Amateurish effects are part of the charm of these films, but they only grant so much grace. Thankfully, the story of an island's native population being exploited by ruthless profiteers stood up in its own right, and ensured that Mothra wasn't simply an unremarkable preamble to the main attraction: a 35mm print of Godzilla.
Live Every Day Like it's Your 20,000th
It might sound like a whistle stop tour around a man's life, but Cave's mesmerising creative outpourings and deliberate articulation of thought made it impossible to feel rushed. The concentrated blend of philosophy, life history and song-writing entranced the viewer with a world that seemed entirely plausible in its artifice. Rather than begging multiple questions, it was a world that concentrated on just one: who is Nick Cave?
Lessons for the Future
Because, done right, cinema distils universal moments with elegant objectivity, encapsulating and presenting them ready to be coloured by the prism of our own feelings and beliefs. To witness characters bestowing their wisdom on the adolescent Mason was a perfect context for my quest for answers from the film.
Before the Collapse?
One tweet shared around a bit might receive a thousand views, yet the number of people who go to the trouble of clicking through and visiting a link in that tweet is astonishingly, pathetically small. Small as in, single figures small; and a stark reminder that however 'social' our media is, often we are basically talking to ourselves.
Love Me, Love My Book (part two)
Happily, the submission to Publisher 4 appeared to have better prospects. They still hadn’t read any of the actual book, but they were interested enough by the description to send their submission guidelines – a series of seven questions, the answers to which would make up a detailed proposal. A really detailed proposal.
Love Me, Love My Book (part one)
While there can be a case for speculation and earnest hope – in life generally, but in publishing specifically – sometimes the best use of your time is to take five minutes to rant about the fact that unknown authors aren’t given a chance, then move on.
Hip to be Square(space)
Using Squarespace hasn't taught me anything in the basics of coding, but it has let me create a simple, uncluttered site that reflects my ideals. With the limited time that results from having a full time job, I've enjoyed using Squarespace as an intuitive, self-contained solution that has let me quickly refocus on writing.
Industrial Revelation
A short piece for the Inspiration travel writing competition on We Said Go Travel, about how you don't have to fly half way round the world to find inspiration...
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Read MoreEast End Enchantment
I’m here to watch two films about food, ironically (though neither mentions yams). The second one is a Danish film about a French chef who cooks for a puritan religious community. The first is my favourite, however. An American documentary about the most celebrated sushi chef in Tokyo: Jiro Dreams of Sushi.
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