I’ve started reading Master & Commander by Patrick O’Brian. I’ve long been a fan of Napoleonic War era historical fiction but for some reason I’ve never quite gotten around to the Aubrey-Maturin series. Though it’s premature to give a real review, I can appreciate why the books were so well received critically. I’ve got Post Captain and HMS Sapphire on my bookshelf and I’m looking forward to some serious reading!
Category Archives: Entertainment
There Will Be Blood?
I just got home from the late show of There Will Be Blood and I must say I don’t think I enjoyed the movie. In fact it’s the first movie I’ve seen since The Passion of The Christ that I didn’t really feel good about sitting through. Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as The Thirteenth Floor or anything, but it really didn’t make me feel good. Daniel Day-Lewis’ character Plainview is simply too dark for my tastes, he’s a genuine psychopath (probably in the clinical sense) and the acting is a bit too convincing for my taste.
That being said, the acting was excellent and the film, at least as a piece of art in the abstract sense, was quite impressive. I haven’t read Oil!, though from what I gather Paul Thomas Anderson only borrowed loosely from Upton Sinclair’s book so even if I had it might not have prepared me for the tone of the film. I’m a definite fan of Anderson and while I enjoyed his lighter fare (e.g.: Boogie Nights or Magnolia) much more than this film it has done nothing to lower my view of him as a screenwriter or director. I don’t think I’d give it a recommendation but I certainly wouldn’t discourage anybody from seeing it either. A+ in cinema, C for entertainment.
U2 Manager McGuinness Makes Total Ass of Himself
I guess it’s somewhat comforting to know that Bono isn’t the only figure from U2 who has decided to devote his life to being a caricature of a twit. While I have some sympathy with the fact that there is a legitimate case that part of the digital music scene involves theft, every time some fool like Paul McGuinness shoots off his mouth and completely glosses over the real and very difficult issues surrounding digital rights and other technological “paradigm shifts” the issue is buried in yet another layer of total shite. For some reason hearing U2’s manager demand that U2 is somehow being “hurt” by iPods and ISPs makes me want to gag.
Apparently the problem could be solved if we all just dropped our iPods and bought Zunes. I think the most galling of his ill-conceived rant is that he equates all of the various components of the digital music spectrum from ISPs, users, MP3 player manufacturers and Silicon Valley hippies as equally evil. I have all the time in the world to talk to small off-label artists who actually feel the pain in their wallets, but for the most part they are amongst the savviest and are benefiting the most from this shift in power and consumption trends.
Anyway, here’s a link to a CBC article. Here’s a link to Steve Jobs’ somewhat more considered view on the topic for good measure.
The Comedy Network Online
In case you don’t know about it, you can watch a number of The Comedy Network’s top programmes online by visiting: broadband.thecomedynetwork.ca. I don’t watch TV much these days but it’s nice to know I can find stuff like The A Daily Show and The Colbert Report without having to subscribe to cable.
I especially recommend January 22nd’s Daily Show sketch on Iceland pulling out of the Iraq War.
New Bond Film Title Announced
Not sure how keen I am on the name, but I’m always a little excited when they announce a new James Bond film. For some reason it’s one of the few film things that instantly makes me feel like a 16 year old boy. I like the new Daniel Craig interpretation of James Bond quite a bit and I’m interested to see what his second take will be like. The new film is titled Quantum of Solace.