Lincoln

I do my best to allow myself to see one beard-stroking non-violent movie per year if only to prove to myself that I’m not completely mentally lost in a sea of endless pain and suffering while haunted by the screams of the men I’ve sent or led to their deaths. So this year I went to see Lincoln, Senior Spielbergo’s epic biopic of a man troubled by nightmares and haunted by the screams of the men he sent to their deaths. Thankfully for my own mental state perhaps, Steve focused his sight on the internal political wrangling of January 1865 as Abraham Lincoln tried to get the House of Representatives to ratify the 13^th amendment to the constitution, abolishing slavery as well as bringing an end to a terrible civil war and reunifying the troubled nation.

This is a talking film. There’s a lot of talking, posturing, arguing, storytelling and speech-making. One copy of the script could be used instead of log or two on the fire for the evening. There must be at over 60 speaking roles from start to finish. The most ‘exciting’ moment in the movie is where they go through the entire House of Representatives individually getting them to vote by saying 'yay' or 'nay', which some do more colourfully than others, but even this is still more talking! All that aside, what they are actually saying on whole is worth listening to and you’ll be glad you heard it.

Daniel Day Lewis gives us the performance of his career as the man himself and without hesitation I’d hand him the Oscar for his warm, kindly yet deeply intelligent portrayal of a truly troubled man. Tommy Lee Jones gets as much screen time as Republican Congressional leader Thaddeus Stevens who rallied his people to the cause. An ageing Sally Field, without a single dollop of make-up for the role, portrayed Mary Todd-Lincoln, broken-hearted wife, daily coping with the loss of one of their sons. There's far too many other roles to detail here but I will commend Jared Harris as General Grant, James Spader as William Bilbo and Bruce McGill as Secretary Edwin Stanton.

If there is any fault with this movie it's that Spielberg is literally reaching out and demanding Oscars. It's very interesting to compare this to the last movie that seemed to do the same thing - The Kings Speech. The main difference is that the British are much nicer about making their demands, insofar as you can practically hear them saying 'please' and 'thank you' after making them. Spielberg doesn't have the same manners and it's borderline vulgar. I'm by no means saying Lincoln is not deserving of it's accolades but I think audiences who elect to see this are intelligent enough to know it's worthy without a speech or John Williams reminding us every five minutes.

Final Verdict: It's unlikely anyone could 'enjoy' this more than Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter but it's seemingly a little more historically accurate if that's your thing. I can at least acknowledge that the acting overall is far better in this movie which truly humanizes a man of legendary status.

Colonel Creedon rating: ****

Finally!

POPE BENEDICT XVI RESIGNS!!!

German born Joeseph Ratzinger, formerly of the Hitler Youth who ascended to the papacy in 2005 following the death of his predecessor Pope John Paul II, has become the first pope in 600 years to resign his office.

In his letter of resignation Pope Benedict cited a 'lack of strength' and 'ill health'. However as all popes since Pope Gregory XII in 1415 have grown old, fallen ill and died in office it seems prudent to assume that his hand was forced somehow by someone influential, for reasons which may never be revealed...

Django 'Unhinged'

Quentin Tarintino’s latest offering is Django Unchained, the story of a slave [Jamie Foxx] who is freed by Dr. King Schultz [Christoph Waltz] a bounty hunter, himself on the trail of a group of thugs whom only Django Freeman can identify. Schultz offers Django both freedom and money in return for his assistance but also trains him in his art of bounty hunting - skills that Django wishes to use to free his wife Broomhilda Von Shaft [Kerry Washington] from her own slavemasters at Candieland, a famously reprehensible slave plantation.

If you had no problem with the Inglorious Basterds shooting Adolf Hitler in the face with machine guns then the anachronistic events of Django [which is certainly even more loosely based on its period in history] won’t even faze you. I mentally accepted this element before taking my seat and I enjoyed the movie’s offering as a result. The violence quotient on screen was somewhat typical of Tarantino’s direction and many scenes left torrents of blood everywhere. Actually, some scenes were, I’m surprised to say - a little too over-the top even for Tarintino – I guess you can actually go too far with violence when it physically distracts you from telling the story. The movie is easily at least half an hour too long and the final half-hour drags the movie into the territory where you start looking at your watch. There is an incredible shoot out scene about -30:00 from the end and if the movie’s final “explosive” scene was tacked on there instead we’d have a more cohesive and satisfactory presentation [without an ‘Australian’ Tarintino! – don’t ask].

Then there is of course the script. Tarintino is an excellent writer, he’s proved it many times but what he does here, while thematically brilliant, falls short in execution. When a small child discovers a new curse-word, depending on the reaction of its supervisors, it may continue to populate it’s speech with said word. While Django’s script is great for the most part [practically everything written for Waltz and Leonardo DiCaprio is gold], it’s really as if little Quentin had just discovered the n-word and he obviously got the reaction that drove the infantile portion of his mind to repeat the word over 100 times in the script. I’m sorry, but if you’re going to claim that the constant use of the n-word is appropriate for the time, citing a desire to stay true to historical accuracy, then don’t say it about a movie set in 1858 where the protagonists are using Sharps Model 1874 Buffalo rifles and Dynamite which was invented in 1867!! Using the n-word in the manner he did is totally understandable and even expected from him at this stage but using it in the sheer amounts he did per minute was excessive and attention-seeking and deserves admonishing rather than a Golden Globe win or the Oscar nomination.

