Cannon & McGrath's Most Wanted List

Cannon and McGrath Dutch Angle Style.

THE FUTURIST! was recently befriended by Irish police detectives Cannon and McGrath after he assisted them, and their Chief, with information regarding counterfeit Guinness being mass produced and black marketed overseas by unscrupulous characters in a certain part of New Jersey. How THE FUTURIST! was able to assist them cannot be disclosed except to say that it involved a lot of vomiting. Anywho, since he has made their acquaintance and found them to be quite affable, THE FUTURIST! asked them to give him a list of their favorite television detective/police/crime programs. They acquiesced immediately and sent him the following list:

CANNON & McGRATH'S FAVORITE TV CRIME SHOWS
(list compiled while they were on duty)

McGrath:
The Wire: This one took me a while to get into but it definitely lives
up to the hype. I particularly love the bluesy soundtrack and backdrop
of Baltimore. It's very complex and you get a lot out of watching it
for a second time.

The Shield: Criminally, this one is often overlooked, but I think it's
one of the most thrilling and dramatic shows on TV. Great acting and
the camera work (which I was initially put off by) add so much to it.

Cannon:
The Sweeney: Excitingly basic thrills and gritty storylines make this
an essential '70s British police show. No matter how boring an
episode's plot has been, when it abruptly ends and makes way for the
poignant closing theme, you're always left wanting more.

The Job: A sitcom based in a New York police precinct, starring Denis
Leary. The same team went on to create the much more successful, and
more hard-hitting, Rescue Me. One of the funniest shows around, it
was, of course, cancelled after one series.

Police Squad: A send-up of the police genre which went on to spawn the
even funnier, and tighter, The Naked Gun series. But, there are still
plenty of glimmers of that genius here, not least the "freeze-frame"
gag at the end of every episode.

Columbo: Always on TV on a Sunday afternoon, Columbo is a very
danger-free detective show. We always know who has committed the crime
(as does Columbo), but keep watching for two hours until he tells
them. Typically, they always take it well.

And here is one of their adventures. It begins with one of THE FUTURIST!'s favorite opening shots in film history.

Galway Birthday

THE FUTURIST! wishes a very Happy Birthday this November 6th to one of his most faithful followers of and contributors to this blog ... young Mr. Dara Moroney of Galway, Ireland. THE FUTURIST! can't exactly recall when he became acquainted with Dara and his creative team of FAKE DOG FILMS; it was through another Internet source and not the blog you are currently perusing. Dara and his creative partner in film, Paul "Webby" Webster, have been under the scrutiny of THE FUTURIST! for some time. He has watched their films from the very first they created (a parody of the television show LOST) to the very latest they have produced. Though crude in its execution, their first short film provided THE FUTURIST! with great chuckles due to their sense of capturing the show's stop and stall sense of plot structure. It had an aura of intelligent spoofing and Dara was a perfect stand-in for Matthew Fox with his short cropped hair and rumpled suit wandering throughout a stark Irish wooded plot of land which stood in for the mysterious island. This film made THE FUTURIST! want to see what else they would accomplish. Dara and Paul continued to make more films and music videos for local and more prominently known Irish bands.

They've made several of these music videos (a style they seem very comfortable with), a couple of pieces featuring them as themselves in a situation comedy sort of manner and a short (and sequel) that tries to capture a 70s feel of "buddy cop" films. Though not THE FUTURIST!'s favorite of their endeavours, the Cannon and McGrath cop characters have a certain charm and their first "adventure" has an exquisite opening that might impress Godard. Dara, also, has a favorite look in these films that THE FUTURIST! finds perfectly retro 70s and quite amusing .. look at that moustache (below)

Whether you find their films funny or whimsical or amateurish or not to your liking at all ... well, that is not the point to THE FUTURIST!'s collection of words he has gathered together here to, hopefully, make sense of how he feels about the wonderful drive, creativity and optimism of these Irish gentlemen and their wonderful cohorts in film making. THE FUTURIST!'s main motto is "The Future is not bright", but Dara makes THE FUTURIST! smile and gives him hope. Dara's ambition and bravado to strive to be better and accomplish his dreams is to be admired. THE FUTURIST! wishes Dara the happiest of birthdays today and hopes he embraces every minute of a day he can truly call his own.

If it weren't for the wonders of the Internet, THE FUTURIST! would not be able to bring a little of Galway to Utter Despair, even though it is an ocean away. And he would not have been able to see the creative growth of Mr. Moroney and his merry men. The following videos are favorites of THE FUTURIST! and they are both music videos. Please take note of the progression in style, design, editing and thought put into each, but ... brought to a shining evolution in the second video. You will see Dara in each video as the runner in the first and the electrical handyman in the second. THE FUTURIST! must admit he does not fully understand the first in regard to song tied to visual, but he loves the idea and the mood it instills.


NEXT YEAR
music by Buttefly Explosion



BRING THE DANCE
music by Simon Fagan

Grand, isn't it?

Happy Birthday, Dara ... and thank you for providing THE FUTURIST!
with one of those little oases of refreshment in the desert of Life.

Dara and Paul

FAKE DOG FILMS