Next up was a much better film and the first one starring Gerard Butler I think I’ve really enjoyed.
Plot-in-a-nutshell: Man’s family are killed in front of him, killer gets a mild slap on the wrist, man goes after… the justice system as a whole. As you do.
Guys – there are explosions and dead people. Girls – there’s Gerard Butler’s bum. Something for all the family. Law Abiding Citizen plays at being a thriller pointing out the weaknesses in the American justice system. In reality it’s just an excuse to blow things up and see people killed in squelchy detail. I’m awaiting the DVD release with the full dismemberment scene.
It is more of a thriller than an actioner, but only just. The plot’s not that bad and it does just about keep you guessing to the end. It’s certainly far more watchable than 2012.
While Harry Brown is far more gritty, LAC has bigger explosions. It’s hardly The Shawshank Redemption even if there is a prison involved, but it’s still worth doing the time to watch it.
Yes, yes, I know it’s Thursday and I saw the films on Monday. I just haven’t had much time to draft posts recently. With Monday being St Andrew’s Day and East Renfrewshire council really pushing the Homecoming celebrations we got the day off and I decided to use it partly to veg out at the cinema.
I’d hoped to catch up to 8 films over the weekend, but workload cut me down to two. First up:
2012
What a remarkably silly film. A lot of the impact of this insane effects-fest was lost on me as screen 7 at Cineworld in The Forge Shopping Centre is about the size of my old front room. I swear the TV I bought a few month ago is larger than the screen.
Plot-in-a-nutshell: the earth’s going to end, people panic, things explode or get washed away and the companies that sell software to make shonky CGI giggle into their bankbooks.
It’s Roland Emmerich, the guy who washed the world away in The Day After Tomorrowand blew up the White House inIndependence Day. Only this time he’s not messing. Why blow up a few buildings when you can tilt an entire town on its side and drop it into the ocean?
This is a disaster movie on a grand scale. The shame is, the scale’s so big it’s just hard to comprehend and it seems to lose all impact as a result. Look at the classic disaster films like The Towering Infernoor The Poseidon Adventure (even the remake wasn’t bad). Big-name actors in a tight situation with peril at every corner and they could die at any time. Your wage bill had no say on whether you survived or not.
There is just no sense of peril in 2012 at all. At no point was I tensing up thinking “are they going to get out of this?” because they always do. There isn’t a bit of originality in it apart from the size of the thing.
John Cusack is adequate as the lead character – a divorced father who ends up trying to save his kids (very Tom Cruise in War of the Worlds). Danny Glover is adequate as the President of the USA. Woody Harrelson is adequate as a nutjob. Everyone’s adequate. It’s a plot-by-numbers.
SLIGHT SPOILERS: I rarely put these in so you’ve had a warning. This is like Independence Day with earthquakes and water. The President sacrifices himself to help save others. The White House explodes. A man saves his family. Someone gives an impassioned speech about humanity that brings everyone together.
It’s all been done before. And even the effects aren’t that great. They’re simply too big to be taken seriously. And despite all the money thrown at it, the limo in the early “chase” sequence still has all the realistic physical motion of one of the vehicles in PIXAR’s Cars.
But, you know, switch your brain completely into standby mode and it’s watchable. Just don’t even consider thinking about the pseudo-science involved. That way lies bad headaches.
Joe’s made a couple of comments on some of my older posts and he asked me to have a look at his website. I admit, the first time he left a comments I thought “spam”… Â but the fact is he read the blog post and wrote a pretty darn lengthy and appropriate response. Not the acts of a spammer, just of a guy who’s interested in blogs and happens to work for a web-based company.
I’ve been buried with coursework over the last few weeks and I’ve been meaning to review his site for ages, feeling guilty every time I saw the email reminding me “starred” in my inbox. So here it is!
Joe’s site is Broadband Genie and it is genuinely useful. It’s not so much a sales site as a consumer advice one and therefore I’m happy to give it the once over. Now is an ideal time to have a look, actually, as there’s a special section on all the package deals on mobile broadband being offered by a few of the netbook and laptop retailers.
I don’t think I’ve ever reviewed a website before, but here goes!
First impressions are good. It’s well-enough laid out that you could think it’s commercial. However, it isn’t. It’s funded by people clicking on links to providers once they’re decided – using the information on the site – which one they want to go with. The links are sponsored and BG get a little kickback.
Having looked through everything (well, a lot of it!) I’d say their claim to be unbiased is a true one. All the information you could need to decide on a UK broadband provider (home or mobile) seems to be here and in a nice, easily-readable format. There’s also a regularly-updated blog and a forum where you can air your views publicly.
If you’re in the market for a new broadband provider, this certainly seems to be a site worth visiting to help you come to a decision.
Well, after waiting almost three months and giving up on phoning them, I emailed again yesterday and – amazingly – received a response this morning. I guess they’ve actually hired some staff or something.
The bulk of the mail is as follows:
I can confirm that as you had stated that you had lived in England before coming so Scotland we had to ascertain how long you  had been in Scotland and that it was not just for educational purposes.  I can also confirm that we received your residency form on 2 November 2009.   I have now calculated your award and you will receive an award notice in the next 7 days.
But it still doesn’t explain why I’ve waited since September 9th to receive any feedback. The “residency form” at no point explicitly asked me when I was living in Scotland. Had they wanted evidence of that, I could have provided it. It was wholly geared at when I entered the UK – not Scotland. A such, it was a pointless letter to send me.
Really, though. Seven weeks to send out a useless form and four more to respond to it by the time the award notice arrives – after a complaint.
I’m really glad this is a one-year course and I won’t have to deal with them again. If I do opt to do a Primary PGDE then it will be self-funded so this hassle won’t be an issue.
SAAS are still defying belief as one of the most inept government departments I have ever dealt with. And that’s facing some stiff competition.
Following on from the last letter I received and responded to, I have waited a month and heard nothing. I called them (or tried to – see earlier posts) with no luck. I just tried again using the “real” phone number I got from Say No To 0870 (0131 476 8212) and was stuck with an automated system.
It politely took my reference number and said they had received my application and to check again in two weeks. What’s the betting this is the same message I would have been given 3 months ago?
So I thought I’d check on my student loan. Only the nice electronic voice informed me that I’d have to enquire directly with the student loans company which I can’t do as I’ve not got an account with them yet because SAAS are sat around with their thumbs up their backsides flossing their teeth with my application.
I then navigated around to speak to a representative. And the nice machine told me the office was closed. A surprise as it’s not a public holiday in Edinburgh and time I called was right in the middle of the working day as advertised on their website.
I’ve sent them another email via the website, this time a complaint rather than a query. They say they get back to these within 10 days. Mind you, they say they get back to queries within 15 and I’ve never had a response yet.
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