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2019 Film Awards (lost blog)
On March 31, 2020 By troubledproductionsIn Awards, Year round upLeave a comment
So I've now run out of films to review and might not be able to review any for quite a while. So to make up for it I'm going to be doing other blogs to fill in the time. This is a blog that was half-written but never posted as I realised it would be a bit weird to post a blog about the best films of 2019 in March of 2020, it felt a bit late. It felt like a shame as some of the films deserved me gushing over how brilliant they are, so now's the time. Simple enough, I just needed to complete the half-written blog and post, easy. Well, it would have been if I didn't delete the original like a fucking dumbass. So keep in mind a lot of this is based on films I haven't seen for over half a year.
Most Disappointing
Killer Kate
I thought this would be fun. It looked fun, and it had a short run time, which for a film like this is usually an indicator that it will move at breakneck pace. The opening scene is a discussion between the killers, and it's dull. The actual plot doesn't kick off until way too far into it. Nowhere near as fun as it should be.
Far far too long, not enough Pennywise, and it had too many flashbacks of characters we knew were going to survive. It's a shame as I genuinely love the first one, and I thought I enjoyed this. But the more distance I have from this film, the more the flaws are apparent.
I sent the trailer for this to someone I used to work with, that's how much faith I had in this film. That faith was totally misguided. This film just did not work. The story was boring, it was too in debt to the Superman mythos to stand out on its own, and it wasted a brilliant premise. On the plus side I'm interested to see what happens next.
The trailer made it look better than it was. The issue is that it was building towards something we knew was happening. We were waiting for something to happen and to see how it would develop, instead what we were waiting for turned out to be the end. It would be like if Halloween only featured Michael Myers in the last 20 minutes.
"It's a werewolf movie set during ancient Roman times, this is going to be great". Spoilers; it was not great. Yeah, you're going to be seeing this film getting mentioned a lot in this blog, and there's a reason for it.
I don't really like country music, but I loved it in this. "Three chords and the truth" is how the character describes it, and when she sings, you believe it. I've watched the film once, about a year ago, and I still find myself occasionally singing the main song from it.
For two reasons: 1) the new version of the classic theme. 2) The Mark Hamil song that manages to be both kind of creepy, and like it comes from a kids TV show.
Almost entirely because of the really good remix of I Got 5 On It. Although the use of Les Fleurs was damn near perfect.
It's a shit load of Elton John songs, so of course it's going be good. Taron Egerton is REALLY good at capturing his voice.
Best Looking
This film should have more uncanny valley moments than it does. Plus the visual world-building is a sight to behold.
It's not easy to do a film about Elton John. You need to make it look flamboyant without being distracting. This film manages it. It turns out Dexter Fletcher is really good at this, genuinely wouldn't have guessed.
Yes, I didn't like the film, but the look was perfect. It genuinely felt like it was from a different time. The atmosphere it created was near perfect.
The world design for this was picture perfect. This is a gotham that NEEDS Batman. This isn't a neon-dreamspace you can sell with McDonalds toys. This isn't "avoid the bad areas", EVERYWHERE is a bad area with a few exceptions of where the rich live.
Purely for the number of times I watched this film and thought "that would make a cool poster", it also has one of my favourite closing shots of all time.
There were a few moments here where I thought "hmm, they look slightly plastic" and then realised that the characters are plastic, they're toys. I was so taken in by the animation that I occasionally forgot that. Plus they made rain look real, which is REALLY hard to pull off in this kind of animation.
The action scenes in these are usually the highlight of the year in terms of how well designed they are, this was no exception. The choreography is again great, and the world they take place in really suits it. The colours, the set design, the cinematography, all of it adds up to some superb visuals.
The colour schemes, the visual foreshadowing, all of it was just so damn magnificent.
Normally "a good looking film" means it's visually busy and crammed with intricate details, this is the opposite. The use of space (lol, pun) in this film is masterful. It genuinely confused me how this film didn't do better. You watch this and you really feel his isolation. Everything seems so empty and hopeless. I love it.
Worst Looking
Almost entirely for the woeful CGI in one of the final scenes. I've genuinely seen better in PS2 games.
The make up in one moment of this was AMAZING. They genuinely made it look like the actress had been savaged by a werewolf, the scars looked real and they looked aged. If this was just a "worst make-up" award this film wouldn't be listed at all. But this is "worst looking" in general, so that's make-up, visual effects, directorial choices, and editing. It's that last one where this REALLY fails. There are scenes where it cuts to a character every time they speak, no matter how short what they say is. That line about the bad editing for Bohemian Rhapsody? It could easily be used here, except I don't want to find an example of it, lest I accidentally watch a single second of this turgid piece of crap ever again.
No, this did not look worse than the others in this list. But I believe it's a worthy winner because a film with a budget this big should not have CGI as ropey as this. It's shameful how bad it was at times. It sucks but expectations to have to be taken into account for things like this. If you went to an open mic comedy night and one of the comedians there stumbled over their words and had to rely on notes, you'd still find them funny. If, however, you paid through the nose for a gig at Wembley Stadium and the comedian did that, you'd consider it money wasted. That's why even though it's not the worst, it "wins" the worst.
Rocketman: Taron Egerton
He didn't really look like him, but his performance completely encapsulated the character.
Wild Rose: Jessie Buckley
The whole film is anchored on her performance, and she carries it expertly. It helps that she has a good singing voice, but her non-singing vocal performance is also to be commended. Her emotions and worries are there for us all to see, as is the characters attempts to hide them.
Joker: Joaquin Phoenix
What can I say about this performance that hasn't been said already? Absolutely nothing considering how much the awards wanked over it. There's a reason for it though; his performance is utterly compelling.
IT Chapter Two: Bill Hader
I was genuinely surprised by how great his performance is in this. He's sharing the screen with Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, and Bill Skarsgard. His performance outshines all of them. It is mostly comedic but the emotion he gives it really elevates it.
Us: Lupita Nyong'o
Everyone in this plays their dual roles perfectly, but Lupita carries it off best (with Winston Duke as a very close second). It's not just her movements and vocals that show the difference between the two, the way she holds herself is different too. You can have pictures of the two of them sitting in a chair and figure out which one is which.
Worst Performance
Wolf: Everyone
It's hard to narrow it down to a single performance in this, they were all so bad. Such a talented cast too, starring the writer/director, the editor…..okay I see what they did. Even as a film student I wouldn't have pulled that shit, I got actual actors (and paid them in cake), so there's no excuse for a feature film aiming at cinema release to pull this shi.
Hellboy: Sasha Lane
A bad accent can make you forget everything else about a performance. Does anybody remember Dick Van Dyke's mannerisms from Mary Poppins? Or how he carried himself? No, because they were too distracted by the terrible accent. It's similar here, it's distractingly bad. At times it wanders into slightly Australian via New York. It was directed by someone who's directed a few episodes of Game Of Thrones, so he MUST have been able to recommend an actual English actor. It was being filmed in the UK, so it's not as though "oh, well it will be easier to get an American performer". I'm not saying you have to be English to play an English character, but if you're not then you have to put at least some effort into convincing us you are, and she doesn't.
Killer Kate: Alexandra Feld
No matter how good she was, it would not have saved this movie; but it might have made it slightly watchable if her performance was tolerable. The trouble is that it is so wooden I don't even have the energy to make an immature erection joke at the word "wood". It reminds me of me when I try to act, not believable and with zero emotion. It's so bad I'm convinced it's a parody. I felt kind of nervous about writing this in case it seemed like bullying. But it is SO bad. I have no idea how she passed the audition, but the fact she was married to the writer/director must have had a hand in it (but for his sake I hope he got more than a hand out of it).
Ben Is Back: Holly Burns-Beeby (played by Julia Roberts)
Over the last few years I've really started to GET Julia Roberts. I think it's because of how great she was in the supremely underrated Secret In Their Eyes and Money Monster. She's picking really interesting characters lately, and this one is no exception. A mother who has to stand by her drug-addicted son. Her character is one borne of frustration, anger, and love. The moment where she yells at the Alzheimer-riddled doctor who was responsible for her sons' addiction is brilliant to see and really highlights the role of prescription drugs in drug addiction.
Happy Death Day 2 U: Tree Gelbman (played by Jessica Roth)
She is a big part of why this film works. She is so…human. Even her stupid decisions are ones which you understand her reasons for making. Her growth over the two films are a sight to behold. This is the best example of that character though. Underneath all the bluster and confidence is someone who is still haunted by her mothers death. When she has to make the decision about going back to her own reality and abandoning her mum in the present multiverse, you truly feel her pain.
The Day Shall Come: Moses Al Shabaz (played by Marchant Davis)
This is heartbreaking. Absolutely heartbreaking. You are rooting for this character throughout the film, so when the inevitable happens it just breaks you. His motivations are clear, his relationships with the other characters make sense, and his actions always make sense. Every single decision he makes is based on a weird kind of logic. This is one of the few films where I wanted a happy ending, yes it would have felt unnatural, but damn this guy deserved a break.
Good Boys: All of them
I've said it before and I will say it again; these characters were so smartly written. They're in that awkward age where you start making sex jokes, but you have no idea what sex is. It's a tricky line to walk, if you write them as too young they seem like idiots, but if you write them as too old it seems unrealistic. This strikes the perfect balance between the two and is all the better for it.
Knives Out: Marta Cabrera (Played by Ana De Armas)
Her character would be quite easy to dislike if she was badly written. Thankfully the script injects her with just enough warmth that you are rooting for her throughout the film. Her character, more than any other in this list, is helped by the other characters reactions to her. Every time one of the family members talks to her they say "I wanted you at the funeral, but other people objected", every single one. Plus, every time they mention where she's from they say a different country, indicating that they don't actually pay much attention to her. It's almost as though they don't see her as a nurse (and certainly not as a close family friend, no matter what they say), and instead see her as "the help" for the family. This is best showcased in a scene where a character is mid-conversation with her and hands her his empty plate, as if to say "go take that out for me". The best part about these moments? They're easily missed. They don't have attention drawn to them, not explicitly mentioned, no reaction shots, nothing.
I just didn't vibe with this. Part of it may have been because I was watching it on a laptop, which is never a good way to watch a movie and always requires a film to work hard to overcome it (so far the best example of a film doing it is The Last Word). I get some people would like this, but for me it was just a bit dull. I was never invested in the story or the characters. It spent a lot of time treating the audience like they didn't know that Ted Bundy was a serial killer, and I don't really get why.
