Rosebud

This has gotta be a hoax, right?
There's a certain category of film that one must see; more importantly, one must recognize as a great. If one wants to appear deep just nod and give your assent. Tarkovsky, Kurosawa....brilliant!Even if you really thought The Seven Samurai was naff, or The Mirror was, well, unbearable tosh. Perhaps the same applies for music: Dylan (again!) ..and wouldn't you simply die without Mahler..and there's a certain style of writing that is, perhaps, valued for being incomprehensible, obtuse. It's as if a genuine esoteric perspective, having been displaced, must be replaced with a fake one. Can't help think that philosophy/science only touches the outer garments of religion, only elicits interest by being a fragment of theology...

Rescue Dawn. Don't get it. What happened to old Werner? This was little better than the typical Hollywood candyfloss. And yet it was passed off as mesmerizing. Okay, leave the politics to one side, try and forget that the protagonist was actually dropping bombs on the goons- how fucking civilized! Instead, let's believe, for a moment, that what's important was the sheer love of flying.
Open skies and white man loving freedom and all that..But even then, the sheer lack of realism leaves one wondering. Must try and and get Ronald Searle's biography to regain some sense of perspective...

And God Created Woman.
Strange. Watched this again after 15 years and couldn't help but cringe. The dance scene reminded me of Helen!

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The tents are up again. I don't think I enjoy anything more than walking under them late at night or early in the morning. I must have worked in a circus in my previous life.

The monkey was on again last night. This time arguing with a Hindu who told him, 'what's the point of arguing over everything, trying to convince everyone that only you are right, that everyone else is damned to hell. Try and talk about things that bring people together. Logic will only get you so far'.

The point was lost on old Zakir who continued to tirelessly churn out quotations from the Qur'an and hadith. Chapeter 27 , verse 34, chapter...give it a rest bro'.

Someone from the audience asked him if cricket was 'haraam' (forbidden). He spent 10 minutes on that! That's the level of discussion here. These guys are so simple -I'm being polite here, 'thick' is a better word. Reminds me of Roger, the Protestant missionary who tried to convert me by giving me a book on why God loves me. (How reassuring!). Except that it was just a book full of cartoons! And when I asked him about saints..why, I'm a saint, everyone is..there's no such things as saints. Yeah, like, when did you come off therapy?

Anyway, Zakir's 'learned' conclusion? 'It might be, but personally I feel it is a complete waste of time'. The Indian audience stirred. Religion is one thing, criticzing cricket in these parts is another, boy!

Met a friend over the weekend-usually the most reasonable fellow one could hope to meet. But then: "Do you know there's only one country Israel is afraid of?"I nearly burst out laughing when he said Pakistan. "You know", he continued, "they won't rest until they've establish their kingdom..and I've got a book to prove it"

Me: "Er..it isn't the Protocols by any chance?"

A: " Yes! How did you know?"

Me: "For fuck's sake, get a grip of yourself , man"

The tents are up..enter the clowns...