text:
Nik Dirga
An American living in New Zealand, I write whenever I get the urge about life, music, books, comics, movies, and more.
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The Mos Eisley cantina, or when Star Wars became Star Wars
I remember the exact moment Star Wars: A New Hope cast its spell on me for good. It was a dark and dusty bar in Mos Eisley, a wretched hive of scum and villainy, and it was filled with aliens.
So many aliens! Despite endless franchising ever since and a big diluting of Star Wars mania for me, I'll always love that cantina scene. This couple of minutes of film is crammed with babbling extras and inventive aliens and it opened up that Star Wars galaxy wide, to be far more than just that farmboy Luke Skywalker and few chirpy droids. The cantina was everyone and everything. It was a universe, filled with mysterious critters and their stories.
Literally every single character that gets a second or two of screentime in this sequence has since gotten a name and their own complicated story in the "expanded universe" – sometimes a few versions of it. There's the fun 1995 paperback Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina which delves into dozens of backstories and sidestories for everyone from Momaw Nadon (Hammerhead) to Muftak (the multi-eyed bear thing). The more recent From A Certain Point Of View collection imagines several more side stories from the cantina and the rest of the 1977 movie, and a listing of the gazillions of other Star Wars retellings over the years is far beyond the scope of one mere blog entry.
I have trouble imagining a single work that has had quite so much backstory and interpretation for every single mask-wearing extra later added into it. You'd probably have to look at the Bible or Shakespeare for something that's been examined and reimagined quite so much.
There were just four cantina alien action figures released by Kenner in their original wave back in the day – "Snaggletooth," "Hammerhead," "Walrus Man" and Greedo. Poor doomed Greedo is the only one who actually got a name, and later on the others like Walrus Man got less, um, kinda racist names (he's actually Ponda Baba, and he'll kill you just for looking at him funny).
Back in elementary school, I remember friends and I trading our Star Wars figures and daydreaming about other ones they might make – we all wanted the cantina band, but they didn't get action figures until the late 1990s. By now pretty much everyone who appeared in that cantina scene has an action figure. There is a part of middle-aged me that craves them all.
Because there were less of them, these OG Star Wars figures were played with within an inch of their lives. When there were just 20 or so of them, old Walrus Man (sorry, Ponda Baba) got pulled out a lot. And don't even get me started on the mysteries of Red Snaggletooth and Blue Snaggletooth. (A friend had a Blue Snaggletooth once, and to us Kenner geeks it was like a comics fan pulling out an Action Comics #1 or a Beatles fan pulling out the butcher cover.)
That was the appeal of old school Star Wars – there was so much hinted at in it that you could fill in the gaps yourself forever. There was a great Marvel comic book and the action figures; no internet, no expanded universe yet. You expanded your own universe.
I still feel the cantina scene is what made Star Wars for me – lifting it from a cool Flash Gordon homage about daring heroes and princesses in peril to a passageway to a galaxy vast, strange … and full of an unimaginable bounty of stories.
Author nik dirgaPosted on January 13, 2021 January 13, 2021 Tags movies, star warsLeave a comment on The Mos Eisley cantina, or when Star Wars became Star Wars
Movies I Have Never Seen #8: Alfie (1966)
What is it: "What's it all about, Alfie?" A time capsule of swinging '60s London, it's the movie that made Michael Caine a superstar and broke many longstanding movie taboos in its frank depiction of a bed-hopping Lothario and the damage he leaves in his wake. Caine's Alfie is an unapologetic cad juggling multiple women with a casual sexism that's pretty savage more than 50 years later, yet despite his character's nastiness Caine also charms – it's the birth of one of the cinema's greatest stars.
Why I never saw it: First things first – I've always liked Sir Michael Caine, who brings authority and intelligence to pretty much everything he does, even A Muppet Christmas Carol. However, my exposure to him began with middle-aged Caine – the first movie I remember seeing him in was Blame It On Rio (1984), nominally a very '80s teen sex comedy about a man having a mid-life crisis affair with his best friend's daughter. It's highly creepy stuff in hindsight, yet what sticks out (besides the plentiful nudity that first caught teenage me's eye) is Caine's nuanced, frazzled performance, far better than the movie itself merits. I later grew to dig Caine in such '80s flicks as his hilarious turn in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and particularly his Oscar-winning role in Woody Allen's Hannah and Her Sisters. Yet it's taken me years to really dig into the great run of 1960s/70s movies that made Caine's career – the astonishingly gritty Get Carter, the classic heist flick The Italian Job, the marvellously intricate duel of wits that is Sleuth. And there's 1966's Alfie, his first enormous hit, which in some ways feels as ancient as Victorian times to today, but still has plenty of bite.
Does it measure up to its rep? Alfie is a product of its time – post-war London, men who don't bother with birth control, country clinics for tuberculosis patients and women who come second to men in almost every arena. It's got a bit of a reputation as a light-hearted swingers' comedy romp, but it's really more of a drama – like Saturday Night Fever, another movie that is far darker and more cynical than its frothy reputation. Alfie dumps women at a moment's notice, refers to them as "it", and fathers two children that we know of with little consideration for his lovers. Frequently breaking the fourth wall to laddishly address the audience, Alfie at first seems a charming jerk, but we soon see the damage he leaves behind. The emotional heart of the movie is a harrowing abortion sequence involving the wife of one of Alfie's friends (a terrific Oscar-nominated performance by Vivien Merchant). What makes Alfie linger is Caine's performance, which balances swaggering arrogance and snarky wit with just the faintest glimmers of self-analysis. He's a confident Cockney bastard, and you often hate him, but Caine gives him more depth than say, Robert Redford or Peter O'Toole might have. There's something a bit reptilian about Alfie, a sense that something is always held back. Alfie gets his comeuppance, in a way, but you're still left with the impression he hasn't really changed enough, or paid for the pain he dealt out. By 2020 standards, the world of Alfie is a time capsule, but there's still a lot of Alfies out there today breaking hearts on Tinder and treating women with the same casual disdain Alfie did half a century ago.
Worth seeing? Absolutely. Go in expecting a reflection of the world of 1966 which is pretty rough'n'tumble compared to today's expectations of relationships, but underneath it all, a lot of how men and women interact today is still as cruel and callous as Alfie himself. It's also the birth of a charismatic, unforgettable movie star, whose long career has always married Cockney confidence and charm with a hint of something darker, self-contained and possibly unknowable.
Author nik dirgaPosted on December 27, 2020 Tags movies, movies I have never seenLeave a comment on Movies I Have Never Seen #8: Alfie (1966)
A year at the movies in the year of the plague
I went to the movies 237 times this year.
However, due to the troubling times we live in, I only saw maybe six of these movies in the actual cinema. So it goes.
We all wanted distractions this year from doomscrolling and darkthinking. And social media rarely made me feel anything but anxious or mad, so to the movies it was. With new films in short supply this year, it gave me time to dig back into cinema history and either fill in some gaps or revisit old favourites.
I started using the nifty website Letterboxd this year to keep track of my viewing habits. Turns out it's actually a New Zealand creation which I didn't realise at first, and it's pretty swell – I don't review the movies I watch on there, because then I'd spend the entire time watching a film trying to decide if it's three or four stars … and besides, I spent years writing video and movie reviews for newspapers back in the day, so I've done my rankings time.
As of Dec. 23, I'd clocked 237 films on Letterboxd since Jan. 1. The oldest movie I watched was 1922's Nosferatu. The newest the superb Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, which came out just last week.
I'm fairly egalitarian in my habits. I watched a lot of the wonderful works of Akira Kurosawa and Robert Altman, but also trashy fun like Blacula, The Toxic Avenger and Flash Gordon. Sometimes you want an escape, like revisiting all three Karate Kid movies, and sometimes you want to be deeply moved by a film like Ozu's Tokyo Story.
During the depths of New Zealand's long initial lockdown, I watched all six of William Powell and Myrna Loy's effervescent Thin Man comedies and dreamed of martinis and solving crimes. During the heart of the Black Lives Matter protests I watched Do The Right Thing again, with my son. Around American election night I re-watched Warren Beatty's Bulworth, about a politician who loses his mind.
There were great movies I'd never seen before – Michael Caine's Get Carter, Brian De Palma's Blow Out, Dario Argento's Suspiria, western Rio Bravo and fantastic more recent films like Midsommar, Portrait of a Lady on Fire and The Last Black Man in San Francisco. There was a dive into revisiting the always welcoming works of Chaplin, Keaton and Harold Lloyd. I got very into digging into the careers of Hal Ashby, Angie Dickinson, Michael Caine and Warren Beatty. The movies are an endless maze, with many exits.
And perhaps best of all there were the occasional visits to the cinema again – getting to watch True Romance in a jam-packed theatre after New Zealand squashed COVID-19, or taking the entire family to see the big-hearted Bill And Ted Face The Music, which was so darned good-natured and amiable a reminder of the "before times" that it made one want to cry a bit for what we've lost.
