Do yourself a favour. Go and see this on the biggest screen you can find.

3D IMAX for me.

Outstanding.

Do be warned that the run-time is over 3 hours - I had to pick my moment for a midway p-break.

Other than that, I don't have a single bad word to say about this. Quite the opposite. I enjoyed this so much more than the original.

If I had to give a score, then out of 5 it would be 5. Out of 10, then I guess 9.

I have avoided reviews, and I don't want to do any spoilers, but I would say that this is a triumph.

This isn't going to change your life or anything like that, but for 3 hours, this will do what cinema does best and transport you to somewhere else completely.

I went into this in a good mood anyway, and came out happier still.

You heard it here first. Maybe.

I last saw Dare in 2005 supporting Asia and have wanted to see them again. FM I've seen a few times, including this year.

Tyketto I've never seen (although I have seen Danny Vaughn doing an acoustic set supporting Journey in 2008 I think it was.

Sounds like a great night out - to those (like me) that like this kind of thing 

Bring it on, as they say.

Brilliant!

I saw this in the afternoon before catching Casablanca later on.

Die Hard / Die Hard 2 meets a 15 rated Home Alone by way of John Wick.

Bit busy right now - but will say more later. Loved it. Big grins.

Cineworld are showing this as of today. How can I resist?

The current plan is to see it next Wednesday evening as I have some free time. Sian is attending a work event that night so seems like a plan for me to slope off to see this slice of cinematic history. I have seen it a couple of times before, and have it on DVD somewhere, but I've never seen it on the big screen.

Bring it on say I.

Mm.

This one didn't sweep me away like the first.

There were a couple of things which jarred with me which didn't help.

Firstly, over-use of ready made music. I just thought that there was too much of it in this.

Secondly, some of the movements of the antagonist "Namor", especially in the air, looked a bit amateurish. I mean as in the effects - just didn't look natural. This kind of thing I thought they had perfected with Spiderman, but some of this was quite dodgy to my eyes.

So. The story itself stands up well, and is also quite reverential to the memory of Chadwick Boseman.

I'm pleased I went to the cinema to see this, but it wasn't all that I hoped it would be given the goosebumps I got from the trailer.

As with the 1st film though, top marks for costume design.

Overall, a slightly disappointing 3/5.

I thought I would start a coffee topic, as with my latest order from Rave Coffee, they sent a 'freebie' code.
Said freebie is a 250g bag of their delicious Signature Blend. Beans or ground to your preference.

The catch? You pay for delivery, which is a couple of quid.

If anyone is interested, let me know, and I will message you the code you need. Obviously first come first served, and it is valid until the end of October.

Also I can any number of referral codes for new Rave customers - if you've never ordered from them before, then I can send a referral link. If you order, then you get £5 off and I get £5 too.

No, I don't work for Rave, but I have ordered regularly from them over the years. They are my 'go to' supplier.

Anyhoo, this is them . . .

https://ravecoffee.co.uk/

This just came to my attention. I don't think I will be able to make a showing myself but others might be interested. I will wait for the release for home viewing Bluray or streaming.

Anyhoo, I'm pleased to see that RJD has a documentary for imminent cinematic release 'worldwide' (albeit only select cinemas).

Details on the official website here:
https://www.diodreamersneverdie.com/

Teaser trailer here:
https://www.diodreamersneverdie.com/videos/

Inspired by James' post about a Space Catapult. I saw this documentary some years ago, and have managed to locate it again on Vimeo.

To Mars By A-Bomb

Synopsis:
The true story of how, in the dark aftermath of WW2, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a group of brilliant scientists hoped to travel to Mars and beyond in a huge spaceship propelled by small, controlled nuclear explosions. BBC4 (2003). With Freeman Dyson, George Dyson, Ted Taylor, Arthur C. Clarke and other visionaries.

Seriously, this was a thing. Another concept to make your head hurt! Flying through space on a spaceship propelled by a serious of continuous small nuclear explosions.

Terrific entertainment. Sadly I missed the opportunity to see this in Imax, so it was a 'standard' 2D showing for me.

I was so pleased to get back to the cinema after a period away.

So, to the film. Well, I can't say I'm a big fan of Russell Crowe but he steals the scene with his turn as Zeus, complete with dodgy Italian accent.

I was looking forward to Christian Bale's turn as the bad guy in this (Gorr the God Butcher no less) and was not disappointed. A very good performance from the get go.

