Rest in peace Ernest Borgnine

I'll tell you what, let's just do a blog of things that jump out at me and see where we end up.  I know, no change there then.

The first thing that pops to my head is the passing of the great actor Ernest Borgnine.  Now the first thing I think I remember seeing him in was probably The Dirty Dozen.  It could have been the Airwolf television series, but I'm almost certain that it was the former.

No matter what it was that I had seen him in first (in fact it could even have been the Kris Kristofferson film Convoy come to think of it).  Ah well, as I was saying though...  Oh, it could have even been Escape From New York.

Damn it, okay I have seen a fair few things that Mr Borgnine has been an actor in.  Needless to say I think that he was a really good actor, and from some of the video footage that has been posted as links, it seems like he was a lovely man as well.

A film that I haven't seen of his for a long while, but I know looking back on it is still a favourite, is The Wild Bunch made by the great Sam Peckinpah.  Based in the 1910's, it is a story that is very much about the transition between the old Wild West type period and the lead up to  commercialism, which would eventually see the cowboy gunslinger types of that time being replaced by gangsters.  In the film Borgnine plays one of a group (including William Holden, Warren Oates and Robert Ryan among others) who decide to make one last big score while they still can.  The film is rightly seen as a classic, even though many would find the film to be incredibly brutal and violent, especially the incredible fight at the end.  I personally think that Tarantino sees it as a big influence because his films I have always seen to have that Peckinpah influence.

Anyway, it is an incredible film to watch, but it is also a long film (not half as long as Peckinpah wanted it to be I think).  The storyline and the period though is fascinating.  Another interesting thing is that for the most part the actors in the core group are a surprise for this type of role in a way, playing completely different roles to ones that they are known for.  They are a bunch of hard-nosed men who curse, are incredibly violent, and have a really "don't give a damn" attitude.  It is in some ways this film and this fact that brings an admiration from me about these actors - that they can play so may different characters and really sell it to you.  Borgnine was one of these people, and like the others, he was bloody good at it.

If you get the chance, dig something out that features this great actor.  Yes I said it, he is a great actor, because as I have done going through this the writing of this blog I have shown that that is what he is.  All those roles I mentioned are completely different parts and different characters.  Not many actors nowadays are like that.  Now you will find people who basically do almost the same character all of the time, but here was a man from the school of acting where you are a very different person every time.

Rest in peace Mr Borgnine, you have left this world with a fantastic legacy and a back catalogue of films, television, and in theatre.  Not only that though, but to those who knew you (not including myself unfortunately), there is a really nice man for them to remember.

Thank you.

This is about him, so the usual ending to my blog is not being used.

Relations, Careers, and Judgemental Fears

Hello to my friends, family, and anyone else who may be reading.

Here I am wondering what I can talk about in a blog.  I was at one point thinking of commenting about the impending divorce between Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.  I wasn't going to have a go about either of them, or about how weird any religions are.  Well, I say that.  The thought had crossed my mind for a moment, but only for a moment.  Even before I started writing a blog the other day that idea had been pushed aside because I really don't feel like critiquing religion.

I have seen a number of films that feature Tom Cruise as an actor, and I have enjoyed a fair few.  Out of the films that I have enjoyed I would include (in no order) Minority Report, Rain Man, Jerry Maguire, the Mission Impossible films, Valkyrie and The Firm.  I think the fact that he follows a belief that a lot of people see as strange shouldn't use this to form an opinion of their work.

What I mean is that it is rare for people to bash somebody's body of work based on the fact that they are Roman Catholics, Church of England, Muslim, or any belief.  If you like something then you like it no matter what.  I like the Lethal Weapon films despite the fact that Mel Gibson came out with the ridiculous comments  that he did whenever it was.  That is yet another discussion altogether, but I will quickly say that I think just like Robert Downey Jnr believes - Mel is going through difficult times and will eventually come through it all just like an actor such as Downey himself has come through problems and is having a great career at present.  Mel did however come out with some comments that were absolutely disgraceful.

I am still looking forward to the film Jack Reacher that is coming out at the end of this year (December 28th), in which he stars as the title character, a homicide investigator who is digging into a case where a trained military sniper has shot and killed five random victims.  It is based on the novel One Shot written by Lee Child (part of a large series of books, so it is a potential franchise).

Anyway, I think that I should leave it there.  I know very little of Ms Holmes' work, other than her part in the recent Batman offerings.  I may have seen other stuff with her in, but I don't know.  Apparently she was in that Dawson's Creek thing, but I haven't even seen a second of that programme as far as I know, unless I have channel-hopped past it.

As an aside I was told that Joshua Jackson was in Dawson's Creek, and I happen to love the series he is in that is called Fringe.  Unfortunately this has only one season left on it, which is a real irritation to me!

Anyway, I know this is a relatively short epistle in comparison to my usual fare, but I think I will actually leave it there, and may then actually have something to discuss very soon in my world of blogness.  We will see what grabs my attention and brings me out of my pit of non-creativity with regard to this medium.

Thank you for reading, please take care.

July 3rd 2012 (41 years, 7 months, and 7 day old)