Recently I've been the brunt of my friend's jokes about being a premature senior citizen because i never go out anymore. So this weekend I decided to be spontaneous and do everything I used to when I was still far from the brink of 25. As you can see I am indeed having a quarter life crisis!
So instead of our planned itenerary of going for a quiet movie and coffee. I decided to drag my best friend to a tiny Mexican place that I've never been to before but have driven past many times. The fact that there were no other customers didnt dissuade us or that I got the feeling that the waiter didnt really care about anything we were saying. He just nodded at everything. My initial impression of this place wasnt great because their lime margarita tasted like frozen sea water but I was really suprised that the food was that good. We started with chilli poppers which are battered and fried jalepeno chillies, stuffed with chicken and cheese. For mains I had a crunch chicken taco which was awesome but the Mexican rice on the side was literally out of this world. My friend had the chicken fajitas which were also really good, just spicy enough and incredibly cheesy, melty and delicious.
So after this feast and also as part of my spontaneous streak we ended up going to a pub in Parkhurst, not realising it was St Patrick's day. The pub was packed, smoky and loud, everything I've been avoiding since I started feeling old. It took me awhile to acclimatise myself but eventually I got back into the swing of things. I drank Guiness and Kilkenny which on any other day but St Paddy's day I hate but went down really smooth that night. As bustling and noisy as the pub was it was awesome! I love being South African, everyone is so friendly and chatty and anyone can claim to be one eighth Irish for St Paddy's day and you'd never even know.
I got home exhausted because this is the most I've done in a long time but seriously very fulfilled.
Impromptu nights are the best nights. You're never dressed right but eventually you don't care, you can't be disappointed because there was no expectation of anything to begin with. But those are the nights where everything just seems to go so right.
Sunday, 18 March 2012
The Descendants
I always think that these are the type of films that are going to make me think and are going to change my life. But the one film that has really done that for me is The Descendants. It's not epically emotional or particularly stylish. Its not really even what we're used to as a post-modern audience, the protagonist Matt King basically narrates the entire story. It's not a grand expose, there aren't really any twists and turns. This film is so simple in its execution but deals with such complex issues of family, grief, responsibility.
George Clooney is absolutely at his best in the role of Matt King, a Hawaian lawyer who is dealing both with the loss of his wife, who is in a coma afer a boating accident, and the dilemma of selling off his family's acres of untouched land which is their family legacy. The dynamic between him and his daughters is explored and there are so many touching yet not overly sentimental moments. In the midst of the most intensely sad moments there are also moments of laughter and that's what makes this film so real. Alexander Payne as a director is just so good at those awkwardly funny moments that are often so whacky that they cant help but be real. Yet the thing that I like the most about The Descendants is that more than anything it is a real movie, it explores real life issues and touches your heart but its also really entertaining.
Sunday, 11 March 2012
Sex and the City weekend marathon
It is such a cliche that all women are in love with Sex and the City. Yet every girl I know whether they are super girly or tomboyish or just trying really hard to break the sexist stereoptype seems to somehow be touched by some element of SATC.
Kudos to the creators who surely hit a goldmine but what is it that makes women love this show so much?
When I think about it so little of it actually does echoe my own life. I dont identify totally with any of the characters because their personalities are written to be so 2D and specific. They each represent an example of an aspect of every woman, it's like trying to fax a photocopy.
When you watch the old seasons the fashion is just so ridiculously bad, you see horrible things like Alanis Morrisette with dodgy braids kissing Sarah Jessica Parker, all the male characters look either like porn stars or extras that they got of the street. You literally have to look for the girls' reactions to understand whether they are meant to be hot or not.
But still theres something that just entertains me and draws me into this show. Maybe its that the writing is just really that good, maybe the characters do tell women something about themselves but I think more likely is the comforting feeling that you get watching women in their 30's and 40s who are still trying so desperately to figure things out, usually unsuccessfully, which makes you feel just a little bit better about your own life.
Kudos to the creators who surely hit a goldmine but what is it that makes women love this show so much?
When I think about it so little of it actually does echoe my own life. I dont identify totally with any of the characters because their personalities are written to be so 2D and specific. They each represent an example of an aspect of every woman, it's like trying to fax a photocopy.
When you watch the old seasons the fashion is just so ridiculously bad, you see horrible things like Alanis Morrisette with dodgy braids kissing Sarah Jessica Parker, all the male characters look either like porn stars or extras that they got of the street. You literally have to look for the girls' reactions to understand whether they are meant to be hot or not.
But still theres something that just entertains me and draws me into this show. Maybe its that the writing is just really that good, maybe the characters do tell women something about themselves but I think more likely is the comforting feeling that you get watching women in their 30's and 40s who are still trying so desperately to figure things out, usually unsuccessfully, which makes you feel just a little bit better about your own life.
