i was indeed going to call this post the value of entertainment, but i am sure i have pinched that name in the past and, look you see, it has little or nothing to do with either ZTT or the Art Of Noise. so i didn't except for this opening paragraph where i have used the term.
whereas i am hardly on the cutting edge, or any such edge, of being witness to the latest and greatest of entertainment media, i do from time to time engage in taking in such things. i quite enjoy posting my comments and that on them here, and that's what this post shall be all about.
a bit of a mixed bag, really, as you might be able to see in this picture.
if any or all of the above strike you as interesting and for some reason you'd like to learn of my comments on any or all of them, well then have i got great news for you if you elect to read on here.
Title : Goon
Provenance : Spiros, probably off of a Charity Shop
Value : unknown, market rate for Charity Shop DVD £1
I was sort of vaguely half aware of the film Goon prior to Spiros championing the film. My thoughts on it, although I could not state them as such with any clarity of being confirmed, were along the lines of it’s probably good, but if you have seen the magnificent Slap Shot then you have seen pretty much the best ever ice hockey related film for a mature audience what is ever likely to be made.
To this extent, no, Goon certainly did not surpass or overtake Slap Shot as being the best of the best. Reviews have, however, favourably and positively compared Goon to the Paul Newman film, and they are right to do so. The best way I can describe the justification of the comparison is that it echoes much of what made Slap Shot so dearly loved, rather than, say, ripping it off, remaking it or “paying cheeky homage” to it.
That said, there are some very clearly “paying homage” moments to the classic, in particular the Russian brothers inviting direct comparisons to the legendary Hanson brothers. Different in actions, but equally “out there” as bonkers, fringe yet memorable characters.
Is Goon a film for you? Do you enjoy comedy which features a formidable level of potty mouth foul language, crude and crass jokes, an arguably sexist / misogynistic portrayal of and approach to the ladies and lots of macho violence existing purely for the sake of all things macho? If yes then this is an exceptionally well made, superbly acted and finely presented comedy of that nature, and would be one with few equals.
Title : 60s and 70s California Rock
Provenance : Yorkshire Trading Company
Value : 20p, down from £1
Yeah, I paid 20p for this. Twenty whole pence, in coins of money. They were clearing out discs and doing so at a price which is probably lower than the value of just the box the disc was in alone.
It would not be often that I know what all you people want, but in this instance I know what you people want. What it is you people want is a snippet, in Camcorder mode, of The Turtles doing the most well known song that The Turtles did.
There’s not really much in the way of a plot or synopsis I can do for a music DVD, in truth. It’s not some sort of “concept” music film like what Led Zeppelin would make, just a collection of movie clips that were presumably selected as they were either out of copyright or featured really low royalty costs. Most compilations are made that way.
You get a mix of what is considered “California Rock” in the context of what footage was available with the above in mind. So, that’s The Turtles, Linda Ronstadt, Sonny & Cher, The Byrds, The Mammas and The Pappas and, as you can see in this clip in classy Camcorder mode, Brian Wilson off of The Beach Boys doing Sloop John B.
Man, I love Sloop John B. It’s off of the Pet Sounds album, with Pet Sounds being one of those held up as being argued for “the greatest album of all time”. I don’t know if you can, outside of The Stone Roses, ever consider a record to be the greatest of all time, but Pet Sounds is one of those described as “a classic which is essential for all music fans” that actually lives up to the description.
It’s hard, nay impossible, to argue with this disc in terms of pricing. I would have paid more than 20p for The Turtles bits alone, likewise the Brian Wilson performance. A very nice find, I would say.
Title : Secrets Of The Clown
Provenance : Poundland
Value : £1
Secrets Of The Clown is, to get to the point, crap. The reviews and comments across the internet, which I did not read before purchasing but did read before attempting to watch, all say this. They are not wrong to say it.
If I were to grasp at a positive, it would be that it featured a premise which was a slightly new take on the “slasher” section of the horror genre, and was an interesting one. But it gets let down by the bizarre decision to record or release it in a very poor quality, always dark image and the horrid, awful, rubbish acting in it. I couldn’t make it through to the end, so I have no idea if the different spin on a standard horror film carried on and made it all worthwhile for anyone.
Why on earth did I buy when there was every chance that it would be awful? Why did I watch it despite knowing that the reviews said it was awful? Because the 18 certificate on the back was accompanied by text which said the film featured “graphic nudity of a sexual nature”. Writing that on something is the most straightforward way to get £1 off of me, look you see. In regards of the hour or so I watched, there was only some mild nudity, and it wasn’t really of a sexual nature, unless you get off on dead bodies. The BBFC presumably do, you’d have to conclude.
What will I do with the disc? Probably strip it of the box and use the box for something, and then post the disc and cover art insert to someone like the Viscount of Stockton, the Ambassador for Burkino Fasso (or whatever) or Spiros.
Title : All The Lost Souls off of James Blunt
Provenance : Poundland
Value : £1
James Blunt. Welcome to the modern world. He is an artist that scored massive sales with a really good song, became a subject of scorn and mockery because the excessive saturation of his really good song led to people deciding he was somewhat wanky and a little whiny, has become championed as a hero of the modern world because of the witty and wry way he bothers to respond to spiteful, jealous comments by people having a go at him on all that Twerker Snap Book Chat Face thing.
Me? I just find his music pleasant and enjoyable, really. I mean, great that he takes on and tackles wankers of Twerker, but let’s be honest here – finding a wanker on Twerker and outsmarting them is like shooting fish in a barrel, except easier. You cannot move for morons on the thing.
Is this album any good? I don’t know, to be honest. I haven’t heard it since I bought it, and I don’t think I heard it at any stage of it being out (10 or so years I think). I do, however, have the 1973 single somewhere. I do love that song, and have heard it, and both the song and the video off of that are included in this CD and DVD set which Poundland sold me for 1. Yes, Camcorder footage of the video is here.
Whilst Poundland predominantly sell traded in, second hand or “replay” discs, often they have brand new, factory sealed ones for sale at the £1 price. This James Blunt set, as indeed was the case with the Clown DVD, is one such incident of this. Presumably there was a warehouse full of unsold copies which Poundland picked up uber cheap and are now selling off at a profit. This beats, for example, dumping unsold copies of something in a landfill site, which was the case with Atari and the ET game, and many other things back in the 70s and 80s.
Well, if it’s there then whoop, indeed, there it is. There’s every chance that the above has been of some use to someone somewhere, and if that is true in particular with helping the people avoid Secrets Of The Clown then so much the better. There are, I can assure you, cheaper and better ways to access “graphic nudity of a sexual nature” that that film.
For anyone not really swayed one way or the other by the items of entertainment mentioned here, I can only hope and indeed trust that some entertainment was drawn from the way I wrote of these things.
cheers as ever for reading, either way!
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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