I listened to this yesterday. Not a bad story if a little one dimensional. The idea isn’t a new one, but, as often with Torchwood, was taken much further than I’ve seen it taken before, and possibly would have liked to have seen (or rather heard) it taken before.
I didn’t feel it moved the story arc on any further though, not really. That was a bit of a wasted opportunity in my view. There isn’t anything more known about the arc than at the start of this episode. I’ll stick with the series, but I’d like to see (hear) it move forward a bit more than it is right now.
I was out and about in London today and managed to get a handful of recordings, indoor and out. I haven’t had a chance to review any of them as yet, but I hope to do that tomorrow, and, if they’re good enough, I’ll get them up onto SoundCloud.
It might not be the most musical app in the world, but it is really very useful, and beautifully simple too. It uses the vibration in the watch to pulse as a metronome. It’s very simple to use and quite effective. I don’t know how good its timing is, but that’s not a massive deal right now.
Now I’ve seen both, and within only a few weeks of each other, so I think it’s not a bad time to make a comparison.
I have to start with the fact that my preference is unchanged. I think that the original is the best of the two. In fact it is the best by far. Having said that, the remake has some very good qualities in its favour. First off, it is a very true remake. Very little is changed, with the exception of the ending, which, I believe, is much closer to the book. However, I’ve not read the book as yet. When I have there’ll be another comparison of all three.
Where I think the remake went wrong is in three key areas. I’ll explain them shortly. However, for now …
IF YOU HAVE ANY INTENTION OF WATCHING THESE FILMS, PLEASE NOTE THAT THERE ARE SPOILERS FOLLOWING!
John Wayne can’t really be bettered. Bridges did a good job but I wasn’t sure what he was trying to do with his accent really. That seemed a bit strange to me.
The (for me) quintessential line “Fill you hands you son of a bitch” is delivered properly in the original. Not so much in the remake.
The ending. I won’t say why I don’t like the ending in the remake, but the original’s ending is upbeat and excellent, and I love it.
I’m glad I’ve seen both and I’m glad I’ve got both. In my opinion they’re both worth watching, but the original will always be the best.
This is a real return to form. I absolutely love it. I shan’t give anything away just in case you’re likely to listen to it, but it is a lovely story and a great one for Romana II to return to. It has the feel of another delightful story, “The Auntie Matter”, which is gorgeous.
If this is setting the tone for this season then I’m going to be very happy indeed.
I am Ashley Elsdon 