Media reviews of the week

Firstly I have been watching a lot of DVDs in recent days. Eddie Izzard 7 a box set of all his shows is great entertainment if you enjoy slightly unpredictable and off the wall comedy. Star Trek (the film released earlier this year) is a very good watch. The only slightly unsettling thing about it is that I keep expecting Zachary Quinto, who plays Spock, to turn into Sylar rather than use the Vulcan neck pinch. I have also completed series 2 of Highlander.

I am still reading Ranulph Fiennes' latest book which as something of a history buff is incredible. This is one family going down through history affecting major events. I recommend it to you all but read after reading John O'Farrell's Utterly Impartial History of Britain.

Apologies for coming to the weeks televisual film offerings but I had a life at the weekend. I won't dwell on what we have missed so far but Wednesday has a number of films worthy of consideration. The Last Samurai is arguably my favourite of the day. It is beautifully shot and Ken Watanabe steals the show from Tom Cruise but unlike in his early days I suspect that Cruise is more comfortable with this. Cruise is good and with able support from Billy Connolly and Timothy Spall it is a well spent couple of hours. Also worth a look is The Sixth Sense which is up against one of the most overrated horror films of all time The Exorcist.

On Thursday we have Enter The Dragon. Arguably the most influential martial arts movie of all time. It is brilliant entertainment particularly if you get to see the unedited version. Bruce Lee was never better than in this and it is a tragedy that he never lived to see the successor possibly to fulfil his massive potential. Big Trouble in Little China is also on but if you watch Dragon then why would you bother with this effects driven chop socky adventure. On any other day Big Trouble is worth a look.

Friday's tour de force is Mars Attacks. It is hysterically funny and star studded. Perhaps those who make films based on computer games should watch this to see how to expand an idea where there is little actual source material. With nods to War of the Worlds, Airplane and many other films this is one that is well worth the effort. Also available is The Black Dahlia. This was a disappointment after LA Confidential but that being said it is worthy of a look. It was a bit slow and ponderous and didn't quite hit the film noir feel which it needed. Samuel L Jackson's version of Shaft is also worth a look. Like The Jackal which I reviewed some time ago it retains enough of the original but is more than capable of standing on its own two feet as a film in its own right.

A few thoughts

Well I have been accepted on the PGCE and have now called off my henchmen after what I thought was a really bad interview process. They still await my call 'At my command unleash hell'. I now know what path I am intending to go down and I know what I want to do if I get to the end of that path and it is just now a case of putting in some hard work to get there.

Today I gave some money to a man sitting on the roadside begging. Why did you do that some of you may be asking? I have been walking the 2 miles or so from the kids' school to work and this morning was a fairly brisk morning. Normally I would give to the Salvation Army and outsource the hard work to somebody else and I would always commend support to them as they were there for me and mine when I was a kid. My logic was that maybe if I give this guy something he might get some immediate benefit from it, maybe a cup of tea. Financially it wasn't going to make any great difference to me. Morally it doesn't make a difference to me. If he then went and spent the money on something else then ultimately he will have to answer for his choices to higher authority than I.

What really struck me was the fact that this man who apparently had nothing much to speak of he was courteous and polite which is more than some of my clients are a lot of the time. Maybe if I see him again I will speak to him a bit more and find out where he fits into the universe.

Ireland Week 2 and the mighty Huddersfield Giants

Saturday 8^th August

Well after saying goodbye to mum and dad last night and taking lots of photos I woke up screaming in the middle of the night for no apparently good reason. After a bit of a lie in this morning we set off for Fort Dunree and Buncrana.

We arrived at the fort early and so had to go away and come back which involved some interesting manoeuvring of the car. I spotted a gorgeous deserted beach and tried to find an access point. I found two both of which basically said private property go away. This was extremely frustrating. Whilst waiting I looked up at the top fort and half expected Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood to crawl out of the undergrowth shouting “Broadsword calling Danny Boy!!!”

The exhibition is known as the Guns of Dunree and so I kept expecting Gregory Peck, David Niven and Anthony Quinn to shin up the seawall and start blowing the place up. The museum is good for what it is and the fact that there were few visitors added to the appeal. We were able to wander about but with restrictions. We set off for the top fort and it added to its feeling of being a cross between Navarone and the Schloss Adler. The views from the top were stunning.

