Jungle Book (Episode 6)

Having wandered into the jungle at but an innocent helpless wee age, little Mowgli (Sabu) finds sanctuary amongst wolves, who in turn rear him as if he were one of their pups, generous and watchful, an unorthodox family thrives.

While aggrandizing within the jungle Mowgli learns its forbidden ways, how to communicate with the different animals, find food, and rest and play.

The most imposing local tiger is none too impressed with this eccentric man cub, and swears he will one day indeed devour him, should he be caught wandering unaware.

But the other animals are quite fond of him and he gradually gains swift skill and strength, having enigmatically adapted, to the oldest school of raw existence.

Unfortunately, one inauspicious day, he's captured by the local village, which instinctually marvels at his wild heroics, and somewhat begrudgingly takes him in.

He quickly irritates its proudest unsurpassed vain boastful hunter, who had held the most ferocious standing, until Mowgli's sudden arrival.

Mowgli cares not for social prestige and simply seeks to freely co-exist.

Unconcerned with myth or legend.

Buldeo (Joseph Calleia) scurrilously haunts him.

Another look at The Jungle Book more intently focused on village life, since it was created long before spry special effects and doesn't rely on animation.

Many real animals are found within alongside giant puppet-like creations, the live shots aren't particularly elaborate, but may still have seemed cutting-edge at the time.

It examines stories from Kipling's book that aren't found in Disney's cartoon, nor Mr. Favreau's stunning rendition, worth checking out if seeking to learn more (reading the book also recommended).

It menacingly captures the aggrieved dynamic perennially narrativized between man and nature, as a young man harmoniously exists in the wilderness, while the older exploits technology to gain repute. 

Harmonious wilderness existence doesn't teach Mowgli sociocultural strategies, which Buldeo also knows how to exploit, as competing bucolic forces clash.

Compete is perhaps the wrong word since Mowgli isn't seeking recognition, but finds himself caught in a preexisting paradigm that hasn't been placated through democratic reckoning.

The man cub raised by wolves proves to be much more civilized than those seeking glory.

Who adopt disgraceful methods to pursue him.

And his caring animal neighbours. 

Susuz Yaz (Dry Summer)

Two brothers work their hearty ancestral farm, gathering nutritious wholesome food from their abundant fertile land.

But they live close to a feisty village and have many trusted neighbours, who rely on their generous spring to kindly irrigate their crops.

One day the older brother decides to dam their fluid fountainhead, and keep all the water for themselves until they've saturated their bounty.

The younger senses danger and knows the villagers will be furious, especially since there's been no rain and none is forecast on the horizon.

Meanwhile, he's fallen in love, and soon he's wed to a carefree lass, their innocent sweetly flowing union effortlessly nurturing the countryside.

But the villagers have responded in fact retaliated with blunt antagonism, the older brother choosing to fight rather than share their rich good fortune.

Soon he's committed murder and is worried about prison life, so he convinces the younger to claim wrongdoing, by tricking him into believing he won't serve much time.

With his younger brother sentenced to 8 years he turns his sights on his distressed bride, who has thoroughly misjudged the man, and virtuously suspects nothing.

Soon he's told her husband's passed alone and forgotten within the prison.

And it seems as if purest malevolence.

Will prosper through disillusion.

The potential for collegial congruity is bellicosely menaced in Erksan's Susuz Yaz (Dry Summer), as greed disproportionately decides to simply take care of its own.

Sharing no doubt would have created interactive social prosperity, not to mention a wide range of goods and services respectfully provided free of charge.

Lazy laidback Summer evenings flush with wine and delicious food, convivially relaxing with friends and acquaintances while the copious harvest manifests.

Instead there's violent disparity and habitual conflict and confrontation.

The loss of a loved one, no time for sleep.

Constant vigilance, prescribed paranoia.

I'm no expert in running a farm but you can't starve everyone else, and refuse to share the Earth's lifeblood as has freely been done for communal millennia. 

Excessive pride and limitless avarice have been condemned throughout the ages.

Susuz Yaz brings them to light.

With toxic mad solipsistic atrophy.

The Plague Dogs

A clandestine facility isolated in the English countryside conducts research into the bubonic plague, and subjects dogs to abhorrent endurance tests, with no concern for their distraught feelings.

But one night after the cleaning of a cage, an infernal latch is left unlocked, and two dogs bravely escape forthwith, into the nebulous realm beyond.

Attempting to reconstitute their latent wild survival instincts, they venture forth with determined vigour, but the lands are unaccustomed to roaming beasts in search of food, unfortunately for Snitter (John Hurt) and Rowf (Christopher Benjamin), the domain is inhospitable. 

A sympathetic fox (James Bolam as the Tod) takes them into his care however, and guides them from place to place as they intuitively adapt.

Soon their presence is detected, after an innocent man is accidentally shot, and local farmers notice sheep missing, the dogs are identified by their collars.

Soon the research facility is taken to task for its inherent wrongdoing, and even though people remain compassionate, a scathing hunt panoramically begins.

