Announcements & News
Any public announcements or news pertaining to the RSCnet will be contained in this forum.
24 topics in this forum
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- 8 followers
- 1.6k replies
- 145k views
Thought I'd start a little something so we (me in particular) could hear about any and all goals you had that are now victories for you. It may not even be a "win" in any sense of the word, but maybe it's a story of succeeding in an unlikely scenario or it's as little as finally saving up enough money to acquire something you've wanted. Maybe you finally got back into the Creator and made something that's getting attention or maybe you just kicked some tank griefer's ass in a lobby. Small and large, let's hear 'em. I'll start: - 9000th player kill of which 90%+ is from DM/TDMs of some kind I can say for sure. - becoming more involved with the crew, LT - couldn't …
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- 2 followers
- 0 replies
- 740 views
Hello Everyone, I will be implementing a change that will go into effect 12am (Midnight) on 3/5/23 that MIGHT affect the way you log in. Currently you can log in with either your display name and/or email address. Logging in with your display name is unsecure. To improve security, I will be disabling display name log in and enforcing everyone to log into the website with your email address instead. Please let me know if you have any questions.
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Push Notifications
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 943 views
The site upgrade now has push notifications to your phone/tablet as a feature, to enable use your mobile device, click on the bell on the top right of the site and click enable.
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Changes to the Other Games forums...
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 963 views
You'll no longer be able to start new topics in the other games forums such as Racing, Shooter, etc.. Instead you will need to add whatever game/s you want to talk about to the Games page https://www.rockstarsocialclub.net/games/ Once added a new topic will be auto created in the apporpriate forum to which anyone can reply to We once had something very similar to this on the old XDBX site, support for it fell off from the dev, this is a new version from a highly reliable dev that has custom built many things for this site so I am confident this large add on will be around for ahwile.
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Enter the GTAO Photo Contest
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 909 views
Found here https://www.rockstarsocialclub.net/index.php?app=competition Put your best 4 pics from GTAO in the contest. Pics with the most votes wins Contest runs till Januaury 1st No prizes at this time for the winner as I want to make sure all works correctly, but is possible for future. It can be found in the navgation menu as well.
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Android, iOS app for RSCnet
by JustHatched- 4 replies
- 1.2k views
The app is live, to find it search for Communities by Invision, I think you will need to confirm taking part in the Beta and then look in Gaming category for RockstarSocialClub.Net Keep in mind this is a Beta, only thing there is the main forum, you will not find the crew forums or chatbox, etc... IPS has stated once this is out of Beta they will work to add other features to it and develop app for each site rather than having them all in one app. Please report any bugs in this thread and I can relay them to IPS. I will continue to vierw the site the way I always have, mostly on PC some on phone, the app for me is just an easier way to get not…
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Chatbox Use
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 4 replies
- 1k views
I've made some changes you all might want to be aware of to the chat box. Up until now RSCnet has been using 2 different types of chatboxes, one for the main chat box on the forum index and one in the crew areas, I have opted to use the crew area style box the only one used. For those whom may not know, on the forum index there is a chatbox just under the recent videos, you gotta have 1000 posts to access it or buy a subcription to the site. All should see Chatbox on the bottom right of your screen, depending on your access you will see Conversations and Rooms. Conversations - you can have one on one conversations or group conversations, anyone with 1…
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Website Upgrade Info
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 10 replies
- 1.6k views
A few new things - Firstly the theme, this is a totally new theme, the previous was uograded by the dev but the changes made to it were beyond confusing and I feel it would have created questions and frustration. This new theme has a light/dark option like Twitter, just click the moon icon in the top left. Also, I highly siggest you play with all the options in the top left to customize the site to look how you want it to. @JuniorChubb, any chance of getting a new logo or 2 for the header of the site? Feel free to go taller if you want Alot of the upgrade was backend stuff, better security. A couple things to highlight for you, check your account se…
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Arcade Challenge!! Arkanoid
by JustHatched- 2 followers
- 3 replies
- 1.2k views
Arkanoid is the challenge of the Month. It ends on 04/30/2020 12:00 PM. If you are up to the challenge to see who can get the highscore then give it a try. You have 10 attempts to set your best score. Visit the Arcade and click Play in the challenge box https://www.rockstarsocialclub.net/ipsproarcade/
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Destroy All Humans
by omarcomin71- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 1.1k views
I didn’t see any announcements for this game anywhere. Saw the trailer on Twitter and it looks pretty fun.
