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Courtesy: Shout! Factory/itv

Shout! Factory has made quite the name for itself in recent years by releasing some of the twentieth century’s greatest TV shows and movies. Partnerships with variety of companies have resulted in the release of classic 90s Nicktoons and some equally beloved older movies including: The Producers, Swamp Thing, and They Live just to name a few. While many of Shout! Factory’s releases in recent years have been relatively well known to American audiences, there have been those releases that are far more obscure. Earlier this year, Shout! Factory partnered up with an Australian company to release the Dr. Who spinoff, K–9: The Complete Series. Now as the year winds down, Shout! Factory has partnered with British network itv to release another more obscure classic series in the form of Sapphire and Steel. Sapphire and Steel was a show well ahead of its time. An examination of its writing and production values proves this. A side-by-side comparison with the likes of Fox’s hit sci-fi series The X–Files and Fringe shows just how far ahead of time Sapphire and Steel was in its original run from the late 70s into the 80s. That comparison will prove in the grand scheme of things just how important Sapphire and Steel is today, despite its original short, roughly four-year run.

Sapphire and Steel was in its original run, one of very serials on the air at its time. Other than soap operas, most networks during the 70s ran very few primetime serials. This applies even with British television. That aspect alone puts Sapphire and Steel far ahead of its time. Putting it even far more ahead of its time is that despite audiences’ desire to compare the two, this series is nothing like its fellow British sci-fi series, Dr. Who. The only concrete similarity that the two share is the fact that Sapphire and Steel are able to travel through time with ease as they investigate various cases. Other than that, there are no similarities between the pair. If anything Sapphire and Steel can be more easily compared to Fox’s The X–Files and Fringe. All three shows see their main characters investigating experiences that defy any logical explanation. In the case of Sapphire and Steel, audiences see its two main characters investigating most notable the case of a man who had the ability to trap people in photographs in one episode. Another saw them investigating a haunted train station that was already being investigated by a self-proclaimed ghost hunter. And in one of the most interesting of the short-lived series’ episodes, Sapphire and Steel have to deal with a pair of time travelers from the future. The dialogue between the characters is simple enough for any viewer to follow. And the music written in as a bed for each scene helps make each one even more gripping. One must not forget the manner in which each episode ends, too. The show’s writing staff made no bones about the fact that this show was a serial. The semi-cliffhanger episode endings were expertly written. They kept viewers really wanting to know what will happen next. This is a tribute to the work put into each episode by the show’s writers even with each episode being split into so many episodes. That writing made having so many episodes per story enjoyable, rather than annoying as some critics would like to believe.

The writing behind Sapphire and Steel is the series’ key point of success. The show’s writers crafted stories that were largely unlike anything that other British, and even American dramas of the time were doing. Also to be factored into the show’s importance is its production values. The general production values of Sapphire and Steel are by today’s standards rather low grade. However, when one looks at the production values in a larger picture, those behind the show used what they had at the time. The result is that it led the show to rely on its writing and acting for its success. That’s not to say that in hindsight the special effects are low budget. There is something about the show’s production values that in comparison to so many of today’s TV shows and movies that makes one appreciate them. Today’s movies and TV shows are so over the top in terms of their production values that it makes them feel boring. Classics such as this show though, have more substance. It uses the production values as a companion tool to the writing, thus giving audiences a truly full viewing experience. Whether one is familiar with Sapphire and Steel or not, it proves with its combination of solid writing and its production values that it’s a show that any sci-fi fan should see at least once. Perhaps in doing so, said viewers will gain a new appreciation for not just the one show, but classic science fiction television and film making as a whole. Sapphire and Steel is available now on DVD in stores and online. It can be ordered direct from the Shout! Factory online store at http://www.shoutfactory.com/catalog/search/?uc_search_word=Sapphire%20and%20Steel. More information on this and other titles from Shout! Factory is available online at http://www.shoutfactory.com and http://www.facebook.com/shoutfactoryofficial.

