Posts by Matthew Littlewood
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Hard News: Back to mediocrity, in reply to DexterX,
Was the envy of the Nation during the RWC - how sad is it for Colin Slade - wince - it hurts me to think about it.
Yeah, the guy's had a horrible run of luck over the last two years. It's a shame, because I think we'll never know now whether he was truly good enough to translate his excellent play at Super 15 at international level- nearly every time he played for the All Blacks, he looked nervous and hesitant, as if he was worried he might not get another run.
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As a hardened, and indeed, long-suffering Otago supporter, I'm really angry at how badly the ORFU has messed things up, and forced everyone else to carry the can while they struggle to pay off the creditors. And the DCC not signing a contract stipulating a minimum number of matches per year until after the ORFU went tits-up was seriously stupid in such a way that you've got to question the competence of some involved.
However, the stadium itself is a magnificent thing. Look, I have more than a decade's worth of memories of standing on the Carisbrook terraces (ironically, most of them with my dad when still a teenager--by the time I became a Uni student, my attendances at Carisbrook were far less frequent) watching Otago, the Highlanders or the All Blacks play. But near the end of its lifespan, the ground had become as depressing as the Otago Rugby team- a decaying wind tunnell.
In contrast, the "Glass House" looks fantastic from the outside, houses just the right capacity for rugby, and is an absolute barnstormer when packed (the noise that 26,000 made during the Ireland vs Italy match was insane). Location-wise, it couldn't be better placed, either. It helps that the Highlanders have been in winning form for the first time in years- and even against the Brumbies, they were competitive- but I'm pleased the city has it. Even if I share many of the concerns about the financial health of it, and am a bit sad it's not really purpose built for anything but rugby-although there is the University Oval nearby, which is fast becoming a lovely ground, if dangerously susceptible to weather.
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Just reading through the interesting discussion on this thread, it seems that Plan B has marked the six month "anniversary" of the London Riots by releasing this single.
I think it's scatter-shot and occasionally clumsy, but sonically it's brilliantly evocative, and kudos to him releasing such a highly charged record. And if this fascinating interview is any indication, there's a genuine intent and sincerity behind it. This might be a take-home quote from it:
When you attack someone because of the way they talk, the way they dress, the music they listen to, or their lack of education, and you do it publicly and it's acceptable to do that, you make them feel alienated. They don't feel like a part of society … For every person who uses the word chav there is a less educated person ready to embrace it. They say, well, look, I'm never going to change the way you think of me so actually I'm going to play up to it and fuel the fire. In essence that's what Ill Manors is about
I don't know whether the song stands up to the sheer weight of that context, but it holds up a lot better than many would. And I love the fact it sounds like a bloody parent-baiting racket
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Erm, sorry, that's Tinker, Tailor...- apologies for the typo/Freudian slip :)
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Hard News: That page doesn't exist ..., in reply to Ian Dalziel,
see Dr Lesley McTurk’s, soulless hand at work here as well, helping to remove the personal interface, dehumanising all processes – she did much the same thing when she was CEO (Town Clerk) in Chch...
Speaking of Lesley McTurk, John McCrone's feature "Double Acts in the City" in last weekend's Press is absolutely essential reading. It puts a lot of the current issues with the City Council in some form of historical context- and McTurk figures strongly in what happened next.
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In regards to Clooney the filmmaker, I thought Confessions of A Dangerous Mind was a funny and freewheeling debut, and probably the fourth-best film based on a Charlie Kaufman script ( Being John Malkovic, Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine) , while Good Night & Good Luck was a gorgeous-looking and well-acted, and breezily written period drama, even if the allegory for contemporary concerns about freedom of speech and dissent were laid on a little thick. Leatherheads was an utter mess, while I haven't seen Ides of March yet.
As well as concurring with Craig R's acclaim for Oldman's performance in Tinker, Taylor- it's a brittle, brilliantly controlled and surprisingly sardonic take on Le Carre's greatest creation--I also thought Brad Pitt deserved all the plaudits that came his way for both Tree of Life and Moneyball.
In the former, he imbued what was less a character than an allegory with a surprising amount of nuance and bruised regret in between the moments of exhibitionist fury (indeed, it was only Sean Penn's wretched work during the confusing "modern section" that stopped the whole thing from being pure cinema for me), the latter was a suitably engaging and energetic portrayal of an unlikely hero in a film that's romantically unromantic about the sport- and I mean that in a good way.
Regarding Gosling- I'll tip my hat to his almost ridiculously minimalist turn in Drive, but still think his best work was as the heroin-addled teacher trying to do good in Half Nelson. A performance of great humour and self-awareness, with little of the showiness or exaggerated "naturalism" often associated with "junkie" roles. But I fear that unless he finds some more interesting roles to work with, my liking for his acting may wane.
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Hard News: NZ On Screen: The…, in reply to Craig Ranapia,
I assume it will be granted after the screening on Three next Wednesday (February 22) at 7.30. Which I'm pretty OK with, because it's not as if feature length local documentaries getting a mid-week prime time slot on FTA television is a routine occurrence.
Yes, I agree. And well done to whoever managed to arrange the TV3 screening to coincide with the anniversary of the event.
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Hard News: NZ On Screen: The…, in reply to Russell Brown,
I believe I have written before how much I liked Gerard that day. I aim to turn up at that man’s house with a couple of good bottles of wine some time.
I interviewed Gerard Smyth back in 2008, when I was doing the Canterbury University Journalism course, about his Alun Bollinger doco, Barefoot Cinema, which had just been released. He was a lovely and very interesting man, and was kind enough- once the tape was turned off- to give me some "tips" on how to interview subject- in a really nice way, that is, like he wanted to make sure someone got the best out of their subject. And anyone who has a passing interest in NZ Cinema should see the Barefoot Cinema , which is heartfelt, thorough and charming.
When A City Falls was an awesome, shattering and utterly necessary work, and I was struck by how much I felt the film when I saw/reviewed it. Don't think that's ever really happened to me before- I mean, I've been moved by cinema many times before, obviously, but I think that was the first time I had watched something and felt utterly inside it. Quite a strange sensation, really, especially considering, I wasn't there on the day, if you get what I mean.
A really interesting NZONScreen collection. I look forward to watching parts of it in my spare time.
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Ha! Good shout! Weekend were/are indeed a fine, underrated act, while Colossal Youth is, of course, a classic. Regarding Tracy Thorn, really like her voice, but often feel she's at her best singing for other acts ("Protection" etc).
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Incidentally, does anyone else notice any similarities between Lana Del Rey and The Weeknd? Indeed, the parallels are fascinating. LDR has been smothered in a tidal wave of contradictory hoopla and (ultimately dull and pointless) questions about her "authenticity"; Abel "the Weeknd" Tesfaye has refused all interviews, thereby cultivating his persona by ommission.
The Weeknd is more obvious in his influences- his music is essentially a monumentally slowed-down and aggressively compressed take on modern "RnB"- but nearly all the lyrics seem to be from the point of view of the sort of "fuck 'em and leave 'em" bad boy that LDR's songs are so obsessed with.
I think he's a similarly flawed artist- lyrically, it often crosses the line between upfront to just plain unpleasantly misogynist, and the music can be similarly overwrought- but he's just as fascinating.as LDR. It'd be interesting to hear the pair do a duet.