Received this email today:
Friends
I have just been made aware of a 'census' coming in August.
I am NOT in the habit of forwarding emails, but this is of consideral importance to myself & the country I was born & choose to live in.
I will be ticking CHRISTIAN.
Blessings
Leith
Forwarded Message
From: Michelle
IMPORTANT
AUSTRALIA WILL BE HOLDING A CENSUS IN AUGUST
DO NOT LEAVE THE “RELIGION” SECTION BLANK. BE SURE TO AT LEAST TICK CHRISTIAN (OR YOUR UPBRINGING FAITH).
1,000,000 MUSLIMS WILL TICK THEIR BOX.
10,000,000 AUSTRALIANS WILL LEAVE IT BLANK THEN WONDER WHY A MOSQUE IS BUILT IN THEIR NEIGHBOURHOOD!!!
PASS THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS.
***
To that I say FUCK YOU.
What kind of intolerance in this world tries to prevent people in a neighbourhood from practising their faith? If people are apathetic about religion (read: don't go to a place of worship on a regular basis) then why does it matter if other people are not, as long as they don't try and impose their views on the rest of us?
Besides which, would this email have dared raged about a synagogue in the neighbourhood? A Buddhist temple?
I happen to live around the corner from the Muslim prayer hall in Artarmon and I have never had anything but polite dealings with its visitors. (Besides which, it means you can usually find a taxi close by).
It's arsewipes who use taxpayers' money to fund chaplains in schools that are the problem.
It's the backward politicians that don't recognise gay marriage because of some distant religious tradition that should be forced to see the world with 2011 eyes.
YES I AM REALLY ANGRY.
(I was going to write "I don't even know who this is!" but then I realised it's this horrible lady I met through my former Meetup group—the one that got me a boyfriend—that I never want to see again.)
My reply:
I'm happy with having a mosque in my neighbourhood. It's too many churches that spoil things.
A
29 June, 2011
#25: Favourite movie franchise/series?
Hmm! This is a hard one because the only ones I don't like are the horror ones.
I've had a lot of people diss later movies in franchises/series that 'lose their way' and while I think that's a valid argument, I feel that as long as the movie itself has something to offer, consistency with other movies is kind of secondary. I mean to say that if the film is reasonable on its own merits, then why should we worry that it's not as good as another in the franchise? After all, there are always going to be movies you think are weak or movies you don't like and that's generally subjective.
I like the X-Men franchise and, as you may have guessed from yesterday's entry, I love the Three Colours trilogy. Christopher Nolan's Batman series is shaping up to be good—better than X-Men, despite the delightful X-Men: First Class. I'll eat my hat if the third film isn't brilliant.
Another series looking to be huge is the Marvel franchise, right now a disparate bunch of films about the origins of certain heroes—Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America—which will culminate in The Avengers, directed by Joss Whedon. I already know this will be good, but just how good? We'll have to wait until next year.
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
I've had a lot of people diss later movies in franchises/series that 'lose their way' and while I think that's a valid argument, I feel that as long as the movie itself has something to offer, consistency with other movies is kind of secondary. I mean to say that if the film is reasonable on its own merits, then why should we worry that it's not as good as another in the franchise? After all, there are always going to be movies you think are weak or movies you don't like and that's generally subjective.
I like the X-Men franchise and, as you may have guessed from yesterday's entry, I love the Three Colours trilogy. Christopher Nolan's Batman series is shaping up to be good—better than X-Men, despite the delightful X-Men: First Class. I'll eat my hat if the third film isn't brilliant.
Another series looking to be huge is the Marvel franchise, right now a disparate bunch of films about the origins of certain heroes—Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America—which will culminate in The Avengers, directed by Joss Whedon. I already know this will be good, but just how good? We'll have to wait until next year.
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
28 June, 2011
#24: Favourite sequel?
A good sequel should carry the story of the original film but not rely on it. If a moviegoer has not seen the first film, he or she should be able to understand what's happening in the second all the same.
At the same time, people who have seen the original film need to benefit either with a few in-jokes, or having something happen in the sequel that throws light on events or characters in the first. It's a fine line to tread and I'm sure you all know it.
I don't generally like sequels but I'm one of those suckers who will go and see the second film just to know for sure that it's worse than the first and they never should have made it. I have been pleasantly surprised more often than I care to admit.
