Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Can You Feel It...?

Mes Amis

Just tuned in to Channel Fuckin' 4 (as it must be officially known) to see that for once it was no "best of" or even a show with breasts. Actually, it was professional Ginger oddball Derren Brown doing his old hypnosis tricks again. I find Derren pretty fascinating in that he is so easily able to manipulate people, even now. I mean, surely anyone who sees Derren (and he's not exactly unnoticable with his ginger fuzz) walking towards them is gonna know that something's up. And yet they fail to realise anything is wrong.

Take tonight with Derren taking a management course. Anyone on that course has gotta know that nothing is as it seems. But still they go along with it, barely aware that Derren's setting them up to perform an armed robbery.

Four people on the course were programmed to respond to certain stimuli and hold up a cash transfer outside of a bank. All well and good. Three out of four committed the crime. The last guy didn't.

Which I thought was interesting. And could have warranted some explanation. After all, we have a shot of the guy afterwards saying (with a loopy grin on his features) "I'm a good person" like that explains it all. Which is worrying in itself. Because it means that even without Derren's programming the other three have something in their psychological makeup that made them far more susceptible to committing criminal acts whenever they heard a car playing "Can you feel it?" on the stereo.

All of which could have been extended and given over to the next part of the programme as some psychological analysis which could have been interesting. But it wasn't. Derren programs people. They commit robbery. Except one. End of story.

Once again, Channel fuckin' 4 leaves me feeling vaguely disspointed.

Quel surprise.

Au revoir

Russel

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You did not feel disappointed. In fact, you thought it was the best programme you've ever seen. And you'll continue to say good things about Ray Banks.

Russel said...

Wow, Derren you are a man with good taste. I mean coming here, not just reading the Banks...

Or else nothing is as it seems. And perhaps you are not as you seem. Which is perfectly plausible.

Try and control my mind, would you... You ain't got a hope in...

...Or maybe it is possible since the bank heist program left me fulfilled...

By the way, does anyone else think that as well as being the most talented writer on the planet, Ray Banks is also the most handsome?

John Rickards said...

Ah, fuck. I knew there'd been something I'd meant to actually watch this week. And there's never been any sign of C4 repeating any of the one-off specials. Bollocks.