Weekend - Andrew Haigh

Met someone at a nightclub, spent an awfully wonderful night with someone. Something seemed to be cooking between the two of you. However, the next day the both of you had to go separate ways. Does it ring any bell? Andrew Haigh wrote and directed the “Weekend”, took us down to the familiar alley and rekindled the feelings we had fought back a thousand times.

I wonder how many of us have actually done what Russell (Tom Cullen) did, declining a friend’s invite and went to a bar alone and went home with a stranger, Glen (Chris New). This was how the "weekend" started, followed by unanticipated attractions, heated discussions, erotic sexes and eventually an undesired goodbye. Obviously, most of us have been through or did something somewhat similar, it was pretty predictable, but why it is a compelling movie?

It was how Haigh engaged in the emotions, the differences of the two protagonists. The authentic personalities set both of them on very diverse grounds. The distinct personas drew the audience like me, pondering their own experiences. Unlike the typical gay themed movies, it was not about coming out, struggling within the society. It was more of an individual awakening, striving for what they need, and it was exactly the initiative of why Russell walked into the nightclub alone.

What drew Glen to Russell was a different story; an intended affection left him helpless. What the both of them represented were the two emblematic norms of this generation gay perspective. On one hand, hoping to be loved; on the other hand losing faith in love but still constantly falling into it.

The bona fide characters not only brought by the sensitive measures the director took, but also letting the leads improvise, Haigh revealed in an interview with the SXSW Film Festival 2011. The genuine dialogues and the subtle development of the story carried out a sense of togetherness which was extremely relatable.

This year I have come across two very similar movies, “Weekend” and “Room in Rome”, Spanish director, Julio Medem first English movie. Both featured same-sex encounters in a short burst of time. Is it just homosexual relationship could easily end up having an instant fling or it was a sheer coincident that both movies depicted the same scenario?

No matter what the reason is, both movies inspired and brought back a lot of memories. Today there aren’t many low-budget movies with such quality which could leave you ponder and nodding your head with appreciation. 

Hesher – Spencer Susser

Grieving is one thing, being nonchalant is another. When these two scenarios come together we had Hesher (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) – a heavy metal, malevolent but kind-hearted guy to save your day.

The movie greeted us with an early teen, TJ (David Brochu) wounded by the recent death of his mother. Fail to purchase the wasted car, which his mother died inside, as a memory. He became a trouble stricken kid and runs into a bigger firecracker, Hesher. TJ cost Hesher his shelter, thus resulted the uninvited Hesher to his place.

The title character Hesher was a deviant person; he walked into your life without your consensus. As the story developed, we learnt that he had his own way in helping people. The metaphor he told, might seem a little difficult to digest but he meant every word he said. He might not even know his words have indeed effect on other people. He never sugarcoated his words, he said whatever he wanted, did whatever he wanted. And they were not always bad. It was just the way he acted might be misleading sometimes but his intentions were good.

When Hesher was spotted on the couch in their living room, TJ’s dad, Paul (Rainn Wilson) only asked who he was. May be it’s due to his intimidating appearance or Paul was too tired to bother to deal with the intruder. Not long we found him having dinner with their family and bonding quickly with TJ’s grandma. Somehow Hesher blended in the family. He might seem nonchalant, however, his action said the other. This was proven by the way he helped TJ and his reaction after grandma’s death.

Sure there were a lot of problems existing in the family. The father and son duo were traumatized by the death and grandma was trying to get a hold of the boys. And even Natalie Portman’s /producer character had a lot to offer. Life isn't perfect as we all do aware of. It’s about how to make every second counts instead of blaming the world and hating everything.

Sometimes grieving overshadowed the bright future we have in front of us. I am not saying we should put all the sadness away. It’s just that we should remember, no matter what happens, there are always two sides of a story.

The Glamour - Christopher Priest

1 victim, 2 witnesses, and 3 statements, which side the story we should listen to.

The story was written backwards but it seemed the other way round. One of the characters, Richard suffered from amnesia, which he had lost partial of his memories. There were so many versions of his life, one from his hypnotised sections and the other from Sue. One happened in France and the other happened in the UK, which left me thinking which was the real version. When he started to believe Sue’s version, the intrusion came in when Richard found out Niall (Sue’s ex) knew everything about him, not simply “things” but his future. Everything suddenly became surreal. How could Niall know everything? Or he simply was just being schizophrenic.

"Wish you were here,” signed X. the post card from France.

Christopher Priest led us to a huge confusion. Especially the post cards, they appeared in the story 3 times featured 3 versions, First before the accident was sent by Richard, Second also before the accident was sent by Niall and third after the accident was sent by Richard. Again, which was the actual one?

"We all make fictions. Not one of us is what we seem. ... The urge to rewrite ourselves as real-seeming fictions is present in us all. In the glamour of our wishes we hope that our real selves will not be visible."

Once the narrator revealed what was the true meaning of ‘the glamour’, which was the invisibility of a person. It was like playing a jigsaw puzzle, pieces by pieces you assembled a world in front of you. When I tried to relate the whole idea of glamour to the world, it does make sense; people are always trying to hide things from each other, at home, at work, everything, and everywhere. People always hide the truth of themselves, which is why people switch on their invisible mode.

No matter you were invisible or not, people could still sense the differences. People knew you were hiding something. There is no absolute invisibility. Not knowing the truth doesn’t mean not aware of its authenticity.

