Abril 2010

April 26th

Hi everyone!

Do you remember one of your mates, Almu? You might not, as she's been away for a long while now. You see, she's living and working in Italy at present, in a town near Milan called Seregno. That's why, as a compensation for her lengthy absence, she's sent the following stuff with her best regards:

Milan is a big, industrial and commercial city, but there are also some touristic attractions.

The most famous is its cathedral, "Il Duomo", which has five naves and is made of pink marble; tourists can go up to its roof and walk over it. In my opinion it's a marvellous experience and the views are amazing.

On the left-hand side of the cathedral, you can see the shopping gallery called "Vittorio Emanuele II", where there are the most luxurious and expensive shops, such as Luis Vuitton, for example. This gallery is very well known thanks to its glazed roof, and the first thing that you find when you go in, as soon as you watch down on the floor, it's the tourist office, which seems hidden under the gallery! On the other side, Milan's Royal Palace was for some years the government building, but nowadays it takes in a great deal of exhibitions.

Opposite the "Il Duomo" there is a pedestrian street called "Via Dante", similar to Zamora Street in Salamanca. At the end of this street "Castelo Sforzesco", a medieval castle, is waiting for a visit. Apart from its beautiful gardens, inside the castle there is a wide range of exhibitions: the painting and sculpture gallery, the furniture and, above all, the Egyptian museum.

It's worth going to the "Scala" theatre, but if you're affected by the financial crisis, you can visit the "Scala" museum, where a short visit of the theatre’s inside is included.

There are other interesting places, but if you have ever seen the "Cenacolo Vinciano", you'll know why I include it in my list of must-see places. However, it's essential to book in advance if you want to see this magnificent masterpiece by Leonardo Da Vinci, which is inside the "Santa Maria delle Grazie" church. Unfortunately there aren't any vacancies until July, so if you are interested, you must hurry before the tickets are sold out for this year.

To sum up, Milan combines the bustling shopping streets, bars, cafés and a wealth of attractions with my pleasant presence until October, so you've got the perfect holiday destination!

Thanks so much Almu for the Milan virtual trip? (lovely photos by the way). Still, isn't it funny that some of you need to go abroad to write something on our blog, ha ha! Whatever. I take it from your last line that we are all invited to visit you in Milan, is that right? We look forward to seeing you soon again, in the flesh! In the meantime, good luck ragazza!

April 22nd

Hi there! At long last this is Concha's review of Waking Ned Devine:

This comedy was entirely shot on the beautiful Isle of Man, although it is set in Ireland, in a sleepy little village of 52 inhabitants, named Tullymore, on the west coast.

Something that happens weekly all over the world has happened in Tullymore too. The lottery’s jackpot has been won by a citizen from the village. This time the lotto prize is huge and the local who firstly hears the news and his best friend try to guess who the winner is, in order to befriend him and share the profit. Later on, the whole village gets involved in the ploy.

The whole plot twists and turns around this purpose. Human passions are shown through the life of the citizens. The main stars play fantastic roles using an ironic language. You are gripped from the beginning because nothing is predictable.

The movie shows a breathtaking landscape and a beautiful rugged coast. It is an excellent, absolutely hilarious film, despite the fact that the plot is quite simple.

I strongly recommend Waking Ned to anyone who wants to spend an enjoyable and relaxing time.

Well done, Concha, thanks for your review. Here's the film's trailer:

More Irish stuff: Ana (Garcia) sent me an interesting video a couple of days ago. She knows how much I love Ireland (so does she now!) and anyway she had come across this fantastic clip about the island's musical heritage, which seems to be part of a promotional campaign called "Donde Irlanda te lleve". Since the video is in English (subtitled in Spanish), I thought it should be on our blog. Boy, do I love those Irish accents! Besides, the clip accurately portrays the character of Ireland (and its people) north and south of the border. Watch:

Accidentally I also found this other piece on Irish food belonging to the same campaign. You know that none of the British Isles have never been renowned for their cuisine, but Ireland might be a pleasant surprise: there's a wide variety of cheese, the fish and seafood are pretty good (indeed oysters and Guiness are a famous Irish delicacy worldwide!) and well, when they mention the "new cuisine" you will find they talk about ... paella!? Whatever. This short clip surely will make you hungry ... not only for food, but specially for Ireland!

Ana has written some comments on these two videos:

What more can I say? That’s Ireland: its people as sweet as its music and its landscape.

As it is said on the video, the Irish atmosphere is special, above all its people. You can’t feel like a stranger among them. For instance, would you change your kitchen into an improvised concert hall? Well, they do it! Can you sing a single note? You’ll be welcome. That is what I adore of Ireland: you won’t feel different any more.

Irelands means hospitality, music, pubs, beer (not only Guinness) and a mixture of modernity and tradition that envelops everywhere.

In one way for me it is like time stopped in the middle of nowhere and it makes me feel free. In fact, now I can understand why every single person who goes to Ireland returns in love with this country (so do I).

Actually Ireland in general –Dublin in particular- is the only place where I could live forever.

April 13th

Morning guys! Well, here I go again, fresh from my Easter hols in the awesome city of Paris. Because that is the only way to put it: A-W-E-S-O-M-E! Lavish buildings, a fantastic river, the Seine, abundantly crossed by now picturesque, then luxurious bridges, and well, you're spoiled for choice if you are a culture vulture as museums are plenty. But I don't want to bore you with my enthusiastic reflections. Let me just say that if I had to choose a couple of places in the French capital that really struck me, they would the magnificent, lavishly decorated Academie Nationale de Musique, the Paris Opera that is, and the imposing Eiffel Tower, no doubt one of the most recognizable icons of our planet. We had the chance to literally go top of the world on a glorious sunny day.

