Films

I don’t reckon I’ll forget this September

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Sadly there was no gold

September has been quite balmy in Edinburgh, great for some late afternoon brambling in the park; well, just for idling in the park generally, making the most of the end of summer. I haven’t picked as many brambles as last year, but then I’m not going to make any wine this time, just lots of jam! Time for a terrible segue, Jed Potts was the guest host at the Handsome House Jam at Stramash on the first Sunday of the month, a fine evening of the blues. It was the second time seeing him that weekend as he and Nicole Smit were doing their thing in the Jazz Bar early Saturday evening, an interesting change from Binkies!

The next HHJ is this Sunday evening, I haven’t seen who the guest host will be; but I do know the Scat Rats are playing after that at ten o’clock, yay! That’s the only music noted on my calendar now until the end of the month – unless something pops up soon. I had toyed with the idea of a wee Highland trip up around Inverness to coincide with Carl Marah‘s gig at the Market Bar (this Saturday), but by the time I thought about it again everywhere cheaper than very expensive was gone, Inverness is obviously going to be very busy this weekend!

Ho hum, shouldn’t grumble, last week was ridiculously great fun; Glasgow on Wednesday for some blues harmonica, the Scat Rats twice on Thursday night (early in Stramash, midnight in Whistlebinkies), they were back in Binkies on the Saturday afternoon, mid-evening spot was Louis Crosland plus two, he was back in Binkies Sunday midnight with two others, that was after he’d played the ten o’clock slot in Stramash with the Moanin‘ Bones; and I didn’t miss a thing (apart from a few opening numbers, as per usual).

Saturday night
Sunday midnight

Friday evening I was in Peebles for Show Don’t Tell, an evening of five short films from the Tweed Valley, by rural filmmakers, with live music afterwards. Okay, so the live music was a short set by Logan’s Close, they also starred in one of the short films, of course I went along! It was held in the Eastgate Theatre, an arts centre in a converted church. Wow, what a great place they’ve created! The auditorium is the actual church (there’s a studio area and cafe too) with well tiered seating (with plenty of leg room!) that can all be retracted back leaving the floor cleared, stairs on both sides up to the three-sided balcony. After the films were shown there was a long break while the band set up and the seating was just taken back a few rows, so that there was room for standing and sitting. I mean, what an amazing use of space! I would definitely go back.

Logan’s Close: Live at Maryhill was up first, quite a gothic feel to it, the lads performing in an old empty theatre, flouncy shirts, and a freaky, disturbing side storyline involving Scott and a surgeon (I would tell you more about it, but it was just really odd, okay?) The songs in it were Costume Changes, Chillz and Dans Le Jardin, beautifully shot in a slightly disorientating way. It was directed by Aidan Duckworth, our host for the evening and also director of GIMP the last film shown (his party, so why not two?). The others were Antlers, Cover-up and Cernunnos; short films, they throw you in at the deep end and expect you to survive confusion, gore, drama, BDSM, old gods and antlers (not just in Antlers!). Fun, but I definitely needed a drink afterwards!

I took a stroll down the main street to the Bridge Inn, a real ale pub that I visited some years ago, yay, they had a Stewart’s ale in. Just a half for me seeing as I was driving, then the stroll back to the theatre took me to almost time to head back into the auditorium and some music. Due to the first part of the evening lasting longer than expected, it was a shorter set than planned just five songs, opening with Babestation on to Costume Changes, Hot Blondes, very new one Cuck Chair, then with the crowd yelling for one more, the lads got the nod to go ahead, so they went out with the bloody magnificent Mock Marble Linoleum, yay! Needless to say, my soundtrack for the drive back to Edinburgh was my Logan’s Close Live at LimbicTV cd. All in all, a damn fine evening!

Ha, since I started this, then paused a while for my tea, I’ve discovered that Louis Crosland (and whoever!) is playing the half nine slot at Whistlebinkies on Saturday, yay. Ha, a Binkies usual, a band was listed as playing that slot on the month’s list poster and the website, and then this week it was TBC on social media – but hey, that’s me happy! There was also confusion over last Sunday’s midnight slot; towards the end of the Scat Rats Saturday afternoon set Carl announced they’d be back the following night, a back and forth ensued between the Rats and George on sound as he was down to play bass with Louis then, I piped up that he was right, erm, they ended up playing Rock, Paper, Scissors for it, hahaha. All friendly banter, the Rats were having a great afternoon, a good, appreciative audience, they never sounded better (in part, thanks to George, he really knows his stuff), Funnel of Love was particularly exquisite 💛 Oh, and we even got an encore of two extra songs over time, sweet!

And on that note I shall bid you goodnight, bonne nuit, gute Nacht, buonanotte!

A bugbear, minions and music

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As the Fringe gets ever closer, the rain gods are once again perfecting their sudden deluge from nowhere techniques, so don’t forget to bring a brolly (a sturdy one, it can get very windy here). Oh, and don’t forget to bring some commonsense too, honestly, you would not believe the number of people wandering around Edinburgh who clearly leave theirs at home (we have enough local numpties, and, well, it looks bad when the headline says “tourist in Edinburgh….”, okay?); but that’s a rant I’ll save for another time.

The town is noticeable more bustly now, not what I’d consider busy yet just bustlier (not bustier as spellchecker tried to insist). Heck, there were even people drinking after ten in George IV Bar on Friday evening – it’s busy through the day while people are coming in to eat, but it does seem be very quiet once the kitchen close. Oh yeah, that reminds me! A bugbear. Pubs that have that sign “Please Wait To Be Seated” just inside the door and don’t remove it after dining is over? Sure, some of us know when to ignore it, but some hover, glancing around, trying to appear nonchalant but we can all see the embarrassment in their eyes. A quick timely removal of that sign wouldn’t take a minute, well, maybe two or three.

I’d been to the cinema to see Minions & Monsters, wow, such bloody good fun and so many cheeky wee film references, had me grinning and guffawing right the way through it. The voice cast was perfect with Christopher Waltz and Jeff Bridges in there, and of course, Pierre Coffin (the man is a genius); the story skips and trips along, aided by hilariously wonderful montages. There’s been plenty of films about the beginnings of Hollywood, honestly, this could be my new favourite (Friday evening was the second time I’d seen it, so ).

Feel that passion, yeah!

Anyhoo. It made sense to head to George IV Bar – bluesman Louis Crosland was playing there before heading to Whistlebinkies for the midnight slot (plus band), total sense. How good to hear acoustic then electric versions of All Along the Watchtower, brand new to Louis’s setlist and an old favourite of mine (I do incline towards the Hendrix version). I’ve put a reel that incorporates both on my Instagram, please do check it out. I was also treated to Gilbert O’Sullivan’s Alone Again Naturally, another new one on the setlist, nice, I liked Louis’s take on it. FYI, Louis will be playing the Canons’ Gait at nine o’clock on Wednesday nights through August.

The Canons’ Gait and Whistlebinkies are once again venues for PBH’s Free Fringe along with plenty other pubs in the city, the rest are part of the Laughing Horse stable, nah not really, but it can feel like every pub in Edinburgh becomes a Fringe venue! Of course, it helps if there’s an actual separate room available and plenty of the old pubs have weird and wonderful spaces!

Time I was creeping off to bed. Back to Fringe nuggets tomorrow.

Sweet dreams, mes amis!

A wee catch-up … and more

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It’s the Sunday evening before Christmas, thought I’d tap out a quick update before I head off to see Fackham Hall, and joys, the Louis Crosland Trio are playing Whistlebinkies at midnight (one can never too sure too soon). My Christmas week starts tonight!

A bit of a departure on my advent calendar today, I reposted a montage of ice creams from Thistle & Churn, well, the track with it was Ice Cream Man by Tom Waits, a classic in my book, and so are their ice creams. Oh, and I have three precious tubs from T&C in my freezer! Two of Caledonia Cream and one of Clootie Dumpling, they should see me into the new year, yeah, should.

It was my first time back in the reopened Filmhouse to see Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Mind, I’m still a little confused about the scene that was meant to explain what happened in the wood, nah, kept running it through my head. Help, someone. Even better for me was The Running Man, and I went in not sure about it, but yay, Edgar Wright wove his magic again. Had a wee inward cheer to myself, when I spotted Rich Hall in a brief scene, nice one.

On a much smaller screen, Carl Marah has a video on his YouTube channel to go with his latest song Cold Cold Christmas, do give it a watch. Mind, if you want to just listen to it, I wouldn’t bother asking your smart speaker! Certainly Alexa refuses to understand the name Carl Marah, stupid, stupid !!#*?!! I was round at a friend’s, it just confirmed to me why I’ll never bother getting one.

Tonight will be the second time this week seeing Louis Crosland as I caught the band in Stramash on Thursday evening, but it wasn’t a trio, oh no, added keyboards. I did wonder beforehand, but any doubts were quickly dispelled, a part of the puzzle that we hadn’t even realised was missing. A perfect fit for Louis’ sound, especially his own songs; sadly, it was only for the one evening so far, but hopefully, he’ll be back, that’s Guilhem Forey.

With more originals on the setlist some of the usual had to go, so not much Dylan except, of course, Knocking on Heaven’s Door, Louis’s all time favourite song. I’ve heard the band play Louis’s My Kind of Heaven a few times, but it was a first outing for Losing Game, apparently voted into the set by the rest of the band, they all really like playing it. Yeah, I could tell you the names of the other two new originals, but I wasn’t taking notes, just enjoying being in the zone. Like I’ve already said, the keyboards slotted in so sweetly, the bass vibe was brilliant as ever, thanks to Rob Henderson; I’ll leave that there, just add a few pics for you.

Blimey Charlie, time I shifted! More very soon. Toodle pip!

I’m beginning to feel christmassy

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It’s late on a Tuesday evening, not one of those Tuesdays, last Tuesday was meant to be, but it didn’t happen as Mr Rough was unwell, the next of those Tuesdays isn’t ’til the 30th, boo; but the Scat Rats are playing Stramash at the more reasonable time of 9.30pm on Tuesday 23rd, yay. The night before, Marah and Rough will be in Glasgow with the rest of Logan’s Close at the Hug and Pint for the band’s annual Christmas bash; I’ll be there too, of course. Just one downer (apart it being in Glasgow), sadly it’s the same night as Blue Christmas 2025, a wonderful evening of blues, r’n’b and rock’n’roll festive tunes performed by Jed Potts (curator of the event) and a bunch of his friends (honestly, the amount of talent in that one room, wow, only for LC will I miss it). It’s like a warm fuzzy hug of Christmas cheer (and it’s happening at La Belle Angele off the Cowgate, Monday 22nd).

Aw sweet, the night before again (so that’s Sunday 21st), the Louis Crosland Trio are on the midnight slot at Whistlebinkies, well, that’s what the poster says. Oh, but that would be a great three night run of great music, please Binkies, don’t screw it up! At least I know they’re definitely playing Stramash on the 18th, but not as a trio, no, there’s gonna be keyboards too! I’m looking forward to it, I’m intrigued. Up until then things are a tad quieter, no bad thing, I’m recovering from a bad cold and there’s a number of films I want to see. Oh, I may wander into Binkies on Saturday afternoon for Louis Crosland solo; I wonder if there’ll be any Bob Dylan covers. Instagram says the Moanin’ Bones are playing there this Sunday midnight, go on, I’ll believe them.

There’s four films that I want to catch before they disappear from the big screen, The Running Man is a definite, being Edgar Wright’s latest, well, I’ve loved everything else he’s done. It could be good, it could be awful, but I’m willing to give Fackham Hall a shot. The cast looks fun, but will it be funny or a tad cringey? Would I go see it if I didn’t have an Unlimited card? Probably not. Another that I’ll see just because I can is Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, I enjoyed the previous films, how will this one measure up? Annoyingly, Benoit Blanc’s latest investigation, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery is not on at Cineworld (I’m so not impressed), but it’s still a definite for me. There’s a second Five Nights at Freddy’s coming out on Friday, the first was okay, I thought about it but then I looked it up on Rotten Tomatoes, hmmm, don’t think I’ll bother. Fitting the four in will be interesting enough.

In other pre-christmas news, I’ve finally made jam from this year’s harvest of park brambles, my fridge freezer needed defrosting so it made sense. There’s also new batch of bramble wine just started fermenting! That made sense too. I’m a tad nervous about the jam but my previous attempts have always been well received, so hopefully this lot will be just as delicious. It’s the frozen plate test bit that never works for me, but afterwards the jam sets perfectly well anyway!?

I’m doing another Advent Calendar of music from the last year on Instagram, it’s fun going back over stuff, picking out what to include has been fine so far but I know it’s gonna get harder, too many to choose from, too few days! Haha, I just can’t help going in deep with my silly notions. They’re all still available to view in my highlights, including a clip of Carl Marah singing his new Christmas tune at the Auld Hundred last week! I’m looking forward to hearing it in all it’s full glory!

Anyhoo, it’s very late, I must away to my bed. I’ll leave you with a pic….

My box of jars is now somewhat depleted

Bad influences, good music

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I’m blaming bad influences for losing my bank card last Monday. Was I feeling rebellious after an evening of high spirits and rockabilly rock’n’roll? Could be, the band were after all The Best Bad Influence back in Stramash, always a blast. I was stood near the stage, enjoying the tunes when they struck the first notes of Johnny B Good, I think I may have yayyed out loud because a lady close by looked at me, I looked at her, and that was us, two crazy dancin’ fools until the band finished; both of us thanked the other profusely for dancing, but no, no, thank you, I never usually get to dance. There was even hugging going on, the happy joyous type, she was there with her other half but he’s not the dancing type, and he was clearly delighted to watch her dancing without having to oblige her himself. Such a shame that they were only here on holiday, I wouldn’t mind bumping into them again, so great to let loose on the floor.

Anyhoo, so Monday afternoon I was in Holyrood Park, I went up Moose Ridge, then across to the rocky top of Crow Hill. Now, officially the path down from the Nether Hill to Powderhouse Corner is still closed, officially, but recently I’ve noticed plenty of folk using it in the evenings, so as it was after five, I decided to check it out. Turns out that after the initial stepped area at the top (still with large bags of rocks to be used), the rest is pretty much done. The horrible, scary, slidy bit is now a delight, they’ve done a brilliant job on it, sweet! Annoyingly, that didn’t stop my mother’s voice sounding in my head that closed means not to use it (I had way too much parental guidance as a child), I reasoned back that all was fine, then not half an hour later the cashpoint at Tesco’s accepted my card then shut down, bugger. I know it’s daft, but it felt like retribution for being naughty! Sorry, mother. Apparently, a swallowed bank card is treated as lost, so I’ve had to cancel it and order a new one, thank heavens I have another account as well. I’m now wary what might happen to me if I use that path again before it reopens!

A heron engrossed in finding some lunch in St Margaret’s Loch, Holyrood Park

Tuesday night was a Scat Rats midnight set at Whistlebinkies, so I checked out what was on at the cinema ’til late. Oo, a film that Edgar Wright recommended on Instagram, Sinners, blues music and vampires (anyone else immediately reminded of From Dusk Til Dawn?!). A voice-over at the start of Sinners tells of musicians “with the gift of making music so true, it can conjure spirits from the past, but it also can pierce the veil between life and death,” and alas, it can attract evil that wants such power for itself. The setting is 1930s Clarksdale, Mississippi, Sammie Moore is a blues guitarist with this particular gift, Remmick is an Irish vampire who wants it for himself, Smoke and Stack are Sammie’s twin cousins who are setting up a juke joint, inadvertently providing the setting for the big showdown.

Like From Dusk Til Dawn, Sinners is a film in two halves, the first, a story of the twins returning to their home town, reconnecting with folk as they prepare a big opening night for their venture, there’s just a few hints to what lies ahead; then, there’s the expected (well, I was totally expecting something spectacular after that voice-over) awesome scene where Sammie’s music moves the assembled in euphoric, mystical ways, causing the vampire (now with two more, freshly turned) to come a-knocking, aaand that’s the second half underway, nuff said. Oh, and the coda after the first credits very neatly ties everything up in a blue bow (I knew to watch out for it thanks to Mr Wright’s Instagram).

God, there’s a lot to enjoy in this film, the performances, the music, the cinematography; I like how it starts on one morning, then goes back to twenty-four hours previous and shows how Sammie got into the state he’s in. I also like the premise that some musicians, some music can be so sublime, transcendental – you know where I’m going with this, if you’ve read much of my blog. Maybe I should start carrying a bottle of garlic water and a pointy stick when I go see certain musicians?!

It’s late. Time for bed. Sweet dreams!

Mobsters, movies and music

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Did you watch Boardwalk Empire when it was on the telly? I didn’t, hey, I’m just fifteen years late. One of the many charity shops on South Clerk Street had the first two seasons on dvd for £2 each, hell yes! Steve Buscemi was the man! The first thing I saw him in was the film Miller’s Crossing, another mobster tale, back in 1990 (well worth seeking out if it’s still available). From then on he was forever popping up in my film choices through the ’90s, we’d give a little cheer whenever he appeared, haha.

The whole cast of Boardwalk Empire are excellent (Stephen Graham pops up as Al Capone!). Oo, the whole thing, the attention to detail, mind it is a Martin Scorcese project, so yeah. Honestly, if you even vaguely enjoy gangster stories then check it out; I’ll be keeping an eye out for more of the series. I’ve also been watching the second season of My Name is Earl, I noticed the boxset at a friend’s in a pile bound for a charity shop, it will get there, just a bit later.

Earl Hickey, such a wonderful anti-hero, he’s fallible and flawed, not the brightest spark, he can be downright selfish and mean, but he tries so hard to do good and there is a kind, generous heart in there, and he loves his brother. Earl’s trying to level up his karma by doing right by everyone he’s wronged in his past; I loved this show at the time and yeah, I still love it now (especially his ex-wife Joy, pure trailer trash). And on anti-heroes, I picked up Wreck-it Ralph in a charity shop today, such a great movie, must get me some popcorn!

Meanwhile on the big screen, I went to see Death of a Unicorn last Thursday, just the title had me. A comedy horror with unicorns, Paul Rudd and the guy who played Victor Zsasz in Gotham in the cast? Yes, please (Victor Zsasz was awesome). Hmmm, I did kinda enjoy it, the unicorns were great, but the dialogue and acting felt a tad hammy and lame in parts, such a shame considering all the acting talent involved. The idea was great but the execution was lacking, this should have been so much better; maybe a European re-make could take it there?!

Thursday night this week I saw Novocaine, I’m not really sure what enticed me to go, the film poster looked really naff to me, but hey, I have my Unlimited pass. Wow! To paraphrase Bo Diddley, you can’t judge a film by looking at the poster. Novocaine is funny, well-crafted and extremely violent, I won’t lie, I was flinching and squirming a fair bit, and occasionally just shut my eyes. Hey, the main guy doesn’t feel pain, a clear indication that the violence will be ramped up!

As I just mentioned, our guy Nathan Caine is a mild-mannered assistant manager with a disorder which prevents him from feeling pain and discomfort (including having a full bladder, he has an alarm go off on his phone to remind him to go to the bathroom every three hours). He lives life very carefully and quietly, by day in the credit union office, then straight home to game; he’s also well-versed in medical first aid in case of injury. Enter a new girl at work who persuades him out to lunch and to even try a bit of her cherry pie (Nathan hasn’t eaten solid food in years for fear he might bite his tongue without realising). Our boy feels so alive! They go on a date, have sex, he’s on top of the world! The very next day the credit union gets robbed and she gets kidnapped by the gang….

…. So, a man who doesn’t feel pain, who has just had the best 24 hours in his life, has his new love snatched away by ruthless killers (they kill a lot of cops while making their escape). You just know how this is going to go!! Oh, and one of the gang has left his place booby-trapped to the max (not really sure why, but it sets up a very painful, gory scene). This is a wonderfully madcap violent film, I fully intend to see it again, without shutting my eyes!

The past two Thursdays have also seen me at Whistlebinkies for the midnight band, the same both weeks, the Louis Crosland Trio, he’s rather good, you know. Louis is another fine blues guitarist on the Edinburgh music scene. Besides his own band, Louis has also been playing with the Moanin’ Bones recently; a few of his own compositions can be found on Spotify. The crowd in Binkies last night were loving all the Jimi Hendrix covers, I also recall some Dylan, Stones, and Zeppelin (or maybe that was last week?) As yet I find his vocals a bit lacking at times, but hey, the voice will come with experience and a few more years knocking about; definitely worth seeing if you like your blues with a tinge of rock.

It’s now very late and I notice I’ve prattled on quite enough. I shall leave the other musical notes for next time, hopefully tomorrow?! ‘Til then, a pic of Louis Crosland doing his thang in Binkies. G’night!

Moose movie musings

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I notice that I haven’t mentioned seeing any films since Conclave in December, hmmm, maybe they weren’t worth mentioning? Certainly, the latest Bridget Jones film isn’t; a friend wanted to see it, how bad could it be, I wondered. Pretty bad, oh there are good moments, moments. I also saw Anora back in January, I knew nothing about it, just went on a whim, no sweat with an unlimited card.

Anora, for the first twenty minutes or so, I sat there feeling like I should be wearing a dirty old mac, ye gods, I knew it was an 18 but that was a lot of flesh (and to think I felt a bit seedy at parts of The Substance), after taking an inordinate time to set the scene and main characters, the action began. I did quite enjoy it, even as I found it a tad flawed, but yeah, it really didn’t help that I kept seeing Andy Samberg at his most slappable every time Ivan (rich Russian man-child) was on screen. And how could a streetwise girl like Ani not see what a shallow, selfish brat he was? Okay, maybe not at the start, but certainly by the time he ran off; that really irked me, it didn’t ring right; that aside, it was quite amusing, I would probably watch it again on the telly.

A few nights ago I went to see Mickey17, a film written back in 2021 and shot soon after; that it’s been released now, at this present time is wickedly funny! If you thought Mark Ruffalo was bit ott in Poor Things his character in this, hahaha. Two things though, one, at times I thought Ruffalo piled on the grotesque too heavily, maybe some subtle nuance might have been nice; two, a ridiculous villain or three (I include the wife and his assistant here) may seem comically hideous, but the power they yield is scary, know what I mean? (for those reading this sometime in the future, bear in mind I’m writing this in March 2025). Yes, Mickey17 is a wee bit clunky but worth seeing, especially on the big screen, Robert Pattinson is amazing; it’s a sci-fi action comedy on the surface with a dark, provocative and satirical undertow.

Back a few weeks for my favourite film so far this year, A Real Pain, so good I saw it three times. Okay, so two of those times I missed the beginning, part of the reason I went back again, and indeed seeing the very start did give an extra context that I’d missed, Jesse Eisenberg really makes every minute count in this movie. All the nominations and awards Eisenbreg’s won for Best Screenplay are well deserved, as are Kieran Culkin’s Best Supporting Actor awards for playing Benji, that is one complex guy.

Interestingly, Eisenberg wrote the screenplay thinking he would play Benji, thank god Emma Stone persuaded him not to! For one, he’s quite obviously more like the David character in himself, and, well, I really wonder that his Benji would just have been annoying and irritating (is that what Stone reckoned?) Then, when his sister suggested Culkin for Benji, Eisenberg took him on without meeting him, let alone auditioning him; he was vaguely “aware” of Culkin, enough to realise that Culkin had the right essence for the role (like, absolutely!). David and Benji are cousins on a trip to Poland to see to the homeland of their grandmother (recently deceased). Two guys who were really close when they were kids, now reconnecting, it’s awkward at times, caring, messy, bittersweet, exasperating. I’ve had a Benji in my life, lovely, lovely person but god, half the time I didn’t know whether to strangle or hug them!!

Whilst there is plenty of humour in A Real Pain, it does have serious and thought-provoking times, as well as a backdrop of historical trauma; Eisenberg’s excellent writing keeps the film buoyed up but also sombre and respectful. Most of the music through the film is Chopin (chosen as that’s what Eisenberg was listening to as he was worked on the screenplay), wow, it fits beautifully and sets the tone of the film so well; and then the silence during the visit to Majdanek concentration camp was stark, quite emotional. It could be some time before I see another film that will beat this as my film of the year.

Well, it’s late and my bed is hollering at me. Coming! G’night, sweet dreams.

Oh come all ye faithful?

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Last night I went to see Conclave, wow. It’s a big movie, like old-style Hollywood, there’s big names, great supports, stunning cinematography (I likened it to Gladiator II, that bigness). One little annoyance was clearly knowing who would become the next pope (well, it was obvious to me), but the etiquette, the politics and the mind games, right up to the very end, were utterly delicious. Oh, and I love me some Tucci!

What really amused me was that I’ve just finished watching an old BBC series The Barchester Chronicles from 1982, that too is a fine portrayal of similar themes within the clergy, but way back in the nineteenth century (it was an adaptation of two books in a series by Anthony Trollope). The cast are a plethora of fine British actors, many recognisable faces; Clive Swift as the new hen-pecked bishop and Geraldine McEwan as his acerbic wife, Nigel Hawthorne is magnificent as the pompous, ill-tempered archdeacon, and how lovely to see Barbara Flynn (always feisty glint in her eye, that one).

Top honours must go to Donald Pleasance as the unassuming, gentle warden and Alan Rickman in an early role that, well, typecast him?! Haha, no, but watching it now, one can thoroughly enjoy watching a young Rickman being supercilious, odious, conniving, in a part that should be up there with his best. Whilst Rickman was playing the type of role we’ve come to know him for, Donald Pleasance was a wonderful revelation to me, so very different from some of the old film roles that immediately spring to mind. It’s a beautiful understated performance that has you rooting for him against all the mean, self-serving, just plain horrible characters around him.

…. Which takes me back to Conclave played with such perfect nuances as to have us guessing just who are the humble servants of their god and who are self-serving in their desire to become pope. As truths are revealed, the hypocrisy is in turn, damning, sadly human, and to some of us, darkly humorous; to borrow a quote from The Barchester Chronicles from a conversation between the archdeacon and the deacon about their problem, the warden, “He has persistent bouts of Christianity”, likewise, darkly funny and revealing.

This Christmas you could worse than go out and see Conclave on the big screen, then snuggle up at home and watch a fine old BBC drama, it’s just seven episodes so not too big a chunk of time and it is rotten weather outside.

Toodle pip!

Quite why Donald Pleasance isn’t on the cover picture is beyond me!

There’s been a few films out

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Casting an eye back on the last few posts, I mentioned seeing Joker again at the end of September as a recap before seeing the sequel, it wasn’t until almost a month later that I got to see Joker: Folie à Deux. Blimey, Arthur Fleck, Lee Quinzel, the film itself, all had serious personality disorders; the film flips around between drama and weird musical numbers – because of Lady Gaga’s inclusion? Okay, so I should mention that I really don’t care for Lady Gaga, I don’t get her, yeah, so she is a very talented musician but she doesn’t move me at all (apart from a shrug and shake of my head). I get that her character was fixated on Joker and bringing him out of Arthur, I get that both of them have like a musical narrative in their heads, on finding each other their drums are beating the same rhythms (isn’t that what we all want, just without the psychotic edges?).

I did enjoy Joker: Folie à Deux, more than I thought I would, just a little less Gaga would have been better, and if Arthur had been more in his own right, rather than a manipulation of Lee. Will there be a third film? How would it fare?

I caught Venom: The Last Dance a couple of weeks ago, ooch, fun but I much prefer the first two films. There was plenty of action but I thought the storyline and detail were a tad weak, not enough padding. Another third instalment, Paddington In Peru was very entertaining, it did have lame moments, but over all it was wonderful. Paddington In Peru has so many nods and winks in it; it took me a while to realise the familiar nun in the background was from Nonnatus House (Call the Midwife). Olivia Colman released her inner Julie Andrews for the big musical number Let’s Prepare for Paddington, what a hoot!

Hugh Grant has a very brief cameo at the end of PiP, still in jail as the baddie in Paddington 2. He does baddies so well, you should check out Heretic where he turns his bumbling, amiable gent act into something quite creepy and devious. Our Heretic does have some interesting things to say on religion and faith, he just couldn’t leave it as a chat over tea and biscuits. Mind, see next time any Jehovah’s Witnesses knock on my door…!

Two more then bedtime, Juror #2 snuck up on me, I knew nothing about it so clicked to see the details, oo, Nicholas Hoult and Toni Collette, yes please. Oh, blimey Charlie, great film, hard watch, a good man with a serious dilemma, totally gripping; it reminded me of the 2013 film Locke, another intense dilemma. Lastly, Gladiator II is big, like, really big with an old-style Hollywood epic quality. Like a lot of the old Hollywood epics great character actors swell the production but the female parts seem rather formulaic, obvious, a tad dull. For me, Denzel Washington was the stand out, oh, and the psychotic twin emperors, a nice touch.

I’ll leave you with a few pics taken last Saturday morning – we had snow (it was all gone by Sunday morning, except for a few snowmen remains). Goodnight!

A tourist stood still too long?!
Psychotic twin snowmen?!
It was a very cold day

Best laid plans of mice and moose

bruceonthefringe 2024, Films, Good listens, Live bands in Edinburgh, Live music venues, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

After my last post a week ago, I fully intended to knuckle down and write every other day about my European wanderings, and make a serious start on this year’s Fringe programme. Unfortunately the gods had other ideas and laid the moose matriarch low, very low, so everything went out the window. It’s been a busy, taut time; thank god for the NHS, they’ve been brilliant. I’m in Edinburgh for just a couple of days to sort some things out, a wee chill out, then back down to Yorkshireland tomorrow.

I arrived yesterday at noon, so was able to trot along to the Farmers Market to stock up on some good quality frozen meats to take back down (for some good, quality, hearty frozen dishes for mother’s freezer). Co Co Co. were at the Market with another new chocolate, Strawberries & Cream, well, I had to, and a packet of Crème Brûlée (mother’s favourites).

Later in the afternoon the R&R really began when I popped in Whistlebinkies to catch Jed Potts and Nicole Smit doing their thing, just what the doctor ordered! Washed down with some Olicana, Stewart’s latest brew. I’ve since checked out their tasting notes, Stewart’s say mango, grapefruit and passionfruit; I say peapod. Honestly, the first sniff was like opening a bag of peapods, the taste did nothing to change that thought. Oh, I did like it in some weird way, but I couldn’t drink a lot of it.

There’s a film in cinemas at the moment with Austin Butler, Jodie Comer and Tom Hardy, oh my heartses. The Bikeriders is one hell of a movie with a soundtrack to match (currently playing on my Spotify). The writer/director Jeff Nichols was inspired by a photo book by one Danny Lyon who took photographs and tape recordings of a chapter of outlaw motorcyclists between 1963 and 1967. Apparently the recordings Lyon made of Kathy, played by Comer in the film, are still around to listen to, gonna have to check them out. All three of the leads are mesmerising to watch, and another accent nailed by Comer! Hopefully I’ll get to see it again before it disappears from the big screen.

Time for my bed, still got a lot to do tomorrow before I hit the road south. Still no sign of a drought in Yorkshireland this summer….

G’night!