#Michael Elphick

[maturemenoftvandfilms]

I was always attracted to the British actor Michael Elphick. He was rough, he seemed unsociable, with a compact physique and enormous sweaty masculinity. I especially loved him in Lars von Trier's The Element of Crime. Do you find him desirable?

I could do him.

[starafterdeath]

Michael Elphick in The Element of Crime by Lars von Trier.

[zippocreed501]

Michael Elphick as Private Gerhard Schulz and Ian Richardson as Major Neuheim

Private Schulz (1981)

[kwebtv]

Top: Lesley-Anne Sharpe, David Daker, Michael Elphick and Neil Morrissey in "Boon"

Bottom: David Daker, Michael Elphick, Neil Morrissey and Saskia Wickham in "Boon"

[byneddiedingo]

Michael Elphick, Me Me Lai, and Lars von Trier in The Element of Crime (Lars von Trier, 1984) Cast: Michael Elphick, Esmond Knight, Me Me Lai, Jerold Wells, Ahmed El Shenawi, Astrid Henning-Jensen, János Herskó, Stig Larsson, Lars von Trier. Screenplay: Niels Vørsel, Lars von Trier. Cinematography: Tom Elling. Production design: Peter Hølmark. Music: Bo Holten. Film noir becomes film jaune. The sulfurous hues of Lars von Trier's first feature-length film were apparently achieved with the use of sodium-vapor lamps not unlike the ones used in some cities as streetlamps and parking-lot illumination to cut down light pollution. The nightmarish monochrome so pervades the film that an occasional irruption of blue light comes as a welcome relief, especially since the determined grunge of the settings gives the eye no place to rest.  The Element of Crime is, in short, an assault on our expectations that a film will involve us in either its characters or its story. It's a detective story, in which Fisher (Michael Elphick), a former police detective now living in Cairo, visits a therapist to help him in remembering his last case -- the one so disturbing that it caused him to go into exile from Europe. Under an induced trance, he returns to the scenes of the crimes committed by a serial killer who murdered and dismembered young girls who sold lottery tickets. But the Europe -- no specific country, but though everyone speaks English, the place names are German -- to which Fisher returns in the trance is not the one his conscious mind recalls: It's a trashed-out land where the sun never shines and it always seems to be raining. There is a conventional film noir plot at work throughout the movie, but von Trier is less interested in it than in crafting a sinister dreamworld. He succeeds at that exceptionally, but fails to create a film that lingers in the mind as more than a tour de force in giving you the creeps.

[gameofthunder66]

'The Elephant Man' (1980) film

-watched 6/5/2024- 4 stars- on Pluto tv (free)

92% Rotten Tomatoes

I don't guess I've ever watched this movie before, but I do remember it was highly regarded whenever it first came out.

[moviesandmania]

I BOUGHT A VAMPIRE MOTORCYCLE Reviews of comedy horror

‘The bike that runs on blood not petrol’ I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle is a 1990 British comedy horror film directed by Dirk Campbell from a screenplay written by producer Mycal Miller and John Wolskel. The movie stars Neil Morrissey, Amanda Noar, Michael Elphick (The Elephant Man), Anthony Daniels (C3PO) Andrew Powell, George Rossi, Daniel Peacock, Midge Taylor, David Daker and Burt Kwouk (The…

[abs0luteb4stard]

W A T C H I N G

[cinemacentral666]

The Element of Crime (1984)

Movie #1,142 • Ranking Lars von Trier #4

Let it be known that during this LVT filmography viewing I made the executive decision to only ever watch full director filmographies in chronological order. That had always been my preferred method, but I thought it would be best if, from time to time, I mixed up the order for [insert reasoning here]. This is the sixth or seventh Trier flick I've consumed (depending on how you want to count his two early shorter films and both the first two seasons of his Danish TV show) and it's essentially ground zero for the man's career. It's as weird and as bold of a debut feature that I've ever seen.