The best sequel I've ever seen is The Dark Knight, the second of Christopher Nolan's Batman movies. In many ways it actually surpasses the original. I think the villains get a good workout, for starters, and share the spotlight with party boy/psychopath vigilante Bruce Wayne.
But my favourite sequel (if you could call it that) is Three Colours White, directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski. How to describe it? It's about an award-winning Polish barber whose wife wants to divorce him because he can't satisfy her in bed. The barber leaves France and goes back to Poland in a suitcase... I won't say more but it's funny and touching.
I'm not sure you can call it a sequel, though because there are only cameos of characters from Three Colours Blue (the first movie) in it, rather than it being a continuation of a narrative but I'm going to nominate it all the same because this is my blog.
Day 25 - Favourite movie franchise/series?
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
At the same time, people who have seen the original film need to benefit either with a few in-jokes, or having something happen in the sequel that throws light on events or characters in the first. It's a fine line to tread and I'm sure you all know it.
I don't generally like sequels but I'm one of those suckers who will go and see the second film just to know for sure that it's worse than the first and they never should have made it. I have been pleasantly surprised more often than I care to admit.
The best sequel I've ever seen is The Dark Knight, the second of Christopher Nolan's Batman movies. In many ways it actually surpasses the original. I think the villains get a good workout, for starters, and share the spotlight with party boy/psychopath vigilante Bruce Wayne.
But my favourite sequel (if you could call it that) is Three Colours White, directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski. How to describe it? It's about an award-winning Polish barber whose wife wants to divorce him because he can't satisfy her in bed. The barber leaves France and goes back to Poland in a suitcase... I won't say more but it's funny and touching.
I'm not sure you can call it a sequel, though because there are only cameos of characters from Three Colours Blue (the first movie) in it, rather than it being a continuation of a narrative but I'm going to nominate it all the same because this is my blog.
Day 25 - Favourite movie franchise/series?
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
26 June, 2011
#23: Favourite director?
This used to be an easy question. I took a look at all my favourite movies and shortlisted the ones where I thought the direction was exceptional. Then I tallied up which director had the most movies in the shortlist and the answer was Christopher Nolan.
Before Inception (yes, I am one of the many who believe Nolan was robbed of a Best Director Oscar), which is the only heist movie I've ever liked, there was The Dark Knight and Batman Begins. But before *those* were The Prestige and Memento. Not only does Nolan pick interesting movies, he directs them well, and that combination is the winning one.
Now I said this used to be easy because I've come to realise that there are a number of films I really, really like that I don't necessarily own or name on my top films list that have amazing direction.
Among them:
Danny Boyle, for 127 Hours, Slumdog Millionaire, Sunshine, 28 Days Later and The Beach.
Guillermo del Toro, for Pan's Labyrinth.
Spike Jonze, for Where the Wild Things Are, Adaptation, and Being John Malkovich.
I also don't mind a bit of Quentin Tarantino—and I think Duncan Jones is one to watch.
Day 24 - Favourite sequel?
Day 25 - Favourite movie franchise/series?
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
Before Inception (yes, I am one of the many who believe Nolan was robbed of a Best Director Oscar), which is the only heist movie I've ever liked, there was The Dark Knight and Batman Begins. But before *those* were The Prestige and Memento. Not only does Nolan pick interesting movies, he directs them well, and that combination is the winning one.
Now I said this used to be easy because I've come to realise that there are a number of films I really, really like that I don't necessarily own or name on my top films list that have amazing direction.
Among them:
Danny Boyle, for 127 Hours, Slumdog Millionaire, Sunshine, 28 Days Later and The Beach.
Guillermo del Toro, for Pan's Labyrinth.
Spike Jonze, for Where the Wild Things Are, Adaptation, and Being John Malkovich.
I also don't mind a bit of Quentin Tarantino—and I think Duncan Jones is one to watch.
Day 24 - Favourite sequel?
Day 25 - Favourite movie franchise/series?
Day 26 - Popcorn?
Day 27 - Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
Day 28 - Last film you bought.
Day 29 - Last film you watched.
Day 30 - Five films that mean a lot to you.
Twenty-one categories of this meme are from Books and Movies and Wordsmithsonia. The rest of the categories are my own creation.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)