ESSIE SPEAKS OF WHAT'S NEW THIS MONTH

Ok, ok here I am, so so sorry I'm late!

But come on. It's the festive season. There were big meals with family, followed by lots of sitting around by the television feeling probably quite similar to an anaconda who has just swallowed a goat. There was much catching up and a lot of festive spirit so my inner blogger got the tiniest bit... Distracted. I know you get it. And I hope your Christmas was just as fun and peaceful as mine.

But this does not mean I was sitting on my hands through the festive season gentle reader. Oh no. I am so cutting edge and up to date at the moment (ehm) that I come to you this week with two brand-spanking new television and cinema extravaganzas. One of my New Year's resolutions is to keep the blog more "up to date" so hopefully you will be reading more about what is actually in cinemas at the time and less about my random dives into my film collection. I'm not making any promises though. Just saying.

So anyway peeps, belated Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year! See y'all in 2013!

Essie

STEP INSIDE YOUR OWN MIND : "LIFE OF PI"

Ok, confession time. I was so impressed by this film, and I mean, so SERIOUSLY impressed that it played a large part in my delaying the update for a day. My sincere apologies. But it was so good, I literally couldn’t wait a whole week to talk about it. And, ok, credit where it’s due, I did have a reasonable amount of time to write the entry. That’s when the turkey and potatoes got in the way. And I actually had other posts ready but… You see… Come on though. I know you’ll forgive me. It’s Christmas. And besides, it’s Ang Lee. He just happens to be one of my favourite directors.  And this film soared to the top ten of my favourite films ever almost the second I finished it; all this without reading the book at all I might add.

Life of Pi is the story of many things. Life, religion, philosophy… It is one of those stories that you can make whatever you feel it should mean. This is actually rather strange, because on the surface it doesn’t seem to be one of those stories at all. Pi is a young boy of 16 when he is shipwrecked. He is lucky enough to find himself in a lifeboat with supplies enough to keep him going for a while at least. However, he is not alone on the boat. A large and vicious Bengal tiger, part of the ship’s cargo, has also made its way onto the lifeboat… Pi must now attempt to survive being shipwrecked in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, a Bengal tiger and, maybe the most frightening aspect of all, being completely and utterly alone with himself…

Ok, first of all, the film. I mean, wow. The film is stunning, first and foremost as a film in itself. Lee is, as you may know, a master at creating and conveying dream-like “film worlds”. He does not fail here. In fact, I can almost guarantee you that the visuals of the film alone will ensure you leave the cinema mildly – if not completely – stunned. This is also a good example of using the CGI in an understated way. Here, yes most things are computer generated. However, no big explosions, no dragons, nothing is overdone. I mean, the realism of the film is to the degree that, the rest of the family was in some division over whether some bits were actual photography or not. It is my professional opinion that most of it was not but I can’t help but be impressed. You can actually use computers to make “fake” images look almost better than real life.  And if that isn’t something to think about, I don’t know what is.

But of course, this isn’t the only “thing to think about” the film provides. As you can imagine (or perhaps already know as I seem to be literally the only person on the planet who hasn’t read the book yet) the book is, more than anything else, an invitation to consider some of the most important philosophical questions in life. As the story unfolds, the number of possible interpretations also grows and we are, at the end of the day, left alone with ourselves, much like Pi, to consider what really happened. And please don’t be put off by the concept of “philosophising”. It is not that kind of film at all. It will draw you in gently and almost despite yourself. I mean, trust me, even if it isn’t normally your thing, you won’t be able to help thinking about it.  Come on. Step right in. You know you’re at least curious by now. 

A SEQUEL 30 YEARS IN THE MAKING : "THE SNOWMAN AND THE SNOWDOG"

Anyone living in the UK knows that this one had to make the cut this week. Ok, it isn’t technically a film, heck it’s only 23 minutes long actually. But it’s a Christmas tradition. We have waited for the sequel for nigh on 30 years. Admittedly, back in the day when I first watched it I was actually traumatized by The Snowman. Not because the snowman melted. Because in my mind, somehow, the snowman actually abducted the child – heck, I was relieved he melted! The fact that I was terrified of heights even back in those days when I was knee-high to a grasshopper wouldn’t have contributed to my enjoyment of the flight scenes. But all the same. Come on, this is a historical moment peeps.