I feel like it's worth mentioning that I am now starting at the beginning and only going forward, because everything about this felt like a shock having digested some of his other work, most notably: his prime "Golden Heart Trilogy" of films (1996-2000) and his most recent work, 2018's The House That Jack Built. It felt like a different director and I say that in the most positive way. Some similarities arose, naturally. The sepia tones were visually similar to The Kingdom's (though more on this later). The conversational voice-over between main character Fisher and his Cairo hypnotist felt like a direct through-line to how the character of Virgil functions in Jack. And the general "frustrated search for something largely intangible that will ultimately disappoint if not fully horrify" evoked pretty much everything I've seen by the man in some way.

But structurally and compositionally, this felt like a whole new world. In fact, in many ways, it is a complete invention of Trier's. This "Europe" consists of fictional cities and towns where it's always night and everything is drenched in liquid. Despite a few grounding allusions, there is no specific state or country, just this cold, wet dystopia broadcast under yellowy sodium lights. The sets used and built for this are fantastic, each a kind of micro-labyrinth, a small mystery onto themselves cutting against the larger noir framework of the movie's plot: a man is on the hunt for a serial killer of small girls before he strikes again. Detective Fisher (Michael Elphick) navigates this spaces in a literal daze, as the entirety of the action is presented as the memory of a man, now an expatriate in Egypt, spilling his guts to a guy with a monkey on his shoulder. This is the first of two primates to get screen-time. The second, notably of the lower order, Fisher finds in a gutter, scared to death and confused, perhaps a stand in for the audience….

I believe that guy is a loris. To start your film with monkey and end it with a loris speaks to some theme of reverse evolution. The fascist nightmares we see are a product of no less. In fact, this – coupled with the elements of his earlier student work and up through his unfortunate "I'm a Nazi" comments – provide much of the framework for understanding Trier's motives on a larger scale. I do believe it goes beyond simple provocation and is worth explorin. I think he's trying to make sense of a world still drying out from the tsunami that was WWII. But I'll put a pin in it that for now before I get to watch the rest of his films.

The Element of Crime is not a movie made for easily digestible 'understanding' or textbook mystery reveals. Even when you get the gist/uncover the trick, he throws a mysterious postscript that shrouds things further. I'm still trying to make sense of these manic bald men…

LVT created a world here. His stellar framing, innovative shots, and glorious use of light all cut against the frantic, obtuse and occasionally obscene script in such a delightful way. Sure, maybe it's all an amalgamation of influence (certainly Andrei Tarkovsky and Lynch's Eraserhead among others) but it's still wholly more than the sum of its parts.

I took a weird route to get to this beginning. In a way, I'm glad I did, but I'm even more excited to keep going forward.

SCORE: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’ll be counting down all of Lars Von Trier’s movies right here at @cinemacentral666 every Thursday through September 2023

[mydarkmaterials]

[randomrichards]

THE ELEMENT OF CRIME:

Yellow tinged Europe

Detective use hypnosis

To find a killer

[scotianostra]

My favourite Scottish singer, Jim Diamond was born on September 28th 1953 in Bridgeton, Glasgow.

Born to Sarah (nee Harper), a seamstress, and Lawrence, a firefighter, who would habitually get up to sing at parties, we all had a relative like this didn't we? Apart from his father, his earliest musical inspirations were soul music greats such as Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. By the age of 14 he had joined his first band, The Method, and later he became lead singer of the Glasgow group Jade, touring the country playing club and college gigs. Then he embarked on a European tour with the band Gully Foyle (he had seen their advertisement for a lead singer in Glasgow’s Evening Times), which included some dates supporting Procol Harum.

His next stop was a quintet called Bandit, who were signed by Arista Records but they swept away by the emergence of punk rock. Bandit's one album was enough to prompt the NME’s reviewer, Tony Stewart, to comment that he was “an inspired and remarkable vocalist who projects himself well, displaying not only a passion for the music but a staggering range, which he uses fully”.

Bandit split up soon afterwards, but Diamond and Bandit’s guitarist, Danny McIntosh (now Kate Bush’s husband) went on to work with Alexis Korner. Word was spreading about Diamond and his powerfully expressive singing, and he was invited to fly to Los Angeles to form a band with the guitarist and David Bowie collaborator Earl Slick and the drummer Carmine Appice, who had been playing with Rod Stewart, but before the project could come to fruition, Diamond was in demand again, returning to England to form PhD and embarking on the series of hits that sealed his reputation.

