jonnybaker

the wire hits the bbc

last night on bbc 2 the first episode of the wire was screened and they are going to show all 5 series which is great news! if you missed it go to iplayer and catch up. everyone i speak to at the moment seems to have just discovered the wire in the last few months (unless they are in the US and it's old news). my sister gave me series one on dvd back in february for my birthday. i've got one programme still to watch and i'm hooked. it takes a few programmes for the plot to get going and to get used to the baltimore accent and i know a few people who started with subtitles on (!) but if you make it to episode 4 you're there. the language is street - be warned. if you like your viewing squeaky clean it won't be for you. and the soundtrack theme song way down in the hole by the blind boys of alabama is brilliant. thanks nic and esther for first putting me onto it.

you must go and see...

last weekend i did something i haven't done for years - went with jen to the cinema two nights in a row. decadent eh...?

on friday we saw slumdog millionaire, an uplifting romantic tale set in india of a boy on who wants to be a millionaire who answers all the questions but because he grew up in the slums is suspected of cheating. he is on the show for love not money trying to communicate with his childhood sweetheart who is caught up in slavery. the filming of india is beautiful - an array of colour, chaos and beauty. it's impossible not to be caught up in the romantic tale of the slum/underdog who risks everything for love and comes out on top and go out with a smile on your face. the bollywood style credits at the end are fun.

if you had said to me that i would see a better film the next night i would have laughed. but saturday we went to see the wrestler, a totally different kind of film but yes it was even better. i haven't been able to shake the film out of my head all week - i keep thinking about it. mickey rourke plays a wrestler 20 years after his peak. he is still on the circuit of wrestling matches but earnings are low, so low in fact that in the opening sequence he is locked out of his trailer because he is behind on the rent. his ageing body can't take the beating it used to. but somehow the need for affirmation and his 'family' of fellow wrestlers proves an irresistable draw even when he is under doctor's orders to stop. his story is mirrored by a pole dancer who is trapped in her own way in performing and affirmation but equally lonely. their paths cross and a glimmer of friendship struggles to lift itself above their combined loneliness. on her advice rourke makes contact with his estranged daughter to try and repair their broken relationship. and it all ends tragically which you kind of guess pretty early on... why's it so good? well mickey rourke is one huge factor - i so hope he gets best actor oscar for this. it's the perfect role for him. he has a broken loveable charm, character etched in his face and a deep sadness. and i think it's this deep sadness that has haunted me all week. the combination of reaching out so touchingly to his daughter and then just messing things up when they seem hopeful is heart breaking. i cried more than you probably should in a  film called 'the wrestler'! the filming is brilliant too - the opening 5 minutes gripped me following rourke with barely a shot of his face and some scenes so dark you could just see light reflected on the side of his face and not much more. brave and original...

go and see both if you get the chance

waltz with bashir

Having made Waltz with Bashir from the point of view of the common soldier, I've come to one conclusion: war is so useless that it's unbelievable. It's nothing like you've seen in American movies. No glam, no glory. Just very young men going nowhere, shooting at no-one they know, getting shot at by no-one they know, then going home and trying to forget. Sometimes they can. Most of the time they cannot.

so says ari folman, writer, director and producer of waltz with bashir. it is an incredible animated documentary of ari's journey to remember his involvement with the israeli army in the lebanon war of the eigfhties. the story, the drawing and the music are all breathtaking.

man on wire

i haven't been to the cinema a lot this year - not sure why... but friday night jen and i went to see man on wire which i had been meaning to see for a while. the thing that reminded me about it was chatting to a girl who served me a coffee at the big chill who was raving about it having seen it at the festival. she said it had made her think nothing was impossible...

it's an extraordinary film of an extraordinary feat by philippe petit, a high wire walker who covertly rigged a wire between the twin towers of the world trade centre and walked across, lay down on the wire, went to and fro spending 45 minutes out there enjoying himself! he did this in 1974 and the film blends interviews with the group of friends and philippe with original footage.

1 giant leap tv series on channel 4

starting this week on april 23on channel 4 is a series of 7 tv programmes from 1 giant leap . their first album and dvd was brilliant - a window into world music and global culture but whilst still remianing contemporary. looks like an album and feature film is also to follow...

