Empire States: The OCD Overhaul
Posted on Monday April 27, 2009, 17:32 by Emily Phillips in Empire States
 I’m on a health kick. The sun was in the sky for approximately 20 glorious hours over the weekend, which means it is time to get in shape in case it returns any time this side of 2010. In order to do this, I revert to a mode which is arguably a little excessive and would perhaps be better suited to military planning than getting into a swimming costume. I like to call it my OCD overhaul, since I am known for my slightly obsessive compulsive tendencies. I have a desk akin to that of a serial killer’s in its neatness, and my wardrobe is colour coordinated (although my DVD shelf remains unalphabetised, so there’s hope for me yet – unlike Dan ). However, the OCD overhaul is the next step up from my usual foibles. It involves heavy reliance on counting and organization, as well as copious lists and precision time keeping.
“But what does this have to do with movies?” I hear you cry. Well, in the whirling ... Continue reading... Comment Now (5 comments)
Back To TopEmpire States: My Perfect Movie Family
Posted on Thursday January 15, 2009, 14:57 by Emily Phillips in Empire States
 It seems like a distant and very dim memory now, but Christmas with all the family got me thinking about a game I used to play with my brother when we were younger, where in place of all of those family members you spend the rest of year trying to forget, you cast a brand spanking, shiny new family. We used to use TV personalities- substituting Terry Wogan or Rolf Harris as the grandfather and so on.
Now I am not saying that I myself do not love and cherish all of my family members, but play along if you will…
I myself like to think of Angela Lansbury in any incarnation as my TV or movie grandmother (and especially as Miss Price in Bedknobs and Broomsticks). The soft fuzzy peachiness of her lovable face and the warm tone of her voice. You could just imagine her baking a lovely Victoria sponge for you on a Sunday afternoon, before she goes off to write her murder mysteries at her well-used typewriter.
Now who would make the ideal granddad? There are few male actors... Continue reading... Comment Now (53 comments)
Back To TopEmpire States: My Favourite Christmas Movie: The Muppet Christmas Carol
Posted on Tuesday December 23, 2008, 14:35 by Emily Phillips in Empire States
 Now, running after Brazil, Die Hard and Uncle Buck, touting of The Muppet Christmas Carol as my favourite festive movie just seems unimaginative. But I put this to you, that unlike all the others, this film leaves no one - not the poor, the old, the young, the cast-out - no one, still uttering ‘Bah Humbug’ by the time the credits roll.
Having watched it twice already this festive season, I can fully vouch for the power of this all singing, all dancing, all encompassing tale of the misery-guts who finds Christmas. It has cheesy sing-along songs; pitch-perfect one-liners (“light the lamp, not the rat”); Beaker and Bunsen as the least offensive charity-muggers known to man; and Michael Caine hamming it up with a blob of mustard on top. What is not to love? Some may say there is even something phantasmically endearing about the fiendishly foetal Ghost of Christmas Past...
Song-wise, The Muppet Christmas Carol outstrips every other original Christmas film score, an... Continue reading... Comment Now (24 comments)
Back To TopEmpire States: How Soon Is Too Soon For Christmas Movies?
Posted on Monday December 1, 2008, 18:05 by Emily Phillips in Empire States
 As the nights draw in, we need some comfort to get us through the greyness. And as it is now only one month until Christmas, it is officially time to get into the spirit with some festive flicks. But when is the right time to start watching those warm and fuzzy, jingle bell ringin’ classics?
By this point, it is very likely that you will have ticked The Nightmare Before Christmas off the list, sometime after Halloween. That whole Halloween Town/ Christmas Town crossover means it’s officially OK to watch that any time from October 31 onwards.
The next stop is likely to be any film set around the festive period that is not officially about the big day. So, for an early December Sunday sofa session, think Gremlins, Home Alone or Trading Places. Serving up Christmas capers with an extra helping of farce, violence and nasty glee, they brighten up those winter doldrums without a trace of schmaltz or overly-seasonal cheer.
But perhaps one... Continue reading... Comment Now (51 comments)
Back To TopEmpire States: Break-Up Bounce Backs
Posted on Monday October 20, 2008, 17:39 by Emily Phillips in Empire States
 Divorce is never fun, as Guy Ritchie and Madonna are no doubt realising right now. However, it seems it may have its career benefits.
As the details of their split emerge, it appears that both parties are channelling their energies into work in order to weather the storm. And the result of this renewed vigour for all things business is that some of your best work can come out of the heartache.
A case in point is the recent up in Anne Hathaway’s status, directly following her split from long-term lover Raffaello Follieri. Creating Oscar buzz with her perfect performance as tortured drug-addict Kym in Rachel Getting Married, Hathaway shows that the rollercoaster of personal heartbreak can be directed into the creative to fuel the on-screen emotionality. Similarly, Nicole Kidman earned her first Oscar nomination (for Moulin Rouge) straight after her divorce from Tom Cruise.
And with Guy Ritchie making a return to form with RockNRolla, we can see that flying solo can h... Continue reading... Comment Now (6 comments)
Back To TopSmall Screen: We Don't Need Another Heroes
Posted on Thursday October 2, 2008, 11:59 by Emily Phillips in Small Screen
 OK, this isn’t film, but it’s film-esque, and has us all talking, so we wanted to share. Heroes kicked off its third series last night, and is now officially more lost than Lost. Following a second season stunted by the writers' strike, we hoped to get back to the grasp of some gripping “Save the Cheerleader” action. But if the cheerleader doesn’t need saving, and if Sylar can be stopped by a mere louver door, then where can it go from here?
We are now in plot blurring territory, where the writers rip up all the character notes (if they had any), and rewrite them, a week at a time, losing track of what has gone before with every passing episode. But our discussion of this is going to get spoilerific, so if you are saving this quality drama for the weekend or didn’t watch the second episode on BBC3 later, then look away now!
Opening on a flash-forward to the future, we see that Future Peter has a major gash across his face and Claire Bear has evo... Continue reading... Comment Now (122 comments)
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