The Art of Conversation...

Within the last 24 hours, 3 of my all-time favourite films have cropped up in several totally different conversations and I decided this was too much of a coincidence to not write about them. All 3 are connected in that each tell the story of 2 people falling in love in a very limited amount of time and with very little they can do in regards to their feelings. And all 3 are so brilliant at portraying love through the art of 2 people talking about... well, nothing in particular.

• BRIEF ENCOUNTER

What makes 'Brief Encounter' so wonderful a classic is its use of internal monologue. You can't help but sympathise or, indeed, pity Laura due to the story being told through her eyes. The escapism that comes with her titular encounter with Alec is truly delightful to watch. As they continue to flirt and converse in such a whimsical fashion, you are constantly reminded of her marriage at home and the fact that what she's doing is wrong. But also, natural. I mean, you meet the man of your dreams... you're not going to ignore fate, are you?

• BEFORE SUNRISE/SUNSET

I could genuinely talking about 'Before Sunrise' and 'Before Sunset' for the rest of forever. They are undoubtedly perfect in their representation of being 'caught in a moment' and enjoying the company of a perfect stranger to the point where you begin to fall for them. To watch the relationship of both Jesse and Celine unfurl is breathtakingly candid and totally natural. Of course, this is down to a fantastic script - and equally as amazing acting performances - but also the fact you KNOW the clock is ticking and their time together is limited. Alike 'Brief Encounter' ; Laura is going to have to go home at some point, and here, Jesse and Celine have only one night in each other's company.

There are truly no words. It feels raw. It feels real. It feels lovely. I believe in their relationship - and the sequel 'Before Sunset' does not falter. The fact it's set 10 years later strengthens and matures the already utterly astounding chemistry on display, and adds a depth that could really only be portrayed over such a time period.

• WEEKEND

Here, we have the story of two gay men falling for each other over the course of a weekend. It sounds pretty simple, and in a round about way, it sort of is. It's incredibly reminiscent of 'Before Sunrise' in the sense that the relationship on screen only has 2 days to peak before both characters are seperated. We're given witty, funny, realistic conversations between the pair that don't feel scripted and that relay totally naturally. Again, the gift of a quality actor. What I particularly enjoy about 'Weekend' is that it so far stands alone in its depiction of the LGBT community and what it means to be gay today. I have noticed that throughout the years, the conversations on screen within gay films is changing incredibly year by year (equal marriage = HURRAH!), but what needs to be at the helm of a solid and worthy film, is a story that resonates and feels timeless. 'Weekend' achieves that. Here, we have topics that vary between friendship groups, to past relationships, to everything and anything. There aren't sexuality stereotypes and none are played to. It really stands on its own.

Conversation matters, doesn't it? And I, personally, love nothing more than watching and being a part of something truly wonderful/pointless/humorous/poignant getting discussed on screen. It makes it personal. It makes it somewhat selfless. I also enjoy such conversations in 'real' life. Let's make a conscious effort to have more random chats with strangers, yeah? (Within reason, of course)

When I'm stuck with a day that's grey...

...and loooooonelyyyyyy...

RIGHT! Little Orphan Annie annoys me. She's just cocky. And arrogant. And far too full of herself for a girl of her age. But I do enjoy her optimism. And I'm not sure if the weather's to blame, but I, personally, have had what can only be described as a 'life lull' recently. That, and the last 72 hours have tried to kill me (genuinely thought I had a tumour at one point)...


BUT NO MORE! I'm going to stick out my chin and grin and say.... well, exactly what Annie says. Tomorrow is a day away, isn't it? You gotta hang on 'til tomorrow and see if things can pick themselves up. So, as of now - I'm going to heed the ginger one's advice. And I pledge you all to do the same if you're feeling slightly down.

Chris Colfer... you have struck me.

... it's like lightning. It's frightning! So, I've just watched 'Struck By Lightning' - the cinematic writing debut from Glee's Kurt Hummell. Man, that boy can WRITE.

