Reminiscence

Another day to fill and so I booked another trip to the cinema. What’s quite nice is that I book films without knowing a single thing about them. The previous film, The Night House, has been playing on my mind and I’m concerned for the main character. At the end of the film it was clearly implied that she was safe from the demon just because she didn’t kill herself, but if, as the film wants us to believe, a demon is after her then how can it be defeated? Oh, maybe it can’t affect her directly which was why it was using her husband to attempt to kill her? Nope, the film clearly shows the demon affecting her directly so it can’t be that. Maybe it’s because she didn’t kill herself and so the demon is giving up? Nope, can’t be that because that fucker had chased her from the shadows since her NDE following a car crash. This is the problem with supernatural horror films with demons and shit. You can’t make them internally consistent because it’s all bollocks. I’d still go for the mental breakdown version of this film, but then it has the neighbour seeing the “shadow” at the end of the film, so who knows what the intention was. Maybe a I care too much about this film? Maybe it deserves a higher rating? Nope, I’m not going to watch it again.

So, I drove to the cinema on this Sunday and actually got there before the showtime. This allowed me to take a photograph of the river. As you can see from the green plant layers on the nearest pillar that the tide is reasonably low [it was even lower when I Ieft the cinema]. Don’t look too closely at the nearest bridge otherwise you’ll see all the strengthening bolts and rods and start to get concerned about the integrity of the structure. A lot of bridges have this down this way and I think it’s because of the gradual increase in maximum limits of truck mass. I’ve written about the bridges before.

Three Bridges - River Medway
Three Bridges – River Medway

Sometimes after watching a film I have to think about the rating and what I consider to be “fair”, although this is cancelled out by the rating system that I created and you can read about here. This particular film soon dove down to a lowly rating while watching it. I’ll explain shortly. Here’s my rating, but Twitter based.

Oh, my god. This film was utter shit. I even think I might have been generous with a 4/10 rating. I hated it after about ten minutes and that hate did not dissipate as time went on. Even now, the day after, I feel angry at how bad this film was and I don’t have any connections to it.

Let me start off with a good thing. I quite liked the world that was drowned and how they played with Miami being under the sea. This was quite good. I don’t like the dams they created because they looked at though they were designed by a five year old and they wouldn’t work. I’m not sure the production designers had any concept of the depth pressure relationship and how much water actually weighs. I did wonder if I was meant to recognise the city from the skyline and before I knew it was Miami I had settled on Chicago but I was wrong in a big way. Oh, Miami and most of Florida is absolutely fucked when it comes to sea rises. As is New Orleans, another city featured in the film.

Another thing I quite liked about this film was that during a fight scene the camera stayed at a distance and actually followed the fight rather than get all “in the action” and blurry. The underwater scenes actually looked pretty too, but they suffered like all underwater scenes in movies that people can’t hold their breath for that long and the “action” is super slow.

Now it’s time for all the bad in this shit movie which I’m going to write as a stream of consciousness so watch out. None of the voice over was necessary. Why is he set up in a bank? How does the electricity still work? How did he get into the mansion at the end? Why is this such a tart with a heart film – it could have been better? How many times do I need to see the same scene? What the fuck was this film actually about? Who the fuck wrote this utter shit? How did it get 68 million dollars to be made? Why is more than 30 volts terrible? Why was the bad man facially scarred? Scarring is one of those things that is only on bad people in films, it’s terrible. Why is this film?

I absolutely hated this film, it was shit and I only stayed to see how they decided to resolve the film, which, much like the rest of it, was poor. Fuck this film, it’s a heap of shit.

This is communication number 1937 and so here, in keeping with recent tradition, is a list of some things that happened that year.

  • GM recognises a workers’ union.
  • Over 295 students and teachers are killed in an explosion in New London, Texas.
  • Police kill ten unarmed demonstrators in Chicago.
  • 724,000 people are killed in a Soviet “purge”.
  • The last Bali tiger dies.

Third Stage – Boston

I had a Boston phase and their first album still strikes me as utter genius. I’m not saying this one isn’t brilliant I’m just saying that I couldn’t tell you whether this album is good or not. I don’t think I’ve listened to it all the way through and all Boston listens are effectively part of a shuffle. It’s not something I deliberately choose to listen to.

