Guilty Pleasures....

So I'm off to Leeds Fest again this year and will be camping for five days... It is a tradition that my friends take a bunch of very cool mixed cds. Full of all the best songs from the bands that are playing, to help us while away our time on the camp site. (a couple of them are dj's)

This year I intend to suprise them with a mix of my own, a mix with a twist.... all of the guilty pleasures people love but won't admit to.

So far on my list:
Copacabana - Barry Manilow
Take Me Home Country Roads - John Denver
Rio - Duran Duran
I Should Be So Lucky - Kylie
Mickey - Toni Basil
Hole Hearted - Extreme
Here You Come Again - Dolly Parton
Bright Eyes - Simon and Garfunkel
Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys
and two girls that I saw being bottled at Leeds way back in 2001 (or was it 2002!).....
Ooh Stick You - Daphne and Celeste

So inspired by this, I ask you all this question... What are your guilty pleasures?

Tea and Cupcakes Anyone??

I've hit 2000 posts of DC loveness and I felt it needed its own thread.... to share the joy!

So!... would anyone like to join me for a civilised Tea Party in celebration?

Jay Chou

*swoons*

(Jay is the one in the white suit!)

The Movie Review Thread

I thought it would be cool to have a movie review thread. So here it is....

Across the Universe (2007)

Its a cold, grey day in the North West of England. A lone man sit's upon a beach, staring out onto a vast ocean. He turns towards the audience, and with sadness in his eyes begins to sing the opening lines of the Beatles song Girl....
"Is there anybody going to listen to my story,
All about the girl who came to stay?
She's the kind of girl you want so much it makes you sorry,
Still you don't regret a single day."

With these few lines we know we're in for a musical with a difference; as each of the 33 songs is from the Beatles extensive back catalog. This film is a love story set in 1960's America, in a time of political and social change. The lead male is Jude (Jim Sturgess) a working class bloke from Liverpool, who travels to America in search of his father. Once there he is befriended by Max (Joe Anderson) and ends up in the heart of a bohemian New York City. Here he fall’s for Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood) Max's younger sister and together they reside with a rock and roll landlady Sadie (Dana Fuchs) her guitarist boyfriend Jo-Jo (Martin Luther McCoy) and Prudence (T.V Caprio) an Asian-American lesbian cheerleader. Spending their days playing music, living an idyllic artisan lifestyle and seemingly ignorant of the world around them. That is until Max is called up for Army duty and packed off to Vietnam. Jump ahead a few scenes; Jude is now an aspiring artist and Lucy an anti-war organisation member and with their worlds moving in different directions, the two begin to drift apart....

This film is a visual and musical treat, with moments of sheer genius entwined around some of the greatest songs ever written. (It actually makes me want to change track and become a cinematographer!!) Set upon a backdrop of war and revolution, in a time of free love and psychedelia; this modern film uses a multitude of simple effects to embrace the spirit of the 60’s, almost forcing each viewer to live for a slice of time within the realm it has created. Aesthetically speaking this film can do no wrong. It pushes boundaries not often seen outside the world of Fine Art, with parts becoming reminiscent of artist's like Andy Warhol and Bill Viola. One such scene being 'Strawberry Fields', in which Jude locks himself away with a bunch of strawberries and his artworks. From here he proceeds to smash said strawberries off the walls and floor while simultaneously destroying his work. For me this was the visceral peak of the film, and quite simply wonderful.
Beautifully sung and acted, with notable cameos for Salma Hayek, Bono and Eddie Izzard. Each song is pivotal to the story and acts as a portal for each character to unload his/her own emotional journey. Director Julie Taymor has produced a forward thinking, thought-provoking masterpeice that will as far as i'm concerned will live on and on in the hearts of all those who have seen it.

I have read a number of reviews that say this film is too long (2hrs 8mins) and that it is tarnished by not only its refusal to become removed from the drug culture so prevalent in the 60's; but also its depiction of anti-war activism and racial strife. However, without these elements would there be any point to this film at all? Is it not-even in its vague form-what we conjure up in our own minds anyway when we think back upon this era? Yes, I agree that this film is slightly too long, and that some scenes seem to hold it back because the plot is slow and unnecessary. But overall, I found it a mesmerising treat to my senses.

If I'm honest I was a little hesitant upon buying this DVD! A musical set to the Beatles, please....! Not only was I pleasantly surprised, but this has now made into my top movies of the year so far.

Link to trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43aLbo-Y_W0

The Photography Thread

I thought it would be fun to share photo's of anything... It could be holiday snaps, or something random you saw in the street, or well anything else you can think of!

I'll start...