EXAM SEASON

It's warm and sunny outside and I've been watching copious amounts of the OC, and my boyfriend and his friends have revived the Game of Thrones board game, so that can only really amount to one thing... EXAM TIME! There literally hasn't been anything interesting in my life as of late. Handed in the essays I was working on over Easter and moved straight into revising. Exams are in a one week span.

Just a little update as I should really be doing something productive with my life. I haven't been updating properly in forever anyway, BUT i am going to start again in summer as there is nothing I really have to do.

See y'all then!

BLITZ!

I'm afraid I have neglected you terribly.

 My life this term has been a perfect wash of all things good and hence, very boring to write and read about. There have been highlights and interesting things, but in the effort and mindset of moving ONWARDS AND UPWARDS with my revived blog, I probably shan't bother going through the effort of remembering everything, finding photos etc, so y'all with have to accept that there is a chunk of a few months of my life that you will not be privy to, asides from the super brief update of things I can think of off the top of my head.

 Last time I blogged it was midway through christmas break, yet I am now blogging at the end of my Easter one. EXAMS! are coming up once again. Essays (3) need to be handed in but I'll try not ramble on about workload because that's never really fun to read. I have not gone home as I did last holiday, but spent the break intruding upon my boyfriend's family and home life and visiting the cute lil' town of Porthcawl, Wales where he was born and raised. We've spent a great deal of time doing everything and nothing as we do best; several London trips, the Lion King West End show, an overly expensive meal for 2 'poor' students, frolicking with baby lambs, one (ONE!!! IN A MONTH+) night out, and various adventures and ice creams walking down the pier on a nice day. I've managed to get a lil' bit of productive stuff done and I'm even more crazily in love (sop) so I'll count this holiday as a big tick. PLUUUS boyfriend's gone and booked his flights to Hong Kong for the end of Summer, where mama and papa Grant may accompany us on our additional detour to Phuket. Can we say exciting? YES!

So really, as of this term, my life has been:

• Lectures, seminars, film shenanigans. My coursemates are still bonkers as ever and I still love every minute of it.
• Spending silly but lovely amounts of time with the SO. Improving our cooking skills, watching films, playing games on a DS emulator. I'll try keep the cheesy stuff off the blog but I'm happy.
• Only having a FEW super!drunk nights this term. Bonus points to the one where I went blackout and magically behaviourally transformed into a toddler who intentionally spilled water all over the floor.
• Cute girl's nights with junk food, pizza, films and gossip. I love my girl's nights.

In all, nothing too exciting, but nothing that boring either really. 

 I guess another thing I could mention is that I've recently decided to get back into 'proper' photography.  As in, booking more 'proper' shoots, doing editorial-esque planned photoshoots with people interested in modeling. First step is really to refresh and rebuild a portfolio so I've planned a few shoots, so I may be talking about a few of them in the future.

Anyhow, ENOUGH of old stuff. Here are some photos from today's visit to a farm and the baby lambs (and boyfriend and me of course)

Mother teresa WHO??





That's what I'm gonna leave you with as it's past bedtime so I should probably shimmy back into bed. Will be back again soon (I won't quite make a promise but I'll give you an I'll-try-really-hard.)
MUCH LOVE!

Transatlanticism

I was counting down the hours until I took off to the skies.

The terminals and runways merge into one time and time again.

You find sanctuary in the clouds,

and solace by the sun.

So, I close off for comfort as I could walk for miles and miles;

and never reach my destination.

I sleep on my side without the safety of your arms.

The pavements no longer crunch,

And the leaves no longer fall.

The expanse of flatness we walked over, over and over,

Changes to tower over me instead.

And it casts a shadow that echoes in my head.

I attempt to make familiar feeling of this foreign scene.

Winter’s chill keeps my chest warm,

And five past sets me on fire.

Tangled in the duvets,

Gazing out the window.

The moon marks the nights we spent staring at the same starry skies that are now empty to me.

I am not a writer but I feel like you deserve some words from me.

A Review Of Sorts (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)

So, I'm never really one for reviewing things, especially films (despite studying film,) but I have just stumbled out of the cinema after the three hour long adventure that is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. (And it's Spoiler free!) I am still in the process of sorting and formulating my own thoughts on this, so apologies for the jumble.