We then returned to Buncrana and did some shopping but had to go home before we found the internet café. Jenni & I then spent the afternoon asleep whilst the rugby was on. In the evening Tom and I went down to the sandy beach 2km away. The tide was coming in and so time was limited. The beach is more shells than sand and on a good day is probably fantastic fun.

Tomorrow is a quiet day on the island we hope!

Sunday 9^th August

The day was a bit of an odd one. Went to Mass on the island no strange thing there but the sign of peace was omitted. Dropped the kids and Alison off on the beach and went back to the cottage only to discover that Alison had the keys. Walked the 2k back to get them and Alison came back with me and the kids. We had lunch and then headed off to explore the island. We found the pier and the beach next to it but it wasn’t very nice so we left. Then we looked for the promontory fort but the roads looked dangerous. We then looked for the nice little beach we had seen but couldn’t find a way on to it.

We decided to go to Lisfannon beach which was OK until it rained. We returned home in time to watch the Giants magnificent triumph over St Helens. I then went out to visit the graves and called in on Nellie and had a cup of tea and a chat.

Monday 10^th August

Quiet day. Went to Strabane and stroked Ambrose the bronze pig. I’m sure that God got quite irate over a bronze calf once before. Went to the library and checked email. I had 46 emails of which 6 were actually of any use.

Plans for a trip to Lifford were suspended due to a lack of interest. We stopped off at a picnic spot along the N13 but I was harassed by a wasp and so fled to the car.

Got home and have made arrangements for tomorrow and Wednesday. Also managed to get tickets for Wembley so now have to find somewhere to stay.

In the evening went up to Grianan again. The weather was considerably more clement than it had been on our first trip.

Tuesday 11^th August

Went down to Donegal town and bought some presents. Walked to what’s left of the abbey and went round the outside of the castle. The town was full of visitors from all over the world ( well Europe anyway!!). After Donegal went to Ballybofey and took Tom to see the ground of the mighty Finn Harps!!. The town has changed dramatically in the 13 years since I was last there.

Went for lunch at Seamus & Vonny’s place. Spent the afternoon chatting about life the universe and everything. I put my foot in it criticising social work students and also possibly by the fact that any invite to S & V to come down to the cottage might not have been clear enough. Tom & Jenni both had a go on the drums and Jenni also had a go on a guitar. Also found out that I will not need to learn how to speak Gaelic to teach at the level I want in Ireland. Not that learning Gaelic would be a problem. Chatted to Paul about his musical taste.

After getting back to the cottage Paul & Phyllis came over. We had pizza and chatted and got photos taken. Decided that I will go and see Willie Downey whilst I am here as it might be the last chance to do so.

Wednesday 12^th August

Went to the Aquarium in Derry this morning. A reasonably interesting place if not much to do there. We then went in search of Prehen Woods. These are known as the 'lungs of Derry' but they seemed to have been removed. We eventually found the place but there was no parking or at least none that I was happy leaving the car in. Thwarted in our efforts to walk through the ‘lung of Derry’ we decided to call in on Nellie to see how she is doing.

Got back to the cottage earlier than planned and so had to do the washing up before preparing lunch. Off bowling this afternoon with Paul & Phyllis. Bowling was great fun and Tom and Jenny had a whale of a time.

Thursday 13^th August

Today was Nellie’s birthday so a mass visit was coordinated for the afternoon. I went into Derry and got some flowers for Nellie having been recommended a place by Terri. At lunchtime I took the kids for a pony ride at Terri’s. The kids were escorted by Aoife. The ride didn’t quite last as long as I was expecting but the kids enjoyed it.

On the way down to Nellie’s I called in on Willie Downey but he wasn’t there. Got to Nellie’s and she was as ever delighted to see the kids. It was announced that Patsy was on her way up from Dublin. She had made the decision when she got up that morning.

Shortly after Jacqui, Gerry, Paul & Phyllis arrived. Jenni did what she usually does which is feed off the fact she has a new audience to delight and Patsy did not disappoint.

Later on Patricia, Harry and Chloe arrived. Jenni made a new friend and acquired a new toy.

Called in on Willie Downey again but he wasn’t in.

Friday 14^th August

At last I have met my uncle Willie and also one of his daughters. It was fantastic to spend time with him and get to know him and everybody else. He gave me a few tips for the family tree which paid off massively when I got back home.

On Saturday went back to see him again and brought the family this time. The kids had a whale of a time getting to know their new relatives. We then went over to see Nellie before setting off for the ferry.