[update: you can watch the episodes here]

golden compass critque of religion

i saw the golden compass at the weekend and really enjoyed it. i have read the books and loved them too. i just don't get why christians get their knickers in a twist about stuff like this. it critiques power and control in religion (or any other institution) which seems like the kind of thing christ himself did and got killed for...

kester blogs about it and is spot on (as he often is apart from when he talks about football ;-) )

If we try to protect our faith from criticism like this, we seal it from the tricksters, and prevent it from being refined. If we truly believe it, we should allow our children to see the film, and trust that the truth will out.

rains of fear

congratulations to my amazing sister esther! last night we watched the film premiere at the national film theatre of rains of fear, the first film she has directed. she founded synergy theatre company, an inspirational company that works in prisons and with ex offenders teaching drama and putting on plays. over the years we have watched plays in several of london's prisons. every time the sense of achievement and worth the prisoners gain by performing is brilliant.

taking it to another level synergy ran a competition in prisons for writing a screenplay. this was won by damo whose script became 'rains of fear'. esther had done a course in film directing and raised money and away she went with the confidence and daring she has always had in abundant supply. the results were brilliant. it's a short film that tells a tale in the life of irish travellers - dark and brutal at times. i chatted with damo - he was so warm and gushing about esther and the transformation that has come in his life. 6 years ago he couldn't read or write and yesterday he stood up to introduce his first film at the national film theatre! isn't that incredible? esther has always loved prisoners - she sees the good where others fail to look. it's an amazing gift. i was a very proud big brother...

belleville rendezvous with live rescore tour dates

last year first at the big chill festival and then at the roxy in borough i saw belleville rendezvous with a DJ/live rescore. it was unbelievably creative - along with a whole bundle of instruments and DJ'ed tunes, at one point a note was even played on a stove top espresso pot! i love this film - it's a quirky and charming animation, with beautiful illustration. i don't want to sound obsessed but there are more tour dates this year. if you are in london, oxford, brighton, york or edinburgh you simply must go...

tour details here

misreading borat

the strangest review of borat - from culture watch.

i thought it was obvious that christianity is mocked just like everything else (and let's face it a lot of what we do looks very funny when put on camera and is almost irresistable to take the mick out of). i'm astonished anyone could read something sincere into the film...

the next month in london

one of the things about living in london is that there is so much fab stuff to do. whilst there is a lot that can cost loads there is also a lot of free stuff. here's a few i'm going to be checking out...

art installation at the V and A - 25 november - end january. robert del naja and neil davidge have collaborated with massive attack's tour designers UVA on an installation in the courtyard of london's V&A museum. 'volume' opens on 25th november and runs until the end the end of january.

belleville rendezvous with live music score - 3 december. i am really excited about this one. i caught some of this at the big chill. the film is shown but with a live score that is a mix of DJ and live instrumentation. it may sound weird but it will be a wonderful experience.

ben westbeach at big chill house - 28 november. ben wetsbeach is a new kid on the block, and his no 1 fan seems to be gilles petersen, (and his no 2 fan seems to be joel). he's playing a live set

jon hopkins and ulrich schnauss at big chill house - 30 november. second fab free gig in a week at the big chill house. jon hopkins album contact note is one of the most played on my ipod at the moment along with the compilation the art of chill 2 which he put together a few years back and is currently a bargain on amazon.

laura b at the big chill house - 6 december.

grace nine

and some things i'm lining up that are not free (sadly)...

a visit to the wildlife photographer of the year exhibition - always an annual baker family pilgrimage

chelsea v arsenal - yes i have got tickets - can't wait - will be our first match of the season

DJ shadow at brixton

ice skating at kew gardens - that's also become a bit of a christmas tradition for a few of us from grace

looks like it's going to be a good month...

little miss sunshine

on saturday jen and i set to see volver but it was full so we ended up seeing little miss sunshine instead. you simply must see it - laugh out loud. sort of in the same vein as napoleon dynamite - brilliant. the audience burst out in spontaneous applause at the end which i don't remember happening since i went to see lord of the rings.

shooting dogs

on friday we went to see a preview of shooting dogs in london. it tells the story of the rwandan genocide through the true story of a school which provided refuge for tutsis. it's a harrowing tale. if you haven't seen hotel rwanda go and see this at the cinema when it comes out in a few weeks. if you have, the plot is very similar - it's a shame it's so similar really - this time it's a school instead of a hotel. but it's a story that needs to be heard.

Technorati Tags: shootingdogs, rwanda

rejesus on the davinci code

rejesus on the davinci code

brokeback mountain revisited

you probably haven't noticed but there's been a steady conversation going on in the comments on my brokeback mountain - wondering what's redemptive post. i love the latest riposte from ian...

why on earth would you think that a movie that has gay characters at its core is trying to 'convert' you to something? Is King kong trying to convert us into giant apes? Is Big Mommas House trying to make us into robust black women?

