Super 14 Week 3 Report – Australian teams
After the first three weeks of Super 14 rugby, we are starting to get a feel for who has what it takes to make the finals and who will be stuck at the bottom of the table come May. And there are a few surprise positions on the ladder. Here is a look at how the Australian teams are traveling:
The Australian teams are going well as a whole with three teams in the top four and none in the bottom five. The Waratahs are showing again why they are title contenders (as they have been the last few years with without going all they way), but are being accused as being boring by almost everyone from the public to the media to rival teams. They did start to show a bit more flair in their win over the Highlanders, and entertaining or not, they are winning and sit second on the ladder. They are a very well-drilled, well-structured side and should head towards the tournament’s final weeks without dropping too many games.
The Force are surprisingly fourth on the ladder after their win over the Brumbies on the weekend. With the announcement of star playmaker Matt Giteau moving back the Brumbies next year adding to the reports of infighting and tension over in Perth since this year’s pre-season, the Force were considered outsiders to win in Canberra, but with a fantastic turn by fullback Cameron Shepherd, who scored 3 tries, they achieved a great win in the face of diversity. If the players can ignore all the outside distraction, they possibly could do very well this season, but a middle-of-the-table finish is the likely outcome.
The Brumbies are solid at the moment with 2 wins and 1 loss, but will be shocked their loss the the Force at home, a game they thought was very much in their favour up until the whistle blew to start the match. The Brumbies are usually a solid bet to make the top 4 of Super Rugby, or at least stay in the top half of the ladder, but whether they can repeat that this year will rely heavily on whether their young flyhalf Christian Lealiifano, who is in the shoes that were filled by Wallaby great Stephen Larkham for so many years.
Finally the Reds will be looking to throw off the shackles of the bottom end of the table where they have been for the past few years. With a backline that finally looks like they could do some damage, the Reds will have to start making a move up the table very soon if they want to show they are finals contenders. The big grudge match against their southern neighbours the Waratahs this friday could be the litmus test for how their season ends up
On the eve of Watchmen
With only one week to go before the release of Watchmen in cinemas across the globe it is definitely time to get excited, very excited.
By all accounts from those who have seen the early previews, the film lives up to expectations. With it being possibly being the most anticipated film adaptation of a comic ever, especially amongst hardcore fanboys, the anticipation of whether it will live up to the legendary graphic novel of industry-god Alan Moore has been felt by fans and the film’s creators alike. At this point, things are looking good. Just by reading any interview with Zack Snyder (director of 300 and the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead), you certainly get the feeling that he is a true fan of the source material and that this film is a labour of love.
For more tangible evidence that the film is in good hands, just check out the all promotional stuff that is available online. The official website http://watchmenmovie.warnerbros.com/ is full of posters, videos and other cool shit that makes you wish you were watching the movie right now damn it! Make sure to visit the site of The New Frontiersmen, based on the fictional right-wing newspaper from Moore’s novel, as it is full of really interesting viral-style articles and other media based on the world of Watchmen.
Who will be watching the Watchmen next week? Well I am for sure, and I guess a whole lot of other people will be too. Will you?
Terminator Salvation Trailer
The next film in The Terminator franchise could either be very good or very bad. Considering what most fourth installments of a film series usually are, history is not with Terminator Salvation. Adding to any fan of the original two Terminator film’s scepticism is that the director, McG’s (yes, apparently that is his credited name), most famous films to date are the two Charlie’s Angels films. Not exactly the director who would first pop into your mind when thinking about the legendary Terminator films.
However, there are some good things going for Terminator Salvation. The first and by very much foremost is the casting of Christian Bale as John Connor. Bale is with out a doubt one of the best actors working today, and his mere presence gives this film a whole lot of credibility. Add to that the information coming from the production camp. They are looking at this film as a kind of “rebooting” of the series. Now the term “reboot” is thrown around a little too much these days, ever since Christopher Nolan’s “reboot” of the Batman series (also starring Christian Bale), but in this case seems like a valid vision. With the film now focussing on the actual war between mankind and the Skynet robots, there is also an opportunity to take the franchise in a new direction, one that could continue for a few more films. Also, McG, has apparently conferred with Mr. Terminator himself, director James Cameron, as to the direction where the next film should head.
Anyway, the new trailer for Terminator Salvation is out, and it actually looks pretty damn cool. It certainly looks like a lot of action will be involved and add to that the acting chops present, and this fourth film just might make up for the travesty that was Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. Sure it doesn’t have Arnie, but it just might be worth a look.
Check out the trailer here:
LOST is coming
Well it has been 6 long and boring months since the finale of Season 4 of Lost aired and there is still a little bit more waiting to do. The good news is that a countdown to the next season is now worth commencing. In exactly 7 weeks from today, Lost Season 5 will premiere in the U.S.
