Three early summer films at the cinema.

In the early summer I saw three of the season's biggest films....

Iron Man 3

Marvel continue the adventures of Tony Stark (played by the always watchable Robert Downey, Jnr.) and his superhero alter-ego, in the first film post the mega event that was The Avengers and it's multi million box office take last year. Director Shane Black, a newcomer to the Marvel universe, gets Tony out of his technological comfort zone (and of course into Christmas - a time of the year he loves to film!) and therefore the famous suit for a lot of the running time. This allows the character to plan beyond his usual way of getting out of scrapes, and gives the film an edge. The visual effects are up to the usual high standard, and there are some nice one-liners. The character of the Mandarin was wonderfully realized by Ben Kingsley. Good twist there! Also great to see Gwyenth Paltrow as the lovely Pepper Potts, who gets into a suit this time. I found the film very enjoyable, far better than the rather average Iron Man 2, and am not surprised its the highest grossing film of the year (so far!)

Iron Man 3 poster art.

Official Site
IMDB


Oblivion

Tom Cruise on the Oblivion poster.

In this science fiction film set in the near future, after a nuclear war against invading aliens named the Scavs has been 'won', Tom Cruise plays Jack, an engineer, tasked with patrolling and protecting an area of the blitzed planet where vast power plants have been set up to create enough energy from the sea to fuel a space trip that has been designed to save what remains of humanity. His masters (based off-world with the remaining human race) check in with him and his colleague and lover (played by the lovely Andrea Riseborough) everyday to set missions and check if they are still "an effective team". All is going well with their quiet sky-based life, but odd things start happening when Jack investigates a crashed patrol drone...and finds out that not is all what it seems on Earth, especially when he finds an old crashed ship containing Julia - a woman that haunts his dreams (played by the stunning Olga Kurylenko.)

    Tom is his usual dependable self in these type of roles: playing the concerned everyman who becomes the action hero. What I do like about him is that he seems to have passion for all of his film projects, particularly SF-based stories, and this enthusiasm flows into his performance. The film's real strength is the look and feel that the director Joseph Kosinski brings to his films (similar to his previous hit, Tron: Legacy.) His style fits somewhere in-between Stanley Kubrick and James Cameron. The special effects are beautiful; with flawless CGI and camerawork, the visuals have a cold quality, echoing those in 2001: A Space Odyssey. The empty Icelandic landscape that is used portray a future USA (with amazing CGI enhancements of ruined cities) does look fantastic. Kudos to the design of the ships and robots. Also, worth noting is the astounding sound design; it was amazing in the cinema, especially when the flying drones are on screen.

Andrea Riseborough as Victoria.

    The film plays (for the most part) like a 1970's bleak sci-fi film, which I appreciated being a fan of many of those productions (such as Westworld and A Boy and His Dog etc.) Maybe the film could have been tightened up in the mid section, and some reviews have said this film is a case of style over substance, but for me the films worked nicely and features some fine action set pieces. Some elements of the plot are rather silly and didn't face up to much scrutiny, but overall this a solid sci-fi tale with a satisfying conclusion. It does look amazing, having been filmed using the new Sony CineAlta F65 4K cameras. Certainly worth catching on the big screen.

Official Site
IMDB


Man of Steel

Superman returns! After a few years away from the silver screen, Zack Synder (300, Watchmen etc) brings us a rework of the world's best known comic book character. This reboot is an origin tale, showing how Kal-El gets to Earth and becomes a superhero and saves Metropolis from his nemesis, General Dru-Zod (played with threat by Michael Shannon here.) The style of the film is nearer to the recent Dark Knight films from Christopher Nolan (a producer) - it has a darker, more sombre feel and look compared to the upbeat Superman: The Movie (1978), with a soundtrack by Hans Zimmer to match. Henry Cavill slips into the cape very well, I was impressed with his performance, as he really looks the part and does the standard American accent well. A good cast, and for the most part a pretty exciting film, although I felt the use of over-blurred CGI shots was a let down in some of the action scenes. Of course, once again we get a city totalled at the end!

