Hi Folks - I am back.
I thought I would kick off my new years contributions with a film review.
No Country for old men
Written and Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen
Based on the Novel “No Country For Old Men” by Cormac McCarthy
Staring: Tommy Lee Jones
Josh Brolin
Javier Bardem
Kelly MacDonald
From the opening shots of this movie I knew I was in for a treat. After a brief but beautifully written voice over that anchors the film, perhaps a little deceptively in the tradition of the western, we leap exhilaratingly into the action of the story.
Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) a welder by trade and vietnam vet, stumbles onto the scene of a drug deal gone wrong whilst out poaching. Of eight or ten men at the scene only one man is alive, wounded and crying for water. Moss finds one dead man with a case full of money and leaving the wounded man to his fate takes the money home to a trailer he shares with his wife Carla Jean (Kelly MacDonald).
It is perhaps the soldier’s opportunism in him that compels Llewelyn to take the money, but it is the soldier’s compassion for a fallen man that illustrates a man’s guilt or innocence is not so black and white as most American movies would have us believe. It is these very human traits that are the catalyst for a chain of events that makes No Country For Old Men one of the most tense, gripping and masterfully handled thrillers I have seen in a very, very, very long time.
And make no mistake the Coen Brothers are indeed masters of their craft. Leaving aside for the moment their incredible gift for story telling, they have been responsible for bringing to life some of the most unforgettable characters in film, Marge Gunderson (Frances MacDormand) from Fargo being one of the most memorable. This film is no exception, and there are two characters in particular I must mention here.
Even though I have liked Tommy Lee Jones in pretty much everything I have seen him, I must confess I have got very used to him playing Tommy Lee Jones. In No Country For Old Men however he is superb and I make the call that this is the best role he has ever played. Jaded, disillusioned and tired, as Sheriff Bell he plays a good man whom God has forgotten and in his heart cannot blame God for doing so. Savvy, street-wise and wry as a sheriff, he is bewildered, shocked and lost as a man, at times heartbreakingly so. The brilliant scripting allows Jones to realise this character in a way I have never seen him do before. If you are a Tommy Lee Jones fan this is a must see movie.
I must also make mention of Javier Bardem who plays Anton Chigurh. A more terrifying, mesmerizing and magnetic psychopath we have not seen since Hannibal Lector. With a touch of the Terminator he is relentless, remorseless and seemingly indestructible in his pursuit of Moss and the two million dollars he has been hired to retrieve. This character is the mechanism that makes this film tick. We live in a world in which we so constantly hear of unspeakable evil that it has become common-place, but when we look into its eyes, we are unable to comprehend it. I viewed this character as Death. Precise and random, unemotional and detached, yet he is strangely and madly wise and principled. In the words of Woody Harrelson’s character Carson Wells “you cannot strike a bargain with him” and “he doesn’t have a sense of humour”.
No Country For Old Men goes well beyond the level of “a good movie” into the realms of artistry. Themes of muddy morality, fate and destiny, Gods and loss are familiar territory for the Coen brothers and here they utilise all their accumulated experience to make a near perfect film. Set in 1980, this movie does not fall into the trap of using obvious eighties hair-styles, costumes, music and cars to ground it as many lesser film makers may have been tempted to do. Sets and costumes are deliberately ambiguous so as not to distract, giving the film a very contemporary presence.
Scripting, cinematography, editing and casting (although I haven’t time to talk about all of them the cast is uniformly flawless, Josh Brolin and Kelly MacDonald give stunning performances) have rocketed this film into my all time top five movies (a list of five which contains another Coen Brothers movie, Fargo). One scene in particular in which Anton arrives at a run down gas station is the most brilliantly played scene I have ever witnessed in any movie - and I have seen a lot of movies.
I urge you to see this one at the cinema - I saw it twice in two days. However before you rush to the cinema on my recommendation you need to be aware that this is a violent film. Very violent. Very, very violent. The violence is completely in context but there will be those who have no stomach for it.
I have never given a film a perfect score, yet I cannot find any grounds on which to take points away. I give it a 5 out of 5.
Ok this is the third time I am having a go at this.
For some reason unknown to me, Nook admin deems my merry christmas message as inappropriate or in need of censoring. Admin could you please let me know -what is the bad content in my two previous posts? Was it the word Yuletide? Or Felicitations?