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Bored????
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 17 replies
- 1.7k views
Then click that new Arcade tab in the navigation bar. This is was not possible on the old servers. It is a Release Candidate (if you don't know what that is, it is just after a beta test) so any issues please report. It has a slew of settings I am figuring out and there are 100's of game I could install, but I gonna drip feed them in.
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Open Staff Positions
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 1.2k views
Got a 2-3 spots to fill, PM me if you are interested. Videos Moderator - key duties will be to make sure videos are posted in the correct category and meet the guidelines of the website, video comments meet the guidelines of the website and to select 3 videos each week to be the featured videos of the week. Forum Moderator - key duties are to ensure all topics and posts meet the guidelines of the website, this may entail moving topics to the correct forum, merging 2 or more topics discussing the same thing, ensuring topics stay on topic and either steering a topic back on the topic or splitting the off topic posts into a new thread, locking or unlocking topics, …
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Twitch Streams
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 9 replies
- 1.4k views
If got the streams app working, it's same as what we had on the XDBX site, I tried before to get it to work on this site and couldn't due to server limits but it works now. I have added @Con, @Protocawl and @LimeGreenLegend streams to it (feel free to edit if you want guys). Feel free to add your stream if you want, easiest way to navigate it to add it is to click Create at the top of the ste and then click Streams.
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Nearly Done
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 7 replies
- 1.3k views
Other than some small details and fixes the merge is pretty well done as far as getting it all up and running. There is still alot of thread cleaning up to do and that will take some time. I do plan to add the homepage this weekend, and there will be something new that both sites didnt have very soon, and I think it will be used quite a bit.... If you are having issues or need some explaining let me know
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Goodbye domesticbatterygaming.com
by Dodge- 4 followers
- 14 replies
- 1.7k views
Soon we will be at the pinnacle of a sad day. This website, domesticbatterygaming.com, has been our home for 6 years. This website has seen crew members laugh, love, fight, and cry over the years. Hours, upon hours have been spent here my myself, and many others to "get our XDBX fix". The choice to move our website to a more public venue, did not come easily. But I do not see how to keep this website running with the cost of it continually on the rise. And it's not fair to ask a few members that have donated to the site, to continue to donate to keep this site alive. It may a long time before we start getting more member back into our ranks. With R* newest GTA title…
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Change coming to RSCnet...
by JustHatched- 11 replies
- 2k views
I'd like to let you all know that the website Domestic Battery uses is going to be merged into RSCnet. This means all the posts and members from our crew site will be on this site. All our private forums will be inour crew area, public forums will be accessible to all as they are on the XDBX site. This is planned to occur in March or April. One question that might come up before then is how staffing will work with the XDBX staff coming here and @JuniorChubb and @doubleg213 being staff here. Simple answer is the current XDBX staff will still be staff in our crew area, website staff will be mutli crew, there may or may not be an XDBX Admin or Moderator, or these …
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Congrats Trashbags
by JustHatched- 7 replies
- 1.4k views
Congrats @Trashbags, you are the June Member of the Month. Thanks for your support of RSCnet
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Light theme available
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 1.1k views
FOr those that prefer a lighter theme of the website rather than the dark you have that option now. Just click the moon icon at the top of the site (next to your messenger icon) and select Gradient Light. Keep in mind that there may be some dark elements here and there. This is due to the code in a few spots not being able to be split between 2 themes and since the dark theme is the default then that is the priority theme
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Video interview
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 1.2k views
I was interviewed by Dunkmaster of Fierce Gaming last night. Was fun
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Congrats Catmandoza
by JustHatched- 6 replies
- 1.2k views
Congrats to @CatManDoza, Cat has been selected as the May Member of the Month. (There is a widget on the homepage showing this). Thanks for all the effort you have put in here at RSCnet in keeping things fun and active. For anyone who will be seeking to be MOTM, it is based on reputation count, post anything in the crew forums, main forums, videos, etc.. anything that gets you likes is what gets you to MOTM. Same person can not be MOTM 2 months in a row. Post count will be tie breaker if needed and staff are not eligible.
