david tennant | the m0vie blog

Doctor Who? A Tennant Era Retrospective…

Posted on April 6, 2010 by Darren

Well, with The Eleventh Hour airing over the weekend, it seems like the perfect time for a reflection on the end of the Russell T. Davies era of Doctor Who. I’ll probably go back and do a retrospective on the Eccleston era at some point in the future, but Tennant’s four years in the brown trenchcoat provide a fertile enough starting ground.

Has the Tenth Doctor got a screw loose?

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: bbc, christopher eccleston, david tennant, doctor who, era, regeneration, rose, rose tyler, russell t. davies, Television, ten, the doctor, the end of time, the tenth doctor | Leave a comment »

Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead

Posted on February 9, 2010 by Darren

There’s nothing necessarily bad about Planet of the Dead. Okay, there’s nothing necessarily unforgiveably terrible about the episode. It certainly isn’t anywhere near the worst episode of the show since the revival. On the other hand, there isn’t anything essential or even spectacular about it. In any given season, it would probably be mid-year filler and pass without note or scrutiny. Unfortunately we only got five of these specials, so each on seems just a little bit more important than a regular episode – even more with the countdown ticking towards David Tennant’s departure. Despite some lovely scenery and a few hints of charm and whimsy, the episode seems too much like treading water.

Somebody missed their stop...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: david tennant, doctor who, lee evans, michelle ryan, planet of the dead, review, russell t. davies, Television, the specials | Leave a comment »

Doctor Who: The End of Time, Part II

Posted on January 1, 2010 by Darren

That was much better. I mean, there’s still a whole host of half-baked ideas clogging up the narrative (the Naismiths, the Master’s superpowers), but it works a lot more fluidly mainly because it manages to both embrace the sheer ridiculousness of what it’s doing (featuring a Star Wars homage in a flight across the Channel and a cantina scene which seems to exist solely to demonstrate all the aliens created during the run) with some fantastic performances. It would be hard to tell if Tennant has ever been better than he is here, but he nails his final episode as everyone’s favourite Timelord. That Russell T. Davies keeps his hand mostly away from that giant reset button installed in his office helps no end.

The Doctor feels the worst New Years hangover ever

Note: This review will be discussing the episode in depth (including spoilers). If you are looking for a quick recommendation, it’s a yes – as if you weren’t interested anyway. It might not represent the best regeneration story ever written for the show (give me The Caves of Androzani) but it is an emotional farewell to the Davies/Tennant era.

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: bbc, david tennant, doctor who, john simm, regeneration, review, Television, the doctor, the end of time, the end of time part 2, the master, timothy dalton | 2 Comments »

Doctor Who: The End of Time, Part I

Posted on December 26, 2009 by Darren

That was… an episode of Doctor Who. I don’t know. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I know that wasn’t quite it. And there are enough cringe-worthy moments here to prevent the episode from becoming a classic (or even just a great episode) there are more than a few diamonds in the rough hidden amidst the mess of an episode. It is very much a Russell T. Davies episode, with all that involves – the ridiculously over-the-top moments paired with a fantastic grasp of character. Is it a fitting end to perhaps the most iconic version of the Timelord (I’m an Eccleston man myself, but only Tom Baker could be said to challenge Tennant as the most recognised face of the Doctor)? I don’t know – I should probably wait for the second part, to be honest. On the otherhand, it certainly doesn’t feel like a crowning moment for the first five years (or even Tennant’s last four) of the revival.

The Master in a hoody... and the establishment did tremble...

Note: This review will be discussing the episode in depth (including spoilers). If you are looking for a quick recommendation, it’s a decided ‘meh’. It isn’t a highpoint in the new series, but some good ideas and some nice character moments (as well as three fantastic lead performances) make something out of the mess that is the rest of the episode. I’m not sure what exactly, I’ll let you know next week. Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: david tennant, doctor who, john simm, russell t. davies, the doctor, the end of time, the end of time part 1, the master, timelords, timothy dalton, wilf | Leave a comment »

Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars

Posted on November 16, 2009 by Darren

Of all the people to survive, he’s not the one you would have chosen, is it? But if you could choose, Doctor, if you could decide who lives and who dies… that would make you a monster.