Henry Cavill as Superman.

Official Site
IMDB

....next up is Guillermo del Toro's Pacific Rim (a film I've been excited about since it was announced as I *love* giant robots and monsters) ...and a bit of Alan Partridge! A-haa! :)

Some films I've seen over the winter...

I've not been to the cinema much (but I've seen a lot of stuff at home on disc instead, including the amazing Dredd, and the rather average One Day) but here is what I've seen on the big screen over the last few months...


Skyfall

I saw this feature, the 23rd (official) "007" film, released on the series' 50th Anniversary, a week after it opened. I was lucky enough to go with my friends Mark and Mandy at the Coventry Odeon. That date tied in with when we were all available, and with the ice hockey game that Mandy and I were going to that evening at the ice-rink next door. Anyway, it was lovely to get together with them again and have a good catch-up!

I thought the film was tremendous, I absolutely loved it and really got into the story and action at that screening. Daniel Craig has certainly made Bond his own, playing it as a thug in a Saville Row suit but now with, I feel, more confidence. This allows him to be a little playful within the role. There is an improved script this time around, compared the muddled and supposedly rushed Quantum of Solace. Good performances from all. I especially like Ben Wishaw as the new "Q". My favourite parts of the film were the attack on the hit man in the Shanghai skyscraper, the look of the film there was spectacular with the advertising lights dancing over the skyscraper (see picture), and the Scotland scenes compromising of the end half hour, where the typical "Bond film vibe" seemed to morph into harder action drama. Stunning. Its huge worldwide success (over $1billion taken at the box office so far) has surely guaranteed 007 films to come for many years. If they are this good, bring 'em on Sony/MGM!

"Empire" magazine review.

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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Japanese poster.

At long last! Part 1 of Peter Jackson's new Middle Earth epic opened just before Christmas. I'd been waiting for these films for *years*, after being blown away by his Lord of the Rings trilogy ten years earlier. This first episode, covering roughly the first third of the book, did not disappoint. Most of the film presented here was excellent and very exciting, even though Jackson could be blamed for padding the film unnecessarily (some scenes have been added that were not in the book, but appear in the LOTR appendices, or were created for this version). The second half of the film was probably more effective than the first (picking from Rivendell and beyond) as it seemed to flow better and was more thrilling. The Gollum (Andy Serkis) v Bilbo (Martin Freeman) riddle battle was the key sequence in the film, and top notch film making it was from all concerned. Brilliant. Hats off to Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen) and the Dwarves (Richard Armitage etc.) as well. Generally, the visual effects from WETA Digital and their prop making group were stunning, particularly the work on animating Gollum over Andy's movements in his gimp suit. Anyway, this all points to some great stuff coming in the next two films (Smaug! Giant Spiders! The Battle of the Five Armies! ...and, er..Stephen Fry!?), to be released over the next two Decembers.

I saw this film in 2D - didn't bother with the 3D or the new 3D-48 Frames Per Second version this time. I'll definitely try the 'new' format next time around to see Smaug the Dragon swooping over my head, though!

*The film just went over the $1billion mark, in terms of worldwide box office take. MGM and Warner Bros. must be happy. :)

"Empire" magazine review.

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Les Miserables

I was intrigued by this musical (the latest of a few non-musical film versions made over the years) especially as the stage version has been such a worldwide success. I didn't think it was that bad, but wasn't amazed by it. I had some doubts over the running time (I got a bit bored, to be honest), the pop-style vocal talents of Russell Crowe (pictured), but generally this film is done pretty well and everyone is trying their best, what with singing live in front of the camera. I had some quibbles with some of the way the sets looked: a bit "stagey", but maybe that was the point, or they had run out of budget! Anyway, an average...3/5 from me.

"Empire" magazine review.

Next up will be Oblivion at some point in April, followed by Iron Man 3.

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Our Dorset break, and two collectors shows.