It seemed like almost everybody loved this film, except for me and about 2 people I know. I just found it lacking any form of coherent structure or purpose. So much of it felt like it was just padding, like it didn't justify it's own existence.
I saw quite a few good reviews for this, oddly enough praising the things I didn't like about it; how the characters were dumb and some bits didn't make sense. Why are these seen as good things?
Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy this movie. But for it to get THAT many Academy Award nominations? No, just no.
I wanted to like this film, it seems very important and with a story that needs to be told. I just felt it wasn't told in an effective way. For two reasons: the narration and the length. Some scenes had a natural ending point, and then decided to continue on for a few minutes long. The narration didn't really add anything a lot of the time and it felt like it assumed the audience were dumb.
Alita: Rollerball
The rest of the film was nice, but the way these scenes were set up…I loved it. Was so well done, and you could easily follow the action because of how well directed it was.
Avengers: On Your Left
Yes this film was all over the place, yes it closed off many other potential films which would have been interesting. But that moment, where everyone we love from the franchise starts making their return? Very satisfying.
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood: Leonardo DiCaprio Acting
Okay that's not exactly what happens. But there's a moment in this film where DiCaprio's character forgets his lines. But then gives a superb performance motivated by his own fear. It's an incredibly powerful moment full of nuance and unsaid character motivations.
Spiderman Far From Home: Post-Credits
The scene which changed the arc going forward, and is without a doubt one of the most important post-credits scenes in the MCU. Not only is JK Simmons in this franchise, but Peter Parker's identity has been revealed. A great double whammy and a genuine shock.
Us: reveal
When you realise what's actually happening, and how widespread it is. I distinctly remember thinking "you magnificent bastard". It was set up SO well and was an incredibly satisfying reveal.
Knives Out: Ending
Truth is, there are so many perfect moments in this that it's hard to pick just one. If I had to narrow it down to one then it would be this bit. The first reveal is incredibly satisfying and goes against all your expectations, but the ending for this is sooo well done. The genuine reveal leading up to it is superbly written, and the closing shot might just be one of the most simplistically brilliant that I've ever seen.
Worst Scene
Childs Play: the ending
Okay, not the very end. But once everyone was locked in the toy store the carnage felt incredibly subdued, it should have been bigger. It felt like the whole film was building to this scene and it felt really neutered.
Stuber/Good Boys: fight scenes
I'm counting these as one because they do the same thing, and it has the same effect on both films. They're fight scenes which just break up the momentum of the film, not only that but there are things done in the film which would kill someone if they actually happened. So when they're just shaken off in this it reminds you that you're watching a film.
I Love My Mum – Fake Cancer
Right near the end the mother character admits that she faked having cancer because she didn't want her son to leave. Now already she was unlikeable, but that pushed her into being hateable and ruined any dynamic the two of them had.
Escape Room – The Opening
There were a lot of options from this film. I was tempted to go with the cliche "rich people are placing bets" ending. Instead, I went with this because it showed a character alive, then spent 80% of the film catching up to that moment, so any scenes where that character nearly died were devoid of any tension.
The Wolf – The Opening
5 seconds. That's all it took for me to go from "this film is going to be amazing" to "this will be a steaming pile of shit won't it?". That's a record (Hellboy came close with the narration though). Too much happened offscreen, the acting was bad, and the editing was woeful. Kind of like the film itself tbh.
Most Awwww-ful
Fishermans Friends
This is your typical British film, which means it's incredibly heartwarming. Yes, you've seen it before, but it knows the best way to engage emotionally with you, and you'll have to have a heart of stone to not feel affected by it.
This has a different kind of beauty, the beauty of love that a family has for each other. A love that involves you hating each other occasionally when they deserve it. But this means that when the sweet moments do hit, they hit a lot harder than they would otherwise.
This film is incredibly sweet in a way I didn't expect. It really showcases that awkward age where you're not mature enough to be a teen, but you're not a kid. It's a weird time in life and it's refreshing to see a film approach it so honestly whilst talking about male friendships during that stage in life.
A tale of friendship, of loss, and of age. It's helped by the performances, but the film, in general, is just so touching that you'd have to have a heart of stone not to be affected. This was one of the first films I saw in 2019, so it set a kind of high bar for the rest of the year.
This film shows the power of music, how it can change peoples lives and how much of themselves people put into their art. incredibly powerful and a real surprise highlight of the year.
Most Disgusting
Yes it could have gone further, but there were quite a lot of moments in this which did make me wince. Plus the scene where the guy in the costume sprayed blood all over a group of kids was disgustingly brilliant
For one moment and one moment only; someone's finger being chopped off with a cookie cutter. Came out of nowhere and you REALLY felt it.
This film had many flaws. But it was visually well done, and some of the gore was incredible. This is mainly here for one other moment: the homophobic beating at the start. It's…..it's ugly.
The racism inherent in the American law system is disgusting, and this film highlights it incredibly well. To the point where you yourself feel beaten and trapped by the end of the film.
The film alone is depressing, but when you read up on it and read the cases it's based on, it becomes even more so. This is a film which should light a revolutionary fire underneath you, but because everything is so bleak and depressing at the end it just makes you wonder what's the point; the system will win and will rig the game to keep certain people down, and it's all legal. We're fucked as a species.
Worst Film
This film lost me in the opening scene. It was trying so damn hard to be mature that it came off as childish. I'd have loved this if I was a 14-year-old boy, but when I was 14 I also thought that one day I'd be happy, so I was fucking idiot back then. It also features some of the most embarrassing CGI I've ever seen.
"surely this can't be as bad as everybody says?" It can, and don't call me Shirley (I make the most original jokes). A film so bad it taints the X-Men franchise (and this was a franchise that survived Last Stand and Origins). I think that's the worst thing about it, it takes all the goodwill built up by Logan and flushes it down the toilet, and then blocks the toilet and makes you unblock it by hand, leaving you holding shit and shit-water and wondering what the point is.
I can't remember the plot of this film, and I don't think the people who made it can either. It was apparently mostly improvised, and it shows. The scenes don't move forward, don't serve the overarching narrative, it was like watching someone's holiday videos.
I've said a lot of bad things about this movie, and will continue to say more, and for a good reason; it's awful. It starts off with a way-too-long scene of the killers just sitting around talking in a manner which isn't consistent with their later characterisation (and we don't see them again until the 40 minute mark. We then cut to boring family drama for about 30 minutes before the horror starts. It's not even good family drama which lets us enjoy the characters, so many of the scenes are not needed; I would love the makers of this film to explain the purpose of a 2-minute scene where characters flip through television channels. The entire film is full of moments like that, scenes which don't advance the plot, aren't scary, aren't funny, and don't tell us anything about the characters. Essentially, they're worthless
Obviously, this was going to win. I maintain this will remain the worst film I ever see at the cinema in my entire life. This wouldn't even get a passing grade at a film school. I saw it for free and still want my money back. The acting, the script, the fact that they couldn't afford tracks so every time that characters spoke they had to stand completely still even when they were supposed to be moving quickly to escape something. I forgive every bad word I've said about any film, because this film is the one that truly deserves my vitriol.
Academy Award nominations for Bohemian Rhapsody: 5. Academy Award nominations for this: 1. That should not be the case. Everything Bohemian Rhapsody did well, this did better. It suited the artist better, it had a more unique visual look, it was more honest about the subject etc. Whilst we're on the subject, how in the blue holy hell fuck did Bohemian Rhapsody win "best editing". Look at it! That scene's got so many cuts it's being used to execute people in China. The Bohemian Rhapsody finale was about the performance, the finale of this was more focused on the personal. You learn a lot more about Elton John through this than you ever did about Mercury in the Bo-Ho. Also, it reminded me of how many great songs Elton John has done.
I can't think of another franchise which has maintained this high level of quality four movies in. By this point of a franchise, the quality has got so bad that the next movie is a soft reboot. This continues the high benchmark that the first three have set. I've been nervous about the quality of these films every single time I've been to watch one, and every time I've been shown to be a fool (I'm used to that though). Normally Toy Story films wait until near the end to hit you with emotions, this goes the Up method of teabagging you with its emotional balls right off the bat.
Films like this just highlight how stupid the Academy are for ignoring horror films so much. This film is a visual and thematic masterpiece. Is it as good as Get Out? It's hard to tell, this had higher expectations thrust upon it because of Get Out, and the fact that it managed to not be hated despite that points to how strong a film this is.
I think this was the last film I saw of the year, and it seemed like 2019 saved the best for last. Warning, you will see a lot of mentions for this film in this blog. So if you didn't like it, prepare for a lecture on why whilst opinions are subjective and as such can't be right or wrong, yours is still wrong. A near perfect film that I REALLY struggled to find negatives with. Every so often I remember a moment from this film and think 'damn that was impressive"
The Invisible Man (2020)
On March 24, 2020 By troubledproductionsIn ReviewLeave a comment
It pains me to see that current events will forever taint this movie in my memory. This film was the last one I saw at the cinema before the coronavirus happened. So this might be the last recent review we post for a while (an update will be up shortly regarding our status in regards to continuing this site). That's a shame as this movie deserves better, it's an incredibly solid piece of film-making, albeit frustratingly inconsistent. It does some things brilliantly but then does the same thing badly a few minutes later, almost like it was made by two separate people.
The main areas of this for me: visuals and audio. There were times where the film seemed to think "music played at a volume that causes it to muffle" is tension. When it happens in climactic scenes and the music is built towards, then yes it is effective, but there are times where it seems just annoying. Similar with visuals, there are some brilliantly subtle moments, where we just see a breath cloud in the background. But this is let down by other scenes which take place in a frustrating amount of darkness. I get the appeal of hiding a lot, Alien etc did it well, but that was done differently. This was done where the main characters were in darkness, so all you could see were blurry shadows moving around slowly.
Now onto the good; the performances. Elisabeth Moss is PERFECT here. Her broken nature is obvious for everyone to see. Even when her partner isn't on the screen you can see the effect he has had on her just through her performance. She anchors this entire film brilliantly; if her performance wasn't as good as it is then the film would suffer.
The worry with taking a classic story like this is making it appropriate for the modern age. "scientists and a special magic potion" isn't really a formula (hah, science pun) that works for modern movie audiences. Maybe this is because people have access to the internet so fraudulent science will be found out easily. They updated this in the best way possible; it's a suit made of cameras. This not only is a perfectly logical way to fix some flaws in the power of invisibility (vision works on reflection so if you're invisible, you can't see either), it being cameras fixes this. Plus it causes a great scene where the suit gets damaged and starts to glitch in and out of visibility.
