TO PROTECT AND SERVE?

The Virus continues, Dominic Cummings is still a thing, Social distancing is becoming not so social distancing but events in the USA have taken over everyone's attention.

Those entrusted to serve and protect have murdered yet another citizen; another black citizen. This time, as opposed to multiple other times, without impunity it seems.

The response has been one of protest; the percentage of which has been peaceful. The protest has been huge and the President of the US has responded with talk of military domination, intervention and a Wild West attitude. Police Officers  are assigned to stand guard and intimidate protestors and they are heavily armed doing so.

In the US the constitution is quoted often (especially the 2nd amendment as it pertains to the massive gun industry) and the right to public assembly is there in the first amendment, yet the man at he top of The World's Greatest DemocracyTM is dead set against people having this right. His view seems to be that all protestors are criminals.

Let's make something clear. Looting is not a part of a peaceful protest. Looting is opportunistic behaviour that says something about the looter and their morality.

In a way, it all boils down to rights; human rights. The right to be treated equally, the right to seek justice, the right to leave your home in the morning and not be killed simply because of the colour of your skin, especially by those very institutions that are there to uphold your rights.

Murders, executions and assassinations of people of colour in the US by the police have been going on for ages (literally) and in this time of lockdown where news is dominated by one story the shocking film of the latest murder has struck a chord.

Bottom line is that people want justice and want lessons to be learned. People want the type of discrimination that leads to state approved murder to cease and they are taking to the streets to that end. This issue has united people, this issue has made people have the debate, this issue has prompted thought.

The response of meeting  protests with sanctioned violence is something that US politicians cite as monstrous behaviour in other countries but validate in their own. Then again the US was founded on violence, genocide and slavery so there is previous in this regard. However, the protests are showing that there are many, many, many Americans that abhor the way in which their fellow citizen's are treated and maybe that's why their president can't handle the show of support

Will this issue bring about change? who knows, but one thing that is important to remember about this issue is that the issue is a man's life. A man asphyxiated by a public servant, calmly and systematically in broad daylight and with an audience. 

If the elected leader of the country in which this happened can't understand why this has led people to take to the streets then he's dumber than he looks.

THE RETURN OF WHAT?

So what do we all think about the return of the Premier League and The Arsenal playing a minimum of 11 matches (this includes the FA Cup quarter final) and most other teams playing 9 games? The time frame that I have seen quoted seems a bit ambitious. 

Is this about commerce, sport, uplifting the nation or something else? Is it about the economy?

I’m assuming that this will coincide with pubs reopening and some people getting carried away, after all football on the telly with this schedule is unprecedented:

Games on a Friday will kick off at 8pm.

Saturday matches will start either at 12.30pm, 3pm, 5.30pm and 8pm.

Sunday matches will kick off at either 12pm, 2pm, 4.30pm and 7pm.

Games on a Friday will kick off at 8pm.

Midweek games on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays will kick off at either 6pm or 8pm.

I haven’t even mentioned the European Tournaments and how it would be possible to fulfil those fixtures. 

I also wonder if it will be a success or a reminder of how far football, Pre-Covid, has eaten itself? Avaricious agents, sky high ticket prices, fixtures moved at the whim of broadcasters, the fan being treated as customer: and not a very valued customer at that. The match day experience costing an arm and a leg and the corporate boxes full of bystanders, will this pandemic with it's inevitable self reflection have an impact on all that?

For whoever goes on to win the League & FA Cup will those victories feel tainted to the fans of those clubs or will it be a moment of joy in what has been a pretty joyless year?

I can’t help but think that this commencement of football is all about money. Money for the clubs, the TV companies, the breweries, the advertisers and all the cogs in the football machine

Maybe I’m over thinking it and it’s simply about getting the football back on the box and the pubs back open. After all this would be a great distraction from this government's chicanery! 

