All Consuming : calypte

Consumed "Mamma Mia!"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:19:56 GMT

WORTH IT!

A story about "Mamma Mia!"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:17:54 GMT

Brilliant! Just SO much fun – foot tapping away, really joyful, feel-good movie. I wouldn’t have described it as entirely my cup of tea, but I’d go back to see it again in a flash!

Takes just a little to get going – the movie starts with young Sophie on the day before her wedding, but really the whole gleeful fun hangs on her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep), and friends (Christine Baranski and a gloriously hamming it up Julie Walters).

You see, Donna doesn’t actually know which of three men she… urm… knew that summer is Sophie’s father. But on discovering her mother’s diary, and thus the three possibilities, Sophie decides to invite all three to the celebration, figuring she’ll know the right one on sight. Of course, nothing is every that simple – and what happens when the men discover each other, that Donna wasn’t the one to invite them – and of course, when Donna finds her past turned up on her doorstep!!

It’s almost a Shakespearean comedy of errors – a classic story-telling style with a hefty dose of music, allowing the whole thing to overcome a shade of predictability.

The film does storm along best during the big Abba hits: the Dancing Queen scene is alternately VERY funny and very… oh, just life-affirmingly joyous. Alas, there are a few set pieces of quieter and/or less known songs (a few I didn’t recognise at all) where the pace does slip, but overall it’s fun. The singing is largely pretty good, too – although… sorry, Pierce (Brosnan), but that voice could do more damage than Bond’s Walther PPK!!

Oooh – stay a bit at the end. The girls do a couple of songs, in full costume and make up… but then there’s a small surprise for you ;)

A story about "Rise and Shine muffin"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:07:35 GMT

Rise and Shine muffin

by Starbucks

I was always worried about what was actually in these. Then one day there was a tray of (chopped up) samples, and I was so taken I asked what I’d just eaten. “Is it good?” asks the barrista. “Your the fifth person to ask today!”

So yes, the rise and shine muffin is good. Hmm… well, it is in small, bite-sized pieces. Alas, after about half it’s faded to just okay, which isn’t bad at all, but really classic blueberry or apple and cinnamon would have been better.

“Nutritious breakfast muffin packed with sultanas, raisins, bran, apricots, sunflower seeds, pine-nuts, walnuts, cinnamon, honey, brown sugar and a little vanilla”.

Consumed "Rise and Shine muffin"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:07:35 GMT

Rise and Shine muffin

by Starbucks

WORTH IT!

A story about "Nick of Time"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:04:50 GMT

Nick of Time

by John Badham

Hmm. Underwhelming. I think – I probably shouldn’t comment when I managed not to tape/see the last… 10 minutes, perhaps? Grr!

Still. It was a 90-minute film and still took me 3 sessions to try to watch. It just didn’t grip me, really, which goes against the point of the movie!

Nice idea, definitely with the ‘real time’ concept (long before ‘24’). However, Johnnie Depp just isn’t really the everyman-type (he looks disturbingly young and clean-cut here), and against the everyday background, Christopher Walken is both sinister and every so slightly OTT - less the acting, more the plot/script.

I guess I’d watch the last bit ‘again’ to see what happens, but wasn’t thrilled with it all.

Consumed "Star Wars Episode 1: Phantom Menace OST"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 18:45:32 GMT

Star Wars Episode 1: Phantom Menace OST

by John Williams

WORTH IT!

Consuming "Dreaming the Serpent Spear: Boudica 4"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:54:28 GMT

Dreaming the Serpent Spear: Boudica 4

by Manda Scott

Consumed "Interview with the Vampire"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 17:50:19 GMT

Interview with the Vampire

by Elliot Goldenthal

WORTH IT!

Consuming "The Jelly Effect: How to Make Your Communication Stick"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:42:24 GMT

The Jelly Effect: How to Make Your Communication Stick

by Andy Bounds

Consumed "The Chronicles of Riddick"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:42:02 GMT

The Chronicles of Riddick

by David Twohy

WORTH IT!

A story about "The Chronicles of Riddick"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:41:10 GMT

The Chronicles of Riddick

by David Twohy

It’s not the best story in the world, or the best told. But by ‘eck it looks amazing!!

A story about "Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:17:51 GMT

Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

by Joss Whedon

Dr Horrible wants to be a super villain. He has his own blog about it, and everything!

Thus starts 45 minutes of singing about evil schemes, taking over the world, and the pretty girl in the laundromat. Neil Patrick Harris is rather good as the baddie-hero, and Nathan Fillion hams it up as the hero-baddie. Hmm. Well, it is from Joss Whedon!

Quirky, and worth a watch: www.drhorrible.com

Alas, if you’re reading this after July 20th, you’re gonna have to pay for the priviledge.