Foxx may be an Oscar winner in his own right but even as the title character, he’s nothing more than a rank amateur when acting alongside Waltz. The German actor steals the show and deserved the admiration of not only the audience but every award that he’s eligible for, he’s that good. Blood Diamond, Inception and The Departed mean that DiCaprio is no longer considered to be a fucking twerp and his turn as the eccentric slave-owner Calvin Candie is excellent but unlike Waltz his performance isn’t worthy of award. Of Samuel L. Jackson’s character Steven, I can only ask “What the fuck?” There are some interesting appearances by Don Johnson, Walton Goggins and Tom Wopat but sadly a criminal under use of Bruce Dern as well as an audience-insulting [mis]use of James Remar playing two different characters.

Final Verdict: While it should never have been considered for most of the accolades it’s earned; Django Unchained this generation’s answer to Blazing Saddles in so far as it should be taken just as seriously but just as thoroughly enjoyed.

Colonel Creedon Rating: ****

Walmart Shoplifter Plugged by Deputy Sheriff - Part 21 in my "Shoot First, Questions Never" series!

27 year old Shelly Frey, mother-of-two, was shot and killed by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy at a Walmart in Texas.

Louis Campbell, a 26-year veteran of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, is employed as a security guard at Walmart. He was notified by store security that Frey and two accomplices had placed some items in their purses while shopping.

As there were exiting the store Campbell who was in his uniform, stopped the women and identified himself as a law-enforcement official but the trio fled to their vehicle. Campbell gave chase and opened Frey’s car door, ordering her to exit the vehicle, an order she refused to comply with. Tisa Andrews, another of the suspects, then put the vehicle in reverse while Deputy Campbell was standing between the open door and the driver’s seat.

“She threw it in reverse and tried to run over the deputy,” said Harris County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Deputy Thomas Gilliland. “He confronted the suspects at exit of the store before they left. One female wouldn’t stop, struck the deputy with her purse, ran off.” He added, “I think it knocked him off balance and, in fear of his life and being ran over, he discharged his weapon at that point.”

Even with Frey wounded in the neck, the women still fled, but they stopped on Greens Parkway. Frey was pronounced dead at the scene when paramedics arrived. “Shelly was the perfect mom, perfect friend, perfect daughter,” said her father, Shelton Frey. “Why couldn’t you just shoot the tire, shoot the window?” said her mother Sharon Wilkerson. “Was it that serious?”

Verdict: RIGHTEOUS KILL! That's right! Although the crime itself was certainly not one to be answered with a bullet to the neck. The trifecta of Assaulting a Police Officer, Evading/Resisting Arrest and Attempted Vehicular Manslaughter means you deserve to get dropped. The real question is why was there only one shot fired? You're unlikely to take down three perps with one shot Campbell! More training for you!

Gangster Squad doesn't shoot straight

Gangster Squad is the story of a group of the toughest cops in L.A. who dispensed justice without their badges on and fought to keep East Coast Mafia types out of Los Angeles in the 1940s and 50s. It was to have been released in September, but Warner Bros. decided against releasing film with an explosive cinema shootout/massacre just a couple of months after the Aurora, Colorado shootings and there was some frantic reshoots and editing required to deliver a finished product.

The performances from Josh Brolin as dedicated squad leader Sgt. John O'Mara and Emma Stone as sultry Grace Faraday, moll to crime boss Micky Cohen were above their average. Sean Penn [Cohen] seemed to relish in his slightly over the top villain and despite the fact I despise Penn himself, his performance was faultless despite his distracting make up. Ryan Gosling however perplexed us with an extraordinarily effeminate whiny voice for his Jerry Wooters that did not sound convincing whatsoever and while Robert Patrick may be getting on a bit alright he’s not old enough to be playing Max Kennard a role that would have better suited Sam Elliot 10 years ago. I was also left wondering how many of the people in the audience would have even recognised the once great Nick Nolte playing legendary LAPD chief William H. Parker?

I really wish I could have seen the original cut because I think I'd be here singing Gangster Squads praises in a longer, better review than I can write about this. I think what we got has the makings of a masterpiece that would sit on a shelf just beneath L.A. Confidential and The Departed but the changes made literally castrated the film. As it stands now, it’s fair to good rather than the excellence it exudes from its best moments. Sadly now there’s as much wind in my sails about it as I assumed was in Ruben Zombieland Fleischer's as he signed off on the final deeply flawed cut. 

It’s easy to see where the movie was altered from the multitude of glaring plot holes that manifested themselves in the last 40 minutes or so with characters apparently developing both powers of deduction and psychic abilities not out of place in a superhero flick. I'm unsure if it was due to these changes the made it seem like the Gangster Squad was basically running about without a cohesive operational plan or what the O'Mara/Wooters friendship didn't seem to be in any way genuine, but I guess we'll never know.

Final Verdict: It’s a cinematic tragedy that this felt like a 4.5/5-Star movie that had to be butchered down to 3. As such Gangster Squad deserves to be listed as one of those wounded in the Colorado shooting.