To start with, this is a film that has been facing potential scrutiny and criticism since day one - it's got Jackson's previous Lord Of The Rings trilogy to measure up to (including the Oscar winning Return Of The King), whilst the intense fandom hype that has been surrounding the film since it's initial announcement almost seems to be calling for a severe backlash. It's also been shot in 3D, at 48 FPS, allowing for "better colour vibrancy and realism etcetera etcetera," and features a whole range of actors from those noted and loved (such as McKellen,) and newcomers into Middle-Earth lore with big, big boots to fill. (Freeman as Bilbo, for one.)

There is good news: it is not a bad film. (In my opinion, anyway.)

In order to make this easier for myself - and perhaps for you, reader, - I am now going to break this down into several seemingly random categories and discuss them in relation to expectations, execution, and any other notes. And although this is a film adaptation of a (very well loved, I might add,) novel, I am going to vaguely attempt to treat it as a film for film's sake. I cannot fully discount or be un-bias to the existence of its source material, but that's why I cleverly stated 'vaguely attempt.'

Firstly, narrative. The film starts by pulling you in like a novel (how very fitting,) and allows even the audience member with no prior Lord Of The Rings knowledge to understand and delve into the lore of Middle Earth. For the avid fan, however, the film plays much homage to its filmic predecessors; watching The Hobbit will make you feel like you are returning home.

From the minute Shore’s gorgeous score really kicks in, we return right back to … the beginning of where we left off from at The Return Of The King. The beautiful, vast, landscapes are back – and Jackson sure does make use of them, with panoramic shots tracing the action, helping us suspend disbelief in this amazing diegetic world both he and Tolkien created. Little sequences serve as nods to the first trilogy, reminding us that this is a standalone film that isn’t actually standalone, allowing us to immerse ourselves fully in the world of Middle Earth.

Those concerned with pacing may complain about the slowness of the film – and it is undeniable that some parts drag out. However, it also cannot be denied that the action scenes are, on the whole, brilliantly executed, and that the second half of the film really picks up. Without giving too much away, (or any, if I can help it,) the special effects really go to an impressive level with some of the beasts. More impressive still though, is the scope and scale of some of the gorgeous sets, and the attention paid to detail in order to create as rich a diegetic world as possible, in which they definitely succeed. (Those first establishing shots of the dwarven kingdom, anyone?)

The film is one out of three, and roughly 140 pages of The Hobbit. My sister, sitting beside me, worried for a minute about a cliffhanger ending – after all, the next film isn’t out for another year. Luckily, Jackson followed his old tact with the Lord Of The Rings trilogy and leaves us on a good leaving note – partially resolved, but ready for more.

Secondly, we cannot discuss the film without discussing the characters. A diverse and colourful range of dwarves of all different types, (apart from gender, we may note, but this is adapted from Tolkien's work so hey ho,) everyone's favourite wizard, and a familiar-in-a-way hobbit all team up to embark on an adventure – a quest! With an adventure party totaling 15, not including minor characters, appearances from elves, antagonists and beasts, it was always going to be a challenge to balance screen time, characterisation and narrative development.

Jackson has here, I believe, set the base for characterisation. We know the dwarves, but not well enough. Whilst lack of full character development is always an important critical factor, we must bear in mind that despite the almost-three-hour time stamp, there are still FIFTEEN CHARACTERS we have to deal with, not including narrative and action. Luckily, Jackson's decision to turn the novel into a trilogy allows him the ability to further develop these characters in the next two installments. Whilst I believe that the 'more-minor' dwarf characters have had a relatively good establishing character base set, it was not really into the later parts of the film that we really began to see character development from the titular character, Bilbo.

Despite this drawback, character dynamics were handled well, and audiences saw a new hero of Middle Earth arise in the character of King Thorin, who seemed like the real protagonist of the film – for the first half or so, at least. In addition, Jackson does well in characterizing the overall lifestyle of the dwarves, establishing quickly their natures and different personalities in a fun sequence early on, creating distinctions from the elves of Rivendell, and of course, the hobbits of the shire. It does help that those familiar with the original trilogy (so basically everyone,) will know all these species back to front – and this is again, what helps to make this film so delightfully familiar in its settings.