Oh yes - keep your eye open for a small role for Matt Damon

There are some truly spellbinding visual moments to behold here, and the action is what you have come to expect.

And if you stay for the credits, you will be treated to 2 scenes, and also a real aural treat in the form of the late great Ronnie James Dio's Rainbow In The Dark.

No spoilers from me here, but I do recommend this after the failure (in my eyes) of Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness.

p.s. I thought the goats would be annoying, but they added to the fun!

We finished watching this (on iPlayer) last night, and what a very rewarding watch it was too.

I believe that there was some grief about some incorrect footballer reference in the 1st episode, but that didn't bother us in the slightest as we have zero interest in that sport.

This fictionalised version of real events (names changed for example, and not sure how much 'fact' was changed to make good drama) was 6 episodes of slow burning character study and glimpses of the past in an ex-mining Nottinghamshire town.

The real events in question were 2 murders and manhunts that took place in Nottinghamshire in 2004. The series depicts this, along with the tensions that are brought to the fore again regarding events of 1984 during the miners strike.

This is the kind of TV that the Beeb do so well - featuring a whole host of faces that you will recognize. A great ensemble cast with a special mention to someone who I am not familiar with - the actor (Adeel Akhtar) who plays Andy Fisher. I thought his performance was excellent portraying quite a tormented soul (although there are more than one of those in this).

Anyway, highly worth investing your time in.

Splendid.

General enquiry here. I was looking around for local gigs when I spotted that Chester Live Rooms show Eucon 2022 as booked for Friday 23 & Saturday 24 September this year. Tickets not on sale yet.

Does anyone here know anything about this? Is it a thing, or is it a booking left over from last year perhaps and isn't going ahead.

I'm not on facebook, so wouldn't have seen any announcements on there.

Over to you ladies and gentlemen, in the hope that somebody knows something.

Does what it says on the tin. Very enjoyable, although the story might need some explaining to younger children.

Even as an older child, I am questioning a crucial part of the plot, as I can't get my head around it. I might need to do some internet searching to see if I missed something. No spoilers from me here though.

All in all, a very enjoyable trip to the cinema.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14229154/

Plays himself. Credit to https://rushisaband.com/ for the info.

Not a film that I am likely to see myself, but horror aficionados might stumble across it somehow.

I wasn't sure where to put this, as it is tech nostalgia related rather than news about new stuff.

Anyway, I have had numerous handheld PDAs running the Palm operating system in the dim an distant past.

Ones I can remember being:

Palm Vx (my first, and one that I really regret selling)
Palm IIIc - my first colour device
Palm Tungsten something or other (probably 2 or 3 of those, different models)

And the most advanced / revolutionary design being the Sony Clie NR70V I think it was, with a rotating clamshell design. That was lovely.

All sold in search of the next best thing.

In a fit of nostalgia, I have been scouring ebay for a reasonably priced Palm OS device (the Clie mentioned above goes for hundreds, so not a viable option).

I was thinking about getting another Palm Vx - a lovely form factor device which I remember with real fondness - however, I thought that something that old would benefit from a new battery, and when I discovered you needed to heat the case with a hair dryer in order to crack it open, I gave up on that idea.

I then discovered that the more modern (and affordable) Sony Clie PEG-SL10 runs on 2 x AAA batteries. This still sold for over £200 when new I believe, and I have just secured what appears to be a very little used one of these for a 10th of that price, complete with box and manuals, but no installation CD.

Of course, the internet was my friend here and I have already sourced an ISO image for that, and found a page with help to get the sync working with Windows 10 (this was a 98/XP device).

So I am looking forward to getting my hands on one again. It will have a small fraction of the power of a modern smart phone of course, and a 320x320 monochrome screen, but then I have a smart phone for high-res moving image tomfoolery 

This is for nostalgia, and perhaps to play a few of the old monochrome games that I used to.

I seem to remember Slim having one or more of these devices - perhaps the older Palm Pilot model(s)? But maybe my memory is playing tricks on me.

Hopefully happy tinkering days await.

Normal service is resumed . . . . move along now, nothing to see here.

No spoilers please if anyone wants to join in the discussion.

p.s. if you haven't seen any of Stranger Things Seasons 1 to 3, then don't watch this - you NEED to be up to speed with previous events and characters.

Episode 1

I had already watched the first 8 minutes thanks to Netflix putting it out there as a teaser.