Colonel Creedon Rating: ***

SETI targets belligerent aliens with scanning beams!

The Green Bank Telescope [Image CMU.EDU]

UNETIDA today blasted SETI for the institute's instance on performing targeted searches on inhabitable solar systems in deep space. Apparently the reckless organisation has been using the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to scan 86 different stars, chosen because Kepler data indicated they host potentially habitable planets by our standards.

SETI surveyed each star for 5 minutes by searching radio bands in the 1-2 GHz range for alien cell phones and Television signals as well as the spectrum beneath 5Hz which can't be produced by anything in nature. However, due to the vast distances involved in the scanning, the only signals that could have been detected were those that were intentionally aimed in our direction — which would be a deliberate effort by ETIs to signal their presence.

Unsurprisingly, the researchers noted that no signals of extraterrestrial origin were found. Despite this they remain hopeful for the future. SETI intend to expand the list of signatures they will scan for to include laser pulses and to consider civilisations on different levels of the Kardashev scale.

UNETIDA are opposed to SETI's efforts and Colonel "Whopper" Creedon, Director of Intelligence was quick to admonish the recklessness of the SETI researchers. "Goddamn fools is what they are! Sure it's infinitesimally remote that there will be some kind of signal from these places back and they are at least 1000 light years away but we've got our own issues to deal with before we start inviting ET over for coffee!"

UNETIDA resources are believed to be stretched wafer thin following a major military and scientific highly classified operation which prevented the destruction of the planet on December 21st last. At the most recent UN General Assembly, the Security Council was encouraged to put steps into motion that would see the permanent merge of UNETIDA and it's sister service UNPASID which had it's command staff wiped out in a series of unfortunate events last year. Looming U.S. defence budget cuts will likely have a detrimental effect on future operations and it's believed that unlike in the past, UNETIDA will not be able to fund operations to prevent SETI or independent researchers from their misguided and irresponsible efforts.

Source:  io9

Reaching for Jack

One of the world’s finest actors, wacky Scientologist Tom Cruise, adopts the mantle of literary character Jack Reacher in Christopher McQuarrie's adaptation of One Shot by Lee Child. A former major in the U.S. Army Military Police Corps, Reacher has since bizarrely eschewed an identity, permanent address, drivers licence and now only seems to own only the clothes he’s wearing. Despite his eccentricities however, he’s also a highly skilled investigator and when another former soldier whom Reacher failed to convict years earlier, becomes prime suspect in a multiple homicide - he demands Reacher himself assists his lawyer in investigating his case.

Cruise is joined on screen by Rosamund Surrogates Pike, Richard Killing Them Softly Jenkins, Jai Spartacus Courtney and the legendary Robert Duvall. The latter puts in the most convincing performance an an old-timer US Marine who won't walk away from a fight and relishes the chance to open fire on human beings again. And then there's Werner Herzog, the villain of the piece to which I can only bury my face in my hands in disbelief. The man is one of the worlds most prolific documentary filmmakers but he's no actor. For his [thankfully] few scenes he does nothing but sit in a chair sprouting sheer nonsense in his trademark emotionless monotone.

McQuarrie [who wrote The Usual Suspects and will helm M:I-5] has the movie play out bizarrely like a common 80’s thriller. It’s a mishmash between a bog-standard conspiracy tale at its best and a predictable Steven Segal movie at its worst. Despite the sheer nonsense of this combination, when melded with the absurdity of the Jack Reacher character and Cruise’s professional performance as well as Duvall's, this has far more a credible pedigree of an action-thriller than most movies that make such a claim these days and in fact the end result is thoroughly entertaining.

Final Verdict: They don’t make them like this anymore. Not sure of that's a good or a bad thing yet.

Colonel Creedon Rating: ***1/2

An Unexpected Journey, an expected pleasure

A friend of mine typed the word “Aarg!” into a chat window during a DDO game in exclamation at the apparently startling revelation that I had never read The Hobbit. I gather it’s a common supposition to have read the book considering I’ve been playing the likes of Dungeons & Dragons with him for the best part of a decade, but I’d have told him if he had ever asked. I thought it best not to add I had never read so much as one of Tolkien’s short stories [and I’m confident his world would probably fall apart if I told him in truth I’d never actually read a single fantasy novel in my life, no not one]. I just want to be sure that I’m framing for you the fact that my sum total of knowledge of Tolkien’s work is entirely from watching all three Lord of the Rings movies several times [and a few of the DVD extras].

 

Needless to say I’ve already stated in the past that the Lord of the Rings trilogy is the greatest movie trilogy of all time* so the news that they were adapting The Hobbit was expected and believed partly necessary to truly cement LotR in cinematic history. The production cycle however was quite tumultuous. Some of you may recall during the life cycle of 2IGTV that Mark and I discussed the status of what was presumed to be Guillermo Del Toro’s project that seemed to change seasonally. Eventually there was light, a green light, money flowed in and filming began - instead under the direction of Peter Jackson once again. Since then, anticipation was as palpable as it was for Fellowship of the Ring and finally ended for me on December 12th.

