Sean Bean Week: Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Lightning Thief

Greetings and welcome to Day 4 of Sean Bean Week.  It has been kind of hetic around here so this will be the last day of the week.  Perhaps I can do something on Saturday but I offer no guarantees.  Imagine Gods of myth and legend walking about in our time.  Beings of awesome power that hail from legend and folklore. Now imagine a war breaking out that threatens to shatter not only that pantheon but our world if a wrong is not righted in time.  This is Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Lightning Thief.

So, was Rome a good gig?

Chiron:  Percy, take this to spoil yourself.  It's a powerful weapon. Guard it well. Only use it in times of severe distress.

Percy Jackson: This is a pen.  This is a *pen.*



Eons gone by and two of the elder gods Zeus (Sean Bean of Silent Hill, The Hitcher, Outlaw, Black Death, Game of Thrones, Mirror Mirror and Soldiers of Fortune) and Poseidon (Kevin McKidd of Trainspotting, North Square, Dog Soldiers, Nicolas Nickleby, Kingdom of Heaven, The Purifiers and Rome) have met for the first time in centuries as Zeus points to the heavens how the lightning is missing in his storm.  Poseidon takes immediate offense that his brother would accuse him when Zeus concludes it is Poseidon's son Percy (Logan Lerman of The Patriot, What Women Want, The Butterfly Effect, Jack & Bobby, 3:10 to Yuma and Gamer) that has acquired it and he has 14 days to return it or it means war.

I think the girl farted but I am not sure.

Percy, unaware of his lineage enjoys his almost waking time in water as it is a comfort.  He confides these notions to his friend Grover (Brandon T. Jackson of This Christmas, Big Stan, Days of Wrath, Fast & Furious, Tooth Fairy and Operation: Endgame) who reveals to be a satyr and Percy's mother Sally (Catherine Keener of Walking and Talking, Boys, If These Walls Could Talk,  Out of Sight, Death to Smoochy and An American Crime) must take the boy to safety in Camp Half-Blood (a haven for demi-gods) but his mother is claimed by Hades as leverage on the young half god.  The boy finds a realm composed of the children of the gods that train and toil to become warriors, soldiers and even heroes.

The camp's instructor Chiron (Pierce Bronsan of Remington Steele, Noble House, The Heist, Detonator, GoldenEye, Dante's Peak, The World Is Not Enough, The Matador and Mamma Mia!), trainer of Hercules and Perseus who vows to train the boy as he is of the rarest of pantheon, born of one of the three major gods of Olympus.   He must go before Zeus, convince him of his innocence and embark of the quest to retrieve the lightning bolt, save his mother and the world from impending war.  With monsters Medusa, Hydra and even a Minotaur in the way of this quest Grover and Percy are joined by Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario of The Hottest State, The Attic, Damages, Bereavement, White Collar, Hall Pass and Texas Chainsaw 3D), daughter of Athena who aids them in the hopes to save the world and meet her mother.

A few bits of trivia now.  In the book of same title Rick Riodan made the kids all of 12 rather than 17 as they are in the film.  Anthony Head auditioned for Chiron and lost to Pierce Brosnan but later helmed the character in Percy Jackson: Seas of Monsters.

James Bond went Furry!

Sean Bean Week: Scarlett

Welcome folks to Day 3 of Sean Bean Week and unlike yesterday's goof I assure you Bean has a much greater role in this tale of the South.   A journey from Atlanta, Charleston, Savannah to London and finally to the ancestral home of Ballyhara in Ireland.  This story continues after Gone with the Wind, the sequel manages a six hour mini-series filmed in more than 53 separate locations in the States, England and Ireland in this 1994 creation.  This is Scarlett.

Take that for entering my life, Kilmer!

Set 1873 in Atlanta show begins with Scarlett (Joanne Whalley of Emmerdale, How We Used to Live, A Kind of Loving, Willow, Shattered, Before You Go and The Borgias) at the funeral of Melanie Wilkes, her former sister-in-law and former rival for her very estranged husband, Rhett Butler (Timothy Dalton of Cromwell, Mary, Queen of Scots, Flash Gordon, Jane Eyre, The Living Daylights, Licence to Kill, The Rocketeer and Penny Dreadful).  Heartbroken that Rhett has kept her at bay, Scarlett finds her guardian Mammy (Esther Rolle of Cleopatra Jones, Maude, Good Times, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Singer & Sons, My Fellow Americans and Rosewood) is dying and Scarlett cannot forsake this woman that would be her mother in every sense of the matter.  Reluctantly Rhett accompanies her to Mammy's death bed.  Moments after this selfless old woman of good works passes away, Rhett and Scarlett have another drag down fight causing him to leave her and she heads back to Atlanta, for some reason convinced she will win him back.

Frankly, I don't care if it scares the living daylights out of her.