So in summary; if you get a chance you should definitely watch this. It's brutal when it needs to be, but is incredibly human too. If the Dark Universe started with this instead of The Mummy (or the Dracula one they attempted to start it with) then maybe it wouldn't have been dead on arrival. It's slow but it makes the most of the time, and it has a truly chilling ending.
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) (2020)
On March 20, 2020 March 20, 2020 By troubledproductionsIn ReviewLeave a comment
I should preface this with the following disclaimer: I don't like Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. I think she tries to hard to be "crazy" and it hurts the performance as it seems incredibly cartooney. It reminds me of "crazy" pro-wrestlers in the 80's who would just sit in the background and pull funny faces whilst their manager spoke. It hurts films like this as she's essentially a cartoon character in a realistic world, and I personally don't think those two worlds mesh well together. It's my big issue with Jared Leto's Joker too; the instant that character has "damaged" tattooed on himself he's no longer that character as, it's done for stylistic movie effect rather than in-movie reality. Basically, it makes it seem like he's doing everything for the benefit of an audience, and it hurts the character. That's my issue with Robbie's performance. So if you're a "OMG Margot is SOOOO perfect and wonderful" then you might want to skip this review.
I wanted to like this film, I really did. It received a lot of hate for having the sheer audacity to be a film which features women both in front and behind the screen. I wanted to write this review and be like "no, support women in film, go see this movie", but I can't (and not just because all the cinemas are shut now). My biggest issue is it reminded me of Suicide Squad, like they didn't learn their mistakes. The complete tonal mess? That's present in this film. The fear that the film wasn't comfortable with silence so filled everything with unnecessary noise? That's here too. The fact that a group of people go from complete strangers to bestest buddies forever? Yup. The Birds Of Prey don't even really occur until the final scene. So much of the film is about Harley Quinn that it forgets about the group, and not in an effective way. It doesn't make me want to see more of them (with the exception of one character who I'll get to later). Harley Quinn is all over this film, which when you're trying to use the film to introduce a 3-person group for a future movie, seems like a mistake. You know how people felt Captain America: Civil War was more like an Avengers movie than a Captain America movie? This is the opposite, it feels more like a Harley Quinn movie than a Birds Of Prey one. Actually that comparison isn't really apt, this is more like if Age Of Ultron was called "The New Avengers" based on the final scene. This is a terrible sign for the future because nobody will go see a Birds Of Prey movie without Harley Quinn now, why would they when the studio has done such a terrible job of introducing the characters? Although considering how little money this is making, that's unlikely (personally I think it was a huge mistake to market this film towards teenage girls and then have it R-Rated so they can't go see it).
The lack of characterisation hurts none of the characters more than it hurts the villain. Ewan McGregor is clearly having a lot of fun, but he's not really given enough to do. His character isn't given anywhere near enough detail, which is a shame as when he is on-screen he's terrifying.
So yeah, I wouldn't recommend seeing this film, unless you loved Suicide Squad, in which case what the hell is wrong with you? If it's part of a box set or if it's on Netflix then check it out, but it's just not for me. As I said before though, that might be because I don't like Margot Robbie's performance in this (LOVED her in I, Tonya though), so that's definitely tainting my view of the film. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is perfect in it though, and is the only reason I would see a Birds Of Prey film. Her performance, her character, everything is just so wonderful.
On March 12, 2020 By troubledproductionsIn Review1 Comment
I hadn't even seen a trailer for this before I watched it, but I knew it was supposed to be really good. All I really knew was that it was a South Korean film, and it was VERY good. I don't think I've watched a South Korean film before so I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of cinematic culture. South Korean or Japanese (and yes, I know they're distinctly different but this point does apply to both so stay with me) films tend not to make much of an impact on the western world unless they are one of the following two things:
Incredibly fucked up.
So when I heard the buzz this was getting I imagined it to have a really fucked up twist somewhere. I think that somewhat hindered my enjoyment of the film, I kept waiting for a twist that wasn't going to happen, which was especially damaging because there were a few points where I sensed it approaching it and thought "okay now it's happening". Really that's the main issue I had with this film. That's quite telling that the main issue I had with this film was basically my own idiocy, if the Oscars gave a shit about horror films then the best actress nominations from the last few years would have been a lot more interesting.
The film itself is nothing like what I was expecting. Like I said, it's a South Korean film called Parasite and it has a seemingly perfect rich family with something hidden in their basement, so you can see why it took me so long to get used to it not meeting my expectations. It's actually kind of a nice film. It's about a family. Yup, that's all you're getting. They con their way into all working for the same family. The scenes where we see them do that are pretty damn good; brilliantly edited and paced, very reminiscent of a heist movie. There are a few surprises later on, but really you're not here for the shocks and twists, you're here for the experience. On that note, I doubt you'll see another film like it. On the downside, the satirical nature of it may be a bit too subtle. On the bright side this means more people will watch it, but (and I recognise this is personal opinion) I prefer my satire to bite a bit harder. That's not a slight against the film, it's just a personal preference. The final scenes do have to be seen though, incredibly heartbreaking and with just a slight touch of hopelessness that overwhelms you, I love it. So yeah go see it, it's funny, warm, and features a dog eating sausages next to a corpse.
On March 3, 2020 By troubledproductionsIn ReviewLeave a comment
I was actually excited about this. The idea of a group of people getting what they wish for but it leading to their destruction is perfect for a horror movie. Think about it, since there's really no limits you get to showcase some incredible set-pieces full of imagination. You can use the characters wishes to display who they are as people. Plus the whole "be careful what you wish for" allows for some creative scripting as well, the idea of your dreams being cursed or not up to what you expected. That's definitely not the case. The script is formulaic, as is the direction and performances. I'm mainly annoyed by two things, two major issues I had with the film:
The horror wasn't linked to the dreams.
The ending.
I'll go into them in further depth. The first one: the way the wishes end up causing deaths is not really linked to the wishes themselves, there's no sense of clever Twilight Zone/Black Mirror karma going back to get you kind of thing. I'll go through them here:
She wants to torture someone she went to school with.
How it goes wrong
It turns out it's not a hologram and she is actually torturing her. I'm going to go into this specific moment in more detail later on. It then gets darker as she breaks the woman free and they end up getting chased by the torturer. So it just becomes a standard slasher film.
What would have made sense
Simple; have Melanie kill her but then realise that revenge doesn't fix everything and she's haunted by the memory of what she did. When she tries to sleep at night all she can think of is what she did.
JD And Brax
"having it all" Basically a massive party at a big house
The house used to belong to drug dealers who come to the house to kill everyone
This could have been the most interesting. All they needed to do was show the toll that lifestyle takes. Basically have them trapped in a never-ending party, forever. No sleep, no rest, no escape. Every time they go to leave the building they're transported back in, every time they sit down they get forced to join a conga line. Show lots of asshole strangers there who refuse to leave the party.
To accept a marriage proposal she rejected years ago.
Okay this is where the film gets weird. She gets exactly what she wanted but realises that her new life with her now-husband and daughter doesn't actually belong to her and she has memories which aren't hers. Interesting concept for a horror movie, right? This was done magnificently in Happy Death Day 2 U, in this it lasts a few minutes and then she changes her mind and asks to go back to a hotel fire she caused. Now she's there again she changes the past by………she doesn't. The fire still happens. It's very important to the plot though as she sees everybody else from the island (minus Melanie) there on the night of the fire. So really this only happens for plot reasons.
Have you seen The Butterfly Effect? Make it that. Show how her decision would have impacted her life; have it mean she failed in her career etc. Basically, have her first wish matter.
To be in the army like his dad.
The army think he's pretending to be a soldier and hold him hostage. This section actually provided the strongest moments of the film, he's transported to the past when his dad was alive and meets him. There are some great emotional moments where his dad realises what's happened and they have a great reunion and talk about how his dad died saving his troop. Patrick ends up disappointed when his dad goes to leave as he doesn't want to go on the next mission because (as Patrick told him) it leads to his death. "but you dying saved your men, that's why I thought you were a hero, you have to go do it" is essentially Patricks argument. An argument which makes no sense, the only reason he died is because he walks into an ambush he wasn't prepared for, he's prepared now, so can tell his men to avoid the ambush. His dad ends up dying anyway when they walk into the house where the aforementioned party is going on (in the present, and no they don't mention the time discrepancies, the closest you get to it is "oooo magic island water").
Keep the "transported back in time to see his dad" part, that part works. But change it so it is his dad's final mission, and he didn't actually die saving his men in an ambush. He was part of a top-secret mission to attack something non-human; so a demon, a monster etc. Basically, turn it into a monster war movie (similar to Predator). Ordinarily, I would have gone with "show how his dad was not really a hero and instead killed lots of innocent people", but the emotional moment of the film is the only part that worked, so it needs to stay.
Now is as good a time as any to mention the wasted talent in this movie
There you go, it's fixed. Now what you have is more like an anthology film, with each section having a different tone, with different scares, albeit ones which merge together well. Now onto the ending. The ending twist was that the whole thing was actually Melanie's wish, and she wanted them all to die because she blames them for her not-boyfriend dying in a fire; Patrick because he didn't rush in and save them, JD and Brax because they were friends with him and didn't check he had left the room before they left the hotel, and Gwen because she started the fire. This would have worked if we didn't see Melanie early on act really confused by the fact the powers of the island were real and she didn't realise the woman she was torturing wasn't a hologram. But if she was behind it all, then she knew all the time what was actually happening. So why was she pretending? She was alone in the room so the only people who were watching her were the audience. It was like the ending was written by somebody who hadn't read the rest of the script. It makes ZERO sense and completely kills the small amount of goodwill I had towards this film. It wasn't even needed, just play the film straight and let it scare people, not everything needs a twist. If you must have a twist, make it a different way. Cut out the fire sub-plot completely. Yes, if you had them all die and this was hell it would have been obvious, but it would have made sense.
So in response; avoid this movie. I can see 2020 having worse films than this, but I can't imagine I'm going to see one that wastes its potential as most as this. It's truly awful, not even worth a netflix watch.


