Category Archives: reviews

The weekend wrap-up

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I feel so cheap doing the “weekend wrap-up” post when we had no less than three (or four at a pinch) bloggable events! But, time is so precious these days, and truth be told, I only took photos for one event of three; so a wrap up it is!

On Friday night, we trolleyed out to The Durham’s for dinner and a movie (Hoodwinked – gerrod.com rating: 8/10). To complement the delicious pork cutlets, David and Nelly had whipped out a selection of salads that would have put Sizzler to absolute shame. The honey roasted carrots with currants and almonds were particularly impressive!

On Saturday night, whilst Nonni and Poppi babysat for Oscar, Kristy and I had a night out on the town (well, in the valley more accurately)! And frankly, it felt weird being out past 7 PM, and without child! Weird, and yet good. Very good! We were out to celebrate Penny (from work) and Adrian’s engagement, and we partied up in style at The GPO, doing our very best to get through their generous bar tab.

Given that it was a “work” outing, we met up with the work crew – Ben and Michelle, Rob and Elise, and Pieter and Annalize – for dinner beforehand. Rob decided on Kings Diner, and instead of ordering the traditional way, we played Chinese roulette! Basically, everyone randomly chose a number from a range given by the gatekeeper (me), whose job it was to ensure that (a) everything picked was generally edible, and (b) there was a decent variety of meats and styles. It was absolutely awesome – and we ordered loads of dishes that I’m sure we would never have picked otherwise. The salt and pepper calamari in sweet chili sauce was a particular favourite!

We spent Sunday quietly recovering from our night out (it quickly became evident that we aren’t young anymore). Actually, we spent most of the day in the kitchen, cooking food for Oscar, and various delicacies for ourselves. And for the folks that turned down our invitation to join us for dinner – you know who you are – this is what you missed out on:

Lamb shanks

Slow cooked (for 8 hours) curried lamb shanks, served on a bunk-bed of nutmeg mashed sweet potato over chive and oregano mashed red potatoes. I don’t know any other words for “delicious” but if I did I’d be throwing them at you right now. Yeah! Take that!

(A huge thanks to Louisa for the recipe!)

Boy

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If Julian were ever to see Boy, I would imagine he would comment that it was “strange”. And he’d be right, it is a strange film! I’m terrible at trying to summarise film plots, but since this isn’t a primary school book review, I don’t have to! Instead, here’s the summary from IMDB (which I note that they stole too; maybe they didn’t like book reviews in primary school either?)

It’s 1984, and Michael Jackson is king-even in Waihau Bay, New Zealand. Here we meet Boy, an 11-year-old who lives on a farm with his gran, a goat, and his younger brother, Rocky (who thinks he has magic powers). Shortly after Gran leaves for a week, Boy’s father, Alamein, appears out of the blue. Having imagined a heroic version of his father during his absence, Boy comes face to face with the real version-an incompetent hoodlum who has returned to find a bag of money he buried years before. This is where the goat enters.

By far, the best thing about this film is the kiwi accents, which are so thick in parts that they’re almost indecipherable. I also loved the father’s gang’s call sign – the “Crazy Horses”. Just classic!

Definitely worth checking out for an enjoyable night in. gerrod.com rating: 8/10.

Goal setting with GoodDay

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It’s easy to set goals and resolutions in January, but difficult to keep them top of mind as the months roll by. To help me stay on track day by day I’ve found a great iPhone app called GoodDay. It costs 99c and is well worth it.

You set it up with a list of the things you want to accomplish consistently each day. Things like, “eat well”, “exercise”, “work on business plan”, “think positive”. Then each day you give yourself a rating out of 5. The app can then show you a bar chart of how you’ve performed in each area over the last 30 days.

It’s dead easy to use and is the most effective thing I’ve ever used to keep reminding you of what’s important to you in your daily life.

gerrod.com rating: 10/10.

The Adjustment Bureau

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If Kristy and I each had a dollar for every visit to the movies that we’d enjoyed since Oscar was born, we’d almost be millionaires with a grand total of two dollars between us. In fact, until Saturday afternoon, we would have been broke and homeless – clearly this would not be a good way for us to earn some fun-money on the side.

Anyway – we had some “family and friend” themed tickets due to expire at the end of March, and without too many titles competing for our audience, we decided that The Adjustment Bureau might be a winner. And we were partly right.

