One of the great untapped resources of this blog is Simons knowledge of music. The tunes below are a snap shot soundtrack to the 90s and when Simon suggested the list he described them as ’songs you forgot’. Turns out he was right, these tunes are from a time when I hadn’t begun drinking, I listened only to 2FM and I still remember putting down ‘74-75′ by The O’Connells as my favourite song in some sort of personal profile we designed in an IT class. I still have no idea what that song is about. The Cardigans I will always associate with my Junior Certificate as they provided the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmans ‘Romeo and Juliet’, our Shakespeare play that year. I’ve gone for ‘My Favourite Game’ rather than ‘Love Fool’ though. No. 1 is a song that I discovered is especially hard to sing in karaoke in recent years, that said, its my favourite of Simons choices.
Over on AICN there is a suggestion that this may be Matt Damons tendering for an Oscar nod - I ain’t so sure. He might have pudged up and put on a god awful wig, but the Academy like lots of angst and preferably weight loss before they consider people for Oscar. This looks like fun though.
Culch.ie has posted a run down of the new shows on US schedules this autumn. The list is well done so I’ll direct you there rather than paraphrase or attempt a second version. I will post though the clip that previews new show ‘Flash Forward’, which appears to be the new high concept enterprise of the year and has a fascinating idea behind it and clearly a huge budget for its pilot. ‘Fringe’ and ‘The Mentalist’ were the break out shows of the last 2 years stateside, though neither has made a huge impression this side of the pond. Networks are still clamouring to recreate ABCs golden year of 2005 when ‘Lost’ and ‘Desperate Housewives’ were both launched to huge ratings and much praise.
At a going away party on Saturday night the people were abuzz about one thing - the freakin’ gorgeous dip. People were scraping what they could from the bottom of the bowl. The recipe below comes from Kelly, a Canadian chick, I tried to dance poorly with in Roddys in Rathmines after the dip had gone. I can’t envisage there beingsuch a thing as too much of this stuff, I have no evidence of this, but it is scientific fact.
When the director of the Dublin film festival was introducing this years surprise film, she commented how 2009 marked the 40th anniversary of the release of ‘North by Northwest’ and how she had considered the movie as the surprise showing. Whatever her thought process was, she ultimately went with ‘Hamlet 2′. Then this May while I was holed up in a hotel room in Sofia after a day at a conference, I came across ‘North by Northwest’, thankfully not dubbed on a local Bulgarian station. Normally, when I have the TV to myself I flick incessantly; you come across a movie like ‘North by Northwest’ and you dont move past it. Then reading Harry Knowles review of ‘Transformers 2′ on Aint It Cool News this week he made reference to how Michael Bay had created effects shots for the movie during the writers strike and subsequently asked a script writer to string the scenes together with some semblance of a story. To my surprise Knowles commented that Hitchcock used the same technique to make ‘North by Northwest’, though with very different results. On reflection the comparison between the Master of Suspense and Bay is not entirely offensive, as Hitchcock did take a staged planned approach to his work, storyboarding, and quiet often was more interested in an idea or constructing an image or sequence than he was in drawing out a performance. In fact John Patterson over at the Guardian Arts blog, describes the movie as “series of eye-poppingly inventive sequences linked in the loosest way imaginable by a breathtakingly slender plotline” and essentially says the movie gave birth to the Bond movies and dim blockbusters. Patterson needs to aim a little lower with his over analysis however there is no ignoring the fact the movie is noted for its famous crop duster scene, and finale atop Mount Rushmore. Hitchcock would move on to ‘Psycho’ next, ‘North by Northwest’ is however considered Hitchcock at his undemanding best.
6. ‘North by Northwest’ as introduced the big man himself
5. The Crop Duster Scene
The idea for the famous cornfield scene came about when Hitchcock determined to reverse, as dramatically as possible, the clichéd movie trope in which a man is forced to run for his life from some sinister force. “How is this usually done?” asked Hitchcock. “A dark night at a narrow intersection of the city. The waiting victim standing in a pool of light under the street lamp. The cobbles are ‘washed with the recent rains.’?” So Hitchcock instructed his production designer to put his hero in a wide-open expanse in which he couldn’t hide—a completely flat cornfield in the middle of nowhere.
4. The Ice Cool Blonde
Maybe better known, or not, to modern audiences as Martha Kent in ‘Superman Returns’, Eve Saint Marie was also in the wonderful ‘On the Waterfront’ with Marlon Brando.
