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Everything or Nothing, a review by GSyren

Everything or Nothing (5-039036-058704)

United Kingdom 2012 | Released 2013-01-28 on DVD from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

94 minutes | Aspect ratio Anamorphic 1.78:1 | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1

Directed by Stevan Riley

My thoughts about Everything or Nothing:

James Bond is a phenomenon. I'm old enough to have experienced this phenomenon from its start. In its cinematic form, that is. I had not read any James Bond books before I saw the first Bond films. But I soon rectified that. I have seen the Bond films many times over, but I have not re-read any of the books since the 1960's, so I'm really much more familiar with the movie Bonds. By its name, you'd think that Everything or Nothing was all about the movie Bonds. After all, that is what the "EON" in EON Productions stands for. But fortunately this documentary details a lot more than that. We get a lot of info about Bond's creator, Ian Fleming, and also about Kevin McClory who collaborated on the story on which Fleming based Thunderball. McClory subsequently got the remake rights to the story, and remade it as Never Say Never Again. The documentary may not uncover any earth-shattering scoops, but it does delivery many interesting tidbits of information in its many interviews. This is certainly a worth-while watch for any Bond fan.

I rate this title

(From Reviews and ramblings by Gunnar on December 31st, 2014)

if.... , a review by Achim

if.... (The Criterion Collection) (1968/United Kingdom) (United States) Director: Lindsay Anderson Writing: David Sherwin (Screenwriter), David Sherwin (Writer), John Howlett (Writer) Length: 112 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.66:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital: Mono, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Mono Subtitles: English

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Stars:
Malcolm McDowell as Mick
David Wood as Johnny
Richard Warwick as Wallace
Christine Noonan as The Girl
Rupert Webster as Bobby Phillips

Plot:
Lindsay Anderson's If.... is a daringly anarchic vision of British society, set in a boarding school in late-sixties England. Before Kubrick made Malcom McDowell's mischief iconic in A Clockwork Orange, the actor made a hell of an impression as insouciant Mick Travis, who, along with his school chums, trumps authority at every turn, finally emerging as violent savior against the draconian games of one-upmanship played by both students and the powers-that-be. Mixing color and black and white as audaciously as it mixes fantasy and reality, If.... remains one of cinema's most unforgettable rebel yells.

Extras:

• Scene Access
• Audio Commentary
• Feature Trailers
• Featurettes
• Interviews

My personal guess is, that this is actually a fairly accurate portrayal of life at a boarding school in 1968. With a class system firmly in place, things can get pretty rough for those on the lower levels being oppressed by "the upper class".

Travis' transformation from small rebellious behaviour to revolution is very well performed by Malcolm MacDowell and it's easy to see why Kubrick found his Alex for Clockwork Orange in this. The acting in general is good, including the younger cast members playing the "freshmen". It was a bit strange that in the beginning to other characters are set up very prominently, new student Jute and a new teacher, yet nothing really comes from this and the film only shows them on occasion during the second half

The obvious political subtext is mostly lost on me, as it is apparently very British, maybe more relevant for the time it plays in, and I have never been interested in politics much. I am not sure what you'd call it (farce, satire...?) but especially at the end they completely go over the top with the final confrontation of the film (in a good way ). Beyond this the film also shows latent homosexuality as being present (it's an all-boy boarding school...) and at one point a teacher clearly touches one of the boys in a slightly inappropriate way; these topics are touched on but not made topic.

I could never quite figure out what the use of black and white represents. It seems a bit inconsistent to me, as every time I thought I figured it out another scene would come up that "should have been" black and white but wasn't. Unless somebody can tell me, I may have to try the commentary for this.

Here is the link to Wikipedia for further information. It was here that I saw that apparently two sequels were made:
O Lucky Man! (1973)
Britannia Hospital (1982)

Rating:


EDIT:
As commented by Dave and also mentioned in the special features of the DVD, the use of black and white was actually rather random and initially based on an economic decision (the lighting of the church was cheaper for black and white than it would have been for color).

As for the political subtext, I was apparently spot on in that it was a comment on the British class system. The film also happened to coincide with the student revolts in France and other countries, which gave it an eerie actuality at the time.

(From The Movies from Within My Lifetime on July 4th, 2011)

Pete's Pilots, a review by addicted2dvd

Miracles


The Ferguson Syndrome
Paul is sent to investigate what he ultimately comes to believe is a real miracle - a young boy named Tommy Ferguson who has the power to heal. But Tommy's gift costs him dearly after he uses it to save Paul's life - a life which, it seems, will never be the same.

My Thoughts:
This is a great introduction to the series. It is very well done and you can't help but to care for the characters. I thought they young boy did a great job in this episode. One of the women in this episode looked familiar. And sure enough... I knew who she was. Tamara Taylor guest stars in this episode. She is now on the series Bones as Dr. Camille Saroyan. This episode really grabs you from the start when Paul must debunk a miracle where a nun that has been dead for over 100 years was dug up to be moved... only to discover she looks like she died the day before. Excellent episode!

My Rating:

NOTE: This review was taken from my Miracles Marathon thread.

(From Pete's Pilots on April 20th, 2010)