 

So knowing only for sure that I’d see the characters of Bilbo, Gandalf and “some dwarf who would become Gimly’s father,” I entered Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey [in 3D**] with high hopes and even higher standards. I was not disappointed. Jackson literally re-created another chunk of Middle Earth upon the already magnificent landscape of New Zealand, only this seems brighter and more lush in every sense of the words. It can be easily thought of as a world which had yet to fall to the corruption of the evil witnessed in LotR. Frodo and Samwise’s epic walking tour through Middle Earth spanning three whole movies prepared my patience [and my arse] for yet another band of fantasy creatures to make another road trip but despite the preparation [and knowing that New Line had forced Jackson to stretch out a 300 page book to span 3 whole movies instead of two] I was still expecting to the shouting “Get on with it!” in Monty Pythonesque fashion at some point. Imagine my surprise when the credits began rolling just as I was beginning to get into it. I’ve been to many 2.5+ hour movies in my day but this is the first time I have never felt a single moment pass and was genuinely shocked to discover that hours had passed since I had opened my bag of Peanut M&M’s.

 

The dwarf's plight is told through similar flashback exposition to LotR’s ring origin and tells the story of a magnificent dwarf kingdom laid to ruin by a powerful dragon, exiling the dwarfs and scattering their civilisation. Martin Sherlock Freeman takes the reigns as Bilbo Baggins and with everyone’s favourite wizard, Gandalf [Sir Ian McKellan] and Richard Armatage as dwarf-prince Thorin Oakenshield, they lead a lively, hilarious yet heroic band of dwarfs through exotic locales, some familiar, some new as well as meet characters we both know or never before heard tale of on their epic journey of adventure. Sir Ian Holm, Andy Serkis, Kate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Sir Christopher Lee and even Elijah Wood all reprise their famous roles from LotR [although I’m lead to understand that half of that lot are playing characters that never even appeared in the original novel]. They make the transition to this new saga all the more memorable. Canadian composer Howard Shore returned to provide a rich melodic score to the soundscape of the movie reintroducing us to many of his original themes as well as creating a few new ones to highlight this “same but different” adventure. While the 3D was unusually perfect and not used as gimmicky as other movies I reckon I’d have been just as happy with the 2D, it’s an enhancement, not a necessity.

 

While we are led to understand that Sauron’s corruption is just beginning, the main tale here is one of simply going home rather than saving the world from evil – that will come later in history as we’ve already seen – but for now and the next two movies, we are to be content with our merry band of dwarfs evicting their unwanted house guest and keeping would-be orcish invaders off their front lawn. No the whole world doesn’t have to be under threat for a movie such as this to be exciting, just one little part of it.

Final Verdict: With lush visuals, superb CGI, world-class acting, a sharp script and a flawless score it was nothing short of excellent; so much so that I actually went twice!

Colonel Creedon Rating: *****

* Just to reiterate - I consider Star Wars to be religion not a series of movies

** I did not chose 3D either time I went to it. Technical difficulty with the 2D presentation on the day of release and unmanageable 2D scheduling on the following Saturday necessitated the need to see the 3D presentation twice. My 3D rejection contract is not broken as these issues are covered under clause [E] force mejure..

Obama sworn in to face first battle of new term

President Barack Obama took the ceremonial oath of office for his second term as the 44th U.S. president and commander in chief on the steps of the U.S. Capitol today. More than 500,000 gathered on the National Mall to watch Obama and Vice President Joe Biden enter their second term.

“America will remain the anchor of strong alliances in every corner of the globe,” the president said in his speech. “We will renew those institutions that extend our capacity to manage crisis abroad, for no one has a greater stake in a peaceful world than its most powerful nation". The United States will support democracy around the world, “because our interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom.”

L-R - Jack Lew, Chuck Hagel, John Brennan, John Kerry

The first battle of Obama's second term will be to have his choices for his new cabinet confirmed by the Senate. The president wants Jacob "Jack" Lew the White House Chief of Staff to replace Timothy Geithner as Treasury Secretary. Former Republican Senator and Vietnam War veteran Chuck Hagel has been nominated to replace Leon Panetta as Secretary of Defence and Chief Counterterrorism Advisor John Brennan has been chosen to fill the post of CIA Director vacated abruptly in November by General David Patraeus. These appointments are expected to face tough scrutiny if not blocked entirely by lawmakers. However, former presidential candidate, Senator John Kerry's nomination ito replace Hilary Clinton as Secretary of State is not expected to be contested.

End of Watch

Do you like COPS? Bad boys, bad boys, what’cha gonna do when they come for you? etc. Well imagine if COPS was able to broadcast what the LAPD have to put up with every day. Under constant death threats from Colombian drug lords, getting beaten to a pulp until you’re unrecognisable, getting stabbed in the eye with a knife, getting shot at by gangs wielding military-grade weapons. Yeah then it wouldn’t be really COPS anymore would it? But it would be the new movie from David Ayer who wrote Training Day but directed Street Kings.

Ayer brought Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena together, sent them off to ride around with real LAPD cops for a few months and got them to present to us two distinctive police officers who know that this is a dirty job that someone has to do and it may as well be them. They look feel and talk like they may not be the #1 cops in the world but when the shit hits the fan you understand that to each other – they are - and as partners on the street that’s what you need most.