Communication number 1936, here’s some shit that happened in that year:

  • Italy gains victory in Ethiopia.
  • Alan Turing introduces the Turing Machine concept.
  • Stress as a biological condition is first recognised.
  • The Tasmanian Tiger becomes extinct.
  • A levee burst in Japan causes 375 deaths.

Themes – Vangelis

Not overly sure why I got this! I think I had seen Blade Runner and wanted some nice calming music in the same style. I don’t know. I’m not sure I’ve played it al the way through. Sometimes songs will come on as part of a shuffle and it depends on my mood as to whether I skip or not.

This is communication number 1934. Here are some things that happened that year:

  • The Japanese invaded Manchuria.
  • The Philippines is given some autonomous control from the USA.
  • A typhoon in Japan kills 3036 people.
  • Australian Frontier Wars end.

The Night House

Yesterday I went to the cinema because I like going to the cinema and there wasn’t really a lot else to watch. The film was being shown in screen 8 and that’s my favourite of them apart from the shitty right speaker which I might have to email the cinema about, but still, a film being shown in screen 8 is a bonus. The traffic was bad heading to the cinema so I missed all the adverts which can only be considered a good thing but I’m experienced enough to know that the film normally starts 15-20 minutes after the advertised time. While checking the state of the tide I decided to take a photograph to illustrate the view I have.

The View I Check Every Cinema Visit
The View I Check Every Cinema Visit

In the picture above you can see the Medway bridges, I wrote about them here, the North Downs and a little bit of Borstal along with boats and things.

Medway Tides - Annotated
Medway Tides – Annotated

I look for the following as I drive along the esplanade.

  • A – the edge of the mud bank.
  • B – the little water channel.
  • C – the “dip”.
  • D – how high are the boats that are anchored over this side of the river.

Each of those four things and how much I can see or not tell me about the state of the tide. I suspect I probably have spent too long of my life wondering about and looking at this view – who cares anyway?

After watching the film I rated it on IMDB and there’re communications that deal with the rating system but the most important one is this one. At some point after I’ve rated it I tweet the result.

There are going to be spoilers ahead so you should consider yourself warned that I will give away a lot of the film plot points in the next few paragraphs. Overall I actually nearly enjoyed this film. About halfway through I remember trying to work out whether I cared about the main character or whether I was just staying in the theatre to see how it ends and it turned out I actually wanted to know how the person coped. Now, let me point out something I think film makers need to know:

You don’t need fucking pop-scares to make a film scary.

I Parish

It was a touch annoying, for me, that this film could have been a decent psychological thriller and an investigation into a woman’s grief for her husband and yet, for me again, it was spoilt very slightly by the supernatural aspects of it. The big problem for these films and their relationship to me is that I don’t believe in any of that shit and so I just write it off as childish. Let’s get into this in a little more detail:

One way of interpreting this film is that, following a near death experience, a malevolent spirit keeps trying to claim the “soul” he is owed by whispering to the woman’s husband that he must kill her. To avoid killing the wife he loves the husband kidnaps and murders women who looked like his wife to trick the spirit into thinking he had killed his wife. Eventually the husband kills himself to save his wife from being murdered by the spirit through him. The woman knows nothing of this until she discovers some photographs on her husbands phone and computer of women who look like her. She considers killing herself to escape the torture of the spirit who has finally decided to take her on himself rather than act through a proxy. The woman’s best friend saves her and the neighbour sees a dark shadow on a boat.

The upshot of this interpretation of the film is that spirits want what they are owed and are willing to act through someone else to get them even though they can interact with the main person themselves. They are lazy? Or just like contrived plots? I don’t know. The film seemed to want us to believe this interpretation because of the shadow at the end of the film. If the film was written with this in mind then it really opens up many many questions about an awful lot of the film and kind of removes all the mystery.

For me, a better interpretation is that, following her husbands suicide a woman descends into psychological and emotional hell. She discovers some photographs on his phone and twists her reality around to make sense of them. Slowly, she goes mad, including hitting herself onto the mirror and making up stories about finding bodies. She suffers many hallucinations, including some of extreme sexual torture. The alcohol keeps pushing her towards suicide and eventually after deciding that she needs to die to stop her emotional pain she rows out on the lake only to be found by her friend who “saves” her. Now, the film stops at this point but it would have been far more scary and mysterious if this was the acknowledged reality.