In the early summer, we went on a couple of breaks to the some very pretty parts of the coast. First was Dorset on the south coast of England, for my 40th birthday. On the way down, we stopped off in a rather rainy Winchester to have a look at the cathedral and a mooch about the very nice town centre, and grab a spot of lunch. The cathedral was wonderful - I was impressed with the old library there, lots of weighty tomes delicately made by monks of the past...and of course, the stunning medieval architecture. We were amazed to find out the massive building is actually built on marshland! Poor Carla got scared in a dark corner - she picked up a 'bad vibe' from what looked like a 'dark figure'.....spooky! Oh, we found an interesting cinema just past the town centre as well, in what looked like an old school hall.

The impressive interior of Winchester Cathedral. 

We got down to the coast ok, and found our lovely cottage easy enough, which was located right in the middle of the stunning village of West Lulworth, just up the road from Lulworth Cove - a tiny hamlet located on the famous sheltered bay. The evening sun was blazing by this point, although it was a little windy, we went out for a walk by the coast. It was so beautiful there, seeing the sea and bay in late afternoon sun. The views over the bay and coast were simply amazing.

Lulworth Cove, Dorset.

Looking west from Durdle Door, along the 'Jurassic Coast'.

Carla at Lulworth Cove, after the epic descent down the long stairs!

The next day we went walking all around the the cove and up and down the famous and dramatic 'Jurassic' chalk coast nearby, both in East and West directions, in a rough 'figure of eight' route around our cottage. We initially headed west through the countryside towards the famous coastal formation of Durdle Door, which provided us with some fantastic views, then back to Lulworth Cove along the coast, for some reason against most of the walking traffic! After lunch, we went the other direction and climbed the hill that separates the village from the coast. There were very steep steps down to the far side of the bay, but once down safely, it was great to investigate the area which was a little more wooded. We got back early and spent a lovely two hours in the garden in the sun. Bliss!

The ruins of Corfe Castle.

The next day was very sunny and warm, so we went for a visit to Corfe Castle (and the pretty village of the same name next to it) - which is a very impressive ruin of a fortress that must have been amazing in its glory days, due to the stunning location and design. We enjoyed walking around the castle, especially as we were re-creating scenes from the 1970's comedy, "Nuts in May" which was filmed there. After finding some very tasty eccles cakes in a baker's shop, we parked up near the village of Worth Matravers and did a long walk around the lovely coastal headland of St. Aldhelm’s Head. This was a wonderful walk, as it took in impressive (if a little bleak in places) countryside, fantastic sea views, and Winspit Quarry that happened to have been a "Doctor Who" and "Blake's 7" alien planet location in the late 1970's! Here, we had a funny encounter with seagull that loves houmous sandwiches. Later, it was good to discover a tiny chapel right out on the headland, which was very atmospheric to visit as it was 800 years old. Then, a bit further around the headland, was what could be best described as 'the stairs of Cirith Ungol' (Tolkien geeks will get the reference.) Wow, going up and down those was a great work-out! To finish the day, it was off to Swanage, a pleasant seaside holiday resort town that has all the usual stuff: beach, little port and pier, gift shops, arcade, cinema etc. We even spotted the Isle of Wight from the beach.

Me at St. Aldhelm's Head.

The next day was a bit cloudier, but still fine. We drove over to the North West of Dorset to visit the infamous Cerne Abbas Giant chalk figure, or the 'huge nob giant' as I call it! We had a little walk up to the edge of the figure (unfortunately you can't go onto it now) and then back down and explored the village. Then it was onto Dorchester, the county town of Dorset, to have a look around. Really good museum there, and the town centre has a nice vibe with lots of good shops and an old cinema -we liked it a lot. Just outside the town is Maiden Castle, an ancient Celtic / Anglo-Saxon settlement on top of a huge man-made hill.
 mpressive defences! ....and a great place to walk your dog.

Saying 'hel-looo' to the Cerne Abbas Giant!

Carla at a cold and misty Portland Bill - everything was closed!