This was just all kinds of fantastic. I truly think he's set to be the next Zach Braff in terms of writing and directing. Just... watch this space. I wrote a little review, so I'm going to share it with you:

What I love about cinema, it's its ability to make you feel important, to make you feel a part of something - that you're not alone, that optimism does exist. It takes a very special film to make you feel like this. 'Struck By Lightning' was one of these films. A-like 'American Beauty' and 'Sunset Boulevard', this was a tale from beyond the grave and a reflection and perception of life. Except here, we had the perspective of a teenager going through the motions of graduation and acceptance of his peers along with his own, personal problems as well as struggling from 'small town syndrome' (surely that should be a medical condition, yeah?) I was reminded, quite heavily, of 'Garden State' - an excellent film from Zach Braff (who directed, wrote and starred) in which we find ourselves following a central character who is just wanting to find meaning and clarity in their lives and to make peace in their families. Chris Colfer is just a joy. I've been a fan of him since the very first episode of 'Glee' and this just proves that his true talent lies in his writing. This was such a finely crafted and mature story. Well executed, detailed, and just completely moving. I believed him completely and despite the story being told in reverse, I really routing for him. Rebel Wilson is on something of a roll lately, and her rolling (as it were) doesn't stop here. She provides wit as well as comic relief andher character is so much more than just comic relief. Allison Janney is heartbreaking as Carson's suffering mother and, as to be expected with Janney, as drugged up and alcohol-fuelled as she is at times, you can't help but feel for her. An outstanding performance. This was just one of those rare gems that ticks all the right boxes. I would've liked a bit more from Carson's father's new fiancee, and perhaps a bit more of a soundtrack would've been nice - but then would that have been a distraction? I'm not sure. I heartily recommend this to anyone who strives to better themselves.

:)

Inspired by a dead horse.

Well... not quite. Sort of. Today I was en-route to my parents on the 16:50 Northern Rail service to Nunthorpe. I thought I might have been pushing it a bit; what with it being so close to rush hour... but I was pleasantly surprised to find I could have 2 WHOLE SEATS to myself. All was going fine until we reached Seaton Carew when what should appear in front of the track? Yes. A dead horse. Perfect. Cut to me 2 hours later STILL SAT THERE. Starving I was. I'd starved myself all day as I was going out for tea, so that proved to be a mistake at the time (although food was lovely when I FINALLY got some). But... in midst of the 2 hours of people moaning... pondering their life... wondering if they'd make it home for Christmas... (I may have exaggerated the last two a bit, there) I decided to write a little poem. This often occurs on trains for me and I have no idea why. Perhaps I'm a poet and I don't even know it? But this is my poem:

There's a chill in the air and a spring in my step, A smile on my face that's been there since we met. The stars are shining; so wonderous and bright, An unmistakenably perfect December night. The cold on my face, a glove on my hand, With you in my heart I now understand. The meaning of tranquility, of love and of peace, "Joy to the world" on this Christmas Eve. All it took was one look for it all to make sense, The perfect yuletide story, no need for pretense. A symphony of splendour that plays loudly and true, You're all I need this Christmas; I'm no longer blue.

Dunno who it's about or what. But thank you to the dead horse for inspiring me, innit.

'The Hobbit' : An Unexpected(ly Fantastic Cinematic) Journey

Please forgive the long-winded title... It's just that as a lover of ALL things Lord of the Rings, I was truly expecting to not full enjoy 'The Hobbit'... I reckon that old saying of "If you go in to a film not expecting much, you get a hell of a lot more than you were expecting out of it." is true. This was beyond anything I was expecting. It couldn't wouldn't and shouldn't mean to me what the LOTR trilogy did... but it really did feeling like a Friends Reunited meetup. It was lovely to see SO many familiar faces again. To the point that I welled up. Several times.

