A Titanic Mistake

Tomorrow is the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic. And, as I am currently living in Southampton, I feel totally justified in writing about it.

Over the last few weeks, I have watched the film and the TV series, I have gazed at the memorial and I have talked about the tragedy... a lot. And you know what I found out today? A lot of people didn't even know that it was a real event. It actually disgusts me that someone has obviously known about the film/ TV series, has maybe even watched them, and didn't think to find out if it was true. And anyway, aren't all the best stories based on reality in some form or another?

Nothing gets me upset more than a hugely irresponsible loss of life, and I think that the Titanic is an excellent example of this. Despite several ice warnings, the ship continued to go ahead at full speed, with the lookouts missing their binoculars. Not too long ago, I walked along the an outdoor exhibit of Titanic's boat deck and was shocked to read the number of people in the life boats as opposed to their capacity. Some didn't even carry half of their full capacity. About 2224 people were on board at the time, and only 710 survived. Over 1500 people died that night, including a good few prominent figures.

I thank God that so many enquiries were carried out after the Titanic sank. New maritime regulations were put in place afterwards that I am sure will make us sleep easier if we embark on a ship any time soon. But there are still problems in the ship world. I'm sure we all remember the Concordia capsizing off the west coast of Italy in January this year.

So I think now is the time to remind ourselves of the people who lost their lives 100 years ago, and to pay our homage to those people who have kept the events alive.

Tomorrow, Titanic will sink again. But this time it will only be on our screens and in our hearts.

Film Review for a Niche Title - Black Swan

Black Swan is a film like no other. Set in the all too real world of ballet, Nina (Natalie Portman), a shy young perfectionist, replaces Beth in the role of both the White Swan and the Black Swan in a new adaptation of Swan Lake. As she works hard to portray the Black Swan, strange things begin to happen to her. 

Nominated for 5 Oscars, the film has something for everyone: suspense, drama, intrigue and a spattering of horror. This fairly short film is well paced so that no moment is wasted. The dance aspect is beautiful, though due to the intrusively close-up hand held shots, you do not often see this.  

Black Swan is visually stunning; with remarkable special effects that are so real you recoil with the memory. Mirrors play a large part in the film, and the way in which they are used is very clever, albeit rather overdone. The monochrome set and dress for the entire film gives it a dreamlike sense to begin with, which only intensifies as you watch. 

It is also controversial, with the oppressive relationship between the worried mother and the rebelling daughter turning cruel when Nina slams her door purposefully on her mother’s fingers. The sex scenes are sometimes disturbing and uncomfortable; the film shows the ballet director seducing Nina at one point. In fact, the story is based rather a lot on Nina’s virginal state. Another scene shows female masturbation whilst yet another is a lesbian sex scene, both involving the main character. 

Director Darren Aronofsky does a brilliant job of blending high culture with the surreal and horrific. Although the film is very different to many others, we can draw parallels between Black Swan and his other films. The paranoid quality of both Requiem for a Dream and Pi can clearly be seen here. The Wrestler is very much like Black Swan, due to the main character showing devotion and obsession in their profession. The characters both push their bodies to the limit in order to be the best.

If put into a category, Black Swan is first and foremost a psychological thriller, though many would argue that it is in fact a horror. By the end of the film, you are certain that the main character must be insane. But even then it is unclear what she hallucinates and what she does not. She seems to imagine a double of herself that haunts her throughout, making her feel vulnerable and scared. Her constant practising cripples her physically and mentally. Her hunt for perfection by the exploration of her dark side slowly drives her insane.

It is vague as to what is actually happening to Nina until the finale, where she hallucinates that she sprouts black swan wings. We clearly see that the audience cannot see the wings that she believes she has. The plot of Swan Lake is then cleverly intertwined into the poignant ending that almost brings a tear to your eye.

The film is relatable for many people who compete in dance, and yet at points it is overtly sexual and quite grotesque due to the body horror that is used. The film is not one for the squeamish, as there are scenes that would make anyone’s stomach turn as well as horror-like sequences. The most disturbing scenes are ones where she hallucinates bizarre things happening to her: she peels back the skin on her finger, her legs seemingly break to look like swan legs and she violently murders her colleague.