 Our last full day was spent visiting the headland of Portland Bill (disappointing to be honest, and a bit odd down there, very bleak and rocky on the headland....hence the picture!), then Weymouth, a lovely and bustling port and resort town - lots of boats in the harbour and pretty nice seafront. I bought a cheap book about "King Kong". Fun to see the crows on the seafront dropping seashells on the promenade to break them open. We discovered something called 'Dorset Apple Cake' in a baker's shop in Weymouth, and it was astoundingly good! After a late lunch at Subway, we headed up the coast to find some Roman remains before the rain hit. On our final day, we drove back home via the towns of Wareham (nice little town and nice views of the marsh and river), Blandford Forum (some interesting architecture but rather dull), and stopped off in Salisbury (a wonderful and bustling city, and the cathedral and grounds are *amazing*) for lunch. Also, we planned our trip so we could drive past Stonehenge. All in all, a nice little trip (more on our other trip in the next post.)

* * * * *

A week or three after that, it was time for me to attend a couple more film/TV collectors shows. First up was MCM Expo at the ExCel centre in London's Docklands. It was a very hot day, which must have impressed the large amount of cosplayers as some were in very heavy costumes! An interesting show, although a bit of madhouse actually. Good to see my friends Bill, Mark and Clare, catch Jamie (briefly) and watch Jane spend all of her money on Totoro stuff! I didn't get around to getting Elvira's autograph, but I already had one anyway. However, it was nice to see her in costume, she still looks amazing. :) Next show was Collectormania in Milton Keynes, held at the football ground over the bank holiday weekend. Our pals Mandy and Bill came to stay with us for that weekend, so off we drove down the M1 to the show. That went fine, but it took ages to park as half of the stupid car park was shut! Still, once in, the show was good to mooch around, and as always nice to see other pals such as Jane, Ben, Darren, Graham, and Mark and Claire.

Prometheus.

Afterwards, some of us went into the town to meet Mark (another one!) to see "Prometheus" in 3D at the Cineworld. The film was good, although it took me a while to get to grips with the odd things the characters did in places. Great SPFX and design though: Ridley certainly knows how to get 'the look'. Michael Fassbender as (David the android) steals the show. I ended up seeing it again a couple of days later, in 2D this time, with the Mrs and her pal, and enjoyed it a lot more. Anyway, after the film the group went for a cheap but pleasant pub dinner. :)

Early spring town and cinema visits.

We had a nice break before Easter, in a week of wonderful sunny weather here in England - much different to recently as it has been cold, wet and breezy out (current the wettest 'drought' ever!) We did a couple of day trips, to the towns of Malvern and Rugby, to have a look around both places and a snoop around some of the small independent shops and the odd charity shop. In Malvern, we also spent some time walking in the picturesque wooded hills that border the town to the west - lovely views of the countryside from up there, even though the horizon was a little hazy.

A path on the Malvern Hills

Overlooking Malven

I've been lucky enough to go to the cinema a lot recently, as Hollyweird seems to be releasing their big 'event' films early this year (probably to avoid the London Olympics and European football championship.) For the weekend of our 8th wedding anniversary in early April, we saw "The Cabin in the Woods" and "Battleship", both great fun. Cabin was a bizarre film: enjoyable horror hokum that turns the teen 'stalk and slash' film on its head with a new twist. Action packed, gory, and featuring the usual Joss "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" Whedon playful script with loads of film references littered in there for good measure. As for Battleship (yes, based on the MB boardgame - spot the subtle references!) we both loved it! A great popcorn film that didn't take itself to seriously and had some cracking action set pieces. At last, no lizard aliens for a change. Thankfully we remembered to stay for the end scene post credits - those Scottish sheep will fend of any future alien attack!