Consumed "Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:17:51 GMT

Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

by Joss Whedon

WORTH IT!

A story about "Kung Fu Panda [Theatrical Release]"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:13:00 GMT

Kung Fu Panda [Theatrical Release]

My Kung-Fu weekend, part two:

Cute, but not overly saccharine. There is a moral, but it’s not rammed down your throat. I actually thought is was one of the better animations I’ve seen in recent years, as it doesn’t try too hard to be cool and achingly funny.

The animation style is interesting, if a little clunky at times – by that I mean, sometimes the cg-fx are very lifelike, then very cartoony, particularly the (background) characters.

The voices are all good, especially Dustin Hoffman. I totally didn’t spot Angelina Jolie (!), and Lucy Liu and Jackie Chan are criminally underused. Ian McShane was an odd choice but very effective!

Overall it was fun, made me smile, and was pretty heartwarming. I approve :)

Consumed "Kung Fu Panda [Theatrical Release]"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:13:00 GMT

Kung Fu Panda [Theatrical Release]

WORTH IT!

A story about "Ultralight"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 12:38:28 GMT

Ultralight

by Lush

It’s not bad, just far too heavy for me to use during the day – I’m finishing off the tub as nightcream, which works okay. I was getting quite spotty from the combination of this and makeup, though – my face just felt sweaty – so ‘light’ it is not, even if it is the one with sunscreen.

Why I want to consume "The Book of Happiness: Brilliant Ideas to Transform Your Life"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:24:10 GMT

The Book of Happiness: Brilliant Ideas to Transform Your Life

by Heather Summers

For some reason, I feel that it’s my (new) ‘thing’ to cash in my iPoints for self-help-type books – well, The Four Day Win, and now this.

It’s a title I stumbled upon somewhat randomly on Amazon – a recommendation based on something else I was looking at, I think. It has seven 5-star reviews, I believe, and no negatives. So when it came time to cash in those points, this joined the possibilities, along with Michael Neill’s You Can Have What You Want, Paul McKenna’s Change Your Life in Seven Days, and Mind Gym’s Give Me Time (incidently, I’m going to a Mind Gym presentation on Monday – woooo!).

So why this one? I was just back from a blissfully contented weekend break – and pushing myself to be productive seemed a lot less appealing than holding on to and recapturing those happy feelings from the break. If I can feel like that far more often, I can see me getting things done anyway :)

That, and the huge smily sunflower on the front. Far more appealing than Michael Neill’s face on his happiness book, imo!

Of course, one shouldn’t judge on the cover. I’ll report back on how I get on with the book, naturally, but in the meantime you can join me in the first step as the initial questionnaire is on the website. Apparently I’m neither happy nor unhappy in most of the areas, which – blah as it sounds – does rather sum up how i feel. The one unhappiness is ‘sense of purpose’ – I am so in the middle of everything, that the drifting sensation is there. Give it a go!

Consuming "The Book of Happiness: Brilliant Ideas to Transform Your Life"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:05:30 GMT

The Book of Happiness: Brilliant Ideas to Transform Your Life

by Heather Summers

Consumed "Forbidden Kingdom"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:33:34 GMT

Forbidden Kingdom

WORTH IT!

Consuming "Batman Begins (Widescreen Edition)"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:30:51 GMT

Batman Begins (Widescreen Edition)

by Christopher Nolan

A story about "Forbidden Kingdom"

nobody@allconsuming.net (calypte) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:59:56 GMT

Forbidden Kingdom

My Kung-Fu weekend, part one:

Bullied, kung fu obsessed teenager finds ancient/magical staff and is transported to an ancient, mystical kingdom ruled by the tyrant Jade Warlord. Meets up with some nifty hero-types, learns how to be an amazing martial artist in about 20 minutes, and… ye-es. Okay, so the story is (a) a bit rubbish and unoriginal, and (b) totally predictable.

On the other hand, Jackie Chan fighting Jet Li!!!! Obviously not going to be true, but couldn’t help but think they just put the two of them on the set and said, “Right, on you go – we’ll make sure and slow the film down when you’re done.” :)

‘Tis a slight shame such an occasion was in the middle of so sipid an adventure, but it wasn’t that bad – a few too many shades of Karate Kid, perhaps, but at least it was a relatively unannoying ‘teenager’ (he’s 20-odds, and apparently more famous that I’d recognise) and the bulk of the film was given over to long fight scenes – which may not be such a good thing to you, but it was exactly what I’d hoped for, really.

Overall… a rather Westernised, teenaged, slightly comedic version of the Crouching Tiger / Hero / House of Flying Daggers style of things, with a hefty dose of fantasy and Monkey Magic thrown in.