Awe-inspiring! Moreover, to see the whole structure illuminated at night from Trocadero is one of those breathtaking images that will stick in your mind for ever.

No video or photograph, however good the camera or skillful you may be, can do justice to the view. But still I've decided to embed a Youtube clip that will give you, yet roughly, a taste of what if feels like. I was absolutely speechless for the first five minutes, and I'm not exaggerating.

Then I have to admit that, contrary to my expectations (due, no doubt, to my self-confessed francophobia) the French - or the Parisians to be precise - are rather hospitable and more than willing to help you if you lose your bearings. Unfortunately my French is so poor, I wish I had learnt some as a young man, even if you can cope perfectly with English (and Spanish for that matter. But still I practiced the inevitable words, you know, merci, sil vous plait, au revoir and stuff a thousand times, so I feel I can pronounce them almost perfectly now, ha ha!

On the minus side, the chaotic traffic in the renowned avenue, Champs Elysees, and, above all, the huge roundabout in the impressive Arch de Triumph. Sheer madness how cars zigzag their way in and out of the place, I wonder how on earth Parisians manage to drive without crashing into one another! Then, the noble streets are dotted with the ugliest-looking litter bins, plain green plastic bags hanging on a rim. Practical maybe, but such a stark contrast!

Surely, after so the endless walking, sightseeing, photographing and video taping, my kids were

looking forward to a bit of fun in the magic Disneyland. Well, both the park and the studios are beautifully designed (specially the former, which looks like fairy land), but honestly both my kids (and even myself) were a bit disappointed by the lack of truly scary, so to speak, roller-coaster rides, you know, where you let off adrenaline, very much like what you can find in Port Aventura or Terra Mitica. I mean, Space Mountain and Aerosmith Roller Coaster are good fun but pretty mild. And to make matters worse, the whole place can be so crowded that some of these attractions await you with one-hour (or more) long queues.

For me the highlight of the two-day visit were two theatre shows, Animagique and, most of all, Cinemagique. The latter perfectly portraits, as its name indicates, the ever-lasting magic of movies in history by mixing reality and fiction through the splendid performances of actors Martin Short and Judie Delpy and synchronized classic, easily recognized film scenes on the big screen. It only lasted about half an hour but I could have stayed watching for the rest of the evening.

The quality is not very good (pity!), but I've embedded the final excerpt of the show on YouTube. Mind you, if you're thinking of going to Disneyland shortly, you shouldn't see this or else it will ruin the "magique", so just wait for the real thing!

Well, folks, this is getting way too long, isn't it, so I better close now. I just wanted to share with you some fond memories of an unforgettable trip to one of the cities of cities, the magnifique Paris. Au revoir!

The Music Spot (part II)

May 25th

Ana Galache says:

I want to share with you the great concert that I saw last Friday night. The “Auditorio Fonseca” was packed with people eager to see and listen to the music of this fantastic group: The Sunday Drivers. They are five guys from Toledo, but all their lyrics are in English. They have been playing for ten years, and although they are quite popular in the United States and other European countries, there are many people in Spain that have not heard of them. Unfortunately, this was the last chance to see them in Salamanca, and next 17th of July they will play their last gig in the Benicassim Festival, as the group breaks up definitively after this concert.

Their music can be labelled as indie pop, somewhat reminiscent of The Beatles, but it is the mixture of the melodies and the singer’s voice that, in my opinion, makes them so special. There are lots of good songs, but I strongly recommend some of them such as ‘Smile’, ‘To see the animals’ (nominated for Best Song in the Music Awards), ‘Paranoid’, ‘My plan’ (whose video I attach), ‘Everything reminds me of you’, or one of the most popular, ‘On my mind’. As the music critic Juan Mari Montes wrote in ‘La Gaceta’ on Sunday, they are ENORMOUS. I hope you enjoy their music as much as I do.

To conclude, I have to mention that even the supporting band were surprisingly good to my taste. Their name is ‘Smile’, a band from Getxo that also sing in English, with a 70s American Country style. If you want to know them, down below is a video too.

Thanks so much, Ana. It's always great to support Spanish bands. You know, funny though it may sound (being an English teacher myself), I've got mixed feelings about them singing in English, but that's the price of globalization, isn't it?

May 17th

Their Satanic Majesties. That's how the bad boys of rock, the Rolling Stones, are usually referred to after a controversial album they recorded way back in the 60s. A story of sex, drugs and, indeed, R'n'R in its purest sense. Honestly, even if not being my favourite band (I'd rather listen to them than watch them live on stage), I have to give them some credit for their doubtless contribution to contemporary music. All the band's members now well into their sixties, The RS are back in the news as they recently announced they would be present at the Cannes film festival for the premiere of the documentary "Stones in exile", which deals with the making of their legendary 1972 LP Exile on Main Street, almost universally regarded as a rock masterpiece (and I won't disagree with this opinion, as it is a truly fantastic album with classic gems like Rip this Joint or Tumbling Dice).

The thing is that on Saturday I was flicking through the extensive RTVE archive when I came across this 1994 programme "Planeta Rock" by musical guru Tomas Fernando Flores reviewing their illustrious career which I'm embedding down below. I cannot say that, to my taste, it has the best selection of their songs but rather a chronological run-through of their most renowned videos. From Angie (such a beautiful ballad) to Start me up and Undercover of the night, you will get a rough idea of what both some of their music and indeed their aesthetic are like. Fittingly enough, the songs are subtitled, though unfortunately in Spanish.

Nearly five decades later, they are alive and kicking, even if past their prime both musically and physically. I guess their enormous egos make them resist their retirement and anyway audiences across the world seem to still find them appealing after all these years.