Last Saturday, I went with my pal Sarah to my local Odeon to see "Marvel Avengers Assemble" - the 3D version. A very entertaining entry to Marvel's superhero film series from Joss Whedon (yes, him again.) All the superheroes had their moment of glory in front of the camera, and the complex 'New York battle against the aliens' finale was very well done with some top SPFX. I guess the only criticism with ensemble films such as this, is that the plot can't concentrate as there are too many main characters, so there is a danger of losing focus as the story moves from one A-lister to the next. Thankfully, Robert Downey Jnr. as 'Iron Man', together with the excellent Chris Evans as 'Captain America' seem to keep it all together. Good to see Mark Ruffalo as 'The Hulk/David Banner', who brought a lighter, slightly more comedic touch to the character. One reservation I had was that it was a little light on plot.

One of the many on-line reviews can be found here.


We've watched a few enjoyable films and tv shows recently; the highlight being a gem shown on the Horror Channel late the other week - a 1959 feature called "Horrors of the Black Museum", starring the brilliant Michael "Batman" Gough. A very good British horror film from a period where crime/horror cross-overs were in vogue, so similar in tone to the infamous "Peeping Tom" (1960). It will probably be a Halloween favourite of mine from now on! I'm also happy to see "Game of Thrones" back in its second series, the characters as scheming as ever!

As for interesting documentaries, a mention to "Bloody Tales from the Tower" - a three-part series about the death and tragedy at the Tower of London. Presented by the lovely Suzannah Lipscombe.

Mr. Binks returns...in 3D!

A couple of weekends ago, I went to see the cinema re-release of "Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace" - now converted to 3D - with three fellow "Star Wars" fans and friends, who I've known for about twenty odd years.

It was an easy going day, as we planned to see a matinee locally (well, sort of locally!) around lunchtime. Mandy popped down to stay with us for the weekend, so after she arrived early on the Saturday morning, we had a quick cuppa, and then jumped in the car and drove to Toria's, where we passed some time at her lovely house and chatted about her cats, while drinking yet more tea/coffee and eating some rather nice chocolate biscuits. Then, it was on up the motorway to the North side of Birmingham to pick up Gerald. His house was easy to find - I has happy to report I remembered the route in my head from the map I had studied the night before, so no wrong turns! For some reason in his area, the locals like to store sofas in their front gardens. Must be a brummie thing. Anyway, when we got to Gerald's it was yet more catch-up chat, drinks, and more cat talk - are we seeing a trend here?!

The cinema at the Star City entertainment complex (just off the M6) is only a short distance from there, so after driving underneath one of the stands of Aston Villa Football Club Stadium (impressive building) we arrived and had a look around before the film started. The venue certainly has a lot to offer: restaurants, bars, cafes, sports, kids entertainment, and the huge and impressive VUE multiplex cinema, although the place seems a little soul-less, and perhaps it's showing its age a bit now. We went into the cinema and took our seats, and found the auditorium pretty empty, only a few families here and there. The film had been out a couple of weeks so the core fan audience had already seen it I guess, and the kids had all been over the school half-term holidays. Anyway, after some really lame trailer for a flick called "Street Dance 2 - 3D" - the only vague highlight was seeing Sofia Boutella bend over and present her bum to us in 3D, which made us all snigger - "Episode 1" started with a really nice 3D Lucasfilm logo. Woohoo!

The film is the same version as presented on the 2011 blu-ray release: it has the addition of a couple of tiny scenes, as well as the full digital Yoda replacing the *really bad* puppet featured in the original cut. Other than that, the film is the same that premiered in May '99. I don't mind it actually, in fact, I rather enjoyed seeing it again after a few years away from the feature. I will admit that it is a bit clunky in the middle section - pacing issues and some poor acting, and some of the logic doesn't work, what with that treaty being signed stuff, but the production design and visuals are generally excellent. I made a point of carefully watching the CGI effects on Jar Jar and Watto, and they stand up very well after years of CGI effects development. Maybe the characters are annoying (I don't agree though, in fact, both make me chuckle in places) but the CGI effects to put them up on the screen should have won ILM a visual effects Oscar.

