Me, You and Everyone We Know (2005)

Dir: Miranda July

This is one of those films that only a writer/director could make. It is full of those wonderful, visual character moments which cannot be written or interpreted through a shared script - only imagined and determined through one mind. Miranda July, who also stars, has thrown together a brilliantly realised ensemble of characters - most of them younger children - in this surprising "romantic comedy". I say "romantic comedy" because it manages to subvert most of your expectations of that genre.
But don't watch this film because it's a rom-com - watch it because each and every character is played for real. Not a single rom-com "line" is responded to correctly and - from the teenagers who convince themselves reluctantly that they need to have sex to know about it, to the younger girl who has very seriously, secretly, planned her future marriage - every character answers their own personal momentum, rather than a constructed narrative cause and effect. To that end, I was fully engaged throughout.

A refreshing approach to a standard combo. Some of the ingredients were surprisingly delightful.

Me, You and Everyone We Know -

The Reader, by Bernhard Schlink

Published 1995

This book is a very good short read. Surprisingly devourable, given the heavy expectation of a novel dealing with the holocaust, Schlink introduces a complex humanity to all sides of his story. Guilt, and the proper ownership of it's past, are intrinsically connected to the relationship between a young man and older woman representing two very significant generations in recent German history - those that lived through the Second War and their children, who grew to denounce their parents' complicity.

A poignant story that refuses the luxury of dehumanising that which we don't understand.

Done to perfection, this high class dish can be easily enjoyed by anyone. Highly recommended for a quick bite.

The Reader -

This book was a BookCrossing book.

Girl With A Pearl Earring (2003)

Dir: Peter Webber
For those of you not in the know, this movie is an adaptation of a book, which was itself a fictional 'adaptation' of the painting of the original Dutch masterpiece of the same name (by Johannes Vermeer). I am a sucker for adaptations, as it is always fascinating to analyse the decisions made in the conversion - so you can easily imagine how drawn I was to this unique trilogy of media. After especially enjoying Tracy Chevalier's novel, with her intelligent and understated heroine in Griet (the 'girl' of the main tile) and an excellently drawn 17th century Holland, I looked forward to savouring the movie.
As a largely silent character who maintains her place in the Vermeer household as servant, I remember reading a reviewer at the time of release commenting that only Scarlett Johansson could pull off being so compelling (and demure) whilst remaining so quiet. Indeed, the movie was a delicious visual feast, as gorgeous as the novel, but it was sadly missing a lot of the intelligence of Griet. This is almost certainly a concession of the movie - the heroine's inner thoughts can hardly conveyed as well as in the novel - so that Griet has become a lot more gormless and a lot less determined to do what is best, despite her unknowable desires and difficult circumstances. Just watch the way Griet (Scarlett) hangs her mouth open throughout the film - it's just like the painting. In the book, Griet presses her lips together all the time, because she wanted to seem in control and proper - therein lies the signficance of the open-mouthed pose in the painting. The movie makes of for this by making a scene out of Vermeer ordering her to lick and moisten her lips for his pose - thus placing a more obvious emphasis on what is supposed to be on The Girl's mind.
A lot of other elements have been left out from the book, and some could have been swapped for others, but all this is just part of the fun of adaptations. If you like historical fiction, then certainly give the novel a read and then treat yourself to the book - let me know if you
feel the same way about the different interpretations of Griet.

The Girl With A Pearl Earring -

Jpod, by Douglas Coupland

Published 2006.

It has been a while since I have read a book as casually outrageous as JPod.
Focusing on the daily distractions and philosophies of a seemingly average gaming programmer, Ethan, Douglas Coupland gradually heaps an increasing amount of absurd realities onto Ethan's daily plate. The catch appears to be that because Ethan lives, breathes and works in an 'unreal' world of micro-management and forced, bizarre creativity, he accepts the daily insanity in his 'real' world with the minimum of protest.
Ethan, along with his 'JPod' colleagues - all surviving together in a Microserf purgatory (read: "Microserf", another of Coupland's acclaimed novels) - spend more time using their genuine intelligence to evade the reality of work, then they do in pursuing their mutual potential. This is the great blackhole of productivity that is 'the JPod' work environment, and just in case we don't get it, Coupland writes himself into his own novel as a support character to make a few points 'in person'.
A deliciously written novel, a lot of inane fun is had by author and characters alike as they amble through the very lightweight plot. There is, fortunately, an underlying sinister criticism on the wasted potential of the brighter new generation, all utterly apathetic in the face of a reality governed by their parents' generation - the 70s/80s corporate, selfish, self-empowering generation.

A good looking lunch item that promises more on the menu than delivers in the eating. Nonetheless, a satisfactory snack.

JPod -

Jarhead (2005)

Dir: Sam Mendes

Very well made commentary on the inhumanity of training young men into a massive army of ‘soldiers/killers-on-a-leash’. Falling short of actually criticising the Gulf War efforts, it nonetheless destroys the notion that there is anything noble in the act of being a warrior in this day and age. Especially when the foot soldiers are mostly tokenistic due to modern weaponry, yet they are still converted into potential killers waiting for some adrenaline and action. To take half a million of your own population and ‘train’ them to be soldiers with no real intention of them ever becoming functioning social humans again is an act of evil. This movie shows that, but it does not say it.
Directed by Sam Mendes of American Beauty fame – another movie which championed showing the trauma, that film was a little closer to home. Isn’t that always the problem with these computer game wars on the other side of the planet?
If you like this movie, go get Three Kings - right now.

This dish delivers exactly what you expect: A decent slab of Jake Gyllenhaal action, with a side order of cynicism

Jarhead -

A Key To My Tastes...

The Rating System:

- Cuisine! How best to prepare food.
- Great! I would be happy to eat here again.
- Interesting. Well-made.
- A disappointment. I'll not hang around for desert and a coffee.
- Food poisoning...

The class of cuisine:

- A high class establishment
- A decent dinner.
- A casual eat.
- Fast food.

New Year's Resolution

I have always been a big consumer of media. Books, TV, movies, theatre, computer games. Is it all just one big consumption binge? The more I consume, the less I try to produce myself. So here's where I start trying to turn it around. I'm going to start producing my thoughts on every movie and book I read. Occasionally, I might try my hand at a 'formal' review, like it, and attempt to share it with a journal somewhere.
It is my hope that people will eventually begin to treat this site as a sort of 'book/movie club' forum. If you've read the book, then make a short comment or ask a question and I'll respond/retort. If you are intrigued by what I have had to say, then absolutely go get it for yourself and tell me I was completely wrong.

Let's get Socratic on this. Dialogue is good.