Technorati Tags: brokeback mountain

brokeback mountain - wondering what's redemptive

caught my first film of 2006 on friday - brokeback mountain which is being talked about as a gay cowboy film. the cinema was packed out (though it doesn't seem to be on in loads of cinemas). the film is really a tragic love story. two young guys who spend the summer looking after sheep in the mountains develop a relationship. but they both see it as a fling rather than that they are gay. the film then follows their relationship over the years as they both get married and try and maintain their relationship on occasional get togethers back in the mountains.

it is a powerful and moving love story. it's also a very sad film. chris curtis as ever has some good thoughts about it. jen and i found ourselves asking the question what would be redemptive in the situation the two guys find themselves in? the difficulty with the question is that the longer they are keeping their sexuality and relationship secret the more complicated that question is. i haven't really seen much christian reaction to the film though i can guess what it will be in parts of america (such as here). but i think it's a great film - definitely one to watch. i did a quick look through technorati to see what people are blogging about it. one thing i discovered is that gay bloggers see the film as hopeful in terms of helping people talk about homosexuality. a quote i loved about that from david cullen was:

It won't make gay-love acceptable in southern Baptist churches next month. But it will leave the conversation changed.

Technorati Tags: brokeback mountain

metaphilm

came across metaphilm via luke who has written a playful comparison between toystory 2 and augstine's city of god...

what i like about the site is that it wants to interpret film and it is packed with meaty stuff. this is what it says in the about page...

Serious, absurd,
    sacred, profane,
    simple, complex:
    We absorb, filter, review, and interpret cinema
    for your     entertainment and enlightenment.

 

We strive to fulfill the creed of our
  patron saint, Robert Bresson:

 

Make visible what without you
  might perhaps never have been seen.

snapshot of the future leadership of the church of england

had a good weekend with the new leaders/clergy in the diocese of gloucester. the location was a fantastic hotel in woolacombe on the devon coast. i met bloggers mark, kathryn, and justin (whom i have added to my blog list). the weekend was a mix of leading some worship, a morning's teaching on worship and sat evening we watched whale rider. it's interesting how the film plays out in different groups. this was a group of 50% women, many of whom have no doubt faced and do face struggles in leadership because of that. i had thought to show the film because of the parallel between the struggle of how to pass on a tradition in a tribe and what kind of leadeship could lead the tribe forward compared with the church's struggle with those issues. these were the questions we discussed...

What struck you about the film?
What is tradition? How is it kept alive?
Is it possible for a tradiition to be renewed?
What kinds of leadership are displayed in the film?
What are the marks of spiritual leadership?
What is maori identity? How is it maintained as a minority in another culture?
What does reweaving the rope signify in the film?
How might the church remake the ropes?
What is Christian identity? How can we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?
What are the challenges in carrying forward the Christian tradition in a (post) modern world? What kind of leadership may be appropriate? What kind of spirituality? What kind of worship? What kind of community/church?

doing weekends for curates/new leaders in the church gives a good snapshot of what the future of the church might look like. this was a really warm, gifted, open, diverse, mixed age group. on reflection maybe one of the most hopeful things in terms of leadership in the anglican church in the uk is the numbers of women being ordained? they bring different emphases and gifts into the mix. alt worship is not everyone's thing but i hope the weekend helped spark peoples imagination at least. even where it wasn't peoples thing they were very gracious. in worship at grace and when i lead i generally play music as a background soundscape through everything. i do the same in my own life when i work or am cooking etc. there was one guy in the communion i led who found this really alienating and was struggling to focus on the liturgy etc with what he perceived to be intrusive music playing. in some ways i wasn't surprised that i got this reaction - in fact i expected more of it, but i ended up fading it out during the eucharistic prayer (which i don't think anyone else noticed). he was very polite about it and we had a good discussion. but this highlighted for me the complexities of the culture(s) we live in and constuct worship and church in. one person's delight in worship (i loved playing orbital's one perfect sunrise behind the creed we said for example) alienates someone else. all this suggests we need diversity - one size no longer fits all - but we also need to ensure we keep good relationships within the body of christ...

for anyone dropping in on the blog for the first time from the conference, thanks for inviting me! if you are interested in the resources used for the worship, i posted after a youth ministry conference i led worship at in january. the two worship sessions we did were similar to ones there. so if you follow that list of links you will find where the music, video loops etc were from. if there is anything else feel free to leave a comment on the post below (click on the comments button) and i'll respond...

a year of film

wow! jen has given me a year's ticket to go and see any film at ugc cinemas for a year as my birthday present so i'm getting set for a year of film...

hotel rwanda

we went to see hotel rwanda last night. it is an incredible film. it tells the true story of paul rusesabagina a hutu hotelier, and his family who sheltered about 1200 refugees during the genocide of 1 million people in rwanda in the 90s. it is in the same sort of vein as the killing fields, cry freedom, or schindler's list. don cheadle and sophie okonedo are brilliant - both are nominees for lead actor and supporting actress oscars. this film will stay with me for years... go and see it.

fused

fused organised by osbd 3-5 november. includes an art exhibition, film festival and conference... i'm going on thursday - looking forward to it.