Let me say this first, to get it out of the way: What the fuck?!
..
Aherm.
I had the privilege of attending a Live concert as my second ever concert. I was extra lucky because it just happened to be the year of their Best Of tour, which meant that they played such classics as Overcome, Lakini’s Juice, The Dolphin’s Cry, Lightning Crashes and I Alone. I hadn’t ever listened to them before the concert, but I walked out as a fan. They were great live, and their songs were good from what I’d heard. I resolved to check into them, and was not disappointed when I did.
So you can imagine that I was pretty damn excited to hear that Live had released a new album this year. How exciting! :D
Yeah. That is until I actually listened to it.
What the hell went wrong? They’ve changed from the raw passion of old. Even that wouldn’t be such a bad thing, but look at where they went to! I listened to the album, and I couldn’t believe it. Song after song after song, I was hearing radio Top40 pop crap. The album is filled with lovey dovey feelgood tunes that sound like a cross between Vanessa Amorosi and one of the many wannabe rock-band clones out there. Urgh.
It’s pathetic. I listened to each of the songs with a look of pure horror plastered on my face. I actually felt embarrassed for them.
I’ve tried listening to it several times since then, and each time I find that I get through about 60 seconds of each track before I have to skip to the next one. It’s too much! Maybe if I skip it quickly enough, noone will notice that it was by Live.
But see, I can understand that they’re older, wiser. They want to now express different facets of their learned wisdom in their music, wisdom which isn’t necessarily wrapped in angry sounding rock music. That’s fine. This is different though. This isn’t just happy music, it’s fluffy music. It’s cheesy, poppy and has very little actual content to it. The album feels as though they’ve taken a hand at rehashing ‘happy poems’ and slapping it together with ‘happy music’.
Bah!
I’m very disappointed. :(
Yeah, so I watched Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 the other day. As a whole, they were enjoyable and entertaining. But what I found most striking, however, was not the movies as ‘wholes’, but the singular features within the movies. For example, the blood spurting, the spanking, the Battle Royale look-alike, the zing! every time Pai Wei flung his beard. It was all really funny. :D I loved it.
I think that as ‘movies’, both volumes were just an average story. But as a visual feast of hilarity, both films were fabulous. I’m sure if I sat down to watch them again, it’s all of these elements that would be most striking. It’s kinda the same thing as with Shrek – it was a kids movie, sure, but it was so much more than that, and in order to ‘get’ that aspect of it you need to sit down and just enjoy the movie for all of it’s quirks and oddities.
One of the strangest, and funniest, scenes is when Uma Thurman is fighting with Lucy Liu. Uma chops her big, shiny sword down onto Lucy’s head. All we see is a flying hairball landing in the snow. Haha! That part of the movie made me chuckle aloud. Not to mention all the times that someone was injured, and there’d be a torrential flooding of spurting blood. It was hilarious. :D
Anyway, I definitely liked it. It was enjoyable to watch, and exactly the type of humour that I can appreciate. In a lot of ways, it reminded me of Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang – and that’s always a good thing.
Do you guys know of any movies like this, with similar humour? And how did you like the two Kill Bill’s?
This one was way too easy. I'm a music junkie, so compiling such a list took me.. oh, about four minutes. And before you make a comment about my slowness – I had to figure out who to leave out. ;P These are all current musicians though, so that narrows the field a little. Heh.
So anyway. Here are my top 15. In my eyes, they each deserve the utmost of respect for what they've done with their music. A couple are there for the sheer passion they exude. Most are there for using their music as a tool – a platform from which they draw attention to causes they feel deserve attention. I imagine that it would be quite the hubbub of noise if all of these guys were put into a room together. ;P
In rough order, I present you with my 15:
- David Gray.
- Ben Harper.
- Adam Duritz.
- Skin.
- Bono.
- Ed Kowalczyk.
- Maynard.
- Damien Rice.
- Josh Ritter.
- Ray LaMontagne.
- Tom McRae.
- Thom Yorke.
- Joseph Arthur.
- Matthew Good.
- Dave Grohl.
Want to share yours? :D
The question is simple. Which 15 actors would you invite to dinner? You can pick any, and they're guaranteed to come to your dinner. Mmm, steak.
There's only one catch, and that is that you have to invite someone who is still alive today. Yes, that means you can't invite Elvis, but no, he doesn't count as a real actor anyway. =P But anyway.. who would you invite? Who would be your 15?