Ayer creatively used a multitude of camera sources to capture the story he wanted to show, it was part reality-show amateur hour, part steady-cam Panavision. It was a little strange going from one view to the other but I wasn’t on the level of the vomit-inducing Chronicle and the fact that portable cameras now can stream/record HD, the days of Blair Witch nonsense are long gone.

Ayer is the man who wrote the most historically inaccurate movie of all time, U-571. Following worldwide criticism for his historical distortion vowed he would never do it again. While this movie is fictional, I think we can say he's come full circle. It's too real. It’s difficult to actually review this as I do other forms of entertainment as it wasn’t so much entertaining as it seemed like the stark reality of what you read about in the news every day was unfolding before you. You were only now seeing what was happening between the lines of the those reports and it's far from pretty.

Colonel Creedon Rating: ****

2012! - The Year In Review

Time to say goodbye to 2012. The year that was supposed to end it all, but we're all still here.

A year of a long freefall, a "zombie" attack, the iPhone 5, Pussy Riot, solar eruptions, Fifty Shades, Minecraft, Gangnam Style, the sale of Star Wars and an implosion in UNPASID.

A year of pain for those in Syria, Egypt, Aurora, Newtown and those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

A year of heroes in Avengers, a rising Dark Knight, a sky falling, Expendables and a furry-footed Hobbit!

It was a year of triumph for London and her Olympic athletes, Barack Obama's re-election but a year of failure for the Secret Service, Lance Armsrong and David Petraeus.

As always we must acknowledge those we lost in 2012, especially astronaut Neil Armstrong [82] the first person to walk on the Moon, actor Ernest Borgnine [95] , singer Whitney Houston [48], film director Tony Scott [68], science fiction and fantasy author Ray Bradbury [91], Star Wars concept artist Ralph McQuarrie [82], Bee Gees singer and songwriter Robin Gibb [62], and most recently, General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. [78] the Desert Storm commander.

I would like to especially mention actor and former U.S. Army PFC Charles Durning [89] who during WWII took part in the D-Day landings and earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star, 3 Purple Hearts and was granted the grade of Chevailier of the Legion of Honour by france. Never a leading actor his face and voice is nevertheless known to all who watched movies since the 70's. He was Lt. Snyder in The Sting and followed the role with more than 100 movie and TV credits including: Dog Day Afternoon, Tootsie, The Hudsucker Proxy, Spy Hard, Rescue Me, Everybody Loves Raymond and even voiced Francis Griffin in Family Guy. Among numerous Academy Award and Emmy nominations was one for portraying a Marine veteran in NCIS where Durning was able to draw on his first-hand knowledge of Combat Stress Reaction.

We also acknowledge the passing of the following individuals who made the history books: Rodney King [47] whose beating by police sparked the 1992 Los Angeles riots, Richard Alf [59] the co-founder/chairman of San Diego Comic-Con and August Kowalczyk [90] Polish actor and last survivor of 1942 Auschwitz concentration camp breakout.

We mourn the loss of the following entertainers:

Norman Alden [87] American actor [Kranix in Transformers: The Movie / Lou Caruthers in Back to the Future]

Phillip R. Allen

Phillip R. Allen [72] American actor [Captain Esteban in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]

Bob Anderson [89]  British fencer and fight choreographer [Star Wars / Highlander / Lord of the Rings]

Gerry Anderson [83] British producer, writer and director [Thunderbirds / Captain Scarlet]

R. G. Armstrong [95] American actor [Maj.Gen. Phillips in Predator]

Ian Abercrombie [77] British actor [Mr. Pitt in Seinfeld / Chancellor Palpatine in Star Wars: The Clone Wars]

Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, CBE [76] English composer, musician and film scorer [Billion Dollar Brain]

Lucille Bliss [96] American voice actress [Smurfette in The Smurfs]

Frank Carson [85] Northern Irish comedian

Dick Clark [82] American television host and producer

Michael Clarke Duncan [54] American actor [The Green Mile / Armageddon / Daredevil]

James Farentino [73], American actor [Frank Chaney in Blue Thunder]

Ben Gazzara [81], American actor [Sgt. Angelo in The Bridge at Remagen]

Joel Goldsmith [54] American film and television composer [Stargate TV franchise]

Andy Griffith [86] American actor [Matlock]

Larry Hagman [81] American actor [J.R. Ewing in Dallas] 

Marvin Hamlisch [68] American composer [The Spy Who Loved Me]

Bob Holness [83], South African-born British quiz show host [Blockbusters]

Geoffrey Hughes DL [68] English actor [Onslow in Keeping Up Appearances]

Davy Jones [66] British actor and musician [The Monkees]

Alex Karras [77] American football player and actor [Mongo in Blazing Saddles]

David Kelly [82] Irish actor [O'Reilly in Fawlty Towers / Grandpa Joe in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory]

Jack Klugman [90] American actor [Quincy, M.E.]

