The 2008 Raymo awards

As predicted last December it was a patchy year at the movies but I still saw 33 films throughout the year, starting with the traditional light film P.S. I Love you and ending with Twilight. The difference between this and previous years is that I saw more crap movies or disappointing movies than ever before.
I don't know whether I chose wrongly or whether Hollywood's cheapening continued at a faster rate than usual - probably a bit of both. So here I present my top five films of 2008.

1. Lars And The Real Girl
A revelation. A film that dares to tackle a subject that could have been cheapened - man's longing for human contact. Ryan Gosling is outstanding as Lars, an average guy whose upbringing left him closed off emotionally and he turns to an internet ordered mannequin to find love. Yeah it sounds cheap but it is funny and touching and sad and utterly brilliant.
2. The Dark Knight
It's hard not to get caught up in the hype after Heath Ledger's death but this Batman sequel was his movie and he nailed it. I almost wish the film he was making when he passed doesn't come out because this is his supreme moment. He's taken an iconic character in the Joker and made Jack Nicholson look like a rank amateur. The best superhero movie made to date.
3. Horton Hears A Who
Jim Carrey's second attempt at a Dr Seuss classic is just that, an absolute classic. After a reasonable stab at The Grinch a few years back we head back to animation and Carrey steals the show, as he usually does, as the kind hearted elephant Horton who does his all to protect the world of the Who's which is located on a rogue speck of dust. Warm, very funny and with a message everyone can relate to. Loved it.
4. Gone Baby Gone
Casey Affleck stepped out of the shadow of his brother Ben (who directed the film very well) and produced one of the acting performances of the year, in one of the best films of the year and one where you didn't see the ending coming. Affleck plays a PI hired to find a little girl who has been abducted and he finds himself drawn into a web of lies, betrayal and mystery. A must see.
5. The Savages
If you like a film with flawless acting and a great story go no further. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney play siblings forced together to deal with their father who suffers from dementia. Both lead very different lives and learn valuable lessons from their estranged dad who actually sees much more than he is able to let on. Both actors are among my favourites and this is a tour de force for both. Not a flashy film but a worthy top fiver.

Honourable mentions: Prince Caspian (a worthy sequel), Twilight (but the book is heaps better), Never Back Down, Tropic Thunder (a classy comedy).
Surprise of the year: Newcastle. This Aussie surfie movie actually has a great coming of age story that you wouldn't have known existed from the trailer.
Flop of the year: Quantum Of Solace. A poor, poor cousin to Casino Royale which was actually able to hold your interest for two hours. This one couldn't make it past 90 minutes.

I had two films rated on 3 out of 10, the lowest I have ever given a film - they were The Happening (proving that the Sixth Sense was a fluke) and Harold And Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay (proving yet again sequels aren't always needed).

With 2009 kicking off with a Jim Carrey comedy and a Harry Potter film due along with the Twilight sequel New Moon hopefully we are in for a better 12 months.

Duh moment

Today would have been nothing particularly special had it not been for my stupidest act of 2008.
My sister is in town and I gave her my keys so she could get in and out of the house etc and took my spare car key with me.
As usual when I arrived at work I put a steering wheel lock on and went off for the day. When I arrived back at my car, and stepped in, I realised I didn't have the key to the wheel lock. D'Oh!
I called the road service and they told me they weren't allowed to break it in case the air bag went off as they are liable if it does. So I had to convince my sister to drive into the city with my keys so I could retrieve my car.
This wouldn't be a problem if she knew her way around Sydney. I had to direct most of the way and she still got lost twice.
Long story short she eventually made it and I got my car home, feeling a shade silly. Not sure if I'm repeating the dose tomorrow but I have found my spare wheel lock key and have attached it to my car key.
I did try to force the wheel lock off but it just kept causing the horn to go off time after time and I thought it was a bit suspicious if that kept happening. So there we have it, my clanger of 2008 with only two days remaining.

Christmas recap

It's been a few days and I largely stayed away from email and other computer technology for them. Now to get up to speed.
On Wednesday after a rather short day of work and several hours of doing not much I flew home for Christmas, the first time I'd been there for eight years as I've normally had to work Boxing Day which rules out any visits.
I had some trepidation about the flight and to some the reason would be obvious. I wasn't nervous about flying as such as I have done that a number of times before including once to the USA. Anyway the flight went without any hitches and was only a 40 minute trip in the air anyway.
The whole unwrapping presents ordeal takes on a different meaning when there is a child involved and with an eager seven-year-old distributing presents at record pace it was quite a blur. For the record I received Mad About You season 2 and It's A Wonderful Life on DVD, the book Eclipse (from the Twilight series), a bathrobe, a business shirt and some casual clothes.
We had Christmas lunch at my aunt's place as is the norm and after eating settled in for some serious Singstar sessions including the classics How To Save A Life by The Fray and Alone by Heart duly butchered by myself.
The other couple of days away were your standard and were taken up a lot by watching the horse racing, cricket and my nephew tormenting the cats.
The drive back to Sydney was uneventful except for the consistent and not as annoying as I thought it would be inquiries of essentially `are we there yet' from the back seat. The young guy is staying in town for a couple of weeks with his dad before going back home.
So there's an abridged version of the last few days. A good Christmas, a milestone achieved and a reasonably relaxing time. Hope yours was good too.

