, the blonde lady who never speaks and yet seems to be the only one, pre-aphrodisiac at least, to look the way of Pondo.





as for the fantastic actor who played Pondo Sinatra, Matthew Causey, well, enjoy this performance because thus far it has been his only on-screen appearance! it's incredible that someone clearly as funny and talented as him did not have a reasonable (at least) movie career, but maybe he didn't want one. no one really knows for sure; he has sort of "vanished".

there have been stories and rumours as to where Mr Causey is and what he's up to. whilst it's pretty much accepted that the Matthew Causey who is a professor of film & literature at Georgia State Tech is the one from this film, there's others who claim that he holds a similar position in Dublin, or even that he currently manages some fast food outlet in the middle of nowhere. he did, however, apparent surface and make a film in 2003 called Frank And Marie, but as far as i am aware no one has actually ever seen the film!

oh well, wherever he is, you have a legion of fans that wish you had made more than just this film. thanks at least for this one, and good luck with whatever it is you now do instead.





The Party Animal is a low budget gem. it's witty, inventive and at times flat out hysterical. i have no idea how they balanced the inclusion of so many crass and crude elements without ever really slipping into bad taste, but they did it. add to all that i have said an astonishing soundtrack, dominated by some of the best songs that The Buzzcocks ever did, and you have around 80 minutes of lightweight, fun entertainment that's not quite for everyone, but brilliant to those for who it is intended.

this film should have launched the director and star onto a healthy career making well above average movies. it didn't, for some reason, and you have to assume that it's because they chose not to take that path.

for those of you looking for this film, you should find it pretty easily enough on DVD from the USA - amazon have it at a reasonable price. it doesn't appear to be officially available anywhere else at the moment, although i could well be wrong. you may want to bear in mind that, for some reason, some countries had the film released in a heavily edited state under the name Party Time.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

at last! the remake no one wanted will bother us soon....

oh dear.....


no sooner has the news broke that they plan to remake one classic Schwarzenegger film, Commando, than we get images of a remake of another, Conan. neither sound like wise ideas, and finally we get to see confirmation that one of them really isn't a good idea!

the warning signs for Conan perhaps not being as good as the original two Schwarzenegger films are there in the post. are you looking at it carefully?





yep, that's right folks, they have not updated the initial poster for the film, so they are apparently still hoping to have this film released in 2009! the actual, latest date seems to be 2011. and looking at the initial production values on display, i dare say it will be released directly on DVD in 2011.

here is someone called Jason Momoa as Conan....





it's not a bad idea having a relative unknown in the part, i guess - it's better than the initial idea of having The Rock play the most ferocious barbarian of them all, and indeed Schwarzenegger was pretty much unknown, with apologies to fans of Hercules In New York, when Conan The Barbarian was made. however, Conan has been made, and thus a comparison between the two actors playing the lead is impossible to avoid. and this new lad just doesn't look right, does he?





i really don't see this guy being as great in the role as intended, really. it's perhaps wrong to judge on the basis of blurred images and not so much as a trailer out there, but the feeling i get is this will be disappointing. i mean, you just don't see this new guy ever being able to look as mental or as bonkers as Arnold in the part, an example of what i am saying would be this scene....





some of the other casting leaves one wondering, too. for the part of Corin, Conan's father, we apparently will be treated to a make up free Ron Perlman. not really a bad choice per se, considering how he is celebrated and vaunted by the comic book fraternity, but when you consider that a pre-Wrestler revival Mickey Rourke and a not really revived ever Dolph Lundgren turned down the part, you have to wonder how bad the part in particular or the script and production in general are.

Conan is a quality concept and deserves a good, decent treatment. rather than a remake or, as the popular term for it is, "reboot", i would suggest that what the target audience for this film really, really wants is that which was promised to us at the end of Conan The Destroyer. that would be, of course, a film entitled either King Conan or Conan The Conqueror, with the only man who should be playing the part back in the role that launched him to fame and fortune.





unless Arnold really gets bored of his new political career and all of a sudden wants to go back to high octane, quality action movies, however, we are really unlikely ever to see that film. you never know, though - it has taken them some 26 years to make the sequel to The Sword & The Sorceror, the soon to be released Tales Of An Ancient Empire, so never say never i guess!

as for this whole idea of a Commando remake, well, fellow lovers of that film will hardly need me to state that it would be impossible to recast the majority of roles in the film. a thought did occur to me, though. since they are planning a film version of this 24 TV show, why not take the Commando plot as a premise for it? obviously Jack Bauer (as far as i am aware) isn't a commando as such, but a few tweaks and rewrites and i think it might work!