As usual the parting was sad and I don't intend to leave it so long the next time. The trip to Larne was only interrupted by a marching band and a brief stop on Glenshane Pass. We actually arrived too early for the ferry.

The actual ferry trip was better than the trip over but the drive down to Huddersfield was a bit of a killer. Next time I will make sure that we book a hotel both ways.

Overall the trip was the best holiday I have ever had despite what my face might have said at times. It reminded me of why I love Ireland and Donegal in particular.

A couple of weeks later Thomas and I met up with Emmett, Tom's godfather, to watch the RL Challenge Cup Final featuring Huddersfield and warrington. The result was bad but the day was great. We managed to cope with the underground. When we arrived at Wembley we went in search of food and found American Charcoal where the portions were huge and Tom couldn't finish it all. We spent the day with Steve, Denise and Stephanie who we met on the train down.

The stadium is massively impressive but there aren't enough toilets. I almost felt like punching a member of Team Robbo who felt that more singing would help the team play better.

Well that's all for now.
Take care!

Books, films and other matters of interest

Well hello again everybody, here is my latest rambling set of thoughts. In terms of films on TV next week there isn't a great set, the tv channels are saving up for the Christmas glut no doubt. Film of the week is undoubtedly Batman Begins. It has a great cast, great script is well acted and has undoubtedly saved the franchise. Arguably it is a better film than its more vocal successor The Dark Knight. On the same night, Sunday, there is Kelly's Heroes which is something of an odd war film. It is delightfully daft, exciting, funny, moving at times but always worth a look.

As trailed last week I have now watched the Renegade Version of Highlander 2. Is it better than the theatrical release I hear you cry? Yes but only marginally. Some of the additional scenes do help the film make more sense but still the film is disappointing. Perhaps after the original film anything would be disappointing.

John O'Farrell's latest book was, as expected very entertaining, possibly not as good as the first history book but nevertheless a good read. Currently I have 2 books on the go. Ranulph Fiennes' family history is shaping up nicely and P J O'Rourke's latest offering looks like it could be a good read.

This week we have a voyage south to that centre of the universe Worksop and a rugby match in Otley. On Tuesday I have my PGCE interview, fingers crossed there and lip well and truly bitten. We are wondering if my 10 year old will carry through with his strike threat and if so how we will notice that it has started.

Well more later

Vaya con dios

Films of the week (w/c28/11/09)

Well it's been a while since I reviewed any films or indeed anything. I will be watching Highlander 2:Renegade Cut in the next few days. To all those who remember the abomination that was Highlander 2 at the cinema it is supposed to be the film we should have seen. I am currently watching Series 2 of the Highlander TV series.

I have recently finished reading Stuart Maconie's Cider With Roadies. If you are interested in music history it is interesting. It is not as good as Pies & Prejudice but is much better than Adventures on the High Teas. That just didn't click for me.

So on with the films on Saturday there are 3 films each of which if they didn't have the competition would be film of the day. The Adventures of Robin Hood is Hollywood does English legend ye olde englishe waye. It is a fantastic romp and Basil Rathbone, Erroll Flynn and Claude Rains simply chew up the screen. Overlapping this gem is The Empire Strikes Back. This is by a considerable distance the best of the original three Star Wars films and by definition, therefore, the best of the six. It is dark and the Vadar and Yoda characters are fantastic. Late night on Virgin 1 is No Way Out. Gene Hackman acts Kevin Costner off the screen in what is one of Costner's best films. It is simply well written, well acted and a pacy thriller.

On Sunday yet again there are a clutch of interesting offerings. Channel 5 offers Firefox. Based on the Craig Thomas novel of the same name it is actually quite a good adaptation of the book. Unfortunately it was panned by just about everybody as one of Clint Eastwood's worst films. The dodgy Russian accents offered by pretty much the entire membership of Equity are a delight to behold. It is good fun if not a great movie. It is followed by The Green Mile. This is based on the Stephen King story. It is the director Frank Darabont's second King prison flick after The Shawshank Redemption. Coincidentally the stage play of that film is in trouble with a number of reviewers for putting a review of the film over it's theatrical offering which was not so praiseworthy apparently. I am not a big Tom Hanks fan but this is one of his better films. Other offerings are Sahara (Film 4) which is a very good action adventure offering. Lastly there is Enemy at the Gates. This isn't rated too highly in Radio Times but I think it is actually a very entertaining movie if at variance with actual history.

