except it looks like I’ve lost my wedding ring 🙁
appears to have fallen off my finger somewhere between Megabowl and my lounge.
no sign outside (but it’s dark) and no sign in the lounge (but it’s full of junk).
🙁
loan moan
the reality is, that our credit card debt is not in control. it’s expensive, it’s growing, and it’s getting to the point that it’s not going to be cleared by anything short of serious effort.
i’m thinking of taking out a loan, considering how happy i was to pay the last one off, it’s not an easy decision. but just looking at the interest rate numbers and the amount of interesting we’re paying on the credit card bill means it should be a no-brainer. the fear is, paying it off and running it up again. so, i think i’ll pay it off (if i get a loan) and then setup a ‘pay off the credit card each month’ deal from my current account so we have no choice but to clear the bill each month.
hopefully that will keep it under control if we do take this option.
David Gemmell, Hero, Legend and Friend
Eight days have passed since David Gemmell died at his home on the 28th July 2006. I’ve written and deleted hundreds of words in attempt to describe my loss, or to recount my meetings with David, or to try and give you a sense of the man I was lucky enough to be friends with.
I can’t do it, the words seem shallow or inadequate. I can’t express how much life David carried with him, how much presence he had in the same room, nor how much generosity he displayed to those he cared about. I keep trying.
Some fans have asked me which of his characters David was most like. All of them, none of them, he was unique. However, he was born to tell stories, whether one-on-one recounting some part of his life, or to people at a book signing or to the many thousands that read his books. So when Odysseus recounts his tales for the sailors in David’s Troy I am reminded of David himself. He could captivate an audience no matter how small or large with a few small words and hold their attention to the end. He brought you into his story, made you live it, feel it and breath it.
If you were lucky enough to spend any time in David’s company you will understand what I mean. His books were just one reflection of his great ability to tell stories. To talk about life and take you with him, no matter what the topic or subject or location.
David loved his fans, he never once took his skill, success or his fan base for granted. He wrote with honesty, passion, sincerity and integrity. I’ll remember him most for those four qualities. He was honest with himself and with those around him. He had a passion for life, his writing and those he loved. He was sincere, doing everything he did for the love of it and without cynicism. And his integrity was beyond doubt. He’ll be laughing at me now, no doubt, for painting him a hero when he spent his writing career describing the flaws that heroes have. Some might not think a parting word like this is a place to talk of flaws; but David has his share. But he knew what they were. He didn’t hide from his flaws, nor pretend to be better than he was. He shouldered it all, stood up regardless and continued with the honesty that those of us who loved him, loved in him.
You will be missed David Gemmell, your stories, your laughter, the life you brought to a room. You were a man to look up to, to share a fire, a tale, a life.
I will miss you David Gemmell.
Serenity
First of all let me say, I didn’t watch the TV series (Grete did and loved it). But I really enjoyed the movie. Watched it twice on DVD now (it wasn’t on long enough in the Cinema for us to catch it there), and it’s very entertaining. I find some of the acting a little hammy but then lots of Joss’ stuff is like that I find, and it doesn’t always detract. The characters are fun, the plot arc is short and concise and even without having watched the TV series I think you get enough of the background quickly to enjoy what’s going on.
Effects shots are kept to a minimum and used to enhance the story, the bad guy is cool and not entirely traditional (although elements of him are archetypical he’s a mishmash of several sources), the good guys are fun and interesting and even in the short time the movie runs you build an emotional bond and hence suffer along with them.
Definately one to watch, funny, interesting and pacey. I am a leaf on the wind; watch how I soar.
David Gemmell
This isn’t the log blog I want to write about David, not yet, it’s still too soon. It’s a short blog to say that many people have lost a favoured author, some fans have lost an author they loved, but a few people have lost a dear friend. I’m not and can’t deal with this on a fan level, and I’m not trying to dismiss the feelings of those fans, but I’ve lost a friend and I’m dealing with it on that level.
David Gemmell – 57
David Gemmell died this morning, July 28th 2006, after heart bypass surgery two weeks ago.
Minority Report
Not what I was expecting! The hype I’d seen suggested this was an action movie on a par with Matrix. It’s not, it’s a good sci-fi movie, but it’s not a sci-fi action movie.