I'm not really someone who gets into idolising actors and actresses, so this list may seem a little odd. I'll explain as I go. Here's my list:
[All links open in a new window.]
Edward Norton. This is an obvious choice for me. As far as I'm concerned, the man can do no wrong. He's a terrific actor, but that's just one drawcard of his well-rounded personality. He's also heavily involved in charity projects for building cheap homes, in the proliferation of 'green' energy in the form of solar power, and in social justice in general. It's evident that he chooses his roles very carefully. I've heard some radio interviews with him, and I love it. He's well-spoken, and obviously gives a lot of thought to the issues he represents as an actor. I'm a big fan of his, so having him over for dinner would be rad. He definitely gets a seat.
William Shatner. Because he's been around forever, and has seen several generations of TV and film stars. I think it's be really interesting to sit down with the guy and have a chat. Do you know that he's 75 years old?! He's ancient by Hollywood standards, and it's for this reason that he gets a seat at my dinner. Besides, he plays Denny Crane, and I hear he's 'acquired' some of Denny's trademark characteristics. ;)
Natalie Portman. She's fairly young, but has been in the industry for quite some time. It's only recently that I realised that she played the part of the little girl in Leon – a movie I saw a long time ago without realising who she was. She's been in the industry for quite a while, and as far as I know, has yet to take her clothes off. She's one of the very few young actresses who I actually have some respect for. That's always a plus in my books, so she gets a seat.
James Spader. He's funny looking, but you can't deny that the man has talent. He's vastly underappreciated, and he chooses interesting roles, for the most part. He gets a seat.
Kevin Spacey. Another interesting actor, if the roles he chooses are anything to go by. He's also got quite a diverse range of roles under his belt, so it'd be interesting to see his take on many interesting 'dinner topics'.
Angelina Jolie. I know there are a lot of people out there who don't care for her, but I think she'd be very interesting to sit down and have a chat with. Especially considering that she's recently been appointed as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador. When they suggested it to her, she first pointed out that there were a lot of people who may not take them seriously for appointing her. She may have a reputation as being a little wild, but that's even more reason why she'd make a good dinner guest. There's nothing like spice to go with your steak. ; )
Robert Downey Jr. Yes, I realise that he's had drug problems in the past. But that makes him all the more interesting as a dinner guest, right? Besides, if he's half as funny as he is in some of his movies, he'll be a blast to have around. I loved him in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang. *sigh* I truly love that movie.
Gwyneth Paltrow. I'll be honest, I always thought of her as one of those cookie-cutter actresses who only starred in random chick-flick romantic comedies. And then I saw Proof. For that alone, she gets a seat.
John C. McGinley. For playing the role of the funniest man on TV. [He plays Dr. Cox on Scrubs.]
Pierce Brosnan. Because he's another older actor, because he's been around forever, because he's got a spunky British accent, and because he's Bond.. James Bond. *wiggles eyebrows* [By the way, he was brilliant in The Matador.]
Brad Pitt. Because he's Edward Norton's buddy. Heh. And because although he's always been a 'pretty boy' in Hollywood, the guy has still managed to retain his masculine dignity rather than turning into Hugh Grant. Yes, Hugh Grant. That man is so.. urgh. He's not even a bad actor, so whyy does he have to stoop to the level of only ever starring in chick flicks? Psh. Anyway. Brad Pitt. Yeah. He gets a seat.
Anthony Hopkins. Because he's a great actor, because his diction is perfect, and because he did Titus.
Christian Bale. He's so very underrated as an actor. [The Machinist, anyone? Equilibrium?] I'm not sure how he'd be when playing the part of himself, but I'm willing to take the risk and give him a seat to find out. He gets a seat.
Mel Gibson. Not only for being a decent actor, but also for being brave enough to do The Passion of The Christ. I'd love to sit down with him and have a chat about that alone, but also about his role in Braveheart.
And last of all..
Jon Stewart. Hay. What? He counts as an actor. ;P He was in Death To Smoochy. He'd be one of the coolest guests to have at my steak dinner, too. I have a feeling it'd be hard to get him to shutup once the right topics were poked. Hehe. He definitely gets a seat at the table.
And yes, it's a steak dinner. ;)
I've been reading lots of feminist books for a politics essay for Uni, and I've decided; feminism sucks!