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Democracy Live!

hey everyone


well, i was flicking through the channels last night, waiting for the second 20/20 game to start, and happened to land on Sky News at exactly the right moment. i was rather entertained to catch Adam Boulton really kicking off at the notorious manipulator or plain avoider of the truth, Mr Alistar Campbell. if you weren't lucky enough to see it, i am pretty sure it's up around the internet by now, but here are some screenshots.





Mr Boulton may very well have a slant towards the political views of the owner of the channel for which he works, but that doesn't prevent him from giving mostly well balanced, insightful and entertaining interviews and comment. why Alistar Campbell decided to just stand there and taunt him like an annoying schoolboy with no friends instead of answering the questions presented is a bit of a mystery, really. if Mr Campbell can no longer even manipulate words to present "his interpretation" of something, it must be desperate days for him and those he presumes to speak on behalf of!





considering the damage done to many lives by some of the more notorious episodes of Mr Campbell "manipulating" information before presenting it, i suspect many would have applauded Mr Boulton if he had happened to punch him right square in the face.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

pancakes in May

hey everyone

well, let me start off with obligatory apologies for not updating too much this month. i, indeed we, seem to be rather busy these days, so i don't get all the time i would like to sit and write away!

moving right along, over the weekend James had a most splendid idea of wishing to have some pancakes for dinner. i followed this up with the rather good idea of offering to get the ingredients and having a bash at making some.

much to the disdain of local repairmen, sensing a good deal of work being imminent in our kitchen, Michele had the even better idea of me getting the ingredients and allowing her to cook them, since it was less likely things would blow up or break in general with her at the controls.

it took little time and even less fuss for me to stand aside and allow the master to perform her art, ably assisted by James of course!





we have a tendency to "forget" Shrove Tuesday every year in our house, which is a bit of a pity! oh well, they tasted just as good in May as i am sure they would have in February!

James and Michele certainly had great fun making them; James in particular was rather taken with having a cup to pour ingredients in with!





as for young William, well, despite his attempts to eat anything (and anyone) that goes near him, he is not quite ready for the joys of pancakes as such as of yet, and so he wisely just had a nice snooze and left us to get on with it!





anyway, dishes to do, bottles to fill and all that stuff! hope all is well wherever you are in the world!!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

90 minutes of Avatar

hey everyone

well, as i was one of the few people left on Earth not to have seen this Avatar movie i decided to give it a go at the weekend. there are many, many people out there who consider this film to be "the greatest of all time". if you are one of them then please stop reading now and move onto something else that you might agree with.

i tried watching the film on DVD on one of those huge LCD screen things. the short version is that it was switched off after 90 minutes as the whole thing just gave me one big headache.





if ever there was a case of smoke and mirrors being used to convince the masses to the greatest extent possible then it must be in how the world at large appears to have accepted that Avatar features "groundbreaking visual effects". it does not. the CGI effects on display here range from average to poor. the backgrounds and creatures finish a poor second to previous CGI festivals on film - Disney's Dinosaur, for instance, made some ten years ago ("when the technology did not exist" in the words of Mr James Cameron) has a far superior look and feel.

as for these "avatar" creatures themselves, dear me! the ones for the lead actors look like rought draft animation things - the one for Sigourney Weaver in particular is annoying to watch. her "blue avatar" thingie has a grin permanently plastered to her face, as if she is doing a bizarre tribute to Karen Allen's awful performance in Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull.






plot and story-wise, well, not watching the whole thing i can't comment for sure, but the whole thing struck me as going absolutely nowhere fast. if by 90 minutes the film has not got any points of interest worth following then it is unlikely to do so. considering this is a film from the man who gave us Terminator and Aliens - two films that were compelling viewing even if they had no fancy special effects - it's perhaps the most disappointing part of the whole thing.

the main character - Jake, i think his name is? - is very badly presented and developed. more than once, for no apparent reason in the context of the onscreen story development, you seem to cut from him being an avatar back to him making some sort of "video diary". there is no flow nor rhythm to the story at all.





i can give credit to James Cameron for one thing, beyond making a mint off this tripe - it seems that, from watching the 2D version, it's clear that the 3D version has been done with the emphasis on giving depth to the viewing, rather than having things "pop out" at the audience as some sort of gimmick.





i appreciate that i seem to be in a minority in regards of Avatar, but i remain baffled as to just how over-excited so many people have got about this film. i may not always like things that are flavour of the month, yet i can usually at least understand why they have gained popularity. and yes, this whole Twilight business does come to mind here.

oh well, as absolutely everyone has seen it there's not a great deal of point in me telling anyone to either see it or not, i suppose! if you enjoyed the experience of Avatar more than i did, well, lucky you!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Star Wars Day

May The Fourth Be With You.....






be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Teesside International Airport (or whatever they call it now)

hey everyone


at the risk of causing yet more emotional distress for my Dad, here's further confirmation that the Harlo gang are no longer in the same hemisphere as us!





nice to see Gran out and about in the background! notice how Christopher is trying to distract everyone from Andrew loading up the car with several items he has removed from Mum & Dad's house!

many thanks to Uncle Trevor for the pic!



