"This bourgeoisie government can only be brought down from within"
Saw Bara over the weekend. Based on a novel by U R Ananthmurthy, it stars Ananth Nag as an upright District Collector and C R Simha is a communist leader in the same district. The district, which is nameless but somewhere on the Karnataka, Maharshtra border based on dialect is drought hit and ignored by both the central and state governments. Both men work towards trying to help the people of this water less district while being rendered mostly helpless by the powers that be. One scene in the movie really got to me. Simha tells Nag that he's a big fan of the socialist literature and books that Nag's uncle writes and quotes the above line to Nag from one of his uncle's books and hints that Nag is actually part of his uncle's idea to bring down the Bourgeoisie government from within. Simha is serious but says his lines in a very casual friendly manner but Ananth Nag's reaction was a spectacular bit of acting. Half surprised that this brash and loud village leader reads his uncle's intellectual works and half amused at his conspiracy theory. Fabulous bit of acting from 2 superb Kannada actors. Its a pretty good movie and made me wonder where Simha is these days. It also reminded me of his stunning performance in and as Tughlaq in Karnad's play. That was goose bump inducing. They don't make Kannada movies like they used to.
This is the scene but the whole movie's up on youtube. No subs.
In other news, PVR has a special Wednesday offer where you can watch a movie for a hundred bucks and seventy if its a Kannada movie. So off I went and after much inner debate, decided to see "paper boat". Naveen Krishna is the hero in what is probably the worst Kannada movie I have ever seen. Hilariously bad, Krishna manages to solve the world's problems in 2 hours. He gets a start by reselling flowers left on graves, then forms a nationwide team from society's rejects who he rehabilitates and starts a "software" business in a slum and sells laptops for 2500 rupees and finally creates a security software that solves all of the world's security problems. In between all this he also finds Osama Bin Laden and tips off the Americans, tricks Dawood Ibrahim into coming to India and kills him, eradicates hunger in the world, eradicates racism in Africa, fascism in Europe and corruption in India. All of it through his SoS organization and special software. There are plenty of moments right through this film that will make you giggle but there was one moment that will forever stay with me. Krishna launches his revolutionary laptop and there's a scene where a little boy is using it to learn the English alphabet. The graphic on the laptop screen says "A for Aero Plain" with a photo of a nice big passenger airplane to go along with it. That kid will go far. Probably go abroad and teach the Americans some English. This is how we do it. Utter shit but so many laugh out loud moments that the movie has a charm all of its own. This is a movie that I must somehow get a hold of, sub it and upload it on the great internet for the world to see. Unbelievable.
Also saw Gangs of Wasseypur last weekend and it blew my mind. The best Hindi film I've seen in ages and probably ever. Detailed review and opinion coming soon but probably after a second watch. For now, "keh ke lunga".
Blog me this and blog me that. Saw Kreator last night. Who would have thought it. Mille Petroza was everything I thought he'd be. The opening burst of Violent Revolution, Hordes of Chaos and Phobia set the tone for the rest of their set but People of the Lie, Terror Zone and Pleasure to Kill pretty much sealed it. People of the Lie was in particular, fucking awesome and surprised myself by still remembering all the words. Some things you just don't forget, I guess. Otherwise, Suidakra was really fucking boring. Dying Embrace was pretty great and Kryptos had a huge sound and were very professional even if their songs aren't really my scene.
Pretty good show overall but I wish the venue was a bit closer. Took me 2 hours to ride there including one wrong turn that took me way off course and one scary moment when an idiot in a Swift decided to back up all over me and left me on the ground. Many thanks to the auto driver who lifted my bike off me and I hope that driver gets a case of genital herpes (and severe heartburn when he went home and saw the state of his bumper). My bike's leg rest is once again crooked and my most comfortable jeans have an unfortunate rip but otherwise no great loss. Still, such a long ride and the constant walking to and fro from the venue in a college football field to the parking lot has left me with stiff hamstrings and aching legs. If I wasn't following someone on the way back I think I might have still been there. Going round in circles.
There's a new Manowar album. Its strangely subdued and not as epic as the last one I heard but all the better for it. Kind of streamlined and a lot more focused.
Another weekend done and dusted
Another sky threatening to burst
A hope that the mayans were right
A sense that all is not yet lost
Saturday, May 05, 2012
Our lives are done Our deeds written Trapped in these pages Our blood stains this book
Seek out our story We are the horde Abandoned to history We fell on the sword
These bloodstained pages Hold our truths We were not all we could be
These bloodstained pages Hold our truths We were simply what we were
Complex Shetty passed away a couple of days ago. I just found out now. Its strange how our families were entangled in ties from Mangalore and then right here. Still, I'll always remember him as a gentleman. Smoking his smalls, getting his waiters to shoo us away during lunch hour and then calling us back once the crowd had thinned and getting Shetty Jr. to kick us all out at 8. "Go home you useless fellows or I'll tell your parents."
Its dry and humid today. The smoke from my cigarette hangs in the air like its deciding which way to go. Kind of trippy and I'd have liked it if it wasn't so hot and insect ridden.
I saw Parinda recently. Its still a good movie but the acting is so 90s it feels dated and a bit campy. Particularly the big dramatic show downs between Jackie Shroff and Anil Kapoor. Every dialogue is repeated loudly. Kind of an exclamation mark for emphasis but it just feels funny now. Camp. Still, Jackie's entrance has to be one of the coolest Hindi movie scenes ever. A black Padmini, ray bans and that climb up a water tower killing Musa's men one by one. Also, Tom Alter as Musa's pretty fucking cool.
