Coraline

A film for children? Coraline is rated PG (UK rating meaning Parental Guidance) but it will scare the willies off any child with an imagination and a little sensitivity.
I grew up with Labyrinth and Dark Crystal, and the original Star Wars saga (weirdly, I saw these backwards – thanks mum and dad – starting with Return of The Jedi, making the saga even more bizarre). I can remember being disturbed by scenes in all of these films. They have creepy elements that defy any attempts to rationalise them in adult life. Coraline has the same madness. These days, I’m older, more desensitized and – I’d like to think – a little more rational, but Coraline still left me feeling a little bit like I’d bought a sherbet dip and discovered it was filled with dead flies. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not terrifying like Alien or The Exorcist, it’s just unnerving and unsettling. It takes little sacred things from our childhood and twists them slightly; you seem them through the looking glass and you don’t want to look too closely.
BUT, this is the most artistic, boldly creative stop-motion animation probably ever. It’s meaningful too, making Nightmare Before Christmas seem like the Halloween musical that it is. I’d put this in the same class as Belleville Rendezvous; it’s expressive and haunting and a little bit beautiful.
See it in 3D?! I didn’t. I’d like to now, but probably best that wasn’t the first experience; you need to be eased in to this one.
I’m tempted to get some Neil Gaiman books now…to have my button-eyes opened.

Think Of An Eel (teacher and parent resource).

Now this got me excited. A book for my school children explaining the intricate and marvellous natural history of the mighty eel. Thank you, Karen Wallace!!

Through The Book People, I bought Nature Storybooks set for a £10. Sweet nectar from the resource’s gods.

Television.

Wanting to make a stand, I thought I would comment briefly about the requirement we all seem to have for sitting in front of televisions because everyone else is doing it. I will argue that it might expand knowledge of polular culture – an observation that is self-fulfilling because it is largely responsible for creating popular culture – but that it does so to the detriment of imaginative thought and physical wellbeing. The greatest irony is when people tell me that they watch a particular programme because everyone else it talking about it. This is ridiculous and an illogical position to take. It also aggravates me because they are following the interests of culture en masse, rather than developing and persuing interests relevant to their own individuality and their own personality. The other reason why Eastender’s highly observant ‘everyone’s talking about it’ mantra annoys me, when spouted by friends and relatives, is that it promotes a whirlwind of petty disagreements, such as ‘who got voted off last night?’ or ‘did you see Jeremy punch Christine?’ I wouldn’t mind, but when you express an interest for things like the Large Hadron Collider over Eastenders or X Factor, you are markedly singling yourself out as a bit of a weirdo. People tell me this. My enthusiasm for esoteric subjects might sometimes be because they are esoteric, but at least I think I have good reasons for finding them interesting, which doesn’t include because everyone else is talking about them. The differences I’m describing were excellently portrayed on the american sit-com ‘The Big Bang Theory’, in which the theoretical and experimental physicists with very big IQs are questioned on a series of popular culture topics everyone would know the answer to. Their response: ‘how do you know this stuff?’ The answer: ‘because I leave my apartment and talk to people.’ I guess I’m on the geek’s side.

Generation Kill

I’ve just finished watching this mini-series from the creators of The Wire. The show is seven episodes depicting the jerks and shots of the 1st Reconnaissance marines as they make history as the first troops to invade Iraq (for the second time).

There are no political pre-requisites. Instead, as in The Wire, you get excruciating fly-on-the-wall access, and are left to make your own mind up.

It’s testosterone charged, of course, but somehow the marines become just as loveable as loathsome; probably because of the madness of their jobs. For me, as in The Wire, a lot of the fascination comes from the insider information, such as conversations at grunt level, the differences in perspective etc. Often these are the angles missing from the daily news cycle.

Indeed, it seems all the angles are covered; a lot of research has gone into this. The conditions of the locals, the inadequacy of equipment, the decision making process, the filtered news from the rest of the world, the conditions for the marines; it’s all there, you miss nothing. At times this makes the show disturbing, but by the end I was just cheering the genius of the film-making. No resolutions, just insights. Hollywood, this ‘aint.

Hopefully, shows like this will pave the way for more. Mini-series?! Full-sized series, please.

Keep it frosty

Simon Jenkins vs Ben Goldacre, But Why?!

I just read this by Simon Jenkins.

He’s criticising the media’s lust for making mountains out of molehills, referring specifically to the recent Swine Flu outbreak.
Fair enough criticising sensationalist, profit-pandering journalism. I couldn’t agree more. Most of the time. The jury’s still out on swine flu though. As Goldacre says, “the world doesn’t need another arbitrary pundit to say ‘it’s a bit of a risk, yes’”.

But why does Jenkins direct his criticism at Ben Goldacre? I find the blog Bad Science to be a pillar of enlightened ‘new media’ in a sea of waffle and political back-handery. Ben routinely and tirelessly cuts through the Trollope. You’ve only got to spend a few minute perusing his blog to appreciate this.