3. The Hitchcock Cameo
2. The MacGuffin
The Ark of the Covenant, the plans for the Death Star, the Ring to rule them all - a classic device used to propel the story forward, yet most often an object to which the audience will make little connection with, Hitchcock is noted for using in his movies. He in fact coined the term MacGuffin, a term to describe these objects. The MacGuffin in North by Northwest is microfilm with state secrets on it, the detail of these never materialises, we are merely told they are significant enough to set the bad guys in hot pursuit of Grant. The film is about the chase.
1. The Mount Rushmore Finale
While the crop-dusting chase was shot on location, the Mount Rushmore sequence was not. The U.S. Department of the Interior denied its cooperation and Hitchcock was forced to shoot the scene in the studio, employing oversized sets, backdrops and photographic plates of the actual monument to remarkable effect. Next to the shower murder in Psycho, it’s probably the most acclaimed, and frequently studied, scene in a Hitchcock movie.
Following the news earlier today that Farrah Fawcett has passed away after her battle with cancer we now learn that Michael Jackson has also died of a reported heart attack in L.A today.
Two icons in one day, a freaky coincidence.
I’ve had a look on Youtube but can’t find a suitable video tribute for Fawcett (the Charlie’s Angel theme from Season 1 has weird music and Season 2 has a different actress!!)
So for now we’ll just suffice with a tribute to MJ. I’ll remember him as the Jackson from the 80’s and so fittingly I’d like to use the greatest video of all time, Thriller. You can see the full 13 minute version here but unfortunately embed is disabled (they don’t make em like that anymore).
So instead I’ve chosen my lady’s favourite Jackson song which is suitably melancholic.
Well here’s a case of a misleading title - I’m a big fan of time travel concepts, and Eric Bana having already been a party to a time travel tale in this summers ‘Star Trek’ can usually do no wrong in my book. This trailer on the other hand looks awful and then some.
At a point where 7, 000 people have died, references have been made to the real time President of the United States, national security and even 9/11, Transformers 2 takes a poignant moment, where a troop of military men walk slowly towards the remains of a now deceased leader on an airbase concourse. Director Michael Bay evokes an emotive experience, no dialogue necessary, the hazy dessert surrounds serving perfectly to reflect the exposed and vulnerable position their struggle is now confronted with. At this point in a sequel, this is a game changing move, with rippling ramifications for the protagonists of the piece, the fate of the worlds locked into the conflict on screen and also for us the viewer and the attachments we have developed. Thankfully, the character of Sam, as portrayed by Shia Le Beouf, returning to the role that has defined him as a raw young talent on the Hollywood scene, has fortuitous instincts that let him piece together a possible solution. The key macguffin, a matrix of randomsonething and the energy it holds can possibly be deployed to resurrect the departed leader, as opposed to its original use of mobilising a machine that will suck the sun of its energy. Physicists forums are a buzz with how this innovative development of new science-fiction lore might come to materialise in real world energy research. The potential of alien technology, that can be utilised where its power has been earned by making a sacrifice, to both power dead robots that has been twice dropped from a height and also power machines hidden with ancient pyramids to destroy a sun, is limitless.
Viewers can’t help but trust Sam’s instincts – his negotiating power with a emotionally vulnerable autobot in the early scenes of the film reflect a new maturity since his first appearance on screen in Transformers 1, as well as his cool head when being probed by a medical team of decepticons while pinned to a slab only affirms his rightful place at the heart of such a global and epic story. The character is fine tuned so that locating the powerful matrix and fathoming the complex symbols locked in his mind with the help of his loyal team, comes second nature to him. We confidently watch as Sam locates an object hidden from a super race of technologically advanced robots since the dawn of man in one afternoon. Of course, the dynamics surrounding the character are given more impact and sense of tragic focus, by the relationship at the heart of the story, that of Sam and Mikaela. Megan Fox as Mikaela, has of course been catapulted to the top of casting directors wish lists since her appearance in Transformers, and here we are reminded again of her potency as an actress, in the way her pouting lips and heaving breasts deliver her performance while the rest of her body is used for running from exploding objects. Also worth mentioning is the work of John Turturo, who in the mould of Wiliam H. Macy in Jurassic Park 3, has shown a broad appreciation of all movie roles and the opportunities they offer to put extentions on your house. His scene on one of the pyramids of Giza, successfully navigating an avalanche of debris and convincing a nearby aircraft carrier commander to launch a rocket is particularly memorable. Josh Duhamel returns as the human face of the military operation, the actor making impressive decisions in the movie as in real life, having married Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas since he launched himself on an unsuspecting movie audience in the first movie.