Happy Festivus

Just a quick one to everyone out there to say a big happy Festivus to all.
Instead of airing my grievances I'll just say that I haven't helped myself out as much as I should and that I will try harder in 2009.
Merry Christmas to all, I'll be off line for a few days.

Chuck

TV networks here really wouldn't know a good show if it hit them in the face.
And it seems they've missed the boat with my wonderful new obsession Chuck which is due to start on Pay TV in January.
A comedy-action series, this show was recommended to me by a neighbour and after about 10 minutes I was hooked.

It's apparently been voted in the top 10 shows of the year in the USA and it is easy to see why.

With pay picking it up here that mean some genius at the networks passed on it, probably the same bunch that passed on Dexter, Gossip Girl and Friday Night Lights, just to name a few.
For the uninitiated, Chuck centres on the unlikely life of an average computer geek Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi, centre) who is implanted with government secrets by an old college friend-turned spy. Yeah it sounds odd but it works really well and the support cast is great.

Yet another series I'll be watching on the net and trying desperately to get my hands on the first season DVDs.

Security blanket

So I finished watching It's A Wonderful Life and, after wiping the eyes, immediately thought how we lose sight of the little things.
I don't know about anyone else, but the scene where people pour into George Bailey's house with money is a really emotional one. He was so busy putting everyone else first that he didn't think he was important at all. He didn't realise the impact he had on the people around him.
Hopefully this Christmas we can all take a step back and realise how fortunate we are.
Getting a gift is nice, and to me it is really the thought that matters. I don't really need anything, I'm far from rich but would be an average middle class person.
If I could have anything for Christmas, I'd love it be peace of mind. That security blanket that we all have but that some of us lose when traumatic things happen. When we're really shaken to the core and lose that aura of invincibility.
Living without that false sense of security is a battle at times and I'd really like it back. A line from the film Into The Wild hits me when I think about that, something like - `I don't think it is important to be strong but to feel strong'.
I'd like to feel strong again. That's my Christmas wish.

Meh

My new favourite word.

Of course it has been popularised by The Simpsons in the episode Hungry Hungry Homer where Homer tries to get Bart and Lisa to go to a theme park an they reply with `meh'.

When Homer tries again Lisa says, `we said Meh. M-E-H, meh.''

Since then it has been officially recognised as a word, meaning an expression of boredom or apathy.

It also popped up in one of my favourite shows at the moment, The I.T. Crowd, when Roy wears a t-shirt with the word on it.

Just as an aside, that Simpsons episode also contains another scene that I love, where Homer wakes up in a Peanuts pose on top of the dog kennel. Bart comes out and says he could hear him yelling at the swing. Homer replies, with a dejected look, `but I love the swing'. Yeah, I know what you're going to say. Meh.

What's changed?

It's getting to the end of the year and that time when everyone has a look back.
For some reason I always remembered the line from Ally McBeal that went something like ``If you think back and replay your year, if it doesn't bring you tears either of joy or sadness, consider it wasted.''
I always loved that show.
Anyway, my year has contained many things though few, if any, tears for either reason. That's more of a chemical thing at the moment than anything else. It must be said that 2008 has been a tumultuous year, with the obvious event of the family house burning down midyear being one of the most significant.
I'm not going to go through a blow by blow, I can't remember a good part of it for whatever reason, and my annual movie reviews will be done in about 10 days or so. But the question I pose to myself is ... what's changed?
A couple of weeks ago I was told by someone that I'm a completely different person to the start of the year. The word unstable was used to describe me some 11 months ago.
I know I have come a long way but what has become apparent is that I have a long way to go. While stability-wise I am good I have stagnated in a few areas, tend to fall back on old habits from time to time and still worry far, far too much.
I don't know whether I need to take a different approach to things, like in the extreme, I'll admit, examples of George Costanza in Seinfeld doing the opposite of what he normally would do and the new Jim Carrey movie Yes Man where he starts saying yes to things instead of no.
Honestly I don't know whether I'd be able to go that far, when you're treading water you just grab hold of anything solid that you can and don't let go.
Call it a year of work in progress...