As with the original trilogy, Jackson delicately balances humour and light-heartedness with both gritting action scenes. In addition, a certain exchange between Thorin and Bilbo starts the tapping into emotions and begins to delve into more complex character relationships; this is not completely a film about action and adventure - but about dwarves and a hobbit. Andy Serkis’s portrayal of Gollum highlights this perfectly, with a both endearingly humourous yet tragic performance.

Returning to aesthetics, it would be silly not to mention the technical aspects of The Hobbit. Whilst the 48fps did give it an overall smoothness – and gorgeous, vibrant colour, especially with some of the landscape shots – combined with 3D (there was no 2D option to watch it any of the closest cinemas,) it gave some of the characters a very glossed-over feel; I initially almost felt like I was watching a CGI film. Luckily, either my eyes adjusted or the effects did, but by the time we were being introduced to our dwarven company, it looked much more real – and a good thing too, as the dwarves are all brilliantly adorned, with defining physical appearances. Thirteen, newly introduced characters are, after all, going to be hard for non-readers (and perhaps for readers to distinguish on screen,) to remember, but as mentioned before, Jackson has set the base – some are more characterized than others, allowing for further development in the next two films. (No doubt they’ll be just as long.)

This is, without a doubt, an exciting film. Sure, the pace is a tad unnecessarily slow at the beginning, but it makes up for it by throwing you head first into the middle of the action with our large group of protagonists. It’s not a perfect film, but it definitely starts us off on the journey. Fans of the previous trilogy will find solace in the familiar feel of the film, and new viewers will find themselves drawn into a brand new adventure. It is a great introductory film for setting the pace, and tone, and for introducing a brand new range of not-yet-heroes for Middle Earth – as Bilbo says, “I’m not a hero… or a warrior… or even a burgular.” We will, however, come next year, see the next installment of The Hobbit, and see what adventures lie in store for our characters next, as they grow and develop into the heroes we know them to be in The Lord Of The Rings. 

Resolution

I only seem to ever blog when I have literally NOTHING else to do, which isn't really fair to all you readers! (Stats say there are somehow a few of you out there, okay, that's legitimate.)
Maybe my New Year's Resolution this year can be to start blogging again ... all the broken link pictures really got me into a right upset state because I like neatness, but hey, I can always just kind of start again on the same blog, right?


I'm back in Hong Kong now actually. As in, got off the plane today after a failed cab reservation that led to me calling a cab basically in tears down the phone, almost hitting a child with a rogue luggage trolley, oh, and getting an upgrade and having the whole aisle to myself and because it was Air New Zealand, it was basically AIR MIDDLE EARTH. (No kidding, that's like totally their seasonal tagline.)

So, updates: I had my birthday on tuesday! 19 isn't amazing so far. I did get lots of lovely things including chocolate (duh always works,) and i did get sung to in Welsh which was cute. My party was the friday before which you'd know if I'd been bothering to update this but I haven't. Y'all haven't missed much, I swear - house parties and sometimes I went out but mostly just stayed in because I'm boring and afflicted with Couple Syndrome™ now apparently.

You see, I planned a fancy dress party with a wide theme and basically TOLD everyone they'd HAVE to dress up but actually didn't end up getting a costume until the DAY BEFORE MY OWN PARTY.



Portia and Esme also came down and it was nice to have a great CATCH UP HANGOVER SESH the next day when we all dragged our sorry asses to Spoons to devour breakfast. Spoons is becoming my hangover cure - testified by Saturday, when I woke up blindingly hungover at 7.30. Managed to get halfway down the stairs before I had to stop and rest, then turned the heating on and crawled back into bed and then I spent the rest of the morning feeling very sorry for myself and complaining in my delicate state before I was able to go have breakfast and then of course I was fine although quite confused after a very fun and strange house party.

I'm going to have to up my tolerance big time before I fall in the ocean heading home one night and drown.

Last sentence because I've moved to an island which requires ferrying - which is annoying but I can forgive that based on the disneyland fireworks I can see every night. The door also beeps like a maniac every time you leave it open which really confused me the first time. And we have no keys but use a hidden keypad which does admittedly make me feel like a spy every time i walk in which is awesome.

Been trying to dabble with a (writing) piece about traveling and the international lifestyle based on how many times I cross through airports and come through clouds every year, but I guess my mind's not in that creative a place at the minute. I'm going to have to get my hands on a guitar at some point which basically just suggests that I should get a new one for christmas, right?

