Sean and Amanda recap the third installment of the Quiet Place franchise—the Lupita Nyong’o–starring A Quiet Place: Day One—which surprised both of them with its scale and quality (1:00). Then, they are joined by Chris Ryan to discuss Kevin Costner’s gigantic gamble Horizon: An American Saga—Chapter 1 (25:00). The trio dig into its weirdness, its Western tropes and subversions, and whether it stands even the slightest chance of not bombing.
This review of Godzilla Minus One was originally posted in conjunction with the movie’s theatrical release. It has been updated and reposted now that the film is available on digital platforms.
Godzilla Minus One is the throwback movie that longtime Godzilla fans have been waiting for. This is an age of abundance for Godzilla media: Over the past seven years, as part of a partnership between Toho and Hollywood studios, the giant lizard received three animated films on Netflix, two U.S. movies, and an Apple TV series that premieres Nov. 17. Godzilla fans like me haven’t been left wanting. And yet something crucial has been missing from most of this media, something fundamental to the earliest films in the Godzilla franchise: terror.
We nearly had a decade of terrifying Godzilla. In 2016, Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi releasedthe horrifying Shin Godzilla, widely regarded as one of the best entries in the franchise. It promised a return to the petrifying, humanity-destroying Godzilla of the past. But Shin Godzilla marked a lengthy hiatus in the production of Japanese live-action Godzilla films, and signaled the beginning of a colossally successful American era for the big lizard. The American Godzilla media of the past seven years, including Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Godzilla vs. Kong, and those Netflix anime movies, ranges from serviceable to pretty damn good, though its creators borrowed far more from the Marvel Cinematic Universe than from classic kaiju matinees.
Instead, Godzilla Minus One sticks to the original recipe. The movie that kicked it all off, 1954’s Godzilla, mixes horror, classic melodrama, and a feverish anti-war message to mine the anxieties of ’50s Japan. Minus One goes even further into the past, with a story set in the immediate aftermath of World War II. Writer-director Takashi Yamazaki (who took another beloved franchise back to basics with Lupin III: The First)imagines how a Japan with no military, no economy, and no international support would respond to Godzilla’s first attack.
So is this a reboot? A remake? A reimagining? A bit of all of the above.
Our reluctant hero is Koichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki), a kamikaze pilot who, in the waning hours of the war, faked a plane malfunction to escape death. In a Godzilla film, the giant monsters typically carry the central political metaphor, but in Minus One, Koichi shoulders that burden on his tiny human frame. As a kamikaze pilot who survived the war, he returns to his neighborhood to find that little remains beyond rubble and a few surviving neighbors.
This is ground-level Godzilla storytelling: We see the events through the eyes of Koichi, his neighbors, and his co-workers, rather than through knowledgeable government leaders, superhuman soldiers, or Godzilla himself. As with any great kaiju film, we spend much of the film’s first half learning to care about these lovable folks just before their world gets obliterated by hundreds of tons of giant lizard.
Koichi is an unusually grim lead, even by the standards of the more somber early Godzilla films. He despises himself for his decision to bail on his kamikaze mission, and his neighbors, who’ve lost their homes and families, aren’t especially thrilled to see him either. Nonetheless, together they rebuild from bombed-out blocks to bivouacked shacks, and eventually to modest homes that cluster among the suburban Tokyo sprawl. Considering this a Godzilla movie, it’s like watching people rebuilding their lives with a giant box of dominoes.
Image: Toho
Minus One isn’t a period piece in aesthetic alone: The story itself feels like something preserved from the 1950s. Yamazaki steeps it in the melodrama of a classic historical epic. His characters are capital-R Romantic, constantly making bold proclamations and grand sacrifices, discussing heavy topics where modern characters would quip about shawarma.
Koichi and his companions debate the power of nonviolence, the value of self-preservation, and the unjust expectations governments put upon their populations in times of war. The latter point makes Godzilla Minus One a surprisingly potent pairing with Hayao Miyazaki’s animated semi-biopicThe Wind Rises, and a timely response to Japan’s current military buildup.
Of course, it’s precisely when Koichi and company begin to open their hearts and get their feet on the ground that Godzilla arrives. (Technically, he appears earlier in the film, but I’ll spare you the spoilers.) When Godzilla makes his first legitimate impression, he strikes like a 2023 version of the original Godzilla: the living manifestation of nuclear terror. His initial physical destruction is dwarfed by his heat ray, which, as shown in the trailer, leaves behind little more than a crater and a mushroom cloud.
Image: Toho
This is the moment in modern Godzilla movies where the heroes send in mechs, a rival kaiju, or some cutting-edge military aircraft. But Minus One, to its credit, sticks to the original formula, using historical reality to wave away any easy solutions. Most of Japan’s military has been decommissioned following its surrender to the U.S., its remaining warships sent away for disassembly. The U.S. government won’t help, either; its government is afraid to move weaponry into the region, which might provoke an anxious Soviet Union. So there’s only one group left to stop Godzilla: the civilian population. It’s a legitimately terrifying prospect — a group of average people versus a kaiju.
For those of us under the age of 70, conceptualizing Godzilla as a genuinely frightening horror monster can be a challenge. Hell, he appears in an upcoming children’s book that espouses the power of love. But in 1954, Godzilla terrified audiences across the globe, as a metaphor for nuclear weapons’ imprecise, passionless ability to level whole cities.
In its back half, Minus One recreates that style of terror with human stakes and an intensely political message. Yamazaki brings together the threads he carefully put in place: Koichi’s mental health, the barely rebuilt Japan, the absent government, the abandoned military, and, in true classic melodrama fashion, a love story. Then he pits them against an indifferent, catastrophic force.
Image: Toho
Is Godzilla the threat of nuclear weaponry? The temptation to respond to violence with greater violence? An indifferent American military in a period of national rebuild? The fact that Godzilla Minus One prompts these questions underscores what modern Godzilla media has been missing.
Don’t get me wrong; I’ve enjoyed the near-decade of Godzilla entertainment in America. But as someone who has Shin Godzilla at the top ofhis Godzilla tier list, who introduced his child to Mothra at far too young an age, and has a Hedorah anatomy poster sitting behind him at this very moment, this is the Godzilla I’ve been waiting for.
Godzilla films provide filmmakers a precious opportunity to tell political stories not just about individuals, but about communities, or even entire nations. And because Godzilla movies will always feature a kaiju destroying famous cities and landmarks like a toddler let loose in a Lego museum, people will show up. It’s a fantastic entertainment vessel for big ideas. For years now, Godzilla has been giving us plenty of sugar. But considering the state of the world, I’m glad he’s once again showing up with a bit of medicine, too.
Godzilla Minus One is streaming on Netflix, and is available for digital rental on Amazon, Vudu, and similar digital platforms.
Discworld is one of those strange series that you simply cannot explain to somebody who has not read it before. Sir Terry Pratchett was the greatest fantasy writer of his time, perhaps of all time, and reading his books while I was homeless was one of the few things that brought me enough joy to keep going some days.
Challengers is a movie obsessed with making sure you understand its chronology. Throughout its 131 minutes, Luca Guadagnino’s new ténnage à trois flick deploys a barrage of scene-resetting phrases like “THIRTEEN YEARS EARLIER,” “THE NEXT DAY,” and even “MIDNIGHT,” in all-caps, pink-text title cards. (Also: “SET BREAK,” shortly after a match official explains that they’re going to take a break between sets.) I’m not sure all of this is necessary: Even as the plot volleys across two decades, most shifts are easy to track. We know that it’s the mid-aughts because there’s a Motorola Razr on Zendaya’s nightstand; we know that it’s closer to the present day because Josh O’Connor is swiping through Tinder on a cracked iPhone. This isn’t exactly Lost Highway! (Though I would love to see what title cards Luca would’ve cooked up for Lynch’s neo-noir headfuck.)
This is, of course, a minor complaint—and I may be on an island here, considering the Letterboxd and Rotten Tomatoes loveChallengers is getting. But it’s relevant to a question I’m about to ask: Does Luca think I’m an idiot and that I wouldn’t notice he snuck a song from the wrong decade into a scene set in (roughly) 2006?
I’m specifically referring to THE scene, as in [insert “SPOILER” and “CONTENT WARNING” title cards here] the infamous threesome set piece that threatens to, uh, thrust the acronym “MMF” into the mainstream lexicon. [Another title card here: “DON’T GOOGLE MMF AT WORK.”] If you have a passing familiarity with Challengers, then you know what I’m referring to—Zendaya, O’Connor, and Mike Faist on a hotel bed, both men fawning over her, things getting hot and heavy as the two men try to show her their stroke (before playing a little doubles with themselves). The movie’s been out for less than 24 hours and it’s already one of the most talked-about scenes of the year. All of my attention should’ve been on this triples match. However, I was too busy losing my mind over one small detail: the song playing on the radio during this scene. Blood Orange’s “Uncle ACE”—ace, get it?—from his breakthrough Cupid Deluxe. A song that came out in 2013—as in six or seven years after this illicit almost-affair took place.