I'm feeling kind of low and dull. Frustrated, irritated, looking for a fight and completely alone. I don't mind the solitude so much but it seems like every emotion I feel is negative. Actually looking forward to work tomorrow.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
What the hell man. Its been a terrific year for music so far. So much music that sounds killer and I can't keep up. I still haven't listened to the new napalm. Fucking hell. Ha Ha.
My cousin and nephew visited over the weekend. He's smart and has a predisposition to violence. He pretends to be singham when he's shooting you and chota bheem when he's punching you. He's also smart enough to do a baby voice when he breaks something. He's all of 4 years old and dangerously intelligent.
Six Feet Under sound like they finally eased up on the weed. New album's not bad. A bit boring but better than I remember them being.
The new Torche is magical. Harmonicraft.
No electricity since 2 pm. We've all been slowly cooking for the last 10 hours. Maybe that's the plan. Another day of this heat and our man eating alien creators will be upon us. Their harvest, our flesh. Such is life.
The worst part of the heat is the sweat on your neck. When you're sleeping. Sick and disgusting and wakes me up.
I want to see 21 Jump Street. And the new snow white movie with julia roberts.
Hurtling down through a pitch black tunnel at great speed. The burning man's behind me and the goat waits at the end. In a ganesha like pose. Motherfucker. That was vivid.
So there's a new St. Vitus out. Some 15 years and more since Die Healing. New album has a complicated name that I can't remember but the songs are pretty good. The solos aren't as great as I remember them being though. Also, the album's really short and has 2 pointless instrumentals.
Its so fucking hot today. I mean, seriously. Drained, tired and sweaty faces all around me. Almost like people are isolating themselves. Staying still and quiet and hoping that somehow the heat will pass them by without touching. The weatherman says 2 more days of this and the temperature needs to hit 40 before the rains come. Bangalore's never been this hot. Ever. Terrible shit.
The new Wolfbrigade is finally out on the great net. It seemed like a never ending wait and for once an album I've really been looking forward to has managed to live up to every one of my expectations. Part crusty d-beat, part motorhead worship and some superb slightly black melodic guitar riffs that seem to take their inspiration from Dissection. Damned is awesome.
Now if only I can get a copy of the new Reino Ermitano. 2 days to official release and still no leak dammit.
And it rained. A full day before the weatherman said it would. Its dark, cloudy and windy at 2 in the afternoon. Thank you.
The heart of the lettuce is tender The flower of the zucchini is bold
The behavior of the rogue may fairly be described as individual, separation from its fellows appearing to increase both cunning and ferocity. These solitary beasts, exasperated by chronic pain or widower hood, are occasionally found among all the larger carnivores and graminivores, are generally male, though, in the case of the hippopotami, the wanton viciousness of old cows is not to be disregarded.
I’ve been reading grand dad’s books one by one almost obsessively and today I started to feel nostalgic and miss him. I wish I had the balls to ask him what he thought of No Orchids for Ms. Blandish and how he came to own a treasure trove of pulp. Also, for some strange reason, I’ve come to associate grand dad and Jarboe. So naturally I spent all day listening to J2 and Mahakali. Doubt if grand dad would have liked but I certainly do.
There’s something about the way chester himes writes that I really like. His books read like blaxploitation movies. Coffin Ed Johnson and Grave Digger Jones could have been superstars and badasses. Just look at their names. But Himes only kept the badass bit and never let their personalities take over the plot. They were honest good police who worked hard and kicked ass occasionally. Cotton Comes to Harlem was filmed and it was Ossie Davis’s first film as director. I had no idea till IMDB told me but he was on my mind after Bubba. Anyway, it’s pretty good and holds up well but imagine Fred Williamson as Coffin Ed and Richard Roundtree as Grave Digger. That would have been something else. The potential for badassery fries the brain but it was never meant to be. Instead we got a lame ass sequel based on The Heat’s On and it ended right there. Let’s not talk about a rage in harlem and that fake piece of shit.
Anyway, I’m just rambling here and I’ve forgotten what I came to do.
"If you want to know about a mother's love then watch a movie by Prem, if you want to know about brother and sister relationship then watch a Sai Prakash movie but whatever you do, don't watch an Upendra movie. He'll tell you love is a brinjal and just as crappy."