With a slight encounter with Ashley Wilkes (Stephen Collins of All the President's Men, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, 7th Heaven and Blood Diamond) she leaves Savannah and forsakes the States in search her roots finding them in the library of her grandfather Pierre Robillard (the late John Gielgud of Secret Agent, Julius Caesar, Richard III, Murder on the Orient Express, Caligula, Chariots of Fire and Arthur) and forced to stay at her grandfather's household while his remaining years are among him in return his estate would be half a million dollars.  She graciously turns him down in a lady like fashion, Butler serves her divorce papers and she chooses to leave to Ireland which of course it is under British rule causing Scarlett reminder of the North's treatment to the South.  With child she strives to make a new change in this life no matter the obstacles in the way.

 She encounters the noble Lord Richard Fenton (Sean Bean of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Sharpe's Challenge, The Hitcher, Outlaw, Sharpe's Peril, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Ca$h and Crusoe) a handsome, pompous and heartless man that badgers and batters the servants about, a man that takes what he wants and expects no questions to the contrary.    He, of course takes a liking to Scarlett who turns him down.  No woman would or can turn this egotistical monster away or he loses face in the eyes that he deems matter.   From his forceful ways he is murdered by a servant girl Mary (Tina Kellegher of In the Name of the Father, The Snapper, Ballykissangel and The Wednesdays)  and yet Scarlett fall under blame for such.  Will Scarlett be found guilty and sentenced to hang?  Will Mary come foreward?  Will Rhett ever seek out Scarlett before it is too late?   Well go watch it but bear in mind this is a mini-series and is about six hours long.

A few highlights about the series.  This film takes slight to unbelievable directions from the novel.  Events unfold for the sake of a TV viewing audience rather than the slower story building sections of a reader.    Lord Fenton is far more evil in this than ever in the novel and Bean depicts a dapper monster than no one dare challenge.   Jean Smart was astounding in this and stole the scenes with her comedy gold.   Every location itself told a tale and set dramatic sequences film worthy so dare not call this just another TV movie.   Joanne Whalley breathed life into Scarlett and while her performance differs with the late Vivian Leigh, she brought strength, character and dignity to the a similiar fashion.  Both Dalton and Whalley bring their A game to these paradigmatic roles and do them justice.  Lengthy but highly impressive.

Thought Jake forgot about me, didn't you?

Sean Bean Week: Black Beauty

Howdy folks and welcome back to Day 2 of Sean Bean Week.  Oddly enough I do not have any graphic Bean death scenes to share with you lot but... we can manage to cover the fellow yet again.  This time around an adaptation of Anna Sewell's novel was released in 1994, giving a fresh perspective on this classic English novel allowing viewers to see through the main character's eyes as well as a narrative for him as well.  This is Black Beauty.

I wonder why Jake thought this was a huge part for me.

Black Beauty: Oh! If people knew what a comfort to horses a light spoil is, and how it keeps a good mouth and a good temper...




This version of the movie feels almost like a autobiography of the very same named horse.  Writer/producer/director Caroline Thompson (Edward Scissorhands, The Addams Family, The Secret Garden, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Black Beauty, Buddy and Snow White: The Fairest of Them All)  and introduced a voice over for Black Beauty via Alan Cumming (High Road, Second Best, The High Life, GoldenEye, Spy Kids, X-Men 2 and Shoebox Zoo) bringing a perspective for the audience from this majestic creature.   Black Beauty resides on the lands of Birtwick Park belonging to Squire Gordon (Peter Davison of Sink or Swim, Doctor Who, A Very Peculiar Practice, Mystery!: Campion,  All Creatures Great and Small, The Mrs Bradley Mysteries and Law & Order: UK).  As Black Beauty attempts to get closer to Lady Gordon's mare Ginger, who doesn't give him the time of day he realizes he must be patient with her and chooses to be sweet on Merrylegs, the pony that entertains the good squire's daughters, Jessica and Molly.  

Dammit, lost a contact!

Alas Mistress Gordon (Rosalind Ayres of Armchair Thriller, Penmarric, The Bounder, Father's Day, Emily's Ghost, A Face to Die For, Titanic and Gods and Monsters) has slowly became ill and requires a warmer climate to improve her health.  Beauty and Ginger are sent to a new home in Earlshall Park, home of Lord (Peter Cook of Bedazzled, The Bed Sitting Room, Not Only... But Also, Find the Lady, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Two of Us and The Black Adder) and Lady Wexmire (Eleanor Bron of Yes Minister, The Hound of the Baskervilles, Play for Today, Doctor Who, The Attic: The Hiding of Anne Frank, Deadly Advice and A Little Princess) forces both Beauty and Ginger to pull Lady Wexmire's carriage with reins that forces her heads up and Ginger breaks away from the carriage in anger.    Separated from Ginger for the first time Beauty is lead to yet another owner as a taxi horse.  Will he meet with Ginger again or meet any of his human friends once more?

