A review of the new David Fincher film “Killer”
November 6th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
Director David Fincher is the master of the thriller movie – think “Seven” or “Fight Club” or “Gone “Girl”. Here the tension begins with the jarring opening credits and never caeses for the next two taut hours.In his first screen role for four years, Michael Fassbender plays a superbly professional assassin – never named – who suddenly finds that the hunter has become the hunted. Fassbender – who is rarely off the screen – is brilliant as he methodically travels from one location to another to find and eliminate his adversaries in echoes of “Kill Bill”. Based on a French graphic novel, it is not simply that the point of view is that of the killer but we inhabit his mind as we hear him mentally repeat his mantra and listen to a series of music tracks from The Smiths.
The entire film is wonderfully stylish, but there are two stand-out scenes: a brutal fight sequence with a character simply titled The Brute (Sala Baker) and an ice-cold encounter with The Expert (a brilliant Tilda Swinton). This could have been a classic but it is let down by an anti-climactic ending. However, if you like the John Wick movies, this is for you.
It will be on Netflix in a week’s time.
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Is there intelligent life out there or are we alone in the universe?
November 5th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
If it is suggested that humankind is probably the only intelligent life in the universe, some people condemn this as an arrogant thought. But this is not a matter of attitude or emotion; it is a matter of science and probability.On the one hand, it seems impossible that humans can be alone in the universe. A typical galaxy can contain around a billion stars and there are thought to be approaching 200 billion galaxies in the observable universe. On average each star has two or three planets revolving round it, so there must be millions in the ‘goldilocks zone’ where it is not too cold or too hot for liquid water to exist (which is the basis of any life that we can understand).
On the other hand, the existence of humankind on planet Earth revolving round the Sun is the result of a whole series of highly improbable variables. One of these is the ‘jump’ from single cell organisms to multi-cell organisms, something which is sometimes known as ‘the fateful encounter’ that has happened only once in more than 3 billion years of the existence of bacteria. Such an encounter does not guarantee the evolution of intelligent life forms; after all, Earth has experienced five great extinctions when substantial proportions of life on the planet were wiped out. So us being here is quite improbable.
There is actually something called the Drake Equation that attempts to give some sort of guidance as to the probability of intelligent life. It consists of seven key variables. The last of these is the length of time for which intelligent civilisations release detectable signals into space. Humans have only existed for a tiny fraction of the past life of the universe and may not continue to exist for long in the future life of the universe. So, even if other intelligent life has existed, maybe it did not coincide with our existence as a species.
I find the detectable signals variable of the Drake equation the most compelling in terms of deciding whether there is any other intelligent life out there. Any intelligent life must use parts of the electromagnetic spectrum to communicate – as we do with telecommunications, radio, television and the like – and, even if they had no wish to communicate with other intelligent life in the universe, these signals would travel through the universe for ever. Forget flying saucers and the like – how is it that we have never detected any such signals? Even ET phoned home.
On the balance of current evidence, I think that our working assumption has to be that we are alone. If we are the only intelligent life form that exists or has ever existed, we have a tremendous responsibility to preserve humankind and make it as civilised as possible.
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A review of the new blockbuster movie “Killers Of The Flower Moon”
October 31st, 2023 by Roger Darlington
Such is my admiration for them that I would see any film directed by Martin Scorsese or starring Robert De Niro or Leonardo DiCaprio, so I am never going to miss a work like this that combines the talent of all three.A few statistics: this is Scorsese’s 26th feature, it is the ninth film that Scorsese has made with De Niro and the seventh that he has made with DiCaprio, and it is the fourth time that De Niro and DiCaprio have been in a movie together. Both Scorsese and De Niro are now 80, so we may not see too much more of this sort of magnificent collaboration.
For all the talent here – and I have still to acknowledge other fine actors such as Lily Gladstone, Jesse Piemons, John Lithgow and Brendan Fraser, the wonderful cinematography of Mexican Rodrigo Prieto (“Barbie”) and the haunting soundtrack of Robbie Robertson (who has since died) – this is a film that is going to win over the critics more than the generality of cinema goers.
It is just too long (almost three and a half hours), too slow and too downbeat to pull in the punters and it is most unlikely to recoup its massive $200 million costs.
Set in Oklahoma in the 1920s, the film tells a story – based on the non-fiction novel by David Grann – that I did not know: how Native Americans of the Osage tribe, on whose land floods of oil were found, were swindled out of their landrights and often simply murdered by the white man.
The movie is a truly powerful work but, by focusing on the crimes of one white family, we do not see the full magnitude of this huge crime that was eventually investigated by the newly-formed FBI and, by ending with the recreation of a radio programme (featuring a brief cameo from Scorsese himself), we do not feel the full horror of this outrageous betrayal and bloodshed.
In short, this is a film for serious lovers of cinema who may find it a flawed masterpiece.
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How long can you stand on one leg? How often should you try?
October 31st, 2023 by Roger Darlington
In the last few weeks, three different friends have advocated to me the health benefits of standing on one leg, especially if one is a senior citizen. So I’ve decided to give it a go.
A couple of my friends do it while brushing their teeth. I don’t know how they manage this. I do it as the first thing of the day and I do it each day
I try to achieve 60 seconds for each leg but, so far, I can only achieve this by – several times in that minute – touching the ground with my other leg or touching the wall with a hand. I’m sure I’ll get better as my muscles develop.
If you’d like to read a short piece on the health benefits of this routine, you’ll find one here.
