Film: Good Boy

Today, back with The Hideout for Good Boy - a horror film from the perspective of a dog just trying to protect its master! Happening in Cineworld Leicester Square - details announced on Tuesday - and I booked to eat in Bella Italia beforehand, of course.

Wow, amazing - my bus came exactly as scheduled! Unprecedented, in a long time. I was slightly late for my booking though.. and you could tell the manager that chats to me wasn't there, because they waited a good while to take an order they should have known by heart. To be fair though, I got my regular table, service after that was quick, and the only reason I didn't finish my dinner was the half packet of Tim Tams I consumed before I left. Ah well..

We were meeting at Victory House. I was glad when the organiser messaged that he was there - I was sick of forcing food into me. The people in Victory House knew me too, of course, and I didn't bother asking what wine they had - they only tend to have one, and it tends to be ok. Sat and chatted with the organiser, and another that arrived - we only had one further person join, who was delayed, and joined us at the cinema. We were a little late, but you can do that with films of course, they have ads first - and we hit the concession stand before we went in.

It's a novel idea, doing it from the pov of a dog - one thing quickly resonated with me from our conversation, which was the use of mobile phones in films. This issue doesn't exist in this case - the dog occasionally hears the phone ringing, or hears or sees his master talking on it - doesn't pay it much mind, not being much of a reader. So it's extra to the story.

FYI, there isn't much of a plot - the dog's master seems to have a terminal illness (great how he could take his dog to the diagnosis: perhaps it's an assistance dog) and has inherited an old house in the middle of nowhere - the suggestion is that the previous inhabitant also came to a sticky end. The dog isn't much bothered by any of this - and of course, it's a big, bouncy retriever: belongs to the director, apparently. What he's more concerned with is the shadowy figure that seems to roam the house, targeting his master..

As Martin once remarked to me, horror, uniquely, is something that you don't need much exposition for. So that's enough detail, really - and the essence of the film is the atmosphere. Of course, what stays with you is the sheer devotion of the dog, and his helplessness in the face of something he doesn't understand, and can't do anything about. What an unusual take on a horror film - just to watch, with no thought of finding a remedy, as bad things happen around you. Very moving - and to see the entity threatening the dog was terrifying. One for dog lovers..

Oh, the #188 was up to its old tricks on my way home - with nothing saying it was coming in the next 90 minutes, I just went around the corner and caught the #381 instead.

Next, a couple of plays. Tomorrow, second Meetup in a row, back with Up in the Cheap Seats for Lifers, a prison drama at Southwark Playhouse - was delighted I still had credit on my PAYG subscription with them.

On Tuesday, heading to Blessings at Riverside Studios - a play about a staunchly religious family in the 60s, with change in the offing. Damnit, I saw it was on CT, checked to see whether full-price tickets were more expensive, which they were - and accidentally booked one of those instead!

Wednesday is our work social - we're headed to Boom Battle Bar, which has, em, axe throwing.. among other things. Augmented reality features. Well, I missed it at Shocktober..

On Thursday, I'm back with the London Classical Music and Theatre Group for The Cardinall's Musick, performing a choral concert at St. Martin in the Fields.

On Friday, The Hideout persuaded me to go to Ti West's X trilogy - Pearl, X, and MaXXXine - at the Prince Charles. Never seen any of them before. Lord knows when I'll have time to eat..

And on Saturday, meeting James for our monthly get-together at The Phoenix - it's the only weekend he can, and he prefers Saturday. Ivan can't make it - Martin provisional as of yet.