I wrote the words “extreme sexual torture” in the previous paragraph mostly because this was mentioned at the beginning of the film and close to the end of the film I found myself wondering where the sexual torture was. I didn’t really see any. There was a statuette thing that the main character found but there wasn’t really any sex stuff. The movie had teased me but failed to deliver. Not that I wanted to see that type of thing. Sexual violence [unless consensual in which case I suppose you could argue it’s not violent] is a horrible thing.

To think the best of this film is to remove all the supernatural and just read the meaning as the complete psychological breakdown of a grieving widow. Humans are complicated enough without adding all that god-shit to everything.

This is number 1933 and so here are some things that happened that year:

  • The bodyline Ashes tour.
  • Dachau is opened.
  • The birth of radio astronomy.
  • FM radio is patented.

The X Factor – Iron Maiden

I am not sure if I’ve ever really listened to this album.

This is communication number 1931. Here’s what happened that year:

  • Oswald Mosely founds the New Party.
  • Porsche is founded.
  • The China floods have deaths between 400,000 and 4,000,000.
  • The Panama Canal is closed for a while due to damage by earthquakes.

The Wrong Side Of Heaven and the Righteous Side Of Hell – Five Finger Death Punch

I think all I had to say about FFDP I said in the previous communication about them. There seems to be a bit of a dip in quality albums in this area of the alphabet. Or, it’s just that there are a lot of Ts and coupled with my mistake of the “THE” word creates a stretch of albums I’m not fussed about.

This is communication number 1930 and I’m kinda trying to beat my “most in a month” record while at the same time trying to keep the quality up. It’s 19 days into the month and progress is good. I’ve got some ideas for longer communications too so maybe they will get written when I have some more time and freedom? Here are some things that happened in 1930:

  • The existence of Pluto, dwarf planet, is confirmed.
  • Lili Elbe begins sex reassignment surgeries.
  • A fire in the Ohio penitentiary kills 320 people.
  • The last recorded lynching of African Americans in USA.
  • The Pope stresses the sanctity of marriage, the ban on artificial birth control and the church’s view on abortion [what a cunt].

The Way Of The Fist – Five Finger Death Punch

I got a number of FFDP albums after I saw them at Download and then a location in London. I don’t mind when one of their songs comes on in a shuffle but I am definitely not bothered about playing a complete album. I’m not too fussed by their double bass drumming all the way through complete songs. Chaps, you have to have variation. But then, I’m old so maybe that is the way to go? So, there may be good stuff on here, there may not. I’m also trying to beat one of my previous best communications-per-month totals so that is why I’m publishing a lot this month.

In 1928 some of the following things happened:

  • Frederick Griffith proves the existence of DNA.
  • A dam failed north of LA killing 600.
  • The voting age for women in UK lowers from 30 to 21. Prior to this only women over 30 and with property could vote.
  • Farnsworth demonstrates the first all-electric television system.

The War Of The Worlds – Jeff Wayne

This is actually a really good album in that late 1970s way. I’m glad Jeff has made a shit-ton of money from this. I like the fact that the first Martians land near Jase’s house, also loads of the place names are places I know. But those two things were more about HG than Mr Wayne. Oh well.

Communication number 1927 so in keeping with recent tradition and recognising this communication feels like a “cheat”, there’s not much to it, here’s what happened in 1927, curated by me:

  • British troops land in Shanghai which is British [apparently].
  • The UK formally becomes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
  • The Mississippi floods and kills 700,000.
  • Iraq gains independence from the UK.

The Wall – Pink Floyd

I think I own this because everyone thinks they should own this album. I don’t particularly enjoy Pink Floyd’s music and while some of it is quite good and catchy I find the rest dull and repetitive. Yes, I know, that makes me an awful person in the view of many but I just can’t quite get it. I’ve always felt like this about Floyd, not sure why, you can’t help what you like I guess.