Kannada movie bonanza this weekend. Saw Alemari with Yogesh alias Loose Madha as hero and it wasn't bad at all. A horribly disfigured and somewhat slow man is brought to Bangalore from a village to work as manual labour. Every night he sleeps and dreams of a time when he was a normal looking dude and living his life as a milkman, falling in love with a girl (Neeli) and getting involved in gang fights with a local rowdy who goes by the name of NIMHANS Suri. Mental fellow. The story is the by now cliched plot of love, rowdyism and longs. What makes this a bit different is you're never sure if it's a flashback of the hero's life or simply a dream. Its only when the movie's over and I was putting all the pieces together that I realised every character in the hero's dreams was someone he met on the streets during the day. His dream mother is a woman who takes pity on him and feeds him, his dream lover is the woman who lives in a house next to the shed he's staying in, his dream mentor is a man who's dead in the real world and whose giant billboard he passes by every day and his dream brother in law is a rowdy who's just gotten out of jail. Or, maybe, it all actually happened and his mom and brother in law just don't recognize him cause of how fucked up his face is. Originally running at over 3 and a half hours, the movie was then cut by about an hour before release and further cut by 20 minutes after its initial release. Its a jumbled tale and some parts don't make much sense. The fight scenes are great though. A chase where Milk Madha is running through the lanes with all of NIMHANS Suri's area boys chasing him is done nicely and the final fight is pretty good too. I have to say, Jogi has had such a huge influence on kannada movies that its scary. Its given birth to a whole new dialogue, our own street, full of sketches, deals and fittings. Hardboiled as hell for anyone willing to sit through a half assed love story and a few obnoxiously loud songs to get to the good bits. The writing is really good. The dialogue is sharp and honest. The above quoted lines lose something in translation and with no context but it made me laugh. Also, Ramesh Bhat as Shastri the brahmin music teacher, simple man and father of heroine is such a lame character and Bhat has been doing these for years now. Umashri in the role of milk Madha's mother is also on autopilot. She's done this whole loud, short tempered but loving mother role hazaar times. On the other hand MICO Nagaraj as Naganna the kind hearted moneylender and ex-rowdy and Adi Lokesh as Pulav Krishna the cold and heartless rowdy play out newer cliches like they were born for it. In fact, Adi Lokesh was quite impressive. Not hero material but maybe another solid character actor. Anyway, it's a movie worth checking out.
Tired dude. Too early to sleep so here I am. Also saw Spartacus: Blood and Sand and it was pretty crappy except for one great fight scene and Lucy Lawless who's quite hot after horrible Xena. Season 2 of the Borgias cannot start soon enough.
Blog me this and blog me that. What's up with all these NWOBHM revival bands? They're alright but kind of pointless.
I saw the Tintin movie last night. I think the best word to describe it is charming. Snowy was awesome and probably the best bit about the movie. The villain was pretty great and overall it was an entertaining movie. I'll watch the sequel if there is one.
Been mostly watching a WWE show called Legends of Wrestling where a bunch of ex wrestlers and management sit around and gossip about various topics. The best stories come from Dusty Rhodes, Michael Hayes and Pat Patterson but the topics are all pretty interesting. Particularly the ones on "Bad asses," "worst characters" and "heatseekers." The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes has the kind of hillbilly accent that I thought was a put on but no, that's actually what he sounds like. Nekkid. It also reminded me of probably the creepiest thing I ever saw on tv as a kid back when WWE was still the WWF. Golddust. When I first saw this promo, I remember being creeped out and very uncomfortable and wondering why Razor didn't beat the shit out of him. Now when I saw it on the Worst Characters discussion, I simply admired Dustin Rhodes' promo skills, McMahon selling his own homophobia and the fantastic job The King does on colour commentary. "Golddust is here, he may be queer. Get used to it."
I also saw Maniac Cop with commentary. Not sure why and its going to take ages to seed this back but it was fun. William Lustig, Phil Cohen and Bruce Campbell on the perils on B movie making. Not as good as Brian Trenchard Smith's commentary on Turkey Shoot but close. For whatever reason, it made me want to watch Bubba Ho Tep again. Maybe over the weekend. I wonder if it ever got a commentary version.
Its become a sort of habit to finish work and head straight to the complex for a coffee before going home. There's an ancient dog here who every evening, just as I sit down also sits down on a bed of dry leaves and naps. Very cute.
Onto week 3. so far so good. cleared the first hurdle and 2 more to go. Should be okay. I'm steadily getting back into the groove of things.
It's been a dull few weeks apart from work. Feels like whining is such an easy thing to do and I'm trying hard not to fall into that pit. Quitting smoking seems to have failed after a period of success. So much for that.
Not much else to report and now that I have this page open, can't really think of much to write about. So I guess this is it. Till next time etc. etc.
The karnataka chief minister decided he didn't want the state to be a part of project tiger. So no money or infrastructure from the centre and this in the state that has the highest population of tigers in the country. This after already having said no to a world heritage site tag for the western ghats. Is there any point in getting angry over this? Especially when the national media seems to think Salman Rushdie's freedom of speech is a far more important issue.
I'm getting blisters inside my mouth. Big water filled boils.
I'm also in a constant sense of anticipation. Something's going to go horribly wrong between now and monday. Paranoia only. Hopefully.
Met a friend yesterday and after the initial debate on the pros and cons of vinyl, we settled into a Tendulkar bashing dialogue. No one else seems to be doing it so why not. With Ponting's resurgence and his touching of the 13000 run mark it seems inevitable now that Tendulkar will carry on for another year or so. Maybe 2. Considering that the next test series is only in July and we don't play outside the sub continent for almost 2 years after this tour, it seems likely that Tendulkar will go on to hit the 15k mark. Doesn't matter if he doesn't win any matches for India or if he just plays for his records. In a country obsessed with numbers, Tendulkar is truly God. Just as unreliable too. I hope he proves me wrong but I doubt it. I'm just waiting to see when Boria and Arnab will finally start to grow some balls and criticise the great man.