Joe Kubert [85] Polish-born American comic book artist [Sgt. Rock]

Lance LeGault [77] American actor [Colonel Decker in The A-Team]

Lance LeGault

Herbert Lom [95] Czech-born British actor [Chief Inspector Dreyfus in the Pink Panther movie series]

Richard Lynch [72] American actor [Wolfe in Battlestar Galactica / Baran in Star Trek: The Next Generation]

Sir Patrick Moore, CBE [89] British astronomer and broadcaster

George Murdock [81] American actor [Admiral J.P. Hanson in Star Trek: The Next Generation / Dr. 

Salik in Battlestar Galactica] 

Jerry Nelson [78] American puppeteer [Count von Count in Sesame Street]

Michael O'Hare [60] American actor [Commander Sinclair in Babylon 5]

J. Michael Riva [63] American production designer [A Few Good Men / Iron Man]

Hal Roach [84] Irish comedian.

Ken Sansom [85] American voice actor [Hound in Transformers]

Jean Wells [56] American game designer, writer, artist. [Dungeons & Dragons: Palace of the Silver Princess]

William Windom [88] American actor [Commodore Decker in Star Trek]

We thank them for their talents.

We also acknowledge the passing of those who dedicated themselves to military, science and public service:

Master Sergeant John F. Baker, Jr. [66] American, former U.S. Army NCO [Medal of Honor recipient]

Air Marshal Sir Alfred Henry Wynne Ball KCB DSO DFC [91] British, retired RAF Air Marshal

Colonel Van T. Barfoot [92] American, former U.S. Army soldier [Medal of Honor recipient]

Master Chief Hospital Corpsman William R. Charette [79] American, U.S. Navy NCO [Medal of Honor recipient]

First Lieutenant Lynn Davis "Buck" Compton [90] American, former U.S. Army soldier [inspiration for Band of Brothers]

Colonel William H. "Bill" Dabney [77] American, retired USMC officer [awarded Navy Cross]

Pádraig Faulkner [94] Irish, former Fianna Fáil politician [Minister for Defence 1979–1980 / Ceann Comhairle 1980–1981]

Florence Green [110], British supercentenarian, former WRAF [Last surviving veteran of World War I].

Senator Daniel Inouye [88] American politician and former U.S. Army officer [Senator from Hawaii / U.S. Army Captain during WWII, Medal Of Honor / Bronze Star / Purple Heart]

General Samuel Jaskilka USMC

General Samuel Jaskilka [92] American, retired U.S. Marine Corps Officer [WWII, Korea, Vietnam / Assistant Commandant 1975–1978]

Senator George McGovern [90] American, former USAAF pilot [U.S. Representative 1957–1961 /  Senator 1963–1981 / 1972 Democratic Party presidential nominee]

Command Sgt. Major Basil L. Plumley [92] American, U.S. Army NCO [Battle of Ia Drang 1965

"We were Soldiers"] 

Captain Alan G. Poindexter [50] American, U.S. Navy officer [retired NASA astronaut]

Rear Admiral James D. "Jig Dog" Ramage [96] American, retired U.S. Navy officer [Naval Aviator during WWII and Vietnam, major player in putting nuclear-capable aircraft aboard carriers]

Sally Ride [61] American physicist and astronaut [First American woman in space]

Marshal of the Soviet Union Sergei Sokolov [101] Russian, retired Soviet Army Officer [Minister of Defense of the Soviet Union 1984–1987]

Colonel James L. Stone [89] American, retired U.S.Army officer [POW and Medal of Honor recipient]

Janice E. Voss [55] American, former NASA astronaut

Flight Lieutenant William Louis Buchanan Walker, AE [99] British, former RAF officer [Pilot during Battle of Britain]

Admiral James D. Watkins [85] American, retired U.S. Navy officer [former Chief of Naval Operations 1982–1986 / U.S. Secretary for Energy 1989-1993

May they rest in peace.

And now we embrace the future of 2013! 

Happy New Year

Goodbye to The Bear, R.I.P. Norman Schwarzkopf 1934 - 2012

I was a captain commanding a Force Recon platoon with the the 13th MEU in August 1990. We were beginning a routine deployment when orders came in diverting us to Southwest Asia. We knew something big was going down. The orders came from CENTCOM commanded by a giant bear of an Army officer, one General H. Norman Schwarzkopf.

Yesterday in Tampa Florida where he had retired, Schwarzkopf died at aged 78 of complications from pneumonia bringing an end to the life of one of the United States most celebrated generals and commander of one of the most successful military campaigns in history.

A New Jersey born Army brat, Schwarzkopf studied in Europe before attending West Point in his father's footsteps, graduating with a degree in engineering in '56. He served two tours in 'Nam, once as a battalion commander and among many other awards he earned three Silver Stars, including one for crawling through a minefield to rescue his wounded troops.

Schwarzkopf stayed in service after Vietnam. During the 70's he attended U.S. Army War College and served on the Army General Staff at the Pentagon. Later he was Deputy Commander of U.S. Forces Alaska and then commanded, 1st Brigade, 9th Infantry. After getting his first star, Brigadier General Schwarzkopf served at PACOM, later Assistant Division Commander (Support) of the 8th Mechanized Division in Germany. 

Major General Schwarzkopf was commander of the 24th Mechanized Infantry Division, at Fort Stewart, Georgia and became Deputy Commander of the Joint Task Force which invaded Grenada in 1983. Lt. General Schwarzkopf commanded I Corps before gaining his fourth star and taking command of CENTCOM in 1988.

