Quick Review: Twilight Saga's New Moon

It's fair to say, that after the monstrosity of an adaptation that was 'Twilight', I was fairly apprehensive about 'New Moon'. While I love 'Twilight' as a standalone film, it misses many of the elements that make the book so appealing. I could rant about the smaller details that were missed that would have truly enhanced the film for fans, but I won't. This review is not about 'Twilight'.

'New Moon' was, in a word, amazing. It had everything it was supposed to, and more. Chris Weitz really did everything that Catherine Hardwick failed to do. It was, simply, the book, on screen.

It's hard to know if it was because of better directing, or just a familiarity with the roles that they didn't have in 'Twilight', but the actors portrayed the characters much better, and it was far easier to see them as the characters we love from the book (in 'Twilight', while the names were the same, the emotions and traits just..weren't there.). They were more comfortable in the roles, and that came across on screen.

I was worried about how the wolf pack, and more specifically, the actual wolves would be created, but I needn't have been. They were exactly as I had pictured..perhaps more frightening. (I'd go on about CGI or whatever you call it...if I knew anything about that type of thing!) There isn't a huge amount of screen time for the wolves in 'New Moon', so I am really excited about 'Eclipse', which should feature them a lot more.

The film also gives us our first glimpse of the Volturi, the royal family and lawkeepers of the vampire world. Being so used to the Cullens, how friendly, and good they are, meeting the Volturi shows us really just how menacing and dangerous their world is. Michael Sheen as Aro was fantastic. He played the role perfectly...I cannot praise him enough.

There's very little I can say without ruining it (though really, as was pointed out to me, all you need to do is read the book to know what the film is like)...it truly was amazing, and I would recommend it to EVERYONE. Go see it. Do it. Do it NOW!

21 years (almost)

How fast it goes...

Skip about 8 years that I can find NO pictures from..

Not just me?

I'm a daughter through a text.

Playing dress up

Sometimes, I hate being a grown up. As grown ups go, I'm still relatively childish, but sometimes I just wish I was an actual child again, with no responsibilites, no job. When your best friend is for life, boys are icky, and school is the biggest worry in your life.

Being a grown up, of course, has it's advantages. But sometimes I miss having the decisions made for me, having someone there to take care of me. Like, proper care. Making sure I'm fed everyday, putting me to bed at a decent hour and tucking me in. The things I resented most back then are the things I miss the most now.

And, the more I think about it, the more I realise that really, I am still a child, a child that's playing dress up, dressing up as a grown up. I have no idea what I'm doing. I'm going through life blindly, hoping I make the right decisions, build the right relationships, make the right choices. I think I'm doing ok so far, but I'm terrified that I'll mess it up. Those worries didn't exist when I was a child. Being a child was blissfully ignorant.

They say youth is wasted on the young. And I'm coming to understand that.

Belly Laughs # 2 - C.R.C. Comedy Show

What? : C.R.C. Comedy Show

Where?: Olympia Theatre

When? : Thursday 15th October, 2009

M.Cd by Des Bishop, the C.R.C. Comedy Show got off to a great start, and the standard really didn't drop throughout the night. With such an exciting line-up, expectations were high, and we weren't disappointed. With 15 acts, featuring some of the biggest names in Irish Comedy, mixing with some of the lesser known, it was a great blend, and everyone left with their sides hurting.

The show featured the comedic brilliance of Des Bishop, Ian Coppinger, Marcus Bergman, Colin Murphy, Willie White, Maeve Higgins and Colm O' Regan. After a 20 minute interval (and some confusion), Dead Cat Bounce started us off again, followed by Neil Delamere, Dermot Whelan, Elenor Tiernan, Dublin Improv (with Ian C., Dermot Whelan, Joe Rooney, and Paul Tylak), Damian Clark, Eric Lalor and last, but most definitaly not least, David O' Doherty.

Was impressed by almost all the acts, especially Des Bishop, Ian Coppinger and Colin Murphy opening the show brilliantly. I was not so amused by Marcus Bergman, Willie White or Colm O' Regan during the first half. It's not that they weren't funny, the laughs all around me could dispute that, they just weren't my style. I was also surprisingly disappointed by Maeve Higgins, which will come as a shock to anyone who knows about me and my girl crush on her. She wasn't playing to a crowd of her fans, and she almost died on her feet (and knew it).

The second half of the show was far more entertaining, with only Eleanor Tiernan leaving me straight faced. I've heard loads of good things about her, but I don't get it..she wasn't funny.

I think the high point of the night, for me, was Dead Cat Bounce's performance. They have quickly become a firm favourite of mine since seeing them in Kilkenny this year (followed closely by the DOD of course!)

All in all, a fantastic night, and a show I will definitely be going to again, and would urge others to go to, next year!

The Last Laugh

Death. It's one of those topics that few people like to think about, or to discuss. It makes people uncomfortable. Most people don't like to be faced with their own mortality. Unfortunately, it's something we're surrounded by, day in, day out.

So, we do what we always do when faced with something that makes us uneasy, or uncomfortable. We make a joke about it, try to lighten to mood. Share the laughter. Anything is material if it's funny, right?

Hmmm.

When does the joke go too far though? When do people pause, and think, remember that the subject of that joke that they're texting / emailing / tweeting etc is a person? A real person, who has just died. Died. When do they stop, and spare a second to think about that person's family, their friends?

I would love to know why it's acceptable to send crude, vulgar and generally unfunny jokes about a person recently deceased. I know that generally, the people at the heart of these 'jokes' are people in the public eye (most recent examples, of course, being Michael Jackson, and our own Stephen Gately). Sure ordinary people just aren't as interesting, are they?
But, regardless, it's NOT ok. Life in the spotlight or not, death is something that should be respected. Mourned, not joked about.

I shared this opinion recently, and was told that it was 'laughter in the face of tragedy'. I just think laughing in the 'face of tragedy' and making crude jokes at the expense of someone who has just died are entirely different things.

Am I the only one who finds it disgusting, and disrespectful in the extreme? How would the people sending these jokes feel if it was THEIR loved one who had just died? Would it be ok then? I highly doubt it. I think a little compassion, and some empathy could go a long way.

Don't get me wrong here. I'm not some boring old prude who can't see the funny side of things, and my sense of humour can be as warped as the next person's. I just think that maybe, the next time you're about to hit that send button, send that 'hilariously original' joke about someone not even buried yet, you'll stop. Think. Remember that at the end of the day, a fellow human has just passed away. Maybe then, you'll change your mind?

Maybe.