We Don't Need Two Metaphors

BBC Radio station brings its 10th anniversary celebrations to a close. Poll to find the listeners' favourite single from 2002-2012. BBC 6Music have released a list of the Top 100 singles released during their first 10 years on the airwaves and have given its listeners the near impossible task of picking their favourite song. Naturally, I took a look at the list and tried to pick a favourite. I failed. I took a second pass at the list and wrote down any track which I thought might be the one. This produced a short list of 12.  In no particular order, here are the 5 tracks which made the final cut. The National - Bloodbuzz Ohio Bloodbuzz Ohio caught my attention with its toe-tapping beat and sustained my attention through its captivating yet wilfully cryptic lyrics. Like many  The National songs, Bloodbuzz Ohio is deceptively simple in its structure but the band manage to build up the instrumental layers to create their great sound (look no furth...

Films Of 2012 - The Honourable Mentions A further 10 films which deserve recognition 2012 was a good year for film. Not excellent but still good. Whilst I found choosing my top 10 films relatively easy, choosing those worthy of an honourable mention proved to be more difficult. There were those films which narrowly missed out on the top 10, films which missed out because of the odd flaw and those which require additional viewings to fully be appreciated. So here are my honourable mentions of 2012,  in alphabetical order. Cabin In The Woods The Dark Knight Rises Even The Rain The Master Moonrise Kingdom The Muppets Prometheus A Royal Affair Rust And Bone Your Sister's Sister These films wouldn't necessarily make up my 11-20 list, but each one does something noteworthy enough to deserve its mention here.

Films Of 2012 - No. 1 Martha Marcy May Marlene (Dir. Sean Durkin) After leaving the cinema back in February of 2012, I was very impressed (if a little baffled) with  Martha Marcy May Marlene  and it's outstanding debut performance from Elizabeth Olsen. As the year progressed I continued to revisit the film, reading other reviews and interviews etc. It had burrowed it's way into my thoughts and slowly became a personal benchmark for other films in the year. When I came to chose this list, it was the obvious choice but I wanted to see the film again before settling on my decision. Not only is it fully deserving of my number 1 spot, but it was arguably better on the second viewing. Martha Marcy May Marlene (a weird but perfect title) tells the story of Martha, an impressionable young woman who flees from a sinister farming commune. She is collected by her older sister and goes to stay at a luxurious lake house. The film moves between her time at the commune and her ti...

Films Of 2012 - No. 2 Shame (Dir. Steve McQueen) Michael Fassbender has slowly built a reputation as a very talented performer from stand out performances in blockbusters (Prometheus, X-Men First Class) to critically praised work in independent films (Fish Tank, Hunger). He's one of the most sought after actors in the world right now (take a look at his upcoming projects if you don't believe me) and his staggering performance in Shame  is a magnificent showcase of his talents. Fassbender plays Brandon, a handsome, successful young man living in New York. Behind this seemingly idyllic lifestyle, Brandon harbours a secret sex addiction which has control of his personal and social life. One night stands, a wealth of explicit material and a strict routine have given his life a sense of structure and discipline. This lifestyle is disrupted by the arrival of his sister Sissy who brings her own troubles to Brandon's doorstep. Shame is a devastating glimpse of a m...

Films Of 2012 - No. 3 Berberian Sound Studio (Dir. Peter Strickland) Of the 10 films in this countdown, I saw 9 of them in a cinema. Of all of them, Berberian Sound Studio was the one which felt like it needed to be cinema. Having recently watched it again on DVD (in an odd coincidence, it was the last thing I bought from HMV who have just entered administration and may have disappeared from UK high streets by the time you read this) it was less impressive on the smaller screen but still worthy of a place in my top 3. Sound engineer Gilderoy arrives at the Berberian Sound Studio in Italy to begin work on a new film, "The Equestrian Vortex". Having not been told anything about the film before arriving, Gilderoy is quite shocked to learn that he will be working on a gory, sinister horror film (not a nice film about horse riding). As he immerses himself in his work, he begins to lose his grasp on reality. There are many other psychological horror films which port...

Films Of 2012 - No. 4 Young Adult (Dir. Jason Reitman) Spoiler Warning: The film's ending is not discussed in detail, but it is mentioned. “Psychotic Prom Queen Bitch.” This is how one character describes Mavis Gary, but high school was a long a time ago and everyone else has grown up.  With her series of moderately popular young adult novels coming to an end, Mavis learns that her high school boyfriend Buddy is now married and has a newborn baby. She jumps at this chance to return to her hometown with the sole intention of reclaiming Buddy from his “torment” and kick starting her own life. Charlize Theron is outstanding as the mean spirited and stunted Mavis, in easily one of my favourite performances of the year. As a writer of novels for teenage girls, she can’t escape her teenage years where she was adored and looked down on the people who now have everything she wants. Other films would let the nerds get revenge on the high school bitch or allow the prom queen to ...

Films Of 2012 - No. 5 Sightseers (Dir. Ben Wheatley) Not content with reinventing the British gangster film in Down Terrace and shredding everybody's nerves in Kill List , Ben Wheatley's 3rd film celebrates two ever present British traditions: caravanning and funny Brummie accents. Despite her mother's best protests, Tina sets off on a romantic holiday with boyfriend Chris. Manned with their caravan and an itinerary which takes in some idyllic areas of northern Britain, what could possibly spoil their trip? Quite a lot, it turns out, as some psychopathic tendencies start to take over. Sightseers is a film that is as dark as it is funny, quite often at the same time. One unfortunate incident that is told in flashback is horrifyingly grisly and yet so ridiculous that you can't help but laugh. Wheatley and D.P. Laurie Rose show the British countryside as the beautiful place it still is, but crucially the visual style changes to reflect the ever darkening ton...