Fair enough, this is my modest contribution to our blog on Internet Day. If you'd like to voice your opinions about one of the most important rock bands ever, this is the place. If you happen to be a Stones fanatic, you might even want to list your favourite songs. If you hate them utterly, why is that? Anything goes!

May 6th

Antonio says:

One of the things with which I made a joke was during Tuesday’s class, after the Fleetwood Mac song, because José Luis was saying “because…” and I made the most of the occasion and inserted the rest of the words as in the renowned Patty Smith song “Because the night belongs the lovers”, do you remember?
Well, in order to write a review of the song I will tell you first that I don’t “control” too much about English music reviews - it’s my fault! - and serves me right for not revising the topics which focused on Macy Gray (pages 24-25 of Cutting Edge). I also regret not having fulfilled all the written tasks we were asked to do by José Luis on its day (I pull my hair!!). I didn’t do hardly anything!
Well, putting aside my semi-joke, I will say that I especially love 80’s music; and I love the sweet clear female voices which appeared in that decade, namely, Sandra, C.C. Catch, etc. They continuously speak about love and the word you come across the most is “night” or “tonight”, which I love!! What’s more, when I listen to a piece of music sung by this sort of singers (girls, I mean), speaking about love or a similar issue, plus the precious utterance “night” / “tonight”, I get very moved and energetic (kind of a contradiction, don’t you think?). I imagine myself patrolling the streets on foot at night, and, during my walk, helping people with problems (I mean, concrete situations, imagine a person who falls down and needs someone to help them, for example)
I know this is way too weird to understand, but let my feelings come out …
OK, thank you for your attention.

May 2nd

Paz starts May with another song:

Hi guys!

I’ve been listening to these new entries on our already lively blog and I was thinking about the music I like, and definitely The Police is one of my favourite groups. I like most of their songs. Perhaps I’ve never thought of their lyrics, because what I really like in a song is its music. If it has plenty of sounds, the more instruments it uses the more I like it. That’s probably the reason why I prefer studio recordings to live concerts, as the sound in the latter is not so good.

Wrapped around your fingers is the second single The Police released in 1983. This English rock band, consisting of only three members, was formed in 1977 and oficially an act until 1984. Their music had great influences from reggae and jazz and their success was based on the sublime songwriting and the instrumental talent in their songs.

Here are the video and the lyrics scroller. Hope you enjoy the song!

Well done, Paz. Great stuff by The Police! I can only say that once in my teenage years I was totally hooked on the fabulous English trio, bought all their records and knew their songs by heart. I was really upset when they disbanded even if they never publicly announced it, but Sting's solo career kind of triggered off the ensuing events.

Honestly, Wrapped ... is not my fave song but I do love the video, especially Sting doing the slow-motion lip synch while jumping across the circle of candles. The lyrics are rather weird and enigmatic, with references to both Greek mythology ("caught between the scylla and Charibdes") and the Devil ("Mephistopheles is not your name"). Who knows who or what Sting was thinking of while he was penning the song?

April 26th

Eric Clapton. One of the best rock guitar players in history and truly one of my idols when it comes to one of my favourite genres, the blues. His personal life has had his ups and downs as much as his music but he has always looked to me an honest musician, who I’ve admired for his “bluesmanship”.

You must be wondering why I'm talking about good old Eric (he's 65 now). The thing is that Ana has sent me this great interview down below on the CBS programme Eye to Eye about his 2006 album with another music great, the Tulsa sound founder J.J. Cale, called The Road to Escondido, dedicated to the legendary keyboards player Billy Preston. As you will hear if you watch the programme, he modestly admits that "your faculties start wearing away at some point".

Obviously, it's been a long while since Eric started his illustrious career way back in the mid-60s with such influential bands like The Yardbirds and Cream. That's why I thought I could also embed this interview (subtitled in Dutch) featuring a young Eric in his early 20s as a member of Cream (Ginger Baker walks by now and then), at a time when he was building the reputation as a guitarist that made him into the legend he is today. So funny to see him in his hippy looks, you can barely recognize him! Watch how he talks about his music, his new album, his influences ...

Now, I guess most of you have at least heard of Eric Clapton, but also many probably don't know much about his music. Mind you, it would be extremely difficult for me to choose a single song, but one that I really dig is this 1960s Billy Myles classic called “Have you ever loved a woman?” The live cover I embed here is, to me, simply amazing, a 7-minute gem, and Eric’s guitar solos let you know why he is famously nicknamed “Slowhand” and why he's one of the most influential musicians of rock music. Boy, do I love that blues sound which makes my hair stand on end. And the way he sings - literally howls - the song: "Have you ever loved a woman / so much you tremble in pain …” , so much class he has that I tremble in awe! How many times I have played him when my son learns to play the blues in his electric guitar. "Sonny, Eric really rocks!", I keep telling him. And one of the lessons I hope David learned from his early years (and I hope one he’ll never forget) is that, as someone once said:

"The blues is the root, the rest is the fruit"

April 1st

Lourdes says:

The weary kind is the main theme of the film "Crazy Heart" and the Oscar-winning song in 2010. After listening to several versions, including Jeff Bridges’ performance, I´ve chosen which I consider the best, perhaps because the singer is the author and the way he plays moved me more than the others. As you can see it's the story of a loser because of alcohol. Apart from the lyrics, I would like to emphasize the country sound of the accompaniment; as a whole it turns out to be a moving, heartbreaking ballad.

Lastly, I would like to recommend you to see the film; it´s worth waching Jeff Bridges in the role of an alcoholic country singer whose career is fading away. As far as I'm concerned, he's just superb.

