Freaks and Geeks: The Movie?

If you haven't been lucky enough to see any Freaks and Geeks or Undeclared then do yourself a favour and invest in a Region 1 box set, getting to know the students and staff of McKinley High across 18 fantastic episodes.

DVD Reviews: Herostratus, All the Right Noises and Man of Violence

Once more reaching down between the metaphorical cracks in the floorboards of UK film history, those bastions of our celluloid heritage the British Film Institute (BFI) have pulled out and dusted down three more examples of films which there's little chance you've seen but of which everyone should at least have heard of.

Taking place at the BFI on London's Southbank each month, Flipside is a series of screenings of movies forgotten about by the masses, and even by many of the experts.

Releasing some of the best (weirdest?) examples on DVD and Blu-ray, the rest of us can finally get our hands on little pieces of our culture previously hidden in the vaults.

First up is Herostratus from 1967 (15, ***), a suitably flower-power infused slice of oddness centring on young poet Max (Michael Gothard), a troubled soul who starts the film going all moody in his bedsit as the camera lingers on him in a series of close-ups.

Soon we discover that Max has decided to commit suicide, but not your common-or-garden suicide: with the help of a city marketing company. Max wants his death to become a media event, with as many people as possible to know about his demise.

Herostratus is often an uncomfortable watch, its lack of linear storytelling and use of abstract images and scenes giving an often disjointed feeling. There's nothing straightforward about the film, one sequence of a girl dancing spliced with a butcher hacking a piece of raw meat dropped into the film seemingly randomly.

Still, there's no denying the energy of the film, Gothard quite mesmerising as Max: the energy bubbling away beneath his exterior is quite captivating. It's a performance made all the more poignant when you consider that the actor would go on to commit suicide in real life in 1992.

Extras on this two disc set include an audio interview with director Don Levy and three other short films made in the 1960's.

All the Right Noises (12, ****) is the story of a married man, Len (Tom Bell), who unwittingly falls in love (or is that lust?) with 15-year-old schoolgirl Val (Olivia Hussey) and begins an affair with her under the nose of his wife, family and friends.

Hailing from 1969, when social realism was a hot topic for British filmmakers, All the Right Noises refuses to titillate in its depiction of the central love story.

Len and Val's meetings are shown matter-of-factly, their visits to Len's council estate, the beach and the streets of London showing us that they're nothing particularly special, just two mixed up people trying to get by.

The film doesn't judge Len, at least not in the way a modern day film would be forced to. The fact that he hasn't done much with his life and likely never will is probably punishment enough, his brief romance with Val a passing phase that will soon see him return to his status quo.

Bell is up there with those other 60's leading men such as Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay, this film perhaps just not showy enough to lodge in cinema-goers or critics memories after release.

This is a shame as out of the three releases this bears the most re-watching and is a nice curio for those looking to discover more from the era that brought kitchen sink dramas to such prominence.

Extras include an interview with Hussey and short film The Spy's Wife, also starring Bell.

The final release is the almost uncategorisable Man of Violence (15, ***), a spy/detective/action/romance/thriller-type affair which bundles guns and girls into one film with little thought for the actual plot.

Directed by master of exploitation Pete Walker, whose work was both loved and loathed in equal measure by critics and audiences, Michael Latimer is Moon, a private detective hired to investigate problems with a property investment.

Things start to go wrong for Moon when double dealings and gorgeous girls (in particular the stunning Luan Peters) threaten to derail his investigations.

The story then spins-off into confusing territory with kidnappings, spaced out hippy chicks, gun fights, a trip to Morocco, more girls and a suitably 60s soundtrack combining to create a muddled adventure which becomes a series of set-pieces and worried glances.

London looks suitably gritty throughout, the Dockland locations that would a few years later become so vital a part of The Long Good Friday, acting as backdrop to the dodgy meetings and morals, prominent here.

The transfer looks bright and crisp, as with all of these releases, the colours of the still barely-swinging sixties appearing gaudy and brash.

Also on this disc is another Walker feature, 1968's pulp thriller The Big Switch, the plot of which is even less important than that of Man of Violence, comprised of more scantily clad women and a smattering of intrigue.