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Courtesy: IFC Films/mpi media group

There is nothing more powerful in the world than the love of a parent for his or her child. This common theme has been used time and again throughout the history of motion pictures. A quick glance through the annals of movie history will show no fewer than at least a dozen films whose plots are based on this theme. One of the most recent films to use this theme comes from mpi media group. The movie in question is the action/thriller Inescapable. While it isn’t the first movie of its kind, it does have quite a bit going for it. The story itself offers viewers a different take on the classic theme that sets it aside from the likes of Liam Neeson’s Taken franchise. It also has going for it an all-star cast led by Alexander Siddig (Da Vinci’s Demons, Primeval, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). Most people are more apt to know the names of Marisa Tomei and Joshua Jackson. And most of all, it has some very interesting commentary courtesy of writer/director Ruba Nadda and cinematographer Luc Montpellier. These three factors offer so much more than can even be discussed within these confines; so much so that one would be best served to watch the movie by one’s self or with friends to really take in everything that the movie has to offer. Regardless of alone or with friends, it is a work that is worth at least one watch.

Inescapable offers viewers first and foremost a take unlike that of other movies within this vein. Something interesting to learn (as viewers will learn in watching this movie with additional commentary) is that writer/director Ruba Nadda in fact wrote this movie in 2005, three years before Taken premiered. This makes the comparisons to that franchise in question understandable. Sadly, this type of thing happens far more often than audiences realize both within the confines of the movie industry and the music industry. Understanding that this movie came years before the Taken franchise took off, it makes it easier to take in its differences from the franchise in question. This story does have its share of action. But the character development (again as noted in the commentary) of Siddig’s Adib is a big part of what makes the story progress. The story becomes just as much about learning about Adib’s past as it is about his journey to find his daughter.

Adib’s quest to find his daughter is the most obvious comparison that critics and audiences have made in discussing the story of Inescapable. His search for his daughter is entirely unlike that of Taken. The latter of the two films centered on human traffickers kidnapping a man’s daughter. Inescapable, on the other hand, centers on a group of figures that kidnapped a man’s daughter to use her as a political pawn of sorts. Why they kidnap her is typical movie fare. But the revelation of why they kidnapped her is revealed. And it is just enough of a twist to leave viewers guessing and cheering for Adib especially in the eventual happy ending. Yes, it does have a happy ending. That much will be revealed. Though, that is the extent of what will be revealed.

The script behind Inescapable should visibly unlike that of either of the movies in the Taken franchise by now. So from here, it would serve viewers best to move on and focus on the movie’s cast. Veteran actress Maris Tomei (Parental Guidance, Crazy Stupid Love, The Wrestler) and actor Joshua Jackson (Dawson’s Creek, Fringe) are billed as major stars of the story. But the reality of the story is that much as in the case of Johnny Depp in Chocolat for example, Jackson and Tomei are really just lures to get viewers’ eyes. They are in fact just supporting cast. Alexander Siddig is the real star of this movie. And considering his personal background, he could not have been a better choice. For those that don’t know, Siddig was born in the Sudan in North Africa. Keeping that in mind, and adding in his professional resume, his was a natural choice. He looks and sounds every part the role of a Middle Eastern man. His experience with some of the U.K.’s most well-known acting schools and on the large and small screen made him even more the natural choice for the movie’s lead role. He had a real ability to take his character and bring such depth out of him. It makes Adid that much more of a believable character for viewers. That, along with the understanding of the story helps to make the movie even more worth the watch.

Audiences should see by now that despite early preconceptions about it, Inescapable has far more to offer viewers than they might have thought without seeing the movie. If what has been noted already is not enough, then perhaps the additional commentary by writer/director Ruba Nadda and cinematographer Luc Montpellier will change viewers’ minds. Their discussions range from politics of the Middle East and their effect on shooting, to shooting on location in Damascus, to so many other topics. It adds so much more depth to the story in a second watch. That second watch will hopefully prove to viewers that have yet to see this action/thriller just how underrated it is. Hopefully it will serve as one more example of the fact that indie flicks can be just as enjoyable and interesting as the big screen pieces to which they are so quickly and close-mindedly compared far too often. Inescapable is available now on DVD and Blu-ray from mpi media group and IFC Films.

Indie flick audiences and fans can keep up with all of the latest from IFC Films and mpi media group online at http://www.facebook.com/IFCFilmsOfficial, http://www.IFCFilms.com and http://www.mpimedia.com.

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Tag Archives: Fringe

Sapphire And Steel Proves To Be One Of TV’s Most Underrated Sci-Fi Dramas

Inescapable A Nice Escape For Action Movie Fans