Gizmo

Just a couple of pics of Gizmo who is going to an old friend's place from high school (who married another older friend) tomorrow night for an adoption trial.
They have 2 dogs so they want to see if they get along so fingers crossed they're a good fit and I can foster some more kittens in the future.
If not he comes back to us, and the great advertising campaign starts! Although I will be sad to see him go, he's getting better behaved and has a lot of character.

Valentine

I'm a terrible horror movie critic. Even when I know the movie is terrible, the acting/actors are bad, the story is cliched, dialogue unnecessary I still think it's a good horror movie as it managed to make me jump.
Every red herring still makes me want to hide my face in my pillow. Why? Who knows, my dad gave me a good education in campy (and some not so) 80s horror classics like the Howling, Nightmare on Elm Street, the original Prom Night and An American Werewolf in London when I was in high school so I would have assumed I would be immune to the devices the films use to scare us silly.
Instead I am a wimp and Valentine still made me jump. Instead of taking the high road and having a look at the classic horror movies I want to look at those corny, usually kind of crappy movies that still nonetheless can give me the heebie jeebies. Insults are expected.

Released in 2001 and I'd suspect cashing on on a bit of the Angel fame David Boreanaz had at the time ("He's no angel, but he's not a killer!) Valentine had it's moments.

It opens with a flashback scene where a young boy (Jeremy) at a valentine's dance is asking a few pretty girls to dance with me, and getting knocked back each time. These girls are: Paige, Kate (the only nice one), Lilly, and Shelley. Dorothy, a chubby girl agrees to dance with him and then we later see them kissing. Some other boys also catch them, and then because Dorothy is embarrassed she pretends that Jeremy forced her to kiss him (how very Jessica Wakefield!) and the boys proceed to beat the shit out of Jeremy, with apparently no teachers noticing.

Fast forward about 13 years and the girls who rejected Jeremy are getting killed off one by one by someone in a creepy cherub mask.
The cast of girls consists of Denise Richards (why oh why is she cast in films, she plays the same characters consistently badly), Marley Shelton, Jessica Cauffiel, Jessica Capshaw and Katherine Heigl who dies within the first 15 minutes. They're all serviceable apart from the annoying Richards.


Things that annoyed me about this film: the lame installation type 'art' Lilly's boyfriend produced and the techno music in this part and during the valentine's day party. I hate that kind of music. Maybe that's just me but it turned me off.
Denise Richard's whole part in the film and in particular the part where the detective hits on her. Can I find another word meaning lame?
The random people that got killed. The maid, why? The girl in the sauna, who was she? Our rented DVD skipped at that point so I have no idea of the context of that murder.


Things I didn't hate about this movie: Marley Shelton (Kate) and Jessica Capshaw (Dorothy)were okay, I emphasized a bit with Dorothy and I quite like her as an actress.
I did jump during a few scenes, in particular the scene where Katherine Heigl was murdered, so it did manage to scare me. Granted it may have had something to do with the huge projector screen we were watching it on and the fact as I mentioned before, I am something of a scaredy cat.
The twist wasn't too bad, I mean not up there with The Usual Suspects or anything but I didn't hate it.
Overall an okay film with some bad dialogue at times and some pretty average killings.
In other slightly embarrassing news I also watched 17 Again on the weekend and didn't hate that either. I must be growing soft in my old age. Also in other 'I'm getting soft' news the kitten I have been fostering, who we have nicknamed Gizmo due to his likeness to a mogwoi is up on the adoption webpage and I've gotten a little teary. Sigh.

Yahoo Serious

I've been meaning to do a post on a ridiculous (but if memory serves funny) australian movie named Young Einstein which gained a ridiculous amount of press at the time it was released, but I feel it may be a struggle to find a DVD store that stocks this gem.

While I locate (or buy) the DVD I present some interesting facts about it's star, one Yahoo Serious (born Greg Pead, well you'd change your name too?):

Apparently first Australian to write, produce, direct and star in his own film

He married the actress known as The Blonde in Young Einstein.

He allegedly tried to wage a trademark lawsuit against Yahoo! in 2000, it was quickly dismissed as he couldn't prove he'd suffered any distress or confusion from the name being shared. Heh.

When I googled him, the second pre populated result was: Yahoo Serious where is he now?

The Bingle

This is Lara Bingle. Pretty no? She rose to fame as a spunky 19 year old in the Australian tourism ad which featured the line "Where the bloody hell are ya?" to much disgust from our English friends. That was around 2006.

This is Brendan Fevola. He plays football (that's Australian rules) for a club called the Brisbane Lions. Prior to this he played for Carlton football club where he was dumped for unfavourable antics. He is a douche. This will become more apparent later.


This is Michael Clarke. He plays cricket internationally for Australia. Generally a like able character. Is rolling in the money hence he brought Lara an Aston martin car. He and Lara hooked up about 4 years ago and were until recently engaged.