To be clear, “Uncle ACE” is an excellent song off Dev Hynes’s excellent album, and maybe a perfect choice, vibes-wise. It’s sexy, it’s propulsive, and it, uh, climaxes with an unbelievable sax solo. It’s also vaguely nostalgic, which should work in a movie that taps into nostalgia. The problem is that this song is supposed to be diegetic—the film nerd word meaning it exists in the world of the film, which, well, “Uncle ACE” certainly did not. (In fact, not only does Challengers imagine a world in which this song existed in 2006, but it also imagines a world in which a radio station would be conducting a lengthy interview with Dev Hynes.) If you’re a music nerd on top of being a film nerd, this is the exact kind of thing that will take you out of an experience. Instead of focusing on the Y tu Tennis También shit unfolding before your eyes, you’re desperately trying to make sense of why some dork-ass tennis prodigies in 2006 would be listening to a deep cut off of Pitchfork’s 21st-best record of 2013. It is all-caps, pink-text MADDENING!
A few weeks ago, before I had seen Challengers, a colleague of mine referred to it as “Saltburn-core.” If you’ve seen both, the descriptor fits. Even if Challengers’ threesome scene or churro-nibbling can’t come close to Saltburn’s spunk-slurping, grave-humping chaos, there’s a certain memeable soapiness to both. Both films also share an affinity for overexplaining things—I will never forgive Saltburn for the climactic montage, which gave the Usual Suspects plot-twist treatment to things that no half-awake viewer could have ever missed. (What do you mean the bad-guy liar lied about bad things?) And maybe most importantly, both Challengers and Saltburn mine the same era for nostalgia—with apparently little care for the finer details. Infamously, in Saltburn—which is also largely set in 2006 and 2007—there are a number of issues: characters playing MGMT songs a year before they could’ve known about them, karaoke versions of yet-to-be released Flo Rida hits, the family watching Superbad on DVD before the movie was even released in theaters! I know the rich have access to many things us plebes don’t, but I’m pretty sure Judd Apatow wasn’t sending the Catton family rough cuts of McLovin and friends. And it wasn’t just music and film nerds that noticed this stuff: The Saltburn anachronisms were so egregious that blogging about them became something of a cottageindustryaroundthe holidays.
As time goes on, it’s only natural that more and more movies will start looking back on the late 2000s and early 2010s. But if I’m going to be repeatedly confronted with the notion that my best days are now fodder for nostalgia, can’t they at least nail the details? Why bother setting the story in a not-really-that-bygone era in the first place if not? And if that doesn’t matter, then are these films being placed in the mid-aughts in service of the story or because it’s easy to tap into cheap sentimentality? Why didn’t the music supervisor for either movie step in and say, “Hey, shouldn’t these kids be listening to, like, “Daft Punk Is Playing at My House” instead? (Though if I’m being real, Art Donaldson seems more like a Band of Horses guy.) It’s not like Luca and his team didn’t focus on other small details: The product placement is self-aware, but avoids veering into Talladega Nights or Wayne’s World parody territory. The specific degradations of Josh O’Connor’s character—and the way they manifest through his court attire and the empty bottles clinking around the floor of his car—are subtly brilliant. Hell, this is a movie with an intricate understanding of the geography of Westchester County! I have my gripes with a handful of things about the film—let’s never talk about the stop-motion wind kiss under the giant “Game Changer” poster—but it’s clear some level of care went into this. (Though there is one other pedantic, also diegetic thing I have to speak my truth on: At one point, Zendaya’s kid asks to watch Spider-Verse, and while I admire the restraint shown in not referencing the mononymous star’s own role in that franchise, the winking reference doesn’t break the fourth wall so much as it splits its skull against it.)
Mistakes—or possibly just wanton flouting of chronology—like the “Uncle ACE” placement are head-scratching, but ultimately inconsequential. No one, aside from the most P4K-pilled, is going to truly care about the flattening of indie-music history. (And to be fair, during one scene, Challengers got the mid-aughts hipster catnip right with a needle drop of Spoon’s “I Turn My Camera On.”) Also, I get it: There are a trillion small things that go into making a movie, so it’s better to have some grace, especially with the man who made Call Me by Your Name. But my culture—my skinny jeans and iPod Nano and Sailor Jerry tattoos—is not a costume, so please have some respect. If you’re going to ask me to care that much about the timeline, you have to care about every part of it. That shouldn’t be hard to grasp. Maybe if I put it on a title card in all caps, they’ll understand.
Meg is joined by former team principal and Netflix star Guenther Steiner to discuss his new role as ambassador of the Miami Grand Prix and how Formula One is incorporating the American audience in the sport. Then, they hit on Steiner’s Drive to Survive stardom, talk about his friendships on the grid, get into his approach as team principal, and then wrap things up with quick season predictions.
In her bid for a second term, Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman pulled above 50% for the first time since vote counting began in last week’s primary election, increasing her prospects of avoiding a Nov. 5 runoff.
The latest batch of returns, released Tuesday, showed Raman with 50.2% of the vote, compared with 39% for her nearest opponent, Deputy City Atty. Ethan Weaver. In third place was software engineer Levon “Lev” Baronian, who had about 11%.
In a statement, Raman said she’s still waiting for all the votes to be counted. Nevertheless, she called the latest batch of results “very exciting.”
“It’s been the honor of my life to serve this incredible city as a member of its council, and I very much hope to see what more we can accomplish with four more years of work,” she said.
Vote counting is expected to resume Wednesday. Raman and her two challengers were competing to represent a district that straddles the Hollywood Hills, stretching from Silver Lake in the east to the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Reseda in the west.
Raman was running for a second four-year term in a district that is significantly different from the one that elected her in 2020. A year after she took office, the City Council redrew about 40% of the district, taking out such areas as Hancock Park and Park La Brea and adding all or part of Encino, Studio City and other neighborhoods.
Under the city’s election rules, any council candidate who receives more than 50% in the primary election wins outright.
Weaver, in a statement, said his campaign “always knew it was going to be a close race.”
“I do want to say thank you to all the thousands of people who rallied to our campaign,” he said, “and I’m asking for them to be patient while the remaining votes are counted.”
Weaver, who spent several years as a neighborhood prosecutor, had sought to make major issues of public safety and homelessness. He received huge financial support from unions that represent police officers and firefighters, as well as landlords, business groups and other donors, which spent a combined $1.35 million on his behalf.
Raman worked to turn that huge outside spending into a negative for Weaver, saying it showed that special interests were unhappy with her votes in support of new tenant protections and against police raises and digital billboards. Her supporters portrayed the race as one that would determine the future of progressive politics at City Hall.
Raman’s progress on her reelection bid took place on the same day that Ysabel Jurado, another candidate backed by the city’s political left, pulled into first place in her race against Councilmember Kevin de León.
Like Raman, Jurado had been increasing her share of the vote in each of the county’s daily updates. Jurado now appears to be headed to a Nov. 5 runoff election in that Eastside district.
Election officials said they have an estimated 126,000 ballots left to count countywide.
My dog was put to sleep last night. She was my first dog and I had her for almost 10 years. She was the moodiest bitch on the planet but was always super sweet to me. I’ll miss hearing her close the laundry room door to hide from my kids and catch a break. This is a toast to a real one. Fry up some bacon just for your puppies once in a while. They deserve it.
Fearing possible mudslides, officials issued an evacuation warning for some Topanga Canyon residents ahead of heavy rainfall expected late Sunday into Monday.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department alerted residents living in a zone along Santa Maria Road just north of Topanga Canyon Boulevard to be prepared to leave their homes as the wettest weather from a trio of recent storms rolls into Southern California.
According to the National Weather Service, from 1 to 2 inches of rain is expected to drench Topanga Canyon throughout Monday, with thunderstorms possible for the area.
Southern California has “had a series of storms since Friday,” said David Gomberg, a National Weather Service meteorologist. “This one that is coming in overnight and into tomorrow will be the strongest of the series.”
No flood watches were in effect for Los Angeles County as of Sunday evening.
“There’s still possibilities for some locally heavy rates because we have thunderstorms in the forecast,” Gomberg added. “But we’re not looking for a widespread heavy rain event.”
The National Weather Service issued a flood watch for San Diego County on Monday.
For affected Topanga Canyon residents, the evacuation warning goes into effect at 9 p.m. Sunday and extends through 6 a.m. Tuesday.
Officials encouraged residents to monitor local weather while gathering loved ones, pets and supplies.
Last January, a mudslide and a tumbling boulder forced the closure of a section of Topanga Canyon Boulevard after heavy rainfall.
Residents can visit L.A. County’s website to learn if they are in areas that may be affected by mudslide evacuations.
In 2021, One Shot blasted into action fans’ hearts, making full use of Scott Adkins’ varied skill set. It’s a high-octane tactical action movie with a fun gimmick: The whole movie is designed to look like one continuous take.
The newly released sequel, One More Shot, now available everywhere you rent or purchase movies digitally,is a more confident, polished effort than the original, adding a compelling and familiar action-movie setting (an airport), more action legends (Tom Berenger and Michael Jai White), and a string of exciting fight sequences that make the most of the location, the conceit, and the talent.