Then Diamond contracted hepatitis, which prevented him from touring and prompted PhD to split. In 1984 he was back in action as a solo artist, triumphing with the No 1 heartbreaker I Should Have Known Better, often remembered for its soaring “I-I-I-I-I” chorus, which believe it or not, I pride myself on singing welle, The single, which was from his album Double Crossed , earned him a nomination for an Ivor Novello award.

Diamond’s career cooled after his intense burst of success in the early and mid-80s, although in 1985 Diamond went to No 1 again with the celebrity ensemble The Crowd on You’ll Never Walk Alone, a charity record for families of the victims of the Bradford City stadium fire. In 1986 his second solo album, Desire For Freedom, delivered the No 5 hit Hi Ho Silver, a song commissioned for Boon, starring Michael Elphick, and featuring yet another of Diamond’s catchy choruses, this time set to a briskly pumping reggae beat.

In 1993 he released the album Jim Diamond, which reached No 16 on the UK charts, and went on tour performing acoustic versions of his catalogue of songs. In the late 90s he teamed up with the saxophonist Chris “Snake” Davis, renowned for his studio work with M People, George Michael, Paul McCartney and many more, and they performed as The Blue Shoes. With the Hammond organist Paul Birchall, they also worked on Diamond’s 2005 album Souled and Healed. In 2009 PhD reunited to record a new album, Three.

In 2011 Diamond joined up with a group of Scottish musicians, including veterans from Wet Wet Wet and the Proclaimers, to record City of Soul, a collection of soul music cover versions to raise money for Cash for Kids.

Sadly on n 8 October 2015 Jim Diamond passed away as a result of a pulmonary edema – a build-up of fluid in his lungs. The family later said they were unaware he was unwell, his daughter Sara said “Dad was quite a private man, he didn’t court celebrity, and the only reason he did what he did was because he loved making music." adding “Dad’s song (I should have known better) went to Number one at the same time as Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas was released.

“He was over the moon, but told everyone to go and buy the charity single.” Sara added that the one thing her dad enjoyed using his fame for was to help others. She said: “Dad was always very aware of how lucky we had been as a family, in terms of health and wealth.

“He was very passionate about helping charities. He saw it as his duty to do what he could to give something back.”

RIP Jim Diamond, dubbed "Scotland's Ray Charles.

[ulkaralakbarova]

In Victorian England, a master criminal makes elaborate plans to steal a shipment of gold from a moving train. Credits: TheMovieDb. Film Cast: Edward Pierce: Sean Connery Robert Agar: Donald Sutherland Miriam: Lesley-Anne Down Edgar Trent: Alan Webb Fowler: Malcolm Terris Sharp: Robert Lang Clean Willy: Wayne Sleep Burgess: Michael Elphick Elizabeth Trent: Gabrielle Lloyd Emily Trent: Pamela Salem Barlow: George Downing Harranby: James Cossins McPherson: John Bett Station Despatcher: Peter Benson Maggie: Janine Duvitski Trent’s Butler: Brian de Salvo Judge: André Morell Prosecutor: Donald Churchill Captain Jimmy: Brian Glover Connaught: Noel Johnson Putnam: Peter Butterworth Burke: Patrick Barr Lewis: Hubert Rees Woman on Platform: Agnes Bernelle Rail Guard: Joe Cahill Chaplain: Cecil Nash Emma Barnes: Susan Hallinan Ratting Assistant: Oliver Smith First Pickpocket: John Altman Second Pickpocket: Paul Kember Third Pickpocket: Geoff Ferris Woman on Strand: Jenny Till Urchin on Strand: Craig Stokes Policjant na stacji przy moście londyńskim: Frank McDonald Film Crew: Novel: Michael Crichton Original Music Composer: Jerry Goldsmith Editor: David Bretherton Producer: John Foreman In Memory Of: Geoffrey Unsworth Camera Operator: Gordon Hayman Production Design: Maurice Carter Art Direction: Bert Davey Costume Design: Anthony Mendleson Makeup Artist: Basil Newall Music Editor: Michael Clifford Assistant Director: Anthony Waye Casting: Mary Selway Hairstylist: Elaine Bowerbank Set Dresser: Hugh Scaife Wardrobe Master: Rebecca Breed Executive Producer: Dino De Laurentiis Still Photographer: Laurie Ridley Action Director: Dick Ziker Draughtsman: Jim Morahan Movie Reviews: Wuchak: _**Robbing a train of a shipment of gold in Victorian England**_ Written/directed by Michael Crichton and released in 1978/79, “The Great Train Robbery” was loosely based on the real-life Great Gold Robbery of 1855 that took place in England. Sean Connery plays the mastermind, Lesley-Anne Down his girlfriend and Donald Sutherland a safecracker with whom they team-up. I generally don’t like caper films because the protagonists are criminals, but Crichton wisely makes the characters played by Connery and Sutherland likable rapscallions; meanwhile Down is babelicious, in particular in her jaw-dropping first scene. Crichton intentionally made the movie more farcical compared to his novel and I appreciated the wit and low-key humor. I didn’t expect to like this movie, but it won me over. The film runs 1 hour, 51 minutes, and was shot primarily in Ireland (Dublin, Bray, Cork & Moate), but also Pinewood Studios, England. GRADE: B-/B JPV852: Seen this once before many years ago but decided to check out the new Blu-ray from Kino Lorber. A solid heist-thriller though what struck me was these thieves were stealing gold meant for British soldiers, so not exactly stealing from some corporation, and our lead played by Sean Connery had no issue murdering a guy. Even so, still found it entertaining and some suspense-filled scenes, among them a great sequence with Connery on top of a moving train. **3.75/5**