Now, this is usually the point at which I tell you what the story is about. But, fair warning, we got into an extremely heated family discussion as to what the premise of the story was. I, therefore, missed a large part of the first five minutes. But I will try and reflect my school of thought. There are several opposing schools of thought (yes, every detail matters, we're that kind of family). And naturally I’m not checking this online. I am confident in my film analysis abilities. So there. (Edit: Just before posting this update I actually did a Google search: YES it is the ORIGINAL HOUSE with a DIFFERENT boy. In case anyone who participated in the afore-mentioned heated discussion is reading). 

The story takes place in the original house of the snowman. Only it is years later and there is a new family living there now. The little boy of the family is about the same age as our original hero, although it’s all a bit sad in that his beloved dog has just died. Anyway, one day, when playing in his room, he discovers the old box where the original snowman’s things along with a picture of said snowman and our original hero are kept. Our current hero likes this idea and next time it snows, makes a snowman with said materials. He then goes on to construct a snow dog in memory of his beloved  dog.  Lo and behold, on the stroke of midnight the snowman comes alive – and so does the “snow dog”! . Let the festivities begin J

Ok, one thing. They have changed the soundtrack. They actually axed “walking in the air”. There are several music professionals in the family whose professional opinion it is that they should have at least done variations on the theme as they flew over the city. Apart from that though, it’s spot on. I feel that following the original style of animation was absolutely the right call. And even though, I mean, naturally there is nothing wildly original about it, it is just a warm, fuzzy bundle of joy to watch.

One alarming thing I learnt about myself though is that I actually have now got into the rather antisocial habit of  blurting out the ends of films – or rather my predictions of them – which these days often turn out to be right (ehm ehm. Not to blow my own trumpet or anything.) I did the self-same thing and somehow amazed the family at the end of this one as well. I would normally jot down being able to predict the end of the film as an actual minus, but in this case… Well. We’re watching it because it’s a classic folks, not for its originality value. Merry Christmas. 

APPOLOGIES FOR DELAY

Hey folks! Just wanted to give some sign of life asap as I have been uncharacteristically late at updating the blog this week.

It's all the Christmas dinner damnit. Copious amounts of turkey and roast potato later one gets a tiny bit sluggish.

Bare with me until tomorrow morning, the blog should be updated by 10.00 a.m. GMT. What can you look forward to? Well, the theme of the week is "new this december". So we will talk about a classic we have all been waiting for for rather a long time and a new film that, in my humble opinion, is well on the way to becoming a modern classic (hint : Ang Lee, you've done it again!). 

Thanks for baring with me peeps, and a belated merry Christmas to you and all your loved ones!

Essie

ESSIE SPEAKS OF LOVE AND MONEY

I mean as concepts. I don't mean the classic film starring Michael J. Fox, besides that was called "For Love or Money". Note to self, must review that too sometimes, it wasn't a bad film at all. If I ever get the time. At the moment, factoring in time for sundry matters such as showers and meals are a challange. Much less digging up old films from God only knows where.

I have a seasonal part time job you see. And 'tis the season for office parties. Especially relevant if you work in catering. (I know, my employment record looks nothing short of schizophrenic at the moment but oh well. There's a recession on. You do what you can to live thrive and survive in the worlds of Elwood Blues). But hang on, let's talk about recessions for a second. Heck, let's talk about them a lot. In fact, if you scroll down to my second post of the day, we will be able to do just that. If you are not in the mood for something so serious (and indeed, "why so serious?" in the words of... Oh come on, you know who). I can offer you the funniest, most awkward and by far most romantic love film I have watched in a long time : Moonrise Kingdom. Don't be decieved by the age of the heroes. Serious stuff going on here.

Anyway, happy  viewing folks, I still have Christmas presents to wrap!
Essie

MY FUNNY VALENTINE : "MOONRISE KINGDOM"

Don’t get me wrong, I have never had anything but respect for Wes Anderson. It grew even more when I saw his rendition of Fantastic Mr. Fox. I mean, wow. Seriously, wow. That was something. But this… This is just… I am not known for being caught short for words but I am actually having trouble describing this film. It is categorically the sweetest film I have ever seen with the best examples of absurd comedy and caricatures that I have ever seen. You can neither get “into” the film and be swept away by it nor can you help sympathizing completely with the characters and getting caught up in it emotionally. I mean, I kid you not, this film bends time it’s that exciting. And yet you’re always an outsider looking in – and you feel it very clearly. How does this come about? Let me try and explain as best I can…

Sam Shatusky and Susy Bishop are lovers. There seems to be nothing wrong with this statement in itself. The thing is, they are 12. Ok, you may say, a bit young, but still, nothing wrong. The thing is though, neither Sam nor Susy are exactly your average 12 year-olds. They are both, in their own ways, problem children. To the point that their families, friends (well, acquaintances anyway) and their teachers alike are unsure what to do with them. Sam and Susy however, being problematic yet not stupid, come up with a simple solution. Elope, find a place to live, start a new life together far, far away. Which again would be completely fine if they were not 12. As they are 12, however, once our lovers elope, the entire population of the small town they live in comes out in force to look for them.  In the process, of course, quite a few dirty secrets start to see the light of day… It turns out, in fact that our “normal” little town may not be quite as normal as they make themselves out to be.