Life During War Time

Let's get something straight; this is war, a war against a virus, which means we have been, and are still living in war time. Its life on the home front where wearing pants is no longer a daily necessity, where alarm clocks are semi-retired, where binge watching TV shows is not frowned upon. We have new days within our seven day weeks; Thurnsday, Fraterday and Wunday. After all when the pattern of daily life is disrupted who can tell what day it is?
Measurements of social distancing seem to vary according to the whims of the person in front, or behind you in the M&S queue and we've learned that masks come in all shapes and sizes (along with people's levels of suspicion). We've got to know the guy that stands at the door of our local supermarket, telling us when we can enter, and the quickest way to reach the alcohol aisle with the least amount of touching foreign objects. We've got bored of the Downing Street daily briefings and got used to pouring scorn on excruciating celebrity sing alongs designed to raise our spirits. We've made the Thursday clapping of the NHS part of our schedules and we've all found at least one thing to agree upon: that Captain Tom is an amazing bloke.
Many of us have discovered that Zoom is not just the name of a Seventies rocket shaped ice lolly and that TikTok isn't just the opening line of  Tick Tock You Don't Stop by J Hanna. We've also learned that memories are short. No really, they are. Here's a list of things that I had forgotten about from before the war:
Extinction Rebellion, VAR, Philip Schofield coming out, Meghan, Pizza Express Woking, Harvey Weinstein being banged up, Veganism, Brexit and The new James Bond theme tune.
Apart from rightfully celebrating victory over the Nazis, VE day was seen as a bit of celebration of Covid being sort of conquered-Victory over Epidemic if you will, and with the muddled messages from Boris about staying alert we have seen more people taking to the street.
I get that impatience and boredom play a big part, not to mention income, but I can't help but feel that many people are suffering from Premature Elation.
The all clear sirens haven't been sounded and the armed forces of Covid-19 have not conditionally surrendered. Its not yet peace in our time.
One day we will be together with the hope that here will be no more war, but like the days following WWII we may very well have to live on metaphorical rations for some time to come. Those that fought on the front line will hopefully be remembered in the years to come and be remunerated accordingly. let's hope that Boris and his cohorts remember the few that did so much for the many.

COVID VISITORS

I don't like people, that is to stay I don't like being in crowds of people. The Tube, buses, the High street where I work, Festivals, Night Clubs; well you get the picture.

Am I missing people? no absolutely not and part of me is anxious about returning to the  world of the masses after this is over. 

But I am going to contradict myself here and say "I like people". That is people that I care about. These people bring joy, good humour and love to the party. Seeing them on computer screens, hearing their voices, reading there communications just isn't the same as the real thing

I have met new people  though, Ive had these visitors; there's Tony from After Life, Joe Exotic, Marianne and Connell from Normal People, Paul and Ally from Breeders, Michael Jordan, Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen, The Gangs of London, Chris Tarrant via Michael Sheen, the people racing from Mexico City to Ushuaia among others. Quite a long list actually.

When we look back at theses times we may not remember what we did with our time, much less what we watched, but the one show that will probably have the most resonance may very well be After Life. At a time when things have slowed down the pace of this extraordinary TV series fits perfectly. Tony has contact through the computer screen with a life he once had and struggles to see a future. The reflective nature of the story can be digested because we have time to do so. We can empathise with the mundanity, recognise the good that squeezes out of the characters and most importantly feel lifted by the thought that one day we will be able to move on from this.

Yes it has flaws but I can think of very few TV programmes that have fitted in perfectly within the times that they have been released in.

Welcoming these fictional characters into our homes helps. No they are not the real thing, but in lieu of that, they feel like, well, people.

COVID QUARANTINE DECODED

Wakey! Wakey! Rise and shine! Another day dawns, and another, and another...well, you get the picture.

Life during lockdown is life on hold for the most part. Time to catch up on those films and box sets, those books you always meant to read, that film script/novel/play you thought you would never find time to write. Time to learn Cantonese, the Trumpet and how to bake sourdough. Time to work on your core and get all those jobs done around the house. time to see how long your hair can grow, how few showers you can take and how many hours you can go without an alcoholic drink.

And then what?

Just relaxing, taking it easy and enjoying the sun from your garden or balcony somehow has a sense of guilt attached. Not doing your daily exercise and coming out the other end as some sort of  chiseled type that can sport a skin tight shirt, skinny jeans that have had an argument with their ankles and a man bun.

Eating and drinking is not only pleasurable but, let's face it, helps while away the hours. However everyone is worrying about their intake just to add to the more obvious concerns.

When this is all over (and how many times have you heard this phrase?) will we emerge from our cocoons like butterflies or burrowing insects? will we see a kinder society, more considerate and reflective communities? Will we be grateful for the small things? Hard to say. Certainly there will be sub cultures of the Post-COVID to be defined, analysed and categorised:

The CONVIDEOGAMERS- They will emerge blinking into the light, hallucinating hostile AI every time they visit the chicken shop bought on by hours and hours of game play in curtain drawn bedrooms

The COVNIDEGOISTS- Having spent the duration exercising like an American Con in an Alabama prison yard, they will renter society bulging with muscles, 0%fat and massive narcissism 

The CONVESTIGATORS- weeks of investigating and researching will yield countless experts on the global pandemic, Bat DNA, Bermuda Triangle, Uri Geller 5G, Beiderbeck  conspiracy. They will, of course, have ben right all along.

The CONVIDIABETICS - Those with pre Corona diets of appalling grey matter from chicken shops will have gorged on substitute material and family sized bottles of full fat Coke and therefore will wobble back onto the high street at an even slower rate than before

I'm not saying that there will be a ravaged landscape populated by gangs of mutated twerps, but we should prepare ourselves for the worst. The best way to do this, I reckon, is to choose the kindness option. Being considerate and appreciative of what we've been through and those who have put themselves on the line for the greater good has to be the answer. Being the Butterfly and not the exo-skeletoned freak has to be more appealing.