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the force is strong with this one

hey everyone

well, some things seem to run in our family. a love of Batman would be one, but Star Wars is kind of the king amongst the younger members. sorry Dad, but you did sleep through most of The Empire Strikes Back at Leicester Square in 1981.

in keeping with this tradition, here's William having a go with a light saber!





he looks most impressive with it. not long after this picture was taken, however, we had to take it off him. why, you ask? clearly you are not well versed in the ways of young children then. we had to take it off because, like everything else in his world, his instinct was to try and eat it!

here's one of James with William, sat watching something after a hard day at school.





yes, that's right - nice new couches and the two of them pile cushions on the floor to sit on. oh well, if it's comfortable what can you do?


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Ho, Harlo Holiday.....

hey everyone


nothing lasts forever, as the saying goes, although sometimes some things feel like they do. in the case of the Harlo Invasion (or if you will "holiday"), the people of Iceland and their mystical volcanoes certainly stretched a two week visit out beyond the conventional fourteen days. however, those extra days have now come, sadly, to an end.

to the great delight of some school governing bodies and employers, a delight matched only by the contempt and disdain by the people of Iceland, the Harlo gang have taken to the skies. at long last, my Dad asked me to add in.

now, a tradition to many when ending a holiday would be to "liberate" (or, if you will, steal) any and all items which are not nailed down in the hotel. in the strictest sense of the word Mum & Dad's house isn't a hotel as such, but this did not stop their enthusiasm for engaging in this most noble practice.





the haul they loaded up was most impressive, it has to be said. what exactly they intend to do with a 1981 edition of The Complete Encyclopedia Britannica and several pairs of mismatched socks left by Fred on his last visit is anyone's guess, but there's no faulting the spirit and excitement displayed by them as they whistled away in innocence as they shoved the lot in their cases.

next came the somewhat simple task of checking in for their flight. yes, even in this day and age of high alert security it is still a pretty simple task; the "somewhat" part to it invariably comes in when you ask certain gents to assist you with it. have a look at the picture below and see if you can spot anyone with a penchant for speaking their mind in a most abrupt and direct manner who might have made the check-in process all the more involved and entertaining than it normally would be.





a clue would be that his shirt is closer to blue than it is yellow. never mind, i am sure Colin appreciated the fact that the gent who spoke to him about his checking-in approach put some warmish rubber gloves on before doing a full inspection, so to speak.

i would like to think that the Harlo gang had a wonderful time on holiday here. their reaction on leaving certainly seems to suggest that they have. i mean, look at them, proudly showing off how each and every one of them clearly had a "number one time".





Mum & Dad have had a hard time accepting the fact that they have gone (at last, my Dad asked me to add here), and that they have the house to themselves once again. look at my dear Mum. she is so upset she is smiling through the pain, waving her fist in anger at the aeroplane which has whisked them away.





as for my Dad, he is beside himself with despair and depression at the fact that they have gone. the Harlo family leaving has hit him like one imperial tonne of bricks, really. i know this because we have seen this kind of reaction before.





the above picture is how my Dad looks when he is upset. Richard, Gillian and I know this because this is the same reaction we get from him when we deliver some really bad news that is going to break his heart. examples of this reaction have been at the times we have said "Dad, i am moving into my own place.", or "no Dad, keep your money, we shall buy it ourselves.". we try not to hurt him with phrases like that, but sometimes we must and simply have to leave him to work through the visible pain.

i must say a lot of people are aware of how much my Dad will miss his guests. it's not only the people of Iceland who have tried to keep them here. a number of people, Uncle Trevor in particular, have gone to the length of offering to sell their own blood or "anything, absolutely anything at all" if it means keeping the Harlos here and several thousand miles away from them. a selfless gesture, and one that my Dad has for the most part politely declined, even thoughtfully suggesting that one or two of them avail of a bathroom to relieve themselves as they depart with their idea.

