Madolescents

Charged on hormones, testosterone, bad dreams and low self esteem, the adolescents that slide the spectrum of insanity are a muse for many projects, on the screen, stage and pages. As a dodgily wired up eighteen year old, these intrigue me; whether it's because some middle aged guy thinks he knows how it feels to be young still and I want to rip the shit out of him, or because occasionally someone manages to tap into the madness and portray it originally. 

Girl, Interrupted (1999) Dir. James Mangold

Actual mental people, who go actually properly crazy; Girl, Interrupted is not for the faint hearted. Set way back in the 60s, the narrative follows an androgynous Winona Ryder as she works out what's going on in her head. Befriended by wild child Angelina Jolie, the pair trundle along doing what crazy people do, getting better or worse depending on how you see things. It's a film about friendship and hurting yourself on the outside to kill the thing on the inside. Popular with angsty female teens, Girl, Interrupted gets some bad press, but stripped down the psychology underlying the script and raw, feisty performances from the entire cast make this a film to see before you die. Just don't expect it to leave you in a good mood.

 

Manic (2001) Dir. Jordan Melamed

I've been watching this on half the screen while writing on the other. Joseph Gordon-Levitt brought Manic to my attention; he hasn't done a bad film to date. And he doesn't disappoint. Shot using hand held cameras, filmed on location and padded out by ex-institutionalised teenagers for extras, Manic doesn't leave much to the imagination. In a very good way; the entire film feels as 'real' as a documentary, the characters are perfectly flawed and, most importantly, it ends hopefully. Manic is by far one of the best films I have ever seen, and had an unusual relevance to how I felt at the time I first saw it. Joe's character Lyle answers the question 'Who is the most important person in your life?' with "I don't really think I've met that person yet. But honestly I think it's just as well 'cos . . I mean I almost hope that I never do meet 'em because if I do I know they'd just fuck me over." Manic, it is a film for the lonely and let down, the angry and the heart broken. 

The Madolescents by Chrissie Glazebrook

Rowena M Vincent. M as in Mad, as in Madder than logs. So mad in fact, that she's told to attend group sessions with other barmy adolescents. Turns out they all get on like a house on fire (literally) and dub themselves, the Madolescents. Absent fathers, cat fleas, sex on sheep skin rugs, Dolly Parton, dead babies, back combed hair, fingernails, cocktails, fatties, obsessives and depressives all thrown in to one decent length novel sounds like a good deal. More so when it's Chrissie Glazebrook penning the hilarious inner workings of Rowena, in a dark, intertexual comedy that will make you cry with laughter. Probably. Also has a sequel called the Blue Spark Sisters, just as funny, not quite so fucked up.

Thirteen (2003) Dir. Catherine Hardwicke 

Catherine Hardwicke is a woman of many talents. Thirteen is the epitome is all those individuals talents, worked together to create a revelation in film. Apart from a stark representation of teenage life, Thirteen is also dissection of emotion and relationships, focusing on mother and daughter, and Evan Rachel Wood's desperate attempts to fit in and be popular. Although the film features mostly female characters, it is applicable to every person on the planet because no one has lived without the struggles presented in Thirteen; to be loved and appreciated. What deepens the impact is that Nikki Reed was thirteen when she co-wrote the film and just fourteen when she starred in it; to a critic Thirteen might be a dramatically exaggerated portrayal of a thirteen year old girl's behavior, but for Nikki this is a film about her life.

C.R.A.Z.Y (2005) Dir. Jean-Marc Vallee

Subtitled films have always held a particular appeal, maybe because you don't miss a word the characters are saying. The gorgeous Marc-André  Grondin  plays a 'confused' guy who doesn't feel he can come out to his family because he doesn't want to disappoint his father. As cliche or whatever as it may sound, C.R.A.Z.Y is funny, colourful and infinite. The appeal of such an incredible film, complete with a legendary 70s soundtrack, will never die; there will always be more 'confused' teenagers edging out of the closet.

There you have it, five great films to get stuck into next time there's no one to tell you to pull your act together. Tomorrow morning Eurostar will be leaving St Pancras with me and my case in it's belly. No posts until Friday night at the earliest,  au revoir 

Heart Breaker

The last bit of Garbage is going up straight after this, read the entire short story here. 

After tomorrow it's all stations go for getting a script down for Hangers and the new parallel universe project. Fingers crossed it'll be perfected for this Autumn so casting can commence and throw up a load of interesting people to shoot and hang out with. Since the weekend, my head's been spinning in a way that feels bad, which is good. Not enough nicotine, too much drink mixing.

Sickening. 

. .  Back with chocolate ice-cream and 'fresh from the scanner' image files of the model Tyler, who seems to be the more chiseled version of Paul Dano. And we like Paul Dano, because he's a good actor who does good films, L.I.E and Little Miss Sunshine. Anyway, Tyler.

