A Netherlands television series from the sixties is not something you would typically expect to be covered here. But in this case, there are a couple of interesting people who were very much involved. They would both go on to achieve international fame, at a level likelyfar beyond what was expected when beavering away in Dutch TV. The star of the show was then unknown theatre actor, Rutger Hauer. But the director would also go on to greater things, making Robocop, Total Recall and Showgirls. For it was none other than Dutch cinema’s greatest export, Paul Verhoeven (on set, above).

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My Fair Lady
Gammage Auditorium, Tempe
December 12, 2021

My love for My Fair Lady is abiding. I think it’s the greatest musical of all time, and the 1964 film version is an all-time classic. Rex Harrison’s portrayal of Professor Henry Higgins may be my favourite performance ever by an actor. Whenever a live version comes through town, attendance is mandatory, and the most recent such was on Sunday. This tour was produced by the Lincoln Center Theater, under the direction of Bartlett Sher. And it was… okay.

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Very disappointed in the lack of actual cephalopods. Would not watch again. Two stars.

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Jurassic Fight Night
Gila River Arena, Glendale
October 9, 2021

Readers should already be aware of our fondness for prehistoric reptiles. So you will not be surprised to hear that we were there for an event which described itself as “dinosaurs in the boxing ring, fighting to determine who is the fiercest creature of the prehistoric era.” You pretty much had us running to buy tickets at “dinosaurs in the boxing ring”. This was actually a return for us, having attended a previous such event in February 2019. That wasn’t reviewed, since I was between websites at the time, but I have no intention of letting it pass without commentary again. Below is a video which will give you some idea of what this was like. Complete with me yelling.

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The Dyatlov Pass Incident is one of the weirder events of the 20th century. Nine Soviet hikers were found dead on the side of a remote Siberian mountain, in very unusual circumstances. Some were half-clad. Others had crushing injuries. Their tent had been ripped open from the inside. Theories for what happened range from the prosaic (avalanches triggering a panicked exit) to the esoteric (UFOs, naturally).

Nobody knows for sure what happened, which makes speculation all the more fun. There have previously been both documentaries and fictional features about the event. Now, comes this 8-part Russian TV series which while fictional, is based on official records, and purports to tell the true story of what happened in 1959.

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