Anyway, as for the film presentation, we all were generally impressed with the conversion, although it is subtle in places - there isn't much obvious 3D 'coming out at ya!' stuff here (although the pod race sequence does feature some into the camera action), but you do get a greater sense of depth to many of the scenes, which we liked. I would guess it is hard to create a 3D effect with film scenes filmed for two dimensions, so what Lucasfilm have done was very good. Other 2D->3D conversions have been less successful, such as the rushed "Clash of the Titans" remake conversion from early 2010.

For a positive review see my friend Mary Jo's blog here, and a for a negative review see the film critic who makes a profession of hating *everything* "Star Wars"/George Lucas, Mark Kermode, here. I was glad I got to see it on the big screen again, and hopefully we can all get together next February for "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones". Oh, and just a few positive words about the cinema - we were very impressed with the gradient of the seating, the leg-rom, the screen size and projection/sound. 10/10!

After the film finished, we spent quite a while chatting and drinking in the cafe, then I took everyone home. After we had some wonderful tarka dal, aubergine curry, rice and wholemeal pittas for dinner which Carla had made, the three of us settled down to watch the dvd of Aliens as Carla hadn't seen it years. Good film (Mandy's favourite of all time!) but Carla and I prefer the original, Alien.

'The Woman In Black' and 'Ironclad'

On Sunday afternoon we went to our local Odeon cinema to see "The Woman in Black", a new film adaptation of the book by Susan Hill. This is the story of a young solicitor, Arthur Kipps (played by Daniel Radcliffe) who is sent to retrieve some legal papers from the house of an old woman who has died. Once he arrives at the large crumbling property, located in the middle of sinister marshland, strange things start to happen....

It was nice to see a modern horror film that was relatively quiet and slow-paced, and that did not depend on lots of over-the-top CGI effects or bombastic mood music. I haven't read the book, but me and Mrs. did watch the 1989 ITV version a few nights before, which we both thought was superior to this new cinema version. Daniel's performance was decent, and he seems to have mastered the tears-standing-in-eyes close up. In all, I think he gave a fairly nuanced performance, especially as hasn't that much to say - this is not a talky film. The picture would have been better without the needless addition of the dead wife story line - in the 1980's version she is very much alive. I also thought the vaguely upbeat ending was a little hokey. But all in all, the film was enjoyable. No big scares, but mild tension throughout. The jump scenes were full-on manipulation with loud bangs in the music, unlike the ITV version which was genuinely creepy, quiet, and had a downbeat tone. Definitely worth seeing though. Also, it was great for us to go with my sister and her husband for an afternoon out at the flicks.
*Thanks to Carla for helping me with this review.

We also watched Ironclad on DVD this week: an extreme action film (British produced) based on the real event of the siege of Rochester Castle in 1215 AD. Here, we have the wonderful Paul Giamatti as the mad King John, attempting to take back his kingdom from the barons of England that forced him to sign the Magna Carta. It also starts James Purefoy as the Templar knight leading the defence of the castle against him - essentially the hero of the piece - and boy, does he have a big sword, as the King's army of Danish ruffians find our to their disadvantage. I have to say I loved this film. True, the story is rather weak (er,..."Defend the castle".) and the production looks as if the film makers could have done with a bit more cash, but what is there is very entertaining, if only for spotting the overt gore and battle violence, and the odd wish-crack from the solid cast. Good to see Derek Jacobi as well, and the CGI landscapes of the castle and its surroundings looked pretty good on the whole. This might make a good double-bill with Black Death, another medieval set film from the recent past, which stars the always watchable Sean Bean.

Rochester is still a castle we haven't visited, so I'm even more excited about going there now! Must re-watch the episode of Castle where Marc Morris discusses the real history of the event. Excellent series.

Summer films, house plants and Rainbow (twice!)

