I just can't get away with it can I?
With little on TV we fancied watching, I offer up the chance to watch some science fiction (okay, not Cloud's favourite genre admittedly).
First response?
"Who's in it?"
GRRRR....
Reluctantly passes over the DVD case for The Quatermass Experiment.
Cue an evening where Cloud gets most of his entertainment from watching me squirm at his watching me watching the TV with what he describes as "great intensity"...
Humph....
Very good though: a very effective update. I recall the John Mills version, and subsequently reading up on all the previous ones (being a bit of a sci-fi geek girl). This 2005 version - originally broadcast as a LIVE production on BBC4 - stands up very well I would say.
Mind, we did get a bit distracted trying to recall exactly where we knew Adrian Bower from. Ah, of course: he was Brian of 'Kurt and Brian' fame in Teachers! Doh!
7 comments:
There's no shame in watching The Quatermass Experiment (well, my wife won't let me but... She calls it "one of your programmes" in a dismissive voice). It's actually very good though.
As for the other Quatermasses, the original Experiment is very slow and not enough of it survives to really engross you - they definitely chopped it wisely for the remake - but is probably the most important programme in television history. Quatermass II is dull and not very important. Quatermass and the Pit is outstanding and should not be missed at any costs. Quatermass is deeply depressing but not bad.
And then there are the movies, where actually Quatermass II is the best, The Quatermass Xperiment not too bad and Quatermass and the Pit largely pants. The Quatermass Conclusion is a chopped down version of Quatermass and is actually more or less just the same: you can hardly notice the joins.
If you can, pick up the Quatermass box set on Amazon: it's reasonably cheap, plus it has a nice interview with Nigel Kneale. Even if it only had The Pit, it would be worth it. You'll soon find yourself hoovering up other Nigel Kneale stuff, such as The Stone Tape and 1984, and cheering on BBC4 to remake The Road.
PS: Interesting fact - Quatermass is the only other science-fiction character mentioned in Doctor Who as though he were a real (in their world) person.
The Stone Tape! Awesome.
And the Quatermass box set is something I've been looking at getting... on the list for returning from NZ.
Have borrowed the stone tape from the college library (and it accidentially fell into my dvd burner) have yet to watch it but am waiting to have a double bill with it and the year of sex olympics that i got from tesco dvd.
"and it accidentially fell into my dvd burner"
BWAH!
Tut, tut... if it wasn't so good I wouldn't approve...
DON'T watch Year of the Sex Olympics! Great idea, but absolutely diabolical to watch. Watch Stone Tape now, and if you have to, watch YOSO on another day, so the memory of Stone Tape isn't ruined.
Yeah, Rob is pretty on the button re YOSO... I've caught clips from it and lordy is it a tad stiltedly dull...
I've just been doing some thinking about Quatermass, if you're interested:
http://archeologyofthefuture.blogspot.com
I managed to but Quatermass and The Pit on video from a charity shop the other morning and I can hardly believe that it was done live. It is, without a doubt, wonderful.
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