Communication number 1923 so here we go:

  • First flight of an autogyro.
  • First Le Mans 24 hours race.
  • Louis Armstrong makes his first recording.
  • Large hailstones kill 23 in Russia.
  • A damn bursts in Italy killing 356 people.

The Very Best Of Van Halen – Van Halen

There’s something about “best of” albums that ends up meaning I don’t play them much. I think I buy a “best of” because I know some of the songs and want a few more but I don’t want to be saddled with an album that might be a bit shit. So, I get a “best of” and I hope that I enjoy listening to it. Broadly speaking I don’t enjoy listening to it and I don’t play it that often. With Van Halen I really love the album 5150 and enjoy listening to that all the way through but for some reason having the “best of” doesn’t bother me and I don’t play it. I think my emotional attachment to 5150 belongs with when I first encountered it in my life and it takes me back to the summer of 1988. Live albums are slightly different though and while they are a kind of “best of” they are also different from the studio recordings and so you discover new parts to each song.

This is communication number 1922, so here are some things that happened then:

  • Snowfall causes a roof of a theatre to collapse in Washington DC killing 98.
  • Insulin treatment is successfully used for the first time.
  • Monza race track is opened.
  • The Barbary lion and the Amur tiger both become extinct in the wild.

The Last Letter From Your Lover

After finally recycling all the crap from my garden at the Cuxton dump I went to the cinema at Rochester [not in Rochester, actually in Strood] to see The Last Letter From Your Lover. I noted the state of the tide as I drove to the car park and it was middling, I didn’t know whether it was going in or out but after the film it was definitely close to high tide, so now we know. After seeing the film I rated it on IMDB and then tweeted the result, there’s a whole system to all of that explained in this communication.

I almost didn’t go and see this film. I parked the car and pondered whether I actually wanted to see a romance film and I nearly went home to “waste” a few hours in the current Minecraft world that I have. But, I was here and I won’t have a chance to get to the cinema for a while so I decided it was going to be a positive experience. Upon entering the theatre I scanned the crowd [about 30 people] and I think I was the only man in the room – oh well. I’ve seen other films like that, when there’s been people not like me and me and I coped.

I enjoyed this film. It was a perfectly good piece of artwork and was a pleasant watch. While driving back home I was reminded of my maternal grandmother who went to the cinema quite a bit and she would have enjoyed this film. I remember chatting to her about a film she had seen once and she said it was a good film but there wasn’t the need for all the bad language. She wasn’t that much into swearing which was probably a generational thing? I swear a lot.

This film was focussed on the relationship between two couples spread over time and it was a kind of “love triumphs over all” message. I’m not sure I would have had that as my overall message, I’m not sure that’s a particularly healthy thing for people to think. I don’t think people should dwell too much on lost loves and I don’t believe in “true love”. I tend to think it’s just chemicals and we aren’t “destined” to be with someone, and we aren’t “soul mates” with anyone. I do understand emotional attachment though.

So, here’s my thing: for me the issue with this film was the inequality in relationships that has existed in societal expectations and the Law over the years. We see the 1960s couple at dinner and the MAN tells the wife basically to shut up with her intelligent ideas because she can’t know these things, she’s just a pretty woman. We see this couple argue over divorce and the law and society was so anti-female in those days that really I would make more of this in the film. I have massive issues with inequality that has existed over time and still does exist in our current society. I guess we kind of hope we are the best that we can be but just look around at how people are treated and you’ll see that it’s all a work in progress and sometimes that progress is negative.

Anyway, it’s a nice film. As this is communication number 1921 here’s what happened then:

  • The Jaffa riots kill about 100 people.
  • The province of Northern Ireland is created.
  • Between 100 and 300 people are killed in the Tulsa Race Riots.
  • Russian famine begins. 5,000,000 die.

The Very Best Of Testament – Testament

I’m pretty sure I bought this as an alternative to buying the album Practise What You Preach. The idea was that I would get all the good Testament songs and not have to worry about buying a few albums. Eventually I went on to buy the albums individually anyway as a couple of albums a month keeps me happy. I honestly don’t know what is on this album. I probably played it a few times when I got it but since then I’ve always done the right thing and listened to the proper albums.

In the communication number is the year that I write about continuation this is number 1920 and here’re some things that happened that year.