I don't mind watching movies at home, but the cinema experience is the real deal. As the curtain falls on 2020 and rises on 2021, I hope the big changes in how we view movies don't take away their magic, and that I can still find ways to sit in a big room with strangers, popcorn in hand, and enter another world.
"We live in a box of space and time. Movies are windows in its walls." – Roger Ebert
Author nik dirgaPosted on December 23, 2020 December 23, 2020 Tags movies, year in reviewLeave a comment on A year at the movies in the year of the plague
In defense of that New Mutants movie
The New Mutants were what the X-Men were supposed to be.
A group of outcast teenagers, struggling with strange new superpowers they'd been born with, in a world that hates and fears them. The X-Men used to be about that, but the super-sizing of the franchise over the years meant that got more and more diluted with Phoenixes and Wolverines and Gambits and such.
I was the perfect age for the New Mutants comic which premiered in 1982, on the cusp of teenagerdom and a bit of an outcast myself. At long last, after nearly 40 years they got their chance to star in their own movie this year.
Considering its epic series of delays, reshoot rumours and studio squabbling, the New Mutants movie by Josh Boone actually isn't that bad. I rather liked it. It's certainly better than the cluttered, underwhelming last several actual X-Men movies have been.
Don't get me wrong – it's not a five-star classic, no game-changing Dark Knight or Black Panther, but it's a tight little potboiler that doesn't utterly betray the spirit of the comics it inspires. It keep the core cast of the comics – Native American Dani Moonstar, Scottish werewolf Rahne, human "Cannonball" Sam, literally fiery Brazilian Roberto and the magic-cursed Illyana. The movie is set almost entirely in one mysterious institution where the teenagers are being kept forcibly, and the movie follows their attempts to learn more and then deal with the mystery powers of one of their own. It's an origin story, but never forgets its central metaphor: Growing up is hard, but eventually, hopefully, you get better and find your powers in life.
They fight, they squabble and act like real teenagers, not superheroes-in-waiting. Again, it's not perfect – while Queen's Gambit star Anya Taylor-Joy is superbly charismatic as the nasty Illyana, Game of Thrones' Maisie Williams makes a good Rahne, but "Cannonball" Charlie Heaton has the worst attempt at a Kentucky accent I've ever heard. Yet it looks and feels a lot like the comic I loved, and refreshingly, the stakes are small for a superhero movie. There's no CGI-filled battle for the entire world. There's a little bit of unnecessary sequel-baiting but it doesn't feel quite as assembly line as some of the other Marvel movies have, and has a much more horror edge to its storytelling. Like the comic itself, it realises that being a teenager is often a living nightmare.
For its first 40-50 issues, New Mutants was a terrific comic book – written by X-Men guiding light Chris Claremont, it really dug into the teenage metaphor in a way that the older X-Men at the time (with the exception of Kitty Pryde) couldn't. In its first 17 or so issues it was sturdy fun mutant superheroics, with lots of angst and batting mutant factions.
Then in issue 18, like a bolt of lightning, Bill Sienkiewicz came on board as the artist and New Mutants proceeded to blow my mind. His impressionistic, painterly art was a radical change from the solid but very traditional artists before him, and suddenly the chaos of the teenage mind was laid bare in colours and images that surged off the page. It was an astounding mutation and Claremont, who works best with great artists, twisted to meet Sienkiewicz's challenge with the best stories in New Mutants history – the "Demon Bear" saga which is loosely adapted in the new movie, the introduction of the alien Warlock, a shape-shifting surrealist blob who looked like no hero ever seen in comics, the rise of mutant fighting rings and more.
New Mutants frequently got dark. In one of the best issues, #45, a young mutant commits suicide, and it's dealt with in a genuinely honest manner. Then there's the shocking issue where as part of mega-crossover Secret Wars II, a cosmic entity, the Beyonder, literally slaughters the entire team. It's one of the bleakest mainstream superhero comics of the 1980s, an unrelentingly nihilist battle against an unbeatable foe, and at the end of the issue, everybody is dead. (Yes, they came back, but to Claremont's credit, several issues were then spent dealing with the trauma of the team's resurrection.) That one storyline alone makes the rather muddled mess of Secret Wars II worth it in my book.
Just like the X-Men comics, the New Mutants comics eventually spiralled into an insanely complicated mess of continuity, spinoffs and hip new characters (I have zero time for the totally x-treme Rob Liefeld/Cable years). The main characters are still around (and of course, because it's comics, barely have aged into their early 20s) and I like to check in on them now and again, but for me the first 60 or so issues of New Mutants was all I needed. Growing up, they felt like companions.
Again, I won't defend New Mutants the movie to anyone by saying it's a total gem. But in a year when we surprisingly ended up with almost no new superhero movies at all, it felt welcome. It brought to life a lot of characters I fondly remember that meant something to me at their age, and didn't make me groan. When we're literally surrounded by superhero TV and movie products, something that felt a bit more tailored to my childhood nerd hopes and dreams personally kind of hits the spot.
Author nik dirgaPosted on December 19, 2020 December 19, 2020 Tags comic books, movies, oddball comicsLeave a comment on In defense of that New Mutants movie
Laurel and Hardy, still funny after all these years
In my dotage, I keep turning back to the classics to make me laugh – the film stars who were mostly gone and dead long before I was even born, the Chaplins and Keatons and Marxes. But I've long had one curious blank spot – the stylings of Laurel and Hardy.
I've been chewing through a fantastic collection of most of their best shorts and feature films the last few weeks, and enjoying how well many of these 90-year-old gags still work. The basic building blocks of their comedy – the pratfalls, the slow burns, the turns of phrase and the elaborate chaos – can be seen everywhere still in comics today.
Stan and Ollie became an institution, marketed long after their heyday in comic books and products, and even lionised recently in a well-acted (if a little too melancholy) biopic. Today it's kind of easy to just see them as dusty archetypes and forget the actual comedians who first hit the screen almost a century ago.
Many of their famous shorts spring out of fairly everyday domestic settings – a picnic with the wives, installing a new radio antenna, moving a piano. Yet inevitably these ordinary situations seem to go horribly askew in the hands of Laurel and Hardy, ending with plenty of Ollie's outraged squeals and Stan's weeping, all attempts at civility and erudition collapsing into a sea of tears and babble. Unlike the Marx Brothers, they're not quite as surreal, and they're not as mean-spirited as the Three Stooges.
You can't quite imagine the Marx Brothers navigating the bills and obligations of ordinary life in their movies, and while Chaplin and Keaton often took on domestic life, the elaborate performative style of their silent work gave it a more pantomime quality and they generally stumbled more when sound came on. Laurel and Hardy start off grounded, then spiral into chaos.
There's a formulaic glee to the best of their shorts, which tend to start slowly and ramp up into elaborately orchestrated disasters – a lot like any sample episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm does today, for example. That formulaic quality means you don't really want to binge 12 Laurel and Hardy shorts in a row, but it makes them comforting.
Escalation and repetition is key to Laurel and Hardy. If a piano falling down an endless flight of stairs once is funny, by the third time it's kind of zen hilarity. The key to Laurel and Hardy comedy to me seems to be that everything falls apart a bit in the end. In 2020 there's something kind of weirdly comforting about that notion. Same as it ever was.
Laurel and Hardy, in some ways, still feel like our reaction to modern life – Ollie, exasperated and raging; Stan, confused and flailing. In Ollie's many world-weary double-takes as one of the pioneers in breaking the fourth wall, or Stan's always-funny "sad cry," we see some very modern gestures that still echo today. Not everything old is still funny – but Laurel and Hardy hit a gold mine that's still paying off to this day.
Author nik dirgaPosted on November 26, 2020 November 26, 2020 Tags classic films, moviesLeave a comment on Laurel and Hardy, still funny after all these years
Movies I Have Never Seen #7: Suspiria (1977)
What is it: One of the grand touchstones of moody horror, Dario Argento's 1977 Suspiria. This highly influential film is a surreal nightmare about a young ballet dancer who discovers her new school is not what it seems. Inspired by Italy's giallo horror subgenre (but not, according to many, technically a giallo film itself), Suspiria is drenched in vivid colours and disturbing sounds, and a horror film like few before it.
Why I never saw it: As I've mentioned before, while I love a good horror movie, I'm less of a slasher movie fan. Suspiria's blood-soaked, intense reputation kind of scared me off for a long time, and for many years, pre-streaming, it was also kind of a difficult movie to find to actually watch it.