In conclusion

Complementing each of the films are comprehensive liner notes, helping to set the scene for these stories of death, violence, love and, above all, an energy lacking from many present day British movies.

Very much of their era, these films are all great fun in their own way and all credit is due to the BFI for going to the effort of restoring them to their former glory.

Herostratus, All the Right Noises and Man of Violence are all available now from the BFI on DVD (£17.99) and Blu-ray (22.99).

Avatar preview coming tonight - updated

In case you missed the announcement, today is Avatar Day: cinemas around the world are screening 15 minutes worth of footage from Terminator director James Cameron's latest 3D blockbuster Avatar as excitement surrounding it grows to fever pitch.

Yesterday saw the first trailer appear online, which, while pretty action packed, doesn't really do the film justice.

I saw a few minutes of 3D footage last week and it looks impressive on the big screen - I'll report back tonight after I've seen the new footage with more details about what to expect come the release date of 18 December.

Updated 10.20pm: I'm pleased to say that the scenes I saw at the weekend weren't just a flash in the pan - Avatar does look great in 3D.

The colours are vibrant and Cameron has clearly put his time and money on the screen with the action scenes. The 3D isn't obtrusive but offers depth to the picture missing from traditional films.

The depiction of the lead characters - Jake Worthington and Sigourney Weaver both play human characters and CGI "Avatars" - is still sketchy so I won't go into detail about them here. It'll be interesting to see how much of the flesh and blood versions we see in the finished film.

So all in all I'm positive about the picture, even if I can't quite agree yet with the "future of filmmaking" label being attached to it.

This being a James Cameron film I have very high expectations - here's hoping it meets them this December.

Reel Time in today's Guide

In today's pullout Guide section of the Edinburgh Evening News I talk more about some of the big films coming our way in the next six months or so, including Michael Caine in Harry Brown, new British comedy Bunny and the Bull and Robert Downey Jnr's Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man 2.

Movie-Con II Day One: District 9, Downey Jnr and Dr Parnassus

This weekend I'm in film geek heaven, joining 499 other film fans at London's BFI cinema on the Southbank for Movie-Con II, two days of trailers, interviews, sneak peeks and exclusive screenings from the world of cinema.

Kicking off at 10am, we were treated to footage from Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, who had provided a pre-filmed introduction from the New Zealand, for the much anticipated Lovely Bones.

Opening in the 1970s, the film starts with the murder of a young girl and the failure of the police to capture her killer. Although she's dead, the girl can see everything taking place in her home from a kind of limbo, somewhere between heaven and hell.

There she does everything she can to help her parents find out the truth behind her death.

The film looks gorgeous, Jackson using CGI to enhance the look of the afterlife rather than overwhelm it. It looks dark, scary and strangely uplifting and I can't wait to see this on release.

There was also footage from the next film in the Twilight saga, New Moon. The clip shown was of Bella (Kristin Stewart) tried to ride a motorbike for the first time. As she takes off on said bike she sees visions of Edward (Robert Pattinson), causing her to crash the bike.

The next scene, of a man noticing her cut head and taking his T-shirt off to wipe the blood, caused a wave of laughter from the audience, while the acting was extremely ropey.

I didn't have high hopes for this one before and have even less now, but rest assured it'll be a hit at the box office with the target audience of young girls.

Extended clips from new animated adventure Astroboy followed, which looks like it could be good fun if a little simplistic in tone, and a trailer for US teen horror Sorority Row, which looks like it could be good fun, if quite bloody.

One of the highlights of the day came with footage from the next Michael Caine film, Harry Brown, which stars the Cockney legend as a retired war veteran tired of the intimidation from local Hoodies on his London housing estate.

When his best friend is killed, Harry decides to take his revenge by buying a gun from local drug dealers and wreaking havoc on the gun-toting youngsters.

With echoes of the recent Clint Eastwood thriller Grand Torino, the clips shown were very encouraging, as was the enthusiasm from the film's director, who seems to have put a lot of love and attention into the picture.

Next was ex-Python Terry Gilliam, here to promote his new film, The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus, a story about a fantastical travelling circus.

Any new Gilliam movie is worth getting excited about, but this one looks particularly exciting, not least because of the involvement of the late Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer, Jude Law, Colin Farrell and the always-watchable Johnny Depp.