Saturday, 10 March 2012
Neighbourgoods market reviewed.
I've decided to review my original post of the Neighbourgoods market because I think last week I was possibly irritable because of the blazing sun and didnt really get the full impact of Neighbourgoods.
I still think its pretentious and over-priced but it really is so ultra cool. I love the fact that you'll end up randomly seeing five people you know on the rooftop. I love the fact that people are so friendly and talkative in the middle of the city.
I totally understand what they're trying to do with Neighbourgoods and similar set-ups like Arts on Main. The target market are hipsters but if you ask these hipsters where they live they'll all probably say the Northern suburbs or Randburg (the same as the north but with slightly better street cred). Hardly any of us ever go into the city. It was really different when I lived in London because all people ever wanted to do was get to the centre of the city. That's where everything happened and the closer you were to the centre, the better your cred. In Joburg its different, most areas in the CBD are badly deteriorated and have a reputation for being inhabited by illegal immigrants whom South Africans are deathly afraid of. The urban regeneration project is on/off but with places like Neighbourgoods and the surrounds you can see that they are trying to get people back into the city.
There are so many worries when you decide to make a trip into town. 'Will I get lost with all the one-ways that arent picked up by the gps?', 'Will I find parking?', 'Will I get mugged by a crack addict?'. Luckily none of those things happened to us. It seemed really safe, I parallel parked like a boss!(although not everyone can be like me) so we were literally across the road from Neighbourgoods and we were also really suprised at how close it was! So the Joburg CBD isnt really like Mordor to us anymore.
Also I felt really bad about what I wrote last time about the paint tin pot plants. I actually spoke to the stall owner this time round and she told us that she lost her job and formed a sustainable development NGO. When she discovered that some company had been dumping hundreds of paint cans she decided to do something with them. So I feel kind of ashamed for judging her so harshly her invention isnt half as over-priced as some of the things inside Neighbourgoods and she really is doing a good thing.
I still think its pretentious and over-priced but it really is so ultra cool. I love the fact that you'll end up randomly seeing five people you know on the rooftop. I love the fact that people are so friendly and talkative in the middle of the city.
I totally understand what they're trying to do with Neighbourgoods and similar set-ups like Arts on Main. The target market are hipsters but if you ask these hipsters where they live they'll all probably say the Northern suburbs or Randburg (the same as the north but with slightly better street cred). Hardly any of us ever go into the city. It was really different when I lived in London because all people ever wanted to do was get to the centre of the city. That's where everything happened and the closer you were to the centre, the better your cred. In Joburg its different, most areas in the CBD are badly deteriorated and have a reputation for being inhabited by illegal immigrants whom South Africans are deathly afraid of. The urban regeneration project is on/off but with places like Neighbourgoods and the surrounds you can see that they are trying to get people back into the city.
There are so many worries when you decide to make a trip into town. 'Will I get lost with all the one-ways that arent picked up by the gps?', 'Will I find parking?', 'Will I get mugged by a crack addict?'. Luckily none of those things happened to us. It seemed really safe, I parallel parked like a boss!(although not everyone can be like me) so we were literally across the road from Neighbourgoods and we were also really suprised at how close it was! So the Joburg CBD isnt really like Mordor to us anymore.
Also I felt really bad about what I wrote last time about the paint tin pot plants. I actually spoke to the stall owner this time round and she told us that she lost her job and formed a sustainable development NGO. When she discovered that some company had been dumping hundreds of paint cans she decided to do something with them. So I feel kind of ashamed for judging her so harshly her invention isnt half as over-priced as some of the things inside Neighbourgoods and she really is doing a good thing.
Friday, 9 March 2012
Neighbourgoods Market
Last Saturday I went to the Neighbourgoods Market with a few freinds. Neighbourgoods is located in the middle of the Joburg CBD, I can't tell you exactly where it is just that we drove through one badly deteriorated area, then drove through another 'deteriorated for effect' area and parked next to the 'Pikitup' collection plant. From there we followed hoards of hipsters through the thoroughly upgraded inner city to a non-descript grey building which somehow everyone knew was the neighbourgoods market.
The market is cool, almost too cool to handle! It is literally a Saturday morning solace for hipsters. I was slightly discouraged by the first stall I saw which had a guy selling paint tin flower pots for R40! (seedling not included!) Talk about milking people's concern for the planet. But when you enter the foodhall all is forgotten when you're immedietly confronted by delicious smells and even more exciting is the amount of choice you have. There are so many different national cuisines, oysters and sparkling wine, gourmet cupcakes. You are literally spoilt for choice.