Watching the cricket in Australia is a bit like watching a slasher movie. Except there are 11 screaming psychos at any given time going after 11 nubile and delicate brown beauties. This is exploitation at a whole new level. The last time India went to Australia it led to a purging of the old guard from the limited overs side. This time around it might well lead to a purge of the old guard from the test side and I think its about time. These guys won't go anywhere till they're pushed out. So push. Its become almost impossible to hide them on the field, their reflexes are down so having them catching in the slips is a risk and Laxman and Sehwag look like they have cement boots on. Of Sehwag, Sachin, Dravid and Laxman, Viru still has a few years of cricket left in him and the great Tendulkar will never be dropped even if its pretty obvious that he's only playing now for that 100th century and his own personal milestones. Dravid is still fit but is dropping catches and getting bowled too often. He might survive another season. Laxman I think will be the first to go. He hasn't been very very special since that last home victory against Australia almost 2 years ago. We're going to lose 4-0 in this series and Dhoni I suppose will be the scapegoat and lose his captaincy at the end of it. Replacing him with Sehwag will be a monumental blunder but that just might be what happens. If I was chief selector I'd tell Laxman and Dravid it was time to retire and bring in Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Ambati Rayadu. At least 2 of those guys should go on to have successful test careers and be good enough eventually to replace Dravid and Laxman.
Knowing Indian cricket though, the team will stay in its current form, Sachin will eventually get his landmark ton and the others will score on the flat pitches of India and prolong their career by another year or so. Kohli and Rohit Sharma will probably compete for the same spot till these guys decide to retire.
I will be rejoining the corporate world shortly. About time. Irregular timing and 9 hour work days or nights. Can't wait.
The Djinn & Miskatonic demo sucks. If I was reviewing it for GD I'd be making all sorts of nasty comments. We got royally screwed by an incompetent sound engineer. The bass is too soft, the vocals too loud and the drums sound like someone's beating on a cardboard box with a wooden scale.
I want to get completely and utterly stoned and giggle at comedians being mean to each other and then have Herzog take me on a guided tour of the La Chauvet caves. 2 out of 3 will probably happen tonight.
Today, I was accosted by a young boy who was working for some ngo. He asked me if I knew Kannada initially and then proceeded to give me his marketing lecture rapid fire and pointed me at a website to investigate further and showed me the incense sticks his ngo makes and finally thanked me for my time and for speaking to him in kannada cause i was only the second kannada speaking person he'd met since morning and then wished me a nice day and walked off with a smile. If i had any money I'd have bought those fucking agarbhattis.
I've been catching up on the movies of Alex Iglesia. Probably because I found out he was responsible for both Perdita Durango and The Perfect Crime. Wanted to see what else he'd made so...
La Communidad
Better informed people than myself say this is Iglesia's best film. A down on her luck real estate agent is living in an empty apartment that she's meant to show to potential customers because her own flat has no heating. One day, a million cockroaches fall on her from a crack in the cieling. This leads to a discovery that the man who lives in the flat above her is dead and peacefully rotting away, uncared for and unattended. We find out that the dead man was a recluse hated by the other people living in the complex and was also a winner of the national lottery. The woman happens to find the money hidden away in his flat and so begins a tense and comedic cat and mouse chase between the woman and the rest of the occupants in that building. There's an opening shot with a corpse and a cat that is simply fantastic and the movie does have its moments but of the Iglesia movies I've seen this is probably my least favourite. Still better than 90% of the crap out there.
The Day of the Beast
The movie follows a catholic priest and theology professor who has deciphered a code that tells him the anti-christ will be born in Madrid. He determines to summon the devil so he can ask him when and where exactly the baby will be born. Along the way he recruits a metal head and a popular TV medium to his cause. The movie plays out like a light hearted farce for about the first half and then things start to take a turn to darker territory. The performances are terrific in this film and the characters are likable. A very enjoyable dark comedy with a high body count.
The Last Circus
The latest film from Iglesia. This is a strange film about a boy from a family of clowns. His father, a "happy" clown is imprisoned and later dies in prison as a rebel of General Franco's politics. The son goes on to become a "sad" clown and joins a circus. Here, the happy clown is the star and is a cruel bully who mistreats his employees and beats on his wife (the beautiful Carolina Bang). Our happy clown falls in love with her and it all ends badly. Part camp, part comedy, part horror and part heartbreaking tragedy, the movie is held up by 3 superb performances from the sad clown, the happy clown and the woman. The hero's father, played by Iglesia regular Santiago Seguro turns in another wonderful performance. There's heavy use of CGI particularly for the set piece climax with the three main characters battling it out on top of a gigantic tower and the whole movie is set in Franco's Spain, starting from when he came into power and ending as his power was on the decline. This is a powerful film and worth watching.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
So I finally saw the film. It has one great central performance from Gary Oldman and a terrific supporting cast which makes even the smallest walk on cameo a pleasure to watch. The story is simple enough. Set during the height of the cold war, there's a mole in British foreign intelligence and Oldman is brought out of retirement to flush the mole out. Maybe its just in my head but it feels like Oldman is channeling Alec Guinness' performance in the TV series. His speech, the half smile, the delicate way he holds his cigarette all reminded me of Guiness's performance but Oldman is a terrific actor and he makes the role his own. Its a very tight movie at just about 2 hours and has almost no exposition. you need to pay attention to the dialogue and the seemingly thrown away little pieces of information that the director let's you have. The problem with this is that apart from Oldman's Smiley, the rest of the characters never really come alive and are just cardboard cut outs. Still, worth watching.