Since the last update, we've had the chance to see a some more of the Hollywood summer blockbusters, one a weekend over four weeks! The Showcase cinema in Coventry must have loved us. Through July and August we saw "Captain America", "Super 8", "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", and then "Cowboys and Aliens". All were entertaining to varying degrees, with some great visual effects and sequences, but the stand out film for had to be "Apes" - an excellent and well made prequel to the original film, that had some great ideas of how the events in the 1967 production came to be. Fantastic animation/mo-cap work as well; deserves an Oscar nod for that. "Super 8" would have been better if some of the unnecessary action sequences at the end had been cut, or at least better edited. The performances from the teenagers was excellent, though.

* * *

As the the weather has got a bit cooler, particularly just as August was ending, we decided to get some plants to bring a bit of green into are home.....so off to Dobbies (a local garden centre) we went. Some of our new plants are shown here at Carla's blog. Also, one early July evening we had an amazing double Rainbow visible after heavy rainfall....

....talking about 'Rainbow', I was sad to learn that Roy Skelton, puppeteer and voice of Zippy and George in the show (he also voiced the Daleks in 1970's "Doctor Who"), passed away in June. Here is a picture the two little characters as way of a tribute.

A couple of spring trips, cinema visits other events.

We recently had a couple of short breaks to get away and see some countryside and interesting historical sites. In May, for my birthday, we went to North Devon and based ourselves in a small village near to Ilfracombe and the coastline (a very pretty area on the edge of the Exmoor National Park, and by the coastal AONB). Here we had the opportunity to do some country and coastal walking and visit some really pretty towns and villages. Our first day was spent in Ilfracombe, a large town in the area, which is also a famous holiday resort and has an attractive harbour. We walked along the SW Coast Path to the west of the town. This was a wery good walk; there were some amazing views to see, but on the return we had to dodge some cows who seemed to think we were going to feed them! One of the best walks we did was around the headland near to Mortehoe, to the west of Ilfracombe. The walk provides some wild and stunning scenery and lots of sheep that seem unfazed by walkers. Another fantastic walk was SE of Lynmouth, along the wooded river valleys around Watersmeet. It was also fun to ride the famous cliff railway between Lynmouth and Lynton. On the way to Devon, there and back, we stopped off and looked around the Somerset towns of Glastonbury and Cheddar - it was very windy at the top of the Glastonbury Tor!

In June we stayed up in North Yorkshire and visited Harrogate, Ripon (to see the cathedral), Knaresborough (fantastic views of the river!), and the famous sites at Fountains Abbey and Brimham Rocks. Driving around we saw some lovely countryside and lots of cows! Also, it was fun to visit the oldest sweet shop in England in Pateley Bridge to pick up some treats....and it only rained on one day! Oh, on the way up to Yorkshire we also visited Brodsworth Hall and Gardens, but more impressive was Newby Hall and Gardens just to the East of Ripon. The gardens there are absolutely beautiful; the most impressive element was the extensive rock garden which was a joy to explore. Thankfully the sun was shining for the few hours we were there! There were interesting wicker animals (created by a local artist) located all over the park.

We spotted some old cinemas in Ilfracombe, Lynton and up in Harrogate. The 1930's Odeon in Harrogate town centre was particularly impressive (see pic). Also, we manged to catch this year's Eurovision broadcasts at our rented cottage in Devon. Bizarre TV, but thoroughly enjoyable, particularly the Moldavian gnomes playing trumpets ...on unicycles!

* * *

Since the last update, our friends Sarah and Mandy have visited us, and it was lovely to see them. When Mandy was here we went to Milton Keynes to attend the Collectormania show which was fun as always - I was very impressed with a friend's home made R2-D2! Also, last weekend I went to the London Film and Comic Con, which was very busy due, I think, to the presence of actress Karen Gillian (from the current "Doctor Who" series). Nice to see friends and 'celebrity spot' at both events, and chat with the cosplayers at LFFC. I got a couple of autographs at both events.