One More Shot also reunites director James Nunn with Adkins and fight choreographer Tim Man, who’ve each worked with Nunn four times. But this movie is Nunn and Adkins’ most accomplished collaboration yet. Polygon spoke with Nunn about the difficulties of shooting an action movie in one take, following in the wake of Sam Mendes’ Oscar winner 1917, hiding the cuts, what he learned from the first movie, and his hopes for the future of the series.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Polygon: As someone who’s filmed more conventional action movies, like Eliminators, what do you think is different for the audience when a movie is portrayed as one continuous take?
James Nunn: Well, it’s funny, because it started as an exercise in How can I push something? How can I be different? How can I be unique? How can I use Scott’s raw, amazing ability to the best? And how can I use my technical knowhow? So it actually started as more of an experiment in just proving to people, I’m really good technically, he’s really good physically and on camera — merge them skills, make a movie. That was where the initial pitch came from. But as time went on, and as we started filming it, honestly, I’ve kind of fallen in love with doing it this way. You realize that you’re pushing this immersion on your audience.
All movies have a ticking clock. That’s the premise of a lot of stories: You’re going from A to B, or A to Z, but it’s not about the letters, it’s about the journey between. There’s always a ticking-clock narrative, especially in action movies. Whether it’s a bomb going off or saving your loved one because she’s about to fall into acid, there’s always a timer. And I think what happens when you don’t manipulate time with cuts is, you’re actually forcing people to, almost on a subconscious level, just feel that timer a bit more, feel the urgency, and be a bit more present in it.
Now look, a lot of problems come with the style, because you can’t film Scott as the best martial artist in the world, necessarily, because you can’t do the angles that really show off what he can do. Equally, he can’t be like, spinning around doing amazing butterfly pirouette kicks, because it would just be of a different world. So the format comes with restrictions. And we know what we’re doing. We try to hold back on the flashiness and go for, like, this grounded CQC [close-quarters combat] military vibe, which fits really well. I think the elongated take of it, whether you like it or not, you’re just being sucked in.
Certain actors will really rise to the occasion and be the best you’ve ever seen, because they’re like, I don’t want to be the one in this 10-minute take who messes it up. So they switch on to this level of authenticity and focus, and you can feel that as well. But then equally, if you’ve got a slightly weaker performance, it’s harder to hide away from that.
I’ve fallen in love with it. I won’t do it forever. I will return to normal, conventional moviemaking soon, I’m sure. But I’m having a lot of fun. And I am so pleased with the reception that we’ve had.
Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment
What did you learn from One Shot that you applied to One More Shot? The movie feels more confident — did it feel that way to you while shooting?
For sure, we did. And I say “we” because I’ve got a very solid core team who I love working with, and they’re all on the same train with me. I think the first movie, although I was confident… Look, I tried to keep it a bit of a secret in the first one, but we all know there’s hidden cuts in the movie. Don’t get me wrong, I will run a take as long as I can. There’s three reasons to break: safety, geography, or actor availability, if you have to shoot out of sequence. Those are really the reasons I cut. If not, I’ll go for as long as I can within that time frame. So you’re really looking at, like, eight- to 10-minute takes.
On the first movie, I knew we could do it, but we hadn’t done it, in that we hadn’t actually hidden cuts before. So I put a lot of the focus in the first movie on making sure that we could hide the cuts. The difference with the second movie was that weight had been lifted. We’d done it. I knew we could do it. I knew how to do it. I knew how to get myself out of a bind, even if something wasn’t working on the day and I needed to get out of it. Because we’d tried and tested it before.
So that weight had been lifted off my shoulders. So it’s like, OK, well, now I’ve actually got the time to think a bit more about being more elaborate with the camera. And also, we had a tiny bit more money on this one. So we could do stuff like hand the camera out of the car and throw the camera down a stairwell on a rig and know it would be OK. We were able to be a little bit more tricksy.
How did you manage filming at London Stansted Airport?
That was the most difficult part of this whole process, filming in the working environment of an international airport. We knew we wanted to go bigger. The fan response to the first one was overwhelmingly positive, and much more than we’d anticipated. Obviously when you set out on these ventures you believe in the movie — you have to, otherwise you wouldn’t do it. But I really wanted it to land. And it didn’t necessarily get the big push I hoped for, because of COVID at the time, but it did enough to really find an audience.
We listened to the feedback of the fans. Not necessarily the big paper reviews, but the fans. And we tried to respond to that in this movie and give them more fights, give them more hand-to-hand, give them more plot, but also make it not feel as low-budget of a location, which was something we bumped into a lot in the comments.
So once we found out we were given the lucky opportunity to go down the road for number two, we embarked on what we’re going to do, and we were like, We’re never gonna get an airport. We’re just imagining we’re gonna get, like, some private little runway. It’s gonna be rubber, it’s gonna feel low-budget anyway. So the producer, Ben Jacques, was tasked with Can you get an airport? And as if by some sort of miracle, the fourth-largest airport in England, Stansted Airport, showed an interest. They were like, Oh, we love the sound of this. Yeah, come on down. And so we did.
Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment
So we went down and we looked, and we thought it’d be perfect. And then we wrote the script around it. But this is where it became tricky. The first movie, we had a derelict location, which we could film for 11 hours a day, no questions asked, easy-peasy. But going to Stansted came with a huge amount of restrictions, the same restrictions you face as a traveler flying internationally. You’re going through the metal detector, you’re going through the screening thing. Getting a hundred crew in with guns, with knives, with fake explosives takes an hour off your day easily.
Equally, you’ve got tourists running around waiting to catch their flights and stuff. In the U.K., you can’t fly between midnight and 4 a.m. They basically close it down so that people can sleep. And that was when we shot the movie. So we’d get in the airport at like 7 or 8 at night, do some rehearsals, have a bit of food. And then we really started kicking off between midnight and 4. It was a hard stop at 4, because the planes were coming in, or people getting on planes.
One particular night, we were in the baggage claim area, and we had a long take and an hour to go. And we’ve had months and months of meetings about this. But you know, there’s always one guy who’s never at the meetings who shows up and is like, Oh, you’ve got to wrap in 20 minutes. We managed to get two takes that were nine minutes each. The second one’s in the movie.
Everyone knows the layout of an airport, so it becomes a lot easier for the audience to ground themselves in where things are, what access-restricted locations look like, that kind of stuff. But it lets you interact more with the environment in terms of the action. What else did the airport location add to the film?
It’s kind of like how I feel about 1917. One thing we faced coming out after 1917, even though [One Shot] had originally been written before 1917, was that people struggled a little bit with the backstory. There wasn’t a huge amount of backstory being told. And the problem with doing things in real time as a one-shot thing is, you can’t stop in the middle of a fight and start calling your mom or your wife, because the audience knows what you’re doing. You’re crowbarring in a backstory, but it just starts to feel hokey and not real.
And the advantage that 1917 had over us is that the nation and the world’s collective understanding of a soldier in World War I — everybody’s studied it in school. You immediately have some idea or backstory knowledge of that soldier. So it’s not necessarily that 1917 even has more backstory than we do. But what makes a difference is that there’s this unwritten understanding of World War I that you just understand. It’s in your subconscious, generally speaking, as a Western audience.
And that’s the same, probably, with the airport. Not everybody’s seen a Guantanamo-style base [the setting of One Shot] outside of a movie. Whereas everybody knows an airport. And I think that’s where [One More Shot] heightens as well, is that we’ve gone to somewhere that you all kind of understand: Oh, there’s gonna be an escalator, there’s gonna be this, there’s gonna be that. So I think to harp on your point, I agree with you totally. And then you just start enjoying the fruits of what you can find, you’re walking around and you design the [fall] going over the rails, or fighting on the metro.
Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment
By the way, that’s my favorite fight in the movie.
Me too. We don’t cut during the fights. That’s part of the reason that Scott loves doing it as well, is that we really make him do it for two, three minutes. And what I love about the metro fight is because of all of the foreground, poles, beams, and glass, it’s actually impossible to have even put a cut in there. So that is just two physically amazing on-screen fighters [Adkins and Aaron Toney] really going for it. And I’m privileged that they did that for us on a moving train at about 30 miles per hour.
What strikes me as one of the hardest storytelling challenges of the format are the transition sequences. How did you approach getting from scene to scene within this structure?
[That’s where] the advantage of going to the location [came in]. Having a 10-page outline, finding the location, then writing the script around the location, and then doing set visits backward and forward. And also it being a [real] location, not being something we were building that people had to try and understand.
Because there’s a lot of One Shot that is actually a set. Like, we use the exterior terrain, but actually all the interiors are generally fudged together in a gym on the location. And that was much easier for [screenwriter] Jamie [Russell] to write those passages of time. And then I had a couple of actor friends come down about three months before we shot the movie, and on a GoPro, we walked every scene just for script timings.
You want to do another one of these? One Last Shot, perhaps?
Yeah, I do want to do another one. I’ve got no spoilers for you. There’s no green light yet. I’m gonna try my best and knock on every door to hopefully get us there. But there’s no news, other than the title. And it seems like the internet has found the title itself.
I mean, you set us up for it.
