Phew, this was quite a lot to read wasn't it? Well, it is a whole year isn't it - 2013!!! The year that was.
Here we are again and I am starting this next part at just after eleven at night on New Year's Eve - I'm at work! I don't think I will have finished every single part by midnight that is for sure... In fact, I doubt that I will finish this part by then. Let's see shall we?
Now, what events happened between January and March then?
Oh dear, plenty of wars started in January in the shape of the Syrian civil war, the war in North-West Pakistan, the Colombian conflict, and the Nigerian Sharia conflict. A four-year old boy was killed by a stray bullet shot from a gun during New Year celebrations in the Philippines, and... Crikey, dark dark dark!
I remember a few things during the year, and in a way I know that it skates over things to do so, but I don't really want it to be all doom and gloom. There were some good things as well for crying out loud!
We saw the return of Justin Timberlake to the music world. The guy who continues the poppy danciness (made up a word there) that was Michael Jackson's stock in trade released his first album for seven years in March in the form of The 20/20 Experience... Only to be followed in September with The 20/20 Experience 2 of 2... You wait all those years for a new album and he issues two in the same year. Personally I like some of his songs, and I thought the 2006 album FutureSex/LoveSounds had some really good stuff on there. I'd have liked to have seen what would have happened with the proposed album Michael Jackson was going to be working on with guest producers including Justin with his mate Timbaland, as well as others.
Anyway...
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| He's back!!! |
Television? Hmm, I think I will just do a generic "my year of telly" later... I'm not Clive James, I haven't got the time ;-)
On February the 28th scientists created the first living lab-grown ear using a 3D printer from collagen and ear cell cultures from animals. It's hoped that in the future they could create transplant organs and parts for humans and animals using this method. Tests and experiments are ongoing!
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| A human ear created using cells on a 3D printer.. Perhaps I could get one to make guitars? |
On February the 28th Benedict XVI resigned as the pope, and was succeeded by Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio from Argentina who takes on the name Francis (they do that a lot don't they - weird. What would be wrong with Pope Jorge the First or whatever?)
In a nutshell, so far I have the "bullet points" from the year... I really wanted some things from my friends and family on Facebook and Twitter, but no response so far... Oh well!
Ten to midnight... I'm taking a break. This review will take a while :-)
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| Happy New Year everyone :-) |
In April like many others I was absolutely shocked and lost for words by the explosion during the marathon in Boston, Massachusetts. This is an awful thing and I will never ever understand why these people do these things. To kill people without any actual reason other than to create terror is pointless and completely inhumane. It is unfathomable and, for someone who very much fights for human rights (as a supporter of Amnesty International), that tests me to the point of saying that they don't deserve any! I'm sorry, I wish in some ways that I didn't feel that way, but I do.
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| Milo O' Shea (RIP) in a scene from the television series Frasier. |
Irish actor Milo O'Shea died in April who played Durand Durand in Barbarella. I haven't seen it, but it's supposedly a cult sci-fi classic, and the band Duran Duran named themselves after that character. He features in the Duran Duran film Arena, which is what I remember him from the most.
I can't miss out that Margaret Thatcher died in April, but will leave it at that. She did make a difference to society in the UK, but to go on about that would make this very political!
I can't believe that I had forgotten about Chris Kelly (rapper from Kris Kross) had died in May. I remember the image more than the music, as well as the fact that both he and Chris Smith featured in Michael Jackson's music video for Jam (a song that was really flipping long on the Dangerous album anyway but was made even longer for the music video as well as featuring a lead vocal track that is much too low in the mix during the verse).
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| Ray Harryhausen RIP, with King Kong, for which he created the stop motion animation for. |
On May the seventh the legend that is Ray Harryhausen passed away. I have such great memories of the films Jason & The Argonauts, the Sinbad films, Clash of the Titans, and so much more. He was one of the most visionary filmmakers that the world has seen in my opinion.
The American actor Steve Forrest passed away in May as well, and him I remember from the Mission Impossible series repeats here in the eighties and nineties. British actor Bill Pertwee (actor in Dad's Army) died in May, his cousin was former Doctor Who star Jon Pertwee, who is the father of actor Sean Pertwee.
Phew... ... ... ... We're nearly half way through the year! I'll push on and finish this one after June. I think after this though I might leave it and carry on during the next shift at work ;-)
Scottish author Iain Banks died in June, famous for works such as The Wasp Factory and The Bridge. We also lost the wonderful actor James Gandolfini in June, famous for roles in True Romance, Crimson Tide, The Mexican, and of course The Soprano's.
