Catfish

Last weekend I watched 'Catfish', a documentary which touches issues of identity, fiction, reality and modern technology. It is not the film you expect it to be from the trailer, instead it captivates, questions, and on more than one occasion made me feel physically uncomfortable, just through the issues it dealt with. It is one of the best films I have seen in a long time, purely for the effect it had, and the debate stirred immediately after watching it. Whether this is a "real" documentary or a false one remains vague and undefined. While the film-makers claim it is 100% real, many have questioned its veracity, and I can see why. To me however, the question of whether it is "real" or not only adds to the effect of the film as a whole, and gels well with the issues it raises in itself. Can we believe something or somebody to be 'real' just because they say they are? This is film about fiction and reality, and at the end of the screening we are too forced to question some of the very same issues; whether this is intended or not, it is certainly thought-provoking and contextually relevant. 

Wuthering

Currently in the middle of marking essays on, among other Victorian writings, Wuthering Heights. Back in September I watched the 1939 film adaptation starring Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon (perhaps the best name ever). Though the film doesn't stick very closely to the plot it does have the most melodramatic death scene you might ever encounter - see the penultimate image above.


In other news, "New Year" begins for me tomorrow. While most others diligently start afresh on January 1st I like to give myself a week to refocus before I begin to tweak things. Plus, it's handy to have an extra week to finish the mince pies and Christmas chocos, who also happen to be my faithful companions during January marking week. 

Babies 2010

This weekend I watched a stunning documentary by French director Thomas Balmès, 'Babies'. I think one of the most beautiful things about this film is that there is no narration, no subtitles, nothing but images. Taking four babies from four different corners of the world: Namibia, Tokyo, Mongolia and San Fran, this film effectively shows the differences and similarities between life (not just baby life) in each location and culture, and it really makes you think. I love it when something as simple as images without words can make you think and break down the barriers of understanding foreign languages, it really is fascinating. Plus there are lots of cute moments in there, my particular favourite was when the little Mongolian chap was taking a bath and a stray goat came to take a sip of the water. Continuing with this theme, there are some amazing interactions between fearless babies (sometimes fearless naked babies if you're in Mongolia) and goats, cows, cats and sharp toothed dogs having their fur pulled, having baby fingers stuck in their mouths, and not biting back.  And if that's not enough, the Namibian baby has some intense dance moves going on too. Watch the trailer here.

Match Point

One of Woody Allen's most beautifully shot films, I watched Match Point (2005) last week. A film of entrapment, lust, obsession, deception, and crime; it wasn't what I expected. It was better. Is it just me, or do all the character's seem very two-dimensional and cardboard-cut-out in Allen's films, apart from when they give into some form of illicit lust? That's when you see the real person come out. I think one of the saddest things about this film is that some characters never achieve this release, they are trapped in their own, 2-dimensional worlds of blind obsession and social position, remaining oblivious to it all.

Will I? Won't I?

You might be most familiar with this image of James Franco if you've seen Spiderman 3.........

but these days he looks more like this.....

ok yes, this is another film where he plays Allen Ginsberg, but the point is that the Spiderman star has turned his artistic talents to literature. His collection of short stories 'Palo Alto' has just been released. it's received some bad press, but as i always say...it's ok to judge a book by its cover, and in this case i like it.

Will  I read it though? Well that's another question. Will I? Won't I?