entropys

Lack of updates and new models sees Apple Watch sales decline

entropys

May 7

In my country we can still have a working O2 sensor.
however I suspect the decline will be the same. The economy is tight, cost of living has rapidly risen, while Apple Watches are premium priced and not real additional features.

basically priorities currently elsewhere, lack of feature expansion to generate interest in new models, and high price in current economy limit purchases.

Tom Hanks 'Greyhound' sequel sails into D-Day & the Pacific

entropys

April 25

tmay said:

Naval operations between the Allies and the Japanese in the Pacific, were a brawl from the Battle of Savo Island, to the New Georgia campaign, and Cruisers and destroyers were central to these Naval battles, often without air support. Losses on both sides with extensive, especially during the frequent night battles. These battles occurred from August 1942 at the start of the Guadalcanal campaign to October 1943, with the capture of New Georgia.

With that, the most memorable battle for destroyers is likely the Battle off Samar, during the invasion of Leyte gulf in the Philippines, where a small task force of destroyers, destroyer escorts, and Escort carriers, took on a Japanese task force that included the battleship Musashi, armed with 18 inch main guns, attempting to breakup the Leyte landings.

Japan wasn't able to do that.

I expect that this will be a great film.

Totally agree. Don’t understand the grizzling about this production. The whole naval history of the pacific war was absolutely incredible and the attrition (if you can call it that) I suspect would not be tolerated today. The other interesting bit about the Battle off Samar was the American task unit of smaller ships against a major Japanese fleet was that Admiral Halsey had been tricked into sending the Third Fleet north after a decoy, leaving a small task unit of small escort carriers and destroyers. That the small American fleet defeated such a vastly superior force is an incredible victory against all odds.

Tom Hanks 'Greyhound' sequel sails into D-Day & the Pacific

entropys

April 25

Regarding CS Forester, a streaming series of his Horatio Hornblower novels would be absolutely awesome.

The poms did a 1998 six TV movie effort starring Ioan Grufford that was low budget and pretty good, but that only covered a few of the first novels. There was a Gregory Peck/Virginia Mayo 1951 movie called Captain Horatio Hornblower which was quite popular (trivia: the role was originally planned for Errol Flynn).

A competitor streaming series could be the stories by Patrick O’Brien of lucky Jack Aubrey, with an version of bits from various novels in the 2004 movie awesomely produced by Peter Weir and acting from Russel Crowe in Master and commander, Far Side of the World. should have won a heap of Oscars but finally LOTR’s turn.

Tom Hanks 'Greyhound' sequel sails into D-Day & the Pacific

entropys

April 25

Speaking of American films being made in Oz (although Elvis Presley was a Baz Luhrmann production), while filming Elvis Presley in Australia Hanks and his wife contracted Covid in the outbreak’s early days and got isolated in a hospital on the Queensland Gold Coast. Being older he and his wife Rita were quite impacted, but not that much. An example of the initial panic resulting in response overreach, even a rich celebrity couple were required to isolate in a hospital rather than their luxurious Gold Coast accommodation.

the issue of countries influencing where films get made isn’t only an external issue, it also happens in the USA between states.

The film industry in Oz and similarly in many other countries and states within them get enormous tax breaks, grants and subsidies to attract industry. Film companies of course game this to maximise as much taxpayer loot which is why there are so many (and the list ever longer) national and state film associations taking up space towards the end of the film’s credits. It’s like some sort of ever escalating war using subsidy weapons.

The local justification is that it helps build up the local industry so it can make better local product by attracting big international films. But the local film industries never ever seem to be able to stand on their own feet without them, regardless of country. They are forever infant industries. And worse, chasing that loot starts influencing what films are made. Gatekeepers of that loot (eg arts industry bureaucrats) start having more and more control over what gets made because they decide who gets the funds. Less of a problem with big international productions, but local content these days would just not happen without those handouts. The main customer for local industry becomes the grant providers, not the ticket holders, with the inevitable result the potential ticket holder isn’t that interested and uses their money on something else.

But even at major international film level, chasing handouts from bureaucrats is no doubt one of the factors leading to a more risk averse industry and we get endless sequels, prequels and offshoots instead of new, original ideas.

i don’t know what the solution is to the ever escalating skirmishes for government favour, so the subsidy wars can be brought to an end. Any action to wean film industries would be portrayed as shooting a whole herd of Bambis. Or in the Australian context, a whole mob consisting of skippy the bush kangaroos.