Pick up, pin on. Badges of priorities and pride, hand over heart we stand for what we believe in. British flags and old punk bands, born and bore on each beating chest. Give it some heart. 

A Boy Less Ordinary

Maybe I can tell her all the things we don't have words for here.

British model Agyness Deyn photographed by Nick Knight, i-D May 2008

Torture Garden

In the blink of an eye half the year is down the drain and the point of no return is upon us. In two weeks I have the last exams I will ever sit and I should have been revising this week. I've been otherwise engaged. Camden was all bipolar weather and good natured bartering on Thursday; better than the last visit in February. There's a buzz, an adrenaline rush that London inspires in me that nowhere else does. No matter how long I stay away from the city, it always draws me back, it will always be my home town. Camden Piercing & Tattoo Studio shoved a leaflet under my nose before anyone else, so they received the honor of sticking sharp objects into me. 

Yesterday it was Beer Fest

Needless to say, Sam, Barry and I all drank copious amounts of ale. All in the name of charity, of course. After stumbling to and from town, eating bread in Sainsburys car park and passing out/forgetting all that had previously occurred, we sobered up enough to watch a film and eat cake with Jimmy. Half way through, we get some unexpected visitors. Chels, Beth and a brand spanking new, teeny tiny, screwed up and red in the face baby Morgan! Not as if anyone had told me Beth had given birth . . but it was a great surprise. Sobered up pretty quick after that. He is the spit of his mum and dad, he was only born at 6.30am on Friday, so bloody impressed that Beth was so chirpy and glowing; congratulations!

The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory

The novel, not the film. I'll start by saying that I am not planning on watching the adaptation for two reasons - Americanising part of British history is wrong, there are no leads given to British actors and the whole enterprise is Hollywood's attempt to gold mine a foreign history because America does not have it's own. Also, the trailer showed clips that were not in the novel and from what I've seen the whole thing has been produced in the interest of profit, and not accuracy regarding the original novel or the historical Tudor period. 

Back to the book:

It's an eye opener. Not only into real British history, but also in the way that characterisation and interweaving narrative strands can be used so effectively as to make the fiction convincing, even if the quality of the actual writing is nothing of distinction. Personal preference in writing techniques and styles leads me to conclude that Philippa Gregory is nothing special when it comes to penning content; she uses many of the same phrases, terms and descriptions repetitively, which is boring, frustrating and unnecessary. Also, there is little use of commas in her lists of adjectives and premodifiers, another pet hate as, in written mode, punctuation should be carefully considered so as to read well and communicate the correct tone. However, the detail she picks up upon in the individual characters allows the reader to feel as if they too are in the court of Henry VIII. 

Written from the perspective of the infamous Anne Boleyn's  (right above) forgotten sister, Mary Boleyn (left above) the story is about their rivalry in a bid to bed the king. Unconvinced by the start of the book, although it must have been alright because I rarely get past the first page if nothing's interested me, the introduction and development of the character George Boleyn, the brother of Anne and Mary. It was much more fun guessing early on that George was gay and waiting for all the other characters to catch on than pay much attention to the main plot. Philippa Gregory incorporates the 16th Century attitudes towards the link between 'abnormal' sexual practices, Satanism, witchcraft etc and miscarriage/fetal deformities. George and Anne are accused of incest and George's homosexual affairs are blamed for several miscarriages and the birth of a dead 'monster' baby. It wasn't the aim of the book at all, but I was much more interested in what George and Sir Francis were getting up to, and working out whether the Boleyns were incestuous in their desperation to have a male heir for Henry VIII. 

The build up to the ending was excellent. There is no tell tale giveaway about whether certain characters will be arrested, charged and executed, although knowing the fate of Anne Boleyn and the future of the Tudor reign is a vital insight. My heart was racing ten pages from the end, only to be let down by a rushed finish that served the novel no justice; after wading through 529 pages I expected an infinite conclusion that would allow me to day dream about it for days to come. Unfortunately, it was very finite and now it's all over I doubt I'll be doing it again anytime soon. 

Recommended only for readers with patience and an intense imagination. The Other Boleyn Girl falls flat on it's face unless read with an active mind's eye and the ability to exaggerate the hinted darker moments.

In other reading, Vogue Hommes International Spring-Summer 2008

Cover: Josh Beech, one of the new British models to appear here there and everywhere, flaunting raw, sexy Britishness.

The issue's theme is EROTIC, the only reason I picked it up. Inside is a feast of half naked, beautiful men and enough articles to keep your eyes keen. Watch the preview here and do yourself a favour and invest £5 in the glossy pages of Vogue Hommes International.

And now . . . all that's left now is to get exams over and done with and disappear off to Paris for a bit. All's well that ends well.