Even a cynic like me can believe in a better post COVID world.

STUPID STUPID STUPID

Idiocy is the new black, the new rock 'n' roll, the new broom that has swept away reason. In a search for lack of meaning huge swathes of the population have embraced stupidity with the fervour of born again zealots. A trip to Luton on business cemented my belief on this hot chicken leg of a debate. Blank identikit expressions punctuated by pouts wandering around like extras from 28 Days Later, eyebrows of fake, tattoos of baby faces on calves, jeans of the designer torn variety, socks and adidas slides, slippers and pyjama bottoms, fake tan and pallid of face ingesting deep fried fowl from yellow and orange boxes. It looked like the epicentre of a post apocalyptic ghost town where radiation had created a less charming version of the Moorlocks, only these Morloccks live above the surface.
Being thick is not really the problem though. I think that being gormless is a bit of a blessing, one doesn't have to worry about the big issues; mortality, the state of the planet, why Rothko's work is so emotionally charged...you know, that sort of thing.
There's being thick (for want of a better word) and there's being stupid. Being stupid takes an effort, it takes decision making, a bit of planning and a lack of an inner voice.
Stupidity thrives on conformity and Luton presented a town where conformity is king. Don't get me wrong, they seemed friendly enough, in fact they seemed docile and very much like they were living under a dome.
We've seen the rise of certain behaviours and viewpoints from Luton recently so it was interesting to see the place for myself. Nothing shocking, quite a bit of diversity but underlying things was the feeling that any bright people  were either hiding away or had moved away.
In this age of stupidity I feel there will be more Lutons, just as conformist, just as docile and just as stupid.
The Galaxy Centre feels like it's the spiritual home of the hard of thinking and you could almost sense that beneath the Wetherspoons, bowling alley, arcade and cinema there is a gigantic thought processor harvesting any common sense or originality from the local population.
At the moment that Galaxy is far far away from me, but for how long?

THE RETURN OF THE...

wellyousaythat has lain dormant for two years. Yes two years! not sure why really, a number of reasons. It's not as if there hasn't  been anything going on in popular culture, or anything to talk about from the old memory banks. It's just been circumstance I suppose. Ive seen some great movies over the last two years, my fair share of excellent TV and many other things appealing to the ear and eye.
Two trips to the Edinburgh Fringe which reaped a variety of rewards. Some gigs, exhibitions and some nights at the Theatre and a few good books and Comic books along the way.
Maybe the creative juices haven't been flowing for two years: I don't know.

The thing is that putting down your thoughts can be the easiest thing in the world but the motivation to do so is the key and without that whats the point? 
That's a rhetorical question. All I know is that 'getting it out' is a good thing. Having an opinion is a good thing, and in this day and age when everyone has one, separating the good from the bad and the ugly is another matter all together.

I think that wellyousaythat is due a revival and that dear reader (singular) is what will be happening. Regular missives from your truly. Hopefully they will be the source of mild amusement, inspiration, debate and hopefully a bit of insight.

Keep watching the skies.

LOVERS ON THE LAM

 They Live By Night

 A Bout De Soufle

You Only Live Once

Gun Crazy

Pulp Fiction

Badlands

True Romance

Natural Born Killers

Bonnie And Clyde

The Sugarland Express

 The Getaway

Wild at Heart

MID YEAR MOVIE REPORT

It's time for a mid year review of what I've seen at the cinema so far in 2016. I have been able to attend once a week which has meant some good some bad and some indifferent.

The Revenant- A journey for the protagonists and the viewer, impressive stuff
Spotlight-The Year's best film?: can't say I agree but this investigative journalist movie is well crafted
Green Room- Slick and efficient. A concept well delivered
The Lobster-Lynchian to say the least, this is one movie that I would recommend to anyone who likes leaving the Cinema with more questions than answers
Room- Great performances from the small cast, Room is a movie that revels in the quiet moments
Louder Than Bombs-Enjoyable family drama that gets under the skin of family politics
Creed- does exactly what it says on the tin

Captain America : Civil War-Lean and efficient with a healthy dose of action and just plain entertainment.
X-Men : Apocalypse-Flabby and full of exposition: far too long
Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice-Affleck's Batman is good (and unfairly criticised) as is Gadot's Wonder Woman, however Cavill has as much screen presence as an Ikea sofa.
Deadpool- Fourth wall fun

Triple 9-Almost could have been a contender, but this heist movie has it's moments
Midnight Special-I expected more but this slow burn movie has plenty of good things about it
Money Monster- Chanelling Dog Day Afternoon, Jodie Foster directs with some nice twists but you sense there was a more complex movie somewhere
Eye In The Sky- War as video game but with moral decisions to be made
High Rise- Ben Wheatley has established himself as a great film maker but this time around there are too many missteps
The Nice Guys- Old School Buddy movie high jinx reminiscent of The Last Boy Scout

Hail, Caesar!- Didn't work for me. The Coen's failed to nail the screwball homage this time
Grimsby- Awful: a Holiday On The Buses for 2016.