Colin, Angela, Andrew and Christopher - it has been a sheer delight having you come and stay with us. we all look forward to seeing you again real soon!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

broadcast news

hey everyone


on the off chance that the people of Iceland have another go at their version of the Hadron Collider thing, i.e. set off that volcano that has a name that no one outside of Iceland can say properly, Andrew has been having a look at what career opportunities exist for him here.

whereas he quickly dismissed his Uncle Bob's grand ideas of a life as a sailor or possibly an interior decorator, my Dad did have one or two good ideas for him. one of them involved a dynamic life of selling and wagering large amounts of money on horses, the other would be a career as a television broadcaster.





well, there you have it Andrew. if the volcanoes start again, it's a life of glitz and glamour, living the celebrity lifestyle and being hounded by the press. should these (possibly imaginary) volcanic ash clouds dissipate and you fly home, it's exams and Teesside. it sounds like a win-win situation to me!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

scenes from a mid-life crisis

hey everyone


well, a visit to my Mum and Dad at the weekend means yet more exposure to my Dad's increasing range of bizarre idiosyncrasies and ever more curious way of going about doing things. this weekend was no exception; in fact i would argue he was on top form. only a canal ride and a chance meeting with some lovely lads who live on a barge together could have made it any more perfect.

warning signs were there from the start, really. when we arrived it seems that he had decided the moment that we sent word we were on our way that cementing a piece of wood to the front door as a "draft excluder" was a particularly good idea. we arrived, then, to find our way into the house prevented as no one was allowed to walk near the cementing project. i have no pictures of this, alas, but bear it in mind for the stunning conclusion.

a little while after the festival of timber and cement it was mid-way through watching some sort of horses being sold that Dad just got up and walked out the house without a word. sensing something was up, i grabbed my camera and ran after him.

as it turns out, he was off to his newly installed and most impressive shed. as you can see below, he went there to fetch a gas-based heater.





nothing unusual in that, as such, as it was a particularly cold day. the fact that he went and fetched it, positioned it in the house and then didn't quite get around to putting it on or igniting it, however, gives you a clue to the day's proceedings.

a crowning glory for many, if you will, was when Richard returned from the shops. it transpired that he had invested in a "beanie" style hat, one bearing the flag of England. Dad asked where his was, which took Richard by surprise as there was no prior solicitation or conversation about him getting one for Dad. after a bit of a "i want it, i want it, i want it" performance, Richard opted for the quieter, simpler life and just gave Dad his. the result was a very happy Dad!





after a reasonably (by his standards) normal dinner and berating for everyone who did not get quiz questions from the newspaper correct to his exacting standards, it was just about time for us to head home. it was, needless to say, as soon as we got William and James ready to go that Dad decided his concrete based wooden draft excluder was not going to work, and thus he should "drill the bugger".

he wouldn't block off the door with a power tool and impressive tool box just as we were trying to leave, would he? oh yes, he would.





just to make sure that we knew he was going to make it as tricky to get out of the house as he did for us to get it he encouraged Colin to join in the blockade by the door!





well, there you have it. yes, i fully expect to arrive one day and find a Harley sat in the drive, or even possibly him proudly showing off a tattoo or some sort of piercing, quite frankly.

if the question is would we have him behave any other way, then the answer is no, not really, not at all. we love him just the way he is, just ask James!





be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

if you never say goodbye......

hey everyone


well, despite some extraordinary claims that this whole volcanic ash cloud which grounded flights did not and does not exist, getting on an aeroplane is not as easy as it once was. oh for the days of just having your shoes x-rayed, i guess. i tend to have a healthy level of skepticism on most things reported in the news, but not for one moment did i suspect that they grounded all flights around Europe for 6 or so days.

anyway, it means that the Harlo Invasion Holiday continues unabated at the moment. we have had two or three goes at saying goodbye to them but, alas, thus far they haven't made a move. this is no bad thing, really, as it has been excellent spending some extra time with them.

Colin has in particular enjoyed his extra time here, as it has meant that he has been able to interfere in the affairs of Mum & Dad's kitchen for a few days more. i have no idea why he isn't allowed to mess about in the kitchen at home; i assume that he is banned from doing so and thus is making the most of it whilst here such is his enthusiasm. anyway, here he is in action (and indeed in a pair of shorts that Richard took quite a shine to), keeping an eye on the window for any wandering clouds of volcanic ash which may very well not exist.