Writer Richard Matheson died in June. He was responsible for writing the books I Am Legend and The Shrinking Man, as well as episodes of The Twilight Zone. He wrote some great stuff!
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| Actor and martial artist Jim Kelly (RIP) with Bruce Lee. |
Lastly, but no means least, the actor/martial artist Jim Kelly died as well, who was one of the stars of the film Enter The Dragon (one of my favourite films).
In world news I was again crying for the many who died in the flash floods in India between June the 14th and 30th. More than 5,700 people died as a consequence. It was the sort of event that leaves anybody lost for words. An awful tragedy.
Ooh, films...
The science fiction film Oblivion came out in April starring Tom Cruise. I thought it was a decent film that had a lot of tropes in, but it plodded slightly. It had the potential to be a classic sci-fi in the same way as Silent Running, I Am Legend, Planet of the Apes, et al... It didn't quite hit that mark though for some reason. The acting was okay, but could have been better. Wow, an actual review of a film I saw (eight months later on DVD). At least they changed the title from All You Need Is Kill, which was a ridiculous title for the film's premise!
I actually saw Iron Man 3 at the cinema and loved it... For the most part! i just didn't like the end bit with the fireworks type thing. I'm not going to give it away, but I just hated that bit so much! Both me and Louise enjoyed the Matthew McConaughey film Mud when we saw it on DVD together. A decent "by the numbers" thriller, but the film The Big Wedding (starring Robert DeNiro, Diane Keaton, etc) that came out the same day over here was absolutely dire - one of the worst comedies I have ever seen in my opinion. Me and Louise expected it to be great with the cast involved, but I think we laughed perhaps twice during the whole film. Louise actually wished she had seen Iron Man 3 with me a week before when I saw it on my own!I obviously went to the cinema to see Star Trek Into Darkness as well... A film that I enjoyed for the most part, but perhaps it's just me but I got irritated by the borrowed dialogue from a previous Trek incarnation. I did love the inclusion of Section 31 into the story though - a fantastic coup there in my opinion. They were something that stemmed from the Deep Space Nine part of the Star Trek world originally that I thought were a fantastic idea. After the film finished I was entertained, but peeved by the unoriginality in places. I don't want to give too much away here, although I think "the twist" has been given away by so many already. I won't be one of those people. I would definitely watch it again though because for the most part it is a great reimagining of a character.
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| Me doing the "Spock brow lift" |
The Great Gatsby came out in May, and we haven't seen it yet. Louise wants to see it, so I think we probably will. I am very much a fan of music from that era so I'm a little averse to modern dance and rap songs being used... We will see.
I enjoyed watching Fast & Furious 6 in May at the cinema (again one I watched on my own - they have cheap daytime entrance at our cinema). There were ridiculous bits in the film, but it goes with the territory. I've seen them all (and own them on DVD), so I am used to it by now. More on this franchise in a later post :-(
Ooh, I haven't seen Before Midnight yet... I better hire it out since me and Louise have seen the two previous films Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (I can't remember which order they are in). I thought that After Earth was sort of okay, but there was more wood in the performances than there is in a timber yard. The stand out was the incredible scenery and cinematography per se (all digital of course).
The Joss Whedon vision of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing... I enjoyed it and was fascinated by the bard's words in a modern world. The odd liberty was taken sure, but for the most part the dialogue remained the same. Amy Acker was the best thing in the piece for me, but as I said I enjoyed it. It won't equal my favourite screen version of Much Ado, which is the Kenneth Branagh directed one, but it was good. I think Louise got bored with the whole modern world with olde english language.
Man of Steel - both me and Louise went to see that at the cinema and loved it to bits. Sure it wasn't Christopher Reeve, who to me is the greatest Superman/Clark Kent (yes, they're both the same person believe it or not - weird that they didn't hide that in this film). It was action, great character development, and some nice moodiness in there to make it a "modern vision" of the Superman world (why are most superhero films nowadays so dark?).We will be getting Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University coming through from Lovefilm at some point, as I have World War Z. And with that, the first half of 2013 is reviewed... Phew.
We will rest now before carrying on with Part Three of this exhaustive piece.
Thank you for reading, please take care.
January 1st 2014 (43 years, one month, and 5 days old).
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