I wrote a review on Rotten Tomatoes () and tried to post it to my FaceBook.... yet for some ungodly reason, it refuses to comply. So I've resuscitated my old Blooger account *sigh* just for some own piece of mind of having my account of my cinematic experience on this 'ere world wide web. (I don't even care if nobody reads it. I'm so besotted with the film!) "Home is now behind you. The world is ahead." It's been nine years since 'Return of the King' was released and swept the board at the OSCARS. It's been nine years since I fell in love with a fictional universe and knew the ins and outs of those that dwelled there. It had been nine years since I returned 'home'. I have watched a great many films in my time between 'ROTK' and 'The Hobbit' but none have stirred me the same way as those based within Peter Jackson's Middle Earth. 'The Hobbit' is undoubtedly flawed, yet I am completely bias. The plot may have been some 30 minutes too long, but this is a story that is rich in detail and character development. This truly felt like a loving ode to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and as such, Jackson has over-fleshed everything to make sure 'The Hobbit' gives as much as it can to fans. The casting is superb. I was worried it may be *too* obvious to recognise some of the cast as being from other works (James Nesbitt and Martin Freeman alike have been in so much - surely they can be seen as being TOO recognisable?) but this was not the case. Everyone owned their part. In particular, I was very impressed to see Brett McKenzie playing Lindir (previously FIGWIT) amongst other Kiwi-based names. Middle Earth was just as we left it - beautiful. Stunning. Surreal. Jackson truly is the only man for the job. Undoubtedly Del Toro's handy-work is apparent (in particular with regards to the goblins and trolls and their humourous means of travel) - but my favourite partnership will forever be Jackson and Howard Shore's scores. Never did a hand fit a glove quite so perfectly. I have heard many complaints about the "excessive CGI" but I honestly had no problem with it. This is a fictitious world with fictitious creatures. If anything, I expect CGI, don't you?! I particularly enjoyed the use of it on characters such as Saruman, because, let's be honest, Christopher Lee is no spring chicken, and 'The Hobbit' is set 60 years prior to 'The Fellowship of the Ring'. I take my hat off to all involved. I truly do. I'm very impressed that considering 'The Hobbit' isn't *that* lengthy a book, enough of a cliff-hanger was left at the end of 'An Unexpected Journey' for more detail and more plot to be explained. Bring on Smaug, is all I can say! That, and it's good to be home. I truly feel 13 again.

Pirates, modern horror and a crazy young assassin...

Why, hello!



It's been about two years since I decided to write a new blog post. How disappointing. For myself, that is. I told myself last year that come 2011, I'd DEFINITELY start my film blog. Properly. The new year dawned, and... well. Yeah. It's now May. Only 5 months late. Better late than never, eh?



So yeah, this is now the future! I'm going to write my random rants in this here little blog space. Cute.



I had a thing (still do, on occassion) whereby if I saw a film at the cinema, I would take to Facebook/Flixster and write a review on there. So I'm going to... if it's possible... link this blog up to Flixster and combine both thingymajiggys. But I'm a bit computer illiterate, and fairly lazy, so we'll have to see. All in good time, an' that.



So yeah, I've actually seen a fair few films lately. But as this is a bit of an intro blog, I don't really want to swamp my pages with rants and what not for like a gazillion different films. So I've narrowed everything down to 3 that I want to discuss.



Firstly...

Ground control to Major Tom...

...check one, two, check!

Very first blog, and very exciting stuff! I've never understood the point of these things despite not really having a life, but I've warmed to the idea as I thought it might prove amusing to see how dull I really am.

I'm not entirely sure what these bloggings (is that a word?) will include... I'm feeling random witterings and a few film reviews if that suits you? ...I don't know who you are, but I hope that's okay.

Not a lot has happened today in all honesty, certainly nothing to report... I just kinda slept a lot and watched Hocus Pocus and ate quiche. Not a bad day, just not a particularly special one.

I've been invited to see 'Transformers 2' tonight at my old work by my old boss... kinda awkward, and I'm not entirely sure why he asked me... hmmm... I think it's probably best if we leave it!

Besides, Mitchell and Webb are on telly tonight.