I don’t know what genre the film falls in, but to me, it was somewhere between a romance and a sci-fi. Actually now that I think about it, that sounds like a perfect couples movie – something for everyone! The big ticket is Matt Damon, who I typically like in films – yes, he’s a bit flat, but he has an absolutely winning smile which rescues him from even the poorest of storylines.

And the storyline for The Adjustment Bureau is far from poor – in fact, it’s pretty good. Basically it’s about an organisation (whose name I’m sure you can guess) who are responsible for ensuring people live their lives according to “the plan”. It explores the roles that fate, destiny, chance, and external influence play on people’s lives. And, for the most part, it does a good job of it; but I felt like in the last half-hour (or so), the film was headed towards one of two inevitable endings. One of them would not have rated well with American audiences, and so I was none too surprised to see the ending that did eventually unfold. It was all just a little bit too convenient for my liking.

Overall I enjoyed the film, but there was nothing new here; it certainly doesn’t top The Fifth Element for the title of “Best ever romantic sci-fi film”. Still, it was a great way to spend a lovely afternoon with just the two of us (thanks again to Mia and Pa for babysitting!).

gerrod.com rating: 6.5/10.

More movies

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Blockbuster have a deal – four movies, four nights, for £10 – so when we watch one move, we end up watching four. Here’s a short review of the other three from our latest batch:

9: Very interesting! This is a computer animated film, which follows the journey of a little hessian sack doll who wakes up in a world where humans have been wiped out by machines. It’s a bit dark and mysterious at times – its one of those films where discovering the past leads to an understanding of the future. It was also very short, so even if you do end up watching it and hating it, you’re not going to be there for long. Sensational on bluray. gerrod.com rating: 7/10.

Seven Pounds: I had never heard of this film before, but was trying to pick out something in the RomCom genre for Kristy’s viewing pleasure. The photo of Will Smith on the case looked like it was straight out of Hitch, so I figured it was a probably winner. I also didn’t bother to read the box too closely – something about changing the lives of seven people – so we watched it in ignorant bliss.

Turns out that the film is very gripping; it definitely has a bit of romance in it, but it’s by far more of a drama. The less you know about it, the better – but it’s good. Very good. There were tears by the end. gerrod.com rating: 8.5/10.

The Invention of Lying: Fail! This movie turned out to be the RomCom, yet I had thought it was purely a comedy. It’s a Ricky Gervais film, so I had expected it to be of the calibre of Ghost Town. Sadly though, it wasn’t – it was slow, and it didn’t hold my interest. I think it held Kristy’s interset even less! Sure, there’s a few laughs to be had, but overall, its definitely missable. gerrod.com rating: 5/10.

A week of nothing

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Where did the week go? Not a lot happened, and yet I feel like we haven’t really been home at all!

On Tuesday night, we met up with cousin Louise, and her sister (hence also cousin) Kylie. Kylie is fresh off the boat from Queensland, having only landed in London on Thursday the week before. It’s way cool having more family over here now!

On Wednesday night, both Kristy and I had “after work drinks” to go to, and in both cases, catching up with old colleagues. It’s been ages since I had a night on the turps, and boy did I feel it the next day! It was nice seeing my old workmates again however, so all worth it in the end.

Thursday was a total write off. I feel like I spent the whole day in the wrong place, at the wrong times. I was glad to be home on Thursday night; but more on this later.

Nick and Giovanni arranged a Friday night get together at one of my favourite bars in London – Bar Kick. Unfortunately, since the French were playing the Welsh in the rugby, and since it’s a French bar, the place was absolutely packed out. I left around 10:30 PM, feeling very hot and exhausted. It was too crowded to take any photos inside, but this is the tube that I caught home:

Julian and Shelley stayed over on Saturday night, and amongst a boatload of food, and a game of hearts, we also watched the movie Surrogates. It was ok; perhaps one for the Bruce Willis fans out there, and fairly harmless entertainment for said fans’ wives. gerrod.com rating: 6.5/10.

And that brings us to Sunday, in which our highlights have been gym, salmon fishcakes, and a few episodes of How I Met Your Mother. See? Not a lot happening at the moment, but I guess that’s how things roll in winter in London. Oh, blue skies and sunshine, where for art thou?