[Laughs] Me and the producers have talked about it in the past, but it’s sort of organically been like this little bit of a roller coaster online, which is fun and exciting. So I desperately would love to do that movie, but we’re not there yet. Let’s see.
One More Shot is available for digital rental or purchase on Amazon, Apple TV, and Vudu.
In 2020, after the tragic murder of George Floyd, there was a moment when it seemed as if America, California included, was ready to reform our broken and discriminatory criminal justice system.
Proposition 47, which helped lower California’s prison population by changing certain nonviolent crimes from felonies to misdemeanors, is likely to be rolled back, if not undone this year.
Drug dealers are being charged with murder as deaths from fentanyl overdoses continue to spike, a new tactic in a new war on drugs, little different from the one that led to overincarceration of Black and brown people during the crack epidemic of the ’80s when we insisted we could arrest our way out of poverty and addiction.
It is a troubling reversal of both attitude and reform that, as history has proven, will not lead to the safer communities we all want.
But what is about to happen inside San Quentin State Prison has the potential to fundamentally change crime and punishment in the Golden State, and beyond.
Because as much as we want to believe that a single law, more police or a tougher sentence can protect us, the truth is that the best way to cut crime is to stop it from happening in the first place — not with the pounding fist of punishment that for decades has left us with jails and prisons where more than a third of people return within a few years of release.
But instead by helping people to find other paths, and giving them opportunities to survive in ways that uplift rather than prey upon our communities — an approach with proven results both in the U.S. and other countries, where incarceration decades ago embraced rehabilitation not as an option but a mandate.
Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that he wanted to transform San Quentin, California’s oldest and most famous prison, into a new kind of incarceration facility modeled after Scandinavian principles of rehabilitation, where that mandate for changing lives is written into law.
With his love of catchphrases, he dubbed it the California Model and left the details for later. On Friday, a long-awaited explanation of what the California Model will look like in practice was released, providing both an ideal and a blueprint for what is a radical, subversive and important shift in what it means to be in prison.
“This is a big deal,” Darrell Steinberg told me. He helped chair the committee that created the recommendations, and is the mayor of Sacramento, a city as plagued as any by the drug addiction, mental illness and homelessness that have driven much of the shift in attitudes around crime. So he knows as well as any that voters want results, not experiments.
“This will enhance public safety for the self-evident reason that when people have the tools to succeed on the outside they will have better lives and are much less likely to commit another crime,” he said.
It is visionary, he said, but also doable.
A core part of the transition involves changing the job of correctional officers from enforcers and adversaries to participants in rehabilitation, a metamorphosis that the union representing correctional officers supports. Under the plan, officers would take college-level classes on trauma-informed practices, and be expected to interact with inmates as mentors and guides.
San Quentin itself would also receive a makeover, albeit one curtailed by our current economic realities. Cramped cells that currently house two people in 46 square feet, about half the size of a decent bathroom, would be removed to allow for single-occupancy spaces that Steinberg said are the minimum dignity demands.
Correctional officers would also see an upgrade. Housing prices are so high in Marin County, where San Quentin is located, that it is impossible for many to live close enough for a daily shift (a two-bedroom averages more than $3,000 a month), leaving them with hours-long commutes.
So some officers have resorted to “dry camping” in trailers with homeless-like conditions that lack running water, electricity or even sewers. They are packing a week’s worth of work into a few days just to get by. The new plan would give correctional officers a campground with basic facilities and access to showers and safe spaces to relax — perhaps making the job less stressful.
For incarcerated people, the change will mean that on Day 1 of their sentences, there is a coordinated effort to arrange services — mental health care, education, job training, substance abuse treatment. And that there are people to implement those plans, and support them.
While that seems basic, it doesn’t happen now. People are largely left to their own devices to navigate an opaque and inefficient system that is so archaic that some of it isn’t even computerized. Wait lists are long and information can be hard to come by.
If the ideas laid out in the plan makes it through the upcoming budget negotiations (in a year with a large and unexpected deficit), it will be a culture change inside the most infamous prison in the country’s second-largest state prison system (Texas is the only state with a larger incarcerated population).
Though taking the California Model from paper to practice is the work of years, the proposal for San Quentin has the potential to be the largest and most meaningful criminal justice reform in decades — if we get it right, which of course is always an if when it comes to government.
But it is a big swing with the potential for real payoff — not the knee-jerk anger and fear of proposals like gutting Proposition 47, which will only repeat the mistakes of the past.
There will always be predators and there will always be crime. And admittedly, it all sounds touchy-feely and nebulous, like we are about to spend a bunch on money on holding criminals’ hands while they talk about their childhoods and get their GED.
And to be honest, that’s part of it, one we shouldn’t ignore.
At its root, the California Model is about dignity and compassion, creating policy around the belief that healing isn’t just for the innocent, and it isn’t soft.
Fixing humans, especially ones broken enough to hurt others, is the hardest of tasks.
But it can be done.
And if California turns San Quentin into a place where that happens, we will all be safer.
Years before the director Ishiro Honda started work on a low-budget Japanese horror film starring a giant, isotope-spewing lizard, he hiked with the Western allied powers through the wreckage of imperial Japan’s brutal atomic collision, in the charred city of Hiroshima. He had heard of the Bomb but he had not seen it. A veteran of three tours of duty in the Japanese Imperial Army, Honda spent the last six months of World War II in a prisoner of war camp in northern China. He’d witnessed first-hand the toll of the conflict in human lives—millions dead, hundreds of thousands missing and wounded—but information was as scarce in captivity as comfort.
When the war ended he was repatriated to occupied Japan, by route of nuclear ground zero. What Honda found—upon the land, in the rivers, among the city’s depleted citizenry and the nation’s collective psyche––was a world’s worth of scars not unlike the imprint of clothing which had been seared onto victims of the bomb. He saw, and never stopped seeing, the battle after the war. The fires of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were stanched. The embers were not.
Godzilla, the film that Honda would go on to direct less than a decade later, was a movie built as a reminder of the cost attached to nuclear power. It was also very DIY, and I mean that in the best ways possible. (The lizard was a man in a ready-mixed concrete suit.) While immensely rough, the creature’s appearance was a collective endeavor between director and crew with a common aim: “I wanted,” Honda admitted years later, “to make radiation visible.” Thirty-six sequels later, the most recent and most nostalgic entry in the franchise, Godzilla Minus One, has managed to strike U.S. box-office gold and earn word-of-mouth praise, while holding on to its political roots.
Directed by the filmmaker and VFX maestro Takashi Yamazaki, Minus One takes place in the immediate aftermath of the second World War, following Koichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki), a one-time kamikaze pilot haunted both by his decision to not sacrifice himself in combat and his inability to confront the titular green reptile. After failing to stave off Godzilla’s attack of a military installation on the fictional island of Ono, Shikishima finds himself caught between his remorse over the wartime death of his loved ones, his desire to protect his newfound family, and his shame over fleeing his martial duties.
Debuting in Japan in October, the film arrived in the U.S. on December 1 for what was supposed to be a limited theatrical run. As of December 11, Minus One has pulled in $26 million in American theaters and continues to have its run extended and expanded. That all of this has occurred on a relatively shoestring budget and without an extensive U.S. marketing campaign puts the film in perhaps the rarest of positions in a post-streaming theatrical marketplace: a genuine, diamond-in-the-rough hit. (And a hit with critics, too: As of publishing time, Minus One sits at 97 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, better than Oscar favorites like Killers of the Flower Moon and Oppenheimer, and good enough to be the highest-rated entry in the long Godzilla canon.)
The film, which is as much a story of survivor’s guilt and identity as it is about a prehistoric, raging lizard, is the best in a wave of kaiju-related international releases—most of which have been produced by the U.S. studio Legendary Pictures. (Toho Studios, the original home for the franchise, has a licensing agreement with Legendary, limiting the Tokyo production house from releasing any Godzilla projects in the same year as the big-budget American company.) As an unabashed fan of movies with CGI budgets in the hundreds of millions, and dialogue like, “is that a monkey,” even I would admit that the output has been not-so-stellar lately. American producers could stand to learn more than a few things from Minus One’s strengths and its willingness to look back—especially since they insist on force-feeding us more interspecies, buddy-cop sequels. Here’s a few do’s and don’ts:
1. No More Pocket Watching
Minus One works not only because of its intent, but also because of its lack of world-box-office-dominating intention. At its core, it’s a film that’s fluent in the language of American spectacle with ambitions to go beyond it. Leading up to the movie’s release, Yamazaki spoke openly about the ways in which a blockbuster flick like Jaws (which Minus One does a pretty decent impersonation of at times)—or even a crossover darling like Hayao Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke—was a guiding light in building a narrative with the right amount of propulsion without over-relying on bloated set pieces. These are films that made a shitload of money partly in spite of their artistic compasses.
Minus One is not a movie about kaiju formulated to pad seat totals; it is a kaiju movie about people, and—much the same as the ’54 film—those people are not Americans. The history of Godzilla films being rearranged, diluted, and generally proffered in an attempt to attract U.S. audiences is practically as old as the character. When the original picture finally made it over to the States it was renamed King of the Monsters in a ploy to link it to the already-established IP of King Kong (who I now realize coasts on counting stats and opposable thumbs). It was reorganized around the flashbacks of a white American journalist played by the first Perry Mason and practically stripped of its explicit critiques of nuclear proliferation. It worked, but at what costs?Minus One—in part because of the expansion in popularity of anime, and in part because internment is decades and not years away—isn’t just avoiding that fate, it’s showing the fallacy in it to begin with.