text:
\section{Introduction}

The demand of solvers on NP-hard problems is ubquitous in daily life, and it has attracted tremendous attention from both academia and industry recently. Many combinatorial optimization problems are NP-hard problems, e.g., knapsack problems\cite{Martello1990kp} and traveling salesman problems\cite{Miller1960tsp}. At present, there is no polynomial time solution for this kind of problems. Solving large-scale NP-hard problems is notoriously difficult even for preeminent mathematicians or poweful supercomputers. Nevertheless, seeing the enormous impact it takes, such as the reduction of resource consumption, promotion of benefit, and even survival of enterprise, it is crucially important of seeking for efficient solutions to such puzzles. Karp described 21 NP-complete problems by showing the polynomial time many-one reduction from the boolean satisfiability problem\cite{Karp1972npc}. Actually, once one of these NP-complete problems is polynomial solvable, so are the others in principle.

One of the most vital NP-hard problems is mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) problems\cite{Wolsey2020ip}. The discrete-continuous optimization scheme is center in many applications including finance portfolio\cite{Jorion1992po}, vehicle routing\cite{Achuthan1991vrp}, and drug molecule design\cite{Allouche2014pd}. In the interest of solving the problem, a variety of commercial or open source solvers have been spawned on the basis of both precise algorithms such as branch and bound\cite{Land2010bnb} and approximate algorithms. Known as the first commercial MILP solver, Xpress was originally developed in 1986\cite{Ashford2007xpress}. Subsequently, Gurobi\cite{gurobi}, CPLEX\cite{cplex} and other commercial solvers have mushroomed over the past 30 years, as shown in the table\ref{tab:csolver}. SCIP\cite{scip}, one of the fastest non-commercial solvers for MILP problems, was originally developed in 2001, and has inspired the design of various solvers in our country. Notwithstanding the thriving solvers, with the problem scaling, there is still an uncoordinated contradiction between resource consumption and solution precision, which will be no less disastrous than the developing bottleneck of classical computers within saturation limits of Moore's Law.

\begin{table}[!htb]
\centering
\caption{Information about MILP solvers}
\label{tab:csolver}
\begin{tabular}{c|c|c|c}
        \hhline
        Solver & Country & Year & commercial \\ \hline
        Xpress & Britain & 1986 & Y \\ \hline
        CPLEX & America & 1988 & Y \\ \hline
        GLPK & Russia & 2000 & Y \\ \hline
        SCIP & Germany & 2001 & N \\ \hline
        Ipsolve & Finland & 2004 & Y \\ \hline
        Gurobi & America & 2009 & Y \\ \hline
        CMIP & China & 2018 & N \\ \hline
        COPT & China & 2019 & Y \\
        \hhline
\end{tabular}
\end{table}

Quantum computing is promoted as one of the potential ways to efficiently solve NP-hard problems and overcome the bottleneck. In recent years, many quantum algorithms have erupted and showed their novelty and potential in solving NP-hard problems, such as QAOA\cite{Farhi2014qaoa} and VQE\cite{Kandala2017vqe}. Some effort on quantum computing has also focused on hard optimization problems\cite{Qi2020cqn, Qi2021oqn, Yan2020nqn, Mu2020rlr}. Whereas, some non-von Neumann computers, such as general quantum computers and quantum-inspired Ising machines, have shown quantum advantages in max-cut problems\cite{Farhi2014qaoa}, protein folding problems\cite{Robert2021pf} and so on. Quantum-inspired solvers for various optimization problems have been springing up, especially quantum annealers based on adiabatic quantum computation\cite{Das2008qa}, and coherent Ising machines based on optical oscillators\cite{Takata2012laser, Wang2013dopo}. Generally, these solvers reduces a practical issue into the Ising model or quadratic unconstrained binary opitimization problem at first, and then embeds the problem in the corresponding hardware. The solution is measured once the machine has stopped evoluting.

\begin{figure*}[!htb]
        \centering
        \includegraphics[width=\hsize]{evolution.eps}
        \caption{The evolution process of Ising machines.}
        \label{fig:evolution}
\end{figure*}

Due to the parallelism caused by quantum superposition and the tunneling effect caused by quantum fluctuation, quantum solvers have great advantages over the classical solvers in precision or efficiency. However, these quantum computers either required rigorous physical conditions such as ultra-low temperatures and confined spaces, or possessed huge volume, facing tremendous limitations to practical applications. In this paper, we introduce the working principle of several new type of computers represented by Ising machine, of which the main evolutionary process is presented in Figure~\ref{fig:evolution}.

The rest of this paper is organized as follows. In Section~\ref{sec:milp} we introduce the MILP Problem and some classical algorithms used for solvers. We discuss two main kinds of Ising machines in Section~\ref{sec:ising}, and end by analyzing the challenges and opportunities of quantum-inspired solvers. In Section~\ref{sec:conclude}, we conclude the paper.

\section{Mixed-Integer Programming\label{sec:milp}}

As a special case of linear programming (LP) problem, mixed-integer linear programming is defined as:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:milp}
\begin{aligned}
        \min_{x}~&c^Tx \\
        s.t.~&Ax\leq b \\
        &x\in \mathbb{Z}^m \times \mathbb{R}^{n-m},
\end{aligned}
\end{equation}
where $c\in \mathbb{R}^n$ and $b \in \mathbb{R}^r$ are two coefficient vectors, $A \in \mathbb{R}^{r\times n}$ is a coefficient matrix. Equation~\ref{eq:milp} tells us that notwithstanding the discrete-continuous variables, the constraints and objective functions of MILP are tantamount to those of LP.

Regardless of efficiency, LP problems can be solved by methods such as simplex method, interior point method, ellipsoid method\cite{Wolsey2020ip}. Different from LP, it is the discrete variables of MILP, that is, the discontinuity of feasible region, that makes the above methods cannot be directly applied into MILP.

A trivial method was enumeration, which searched all feasible values of discrete variables inefficiently. A modified implicit enumeration method worked in pure integer programming problems that could be reduced into binary integer linear programming (BILP) problems\cite{Wolsey2020ip}. However, the aforementioned method is expensive even for pure integer programming, meaning that it is necessary to seek more efficient algorithms. Aiming at the inherent nature of MILP, methods including branch and bound, cutting plane, and column generation have been proposed\cite{Land2010bnb, Kelley1960cp, Lub2005dwcg}. In addition, decomposition algorithms such as DW decomposition\cite{Lub2005dwcg} are worthy for reference as well.

In some practical applications, expensive resource and time consumption seriously obstruct the precise computing for the minimum, motivating many heuristic and approximate algorithms. A computational cheap heuristic method for MILP is accepting the rounding of corresponding LP solutions. Though the rounding solution is not even a feasible one, it has heuristiced many algorithms with supplementary constraints, such as local branching\cite{Fischetti2008lb}.

Besides, algorithms including hill-climbing\cite{Hinson1983hill} have been inspired by a core idea named local search. The local search scheme started from one or several initial solutions, and ended with the optimal solution in certain feasible region by iterating searching for candidate solutions in the solution domain. Approximate algorithms inspired by biological or physical phenomena have been also used to design solvers, such as simulated annealing\cite{Laarh1987sa}. Almost all commercial and non-commercial solvers support both precise and approximate algorithms.

\section{Quantum-inspired Solvers\label{sec:ising}}

\subsection{Ising Model and Reduced MILP problems}

Many combinatorial optimization problems can be reduced into Ising problems\cite{Lucas2014Ising}. Ising model is a general mathematical model in statistical physics, which was firstly used to explain the correlation between spin states in ferromagnetic material and the macroscopic magnetic moment\cite{Ising1925}. It assumes that ferromagnetic matter consists of a collection of small magnetic needles, of which each is only allowed to be either $+1$ or $-1$ (in quantum mechanics it is described as $\left|\uparrow\right>$ and $\left|\downarrow\right>$). Adjacent magnetic needles interact with each other through field, combined with stochastic magnetic flips caused by the interference of ambient thermal noise.

The purpose of Ising problem is to minimize the Ising Hamiltonian, which is given by the following equation:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:isingspin}
 H=-\sum_{i,j}^{V}J_{ij}\sigma_i\sigma_j-\sum_i^Vh_i\sigma_i,
\end{equation}
where $V$ represents the number of spins, $J_{ij}$ means the coupling constant between spins, the sum of $h_i\sigma_i$ is called external field, and $\sigma_i$ denotes spins. Obviously, each different combination of spin states corresponds to a unique value of energy. The whole system tends to have a lowest energy, corresponding the minimum loss function pursuing for.