General Schwarzkopf capstoned his impressive career as combatant commander of Operation: Desert Storm, a U.S.-led international coalition of 30 nations organized by President George H.W. Bush, that succeeded in driving Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi forces out of Kuwait in 1991.

Schwarzkopf declined an appointment as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army to instead retire. In his best-selling autobiography, “It Doesn’t Take A Hero”, of his Gulf War role, he said: “I like to say I’m not a hero. I was lucky enough to lead a very successful war.”

Throughout his career Schwarzkopf earned Distinguished Service Medals from The Department of Defense and all branches of the armed forces including 4 from the army, three Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, three Bronze Stars [and Combat 'V'], two Purple Hearts, seven Meritorious Service Medals, four Army Commendation Medals [and Combat 'V'], The U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom, Knight Commander of Most Honourable Order of the Bath from the UK and Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour from france.

He is survived by his wife Brenda and children Cynthia, Jessica and Christian.

Merry Christmas

 Merry Christmas to all readers, followers and friends. 

Have a good one.

A Corps of Stars

On Saturday the former head of Marine Corps Forces Command, Commander, U.S. Marine Corps Forces Europe and Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force Atlantic Lieutenant General John "Jay" M. Paxton Jr. of Chester PA. pinned on his fourth star to become the 33rd Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps.

At a ceremony at the Marine Barracks in Washington D.C., Paxton was promoted by Marine Corps Commandant General James F. Amos and replaces 32nd ACMC General Joseph F. "Fighting Joe" Dunford Jr. who has been confirmed as the next Commander of the International Security Assistance Force and Commander, U.S. Forces Afghanistan.

In his remarks Gen. Amos addressed a crowd which included former CMCs James Jones and Alfred Grey and said that the ACMC's job was difficult having had first hand experience of it himself before becoming CMC.

Gen. James F. Amos, CMC and Debbie Paxton, pin on Gen. John M. Paxton Jr., ACMC his current rank of general during a ceremony, Dec. 15. - Photo: Sgt. Dengrier Baez / Marine Corps

Gen. Paxton became the Corps sixth currently serving 4-star general, nearly unprecedented for the service which only got it's first 4-star in 1945 after 170 years of existence. U.S. Code of law normally limits the Corps to two 4-star generals - the CMC and the ACMC. Currently, however there are four other USMC generals currently serving in Joint Assignments which do not count towards this limit: 

- Gen. Dunford, as aforementioned who is awaiting assignment and preparing for his new position as COMISAF/COMUSFOR-A. 

- General John R. Allen, the current COMISAF/COMUSFOR-A and who has been nominated to replace Admiral James G. Stavridis as Supreme Allied Commander Europe [although the nomination is on hold pending the outcome of an Inspector General's investigation of Allen's involvement in the Petraeus affair].

- Lt. General John F. Kelly was promoted to general and took command of U.S. Southern Command in November.

- General James N. "Mad Dog" Mattis is currently Commander, U.S. Central Command but his replacement, Army General Lloyd Austin has been announced and Mattis will have to be appointed elsewhere or retire early next year. Two possibilities under wild speculation are that he could be SACEUR should Gen. Allen's nomination be withdrawn or that he could once again replace David Patraeus [as he did as Commander CENTCOM] as CIA Director.

The bad news is Brasso is now out of stock at Wamart!

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I am personally deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life in the Sandy Hook Elementary school in Connecticut on Friday. My condolences to the families of the victims during what should be the joyous of seasons.

Once again, I am abhorred by the media frenzy which surrounds an event like this. This is exactly what the sick, twisted and mentally disturbed individual who perpetrated this crime wanted so he didn't die a nobody. Sadly the media seems to be all to eager give him the attention he desired.

His name will not be uttered here, nor will his image be published as I wish nothing but for him to experience pain in the fires of hell for all eternity.

Whopper

Argo

During the Iran Hostage crisis of 1979/80, six staff at the U.S. embassy escaped and hid at the Canadian Ambassador’s residence. The White House and the CIA had a number of different ideas to retrieve them from Iran but the extraction mission was given to Tony Mendez who would go into Iran posing as a Hollywood Movie producer doing a location scout for Argo, a middle-eastern themed science-fiction adventure film. The plan was that he would then leave with his “crew”, the Americans holed up at the Canadian embassy.

Unlike Matt Damon or Tom Cruise, Ben Affleck doesn’t have people running into the movie theatre to watch him act anymore but after his success behind the camera with The Town, I’d be one of the people running into said theatre to watch a movie he directed.  As the subject matter was very close to home [intelligence agent creates an elaborate and precarious plot to get the job done] and based on a practically unbelievable true story that only came to light many years after the fact [much as my own will I hope] this was something I was really looking forward to.

I doubt anyone was disappointed. Affleck’s attention to detail in recreating the period was staggering, even down to the old red-background Warner Brothers logo. Knowing what the story was may have prompted an idea that the film would drag a little. However, through Affleck’s superb direction and focusing on the significant events [with a few elements of creative licence near the end] in this dramatic tale meant that the tension was nail-biting from opening to climax. Affleck’s portrayal of Mendez was clinical yet empathic. Alan Arkin as Lester Siegel and John Goodman as John Chambers as were superb and gave the project the air of controlled levity preventing it from descending into farce.  Special mention for the usual stony-faced Victor Garber as Ambassador Taylor who even smiled during one scene.

