And we're the best in the business, because we kiss

[alexsarll]

Towers of London are emphatically not my thing (they remind me of those Japanese kids who get every detail of a Western subculture absolutely perfect, and yet somehow get the whole thing completely wrong) but nonetheless, that was a thoroughly enjoyable Stay Beautiful. When it's on form, it's narrowly ahead of B Movie as the most fun one can have in a nightclub.

I'm not sure why, given it's Burton/Depp, but for some reason I wasn't expecting a great deal from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. This would be one of those rare occasions when I was wrong, then. Somehow, it manages to be even more disturbing than Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory - and Depp's Wonka is so unsettlingly Michael Jackson that, for the first time, I think he managed to act himself unattractive (an assessment with which intermix vigorously disagreed). Even Wonka's back-story, a concept of which I was deeply sceptical, was saved from sappiness by the ever-excellent Christopher Lee*. And the oompa-loompas...marvellous. Well worth the million he/they cost. And then, before the year is out we get more Burton/Depp goodness! Hoopla! Hoopla!
Then home to The Shield and Nick Fury - Agent of SHIELD, another film which was far better than I expected. The Hoff at times appears to be imitating Fury more than playing him, but for such a legendary turkey, it's really not bad. Certainly better than some recent Marvel films, such as Elektra, and I'd probably place it above Fantastic Four too. I'd even rather watch it again than either Spider-Man film, though that's more because the young 616 Peter Parker is such a hopeless dork than any fault in the adaptation. Also, it probably helps that Viper was stunningly attractive. But really, in many ways this was closer in tone to Garth Ennis' Fury than to the original espionage capers, and all the better for it - we don't need another Bond. Score one for the free world.

Sunday was, of course, Love Your Enemies. We broke our own record this time - for much of the night, we didn't even have all the residents present. Sigh. Effusive thanks to those who did come, though.
Space Ace - Brett Smiley
Big Store - The Devils
Saturday Night Special - Fad Gadget
Guns Of Brixton - The Clash
Meet Me At The Airport - Baader Meinhof
Chemical Warfare - The Dead Kennedys
Eleven Executioners - Momus
This World Is Full Of Crashing Bores - Morrissey
Can You Forgive Her? - Pet Shop Boys
I Love Life - Pulp
Jealous Of Your Cigarette - Hawksley Workman
Delicious - Shampoo
Art? - Minty
Close-Cropped - Luxembourg
Falling Out With The Future - Billy Mackenzie
Fait Accompli - Curve
Mouth To Mouth - The Glove
Summer Of Hate - Baxendale
Forever J - Terry Hall
All The Umbrellas In London - The Magnetic Fields
Brilliant Mind - Furniture
Boho Bird - Elcka
A Drinking Song - The Divine Comedy
Search And Destroy - The Stooges
Warrior - Public Image Limited
Killing An Arab - The Cure

Does anybody want boring Young People's Dance Music compilation Microsolutions #1 or boring singer-songwriter Syd Matters' album?

It's not often that picking up a paper improves my day, but the front of Metro had Bonnie Prince Billy, Scarlett Johansson and talk of treason charges. After that, I was almost sure the lottery numbers would bring me further cheer, but I only got two. Ah well.

*Interestingly, Saturday's Guardian had an article in defence of sweets by a historian of confectionery whose father was a dentist.

Comments

[pippaalice.livejournal.com]

sorry! I am a bad pippa.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I don't hold it against anyone! After all, any individual not coming, fair enough, it's just the aggregate of that which starts to look a bit bleak...

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Well, I was watching it fairly late and it kept me awake, even though I was also drinking GIN. I suspect these people simply don't appreciate Nick Fury enough.
I think the prior conversation was when I was debating whether to tape it. That was months ago, wasn't it?

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Eeee, them were the days.

[intermix.livejournal.com]

It was a nice surprise though, because I really wasn't expecting to find him all that attractive, but then we must remember that this is Johnny Depp and being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off.

And besides, top hat, lovely velvet fitted coat and rubber gloves (hmm, that last bit doesn't sound sexy when you type it, does it?) and the palest of skin. *goes off into a little daydream* *then adds alan and morrissey into the mix* **falls on floor**


Also, in a Nikki recognises more than one song in an LYE set shocker, that is my favourite Clash song. I really will make it along someday, promise. Maybe when I finally get my sat nav installed in my car/brain.

being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I don't know...even aside from my feelings about this, I'm sure he'll eventually decide to do some thoroughly minging role just because it's the easiest way to get an Oscar (cf Charlize Theron).

I wouldn't normally play the Clash, but under the circumstances I couldn't resist. Didn't get time for Alec Empire's 'Squeeze the Trigger', though.