The end of Season 4 was quite a cliffhanger, with some of the castaways escaping the island, the island itself “disappearing” and a major revelation concerning John Locke in the flash-forwards. With only two seasons left to go, presumably we will start to get some answers to the multitudes of questions that have arisen during the show. Questions such as: What exactly is the island? Who exactly are “the others”? Why doesn’t Richard age? What is the “monster”? Why did Charlie have to die? Why is Walt special, and why did the others let him leave? Why is Jack really such a pompous arsehole? What is the Dharma Initiative and the Hanso Foundation? Is there anyone more awesome than Locke?, but mostly, What the hell is the show about? Okay so that is a lot of questions, and hopefully we will start getting some answers.
To whet your appetite check out the Season 5 trailer the official Lost website.
Also it seems ABC will be releasing a series of sneak previews for the first episode, with the first one also available at the Lost website. It seems someone knows the truth about Kate and baby Aaron’s “relationship”, and wants to reveal it. My bet is on Charles Widmore, but hey I wouldn’t put it past Ben Linus as part of his sneaky scheming.
Anyway, remember to check out the previews and get excited.
Novel Review: On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft
Stephen King is one of the most popular and prolific writers working today. While not without detractors, he remains a leading figure in fiction writing, especially within the horror genre. Novels like The Stand, Cujo, Salem’s Lot and Carrie are widely known throughout the world, and his epic fantasy series, The Dark Tower, has a massive following. Furthermore, many of his novels have been turned into films, and comic book adaptations of The Stand and The Dark Tower are currently in production. Commercially he is one of the most successful novelists alive today.
With all of these accolades, King is undoubtedly in a prime position to have something to say on the craft of writing. And it is with his book, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, that he has decided to pass on some of his thoughts on what makes a writer, or more specifically, what makes a good writer.
The tack he has taken with this book is an inspired one. Writing is very different to economics or maths; it is not an exact science. And On Writing is certainly no textbook. One of the main points made by King is that writing is a craft, and in that craft the writer shapes the story. So each and every story is ultimately dependant on the personal life experience of their creator, the writer. To get this point across in practical terms, King dedicates a big portion at the beginning of the book to a kind of biographical history of his own life, which he aptly entitles “CV”.
With a cheeky comedic touch, King tells the tale of his life with brutal but admiral honesty in a way that is genuinely interesting as well as entertaining. From his humble childhood in a lower-middle class, single-parent family to his early adulthood trying to support a family with two kids living in a trailer park, King paints a vivid picture of the many ups and downs of his life. What the reader ends up with, is an understanding of these struggles and joys in King’s life, which shaped what kind of writer he is, and thus the stories themselves.
But the book is not all biographical story-time; King is full of practical advice as well. Instead of trying to bombard the reader with boring rules and stiff diagrams, the bulk of the book is filled with real and solid advice as to what does and does not work in the journey to write a story. With examples from his own work, as well as from other authors, King illustrates many of the do’s and don’ts of writing, all in clear language. He adopts the tone of a helpful uncle giving advice, rather than a lecturer standing at the front of a classroom, and so his teaching is very accessible.
King stresses the point that writing is above all a very personal undertaking, and that any attempt to try and teach the craft in conventional ways is useless. This is why he has written On Writing as more of a rough guide to how he became a good writer, not how you can become one. Without too many rules but filled with helpful advice, On Writing has come out as an insightful and above all useful book on the craft of writing.
THE WORD
Old School, is a fan-favourite film for a whole generation. Filled with endless comic quotability, anyone who has seen and loved the film will be able to spill forth the favourite line from Frank the Tank and company. Almost every line said in the film makes me laugh in one way or another, but I have to be ruthless and choose one. So for this week’s THE WORD I have chosen something from Frank the Tank, which is in my opinion Will Ferrell’s best role to date. It is said at the first party thrown at Mitch’s new house, The Mitch Martin Freedom Festival. Frank has promised his new wife not to drink and is trying to explain to some college guys why he can not do a beer-bong with them as he has plans with his wife for the next day:
Frank: I told my wife I wouldn’t drink tonight. Besides, I got a big day tomorrow. You guys have a great time.
College Student: A big day? Doing what?
Frank: Well, um, actually a pretty nice little Saturday, we’re going to go to Home Depot. Yeah, buy some wallpaper, maybe get some flooring, stuff like that. Maybe Bed, Bath, & Beyond, I don’t know, I don’t know if we’ll have enough time.
From the film Old School, directed by Todd Phillips.
3rd issues of Stephen King’s Treachery and Captain Trips comics out now
The third issues of both The Dark Tower: Treachery and The Stand: Captain Trips were released last week. Both series of comics are fantastic comic book adaptations set in the worlds of two of Stephen King’s most loved novels and well worth a look.
Treachery is the third series of a planned five covering the early years of Roland Deschain, the hero of The Dark Tower series of novels.
And Captain Trips is the first of a planned six covering the epic novel, The Stand.
More info found at:
http://www.marvel.com/comics/dark_tower/
A Game of Thrones pilot a go!
The latest news on the television series adaptation of A Game of Thrones has been announced by George R. R. Martin on his website. And what great news it is: HBO have given the go ahead for a pilot to produced. As always the production of a whole season depends on how well the pilot goes. So to quote the great man himself, “let’s all hope the pilot will kick serious ass.”