Does it measure up to its rep? Suspiria isn't a movie you go to for plot – the "haunted house" storyline (well, haunted dance school) is as old as the movies itself. But where it soars is in creating a nightmare world all its own. Much of what makes a good horror movie work is mood. And Suspiria is almost all mood. The acting can be wooden and the story is a thin thread to drape the atmosphere around. Yet it all works, because Suspiria is about unsettling you. It's that pounding iconic score by the band Goblin, which ramps up for the film's gory set pieces to almost unbearable intensity. The gory scenes are brash and brutal, but the bulk of the movie basks in creating a more subtle unsettling dread. It's seen in the film's striking use of colours (it was the final film to use three-strip Technicolor), which make even the most gruesome of scenes oddly beautiful. In its own way, it uses colour as memorably as The Wizard of Oz, Vertigo or Black Narcissus. It feels like an adult fairy tale, a Snow White without dwarves but plenty of witches. Argento's chilly, removed storytelling gives Suspiria a very Stanley Kubrick vibe. It's defiantly original and unforgettable.
Worth seeing? Absolutely, but not for the squeamish or easily rattled. As a sheer exercise in macabre, colourful style, it's a cinematic milestone and perfect for the spooky season.
Author nik dirgaPosted on October 25, 2020 Tags movies, movies I have never seen1 Comment on Movies I Have Never Seen #7: Suspiria (1977)
Freddy Krueger, child killer and, briefly, the coolest man on the planet
It's Halloween season, and while this year has admittedly been spooky enough for most, I still love to dive into some of my favourite horror movies over the month of October. Spook-tober generally always involves an annual visit to my old pal Freddy Krueger, one of the 1980s' strangest pop culture heroes.
I do dig the Nightmare on Elm Street series, with its dream-stalking serial killer Freddy murdering people in deeply inventive ways, usually while making terrible puns. I prefer Freddy, portrayed with a corny charisma by Robert Englund, over Halloween's Michael Myers or Friday The 13th's lumbering brute Jason Vorhees, who both always seemed rather dull compared to Freddy. Adding a dollop of black humour to the silent, ultra-serious slasher villains like Jason and Michael took Freddy to the next level. The potentials of the dream landscape gives the Nightmare movies far more creative killing fields than its rivals.
The Nightmare movies – there's been eight of them, plus a widely panned reboot – are generally good gory fun. You've got the still-creepy original, the ultimate '80s horror/superhero indulgence of Part 3, The Dream Warriors, and a pretty clever meta reinvention with A New Nightmare. Even the lesser sequels – and by part 6, Freddy's Dead, they got pretty sloppy – usually have a few fun one-liners and inventive slayings to enjoy. Heck, I even kind of like the monster mash Freddy Vs. Jason.
But what's still truly strange about Freddy to me is how popular he was for a span of a couple of years in the mid-1980s. Not just in a cult way. A child-killing nightmarish serial killer became a pop icon, appearing in everything from terrible rap videos to fan clubs to board games and bubble gum. The movies became big events, even as the quality of the series went downhill. I still remember going to a packed theatre for A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, which is objectively not a great movie. Freddy became a wisecracking goofball who also murdered people, like an R-rated version of Bart Simpson or Yosemite Sam.
Horror icons have often crossed over into pop culture – Karloff's Frankenstein, Christopher Lee's sexy Dracula, the Vampire Lestat – but they've rarely been quite so celebrated in the mainstream as Freddy was for that brief period of time. Make no mistake – Freddy Krueger, no matter how witty Englund's portrayal made him, was no hero, not even an anti-hero. He was a thuggish, inventive psychopath, who hacked up children and teenagers and was never really given any sort of redemptive arc to make him more likable.
The original series very carefully walked the line between "Freddy kills kids" and "Well, actually, Freddy's a pedophile child molester." (The 2010 reboot made Freddy more serious and really leaned into the pedo-thing, one of several reasons it failed to catch fire.) The sexual undertones of the Nightmare movies are a bit icky today, but they're somewhat redeemed by the fact that in nearly every movie, a strong woman kicks Freddy's arse in the end.
As much as I like the Nightmare series, I'm not alone in wondering what that brief period of Freddy-mania said about where America's head was at in the 1980s. Creeps were big – look at movies like Lethal Weapon, Die Hard and Wall Street, where the heroes are all basically kind of jerks.
Was it just that Freddy was a funny guy who shook up the system? An '80s maverick party animal like Chevy Chase or Rodney Dangerfield who also killed folks? That Freddy didn't seem to give a f**k about who he offended? (Cue up analogy comparing him to the current President.) Or was this pizza-faced, ratty-sweater wearing villain just cool, like the rock stars on MTV that he ended up hobnobbing with?
I'll always love the original Nightmare movies, even at their campiest. It's hard to imagine a child-killing undead burn victim making it quite so big in 2020. I don't think it's that our culture has become "snowflakes" as some would have it, but somehow, things have changed a bit and while horror movies will always endure, it doesn't seem likely their villains will become quite the pop culture juggernaut Freddy Krueger was for a year or two in my teenage nightmares.
Author nik dirgaPosted on October 14, 2020 October 14, 2020 Tags moviesLeave a comment on Freddy Krueger, child killer and, briefly, the coolest man on the planet
Godzilla Vs Hedorah, or the grooviest kaiju flick ever
Brothers and sisters, let's rap about Godzilla's strangest trip of all time, the crazy, freaked-out madness that is 1971's Godzilla Vs Hedorah (also known as Godzilla vs the Smog Monster in the US).
I love me some Godzilla, but the psychedelic 11th Godzilla movie is, um, divisive among Godzilla fans, and even landed a spot in The Fifty Worst Films of All Time.
Yet there's something nervy and loose about Godzilla Vs Hedorah that the mostly formulaic 30-something other movies in the franchise lack. It's a Godzilla movie, so there's smashing and screeching. But it's also without a doubt one of the strangest Godzilla movies ever made, a dogged attempt to be topical and hip as Godzilla fights the evils of … pollution.
The "smog monster" Hedorah is, to put it mildly, disgusting. He's a shapeshifting blob of goop and tendrils whose most imposing form has a strong Cthulhu vibe, with one single sideways staring eye that never fails to creep me out. At one point Hedroah gets blissfully stoned sucking on factory smokestacks. He's constantly leaking and spurting out his bodily fluids, raw toxins and disease. Unlike say, Rodan or Mothra, he isn't cuddly at all. A scientist at one point says he comes from "a negative world of death." He looms over the movie far more than Godzilla does.
A trippy movie that's soaked in 1971 vibes, from the go-go hippie music sequences to the inexplicable brief animated cartoons that pop up between scenes, Hedorah is firmly planted in its time. It boasts many of the familiar Godzilla cliches – an evil monster to fight, buildings toppling, an incredibly annoying little kid who keeps screaming "Godzillaaaaa!" – but there's something spartan and weird about Hedorah. Godzilla himself seems half drunk, introduced with a bizarre woozy horn fanfare in each scene. (One of the most infamous scenes in Hedorah has Godzilla flying, backwards, using his nuclear breath to propel him. It's mental as anything, and yet it's another one of the weird touches that give this flick the feeling of a strange fever dream.)
Unlike pretty much every other kaiju monster in the Godzilla series, Hedorah doesn't flinch in showing the body count. At one point his toxic goo invades a boardroom of Japanese businessmen, who are then shown in a rapid cutaway all dead, soaking in ooze and oddly evocative of some of the horrors of Hiroshima. In several scenes, Hedorah swamps civilians and leaves them nothing but smoking bones. In most Godzilla movies, carnage is abstract, smashed buildings. Hedorah dissolves you.
Godzilla movies mostly stick to the basics, but some of the other films have tried to be topical – the 1954 original is all about nuclear fears, while 2016's innovative Shin Godzilla, made in the shadows of the Fukushima disaster, is one of the boldest movies in the series since Hedorah. Hedorah is definitely preachy, but it's hard to pretend its environmental message isn't still in the right place nearly 50 years later.
Director Yoshimitsu Banno was trying to shake up the Godzilla franchise from its kiddy-movie reputation. He didn't really succeed in the long run – he was actually fired from the franchise! – but yet his goopy masterpiece still stands out from a line of assembly-line kaiju clashes. Most Godzilla movies are just popcorn fun, which is totally cool, but Godzilla Vs. Hedorah is the only one of them that really leaves you feeling a little creeped out over the horrors we can't always see.
Author nik dirgaPosted on September 18, 2020 September 18, 2020 Tags moviesLeave a comment on Godzilla Vs Hedorah, or the grooviest kaiju flick ever
Sometimes you can go back, and it is most excellent
So a few weeks ago I had a bit of a rant about inessential sequels, the never-ending Terminators and Predators and remakes which plague Hollywood.
But then on the flip side, there are the revivals that bring something new to their franchise, and when it works it's like the best school reunion ever.
Exhibit A: Forget Tenet, I am so here for Bill And Ted Face The Music. It was the first new movie I'd seen in theatres since March, and the first time the whole family went to a cinema since gosh, maybe Avengers: Endgame.
After nearly 30 years, was the return of Bill and Ted really necessary? Turns out it kinda was. Face The Music is goofy, silly and big-hearted, just like the other two Bill and Ted movies, and even if I kept squinting and seeing John Wick when I looked at Ted now, it was ultimately a mighty fine palate-cleanser for the sour stew that is 2020.