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No Sidebar?
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 1k views
Just for testing atm, I have removed the forum sidebar since according to the stats ya'll are using mobile more than PC's. Mobile don't see the sidebar like PC's do but instead they see a shuffle on the sidebar below the forum. SO I moved things around a little to lean towards mobile viewing over PC. Let me know what you guys think about it (note, only the forum has had this done to it, all other pages are the same for now)
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Congrats Junior Chubb
by JustHatched- 1 follower
- 18 replies
- 1.8k views
@JuniorChubb has stepped up to the role of Admin. He is now a part of "the company" and therefore should be viewed as "the man" 😛
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Homepage FYI
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 1.1k views
Just to avoid throwing anyone into shock in a few days there will be a homepage added to the site. Once done thats where the URL will land you. The forums will then be found at https://www.rockstarsocialclub.net/forums/ You can view the current construction of the homepage at https://www.rockstarsocialclub.net/home/ What you won't see is the sliding images at the top, those are still being worked on and once done you will only be able to see them if you are not logged into the site.
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Website is open
by JustHatched- 0 replies
- 1.2k views
rockstarsocialclub.net is now open for anyone. There is still a few bugs to be sorted over the next few days after which I will begin making some new threads and posts. In the mean time if you are reading this feel free to sign up and begin posting, add your crew to the crew area and make yourself at home here.
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Recent Activity on RSCnet
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249Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
Operation Mincemeat (2021) dir John Madden A WWII film focussing the efforts of British intelligence to trick Germany into thinking an upcoming major operation was going to happen somewhere else, so that they diverted defending forces away from the actual location. The basics are a true story. The characters are mainly the real people who were involved. It has a great ensemble cast. The main characters are two officers working for MI5, one from the navy and one from the air force, played by Colin Firth and Matthew McFadden, with Kelly MacDonald and Penelope Wilton playing their civilian assistants. It also features Johnny Flynn as the young Lt. Ian Fleming who narrates some scenes in a style that could well have been passages from his James Bond novels. You could, at a big stretch, almost class this as Bond film since it features characters referred to as M (head of MI5, Jason Issacs) and Q-branch (the gadget inventor, James Fleet). Simon Russel Beale also puts in a great performance as Winston Churchill. I have heard of Operation Mincemeat, knew the basics of it, that Ian Fleming was involved and what the outcome was. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the plan worked, as various characters in the film say that if it doesn't the allies won't win the war. The plan was to take the body of recently deceased man, a Welshman living rough in London called Glyndwr Michael, dress him in an officer's uniform, attach a brief case containing fake, but apparently top-secret documents, and then release it from a submarine such that it would wash up on a Spanish beach. Spain was neutral in WWII but under the regime of the Fascist, pro-n*zi, General Franco. So British intelligence knew that the contents of the brief case should find their way into the hands of German agents, before being returned to Britain, and thus the fake information would find it's way to Berlin. The operation they were planning for was the allied invasion of Italy, then Germany's ally. The fake information was one part of bigger plan to convince the Germans it was occupied Greece that was going to be invaded. The subsequent invasion of Italy is one of the lesser known parts of the war. Much is made, quite rightly, of the D-day landings, but that was not the first invasion of German controlled Europe, it was this invasion of Italy, nearly a year earlier. So it's nice to see a film about this aspect of the war, because there aren't very many of them. The film shows the meticulous level of detail the agents went to, creating a whole fake identity, Major William Martin, along with personal letters, a photo of a fiancé, etc. The plot does come across somewhat unbelievable at times and includes a completely