Brendan and Lara had a relationship in 2006. Lara claimed to have never known that he had a wife and 3 kids. While in this affair, Brendan allegedly took a topless camera photo of Lara in the shower. The photo was released to the media by another anonymous footballer who claims that it is widely circulated around many footballers phones. Woman's Day, a fluffy 'celebrity' magazine reportedly offered her $200,000 for her story, after they published it last Monday.

This is Dermott Brereton. He played football for Hawthorn in the 80s, and is currently a sports media personality. Whatever that means. Friday just gone he claimed that before Lara and Brendan began their affair he had informed Lara that Brendan was married. "And her reply to me verbatim was 'Do you think he'd still have a go after me?' " Lara's agent Max has denied this claim.

On Friday 12th March, Michael Clarke flew from New Zealand where is was playing in an international game to be with Lara. On Saturday night their engagement was called off. No other comment was given.

This story has generated so much attention in Australia it is practically the first news item for the last week since it broke. Now there has been talk of Lara allegedly flushing her $200,000 engagement ring down the toilet and a plumber had to be called as it blocked the pipe.She has copped so much flak for this whole thing, primarily because people saw her as a money grabbing 'model' who has really done nothing since the ad campaign several years ago, and Michael Clarke is seen as a nice wholesome cricket player who has been swindled by Bingle. The annoying sexist thing is that Brendan Fevola who is well known as a cad is not getting the same criticism she is. Regardless of whether she knew he was married or not, he definitely knew he was married with children and shouldn't have pursued a relationship full stop.

I'm not one to usually harbour any friendly feelings towards models (except for Megan Gale, she seems so cool). Primarily because I find it ridiculous people should be paid astronomical amounts of money just for looking like whatever is in fashion at the moment. And right now that seems to be very thin, tall, and sort of same same in my opinion. But then Tyra will tell me you have to be able to walk down a runway and pose and contort your body to what the stylist/photographer wants in shoots, which would be harder than it looks I'd imagine. Secondly I'm more than likely majorly jealous that I'm not making an astronomical amount of money for being young and hot! Back to Lara's situation and in particular the topless photo of her taken by Brendan. The rampant sexism still prevalent in football is disgusting. they have their 'ladies days' but the fact that so many footballers still felt the need to forward this picture around on their phones shows that not a lot has progressed. Saying that Bingle has not handled the situation very well. What could have been a sympathetic situation towards her, perhaps under the right management, has turned into a publish backlash against her. She obviously did not want her photo taken in the shower, it is obvious she is not posing for it and is unhappy. If she had just agreed to an interview immediately after the photo was published and donated the money to some kind of women's charity group, it may have been over in a manner of days. Instead she publicly denounced the media, essentially biting the hand that feeds her, not to mention her agent orchestrated the whole media circus ring around her. The result is a broken engagement. She is only 22, and while I can't say I feel sorry for her, I don't believe she deserves the backlash she is receiving at the moment. I think it shows the narrow mindness of the Australian media that it was even made into such a big deal, when there is no much more going on in the world. Or maybe it the enormous thirst for 'celebrity' scandal we seem to have.

Books to read: part 2

After watching First Tuesday Book Club on the ABC I have now discovered Fade by Robert Cormier and I can't believe I haven't heard of this guy in regards to YA/science fiction before. Ordered from Borders, hope it lives up to the hype from the presenter.


Going by my original post from March 25th 2009, I still haven't read Beloved (Toni Morrison); The Princess Bride (William Goldman); A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith); A Separate Peace (John Knowles); The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Stephen Chbosky) and Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian (Sherman Alexie).
Hmm 9/15 isn't too bad.

Out of the books on my list I did read I most enjoyed The Handmaid's Tale, Prep and Rebecca. Not to sure if I want to read Chbosky's anymore. And realised I still have not read On The Beach, after the ordering debacle. Always order online kids, not through those pesky retail monkeys (just kidding I used to be one).
Any suggestions on old or new classics would be much appreciated?

In Like Flynn

In honour of Hollywood greats with the Oscars on today, I thought I'd take a closer look at old school Hollywood in the form of Errol Flynn.

The allure of Flynn has always been a bit of a mystery to me. For a start, he was deemed swoon worthy eons ago (born 20th June 1909), so I guess that means tastes have changed (it was really hard to find a picture of him without that horrible little mustache!).

Secondly, he is from Tasmania. I don't know what the american equivalent is (I guess being from the south?), but in Australia if it is revealed that you hail from Tasmania it is akin to marrying your cousin. Actually that's when the inbred jokes starts. And also the 2 heads jokes etc. Basically Tasmania is the butt of all states amongst australians, followed closely by South Australia and then Perth, Western Australia where I'm from (acronym of WA = wait awhile).

