We watch all these movies and what do we have to show for it?

I read an interview with director Steven Soderbergh- the director of the Ocean's movies, and sex, lies and videotape (the rare breed to tread safely between commercial success and indie acclaim). And he had something remarkable to say:

...I'm not saying movies aren't influential; I just don't think they're important any more. There was a time when they were important culturally [and] I think they're as influential as ever, if not more, but that's not the same thing.

...It's not specific to films. I feel that way about all art right now. I'm not convinced it does anything any more. I look at what's happening in the world today, and I don't know how many stories about ourselves we need to tell before people stop killing each other. If the works of Shakespeare can't stop the Holocaust, then what is it worth? I'm being serious.

What good has it done us to read all of these great plays about all of these incidents and go, "Oh my God, what a tragedy that this person behaved that way", and there's no translation to what is happening around us. It's just the same thing over and over.

How's that for 21st century cynicism? We pump billions of dollars into the film industry, and spend countless hours being 'entertained'...and what do we really have to show for it? If we don't learn anything from it, whether it be an intellectual lesson, an emotional lesson, a political or social lesson, then there is something seriously wrong with the film culture we live in.

But then again, I LOVE Transformers. So what does that mean?

Just something to think about i guess.


As a post-script....i love Radiohead.

http://www.houseofkloo.blogspot.com

Jigsaw Pieces Falling Into Place

On day 3 of 5 of my Radiohead journey, I have found some interesting results.

The first thing i noticed when limiting myself to one artist for a week is that i listen to a lot of music. Over monday and tuesday alone, I had already listened to Kid A 3 times, The Bends once, OK Computer at least 1.5 times, Hail To The Thief twice and Pablo Honey once. In Rainbows featured twice at least and even now it is pumping through my brain. So I had virtually exhausted my Radiohead collection multiple times over within a period of less than 48 hours. I don't have Amnesiac or other live recordings...but i think I should...

As i looked back on the past two days, i realised the vast amount of time i spend with earbuds playing music directly to my brain. And for that matter, how much time we all spend with our personal music players in some sort of symbiotic relationship that effectively creates the cone of silence between us and the outside world. We sit at our computers and look at windows for hours at a day without so much as a hello or a smile to those sitting less than a metre away.

Never before have we been so connected, and never before have we been so disconnected.

Just an interesting thought i had.


I guess that's what Radiohead does to you. It makes you think a little bit.

Have i noticed any difference in life from listening to nothing but Radiohead? Nothing too noticeably different. Probably just made me think about things i already had going on in my head. The past two days have been wet and dreary, which fit quite nicely actually...but it'll be interesting to see how Radiohead will relate to this incoming hot weather in the next few days.

Fake Plastic Trees

The gimmick of the week is this: I officially declare this week Radiohead Week whereby I will perform a little social experiment and listen to nothing but Radiohead until Friday! The aim is to observe what effect this has on one's outlook on life and whether there is any quantifiable correlation between quality of said life and the amount of Thom Yorke in one's ears/mind/soul. The hypothesis is that it will be something of a challenging emotional journey, with the worst result being that I inexplicably start reading Stephanie Meyer novels.

Stay tuned for the final results, discussion and conclusions! (Scientific credibility of my findings up for debate).


Or maybe it's just because I've finished and handed in my thesis, and i just needed another experiment to fill in the time.

In Exile

I am in exile, a sojourner
A citizen of some other place
All I've seen is just a glimmer in a shadowy mirror
But I know, one day we'll see face to face

I am a nomad, a wanderer
I have nowhere to lay my head down
There's no point in putting roots too deep when I'm moving on
Not settling for this unsettling town

My heart is filled with songs of forever
The city that endures when all is made new
I know I don't belong here, I'll never
Call this place my home, I'm just passing through

I am a pilgrim, a voyager
I wont rest until my lips touch the shore
Of the land that I've been longing for as long as I've lived
Where they'll be no penalties anymore

beautiful words. It's also a beautiful song. So simple and elegant. The whole album is so rich in lyrical depth that I'm surprised they aren't as big as they should be. 10 points to whoever figures it out without googling it.

And for all you facebook kiddies out there, these posts are all found at my blog fyi.
http://www.houseofkloo.blogspot.com

Good night...and good luck.

Last. Lecture. Ever.

As a physicist, it's in my blood to love graphs and data processing/presentation in any form. Today we calculated that we spend on average 13,000 hours in class at school over 13 years, and about 2080 hours in uni class time over 4 years. Total class time was therefore 15,080 hours- approximately 620 days, or 1.5 years straight of education. Not much really, when you think about it...i asked, what have i been doing the rest of my life??

This is not counting time spent in study or lunch breaks or those all-important extra-curricular activities. It also does not account for any time we spent not going to class, or procrastinating on facebook. I think we can safely double the hours if we count study time etc. We did this mainly because we realised that we were about to have our last hour of official class lectures EVER at St George Hospital this evening. It was a moment to remember. A bittersweet moment in life as we passed another milestone along the proverbial road of life. Kind of like turning 20 i guess.

Anyway, i thought of that just then because i made a graph of my music tastes. It's late and i don't know why i'm still online. I ate a LOT of food tonight at Sizzler, and so i just don't feel healthy lying down with such a full stomach...

Enjoy the data!

Fig.1 Pie chart- global distribution of my music listening habits

Fig.2 Data breakdown including 'others' as in Fig.1

Table 1. Evidence that i just have too much time on my hands late at night. This is what happens when you write an honours thesisin physics. you start nerding out on everything in life.

brand new eyes

The new Paramore album is good.



But it needs more breakdowns!



Oi Paramore...DISRESPECT YOUR SURROUNDINGS!!

Life is like a poorly chosen analogy.

At first you think you understand it, but then you just get a little confused. It takes a second before you realise the absurdity behind the analogy. Then you get angry at the guy who told you the analogy in the first place. Then you punch him in the face and leave.

So next time someone pulls out a poor analogy on you, make sure he doesn't do it again.