There’s action in it of course, but it’s not the focus. I guess I should have known, it being a Philip K. Dick story.
Tom plays a cop in a ‘pre-crime’ unit, using pre-cognitive people who see the future, the cops are able to stop murders before they happen. Things take a turn when Tom’s character is seen commiting a murder in the future. If Tom avoids his apparent fate then how can anyone trust the visions the pre-cogs have of the future? If not, then our hero is in trouble …
There is intrigue, some action, some nice funny moments, some tense moments and a couple of jumping out of your chair moments. Two bits made me feel queasy.
I really needed the loo for the last 20 minutes, which detracted a little, and once I’d worked out ‘who did it’ it was a little hard to stay involved, but it was a good film non-the-less. Tom was excellent, supporting cast was nice, and the overall look was very good.
I felt that as with other short stories by Philip that have been made into full length films, there’s a few things that are just glossed over (they really expect us to believe that 3 pre-cogs and about 20 policemen can prevent all murders in a city this size?), some bits of the story felt as though they’d been shoe-horned in, and I was left feeling that not all of it held together.
Having said that, it’s well worth going and seeing it. It keeps you guessing, keeps you interested, and keeps you entertained. The pace is good.
It’s probably just as good on the small screen, it’s not another Matrix, it is a good come-back for Tom after his recent movies.
Star Wars Episode Two : Attack of the Clones
So, Attack of the Clones. One line summary, “Better than the first one, still holding out in the hope that the third one is excellent”.
Very entertaining movie, if I’m honest, and I do hesitate to say this, more entertaining than Lord of the Rings (not necessarily a better movie, but more entertaining). It had pace, drama, humour and all the elements we expect from a Star Wars movie. Some nice foreshadowing, some nice gentle pokes at the previous movies, light plot, light acting and some excellent action scenes.
If you doubt the impact of computer graphics in movie making, go and see this movie. A good cinema going experience. I will be buying the DVD, and with more enthusiasm than the Phantom Menace.
Blade 2
Aaaargh. Here’s a quick recipe.
How to Ruin A Sequel
- Take one excellent movie
- Take one charasmatic actor
- Overcomplicate the plot
- Remove chances for Actor to ooze charisma
- Add pointless elements and silly dialog
- Pretend the first movie never happened
- Place in the oven and bake for three years
They did it to Mission Impossible, they did it to Batman, and now they’ve gone and done it to Blade. The first movie was simple and focussed on action and charisma. The sequel is overcomplex (although not that complex), badly edited (I hope, otherwise the script sucked), and lacked all the charisma and chutzpa that made the first Blade rock.
We are to believe that Blade teams up with some vampires, to kill some even nastier vampires. The nastier vampires have nice special effects, gory that is, which we are treated to over and over and over again. Hey, I got it the first time guys. Blade and his Vampire Buddies hunt down and kill the other Vampires. And there’s a twist. No, really, there is. Honestly. Because hunting vampires isn’t enough (even though it was the first time around).
Very dissapointing. They should have just had the Blood Gang (the vampires that Blade teams up with) hunting him down, and him killing them off one or two at a time for 110 minutes, and it would have been far better.
The action scenes are ok, and some of the fights are nice, but they are too few to make this a good action movie. There is an element of horror, but not enough to make this a horror movie. So, it lies in the no-mans-land between horror and action, alone, ignored, and unloved.
A terrible way to honour the original movie.
The Last Boy Scout
Bruce rocks 🙂 Ok, so this movie is violent, and has lots of bad language, but it’s sassy, funny, thrilling, amusing, entertaining, and fun!
Typical early 90’s action movie, with the good guys dealing out as many wise-cracks as they do gunshots, and the bad guys getting wasted often and in increasingly messy ways. The good guys spend more time getting beat-up than they do investigating, and a kid is taken hostage 😉
Bruce is excellent, this is the role he plays best, and while it’s not demanding, his attitude is just excellent to watch. Damon Wayans as the side-kick is cool and entertaining, and ensures he never steals the screen while Bruce is on it.
The DVD cut is fine, although it felt as though there were one or two moments with lip-synching issues. Quality is ok, no added extras, but hell, who needs them when you’ve got Bruce kicking arse!