  • The Treaty Of Versailles takes affect officially ending WW1.
  • The Khan Of Khiva abdicates.
  • The five interlocking rings of the Olympics are first displayed in Antwerp.
  • UK, France and Italy discuss how to partition the Ottoman Empire.
  • A bomb kills 38 in New York.

The Spaghetti Incident? – Guns N’ Roses

I’m not sure if this album came out before or after the Use Your Illusion duo and I can’t be bothered to check on Wikipedia, if you want to have a look then you can. What I can tell you is that this album is a bunch of covers and gave a return to a well-produced but still raw sound for GnR. Listening to this gives me real flashbacks to living in Fulham and spending loads of time with the Fulham Five. I really enjoy this album and I love the speed, energy and sound. You might find it a little derivative nowadays but at least it didn’t take fourteen years to produce like other GnR albums!

This is communication number 1981 so, here are some words to increase the word count:

  • The 1918 flu pandemic first recognised in Kansas.
  • Russia adopts the Gregorian Calendar.
  • The last Carolina parakeet dies.
  • Marie Stopes publishes “Married Love” and opens the discussion about birth control [which must be misnamed!]. She is also a massive eugenicist and so we can celebrate her positive contributions to society while still condemn her shit views.
  • 453 people die in a fire in Cloquet.

The Southern Harmony And Musical Companion – Black Crowes

I feel that this album really cemented where the Black Crowes were going with their style and sound. However, it’s not really my bag. I played this album yesterday and I enjoyed listening to it, the guitar blues sounds were really nice and it’s a lovely calming album. They have backing singers and the whole thing works really well. It’s a lovely album.

This is communication number 1917 and so here are some things that happened in that year:

  • The King of UK changes his surname from Saxe-Coburg to Windsor.
  • The “miracle” of the Sun in Portugal – ha ha.
  • Women campaigners are deliberately assaulted while imprisoned.
  • The world is still going to shit with war.

The Suicide Squad

My first real day after completing the sleeping system and so I must go to the cinema. There wasn’t a lot on really and so I almost flipped a coin between The Suicide Squad and The Last Letter From Your Lover, which I still might go and see. Driving along Chariot Way I could see that the tide was very much high, small waves lapping at the edges of the mudbanks and leaves poking through the surface of the river.

After watching this movie I rated it on IMDB. Actually I rated it the day after because there are issues with tweeting something when you have removed Twitter from your phone. I think that possible the scoring isn’t as raw as it should be but I just need to remember to follow the guidance I established in this communication. I guess I also need to point out that this film, The Suicide Squad, is different to one I watched in 2016 called Suicide Squad. Here’s the result:

I actually really enjoyed this film. It’s silly and funny and over the top. I guess it’s a bit like Deadpool but with more characters. The film had a very comic feel to it with flashbacks and floating graphics. It worked well. I’m not sure there’s a whole lot more I can say. This outcome is surprising as I don’t often rate superhero movies and definitely not DC ones. But, hey, it is what it is.

I published this without writing the whole “in this year” thing, so here goes. The year 1916:

  • Emma Goldman is arrested for lecturing on birth control.
  • The toggle light switch is invented.
  • 4 people die of shark attack along the Jersey Shore.
  • Margaret Sanger opens a birth control clinic.
  • War and shit is happening and that’s pretty fucking depressing.

The Slip – Nine Inch Nails

I bought this album to help complete my NIN collection but I’m not sure that I’ve listened to it all the way through. NIN albums that I’ve had for a long time have all been listened to quite comprehensively. I’ve got this on while I perform some admin on the computer, I’m backing up my Minecraft world and creating a map, and it’s ok. I think I would say that the sound isn’t as rounded as other NIN albums. This is perfectly good NIN stuff.

Communication number 1915 requires some information about what happened in that year:

  • US House of Representatives rejects giving women the vote.
  • “Typhoid Mary” infects 25 people while working as a cook.
  • Pluto is photographed for the first time.
  • The Ottoman Empire genocides the Armenians.
  • The US occupies Haiti until 1935.
  • Theory of Pangaea published.