Now you are probably wondering where in the seven hells is Sean Bean.  Well his character Farmer Grey had less of a part than I remembered. He discovered the young colt that one day would be Black Beauty and... yeah it was over fairly quick.   I feel a bit silly on this but it does happen.

Here is a bit of trivia with this movie.  This was Peter Cooks last movie and not too bad to end on a high note there.    This has been Peter Davison's first and only theatrical film release and filmed all his scenes in no less than ten days.

Guys, I got us a cologne commercial! We're rich!

Sean Bean Week: Sharpe's Rifles

Welcome fine readers to Day 1 of Sean Bean Week and I hope we get off to a great start by viewing one of Bean's first ground and back breaking series based of the Bernard Cornwell novels (a novelization based on Peninsular War campaigns Sharpe's Rifles, the prequels Sharpe's Tigers, Sharpe's Triumph, Sharpe's Fortress, Sharpe's Trafalgar and Sharpe's Prey)  a young sergeant promoted to lieutenant commanding a handful of sharpshooters.  This is Sharpe's Rifles.

Hope those guns are loaded with blanks... this time.

Richard Sharpe: So... the Chosen Spoilers, eh?  Well, I didn't choose you. But I know you, you and your kind all my life.  All I know is how to fight. So if there's any man among you expecting a quick ramble through this war, now's the time.

Sir Arthur Wellesley (David Troughton of Bonjour la Classe, Sharpe's Eagle, A Few Short Journeys of the Heart, Underworld, Captain Jack and The Cafe) is the commander of the British infantry being pursued by the French when he is saved by a shavetail sergeant Richard Sharpe (Sean Bean of Patriot Games, Scarlett, Goldeneye, Airborne, Ronin, Equilibrium, The Lord of the RIngs: The Fellowship of the Ring and Troy).  Impressed with this young wily sergeant, Wellesley offers Sharpe a field promotion to Lieutenant and command of the "Chosen Men" some of the best sharpshooters formerly lead by Rifleman Patrick Harper (Daragh O' Malley of Texas, Sharpe's Seige, Sharpe's Justice, Grim Fandango and Cleopatra) and they both immediately loathe one another. Stuck in Portugal with no monthly payment, Wellesley has arranged a loan from the Rothschild household that was sent from Vienna but is overdue.  James Rothschild was said to have been traveling with this notice and has not been heard from in some time.

I'm telling you, that is the guy from Goldeneye.

Wellesley, Sharpe, his men and company commanded by Major Dunnett (Julian Fellowes of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson, The Bunker, Angels, Damage, Tomorrow Never Dies and Monarch of the Glen) follows Rothschild's last known whereabouts and set out to find him.    The company is exhausted as Sharpe and his men are on recon trying to make heads or tails of this missing member of noble house.  Will they encounter heavy resistance?  Is there a trap lying in waits for them all?  Will they ever escape this accursed war?   Well give it a view and find out.  Rather good periodical work.

Just a few comments about the TV movie now.  Paul McGann (Doctor Who, Downtime, Fish, Queen of the Damned, Doctor Who: Shada, Collison, Luther and Art Is...) was chosen for the role of Sharpe but due to a football (Soccer for us yankees) injury, Sean Bean was given the role and McGann is a shorter fellow and the outfit was tailored to fit him so that is why it looks snug and open for Bean.

Author Bernard Cornwell was blown away by Sean Bean's performance as Sharpe that he changed the physical description of his own character to closely resemble the man in question.   Sharpe's 95th Regiment and the green jackets are factual and the direct ancestor of the Royal Green Jackets better known as The Rifles Regiment.

God's sake man, put a bra on.

Sean Bean Week

A big hello, hi there and welcome to a week I thought amusing for all.  We have seen this Englishman a villain, a reluctant hero and a fellow striving to do the right thing.  Alas we have also seen this charismatic fellow die numerous times and sometime horrifically.  I speak of none other than Sean Bean.   standing at 5'10", this green eyed, sandy blonde has been working in all forms of the acting medium ranging theater, TV, radio and movies this gentleman has played some of the most angst-ridden villains to some of the most emotionally worn warriors of the land.

They didn't want me as pretty as Brosnan.

 













With no less than four divorces under his belt and three children I could see why most of his characters have a penchant for brooding and scowling.  Nevertheless our actor of the week has some of the most screen captured deaths in more than 20 times and I thought it fitting and proper given his new TNT drama Legends where he may stand a running chance of not dying horrendously he deserved the spotlight.  This marks a new era for a man that has worked with the likes of: Robert Deniro, Pierce Brosnan, Harrison Ford, Viggo Mortensen, Miranda Otto, John Hurt, Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, Julian Glover, Laurie Holden and Radha Mitchell.  So keep them eyes peeled and stay on target because this week is Sean Bean Week.

Mr. Jackson, why are you tight zooming on me?