Homeland
Saw season 1 of Homeland over the weekend and its pretty good. An American marine sergeant held captive by a terrorist cell in Iraq for 8 years is freed in an unrelated attack on insurgents. He comes home a hero and one track follows his rehabilitation and settling into his domestic life with a wife and 2 kids. Then there's Claire Danes who plays a CIA agent with information that a POW has been turned by the terrorists and is planning something big in America. She's convinced that its the Sergeant and so begins a 12 hour cat and mouse game with various political and CIA intrigue thrown in. The acting is pretty great right from episode 1. The dude who plays the sergeant, his wife played by the whore from Firefly, Mandy Patinkin as a CIA consultant and Danes are particularly good as is just about every kid cast in this series. Homeland also stays away from any sort of propaganda and jingoism with all the characters dressed in various shades of grey. Overall, worth watching even if a touch predictable and succumbing to the rules of television and a possible second season.
Outrage
TakeshiKitano returns to the world of the Yakuza after almost a decade with mixed results. The story is simple enough and almost an alternate version of Sonatine. Kitano plays the head of a minor Yakuza gang who gets used by his immediate boss. He's asked to constantly pick fights with a drug running gang who's boss is brother to Kitano's boss. Kitano's gang is used to further his own ambition and then thrown to the wolves when it suits him. Obviously, this doesn't sit well with Kitano and company after about an hour of set up we're left with a violent and bloody closing chapter that sees Kitano the director, completely unrestrained in the spilling of blood. Kitano the actor also seems to be having fun with his role and is a bit more animated than usual. The stillness I've come to associate with Beat Takeshi is reduced here. There's also a lot of familiar faces from previous Yakuza movies. Overall, fans of Kitano's more violent work will probably like this but it lacks in characterisation and the labyrinthine plot of double and triple crosses and political intrigue and power struggles within the yakuza need to be paid attention to, to follow completely. The man's well over 60 now but his energy seems to be boundless. Kitano fans will like this but everyone else should stay away.
Kill List
Act 1. A family. Husaband and wife love each other. They have a son they love as well. But. Husband has no job and they're broke. Wife is upset about this. They fight constantly but they still love each other and love their son. Then one day, husband's old friend turns up with a new girlfriend for a dinner party. Offers the husband a new well paying job. We find out then that the husband and his friend used to be soldiers, then dodgy mercenaries and now are hit men. There's also something a bit off about the friend's new girlfriend. Act 2. The husband and his friend take on the Kill List. Everyone on it is involved in a kiddie porn ring so no problems in disposing of this scum. But. Husband seems to be on the verge of a breakdown and each kill is more violent and gory than the last. Act 3. Everything goes to hell with a crazy fucking twist ending. Honestly, a tense, superbly acted little British film with an ending that left me asking "Why?!" Completely unnecessary. Shades of A Serbian Film, shock cinema, whatever you want to call it. A film worth watching but with an ending that left me quite disappointed.
Spun
Jason Shwartzman, Mickey Rourke, Mina Suvari, Brittany Murphy and John Leguziama makes for an interesting cast. Put them in a movie made by a Swedish music video director and what you get is a hipster druggie movie that's part Requiem for a Dream and part Tarantino wannabe. Shwartzman goes to his dealer Leguziama to score some crystal meth. There he meets Murphy who takes him to meet The Cook, played by Rourke. Shwartzman spends the next 3 days driving the duo around in exchange for drugs and that's pretty much the story. There's also a disturbing sub plot involving a girl that Shwartzman's chained up in his house. There's Shwartzman's neighbour and phone sex operator played by Debbie Harry, Rob Halford as a porn shop clerk, Ron Jeremy in a thankfully non speaking cameo and Eric Roberts in an embarrassing, over the top cameo as a gay drug lord. The most likable characters here are Leguziama as the meth dealing Spider and Rourke as the meth cooking "Cook." Both are competent and over the top when they have to be but both have been way better. Shwartzman, Suvari and Murphy are all at various levels of annoying although Peter Stormar turns up in a fun little role as a coke head cop. Credit where its due, the movie isn't as bad as it sounds. The director uses a shit load of edits, dilating pupils and animation to add visual flair. Unfortunately, the story isn't much. Still worth a watch if you want an over the top flashy ride with very little substance.
Here's Rourke and Halford in the same scene. Sort of.
A Lonely Place for Dying
Tight action thriller about a group of mountain climbers out on a climb in Scotland who come across a little girl buried in an underground chamber. Who she is and who put her there makes up the story with some stunning cinematography. The movie plays out like a more cerebral Cliffhanger with a couple of great action set pieces. Doesn't flinch on the violence and the acting is pretty decent. Overall, worth a watch for action fans.
Triangle
From the guy who did Black Death and Creep, this movie was quite entertaining. A group of friends take off on a boating trip. The weather suddenly changes and a sudden storm overturns the boat. The stranded survivors see a cruise liner that drifts along and manage to get on board but its not a normal ship. Released the same year as Time Crimes from Spain, the similarity in theme is undeniable. However, thanks to a great lead performance, the movie holds together and as it unfolds, manages to be gripping in spite of the fact that genre fans should figure out the plot quickly. Nothing special but worth a watch for sci-fi fans.
I read today that there's been an increase of 50% in the number of men who have acid reflux at least once a week in the last 10 years.
Cyclone Thane has arrived but everyone's too busy with the Lokpal. Our leaders have let us down. We're in the shadow of a dying world and we're watching it on television.
January my love, arrive already.
The look of disembodiment in her lifeless eyes methadone and wine and distant death's bleak lullaby.
What a dull fucking start to the new year. Like seriously. It took just about every bit of energy I had to get out of bed. Now I'm sitting around worrying and brooding about 2012. From a purely escapist point of view I welcome the coming end.
I hope the first day of the year isn't a sign of things to come.