Ising machine can solve many NP-complete problems, including BILP problems. As for BILP problem, for example, the Ising Hamiltonian could be divided into two parts\cite{Lucas2014Ising}:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:ha}
\begin{aligned}
        H_A&=A\sum_{j=1}^m{{\left[b_j-\sum_{i=1}^N{S_{ji}x_i}\right]}^2}\\
        H_B&=-B\sum_{i=1}^N{c_ix_i},
\end{aligned}
\end{equation}
where $0<B\ll A$ are two positive integers, of which the value is chosen subjectively but bounded by the properties of constraint equations and the cost function. $x_i$ denotes a binary variable. $b_i$, $c_i$, $S_{ji}$ corresponds to the coefficients of the constraint $Sx=b$ and the cost $c^Tx$.

BILP is directly reduced to the Ising problems by Equation~\ref{eq:ha}, solved by the general Ising machine. However, for large scale MILP problems, the reduction from a discrete-continuous puzzle to a discrete conbinatorial optimizatiton problem is impractical. Fortunately, such puzzles have been able to be partitioned into solvable Ising problems combined with classical efforts\cite{Ajagekar2020dco}.

\subsection{Annealing-based Ising machine}

Ising machine is a solver used to solve Ising problems, that is, a physical machine that minimizes the Ising Hamiltonian in Equation~\ref{eq:isingspin}. Ising machine belongs to natural computing, a novel non-von Neumann computing paradigm in which the physical nature phenomenon used for calculation has an intrinsic convergence property\cite{Yamaoka2015cmos}. As shown in Figure~\ref{fig:solver}, to solve a practical issue, the puzzle should be mapped to the natural physical phenomenon corresponding to the convergence property. The solution to the puzzle is measured when the system stopped converging under the external field and evolution.

\begin{figure}[!htb]
        \centering
        \includegraphics[width=\hsize]{solver.eps}
        \caption{The diagram for solving a practical issue on an Ising machine.}
        \label{fig:solver}
\end{figure}

The most famous Ising machine suppose to be quantum annealer based on adiabatic quantum computation. Compared with classical simulated annealer, quantum annealing is superior in approximate optimization problems due to superposition and tunneling effect. Quantum annealers produced by companies such as D-Wave have been operational for commercial use\cite{Johnson2011dwave, Mc2020tvpdwave}.

While real quantum annealers are limited by the harsh operating environment, analog ones inspired by quantum annealing have demonstrated their superiority in some practical applications. The Digital Annealer developed by Fujitsu simulated the quantum annealing process by Monte Carlo method, demonstraing its power on solving complex combinatorial optimization problems\cite{Aramon2019fujitsu}. Benchmark test on real problems has demonstrated the strengths and weaknesses of different quantum and analog annealers\cite{Oshiyama2022benchmark}. However, these special computers are too cumbersome so that it is inconvenient for a global rollout.

Yamaoka et al.\cite{Yamaoka2015cmos} has proposed to use CMOS circuits for annealing, with the Ising model encoded in SRAM arrays. The coupling between spins is simulated by logic circuits, and the machine is able to solve MAX-CUT problems no more than 20k spins. They then have proposed a modified annealing processor based on FPGA\cite{Yoshimura2016fpga}. By minor embedding and time-division multiplexing architecture, the FPGA Ising machine has been designed to address large scale combinatorial optimization problems\cite{KYamamoto2019fpga} with almost any topology. The basic idea of FPGA-based annealer is to embed the Ising model into the electronic circuit, with each Ising spin mimicked by a circuit diagram equiping a memory cell array. In such a spin circuit unit, different coefficients are connected with coupling by AND gates, followed by an operator circuit controlled by some random pulses. The proposed FPGA annealers achieve the minimum value by local searching, i.e. flipping one bit and find the lowest energy repeatedly. To escape from the local optimum, probabilistic behavior such as pseudorandom number generator who generates aforementioned random pulses is added to the circuit to invert the spin. Besides, though it has been only used for SAT problem and integer factorization with several fundamental circuit structures, the invertible probabilistic circuit implemented by FPGA is also an alternative for such a global optimum without the necessity of complex inverter structure\cite{Aadit2021sim}.

A feasible portable solver designed in FPGA as mentioned before is shown in Figure~\ref{fig:fpga}. A quantum-inspired annealer in FPGA votes possible candidates to get over the local minimum. The core to simulate quantum annealer on a classical FPGA is to update spins by appropriate Monte Carlo such as Gibbs sampling. For the Ising Hamiltonian in Equation~\ref{eq:isingspin}, a most common sampler requires an interaction of:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:interaction}
 I_i=-\frac{\partial H}{\partial \sigma_i}=\sum_{j}^{V}J_{ij}\sigma_j+h_i.
\end{equation}
$I_i$ is used to vote candidate spins with corresponding Boltzmann probability:
\begin{equation}
\label{eq:boltzmann}
p_i \propto \exp{\left[-\frac{H(\sigma)}{kT}\right]}.
\end{equation}
The update unit for a single spin is implemented by the unit in Figure~\ref{fig:fpga}, consisting of Equation~\ref{eq:interaction} with corresponding probability in Equation~\ref{eq:boltzmann}. In FPGA, Equation~\ref{eq:interaction} is calculated by circuits, and the accept-reject probability in Equation~\ref{eq:boltzmann} is generated by randomly inverting the spins through Monte Carlo methods to get over the local minimum. Different units update spins by aforementioned interaction methods iteratively. Finally, the FPGA solver votes the ground state of corresponding Ising Hamiltonian, which is also the the solution to the question.

\begin{figure}[!htb]
        \centering
        \includegraphics[width=\hsize]{mcsa.eps}
        \caption{An implementation of Ising spin unit in the FPGA solver. The Monte Carlo method inspired by Quantum Annealing process is reserved in two interfaces that have been noted by dotted lines. Interface $1$ is used to invert input spins randomly, while interface $2$ is used to invert the output of the spin unit stochastically.}
        \label{fig:fpga}
\end{figure}

In some situations, it is ridiculous to directly take an expensive solver to solve an easy exercise or a puzzle undetermined whether unsolvable or not. Since FPGA-based annealers encode a problem with circuits, it is natural to simulate a proposed solver on CPU, GPU or TPU\cite{Aadit2021sim}. A mature simulated solver will be implemented even on PC, convenient for daily issues of small scale.

\subsection{Oscillator-based Coherent Ising Machine}

Coherent Ising machine (CIM) represents Ising spins by different polarization states above the oscillation threshold in coupled nonlinear oscillators, such as $0$-phase and $\pi$-phase. The coupling mechanism is based on injection locking, a common phenomenon in most nonlinear oscillators where the output frequency is precisely locked to a similar given external interference frequency\cite{Wang2017oim}. Injection locking consists of fundamental frequency locking or harmonic locking. Sub-harmonic injection locking (SHIL) is popular in CIM since it excites multiple stable phase-locked responses in oscillators.

The energy landscape of the initial Ising Hamiltonian is embedded into a network of oscillators by coupling mechanism. The ground states of Ising Hamiltonian, also corresponding to the solution of the original problem, is found through phase transitions of oscillations caused by external distractions. Differing from quantum and analog annealing processors, CIM gradually raises the gain to search for the minimum value of energy landscape upward, while annealers optimize along the landscape\cite{Marandi2014tmcim}.

Early researches on CIM began with the concept of an injection synchronous laser Ising machine proposed by Stanford in 2011\cite{Utsunomiya2011laser, Takata2012laser}. The number of lasers corresponds to the number of qubits but the coupling is difficult. They then have proposed a modified CIM based on degenerate optical parametric oscillators (DOPO) network\cite{Wang2013dopo}. Each degenerate OPO in the network denotes an Ising spin. All OPOs are in squeezed vacuum state under the threshold, while the phases of OPOs polarize into binary phase states above threshold by external pump. The coupling comes from mutual injection between different OPOs. Since strong coupling strength is able to cause probable errors in solving Ising problems, it is essential to choose a suitable coupling method. Time delay has been a potential method to generate suitable couplings, which modulates arbitrary Ising problems with $n$ spins by delaying $n-1$ times\cite{Marandi2014tmcim}.

DOPO-based CIM has been used to solve many problems\cite{Takata2015qcdopo, Takata2016cim16, Inagaki2016cim10k}. However, the scalability of CIM is poor. On the one hand, decoherence and dispersion effects of photons extremely limit the number of couplings in physical Ising machines. On the other hand, precise control of thousands of delay lines has remained impractical. They then have realized the coupling process of time multiplexed DOPO pulses with a measurement and feedback scheme implemented by FPGA\cite{Haribara2015qmfc, Haribara2016maxcut, Inagaki2016cim2k, Honjo2021cim10k}. Pierangeli et al. abandoned traditional mechanical networks and built a new Ising machine using spatial light modulation\cite{Pierangeli2019spatial}, breaking the scale limitation of optical Ising machine. Novel materials such as nanomagnet and nanophotonic also have been supposed to be the candidate for Ising model\cite{Sutton2017nanomag, Wang2018nanophoto}.

In fact, optical material is not the necessary condition for CIM, although photonic computing have been demonstrated more efficient in Boolean computation than von Neumann computers. As aforementioned, injection locking is universal in nonlinear oscillators, that is, almost all nonlinear oscillators are able to denote Ising spins. For example, LC, MEMS, and biochemical reaction networks have been suggested to be suitable as well as Photonics oscillators\cite{Wang2017oim, Chou2018wim}.

\subsection{Discussion on Miniaturized Solvers}

Aforementioned Ising machines have their own advantages and disadvantages on solving practical MILP problems. A qualified solver should be convenient for practical usage, that is, it is supposed to be miniaturized without harsh environment. Therefore, the following topics are needed to study further.

\begin{itemize}
  \item[(1)] \textbf{Scalabilty of annealers}. \\
Annealers have worked well in many practical applications, but the challenge is how to scale up the problem size without excessive resource consumption. Though minor embedding method is helpful as well as Chimera graph, it still stands a limitation of sizes. The time-division multiplexing architecture seems to be helpful, but more actual experiments are needed. For many large complex problems, the process of finding an optimal embedding graph is itself NP-hard, restricting the generalization and miniaturization vastly. Heuristic algorithms might help find an efficient embedding\cite{Cai2014ha}, but at the expense of reducing acuracy. Hence, it is significant to find more efficient embedding algorithm to scale up and generalize annealers.