Re: being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[intermix.livejournal.com]

Charlize Theron is not pretty when she doesn't have any makeup on though. Mr Depp still looks alarmingly attractive even when he has the dodgiest facial hair known to man going on. He's not won an oscar has he?

Re: being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I don't think so. Which is why playing a minger, mental or cripple can't be far off.

It does amaze me that he manages to be fancy even when wearing the godawful hats he favours while off-duty.

Re: being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

No, you have to be famous and *then* play a M/M/C.

Re: being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[stealthmunchkin.livejournal.com]

Hunter Thompson

Re: being unnatractive is something he will never be able to pull off

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I still would have. Benicio did a pretty good job of turning himself ug, though.

[beingjdc.livejournal.com]

Killing An Arab - The Cure

I think you had dashed off so you missed my applause at this point for the subtle incisiveness of your topical satire. Or rather I mean that I may have made more effort to turn up earlier if I'd known to expect Furniture and the Pet Shop.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Well, I can hardly post likely setlists in advance, can I now?

[beingjdc.livejournal.com]

Yes. Yes you can. In fact it would be good if everyone did, we could plan more easily.

[beingjdc.livejournal.com]

Sorry, got so distracted by the playlist that I forgot to say that Kate denied to the point of shouting that Wonka is at all Jacksonish, which was the wrongest thing until she claimed my suit jacket looked nothing like his ALMOST COMPLETELY IDENTICAL BUT LONGER ONE (not often that I see anyone with a longer one, etc etc) which were collectively the wrongest thing until narrowly ahead of B Movie as the most fun one can have in a nightclub on what grounds? slightly hotter? slightly more overpriced, slightly more barging braying stomping burning clientele? B-Movie has the edge on consistent quality of music, SB on likelihood of hearing something good you wouldn't hear elsewhere, but the former is consistently ruined for me by having too many people in too small a venue, and SB by the fact that it's a load of chav randoms in a warehouse - sorry but the final straw came for me on Friday night when I tried to go up the stairs and my way was blocked by a HOODIE. Sorry but if I'm in the same room as someone wearing a hood it's either a Pratchett convention or I'm in the wrong place.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Wow, that was impressively hyper.

Sometimes these mundane objections do hamper my enjoyment of each club, but when I'm locked into the right frame of mind, they fall away like yesterday's dew.

[beingjdc.livejournal.com]

Well yes, maybe, but I wasn't in the mood for clubbing yesterday, but had an excellent hour and a half, and I fairly had to be persuaded out on Saturday, but as ever couldn't fault Sid's alternative 80s classics, the subtitled Italian Job on the projector, the comfy black sofas, or the company. Admittedly the floors could use being a bit less sticky, and Northampton is a bit of a trek for two and a half hours' clubbing, especially when you then need to get a taxi ten miles afterwards, but there we are. It's possible that I just hate Fridays or something, but it's not as if I work so hard I'm exhausted at the end of the week, if anything I improve as the week goes on. Ho hum.

[duranorak.livejournal.com]

Damn it all. I wanted so much to come out last night and then my mother had a wild attack of paranoia (she's allowed, she was doing a live broadcast today) and I had to stay in and make her tea and be generally helpful and all that bloody nonsense.

Anyway. Yes, the new Chocolate Factory is a thing of beauty and you'd be right about Johnny Depp if it weren't for the gloves and the cane, which would be almost enough to make anyone attractive, but work especially well on Mr Depp. (I do wish I could run into him - mother and her driver keep doing so, as he has a flat opposite ours in Paris, but he never seems to be out when I'm there. Possibly there's a reason for this... )

E.
x

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

The gloves were fine, until I realised they were rubber. Then they scared me a little.

When he was filming Sleepy Hollow, he visited an ex's favourite takeaway, on the evening when she'd normally have been there. Except that that week, she was attempting to diet. She never quite got over it.

[duranorak.livejournal.com]

They're purple, though. Surely the scariness of rubber gloves is mitigated if they're purple?

E.
x

[intermix.livejournal.com]

I'd forgotten the cane. I don't know how, but there it is. I agree about the gloves. I found them to be very Manson-esque as he spent a lot of the last year wearing the Moschino ones. And looking delightful.

[duranorak.livejournal.com]

I seem to have somehow missed that. Damn that lack of cable TV. But the cane! How could you forget the cane!

Mind you, this is admittedly coming from someone who has been known to get off at tube stations that aren't her own just so she can follow the man with the walking cane down the road.

I've got to stop admitting these things.

[kiss-me-quick.livejournal.com]

Four, possibly five or six.

[my-name-is-anna.livejournal.com]

Is that line at the top from Absolute Power?

[my-name-is-anna.livejournal.com]

Or whatever it's called.
Stephen Fry's newy

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

It is indeed called that, and was indeed the source of the line.