Thanks a lot, Lourdes. I thought nobody else was ever going to send some stuff for our moribund blog.

Well, on a funnier note, I'd like to embed another Youtube clip my son showed me a few days ago, which I find rather amusing. You see, I tend to forward you more or less serious stuff, but not this time.

Anyway, who hasn't heard at least once the famous Pachelbel's Canon? If you listen to the goear player down below, you will recognize the music instantly, I'm sure. "Ah, yes. Beautiful!" You will probably think. Well, there's a guy who's not that fond of it ...

March 7th

Hello folks, here I go again with a bit of music for our blog (which I haven’t done for a while).
You know, a few days ago I was watching A3’s news bulletin when Matias Prats read the news that it was 70 years, no less, since Frank Sinatra had had its very first hit. So the TV channel played a dull report on the glorious artist, as usual full of corny cliches, such as his alleged crime links with to the mafia, his political views, his condition of a womanizer, blah, blah, blah. But what made me upset is that they always seem to play the same obvious and trite songs, namely New York, My Way and Strangers in the Night, which to me are among some of his most "average", however famous they may be in Spain (and indeed across the world). I mean, they depict an old Frank, well past his prime (very much like Elvis in his Vegas period), when actually he sang, literally, hundreds of marvellous songs who very few know.
You see, I regrettably discovered Sinatra in my late twenties, thanks to a very influential secondary school English teacher I had, my always remembered Juan Antonio Carrascal, who later became a close friend until a terrible disease took his life some years ago. Indeed I had heard of Sinatra but never paid much attention to his music (apart from the classic hits, New York and stuff). That was until he recorded for me on a modest 4-cassette pack (those were the days!) a collection by the name “100 songs in the life of a man”, which I still preserve like a treasure, for the sentimental value, certainly not the sound quality, as the original source was an old turntable. He was shocked I couldn’t possibly appreciate Frank’s music as it deserved. And damn right he was!
Well, those tapes were like a revelation to my ears: soon I started to love Frank’s masterful phrasing, his crystal clear English (I keep telling my students, as did Juan Antonio to me, that they’re a hopeless case if they cannot understand his words … and that music, well, the glorious “swinging” jazz sound that grabs you by the throat and never lets go.
But I will let the music by “Ol’ Blue Eyes” (as he was sometimes nicknamed) speak for itself. I’ve chosen, just because that’s the song I listened to on BBC radio 2 which triggered off all these memories, a 1957 classic, representative of, to my modest opinion, his best period, the so called Capitol years (when he signed a contract with the namesake record company): Witchcraft, a beautiful love song with short yet powerfully romantic lyrics that can only be described with two words: sheer class!
Wow, I guess I’m making this too long. Just let me end up by saying that I hope this latest addition on our music blog will arouse in some of you the curiosity for this universal artist … Enjoy!

March 1st

Ana wishes to have another song featured in the film Once embedded on our music spot. This time is not a duet by Glen and Marketa, but just her (yet I'm not sure if Glenn does the backup during the chorus) singing a beautiful heartfelt ballad called If you want me. You know, the film is sort of driven by music rather than dialogue, and this is a good example, but I'm not going to spoil the plot by saying what it means within the film, as hopefully some more of you guys will want to see it too.

March 2010

25th March

After a 2-week stretch Ana has written a small review on our blog, this time of a 2000 film directed by Stephen Daldry, Billy Elliot:

Durham (Northern England), 1984. Eleven-year-old Billy Elliot, whose father and brother are miners on strike and whose mother died not long ago, attends boxing lessons after class, but what he really likes is the girls’ ballet lessons.
Living in a gruff family, with the exception of his grandma, who lives unaware of reality, his secret new love for dancing is a difficult issue for him. Nevertheless, he doesn’t give up pursuing his hidden dream.
Taking everything into account, Billy Elliot is a film such a hard (yet also sweet), moving and captivating film that you can’t stop watching it until the very end.

Thanks Ana. Our blog was rather inert of late, so your contribution, however small, has brought it back to life. A highly recommendable film indeed, acclaimed by the critics and loved by audiences across the world, which scooped a few awards at the time and is regarded as one of the best British films in modern history. This is a little sample, the official trailer courtesy of, what else, YouTube:

March 10th

Hi there! Tell you what: since she visited the Emerald Isle, Ana has become half Irish now, kind of a leprechaun, ha ha! Only joking ... or am I? The thing is that she seems obsessed with all things Irish. You see, she has just sent a review of another film shot on location in Dublin. First, it was Once, and now ...

Engagement, dedication, obligation, responsibility… (The) Commitments. That’s the title of this 1991 movie, directed by Alan Parker. The sweet dream of a working-class group of Dubliners doesn’t commit them to anything but pursuing their fondest wish, which is playing soul music.

What is the most important thing? Achieving a dream, even if it’s too painfully brief to relish? That is the premise behind “The commitments”: a youngster from a humble family decides to found a music band, so he recruits other boys and girls from the same background with no apparent prospect of future in order to make his dream come true ... and he kind of achieves it, but what happens in the end? Well, I don’t want to be a “spoiler” so you must watch the film.

Apart from the unbeatable Dublin atmosphere, the music envelops a modest and unpretentious plot, with a dose of harshness not exempt from tenderness.

To tell you the truth, I know that I’m not absolutely objective because I adore music and I am very much in love with Dublin. Anyway, the best way to know if I’m right is to watch this great film, The Commitments.

Thanks a million, dear Ana. I cannot but recommend this highly entertainment Alan Parker flick - the first screen adaptation of the so called Barrytown Trilogy, written by Irish author Robby Doyle - specially if you love quick-witted dialogues and soul music. Here's the trailer.