So the fact that he rose above his Tasmanian upbringings speaks volumes I guess. The fact that he was a sex symbol for a while and was actually born in Australia (do not see Gibson, Mel; Crowe, Russell or Kidman, Nicole) also gives him points.

Flynn was known in movies for playing the dashing swashbuckling hero but in reality he had a reputation as a notorious womanizer (married 3 times), a binge alcohol/drug taker and rumours circulated that he was bisexual (with Howard Hughes and Truman Capote no less) and a Nazi sympathiser.
The phrase In Like Flynn resulted from his charges that were laid against him for statutory rape in 1942. He was acquitted. So overall an interesting guy? "I like my whiskey old and my women young."
So not so sure about Errol anymore, seemed like a dirty old man at times.
I did like Guy Pearce's portrayal of him in Flynn in 1997, but then again I think Guy is pretty cute.


Australian Crawl a band popular here in the early 80s before disbanding in 1984 even immortalised Flynn in song:


Errol Convict state
It just don't rate
He want to get higher
Apple isle, the inbred smile
He's going to get by'a
His mothers hand
He could not stand
He left for the islands
To fish and hunt
He take a punt
The new guinea highlands


Ohhhh Errol
I would give everything just to be like him


He had to go
The Sirocco
He's sailing the high seas
Hollywood, Captain Blood
He's billin the Nazis
Took a rebel stand
Contraband
Coast of Mexico
He wants to pounce
Like an animal
To the girls he just can't say no


Ohhh Errol
I would give everything just to be like him (x 2)


He had them all
Screamin for more
He play the wild scene
Ah scandalise, no compromise
He's down on his knees
Swashbuckling
He was the King
The toast of Tinseltown
They build him up
They took it all
And then they just cut him down


Ohhh Errol
I would give everything just to be like him (x 2)


Bad grammar aside, it's succinct, a little ironic, quite a catchy song and a good sum up of Errol's life.

Thanks to:
theerrolflynnblog.com
lyricsdownload.com

Fun with animals

So I want do something a little different and do a more personal entry. I know I've done them before but they were kind of lame and the only reason I haven't deleted them is that deleting them would be more lame. This event is about something which only happened yesterday and I wanted to get it out of my system in a therapeutic writing session.

I have recently signed up with an animal volunteer organisation with animal welfare being very close to my heart (some would say too close, I have a tendency to get emotional about animals). Seeing as I wasn't getting much job satisfaction out of my 2 part time jobs I thought I could at least try volunteer work in a field I was interested in.

Basically the deal with this organisation is primarily all the volunteering opportunities are posted on a forum (things like fostering, home checks, transport help, events) and anyone who can help and who has signed up posts a response if they can help.

I am really keen to foster a cat or dog, but my boyfriend not so much. And since I am technically living in his house, it is up to him. He wants to wait until we have grown some lawn as at the moment it is sand city. But then I saw this posting for a staffy cross older female who was going to be put down yesterday unless we could find a foster/someone who would adopt. For a start I shouldn't even be looking at the foster section, but I was and my heart went out to this dog who had been in the pound for 14 days and was due to be put to sleep unless she was picked up.

I asked my boyfriend and he agreed reluctantly and I spoke to the ranger at the pound. They advised she would be put down soon and I told them I would try and get down there by 4 that afternoon and I would bring my dog Ebony down to see if they would be friends.

I got there to some very nice rangers and a volunteer with the pound and Ebs and I trotted out the back to meet this dog named Venus.

Well the two dogs did not even notice each other for a few minutes both happily sniffing around the yard. The ranger had walked away, just in the next room I think and I was left with the volunteer. I still had Ebony on her lead and they finally noticed each other and were nudging noses. Ebs was doing her little dance on the lead she sometimes does when she wants the other dog to play (she is a 2 and a half year old Labrador cross, also a rescue dog but we got her when she was 8 weeks old).

But out of nowhere after some careful sniffing, the other dog turned feral and latched onto Eb's neck. Well I tried grabbing the dog, Ebs was squealing, I'm sure I had some interesting sounds coming out my mouth, the volunteer rushed to get the ranger. I got my hand in the other dogs mouth and was trying to ply it away from her neck, I got her away once and Ebs started to wander off but she was a bit confused and the dog latched on again. The ranger came running out and managed to separate the dog and I grabbed Ebs who luckily seemed to be okay.

We went into the rangers office, because in all the hoopla I had grazed both knees quite badly and 2 of my fingers were bleeding. Some nice old ranger put antibacterial solution on my fingers and knees and band aids and then I started to feel woozy. Think my body had lost it's adrenaline hit and the shock was now catching up with me. Ebs was checked out and seemed OK, no bleeding, I seemed to be more traumatised by the incident than her! My vision started to go blurry and it felt like cotton wool was filling my ears. The last time this happened was when I had to give a uni presentation solo while everyone else had partners.