William is still a little bit young to grasp this whole hello and goodbye thing, really, but even he is getting somewhat perplexed by the Harlo travel itinerary. he seems to be rather curious about seeing them and saying goodbye every weekend....





meanwhile, Andrew and Christopher were delighted when their school sent some work for them to do whilst stranded here. whereas Christopher has diligently been doing the work sent to him (a number of times, i believe, as the "save" button is something that he disapproves of), Andrew has taken an interesting but nonetheless commendable approach to revision...





as for Angela, well, i have been told to put here that she celebrated her 28th birthday at the weekend. if i say no more of it you can draw your own conclusions, but in the mean time here's an ace picture of her with James and William!





well, as and when the Harlo gang do decide to cease their invasion and head home (or if the apparently imaginary volcanic ash vanishes, whichever happens first) we shall no doubt miss them a very great deal!! i will endeavour to report on any departure as and when it happens, assuming that we are all still using this "internet" thing by that time!!!!!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

putting on some clothes i made my way to school.....

hey everyone


well, as excited as you all get about what sort of flags i have on my desk at verk and as thrilled as you are about my musings on 26 year old soundtrack albums, i am sure every now and then a James and William update isn't too much interference for you!

William, as i mentioned earlier, was a bit ill last week, but i am delighted to say he is now back to his usual self. James remains very much James - he had an exciting, first ever school trip out during the week to an aviary and loved every minute!

anyway, as they were getting ready to go to school / daycare / whatever name you care to give it this morning they looked very much like they would make a perfect picture. i thus grabbed the camera as quickly as i could and here's the result!





yes, i know, very much an "aaaaaaah" moment! i am glad that i thought to grab the camera!!

they are dressed warm as we are on the verge of winter here, and indeed it looks like it could be a cold and wet weekend. maybe not, it could be a wet and cold one. i don't know. wherever you are, or whenever you are since i am led to believe one or two time travellers visit here, do have a great weekend!!!


be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

classic album : 1984 (for the love of big brother)

well, this one could just about fall into the category of "forgotten albums" as easily as it could classic. for a variety of reasons, the soundtrack for the magnificent 1984 film version of 1984 recorded by the Eurythmics hasn't been released or re-issued for some 15 years now.

note i say recorded by and for - as director Michael Radford wasn't really taken with the band, he re-edited the film to exclude most of the music they had made for it. this is hardly the first strange run-in with Orwell's masterpiece a musician has faced. Bowie planned a musical based on 1984 only to have the Orwell Estate refuse him permission to release it as an adaptation. he quickly knocked it into the form of the Diamond Dogs album and, showing that he was perhaps a bit cleverer with words than the Orwell Estate gave him credit, soon embarked on the cheekily named 1980 Floor Show.





as for the Eurythmics' attempt at capturing a musical experience of the book for the film adaptation, the "hard luck" they ran in to was that Virgin commissioned them to compose and record without gaining approval from the director. as said above, Michael Radford was unhappy with what they did, and after the initial run of the film soon re-edited it, replacing much of what they had recorded with some orchestral pieces.

irrespective of this, the soundtrack album was issued - in part, presumably, to generate some commercial interest and success for the film, but mostly, you would hope, because it is one of the greatest works of music from the decade.





the nine tracks take the titles from the more indelible parts of the book - doubleplusgood, Greetings From a Dead Man, Room 101 and so forth. the music itself manages a rather interesting trick. for those well versed with the book it strikes one as haunting and perfect in capturing the mood of the part the music relates to. in addition to this, though, it's surprisingly and indeed startlingly catchy music that you can dance to.

whereas you cannot get the tune of doubleplusgood out of your head for many hours after hearing it, the above is best exemplified by the single taken from the album, sexcrime (nineteen eight-four).





now, the mind boggles as to what people unfamiliar with the book or film made of that title exactly, but trust me, it fits in perfectly. it's a great dance tune - notable in particular by the exceptional 12" mix of it - and at the time not all that many Top Ten singles featured lines like "how i wish i'd been unborn / wish i wasn't living here".





i can, to a certain degree, understand Michael Radford's rejection of the soundtrack presented to him by the Eurythmics. whereas it doesn't feel particularly dated today, it does sound very much like it was recorded in 1984, and not for the 1984 envisioned in the book. the somewhat frenetic paced beats of some of the tracks would certainly not have fit all that well as the background to certain key scenes.

understanding why Radford dropped the Eurythmics soundtrack, however, does not in any way mean approval or appreciation of the way he handled it. he for some reason went very public with his disapproval, including a rather harsh denouncement of the soundtrack and the band at a televised awards ceremony.

it's not like Mr Michael Radford is known for his good sense and ability to spot all things good, of course. lest we forget he was bitterly opposed to Richard Burton being cast in the part of O'Brien. the film turned out to be Burton's last, but his performance in it - as troubled as it was with well documented cases of his ill-health being problematic when filming - stands as one of his greatest ever.





if you are a fan of the Eurythmics and for some reason don't have this in your collection then it's time to add it. for everyone else, this is far from a plain film soundtrack and is well worth a listen. with no CD issued of it in the last 15 years, rather buy a copy now before it disappears all together.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!