  \item[(2)] \textbf{Limitation of CIMs from materials}. \\
Photonics computers requires sufficient space to generate optical pulses, which is the base of coupling. Methods such as time-multiplexing and measurement and feedback couldn't do anything to miniaturization of optical generation. Ising machine based on LC oscillators seems suitable for miniaturized solvers, but facing the same limitation of scalability. As for new nonlinear oscillators, how to couple spins is still an obstacle as well as the coupling performance.

  \item[(3)] \textbf{The reduction of MILP problems}. \\
BILP scheme can be reduced into Ising model directly. However, out of BILP, other MILP problems can't be embedded into Ising machine straightforwardly since Ising model is not capable for continuous variables. Although it is operable to split or convert MILP problems into BILP problems, more efforts have to be made and the quantum superior is then diminished. A potential direction is to reduce the MILP problem into XY model, whose Hamiltonian is given as
$$H = -\sum_{i,j}^VJ_{ij}\cos(\theta_i-\theta_j)-\sum_{i}^Vh_i\cos\theta_i.$$ The MILP problem then can be converted into finding the minimum value of the mixture of XY Hamiltonian and Ising Hamiltonian. Nevertheless, the solvers on XY model such as Born machines is still under theory\cite{Gomez2021born}. For further studies, the reduction of MILP will be annoying.

  \item[(4)] \textbf{More possible solvers}. \\
An alternative for physical solver is simulating software. The work principle of FPGA and LC oscillators can be simulated on classical computers, meaning it is possible to design and implement a virtual Ising machine on classical computer. The evolution can be speeded up by CPU, GPU, and TPU. Another miniaturization paradigm is the Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) quantum computer, which uses particles in resonance excitation in a magnetic field to produce excited state $\left|1\right>$ and ground state $\left|0\right>$ respectively, solving MILP problems in general quantum computing paradigm. General quantum computers, such as superconducting computer and optical computer, survives on a harsh physical environment which is available only in the laboratory now, while NMR computers can run fine at room temperature. The prototype of desktop quantum computer has been realized by SpinQ, though with a size no more than 3-bits\cite{Hou2021spind, Feng2022spinq3}. Obviously, it still needs more efforts to be used in practical applications.
\end{itemize}

\section{Conclusion\label{sec:conclude}}

In this paper, we have reviewed some quantum-inspired solvers from the perspective of working mechanism. Annealers based on adiabatic quantum computation find the mimnimum energy by searching along the landscape and speed up by quantum tunneling effect. Coherent Ising machines based on oscillators excite oscillators to find the mimnimum value upward. Analog solvers inspired by these two kinds of Ising machines are capable to solve Ising problems more efficiently than classical solvers. These solvers demonstrate their advantages and disadvantages on solving practical problems. However, there still exist many obstacles to design a miniaturized solver on MILP problems. We have listed many worthy directions above. In the future, more efficient solvers will be widely used to solve general MILP problems.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
THE GAMBLER – Parody
by admin | posted in: NEWEST, Parody, Trump Parodies | 9
So as Trump and Pelosi engaged in their standoff that led to the shutdown (with another one possibly coming up according to Trump), I received an idea for a parody from Ron Dusseau – using Kenny Rogers' version of The Gambler with gambling metaphors generously sprinkled throughout. The end result is the production you are about to watch.
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LYRICS to THE GAMBLER PARODY
On a warm summer's evening
in July twenty-fifteen,
a conman made a gamble:
tried to build a wall of cards.
He thought he'd won the payout
on the day he got elected,
but then came the new players
and they were not trumptards.
When he reached across the table
to rake in all his winnings,
a voice cut though the darkness
and his anger was aroused.
The words came from the Speaker
making his life bleaker,
when she told him that a joker
could not beat her full House.
She said, "You should not be bluffing
when your deck is not a full one."
Her words just made him angrier
so of course he doubled down.
The night got deathly quiet
and the silence made him shuffle.
She knew that he would blink first
'cause she wasn't new in town.
He didn't know how to play 'em
or what to say, when.
Didn't read the rules
'cause he don't know how to read.
He just wiped a booger.
It was classic Dunning-Kruger.
He lacks the neural networks
to know he can't succeed.
And every gambler knows
the game cannot be won
by stealing someone else's cards
to claim them as your own.
When your back's against the wall
and you're betting on the outcome,
the best that you can hope for
is to just be left alone.
But he thinks he's an ace player
and the best that ever could be.
He's threatening to challenge her
to another round.
The stakes are high,
but not for him.
He doesn't care who gets hurt,
he only wants to win.
He doesn't know when to weigh in,
stuck in his playpen,
doesn't know he tips his hand
by the way he acts.
He wants to be the big guy,
the strong suit at the table,
but he lacks the capacity
to know that's what he lacks.
Doesn't know what he's sayin',
who he's dismaying.
Doesn't know not everyone
was dealt a diamond flush.
So he stacks the deck
for those who do not need it.
He fills his hand with wild cards.
He wants to win that much.
Doesn't know how to play 'em
or what to say, when
didn't read the rule book
about the deck he stacks
He will always be a loser.
It is classic Dunning-Kruger.
HISTORY of the SOURCE MATERIAL
"The Gambler" is a song written by Don Schlitz, recorded by several artists, most famously by American country music singer Kenny Rogers.
Don Schlitz wrote this song in August, 1976 when he was 23 years old. It took two years of shopping the song around Nashville before Bobby Bare recorded it on his album "Bare" at the urging of Shel Silverstein. Bare's version didn't catch on and was never released as a single, so Schlitz recorded it himself, but this version failed to chart higher than #65.
However, other musicians took notice and recorded the song in 1978, including Johnny Cash, who put it on his album Gone Girl. It was Kenny Rogers who finally broke the song loose, in a version produced by Larry Butler. His version was a #1 Country hit and even made its way to the Pop charts at a time when Country songs rarely crossed over. It was released in November 1978 as the title track from his album The Gambler, which won him the Grammy award for best male country vocal performance in 1980.
In 2006 Don Schlitz appeared in the Kenny Rogers career retrospective documentary "The Journey", where he praised both Rogers' and Butler's contributions to the song stating "they added several ideas that were not mine, including the new guitar intro".
AND WE HAVE SOME FUN STUFF IN THE PARODY PROJECT STORE
blue wave, don caron, donald trump, kenny rogers, nancy pelosi, parody project, ron dusseau, shutdown, the gambler, trump parody, Trump satire
greg anderson
i love the dunning -kruger reference ,
February 8, 2019 |
YES we all know about , executive time , his response to joint house was half bullshit , Lets see his Tax Returns ,so we can know/or be assured its not 'apprentice president' , he does not appear to know the difference , thanks Don , as always
Adrian Moran
Love your stuff, not only is it funny, but totally bang on the money. You should have a go at our Prime! Minister, shea as dumb as doughnuts.
Regards from the UK
Bear Moran
leslie Hulkower
wonderful keep it up.at least some people in this country have the guts to talk back bravo
Katherine Lake
Loved these lyrics! Every Trumpelthinskin bloviation IS classic Dunning-Kruger😂
chantilly lovelace
Another fine job! Pokes the crazy while keeping the feel of the original tune, right down to croaky vocals.
Deborah Gostin
Yes, thanks Caryn!
Thanks Caryn!
Caryn LeMur
Incredibly well done, as usual!!
For those wondering: Classic Dunning-Kruger is explained here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Playing Zelda video games is all well and good but what if you could live out a real-life Zelda experience? You're going to get your chance now that Nintendo has partnered with SCRAP to create a Real Escape Game based on The Legend of Zelda.
The Defenders of the Triforce is played with a team of six players who will be seated at a table that serves as their base of operations. Players will then search the surrounding area for clues in order to solve puzzles so they can escape. In case players cannot escape, there will be a solution walkthrough at the end. After the game is over, participants will enjoy hanging out at a Zelda-themed area that has video trailers and special merchandise.
Defenders of the Triforce will run from January 31 to February 5 in San Francisco, February 10-12 in Los Angeles, and February 24-25 in San Diego. Dates for Seattle, Phoenix, Houston, Chicago, and New York will be announced at a later time. You can find out more information by visiting the event's official website. There, you'll find a handy FAQ that goes into more detail about what to expect and what is expected from you.


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Aaron Swartz International Hackathon 2014, Press
Digital Journal: Activists hold worldwide 'hackathon' in memory of Aaron Swartz
November 16, 2014 lisa
Activists hold worldwide 'hackathon' in memory of Aaron Swartz
By Brett Wilkins for Digital Journal.
…Swartz has become something of a martyr. Not in some pathetic, quixotic way. His life, his work and his untimely demise have inspired a whole generation of 'hacktivists' and other open Internet advocates who are hard at work fighting battles in defense of net neutrality and against corporatization of the Internet, government surveillance and other pressing problems.
"Since there are projects like SecureDrop (an open-source whistleblower submission system managed by Freedom of the Press Foundation) going strong, and policy movements aimed at protecting innovative students on college campuses, and more updates on the ongoing fight to have Aaron's government documents released to the public, and so many people willing to do amazing projects in his honor, I decided to just try to include everything I could, and see how large it became," Lisa Rein, co-founder of Creative Commons and host of The Internet Archive hackathon, told the Daily Dot.
"Aaron doesn't deserve to go down in history as some malicious hacker out to steal and make money from his loot somehow," added Rein.
Purcell agreed, telling the audience of several dozen than what Swartz did was "not hacking."
"It was walking through a door that was left open for anyone to walk through," the attorney insisted, calling Swartz's alleged 'crime' "a harmless effort to point out a problem."
Director Brian Knappenberger was on hand at the San Francisco event for a screening of his critically-acclaimed documentary feature, The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz.
A panel discussion and audience Q&A followed. Many attendees had personal connections to Swartz. There was much talk of how activists could honor his memory.
Brett WilkinsDigital Journal
Previous PostTruthdig on Aaron Swartz Day: A Vital Legacy Lives OnNext PostAaron Swartz Day Celebration in Riyadh


Students will be able to describe religious traditions within their historical and cultural contexts.
Implies knowledge of the cultural, social, political milieu of religious traditions.
Students will be able to demonstrate the critical skills required for reading, evaluating and interpreting religious texts and statements.
Students will be able to critique and discuss the application of religious texts and statements as they relate to contemporary issues.