Really. You can't do anything right by them. You put a strong woman in a movie; they'll bitch at you for showing that she has a human side when she cries or is shown as being weak in any way at all. Put a strong woman in a movie, and give her no flaws at all; they'll bitch at you for creating an image of women which is impossible for real women to match. So what are you supposed to do? Sheesh!
So anyway, I'm doing a bit of research about gender stereotyping in popular culture, and whether it's changed over time. And honestly, you can tell that is has. Sure, there are tongue-in-cheek depictions of 'ballsy' women. Or depictions of strong women which simultaneously undermine their strength by having them cry over something silly and trivial. But the fact is that these new depictions of strong women allow them the option of being strong and tough. It's much better than the movies back in the 50's and 60's, where all women were shown as working in the kitchen to make some pie, whoring it up on the streets as working girls, or shown as mothers, grandmothers, school teachers and a whole range of other 'feminine' stereotypes. These days there are the options of being a ball-breaker in the boardroom, an outdoorsy woman on a mission, an action hero or any of the other roles women are playing in movies and in real life. It's great!
But it's when the feminists push for more that it starts to get annoying. I'm all for equality between men and women, but that's just it.. equality. None of this 'women taking over the world' business. And if a woman chooses to stay in the kitchen and make pie, then that's her choice, feminists. She's perfectly entitled to make pie, perfectly entitled to shave her armpits and her legs, and perfectly entitled to look feminine if she so desires.
Psh!
1. Pink Martini – Hang On Little Tomato – Hang On Little Tomato (3:38)
2. Damien Rice – The Blower's Daughter (4:44)
3. Ben Harper – Both Sides Of The Gun (2:44)
4. A Perfect Circle – The Package (7:38)
5. Marcy Playground – Sex And Candy (2:51)
6. Matchbox 20 – Push (3:59)
7. David Gray – My oh my (4:37)
8. Ray Lamontagne – hold you in my arms (5:06)
9. Stereophonics – Jealousy (4:26)
10. Turin Brakes – Buildings Wrap Around Me (3:45)
11. Foo Fighters – For All the Cows (3:29)
12. Skunk Anansie – 100 ways to be a good girl (4:01)
13. Lifehouse – Breathing (4:37)
14. Queens of the Stone Age – Lost Art of Keeping a Secret (3:54)
15. U2 – I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (4:38)
16. Iron & Wine – Love and Some Verses (3:40)
17. Blue October – Overweight (4:24)
18. Josh Ritter – Girl In The War (4:23)
19. Pearl Jam – Better Man (4:28)
20. Jack Johnson – People Watching (3:19)
21. Social Distortion – Tainted Love (cover) (2:28)
22. Stereophonics – Devil (4:40)
23. Joe Satriani – Bamboo (5:45)
24. Stereophonics – Superman (5:07)
25. Joe Satriani – Lifestyle (4:34)
26. Sigur Ros – Hoppipolla (4:28)
27. Ben Harper – Serve Your Soul (8:21)
28. The Mars Volta – This Apparatus Must Be Unearth (4:58)
29. Anna Nalick – Wreck Of The Day (4:06)
30. Joseph Arthur – In the Sun (5:38)
31. Nirvana – Rape Me (2:51)
32. Coldplay – X&Y (4:34)
33. Damien Rice – Delicate (5:12)
34. Travis – Sing (3:50)
35. Counting Crows – Amy Hit the Atmoshere (4:38)
36. Foo Fighters – Best Of You (4:15)
37. Sia – Breathe Me (4:34)
38. The Cranberries – No Need To Argue (2:56)
39. A Perfect Circle – Annihilation (2:13)
40. Joss Stone – Spoiled (4:03)
41. Foo Fighters – Monkey Wrench (5:20)
42. Tom McRae – Ghost Of A Shark (3:24)
43. Howie Day – Sunday Morning Song (3:57)
44. Blue October – Congratulations (Feat. Imogen Heap) (4:01)
45. Nirvana – All Apologies (3:47)
46. Arthur, Joseph – Chemical (4:09)
47. Thomas Dybdahl – rain down on me (6:25)
48. Counting Crows – Mr. Jones (4:32)
49. David Gray – Please forgive me (5:35)
50. Nirvana – Smells Like Teens Spirit (4:57)
Perhaps I've just been listening to a lot of music lately, but I look at that list and I can't help but feel that it's a custom-created list. Heh. There are a lot of awesome songs on this list.
781 on my current playlist. 57hours, 44minutes and 20 seconds.
Post yours! : )