LOVING THE A L I E N

Alien, Aliens, Alien3, Alien Resurrection: four films four talented directors and one particular species of Xenomorph.
Those eggs laid on LV-426 have got a lot to answer for. But there's one character holding it together Ellen Ripley superbly portrayed by Sigourney Weaver despite the variances in quality. 

Alien is the superb father of the franchise and had instant classic status the moment after I first saw it at the Odeon Marble Arch in 1979. It's intricacies and suspense cross genres and the shock that the movie instilled in audiences was and is unforgettable.

Aliens was the offspring that approached the subject for a different angle and manages to be a triumphant war movie to sit alongside it's claustrophobic parent.

When watching Alien3 it seems clear that there was a great degree of muddled thinking and interference. Fincher's vision by all accounts  seemed clear but comes across muddled. Hiding in this movie is a far superior product: a case of what might have been



Alien Resurrection has its moments but the final reveal of the hybrid alien ruins any of the previous good work: a flawed but valiant attempt at injecting something new.

So we await Neill Blomkamp's addition to the cannon and, based on his films to date, I have high expectations: that and the fact that he is purportedly picking things up from the end of Aliens. We shall say, and hopefully I will still be loving the Alien after seeing it.

2015 and all that

That was the year that was, or as I call it: the 'year of living dangerously' by which I mean a year of enjoyment, travel, and a smidgen of over indulgence.

Let's see...what happened? Marriage, trips to France, Greece and  Spain and a few British jaunts in between, but this blog is supposed to be about popular culture so lets get down to that.

A fantastic Edinburgh festival. this was my second visit and now having a good knowledge of how to navigate both the streets and the venues it allowed for a jam packed visit with highlights being Stewart Lee and The Ruby Darlings. another highlight of the festival is the Mosque Kitchen, this rustic canteen style eatery is a wonderful place to refuel between shows. The food is delicious and it's as cheap as Chips.

Liverpool to see Arthur Miller's The Hook starring a hugely underrated Jamie Sives (an actor who, aside from being a mate of mine is also brimming with talent), followed by drinks in the Dockers bar a symbiotic alliance of place and theme. 

Somerset to visit a newly relocated family and relax awhile which is very easy in that company and a visit to Dismaland: which was undoubtedly a triumph. This piece of living art had to be experienced to be believed and boy am I glad I did.

Closer to home, Leftfield at the Forum Kentish Town: something of a homecoming for the act. A splendid night with what can only be described as a warm and friendly audience followed by Leftfield at The Roundhouse: a stupendous sonic experience which certainly benefited from the immaculate sound system. My old friend Neil created a concert going experience that is right up there with the very best.

Also close to home The Ham Yard Hotel: if there is a better Hotel in the heart of the West End I'll eat my hat. A marvellous wedding night and following day was spent there in April and a return visit was soon forthcoming to see a mixed showcase of Pre-Edinburgh comedy. The act that stole the show being Marcus Brigstock: funny and insightful.

Closer still, Escape From New York at the Unity Chapel with live music from John Carpenter's collaborator on soundtracks. The audience were dressed for the occasion and I have to say that this wonderful venue was a great place to see this cult masterpiece.

I think I may have been to the cinema close to 40 times this year and I have to say that it hasn't been the greatest year for cinema, Mind you I only walked out of one movie: Inherent Vice (even though I'm a fan of Mr Anderson) I also found Foxcatcher underwhelming. Amy, Whiplash and The Lobster were stand outs for me this year while Selma, Love & Mercy and Sicario where hugely enjoyable...hold on though: i walked out of two films! The Man From UNCLE being the other one. To clarify, the first walkout was due to not being n the zone the second was due to the general woodeness of acting and clunkiness of plot. Mainstream fun was had courtesy of Spectre, Avengers: Age Of Ultron and Mad Max: Fury Road.

TV was good. Orange Is The New Black, Peaky Blinders, Luther, The Fall and Veep provided some real high points and BBC's The Game was the real quality Spy drama this year not London Spy (which certainly had its moments). The Good Wife was a great 'B' drama as was River and it was farewell to Mad Men, Nurse Jackie and Peep Show.

Of course my real highlight was getting married to the long suffering Mrs Wellyousaythat and this year of living dangerously will give way to a more laid back year. a year of living sensibly; which is not to say that it won't include experiences like those of 2015, in fact January 1st sees us visiting The Ham Yard followed by a night of wonder with Derren Brown. Living sensibly? yes of course but what's life without a hint of danger?