Transformers 2 serves as a benchmark for film in many ways, but none moreso than in the scale of destruction it portrays on screen and the number of machines it utilises to construct the alien robot warriers so effectively and of course the machines used by the human characters to blow up every single type of artifice, upstanding object or anything that could be said to have a dimension. The emotional impact is not spared, the lives lost are never reduced to mere rag dolls being flung from buildings, these soldiers are brought together from disparate locales, and where they have any type of non-cocasian skin colour will talk in street slang. The strides for authenticity are the stuff of Academy votes. Never will there be an overuse of words, explanation or logical decisions that get in the way of increasing the stakes and putting people in the way of acrobatically nubile machines or explosions. The execution of the story will ring through for hours after leaving the cinema, the final shot of a rejuvenated Optimus Prime and Sam aboard an aircraft carrier a pitch perfect final note to the story of a shared desire for a happy existence amongst humans and alien killer robots.
Rather than look to the words of poets, writers, religious leaders or political revolutionaries, this collection of wisdom, mantras, advice or instructions tailored to navigate whatever should cross your path, comes from where else but movies and TV. Pay heed. All the choices are effective, the sentiment of No.2 may not initially sit well with the tone of the other entries, but if you’ve seen the movie you’ll know it works.
6. On Ambition
Knowing where to set the parameters on how much you aim for in life is fundamental to feeling satisfied. We’re spoilt for choice when it comes to words of wisdom with this man.
“You tried your best and you failed miserably, the lesson is, never try”
Homer J. Simpson (The Simpsons, ‘Burns’ Heir’)
5. Laying Blame
To know how to deflect blame is key for never taking account. The quote below comes from a group of parents, wishing to blame a 3rd party rather than look to their parenting decisions when their children misbehave.
“Blame Canada”
Parents of South Park (South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut)
4. Forgiveness
Who better to look to for advice on forgiveness than an embittered ex.
“Some people say forgive and forget. Nah, I don’t know. I say forget about forgiving and just accept - and get the hell out of town”
Debi Newberry (Grosse Pointe Blank)
3. Disposing of a corpse
Professionals in discussion
Brick Top: “You’re always gonna have problems lifting a body in one piece. Apparently the best thing to do is cut up a corpse into six pieces and pile it all together”.
Sol: “Would someone mind telling me, who are ya?”
Brick Top: “And when you got your six pieces, you gotta get rid of them, because it’s no good leaving it in the deep freeze for your mum to discover, now is it? Then I hear the best thing to do is feed them to pigs. You got to starve the pigs for a few days, then the sight of a chopped-up body will look like curry to a pisshead. You gotta shave the heads of your victims, and pull the teeth out for the sake of the piggies’ digestion. You could do this afterwards, of course, but you don’t want to go sievin’ through pig shit, now do you? They will go through bone like butter. You need at least sixteen pigs to finish the job in one sitting, so be wary of any man who keeps a pig farm. They will go through a body that weighs 200 pounds in about eight minutes. That means that a single pig can consume two pounds of uncooked flesh every minute. Hence the expression, “as greedy as a pig”.”
Brick Top in conversation with Sol (’Snatch‘)
2. On what other people think
This moment of honesty between two brothers, caught up in a drama surrounding orchid poaching and writers block is movie dialogue magic.
Charlie Kaufman: “There was this time in high school. I was watching you out the library window. You were talking to Sarah Marsh.”
Donald Kaufman: “Oh, God. I was so in love with her.”
Charlie Kaufman: “I know. And you were flirting with her. And she was being really sweet to you.”
Donald Kaufman: “I remember that.”
Charlie Kaufman: “Then, when you walked away, she started making fun of you with Kim Canetti. And it was like they were laughing at *me*. You didn’t know at all. You seemed so happy.”
Donald Kaufman: “I knew. I heard them.”
Charlie Kaufman: “How come you looked so happy?”
Donald Kaufman: “I loved Sarah, Charles. It was mine, that love. I owned it. Even Sarah didn’t have the right to take it away. I can love whoever I want.”
Charlie Kaufman: “But she thought you were pathetic.”
Donald Kaufman: “That was her business, not mine. You are what you love, not what loves you. That’s what I decided a long time ago.”