Simon Jenkins criticising him is a little like saying:

The US has gone AWOL, just look at that Obama fella…

or,

TV has gone down the drain, just watch The Wire…

All a bit weird.

Jenkins, please launch your hyperlinks at the right targets…

“No limit to the hysteria that scientists and their allies are able to generate round a health scare….”.

And that is just plain wrong. It is very media you thought you were criticising that generate hysteria, not the scientists.

Michael Moore’s Sicko…(recommendation)

If Michael Moore‘s latest film doesn’t have you stirring with pride for the wonders of nationalised health and left wing politics then stir some cream instead. Really fast.

Sicko‘s shots of London made me feel a big shot of loved-up-ness for its architecture, public spaces and people. Yeah, I felt patriotic for the first time since returning home from travelling and reminding myself what a cream tea was. The people made it, though – it seemed that everyone MM interviewed in France and Canada just didn’t have that sense of wry humour that the British seem to have about everything. It was Bill Bryson who drew my attention to this, and when I see these videos it confirms what he said. We speak to laugh. We love sarcasm and especially irony. Bryson tells a story about walking down his drive in the rain, when he sees through the downpour that his neighbour is also out. Bryson says, “nice weather, isn’t it?” with a grin. To which his neighbour responds, “no it isn’t, it’s raining”. I love that.

Anyway, see Sicko. It’s not perfect. Particularly the bit about Guantanamo Bay, in which MM buys the government’s descriptions of the inmates as the crème of terror, although he makes up for it by shipping some of the 9/11 rescue workers – who are still waiting for help at home! – over to Cuba to have them sorted with only their names and date of birth needed. Amazing, and moving. For me, as a Briton, Sicko rocks for reminding me of what we are so fond of forgetting; that we inhabit a utopia. Albeit, a developing utopia.

This might hurt a little

Pom Poko – (Review and Recommendation)

Let’s start by saying that this film is weird. Okay with that? Right…
Weird, but highly accessible. Unlike the themes of recent Ghibli output (Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away) – which can seem a bit lost in translation – those of Pom Poko are clear. The film is a lament for an older, more natural Japan; a time before Tokyo expansion destroyed much of its surrounding countryside. But it’s more than a lament, it’s an exposé. Just one that mixes sociological ideas with dancing racoons. As I said, it’s weird.
The story is about one racoon clan’s frustrated attempts to halt the destruction of what they see as their forest home. Their mission becomes one of sabotage, using their hilarious special powers – which can remain a delightful secret — to survive in a rapidly changing world, which they struggle to understand. Such difficult themes are well explored with emotional integrity, and a surprising amount of political understanding; unheard of from other animation studios. But the Ghibli team clearly have both comprehension of the lives of animals and a human understanding of the crisis – note, for example, the delicate depiction of the racoon’s self-enforced celibacy as a desperate attempt to keep their numbers down. It’s genuinely affecting.
Pom Poko’s structural style takes some getting used to. It’s a sort of historical fairytale, almost a documentary, with an emphasis on narration. An unusual method, especially for an animated film – yet it works well, despite the difficulty of moving between narrated sections and the conversations of the animals. The narration also assists the understanding of the racoon behaviour, reminding us that animals aren’t very self-analytical. It’s also very funny, and occasionally tongue-in-cheek.
Characteristic of Studio Ghibli, Pom Poko is rich with playful humour, and is drawn to a very high standard that shows genuine affectation for animation and for the natural world. It has been written and directed with both children and their weary parents in mind, and so needs to be both funny and informed, and succeeds on both fronts.
Unfortunately Pom Poko is likely to become a bit lost amongst the more frequently publicised Ghibli. It deserves more, as an animal rights film, and because it’s a truly unique experience.

9/10

p.s. Apparently, the film was made by the racoons themselves to show us humans the urgency of their problem. Okay it wasn’t. Well, maybe. But, anyway, who can resist fantasy racoon propaganda? Certainly not me.

Motorized Unicycles? What Next, Robot Clowns?

Potential? A world where one wheel is the norm? Could it be?

The Bombardier Embrio is result of a project by some designers to envisage the future of recreational and commuter transport. They have the youth of 2025 in mind, but I’d like mine now please…

Here’s the link for more info:

http://www.gizmohighway.com/transport/bombardier-embrio.htm

Interested In Current Affairs?

If you answered NO to the title question, you can stop reading…
If however you answered YES then please navigate yourselves to:

http://uc.princeton.edu/main/

For the rather quite exhaustive UChannel podcast.
In their words:
“It is a place where academics can air their ideas and present research in a full-length, uncut format.”

Recently, I’ve listened to one on the importance of emotions in our thought processes, and another from a lawyer involved with the Guantanamo Bay crime.

You can subscribe on iTunes of course.

There’s also a video podcast version if you’ve got the bandwidth and want some visuals.

Over.

The Bug – London Zoo (recommendation)

The Bug on Myspace

I normally don’t like anything this urban, but I had their album London Zoo thrown at me. I’ve got to say, some of the tracks are excellent, and when anything grabs you from an unfamiliar genre it really grabs you.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been living in Plymouth…