unnecessary romantic sub-plot. Even if some of that is what actually happened, the way the films portrays this comes across as if the producers wanted to “s*x it up” and add these elements in because they thought the story of the planning and execution of the operation was not interesting enough. I was all set to give this a lower score than I did, but the last 30 mins or so redeemed it a little. What I found really interesting was, after the the plan had been put into action, the role British diplomats in Spain then had to play to make sure that the brief case of fake documents did indeed end up in German hands. Because after all the detailed and careful planning, it could have easily been undone by a Spanish official simply handing the brief case straight back to Britain, as was technically the correct thing for a neutral country to do, but not what they were supposed to do according to the pro-German Fascist regime in charge. There's almost none of the action you usually get in war films, until right at the end when we see an American infantry sergeant, a minor character introduced earlier, on board a landing craft, storming a Sicilian beach which was taken and held with relatively light causalities. All due to the success of Operation Mincemeat diverting German forces hundreds of miles away. 6 / 10- 1
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249Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
What I Watched This Week #179 (June 2-8) Escape from Alcatraz dir. Don Siegel/1979/1h53m Clint Eastwood stars in this prison break drama based on the true story of the only man to escape from the famous prison island off the San Francisco coast, Frank Morris. This film takes its time, much like Eastwood's performance style it's understated, deliberate and measured, with none of the melodrama of something like The Shawshank Redemption. The plot is simple, Eastwood arrives at the prison, spends some time scoping it out, then enacts his plan. It's the little things that give weight to this film, particularly the character of Doc (Roberts Blossom), who quietly represents the unshakeable human yearning for freedom with his portraits and the symbolic use of chrysanthemums. At times the pace of the film does undercut some of the urgency of the escape attempt, but I did like the ambiguous ending that doesn't tell you what happened to Frank after he got past the prison walls. 7.5/10 Rhinestone dir. Bob Clark/1984/1h51m I was scrolling through Sylvester Stallone's filmography and came across this, and knew that I had to watch it just to make sure that it's real. Rhinestone stars Dolly Parton as aspiring singer Jake who needs to get out of her crummy contract at the titular New York country music club. To do this she makes a bet with the manager, Freddie (Ron Leibman), that she can turn anyone into a country singer. The person chosen is tone deaf cab driver Nick, played by Stallone. To do this she takes him back home to Tennessee for some real country experience. Stallone also co-wrote this based on the song Rhinestone Cowboy. Really, it even says so in the opening credits. This whole thing is like a fever dream, especially the scenes where Stallone sings by howling like a demented gibbon. He plays his role like an overactive child with attention issues. Parton is just as sweet and charming as she always is, and the moments when she gets to sing are obviously excellent. I also liked Richard Farnsworth as Parton's father. This is not a good film, but it is a bizarre film, and it has its charms. 6/10 The Hustler dir. Robert Rossen/1961/2h14m Paul Newman stars in his iconic role of pool hustler Fast Eddie Felson who is on the fast track to self destruction as he becomes obsessed with beating the best pool player in the world, Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason). This is a film in three distinct acts. The first and third are Felson's showdowns with Fats which bookend a tragic romance between Felson and Sarah (Piper Laurie), a depressed alcoholic. This is a bleak film about addicts and losers, yet there is beauty in the direction that makes this world of smoky pool halls cool and alluring. It also helps that Newman is incredibly handsome. The two pool games between Eddie and Fats are the showpieces here and are given the attention they deserve, with Eddie losing even when he wins, that's just the kind of man he is. Gleason is great as Eddie's opposite, someone totally calm and in control of their emotions. Laurie is heart breaking as Sarah, with only one inevitable outcome for her. Rounding out the main cast is George C. Scott as Bert, the sleazy and manipulative pool hall owner. As a standalone film this is excellent, but wouldn't it be good if we caught up with Eddie let's say twenty five years later? 