2. Stop Trying to Make Fetch a Thing
Minus One isn’t the first Godzilla film with a bunch of callbacks to the original movie, but it’s one of the few that manages to incorporate them without losing its own identity. From the start of the picture, where we see footage of the real-life Bikini Atoll nuclear-testing site in the Marshall Islands, it’s clear that Minus One isn’t afraid to be viewed as an atomic allegory. (The culmination of Godzilla’s blue ray in the film is a literal mushroom cloud.) While promoting the movie, Yamazaki has said, “Out of all the Godzillas there have been throughout the years … my favorite is still the original from the very first movie.” He’s running toward the comparisons.
What helps Minus One stick the landing is that it engages with the roots of the franchise without merely retreading old ground. Where Honda’s Godzilla used genre to shroud a commentary on nuclear proliferation, Yamazaki’s movie (like 2016’s Shin Godzilla) updates and retrofits the message. A nod to the documentary-style journalism of the first film coexists with a knotty, multi-act wrestling match with Japanese post-war masculinity, or a sly, nuanced depiction of communal PTSD. The defining feature of Minus One, the thing that links the old with the new, is its general inclination toward probing the interpersonal relationships of its characters in ways that both the originals and the American remakes don’t even consider doing.
3. More Lizard Badassery
There is the scene in which the lizard literally swallows a grown man in a half bite; the one in which the lizard chucks an aircraft carrier like a K-9 on Adderall; the part in which the lizard flicks a single train car onto a high rail platform like a toothpick; the moment when the lizard takes at least seven shots from various tanks and then keeps on trucking like he’s a college-aged uncle/cousin/sibling taking Nerf gun fire like a champ.
We have not mentioned that he gets a literal mine thrown under his tongue, has half of his cerebellum Jackson Pollock’ed like Scratchy, then regrows it and gives them the “and I took that personally…” glare. Or the fact that folks try to pop him like a balloon at the bottom of the ocean but can’t because he’s not fucking leaving. Descriptors for Godzilla in Minus One include but are not limited to: snarling, jagged, bloody, angry, scary, inflamed, snarling again, crystalline, elemental, and a force of nature. That brother’s starving.
4. Take a Swing (and Knock Down a Few Buildings While You’re At It)
Probably my favorite part of Minus One is how it manages, at once, to take itself both incredibly seriously and not too seriously to be entertaining throughout. Is it a period piece about personal regret and communal grief? What about a claymation semi-aquatic thriller? How can you affirm the innate value of human life and show a naval officer being disemboweled?
To really sink into the movie is to hold yourself in a state suspended between reality and surreality. Task-oriented plot mechanics exist next to veiled references to Shintoism, and it all blends perfectly (let the liquor tell it). What we’ve got is a movie that’s a little extra, more than a bit heady, and inescapably soapy at times—which I tend to think a story about a reptile with atomic breath shouldn’t be above. It works because it doesn’t—except of course when it does.
They choose to live, and the Midnight Boys are here to give you their reactions to some of their favorite properties of the year! They break down the animated epic Blue Eye Samurai (09:26). Later, they talk about the surprising monster hit Godzilla Minus One (53:16).
Hosts: Charles Holmes, Van Lathan, Jomi Adeniran, and Steve Ahlman Senior Producer: Steve Ahlman Additional Production Support: Arjuna Ramgopal Social: Jomi Adeniran
Sean and Amanda react to the surprise box office hit of the weekend, Godzilla Minus One (1:00); share preliminary thoughts about Poor Things and why it’s seemingly losing steam in the awards races (18:00); and then open up the mailbag to answer your questions on all things Oscar season (32:00). Finally, they update their Best Picture power rankings (1:30:00).
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Senior Producer: Bobby Wagner
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Relive how Aston Martin started the season spectacularly before slightly tailing off as the 2023 Formula One season progressed
Relive how Aston Martin started the season spectacularly before slightly tailing off as the 2023 Formula One season progressed
Fernando Alonso says he does not expect his performance to drop off any time soon after completing his “best season” in Formula 1 at the age of 42.
In his first season with Aston Martin after joining from Alpine, Alonso finished fourth in the drivers’ standings to claim his highest finish since 2013.
Aston Martin got off to an electric start with podium finishes in six out of the first 10 races, unexpectedly competing with Ferrari and Mercedes, as well as being Red Bull’s closest competitors in the early stages of the season.
While his contract with the team currently only has one season to run, Alonso appears confident of continuing for several years yet.
“I’ve said many times, even before 2018, the day I stop racing is not because I feel not motivated for driving or I feel slow,” the two-time world champion said at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
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Ride on board with Fernando Alonso as he takes on Sergio Perez in an epic battle to seal a podium place in Brazil
Ride on board with Fernando Alonso as he takes on Sergio Perez in an epic battle to seal a podium place in Brazil
“If I feel slow one day, I think it will be noticeable and I will not be happy with my performance and I will be the first to raise my hand and say it’s time.
“But I don’t think that time will arrive honestly in terms of feeling slow, I have extreme self-confidence in my performance.”
While falling short of an elusive 33rd career race win, Alonso clinched all eight of Aston Martin’s podium finishes, including second-place finishes in Monaco, Canada and the Netherlands.
“I’m happy with the personal performance, I think together with 2012, it’s the best season for me,” Alonso said.
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Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz sits down with Fernando Alonso to reflect on his career, 20 years on from his first win in Hungary
Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz sits down with Fernando Alonso to reflect on his career, 20 years on from his first win in Hungary
“Personally, I rate the best season in my driving. I was happy with everything, I was motivated, I was fit, I was performing as you said in difficult conditions sometimes, Bahrain, Monaco, Canada, Monza and Brazil will be my top four/five of the year.
“I put Monza on purpose because it was a ninth place, it was not a podium, it was nothing that people will remember. But probably we had the slowest car in Monza or the second slowest and to be in the points it was one of those weekends everything was very good.”
‘Demanding schedule’ could stop Alonso driving
Cancelled races this year in China and Italy saw F1’s record 24-race schedule reduced to 22, but with a full season set for 2024, Alonso feels the sport’s calendar is the only thing that could wear him down.
“But it could be with the calendar and the demanding schedule and things like this one day, I will feel it this time because you know there are other things in life,” Alonso said.
“It’s been a very demanding season only with 22 races, with two cancellations. Next year with 24, the proper calendar, we will have to see how it feels. Even Las Vegas, I saw today it’s a triple header, I don’t know why, I thought Vegas was alone next year and then Qatar and Abu Dhabi together.
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Fernando Alonso just pips Sergio Perez to a podium spot after an epic battle in the final stages of the race
Fernando Alonso just pips Sergio Perez to a podium spot after an epic battle in the final stages of the race
“I just found out now, like 10 minutes ago, that it was three races together, these kinds of things will drain my battery, not my driving.”
While Aston Martin surpassed expectations at the start, they struggled in the middle stage of the season, with more disappointing performances in the British and Hungarian Grands Prix, but Alonso accepts the process is part of a learning curve for the team.
“I see only positives as well; those struggles are part of the job and part of the journey of this team,” he said. “I think we started really strong with a car that was surprisingly competitive even to us the step from last year to this year.
“Then we found ourselves maybe in a position that we were not ready for it, fighting with Mercedes, Ferrari, top teams. They are used to fighting at the level.
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Fernando Alonso overtakes Lewis Hamilton to move into third place at the restart of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix
Fernando Alonso overtakes Lewis Hamilton to move into third place at the restart of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix
“I think we need to find some consistency, maybe some of the weak points is the car has to operate in a very narrow window, it’s the same with everybody but it seems we are struggling a little bit.
“It would be nice if we can perform always at a stable level and next year see if we can improve the straight line speed.
“I think that was the [under] performance in numbers, our weak point always (was we were) a little bit too slow on the straights and if we want to be as fast as the others, we need to drop too much the rear wing and we ended up slow on the corners as well, so that was probably the loop we could not go out this season.”
‘Stroll commitment was a surprise to me’
Alonso says the level of commitment shown by his Aston Martin team-mate Lance Stroll, particularly after a poor run of form for the Canadian, came as a pleasant surprise.
Stroll, who is the son of team owner Lawrence, raced in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix just 12 days after suffering fractures to his hands, wrists and foot in a cycling accident.
Alonso was heard on team radio throughout the season attempting to aid his team-mate in any way possible, and once more spoke of a strong bond between the pair.
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Fernando Alonso reacts to Lance Stroll’s Alex Albon overtake
Fernando Alonso reacts to Lance Stroll’s Alex Albon overtake
“We talk a lot, we are in contact every week on the telephone, in the factory, in the races and we try to make sure we are all in the same direction and we share many things,” Alonso said.
“He’s been through some difficulties this year; the car was just changing its behaviour a little bit and he was just struggling a little bit more than me and now we fix a few things in the car and now he’s back in top form.