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Klasyfikacja Fontaine'a – klasyfikacja stosowana w medycynie do oceny stopnia niedokrwienia kończyn dolnych.
Wyróżnia cztery stopnie niedokrwienia:
 I – brak objawów klinicznych lub objawy dyskretne
 II – chromanie przestankowe
 IIa – dystans chromania ponad 200 m
 IIb – dystans chromania do 200 m
 III – bóle kończyn w spoczynku
 IV – martwica lub zgorzel kończyny

Zobacz też
 Miażdżyca
 Krytyczne niedokrwienie kończyn

Bibliografia

Linki zewnętrzne

Choroby naczyń
Skale stosowane w medycynie

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
X-Omat Trademark Details
X-Omat was registered on Tuesday, May 2, 1961 and is currently owned by Carestream Health, Inc. under the registration number 714580 . This mark is alive with a status of Registered and Renewed. The last case file activity for this mark occured 11 years ago on Thursday, June 30, 2011, according to the United State Patent & Trademark Office
X-Omat
Carestream Health, Inc. of New York, NY
View all trademarks for Carestream Health, Inc.
Other Trademarks for Carestream Health, Inc.
Eastman Kodak Company of Durham, NC
View all trademarks for Eastman Kodak Company
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Kristen M. Walsh
NIXON PEABODY LLP
1300 CLINTON SQUARE
In the statement, column 1, line 1, "New York" should be deleted and "New Jersey" should be inserted.
Photographic Processing Chemicals
X Omat
001 — Class 1 includes mainly chemical products used in industry, science and agriculture, including those which go to the making of products belonging to other trademark classes. Examples include compost, salt for preserving non-foodstuffs, and certain additives for the food industry.
Certificate of Correction Issued


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You Can't Escape Wesley Snipes in New Virtual-Reality Short 'The Recall VR Abduction'
The 10-minute short is set in the same world as Snipes' upcoming sci-fi horror pic 'The Recall"
Matt Pressberg | February 2, 2017 @ 5:51 PM
Wesley Snipes is wading into virtual reality for the first time with"The Recall VR Abduction," a short VR film tied to his upcoming sci-fi horror feature "The Recall" featuring several members of the film's main cast.
Directed by Mauro Borelli, the 10-minute short set in the same universe as "The Recall" sees viewers experience an alien invasion through the eyes "Breaking Bad's" R.J. Mitte, who co-stars in the film. As the action happens, viewers will interact with Snipes, as well as Jedidiah Goodacre, Niko Pepaj, Laura Maria Bilgeri, and Hannah Rose Ma. "The Recall VR Abduction" will also feature multiple potential endings.
"The cool thing is that for theater actors, or thespians, this is a great format, because shooting in VR is similar to shooting a play, or performing a play," Snipes said in a statement. "You don't have the luxury of cuts, and short takes, and do overs. You have to be on your game, and since everything is in the shot, everyone else needs to be on their game at the same time."
Also Read: How Virtual Reality Filmmakers Used Brands to Develop a New Skill Set
In addition to VR platforms, portions of "The Recall VR Abduction" will also be made available on Facebook 360. It's set for launch before the film's summer 2017 release at a date to be announced later.
The project is from Mind's Eye Entertainment, producers of the "The Recall", in partnership with VMI Worldwide, Bridgegate Pictures, Invico Capital, Talking Dog Studios and SkyVR.
These Virtual-Reality Films at Tribeca Hint How Far VR Can Go (Photos)
Short film "Sens" is the first project to adapt a graphic novel into a virtual reality.
Joan E. Solsman
"Sens" leads viewers on a black-and-white journey, in which the point of view alternates between exploring a strange landscape through the main character's eyes and floating above the character, watching him do things like grip an edge of a cliff.
"Deep VR" combines a underwater fantasy world with a specialized belt the viewer wears around the waist, which monitors deep breathing. You control your movement in the experience by breathing in and out deeply, causing an initial rush of oxygen to the brain followed by a Zen-like meditative calm as you continue to play.
"Deep VR" is set in an underwater seascape, and is meant to explore the ways in which VR can change our relationship with both body and mind.
"The Turning Forrest" is a virtual-reality tale that takes viewers on a journey with a fantasy beast. At the Tribeca Film Fest's main hub, the creators bring viewers into hut before immersing them in the experience.
"The Turning Forrest" is a fully computer-generated movie, but the creators combined the viewing of it with a rumble pack that viewers wear to feel percussions that match the action.
BBC R&D / VRTOV
"Notes on Blindness" is a VR film that images the internal visions of John Hull, who -- after losing his sight in 1983 -- began recording an audio-diary documenting his discovery of "a world beyond sight." His original recordings form the basis of this interactive experience, which uses real time 3D, virtual reality, and binaural sound to explore the interior world of blindness.
"Notes on Blindness"
"6X9: An Immersive Experience of Solitary Confinement" attempts to explain the effects solitary confinement of prisons, people who spend 22-24 hours a day in their cells, with little to no human contact.
"6x9" put virtual-reality viewers inside a cell, to hint at how the sensory deprivation prisoners live with can cause psychological damage.
Until you get a chance to immerse yourself with a headset, peek at some the world's most cutting-edge VR films and interactive formats


The senior dry herb epipe vape kit is ergonomic and durable, high powered variable temperature pipe with ceramic convection heating chamber capable of performing all your vaping needs. this new dry herb epipe have black and white colors available,comes with 1000mah battery. this new senior epipe kit not only brings your flower to vaping temps in less than thirty seconds with larger cleaner cloud, also capable of passing to a friend with no need for reheating.
6)during the heating process, three lines flash on the OLED screen, can read the instant temperature.
9)power off: quick click the power button 5 times in 2seconds.


This is a momentous day. I started re-reading this series over a year ago, and started my original reading of the series 20 years ago. And today I finally finished the final book. As you can imagine, I have a lot to say so I'll try to stick to key points, but I wont be able to avoid spoilers, so you are hereby warned.
The wrap up: It felt like it took forever, and at the same time it went too fast. And it is hard to put my finger on why. I think that the battle scenes were not connected to the actual last battle well (Rand's fight), so it felt like over half the book was spent on things that didn't really matter. As often happens with epic fantasies, the real struggle at the end is metaphysical, and is hard to follow. I was with Sanderson until the very end where Rand and Moridin commence their fight. If Callandor was really a trap, why didn't Rand just pretend to drop it at the beginning of the fight? Was the encounter with the darkness and the inner struggle with the Dark One really an accident for Rand?
Characters: A lot of characters were killed off, and at first I was put off by that, but in the end I was mostly ok with the sacrifices, although the Amyrlin's story line was not wrapped up for me. Couldn't Egwene and Gawyn have at least some happiness in their relationship? Siuan and Gareth Bryne, well it's sad, but I can accept it. I think I would have preferred Galad to not have made it. He was an annoying character most of the time, so it seems unfair. In fact, we hear nothing about the Children of the Light at the end, and I hope they got wiped out. I know that sounds cold, but they were a hypocrisy the entire series.
Biggest pet peeve: the Seanchan. I said in a previous review that if the culture of damane was not resolved it would be a huge detractor from the whole series for me. I'm standing by that. I don't care that they were used to win the last battle, or that they were a fitting punishment for Forsaken. In the end, this book condones human slavery, and that is not ok. Aside from that point as a moral position, there is the issue of Tuon as a character. Where was her growth? I expected some kind of awakening where she becomes enlightened and incorporates the best of what she sees on this continent into her empire, resolving the dark side of the Seanchan plot line. And what about the part where she can learn to channel? The issue of whether or not she chooses to doesn't hold water, because that same argument could be used for damane as well. Why treat them like murderers when they haven't made that choice yet? Anyway, the final status of the Seanchan is a straight up disappointment for me in this series.
Brandon Sanderson straight up saved Matrim Cauthon. He was a weak, whiny character with a chip on his shoulder, and very flat at the same time. His voice was lost in the previous books. Sanderson brought him back with some flair and a voice that added comic relief as well as color to the story line. Mat and Perrin both grew the most as characters through the series, but Mat--if he were a real person--would owe it all to Mr. Sanderson.
So what now? While I enjoyed the overall push through the series, it really has slowed me down. I hope to make it through some quicker reads and then go back to a few series that I haven't read in years, most notably the Shannara series by Terry Brooks and the Sparhawk series by David Eddings. Maybe by then Sanderson will be far enough along with the Stormlight Archives that I'll start it, but I really dislike starting a series that isn't finished, as evidenced by the multiple attempts at the Wheel of Time.
Overall, I really liked this one, but I can't quite put it in the 5 star category. This book had to deal with so much baggage that I think it was about as awesome as it could have been, but 5 stars is a hard bar to reach. I am just happy to have it over with, and have good feelings about the whole series. It is like when you have been gone on a long vacation, and although you had fun and made treasured memories, you are glad to be home and back to normal life.


The T-Rex is one of the greatest carnivores - though not the largest - ever to have walked the Earth. The massive skull of this dinosaur measured 1.5 metres and was balanced by a long heavy tail. Thirty specimens have been recovered, some of which are almost complete.
The house was stripped to the bare bones after the tornado. All you could see were the walls and parts of the roof.
So far, you've only given me the bare bones of what happened. I need more details to fill in the report form properly.
You shouldn't talk about marriage when Mary is around. It's too close to the bone. She has just left her husband.


