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The Man in the White Suit, a review by Jon

The Man in the White Suit
4 out of 5


Sidney Stratton (Alec Guinness) is a quiet scientist working at Michael Gough's textile mill, but running unauthorised, costly experiments for which he is fired. He gets a menial job at another mill and through a fortunate turn of events gets access to their science lab, where he successfully achieves his dream: a material that is indestructible and never even gets dirty. Stratton's dream though, turns out to be a nightmare for the industry as it could see them shut down.

The Man in the White suit is one of Ealing's finest films and may just turn out to be their most resilient, as its themes are timeless and you will likely always find something about the story to identify with. Alexander MacKendrick's gives elegant direction to his political screenplay which can be interpreted several ways and still packs a punch that gets you thinking. That said, it isn't as fundamentally entertaining as the other comedies, despite some wonderful set-pieces especially during the experiments, but it must have been a difficult narrative to balance and it all pays off in the sobering final act.

Guinness is brilliant, though slightly unlikeable, as the awkward and unintentionally sneaky scientist. It's important to note he has no motive except an innocent desire to pursue his talent, which of course we should all have the right to do. After some farcical and fun problems with the experiments almost destroying the mill, he succeeds and Cecil Parker immediately plans to produce it, first making Stratton the white suit of the title. As the industry starts to implode, he becomes a target for everyone. No-one seems to know what to do with him, even Joan Greenwood as the mill owners daughter, who takes up his cause and fiercely defends him. The problem is, he is absolutely altruistic, so no-one has a hold on him. All he wants is for his invention to exist.

No-one is a villain in this film, yet there is massive conflict. Why shouldn't Stratton develop his skills? The mill owners argue incessantly about how to do handle it, but they're in business to make money, so why shouldn't they try to exploit what will surely be the perfect fabric and so the natural endpoint of their industry? But the workers can't allow it to exist otherwise their jobs will be at risk. The status quo may be boring, but it's about survival. It's Capitalist versus Socialist and the story demonstrates the delicate balance that we all need to live in. Greenwood's role starts off a little pointless (the relationship with Gough seems forced and unresolved, though maybe I've missed something), but she adds another interesting layer when her father and the other owners try to bribe her to exploit her friendship with Guinness and she becomes a passionate thorn in their side.

Because Stratton represents a problem for all the other characters, he has little chemistry with anyone and so is hard to identify with for the viewer and occasionally the plot comes undone because of the awkward way he interacts with the other characters. Still, it is the nature of the beast because he is a fascinating construction. He has no back-story and no arc to follow; in effect he is the unknown variable introduced only to demonstrate how dangerous change can be. From a purely technical point, MacKendrick's narrative is a fascinating example of how to structure a screenplay (following the 'equilibrium' theory, the Stratton character is literally the embodiment of the second stage disruption).

So it's dry and political and is like catnip for film nerds! But at just 85 minutes, it's also concise and the typical Ealing wit and farce is still present, so it's great fun too.

(From A Feeling for Ealing... on April 18th, 2010)

The Last Starfighter, a review by addicted2dvd

The Last Starfighter: 25th Anniversary Edition (1984/United States) IMDb |Wikipedia |Trailer | Universal Studios Home Entertainment Director: Nick Castle Writing: Jonathan Betuel (Writer) Length: 101 min. Rating: PG Video: Widescreen 2.35:1 Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio: 5.1, Commentary: Dolby Digital: Dolby Surround Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

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Stars:
Kay E. Kuter as Enduran
Dan Mason as Lord Kril
Lance Guest as Alex Rogan
Dan O'Herlihy as Grig
Catherine Mary Stewart as Maggie Gordon
Barbara Bosson as Jane Rogan

Plot:Extras:

• Scene Access
• Audio Commentary
• Feature Trailers
• Featurettes
• Gallery
• BD-Live

This is the first time I have seen this one in years... probably since it first came out in the '80s. The story holds up well... even if the special effects has not. But then would you really expect them to on a film like this? I found this film to be a lot of fun. I have read reviews putting down the Beta Unit... the robot that stayed on Earth to tak Alex's place. But I enjoyed those scenes as well. This one is well worth the time put in to watch it. This is one I recommend checking out if you never seen it.



(From What Movies I Been Watching on August 11th, 2014)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon, a review by DJ Doena

Synopsis: During the repair of a food replicator, Chief O'Brien accidentally activates a hidden device that was planted there during the construction of the station 18 years ago. This device injects a virus into each replicated food. After the incubation time people start to babble incoherently, then they get fever and die. Even worse: At some point the virus has mutated and has become airborne. Now the entire station is in danger.

My Opinion: It was an average episode, but we've seen Odo and Quark working together for the first time and that was fun.

Synopsis: The first visitor from the Gamma Quadrant comes through the wormhole but he is not on a diplomatic mission. He is the prey in a hunt and the hunters are closing in. But he is no criminal nor did he do anything wrong - not even by the standards of his home world. He was bred to be the prey. The longer he stays alive and eludes his captors the more honour he brings to himself and to the hunter that kills him at last.

My Opinion: Genetically implemented "To the death!" mentality will become a common theme in DS9 and I think the characters handled this situation very well. They've bend the Prime Directive ("no interference in the business of other cultures unless asked to") without breaking it. I don't think Picard could have handled it better.

Synopsis: When the Runabout-class shuttle Ganges returns from the Gamma Quadrant they bring someone with them: Vash. Vash is a archaeologist who is more in the game for the money than the science. A few years back she accepted an offer by the godlike being Q to show her all the interesting places in the universe. Now she's back and Q with her. And Q always equals trouble.

My Opinion: Unfortunately this was the only appearance of John de Lancie in his role as Q on DS9. Stories with Q have mostly been interesting and this was one of them, especially (again) to point out the differences between Picard and Sisko. I really liked it when Sisko punched Q square in the face and he wasn't expecting that.

Synopsis: Three men try to kidnap Jadzia Dax from the station and bring her to a court. Jadzia Dax is a Trill, a symbiotic joined species with a humanoid host and a slug-like symbiont. When the host dies the symbiont will be transplanted into a new one. The former being - and mentor of Cmdr. Sisko - Curzon Dax has died a few years ago but now Jadzia is charged for a murder where Curzon is the prime suspect. But can Jadzia Dax being held responsible for something Curzon Dax supposedly did?

My Opinion: I liked that episode. It reminded me of the TNG episode where it was discussed whether or not Data - as an artificial life-form - has the right to make his own decisions. They had some compelling arguments for both sides and since the minds of host and symbiont have been truly merged it isn't as easy as it would be with Stargate SG-1's Goa'uld/Tok'ra. I also find it fascinating what we will learn about Curzon throughout the show without ever meeting him (except for that short flashback in the pilot).

(From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Marathon on September 20th, 2008)