Here is the link to the official announcement from George himself:
THE WORD
Corresponding with this weeks The Big Lebowski review, this segment of THE WORD comes from that very film.
As with any film by the Coen Brothers, The Big Lebowski is filled with some of the funniest and witty dialogue in cinema. Basically anything The Dude or Walter says is ripe for endless quoting by fanboys. Anyways, this weeks chosen word is the opening passage of the film narrated by Sam Elliott’s The Stranger. For best effect, one should listen to it spoken with the deep tumbleweed-sounding gravelly tones of Sam Elliott. But seeing it written is pretty darn good too:
Way out west there was this fella I wanna tell ya about. Goes by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least that was the handle his loving parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. See, this Lebowski, he called himself “The Dude”. Now, “Dude” – there’s a name no man would self-apply where I come from. But then there was a lot about the Dude that didn’t make a whole lot of sense. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that’s why I found the place so darned interestin’. See, they call Los Angeles the “City Of Angels”; but I didn’t find it to be that, exactly. But I’ll allow it as there are some nice folks there. ‘Course I ain’t never been to London, and I ain’t never seen France. And I ain’t never seen no queen in her damned undies, so the feller says. But I’ll tell you what – after seeing Los Angeles, and this here story I’m about to unfold, well, I guess I seen somethin’ every bit as stupefyin’ as you’d seen in any of them other places. And in English, too. So I can die with a smile on my face, without feelin’ like the good Lord gypped me. Now this here story I’m about to unfold took place in the early ’90s – just about the time of our conflict with Sad’m and the I-raqis. I only mention it because sometimes there’s a man… I won’t say a hero, ’cause, what’s a hero? Sometimes, there’s a man. And I’m talkin’ about the Dude here – the Dude from Los Angeles. Sometimes, there’s a man, well, he’s the man for his time and place. He fits right in there. And that’s the Dude. The Dude, from Los Angeles. And even if he’s a lazy man – and the Dude was most certainly that. Quite possibly the laziest in all of Los Angeles County, which would place him high in the runnin’ for laziest worldwide. Sometimes there’s a man, sometimes, there’s a man. Well, I lost my train of thought here. But… aw, hell. I’ve done introduced it enough.
From the film The Big Lebowski, by Joel and Ethan Coen
Film Review: The Big Lebowski
The Coen brothers are anything but your standard directors. But of course that is what makes them so good.
And The Big Lebowski is anything but your ordinary film. Nailing down what the film is about is quite a slippery task, but then that really is the point. The film tells the story of Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski, an ageing unemployed hippy living in Los Angeles, who through a case of mistaken identity, gets caught up in a confusing ordeal involving kidnapping, extortion, the porn industry, and of course, bowling. Confused for a much richer Jeffrey Lebowski by some dim-witted thugs seeking money owed, who end up soiling his beloved rug, The Dude embarks on a crusade to be compensated for said rug that “really tied the room together”. Along the way The Dude finds himself mixed up with German nihilists, porn stars, a feminist artist, a severed toe, a sexually perverted rival bowler and the Malibu police department.
Within this twisting narrative, it is really the characters that shine through. And that is what they are: “characters”. The whole film is a heightened example of the absurd, and each character is more absurd than the next. From the three German nihilists who are a mix of Nazi’s, sadists and Kraftwerk, to Julianne Moore’s peculiar feminist artist Maude Lebowski, to John Turturro’s briefly seen but delightfully crazy Jesus Quintana, they are like nothing you have ever seen, and utterly Coenesque. Perhaps the most memorable is John Goodman as loose cannon Walter Sobchak, The Dude’s bowling buddy. Here Goodman puts in the best performance of his career, a highly-strung barrel of nerves, rage and delusion that leaves you laughing with glee and shaking your head in shock.
And then there is The Dude. As Sam Elliot’s narrator tells us, The Dude is a man of his time: An ex-radical hippy, who is simply passing the time through Los Angeles in the early 90’s. And Jeff Bridges IS The Dude. His shuffling performance is accomplished with such ease, and executed with great comedic nuance. From his shabby wardrobe and taste for White-Russians to his mumbling speech and exasperated response to the burdens imposed upon him, The Dude is one of the greatest comic film creations in recent history, and one the collaboration of Bridges and the Coens should be proud of.
It is also the filmmaking talent of the Coen brothers that have made The Big Lebowski into a cult-hit phenomenon. The unravelling of this muddled narrative is a joy to follow, and it is the comedy found within this unfolding, that keeps the audience wanting more. The surreal quality of the film is cleverly handled and the two dream sequences of The Dude are an inspired mix of events from the story and drug-addled insanity. The music in the film is much more than just background noise but plays an incorporated part in the telling of The Dude’s story. And the narration by Sam Elliot’s character at the beginning and end of the film is a nice touch.
The Big Lebowski is an absolute must-see for any fan of the Coen brothers, as well as for anyone who is bored by typical modern film fare. It is worth the watch just to see how an intriguing narrative, wonderful characters, fantastic dialogue and brilliant filmmaking are present in a film of utter irreverence and absolute absurdity, but one that works. You just have to remember one thing: The Dude abides.
