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bookmark_border5 Remakes that pass for originals

Posted on by Vasco de Sousa

We’re growing tired of remakes.  Some rehashes claim to be better than the original, but we’re not sure “better” is the right word.

Do we need another Karate Kid, another Dr. Doolittle, another Ghostbusters, another Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, or another Steel Magnolias?  What was wrong with the first film?

(The second Karate Kid was okay,  but “Pick up your coat” is incredibly lazy compared to “wax on, wax off.”)

However, some remakes add something, and in some ways improve upon the original.  A few, in fact, are so good that we sometimes think that the remake is the original. Continue reading “5 Remakes that pass for originals”

bookmark_borderEaster Eggs.

Posted on by Vasco de Sousa

For most, Easter is a wonderful time of year.  Schools (and even many employers) are closed, so families of all religions can celebrate together.  Some paint boiled-eggs, then hide them for children to find. Others use chocolates (or even toys) in place of boiled eggs.  In any case, they are hidden in places that aren’t obvious, but for obvious reasons aren’t too hard to find.

Children then seek out these treats, which they enjoy and share.  This is called the Easter Egg hunt.

When children look for the eggs, they come equipped with baskets. Though some make it competitive, organizers usually ensure that there are enough eggs for everyone. Sometimes we even limit what each child can gather.

The spirit of Easter is about giving and even sharing, not competition. (Although there are sports competitions that sometimes accompany the hunt.) Continue reading “Easter Eggs.”

bookmark_borderApocalypse Now Redux: review

Posted on by Vasco de Sousa

Walter Murch, yes the Walter Murch, travelled all the way to Aberystwyth to take questions on his film, Apocalypse Now.

Okay, so Murch was only the sound stylist, right? An editor, not a director, star, screenwriter or even a producer. Producers take home the best picture award, directors get to be thought of the auteur, actors get famous, screenwriters can say they thought it all up, but without people working below the line there’s only so much you can do.

Continue reading “Apocalypse Now Redux: review”

bookmark_borderList of movies

Posted on by Chinny McGringo

Love them or hate them, here’s a list of movies. It’s not a good list, or a bad list, just a list.

Some have won awards and become classics. Others have been largely forgotten.

Some we watched on the recommendation of friends.  Others we had to see for class. Still others just happened to be playing at a one-screen cinema.

Some we like and can recommend. Others we find boring and annoying.

However, our taste might not be the same as yours.

(Some related films and listed as a group. Consider seeing these as double or triple features, or with a festival pass.) Continue reading “List of movies”

bookmark_borderThe Ptara Christmas message

Posted on by Chinny McGringo

Every year, around the world, heads of state give Christmas messages.  The first time a British Monarch gave such a speech was in 1932, when George V said the following.  (If you are patriotic, British, and love history, then this might bring tears to your eyes. Otherwise, it might help you sleep.)

So, what do we at Ptara have to say this Christmas?

Well, viewing the media of the past year, both left- and right-wing, both highbrow and tabloid, has taught me one thing. There’s more historical proof for the existence of Santa Claus than there is for most of the “events” that have moved history, and that includes the lies and rumors of our time. Continue reading “The Ptara Christmas message”

bookmark_borderConsensus or Group Think?

Posted on by Chinny McGringo

Usually, when people talk about “group think” they are condemning bad decisions. Yet when they talk about “consensus” they are implying that the group or crowd must be right.

When good leaders make bad decisions because advisers not only fail to speak up, but fail to even consider that better options may be available, that’s Group Think. When two people share the same view, and everyone else is afraid to speak, that’s Group Think. Group Think is when people not only fail to challenge the consensus, but fail to consider that the consensus may be wrong.

Look at almost any war, and you’ll find that the consensus behind at least one side’s leadership was wrong, and went largely unchallenged. However, war is politics by other means, and I do not wish to discuss politics.

Before getting into heated political mud fights I may wish to forget, I’ll talk about a “non-political” area, one where I’ve wasted time in debates that have turned ugly: film theory. Continue reading “Consensus or Group Think?”

bookmark_borderMountains Out of Molehills

Posted on by Vasco de Sousa

Mountains out of molehills

 

Mountains out of molehills
First published on Social Media: Mar 1, 2016


I had many titles for this post. The ass-u-mers, The Bore Who Cried Adolf, A Pipe is just a Pipe, but most of them were, well, a bit hyperbolic.

Anyway, take a look at the image above for a few seconds, and register in your head what it is.

Done that? Good, now scroll down so you can’t see it.

Done that too? Good, now get out a piece of paper and a pencil and see if you can draw the image from memory. This isn’t a test of artistic skills, just see if you remember what the image was of.

Have you finished with that? How well did you remember the image? Continue reading “Mountains Out of Molehills”