ANYWAY!!!!!!!
Just wanted to wish you all a very merry christmas and happy new year now as I am off to Perth -again - for a month.
Thanks for your companionship this year -
Hope to talk to you all in 2008!!
Original message included a thankyou to admin also.
The Golden1
I imagine whales feel* exactly like eggplants only wetter.
*to the touch, obviously, not emotionally.
Recently, whilst talking with some friends on the subject of intuition I was reminded of something that happened to me - or I should say didn’t happen to me in the early nineties when I had come to Melbourne to live and work for a short while. I thought I would relay the story to you guys to see if anyone has had similar experiences.
In 1992 I was 25 and I had come to Melbourne for a change of scene from my home-town, Perth. I got a job through a contact of mine in a bar/restaurant on Flinders Lane and was doing regular shifts 4 or 5 times a week. I got to know the regulars pretty well during this time; it was an up-market type of place, the clientele were mainly business folk and Yuppies.
During a shift I was asked by one of the patrons if I would consider doing some photographic modeling for him. At 25 I was tall and slim and very attractive and I had done various modeling jobs in the past, however I had also seen enough of the world to be wary of strange men in bars wanting to photograph me. I declined the offer and he presented me with a business card should I change my mind. As he was a regular I saw him frequently, he was a nice enough guy around the mid-thirties and each time he came in he renewed the offer. My boss overhearing one day encouraged me to do the gig telling me that she knew he was a legitimate photographer who often had work in the major magazines. Other staff also assured me of this man’s credentials so the next time he came in we arranged a shoot for the following Sunday.
That morning I felt a little anxious about the shoot and my flat-mate asked if I wanted him to accompany me but as he had a lot on I told him not to worry. Driving to the appointment I felt more and more anxious about it, but I was unable to pinpoint exactly why. I arrived at the address he had given me, a residential street in North Melbourne. The street was completely deserted which only served to unsettle me more. As I sat in the car every instinct I had began to scream at me not to go into the house. I chose to listen to my instincts and started the engine and drove away. The further I got the more I became convinced I had done the right thing.
The following day at work the photographer came in, monumentally annoyed with me for not having turned up for the shoot. I felt bad as I do not like to let people down but at no time did I regret my decision. A few weeks later I decided that I wanted to go back to study and returned to Perth giving no more thought to the incident.
About a year later I ran into my old boss from the bar in a cafe in Perth. I was absolutely stunned by what she told me; the photographer who I had so nearly worked with had just been jailed for drugging, raping and photographing women in his studio.
“Good thing you never went” she said lightly.
A good thing indeed.
This incident made me appreciate just how important our instincts and intuition are and to this day when they speak I listen. That my instincts were confirmed for me too, when I met my boss in a random cafe, in another city also seems quite remarkable, as if the universe wanted to affirm my actions.
So how about you? Does intuition play a role in the decisions you make? Call it what you will - foreboding, precognition, instinct, do you believe?
Well - the Golden1 is officially 40 this day.
It seems that despite various pleas and offers the nook admin are content to let this once great site die. It is hardly worth checking in anymore as the content is usually frozen for days on end. No one bothers to comment as they either go astray or take days to appear. I will occasionally check in with you all to see how everything is going but I will no longer be contributing.
I am currently looking for somewhere else to keep up my writing and observations and will let you guys know where that will be in case anyone is interested in keeping in touch.
Thankyou for everything
Sincerely and most unhappily
Indi (aka Golden1)
Hey guys, my older brother is (amongst many other things) a comedian of some noteriety in Perth. He has just started this site, which is, I have to say - even if he is my own brother - very, very funny. Take a look.
http://perthworst.wordpress.com/
Hi folks - well this is the first opportunity I have had to sit down and tell you about our big day.
First let me start by thanking all of you for your lovely messages via the nook.
The wedding was held at 4:00 on the 22nd of September at my sister’s beautiful house in the Perth hills. It was a glorious spring day that came smack bang in the middle of two weeks of rain. The Gods were truly smiling upon us.
