TheRetroCritic

Based on an absurdist play by Eugene Ionesco, it doesn't get much weirder than Rhinoceros , the 1974 film starring Zero Mostel as a man who slowly turns into a rhinoceros and Gene Wilder as his alcoholic friend who has to accept living in a world peopled with rhinos. If you went into this one expecting The Producers , then you might end up feeling slightly confused about what you've just witnessed. Rhinoceros is unapologetically surreal and abstract as characters talk about some kind of rhinoceros pandemic where people literally become rhinos until it becomes a worldwide event but you never actually see one of them. This certainly helps sell the fact that the world is going completely mad but it makes for a stagey film and some might feel almost claustrophobic watching it. It really is like sitting through an absurdist play but, since it's also directed with plenty of movement and energy by Tom O'Horgan, it's also like watching one insane whirlwind of a film.

In this third episode, Adam (aka The RetroCritic) and fellow film buff Jamie discuss movie news, review a recent release ( Star Trek: Into Darkness  this week) and rewind back to more retro cinematic topics. Do you know the answer to  The Big Game ? What song is being sung in the  "I Shat Myself"  segment? Send your answers here:  bigrewindpodcast@gmail.com The winner will get a mention in  The Big Shout Outs  at the end of the next episode. @TheRetroCritic retrocriticblog.blogspot.com youtube.com/Cablogula youtube.com/TheRetroCritic

Danny DeVito and Richard Griffiths head this new adaptation of a Neil Simon gem in London's Savoy Theatre and breathe new life into this comedy classic. I remember watching the 1975 film starring Walter Matthau and George Burns as a kid and thinking it was pretty darn hilarious for a movie about two grumpy old dudes. It's a great story: two Vaudeville legends who parted ways long ago on not so cordial terms are made to meet-up again and rehearse for one last show. One is bitter, moody and delusional, the other stubborn, passive and near senile. Their whole relationship is a Vaudeville routine, even subconsciously: they can't interact without their arguments turning into comedic gold. It's unlikely anyone will surpass Matthau's take on Willy Clark, even Peter Falk, as great as he was, could not dethrone the man. Danny DeVito makes the role his own and his take on the character is loads of fun. Willy is portrayed a bit more like a spoiled brat, taking his nephe

As good as it is to see Hammer back in town, so far their movie choices haven't exactly been mind-blowing. The Woman In Black , if the play was anything to go by, seemed like a promising vehicle though. With its moody, dated look, an effective ghost story at its heart and more than just some woman wearing a silly mask (see the play) to scare the bejeesus out of us. Daniel Radcliffe is our protagonist and heads to the rather unpleasant, reportedly haunted, house in the middle of nowhere. There's also a small town nearby with a bunch of dodgy inhabitants all hiding some sort of big secret which might have something to do with several kids randomly committing suicide around the village. Yes it's pretty standard and very predictable but it's also very Hammer so there was a lot of schlock potential there! These guys practically invented this nonsense, surely this should be a walk in the park for them. Well, yes and no. There is a sense throughout The Woman In Black

Adapting a play should be pretty straight-forward: you've got pretty much the whole script right there! But sometimes, movies and plays just don't translate well to each other. Surely a talented director like Roman Polanski would know how to side-step such an issue though. Right? Well... yes and no. From very early on, it's pretty clear that after a Haneke-style opening shot we'll pretty much be stuck in this one apartment with all the main characters for the entirety of the film. I can see why Polanski thought that would work: the claustrophobic setting coupled with the stress and awkwardness bouncing off the walls creating an unnerving sense of "get me the hell outta here!". Fine. It's a stagy concept but I can see it working. Unfortunately, not really the case here. Had the story progressed in a different, more chaotic and entertaining way then this could have worked brilliantly (see The Dinner Game ). But the banality of the core premise's

More along the lines of Casshern than the recent anime-style extreme gore subgenre which is sweeping Japanese cinema by storm, Ashura is actually not so much about the gratuitous violence and gore but rather about its opera-style story and general melodramatic feel. Adapted from a play, Ashura is very theatrical throughout and often feels like a cross between an opera, anime, a samurai film, an Onimusha video game and a cheesy Hammer horror film. There's dodgy CGI and way too many green-screened backgrounds but overall the film still looks pretty decent. It's the performances though which keep the whole thing afloat: some are hammy, some are very good: it's a mixed bag but overall the cast keep Ashura entertaining throughout. That said, the film still feels much longer than it is and could have done with a shorter running time and a faster pace. It remains compelling throughout though and it's worth a look if you're interested in Kabuki or any of t