March 8th (the "Oscar hangover")

Hi guys!
It's official: David beat Goliath. Or, in other words, Katherine trashed her former husband James last night in Tinseltown (Hollywood, that is).
Fittingly enough, on International Woman's Day, she's made Hollywood history by becoming the first female director to win the coveted award for The Hurt Locker, which practically swept the board with six Oscars. Now, I haven't seen the action-packed war epic, but I'm starting to wonder, is it that good?
The thing is that, contrary to what all the media hype - and the generally entusiastic response from audiences across trhe globe - had anticipated, the film of the century, the groundbreaking 3D extravaganza, the smashing box office hit, whatever you call it, Avatar, had to make do with three modest, minor technical accolades (best visual effects and cinematography, indeed). You know, I kind of feel sorry for poor Mr Cameron and guess I surely cast a bad spell on his flick ... not bloody likely! I still feel Avatar is overrated, presumptuous, overambitious ... a mediocre story with a spectacular wrap, so Cameron and his big-budget film got what, in my humble opinion, they deserved. Mind you, not that I think much of the Academy members' artistic judgement and assessment, as they could have chosen Tarantino's glorious Inglorious Basterds as a perfect alternative to the Hurt Locker. Or Precious, for that matter. Or Up in the Air, or even the fantastic animated cartoon Up. The small consolation is that Cristoph Waltz (such an extraordinary performance as the bloodthirsty colonel in "I.B.") won the much anticipated Oscar for best supporting (¿?) actor. Then both the critics and the public quite agree too that Jeff Bridges deserved to win, at long last, an award for his great portrayal of a run-down country singer as much as for his long illustrious career. What I cannot understand is the nod to Sandra Bullock (or Sandra Botox, as she is nicknamed sometimes), whose acting (or rather "overacting") I've always abhorred.
Spainwise, Pe(nelope) left the Kodak Theatre empty-handed so she couldn't kiss her lovebird, Javier Bardem, in front of the US audience (that would have been something for our country's gutter press!). The nearest our cinema reached glory, so to speak, was the award for best foreign language film to Argentina's El Secreto de sus Ojos (a wonderful film, I hear), whose statuette was presented head to head by Tarantino and our one and only Pedro Almodovar.
You must wonder if I stayed up all night long to watch the ceremony as it happened ... well, no. And, according to TV critics, I must have done the right thing because apparently it was dull, slow, BORING TO DEATH. I just watched the opening act with Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin (reasonably funny but not brilliant) and then went to bed until 5:35 more or less when I woke up just in time to watch the last two awards and quickly flick though the ceremony's highlights ...
Wow, this is indeed coincidence! Guess who I've just spoken to on the phone? Juan Heras, the Van Dyck owner, who wanted to talk to my colleague Benimar about the forthcoming fim week the school organizes regularly. And as she was halfway through her lessons, he gave me the "inside" information: the "ciclo" will take place in April, from the 19th to the 22nd and then from the 27th to the 29th. And guess which film, one that both he and I love, will be shown among other titles: that's right, Inglorious basterds! It would be long to put down in words the 6-minute conversation we've just had about Avatar, this year's Oscars, but pretty interesting all in all ...
Ok, so as I was saying, I've recorded the whole ceremony, which once edited you'll be able to see if you wish, for the sake of English of course. And one more thing I haven't forgotten: I have to check your Oscar ballots to see who has won the competition...
Gosh, this is really a lenghty email (may I have set a new Guiness record, ha ha!). Sorry mates for the "sermon"!
See you tomorrow
Jose Luis

PS: I reckon writing a review of The Hurt Locker on our blog is a must now. Anyone who's seen the film willing to do so? In the meantime this is the trailer, if only as a small tribute by our modest blog to the ... film of the year?





Mª Jesús says:

Yesterday, I saw the French film A prophet. It was nominated for best foreign language film, although finally it didn't win.
A prophet is a gripping prison drama, where the main character is a young guy, Malik, who starts his six-year imprisonment in a French prison. He is an illiterate orphan, born in France to Arab parents, but he is extremely clever and sharp. He meets very different kinds of people inside the prison and he learns many interesting and useful things from each one.
Malik learns to write and read inside the prison. Later, he learns economics and languages, because different languages are mixed in this story. The characters speak French, Italian and Arabic. Malik realizes that it is very important to understand the different groups of criminals if you want to survive inside. So, the prison becomes his "school", which is a paradox.
Mainly, he becomes the servant of a Corsican gangster, who virtually runs the jail. On the other hand, he meets an Arab, who encourages him to study in prison. He will become his best friend and will trust him. He also meets a typical gypsy drug dealer.
In this way, the main character changes mentally as the years go by inside the prison. In this "school", he develops a criminal education rather than his moral rehabilitation.
I recommend you A Prophet despite being a bit violent, as it engages you. Besides, I think that the film shows the realistic situation of the prisoners both inside the jails and when they are released, specially because on many ocassions these guys are unemployed immigrants, and the society is unable to rehabilitate them.

March 7th

Hi folks!
It's barely 12 hours before the Oscars ceremony begins in LA. Fittingly enough, Roberto has sent a short review of what could be one of the "dark horses" of the night, a truly harrowing film called Precious:

Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire (this is the long tittle) has just won six Spirit Awards, which proves this independent film is one of the favorites at the Oscars (it has six nominations, including best picture).
The film tells the story of Claireece Precious Jones, an obese 16-year-old black girl who lives in Harlem with her selfish mother. She discovers her second pregnancy (she has already had a Down syndrome daughter) as a result of being constantly raped by her father. No one actually loves her but in her mind there is another world where she is appreciated, which helps her to go on with an otherwise very hard life.
She begins to go to a new school where a nice woman teaches her to read and write, apart from accepting her as a person. From now on she is prepared to fight and begins a new life with her two children.
Precious is a disturbing film with a very moving script, but the main attraction is the female acting (Gabourey Sidibe as Precious and Mo’Nique as her mother). They are both nominated to the Oscars and Mo’Nique is the odds favorite to win in the supporting actress category (she really does a very good job so she is my favorite as well).

