Ryan McNeil
I never thought that February would become my busy month, but ten days in and I’ve barely had a moment to breathe. Much of it is self-inflicted, but regardless, it feels odd to be playing social-butterfly during this grey and cold time of year.
I’m happy to report that I got back out to a cinema this week (twice!), so that part of my routine is back to normal. Now if only I could make a dent in that large stack of dvd’s on my TV stand and the dozen or so movies cluttering up my PVR. Priorities, I tells ya.
One thing I must mention that I’ve realized this week, is that while many may be pulling their hair out and screaming “Why???”, this year’s Oscar nominations have pointed me towards some truly badass films. MARGIN CALL, A BETTER LIFE, PARADISE LOST 3, and HELL AND BACK AGAIN were all recent watches that rocked my socks, and many of them likely would have remained unwatched were it not for the Academy shortlist. Just sayin.
For your listening and reading fulfillment, I give you…
Critical Mass had quite the episode this past week, even if one-quarter of its roster was m.i.a. For probably the first time since I’ve been listening to them, they were all in the same room! The energy is palpable as they talk Oscar, Downton Abbey, and A SEPARATION. Give a listen.
Simon (who is wrong quite often lately) went slightly mod this week and soaked up Antonioni’s BLOW-UP.
Sati at Cinematic Corner has freeze-framed much of BLACK SWAN (…froze-frame?…froze-framed?). She has noticed a lot of little touches that I didn’t catch over my two watchings.
Maria at FILMflare has given a meme dedicated to classic film a lot of effort and flare, give a look!
As I start running low on Oscar nominees, a film I might finally be watching this weekend is THE IRON LADY. If Jordan is right, I could be in for one rusty afternoon!
Kristin honours John Williams on his 80th Birthday and gets us all talking about our favorite Williams’ scores.
As for our Tweet of The Week, I wish I was half as clever as Jake…
[blackbirdpie url=”https://twitter.com/#!/notjustmovies/status/167844282689011713″]
Enjoy!
ha ha ha! Who is WRONG quite lately … hmmmmm…
Have you seen Blow-Up? It really is a must see. Though, considering it is a staple of the sixties, I always believed that the term Mod is more about the seventies – the mods and the rockers, QUADROPHENIA and all that. Sir, it is not I who is wrong … 😉
PS – Thanks for the link.
“Hmmmm”? You want to “Hmmm”? Why don’t you “Hmmm” your way through telling us how little you enjoyed CONTRABAND?
As for BLOW-UP, I watched it back in my photo study days in my Visual Literacy class. Loved it then and still love it now.
As for “Mod”, it was alive and well during the sixties my friend. It even comes up in A HARD DAY’S NIGHT. So my timing works out.
Tune in next week for the next installment of Ryan Teaches English Pop Culture to English Readers.
Thanks for the mention again, Ryan! Love that tweet. So hilarious, so true.
You’re welcome! Happy to know I wasn’t the only one to find that tweet amusing.
Thanks for the links, I haven’t been around many blogs last week, so now I could catch up with some of the good posts.
Anytime! Glad to shine a light on the good things online. Speaking of, I must remember to highlight your blog one of these weeks.
Oh, that would be wonderful, thank you!
Blow-Up always felt like half of A Clockwork Orange to me.
Can’t say I ever thought of it that way. I can sorta see the connection, except in the way the former has far less rape and murder than the latter. Now that you mention it, I’m overdue for a BLOW-UP rewatch.
Thanks for the tweet love, Ryan!
Thanks for the tweet laugh, Jake!