“It was impressive to see his dedication, his motivation, in the highs and in the lows. At the beginning of the year with the broken hand, as I said, midway through the season with some difficulties. He was so determined to put things back in place again.
“Eventually he did after I think Mexico and the race in Brazil, the race in Vegas, this was the surprise to me, the level of commitment, the level of motivation he has, this is only good news and good things for the team.”
24 races in 2024! Watch every round of next season live on Sky Sports F1, starting with the Bahrain Grand Prix from February 29-March 2. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
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Watch the best moments from Martin Brundle’s Gridwalks this 2023 Formula 1 season
Watch the best moments from Martin Brundle’s Gridwalks this 2023 Formula 1 season
Driver of the year: Max Verstappen. Not much else to say, is there? An extraordinary campaign from him and Red Bull.
Chaos of the year: There are two parts to this award which goes to the Dutch Grand Prix. The opening laps when rain came down and some drivers pitted for intermediates and got a massive undercut. Or, the sudden downpour with 10 laps to go as Zhou Guanyu speared into the barriers and the race was forced to be red flagged. It doesn’t sound that crazy from the description we’ve just given, but trust us, it was chaotic! Just try blogging it.
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Sergio Perez takes advantage of an early first lap pitstop to take the lead in a rain affected Dutch GP
Sergio Perez takes advantage of an early first lap pitstop to take the lead in a rain affected Dutch GP
Weather of the year: It’s not often you look out of a media centre window and can’t see the track anymore. A storm in Sao Paulo during the end of Friday Qualifying caused the session to come to a halt and Fernando Alonso exclaimed “it’s night time!”
Race of the year: The Singapore Grand Prix. We are not saying this because it’s the only one Red Bull didn’t win, it was genuinely a thriller to the end as Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton had a big four-way scrap for the lead in the closing stages. Russell pushed a bit too hard though and crashed on the final lap.
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George Russell crashes out on the final lap of a thrilling Singapore Grand Prix as Carlos Sainz holds on to win, with Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton completing the top three
George Russell crashes out on the final lap of a thrilling Singapore Grand Prix as Carlos Sainz holds on to win, with Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton completing the top three
Grid walk moment of the year: Air guitar anyone? Machine Gun Kelly was keen to see Martin’s collaborate with him on the grid in Sao Paulo. Understandably, for the treasure that is Martin, he declined and Machine Gun Kelly gave the camera a thumbs down.
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A classic Martin Brundle gridwalk moment with artist Machine Gun Kelly at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix
A classic Martin Brundle gridwalk moment with artist Machine Gun Kelly at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix
Dramatic finish of the year: 42 years old? Age doesn’t matter if you’re Fernando Alonso and he brilliantly took third place at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after re-passing Sergio Perez on the final lap before holding him off at the line by 0.053s.
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Ride on board with Fernando Alonso as he takes on Sergio Perez in an epic battle to seal a podium place in Brazil
Ride on board with Fernando Alonso as he takes on Sergio Perez in an epic battle to seal a podium place in Brazil
Achievement of the year: Ten wins on the spin is some going. Verstappen was unbeatable from May’s Miami Grand Prix to the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in September.
It’s really not AI image of the year: Toto and Christian.Honest, it’s real!
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Calendar of the year: Valtteri Bottas’. Enough said. Sales of the cheeky 2024 offering raised a very impressive £119,000 for Movember too.
Yodeling of the year: Only one winner here and that’s our very own Craig Slater. Yodeling is a big tradition in Austria and it was only right that Craig had a go himself, or maybe not…
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Ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, Sky Sports’ Craig Slater takes on some yodelling lessons while in Austria
Ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, Sky Sports’ Craig Slater takes on some yodelling lessons while in Austria
Toughest race of the year: A flat-out race in Qatar, due to limits on tyre stints, and the high-speed track led to a massive challenge for the drivers. Esteban Ocon threw up in his helmet and Logan Sargeant couldn’t finish the race. Luckily, Qatar will take place in December next year, so it should be slightly cooler.
Fashion of the year: We’re not talking about Ted Kravitz’s shorts and sandals, but we’re on about an unbuttoned orange shirt and leather trousers when he met Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu in London.
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Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz meets Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu in London as they go to the gym, talk fashion and eat food!
Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz meets Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu in London as they go to the gym, talk fashion and eat food!
Rookie of the year: You could argue Liam Lawson for this but Oscar Piastri was pretty good as well, particularly as McLaren team-mate Norris has become one of the most highly rated F1 drivers on the grid. A Sprint win in Qatar was the highlight for Piastri and it will be fascinating to see how he gets on in 2024.
Rumour of the year: No, not whether or not Lewis Hamilton was going to Ferrari, but whether Fernando Alonso was dating Taylor Swift. Never has a back catalogue of songs been quoted so frequently in the space of four days as was the case in Baku.
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Sky F1’s commentary team were in great form in Azerbaijan, making repeated references to rumours that Fernando Alonso has been dating Taylor Swift
Sky F1’s commentary team were in great form in Azerbaijan, making repeated references to rumours that Fernando Alonso has been dating Taylor Swift
Qualifying of the year: Monaco quite literally was qualifying of the year – although we’ve had some great ones in 2023 – but the drama of Verstappen brushing the barriers in the final sector to steal pole from Alonso was breathtaking.
Surprise of the year: Hamilton pipped Verstappen to pole position by 0.003s at the Hungaroring to end his pole-less run. It was a brilliant lap from Hamilton, even with a little wide moment at the final corner.
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Watch Lewis Hamilton’s pole lap in full as he makes it a record ninth at the Hungaroring
Watch Lewis Hamilton’s pole lap in full as he makes it a record ninth at the Hungaroring
Opener of the year: How can you not love a bit of Richard Ashcroft and his iconic ‘Bittersweet Symphony’ ahead of the British Grand Prix. Norris and Hamilton were on the podium too at Silverstone which was a brilliant moment.
Photographer of the year: Another Martin moment for you. This time at the Monaco Grand Prix when MB went up to interview an 89-year-old photographer, who enjoyed the conversation so much that she asked for his card!
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Martin Brundle meets an 89-year-old photographer and the results are hilarious!
Martin Brundle meets an 89-year-old photographer and the results are hilarious!
Big number of the year: That would be the 1,200+ incidents of track limit breaches reviewed by stewards in the 71-lap Austrian GP. That worked out at 17 a lap!
Not taking no for an answer of the year: Stewart, Federer, security, and Martin’s Miami GP Grid Walk.
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Sir Jackie Stewart defies security guards (and George Russell) to grab Roger Federer to make him speak to Martin Brundle…
Sir Jackie Stewart defies security guards (and George Russell) to grab Roger Federer to make him speak to Martin Brundle…
Overtake of the year: Leclerc threw everything at the Red Bulls in Vegas and caught Perez by surprise on the last lap into the final braking zone. From some distance back, boom, Leclerc chucked his Ferrari in there and beautifully got the car stopped to take second place.
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Ride onboard with Charles Leclerc as he claims second place for Ferrari at the Las Vegas GP with a late lunge on Sergio Perez’s Red Bull
Ride onboard with Charles Leclerc as he claims second place for Ferrari at the Las Vegas GP with a late lunge on Sergio Perez’s Red Bull
Saga of the year: Andretti’s bid to enter F1. The outcome of which is still to be resolved.
Trophy smash of the year: Norris’ trademark celebration of slamming the champagne on the ground in Hungary didn’t quite go right as he knocked over Verstappen’s winning trophy. The $45,000 trophy was replaced thankfully and it’s fair to say Norris was more careful in future podiums during the season.
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Watch the most viral moments so far from the 2023 Formula 1 season
Watch the most viral moments so far from the 2023 Formula 1 season
Verstappen and GP moment of the year: We enjoyed this almost married couple relationship throughout the season and the best of it probably came in Belgium qualifying when Verstappen scraped into Q3. Verstappen wasn’t happy about his preparation laps – s*** execution” was how he bluntly described them – and Gianpiero Lambiase, his race engineer, fired back. Verstappen apologised as he inevitably then topped the final stage.
National anthem of the year: Antoine Delie’s alternative Belgium national anthem performance was quite something. However, it did look like Alonso and Russell were trying not to laugh!
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Antoine Delie sings the national anthem at the Belgian Grand Prix
Antoine Delie sings the national anthem at the Belgian Grand Prix
Podium of the year: Canada, where multiple champions Verstappen, Alonso and Hamilton were joined by multiple-title-winning designer Adrian Newey. You needed a calculator to work out the combined number of world titles.
Mistaken weather forecast of the year: Only George Russell thought it was raining at the Spanish Grand Prix. It turned out just to be sweat on the inside of his visor instead.
Announcement of the year: Now we’re not talking about a piece of news here but an actual announcement. Famous sports announcer Bruce Buffer shouted “Sergio Checo Perez” right in the driver’s face ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. To make it worse, Perez appeared to think he was going to be interviewed, so stood next to Buffer for 20 awkward seconds.