Movies, movies, movies

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Kristy having bronchitis at the moment has given us the perfect excuse to stay in and catch up on some films. We took advantage of Blockbuster’s “4 films for £10″ deal and got out four different films… though you probably had guessed that by the title of their deal.

Year One: I saw a preview for this one somewhere along the lines, and had thought that the combination of Jack Black and Michael Cera would be a sure hit. Wrong! I’d be lying if I said that there’s no laughs at all, but they’re definitely few and far between. Background entertainment, at best – or perhaps a film to put on if you’re someone who appreciates that a movie with lots of low points provides you with frequent opportunities for a trip to the gents. gerrod.com rating: 5/10.

The Ugly Truth: Have you seen that “unforgettable” classic, How to lose a guy in 10 days? Then you’ve pretty much seen this movie. On the up side, I’d take Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler over Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson any day. gerrod.com rating: 6/10.

Revolutionary Road: Unbelievably good. Ben’s review of this movie is what piqued our interest in it, and it was very well recommended. I liked that the characters and the storyline were so relatable – like when they argued about one thing, it inevitably snowballed into something else. The only thing I didn’t like about this movie was Kate Winslet’s hair – something about the washed out blond didn’t match her uber-dark eyebrows. I found it all very distracting. gerrod.com rating: 9/10.

Inglorious Bastards: This film is an absolute masterpiece. I haven’t liked a Quentin Tarantino film this much since Pulp Fiction! Definitely not one for the feint hearted – there’s a few rather gory scenes – but it’s a film about World War II, so I guess it’s not entirely unexpected. Definitely worth your while seeing, even if you have to avert your eyes during some bits. gerrod.com rating: 9.5/10.

Me talk pretty one day

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Back in November, Ariella invited us to see a David Sedaris radio show being recorded at the BBC Radio Theatre near Oxford Circus. I’d never heard of Sedaris, but the idea of seeing a radio show recorded sounded like fun. Plus, it was free and so were we.

It was brilliant! Having no idea what to expect, I was blown away by how laugh out loud funny this guy is. He retells stories from his life, capturing the absurdity of moments that a less observant person may not even stop to take in. His delivery is beautifully understated, so you feel as though you’re laughing voluntarily instead of being forced into it.

There are a few quirks about the filming of a radio show though. You feel self conscious about your laughter. Is it loud enough that the overhead microphones will pick up just how much we’re all enjoying this? Oops, was that particular laugh of mine too loud or out of step with everyone elses so that I’ll actually recognise it if I hear this played back on the radio one day?

On the rare occasions that David stumbled over a word, he’d pause for a split second then resume delivery at the last comma or full stop before his error – a bit like listening to a record that keeps jumping back and repeating itself. Then at the end of the night, a dude emerged from the sound booth and handed David a list of sections to reread because they hand’t come through clearly the first time. It’s weird listening to those portions read back, devoid of context, and hearing him deliver it as though perfectly he’s the moment and emotion of that point in the story. And being told to laugh as you did the first time around was a challenge: how did I laugh at that particular line? I think I got it wrong, so hopefully the others covered for me.

Gerrod then cleverly bought me one of Sedaris’ books for Christmas, titled Me talk pretty one day. It’s named after one of the short stories within, about how students of a second language completely fail to grasp grammar and throw their newfound vocabulary all togeher in a jumble.

I’ve now finished it, after lots of bursts of laughter on the tube, and intend to share it around. It’s too funny to leave on the shelf for long. Check our his work at http://www.thisamericanlife.org/ which features podcasts from Sedaris along with other segments of good old fashioned story telling.

He’s playing at the Tivoli this Friday night if anybody in Brisbane is interested, then Sydney on Saturday and Melbourne on Monday.

2009: The year in music

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Heads up: Pearl Jam are playing at Hard Rock Calling in London next year! Buy yourself a ticket then let me know that you’re coming so we can meet up!

In my opinion, 2009 was a fantastic year for music. Here’s my top five albums of the year, in no particular order – note that the album may not have been released this year, but perhaps I only discovered it (or at least really listened to it) this year.