The dogs and fox furtively evade their ostentatious blunt pursuers. 

But the net becomes too tight.

They must reach the limitless ocean.

The Plague Dogs vividly captures the barbaric stresses animals undergo, while subjected to heartless scientific experiments, whose results are possibly often inconclusive (do conclusive results lead to less funding?).

If you sign up for emails from PETA you'll receive an abundance of notes chronicling animal abuse, with everything from mice to pigs to owls, it's important to sign their petitions, even if they're tough to read.

The Plague Dogs playfully showcases interactive wild and domestic behaviours, as the fox and dogs share thoughts and survival strategies, with interspecial communication.

The bold animals wisely care for one another while encouraging incarnate stealth, but their convivial trials and errors prove too much for surrounding commerce.

Do we really need to research how long an animal can swim before it drowns?, do tax payers pay the bills for such experiments?, critical inquiries must be applied (as many others suggest every day).

I initially thought research into the ways in which many bear species hibernate may generate interesting results.

But who knows how many bears may die to obtain them?

One is far too many. 

*Patrick Stewart has some cool lines. 

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

A worst case scenario wickedly presents itself, as a wanton team chaotically pursues destructive avarice. 

The day starts out much like any other with dedicated workers arriving on time, only to discover hijacking afoot, within New York's resilient quintessential métro.

It would seem like the clever no-good-nicks have made a crucial resounding error, for they negotiate far below ground with potential escape roots easily anticipated.

Indeed the confident métro crew is assured they must have them securely locked down, as they brashly make their outrageous demands, while keeping innocent victims hostage.

Tens of thousands of focused potential passengers find their reliable routes exceedingly disrupted, the mayor (Lee Wallace) resting at home sick in bed, ill-prepared for the grandiose bedlam.

Blue (Robert Shaw) has an intricate plan astutely designed to ensure freedom, but calculating flexible discursive Lt. Garber (Walter Matthau) is well-versed in hypothetical practicality.

A deal is made the money dropped off the hostages theoretically soon to be free.

But will the pressing mystery be expressly solved? 

With no time to spare for argumentative contingencies? 

Time trepidatiously taunts while eternal logic reputedly ruminates, the dastardly indiscreet daunting unforeseen having coalesced the stratified multivariable.

The villains counting on resonant distress to frenetically aid their high strung dissolution, rationalities calmly and patiently counter with wise sure and steady complacent formulae. 

It's not as unhinged as it sounds although different levels offer intriguing insights, multiple viewpoints evaluating the stress, most of the attention cast upon Garber.

If you love the smooth flow of the métro and would like to learn more about its labyrinthine intricacies, various practical details of its robust civility are athletically articulated within the script.

Within a stifling cataclysm to be sure that still balances thought and action, an unorthodox peculiarity to be quietly consumed with complex recourse to otherworldly stamina.

Cool how the filmmakers pulled such an elaborate vision off at large old school.

I imagine it was quite difficult to make.

Long before stunning technological surrogates.

Matthau and Shaw!

Unknown

A brilliant doctor resilient and dependable arrives with his wife at a conference in Europe, the two looking forward to innovative discussions throughout the upcoming thought provoking week (Liam Neeson as Dr. Martin Harris and January Jones as Elizabeth Harris).

But Mr. Harris forgets a suitcase at the airport and must return with improvised haste, a random accident then suddenly sending his swift moving cab into the river.

He wakes in the hospital four days later confused and uncertain of his identity, flashbacking memories intermittently bombarding his worried bewildered forlorn consciousness. 

Enough memories are pieced together to locate his wife back at the hotel, but she's claiming another man is her husband (Aidan Quinn as Dr. Martin Harris), and he has the credentials to prove it.

Dr. Harris A has no supporting documentation and is alone in a foreign city, his only contacts the irritated cab driver (Diane Kruger as Gina) and an old school Stasi agent (Bruno Ganz as Ernst Jürgen).

But as they help him piece things together determined hitpeople come viciously calling.

His life hanging in the chaotic balance.

If he can determine which life is his own.

Identities ephemeral consistent mutating sculpted and warped through variable circumstances, sincere lighthearted earnest scenarios generating alternative fluid trajectories. 

In Dr. Harris's case, a traumatic shock engenders tumultuous transmutations, childlike innocence serendipitously resuscitated with headstrong free contradictory will.

As if latent wondrous ethical senses habitually reside within unobstructed awareness, a less reserved curious luminous syndication ethereally materialized through pneumonic flux.

Divergent associates proceed reflexively according to malleable regenerative factors, expectations foiled with animate nuance or transformatively adorned with newfound resonance. 

New sets of variables present cherished fascinations as inquisitive impulses react with the arts, ahistorical multilateral syntheses composing flexible dynamic spectrums.

Acquiring new knowledge leads to the reinterpretation of staple favourites convivially collected, the reinvigoration of personal relationships, intricate staunch identity.

Dr. Harris makes a go of it in Canada and Québec as so many adventurous people do.

Not that anything's written in stone.

Unknown wildly entertains throughout.