Miscellaneous Great Things

[davidn]

I know that this is a detestable Youtube-em-up post, but I promise to you that every one of these videos is well worth watching. I've found the service invaluable for reliving old TV programmes that I thought had gone forever (or at least until I got back home and opened the chest of old videos behind the television).

Richard O'Brien in D&D - This was easily the best part of the otherwise absymal Dungeons and Dragons film. Introduce a thief character, make him run a guild Maze (in which lies a Crystal... I'm sure you can tell where this is going) and cast Richard O'Brien to play him. As you can tell from the rest of the scene, unfortunately it's also the only remotely good decision that the filmmakers made, but it was truly an inspired idea.

Punt and Dennis - Crystal Maze - Continuing the same theme, this is a pair of British comedians' take on The Crystal Maze and the sometimes distressing stupidity of its participants (and I hadn't previously realized that those two ever had a TV programme).

Within These Walls - It'll Be Alright on the Night is an out-take clip show. However, it is a clip show with the unique distinction of actually being funny. Perhaps this is due to the contrast between the videos themselves and the presenter, Denis Norden, who is quite possibly the most unfunny man who ever lived (equal to Richard Whiteley without the charm). This is a recording of one of my favourite sections from it ever, where an announcer is interrupted by the wrong clip entirely.

Vic and Bob - Masterchef - Bob Mortimer and Vic Reeves (or Jim Moir or whatever his name is) have a fairly unique form of parody. There's exaggeration, there's exaggeration to the point of absurdity, there's exaggeration to the point of unrecognisability, and then, at the other end of the scale, there is this pair. I find that only the start is really worth watching, but it has to be the most terrifying version of Loyd Grossman ever.

Vic and Bob - Carry On Camping - As posted by stubbleupdate a week or so ago. You won't get this unless you've experienced (I think 'enjoyed' is stretching the term a little) the Carry On films, but it manages to sum the whole series up in about a minute. Of particular note is the signature "WAK WAK WAK", which I remember being subtitled simply as "Laughs like Sid James".

A game that looks awfully familiar - This came as a bit of a surprise, as this early in its release I was just expecting to find the normal amount of reviews in Czechoslovakian that I can't read. If I have to critique it a bit, I'd like to mention that the maker of this video obviously isn't using the two-button firing mode, which allows you much better and faster control, but people insist on turning it off.

Yes, quite, but I don't have a project to keep me busy at the moment.

Comments

[e-to-the-ipi.livejournal.com]

Punt and Dennis - Crystal Maze - Continuing the same theme, this is a pair of British comedians' take on The Crystal Maze and the sometimes distressing stupidity of its participants (and I hadn't previously realized that those two ever had a TV programme).

How can you have never heard of The Mary Whitehouse Experience? Admittedly, I'd not previously seen it, thanks so much for sharing it, but the name alone means everyone should have seen it. Notable for featuring Rob Newman and David Baddiel while he was funny (and isn't that one of the saddest phrases there is?). Despite having never experienced either, I will go with conventional wisdom and say that the radio version is probably better. Because everything's better on the radio.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

Punt and Dennis had their own show about a year after the mary whitehouse experience finished. It was originally called the imaginatively titled punt and dennis show but changed to just punt and dennis later as that was what everyone called it. It must be about 10-15 years old now.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

Oh forgot to say, there is another cool part in the otherwise abysmal film of D&D and that was the rug that one of the guys get trapped in. Not only had it better acting ability than most people in the film, but to save on special effects, (personally they could have saved on special effects by cutting out the end and leaving the dead dead) they just filled a hole with a thick porridge and then painted the rug design on top.

[pookatimes.livejournal.com]

Yep, that scene is the only reason I could find to commend D&D. I likened it to Knightmare as well as the Crystal Maze.

When I revewed it for Pooka Times, the final score was appalling.