9/10 Lime's Co-Film of the Week! The Color of Money dir. Martin Scorsese/1986/1h59m Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money catches up with Fast Eddie Felson (a returning Paul Newman) twenty five years after the events of The Hustler. He's now making a decent living off of whiskey, but when a hotshot young pool player, Vince (Tom Cruise), catches his eye he wants back in the hustling game. Without the context of The Hustler this is still a fantastic film full of Scorsese's trademark moves, but with the added history of the character a whole new tragic dimension is added. Eddie is a man full of regrets, so when he sees a chance to recapture his glory days he'll do anything he can to grab it, his old instincts kicking in almost instantly. He's there to use Vince, and he's open about it. But Vince is no d*mmy, even though he may act like it, and with his more emotionally mature girlfriend Carmen (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) he may end up teaching Eddie a thing or two. This has a much different vibe to the previous film, very fitting for the time it was made, and the pool scenes are edited violently by Scorsese's long time editor Thelma Schoonmaker, almost like they're fight scenes. This is a Scorsese film I've not seen before, and didn't really have any interest in before watching The Hustler, but I think this is one of his best works of the decade, only The King of Comedy is better in my opinion. Combined with The Hustler this is an epic, four hour rise and fall and rise and fall and maybe rise again story that spans decades. And it all ends on a high note with a brilliant one liner and a classic Scorsese freeze frame. 9/10 Lime's Co-Film of the Week! Bottom: Exposed dir. Adrian Edmondson/2024/1h30m This made for TV documentary covers the creation, production, reception and legacy of one of my all time favourite shows, Bottom. Written and performed by the late, great (he said so himself) Rik Mayall (seriously, his autobiography is called Bigger Than Hitler, Better Than Christ) and Adrian Edmondson (director of this documentary), Bottom was a BBC comedy that ran for three series in the 90's and was violently crude, obscene, anarchic, absurd and offensive, and one of the funniest things I've ever seen, with slapstick fight scenes that would make Chaplin blush and a sound effects guy straight out of the Looney Tunes. The documentary itself is fine if very standard, featuring interviews with cast, crew and fans, but the real gold is when Edmondson is talking about Mayall, the two being lifelong friends since university. It gets quite emotional at points, which Mayall would have f*cking hated. One of my favourite memories is going to see the Bottom live show with my dad in 2003, their last of five live tours, and even though it's the worst of the five (my favourite is split between 2 and 3), it was amazing being so close to such raw, unfiltered energy. If you've never seen Bottom before, watch it, because the main thing I took from this documentary and seeing all the clips from the show, is that it's been too long since I've seen it. 7/10 La Cage aux Folles dir. Edouard Molinaro/1978/1h32m This French comedy stars Ugo Tognazzi as Renato Baldi, owner of drag club La Cage aux Folles, with Michel Serrault playing Albin, aka Zaza, his partner and star performer. When Renato's son Laurent (Remi Laurent), who the couple have raised since he was a baby, comes home he has some big news. He's getting married. But unfortunately the parents of his girlfriend are in politics, on the conservative side. The very conservative side. So he asks his father and Albin to tone things down a bit while they are visiting. I think this film has aged pretty well considering it was made in the 70's, and while it does rely heavily on stereotypes it never comes across as mean spirited. Tognazzi is good in the lead role, being pulled between his partner, his son and his own identity, with Serrault stealing every scene he's in as a flighty drag queen. The highlight of the film is the climactic dinner party between the two sets of parents with Albin showing some real depth and character here. A little dated but still with a pure heart, I can't wait to compare it with the American remake (see next review). 8/10 The Birdcage dir. Mike Nichols/1996/1h59m Robin Williams and Nathan Lane star as drag club owner Armand Goldman and his partner and star performer Albert in this American remake of La Cage aux Folles. The plot remains basically unchanged from the French original, just with some extra time to let Williams and Lane shine. Considering he's playing a gay drag club owner Williams gives a fairly understated performance, with really only one instance of that classic over the top exuberance. All of that is left to Lane, who is hilarious here. My only real problem with this film, same as the original though I didn't mention it in my review, is that their son, Val (Dan Futterman), is an unappreciative *sshole. Thankfully that doesn't take too much away from this, and the presence of Gene Hackman as republican senator Kevin Keeley, his future father in law, really alleviates this, with him getting to exercise his comedy muscles (and he looks great in drag). This is a slice of fabulous fun and, thanks to the lead duo of Williams and Lane, is better than the original. 9/10- 2