Thanks a lot for your review, Roberto. And good luck for the Oscar competition!

March 1st

Hi and welcome to a new entry of our blog. Well, reviews keep flooding in (which fills me with immense joy) and this time it's Ana Navarro's turn:

Invictus is the latest film directed by Clint Eastwood, based on the political and human figure of Nelson Mandela.

In my opinion this film may be divided into two different parts. In the first one the focus is on the figure of Nelson Mandela when he had just become President of South Africa. Invictus reveals the terrible situation of the country due to Apartheid, and also the gripping personality of Mandela, who suffered the consequences of Apartheid and, despite being imprisoned for such a long time, forgave his oppressors and did his best to put and end to the racism problems that his country went through.

In the second part of the film the main interest is in the way Mandela finds to join blacks and whites together for a common cause: winning the rugby world cup that is going to take place in South Africa. To my mind, this second part of the film is predictable and the rugby matches take so much time. So, if you are not a fan of the sport, there is too much of it. Furthermore, in order to enjoy this second part it seems to me that it is better to have a basic knowledge of rugby. Only when I was explained its importance in some countries such as England, South Africa or Australia, or the significance of the dance by the All Blacks, the New Zealand team, before the final match starts, did I understand rugby’s full meaning.

All things considered, it is without any doubt an uplifting, feel-good film, highly recommendable.

I cannot finish this review without speaking of the main actor, Morgan Freeman, who is superb in the role of Nelson Mandela. In fact, he is nominated to this year’s Academy Awards, the Oscars. Of all the nominees I have only seen George Clooney in Up in the Air, and, as far as I am concerned, Morgan Freeman deserves the award much more than George Clooney. Let´s see what happens!

Well done, Ana. Let me just say I haven't seen the film yet though I've always admired Nelson Mandela, possibly my true political icon of the late 20th century. However, I cannot imagine, after watching the trailer down below, Morgan Freeman dubbed into Spanish, so I guess I'll wait until I can download the film or it is available in the video club. Hope the SGAE watchdogs are not reading this!

February 2010

February 27th

Ana has written a review of a delightful independent film, Once, directed by John Carney:

Something as accidental as a broken down vacuum cleaner is the excuse for an absolutely marvellous story set in a wonderful city: Dublin.
A vacuum-fixer who plays the guitar in the streets in his free time meets a Czech girl who also adores music. Their two lives merge through their songs. In fact, it’s the story of two sincere musicians who are required to relegate their passion by their harsh lives, specially hers.
If I have to choose what the idea of the film is, it’s MUSIC no doubt; yes, with capital letters: music lets you achieve your most secret dreams, or at least, live your mundane existence with benevolence.
This movie makes me wonder what exists behind every simple life that we come across with. The plot is so daily that makes it deeply credible, but not exempt from sweetness, tenderness and bitterness in a way that can tear the seams of your soul.
That said, I’m pretty sure all of you will want to watch this film; otherwise it would be a tremendous mistake.

Then Lourdes has also watched the film, and duly sends her review:

This is the story of a chance meeting of two lonely people in one street of Dublin. Despite their different lives (he is Irish and she is Czech) they share an interest in music. So, through their songs, we manage to get inside their dreams, dissapointments, emotions, doubts, etc. This moving film wouldn´t be so brilliant without its powerful soundtrack. It is remarkable how he plays the guitar and sings with a lot of feeling; sometimes his voice is so strong that it turns out to be heartbreaking while the Czech girl´s voice is full of sweetness. But when they sing a duet, the result is so amazing that they won the Oscar in 2008 for the best original song with FALLING SLOWLY.

Once is an uplifting film and, without making concessions to sentimentality, a love story but far from the hackneyed soppy stories with a happy ending that we are used to watching.

As I see it, perhaps the ending is bittersweet but actually one of its incentives, which makes the film more realistic.

I recommend it to you, specially if you like music or if you believe that dreams can come true; and if you want to have a great time with a feel-good film and learn English, of course, it´s easy to follow.

Ana, Lourdes, thanks a million for your reviews, I couldn't agree more with them. Once is a great little film, one that doesn't need a big budget or lush special effects (Hum, you know which one I mean, don't you!) As the caption on the trailer below reads, which summarizes the film to perfection, “Once has enough heart, verve, wit and song writing genius to ensure you’ll see it far more times than its title suggests”. Well, judge for yourselves, this is the movie trailer:

As Lourdes reminds us, "Falling Slowly" deservedly won an Oscar last year. When Glen and Marketa had to deliver their acceptance speech (I can't embed the clip here due to copyright restrictions, sorry), something funny happened. Watch. By the way, boy do I love Glen's lovely Dublin accent!

Glen and Marketa had, prior to the Oscars ceremony, performed the song at the David Letterman show so I thought I should embed the clip and the lyrics scroller. Such a moving song!

February 11th

Hi guys! We're back safe and sound after a lovely trip to the fine Irish capital. It has been five days packed with English, beer and craic. I haven't got much time to tell you about the details, and I'd rather Ana, Concha and Almu did the job in class anyway (actually Ana has already added a brief comment at the end of this entry). But I thought I should embed a little something on our blog, and as the saying goes a picture is worth a thousand words, so how about a photo gallery of day 1: there's the happy bunch at Barajas airport before the flight and then the first pint at the famous Temple Bar-based pub, Oliver St. John Gogarty's, where we were treated to some live folk music. Plus an audio clip of some Irish music down below from the world-renowned show Riverdance, which fits in nicely with the fantastic dancing show we saw at the Arlington Hotel. Enjoy!