These movies about time-travelling doofuses are not high art – and don't think too hard about the plot mechanics – but they're effortlessly charming, thanks to a never-goofier Keanu Reeves and the spunky Alex Winter (who is always fun despite a pretty low-profile acting career). When writing about Terminator: Dark Fate and other encore sequels the other week, I lamented how they just keep repeating the greatest hits. Bill And Ted 3 does a bit of that too, but it still feels scrappy, surprising and less machine-made than Terminator 6 or Predator 4 – and has a great subtext about what it's like to be a middle-aged dude and still not quite made it. Its message of unity makes Bill and Ted feel weirdly relevant in 2020. It won't win Oscars, but most of the unashamedly feel-good Bill And Ted 3 left me smiling like seeing a friend I hadn't seen in years. That's what any long-in-the-works sequel should do, rather than just straining to keep the intellectual property alive.
Meanwhile, I'd have laughed if you'd told me a decades-on sequel to The Karate Kid would be some of the most enjoyable TV in ages, but Cobra Kai, which recently landed on Netflix, is absolutely a blast. I grew up with Ralph Macchio's cheesy inspirational Karate Kid series, and even had one of my quasi-first dates at a screening of The Karate Kid Part II. (Peter Cetera's goopy power ballad The Glory Of Love still slays the memory of pubescent me every time.) Cobra Kai is brilliant because it flips the script to tell us the story of Karate Kid Danny LaRusso's nemesis from the first film, Johnny Lawrence (a terrific William Zabka), now a washed-up alcoholic trying to make one last go at his dreams. By turning the heel into a troubled antihero and giving returning Karate Kid Macchio (now a car salesman!) some much-needed moral ambiguity of his own, and tossing in the same stirringly motivational karate kicks of the original films, Cobra Kai turns out to be the model for how a franchise can come back from the dead and really have something to say.
Even a once-adapted, beloved novel can have some new life in it, like Hulu's recent take on Nick Hornby's High Fidelity. The 2000 film starred John Cusack, but the recent TV series flipped the switch and cast Zoe Kravitz as "Rob" Robin, record store owner and confused romantic. Switching genders doesn't always improve a story – see the forgettable Ghostbusters remake – but Kravitz's excellent performance finds new depth in Hornby's tale, and the grittier, more lived-in feeling of the series elevates it above the movie. It's a shame the show was cancelled after just one season as it was very promising stuff and moving well beyond just being a cover version of its predecessors.
I still think there's way too much strip-mining of popular movies of the past in hopes of striking gold twice. But Bill And Ted, Cobra Kai and High Fidelity show that if you've still got a good story to tell, there's still hope for the future in the past.
Author nik dirgaPosted on September 6, 2020 September 6, 2020 Tags movies, TV1 Comment on Sometimes you can go back, and it is most excellent
Chadwick Boseman, and the stories left to tell
The death of Chadwick Boseman at just 43 from cancer hurts, coming as it does in a year when there's been so much hurt already.
Just over two years ago, he was the star of the biggest superhero movie ever at the time, the first nominated for Best Picture. But he was eye-catching and charismatic in everything he appeared in during his too-short starring film career, which spanned just seven years. To most of the world's shock and dismay, we learned that he was fighting colon cancer for much of the time he was starring in some of the biggest movies on the planet. Unimaginable.
He's going to always be remembered for Black Panther, but he starred in several wonderful films, carving out a bit of a niche career as a chameleon portraying famous inspirational Black figures. Legendary baseball star Jackie Robinson. Soul star James Brown. The first Black U.S. Supreme Court Justice. He was very different, dazzling in each role and was much more than just T'Challa, the Black Panther. He leaves us these stories.
I always loved the Black Panther as a kid. He was mysterious and cool, and back in the 1980s, he didn't actually appear all that often in comics. And Chadwick Boseman brought him to life wonderfully on screen, capturing the Shakespearean tumult of a Prince-turned-King wrestling with his own power. I would've loved to see what he did in future films.
Boseman's pivotal place in Black film history is not my story to tell. But his starring as the Black Panther – telling millions of Black kids and adults that yes, a superhero could look like anybody – changed the parameters. He made the world bigger, and broader.
Some of us mourn actors and musicians because we see the storytellers they are, and when one of them dies suddenly or too young all you can see are the stories yet untold. Chadwick Boseman should've had a career stretching for decades, and it's unfair. The last sudden film star death that hit me like this was Philip Seymour Hoffman, and I felt much the same thing – I wanted to see more. I felt cheated.
Two scenes from Boseman's turn as the Black Panther keep ringing in my head, neither one of them your typical superhero punch-ups. One is the quiet moment at the very end of Black Panther between T'Challa and his vanquished foe Killmonger, which achieves a kind of graceful sadness. The other came at the very end of Captain America: Civil War, where T'Challa confronts Baron Zemo, the villain who assassinated his father.
Both scenes are notable for the calm centeredness of Boseman. At the end of Civil War, T'Challa decides not to kill the man he's been hunting the entire film, and stops him from killing himself.
He tells Zemo, "The living are not done with you yet." Yes, it's a line by a superhero to a murderous villain, yet somehow it echoes to me so much as I think about Chadwick Boseman today.
He is free from pain now, but the living were not done with you yet.
There were so many stories left to tell.
Author nik dirgaPosted on August 29, 2020 August 29, 2020 Tags comic books, movies, obituariesLeave a comment on Chadwick Boseman, and the stories left to tell
Hi, my name is Nik Dirga and this is my blog and writing home on the internet. I'm an American journalist who emigrated to New Zealand in 2006. I'm an editor and freelance writer whose work has been published in the New Zealand Herald, Stuff, Radio New Zealand, The Spinoff and more.
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Take a trip in time back to my work from 1994-2004. Here's a collection of a decade's worth of newspaper columns from The Daily Mississippian, Sierra Sun, Oxford Town and more.
A year at the movies… on Harold Lloyd, hanging on for n…
A year at the movies… on Sometimes you can go back, and…
Nik Dirga Blog at WordPress.com.


Northwood Cemetery is the second largest municipal cemetery on the Isle of Wight, and dates back to 1856. Throughout its operation as a cemetery, both of the Chapels have been key original features of the site. Unfortunately, from the second half of the twentieth century onwards, their physical condition had deteriorated resulting in the closure and basic mothballing (windows boarded up) of both buildings.
The restoration work was to rescue the two Grade II listed Victoria Chapels from potential collapse as well as to repair and conserve the Grade II listed Wall of the Cemetery. The project, which included significant below ground structural works, masonry repairs, re-roofing and reinstatement of the single storey lean-to extension, engaged the local community and is to act as the focal point for the regeneration of the wider landscape for improved community use.
The project initiative was a collaborative venture by Friends of Northwood Cemetery (FoNC) in partnership with the Isle of Wight Council to provide a unique visitor experience with better interpreted heritage. The works and repairs were grant assisted by the Heritage Lottery Fund as part of the overall enhancement scheme for the Cemetery.


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CBD Oil for Acne & Cannabidiol for Skin Care
Some of the most powerful skin treatments, such as Isotretinoin (sold as Accutane), are accompanied by a long list of unwanted, dangerous, even deadly, side effects. Yes, they can work, but at what price? And yet, the medical industry still makes vast amounts of money from these drugs, because teenagers are affected by skin conditions, the most common of which is acne. In this Article we take a closer look at CBD Oil for Acne & Skin Care.
Current Treatments for Acne
But at first lets talk about the current treatments that are available for acne. Both over-the-counter as well as prescription. Some common over-the-counter treatments for acne include benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, alpha hydroxy acids and sulfur, which are all topical.
Other frequently used drug for skin conditions include Anthralin, Clotrimazole (as Lotrimin), ketoconazole (as Nizoral), and terbinafine (as Lamisil AT). Anti-bacterial preparations are also frequently used, especially when treating acne.
Topical & Oral Antibiotics
There are also antibiotic prescription treatments for acne. Antibiotics may be used on top of the skin or taken orally. Antibiotics work by clearing the skin of acne causing bacteria and reducing inflammation.
Topical antibiotics are limited in their ability to penetrate the skin and clear more deep-seated acne.
Whereas oral antibiotics circulate throughout the body and into sebaceous glands.
However, systemic antibiotics often cause more side effects than topicals, but they can be used for more severe kinds of acne. Usually topical antibiotics are recommended alone as an acne treatment, as they can increase the risk for antibiotic resistance in skin bacteria.
One of the most frequently prescribed medicines used in the Western world is Accutane, which is usually prescribed for skin conditions such as Psoriasis, Acne, etc. Accutane is also one of the deadliest drugs out there.
Among others, the side effects of Accutane include life-threatening birth defects. It is also under the magnifying glass for causing cancer.