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249
Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
What I Watched This Week #178 (May 26-June 1) Welcome to the Dollhouse dir. Todd Solondz/1995/1h28m This darkly comic coming of age story stars Heather Matarazzo as Dawn Wiener, a bullied twelve year old whose parents don't seem to care. One day, the school's meanest bully, Brandon (Brendan Sexton III), threatens to r*pe her when classes are out. Dawn actually turns up voluntarily to this meeting, just glad that someone is paying attention to her, and so starts a weirdly sweet relationship between two outcasts (he doesn't by the way, you know, just if you were worried). This all sounds incredibly bleak, but this is a very funny film in the same awkwardly stilted way as something like Napoleon Dynamite, big Midwest Indie vibes. This also feels very authentic, and that is largely due to Matarazzo's performance which always comes across as natural and real. Sexton also does well with a character that could be totally unlikeable, but he brings some real sympathy and nuance to him. This film does excellently to be edgy without it being there just for shock value. And I love that we end on what seems to be a small note of hope for Dawn, because she deserves it. I hope she had a wonderful life. 9/10 Lime's Film of the Week! Sinners dir. Ryan Coogler/2025/2h18m The latest film from the team of director Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan sees him playing twins Smoke and Stack, returning to their hometown in the deep south during prohibition in order to open up a juke joint, somewhere for their incredibly talented blues musician cousin Sammie (Miles Caton) to play. But trouble comes not from the Klan, but from a group of vampires led by the enigmatic Irishman Remmick (Jack O'Connell). This is a film of two halves. The first is pretty much devoid of any horror elements save for a short prologue. Instead it really focuses in on the characters of Smoke and Stack, and everyone they round up to help them run their club. Among them old bluesman Delta Slim (one of my perennial favourites Delroy Lindo), Smoke's estranged wife Annie (Wunmi Mosaku) and bouncer Cornbread (Omar Benson Miller). But what really gets the film's attention is the music. This is a real celebration of the blues and Black music and culture, with Caton, a musician in his first film role, giving the best performance out of a cast of seasoned professionals. The whole film seems to pivot on a crucial scene halfway through where Sammie is giving a performance in the club and he is joined by spectres of Black music both past and present. Native Africans from thousands of years ago performing alongside DJ's and rappers from the future. It's really beautiful and marks the high point of the film for me. After that is when the horror kicks in, which works less well for me. The interactions between the characters is still really well written and performed, but it's the actual action that is lacking, which is a shame because the fight scenes in Creed, again directed by Coogler and starring Jordan, were near perfect. If that side of the film matched the dramatic side then this would be an instant classic for me, but as it is I still highly recommend this. 8.5/10 Finding Dory dir. Andrew Stanton/2016/1h37m In what feels like a totally unnecessary sequel we return to the world of Pixar's near perfect Finding Nemo, but this time my least favourite part of that film, annoying sidekick Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), takes centre stage. Here the forgetful fish has a sudden moment of clarity and remembers her parents (Diane Keaton, Eugene Levy), and sets out on an epic quest to find them. I'm still not a huge fan of the character, but thankfully she's been toned done slightly from the original, a huge relief given the increase in screen time she has. It also helps that this is a well written film, not one of Pixar's best, but it still had me invested. And the flashbacks to a baby Dory and her parents and just so incredibly sweet that I couldn't help but root for her. I also really liked the new character of Hank (Ed O'Neill), a surly octopus who just wants to be left alone. It's a testament to Pixar that they can make a whole film about one of my least favourite characters of theirs and still have me enjoy and be moved by it, and I don't need to say it but I will, the animation is absolutely stunning. 