An Adventure In Space And Time Airdate Announced

Somewhere near Coal Hill School, a mysterious police box awaits two unsuspecting teachers, and the journey begins again!
The BBC have today announced the broadcast date for their upcoming drama biopic An Adventure in Space and Time. Chronicling the real-world origins of the science-fiction drama Doctor Who, the 90-minute programme stars David Bradley as William Hartnell, Jessica Raine as Verity Lambert and Brian Cox as Sydney Newman.

By confirming the airdate for Adventure, the network has now set in place a more definitive broadcast schedule for its numerous 50th Anniversary celebrations this month. The week of the anniversary itself will feature The Day of the Doctor, various BBC Radio 1/2/4 programming instalments, two Blue Peter specials dedicated to Who, a Culture Show dedicated to the sci-fi saga's history, Matt Smith and David Tennant appearing on The Graham Norton Show, Adventure itself and plenty more besides. From this point onwards, Doctor Who fans will be treated to a plethora of presents in the month of November!

An Adventure in Space and Time will air this November 21st on BBC Two.

Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor Synopsis Released

Is it time yet? Not quite, but the BBC have raised our anticipation even further!
The BBC have this week released the first plot synopsis for the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special The Day of the Doctor. Set to broadcast later this month, the celebratory feature-length episode will provide a retrospective on the past half-century in which the show has survived, while setting plot strands in motion for future seasons.

For some time now, the narrative of the Doctor's 'greatest adventure' has been shrouded in secrecy, and although this plot brief hardly clears things up, there are one or two intriguing hints in there. Here's the official BBC synopsis for The Day of the Doctor: "The Doctors embark on their greatest adventure in this 50th Anniversary Special. In 2013, something terrible is awakening in London's National Gallery; in 1562, a murderous plot is afoot in Elizabethan England; and somewhere in space an ancient battle reaches its devastating conclusion. All of reality is at stake as the Doctor's own dangerous past comes back to haunt him."

Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor will broadcast on BBC One and in cinemas nationwide on Saturday November 23rd.

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Final Trailer Released

As the Misty Mountains near ever closer, Warner Brothers launch the third theatrical trailer for Desolation ahead of its December release!
Warner Brothers Pictures have today released the third and final theatrical trailer for their upcoming fantasy film The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. The sequel to 2012's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Peter Jackson's second chapter in his Lord of the Rings prequel trilogy will pick up from where its predecessor left off, with Bilbo and the Company of Dwarves braving Mirkwood's spiders, the Dark Forest's Elves and ultimately Erebor's tyrannical dragon Smaug on the final leg of their quest to regain the lost kingdom.

What should be of keen interest in Desolation, though, and is emphasised at the end of this preview (below), is the follow-up's most prominent secondary plot strand. Gandalf and Radagast are busy investigating the reemergence of the Necromancer, an antagonist figure who will eventually turn out to be none other than Sauron himself. The Necromancer is voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, the man who incidentally voices Smaug in this particularly star-studded production. Perhaps we'll see these strands fully realised next month, or perhaps the major reveal will be held back until There and Back Again next year- either way, there are dark and thrilling times ahead...

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug blazes into cinemas worldwide on December 13th.

Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Release Window Announced

The prologue chapter of Konami's open-world stealth shooter will land early next year.
Konami Games have this week confirmed a release window for their upcoming stealth third-person shooter title Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes. A prologue product similar to Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, this initial instalment in the MGSV narrative will introduce some of the main game's key features and plot strands ahead of the full product's release later next year.

Ground Zeroes' release strategy is unique, to say the least. The title will retail in both boxed and digital mediums, the former costing consumers £30 and the latter just £20 regardless of on which platform they choose to purchase it. The reduced RRP suggests that the overall length of the campaign will not be as substantial as usual, yet it's noble of Konami to have the decency to limit the price range for the product rather than plumping for a £40/£50 RRP as usual. Certainly, 2014's opening half will be rather hectic for the games industry, with this adventure joining Watch Dogs, Thief and South Park: The Stick of Truth in the initial months of next year.

Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes retails on Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3 and PC in Spring 2014. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, meanwhile, will launch later in 2014.