1 What Is Needed to Start a Pizzeria?
Local pizzerias serve as a gathering spot for pizza aficionados, youth sports teams and adults looking to socialize. Offering fresh from the oven pizza, tempting sides and cold beer, pizza and beer businesses can capitalize on the hungry appetite of locals and those passing through. When starting your pizza and beer business, take your local market into consideration. Offer something for everyone, including the little tykes, grown children and the young at heart.
Write up a business plan. Take into account current and future goals. Include an overview of your business. Provide details related to industry trends and how you intend to capitalize on them. Specify the foods and beverages that you plan to offer and include price points. Consider menu items beyond pizza, such as salads, ravioli and lasagna. Include details related to financing, equipment and initial inventory needs. Seek help developing your business plan from organizations developed to help small businesses, such as the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Settle on a business name and decide on your organizational structure. Sole proprietorship and limited liability company represent a couple of the options for organizing your pizzeria. Check with your state's secretary of state office to determine the availability of your chosen business name.
Register your business. Fill out the necessary paperwork for registering your business with your state's secretary of state office. Submit the necessary paperwork to the Internal Revenue Service for an Employer Identification Number. Use this number to identify your business when filing state and federal taxes.
Secure financing. Present your business plan and loan proposal to a local bank or credit union. Consider additional sources of funding including friends, family and the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Apply for the necessary permits and licenses. Request a liquor license from your state's licensing authority, such as the department of liquor control or the state liquor commission. This will allow you to sell alcohol for consumption at your pizzeria. Contact your local health department to obtain a health department permit.
Secure a location and equipment. Consider seating capacity and kitchen space when evaluating potential locations. Think about parking availability. Take competitor locations into account and choose a location that will provide your pizzeria with the best chance of reaching your target market. Purchase necessary equipment, including pizza ovens, prep tables, refrigerators and freezers.
Find suppliers. Contact local pizzerias, perhaps in a different neighborhood, to see if they are willing to speak with you concerning the best suppliers and equipment dealers. Contact local food and produce wholesalers, beer distributors and paper products companies. Compare several by evaluating pricing, delivery schedules and discounts for bulk orders.
Attract customers. Pass out menus to local colleges, businesses and households. Distribute coupons in local coupon magazines and coupon mailings. Take part in local food expos and participate in local fairs, festivals and events.
Long, Nicole. "How to Start a Pizza & Beer Business." Small Business - Chron.com, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/start-pizza-beer-business-2159.html. Accessed 19 April 2019.


Hello! My name is James McAllister, and I'd like to personally thank you for taking the time to visit MasteringTheBass.com.
I started this website in 2014 in hopes of helping other people from all around the world learn and master the bass guitar. I feel the bass guitar is a beautiful instrument that's dramatically undervalued. With this site, I'm hoping to help more people become great bassists.
Here on MasteringTheBass.com you'll find informational articles, reviews, and news that will help you improve your skill level and knowledge of the bass guitar. I strive to make the process of mastering the bass a fun and easy process.
I hope you find this website helpful, and please let me know if you ever have any questions!


DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Beth Marchetti speaks at the start of the Sept. 27 annual Meeting Breakfast and Panel Discussion at Cantigny Park in Wheaton.
Guests interact Sept. 27 before the start of the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau's annual Meeting Breakfast and Panel Discussion at Cantigny Park in Wheaton.
Wheaton City Councilman John Rutledge welcomes everyone Sept. 27 at the start of the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau's annual Meeting Breakfast and Panel Discussion at Cantigny Park in Wheaton.
WHEATON – The competitive landscape is shifting as DuPage County competes for all-important tourism and convention dollars.
That was the central message Sept. 27 at the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau's annual Meeting Breakfast and Panel Discussion at Cantigny Park in Wheaton.
A large group of business leaders and elected officials from throughout the county gathered for the panel discussion, which featured Michael Jacobsen, president and CEO of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association; Mitch Nichols of Nichols Tourism Group; and Ted Mandigo of Ted Mandigo & Co., a hotel consulting firm.
The county is competing on numerous levels for tourism and convention business, panelists said.
While the county routinely vies with Chicago for hotel and convention business, it also faces competition on the regional and national level as other midsize cities are doing more to attract visitors.
"These guys are upping their game," Nichols said.
He said Indianapolis is one example of a midsize Midwestern city that has taken significant steps to become a travel and convention destination.
The capital of Indiana has become a theater and arts destination that also has linked health and wellness to its branding message, Nichols said.
Remaining competitive in the tourism game requires an investment and an understanding of what potential visitors are seeking in a destination, he said.
"Come to the challenge with the visitor's hat on," Nichols said.
"It's not where to stay, it's what to do when you stay there," Mandigo said. "We're selling experience, not price."
Jacobsen said Indianapolis is not the only Midwestern city that is fighting hard for the tourism dollar.
"The Midwest is on fire if you look at the mid-tier market," he said.
Jacobsen added marketing the county must not be limited to those who work in the travel and tourism business.
"Talking to the broader public is key," he said.
The morning ended with the presentation of the Friends of Tourism Awards to DuPage County Board member Tonia Khouri and former state Rep. Patti Bellock.


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COVID-19 Economic Stimulus Package: What is it and how will it impact you?
UPDATE: 22 March
Earlier today PM Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced a further raft of stimulus.
We will provide you with further detail and analysis tomorrow, but in the meantime here are some links to fact sheets and other information detailing the extra stimulus.
Delivering support for business investment
Cash flow assistance for businesses
Supporting the flow of credit
Early access to superannuation
Providing support for retirees
On 12 March 2020, the government announced a package of measures to help the economy withstand and recover from the economic impact of coronavirus (COVID-19). The package is wide-reaching, including measures to fast-track investment, cash payments for small and medium businesses to save jobs and subsidies to help keep apprentices employed.
In this article, we will break down a few key aspects of the package and explain how you may be impacted. As always, please do not hesitate to contact our friendly team for further information.
Cash Flow Assistance
The Boosting Cash Flow for Employers measure will provide up to $25,000 back to businesses, with a minimum payment of $2,000 for eligible businesses.
Small and medium business entities with aggregated annual turnover under $50 million and that employ workers will be eligible. Eligibility will generally be based on prior year turnover.
The payment will be delivered by the ATO as a credit in the activity statement system from 28 April 2020 when eligible businesses lodge (see below) upcoming activity statements.
Eligible businesses that withhold tax to the ATO on their employees' salary and wages will receive a payment equal to 50% of the amount withheld, up to a maximum payment of $25,000.
Eligible businesses that pay salary and wages will receive a minimum payment of $2,000, even if they are not required to withhold tax.
The Australian Government have released fact sheets with further information including tables and examples. Click below to view the fact sheet.
Business Investment Support
The government is increasing the instant asset write-off (IAWO) threshold from $30,000 to $150,000 and expanding access to include businesses with aggregated annual turnover of less than $500 million (up from $50 million).
The government is introducing a time limited 15-month investment incentive to support business investment and economic growth over the short-term, by accelerating depreciation deductions. This applies to assets acquired after announcement and first used or installed by 30 June 2021.
A deduction of 50% of the cost of an eligible asset on installation will apply, with existing depreciation rules applying to the balance of the asset's cost. This deduction will end 30 June 2021.
This proposal applies from 12 March 2020 until 30 June 2020, for new or second-hand assets first used, or installed ready for use in this timeframe.
Your business may now qualify for the instant asset write-off. Please contact us to discuss threshold and grouping of assets. We can also help you understand how March BAS's may be affected.
$7000 each quarter in wage subsidies for employers who employee less than 20 people to save the jobs of 120,000 apprentices. Subsidies will be backdated to 1 January 2020 and will run until 1 September 2020.
Waiting times for a government sickness allowance will be waived for casual workers forced into self-isolation.
One-off payment of $750 to social security, veteran and other income support recipients and eligible concession cardholders to support. Over 90% of payments will be made by mid-April 2020.
Deeming rates for pensioners cut by 50 basis points in response to the most recent decision of the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Support for regions and communities
Initial $1b allocation to support those regions and communities that have been disproportionately affected by the economic impacts of the coronavirus – including those heavily reliant on tourism, agriculture and education.
This will include the waiver of the Environmental Management Charge for tourism businesses that operate in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and the waiver of entry fees for Commonwealth National Parks. It will also include additional assistance to help businesses identify alternative export markets or supply chains.
Stimulus payments to households to support growth
Assistance for severely affected regions
Please keep in mind that this plan was announced very recently. It is possible that future updates are coming. In the meantime, please contact our friendly team for further clarification.
For a specific breakdown of how this impacts your business, contact your relevant partner.
The Australian Government have released a series of informative fact sheets to help break down the package. Please click the buttons to access available fact sheets.
Enter your email to receive offers, news, and updates.
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PO Box 1396, Mackay QLD 4740
Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand
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© Connole Carlisle 2016. All rights reserved.


Type Runner Keyboard for Bold 9930 (Polycarbonate Keyboards) - Extreme portability combined in a full-function, 80-key keyboard. Easy on the eyes. Easy on the fingers.
The Type Runner Keyboard from BoxWave redefines what we know to be true about portable keyboard options. The Type Runner Keyboard makes previously difficult, cumbersome, and annoying tasks easier.
It's time to put an end to over-sized and overweight portable keyboards. Our formula: extreme weight loss equals extreme portability. The Type Runner's 80-key keyboard is full size in function and half size in dimension and weight. Measuring approximately 8.75" x 4.25", Type Runner fits easily into a bag, case, or sleeve without adding bulk.
You will be even more impressed at the extreme lightweight feel when you find out a single 2-hour charge of the on-board battery grants 90 days of standby time and 100 hours of uninterrupted use. So much power, so little added to your wired footprint.
The Type Runner Keyboard comes in either a brushed black or silver finish. The keys have a smooth-matte feel and rounded edges make them ultra-sleek and responsive. The four, raised, no-slip feet on its underside ensure no unwanted movement.
The Type Runner Keyboard from BoxWave: Extreme portability. Extreme integration. Extremely easy.
Dimensions: 8.75'' x 4.25'' approx.
On-Board Battery: 90 day standby time and 100 hours uninterrupted working time.
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Let us know what you think about the Type Runner Keyboard!
If you don't see Type Runner Keyboard available for your device, you can request a new version to support your device!
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