Al and I had wanted to greet people as they arrived but everyone arrived earlier than the invitation specified so we were not quite dressed and ready - it didn’t really matter however and all enjoyed an extra glass of wine and the spectacular surroundings. I had asked one of my brothers ( who is a very accomplished artist and can make anything out of paper) to make my bouquet for me. He went beyond this to decorate the house with hanging paper roses complete with white paper doves - had to be seen to be believed!
The ceremony was simple and quick - I thought that I would be nervous or embarrassed, but I was neither and Alain didn’t try to escape once.
Alain sang to me one of his songs - The Happy Sound Of You - as his vow to me and I used an ee cummings poem that I have loved for many years as my vow to him. I knew the poem by heart and so was able to deliver it from the heart. ( a friend of mine said afterward that he now knew why he had never married - because no woman had ever said anything so beautiful to him).
Alain had chosen a ring for me that had come to him through an unexpected source, a stunning gold band engraved beautifully in panels, made in the 1890’s in Australia. The rarity of Australian jewellery from this era means that I not only have a ring that I adore, but an heirloom as well.
Whist we signed all the paperwork my darling niece sang for the assembly In My Life by the Beatles and when all was done my younger brother proposed a toast - “a wonderful and totally organic future together”.
After this we were all free to enjoy the party. We had opted for finger food as we did not want the trouble of hiring tables and chairs etc for a sit down dinner, but we also wanted the food to reflect Alain’s philosophy on food ( it must be of the highest quality and plenty of it). Our caterer came through for us beyond our wildest dreams.
We started with:
Tartlets of Brie & Cranberry and Prawn Chili and Capsicum
Meatballs on Rosemary Sticks
French Crepe Rolls filled with Smoked Salmon, Crème Fraiche, Cucumber and Onion
Then we grazed for an hour or so on:
Large Antipasto Platter filled with stuffed pepperdews, marinated mushrooms, fennel, aioli dip, marinated prawns and octopus, Asparagus, French Beans, Baby Tomatoes etc with a large basket of New Norcia Breads and Glazed Turkish Rolls with dips and olives
Large Fruit Basket with Chocolate Mousse Dip, Brie and Mersey Valley Cheddah and crackers
Large Pork & Veal French Terrine with port and vermouth flavours served with a port syrup sauce.
Red Pepper Terrine - Roasted Red Peppers moulded with layers of chargrilled eggplant, zucchini, tomato reduction and goat cheese.
Following all this we had:
Coriander Chicken Skewers and
Roasted Large Leg Lamb with Pomegranate Molasses & Red Pepper Mousse glaze
After this - as if we were not already stuffed full Alain served the wedding cake which he had made himself. A four layered lemon cake made with home made lemon curd (which he had made in Melbourne and transported tenderly to Perth in his suitcase) topped with lemon icing and decorated with daisies from the garden. It was MAGNIFICENT!
The company of the evening was wonderful and seemed to be a perfect blend, as Al and I could not be prevailed upon to invite people who we did not want ie: distant relatives, long lost family friends and the like. Everyone there was there because we loved them and they loved us.
I loaded up my ipod (thankyou Nook) with all our favourite albums and hooked it up to the speakers for music for the evening and I believe that everyone had a brilliant time including our two children who seemed to have been replaced by angels for the day ( not one tear or cry or winge even when they were so tired they could no longer stand up).
I luckily have two professional photographers in the family and many others brought cameras and I will post a few piccies as they come to me.
Overall the wedding was one of the highlights of both Alain’s and my lives so far and certainly the nicest wedding either of us have ever been to, a sentiment echoed by many of the guests, of which there were 40. And when you consider that we brought the whole thing in for under $2500 - including my dress and shoes it was a really remarkable day.
Al and I went to Pemberton, in the southwest for three nights following the wedding, the details of which I need not go into!
Hi guys
have just got back from my honeymoon to find I am a finalist in a competition and I am in desparate need of votes.
If you have a minute could you visit this website and vote for me - Indira Carmichael - I sure would appreciate it. If you have any friends who would also vote it would be great.
http://www.undeniableproof.com/en/final.asp
Cheers folks
I will tell you all about the wedding as soon as I get a minute.
Golden1
Hey folks,
the family and I are off to Perth on Tuesday and by this time next week - Ally and I will be married!!!!
I’ll tell you all about it when we get home and I might even post a few pics.
Ciao
Golden1
