David Hughes

Notes From Afar

Tag: Film (page 1 of 6)

11 February 2024

Weeknote 11th February 2024

A short weeknote this week as I had an injection into my wrist on Thursday and I’m still resting it.

I was in Bristol on Monday and Tuesday which coincided with the Bristol Light Festival. On Monday evening we went to the Left Handed Giant brewpub which was being used as a huge ‘screen’ upon which animations were projected. A great brewpub and an amazing light show.

left handed giant

The injection was steroids to treat a tendon in my left wrist. Guided by ultrasound it was incredible to see the needle approach the tendon and then the steroid liquid surround it.

The needle was incredibly fine but on the screen it looked like a drainpipe.

I woke Friday morning without pain in my wrist for the first time in months, so it looks like the injection worked.

On Friday night we celebrated Chinese New Year. OK, it was an excuse for a ‘slap up’ takeaway, but it was lovely to sit down as a family and spend time together as we’ve got some busy weekends coming up over the next few weeks.

On Saturday I watched the Miners Strike 1984 documentary series on Channel 4. I was 13 when the Miners Strike started and it’s fair to say it helped define my politics. I didn’t think I could loathe Thatcher more than I did, turns out I was wrong. The episode on the Battle of Orgreave is extraordinary.

This afternoon we watched Killers of the Flower Moon. An amazing story in the truest sense of the word, with typically brilliant performances from DiCaprio and Di Niro. Yes, it’s long but it’s definitely worth the investment of your time.

24 December 2023

Weeknote 24th December 2023

Christmas Eve in what has been a oddly quiet December.

No Christmas Do with my employer or my suppliers boooo!

No family trip to Bruges due to my wife’s school term not finishing until the 22nd.

And through poor planning my Christmas catch ups with my friends all ended up in this week, well apart from one that isn’t free until January, and then two of the three events got torpedoed by external events. FFS…

I was due to meet a friend for lunch on Thursday but I had to cancel at the last minute as I was managing a response to a malware attack – yes really.

On Friday I should have been staying with a friend for Christmas beers but his daughter has caught Covid and being ‘high risk’ I decided not to take risk this close to Christmas.

The event that went ahead was our MK Geek Night Christmas dinner with Andy and Roo the lovely chaps that have helped us with the sound since MKGN #3. We couldn’t run MKGN without them, they are a human security blanket when it comes to managing the sound and associated technology.

We watched Love Actually for the first in many years, and enjoyed it much more than I expected. The scene with Emma Thompson and Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now is heart wrenching every single time I watch it.

My wife and I had a very pleasant lunch and wander around Cambridge on Saturday – I can highly recommend Fitzbillies mince pies and the mulled wine from the Cambridge Wine Merchants is very good indeed, even without the optional shot of whisky.

This morning my daughter and I popped over to the new Caffeine & Machine in Houghton Conquest, it was very quiet indeed but will be interesting as a more local alternative to the original C&M in Warwickshire.

The rest of the day was spent prepping for tomorrow followed by our traditional family viewing of Home Alone.

Merry Christmas ya filthy animals!

30 July 2019

Baby Driver – Cars, Choreography & Cool

I’ve always thought that when it comes to watching films expectation can be a double edged sword. Go in with high expectations and so often you’ll be disappointed, go in with low or no expectations and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Baby Driver was a victim of high expectations the first time I watched it; I love Edgar Wright’s films, but Baby Driver left me a little flat.

I watched Baby Driver again this weekend and really enjoyed it this time. I still think it loses its pace in act two, and Kevin Spacey’s change of character and heart seems a leap too far, but it’s such a stylish and fun film.

In multiple scenes Edgar Wright uses the fantastic soundtrack to great effect, synchronising the action and movement with every beat – it’s as if the music is an extra actor.

Just check out the opening scene where Wright uses Bell Bottoms from The John Spencer Blue Explosion to great comedic, character building and car sliding effect.

But the scene that has had me rewatching it on YouTube are the opening credits where Baby does the coffee run – keep an eye on the graffiti and shop names.

How fabulous is that scene? Every element, including the lyrics appearing on and around the street, is timed to perfection. So much fun and explains why a heist movie has a choreographer in the opening credits.

29 July 2019

Bond Meets Q

As a life long Bond fan I’ve hugely enjoyed Daniel Craig’s time as 007.

From Casino Royale, which remained remarkably close to Ian Fleming’s first book, through to Skyfall, Spectre and upcoming ‘Bond 25’ which includes the amazing Phoebe Waller-Bridge amongst the writing talent .

Skyfall is both my favourite Bond film and one of my favourite films of all time. As the film that marked the 50th anniversary of the Bond franchise I loved the references to Bond’s age, and this scene where Bond meets his new Quartermaster is just perfect.

“Were you expecting, an exploding pen? We don’t really go in for that anymore”

2 September 2018

About Time

About time beach scene

I just try to live every day, as though I’ve deliberately come back to this day to enjoy it, as though it was the last full final day of my extraordinary ordinary life.

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