Other side effects include joint pain, itching, nose bleeds, difficulty to move, various types of eye- and lip inflammation, back pain, headache, diarrhea, nausea, rectal bleeding, blurry vision changes in behavior and depression.
What are some of the side effects for these treatments?
Very common side effects would be:
Peeling, application site erythema, contact sensitization reactions. Some of the more uncommon for topicals would be a burning sensation, application site rash, applications site discoloration, application site reactions.
And there are also prescription acne medications which are available like tetracycline, antibiotics erythromycin .
And some of the reactions for oral antibiotics can be:
Rashes, for those who are susceptible and gastrointestinal disturbance like nausea, colicky pain diarrhea. Then we have thrush effects. 5% of treated women and most often affects the vagina with a yeast infection.
It can also affect the oral mucosa or body folds, particularly in diabetics or an obesity. Bacterial resistance may occur but it's less common with the use of oral antibiotics than it is with topical antibiotics.
Acne antibiotics are unlikely to result in the failure of oral contraceptive pills, but if you're concerned add a barrier method and talk to your doctor about the risks.
Not to mention, we also can experience depressed mood, trouble concentrating, sleep problems crying spells, aggression or agitation, changes in behavior, hallucinations, thoughts of suicide or hurting yourselves.
The last resort medication, Accutane.
The Side Effects are kind of horrifying, when you have sudden numbness or weakness, especially on one side of your body. Blurred vision sudden and severe headache or pain behind your eyes.
Sometimes vomiting, hearing problems or hearing loss, ringing in your ears, seizure, severe pain in your upper stomach spreading to your back, nausea, vomiting, fast heart rate, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay colored stools, jaundice, rectal bleeding, black or bloody or tardy stools, fever and chills, body aches, flu symptoms, purple spots under your skin, severe blistering, peeling, skin rash, or joint stiffness bone pain or fracture.
But some of the less serious side effects of Accutane could include "just" joint pain or back pain. Just feeling dizzy, drowsy or nervous. Just having dryness of the lips, mouth, nose or skin or just cracking or peeling under the skin, itching, rash, changes in your fingernails or toenails.
If you are not too concerned about the less likely side effects like the severe side effects, just be aware that as you're treating acne a skin condition, the wrong treatment can lead to some pretty unpleasant side effects.
There are alternatives to these heavy drugs, but nothing that has the success rate that these deadly drugs have, albeit at such a high price that the patients treated by them have to pay in exchange for being free of their skin conditions… and then they are not even guaranteed that the "healing" will be permanent.
Certain agents used in supplements, such as Zinc, could have a positive effect on the treatment of skin conditions, and it has been proven to at least relieve the severity of acne.
Humanity has long been waiting for a solution to the problem of psoriasis, eczema, skin rashes, acne and more, and at last it seems that such a solution has arrived.
New scientific research might just offer a safe, yet very effective, acne remedy in products derived from cannabis & hemp plants and the active compounds contained within.
These compounds, namely cannabinoids, have caught the attention of almost every person on the planet, even the medical industry. But first things first:
What are Cannabinoids?
Cannabis plants contain, in varying amounts according to the strain of Cannabis referred to, substances called cannabinoids, also referred to as Phyto-cannabinoids, or plant cannabinoids.
The human body creates its own cannabinoids, which are endocannabinoids, in other words, endogenous, or internal cannabinoids. Strangely these endocannabinoids were only discovered way after we already knew about the existence of cannabinoids within plants.
Most everyone has probably heard of THC, which is a psychoactive substance that causes the user to go on a so-called "high" when they smoke or consume Cannabis.
THC is still a controlled and illegal substance in most countries. THC is present in varying amounts in Cannabis plants, depending on the strain or variety of Cannabis referred to and is just one of around 85 different Phyto-cannabinoids that have been detected by analyzing the Cannabis plant.
CBD Oil for Acne: Anti-Acne Research
Looking at a study from the journal of clinical investigation, we found that CBD behaves as a highly effective sibo-static agent.
The endocannabinoid system plays a key role in the regulation of sebum production.
And according to the study, prototypic endocannabinoids are constitutively produced in humans sebaceous glands.
Moreover, using human immortalized sz 95 sibo sites, it was demonstrated that these locally produced endocannabinoids acting through a cb2 cannabinoid receptor.
Induced terminal differentiation of these cells, which is characterized by an increased neural lipid production of the sibo sites.
So what does that mean in english?
That means that if your body is producing too much sebum, CBD can calm the sebaceous glands by regulating oil production.
CBD can help with a lot of conditions according to the people that use it in report back. But it can also help with everyday symptoms and conditions like acne.
There is a specific branch of anti-acne research that specifically concentrate on and centers on the healing properties of the cannabinoids in Cannabis.
Lots of information already exists as a result of this particular research, and much has been learned about the healing properties of Cannabis.
Several cannabinoids have been isolated in the process, and one such healing compound has been zoning in on a Phyto-cannabinoid called Cannabidiol (CBD).
Original Source Article: http://thehempoilbenefits.com/
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This is a great piece of graphic design, and I like the use of cream and cerulean blue instead of the basic Red, White, and Blue. It really channels FDR and the New Deal, which are two things I'd like to bring back to America--although it would be pretty hard to bring back FDR now.
When I first spied this ad from the far end of the platform, I thought it was the Obama poster. Upon closer examination, it's obviously not. But the similarity is striking.
It started me thinking about how when you choose an image/brand for your campaign, you really need to look at everything and make sure to separate yourself from the pack. Obviously, I don't think Obama is doing meth, although I'm sure that will pull up some interesting hits from search engines. It was just something I've been crossing my mind every time I wait for the train. I wonder if they'll put up a new ad tomorrow, when the month switches over.
That Obama poster (not an official design) is designed by Shepard Fairey of Obey Giant - the same guy responsible for the ubiquitous Andre the Giant posters/stickers/etc... In the tradition of the Giant campaign, which was a watershed moment in viral art and urban activism (in many ways), the Obama poster spread across the web like wildfire, not least because of its cool look.
I don't know for certain who did Resist Meth's design (and, admittedly, that image looks strikingly like Obama!), but the style is typical of "resistance" propaganda, with Russian design influences and a stenciled on a brick wall feel.
Your overall point rings true, and folks in the design community have written many words analyzing logos and typefaces and styles, and unintentional similarities often arise.
The official Obama campaign posters are less interesting that this one, though I think his text-based signs are gorgeous from a design perspective.
Thanks Kevin for your historical perspective!
Now that you mentioned the Russian design influences, I'm reminded of the exhibit of Soviet textiles that ran at the MFA last year.
Kate, also reminds me of the Communist/Soviet inspired murals I spotted during my travels!


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Posted in Kenya Football articles and profiles, Kenya Sports news and commentary
Oliech was never eligible to play for Qatar, Olunga is ineligible for Japan
Author: shabik Published Date: November 27, 2019 Comments: Leave a comment
In recent days there have been rumours floating in social media that Harambee Stars striker Michael Olunga has been offered an eye watering amount of £600 million to play for the Japanese national team. The rumours took flight after Olunga scored 8 goals as his league leading team Kashiwa Reysol thrashed eigth placed club Kyoto Sanga 13-1 on the final day of the season.
A number of news outlets also posted the story. Many Kenyans on social media were quick to jump on the band wagon, urging Olunga to forget Kenya and follow the money.
Others insisted that Olunga should not make the same mistake that Oliech made in 2004 when the Nation of Qatar supposedly made an offer to him when he was age 19.
As you may recall, reputable news outlets including Kenya's main newspapers printed stories that Oliech was being offered around Ksh 200 million to defect to Qatar. As part of the deal, Qatar was to fund a new stadium in Kenya. Reports suggested that the then Sports minister Najib Balala had acquiesced to the deal. Oliech's own mother later reported that her son had indeed received an offer to defect but had turned it down.
What is likely to have happened is that none of the officials involved actually understood the FIFA statutes around eligibility.
FIFA 1962 Statute would have made Oliech ineligible for Qatar
It is indeed true that before 1962, a player could represent multiple countries in succession. The legendary Alfredo de Stefano played for Argentina, then Colombia, then Italy in succession.
FIFA put a stop to this free-agency in 1962 at the thirty-third FIFA Congress by creating legislation that contained these relevant provisions:
(1) a player must be a naturalized citizen according to the particular country's laws to be eligible to represent the country;
(2) if a player has been included in a national team, he is ineligible to represent another nation;
(3) the only exceptions to these rules concern players whose nationality is affected by independence being given to a region or by part of a country being ceded to another.
By 2004, Oliech had already represented Kenya in full internationals. Not only did he play for Kenya but he was the top scorer as Kenya qualified for the 2004 Africa cup of Nations. This would have disqualified him from playing for Qatar. So the whole idea that he could defect to Qatar was far pure hogwash.
