A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..

Our first visit to Kamakura, a thousand years ago..

Les Moulins de Mon Coeur (encore)..

Since some kind soul took it upon themselves to delete my previous link from Youtube, I was forced to go in search of another example of the great man performing his signature work. And I found one. And it’s even better than the first one, with the added bonus of Japanese subtitles..

Actually, I’m supposed to go and see him tonight in concert, with Alison Moyet for reasons that pass my understanding. She’s a lovely girl, but I don’t think I can face it. Think I’ll stay home and watch this clip a few more times..

A story..

The king died then the queen died

isn’t a story.

The king died then the queen died of a broken heart

is.

I Loves You Porgy..

Keith Jarrett – ‘I Loves You Porgy’. The proper way to play the piano. I will brook no argument on this..

Be seeing you…

So long, cool hand..

Dreamsville..

And they called it..

… Currently watching Being John Malkovich, which I stubbornly refused to go and see when it came out, despite, or rather because of, so many of my friends telling me how good it was. I did eventually get it on DVD and one would have to say it’s very accomplished and clever, but I can’t help but find it somehow a little gauche – what Don Simpson used to call ‘High Concept’. Of course that’s an empty phrase, just a way of polishing a turd – if Top Gun is high concept then I think we know where we stand. One big idea – in this case one big head – yeah, quirky I know.. 7and a halfth floor and all that. But the main thing that pisses me off about this movie is that they threw away what I thought was going to be a fabulous story – the puppeteer thing at the beginning, and the connected story of his puppets. I was transfixed for a few moments, and convinced that all my friends had been right – this was staggeringly, heartbreakingly brilliant.. but then.. no, they go and throw it away with the bloody big head thing. The numbskulls…

Anyway – here’s one of the bits I loved. Could only find it in Italian, but I think somehow it works even better that way..

(By the way – I believe the actual puppeteer is a guy called Phillip Huber)

Vladimir Nabokov talking about ‘Lolita’..

..’a mirror of human frailties’, indeed..

So many things to love about this clip..

Nabokov’s opening gambit – “…First, of all, I don’t wish to touch hearts, and i don’t even want to affect minds very much. What i want to produce is, really, that little ’sob’ in the spine of the reader. I leave the field of ideas to Dr Schweitzer, and to Doctor Zhivago…”

The way they all three suddenly rise unannounced from the desk and faux-casually wander over to the sofa. “.. I’d like to ask mr Trilling.. as we move over here..” Brilliant.

They’re drinking tea from tiny china cups, and Lionel Trilling smokes stylishly throughout – oh, and comes out with this little gem – “..We can’t trust a creative writer to say what he has done. He can say what he meant to do, and, even then, we don’t have to believe him..”

But most of all I love Nabokov’s story about the ape who was given charcoal and proceeded to draw the bars of his own cage, and how Humbert is Nabokov’s own baboon, ‘a genius baboon perhaps’, but still a baboon “… drawing and shading and erasing and re-drawing the bars of his cage – the bars between him and what he terms the human herd… It is his passion, the pattern of his passion…”

Hamlet as Facebook news feed..

If you don’t do the Facebook thing I’d imagine that this item would make little sense to you. If you do, then I think you’d have to concur with me that this is a work of no small genius. Click the pic below for the full size version..

Two more for the road..

Still haunted by this movie.. and just found a fabulous orchestral version of Mancini’s great theme that I hadn’t come across before. Too good, too damn good..

Early Sunday Morning..

.. That’s what time it is here, and I just heard the news.

This was always my favourite composition of his.

(Of course I’ve just realised that it’s actually early Monday morning but what the hell..)

Music, metaphor and manipulation..

Two clips saying strangely similar things in strangely different ways..

“…It was that damned sonata..”

“…name the unnameable…”

Sydney Pollack, 1934-2008

A clip from Out of Africa, which I guess would be generally considered to be his masterpiece, although my favourite of his movies was The Yakuza, with Robert Mitchum and Takakura Ken, which I saw as a teenager and which planted the seed of a desperate desire to travel to Japan, a whole decade before I would eventually get the chance to do so..

( I’m listening to John Barry’s gorgeous Out of Africa main theme, and remembering that I always subconsciously referred to it as ‘Free Born’ , for reasons that I assume are obvious..)

Spinning and spiralling..

.. through the sky. I was reminded of this last night, by une belle petite oisette (I know, that doesn’t really work, does it?). Anyway, the very striking girl accompanying Corinne in a few scenes is, of course, the lovely Belinda, delectable wife of Mr. Staveley O’Duffy, who can himself also be seen hurtling far too fast towards me down our favourite piste..

As is no doubt apparent, this was pretty much my first attempt at iMovie. Let’s be generous and say it has a certain..er, ‘naive charm’..

Anyone know what this is?..

..No? How about a slightly longer version?..

C’mon, I know there’s at least one person out there who knows this one..

Oh, alright, then.. a little audio assistance..

Babyfoot..

.. I just caught myself reminiscing over the fact that I once knew someone who was as good as this..

You don’t know me..

René and Ray agree on that much at least..

Father Jack..

I was obliged at the weekend, against my better judgement, to attend the First Holy Communion of the daughter of close friends. It was, of course, a mistake – big old church, big old priest.. and all I could think of, as he continued to pontificate, were the words of the immortal Jack Handey, which, as it happens, were some of the first I quoted on this blog, a while ago now..

“If a kid asks where rain comes from, I think a cute thing to tell him is “God is crying.” And if he asks why God is crying, another cute thing to tell him is “Probably because of something you did.”

..and while we’re on the subject of Catholic Guilt, and sinners in general, no-one nailed it better than Mrs. Doyle..