I miss having cats around at home. Maybe its time to bite the bullet again.
The look of disembodiment in her lifeless eyes methadone and wine and distant death's bleak lullaby.
Its bright and hot and sunny outside. Winter seems to have disappeared along with 2011.
I'm angry a lot. A kind of seething bitterness at the world at large and some self loathing to go along with it. I hate this.
When I finally tracked down Tabitha she was sitting in the front lawn of her new house with a fat old boxer named Oliver. They were drinking tall cold glasses of milk. Drinking the warmth right out of the hot and sweaty afternoon....
I was lost in a haze of smoke and the smell of stale bitter coffee when the call had come. All I had was a name and a photograph. Tabitha. Find her, bring her back home and maybe make enough to leave the city to its dark unpleasant future. A pretty face when I thought they'd all disappeared. A pretty face in a city buried in ugliness. Should stick out like a vegan at a meat packing plant. Should be easy.
The city was bleeding. Thick waves of black sludge slowly but surely seeped through the cracks in the pavement. The sun had forgotten the city and the rain beat down in sharp drops that could cut your skin if you let it. I pulled my coat closer and walk on. Avoiding the puddles of sludge, the puddles of rainwater and looking for a pretty face to improve my mood. It was tough. The last pretty face in the city had left when the sun was still out. Why am I still here? Hope. And one last job. Scouring the clubs and the alleyways, back room poker games and all night blues bars, one thing was certain. Getting to Tabitha meant finding Oliver. A fat mean spirited boxer who had seen better days and now ran a protection service. Tabitha was his client and everything I heard about him led me to believe he wouldn't go down or let go without a fight.
I learned of an alley that Oliver frequented. An alley for dogs and hobos and women of ill repute. You know the kind. Every city has them. I dressed for the occasion, hoping to be just another face, a nobody looking for scraps. I hung in the shadows and waited. Sure enough, my information was correct. Oliver came lumbering in sometime past midnight. His rolls of fat jiggling with every step he took. Every step he took seemed like it could be his last. I'd met boxers like this before. A lifetime spent being a punching bag and with nothing to show for it but aching limbs and a meanness of spirit that would be the last to go. I'd met this kind and handled them. No problem.
My over confidence was my first mistake. Seeing only the meanness in his eyes and overlooking the intelligence. I stepped out of the shadows and called out to him. Second mistake. I was surrounded by a pack of 3 young cruel products of the street. Nothing more than strays but when in a pack, more dangerous than a herd of lions. The leader lunged at me. I fell and as my head hit the pavement I noted the cracking sound with a sense of detachment. When I came to it was raining again. The sharp cold rain cut through the pain in my bones and I stood. Blood. All of it mine. My head ached, my body ached and I seemed to be bleeding from a dozen different places.
I'd been set up. Lucky to still be alive and maybe Oliver thought a warning would be enough but this old dog had the bit between his teeth and wasn't letting go.
It took me a few days to get back on my feet. Get back on the street. I'd underestimated Oliver and was back at nothing. Every fresh lead I'd dug up had run into a wall and I was clutching at hope and Tabby's photograph. Yeah, she'd become Tabby in my mind. A pretty face will do that to you. Make you lose perspective.
I was on my fifth white russian and just about ready to throw in the towel. I reached into my pocket to pay and leave when I found a little scrap of paper. An address and nothing more. On the outskirts of the city and not a place that would welcome the likes of me. It had been slipped in without me noticing. Getting old and soft and primed for another trap. I had no choice though. I had to follow up on it.
I found the house easy enough and there she was. Sitting on the front porch with that mean old dog for company. She looked at me. Imperious with her green eyes and snow white fur. Took a last lick of her milk and darted in through the open door. I had to follow. Had to see this through. Tabby knew this and so did Oliver. He was standing on the porch, face split into a wide evil grin. Daring me to climb up the steps. Daring me to go after Tabby. I did. I had no choice.
Now, lying in my own pool of blood with Oliver looking down at me with amusement and Tabby calmly licking remnants of milk off her whiskers. All I could do was curse myself. I thought this was going to be easy and I thought I could leave the city. More fool me. In my line of work there's never an easy job and once you've lived in the city there's no leaving it. Like my ma used to say, "boy, you sure picked a hard way to make an easy living."
If life was a 50s noir then this is when I'd be drunk all the time and smoking a ton of cigarettes before karma finally caught up with me and I got run over by a bus. Preferably unknown, unwitnessed and with no claimant for my body. The last act in a 90 minute cycle of fucking up.
Hello dear diary. Its been a while. Did you miss me? Like Herzog misses Kinski maybe.
I've been up and down. More down than up. Now have one less thing going for me which brings me to a grand total of 1. Well done.
Been a while since I came here. So much has happened on the personal front that I have no choice but to leave all of it out. Today is a new day and pain is a warning.
I had the most bizarre dream last night. I was in the masterchef house. Like an outsider looking in. Kumar killed Hayden. Kicked him in the neck with a fancy karate move and everyone cheered.
In other news I'm going to try my hand at haiku writing next time I'm in the tub. I feel inspired.
I got a new waterproof jacket courtesy of the sister and it works like a charm when its raining. When its not though, it gets incredibly stuffy. Luckily I can fold it into my bag. Wow.
"I wish they were hardcore leftists instead of just left leaning. Life would have been so much easier." "But then you can't be apolitical" "Yeah."
"It seems Anna has supporters even in pakistan" "Yeah. Till Eed."