I normally dislike true stories as often a directors ego or opinion [or in worse cases a studio’s political agenda] will get in the way of the truth, but I can’t find any evidence of deliberate mischaracterisation or misinterpretation here save for changes required for dramatic licence and to fit the movie into a reasonable run time [sorry Brits, New Zealanders you got the asshole stick due to pacing]. Thanks for being honest and true to the important facts Ben and for giving us this gem.

Colonel Creedon Rating: ****1/2

Skyfall reviewed

Daniel Craig’s stewardship of the mantle of Bond beginning with 2006’s Casino Royale brought with it a sense of realism that was not a staple of the franchise. However despite dropping the laser watch and exploding pen, Bond is probably the best he’s ever been. Audiences have evolved and there is now so many other “spy-gadget” movies like the Mission: Impossible series that people no longer feel there is anything missing from a Bond movie when our hero’s car doesn’t turn into a submarine. Much to our benefit, Skyfall’s creators have chosen to fill the void vacated by the improbable and infused the series with a… dare I say the over-used word ‘gritty’ realism that modern audiences seem to demand now from their action thrillers.

Craig has already made Bond his own and I think despite another long gap in the series due to legal woes, he’s got a couple more 007 outings left before he should be replaced [with Michael Fassbender if I or an equally competent producer is calling the shots]. In Skyfall Dame Judy Dench returns as M, matriarch of MI6 and Ralph Fiennes made an appearance as Mallory. I cannot fault the performances of Naomie Pirates of the Caribbean Harris as Eve, Ben The International Whishaw as an new Q or Javiar Bardem as Silva, the villain of the piece -  although the latter performance in places left me a little uncomfortable. Even the score from Thomas Newman, one of the most unremarkable composers in Hollywood today, was top notch and despite not being up to the standard of David Arnold it sounds good on screen and off.

Skyfall is still unmistakably a James Bond movie but with an alternative focus on the Bond character not seen since George Lazenby’s sublime performance in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. In that movie, Bond was prepared to end his womanising ways and commit himself to marriage, here in Skyfall we are treated to a significant slice of the character’s history before he became the world’s greatest secret agent. Sam Mendez has done an incredible job with the material and has crafted a movie to rival Casino Royale in perfection as well as correcting the flaws of Quantum of Solace. It does seem like he’s not quite finished with what he wants to do so I hope he gets to continue the tale he started.

Final verdict: Bond as good as he has ever been - and more.

Colonel Creedon Rating:  *****

Did Medvedev drop the ball on UNETIDA protocols?

UNETIDA, the UN sponsored international military organisation tasked with protecting the planet from would-be extraterrestrial aggressors has had it's top counter-intelligence and disinformation specialists working overtime this weekend as Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev revealed seeing top-secret files on extraterrestrials on Earth.

Reports in the associated press reveal that in footage recorded Friday after a TV interview, the former president said that Russian leaders "are given a report of the absolutely secret special service that exercises control over aliens on the territory of our country". Unseen on camera footage, he was heard telling a Ren TV journalist he could not tell “how many of them are among us, because it may cause panic.”

Colonel "Whopper" Creedon, UNETIDA/UNPASID Director of Intelligence said that "a UNETIDA representative meets with high ranking world leaders, explains the situation to them and informs them of their emergency powers granted under UN laws as well as the rare situations where their military command can be superseded by UNETIDA for the good of the planet".

Creedon said UNETIDA will not be giving an official response, but instead has altered press reports to include terms that made the Prime Minister seem "like a goofball" by referencing Barry Sonenfeld's Men In Black movies and making it clear from the wording of the news reports that he was joking.

"It's not too far fetched that the man was joking" said the Colonel "During his presidency he showed that he had a sense of humour. Now if this was stony-face Putin doing the talking we'd be fucked. Royally fucked!"

Source: AP / MSNBC / The Telegraph

Vampire awakens in Serbia!

Garlic has become the most sought after product in the area of the hamlet of Zarozje in Bajina Basta, Serbia. Apparently the local council advised all villagers to place garlic on their doors and windows and to put a Holy Cross in every room, to ward off the legendary vampire, Sava Savanovic.

Savanovic is understood to have been 'reawakened' after an old watermill in which he was believed to have lived collapsed recently according to news reports. The mill had become a tourist attraction, but was left in disrepair by the family who owned it because they feared disturbing it's undead inhabitant.

Villagers are now terrified that the vampire, one of the country's most feared and most famous, is roaming the countryside looking for fresh blood.

Colonel "Whopper" Creedon, Director of Intelligence for UNETIDA/UNPASID said he was aware of the reports but was confident that it was simply a bid by locals to attract visitors to the impoverished region. He had no comment when asked if an UNPASID Paranormal Eradication Unit had been dispatched to deal with the potential threat.

Villagers who cashed in catering to tourists fascinated by the legend of Savanovic say they now wish they had left the place well alone.

Source: The Telegraph / Daily Mail / AP