Films Of 2012 - No.6 Skyfall (Dir. Sam Mendes) I am a huge James Bond fan. I may have lost some of the encyclopaedic knowledge which I held as a teenager, but I have watched all of the 22 films a near unhealthy number of times. It's fair to say that the release of a James Bond film is one I very much look forward to. Therefore, the prospect of a James Bond film directed by Sam Mendes with an all star cast and crew was incredibly exciting. I was sure it wouldn't live up to my expectations, but I'm happy to say that Skyfall  is magnificent. After seemingly falling to his death whilst in Turkey, James Bond returns to the UK after MI6 is attacked by a new terror. The key to Skyfall 's ($1 billion) success is the excellent script which delivers everything expected of a James Bond film in a refreshing manner. Whereas previous adventures have built a story around locations or set pieces, Skyfall  is driven by a compelling and emotional narrative rarely seen in t...

Films Of 2012 - No. 7 Looper (Dir. Rian Johnson) After the vastly over-rated Brick and the criminally underrated The Brothers Bloom , Rian  Johnson returns with his 3 rd film Looper about time travelling assassins. Some years in the future, criminal organisations are using time travel to eliminate their enemies. These enemies are sent back in time where they are killed by a Looper, thus erasing them from the future. Joseph Gordon Levitt is Joe, a Looper who falters when he has to kill his future self (Bruce Willis). As a premise, it is elegantly simple and riddled with potential complications. Johnson successfully avoids getting bogged down in the intricacies of time travel by not attempting to answer them. After establishing the story, time travel takes a back seat as the film asks questions about destiny and consequences. Not particularly original for a science fiction film I agree, but Johnson surrounds his story with compelling characters and setting. It re...

Musical icon's new album was amazingly kept secret from everyone I'm a big David Bowie fan. I'll admit, I haven't listened to most of his albums (I've started to) but he has produced some of the finest rock songs of the 20th century. If I were to be stranded on a desert island with only a handful of tracks, Life On Mars would most certainly be one of them. It's just perfect. Even with the best will in the world, I had accepted the fact I probably wouldn't get the chance to see him play live. He hasn't made an album in 10 years and had rarely been seen in public in that time. Bar his brilliant cameo in Extras and playing Nikola Tesla in magician drama The Prestige , Bowie had seemingly turned his back on the media and his career. How wrong we were. Everybody will have their own story of how they heard about the new track. I can imagine that for those who grew up with his music, it could be a potentially emotional experience. Personal...

Films Of 2012 - No. 8 Life Of Pi (Dir. Ang Lee) Spoiler Warning: The film's ending is discussed in detail. Having not read Yann Martel’s award winning novel, I knew very little about Life of Pi before entering the cinema. Even if I had read the source material, I doubt it would have affected my cinematic experience. Despite many calling the book "unfilmable", Ang Lee’s Life Of Pi  can stand on its own two feet (or four paws) as a marvellous film. The titular Pi is travelling with his family and their zoo animals to start a new life in Canada. After the ship is sunk by a vicious storm, Pi finds himself on a life boat in the middle of the ocean with only a few zoo animals for company.  Life Of Pi is a stunning technical achievement which could not have been made (and was rightly not made) until the technology was in place to create the mesmeric oceanic backdrop of the extensive middle act. More importantly, the mix of CGI and real life footage used to create th...

Films Of 2012 - No. 9 About Elly (Dir. Asghar Farhadi) Asghar Farhadi won plaudits from everyman and his dog for his brilliant Oscar winning drama A Separation . After that film’s success 2012 brought the UK release of his previous film, About Elly , which won the Silver Bear at the 2009 Berlin International Film Festival. A group of friends travel from Tehran to a seaside villa for a holiday. Amongst them is the titular Elly who has very little connection to the group apart from being the teacher of some of the children. The group invited her in order to meet their single friend Ahmad in the hope that they might take a liking to each other. To say any more would spoil what is a compelling drama. It has been described by some as a “moral whodunit” which is an accurate description of what makes the film so great. About Elly is a drama about morality and the fallout of lies but is very intricately constructed like the very best thrillers. The significance of some seemingly mi...

Films Of 2012 - No.10 The Raid (Dir. Gareth Evans) The Raid is style over substance. There’s no doubt about that. However when the style is so breathtaking and refreshing, the lack of substance is completely forgiven. A team of elite Indonesian cops set out to clear a tower block of the murderous crime lord and his cannon fodder. The key to the film’s success is in its careful construction of the action. Director Gareth Evans worked with main stars Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian to choreograph not only the action, but the camera movements. Having seen enough “shaky-cam” fight scenes in recent years, Evans’ direction is frenetic without being an incomprehensible mess. What plot and characterisation Evans does include is perfunctory but acts as a welcome pause between the action scenes. He manages to keeps things fresh by changing the action as the story progresses. The cops enter the building armed to the teeth but are forced to improvise as their ammunition runs dry. Only the...

Films Of 2012 My Top 10 films from 2012 I'm a huge fan of critical lists. It's perhaps unfair to compare films of different genres, but making a list forces you to evaluate the merits of each film in finer detail. I've managed to see 35 films with a 2012 UK release date. Choosing the 10 films was fairly easy. There were a handful of films in contention for the last few places but the choice eventually became clear. It's not a definitive list either, as there are many films which I would've liked to see before the year's end. I'll post a short review of each film for the next 10 days, starting tomorrow with my number 10 choice.