5 time 5 time 5
I was reading in an Modern Art magazine today about an artist who's been kicking round the scene for a while now. She did a favorite Five Meme and I was so taken I did my own. This doesn't mean anything and it's probably not that accurate but.. if you put a gun to my head right now this is what I'd come out with. enjoy.
My Favourite Five
Films
Kelly’s Heroes My dad got me on this film when I was little. It influenced the family so much that “negative waves” is now part of the Boulton lexicon. It’s very funny, has some great set pieces and memorable characters, and one VERY pimped Sherman tank!
Rounders If films resembled food then Rounders would be a chocolate cake; very dark and rich and achingly perfect at times. It oozes style and class and despite the narrow subject matter every main character is a master of their individual craft and that comes across in the film very well.
The Jericho Mile A television movie about a convict runner. No one knows about this film apart from me I think, but the idea of redemption and solidarity in a minority population are stronger here than most Hollywood fare. The instrumental version of ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ adds weight too.
Watership Down Cold War subplots aside it’s still one of the most amazing animated films. Terrifying villains, good dialogue lifted faithfully from the book and wonderful music. Emotional but without been saccharin it’s as good today as when it was first released and in my childhood was my official “poorly film”.
Pulp Fiction Not Tarantino’s best work but his most slick. Looks original even today following thousands of copies and broke ground in the mainstream with its mix of style, humour and graphic violence, not to mention its normal portrayal of buying heroin. Its dialogue doesn’t get old, and it still makes me wonder why Forrest Gump won all the Oscars.
Heroes
Steve Tasker US Football player for the Bills in the eighties and nineties and made a name for himself as a special teamer legend despite being too slow, short and too white to play Receiver in the NFL. Gave me courage to try when everyone said I was mad to attempt it.
Jim Daniels The first paraplegic to complete the Hawaiian Iron Man triathlon in 1993. Did the entire contest under his own power, only getting help to unzip his wetsuit, and beat many able-bodied people. Ran out of time in ’92 but was told he could continue to the 3rd stage Daniels’ refused stating that if he couldn’t compete as an ‘ordinary’ athlete he wouldn’t compete at all.
Linda Greenlaw New England fisherman (lady?) who’s still one of the few women to fish commercially with her own boat in North America. Does her job in a man’s world to the best of her ability, doesn’t care about anyone else’s opinions either.
My Mom Still kicking at 69+1 she’s not only travelled the world several times over, worked on 20 countries and visited many more she’s also the most understanding, tolerant, decisive, intelligent individual I’ve ever met. Still surprises me even today and is the only person I know who can wallpaper a stairwell singlehanded.
Marv Levy Who was a football coach who taught me more about perseverance, tenacity, being upright in the face of defeat and acting with class and honour even when the world seems to be both against you and collapsing around you.
Phrases
The whisper is louder than the shout.
We cannot run from who we are, our destiny chooses us.
It is kosher to go.
You’re never as good as you think you are but you’re never as bad as they say you are.
It’s good to be smarter than you look, it’s better than looking smarter than you are.
Songs
Remains Despite being in some cases unfairly attached to the Dollhouse tv show, the concepts of identity, history and your own sense of self being under threat from others is ringing true for me. Especially in the sense that we can “lose ourselves” in the world around us and whether that is a preferable state of existence compared to existing in something detrimental to our own sense of self.
Defying Gravity The centrepiece of the musical Wicked, it really is about choosing the right road over the easy one, even if the right one is a lot harder. I guess it also reminds me that nothing that’s worth anything comes for free, and you really have to work to see any type of payoff.
The Sun and the Rain I would put the entire Madness back-catalogue in here if I could, but choosing only one song then it would be this. It’s about the weather and given that I’m British and the weather is a legal topic of conversation in the UK it seemed appropriate. Bouncy song too.
Nothing Ever Happens Del Amitri’s old classic has been a favourite for ever. Just romanticises everyday life and working class attitude without going starryeyed and maudlin.
Viva La Vida This is one of my favorites for many reasons; it mentions Jerusalem and has the back end of my name as its title. Coldplay do it justice but I’d like to hear an alternative version sometimes just to see if the string sections are expanded in any way.
Places
New York Fell in love with the place when I went there back in 2008, the hustling vibe, the mix of culture and food as well as the art and music scenes make it place I could visit again and again without getting bored.
Israel The whole country is more than just Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. The south is considerably different from the north of the country and with the political climate constantly changing it is somewhere that will always be at the forefront of global affairs whether it likes it or not.
Elephant & Castle The South London neighbourhood deserves its tarnished reputation to an extent. But it is also ethnic and cultured without being preppy and has a decidedly laid back vibe in the summer months.
Uphill Sand Dunes Far away from the Weston Super Mare promenade and arcades this stretch of sand is my spiritual home in the UK. Playing there since I was little to playing football with parents and friends on walks in all kinds of weather (including snow) it’s acted as stunning backdrop for those kind of walks you have when you need to talk about matters of the heart and don’t feeling like sitting down to do so.
Aberystwyth My college town still hasn’t changed much over the years. Mainly due to its location stuck on the west coast of Wales surrounded by forest its sense of isolationism works in its favour. Now moving to embrace the 21st century it still has a different pace of life than the welsh cities.
5 Things I couldn’t Live Without
Music
Writing
Talking
Crying
The Sunrise
Artistic People who’ve Influenced Me
Robert Capa Capa’s photography was revolutionary and his D-Day photos one of the most artisitic endevours of the last century. His mantra for getting closer, his use of space and disinterest in traditional photographic rulings allowed him a freedom to create what is now known as photojournalism, but at the time was something revolutionary in the art world.
Kelley Armstrong Her books gave the idea of mixing the normal with the supernatural (her ‘Otherworld’) in a way that is 100% authentic to our own. The way she writes in an easy readable, uncluttered fashion about characters that were often portrayed in earlier novels with great fanfare is one of the joys and one of my pleasures in modern literature.
Chaim Potok Wrote about characters with a stunning attention to everyday detail in a time (mid twentieth century) where technology was still in its infancy. His characters didn’t seem to do much at times, and the timeframe of his novels often travelled through childhood to adolescence and beyond without seeming rushed in any way.
Michael Mann His ‘end of man’ remit is not as strong today as it was in the eighties and nineties when Mann was the talk of Hollywood. Giving sadness to the protagonist without making them too likeable or too empathic with the audience together with stunningly minimalist visuals gave me a real idea on how to create uncluttered pictures and compose morally compromised characters without losing their sense of purpose.
Katherine Bigelow Has assembled some fantastic intelligent films over the last twenty five years, from Near Dark to Point Break to K-19 which usually comprise of all-male casts but don’t fall into obviously masculine direction. Her recent success with The Hurt Locker only cements her status but the early works were just fabulous to watch; dynamic but rounded (sometimes too much) and a unique take on a male dominated industry.