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Sergio Perez was treated to a special introduction from UFC’s Bruce Buffer ahead of the Las Vegas GP
Sergio Perez was treated to a special introduction from UFC’s Bruce Buffer ahead of the Las Vegas GP
Shock exits of the year: Nothing quite compares to the triple departures announced by Alpine on the Friday of the Belgian GP. Team boss Otmar Szafnauer and long-serving sporting director Alan Permane were out at the end of that very weekend, while Pat Fry was headed to Williams.
24 races in 2024! Watch every round of next season live on Sky Sports F1, starting with the Bahrain Grand Prix from February 29-March 2. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and his Ferrari counterpart Frederic Vasseur lost their cool during a press conference in Las Vegas; watch every session from the season-ending Abu Dhabi GP live on Sky Sports from this Friday at 9.30am, with lights out on Sunday at 1pm
Last Updated: 23/11/23 3:08pm
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Toto Wolff defended the Las Vegas track and F1 organisers saying it’s not a ‘black eye’ for the sport after a drain cover damage ended FP1 early.
Toto Wolff defended the Las Vegas track and F1 organisers saying it’s not a ‘black eye’ for the sport after a drain cover damage ended FP1 early.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and his Ferrari counterpart Frederic Vasseur have been given formal warnings by Formula 1 stewards for using foul language during a press conference at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The bad-tempered exchanges occurred in the same press conference, shortly after the opening practice section in Las Vegas had been cancelled due to a faulty water valve cover coming out of the ground and causing damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
Vasseur was furious at the damage to Sainz’s car, which would ultimately lead to a 10-place grid penalty for the Spaniard for exceeding his allowance of engine parts, and the Ferrari boss reacted angrily when the interviewer attempted to move onto a more generic topic.
Wolff, meanwhile, was responding to being asked whether the incident had been “a black eye” for F1, when an interjection from another journalist provoked an angry response.
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The Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice One was suspended after eight minutes due to a track defect that forced Carlos Sainz to stop his car.
The Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice One was suspended after eight minutes due to a track defect that forced Carlos Sainz to stop his car.
With F1 having now moved onto Abu Dhabi for the season finale, the duo were summoned to the stewards at the event on Thursday to explain their actions.
Both were found to have used “unacceptable” language that “is not consistent with the values defended by the FIA”, but avoided more severe punishment due to extenuating circumstances.
In Vasseur’s case, the stewards said: “The Team Principal was extremely upset and frustrated by the incident that had occurred in FP1 and that language such as this, by him, was not usual.”
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Frederic Vasseur fumed in the team principal news conference, describing the damage sustained to Carlos Sainz’s car as ‘just unacceptable’ and saying that ‘this will cost us a fortune’.
Frederic Vasseur fumed in the team principal news conference, describing the damage sustained to Carlos Sainz’s car as ‘just unacceptable’ and saying that ‘this will cost us a fortune’.
While in Wolff’s case, the stewards said: “Based on the submission from the Team Principal, the use of the language concerned was in this case unusual and was provoked by an abrupt interjection during the Press Conference and therefore cannot be regarded as typical from this Team Principal.”
What did Wolff and Vasseur say in rants?
After explaining the damage that had been done to Sainz’s car, Vasseur lost his cool when being asked a general question about the success of the event as a whole.
“What Carlos said was he hit something on track and didn’t know exactly what it was. We completely damaged the monocoque, engine and battery. It’s just unacceptable,” said Vasseur.
“We f***** up the session for Carlos and he won’t be part of FP2, that’s for sure, because we have to change the chassis and set up the car. The show is the show and everything is going well but it’s unacceptable for F1 today.”
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Carlos Sainz says he is in ‘disbelief’ after receiving a 10-place grid drop for his Ferrari due to a damage that was out of his control at the Las Vegas GP.
Carlos Sainz says he is in ‘disbelief’ after receiving a 10-place grid drop for his Ferrari due to a damage that was out of his control at the Las Vegas GP.
Wolff began answering a question from a journalist regarding the damage that the incident could do to F1’s image, when another journalist interjected questioning his defence of the event.
“It’s completely ridiculous, completely ridiculous,” Wolff said. “FP1 – how can you even dare trying to talk bad about the event that sets the new standards, new standards to everything.
“And then you’re speaking about a drain ****ing cover that’s been undone. That has happened before, that’s nothing. It’s FP1. Give credit to the people that have set up this Grand Prix, that have made this sport much bigger than it ever was.
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Craig Slater describes how drain covers were forced up and did damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari during P1 of the Las Vegas GP.
Craig Slater describes how drain covers were forced up and did damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari during P1 of the Las Vegas GP.
“Have you ever spoken good about someone and written a good word? You should about all these people that have been out here. Liberty has done an awesome job and just because in FP1 a drain cover has become undone, we shouldn’t be moaning.
“The car is broken. That’s really a shame for Carlos. It could have been dangerous. So between the FIA and the track, everybody needs to analyse how we can make sure that this is not happening again.
“But talking here about the black eye for the sport on a Thursday evening, nobody watches that in European time anyway.”
Sky Sports F1’s live Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday November 24
7am: F2 Practice
9am: Abu Dhabi GP Practice One (session starts at 9.30am)
10.55pm: F2 Qualifying
12.45pm: Abu Dhabi GP Practice Two (session starts at 1pm)
2.15pm: The F1 Show
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Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson takes a look at the Yas Marina Circuit ahead of this weekend’s final race of the season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Sky F1’s Anthony Davidson takes a look at the Yas Marina Circuit ahead of this weekend’s final race of the season at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Saturday November 25
10.15am: Abu Dhabi GP Practice Three (session starts at 10.30am)
12.15pm: F2 Sprint
1.15pm: Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying build-up
2pm: Abu Dhabi GP Qualifying
4pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Sunday November 26
9.10am: F2 Feature Race
11.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Abu Dhabi GP build-up
1pm: The ABU DHABI GRAND PRIX
3pm: Chequered Flag: Abu Dhabi GP reaction
4pm: Ted’s Notebook
After the thrills of Las Vegas, Formula 1 heads to Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit for the 2023 season finale and another stunning spectacle under the lights. Watch the Abu Dhabi weekend live on Sky Sports F1, with lights out on Sunday at 1pm. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
Target is hosting one of the best promotions we’ve seen yet during Black Friday — and that’s saying something, given how good these early Black Friday deals are. Through Nov. 25, virtually all books, movies, and music in the retailer’s catalog are buy two, get one free. Just add three items to your cart, and the least expensive item is free. The only exceptions are pre-order items and new releases that came out this week.
There is a wide array of products that are eligible during this sale, including 4K movies, manga box sets, art books, and vinyl, so we’ve rounded up some recommendations from each category we think you’ll like. However, if you’re not moved by our picks, you can head over to Target’s Black Friday deals page to check out the wares yourself.
Target book deals
A hardcover, leatherbound box set of the Game of Thrones saga is on sale for $62.16 (was $85).
The hardcover collection of The Complete Calvin and Hobbes is currently available for $225. The three-book set features every Calvin and Hobbes cartoon penned by Bill Watterson from 1985 to 1996.
Normally $219.99, you can currently find the 35th Anniversary box set of Akira on sale for $127.99. The clever clamshell case holds six hardcover volumes of the manga in addition to the Akira Club art book and an embroidered patch sporting the iconic pill design.
The three-book Silo Series by Hugh Howey (the very same stories that inspired the Apple TV Plus show) is currently on sale for $40.99 (was $60).
While they aren’t exactly game-ready references, The Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurers Collection is a great, stat-block-free, introduction to the world of D&D. The four-book box set is currently on sale at Target for $23.49 (was $32.99).
The $99.99, 11-volume box set of Chainsaw Man is currently on sale at Target for $59.99.
Target graphic novel deals
Thought to be in permanent retirement, Calvin and Hobbes author Bill Watterson returned with his first original work in over 28 years, The Mysteries. A hardcover copy of The Mysteries is currently available from Target for $16.57 (was $19.99).
Normally $39.99, you can currently find the first and second volumes of the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Omnibus for just $31.99 each at Target. Each hardcover book features a collection of short works by Matt Groening and a variety of other talented illustrators.
Dune is an amazing work of science fiction, but it can be a bit dense. However, the three-volume graphic novel adaptation cuts through some of that with some excellent illustrations courtesy of Raul Allen and Patricia Martin. The first two volumes, Dune and Muad’dib, are each currently available from Target, with the final volume launching in June.
Target art book deals
The Star Wars Archives: 1977-1983 is a massive 604-page tome containing concept art, set photos, and script pages to provide insightful commentary on the original Star Wars trilogy. The paperback version is available for $32 at Target.
Star Wars Art: Ralph McQuarrie is a two-volume, hardcover compendium of McQuarrie’s work, showing off his conceptual paintings and costume designs, along with several exclusive illustrations and commentaries on each piece. This box set is currently on sale at Target for $210.99 (was $300).
This two-volume compendium of McQuarrie’s work shows off his conceptual paintings and costume designs, along with several exclusive illustrations and commentaries on each piece.
A hardcover-bound visual collection of the complete works of Studio Ghibli is currently on sale at Target for $22.49 (was $34.95). The 160-page book features concepts and stills from 26 films from the house of Miyazaki.
