Lockdown Links #3

New to the streaming services:

Today the grand experiment begins as Universal puts some of its very recent mid-tier theatrical releases on streaming services at premium prices. Which means its possible to watch Emma, The Hunt and The Invisible Man on Amazon Video right now at the not entirely unreasonable price of £15.99 (when you take into account how many people could be watching at the same time and how much you've saved on travel).

Doing my bit, I ordered The Invisible Man, which is mostly as good as everything says it is, with an extremely tense opening hour and the mood of a 90s psychological thriller for the rest.  Between this and Upgrade, Leigh Whannel is turning into a very interesting mainstream director marrying schlock with some thematic oomph.

From the back catalogue, Amazon Prime also has The Dead Zone, David Cronenberg's 80s sci-fi thriller with Chris-topher Walk-en as a psychic who can predict people's mortality through physical contact which probably offers an extra level of horror right now.  Elsewhere, MUBI has Park Chan-Wook's superb Lady Vengeance and Kanopy has added a ton of new additions to its Criterion Collection which now has 105 titles.

One final note, although the meat world version of the BFI's Flare festival has been cancelled, the BFI are running a version of it on their rental/subscription service with films which would have been at the festival along with LGBT+ films already on the service. That includes the utterly brilliant Anchor and Hope starring Oona Chaplin and Natalia Tena about a couple traverse the highway and byways of their relationship and London on a narrowboat (also available to rent on Amazon).

[I forgot mention Kanopy the other day in my streaming tips round up.  It's a streaming service accessible via most UK university library memberships.  Just visit this page and sign in with your university account.  UK public library membership is patchy but many US libraries are included.]


A Dose of Doctor Who:

The 8-Bit game Doctor Who and the Mines of Terror is available to play online at the archive.org and below if these embeds have worked correctly.  The C64 version first then the Amstrad CPC.  Here's a link to the BBC Micro version.






Links:

Elisabeth Moss on ‘Invisible Man’: Turn Off the Lights, Turn Up the Volume:
"The “Handmaid’s Tale” star talks about her hit horror movie, which quickly moved on-demand video amid the coronavirus outbreak."

Ethan Hawke Is Confident a Fourth ‘Before’ Movie Will Blow Up the Series’ Timeline:
""We enjoy working together and being together, but we have to make sure we have something to say," Hawke says about the next Jesse and Celine sequel."

Disney to Release 'Onward' Early on Digital Amid Coronavirus Pandemic (US only for now):
"With theaters now closed in the U.S. and much of the world, Disney will make current release Onward available in the home via digital beginning Friday.
The Pixar movie — voiced by Chris Pratt and Tom Holland — will be available to buy digitally and via Movies Anywhere for $19.99 starting at 5 p.m. PT. It will be made available early on Disney+ on April 3 in the U.S."

'You are a trophy': ex-beauty queens judge Misbehaviour:
"An author, actor and doctor look back on their experiences as beauty contestants. What does the film about the flour-bombing feminist protests at 1970’s Miss World get right, and wrong?"

Here's a Bunch of Free Games to Check Out While You're Isolating This Weekend:
"If you're finding yourself at home a lot recently, then you're not alone. While social isolation is probably the best thing for the nation right now, it's not the best thing for being a little bit bored. Although now might be a good time to make a dent in your backlog, it's also as good a time as any to try out something new - and what better way to do that than with a host of free games?"

Some People:
"Some people feel helpless & anxious."


Today's Album: