In the gridlock, with black coffee, near the station.

December 29, 2011

Previous readers will know that I have already written a bit about the state of public transport in Melbourne and my personal feelings about it. Melbourne sits in an unusual midground in regards to its public transport. On one hand its range of services far eclipses most other Australian cities and Trams are perhaps the best way to move around the inner city. Somehow though we compare terribly to European and Asian standards and yet put up with it as we largely have little alternative.

It does surprise me then when I occasionally read intelligent, logical and necessary solutions come up.  Anyone who has driven around the Murumbeena and South Oakleigh areas during peak time will fully understand the ridiculousness of the traffic situation there. The Dandenong train line so effectively cuts the suburbs in half that waits of over a half hour to move a kilometer are not unusual. In suburban Melbourne however this is unacceptable.

The fact that we continue to even use level crossings is astounding given the amazing amount of time, petrol and other resources are spent as drivers sit at traffic lights waiting for the train, or trains, to pass. There is little doubt that Melbourne’s train system needs improvement constantly to meet demand and service expectations however the renovation of all our stations to either above or below ground makes so much sense as a long term improvement that its no wonder the government has not done it yet.

Money is always the most talked about issue in regards to projects such as these with service disruptions coming in a close second.  I do understand the problems, there is limited budget allocated to such things and the closing of a station and roads to raise or lower the track is an immense disruption to everyone’s lives around the area. However at some point you just have to bite the the bullet for the short term in order to reap the long term benefits.  I doubt there is a person around who would disagree that all stations should be free of level crossings so why don’t we just do it and be done with it.

1 Comment | Articles | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

The Wednesday Review – Drive (2011)

December 28, 2011

Drive – 2011

Ryan Gosling as Driver

Carey Mulligan as Irene

Bryan Cranston as Shannon

Albert Brooks as Bernie Rose

Oscar Isaac as Standard Gabriel

Ron Perlman as Nino

 

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

 

Of the movies I have seen in 2011 Drive was perhaps the most impressively anti mainstream that I have enjoyed. What this really means is that the people expecting a fast paced Hollywood action movie were left completely bewildered and perhaps a little disappointed. This only makes Drive all the better.

 

The story of Drive can be summed up very simply, a stunt driver who moonlights as a contracted getaway driver falls in love with his neighbour and then must use his skills to protect her and her son from criminals her jailbird husband is involved with. On the surface it is a story told a thousand times before in any number of moderate to good movies. What sets Drive apart is the serious, slow and deliberate delivery every scene is constructed with. This movie is in no way fast passed and every line and action is focused and dominates the screen.

 

Our unnamed main character, played by Ryan Gosling in a white satin jacket that will soon become an ironically cool real life fashion statement, comes across as strangely liable despite his slow nature permeated with acts of sudden action and violence. Ryan Gosling absolutely sells this role and brings a sense of humanity to what is essentially a stereotypical character. The supporting characters fill out the rest of the movie with some great performances, particularly from Bryan Cranston and Ron Perlman

 

The plot is neither conventional nor unconventional. It certainly goes through what might be considered “the motions” but every part is delivered with sense and reason, it flows naturally and comes to a natural conclusion. This is not a forced movie in any fashion. The film can be suddenly and amazingly brutal when it needs to be which when combined with the steady increase in tension over the film can seriously startle the audience. This is not a movie for those who are squeamish about realistic looking violence.

 

I cannot go without mentioning the style this movie absolutely drips with. Although set very much in the present the essence of the 80′s is unmistakable. The synth soundtrack, the aforementioned jacket and even down to the stylised pink title really brings home the roots of the movie’s themes.

 

Would I recommend Drive? I would have to say a definite yes.. but. That but would be if you can enjoy deliberately slow movies with large gaps between action. If you can enjoy more arty movies then I would defenitly recommend this movie.

 

Four satin jackets out of five.

2 Comments | Movie Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

Something to do in the post feasting euphoria

December 24, 2011

Not much to say today but more a recommendation for when you are all lazily reclining with a belly full of turkey, ham and pavlova that you should probably check out RedLetterMedia’s critical review of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on their webzone.

You remember Indy4 right? The one with the stupid monkeys? Turns out there’s actually more and better reasons why you may have inherently disliked it.

Anyway, check it out everyone have a great Christmas, Festivus or other holiday of your choose. Or none at all, that’s the beauty of religious freedom!

Whichever you do, have fun!

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

The Wednesday review – Casablanca

December 21, 2011

Casablanca (1942)

Starring:

Humphrey Bogart … Rick Blaine
Ingrid Bergman … Ilsa Lund
Paul Henreid … Victor Laszlo
Claude Rains … Captain Louis Renault
Conrad Veidt … Major Heinrich Strasser

Directed by Michael Curtiz

 

In retrospect I am ashamed as a fan of cinema to have put off watching Casablanca until just recently. It had always been one of those films that I would get around to watching, one day when I had bothered myself into it. I could say that It may be in part to my general distaste of golden age Hollywood films. I would never badmouth the classics should people ask me about them however the sheer abundance of arguably mass produced and poor quality films from the period fills the apple cart. Then again, little has changed.

 

The crux of this film plays out like so, Casablanca in unoccupied French Morocco serves as a halfway point for many people attempting to leave for the Americas and escape the Nazi’s who by this point own Europe and the majority of Northern Africa. Two high ranking Nazi couriers are hijacked and killed by underground resistance members for the two signed and dotted Visas that would allow anyone out of the country no questions asked.

Enter Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) the local nightclub and gambling establishment owner who hides the tickets when their holder is targeted and captured by the local police. He dodges the investigation of the local corrupt police prefect Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains) until who walks into his gin joint but his old flame from Paris Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman) and her husband Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid). Now Rick must decide what to do, try and be with the love of his life or do the unthinkable. All while dodging Nazis.

 

Casablanca has a very tightly blended scope of drama, suspense, action and a touch of film noir’ style mystery about it. It begins action packed with the rounding up of the usual suspects and then quickly moves into Rick’s where the cool and calm Rick quickly makes himself known. Bogart is essentially perfect in this role and you cannot help but like Rick despite his gruff exterior. Similar words can be said about all the other supporting characters as well. Ingrid Bergman is quite simply a beautiful woman and plays Isla vulnerable yet determined and strong. She has an impossible decision to make, her husband or the man she fell in love with in Paris.

 

Immediately the problem arises for the audience who are naturally going to side with Rick in this matter however Paul Henreid plays Victor Laszlo as a man so inherently deserving of praise and commendation that you cannot immediately favour Rick in the matter. A lesser man would automatically lose out to Bogart but Henreid manages to size up to the giant of the screen and we love him for it. I also have to mention Claude Rains as Captain Renault who effectively plays as Rick’s foil for the film. He gets some fantastically funny lines and every moment on the screen simply adds to it.

Now for the reason why this film is perhaps considered the greatest of all time. The ending is an amazing scene of eternally quotable lines and above all you see Rick do the one thing that would break his heart completely but he does it because its damn well the right thing to do. The strength in the truly correct decision despite the sacrifices needed is a classic narrative device and raises Casablanca above many of its contemporary moves. Had Rick simply taken the way his heart earned for then the movie would simply have been another love story with a happy ending. Not this time however.

 

I would very much recommend Casablanca to anyone from teens upward. In fact I would specifically recommended Casablanca to anyone who is that the cusp of adulthood as I believe they will enjoy it even if they have never liked old movies before. It is not a long film, only 100 minutes long, and its tight pacing and editing means it never overstays its welcome. It has enough twists and turns and great acting to keep anyone occupied and wondering what was going to happen next.

 

Casablanca gets five Fedora hats out of five

Leave a Comment » | Movie Reviews | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

In soviet (and Australian) banking, home owns you!

December 19, 2011

I am at that particular age where the demands of adulthood have set in and have begun to weigh upon my plans for the future yet I am not mature enough to realise I am barely out of childhood and there are still plenty of years left before I could even consider myself old.

 

It is largely the idea of marriage, settling down in your own home and starting a family that I am referring to and something I see a lot of friends and family doing. I should probably state first of all that I don’t intend to belittle anyone for their choices and life decisions however I feel the need to comment on the idea as a whole and the expectations of it upon people rather then comment of the actions of the individual.

 

There is an issue in this country that we should all strive for the “Australian dream of a house on a quarter acre block with two cars in the driveway” and just how incredibly unavailable such a thing is to most people. Even to those who do not desire such a thing it is still a thing that people often expect of them, that their ultimate goal should be home ownership as “rent money is dead money”. What amazes me is the continual ignorance of the fact that “mortgage money is also dead money”. The fact is that on a $400,000 loan, which isn’t even near enough for a home within a forty five minute range of the city, will incur an additional $400,000 in loan repayments over the lifetime of the mortgage. This of course doesn’t even include council rates and maintenance costs that quickly add onto the monetary requirements of home ownership.

 

It would take twenty years of renting a $400 a week property to reach the same level of the mortgage payments alone.

