Notebook Letters 13.

Wise knows how to scare

It was actually Robert Wise who directed The Haunting. He also directed The Sound of Music. That shows for me that he was hugely talented with great range. Not only did he make one of the scariest films ever, he also made The Haunting. Marc, Salford

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 1/6.

Sincere thanks to the Vortexter who recommended foreign films. You've rescued me from Christmas TV h*ll this year (apart from It's A Wonderful Life, obviously). Richard, Hornchurch

Michael-Ghost Story will be released as a two-disc collectors' edition on November 9. T Rivers, Suss*x

Does anyone know the name of the film with Nicolas Cage in a cab where the driver breaks down? Pete, Aston

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 2/6.

I had to laugh at Paul from Plymouth's comments claiming the Star Wars prequels are bad. Pray tell then, Paul, how did they still manage to collectively gross $2.5bn? Not a bad haul, I'm sure you'll agree. Matthew, Wakefield

I have just watched Drag Me To H*ll and it's the scariest thing I've watched in ages. Matthew, Islandmagee

Can anyone help locate a copy of Faces In The Dark, 1960, please? Sue, Sudbury

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 3/6.

Prince trailer evokes Mummy

Just seen the new trailer to Prince of Persia (out next year when, sadly, Big Screen will no longer be around). Does anyone else get a The Mummy feel from it? Sade, Ess*x

A good death was Chico (Mario Brega) in A Fistful of Dollars. He was crushed by a giant whisky barrel that a beaten-up Clint Eastwood had sent rolling down a ramp to him. What a way to get smashed. Dodger, Colchester

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 4/6.

Modern films are rubbish

G- My collection is almost done, save for a few each year. For me it's easy as I do not love 99% of modern films. The obsession with CGI, weak stories, poor acting and dialogue make it easy not to part with cash. Not to mention the pointless remakes and over-hyped blockbusters. Peter, Saxmundham

Impulse buys are great for finding little gems. I discovered From Within, Out of The Blue and Dead Silence all on a whim. Dave, Banbury

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 5/6.

Best deaths mulled

Diva in The Fifth Element was Maiwenn Le Besco, vocals by Inva Mula Tchako. The best screen death is in Society- a guy is turned inside out! Duane, Hull

My favourite death scene is in '70s road movie Duel. The truck and the unseen dueler went over the cliff. Paul, Hants

Jon Bon Jovi in U-571 is a great death. Aren't films made in the US foreign films, or do we all think we're American? Matt, Leeds

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 5th of November, 2009; 6/6.

Quotations of the week

"Trying to carry on writing about soup tins didn't make any sense." Alex Turner defends Arctic Monkeys' new direction on Humbug.

"Those things can look like an obituary." Dave Grohl isn't best pleased at Foo Fighters' Hits album.

"To me, it's an interesting combination- Neu crossed with Beatles ideas." Michael Rother defends Oasis' inclusion on an album of Neu-influenced songs.

1/6.

The week ahead in radio

Robbie Williams and Sugababes do Fearne Cotton (Radio 1, Mon- Fri, 10am), while Brakes are on Nick Grimshaw (Mon- Thu, 10pm). Tony Iommi is on The Rock Show (Tue, 12am).

Morrissey is on Jonathan Ross (R2, Sat, 10am), followed by Dave Grohl and Jimmy Webb on Dermot O'Leary (3pm).

Fleetwood Mac are on Radcliffe & Maconie (Mon- Thu, 8pm). The Blagger's Guide (Thu, 10pm) looks at jazz.

2/6.

The week ahead in TV

Robbie Williams is on Jonathan Ross (BBC2, Fri, 10.35pm) and Favourites (C4, Sun, 11.30), while Athlete and Snow Patrol do 4Music (Sat, 12.30am).

Bloc Party, La Roux and Mika do Live From Abbey Road (C4, Sat, 11.20pm).

Alice In Chains, Martha Wainwright, Steve Martin, Black Joe and Rickie Lee Jones do Later Live (BBC2, Tue, 10pm) and Daniel Merriweather and Noisettes do Buzzc*cks (BBC2, Wed, 10).

3/6.

The week ahead in gigs

Beyoncé starts her tour on Wednesday, while Biffy Clyro kick off on Saturday.

Paul McCartney, Muse and Gary Barlow play at London Royal Albert Hall for Children In Need on Saturday.

Continuing tours include Babybird, Jarvis Cocker, Hundred Reasons, Mew, Liam Finn, Muse, The Flaming Lips, The Airbourne Toxic Event, The Sleeping Years and The Psychedelic Furs.

4/6.

Champs of the week

Steve Martin A friend of PS who saw his banjo gig in Nashville recently said it was an unexpected joy- not only is Steve Martin a decent musician but it's as close as he's got in 30 years to doing stand-up comedy. Which makes his shows here next week sound essential.

Snow Patrol Their secret gig on Wednesday was a joy- rather than a perfunctory few songs, it was a full set, with Gary Lightbody worthy of the stand-up comedy the pub usually hosts.

5/6.

Chumps of the week

The Strokes' Julian Casablancas is doing a Christmas single, Nikolai Fraiture finished about 23, 000 th in the New York marathon- their days of being achingly cool are gone...

Ticketmaster Has anyone tried to get through to a human being over booked tickets with them? PS was able to cancel some tickets bought in error, but only after an hour-long search for a customer services number that was like a very bad Franz Kafka pastiche.

6/6.

Teletext page 824; 6th of November, 2009.

Does Lynch not count as weird?

I can't believe that in a discussion of weird films, David Lynch has been mentioned only once, while straightforward films such as The Machinist are being touted as the weirdest thing people have seen? Marc, Salford

Vortex; Teletext page 817; 6th of November, 2009; 1/6.