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A review of the 1973 classic film “Mean Streets”
October 28th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
Somehow, in spite of my lifelong love of the movies, I managed to miss this classic film for half a century, but then I saw a 50th anniversary showing at the British Film Institute. It was only the third feature from director Martin Scorsese – who, in this case originated the story and co-wrote the screen play – and it proved to be his breakthrough film.Set in the streets of New York’s Little Italy during the religious festival of San Gennaro, it is all about the fractious relationship between two low-level gangsters, Charlie (Harvey Keitel) and his cousin Johnny Boy (then newcomer Robert De Niro).
The film is visually and aurally arresting, with clever camerawork and lots of period music, but narratively it is an odd, even nihilistic, work. More so than any subsequent movie from Scorsese, it forefronts character over plot and there is more than a hint of screen play autobiography in the Charlie persona.
The main theme – the Catholic notion of penance – is declared by Charlie at the very beginning: “You pay for your sins in the street not in church.”
Speaking about “Mean Streets” in 2004, Scorsese admitted: “In my mind, it’s not really a film, but a declaration or a statement of who I am and how I was living, and those thoughts and dilemmas and conflicts that were very much part of my life at that time.”
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Word of the day: kilonova
October 26th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
I’m endlessly fascinated by the size and complexity of the known universe. We seem to know so little and are regularly discovering new objects. So I know about the type of object called a supernova. But today is the first time that I’ve heard of a kilovova.
A kilonova (also called a macronova) is a transient astronomical event that occurs in a compact binary system when two neutron stars or a neutron star and a black hole merge.You can read more about the recent discovery of one of these objects, and how it creates heavy elements, here.
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What is the origin of the knickerbocker glory?
October 25th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
I’ve just returned from a break in Edinburgh and, on the first night, I enjoyed a knickerbocker glory at a local Italian restaurant. This set me thinking about the origin of the dessert, so I looked it up on Wikipedia which states:
“A knickerbocker glory is a layered ice cream sundae that is served in a large tall conical glass, and to be eaten with a distinctive long spoon, particularly in Great Britain and Ireland.See alsoThe knickerbocker glory, first described in the 1920s, may contain ice cream, cream, fruit, and meringue. Layers of these different sweet tastes are alternated in a tall glass and topped with different kinds of syrup, nuts, whipped cream and often a cherry. The existence of these layers, which create red and white stripes, distinguishes the dish from a tall sundae and lends the knickerbocker glory its name. In the United States this dish is more commonly known as a parfait.
An early form of the knickerbocker glory is believed to have originated in New York in the early 1900s. The name knickerbocker (as it pertains to the dish) is thought to be named after The Knickerbocker Hotel in Manhattan, New York. During the early 1900s the hotel was pink-and-cream colored and well known to the denizens of New York. After it closed in 1920, a tall pink-and-cream colored dish was created in honor of the hotel and the word glory was appended to the name of the dish.
At some point in the 1920s the dish was introduced into the United Kingdom, where it attained great acclaim.”
Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments (0)
A review of the philosophy book “How To Be Good” by John Harris (2016)
October 24th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
I don’t read books about philosophy very often because I find them too abstract and removed from the real world, but this book was given me by the author (Emeritus Professor of Bioethics at the University of Manchester), it is commendably short (less than 200 pages), and the title intrigued me. It is a thoughtful and thought-provoking work. However, it is a rather academic text (the publisher is the Oxford University Press) written in long, if carefully constructed, sentences with some specialist terminology.There are many references to past works and previous differences with other academics, notably Ingmar Persson and Julian Savulescu, and yet Harris eventually concedes “I do not think P&S and I are, all things considered, so far apart” and acknowledges “It may well in the end come down to a clash of values” (which, I find, is often the case in arguments).
Harris is noted, in the world of philosophers, as being a libertarian-consequentialist. He favours the maximum freedom of choice and believes that a decision can only been regarded as moral is there is choice. What is the best choice? It is the one that, inter alia, best promotes justice, the rights and interests of persons, animals, and the planet and which best protects sentient individuals from suffering and harm”.
And how should one make choices? He insists that ‘ethical judgements involve, almost always, a combination of evidence and argument”. He believes – as I do – that “science is our chief hope for the future of humankind”.
I have myself written a layperson’s guide on “How To Be Good” [click here].
Posted in Cultural issues, My life & thoughts, Social policy | Comments (0)
Why did Scotland join with England in 1707?
October 22nd, 2023 by Roger Darlington
I sometimes wonder how well the peoples of the United Kingdom understand how that union was brought about and I really recommend the new BBC television series “Union” written and presented by David Olusoga.
I am in Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital, for a few days. Today I went on a walking tour that I postponed from yesterday when it was still wet because of Storm Babet.
It was enjoyable but, when I asked the guide about the Darien Scheme, he confessed that he had never heard of it. Yet the venture of 1698-1699 was a major factor in the union of Scotland with England in 1707 – a union which is now contested.
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A review of the classic Indian film “Pather Panchali”
October 19th, 2023 by Roger Darlington
The story of the little Bengali boy Apu started as the first of three bestselling novels by Bhibuti Bashan Bannerjee and became the first of three films by acclaimed Indian director Satyajit Ray: “Pather Panchali” (“Little Song Of The Road”) in 1955, “Aparajito” (“The Unvanquished”) in 1956, and “Apur Sansar” (“The World Of Apu”) in 1959. Astonishingly, the first film in the Apu trilogy was Ray’s debut and it took him a couple of years to make because of lack of funds.It is a black and white work of some two hours shot in the Bengali language with evocative music from Ravi Shanker and I was fortunate enough to see a restored version at the British Film Institute. The story is one of grinding poverty and repeated misfortune, but it is told in a loving and humanist way. Much of the photography – especially the use of water, wind and reflections – is magical and the only sign of modernity is a famous scene where Apu and his older sister Durga have a glimpse of a passing train.
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