 

I will admit, you will not have house at the end of that time however the $400,000 that you didn’t give to the previous owners can be invested in any number of other ventures, many of which could be potentially more profitable then the safe and secure idea of property. It is easy to forget that you are not making a monetary investment in your home, the bank is intact making one in you through the loan and you cannot both be winners. I will say that there is a distinction between owning a home and owning a house as a real investment as one receives income through rent, the other does not.

 

For the record I do not disagree with home ownership in the slightest. I too one day wish to own a home in a location I will enjoy living in. But am I falling over myself in an effort to secure a loan and begin now before it could potentially be too late? No, I am not.

This is not meant as a warning against wanting to own your very own place. Just consider the alternative of living a bit more freely, not stressing about getting it all started so damn early and ultimately not caring what others thing or expect of you.

 

Remember, live free or don’t.

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

The Wednesday Review: Batman (1989)

December 14, 2011

Batman: 1989

Starring:Michael Keaton in the title role, as well as Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Robert Wuhl and Jack Palance

Directed by Tim Burton

 

I picked up Tim Burton’s Batman the other day on bluray as it being a movie I loved as a kid and hadn’t seen in years it was more then worth the ten bucks JB were demanding.

For its time Batman was a very different kind of superhero movie as this was long before the superhero explosion of the last decade. When you compare it to the last Batman outing, which was the Adam West version, it was a pretty stark contrast and newer darker form of the character. It is no real surprise of course considering Tim Burton’s other films deal with dark and gloomy atmosphere but remember that this is still early in his career and before his much deserved reputation.

 

Well onto the actual movie itself.

It is interesting comparing this film to more modern superhero films as this one is not an origin film. Yes it sets up Batman as a new figure in Gotham but we are not introduced to pre Batman Bruce Wayne at all .If anything he feels like more of an established character and we are just getting wind of his publicity. I very much doubt such a story telling method would be done today but it worked well to throw you into the movie straight away.

The first thing that people say about this film when talking about is that it feels dated. In retrospect this is true to a point if you’re really only thinking about the insane soundtrack provided by Prince in all his eighties intensity. In fact the movie is so incredibly rooted in 1930′s fashion and design that if anything it feels more like a period piece. I think the only man in film who doesn’t wear a Fedora hat is Bruce Wayne himself. I do believe it works rather well and has a good contrast between the detective noir roots of Batman and the modern day super detective he evolved into. The art deco inspired Gotham still looks fantastic to this day. It really helps to differentiate this city and make it seem truly unique rather then another American city renamed..

 

But you didn’t really watch this movie for Batman did you? Well of course you did but the other half of the card is of course Jack Nicholson as the Joker. Nicholson most certainly stole the show in every scene he was in and pretty much the movie away from everyone else. This is not to say that Michael Keaton who is in himself a very good character actor did a bad job. He in fact did a very good job but its just difficult to hold a fiddle to Jack Nicholson given permission go crazy.

The comparisons between Heath Ledgers and Nicholson’s Joker have been the subject of far too many internet debates so I wont go into it too much. Suffice to say that they are very much different characters and although both very nasty characters it can be summed up in Nicholson’s was a stylish charismatic nut ball while Ledger’s was a sociopath and basically insane.

There is an incredible amount of detail put into this film. My favourite new realisation is in the news cast scene right after the first female caster dies from the Joker’s products her replacement and the male caster are both obviously dirty and have no make-up on from the poisoning fears. A very nice little addition that escaped me for a dozen viewings as a child.

As I bought in on Bluray I should probably comment on the quality. It ranged from adequate to good across different scenes. Certain effects shots become more obvious with the increase in quality but this is simply something that is inevitable with having such good quality image up so close.

Overall Batman still ranks up as a very good movie and not too terribly aged by time. I would recommend another watch if you loved this when you were younger and really to anyone who gets a kick from superhero movies.

 

Rating: Three and half Bat bombs out of five.

Leave a Comment » | Movie Reviews | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

Railed hard by the taxi industry

December 12, 2011

It is amazing that in a city of 4 million people that our public transport effectively shuts down at midnight. Even on weekends where you would expect adequate departure from the city would be important the problem persists. Compared to the rest of the world where trains not only run on time but every 5 minutes around the clock it becomes a laughable fiasco.

I have always thought that the primary reason behind this is to basically force people into using taxi’s which obviously provide a great deal more tax income then the trains and trams do. Funnily enough I read today in the Age that our former premiere Mr Kennett is now stating that we should be running a 24 hour service, at least on weekends. I wouldn’t say its necessarily convenient to state this when you are no longer a beneficiary to said tax dollars but I will give him the benefit of the doubt as it is a really good idea.