– Mr. Cooper, Voyage of the Damned

The Waters of Mars is a lot more intense than I was expecting. It started out as a standard base under seige story with more than an echo of the era of the fourth Doctor about it, but then something happened. The Doctor made the decision that he’s made before – and which he explicitly compares in the episode to the decision to watch Pompeii burn in The Fires of Pompeii – the decision to walk away. And then the episode kicks it up a notch and becomes a fantastically appropriate penultimate story for this incarnation of The Doctor.

A Mars attack...

Note: There are naturally spoilers for the episode under discussion below. If you want a recommendation, then here it is: this is the best episode of the new series since Midnight over a year ago. It has some pacing issues and a very standard opening half. But the finalé is a perfect dovetail of the core themes of Davies’ run on the show.

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: bbc, bowie base one, david tennant, doctor who, doctor who specials, fires of pompeii, lonely god, mars, review, russell t. davies, specials, Television, the fires of pompeii, the master, the waters of mars, time lords, waters of mars | Leave a comment »

Doctor Who? Premature Guessing Games on Stephen Moffat’s Season

Posted on July 21, 2009 by Darren

The Tennant/Davies era of New Doctor Who is well-and-truly over. Despite fandom’s speculations about what a Doctor Who panel at Comic Con means (movie! movie! movie!), it seems that – for the moment at least – the most recent incarnation of the Timelord has made room for his replacement. Filming began yesterday on the first episodes produced by Stephen Moffat and starring Matt Smith as the lovable time traveler. Of course, the photos started showing up around noon. So, what do we make of the newest actor in the role? What do we expect from Moffat as a showrunner (as compared to Davies)? Do we know anything at all?

Who is he? He is Who...

Note: This article contains spoilers. Lots and lots and lots of spoilers, based off rumours about Tennant’s departure and the set photos revealed yesterday.

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: alex kingston, bbc, david tennant, doctor who, matt smith, regeneration, russell t. davies, science fiction, stephen moffat, Television, the doctor, the eleventh doctor, the tenth doctor, timelords | 1 Comment »

Torchwood: Children of BBC Sci-Fi

Posted on July 9, 2009 by Darren

I have to admit, my family’s hooked to Torchwood: Children of the Earth playing on the BBC at the moment. For those unfamiliar with the concept and execution, it’s a five-part epic that is playing at 9pm every night this week. It’s the type of television event that shows why the BBC might just be the best broadcasters in the world – the show is perfect for the format. The tension is elevated by the fact we know the run will end on Friday, the budget is clearly there for all the spectacle and all the talent involved is top notch. It’s the kind of thing that I wish that RTE might pick up on, even once. The really beautiful thing about this run is that manages to demonstrate that not only are the Beeb doing something very well, but they’ve been doing it well all along. From what we’ve seen so far, Children of the Earth can hold its head high with all the other great science fiction events the channel has pulled off over the years.

Back in black...

Continue reading →

Filed under: Television | Tagged: a for andromeda, bbc, children of earth, children of the earth, david tennant, doctor who, miniseries, quatermass, rte, sci-fi, science fiction, survivors, Television, torchwood, torchwood: children of earth, torchwood: children of the earth, whoniverse | Leave a comment »

No More Animated Patrick Troughton? It’s a War Crime!

Posted on July 6, 2009 by Darren

The War Games, the final Doctor Who serial featuring Patrick Troughton, materialises on DVD today. I haven’t seen it (I’ll probably pick it up from HMV today if the price is right), but reviews seem to state it’s one of the show’s few ten-parters that doesn’t feel padded… well as padded. Anyway, I’m a big fan of Troughton’s Doctor (whose one-adjective-summation would be “loveable” – in the same way that Tom Baker’s would be “dramatic” or Eccleston’s would be “human” or Hartnell’s would be “bratty” and so on), but we’re nearing the end of Troughton serials available for release. Which is a damned shame. Is animation the next step forward?