February 6th

Lourdes says:

A friend of mine has just sent me this interesting speech by Isabel Allende about passion, women and feminism. I really enjoyed it not only for the things she says but also the extraordinary sense of humor that she intelligently uses in specific moments. So we can either smile or laugh and life becomes less terrible for a moment. Obviously I agree with most of the things she strongly believes in; otherwise I would be an insensitive, deaf and blind human being who doesn´t care about anything except herself. However, I must confess that, a few years ago, I gave up reading her novels because the main characters were too similar to each other and I got fed up with that, but now, after listening to her explanations, I wonder if I misjudged her, thinking she had found out the way to sell her books, all of them bestsellers . As far as I'm concerned, the most important thing is that people have to know the truth about the lack of human rights, especially for women and children all over the world. Because this is the first step to open our minds and change our behaviour for a better future to everyone.

February 2nd

Welcome to a new entry of our blog!

Love him or hate him. Quentin Tarantino, the enfant terrible of American cinema, had never been my cup of tea, but I have to admit that there's something about his latest movie, Inglorious Basterds (yes, spelt with an "e"), that I cannot help being fascinated by. Whether it's the humorous approach to an otherwise utterly tragic human event, the Nazi Holocaust, or, as a former student of mine once put it when talking about the Kill Bill series, the almost poetic violence he depicts on some scenes through some extraordinary cinematography and haunting music, or even the superb performances of the cast led by a convincing Bradd Pitt, with a special mention to Austrian actor Cristoph Waltz in the role of the murderous Nazi officer, I completely loved this gory yet thoroughly entertaining Tarantino's story of vengeance, which I saw last Sunday. Needless to say you can borrow the DVD from today. Besides, I love the mix of languages, English, German and French (and ocassionally Italian) throughout the film. More than ever, this is a flick to be enjoyed in original version.
Listen guys, I'm too busy (and lazy!) these days for a personal review, so I thought I could embed, not also the movie's trailer but also an expert's opinion (Ty Burr, that's his weird name) on the Boston Globe website in the form of a videoclip.
So, has anyone else seen IG so you would to agree or disagree with my views? This is the place, folks!

January 2010

January 28th

Paz says:

Hi guys!
I’m very surprised that nobody until now has written a review about Avatar, although I think most of you have seen the surprising and well-known film in the last few weeks. At last I could see it without queues or crews, which strongly annoy me. Although I had read the reviews and listened to people’s opinion, I mainly went to the cinema because of the 3D vision (I was looking forward to seeing a 3D film) and I really enjoyed it from the beginning to the end.
I got very impressed by James Cameron’s latest film. The plot is very simple, set in the year 2154 in a new planet called Pandora, which was discovered by human beings some years ago and is important for mankind because there is a priceless new mineral, so the biggest companies on earth send workers there to obtain this mineral, scientists to investigate the natives and something similar to an Army to protect all this stuff from the natives, who sometimes attack the miners. The scientists have built some bodies from the natives’ DNA, but they are not alive unless a mind is put inside them by a machine. One of these bodies is occupied by a doctor (Sigourney Weaver) and the other two by a scientist and an old handicapped soldier. They have to interact with the Navies, which is the name of the natives, and eventually they’ll help them defend their territory because they’ll fall in love with the natives’ lifestyle while forgetting the idea of making money at any price, even if they have to devastate the planet to get it and make the indigenous population abandon their homes.
Despite the simplicity of the plot and not having many well-known actors, James Cameron makes you enjoy the three hours the film lasts as you listen to some lovely music and watch beautiful scenes, all mixed with a soft love story hidden in it and a deep message about how our relationship with nature should be. The Canadian filmmaker develops the interconnection amongst living beings.
Thanks to all these ingredients, you’ll leave the cinema with a pleasant sensation and a smile on your face, so I strongly recommend Avatar to all of you that haven’t seen it yet. You’ll have a good time.

Thank you so much Paz. It's good to see that more of you are joining in.
Now, on a more serious note, let's deal with US politics briefly. As you may have heard, last night President Obama delivered his first State of the Union speech against a backdrop of an American public anxious about the economy and health care reform and lawmakers on edge about the midterm elections. It seems Barack's popularity is dropping little by little, as his administration has had had various political setbacks. But Mr President says it his his spirit of determination and optimism that keeps him fighting. In any case his famous campaign motto "Yes, we can" has turned into a more restrained message of hope and resiliance: "We don't quit, I don't quit!"
I've been watching bits and pieces of his address and I've selected for you precisely the end, where he utters the renewed slogan.

24th January

Roberto says:

Hi folks! We all know Hollywood is the main film industry and its films usually achieve a great box-office success. But many film directors think that cinema is not only big business. They try to say or teach something to the audience, no matter how much money the film grosses.

Lars Von Trier is a well-known Danish director, acclaimed around the world. In 1995 he and other colleagues created a new cinema concept, a movement called Dogma.

Dogma films must be shot according to ten rules (or “commandments”) called the “Vow of Chastity” (“Compromiso de Castidad”): filming must be done on location, the camera must be a hand-held camera, ...

Von Trier's filmography includes twelve films (Europa, The Idiots...), but I want to recommend you two of them:

- BREAKING THE WAVES (1996), starring Emily Watson, tells an unusual love story between a young woman and her paraplegic husband.