No one's back for a week so i guess i'll be running errands and staring at the ceiling of an unfamiliar house wondering what I'm going to do with my life in the time being. I'd keep you updated but I think that would even bore me, so, later.

Liveblogging Twilight from a Module Screening

10.01am: Wander in late during Bella’s monologue. Rosy groans “Why are we watching this”

10.04am: NICE WEAVE, JACOB

10.06am: Bella cruelly beats up some kid with a ball, Kristen Stewart attempts showing remorse

10.07am: Jack’s “oh my god!” as Anna Kendrick comes on screen

10.08am: dramatic music starts. Something big is clearly happening

10.08am: Bunch of lookalike models all dramatically walk in, in slo-mo

10.09am: Footface enters the building

10.10am: they all stare creepily at Bella

10.10am: If Edward was looking at me like that I’d cry that’s terrifying

10.10am: a fucking fan is blowing her hair

10.10am: Edward pulls the world’s biggest derp face, puts hand over mouth as if he is going to be VIOLENTLY ILL ALL OVER BELLA

10.11am: Bella checks to see if she smells

10.11am: Montage of the teacher teaching and Edward looking in a mix of looking like he’s about to vomit and/or jizz himself.

10.11am: Edward is really being very rude and Kristen Stewart is trying to portray Bella trying hard not to cry but doing a very poor job (as usual)

10.14am: Emmett standing up in the car like some kind of hood rat

10.15am: the one “proof” that Bella is clumsy as she falls over. Kristen Stewart has absolutely no facial change.

10.17am: Edward makes least charming, most awkward introduction ever.

10.18am: Bella doesn’t like ‘cold wet things’

10.19am: So many close-ups of Edward’s face I am beginning to feel super uncomfortable.

10.19am: Rosy: ‘She thinks he’s sexy’

10.21am: Edward foils a car’s attempt to assassinate Bella. Kristen Stewart still portrays absolutely no emotion.

10.22am – 10.25am : Bella and Edward have some kind of awkward debate over his heroic antics. They have absolutely no chemistry.

10.25am: Edward is watching Bella while she sleeps THAT IS NOT NORMAL IN ANY UNIVERSE YOU JUST DON’T DO THAT.

10.26am: Mike is quite adorable she should just date him so we don’t have to deal with sulkypants sulking in the background and all the drama he brings.

10.28am: Edward sassily scolds Bella like the incompetent child she is. ‘Why don’t you at least look where you walk?!’

10.31am: Edward dropping hints like bombs, tries to sound dark and mysterious. Comes across as a twat.

10.32am: Bella, world’s biggest hypocrite, talks about ‘strong, independent women.’ The world collectively groans.

10.33am: Outburst of laughter from Sophie during ‘The cullens don’t come here.’

10.35am: Here come the shitty slowmo special effects showing their ‘powers’

10.38am: Special snowflake not into dresses and girly things.

10.39am: Attempted gangrape of Bella. Kristen Stewart doesn’t quite manage to convey fear.

10.39am: The attempted rapists can feel Edward’s BLOODLUST. They back off promptly and he engages in reckless driving.

10.41am: Edward’s ‘charming voice’ sounds like mashed potatoes.

10.43am: “But you…nothing.” Rosy: “Because she doesn’t have anything.”

10.50am: Camera attempts to make us dizzy as Bella reaches the staggering and unexpected realization that Edward is INDEED A VAMPIRE.

10.51am: Laughter as Edward yanks bella onto his back and does some kind of slobbish sprint.

10.52am: Edward walks into the sunlight, glitters like a discoball. Jack: “He’s fabulous” Rosy: “He looks really wet.”

10.53am: Edward runs around the forest and breaks shit, whines about being a predator.

10.54am: “I’ve never wanted a human’s blood so much in my life.” “I trust you.” Vom. Bella you fucking idiot.

10.56am: Romantically lying on the grass, staring at each other as camera spins round and round.

10.58am: Bella’s description of Edward just makes him sound like a giant mosquito.

10.59am: Sepia flashback sequence where Carlisle passionately gives Edward a hickey.