Today was a pretty good sunday. Heard a lot of music, wasted time on rest and relaxation, laughed at some stupid jokes and now listening to demolition hammer, morbid saint and mandator on shuffle.
Been watching this show called eureka. About a small town called Eureka that houses the best minds in America and the town sheriff who must keep these minds safe. Its a lot like Chuck. Ridiculous plots but interesting, likable characters. Good time pass.
Today on the way to work I got late cause of a procession to freedom park by about a 100 college kids in support of anna. They've got the day off I guess. Irritating shit.
In other news, the new Today is the Day sounds like old Cave In. Steve Austin's mellowed. Who would have thought.
So the fourth test is now over. India lost 4-0. Not since that australian whitewash all those years ago has indian cricket been this pathetic. The team, selectors and the BCCI must share equal blame. The selectors for picking zaheer khan and sehwag and not bothering to send a back up opener, the team for its lazy and arrogant attitude and the BCCI for just being power mad assholes. Sachin's still on 99 hundreds and it looked like the fourth test was a perfect opportunity for him to get to 100 considering the series was lost and there wasn't any pressure but he failed and got out in the 90s after playing very determinedly for a 100. Oh we'll, he'll probably get it in the one day series but I hope he flops there also and comes back from England with nothing to show for. Dravid has been fantastic. His 3rd hundred in the series was beautiful to watch and he's been the only player in the Indian team to actually play test cricket. That number 3 slot is going to be very hard to fill once he retires which might be at the end of this year after Australia. I have a strong feeling we're going to come back from this tour without a single victory and then play the lame ass champions trophy where dhoni can reclaim his captain cool image. I think sachin, dravid and laxman should retire after the Australian tour. From the three only Dravid looks fit enough to play test cricket anyway.
In more news, turns out it's the BCCI that's secretly funding anna's camp. Talk about distracting people from the larger issues.
Some dude's been uploading Indian metal bands on to rockbox. Amidst the gigabytes of trash he also uploaded millennium and 1 concept 2 live. Listening to these tape rips has been a lot of fun. Particularly the self titled album and the live side of 1 concept 2 live. I was at that UVCE show and remember the stampede. Does any local band command that kind of adulation today? I'd really like to know. Anyway, super fun in a nostalgic, good old days kind of way. Unfortunately, the peace just in heaven video doesnt seem to be around on youtube so only be one instead.
A friend told me today that by the time he's done with work and goes home and spends time catching up with everything that needs to be read and seen its 3 am. I'm glad I'm not alone. Some days are good and some not so but every night is full of dreams.
Its never too late to turn back Or too late to flee the scene For want of a horse, the kingdom was lost For the absence of trust a good man went to war Everybody's culpable Everybody run
I'm not going to sleep tonight Must remember to check the score I'm not going to read tonight Must remember to tend the sore
I heard the new lady gaga album yesterday. It seems its the first album in 2 years to go past the 1 million sales mark in america. Its mostly dance pop like it used to be around high school and puc. Like tavern on a wednesday night with every song waking a strange sense of nostalgia in me. Its like she's playing retro pop if there is something like that. And totally disposable. I can't remember a single song now.
Watched this tv show called Bored to Death. With Jason Schwartzman , the fat bearded guy from hangover and ted danson. Jason's a struggling writer who posts an ad on craigs list posing as a private detective, the fat guy is his best friend and struggling cartoonist and ted danson's the editor of some big time magazine. All 3 suck at relationships, all are going through personal crises and all 3 smoke pot. It has a very laid back feel good vibe to it that I liked a lot. Watched 16 episodes in 3 nights.
Now on to Psychoville which is the return of the league of the gentlemen. Strange creepy horror comedy. First episode was pretty good. A nurse who talks to a plastic doll like its her own baby, a one armed clown who chain smokes and drives a hearse, an old blind man with secrets, an ex porn star dwarf with telekinetic powers and the obligatory serial killer and his mum. A veritable cornucopia of horrors. Its a bit more in your face and over the top than The League but still pretty damn good.
This blog is becoming more and more like a repository for vague comments on tv shows and music. I feel like I should be writing about more important stuff. The self and things that affect me and all. And even Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev and the Sadhvis and civil society. But what to do? I feel strongly about so many things but can only write about the mundane and disposable entertainment of my everyday life.
Head held high but I was knocked off my feet I can't decide if you're a trick or a treat.
You think Medha Patkar is sitting somewhere and slapping her forehead and going, "damn. What a bunch of jokers! I should have eaten properly."? Doubt it. She seems like a serious lady. Also, for the first time in my life I'm agreeing with the human rights activists and lawyers who are coming on tv. Its a bit disconcerting but when this one lawyer on tv called ramdev a fraud and asked for an enquiry into the source of his wealth I was cheering. Especially when the ramdev fan on the debate asked for her to be banned from tv immediately. Potato smileys and pot tea at Koshys and art fag exhibits at CKP await.
Yesterday, I woke up with this strong feeling that I must track down an old friend. I hadn't seen or heard from him in about 7 years but figured facebook would help me. As it turned out, there's no sign of him or his family on fb. It's left me a little worried.
Its a beautiful day out. The word pleasant comes to mind. Its cool but sunny with a threat of rain on the horizon. So much for the weather report.
Looks like next project is going to be a hardcore tech process for an internet security firm from San Jose. My tentacles are slowly unfurling onto the valley. Tentacles still crossed though.