Ode To Joy, Beaker style

The hugely under rated Beaker does Bach in this awesome clip of Ode To Joy which is a nice light hearted, and very clever, piece of music.
It's right up there with the Manamana song. Yeah I know I am partial to the muppets but this is pretty funny. Like I said, Beaker is very much ignored when it comes to the best muppet characters.

Ben Cousins

I am not a massive AFL (Aussie Rules) fan but I do believe that Ben Cousins does deserve a second chance.
OK, I do follow it a bit but I am more into rugby league, being from NSW.
Today Richmond gave him that chance to put behind him his drug addiction and get back to playing football. Apparently he is a very good footballer, a Brownlow medallist, but you wouldn't know it after the circus he's been involved in with his arrest and admission of drug problems in the recent past.
I believe people deserve a second chance so I have no problem with Ben returning to play AFL next season. But he only gets ONE chance, if it was up to me. If he in any way returns to the old ways that got him in trouble it's out the door. You can't blame the media because Ben is, what, 30-odd and old enough to be responsible for his own future.
I'm sure that's the way most people will see his case.

One tooth less

My trip to the dentist this morning went pretty well and now I am in the period where you're waiting for the bleeding to settle. Yes I had an extraction, a tooth that for all purposes has become superfluous. I can't believe it is gone after so long, I can't remember how long it's been like it was.
I'm a very impatient patient though and really wish I could eat something properly and even drink without having an effect. I know it takes a day or two before things start to get back to normal. Last time I had a tooth out it wasn't too bad though I stupidly went to work that day - spent more time in the bathroom spitting blood than I did at my desk that day.
The tooth had to go and it was surprising how fast it came out - that has to be a good thing.

The spare wheel

So it is 10 days until Christmas and I have managed to avoid that fact for the most part of the month despite the tree going up at work a day after the Melbourne Cup.
I don't know what happened with me and Christmas.
As a kid you always love the anticipation of the presents and the magic of the time and as you get older it takes on a different meaning. You start to realise that, aside from the important celebration of the birth of Jesus, Christmas is about joy and family (whatever your definition of family is).
In the past decade I have had little of either of those things at this time of year. I've never disliked Christmas but I have always felt a bit on the outer. Work kept me from travelling home many times and a couple of times health got in the way. So after being ditched by my uncle I started having Christmas with my housemate's family. I always felt like the spare wheel.
Likely it is something in me stopping me from getting into the spirit. I've never liked being the one who is invited somewhere `because you have nowhere to go at Christmas'. I always appreciated the offer but felt awkward.
So over time I kind of ignored Christmas and treated it like any other day. I'm going to try not to ignore it this year, I feel I need to drag myself out of that way of thinking. Instead of enjoying spending time with people I do care about I have at times ended up feeling sorry for myself - why am I alone at Christmas, why is there no family, no wife or girlfriend etc etc.
That I think is a whole different story.
So I am giving it a go because I truly love Christmas and everything (non commercial) that it represents. I've even hired It's A Wonderful Life to watch this week.

Tonight I watched The Bucket List, finally, and am happy to report that it is enjoyable and thought provoking. Jack plays Jack and Morgan plays Morgan pretty much but neither are bad things but it does leave an impression.

SimCity 4

I have rediscovered a game from my teenage years and am playing SimCity 4 on my computer.
Many hours were spent building cities on my Amiga 500 in the early 1990s and I then took on whatever Sim game was released around that time.
I will admit that I have been using one of the cheats to get the hang of it again but I will have a serious crack at it shortly. The game has obviously changed a bit with the better technology and it has really enhanced the experience.