As an aside: with most of these albums, I wasn’t particularly impressed with them on the first listen. But usually, that’s a good thing – as long as I don’t completely hate it, I’ll always give it a second go! But, albums that I like on the first listen are often just full of cheap hooks that I grow sick of after three months (can anyone say, “Nickelback”?). With the good ones, it’s only the second or third listen through – when the tunes become a bit familiar, and the lyrics start making sense – that things really start to pick up.

Pearl Jam - Backspacer

Pearl Jam – Backspacer (Grunge)
This one is a no-brainer – it says “Pearl Jam” on it so it was pretty likely to make the top five, even if I’d never heard it ;-) . This is their ninth studio album (!), and it’s unsurprisingly fantastic. It’s only short, but it’s clear that they’ve gone for quality over quantity.

Every song is great, but my personal favourites are Amongst The Waves, Unthought Known, and Force of Nature.

Karnivool - Sound Awake

Karnivool – Sound Awake (Progressive Rock)
Hands down, Karnivool have to be one of the most talented bands in Australia. This album is much more progressive than their first, and includes some rather epic tracks, my favourite of which are Deadman (12min 4sec) and Change (10min 47sec).

We were lucky enough to see Karnivool perform in October this year – their songs sound just as good live as they do out of the studio.

Circa Survive - On Letting Go

Circa Survive – On Letting Go (Indie Rock)
This one falls into the “not released this year” category. It’s definitely not for everyone, and it definitely needs at least three listens; and it’s definitely amazing. There are so many subtleties in the songs that you pick up something new on every play-through.

This album really shines if you listen to it with a pair of decent quality headphones. Kristy got me a set of Denon C751‘s for my Birthday (holy crap, how expensive are they in Oz?!) and they’re perfect.

Rise Against - Appeal to Reason

Rise Against – The Sufferer & The Witness (Post Hardcore)
Again, another album that wasn’t released this year, but I only came across it very recently, thanks to the wonders of Spotify and Amazon’s “Post Hardcore bestsellers list”. No, I’m not making this stuff up.

The closest thing I can compare these guys to is The Empire Strikes First by Bad Religion; fans of Blink 182, Yellowcard, or Finch will find something here to like. Rise Against’s more recent Appeal to Reason album was a very close contender here!

Billy Talent - III

Billy Talent – III (Punk)
Ah, the only Canadian band that never fails to bring a smile to my face. I’ve always loved Billy Talent’s music, and especially their creative, poetic lyrics.

This album has a very similar sound to their previous album (titled II, and yes, their first album is titled I), so it was easy for me to get into. Yes, it’s simple, but it’s very, very good.

Honourable mentions have to go to One Day Remains by Alter Bridge, Golden Rule by Powderfinger, and Brand New Eyes by Paramore. Each of these albums is well worth listening to, but didn’t quite captivate me like the albums above.

How about you – what were your favourite songs/albums from 2009?

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

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The moment I saw the preview for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (= HP6), I knew that I’d be watching that bad boy at IMAX, which they so proudly boast as “the biggest screen in Europe”. (Or perhaps “biggest screen in the UK”, but that doesn’t sound as good.) So, yonkies ago I booked us in to see it, and last night our numbers came up… unfortuantely it was a 9 PM session which is a bit late for a school night, but that was all that I could get. Jules and Shelley, and Nick and Suzie crashed our party too.

Kristy and Shelley

No folks, they are not Kristy and Shelley’s ordinary, everyday glasses – the first 12 minutes or so of the movie was in 3D. Whether this added anything to the movie or not is up for debate; it certainly added to the fun factor, though throughout the rest of the movie I felt a compelling urge to spin the glasses around in my hand, to pass the time.

On reflection, the reason I felt this way is probably because the movie is far slower than what I had imagined it would be. I mean, when you watch the previews, it makes it out to be non-stop action from beginning to end; but in reality, there’s a lot of emphasis placed on the awkward love interests between Harry and Ginny, and Ron and Hermionie. (Seperately, that is; there’s not some weird four-way love square thing going on there.)

Suffice to say, the movie did not do the justice to the book that my imagination did. I know they have a limited time window to work with, but I feel like they chose to portray all the boring slower paced elements of the book, rather than the big action scenes. Maybe my memory of the book is wrong, but I’ve never been wrong on anything before, so it’s doubtful.

I still enjoyed myself – it’s easy to get carried away into their world of magic – but overall it doesn’t hold a candle to HP5. gerrod.com rating: 7/10.