You can sit on the rooftop of the building which has amazing views of the city and drink fresh strawberry and pineapple cocktails. There is a small section for clothing in the market too but it seems to be more of an after thought. The main attraction was chilling in the sun with incredible food and refreshing drinks and hipster spotting ofcourse.
The market is cool, almost too cool to handle! It is literally a Saturday morning solace for hipsters. I was slightly discouraged by the first stall I saw which had a guy selling paint tin flower pots for R40! (seedling not included!) Talk about milking people's concern for the planet. But when you enter the foodhall all is forgotten when you're immedietly confronted by delicious smells and even more exciting is the amount of choice you have. There are so many different national cuisines, oysters and sparkling wine, gourmet cupcakes. You are literally spoilt for choice.
You can sit on the rooftop of the building which has amazing views of the city and drink fresh strawberry and pineapple cocktails. There is a small section for clothing in the market too but it seems to be more of an after thought. The main attraction was chilling in the sun with incredible food and refreshing drinks and hipster spotting ofcourse.
Saturday, 3 March 2012
Midnight in Paris
Finally a movie for all those literary snobs out there!
If Woody Allen isn't appearing in his own film then he's directing Owen Wilson to fill his role.
Owen Wilson's character is a neurotic, bumbling screenwriter (sound familiar?) who is writing his novel while holidaying in Paris with his fiance and her family.
He's having trouble completing the novel because of his lack of confidence and his general unsurity about his ability. He constantly wishes for what he believes to be the golden age of American literature, the 1920s.
As he strolls through Paris each night he is magically transported into the world of the 1920s where he meets his literary idols, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway among other artists of the time.
The premise is interesting and there are incongruous moments as with any Woody Allen movie that make it worthwhile. However, in the end, the metaphors were just too blatent and climax was too light-hearted. For most of his career Woody Allen has been writing love letters to New York, which he's done brilliantly but now it seems like writing half-hearted postcards to mistresses. His films set in London and Paris just simply dont match up to his earlier work.
If Woody Allen isn't appearing in his own film then he's directing Owen Wilson to fill his role.
Owen Wilson's character is a neurotic, bumbling screenwriter (sound familiar?) who is writing his novel while holidaying in Paris with his fiance and her family.
He's having trouble completing the novel because of his lack of confidence and his general unsurity about his ability. He constantly wishes for what he believes to be the golden age of American literature, the 1920s.
As he strolls through Paris each night he is magically transported into the world of the 1920s where he meets his literary idols, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway among other artists of the time.
The premise is interesting and there are incongruous moments as with any Woody Allen movie that make it worthwhile. However, in the end, the metaphors were just too blatent and climax was too light-hearted. For most of his career Woody Allen has been writing love letters to New York, which he's done brilliantly but now it seems like writing half-hearted postcards to mistresses. His films set in London and Paris just simply dont match up to his earlier work.
Thursday, 1 March 2012
We Need to Talk About Kevin
On Tuesday I watched the film 'We Need to Talk about Kevin'.
I vaguely remember reading the novel yet by the end of the film I began to doubt whether I ever did read the novel.
I was slightly confused. The filming technique is raw and morbid as is the case with these really poignant films.
I adore Tilda Swinton and she did a good job in this film as did John C Reilly as usual.
The actual film didnt really fill me with as much sadness as I expected. It's a very specific story about a mother who isnt naturally able to have maternal love for her child but also about a child who is disturbed. The relationship between Kevin and his mother is explored in fragmented scenes which show his calculated hatred, his depression and his need to do harm and his mother's reaction to all of this.
The film itself was ok. The acting was fantastic but for me it just didnt have the impact I expected.
The physical climax of all Kevin's disturbia is violent and shocking. This, for me, ruins the film because the real thoughtfulness is in the quiet moments of disturbed behaviour that one encounters. Swinton's performance is truly amazing in those quiet moments that show her despair.
I vaguely remember reading the novel yet by the end of the film I began to doubt whether I ever did read the novel.
I was slightly confused. The filming technique is raw and morbid as is the case with these really poignant films.
I adore Tilda Swinton and she did a good job in this film as did John C Reilly as usual.
The actual film didnt really fill me with as much sadness as I expected. It's a very specific story about a mother who isnt naturally able to have maternal love for her child but also about a child who is disturbed. The relationship between Kevin and his mother is explored in fragmented scenes which show his calculated hatred, his depression and his need to do harm and his mother's reaction to all of this.
The film itself was ok. The acting was fantastic but for me it just didnt have the impact I expected.
The physical climax of all Kevin's disturbia is violent and shocking. This, for me, ruins the film because the real thoughtfulness is in the quiet moments of disturbed behaviour that one encounters. Swinton's performance is truly amazing in those quiet moments that show her despair.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)