Posts by Rob Stowell
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Field Theory: World Cup of Evil, in reply to Chris Waugh,
I only saw the last 15 minutes. I
I only saw snatches of the first 20 - but after that, it felt like it'd be hard to watch any more. Brazilian fans in tears after 20 minutes.
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Hard News: Now win the argument, in reply to 81stcolumn,
giving teachers a day a week in which to learn, mark work properly and give proper feedback may be of more benefit.
Something more teacher numbers might also work towards?
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Some more of The Eastern in this clip
(Not sure how I feel about what this portends for the next episode or so- beyond it didn’t quite work for me today :) I dunno- sometimes it only takes a little pinch of cliche to spoil the whole pot.) -
Link here
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Thanks Craig.
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Hard News: Hope and Wire, in reply to Lilith __,
I think the answer is yes and yes. If people could or should only write of the own experience we'd have no fiction at all.
Doing it well is the hard part :) -
Hard News: Hope and Wire, in reply to Lilith __,
Same with any big emotional experience. It’s a different kind of knowing.
Good story-telling- fictional or factual- can partially, in an imaginative collaboration of thought and emotion, bridge that gap.
I get emotional insight from people's stories here. It's not the same as living an experience, but it's powerful, nonetheless.
So more, please, I reckon :) -
From Philip Matthews review, this jumped out for me.
the immediate aftermath of a disaster can promote altruism, even utopianism, which disappears once official or elected authority starts to manage the post-disaster recovery. We saw that in Christchurch in the weeks and months after February 2011 when all the certainties were upset and people got to know each other. It was like a holiday from regular life and despite the horror of the event, it was also a weirdly exciting time.
When a City Falls caught some of it. If Hope and Wire get's it even half-right, it'll be worthwhile.
And then the way we settled back into routines, new, often harder. The talking heads on TV were more and more those in 'authority' until the voices of the 'ordinary people' faded to a background murmur.
We're going to miss the next two screenings- will have to check on how it's gone here. At worst, maybe it's given Chch writers and film-makers a nudge?! -
Hard News: Hope and Wire, in reply to Hebe,
But there’s no way this grind is gripping film (or writing).
Sad to hear. It sounds bloody nightmarish.
As drama/documentary? maybe. There's a Kafka-esque story that's heartbreaking and enraging. (And you've described it bloody well, only just touching on the way it can eat you up and suck up weeks and months and leave you more worried and upset. Fingers crossed, I guess, for the least worst outcome.) -
Hard News: Hope and Wire, in reply to Creon Upton,
Like these dudes maybe:
That’s great. Real. Would have liked more music.
Where the hell would you start and make it watchable?
Following 5-6 people/families and/or organisations for 3-5 years and see what happened? Choosing the right ‘discrete and particular’ is part luck, part experience, but it’s the best way into telling the bigger story.
Top of the Lake, which has to be one of the strongest contenders … for recipient of the much-sought-after Worst Piece of Over-rated Shit in History award.
So much to watch/read/see/do so little time :)
I haven’t seen TotL (not keen on Campion’s work apart maybe from Sweetie and Angel.) Plenty of flaws in Hope and Wire, but I’m betting they won’t include the ice-in-the-heart feeling I get from Campion.
But while inevitable, it’s tough to compare Hope and Wire with Treme. Simon might just be the best writer/creator of TV series alive. Yet Treme still wandered at times and didn’t always deliver.
What kept me watching was the music, varied and alive while carrying the weight of tradition- and the way music wove itself into the storylines.
Plenty of music in Chch but we can hardly compete with New Orleans.