Captain Phillips Review

Our verdict on Tom Hanks' gripping thriller, based on a true story and retold to devastatingly dramatic effect.
Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips' supremely accomplished lead star, hardly needs to prove himself to the audience at this stage in his illustrious career. Nevertheless, it is Hanks who carries his latest, grounded piece through thick and thin, his uncanny portrayal of a real-life captain who finds his ship stormed by Somali pirates undoubtedly the highlight of the flick.

What the Forest Gump and Saving Private Ryan performer has and the majority of his co-stars lack is a profound sense of tangible depth, his character nothing less than a pinpoint-accurate representation of how many of us would react to the situation of modern piracy and seabound isolation, in great part due to the restrained and thus doubly effective depiction from Hanks. Of course, minor scripted moments such as Phillips' infrequent emails to his family aid in this believable motion picture rendition of a heroic figure, yet in reality it's Hanks who governs the success to which the construct is conveyed to the audience.

That's not to say that Captain Phillips is deprived of quality in any great sense by its supporting cast. On the contrary, Barkhad Abdi's pirate leader (arguably a protagonist of sorts unto himself) is brilliantly terrifying at times, Abdi and Hanks' election to only meet for the first time during the filming of an intense scene clearly having worked wonders in terms of their eventual on-screen chemistry. Other than Abdi, though, whether due to their shallow (pun not intended) portrayals or the inconsistent dialogue they are offered, cast members such as Corey Johnson and Faysal Ahmed present fairly forgettable characters who don't integrate into our view of modern social reactions nearly as efficiently as the two leads, a shame given the potential that the film had to succeed on all fronts.

An inevitable issue that arises when a production team takes on an adaptation of a true story is that they are thus bound by its resolution for the sake of accuracy and integrity. This results in Captain Phillips' climax being governed in direction by the events which it adapts, and while a positive resolution to proceedings is generally preferable to the alternative for audiences (with the horror genre being the one notable exception), the final confrontation here feels rushed and only dramatically impactful to a certain extent due to its brevity. One would hope that the real-world Phillips would be satisfied with this depiction- although word has it that even he questions some of the 'accuracy'-led choices made within the film's structure- but to the viewer, the actual impact of the movie's concluding moments could well be a hollow one, in all honesty. To negate criticism of this would be to defy the role of a film review, so here accuracy can be viewed as proving detrimental.

The end result, then, with this insightful, emotive flick is a somewhat infuriating echo of what might have been. I shan't doubt that Captain Phillips will enter the leagues of the Oscar nominees, yet there's a whole host of instances throughout the film's 135-minute running time where a more consistent cast and a more ambitious narrative might have served the film as a whole more effectively. This is a movie which certainly warrants your time and hard-earned cash, but it's not up there with Hanks' greatest works, the remainder of its supporting constructs beyond its leads requiring a suspension of disbelief that does its lead stars some discredit. What Captain Phillips will be recalled for by this reviewer is moments of dramatic power too frequently overshadowed by the moments of regret and recognition at the lack of one or two crucial contributory elements to make it a bonafida gem.
4/5

TimeOut: London Irish Episode 1 Review

Our verdict on the début episode of Channel 4's latest culture clash comedy can be found over at TimeOut London!
On frequent occasions, here at On-Screen you'll find articles which link over to some of my other work for various entertainment sites on the web. This is one such instance, and in this case it's a piece which I am particularly proud to be able to reference. I was recently part of TimeOut London's Reader Takeover issue, which involved a select few aspiring writers penning reviews on upcoming TV episodes.

My source material? The first episode of Channel 4's binge comedy show London Irish, which premiered on the network a few weeks back. Episode 1 can still be viewed at Channel 4's 4OD player, if you so desire to match your own verdict on the instalment up against mine, but I've awarded a 4/5 score. Sadly, London Irish has failed to live up to its promise in successive instalments, yet I would nevertheless love to hear everyone's views on the article itself! Here's the link: http://www.timeout.com/london/tv-reviews/london-irish

November 2013: Your Guide To The Big Dates

Can't keep up with the onslaught of releases coming your way this month? Here's the perfect solution...
Even the most ardent, dedicated entertainment fan could be forgiven this month for losing track of the industry's overwhelming waves of releases at some stage. Our 'Your Guide To The Big Dates' feature returns now, then, at the turning of the tide, to showcase the major release dates of November, and boy, are there a lot of them this time around.