I personally would like them to go another five steps further, buy back the system and open it up for free use anytime anywhere. Considering the amount of subsidy is over $350million per year anyway I for one would pay more tax and encourage more people to utilize the system. I myself don’t use public transport but freeing up the roads cannot be seen as a bad thing.

I will admit though that this is unlikely to happen ever so the most to hope for is for Melbourne transport to be dragged kicking and screaming into the remainder of the world’s expectations.

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

Paid grades

December 9, 2011

I am a teacher, a union supporter and an idealist. As you might imagine I am not a Liberal supporter and consider some of their decisions to be of questionable nature. You may be surprised that I saw them enter Victorian government with a great deal of enthusiasm and hope. Ted Baillieu promised to fix a great deal of what Labor stuffed up and on top of that promised Victorian teachers to be the highest paid in the country.

Well we all saw how that turned out.

I was browsing through the Herald Sun’s delightful website today when I came across this little article. How is it that Western Australia is the most progressive state in the recognition of the teaching profession when Victoria, and particularly Melbourne, claim to be the most liveable place in the world? Well all I can say is, good on you WA.

Teaching is a rapidly aging profession with the average age close to fifty. In fact there are more people leaving the profession then entering it and this can be pinned to two separate points. Firstly the lack of pay, particularly in comparison to the private sector when it comes to the maths and sciences. Secondly the overtime and bureaucracy that each teacher is required to go through If they even care a little about their job. Believe me, the only reason you go into teaching is because you damn well care about teaching.

Obviously there is no way that society would ever allow teachers even more time off when they lazily get 11 weeks off a year, hopefully to make up for the ten to fifteen unpaid hours of overtime a week that’s required, so the next best way is to pay them adequately for their time and effort involved.

Obviously no one reading this, unless you work for the state government of course, will be able to influence any salary. All that’s really asked is that people consider the massive workload given to teachers and the demands put on them to educate the next generation and turn them into productive, good and reasonable people. It is not an easy job and all they ask for is to be recognised for it.

Direct deposit would be preferable of course.

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

This was in no way a paid advertisement. (although I wish it were)

December 8, 2011

If you haven’t already done so, checking out RedLetterMedia’s 70 minute Phantom Menace review and its “sequels” should probably be the next most important thing you can do in life… but only if you enjoy Star Wars.

Putting aside science fiction fandom for a second the guys at aforementioned RedLetterMedia also create a movie review show called Half in the Bag which in between a continuing story line of fleecing an old man for all his worth a pair of VCR repairmen discuss recent popular movies in great depth and detail.

Now I come to my point where I also endorse watching the review of Adam Sandler’s new comic travesty Jack and Jill, where I too have also had my eyes opened to the reality of movies being made only to deepen the pockets of those who made it and never having the intention of providing worthwhile entertainment. Looking back on Adam Sandler’s movies over the last half decade its not hard to see a trend of high budgeted movies that could have been made for pocket change by any competent movie studio.

Let us compare two films from last year. Firstly we have Grown Ups, a film set almost entirely in a waterpark and costing almost $80 million to make. Can any of you see where that money went? Certainly not on any special effects or costumes.  Next up we have True Grit(2010), a lavish period film with amazing costuming, sets and location shoots costing a comparitivly paltry sum of $38 million.

Now I wouldn’t say that the Coen brothers are better film makers then the folks at Happy Madison productions but.. the Coen brothers are actual and better film makers.  This is all only my opinion of course!

This might have been already apparent to many of you. For years you may have been avoiding movies like this, knowing full well that it would only benefit those greedy fatcats. I however see it as a bit of an awakening to just how low in quality the products people are willing to push.

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

Charity you can bank on

December 6, 2011

Some of you whom I know in real life may have heard me go on about my disdain for Paypal and its rather shady exercises.

I had a Paypal account go completely unused for several years before its deletion largely because of  the Something Awful Katrina debacle where Paypal withheld and then refused to release over $25,000 worth of charitable donations due to… their own discretion.

Well it looks like they’ve done it again.

You may not realize that Paypal operates as a bank but is not considered a bank by most countries and therefore largely sets its own rules in regards to how they handle your money. Offhand the only country I know of that sees it  as a bank and regulates it as such is Germany and funnily enough the reputation of unfair money hoarders doesn’t reside there in any greater strength then any normal bank deserves.

Boycott Paypal? Well it doesn’t sound like a bad idea to me and funnily enough you may end up helping some children out in a strangely round-about way.

Leave a Comment » | Articles | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by Jesse R

« Previous Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 249 other followers