So I have now watched the 1st episode (about 1 hour 20 minutes) and also read some blurb. Apparently the horror and comedy levels have been ramped up in this season. Some of that horror was on screen in episode 1.

This has put Sian off, and she doesn't want to watch any more. She doesn't like horror in general, and struggled a bit with some of Season 3 (as I had already watched it and knew what was coming, I skipped some of the more disturbing sequences).

So this has now become a solo watch for me, which is a shame as until now we have enjoyed watching it together.

I just hope that they don't go over the top with the horror, as it may put me off in the long term.

I have read a lot of comments about how old the 'kids' look now. FFS people, covid put a spike in many things, so get over it (rant over).

So I will stick with it, hopefully to the end of season 4 (the finale is reputed to be 2.5 hours btw).

I had intended to see Everything, Everywhere, All At Once, but delays meant I didn't arrive in time.

As luck would have it, Top Gun: Maverick was available in the Imax so in I went.

Bonus: finally a trailer for Mission Impossible 7, or "Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1" as it is called. Sadly, not due for release until next year.

So, on to the film and I can only gush about this. I spent a lot of the film with a stupid grin on my face, and sometimes on the edge of my seat.

There were moments in this when I was holding my breath, clenching my gut and my heart was pounding, all at the same time.

It isn't all action though (much like the first film), but the aerial sequences are what everyone will be talking about, and they are really breathtaking. The new 'cockpit-cams' bring a whole new level of engagement to the audience.

This is definitely a film to be seen in the cinema, and I suspect word of mouth will ensure that it does well.

Outstanding. I am sure others will give more elequent and meaningful appraisals, but I left the cinema very, very pleased indeed.

Also, run time of around 2 hours and perfectly paced.

40 years old in September 2022. I hope we will be getting something special assuming that there is a 40th anniversary release.

So, I put side one on for a spin yesterday. Well, actually listened through Amazon music but that is by the by.

It struck me just how good this album is at evoking moods / how the music carries the music so well.

So, not that you need it, but here is the track listing.

Subdivisions
The Analog Kid
Chemistry
Digital Man
The Weapon
New World Man
Losing It
Countdown

I know some dismiss the final track, but it is not a duffer to these ears. Possibly not in quite the same lofty league as the other tracks, but worthy nonetheless.

A couple of thoughts / memories:

Subdivisions, no doubt, is a firm fan favourite and I think one of their finest moments, both in the studio and live.

I remember when they played New World Man in Toronto (Vapor Trails, 2002) and I lost my head. I think I may have lost my voice a little singing along so loudly. I was so ecstatic, nay euphoric! There are few bands that can cause this level of excitement, happiness, awe and involvement from me.

I know that there are some that cannot get beyond the increased use of keyboards on Signals. Also, there are no longer form tracks on here (even Moving Pictures had The Camera Eye). 8 short, sharp, punchy toons.

All in all, perhaps this is an example of 'less is more', which continued with the next 2 albums, then things started going slightly downhill with Hold Your Fire. Yes I know, I know. I am probably one of the biggest fans of that album, but if we had been restricted to 8 songs, would we have got Tai Shan? Mind you, which of the other 9 would we have lost? I couldn't choose one.

When I get a chance, I'm going to listen to the 2nd side.

They really were in a solid gold patch from Hemispheres through to (imho) Presto, doing very little wrong.

I know I am drifting / rambling a bit here.

So, over to y'all for your views on Signals if you have any you'd like to share. If I haven't made it clear - well I am very much a supporter.

Just in case anyone will be watching the final tonight, feel free to post comments in here.
Please don't turn it political though (Ukraine are the hot favourites, and of course Russia are banned from entry this year).

We haven't heard any of the entries, but we do like to watch the spectacle and listen to Graham Norton's commentary and remarks.

Apparently (or so I read today) the UK entry is expected to do well this year. That would indeed be a turn up for the books.

So, I saw this at the Imax and came away a bit underwhelmed, although I cannot really put my finger on why.

This didn't enthrall and engage me like Spiderman : No Way Home did.

They were some interesting concepts and, er, cross-overs which were interesting, but I cannot discuss these without spoilers.

I think the highlight for me was spotting Bruce Campbell (yes, THE Bruce Campbell) in a cameo as a street vendor.

Oh yes, and before the main film, we were treated to trailers for Avatar: The Way Of Water and Top Gun: Maverick.

Following the latter trailer, we then got an extended clip of Maverick, which has well and truly got me stoked. Definitely one for Imax.