It's best not to delay any further, because there really is a lot to get through today. Here's our round-up of all of the key entertainment releases of November 2013 and just when you can expect to experience them...

FRIDAY 1ST- GAMES: Battlefield 4; WWE 2K14
SATURDAY 2ND- TV: Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited- The Seventh Doctor (Watch)
SUNDAY 3RD- TV: Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited- The Eighth Doctor (Watch)
MONDAY 4TH- TV: Arrow: Crucible (Sky1)
TUESDAY 5TH- GAMES: Call of Duty: Ghosts
THURSDAY 7TH- AUDIO: Doctor Who: The Time Machine; TV: Trollied Episode 12 (Sky1)
FRIDAY 8TH- MOVIES: Gravity; The Starving Games; TV: Marvel's Agents of SHIELD: FZZT (Channel 4)
SATURDAY 9TH- TV: Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited- The Ninth Doctor (Watch)
SUNDAY 10TH- TV: Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited- The Tenth Doctor (Watch)
MONDAY 11TH- DVD: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition; The Great Gatsby; TV: Arrow: League of Assassins (Sky1)
TUESDAY 12TH- GAMES: BioShock Infinite: Burial At Sea Episode 1
THURSDAY 14TH- TV: The Science of Doctor Who (BBC Two); Trollied Episode 13 (Sky1)
FRIDAY 15TH- GAMES: LEGO Marvel Superheroes; TV: Children In Need 2013 (BBC One); Doctor Who: Greatest Monsters and Villains Weekend Episode 1 (BBC Three); Marvel's Agents of SHIELD: The Hub (Channel 4)
SATURDAY 16TH- TV: Doctor Who: Greatest Monsters and Villains Weekend Episode 2 (BBC Three); Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited- The Eleventh Doctor (Watch); RADIO: Doctor Who At 50: Doctor Who And The Daleks (BBC Radio 4)
SUNDAY 17TH- TV: Doctor Who: Greatest Monsters and Villains Weekend Episode 3 (BBC Three); RADIO: Doctor Who At 50: Protect And Survive (BBC Radio 4)
MONDAY 18TH- TV: Arrow: Keep Your Enemies Closer (Sky1); RADIO: Doctor Who At 50: Fanfare For The Common Men (BBC Radio 4)
TUESDAY 19TH- RADIO: Doctor Who At 50: Thousand Tiny Wings (BBC Radio 4)
WEDNESDAY 20TH- RADIO: Doctor Who At 50: Farewell Great Macedon (BBC Radio 4)
THURSDAY 21ST- TV: Blue Peter Doctor Who Special Episode 1 (CBBC); RADIO: Who Is The Doctor? (BBC Radio 2); The Blagger's Guide To Doctor Who (BBC Radio 2); Doctor Who At 50: Human Resources (BBC Radio 4)
FRIDAY 22ND- GAMES: Xbox One; Forza Motorsport 5; Killer Instinct; Dead Rising 3; Need for Speed: Rivals; MOVIES: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire; TV: An Adventure In Space And Time (BBC Two); The Culture Show: You, Me and Doctor Who (BBC Two); Marvel's Agents of SHIELD: The Well (Channel 4); RADIO; Doctor Who At 50: Dalek Invasion of Earth (BBC Radio 4)
SATURDAY 23RD- TV: Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor (BBC One); Blue Peter Doctor Who Special Episode 2 (CBBC); AUDIO: Doctor Who: The Light At The End; BOOKS: The Doctor & I; Doctor Who: Eleventh Doctor 50th Anniversary eBook
MONDAY 25TH- TV: Arrow: State V. Queen (Sky1); DVD: Doctor Who: The Enemy of the World
FRIDAY 29TH- GAMES: PlayStation 4; Knack; Super Mario 3D World
SATURDAY 30TH- AUDIO: Doctor Who: The Assassination Games