Twilight

Adaptations of popular books are always a bit controversial, in the sense that people who love the book tend to be a shade disappointed in the film even though the film makers did a good job.
Harry Potter is a good example.
I finished reading the book Twilight on Thursday and from about halfway through it I was desperate to see the film. First, the book.
Awesome doesn't go far enough, I was captivated from the early stages and it was just one of those books you can't put down. If you are into angsty teen dramas like I am partial to.
So to the film. Twilight introduces us to Bella (Kristen Stewart) as she tells us why she is relocating from Phoenix to one of the bleakest places on earth, Forks in Washington.
Upon starting school she is intrigued by the good-looking, white faced Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) who goes out of his way to avoid her, occasionally stiffens in her presence and stares constantly at her from across the lunch room at school.
Then he saves her life with a miraculous act of bravery and strength and this sees Bella even more intent to find out what's up with Edward.
It's not a new story but it is a well told one. It's also not a secret (to the audience and those that have read the book) that Edward is a vampire.
The story busts a lot of accepted facts about vampires, quite brilliantly I might add. Edward has four `siblings' at school all `adopted' by the local doctor Carlisle and his wife Esme. I could go on and on and on.
My thoughts are as follows...I enjoyed the movie immensely. It was much like watching The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe in that I knew the story and they were pretty faithful to it, to the extent that some lines were directly from the book.
I thought the casting was close to spot on but there were a few mistakes. Bella was as I imagined and Edward pretty close, though I thought he may have been a bit more buff if you know what I mean. The rest of the Cullens were spot on.
Bella's dad Charlie I thought they got right and her friend Mike Newton was spot on. Some of the other school characters were a bit hit and miss casting wise. I didn't see Eric as Chinese or Tyler as an African American, at least they didn't read that way in the book. Minor detail.
With the book fresh in my mind I was a bit disappointed that they didn't flesh out a couple of Bella's friends - Mike in the book was practically her shadow for quite while, following her around seemingly besotted with her. In the film he was goofy and not as prominent. There was a lot of interaction between Edward and Bella in the lunch room that went missing and would have been interesting and plenty of the pursuit by the tracker James (Cam Gigandet) that would have been helpful to non-book readers.
On the big plus side the setting was amazing and brilliantly shot. The soundtrack was perfect.
The ending was a shade different to the book but I'm not far enough into the sequel New Moon to have worked out whether it leads in or whether they are taking a different direction.
In all, this is a film that is helped plenty by having read the book. Having said that I'm giving a 8 out of 10 as I enjoyed seeing the book come to life.

Transit

Decided not to drive this time around on my break and instead am using a more relaxed mode of transport.
For the journey I have bought the book Twilight, that everyone seems to be raving about, so we'll see how that passes the time. I have a reasonable expectation based on what a few people have said and what I've seen of the movie preview.

Deconstruction

If you are a keen observer you would have noticed a subtle change - yes, I've dragged this blog into the 21st century and upgraded. Though I have to say it doesn't look significantly different.
What has changed is the addition of a soundtrack and I call it that because the songs are chosen deliberately as a reflection of, to an extent, my taste in music but moreso the songs that I turn to when I need a lift, comfort or reflection.
You might learn a bit about me from the selection there.

I have caught up with the latest series of Heroes in the last few days having missed the last TV episode here this week. Still enjoying it though I wonder where it is going. Also got into the new series of The IT Crowd and it is as funny as ever. In fact a few of the funniest scenes in the 15 episodes so far have been in the last two. If you haven't seen it do yourself a favour and seek it out.

I turned down an invite tonight from my housemate to go to a barbecue for dinner based on a conversation we had a few nights ago. I guess it had been coming, but I could never have guessed the direction it came from. To explain. There's something I do that I don't really think about a lot (an automatic behaviour) that has at times annoyed him. Sometimes I know it does and it's great to have a button to press if needed. Given we've known each other for the best part of 10 years it came as a surprise to find out he questions my intentions for doing it. Now, to be a bit clearer, I'm one of those hands on people when it comes to my friends. A tap on the shoulder, pat on the back, those kinds of things. So I didn't go tonight to give him a bit of space, even though I think the conversation was a positive one and an opportunity to reassure him (though I don't think all the issue is with me but a bit being early 30s and single). Am I over-analyzing this?

A different friend asked me yesterday what I was doing with church and it is a question I still baulk at a bit. I don't want to lie about it, but the simple fact is I am not going to a church at the moment. I intend to but something about it just makes me feel uncomfortable. I bought a new CD this week from a Christian band called Rush Of Fools, their second album after a self-titled one came out last year and was very good. This new one isn't as instantly likable but is growing on me.

Worst movies of 2008

Famous magazine has released its list of the worst movies of 2008 and it is a list I will largely agree with (though I haven't seen all of them).
I have only seen two in fact - You Don't Mess With The Zohan, which was a one joke film that was only funny for a while; and Rambo, which I thought was actually quite good if a bit over the top.
I've given a couple of pretty low scores this year, 3/10, for The Happening and Harold And Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. So I guess they are my worst movies of 2008.

A well earned break

There is something really satisfying about leaving work on the last day before you start holidays.
Happily I had that experience today.
A couple of weeks off really isn't enough but considering I will have a three day week then Christmas when I get back it's not too bad.
My plans for tonight were changed at about the 10th hour and it's one of those things that I didn't mind because it involved a family issue with my mate. I was invited to a barbecue by the housemate but elected to stay in, mainly because I feel like I'd rather not have a big night and I'd have to go in a separate car. I'd definitely be wanting to leave earlier.
So I think I'll just cruise around for a few days before I head out of this metropolis for a while. There's something about the country that is so refreshing. Everything is so simple, travel time isn't a consideration and it's not as cluttered. People are generally pretty nice (not that there aren't nice people in Sydney but have you ever had a decent conversation with someone on the train or bus? I'm betting not).
As usual breaks tend to go fast but I shouldn't get ahead of myself just yet.