After a had a sit down and 2 mugs of water and felt well enough to go home, after being informed I would need a tetanus shot.

Today I had my shot and Ebs had a vet check up just in case (and yes because we are those crazy animal parents), we also did notice a superficial mark on her shoulder that we thought should be looked at.

So overall a sad experience for everyone. I felt so guilty taking my fur child to meet another dog and have it end so badly, and now Venus will most certainly be put down when I wanted to give her another chance to get a new family. And now I'm walking around looking like I've got major carpet burn on both knees (as if) and I'm having to use a different finger to click the computer mouse (a hardship I know). For a first time volunteer experience it could not have gone worse. The only sunshine through the clouds is to try and see how much I can milk the experience and get any time off work.

Although the pictures are a bit old, that is our Ebony one spoilt pooch.

Old and new Drew

I watched Firestarter about a month ago and Whip It on Friday night and just thought what an interesting journey for Miss Barrymore.
I'd read Firestarter a while ago but had never seen the movie, I'd enjoyed the book and read it a few times so knew the movie would not match up to what was running in my head.
Basic plot line: Andy McGee participated in a scientific study for cash while he was in university, while there he met Vicky Tomlinson who he later married and had one child Charlene (Charlie) who is played by Barrymore.
The study gave the Vicky mild telekinetic powers and in Andy a substantial mind power which lets him 'push' others actions. Their daughter Charlie has even more powerful abilities, namely the power to create fires.

The government who commissioned the study has been keeping an eye on the couple ever since their university days and are obviously very interested in their abilities, particularly in Charlie. The movie has them basically on the run for the first third of the film from the government agency known as the The Shop, after they killed Vicky and captured Charlie. Andy rescues Charlie using his ability but after a short reprieve they are caught again. They set Charlie and Andy up in separate parts of the Shop and dope Andy up all the time and eventually plan to kill him.
They make Charlie perform all sorts of experiments and plan on using her as some kind of weapon. Charlie's ties to her father are too strong though, and Andy's to her. He fools the doctors into thinking he is taking his medication but is secretly practising his pushing ability. He manages to get a meeting with Charlie and he creates an escape plan.
Unfortunately he hadn't counted on Rainbird, a sniper posing as an orderly in Charlie's chambers to have formed a bond with Charlie. They have a showdown and Andy dies and then Charlie kills Rainbird.
She then goes on a fire spree killing a lot of employees working at the Shop in a rage fuelled by the death of her father. She escapes and goes to an elderly couple who helped Charlie and her dad while they were on the run, and then they help her tell her story to a newspaper.

As with most Stephen King adaptations, when they try and use the similar dialogue from the novel it comes across as laboured and not true to life. While it reads fine on the page, I felt some of Andy's dialogue particularly did not translate well to film. Barrymore does an okay job, she was only 9 at the time and just had to look stressed and whiny a lot of the time which most kids can do!


Now Whip it. I really wanted to see this at the cinema but never got round to it and just watched it on Saturday night. Have to say I was a little disappointed overall, but might have been due to my high expectations.
Ellen Page plays Bliss (what is with the funky hipster names, can someone please call their child Sarah?) whose mother keeps pushing her into beauty pageants she is not interested in. There is some back story with her now being an outsider at her high school, but it isn't fully developed and you feel there could have been a more interesting story there.
A chance sighting of some roller derby girls prompts Bliss and her friend Pash (what the hell is this short for?) played by the delightful Alia Shawkat, to check this event out. Check this out for info on roller derby, I cannot be bothered going into the rules.
Bliss decides to try out for the next intake of roller derby, hiding the fact from her old fashioned mother. She actually gets in and the team gets into the grand final or whatever Americans would call it! Along the way, Bliss forgets about her friend Pash, is lying to her parents, makes some new friends in her roller derby team (including Barrymore who also directed) and scores a (lame) love interest.


I found Drew's character to be unnecessary, she is basically playing a dopey, violent roller girl with lots of colours in her hair (roller derby name: Smashley Simpson). For a maiden directing voyage she didn't do too badly but I think she just wanted to be in the movie and have fun with all the girls, knocking people over etc that she lost sight that maybe the character wasn't necessary. Maybe others thought she added some more comedy to the proceedings but I thought Bliss and Pash's natural friendship had more funny lines.

Drew's career has had a progression from troubled child/teen actor to producer (Whip It, Fever Pitch, Charlie's Angels 1 and 2 and Donnie Darko) and now director and she comes across as likable in my opinion: "I know certain actors are total screwed up on drugs, yet it gets covered up. Why wasn't I excused for 'exhaustion' or the 'flu'?"

Oh and happy 50th post to me! My first post was on the 29th November which makes my blog a Sagittarius. As well as being the birthday of my fabulous aunt it is also the birthday of Louisa May Alcott, C.S. Lewis and Garry Shandling.