Is Goodfellas in Las Vegas. But, that’s not a bad thing, as far as I can see. Anyone know how much of the plot is based on fact rather than fiction?
Also, House of the Rising Sun is just a monumentally awesome track.
Leave the first comment ▶Marketing / Consumerism
It’s easy to be a consumer! Just follow these simple steps:
-  Godskitchen email me an e-flyer, promoting their new compilation set
- Monkey see, monkey click link, get to the real (Flash-based) e-flyer, including some click-to-play excerpts
- Listen and think ‘actually, that’s quite a decent mix, must remember to pick it up’
- Notice iTunes store link
- Pause for about 300 milliseconds
- Click iTunes store link
- Observe the full-track list in iTunes, and then notice the three-disc price is only a tenner
- Mentally weigh up karmic evil of using iTunes vs buying CD on Amazon, waiting for it, ripping it, having the CDDB data be wrong, and the album art missing.
- Pause for about 100 milliseconds
- Buy it on iTunes
- Profit. (for Apple, or whoever it is actually makes money from the store)
It’s a good mix, if you like classic trance. Otherwise, move swiftly along.
Leave the first comment ▶Blade Runner (finally)
After one abortive attempt (the Filmhouse cinema one broke down), managed to see the new (and supposedly, definitive) cut of Blade Runner on Tuesday. I’m fortunate in never having seen the original (studio) cut, which has the, uh, confused ending – but regardless, this version didn’t ever feel jarring or overtly ‘changed’. My overall impression at the end was simply that I had seen and enjoyed the film (which is of course stunningly beautiful) without intrusive cuts, modifications or other tampering. George Lucas, take note. Doubtless seeing it on a big screen helps too.
The impact of the (non-CGI) effects, along with the camera work (I’d never noticed there are lots of of hand-held shots, which probably contributes to up-close feel of the film compared to its contemparies) and especially the lighting all worked better than I had recalled; I feared the visual effects might look chronically dated (they don’t). The lighting throughout is gorgeous, but most especially the classic film-noir shots, notably the kiss lit through a venetian blind. Things to try once I acquire the appropriate toys.
Leave the first comment ▶Stardust, dead-tree version
Read ‘Stardust’ while away in Holland, it’s a goood story, but overall I really preferred the film – of course if I’d been exposed to the film/book in the opposite order, my opinion might be reversed. The two plotlines diverge markedly towards the end, and while many of the choices made in the film script are purely to deliver a suitably action- and drama- packed final twenty minutes, the book concludes in a positively serene fashion, with an absolute minimum of fuss or drama. In truth both endings work well for their respective mediums, but such a contrast is very explicit, compared to most film adaptions where details may change, but the plot outline is untouched.
Leave the first comment ▶Hooke
Finally finished Lisa Jardine’s biography of Robert Hooke, which I was pointed at courtesy of the copious notes at the end of the Baroque Cycle. It was enjoyable, but in part due to knowing the general outlines thanks to Neal Stephenson’s groundwork; I’m not sure how readable it would be in isolation.
Even with the re-assessment of Hooke’s achievements that has taken place in the past few years, his story doesn’t make for optimistic reading, due to a combination of bad luck and his own personality. There’s a few good lessons in there about not promising more than you can achieve, and picking your battles, that I need to pay attention too.
Leave the first comment ▶Watch.
Found, in the bottom of a drawer: my old wrist-watch, not worn in many years since it ceased to function, but probably reperable (maybe even only requiring a battery). Appearance: men’s watch, metal strap and face, face decorated with three Loony Tunes characters. Condition: not fantastic, but reasonable, especially if given a proper clean.
What do I do with it? I have no desire to wear a watch, and if I did I’d buy a new one. Throwing it out seems like a shame, but keeping it for another seven years in a drawer is pointless. I suppose eBay is the answer, but it hardly seems worth the hassle.
Suggestions on a postcard or in a comment.
Leave the first comment ▶Plunkett & Maclane
Just watched this after failing to do so for many, many years (I meant to watch it on its cinema release, which was a long time ago now). It’s really quite entertaining. Liv Tyler looks great as always, and it’s stuffed full of familiar faces, quite aside from some decent lead performances and the scene-stealing Alan Cumming.
The film isn’t exactly a bastion of historical accuracy, but doesn’t suffer for it – my only technical complaint would be some extremely stylistic/realistic lighting near the start making a confusing scene even harder to track. I have the feeling this may be partly due to the DVD transfer or my playback being a trifle dark, though – I cranked the brightness up after the start. I guess the director was aiming to stick with practical lighting for a dramatic look, but since period light sources are essentially pathetic, night scenes lit by candles and swinging oil-lanterns become deeply shadowed and tough to follow. That said, plenty of later but similarly lit scenes were fine (and looked great).
Leave the first comment ▶Museum of London, Crack
Went to visit the Museum of London at the end of my last London trip, it’s pretty interesting, though currently undergoing some major refurbishment, so will require another visit. One interesting aspect of the museum is that at this point I’ve encountered various somewhat-related fragments of London history: Roman pieces from TimeTeam, Saxon from Bernard Cornwell’s Alfred series, and of course the Baroque Cycle period in enormous detail courtesy of Neal Stephenson. I’m currently reading Lisa Jardine’s biography of Hooke, just to really cap things off. It made a substantial difference to have multiple marker points to work outwards from, when assembling the historical picture.
Following on from the museum, I braved the Millenium bridge to view The Crack at Tate Modern – very impressive, though accompanied by depressing health-and-safety signs warning people not to trip/fall/otherwise injure themselves on the artwork they had in fact come to view.
Leave the first comment ▶I have some news, do you want it?
Taking advantage of a spare ticket, I was lucky enough to be in the audience for the recording of tonight’s Have I Got News For You. I’ve never been to a TV recording before, so there were lots of technically interesting things (huge light fixtures!), but mostly a great amount of entertainment for free (tickets are a lottery). For starters there’s a warm-up comedian who has some standard lines, but really had working the crowd down to a polished art. Following that, for a thirty minute show they record a huge amount of material, almost two hours I’d guess. I imagine for some shows this drags, but with Paul Merton and Ian Hislop on form, it was side-splittingly good. Paul Merton has a reputation for being, uh, viciously sarcastic, and having finally seen him, I wholeheartedly agree.
A lot of the cut material is potentially legally dubious, at least for the recording I saw; at the end a few pieces were re-recorded / added, including some comedy disclaimers; presumably they have some legal advice watching the recording to point out what is and isn’t going to get anyone sued. But in the studio, no one cares – anything and everything gets said, and it’s brilliant.
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