2004: FIFA Changes nationality rules again
Had Oliech not played a full international for Kenya, he would have been eligible to play for Qatar. All he would need to do is to live in Qatar for two years. During this period, a number of Brazilians ended up changing nationalities to play for other countries: Francileudo Santos and Jose Clayton both played for Tunisia after having played for Esperance for two years.
The relevant FIFA statute at the time stated that a player could also change nationality if he had at least one parent or grandparent who was born in that country, or the player must have been resident in that country for at least two years.
During this period, Qatar was among many nations that had become notorious for naturalizing foreign players especially Brazilians. FIFA thus held an emergency congress to address the issue again.
"If we don't stop this farce, if we don't take care about the invaders from Brazil towards Europe, Asia and Africa then, in the 2014 or the 2018 World Cup, out of the 32 teams you will have 16 full of Brazilian players." said FIFA president Sepp Blatter in 2007.
As a result, The residency requirement for players lacking birth or ancestral connections with a specific country was extended from two to five years in May 2008.
Note that this statute alone would disqualify Olunga who has been in Japan for much less than the required period.
Also in 2004, FIFA relaxed their statute to allow players who had represented a country at youth level, to represent the country of their ancestry at senior level. As a result there has been a rash of players featuring for other countries. Indeed nations like Algeria and Morocco nowadays field teams made up almost entirely of players who grew up in France and Holland. Some of them played for France at youth level.
The FIFA statute today.
Today in 2019, the FIFA statute for nationality reads as follows:
Any player who has already participated in a match (either in full or in part) in an official competition of any category or any type of football for one association may not play an international match for a representative team of another association, unless: The player permanently loses the nationality of that country without his consent or against his will due to a decision by a government authority.
To put it plainly, Olunga would only be eligible to play for Japan if he were to be expelled from Kenya i.e. lose his citizenship as happened to Professor Micere Mugo after the 1982 coup.
What causes Confusion?
The fact that some players have in the past been able to easily change nationality makes people think it would be easy for a player to switch nationalities. Many people do not fully understand the FIFA statute.
Some are even confused by the fact that Divock Origi whom they think is Kenyan, plays for Belgium and Zinedine Zidane whom they think is Algerian, played for France. In reality Divock Origi is Belgian and likely has never had any Kenyan document be it a passport, an ID Card nor a birth certificate.
Further confusion arises from the fact that other sports like athletics and rugby make it rather easy for a player to change nationality. In fact in 2005, the rumours about Oliech defecting were fanned by the fact that a famous Kenyan athlete , Stephen Cherono, who had represented Kenya and won a gold medal at the 2002 Commonwealth games, had in 2003 defected to Qatar for a large sum of money and changed his name to Saif Said Shaheen.
Stephen Cherono aka Saif Said Shaheen in 2005
Japan is also famous for naturalizing players from New Zealand and South Africa to play for their national rugby team. Indeed almost all the top rugby nations today have naturalized players from nations like South Africa, New Zealand, Fiji and Samoa. This also leads to confusion and a lack of understanding. Which brings me to the last point about Olunga.
Would Japan naturalize Olunga if he was eligible?
If FIFA rules were lax and rich countries could throw their money around, it is unlikely that Japan would come after Olunga. They would most likely be interested in players from prestige countries like Brazil and Argentina.
If they were to recruit from African countries, they would likely go after famous players like Mo Salah or Sadio Mane who would not only play well for Japan, but due to their fame, they can also draw large crowds to the stadium each time they play. Football is after all a business. Tickets must be sold. Jerseys must be sold. And huge TV deals must be signed. And you do that by signing famous players.
Indeed if FIFA rules were as lax as athletics, you would have the equivalent of the Wild west whereby players would sign contracts to play for one nation for a few years. Then sign for another nation. By the time a player retires, he might have played in 3 different world cups for three different countries. A farcical situation.
Tagged dennis Oliech, Michael Olunga, Saif Said Shaheen, Stephen Cherono
Author: shabik
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now we have October and... still nothing?
So maybe someone who already build apps & successfully exported - could write some tutorial or give tips?
I try on Tizen IDE to "import" / "tizen" / "web projects and widget file"
I always get message "No projects are found to import"
But I have a question to people, who already use this servise: what happens when you send them the .wgt file ? They return to you correct wgt or they are publishers ? Anyone?
even if not tutorial: does anyone know how to correctly import C2 exported project to Tizen IDE?
I've tried to get set up with the Tizen IDE but the whole process is so rife with bugs that it's hard to make a sensible guide. I think you're best off referring to the guides on Tizen.org for the time being.
I read docs on Tizen webpage, but I can't import project created in C2 into Tizen IDE. I use non-minified folders (1 way) and zipped WGT (2 way) and it just don't see it.
a) how to certify app in Tizen Store without using Tizen IDE?
b) some people stated that Tizen Store required "back button" handling, how it is supported by Construct 2?
For the back button, use the Browser object's new 'On back button' trigger.
I think you should stick to using the Tizen IDE, but the Tizen forums and guides are probably better places to get help.
"I think you should stick to using the Tizen IDE, but the Tizen forums and guides are probably better places to get help."
Ashley why your defined config.xml to export Tizen looks very unprofessional?
Anyway, Tizen SDK is very buggy, it won't let me run emulator manager. I will use on my mac.
4- Save, go to open .project with generic notepad in folder where you created.
6- Save and Go back to Tizen IDE.
7- Select your project in project explorer tab, right click and select "New" > "File"
9- Ignore the annoying error window.
11- Drag your C2 files (.html, images, icons) into your project in Projetc explorer tab.
szymek no big deal, emulator manager is incompatible with windows 8 version.


The present article proposes to think the interface-database dichotomy regarding new media cultural objects in terms of the relationship between story 1 and story 2. With this aim, two different but possibly complementary approaches to this relationship will be considered, namely, Lev Manovich's and Antonio Caronia's.
According to Manovich 'Creating a work in new media can be understood as the creation of the interface which allows the access to the database. […] The database becomes the center of the creative process in the computer age. The new media object consists of one or more interfaces to a database of multimedia material' (Manovich 2001: 200).
Therefore the interface becomes an "interactive narrative" that allows the user to traverse the database following her/his own trajectory. For instance, in Mac and Windows operative systems the narrative of the 'office desk' is favored, as opposed to the hidden database.
Manovich's hypothesis is that the narrative dimension persists because the dominant order, or logic, of the twentieth century is that of cinema. At this point, it is necessary to add that the logic of cinema is not the only predominant narrative logic. Narratives are pervasive in Western culture; they filter everyday experiences in the same way as new media filters every cultural product today, and they also help to understand the world, to make the unknown more accessible. It is not by chance then that several theorists writing and researching on literature topics have also addressed technological issues, or better, they have used literature and narrative theory as models to understand and try to explain not only what subjects do with technologies –real or imaginary– but also what technologies are doing with subjects, –see, for instance, Brenda Laurel (1991), Janet Murray (1997), Katherine Hayles (1999, 2002, 2005, 2008), and Antonio Caronia (2006, 2010). In the same way in which virtual reality works as a model for human cognition at many different levels, so do narratives; they are, in a strict sense, one of the first virtual realities that humankind created: language, as it were, is one of the first instruments that allowed the creation of other, parallel, worlds.
If the predominance of a temporal, linear, chronological paradigm coincided with the rise of history as a discipline in the nineteenth century; currently, the digital logic is bringing back the spatial, simultaneous, non-linear paradigm that had been relegated to "lower" or pop culture –comics, for instance (Manovich 2001). However, the antecedents of this paradigm in Western culture can be traced back to different models, such as certain cycles of frescoes in churches, especially in chapels, and other immersive spatial models which allowed for a non-linear reading and pointed more at an emotional involvement of the viewer through her/his immersion in the space –just like virtual reality.
Likewise, and still following Manovich, the dynamics between database and interface can be paralleled to the semiological model of the paradigm and the syntagm, according to which the elements of a system can be related on two dimensions: syntagmatic and paradigmatic. In "traditional" cultural objects, such as narrative and cinema, the elements in the syntagmatic dimension are explicit i.e. it is possible to read all the words in a sentence, while the paradigmatic dimension is implicit, i.e. from all the possible choices among the synonyms of a certain word, only one is chosen. So the syntagmatic dimension has a certain "materiality", whilst the paradigmatic remains "potential". However, in new media objects this relationship is inverted: the database is present because all media objects are databases in the last instance; and the syntagmatic dimension is volatile, the narrative of the interface always depends on the user, and it happens to be different, re-created from scratch each time.
The story 1, the interface, would be hidden in the interstices of the story 2, the database. The nodal point then is Piglia's 'Second thesis', namely, that 'the secret story is the key of the form of the tale.' As it is well known, there are some new media artifacts that especially favor the narrative aspect, this is evident in videogames for example which always have "a plot"; and some others that show the database more openly, as it is the case of online libraries or bookstores, "lists of things" through which one has to browse. However, most websites are a mix of both in which the interface "tells a story" that grants access to the hidden database.
