I <3 Football!

Not American that is, but rather “Soccer” as you call in the US and are quite rubbish at (no offence), and which the WHOLE world lives for...

Recently, I have been watching The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2008, and for the past three weeks I have glued to the telly in the excitement. However, as England lost to Croatia they didn’t qualify for Euro 2008 the this .

And last night was the final between lucky Germany (who somehow by sheer chance knocked out Turkey – who played absolutely BRILLIANTLY this year – in the Semi-Final) against the fantastically skilled Spain. It was an extremely enthralling game! Thankfully, Spain easily won 1-0. FOOTBALL IS THE DOG’S BOLLOCKS!

The Fountain of Youth

Earlier Sarah and me watched The Fountain directed by Darren Aronofsky staring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. It is a very difficult film to try to describe. Basically, The Fountain “...is a American science fiction/fantasy film that follows three interwoven narratives that take place in the age of conquistadors, the modern-day period, and the far future. The film stars Jackman and Weisz, whose characters' romance exists in all three time periods. The Fountain explores the themes of love and mortality, drawing influences from the The Fountain of Youth and The Tree of Life. The film is framed with visual language by using transition scenes, light, and shapes...” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fountain_(film).

It is one of those films that you either love or hate; it is kind of in the style of Memento, but I think that Christopher Nolan (director of Memento and The Prestige) would have done a bit better job. However, personally I liked the film, especially the wicked visually effects. ***THREE 1/2 Stars***

Life is SO Beautiful...

On Sunday night Sarah, Sufian, and me watched Life is Beautiful (Italian: La vita è bella) directed by Roberto Benigni, and stars Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini, and Giustino Durano. A surprisingly humorous film about a very dark time in history: Life is Beautiful is just BRILLIANTLY filmed, SUPERBLY acted, and DEEPLY enjoyed... Highly recommended for all. ***FOUR 1/2 STARS***

Go Amir!

On Saturday night we watched my cousin, Amir Khan (Athens Olympic Silver Medal boxing winner) on telly for his 18 Pro Fight against Michael Gomez to defend his Commonwealth lightweight title. It was a very tough fight, but as always Amir won via K/O, of course; now Amir’s hopefully on way to a world title. Congrats, Amir!

I love Rory!

Last night we watched Inside I'm Dancing (known as Rory O'Shea Was Here in the USA) that’s directed by Damien O'Donnell, staring James McAvoy, Steven Robertson, Romola Garai, and Brenda Fricker. I saw it several years ago on HBO in America when it first came out, but I had to watch again as Sarah had never seen it and it’s one of m fav films.

Inside I'm Dancing is about “Michael who is a 24-year-old who has cerebral palsy and long-term resident of the Carrigmore Residential Home for the Disabled, which is run by the formidable Eileen. His life is transformed when the maverick Rory O'Shea, who suffers from Duchenne muscular dystrophy, moves in. Michael is stunned to discover that fast talking Rory, who can move only his right hand, can understand his almost unintelligible speech. Rory's dynamic and rebellious nature soon sparks a flame in Michael, introducing him to a whole new world outside of Carrigmore.” - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_I%27m_Dancing#Plot.

That summery just doesn’t do it justice, but trust me it’s such a well good film... Inside I'm Dancing is so underrated, and deserved a lot more recognition than it got; and as a person w/ muscular dystrophy (not Duchenne though) I think it was a bloody fantastic film, and James played Rory excellently! James McAvoy is just a brilliant and hilarious actor, who’s work I admire, and as he best said, “This is not a film about disabled people... it is rather a film about people who happen to be disabled...”

Also, I love Rory: Rory in some respects reminds me of a lot of myself; I know exactly how he feels, I feel just the same, and I think there’s hope for me yet seeing what Rory got up to... An absolute fav: GO RENT IT NOW AND WATCH IT TODAY OR FEEL MY WRATH! Highly recommended. ***FOUR 1/2 STARS***

Return of the Granddad

Thankfully, on Wednesday my granddad arrived home after several weeks in the hospital and suffering from a massive brain hemorrhage. He’s doing much better, yet he’s still quite weak, but it will hopefully just take time for him to fully recover. I am just glad he’s back home...