James Martin Charlton
@jmcfire.bsky.social
"...a poet of the tower blocks" - What's on. Theatre 🎭 and Film 🎬, Academic 📚. Author of Fat Souls, Divine Vision. Views my own. https://linktr.ee/jmcfire
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My two most recent play publications - Divine Vision: William Blake in Felpham and The Pilgrim's Progress - are available from TSL publications:
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I'd highly recommend the superbly atmospheric, beautifully filmed 1983 Hound of the Baskervilles, with a cast line a finely stocked wine cellar and a stunning production design. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★★ review of The Hound of the Baskervilles (1983)
One of the best screen versions of Conan Doyle’s most famous novel, this benefits from a highly literate script, a fine British cast, and, most of all, an exquisite mise-en-scène which offers stunning...
letterboxd.com
November 30, 2025 at 2:07 PM
I'd highly recommend the superbly atmospheric, beautifully filmed 1983 Hound of the Baskervilles, with a cast line a finely stocked wine cellar and a stunning production design. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Tom Stoppard was charm itself the one time I met him, and donated to fundraisers a couple of times. His plays were a bit variable but I enjoyed the day at the Coast of Utopia trilogy. RIP. www.theguardian.com/stage/2025/n...
Tom Stoppard, playwright of dazzling wit and playful erudition, dies aged 88
A theatrical sensation since the 1960s, whose dramas included Arcadia, The Real Thing and Leopoldstadt, Stoppard also had huge success as a screenwriter
www.theguardian.com
November 29, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Tom Stoppard was charm itself the one time I met him, and donated to fundraisers a couple of times. His plays were a bit variable but I enjoyed the day at the Coast of Utopia trilogy. RIP. www.theguardian.com/stage/2025/n...
Career trajectory for a Creative Writing graduate... www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/b...
British holidaymaker accused of stealing £30,000 worth of wine from estate in US
Natali Ray may face up to 50 years in prison after being charged over the missing wine at a luxury cellar
www.standard.co.uk
November 29, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Career trajectory for a Creative Writing graduate... www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/b...
Profile (1954) is a slight and forgettable British B-movie, lifted only by Kathleen Byron’s ferocity and a pre-Crossroads John Bentley. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★ review of Profile (1954)
A very minor British B-movie, this has a packed plot involving a wealthy old magazine publisher married to a floozie, who in turn is in love with the editor of her husband’s latest venture. To keep th...
letterboxd.com
November 29, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Profile (1954) is a slight and forgettable British B-movie, lifted only by Kathleen Byron’s ferocity and a pre-Crossroads John Bentley. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Watching the first episode of 70s sitcom Lord Tramp, which demonstrates at least that the failures of the past are as egregiously awful as the failures of the present. Joan Sims is wasted.
November 28, 2025 at 8:24 PM
Watching the first episode of 70s sitcom Lord Tramp, which demonstrates at least that the failures of the past are as egregiously awful as the failures of the present. Joan Sims is wasted.
A transitional but essential Carry On, Cabby (1963) marks Rothwell’s arrival, shifts the series toward its 1960s sex-comedy style, and stands out for its superbly tight and well-built structure. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★★½ review of Carry On Cabby (1963)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM
A transitional but essential Carry On, Cabby (1963) marks Rothwell’s arrival, shifts the series toward its 1960s sex-comedy style, and stands out for its superbly tight and well-built structure. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A day at the BFI Archive studying Talbot Rothwell Carry On drafts. Fascinating to see his process. A master of structure - arrived at in first draft - his rewrites were mostly tightening endings and expanding/improving dialogues.
November 27, 2025 at 5:15 PM
A day at the BFI Archive studying Talbot Rothwell Carry On drafts. Fascinating to see his process. A master of structure - arrived at in first draft - his rewrites were mostly tightening endings and expanding/improving dialogues.
The Whisperers (1967) is a bleak and oddly structured social drama whose strong performances can’t disguise its snobbish, ideologically loaded portrait of working-class life. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★ review of The Whisperers (1967)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 26, 2025 at 6:47 PM
The Whisperers (1967) is a bleak and oddly structured social drama whose strong performances can’t disguise its snobbish, ideologically loaded portrait of working-class life. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Fabulous Orson Welles on stage and screen acting. www.instagram.com/reel/DRIPANV...
Laurent Touil-Tartour on Instagram: "🎙️ Orson Welles is being asked, “What is movie acting?”
He smiles:
“I don’t know.”
In one breath he erases a century of manuals,Strasberg included. Gently, but ...