On Tuesday the undoubted film of the day is Flags of Our Fathers (Film 4) This is one of Clint Eastwood's 2 war films and is actually probably the slightly weaker of the two in my humble opinion. Nevertheless it is still a better film than most you will see. It tells the Iwo Jima tale from the American point of view. The outstanding performance in this film comes from Adam Beach who can also be seen in another fantastic film, Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee. The other film on Tuesday is The Blues Brothers. There isn't a plot as such it is merely a series of set pieces to showcase the fantastic music which is what the film is all about.

Wednesday brings the second of the Clint Eastwood war films, Letters From Iwo Jima. I think this is the best of the two. Ken Watanabe is truly magnificent but is there a film where he isn't, perhaps Batman Begins. Also on Wednesday there is First Blood. This is the first and, by some considerable distance, the best of the Rambo films. Stallone is excellent, despite evidence to the contrary (Stop Or My Mom Will Shoot), he can act given the right material (Rocky, Copland, Judge Dredd). The tension is ratcheted up in this film. Brian Dennehy is a fantastic foil and watch out for David Caruso of CSI Miami. If only the rest of the franchise could have been a patch on this one they would all be classics.

On Thursday there is one underrated offering and one guilty pleasure. The underrated offering is Black Widow. It is not normally one of my type of films and I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to see it. However, I ended up watching it one evening and was impressed with the offering. The guilty pleasure is Rat Race. It is by the Airplane team which means one of two things usually. A film will be either very very funny (Airplane, Naked Gun, Police Squad) or it will be very dodgy (Kentucky Fried Movie, Top Secret). There are gags in this film that you laugh at but your not sure why or even if you should be laughing but you can't help it.

We end the week with two films on Friday night. The first of these, The Jackal, shouldn't work and some still feel that it is heresy that it was ever made, but it is a great film that whilst showing a nod to its illustrious predecessor doesn't feel constrained by it. It takes what worked in the original but changes it slightly. Bruce Willis is absolutely fantastic as the title character, Sidney Poitier is fantastic as the FBI agent. The one thing that spoils this film is Richard Gere and the frankly ludicrous plot involving an ex-Basque terrorist. The second film is Downfall. This is about the last days in Hitler's bunker in Berlin. It is a film which was universally lauded particularly Bruno Ganz who portrays the German dictator. I found it a bit turgid and long winded for my taste. It might well be very good but I found it hard going.

Enjoy yourselves more to come in the next few days.

Evidence

Over the last couple of weeks I have come across people who apparently seem to have ignored what evidence actually is. The first offender was a member of Friends of the Earth who uses the governmental interpretation of the word. The debate was with this green type and a farmer and it was about whether or not GM foods are a good thing or not. The governmental interpretation of evidence is that there is only evidence if it has come through research and scientific investigation. Whilst this is to an extent true, it ignores the fact that anecdotal evidence is still evidence and this green advocate was dismissing the farmer's own experiences and knowledge because they didn't fit her argument.

An academic once criticised part of one of my best presentations because some information came from personal knowledge and experience rather than from the groves of academe.

Almost the next day there was a debate about the Kelly Report into MPs expenses when it was leaked that allowances would be lost and spouses not allowed to be employed. The MP's complaint was that Kelly had clearly not listened to the evidence he had given because he had reached a different conclusion to the one he wanted, Politicians are forever doing this. The current furore over scientific advisers is also part of this. The evidence would seem to support the scientist's conclusions it is just that what he said was ludicrous but accurate.

I don't mind people using evidence to support their argument, it is what I have trained to do for 4 years, what I do object to is people denying that contrary evidence exists or stating that unless evidence is gathered from a scientific research program it is invalid. Evidence simply is. You may vary the weight you give to different types of evidence but evidence is evidence and to deny this simple fact is irritating and pointless.

Politicians

I am sick to the back teeth with MPs and those who believe that they are entitled to money. In practice there is little difference between the two groups except that the MPs have marginally better dress sense.

I have today heard one MP (Bill Etherington somewhere in Sunderland) try and justify the purchase of a razor on expenses. A razor is not essential to the correct performance of his duties as an MP and which world is he living in if he thinks that the public would think otherwise. We have Shahid Malik trying to justify the purchase of a Plasma TV at the public expense and other MPs claiming curtains, cushions etc. The other issue is that they never go to Primark to buy these things and the public never get the benefit of their largesse.

Until this country gets away from responding to people who start sentences with "Worrit is right..." with large sums of money from the public purse it is going only one way and that is right down the toilet.