Donald Kaufman: “Whats up?”
Charlie Kaufman: “Thank you.”
Donald Kaufman: “For what?”
Charlie Kaufman in conversation with Donald Kaufman (’Adaptation‘)
1. On making a comeback
The clip below offers a catch-all, every situation retort, that should be a standard in your repetoire of come backs.
Although it is only mid-June I think it’s fair to say that this weekend may well be the formative weekend of the hurling championship. Take a moment to consider that three contests will take place within 24 hours that will relegate Kilkenny or Galway, Tipp or Clare and Waterford or Limerick to join Cork, Offaly, Laois and Antrim in the purgatory of the qualifiers and you begin to see where I’m coming from. The real business of course won’t be settled until September as always but come Sunday evening we should have a fairly sound notion of who will be sporting their county colours well into the autumn.
The biggest question to hopefully be answered this weekend is whether or not Kilkenny get their first competitive game in June this century. Galway were brought in to the Leinster championship in the hope that they might stymie the Cats decade old domination of Leinster and this Saturday in Tullamore they get their first chance. Galway boast arguably the biggest talent hurling has seen in a generation whilst Kilkenny boast three All Irelands won at a canter.
If Galway were going to meet Kilkenny in Leinster this year then they’ve gotten the perfect time and place to do it. Early June is 3 months from when Kilkenny will be hoping to peak and Tullamore is far removed from the open spaces afforded by Croker. Kilkenny are also weakened by injuries to Noel Hickey and Brian Hogan whilst Cha Fitz is also a doubt so everything is set up for Galway.
Well not quiet.
Unfortunately for Galway the rumour is that Joe Canning is also nursing an injury and that would be a massive blow for them. Additionally, Galway is the only team to have beaten Kilkenny in Championship hurling twice this decade and so Brian Cody is unlikely to have any difficulty getting his troops up for this one. Galway will have to match Kilkenny’s physicality throughout the field and then hope that Joe can pull a few rabbits out of a hat. I can see the latter but not the former and although I think it will be close until the last few minutes I expect Kilkenny to do enough.
The next big question for this weekend is whether or not Waterford and Limerick can possibly be as bad as they were on Sunday. I’ve seen better teams in the Tipperary West U12 C championship than what was offered up by both sets of players last weekend. I don’t buy the school of thought that maintains the conditions were to blame. Undoubtedly they didn’t help but that’s a cop out.
Of the two teams Waterford have the biggest scope for improvement given that they possess the more skilful hurlers. Waterford are an aging team over-reliant on the same old gang going back to the well one more time. Rumours of tensions in the camp have also emerged and certainly last weeks performance lent credence to these stories. They were severely handicapped last week by the fact that only John Mullane actually seemed to care among their forward ranks. Ken McGrath failed spectacularly at centre forward and it was no surprise to learn he was carrying an injury. He’ll miss Saturday’s replay but that might actually help Waterford because he was not at the races last weekend.
Limerick on the other hand have the momentum but they’ll be asking themselves how they didn’t win the game last Sunday. They’re a limited bunch of hurlers but you can rarely fault them for effort and as I know from experience they are difficult to stop when they get on a roll. The replay is tough to call but I’d take Justin McCarthy over Davy Fitz to make the necessary adjustments after last weeks game and I believe that Limerick will have enough to carry on their form from the second half last week and win this one in the last 10 minutes.
Lastly we come to Tipperary and Clare who will lock horns on Sunday in Limerick. Tipp did there best to throw it away against Cork in the second half and Mike Mac will no doubt have got a good hard look at the numerous weaknesses that Cork exposed. For the umpteenth season now the Tipp half forward line still struggles to win primary possession, although there are some green shoots of recovery, and the corner backs are lacking for pace. Tipp also have a worrying trait of disappearing for large chunks of games. This surfaced in every game they played last year and did so once again against Cork until they woke up in the last 10 minutes.
As for Clare, well all that is known about them is that they were woefully bad in the league and got relegated to Division 2. I’ve heard it said that Clare are waiting in the long grass for Tipperary. Well as the fella said, you can’t hurl in long grass lads. Clare will be hoping to reduce this contest down to a battle, a war of attrition because if a hurling match breaks out then Tipp should have too much for them.
I’ll take Tipp to win this one pulling away in the last 10 minutes or so. Tipp have weaknesses for sure but whether Clare have the firepower necessary to take advantage of them I’m not so sure. Not totally confident though. I said something similar in 2003!
