Easy guide to production
Mark Hodge is a journalist and copywriter from Glasgow, Scotland. As well as being involved in film festivals in the UK, Mark has also worked as a sports reporter covering events such as the Winter Olympics in Vancouver and soccer matches in his home country. He currently resides in Manchester, England where he works as an SEO Copywriter. However, his real passion and expertise is for TV and film.
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Only the most cynical, disenchanted film fan would condemn Battleship as being yet another example of studio short sightedness. Of course, it is exactly this kind of contrived, jingoistic, sensory pollution, masquerading as family entertainment that has caused that … [Read more...]
Kick-Ass was a movie that no studio wanted to touch. The idea of a comic book adaptation in which foul mouthed adolescents murdered bad guys seemed too risky. In order to get the production off the ground, director Matthew Vaughn (husband of model Claudia Schiffer) and writer Jane Goldman (wife … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) America has always had a strange relationship with the French. Inextricably linked through ideologies that have since drifted further and further apart, they are also both bastions of art house cinema. And, while many Americans may feel like the French snootily … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) David Cronenberg made his name making films you wouldn't take your mum to. His weird, mind-bending explorations cemented his niche in arthouse cinema during the 80s and 90s. In fact, his only genuine flirtation with the mainstream at that time was the 1986 remake of … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) The summer is a period that can make or break a studio's fortunes. For every box office winner there is inevitably a raft of losers. And, this year is shaping up to one of the biggest ever, with Marvel playing one of their aces early; with stunning success. The … [Read more...]
The last time we had a good time watching Mel Gibson, without a hint of schadenfreude, he was sneaking a peak of Helen Hunt's ample bosom. Since then so much has happened. But in a nut shell, he gave up acting and turned into an alcohol fueled anti-Semite. Unfortunately, this turned out to be … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) A film involving a sociopathic media mogul eating up the competition while systematically peddling the right wing rhetoric of the establishment, may sound like a dystopian horror. Of course, when you realise that the subject matter is about the real life Bond villain … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Studios like to remake successful cop shows of a bygone era, suck all that was good out of them , and release them on a unsuspecting popcorn munching public, most of whom are completely unaware of the cultural heap that is playing out in front of them. One of the … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Director Jonathan Glazer's talents exploded onto our screens in 2000 with the ballsy gangster flick Sexy Beast. He followed that up in 2004 with Birth, a film that was savaged by critics and booed at festivals for including a scene in which Nicole Kidman shared a … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Fresh from his biggest ever commercial success, Woody Allen's latest feature is yet another European jaunt. The trailer of To Rome with Love shows the usual mix of big screen talent philosophising about life, love and romance. Allen himself appears on film for … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Normally, looking a bit scary is a drawback in life. From finding a job to keeping friends. However, this isn't the case in the movie world. If celluloid history has taught us anything, it's that looking like you could rip someone's face off can be a golden … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) Gary Oldman has slammed the Golden Globes awards as being 'bent' and too political. For those of you who are American and are unfamiliar with the word 'bent', it's the same as being dodgy or crooked. This outburst occurred when the Bafta winner collected the … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doodleNEWS) When he's not making films about outer space, and making a fool of himself at awards shows, James Cameron is exploring the depths of the ocean. Not only is the billionaire adventurer single-handedly furthering marine science, but he is gallantly filming it, so he can … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) The momentous box office failure of John Carter once again highlights the lack of imagination of big Hollywood studios. But, will the projected $200-million loss change the attitudes of studios execs who seem intent on re-hashing everything that has ever been … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) If there's one thing us Brits do best, it's poncing about in period dramas. And, the Lord of the period manor has to be writer Julian Fellows, who not only won an Oscar for Gosford Park, but also produced the fantastic Downton Abbey. After US audiences actually … [Read more...]
By Mark Hodge (doddleNEWS) One of the strangest aspects of Hollywood has to be the church or 'cult' of Scientology. Being a film fan I have in the past researched it and tried to gain an understanding of it's ethos and structure. However, as I am not an impressionable rich celebrity from … [Read more...]