One thing here is absolutely certain. Anderson has captured the absolute essence of “awkwardness”. This is not some “cutie” story of young romance, people. It talks of being out of place, sticking out, of being alone. It talks of being surrounded by people who never quite understand.  It does this in absurd looking ways sometimes, but the emotions the situations end up conveying clearly, very clearly, leap in straight from real life.

As I said, Anderson uses every trick in the book, every technical gimmick possible to make us feel like “spectators”. But this works brilliant with this particular story, because this is exactly how Susy and Sam feel. Spectators. Outsiders. Not allowed to join in and not sure why. Like I said, you would have to be made of stone not to know exactly what Anderson is talking about here. He has literally taken the emotions out of the emotional field and slapped them onto a screen. And this, boys and girls, does not happen that often.

And I mean. What a cast. Edward Norton, Bruce Willis, Bill Muray, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swindon are all superb. But Kara Hayword who plays Susy and Jared Gilman who plays Sam, who happen to be completely novice actors also definitely deserve a mention. I will risk sounding like a complete old hack and say it is that “raw” quality to their acting that makes them stand out, as opposed to the confidence exuded by some child-stars that makes them seem just that tiny bit unrealistic no matter how good they are. Not only do they work absolutely brilliantly together, but they succeed completely in realistically “being” their characters. I have a feeling they will go far.

This is not a film for the ex-cheerleaders and football jocks among us. This is a film about how it felt to be, well, all the rest of us. On the outside. I am confident you will love this film. Please, please don’t miss it. 

WELL, IT DOES MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND! "MASTERS OF MONEY"

Ok, I decided to try something a little different this week.  Just a tiny bit different, you know. I mean, the series I’m going to talk about is technically a series of documentaries so I’m not that far off the mark. However, they are less cinematic and more of the educational sort. Not surprising really, seeing as they were prepared by the Open University. See, but the thing is, given the turbulent times we live in, I think these are necessary and useful. If only because I feel we really, truly need to understand the world we live in. More specifically the economic situation we are in. Given the fact that the global recession (being global and all) pretty much touched us all in some form or another, I think this is important. Because these documentaries aren’t about some flashy banking scandal or something. They are about serious economists. And more specifically, how their scientific theories could be used to explain and potentially solve the global crisis we are in today. This documentary presents the three main “schools of thought” and invites you to make your own decision at the end of the day.

Now, the documentary is made up of three episodes of one hour each, each one dedicated to a particular thinker and economist. We study the theories of Keynes, Hayek (who, I admit to my shame I had never heard of despite my original International Relations training) and the inevitable Karl Marx. The episodes are biographical, as documentaries are want to be, but also contain a heavy-ish dose of their theoretical work as well. The main aim of the programme is to take these theories and apply them to the crisis today. Every thinker has (or rather would have, seeing as they have all been dead for a while now) a suggestion that is radically different from the others. You will not only gain a lot of general culture through these programmes you may also gain a deeper understanding of what is going on around us. The recession isn’t over yet, as you probably well know.

Well, like I said, this is one to be watched for educational value more than entertainment. It is heavy on the economics and its main aim is to put across economic theory, not juicy titbits from the lives of the three men. However, if you do want to start thinking about these things, or want to learn a bit more, refresh your memory etc, these programmes are for you. I mean, hand on heart. Numbers and I have never got along. I get on even less with complex economic theory. Give me words; I can pretty much get them to do anything. Give me numbers – and anything more complex than basic sums – my IQ usually drops to about 10. No, not the IQ of a ten-year old. 10 on the measurement scale. Given this fact, the Open University seems to have pretty much idiot-proofed the documentaries. No matter how familiar you may (or may not) be with economics, you can pretty much be sure you will work away with at least a basic understanding of the theories discussed and how they apply to the crisis today. I mean, it got me thinking about economics. And that is most DEFINITELY an achievement.