And it was, very much so. 'Lennon Naked' premièred in June. First it was shown at the second preview (BFI, 2nd), then, in a dubbed version, on Japanese TV (12th) and finally broadcast in the UK (23rd). In connection with the première, a variety of interviews, articles and reviews appeared online, in the papers and on the radio. You can find them organized in the main 'Lennon Naked' post, including video and audio materials. Especially worth attention are original press and direct radio interviews.
Some review quotes:
Neil McCormick, The Telegraph, 'The most ambitious John Lennon film yet': "For all the film’s obvious flaws, what holds it together is the quality of the writing and the sheer brio of Eccleston’s performance."'Lennon Naked' was also showcased at Roma FictionFest (out of competition), and Region 2 DVD is already available. The film will be shown and released in the US in November.
Damien Love, Herald Scotland: "In certain respects, his being the wrong age is perfect. Jones’s script is fragmentary, more a meditation on Lennon than a straight portrait, and Eccleston’s intense, mature, sometimes literally naked presence lends a certain abstract, out-of-time quality."
Martyn Palmer, Radio Times: "Eccleston is mesmerising - the voice, mannerisms, the savage, cruel wit, are all pitch-perfect."
Andrea Mullaney, The Scotsman: "Eccleston dominates every scene as much as Lennon must have dominated every room he was in, but there's one big obvious problem: he's clearly around 15 years too old for the role (23 years in the opening section). But you can suspend disbelief a bit by thinking of it as a way of showing Lennon being older and more cynical than his years. And he has the distinctive voice down near-perfectly. It's a fearsomely watchable performance and a fine comeback."
Meantime, on the 4th of June I Am Kloot, a band supported by Eccleston, made public yet another video with him - this time in cameo capacity - for their song 'Northern Skies'. On the 14th Christopher Eccleston participated in the opening of Eccles library. Also in June were published campaign videos, Anti-whaling and Oxfam appeal, narrated by Eccleston.
After the filming for 'Accused' from the end of May through June, new casting was announced on the 2nd of July for Hugo Blick's 'The Shadow Line' (BBC Two). Lensing commenced in The Isle of Man then and has been going on since (listen to 3FM interview). While 'Accused' is set to broadcast this autumn (more info soon), 'The Shadow Line' should be ready for the spring/summer season 2011.
Last but not least event of the summer was Christopher Eccleston co-hosting Marc Riley's show on BBC 6 Music on the 24th of August. Eccleston curated the programme, selecting the music, and also talked extensively with Marc Riley various matters musical and personal.
P.S.: A note regarding 'Our Friends in the North' September re-release - seemingly it is a vanilla box-set, w/o the special features of the now obscure 2002 issue.
ETA:
• It will include though "20-page illustrated booklet by film and television historian Marcus Hearn."
• Guardian article [as suggested by Hedgehog to also add the link here].
• Independent's mini review.
5 comments:
Pity about the OFITN-re-release... I was secretly hoping they might *expand* the extras' section, and maybe, perhaps, hopefully add the BFI panel audio. *sobs*
BFI, would be interesting, but I guess it's of different designation.
You know, it's a miracle they're re-releasing it (it was said the title was deleted).
All in all, life, bright side, etc. I'm just glad others won't have to pay insane money for it like I did.
I also note that the certificate for the "new" issue of OFITN carries a 15 rather than the original 18.
The "extras" were a conversation with Gina McKee and Christopher as well as a pub discussion with the producers and writers of the series.
I remember Peter Flannery signing my copy at BFI Southbank citing that he hadn't seen a DVD boxset in ages.
Still, one of the best ever dramas ever made by the BBC in the 90s shame that Christopher never got the BAFTA for Best Actor that year either.
A drama featuring two future iconic British fictional characters; James Bond and Doctor Who what more could you want eh?
That's correct. No comment is available on the old release at BBFC, but the new one has 15 for "strong language, violence, sex and sexualised nudity" ('Lennon Naked' also carries 15, but sits more comfortably in that category, imo).
And yes, the main extras were two inters, a discussion and a summary in text/pics of the original first episode (_that's_ something I'd like to see, but this is not 'Sherlock', alas).
Edited the post to add that OFITN will have a sort of extra (booklet). More interesting is the promo vid on the amazon's page. OFITN is the forerunner of retro series like 'Life on Mars' and 'Ashes to Ashes'??
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