So i went to a book reading yesterday. A dude i sort of know has compiled a bunch of folk tales from the North Eastern states and self published it. I sat through one full story and random rambling about Sikkim but what was interesting was the abject boredom on the faces of the kids there (there were quite a few) and the exact opposite expression from the parents who seemed genuinely captivated. The whole experience was somewhere between interesting and really boring.
In other news, my project goes live tonight. Finger crossed.
There's this band called Hell. From England, from around the NOWBHM movement who released a bunch of demos between 1982 and 1986. The band has finally released their debut album this year and it's quite great. The songs are mostly the old songs from the 80s given an up to date production and the band sounds like a cross between Refuge Denied and Into the Mirror Black with some keyboards and loads of samples. This is some kickass old fashioned heavy metal and i guess, almost 30 years in the making. I listened to this in the morning on the way to work. Did wonders for my mood and full marks for this video.
The last A Storm of Light album, Forgive Us Our Trespasses was terrific. I finally got the chance to listen to the new one on the way to coffee house today and it sounded fantastic. The post metal sludge vibe has a slightly folky tone to it and the album goes from massive sludge to spaced out acoustics without a moments hesitation. Some great songs on this and Destroyer really grabbed me. Heard it 3 times today.
So I'm watching the Saw movies. 4,5,6 and 7. Watched 4,5 and 6 over the weekend and might watch the last one tonight. It works well as 90 minute episodes. Jigsaw is a pretty memorable villain as far as these things go and the movies build the jigsaw mythos with a fair amount of care and what feels like reverence. Jigsaw dies in the third movie but his work is carried on by his recruits and tobin bell appears now and then in flashbacks and exposition. The holy shit factor of the first movie can never be duplicated but as far as horror franchises go, Saw is surprisingly decent.
The new season of Doctor Who is kicking ass. It left me with a big smile as the doctor ran around through time and space trying to save the planet from The Silence, a race of scary aliens who've invaded 1960s Earth. Also, Pond might be preggers with a time lord meta child who's about 8 years old but not yet born and might have regenerative powers and might just be a time lord or might just be the doctors latest incarnation waiting for this season to end or maybe I'm totally wrong and maybe I'm totally right. There's some real suspense here and overall, this series promises plenty.
Also started watching this series called The Borgias with Jeremy Irons as the patriarch of clan Borgia who becomes the pope and his family. Like a period Sopranos. Pretty good so far and loads of gratitious sex. Treme's also going very nicely 3 episodes in and I'm saving the new doctor who for the weekend.
In other news, I really don't feel like it.
You know how you can listen to something and it won't make any sense at all? Well, I've been writing this post from so long that I've forgotten what music I was talking about. Oh well.
The new Autopsy leaked. The first song is okay. A bit different and a bit of modern dissonance but come the second song "Dirty Gore Whore" and its like a reminder from the band of all that's unholy, twisted and sick in death metal. The boys are back. With a few new tricks in tow.
On the subject of leaks, Necrophagia's Deathtrip '69 is finally out as well. Horror metal. Opening with a sample from Evil Dead II, a song called Funeral for Solange, fun album with killjoy even trying his hand at some outlaw country and succeeding.
Sub Rosa. That's who I was talking about. Loving it now. Just made total sense one afternoon over lunch.
This years IPL is some boring shit. Lots of terrific individual performances but somehow the whole is not greater than the parts.
I'm getting irritated with people and their pretensions. I'm getting irritated with people who talk out of their ass and manage to sound super knowledgeable when they do it. I'm getting irritated generally with a whole lot of people. Maybe time to take up yoga and meditate. For real this time.
Episode 3 with the good doctor turned out be a bit damp. Lazy writing. Hopefully 4 will pick up the pace. Treme on the other hand is getting better with every episode. Anton Baptiste and his Soul Apostles had their first gig, Steve Zahn's producing a NOLA sampler with his crazy aunt, the Indian chief is still frustrated and angry and his son wants to make a New Orleans jazz record. The characters are interesting and unlike The Wire which was plot driven with some great characters, this doesn't really have much in the way of plot but it does have a lot of interesting people.
My lunch has arrived. Later.
So last night Airtel decided to up my internet connection in between sending me payment reminder messages. Suddenly my download speed went from 50 to 200. I ended up downloading some 12 new albums and 2 rather large files with 13 Assassins and I Saw the Devil. It was still on in the morning so I put Mother for download before leaving. This is nice but if it stays this way I might go crazy. And need a new hard disk. Anyway, I have a whole bunch of movies for the weekend. Mostly of the twisted oriental kind.
Only 13 Assassins happened. Its an hour of build up followed by an hour long battle scene. 13 vs. 200. Loads of samurai action and a fantastic battle scene. Liked this movie a lot.
This is turning into a ridiculously long update about nothing but the new Cave In is out and it deserves at least a couple of lines. From Converge like dissonant hardcore to spacey post hardcore, Cave In is like Radiohead with balls and White Silence is pretty fucking great. Somewhere along the way I think Cave In discovered pot, Pink Floyd and the Beatles and nothing was ever the same. Spacey, psychedelic post hardcore. Welcome back.
Other notable downloads over the last week include the new A Storm of Light which sounded fantastic on the first listen, the demo from Vastum is pretty good old school death-doom, the new Across Tundras sounds like the band has finally made the transition from good to great and Corpsessed's debut ep is a solid display of death metal. Overall, its been an awesome couple of weeks for new music.
Anyway, this is becoming really long winded and going nowhere. Must stop now.