7/10 The Morricone Duel: The Most Dangerous Concert Ever dir. Karsten Andersen/2018/1h11m (no trailer for this, so here's a performance of The Ecstasy of Gold from The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly) This concert film captures a tribute to legendary composer Ennio Morricone by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sarah Hicks. Most famous for defining the sound of the western thanks to his scores for Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy (A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly), which is all represented here, this also features pieces from other films he scored such as The Untouchables, Once Upon a Time in America, and his two Tarantino scores for Inglourious Basterds and The Hateful Eight. There are some works not composed by Morricone here, like the Orchestral Suite from The Godfather by Nino Rota and Sonny Bono's My Baby Shot Me Down (presumably for the Tarantino connection as this was used in Kill Bill), but I would've preferred them to stick with Morricone as he has such a huge and varied body of work, the scope of which I don't think is fully represented here. The musicianship, being a national symphony, is world class, so if you have a half decent sound system crank it up and enjoy. The presentation is simple, but there are a couple of nice touches like some hanging corpses around the venue, and simple graphics projected on to screens symbolising the films being played. 7.5/10 Baldwin's Ni- dir. Horace Ove/1968/46m (no trailer again, so here's a clip) This provocatively titled documentary (the title is explained by the subject himself in the above clip) is the first work from acclaimed director Horace Ove, who would make the first feature length film by a Black British filmmaker with Pressure in 1975. Here he documents a short lecture and Q and A session in London given by American writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin, with some short comments at the end by comedian and fellow activist d*ck Gregory. Speaking with a quiet, polite intensity he expounds on the differences in race relations between the UK and the US, his own personal history, what steps need to be taken next, and what role, if any, white liberals have in the civil rights movement. Baldwin is a thoughtful, intelligent, engaging, witty speaker and the forty five minutes spent with him here just flies by, leaving you wanting more. It's so refreshing to see a civilised, mature, grown up discussion about such subjects considering the state of political discourse these days, which just seems to all devolve into shouting matches on social media. A simple and bare bones film, but when you have a subject like Baldwin you don't need anything else. 9/10 Lost in Starlight dir. Han Ji-won/2025/1h36m This Korean animation is set in the near future and tells the story of literally star-crossed lovers, astronaut Nan-young (Kim Tae-ri) and downbeat musician Je-i (Hong Kyung). Their brief romance is tested when she gets a place on a mission to Mars, following in the footsteps of her late mother. This is rather melodramatic at points, but it's also very sweet and tender and genuine, which helps ground it even in the futuristic setting. The world is well designed with it feeling not too far fetched, like it's attainable for 2050, and the animation is crisp and gorgeous, the use of space imagery being particularly pretty. The cross cutting between Nan-young on her mission and Je-i trying to get his music career back on track on Earth is well done, with the distance between them bringing them closer together, but it is all quite predictable. 7/10 A Single Life dir. Joris Oprins, Job Roggeveen, Marieke Blaauw/2014/2m This Dutch animated short has a simple yet fairly well executed premise. A woman has a mysterious vinyl record that, when skipped back and forth, can transport her to different points in her life. This leads up to a dark punchline that's perhaps the best thing about this. I like the style of the set here but I find the character design quite ugly and off-putting, and feel like this could have been expanded to something more emotionally hefty rather than as a setup for a gag. This feels like a practice run for something substantial with more to say, but as it is it's still an entertaining couple of minutes. 6.5/10- 2
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