In this regard, Antonio Caronia in "The Machine and the Unconscious, or How to Catch the Floating Signifier"(2006) proposes to think of an aesthetic of the database in which there is no opposition, where there should be no "hidden story", but a coherent intertwining and influence among both. Therefore the idea of having two separate stories, or logics, should be overcome in favor of a relationship with no hidden stories, or to say it in other words, with no separations or hierarchization of ontological levels between interface and database.
Reading this dichotomy between interface and database in terms of story 1 and story 2 can hopefully help to develop a complementary model to unveil the ways in which one encodes the other one. And in a second instance it could make it possible to approach a position like the one mentioned by Caronia in which interface and database are intertwined and one gives sense and is coherent to the other. The pertinence of doing this, as developed in a previous article, lies in the fact that interfaces are potentially mediating every cultural artifact one might want to access, not to mention most ways of communicating nowadays: as such, they influence and shape the ways in which one perceives and encodes their world, whether digital or physical.
As often happens, art –of any kind– can provide a hint regarding the possible paths to follow for the aforementioned unveiling operation to happen.
'The short story is built to artificially make to appear something that was hidden. It reproduces the always-renovated search of a unique experience that would allow us to see, under the opaque surface of life, a secret truth. "The instant vision that makes us discover the unknown, not in a far-away unmapped land, but in the very heart of the immediate", said Rimbaud.
– CARONIA, Antonio (2006); "The Machine and the Unconscious, or How to Catch the Floating Signifier" in: L'arte nell'era della producibilità digitale, Ed. A.C., Enrico Livraghi, Simona Pezzano, Mimesis, Milano 2006.


JERSEY CITY, N.J., March 19, 2019 - ISO, a Verisk (VRSK) business, released today its National Building Code Assessment Report, a report that examines the code enforcement efforts of more than 25,000 building departments in the United States and offers key insights into how building codes can help prevent losses from disasters.
"We have seen heightened incidents of natural disasters during the past few years that have put the nation`s building codes to the test," said Robert Andrews, vice president and chief field operations officer, ISO Community Hazard Mitigation. "Hurricanes, flood, and wildfire have caused billions of dollars in losses across multiple states. Our new report provides valuable insights about building codes throughout the country and how well they are enforced, which is vital information for communities, municipalities, and insurers."
The report was developed by the ISO Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS®) team, which assesses building codes in effect and grades communities on both code adoption and enforcement. The report also features analyses of natural hazards and catastrophes in each state and diverse perspectives on catastrophe mitigation from the federal government, nonprofit organizations, and academia.
Download a copy of the National Building Code Assessment Report.


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Главная » News » Syrian Gov't Forces Preparing for Imminent Operation in Southern Aleppo
Syrian Gov't Forces Preparing for Imminent Operation in Southern Aleppo
Thursday, 9 March, 2017 - 17:00
Military sources said on Thursday that the Syrian Army has dispatched a large number of forces and a large volume of military equipment to Southern and Western Aleppo to kick off an imminent anti-terrorism there.
The sources said that the army has forwarded a large number forces and a large volume of ammunition and arms from its bases in the cement factory and artillery academy near Aleppo city to the battlefield in al-Hadhar, al-Eis, Khalseh and al-Howeiz in Southern Aleppo to reinvigorate its forces' combat capabilities for an imminent operation against the terrorists in the region.
The sources added that a large number of popular forces of Iraq's al-Nujaba Movement have also been sent to al-Hadhar to take part in a pro-government assualt South of Aleppo province.
They added that simultaneous with the dispatch of fresh forces, sporadic clashes erupted between the army soldiers and terrorists, while Russian fighter jets carried out three combat sorties over terrorists' positions in the towns of Khan Touman, al-Zerbeh and Ma'arateh.
The sources said that the army assualt is meant to end the terrorists' siege on the Shiite towns of Fouaa and Kafraya by driving back the terrorist groups from their positions in the Western parts of Aleppo province.
The Syrian Army's artillery and missile units shelled heavily the positions of Jeish al-Fatah in several towns South-West of Aleppo province on Monday, destroying the group's arms depots and military vehicles in large scale.
The artillery and missile units opened heavy fire at Jeish al-Fatah's positions in the towns of Khan Touman, al-Zerbeh, al-Eis, Khalseh, Zeitan, al-Qarasi, Bardeh and Hobar, killing tens of terrorists and destroying their arms depots and vehicles.
A field source said, meantime, that the terrorists' movements from Idlib to the Southwestern regions of Aleppo province were stopped, adding that the army would possibly carry out a large-scale operation in this strategic region to lift the militant's siege on the towns of Fouaa and Kafraya in Northern Idlib to pave the ground for recapturing the lands South of the two towns as well as terrorists' positions in Western Aleppo.
Source: Farsnews.
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The US minister's sermon about the power of love became an internet hit and went viral.
Bishop Michael Curry has revealed that he thought he was being pranked when he was invited to oversee Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding.
The US minister's sermon went viral after he spoke passionately about the power of love.
But he was convinced someone was pulling an April Fools joke on him when he was first asked to be a part of the big day.
"We're going to sit down, we gotta get y'all married!" he told Prince Harry and Meghan and their wedding guests.
Meghan and Harry tied the knot on Saturday, and the ceremony was watched around the world.
The sermon got everyone talking, and even blew Prince Harry away.
After Curry finished his speech, Harry turned to his bride and said: "Wow".


MDRs offices were certainly the place to be on the 17th April 2013, with the highly anticipated Green Sky Thinking event. In collaboration with Team London Bridge (Business Improvement District), MDR were hosts to four pertinent presentations regarding sustainability. Looking at building regulations, the public realm and innovative green solutions, the speeches certainly provided an interesting and useful insight into the sustainable built environment. With the ever-increasing awareness of the benefits of sustainable building design and imposing government regulations, it is essential to keep up to date on all things green in order to meet the increasing expectations of all stakeholders.
Iraj Maghounaki, managing director of Energy Rating Services kick started the evening looking at BREEAM and the need for sustainable design.
Following Iraj was Andy Thomas of Butler & Young, providing an in depth analysis of Zero Carbon Buildings.
Mehron Kirk of BDP engaged the audience by looking at the value of the public realm, using Deptford as a fascinating case study.
Finally, the charismatic Gary Grant finished the presentations by analysing innovative green solutions. Being involved in the Westfield Green Wall, Gary provided an interesting insight into the benefits green walls and roofing has to the built environment.
MDR would like to thank those involved in the organisation of the event, along with all those who attended. The evening was very well received by all and will hopefully prove to be the first Green Sky Thinking event of many hosted by MDR.
© All content copyright MDR Associates Ltd 2008.


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Tag: disseminated crossword clue
Google reveals Google News search terms for crossword puzzle
Search terms in Google News are now crossword puzzles.
A post on Google's blog revealed the new search terms and asked users to "post in the comments section what the search terms are and what you think the results should be."
A Google spokesperson confirmed the update, saying that the search engine is working to provide more accurate search results to users.
Categories:	Introduction
Tags:	disseminated crossword clue
Why the media are covering Ebola in Texas
A day after President Trump said he had ordered an all-out effort to stop the spread of Ebola, the media is reporting that the U.S. has confirmed one case of the coronavirus in Texas, as well as one death.
CNN reports the death was in Dallas County, Texas, and that there was no immediate word on the number of confirmed cases or deaths in Texas.
ABC News, CBS, and NBC are reporting there have been four confirmed cases in Texas and one death so far.
The Associated Press says there are three confirmed deaths.
"There are at least six confirmed cases and six deaths, so it's very clear that Texas has confirmed two cases of the disease and one person has died," White House deputy press secretary Michael Short said Monday.
"We are working very closely with Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital and we are urging all Texans to remain vigilant."
But the official White House statement says "there is no evidence that there has been any new transmission of the virus" in Texas or in the U,D.C. "No new cases have been identified or confirmed," the statement reads.
"The president is continuing to monitor the situation closely."
CNN is reporting two patients in Texas have died of Ebola.
But there is no news on a third patient.
Two people who contracted the virus while working as nurses in Liberia have died, according to a hospital spokesman.
CNN is also reporting two people are being monitored in Liberia.
CNN says that the hospital where two of the patients died has since been disinfected, but the hospital did not say how.
CBS News is reporting there are no new infections in the state.
The AP is reporting a total of 15 confirmed cases of Ebola in the United States.
A total of three deaths have been reported, while another person is in isolation.
The latest data comes from the U
Tags:	acute disseminated encephalopathy, disseminated bcg infection, disseminated crossword, disseminated crossword clue
How to figure out how to disseminate a crossword puzzle: The best crossword trick
TechCrunch, January 20, 2020, article A crossword is a puzzle game that's been around for hundreds of years, but its popularity has been growing in recent years.
Here's how to use your brainpower to figure it out.
If you want to get the most out of the trick, you'll need to figure some tricks out.