As for cinema films, I've been lucky enough to catch a few recent releases. I saw "Thor" with Sarah and "Kung Fu Panda 2" with Carla, and both films were very enjoyable. Contrary to many opinions on-line, Sarah and I both thought the 3D in "Thor" worked very well. The CGI in "Panda" was amazing; there were some really beautiful shots in the film, and Po's character is fab. :) My pal Gary came up for the weekend just gone and we saw "Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon" - more over the top (but fun) Michael Bay robot destruction -in glorious 'real 3D', followed by "Bad Teacher", a Cameron Diaz comedy. We also did some DVD watching by seeing all three "Star Wars: Robot Chicken" specials, and the first episodes of "The Time Tunnel" and "Land of the Giants". I introduced Gaz to the observational comedy of Chris Lilley in "Angry Boys" and "Summer Heights High". I have yet to buy his first series, "We Could Be Heroes". The shows work so well as the characters are so well realised, and they get themselves into some hilarious situations.

<--- Cameron Diaz in "Bad Teacher"

A trip to Arkansas

Over the last two weeks of May, we went on a little break to Arkansas, USA. It was a family trip to see Carla's relatives, specifically timed to tie-in with her son Ethan's graduation from high school. Apart from that, we had a lot of chores to sort out as well as enjoying ourselves. In between running around doing paperwork, visiting the necessary places and such, we managed to fit in a few fun things. This included a day in Memphis to visit the famous STAX Records museum ("Mr big-stuff, tell me, just who do you think you are?") and the zoo (cute meerkats!) We also took a little trip up to Mammoth Spring near the Missouri border, which is the 10th biggest natural spring in the world. Lovely spot that (see picture of me in front of the falls) with an impressive gift shop. Interesting to see the old railroad station there as well.

On the way up there (about 1 1/2 hours drive from where we were staying in Trumann) we stopped off at the Hardy water wheel, situated on a small creek that flows into the Spring River. There is a long established flea market there, as well being within the site of the "Martin Creek and Morgan's Mill" American civil war battle. On the way back, we visited the tourist town of Hardy, a small town comprising of antique and nick-nack shops. Another day we had a wondeful walk around Craighead Forest Park (see picture) on the outskirts of Jonesboro, which was lovely - the woods around the huge lake were quite beautiful. We spotted a snake swimming in the water, as well as the biggest geese we have ever seen! Generally great weather throughout the two weeks: hot and sunny for the most part, and humid at times so thank goodness for air conditioning! Saw some cracking thunderstorms and very heavy rain after coming out of a supermarket one afternoon - Jonesboro looked like it was sinking under the sea! We spent a lot of time in Jonesboro, the biggest town near to where we were staying, and the town where Carla grew up. There is an impressive new shopping centre there called The Mall at Turtle Creek. Also, for some reason, we ended up spending a lot of time in Wal*Mart! You can't get away from that in the US!

As far as cinema visits went, we ended up seeing "Star Trek" (for the 2nd time for me), "Terminator Salvation", "Angels and Demons", and "Night at the Museum 2". All very entertaining and great to watch, especially as the cinema we went to see all of these in, the Hollywood Malco 16 in Jonesboro, had digital projection equipment in most screens and wonderful seating. I love that cinema! Also I managed to catch up on all the "Harry Potter" films (to date) on the plane journeys. Caught a few flicks on US TV, including "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" and "Wild Hogs", both very funny!

Carla and I continued to do our exercises while staying at her mother's house: we managed to find the "Fit TV" channel on the satellite, and on there worked out to Gilad in the morning, an Israli who now lives and works out in Hawaii! He was good, I enjoyed those workouts even if they looked a bit 1990s 'dated'.

Also while there, I managed to complete my US State Quarters collection! Very happy about that! :)

I think the highlight of the trip for me was spotting Isacc Hayes' 1972 cadillac on show at the STAX Records museum. It was amazing, so 70's cool. :)








Anyhoo, some assorted images of Jonesboro and rural Arkansas....


Fast food and scripture...yep,we're in the Bible Belt!












Some cheap dirt for sale!












Liberty Bank in Jonesboro.....that played stirring military style music in the car park.