[agendaculturaldelima]

#ProyeccionDeVida

📣 Kino Cat / Cine Tulipán, presenta:

🎬 “EL HOMBRE ELEFANTE” [Elephant Man]

🔎 Género: Drama / Biográfico / Discapacidad / Siglo XIX / Película de culto

⌛️ Duración: 125 minutos

✍️ Guion: David Lynch, Eric Bergren y Christopher De Vore

📕 Biografía: John Merrick

🎼 Música: John Morris

📷 Fotografía: Freddie Francis (B&W)

💥 Argumento: A finales del siglo XIX, el doctor Frederick Treves descubre en un circo a un hombre llamado John Merrick. Se trata de un ciudadano británico con la cabeza monstruosamente deformada, que vive en una situación de constante humillación y sufrimiento al ser exhibido diariamente como una atracción de feria. A medida que Merrick le cuenta todo por lo que ha pasado, el Dr. Treves descubre que tras la monstruosa fachada de Merrick yace un hombre apacible y amable

👥 Reparto: John Hurt (John Merrick), Anthony Hopkins (Dr. Frederick Treves), Anne Bancroft (Sra. Kendal), Frederick Treves (Concejal), Freddie Jones (Bytes), John Gielgud (Carr Gomm), Wendy Hiller (Señora Mothershead), Lesley Dunlop (Nora), Dexter Fletcher (Chico de Bytes), Phoebe Nicholls (Madre de Merrick) y Michael Elphick (Portero de noche)

📢 Dirección: David Lynch

© Productora: Paramount Pictures

👤 Productor: Mel Brooks

🌎 País: Estados Unidos

📅 Año: 1980

📽 Proyección:

📆 Martes 04 de Junio

🕘 9:00pm. 

🐈‍ El Gato Tulipán (Bajada de Baños 350 – Barranco)

🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️ Ingreso libre

[kwebtv]

Boon - ITV - January 14, 1986 - May 1, 1995

Drama (93 episodes)

Running Time: 60 minutes

Stars:

Michael Elphick as Ken Boon

David Daker as Harry Crawford

Neil Morrissey as Rocky Cassidy

Rachel Davies as Doreen Evans

Lesley-Anne Sharpe as Debbie Yates

Amanda Burton as Margaret Daly

Elizabeth Carling as Laura Marsh

Brigit Forsyth as Helen Yeldham

Saskia Wickham as Alex Wilton

Joan Scott as Ethel Ellard

Gordon Warnecke as Hanif Kurtha

Christopher Eccleston as Mark

[rapturousrot]

The Element of Crime (1984) dir. Lars von Trier