The Sinister Urge – Rob Zombie

I really like Rob Zombie’s music, there is a definite feel about it and he was great when I saw him live at M’era Luna. Could I tell you what is on this album? No. But I can tell you it’s a good album and worth having. You know you are going to like whatever is on here.

This is communication number 1913 and so as with recent tradition here are some things that happened in that year [AD yes, I know that term excludes many around the world]:

  • Tibet declares independence from China.
  • Igor Sikorsky is first person to pilot a four engined aircraft.
  • Stainless steel is invented.
  • The Great Lakes Storm claims more than 250 lives.

The Singles – Clash

I think I bought this while at college and it was one of those – I like punk and I like Should I stay Or Should I go – therefore I should probably like the rest of this album. I’m not sure I’ve played it a huge amount and I don’t think it is on my phone. Just looking at the tracklisting and there are four songs I could tell you how they go and the other 14 I do not know. Maybe the Clash didn’t put out that many singles? Maybe this should be a “best of”. I don’t know.

Comms #1911

  • A landslide creates Lake Sarez.
  • 146 people die in the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire.
  • Air mail services start.
  • Rutherford deduces the existence of the nucleus of an atom.

Jungle Cruise

I took a small trip to see Jungle Cruise at the cinema. I could have paid to stream it on the television but I really like going to the cinema. I noted that the tide was very low in the river, all the mud banks were exposed. This was a metaphor for my low expectations of this film, even then, the film disappointed me a bit. I rated the film on IMDB, there’s a communication dealing with the scoring system.

I didn’t hate this film but I also didn’t think it was worth watching by the end of it. I know this is a film based on a theme park ride but maybe people should just stop making those. The premise was ok-ish: a plant to cure all diseases exists somewhere in the Amazon jungles and the protagonist has to find it, for reasons. Stuff happened including loads of supernatural bollocks. But, here are the things I found most annoying:

A lot of the action was filmed close up and without a steady camera and so it all blurred and I couldn’t really tell you what was going on during the action scenes. Maybe I’m getting old but there was a lot of CGI and fast moving cameras which took away from the actual action for me. Although I am prepared to say that I am definitely not the market for this film.

Why is the bad guy a German? In a submarine? Why German? Why not some mega-capitalist? Why German? Have we not accepted that perhaps not all bad people have Germanic roots. I kind of get it with Indiana Jones and the Nazis, because that was when the film was set and they were really bad. But this guy just seemed to be some low level German royal who wanted the plant-thing. Maybe I need to re-evaluate my approach to whoever the bad guys are.

NOTHING ELSE MATTERS by Metallica was the music that opened this film and also came along for a bit of easy rock half way through. Fuck this song. It is shit. What is happening in the world?

{SPOILER FOLLOWS} Why did the protagonist, who is motivated by saving the sick of the world give the only flower to a dead man she had fallen in love with? Where was her sacrifice for the better good? What an utterly selfish bullshit thing to do. Fuck this move.

I didn’t really enjoy this film. I was curious to see what the ending was going to be, and, of course, it was completely happy. Except for the German, obviously.

What happened in the year 1910 given that this is communication number 1910?

  • Slavery made illegal in China.
  • The Earth passes through the tail of Halley’s comet.
  • A boxing match causes race riots across USA.
  • 40,000 die in China of a pneumatic plague.

The Rap Guide To Religion – Baba Brinkman

For some reason my album reviews have gone out of order and this one should have been before the last few, as they are alphabetical by title. Now, this is a really odd one for you. This is a rap album by a white Canadian where they explain how religion is formed and what the psychological processes are that means humans are pre-disposed to religion. I don’t mind rap music because I like a good beat, and I like learning about religion. So, this album hits the spot. I bought it originally as I like music and I’m happy to buy music directly from the artists or whole albums as it seems a better way to pay for music rather than use a streaming service. I know that I might only end up liking a few songs overall from an album but I think the type of musician I listen to now needs the money. I’m happy to rip off the superstars though.

I really enjoy this album and possibly you will too if you can cope with hip-hop music.

Number 1909 and so here’re some things that happened then:

  • The NAACP is founded.
  • Turks kill 15-30000 Armenians in a single day.
  • The world’s first military airplane is bought.
  • The Indianapolis Speedway track is opened.