Mon-Stars

     It is almost that time of year again.... Halloween of course!! So to get you in the mood is some 'old school' horror.... The original masters to be exact. With Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Claude Rains and Lon Chaney Jr to name but a few stars in this perfectly creepy correlated collection. But wait there be more. This isn't just a remastered collection of Blu-ray films, the box also contains art cards of the cinema posters from back in the day and a book with over 45 pages of behind the scenes pictures and information on each film.
     Watching these films back you can see where a lot of plots, themes and characters originate from for modern day movies. So you don't have to be a complete movie buff to appreciate them as not just films but works of art. As you can see its a complete package with a great layout of discs and corresponding snapshots from the films on the packaging which will make you proud to have this collection at the very front of your Blu-ray shelf at home.
     Each film has been remastered to bring it into the 21st century while still retaining that 1930's look to keep you loving every second.... of terror!! Now we are not going to bore you with every single detail of every film but all we'll say is it will definitely get you in the mood for the season and if you are a tad on the creative side then it may get your juices flowing to film your own or bust out the costumes.... We would undoubtedly love to see them.
     The box set includes,
- Dracula
- Frankenstein
- The Mummy
- The Invisible Man
- The Bride of Frankenstein
- The Wolf Man
- Phantom of The Opera
- Creature From The Black Lagoon

     Vintage Horror has always been a big influence, whether it be the actors, style or the poster and concept art. Simply seductive black and white or vivid saturated colour, fonts and framing composition make for great wall art and even our own 'Taken By Force' logo has inspiration from 1930's style posters as you can see from the cards bellow. Particularly Frankenstein and The Creature From The Black Lagoon.

     You can pick all this up for between £20-£25, considering all the discs, art cards and backstage literature we think this is a great deal and a great night in. So grab the chips, dips and your favourite pillow to hide behind and treat yourself to a FRIGHT NIGHT!!

Chill Out and Muc-Off!

     It isn't always easy to get all your fluids in to cool yourself down, in what little summer time we have in this country and handheld fans go through AA batteries like the Fast and The Furious cast go through gears. Now the clever people at Muc-Off have come up with the 'Ice-Fresh Sports Towel' for the ultimate fresh, clean feeling ideal for when you're on the go.

     First of all a little history lesson for those of you who haven't heard of Muc-Off and their fabulous products before. It all started in 1991 when Rex and Marilyn Trimnell started X-Lite UK, designing the world's first twin crown bicycle fork and came across the problem of keeping their goods clean as a whistle. 3 years later the Eco friendly pink cleaning fluid was formulated, keeping components clean and corrosive free, and in their words "the best thing since sliced bread". Since then they have been making leaps and bounds into various cycle and motor sports with a vast range of products to keep you and your kit crisp and clean. Even becoming one of the leading brands on Le Tour de France for....

      Back to the product, using its revolutionary, high performance materials the towel can react with the moisture to provide an instant cooling sensation. Which is ideal for cooling and cleaning when you're on the move. Keeping in with the same style as the rest of the range, the packaging is simple but very effectively creative with the standard issue black and pink. Like many other Muc-Off products i've used in the past, I also found several uses for the packaging after the towel had come out.

     I must admit it is one of the weirdest sensations of being cooled down with moisture but not actually getting wet that i've ever had.... Not only does it keep you cool, with it's built in Factor 45 (SPF45) it shields you from harmful UV rays when you're in the sun as well. Here are the simple directions on how to use it, but I mean its a towel.... How hard can it be right?!

Step 1 - Wet towel with water.

Step 2 - Squeeze out excess moisture.

Step 3 - Hold the towel at both ends and pull apart, snapping the towel at both ends. (Watch out for the odd moisture to the eye.... CHEEKY!)

Step 4 - To reactivate, simply snap again. To reactivate a dry towel, repeat steps 1 to 3.

      As you can see after use the towel quite easily can be folded neatly back again to it's original packaged form. Because NO ONE likes trying to cram a tent back in it's bag again do they. You can find the Muc-Off towel at most cycling and sports shops between £6-£10, so not a bad buy considering the longevity of use you get. We highly recommend this product not only for sporting use but general outdoor shenanigans as well.

Most importantly don't forget your fluids throughout the day!!

The Start of Something AWESOME!

     Hello, welcome.... come on in. This is the 'Taken By Force' blog, set up by a few people to hopefully help a LOT of people. We're all general knowledge folks who in our job's, passion's or just lifestyle's have certain skills and qualifications that may come in handy for others.

     This blog is just one small part of our 'operation' with Facebook and Instagram pages as well that you can check out for more daily updates. But what are those updates I hear you ask..... Well on this blog you'll find everything from product testing to product knowledge from our experts and even little 'How To' sections so you get the BEST results. And if we don't know about it then we'll find someone who does!

     We've based most of our reviews and testing around sports and the motoring industry, whether it be finding you the best car shampoo and applicators or reviewing the new downhill tyres for the up coming season and showing you how to successfully fit them and everything in between. We also have a more tech side with gaming, PC and media posts for that perfect movie in or checking out the latest games and consoles. 

In the future we plan to start up a YouTube channel that will hopefully give you, the viewers a better insight and detailed picture of how we roll and make the 'How to' bits easier to follow. Events and shows we visit will also get posted on here as well as the channel and our other social media pages.

So stay tuned and remember, don't just settle..... Take by force!