Kazhes pierakstu burtnīca

Nupat es sevi esmu pārsteidzis - kā izrādās, man patīk simfoniskais metāls. Dīvaini, ka nebiju to piefiksējis iepriekš. Manas atmiņas saistībā ar šo "Rhapsody" ierakstu būtībā bija pilnīgi nekādas, nekad nebiju tam pievērsis sevišķu vērību, bet tagad atklāju, ka tas ir patiešām skaists.

Reizēm gadās, ka es lejuplādēju kādu filmu un tikai pēcāk aizdomājos, kāpēc to vispār esmu darījis. Vismaz ar "Orange County" tas ir tipisks šāds gadījums. Kaut kur man bija zemapziņā iesēdies, ka šo filmu vajadētu noskatīties, lai arī īsti drošs, kas tā tāda ir, es nemaz nebiju.

The book is supposedly a detective. I`m not really sure that it is. Jacob Vogelwart is a fellow who was a writer once but has become a thief later on. He mostly looks in his neighbours windows and spies upon them. Then there`s a woman named Nicole that`s looking for her sister that is lost somewhere in the town. In reality she knows perfectly well where the sister is but she doesn`t want the others to know (she`s not dead and buried and not even held captive if you ask me). Then there`s a strange fellow who owns several bars in the town and who likes to pretend that he`s dying. What does it make as a sum? Not too much, the book is readable but not worth being read.

Turpinot savu stratēģiju datora attīrīšanā no filmām, kas tajā mitinājušās jau gadiem ilgi, pievērsos Kim Ki-duka filmas "Sala" skatīšanai. Šo filmu man, ja nemaldos, ieteica kādreizējais kolēģis Delfos - Kaspars Bankovskis, kas ir liels orientās pasaules mākslas cienītājs. Taču es biju arī dzirdējis, ka šī filma īpaši baudāma acij neesot, bet es vienlaikus arī nebiju pārliecināts, ka runa bija tieši par šo Kima filmu.

Kad uzzināju, ka pēc Kadzuo Išiguro romāna "Dienas atlikusī daļa" eksistē tāda paša nosaukuma filma, kura turklāt vēl skaitās laba un pat tika nominēta vairākiem Oskariem (skaitā 8, lai gan beigās nedabūja nevienu), man nebija divu domu - filma ir jānoskatās. Turklāt papildu filmas skatīšanās iekāri veicināja vēl viens faktors - galvenajās lomās šeit spēlē Entonijs Hopkinss un Emma Tomsone - aktieri, kuru vārdi šaubas nerada.

Public opinion isn`t more important than a dead rat. Critical opinion isn`t more important than a dead bug. My opinion isn`t more important than a dead me. Mr. Steinbeck appears to be a Nobel prize winner (in Literature, of course), but at least this book of his has no sign of literary genius whatsoever. According to what the critics say this is a comedical farse, a parody or something like that. Mr. Eristale is an amateur-astronomer living in Paris who suddenly becomes the king of France for because of struggle between the political parties monarchists take over and monarchy is restored in France. He doesn`t want to be king, for he`s a man whom nobody notices, who just wants to look at the stars. But suddenly he`s popular to the sky, although nobody gives him any power, he`s just a puppet. But the king doesn`t want to be a puppet. He wants to stand up for himself but he fails miserably and he is no king any more. The book is probably a very sharp political satyre of the French democracy, but it a) isn`t funny, b) sounds terribly dated, c) isn`t original. If a man who could write this unintersting could receive the most respected literary prize in the world this world just isn`t any good.

If you don`t live and die for Depeche Mode you`re worth nothing. If you haven`t gone through a stage of your life when Depeche Mode was a symbol for everything you stood for you`re either a retard or you`re still pre-teen. If you don`t know by heart the names of the band members you don`t deserve a name yourself at all. The only excuse for not worshiping Depeche Mode is having switched to "The Cure" instead.

Noskatījāmies trešo no Maikla Peilina ceļojumu piezīmju raidījumu cikliem - "80 dienās apkārt pasaulei" un "Himalajiem" šoreiz seko Peilina ceļojums pa Sahāru. Tāpat kā tas bija Himalaju filmas gadījumā, nav tā, ka Peilins visu raidījuma laiku to vien dara, kā vazājas pa peizāžām - toreiz kalniem, šoreiz tuksnesi. Liela raidījumu daļa aiziet, iepazīstot dažādās cilvēku grupas, kas dzīvo apkārt Sahārai. Līdz ar to arī Peilina apmeklēto valstu kopums ir diezgan bagātīgs - Gibraltāra, Maroka, Rietumsahāra, Mauritānija, Senegāla, Mali, Nigēra, Alžīrija, Lībija, Tunisija un Sūta (nezinu, kā pareizi latviešu valodā rakstāma Ceuta).

Atzīšos godīgi, ka līdz nesenam laikam es pat nenojautu, ka Royal Hunt nepārstāv vis kādu no lielajām "metāla" valstīm - ASV, Lielbritāniju vai vismaz Vāciju, bet gan popmūzikas ziņā provinciālo Dāniju. Izņemot brāļus Olsenus es patiesībā pat nevienu šīs valsts mūziķi tā no galvas iedomāties nevaru, ieskatīšanās Vikipēdijā gan iedeva vēl pāris zināmus vārdus - Aqua, Michael Learns to Rock (patīk man šis nosaukums!), Safri Duo, The Raveonettes. Tomēr pat fakts, ka tur dzimis Larss Ulrihs no Metallica, nedara Dāniju par smagā roka paradīzi, līdz ar to nevar ņemt vērā, ka "Royal Hunt" nav meinstrīma metāla blice.

A good play is as good on paper as it is on a stage. Having hever read anything by Arthur Miller before I was prepared for everything - from a new "Hamlet" to "Dukes of Hazzard" in written form. The whole situation is quite simple - there`s Victor (age circa 50), his wife Esther (the same age), Walther (Victor`s younger brother) and Solomon - and old Jewish antiques dealer. Victor never finished his studies because he had to support his father that became some sort of a living vegetable after his business collapsed. Now, some 15 years after the father`s death Victor and Esther have finally decided to sell all the stuff his father owned. Walther who`s a successful doctor (and not a retiring policeman like Victor) comes to meet his brother and to settle the differences between them that the brothers couldn`t overcome for many long years. Solomon is nearly ninety years old and he`s not willing to give a high price for the deceased fathers posessions. But what will be the price for Victor and Walther becoming friends once again? The whole thing isn`t the best thing I`ve ever read but it`s been long since I read a play this consistently interesting.