19K likes, 294 comments - laurenttouiltartour on November 16, 2025: "🎙️ Orson Welles is being asked, “What is movie acting?”
He smiles:
“I don’t know.”
In one breath he erases a century of manuals,...
www.instagram.com
November 25, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Fabulous Orson Welles on stage and screen acting. www.instagram.com/reel/DRIPANV...
Report to the Commissioner (1975) is a formally inventive but ultimately overfamiliar 1970s policier, notable for its structure and performances (especially Yaphet Kotto) but undermined by its pacing and self-importance. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★ review of Report to the Commissioner (1975)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 25, 2025 at 10:07 AM
Report to the Commissioner (1975) is a formally inventive but ultimately overfamiliar 1970s policier, notable for its structure and performances (especially Yaphet Kotto) but undermined by its pacing and self-importance. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Many Rivers to Cross is one of my all-time favourites. We had tickets for him at Meltdown but sadly cancelled due to lockdown. RIP Jimmy Cliff.
November 24, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Many Rivers to Cross is one of my all-time favourites. We had tickets for him at Meltdown but sadly cancelled due to lockdown. RIP Jimmy Cliff.
My latest in The Critic looks at the prescience of an early Dostoyevsky novel. thecritic.co.uk/how-dostoyev...
How Dostoyevsky dissected activistic hypocrites | James Martin Charlton | The Critic Magazine
Over the past decade or so, a very particular type of character has made its presence known in many of our offices and institutions, veritably tyrannising our lives. Countless numbers of us have…
thecritic.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 8:40 AM
My latest in The Critic looks at the prescience of an early Dostoyevsky novel. thecritic.co.uk/how-dostoyev...
The Quiet American (1958) is fudged a Cold War rewrite of Greene’s novel, stripping away its political bite and leaving a sluggish drama lifted only by Michael Redgrave’s performance. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★ review of The Quiet American (1958)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:28 PM
The Quiet American (1958) is fudged a Cold War rewrite of Greene’s novel, stripping away its political bite and leaving a sluggish drama lifted only by Michael Redgrave’s performance. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
The Music Lovers (1971) is a striking but deeply distorted Tchaikovsky biopic, dazzling in craft yet mired in Russell’s lurid 1970s preoccupations. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★½ review of The Music Lovers (1971)
A very difficult film to evaluate. On the one hand, this is one of Ken Russell’s most achieved cinematic endeavours: the design and editing are brilliant, the integration of music and image is exempla...
letterboxd.com
November 23, 2025 at 1:40 PM
The Music Lovers (1971) is a striking but deeply distorted Tchaikovsky biopic, dazzling in craft yet mired in Russell’s lurid 1970s preoccupations. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Two Gentlemen Sharing (1969) is a flawed but compelling 60s relic exploring race, class, sexuality, alienation and the impossibility of a bond between its two misfit protagonists. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★½ review of Two Gentlemen Sharing (1969)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 21, 2025 at 10:54 PM
Two Gentlemen Sharing (1969) is a flawed but compelling 60s relic exploring race, class, sexuality, alienation and the impossibility of a bond between its two misfit protagonists. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Dogs (1976) is a messy but oddly lively slice of post-Jaws animal horror, where campus satire gives way to the merry sight of collies and terriers on the rampage; star David McCallum should have sued the costume people. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★ review of Dogs (1976)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:26 PM
Dogs (1976) is a messy but oddly lively slice of post-Jaws animal horror, where campus satire gives way to the merry sight of collies and terriers on the rampage; star David McCallum should have sued the costume people. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
One of the most devastating take-downs I’ve seen of the joke universities have become. dailysceptic.org/2025/11/19/k...
King's College London Has Ceased to Be a University – The Daily Sceptic
King's College London has abandoned academic standards entirely with its new marking guidelines, declaring objectivity to be racist and oppressive. It has ceased to be a university, says Professor Mic...
dailysceptic.org
November 20, 2025 at 9:33 AM
One of the most devastating take-downs I’ve seen of the joke universities have become. dailysceptic.org/2025/11/19/k...