Natalie Portman is clearly the best actor in this film. She is perfectly cast as the protagonist, and portrays the transition from the white swan’s innocence to the black swan’s sexuality very well. She can do no wrong in the scenes where she hallucinates scary, violent and sexual encounters and appears incredibly naïve when she depicts the sweet and innocent girl at the beginning of the film. Her captivating performance means that we travel through the story with her. Her emotions are ours and she displays them without making her insanity too obvious.

On the whole, Black Swan has the mark of something special. It cannot be suitably labelled or easily forgotten. It is a compelling and dark story of perfection, sexual repression and mental illness.

Why books should never be subjected to the horror that is film adaptations

I know, I know. It's that age old debate. Film Vs Book. For me, books win hands down. And I'll tell you why. But first, a bit of bio for you (and a bit of a bias warning):

I am a self confessed book worm. I like fantasy the best, therefore I shall chattering away about fantasy books in particular. If you would rather gouge your eyes out with the claws of your favourite cat than read about such things, I suggest you quickly click 'next blog' (just like you would on chatroulette when you see something you'd rather not).

If you love the thought of me criticising terrible fantasy film adaptations, you've come to the right blog. Grab some popcorn, put your feet up, and read away.

Warning over, now for the fun part.

I can think of so many good books that are ruined by the greed of their own authors. I can also think of a few that havn't been almost assaulted, but don't do the plot the justice it deserves. But instead of listing off books and their various faults, I shall just list the worst offending faults, and give you super good examples of films that do exactly that.

First off the casting can be an utter disaster. And in 'The Golden Compass' (book otherwise known as 'Northern Lights' in the UK) the casting is terrible. My Lyra was much more feisty. My Mrs Coulter was scarier and (as in the book, may I add) had dark hair. My Lord Asriel was no Daniel Craig, he was an austere looking man with a thin, elegant figure and a lashing tongue, again, more frightening. And they got the plot all wrong. It doesn't even end in the same place as the book.

Plot twisting annoys me a lot actually. Here I think the phrase 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' comes to my mind. The latest Prince Caspian wins the prize for this one. Not only is Prince Caspian a good few years older than he's meant to be, but he also has a thing for Susan. I understand the appeal of an older character but please, we don't need any love interests unless they're focal to the plot.

The same goes for missing bits out. Because if you miss bits out that you don't happen to think are important in the first film, you end up having to go back on yourself in the next. Take Eragon. Not only were the one liners atrocious but they missed out a character which, in the other books, turns out to shape the entire plot. Good One, people who cut out THAT scene (and they did cut it out, I've checked).

Missing bits out. Oh I could go on all day about that one. My imagination creates these wonderful scenes of battles and places, but when I think I'll be seeing what other people have dreamt up, the whole part is cut. Harry Potter is the best target I could have with this complaint. Fifth film; the hospital (St Mungo's), or the amazing fight scenes I thought would come up in the Ministry of Magic. Who else wanted to see Ron being attacked by a brain? I rest my case.

Bad acting positively kills a book stone dead. Unfortunately the only book to film that I can think of here is Twilight, so it didn't take that much to kill it anyway. Let me get this straight, I am not and will never be a twihard. Yes I have read all the books like a good little sheep. And yes I quite enjoyed them. My excuse is that they had a fairly good plot and the characters were interesting. The writing was descriptive, although lacking an actual style.

Now, the film obviously expects you to have read these books, or else you are in danger of wondering why you are watching it in the first place. The humour in the books is almost completely lost and the long pauses and stares make you want to time how long it takes Bella to get through a sentence, or the film to the point for that matter. And the point? Edward = vampire and they love eachother. Er... yay?

And here I think I will come to a close. I will simply say that books are far superior to their film counterparts. To anyone who would rather watch the film than read the book; you are utterly missing out, and you should be ashamed of yourself.