May 2006 Archives

For several months now I've been toying with the idea of turning up to a Cambridge Critical Mass ride. On checking their website however I've now discovered that they have admitted - in flowery terminology - that turnout for these events has been much lower than is required to keep them viable.

For those who don't know a "Critical Mass" ride is essentially a protest ride by cyclists where they ride en-mass to show that there are cyclists in that city and that they should be respected by other road users. To be honest I'm not surprised that the Cambridge (UK) version is not as popular. If you look at cities where Critical Mass events take place regularly, Frisco, NY, London etc what you see is that these are large super-cities where cyclists are under represented and cyclists are essentially in fear of using the roads.

Cambridge does not need a Critical Mass, since there is no reason - at present - to protest about under representation or about attitudes from other road users. In essence if you want to see large groups of cyclists using Cambridge roads and cycle facilities, merely watch the everyday traffic in the city. Photos coming soon!

If there were a spate of accidents involving cyclist casualties at the hands of motor vehicles, or a change to council regulation with respect to road planning and cycle accomodation then I'm sure protest rides would gain more interest. At the present time though it would seem that it is an unecessary protest.

Some critics have dubbed this film as “this year’s Donny Darko”. I disagree with this statement however. Superficially the film has a similar subject: teen angst in the latter years of high school coupled with mysterious goings-on.

‘Brick’ is a teen angst movie executed in the style of a nineteen thirties film noir. Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt of ‘Third Rock from the Sun’ fame) is a post-pubescent student attempting to get to the bottom of his ex-girlfriend’s demise. Played as a Raymond Chandleresque character we soon learn what a devious fellow Brendan is, playing each side and person off each other to find out what he needs.

Freshman director Rian Johnson also wrote the screenplay for this film, and appears to pay homage to the kind of films that Humphrey Bogart was best known for. However, it goes beyond mere homage by adding stylish cinematography and, by giving seriousness to teenage crises, reminds us that we were all young once too. At first it felt that the characters were taking things a bit too seriously, but then one remembers that at that age even choosing who to sit with at lunch could be an important daily decision!

As for the dialogue, it can be hard to keep up with the film and get one’s ear into the delivery. Maybe the dialogue was done in accurate 21st century American accents, for which I am not attuned. Most of my effort was spent concentrating on the aural aspects of the movie. Obviously the transcontinental accent issue has occurred before; the film ‘Trainspotting’ is reputed to have required re-dubbing for its American audience.

Ultimately the film has a simple basic plot, but is convoluted by the (at first) unfamiliar terminology and delivery; extra interest comes with the film’s rapid action and fast scene-switching. This makes for fascinating viewing and at 1 hour 50 minutes does not attempt to bore you with long scenes or deliberate padding. There is also a certain degree of amusement to be had especially with some of the more antagonistic moments of the film. It must be said that ‘Brick' has less humour than ‘Donnie Darko’ and has no supernatural elements; it does appear that this film may be heading for that now popular “cult” status that so many films aspire to and yet fail to achieve.

*** (out of 5)

Here's a quick picture of the GPS trail of our nofear charity cycle ride.

If you scrunch up your eyes you can just about imagine the coast of East Anglia, and if you know your routes you can see where we led Chenapan against his will to various side-tracks. Plus there are a couple of slightly less deliberate detours. Full stats from the cycle ride coming later...

Werner Herzog directed his own material and incorporated footage taken by new age environmental activist Timothy Treadwell to create a documentary about the man who was ultimately mauled to death by the same animals he was trying to protect.

I’ve read that this film was shown on the Discovery channel but I elected to see it on the big screen. I was not disappointed; much of the film is made up of Timothy Treadwell’s own film shot within feet of Alaskan brown bears. Herzog, a distinguished filmmaker who usually makes his own features, has often incorporated juxtaposition of man and nature, and was clearly drawn into investigating Treadwell’s own fascination with these dangerous wild animals. The film itself mainly deals with the events surrounding Treadwell’s, and his then girlfriend’s death whilst camping in the Katmai National Park in Alaska.

The film opens with Treadwell standing literally feet away from a family of brown bears explaining how you have to be a “shadow warrior” when getting close to these animals, and a slip in confidence will get you killed immediately. The scene is both hilarious and scary, the young bears get too close to the camera and Treadwell shouts at them in a high-pitched effeminate accent to scare them away. He sounds scared, the bear jumps away, and then he shouts “I love you” to the bear. It’s at this point you realise that there is something more to his closeness to the bears than just environmental interest.

The rest of the film shows some of the most impressive film of these animals I’ve seen, and features interviews with people who dealt with Treadwell, including his zany ex. Jewel Palovak who worked with Treadwell to set up ‘Grizzly People’, an organisation dedicated to protecting bears and their habitat. The mood within the movie swings between a range of emotions; largely produced by Treadwell himself, who comes across as being somewhat manic. A scene where Treadwell films an apparently dead bumble bee stuck in a flower with Treadwell getting quite emotional about the death of this creature, then the film cuts and the bee is now seen to have been merely sleeping – Treadwell’s joy is both amusing and disturbing simultaneously. Herzog creates a brilliant juxtaposition himself, in one scene we witness Herzog listening to the audio of the attack on Treadwell and girlfriend Amie Huguenard, Herzog is visibly shaken by the experience – which we have not heard ourselves. The film then cuts to Treadwell’s own footage of two adult bears fighting on a beach. The power this sight evokes puts in the viewer’s mind just how horrific the attack must have been.

The only thing that spoilt the film to my mind was the hammy performance by Franc G. Fallico, the coroner, who abuses his fifteen minutes of fame and produces the most unnatural scenes of the film.

Overall we are given an insight into how one person, driven by insecurities brought about by people, found salvation in spending time with the wildest of animals. Despite the ethical and environmental debate about Treadwell’s actions the overall feeling, to my mind anyway, is that Treadwell did find his niche. The final scene of the film with Treadwell is one that is just out of fantasy.

****1/2 (out of 5)