- DOGVILLE (2003), starring Nicole Kidman, tells the story of a gangster’s daughter hiding from her family who arrives in a small town. Her stay there changes the lives of the community in many ways.

They are probably the most moving films I have ever seen. Only some advice: if you want to have a good time, DON’T WATCH THEM!! Ha ha!

See you on Tuesday, have a nice Sunday!

Thanks a lot, Roberto. This is your debut on our blog, if my memory doesn't fail me, so welcome to the show! Anyway, Can I ask you something? I haven't seen Dogville, and after watching this Youtube trailer I'm embedding I was wondering if you happen to have the DVD ... I mean, the film looks terribly interesting and Nicole (Kidman, that is) is one my favourite actresses.

15th January

Morning folks! You know, I felt like blogging a little bit today, so here we go.

The last thing I posted was a Larry King send-up. Now the real LK talks to American actor Ben Stiller in the wake of the terrible human tragedy in Haiti after the devastating earthquake. Ben, who is a philanthropist himself and had recently launched a campaign to raise money for a school in the Caribbean country, talks about the contrast between the culture, the music and the art of Port-au-Prince and the level of poverty the people in Haiti lived in before the quake happened. He also expresses his concern for some of the people he met there, who may have died after the catastrophe:

Such a human plight, isn't it? Seems like Mother Nature delights in tormenting the poorest ...

Anyway, life goes on so let's talk about merrier things, shall we? Now, you must have seen plenty of British and, above all, American TV series in recent (and some of us not so recent) years, from classics like Twin Peaks and Hill Street Blues to modern hits such as The X-Files and House, MD. Well, The Guardian has asked its TV critics to shortlist the best TV dramas of all time. As the headline goes, the results might just surprise you (or might they?). Whatever, the top 2 spots are taken by two series of major commercial and critical success, but rather distant in time: On the one hand, the long-running The Sopranos, which deals with the life of New Jersey Mafia man Tony Soprano and the ups and downs he faces in order to balance his home life and the criminal organization he leads. And Britain's early 80's instant classic Brideshead Revisited, which only lasted 11 episodes, based on the namesake novel by Evelyn Waugh. It stars one of the finest (and too often underrated) English actors of his generation, a very young Jeremy Irons, whose deep bass voice (remember Scar in The Lion King?) has always fascinated me. BR brilliantly depicts English society from the 1920s well into the 40s through the story of two friends, Charles (Jeremy Irons) and Sebastian (another great British actor, Anthony Andrews). Briefly, the story is told in flashback as Charles, currently an officer in the British Army, is transferred with his company to a country house that he finds out to be Brideshead, Sebastian's family home, where Charles has a series of memories of his youth and young manhood.

So, I searched high and low on YouTube and found a clip of each series to give you a small glimpse of what they're like. As you can see, they're subtitled in English. You can easily appreciate the distinctive British and American accents but also the different language: The Sopranos' often crude jargon contrasts with the polished upper-middle-class style of the cast in BR (and, by the way, a few modal verbs here and there ...)

Do you agree with the critics' choice? Or do you miss any familiar names? Well, voice your opinions here! I nearly forgot: open your mail to read the full Guardian's article. Bye folks!

THE SOPRANOS

BRIDESHEAD REVISITED:

January 7th

Is English a language "de a bulto"? Well, judge by yourselves ...

Now, the real thing ...

5th January

Lourdes says:

Hi folks,

My opinion with regard to the new TV directive in Spain has two aspects: On the one hand, I must confess that I am somewhat skeptical about the financing sources mentioned in the article. So, I fear we are going to pay dearly for state TV in the worst moment of the economic crisis we are suffering. On the other hand, the experience of watching a program without being interrupted several times is fantastic. So much so that the first time I saw a whole movie I could hardly believe it because I used to fall asleep before the end but that time I didn´t miss anything. However, I think it is more important to improve the quality of programs on both private and state channels than to charge citizens with new taxes.

To conclude, from my point of view, it can be possible to enjoy a better TV even if we have to put up with advertising spots, as long as they are shown in a rational way in order to respect the audience.

A wish to share

In my letter to the Three Wise Men , I asked for a new pair of ears to understand English films without subtitles, because I find the task too daunting (a beautiful word!) on most occasions. I hope my wish will come true, because I have behaved very well and I try to every day.

January 2nd

Antonio says:

Yeah, I reckon a strange year 2009 was, will it be possible for us to get over 20th December 2012? (Are you superstitious?). Maybe within 30 years or less, mankind will be “history” but there will be no-one to write it. But stay cool, just take it as a profound endless sleep...

It’s Yuletide (the archaic term for Xmas). I don’t like it very much because it’s cold, years go by, daytime is shorter and the saddest thing, the acid test: when your family sits down at the table and you realize there’s someone who isn’t there, you miss them. Well, it’s my view...

More things: The other day I felt doleful because José Luis will undergo a robbery on his blog, so we should defend it!!! Sorry to tell you off, José Luis, but we’ll do nothing if we trust our destiny by “crossing our fingers”. I think we could defend ourselves regarding the blog. I don’t want to speak about politics but we anarchist trade unionists had a lawsuit against SGAE and WE BEAT THEM. What did we do? Just to fight against them by speaking out against them, sticking posters, painting graffitis on the walls, having demonstrations... etc., and this was done nationwide with the support of many people ...

Enough with this controversial affair. I’d like to attach a song (it’s Christmas and I’m feeling groovy, he, he): in connection with what I’ve just said, our resistance against these vultures (SGAE), I’m obliged to post this magnificent song by Sandra, whose title is very meaningful, “WE’LL BE TOGETHER”. It seems to me I don’t have to explain any further, do I?

- Sandra Lyrics