28 Days Later

I’d like to say that it was my position as chief content editor of d4d that got me in to the first screening of 28 Days Later in Manchester. But it wasn’t – it was the fact I’m a sad git on occasion, and wanted to see the damn film.

Well, the new film by Danny Boyle (Of Trainspotting and Shallow Grave fame, and The Beach infamy) and scripted by Alex Garland (also of The Beach fame) seemed like a good idea – something worth seeing. Even if the poxy cinema company stopped their “free seat, any show” deal a day early, so I had to pay for the priviledge of watching a film accompanied by the background death rattle of a terminally sick aircon system.

Anyway, the film. Worth it? I’m not really sure – it’s mainly shot on handheld Digital Video (DV) cameras, and I’m really not convinced about them. I’m going to need to see it again at a decent cinema to be sure, but everything just seemed to be slightly out of focus. I suppose that could be the effect the director was looking for, but I’m not keen on it – just makes it look messy, for the most part.

The shots of a deserted London are very creepy – it’s a very “otherworldly” feel to it at that point, and very disorienting to see Piccadilly with no-one in it, for example. I know it was mainly done by filming at 4 in the morning, before the commuters get in, but all the same, it’s an effective scenario. The same applies to the deserted motorways and so on – and it just combines to make the “burning Manchester” into the naff effect it should have sounded like, even in the script.

Overall, I’m just not sure about this one – the storyline’s pretty good; the acting’s good; the scripting’s OK, such as it is; but the whole seems somehow less than it’s parts, and I came out feeling somewhat dissatisfied with the entire thing.

Great Northern Square

Ah, the joys of being in Manchester on a grey Thursday. Although I had an excuse – going to see 28 Days Later, the new Danny Boyle film (a review wil be on here later)…

And yes, the Christmas decorations are already up, or going up.

 

Grey Skies

And just a pic I took because of the sky outside yesterday. Should have plonked it online yesterday, forgot til today…

Ashton

Other than that little lot, there’s a mini-rant here about a town near where I live. Which’ll probably get the populace up in arms, or me struck off by the tourist board, or something similar.

Beware, new comments system ahoy.

Right, I’m pissed off with Enetation, as it’s been down for near as dammit three days now. OK, whoopie do it’s being upgraded, but it shouldn’t take 3 days. So lets see if HaloScan works any better. It’s seemed to on the other sites I’ve seen it used on.

Hopefully at some point I’ll be able to re-access enetation, and move comments over to Haloscan, rather than losing them completely. Sorry to the people who have commented and can no longer see those posts.

Cocaine ruined my career

God, it’s been “high profile media sackings” day today, hasn’t it. First of all (technically yesterday, but it’s within the last 24 hours so I’m calling that a day, for sake of argument) old Angus gets sacked from his job of 12ish years, Have I Got News For You, then today alleged rapist (blah blah blah) John Leslie gets kicked off ITV. I can’t say it bothers me as much in Deayton’s case, as he’s admitted to it, and yawn, but it’s known he did what he’s been accused of.

But sacking Leslie well, that’s one I don’t quite understand. Other than being (I hope) not the only person in the UK to go “who?”, whatever happened to “innocent until proven guilty”? From the article, it’s saying they’ve asked him what he intends to do about the allegation, (and that’s all it is) he hasn’t answered, and so he’s been sacked. Doesn’t seem fair, somehow. Ah well…

Unshocking “news” in that Enetation appears to be stuffed yet again…