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall (1973) is a slight and unfocused adaptation of Milligan’s memoir, with Jim Dale struggling as an unsympathetic protagonist, a strong supporting cast but little depth and only sporadic humour. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★ review of Adolf Hitler - My Part in His Downfall (1973)
This was a strange test for me, as I like Jim Dale as much as I loathe Spike Milligan, and here Dale plays Spike in a version of the Goon’s wartime memoir. It is not much of a film - the troupe-in-tra...
letterboxd.com
November 18, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall (1973) is a slight and unfocused adaptation of Milligan’s memoir, with Jim Dale struggling as an unsympathetic protagonist, a strong supporting cast but little depth and only sporadic humour. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
The Devil's Hand (1961) is a goofy, low-rent slice of Satanic pulp where love, lust, and voodoo dolls all end badly — but never boringly. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★½ review of The Devil's Hand (1961)
A very low-budget horror film with a Denis Wheatley-type plot involving a man being drawn into a circle of Satanists in contemporary Los Angeles. The affianced protagonist, Rick, is disturbed by dream...
letterboxd.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The Devil's Hand (1961) is a goofy, low-rent slice of Satanic pulp where love, lust, and voodoo dolls all end badly — but never boringly. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
In Return of Sabata (1971) Van Cleef grins his way through a circus of double-crosses in this unfairly maligned but stylishly absurd, even Fellinieque Spaghetti Western trilogy finale. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★ review of Return of Sabata (1971)
The third and final film in the Sabata trilogy sees Lee Van Cleef return to his original role, along with several members of the repertory company from the previous instalments. In an overly complicat...
letterboxd.com
November 16, 2025 at 9:10 PM
In Return of Sabata (1971) Van Cleef grins his way through a circus of double-crosses in this unfairly maligned but stylishly absurd, even Fellinieque Spaghetti Western trilogy finale. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
In Locked (2025) Anthony Hopkins locks Bill Skarsgård in a torture SUV and talks at him when he isn't hurting him. The vigilante thriller has now reversed the hero/villain - for now, at least, if not for much longer. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★½ review of Locked (2025)
A petty thief and deadbeat dad finds himself trapped inside a security-pimped SUV by its vengeful owner. The next hour and a half sees him tortured, with interludes in which they argue. Based on a 201...
letterboxd.com
November 15, 2025 at 11:25 PM
In Locked (2025) Anthony Hopkins locks Bill Skarsgård in a torture SUV and talks at him when he isn't hurting him. The vigilante thriller has now reversed the hero/villain - for now, at least, if not for much longer. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971) is a lavish but mangled finale to AIP’s Poe cycle – all dreamlike spectacle and acid-scarred faces, but sorely missing Corman, Price, and coherence. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★ review of Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971)
The last, and least, of AIP’s Poe adaptations, this lacks the essential ingredients – Corman and Price. Apparently, Price was furious that he wasn’t cast in the role that went to Jason Robards. He was...
letterboxd.com
November 15, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Murders in the Rue Morgue (1971) is a lavish but mangled finale to AIP’s Poe cycle – all dreamlike spectacle and acid-scarred faces, but sorely missing Corman, Price, and coherence. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
I usually enjoy Graham Greene and get through his novels swiftly. Not so Travels With My Aunt, which I found a chore, although the ending is intriguingly repulsive.
substack.com/@jmcfire/not...
substack.com/@jmcfire/not...
JMC Fire (@jmcfire)
I usually enjoy Graham Greene and get through his novels swiftly. Not so Travels With My Aunt, which I found a chore and difficult to pick back up each time I put it down. I didn't care a fig for the ...
substack.com
November 15, 2025 at 12:34 PM
I usually enjoy Graham Greene and get through his novels swiftly. Not so Travels With My Aunt, which I found a chore, although the ending is intriguingly repulsive.
substack.com/@jmcfire/not...
substack.com/@jmcfire/not...
In Twice-Told Tales (1963), Vincent Price preaches three lush sermons on hubris in this gorgeously coloured Gothic triptych of Hawthorne horrors. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★★½ review of Twice-Told Tales (1963)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 13, 2025 at 10:47 PM
In Twice-Told Tales (1963), Vincent Price preaches three lush sermons on hubris in this gorgeously coloured Gothic triptych of Hawthorne horrors. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
Roger Corman’s hippy apocalypse Gas! Or, It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It (1970) aims for counterculture anarchy but ends up a spaced-out sermon from a Summer of Love’s that was already, by then, hungover. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...
A ★★ review of Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It. (1970)
This review may contain spoilers. Visit the page to bypass this warning and read the review.
letterboxd.com
November 12, 2025 at 5:54 PM
Roger Corman’s hippy apocalypse Gas! Or, It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It (1970) aims for counterculture anarchy but ends up a spaced-out sermon from a Summer of Love’s that was already, by then, hungover. letterboxd.com/jmcfire/film...