Here are the best crosswords, crosswords that people like to share, and crosswords you should try out.
Crosswords that you should share Crosswords can be tricky.
It's easy to start making connections in your head and start thinking, "Wow, this is so cool.
I don't know how to do that."
That's why you want a crosswords puzzle.
When you're figuring out how a crossphrase works, you need to understand the puzzle's meaning and how it fits into the puzzle.
This is why crosswords are so important.
You need to be able to figure the puzzle out before you share it.
Here is a great example of how you can do this: "What is this puzzle that's on the left?
I know what it means, but I just don't get it."
If you've ever played a puzzle before, you've probably seen people trying to solve it by guessing the clues at random.
That's great, but you need more than that to figure this out.
You'll need a good understanding of the puzzle, the answer, and what the answer is, so you can use the puzzle to help you figure out the puzzle answer.
Here we have a cross word puzzle, which we have already seen the answer to, "A man who has a big beard.
Here are three different clues: A woman in a bikini (top) The answer is a man in a hat (bottom) A man in his underwear (bottom left) Crossword puzzle solutions are often complicated and difficult to solve.
The problem is that you can't just go into your mind and start working backwards.
You have to actually think about the puzzle and come up with the right answer, using the crossword clues you've already seen.
If that's too hard, try one of these other crossword puzzles, crossword that are simpler, and share them on Twitter: "Who is the answer?"
"Where did you find this?"
"Who knows this?"
These crossword challenges can be a great way to practice your brain.
They also help you to understand how crosswords work, which is a really important skill to have.
For example, you can find a cross-word puzzle and then ask yourself, "What would the puzzle be about?"
The answer could be a little different for each puzzle, but that's okay.
You're still trying to figure everything out, so it's good to know how the puzzle is related to each puzzle.
Crossword clues are a great source of ideas When you have a puzzle you want people to share on Twitter, you might have an idea of what you want them to share.
For a cross, the clues aren't too important, but for a cross puzzle, there are clues that are more important: What is this crossword about?
How do I solve it?
What's the puzzle about?
Are there any clues that would help me figure it all out?
What if the clue is not about this puzzle, or the puzzle isn't about crosswords at all?
These clues help you make your puzzle more interesting.
If your crossword solution isn't obvious, ask people to try different clues, and you might get different ideas.
People love sharing ideas, so share them and share a good crossword challenge.
Cross word puzzles are crossword-oriented Crosswords are a fun way to make people feel a connection.
For this one, we tried a different crossword, and this time, we used a different clue.
This time, the cross word was "A cat, a mouse, a dog, a turtle, and a bird," and the answer was "The cat."
We have a big crossword problem: "A dog, the turtle, a bird, and two cats."
We're using clues to help us figure out where we should put the cross in the puzzle: "There are two cats, a cat, and three dogs.
Which of the three cats should I put in?"
"Which of the cats should the turtle put in?
The turtle should put in a cat."
This is a good idea because it keeps people guessing and getting stuck.
In fact, it's a good clue because it's crossword oriented.
If we can figure out which clue works for which crossword then we can use that clue to solve the cross puzzle.
You can think of a cross as a puzzle where you have to think about a lot of different clues.
For the turtle puzzle, we thought of a turtle as a cross with two faces and a tail, and we thought about the cross as two turtles and


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Home » Things to Do » The Coolest Chicago Graffiti Spots
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The Coolest Chicago Graffiti Spots
Written by Carmela Rodriguez on April 5, 2019
Written by Carmela Rodriguez
Carmela is a journalist from London. She's traveled from Asia to South America, where she got (temporarily) lost in the Peruvian Amazon. She quit the rainy UK and moved to Medellín, Colombia, where she has lived for two years
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Chicago is home to a large creative community, which comes hand-in-hand with cool street graffiti. The city is known for its love of public art, from the Picasso sculpture at the John Daly plaza through to art museums and arts and crafts festivals. While the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation aren't happy about color being splashed across walls (and there's a zero tolerance policy towards graffiti, with harsh penalties and regular graffiti removal) you can still spot brightly colored street murals that are great for an Instagram post or two, alongside tags of well-known graffiti artists. Here's where you can find some of the best Chicago graffiti:
By Katie Wasserman
Wabash Art Corridor
Chicago's best street art can be seen at three locations in the city: Wabash, Pilsen, and Wicker Park. First up is Wabash, which is home to enormous street murals on buildings as tall as twelve stories. You can find street art on walls running down the Wabash corridor, and also on walls in the surrounding South Loop neighborhood. The artwork has been splashed over 40,000 square feet of walls and buildings in total in the neighborhood and features work by artists including the famous Argentinian Marina Zumi.
By Brandi Ibrao
The murals, which were created through collaborations with the Colombia Arts College, local galleries, and artists, came to life in 2016. Some of the best murals to check out include a tribute to American singer Muddy Waters, on State and Washington, or the beautiful piece of two deers bursting through a galaxy-like landscape. Check out where to stay like a local if you want to fully immerse yourself when in Chicago.
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Be sure to check out the murals in the Pilsen neighborhood, where you can find colorful and symbolic pieces and even a whole house turned into a painting. Head to the house of Hector Duarte, who is an artist that turned his home into a colorful piece of public art. The house is splashed with references to the area's ethnic culture, with an urban version of the Gulliver mural covering the entire building. You can find the house on Wolcott with Cullerton, to the south of Harrison Park.
Continue walking through the neighborhood, and you'll stumble upon the artwork referring to the barrio's cultural mixing pot. Pilsen is best known for its large Czech population, after large-scale Czech immigration to the area in the 1900s, and today it has a large Mexican community. Visitors can enjoy graffiti referring to both large cultural groups, alongside other cultural references.
By reddit
Peaceful Wicker Park is known as one of the most hipster neighborhoods in Chicago, and is home to beautiful street murals and graffiti. Head down the side streets under the Blue Line tracks and you'll arrive at Wicker Park, which is encircled by buildings splashed with graffiti and street art. Continue walking to nearby Logan Square for plenty more street art to soak in during your Chicago trip.
Moving away from colorful murals, for graffiti fans with ogling eyes, you can spot tags by Weed Wolf dotted around the city. They are done freehand with a marker or spray paint, and by one of Chicago's most well-known taggers. There are tons of Weed Wolf's tags in various locations in the city, especially along the L-line.
Bunny Suit
Street artist Left Handed Wave splashes their signature person in a bunny suit, or sometimes a banana suit, with a cheeky grin on their face. Be sure to keep on the lookout!
Damen Silos
You'll see colorful roller brush style graffiti at the Damen Silos, which are abandoned grain silos. The silos have been painted with dripping paints and offer a picturesque scene of urban grey cylinders with vibrant bases.
By flickr
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Jesus in a Plural World | James Stevenson
Peter and John Before the Sanhedrin
1 The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. 2 They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. 3 They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. 4 But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand.
5 The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem.6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest's family. 7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: "By what power or what name did you do this?"
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 Jesus is
"'the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the cornerstone.'
12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved."
13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realised that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together.16 "What are we going to do with these men?" they asked. "Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it.17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name."
18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, "Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
21 After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.
No other name
When Peter healed the lame man, everyone saw him running into the temple and dancing for joy. They wanted to know how this had happened so Peter explained that this was thanks to Jesus. He did so in language they could identify with – quoting from their own Scriptures – and then he challenged them saying 'there is no other name… by which we must be saved.'
No other name. That is a challenge in today's culture. It can sound offensive or threatening in a climate of 'do no harm and believe what you like'. Does our Christian faith mean we need to be so counter-cultural? Yes it does.
We need to get the basic way we see things, our worldview, clear because it determines our beliefs which shape our values which affect our behaviour. Is Jesus at the centre of our worldview, or have we assimilated him into a much more pluralistic way of thinking? Our answer to that question will affect every aspect of our lives.
How then do we put this across to others? How do we counter the basic unexamined worldview that prevails? We can try to live in a way that keeps pointing to the Resurrection of Jesus, whether this is seen for example in how we respond to suffering or how we deal with a tricky situation at work. And when others comment on our response, we can explain the impact Jesus has on us, and invite them to come on the journey with us.
James Stevenson October 29, 2017
Receiving, Relaying and Rejecting Jesus | Fiona Dorman & James Stevenson
James Stevenson November 5, 2017
How To Agitate Culture | Wayne Massey
Wayne Massey October 22, 2017
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You were born into this era to share your gifts and make the world a better place, but nobody gave you a playbook for doing that during a global crisis full of divisiveness, grief, fear, anger, confusion and our Mother Earth in such a struggle.
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Brenda's signature Medicine Song Healing concerts, circles and private sessions invite you deep into potent spontaneous healing soundscapes. Her keynotes, workshops and Picking Up the Pieces 13 Moon Resilience and Reawakening program help women empaths to get through trauma, grief and exhaustion, while embodying resilience and reawakening to the gifts they carry.
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