phil-771 Reviews

The Miracle Maker (1999)

A Surprising video

[8/10 · 25 May 2006]

A Surprisingly useful video. As a teacher of Religious Education this movie was always going to be useful to me, but as a synopsis of the New Testament based largely upon the Gospel of Luke, this video offers an uncanny degree of insight. The creators have bothered to research particulars and peculiarities of life at the time of Jesus, and although there are particular details missing that disappoint me (e.g. the absence of the Dove at the Baptism narrative), individual cut-scenes from this movie make excellent alternatives to trying to get pupils to struggle through texts from the New Testament in class.

The frequent transitions between clay and cartoon animation as a theatrical technique needs explanation before use, especially if only watching brief clips, but these do not detract from the pupils own ability to empathise with characters and evaluate stories based on its presentation.

As an overall synopsis various pericopes are omitted, but this can easily be forgiven a movie of a commercial length, and suitable for pupils to watch in the course of an afternoon.

I personally, as a passionate Christian and student of New Testament Theology, find it a moving and engaging presentation, and it is among the DVD's that I'll stick on on a lazy Sunday afternoon: it's fine for the kids to watch (although obviously they don't get much of its meaning), and I'll enjoy it, too.

Danger Mouse (1981–1992)

Penfold, Shush.

[12 September 2005]

It has to be said, Dangermouse was without doubt the greatest cartoon ever created. It was great for me and my brothers, and for our parents to watch over our shoulders. It became the most quotable thing in our family household - it got to such a state that if one of us dropped in a line at dinner the entirety of the scene would be performed over the next few minutes with uncanny accuracy.

sigh. I miss those days.

Favourite dialogues were from The Tide of the Turn (especially the 'Nien, Penfold...' scene with Prof. Squarkenkluck) and 'Where there's a Well there's a Way' which is the one with the one-off-baddie Copper-Conk-Cassidy (no, it wasn't Barry Manilow in his bicycle cape.) And in almost every episode the monologue provided by the narrator at the end provided sheer Pythonesque silliness of an unique 80's order. Great stuff.