It seemed like there was someone invisible behind me forcing me to turn the pages, pushing my head down. I just can’t stop myself thinking about the book. Christopher Priest really got the power to pull me into the story. This book was first published in 1984, more than 2 decades now, its actually timeless, it will captivate you within seconds.

Something Like Summer – Jay Bell

There is something unique about this book, which set it apart from its genre. Sometimes homosexual themed novels could be carried away by the idealistic life of a peaceful gay world or the protagonist always ended up with the hot cute guy or happily ever after endings. “Something like Summer” does fit into one of these shoes, however, unlike the others it presented in a more sophisticated way which takes us on a roller coaster ride.

Jay Bell takes us through Benjamin Bentley’s life. Ben came out when he was 14. Since then he had been with different curious guys, no one was really looking for long lasting love but just fooling around with him. Until one day he saw a cute jogger in his neighborhood and hoping one day they could be boyfriends. And of course life wasn’t always we hoped it was but life continued. So what happens?

The novel is broken down into 3 parts: one, high school, two, college and three, adulthood. Life is supposed to be full of surprises and dilemmas. Despite that the fact that sometimes it could be easily fit into those cheesy scenarios, then these relatable crossroads pulling you closer to Ben, feeling as helpless as Ben keep your fingers turning the pages urging your mind read faster than your actions. It would be a tough call for me, if I were Ben. I guess most of us would feel the same way too. It’s already difficult to forget your first love; it would be even harder if you have unsettled feelings for them. I kept asking myself when I was reading it, would I do the same? I love about this novel is that it kept me thinking throughout my read.

It’s really hard to run away from those stupid little mistakes we made, the real challenge is how we handle them. One wrong move could cost your entire relationship. And how strong your relationship is could also put into account. I don't know why I felt I was in Ben’s shoes, not that I have any similar happened to me. It’s the power of the author, how he decided to write about a life of a person, it feels like I was growing up with Ben. Sometime this kind of story would get a bit boring but not this one.

The story is a bit unexpected, not a bad ending nor a happy ending. I was dumbfounded and needed some time to take in what I have read, in a good way. Overall it became one of my all time favourites. And I have to say there aren’t many on that list. So I’m really impressed.

Boy A – John Crowley

Eric Wilson (Andrew Garfield) is given a new identity when he is released – Jack Burridge, in order to help him readjust life after spending years in juvenile prison for murder. Under the help from a rehabilitation worker Jake is given a job and a place to live.

No matter what he had done in the past, Jack seems to be a genuine, good person. From the fresh backs of his childhood we know he was brought up in a broken family, alcoholic father and a mother dying from cancer. Constantly being bullied. He was never a bad kid. When the bad influence and malevolent Philip Craig came to the picture, Jack quickly follow suit Philip’s behaviours maybe his loneliness drive to the hands of evil. Later we learnt that Philip was sexual abused by his brother. It seemed to explain his provocative actions.

This is not a typical get back to the society story, it’s about a kid never once has stepped his feet into the world. The movie did not mention any of his imprisonment. It starts from his last day of prison. He has been living in discipline almost his entire life. His soul is purified and innocent. How he interacts with the actual world is compelling to watch but yet brutal.

Something is haunting Jack, the real reason why his friend Philip Craig (the second defendant of the drastic murder) reported committed suicide but Jack suggested it was the opposite. Neither of boys took the sole responsibility of the murder, neither of them gave any detail to determine who should be locked longer. Which implies the close bond between the boys. The story implicated Philip was the troublemaker. And it was Philip who started it. The story never reveals the truth but it was obvious.

From the beginning of the movie we could almost predict the ending. Why he has to change his identity? Which implies people are not forgetful, in order to live a better life one must change ones name to penetrate the people without a trace. How ironic people say giving others second chance which only implies to those with minor record.

People are not perfect, and every single one of us deserves a second chance. We have no right to deprive others’ chances because of our prejudice and preconception.

FM84 2011/5/9 Vol 2

FM84 逢周二下午六時播放


第一節【兩位主持本周電影口味分享，少不了品評一下本周新上畫電影】
本周上畫 / Tony要強烈為大隻雷Thor辯護，討伐4res / 由《Limitless》（逆天潛能）的藥物借用引伸至美少女戰士其中一集？ / 阿根廷電影《XXY》（我是女生，也是男生）帶出的性別錯摸很值得深思




第二節【音樂雜談】Tony主理
樂隊Hurts訪港，Tony熱熾推介 / Billboard榜動態更新，歌曲飆升有時似股市 / Lady Gaga新歌MV出街Tony無好感？ / Maroon 5也來香港，Tony棒場




第三節【電影專題雜談】4res主理
Pixar 25周年展覽介紹 / 4res和Tony一人選一套最喜愛的Pixar作品

FM84 2011/5/2 Vol 1

FM84 逢周二下午六時播放

第一節【兩位主持本周電影口味分享，少不了品評一下本周新上畫電影】

本周上畫 / Tony和4res看了些甚麼 / 順便講兩句itunes有相當廉宜的電影租貸服務？

第二節【音樂雜談】Tony主理

美國藝人銷量提升法 / Lady Gaga新碟上榜只能踏入梗頸十；力邀Britney Spears作featuring的Rihanna終如願登上Number One趕落Katy Perry / 來自美劇Glee的音樂推介

第三節【電影專題雜談】4res主理

由3D肉蒲團延伸至本土情慾片的文化？ / Tony推介兩套歐美情色電影