Target movie deals
The Fifth Element is essential viewing for sci-fi fans who also get a kick out of anything that has Bruce Willis in it. Target is currently offering the 4K Blu-ray version of The Fifth Element with a Steelbook case for $29.99.
The 4K Blu-ray version of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, the inaugural animated feature starring The Dark Knight (that still really holds up), is currently available from Target for $23.49.
The 40th anniversary edition of Ridley Scott’s earliest hit, Alien, is currently available in 4K Blu-ray format from Target for $18.99.
The summer’s pinkest existential crisis caught on film, Barbie, is now available in 4K Blu-ray format from Target for $24.99.
I can’t tell you what the plot of Tron Legacy was, but I can tell you that Daft Punk provided nothing but bangers for the soundtrack. Right now, you can get the original soundtrack on vinyl at Target for $24.99.
It’s difficult to point to a singular work of composer John Williams, but The Empire Strikes Back is inarguably one of his best. This single LP captures the majesty of the National Philharmonic Orchestra in the way only vinyl can. Currently, you can pick up this soundtrack from Target for $29.99.
Hans Zimmer, the composer responsible for the scores for countless epic films, teamed up with the Odessa Orchestra and Choir to record some of his most famous pieces for a vinyl set. The four-LP vinyl box set available from Target includes pieces from Gladiator, Dune, Interstellar, and more.
Inarguably the pinkest album of the year, the Barbie soundtrack pressed onto bubblegum-colored vinyl is available from Target for $27.99.
Max Verstappen: ‘In this political environment we are in every team thinks about themselves and they are going to say ‘no, he has to take the penalty’; watch Sunday’s Las Vegas GP live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Showcase. Race starts at 6am with build-up from 4.30am
Last Updated: 18/11/23 11:08am
Max Verstappen has called for an F1 rule change after labelling the grid penalty given to Carlos Sainz for Sunday’s Las Vegas GP “very harsh”, in the wake of the major damage caused to the Ferrari by a loose circuit drain cover.
And following suggestions that other teams may have challenged the matter had stewards not followed the regulations in the matter, the world champion also said rivals should be excluded from having any say as “in this political environment we are in of course every team thinks about themselves”.
Sainz said on Friday night he had been left in “disbelief” that Ferrari’s request for special dispensation to avoid a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding permitted power unit part changes had been rejected, given the freak circumstances of what happened when the water valve cover failed as he drove over it at high-speed during opening practice.
Stewards said that while they would have liked to grant the team dispensation, they were hamstrung by the sport’s regulations and so had no choice but to impose a mandatory grid drop on Sainz.
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The Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice One was suspended after eight minutes due to a track defect that forced Carlos Sainz to stop his car
The Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice One was suspended after eight minutes due to a track defect that forced Carlos Sainz to stop his car
As a result, Sainz’s second-place result in Saturday’s qualifying session turns into a 12th-place starting position on Sunday’s race grid.
Although Verstappen may be the first driver to directly benefit from his Ferrari rival’s demotion, given he qualified third, the Dutchman expressed his disapproval about what happened to Sainz.
“The rules have to change for that,” said Verstappen, sitting alongside the Ferrari drivers in the post-qualifying press conference.
“It’s the same if you get taken out and have a big accident. You can lose parts of engine, energy store, all these kind of things.
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Sainz says he is ‘paying one of the most unfair penalties I have ever seen’ that ‘nobody agrees with’
Sainz says he is ‘paying one of the most unfair penalties I have ever seen’ that ‘nobody agrees with’
“So, first of all, that needs to change and these things can be taken into consideration that you can take a free penalty or not, it will not be counted.
“Besides, I think teams should not be allowed to have a say in these kind of things because for sure they are going to vote against that. I do think it’s very harsh on Carlos but in this political environment we are in of course every team thinks about themselves and they are going to say ‘no, he has to take the penalty’.
Austin stewards ruled after video hearing that the evidence Haaa presented to them over alleged track limits from the October 22 race did not constitute a “significant and relevant new element that was unavailable” at the time of the original decision
Last Updated: 09/11/23 3:23pm
Haas’ attempt to get United States GP stewards to re-investigate incidents of additional alleged track limits offences in the October 22 race has been rejected.
After a video hearing which started on Wednesday and was adjourned until Thursday for further discussion, stewards decided Haas’ submissions in the case did not meet the required criteria for a full right of review investigation.
A stewards’ statement read: “The Petition for the Right of Review is rejected because there is no significant and relevant new element that was unavailable to Haas at the time of the decision”.
More to follow…
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Fernando Alonso just pips Sergio Perez to a podium spot after an epic battle in the final stages of the race.
Fernando Alonso just pips Sergio Perez to a podium spot after an epic battle in the final stages of the race.
Fernando Alonso has admitted he thought a Sao Paulo Grand Prix podium “was gone” before reclaiming third place from Sergio Perez on the final lap of the race to conclude a thrilling battle between the pair.
Having spent the majority of the race chasing Alonso, Perez finally passed the Aston Martin on the penultimate lap of the race with a move into the first corner that appeared to have sealed a double podium for Red Bull, with world champion Max Verstappen easing to victory.
However, a small error from Perez gave Alonso the opportunity to retake the final podium spot in the second DRS zone on the run to Turn Four on their final tour, before the Spaniard held on to the position by just 0.053s on a charge to the finish line.
Alonso explained to Sky Sports F1 that he thought he had blown his chance of responding by running off line on the penultimate lap as he attempted to hit back having been passed.
“Honestly, I thought that maybe my chances were gone in Turn Six,” he said.
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Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso enjoyed an epic battle in the final stages of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso enjoyed an epic battle in the final stages of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
“I went on the outside to change line but then I picked up a lot of marbles and the tyres were dirty, they were vibrating as well and I thought, ‘ok, this is gone’.
“But then I wanted to have one more chance into Turn One or Turn Four with the DRS, maybe braking very aggressive, very late.
“I think he understood that as well, so he broke late into Turn One, missed the apex by one metre and that gave me the run into Turn Four.
“Unexpected, to be honest, when I lost the place I thought it was gone.”
Perez: Other drivers can learn from our battle
Perez, who crashed out of last weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix and last month’s Qatar Grand Prix Sprint following collisions, said that other drivers could learn from the way he and Alonso had fought for position.
“It was quite an intense battle,” Perez told Sky Sports F1. “We tried everything.
“Unfortunately we didn’t succeed on that, but it was well deserved for Fernando.
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The best of the action from a dramatic Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
The best of the action from a dramatic Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
“I think we had a great fight, very fair and to the limit. I think this is something that a lot of drivers can learn from because what we did, the way we fought today, it’s how it should be done.
“I’m in the wrong side, I end up losing but it’s fine because it was a great fight.”
Alonso agreed that it had been a “clean” contest, and admitted he was surprised to find Perez had matched his tyre-saving ability going into the final stages.
“It was nice, it was a clean battle,” Alonso said. “A very aggressive, but clean battle. Always with Checo I think he has a very good record on finishing the races and always battling hard but keeping both cars on track.
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Fernando Alonso overtakes Lewis Hamilton to move into third place at the restart of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso overtakes Lewis Hamilton to move into third place at the restart of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
“I knew that he was coming, I knew that he was a threat, and at the end it was maybe more difficult than I thought, to be honest.
“Five laps to the end, I thought that I had things under control, so I start pushing and then I look in the mirror and Checo was there, and I said ‘uh oh, I think he was saving tyres as well’.”
Perez: Matter of time before podium | Alonso happy for ‘united’ Aston Martin
Perez came into the weekend under major pressure amid continued speculation that Red Bull could look to replace him next season, despite a year still remaining on his contract.
While his run of races without a podium extends to six, a solid display in coming from a starting position of ninth to finish fourth was an improvement on many of his recent efforts.
“We’ve seen in the last couple of races that the pace has been there, that we’ve been really strong,” he added.
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Ted Kravitz talks to an elated Fernando Alonso after his dramatic podium finish at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Ted Kravitz talks to an elated Fernando Alonso after his dramatic podium finish at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
“For some reason or another we haven’t been able to get the final end result, but I just know that it’s a matter of time.”
Alonso’s podium puts an end to a dismal run of form from Aston Martin, with the Spaniard having retired from the previous two races after qualifying outside the top 10 on both occasions.
After a stunning start to the season which saw them surprisingly emerge as Red Bull’s closest challengers, the Silverstone-based team have failed to keep up with the development of the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren.
However, after choosing not to go with some of the upgraded parts that have failed to provide improvement, they returned to prominence in Brazil, with Alonso’s team-mate Lance Stroll finishing fifth.
“In the end I’m happy that we did it for the team,” Alonso said.
“We’re struggling a lot in the last two races but we never lost focus on what were the targets, we went deep in the analysis, we stayed united, we stayed together and this was a very nice thing to witness in the last two events.”
Get ready for the big one: Formula 1 in Las Vegas! See drivers race down the Strip, and past landmarks like Caesars Palace and the Bellagio, on F1’s newest street track. Watch the whole Las Vegas GP weekend live on Sky Sports F1 on November 17-19. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW
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