Chapter 229 Review: Shutter Island

Verse 1

Shutter Island is a movie directed by none other than Martin Scorsese and starred by Leonardo DiCaprio, Swedish actor Max von Sydow is seen in a small part as an unlikeable doctor. The movie is based on the book by Dennis Lehane that i believe i have read but i can't remember enough to say if the movie follow the book or not.

I am not really sure that i dare to be as critical as i feel is warranted here because J might do me harm when we meet next time but i think i will risk it.

The movie is as i said based on a book but even if you haven't read it you will most likely have a clear feeling of what might happen in the next scene or even how the movie will end. I expect they tried to make the movie captivating and mysterious with a feeling of "what is the real truth" but i think they failed.
The ploy of using a mental institution and doctors messing with peoples head to make them unsure of themselves and reality has been used so many times that it takes something special to make it work. Unfortunately Shutter Island falls short of that and several other crucial ambitions.

Shutter Island

There are occasionally some ok acting but even DiCaprio fail to deliver i think. He has surprised me several times with some skillful acting like in Blood Diamond and The Departed, another movie directed by Scorsese where the ending was terrible but DiCaprio good but this time i am disappointed.

There are really no exceptional scenes to mention in this movie either or any really good quotes, something that usually can make me like a movie more.

The ending will come as no surpise to any one nor the fact that i cannot in good conscience recommend this movie without reservations.

Watch it on dvd but don't expect too much.

Chapter 228 Review: Thirst (some spoilers)

Verse 1

I am never really sure why i watch Korean movies but i think i always have a hope that i will be surprised and like them. That they are different from the Hollywood kind is obvious and they usually have some redeeming qualities.

Thirst is a strange story about a priest that volunteers to help find a vaccine for a deadly virus so he is intentionally infected. He dies and almost immediately wakes up, then not knowing that he has turned into a vampire.
I could go on for a while and tell you about all the things that happen later on but i will just say that the way vampires die in this movie reminds me off how they died in Blade and that is the most positive thing i have to say.

Thirst

The characters are all dull and the moral dilemma the priest faces as he needs to drink human blood to survive is not compelling and does not really move me. You can see the conclusion coming from a mile away and i ended up fast-forwarding a lot. The love-drama is also not very exciting even though there are some surprisingly "explicit" sex-scenes. 

The director Chan-wook Park has mixed some comedy into the vampire story but even if i smiled a few times it doesn't really work.

I just have add this movie to a growing pile of failed attempts to broaden my movie-horizon.

I do not recommend this movie even on dvd.

Chapter 227 I want these

Verse 1

Today i found something that i have been on a slow lookout after for a little while now. To have this piece standing in the hallway greeting any visitors would be kinda cool. An unusual but still classic piece of furniture.

Photo: Auktionskompaniets auctions

I am certain we all can remember these and the tricks we used to get the most out of them. After you had inserted your coin you turned the handle and chewing-gum fell out the slot but there were different tactics to this. Some said you should turn it fast but i was and am a firm believer of taking it slow. Usually that would get me one or two pieces more than a fast or normal turning would.

I can tell you that the left one will drop one big gum and the right four small pieces on a slow turn for the price of  SEK 1 for each machine.
How they tasted? That is between me and A.

You can find the auction here 

Chapter 226 Pork Tenderloin, Rosemary and Thyme

Verse 1

I am usually not a big fan of pork and i very much prefer beef but yesterday we made something really nice. I can't take much credit but i did some nice french fries to go with it.

First you take nice piece of pork tenderloin, try to avoid those tail-thin pieces you often see and go for one that is at least 7 or 8 centimeters in diameter.
After you have prepared the meat you take dried rosemary and thyme together with flake salt and grind it in a pestle. I have one in cast-iron that i really like.

Marble, not cast-iron

Roll the tenderloin in the mix and be generous, it will give an exciting flavor to the meat. Grill the meat in a frying pan just enough to give it a nice surface and put in the the oven at 200 degrees (centigrade) After we had removed the tenderloin we put a little water in the pan and stirred around a little to get all the herbs, this goes into the oven together with the meat.

Let it sit in the oven for 20-30 minutes but check to make sure it's not overdone because pork will get dry easily.

I strongly suggest that you get an oven-thermometer and take it out at 70 degrees.

Let it rest for a few minutes, under tin-foil if you wish and cut it up

This will make a very juicy, tender dish that is full of taste and i hope you will enjoy it.

Rosemary

Thyme

Chapter 225 I will go, obviously

Verse 1

Today Thursday Vildmarksmässan (Wilderness Fair) opens and and one of the keywords this year is "prylarna" which can be loosely translated to "gadgets"
With a theme like that there is of course no chance that i can stay away so this weekend i will go and take a look. Hopefully there wont be anything to buy at all so i can escape with my money and later watch the Melodifestivalen with a semi-clear conscience.

To be honest i have little hope that i will make through without at least one purchase.

Chapter 224 Review: The Wolfman (2010)

Verse 1

This is yet another remake of a movie we have seen any number of times and you can possibly guess what i thought of it.

There are a number of well known actors starring in this movie. Benicio del Toro is of course The Wolfman and Anthony Hopkins is his father with a little secret of his own. Emily Blunt is the female star and Hugo Weaving play the policeman trying to stop the grisly murders taking place, he played among other roles Elrond in Lord of the Rings and Agent Smith in Matrix.

Unfortunately this group cannot save this movie from being mediocre at best and fast-forward boring at worst.

I do not recommend it.

Chapter 223 Asked and answered

Verse 1

The item from Chapter 221 is of course a Micro Grappling Hook, never leave home without it!
Very useful for pulling yourself out of bed on a Monday morning, just hook it to the nearest cat and throw some catnip for it to chase and up you go.

Ps.
No cats were harmed in the writing of this post.

Chapter 222 Review: Alice in Wonderland

Verse 1

I am sure we all have seen at least one version of Lewis Carroll's  Alice in Wonderland and if not this version with among others Johnny Depp as Mad Hatter, Mia Wasikowska as Alice and Helena Bonham Carter as Red Queen is not a bad place to start.

Mad Hatter

Alice

Red Queen

Tim Burton is of course the director and if you are familiar with his work you have an idea of what to expect. He doesn't follow the story to the letter but that is not a problem for me, i enjoyed his version of the classic and there are several other familiar actors this cast that do very well interpreting the known characters. 

Stephen Fryn does a very relaxed and likeable Cheshire Cat, Matt Lucas known from the tv-series Little Britain play the two weird boys Tweedledee and Tweedledum and if you are a fan of the series you will recognize his manners in Alice.

Cheshire Cat

Tweedledee and Tweedledum

If you like Tim Burton, Johnny Depp and odd characters in a weird setting i think you can enjoy this movie. It is not ground-breaking in any way but it is almost  two hours well spent. I like dialogue that contain material that make good quotes and there are several of those in this movie and that is a bonus in my book.

I recommend it.

Chapter 221 Question of the day #2

Verse 1

My latest acquisition just arrived and you will of course get the chance to guess what it is. Just a few details because i think this one is quite easy.
It is made of steel and 5 centimeters long, the three spikes you see protruding are 2,5 centimetres. There is a hole at the top end for attaching something.

How could i ever have resisted buying this little thing?

What is this?

Good luck!

Chapter 220 Glory be and answers

Verse 1

It may rain, it may be dirty slush on every street, windy and like hell in many ways but i feel a glimmer of hope that we soon can enjoy the slow demise of Winter.

To answer the question from Chapter 217 i can let you know that it was a Honey Stove that was just too cute to resist!