“We found the Conscience tied to a chair. He’d knocked him out.”
A clip from Woody Allen’s fabulous film Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sex* – *but were afraid to ask. Here we see the final film short film in the series What happens during ejaculation? The whole concept is genius and I particularly enjoy Woody Allen’s cameo as a sperm, where he delivers two cracking one-liners: “What if it’s a homosexual experience!” and “At least he’s Jewish!”. Have a gander, it’s well worth ten minute of your time.
Great minds think alike
Or perhaps fools seldom differ. Probably the latter. Anyway, for Christmas this year, myself, my sister and my brother all got my father The Guard on DVD. Yes indeed, good to see such clear lines of communication between siblings. Anyway, we opened one of them today (the other two will be returned in January sales, or passed on as birthday presents) and sat down to watch it between the main course and dessert today. Experience has taught me that it’s better to leave a break between courses with Christmas dinner. That way you leave room for pudding and trifle. (N.B. pudding means actual Christmas pudding, not the wishy-washy pudding means any-type-of dessert-English-way-of-usage.) I think it’s a masterpiece of a film. I love it from beginning to end; the rest of the family didn’t seem too convince. My brother and sister were perhaps a bit lukewarm in their reception of it. Dad described himself as being “disappointed” and Mam kept falling asleep (although a strong dose of antibiotics might have played a part in that). Still, I reckon it’s a cracker. It’s really dark and subversive, and really shows off the Westsh of Ireland for all its rugged beauty and muted bigotry. Also, the soundtrack is really, really cool and Wendell’s a bit of alright.
Bicycle Race
Crazy. I especially like the dog at 37 seconds. He appears to be the one deathtrap was wasn’t pre-planned. The footage is taken from a helmet cam, so it’s worth putting it on fullscreen to get the effect.
Stop children what’s that sound
This song Sugar Baby Love, has been going around in my head for weeks, ever since watching Muriel’s Wedding. I’ve tracked it down to the Rubettes, who apparently were big in the seventies. It turns out that it also features in Breakfast on Pluto. This clip encapsulates the zaniness of the film, showcasing its nuttiness and eclectic soundtrack.
And from there, that got me thinking of this, by Buffalo Springfield:
It caught my ear as the backdrop to Cillian Murphy aka Kitten Bradden taking on the entire IRA with a bottle of Chanel No. 5 anti-tourist spray!
Here’s the lyrics, just in case you’re interested:
There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear
There’s a man with a gun over there
Telling me I got to beware
I think it’s time we stop, children, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
There’s battle lines being drawn
Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong
Young people speaking their minds
Getting so much resistance from behind
I think it’s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
What a field-day for the heat
A thousand people in the street
Singing songs and carrying signs
Mostly say, hooray for our side
It’s time we stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Paranoia strikes deep
Into your life it will creep
It starts when you’re always afraid
You step out of line, the man come and take you away
We better stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Stop, hey, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Stop, now, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Stop, children, what’s that sound
Everybody look what’s going down
Just a teensy, insy bit more
Like A Little recently ran a video competition by which users were encouraged to create their own videos to promote the site.
Here’s the winning video:
Just a tinsy, insy bit…
I saw this the other night, and I thought that it was far too cute to resist. Now as short films go, it’s a bit long; running to 12 minutes. But I do think that it’s worth staying with it. I think it’s set in New Zealand, or possibly Australia (unfortunately my ear isn’t attained to dialect detection just yet), so of course my nostalgia overrules my impartiality.
I had found the video on www.likealittle.com – which, if you are not familiar with it, is a “high class anonymous flirting website for Trinity College Dublin”. I discovered LikeALittle early in the new year courtesy of a Facebook link, and it is really good fun. Some of the posts are fantastically amusing. My personal favourite was:
Male. Brunette. Arts Block Smoking Area – Small lizardly looking guy smoking rollies outside the Arts block. Total arsehole, by hey, that’s just my type.
Now whether or not anyone has actually made a connection as a result of a LAL post remains to be seen, but I do think the premise is brilliant. Anyway, returning to the film… With the advent of internet dating, people now find themselves in situations where they are communicating with a person, long before they ever meet them. They’re effectively writing messages to a good-looking stranger. In its essence, that’s what this film is about, and although it’s down without the use of a mobile phone or a keyboard, I think it still gets the message across.
“It’s ride, Sally, ride! Not royide, Sally, royide!”
My iPod threw up Mustang Sally this morning, which of course made me think of The Commitments. It’s a fantastic film, in bits, but the main problem with it is the character of Jimmy who is so irritating that you just want to drown him in the bath. If you can watch it with gritting your teeth every time Jimmy opens his mouth, then you’re in for some real treats i.e. Colm Meeney’s performance as the dad during the audition scene and Glen Hansard’s famous “Fuck me! I’ve just seen Imelda Quirke’s arse coming over that hedge!”
Unlikely hero
For some strange and unknown reason, I found myself singing “Suddenly Seymour” from The Little Shop of Horrors in the shower this morning. You can make of that what you like. Still, I think it’s a compelling argument to put it on the blog.
Whooping nuns!
It’s nearly good enough to make up for the inherent misogyny of the Roman Catholic Church. Oh, no wait.
Gaying it up a bit
You must be wondering how on earth this blog could possibly get gayer. Well it has. Embrace it.
A Legion of Marys 