11.02am: (Tweet from Jack) ‘I think Kirsten Stewart is a great actor. She taps into emotions I didn't even know existed.’

11.06am: Jack and Sophie both cough. Jack: “COUGH BUDDIES!”

11.07am: Bella: “No bed?” Edward: “No, I don’t sleep.” Rosy: “That’s not what she was thinking.”

11.08am: Edward listens to Debussey. He is clearly so cultured.

11.09am: Sophie splutters in an attempt to hold in a laugh at Bella’s ‘I can’t dance.’

11.09am: Jack erupts into laughter as Edward grips Bella on his back and runs around the forest like a loony.

11.11am: Bella lies on the sofa. PAINT ME LIKE ONE OF YOUR FRENCH GIRLS, EDWARD.

11.12am: Stephenie’s moment of stardom, she grins to herself as she drinks her coffee.

11.15am: Whole room groans at “I like watching you sleep.” Jack: “yuck!”

11.16am: Bella gets too frisky. Edward is ‘stronger than he thought.’

11.19am: Forgot about this awful baseball scene

11.20am: FAMILY FUN TIME

11.21am: James and his models strut in.

11.24am: James wants to eat Bella and the two teams of vampires stand and hiss menacingly at each other.

11.29am: Cullens GEAR UP FOR WAR.

11.32am: Montage sequence – James sniffs things, gets angry, Alice has a vision and draws things.

11.35am: Bella goes off and her own and fails miserably at basically everything from now on.

11.37am: James starts to direct his snuff film.

11.39am: Bella starts to get crazy vampire spasms – Kristen Stewart flails around like a fish and pulls awkward faces.

11.39am: The rest of the gang arrive and Alice rips james’ head off whilst Edward just cries and almost kills Bella BECAUSE SHE JUST TASTES SO DAMN GOOD APPARENTLY.

11.42am: Shockingly edited montage depicting their ‘relationship’ and what she means to him.

11.48am: Jacob and Edward have an awkward, hostile confrontation. Me and Rosy both hiss.

11.55am: Mike’s extreme disapproval at radiohead being used as the credits start to roll. We all all severely relieved.

Small Town Moon

Christ, it's really been a while. Facebook's gone and changed their picture formats and the lack of photos on here and how much time it's going to take to edit them all has been depressing me, thus, lack of posts. I should really be typing more and relying less on photos, but I am a photographer and my already not so interesting life is just less interesting without visuals.


Because I am backdated by like, 2 months, I'm just going to summarise.
(1) Got back to uni and was reunited with everyone including my lovely boyf. Because we're living in Leamington this year (and by we, I mean I kind of occupy a little space including a shelf and a corner of the floor and half the bed in Joe's room...) there's been less going out and more house parties. Been to a fair few, several dress up, at all sorts. (cbf to go into detail)
 











(2) Wow I literally remember nothing else (serves me right for not updating sooner.) Basically, been going into uni, course still great, mondays suck blah blah, house parties sometimes, mostly staying in because I'm turning into an old lady and OH WOW YEAH I'M STARTING TO GET HANGOVERS FUCK THIS. :(

(3) Buuut a recent exciting adventure was that me and Joe went down to London to go eat at MAZE because we absolutely fail at being uni students. First day was spent just wandering around oxford circus because shops don't actually close at stupidly-early o'clock there. Went to Hamleys and basically relived my childhood, although I was disappointed that it seemed so much smaller (In before y'all can think 'No shit Laura you've gotten bigger in 10 years,) but was still a nice wander. Went and had a steak (!) in cafe rouge and literally the best desserts ever. I do not think you understand how good this dessert was. Have some pictorial proof of the menu:

MAZE itself was ridiculously nice. Did a bit of shopping in the afternoon and navigated the tube - I still get crowd stress it seems - and ate so much and I got really upset that I got too full to eat all dessert. Drinks and service charge still was a big chunk of money.

Train'd home Monday morning to return back to student life. (Or not.) 


There is really not much else to write here; I guess I just wanted to do a clearing up of all the backdated stuff - because this kind of stuff actually does stress me out ... - so I can move on and post when (if) anything interesting happens. Maybe I'll do more text-based posts or something.


I'm barely motivated to do anything that's not lie in bed and watch films as of late really. And try to befriend cats on the street who just don't want to know...