The film first hit the headlines when Ledger died, leaving Law, Farrell and Depp to complete his scenes in the stunning fantasy sequences inside the Imaginarium. Gilliam urged people not to think of this as merely Heath's final film but as Dr Parnassus' film, and I'm sure this will be a highlight of the next twelve months at the cinema.

There was also footage shown of superhero comedy Kick-Ass, focussing on a teenager who's sick of being bullied and who decides to become a crimefighter, the Kick-Ass of the title, to take revenge on the local tough guys.

Moving from comedy to drama and back to comedy in the space of a few seconds, this is bound to be a controversial one when it comes out, not least because of the knife wielding little girl who wreaks bloody havoc. One scene involving Nicolas Cage, the girl and the use of a gun will certainly provoke outrage, but it's all done with tongue firmly in cheek.

The surprise movie of the day was new science fiction film District 9, more of which in my Evening News column when the film is released, though I can say the CGI is amazing and the plot just about manages to stretch to the 107 minute run time.

Most unexpected event of the day was an appearance by Mr Robert Downey Jnr and Guy Richie to introduce their new collaboration, Sherlock Holmes.

The crowd went wild when Downey Jnr appeared on stage, a touch of Hollywood style brought to the Southbank on a warm day in August - the film itself looks like it could be good fun, if not exactly faithful to the source material.

Elsewhere there was footage from the remake of the first Nightmare on Elm Street, Jonah Hex, Where the Wild Things Are (which could either be a masterpiece or a grand failure judging by the scenes shown), Ninja Assassin and Dorian Gray.

Tomorrow promises even more excitement, including footage from James Cameron's Avatar and Tron 2 - follow me on Twitter for the latest updates from the event.

Bill Douglas Trilogy on the big screen

A few weeks back I discussed the merits of Newcraighall-born director Bill Douglas, whose trilogy of films based on his own upbringing - My Childhood (1972), My Ain Folk (1973) and My Way Home (1978) - paved the way for many of today's independent filmmakers.

Well, in case I didn't quite convince you to rush out and buy your own copy of the newly-released Blu-ray's, Edinburgh's Filmhouse will be screening the films next week as part of their Made in Edinburgh season.

These are not only important films in Britain's cinematic history but also in Scotland's and I'd urge everyone to give them a chance.

Visit the Filmhouse website for more information on the screening, taking place on 19 August at 5.45pm.

Film at the Edinburgh Fringe

In this week's Guide section of the Edinburgh Evening News I took a look at some of the film-related shows taking place at the Edinburgh Fringe.

There are well over 2,000 shows taking place this year, but film fans can find something if they look hard enough - the article is now online so please head over to read how stars got from Fringe Festival to the silver screen.

DVD Review: Hot Enough for June

007 is dead. The British Secret Service needs a replacement in the shape of Whistler, Nicholas Whistler (Dirk Bogarde), a young writer currently on the dole whose only qualification is that he can speak Czech.

Sent on a mission behind the Iron Curtain, Whistler will encounter foreign spies, intrigue and codewords while all the while trying to work out exactly what it is he's meant to be doing.

Made in 1964, just a few years after Sean Connery's debut as James Bond, Hot Enough for June is an early example of a film jumping on the spy Bondwagon.

Director Ralph Thomas (who had worked with Bogarde on the series of Doctor comedies) does well to replicate the look of the Connery films, the stuffy interiors of Colonel Cunliffe's (Robert Morley) office a close match to M's base of operations.

The film moves along at a steady enough pace, Yugoslav actress Sylvia Koscina providing the glamour and Leo McKern doing well as the bad guy.

Bogarde himself is as dependable as ever as Whistler, a man conned into helping his country and unsure about what's happening to him. Unfortunately he's not given much to work with, his character more of a cypher than a superspy.

With no plot to rival that of Commander Bond, no attempt to create an equal to SMERSH, Blofeld or any of Bond's enemies and little effort to challenge the viewer, the film succeeds as a light drama but, while 007 fans will smile at the opening sequence, it sadly fails as a classic espionage film.

Hot Enough for June (PG) is out now on DVD (£9.99).