Half A Person

Cars 8/10 I had seen it before, but a repeat viewing means you get to see all the nice wee touches that you miss initially. It's probably one of the most underrated Pixar movies - apparently it's one of the least grossing, but I think it's funny, exciting and genuinely touching in places. Mind you, I'm just a bit soppy at heart.

E.T. was on ITV 2 this morning. Greatest film ever. Not a poor scene, performance or line in the whole film. Simply perfect. 10/10

Stir Of Echoes. Entertaining enough Sixth Sense offspring sitting just about on the right side of being cliched. 6.5/10

High Plains Drifter Clint Eastwood stars in and directs this odd, unsettling Western. Decent. 7/10

Odd numbers at 'five' a-sides cos some folka can't be arsed telling folk they can't make it Grrrr, etc.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford-- 9/10 Thought this was excellent. Great acting from both leads., great photography, a slow-burning tension...just so well made. Not one for the ladies though as females will struggle to 'get' it.

Just had to endure 2 bum-numbing hours of a High School dance show my daughter was in. Now, it seems like that might not be too bad - I was imagining lithe, pretty teenagers prancing elegantly around to beautiful music, but the reality was lumpen, sullen spottyfaced, eyeliner-caked girls plodding gracelessly to songs from The Wiz and Gwen Stefani. It just went on and on and on..

I'd get that seen to, mate. Or get on an all Weetabix diet.

Southern Comfort 10/10 It's part psychological thriller, part straight-up, exciting 'chase' movie, and it's oddly darkly funny. A group of National Guard soldiers get hunted down by the locals in the Louisiana swamps after the steal some boats. It's got an absolutely. brilliantly tense ending and the brooding and excellently-named Powers Boothe is fantastic in it. The location is atmospheric and creepy and the soundtrack by Ry Cooder is perfect. It's a bit like Deliverance, but much better.

That really annoys me too. It's the same in my street. Folk will park on pavements or in a position which makes it awkward to get past just to get that 20 metres closer to their house.

Go to: Start Control Panel Regions and Language make sure it's UK and NOT USA

Just finished ' A Quiet Belief In Angels' by RJ Ellory. This, quite simply, has all the hallmarks of a classic. It's probably one of the best books I've read. I was staggered to find out it was an English author because he brings to life 1940's Georgia. From the first page I was hooked and read this in two days. If you like 'To Kill A Mockingbird' or even films like Stand By Me, then you'll love this. The tone and indeed , setting, brings to mind Steinbeck - and that is not an crazy comparison- it's that good.The feel of it, the plotting , the characterisation...words cannot describe how brilliant this book is. Ostensibly, it's a murder mystery seen through the eyes of a young boy who, as he grows older, witnesses more and more killings, but when you read it you realise it's so much more than that - it's the story of his life and how the killings shape who he is. The only reservation I had about it was that the last 'twist' seems a bit tacked on and clumsy. I would have preferred not knowing to the way the killer was revealed. However this does not detract from what I feel is an amazing novel. A must read.

What, no bum rape!

I remember having the same debate with my dad and brother so I suppose it's open to interpretation Either way, it wasn't magic disappearing bullets. Or the magic cloak

Yes! That is an mazing chainsaw-featuring film!

Scarface

Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (a pseudonym of John Banville) I thought this was a decent read - a 'serious' crime novel which provided a lot of evocative imagery and carefully constructed intrigue, but little in the way of thrills.It's set in 1950's Dublin and features drunken poets, smoky bars, goldhearted whores and dimwitted henchmen; all the usual hallmarks of a crime novel, however this one displays a bit more literary pretension than is necessary. Some parts are so swamped with melancholy introspection I skipped paragraphs without missing anything. The characters are sparsely sketched and the minor players seem a touch cliched, however, the plot (nonexistent in much of Banville's other work) is clever and elaborate although the 'twist' is obvious from a third into the book. A decent read, as I said, good if you want a 'slow-burner'.

I think you must have missed a scene or two which perfectly (if not a tad unbelievably ) explained this. I thought it was a great scene.

Playing fives tonight in miserable weather. I was rotten. My teammates weren't much better. Just rubbish...

Plus a double team of Scarlett Johanssen and Natalie Portman can't be bad. Just watched Enduring Love. 6/10 Odd kind of a film based on an Ian McEwan novel which deals with themes of obsession and the true nature of love *yawn*. Like a lot of British films which star the usual luvvie suspects, it comes across as a bit cold. None of the characters are particularly likeable and the actings a bit hammy, even Samantha Morton who's excellent usually. However, it's worth watching solely for the opening scene which I rank as one of the best I've EVER seen. It's a brilliant piece of filmmaking.

Brighton Rock - cult classic - 9/10 still seems pretty fresh, despite being made 60 years ago.

Morvern Callar I had heard so much good about this film. Imagine my disappointment when, in fact, it turned out to be indulgent pish. 2/10... Plenty of boobs in it.

Just finished reading 'The Exception' as recommended by ICTChris and I thought it was pretty good, although it didn't really live up to its billing as a 'thriller'. As an examination of workplace psychology and relationships, I thought it was brilliant and showed how easy it can be to get unconciously drawn into the circle of bullying despite good intentions . However, I couldn't really warm to any of the characters -I felt they were all generally quite cold; whether that's in spite of or because of their complexity, or a consequence of translation or the Danish character, I dunno. Also read 'The Book Thief' by Markus Zusak, which is my favourite read of the year so far. It's very much a book lover's book- one to read curled up on the couch. It's fucking heartbreaking though, but I recommend it highly.

Why don't you go linedancing? Apparently it's a great way to meet new people.

3:10 to Yuma - 7/10....good Control - 9/10...very good (although Samantha Morton playing a teenager stretched the bounds of credulity somewhat)