Alan James

@classic575 This topic came up recently, on Radio London, when the presenter, Robert Elms, spotted men wearing flip flops in the City.

I’ve noticed an increasing trend of men wearing flip flops in restaurants, on airplanes and in other public spaces. Gentlemen never wear flip flops other than at a pool, a beach or an appropriate private setting. Gentlemen, please leave the flip flops at home and wear closed shoes. No one wants to see your feet.

@IvanKenneally I'm reminded of a novel I enjoyed, about the Hopper's, The Narrow Land by Christine Dwyer Hickey.

Hopper’s wife, Josephine, a formidable artist as well, once said in an interview that the book on the bed is a Platonic dialogue. I’ve never been able to ascertain which one.

@lizslayed @BFI I'm currently listening to a Screenshot episode, on Fishing, which features an interview with Mark Jenkin.

@AlanpjamesAlan @BFI So did I. I saw it in the cinema, twice

I’m excited to finally be seeing Rose of Nevada tonight! I’ve had two booked Q&A screenings for this film that I couldn’t go to, but at least I get to see it at @BFI in the beautiful NFT1. Not even the absolutely diabolical weather could stop me!

@classic575 I enjoyed the film, awhile back, when I came across it in the Under 90 Minutes selection, on the BFI Player.

Now watching and, as usual, just catching up with many others on The Reckless Moment (1949), starring Joan Bennett and James Mason. It’s very good, with an intriguing dramatic twist and some nice views and the feel of Old California. So I join in recommending it as a worthy noir.

@Carol4OliveFarm I certainly appreciated my beans on toast, yesterday. I know the feeling, with empty spaces, as I've had a few extractions. I'm glad your numbness has subsided.

@AlanpjamesAlan Beans on toast, what joy! My numbness has subsided but it all feels strange with gums and empty spaces!!

Copyedits arrive on the first day of film festival. Terrific timing! I haven't even made it to Cannes yet to collect my badge. Gorgeous weather though. Post dentist? Face a bit spongy, like orange peel gums!

@tcboyle Yes, we also have UK politicians, mainly on the extreme right, who align themselves with said felon.

Welcome to the club. Our country is run, for his own benefit, by felon.

@tcboyle In my area of East London the political party Aspire have been re-elected, to run the council, despite government inspectors being repeatedly deployed, due to incompetence.

What disappointed you?

@CinemaTweets1 Such a good film, that I watch anytime it screens.

Billy Bob Thornton doesn’t really get the credit he deserves as an actor. He’s got a lot of range if you think about it & look back at his career. Here he is next to the late Bill Paxton in A Simple Plan, a film I can’t say enough good things about. I love this fucking movie man.

@tcboyle I feel a similar need after the election results, in the UK.

When I'm away in the mountains and free of all news, I fell a whole lot better about the world.

@tcboyle Very handy protection against flyballs.

My Dodgers cap is wearing thin so I’m looking for something a little more durable by way of headgear.

@CinemaTweets1 I have very fond memories of studying the film, decades ago, at art school. I recently watched Jim Jarmusch enthuse about the film, on YouTube. He also made a passing reference to the Sons of Lee Marvin Club, which you may want to investigate.

The sound of Lee Marvin’s shoes stomping through LAX as he returns from the dead & unleashes Hell on Earth in Point Blank (🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟) is all I can think about. Vengeance…thy name is Walker. Dear Lord, what a film. What a breathtaking, visually stunning, exceptionally beautiful story of revenge- revenge that is ultimately meaningless. The style here is so sharp & so sleek, traveling between San Francisco & Los Angeles puts you in a trance. This is neo-noir at its absolute finest.  I’ve spent the last ten years of my life living in San Francisco & Los Angeles, the first 5 in SF, the last 5 in LA. I can’t overemphasize enough the way in which director John Boorman captures each city with such precision and such perfection. We meet Lee Marvin’s Walker as he’s pulled into a robbery on Alcatraz. An old friend enlists Walker to join him for a good old fashion stick ‘em up on the island that claimed Capone (I’ve taken half a dozen tours of Alcatraz, including a night tour- it never gets old). But halfway through their robbery on The Rock, Walker’s friend turns on him, steals his girl, and leaves Walker for dead. But as is the case with countless revenge thrillers, Walker isn’t actually killed on The Rock. He survives. And he comes back with a mission: kill his old friend & get his money back. It’s just that simple.  But I think what stood out to me most about Point Blank is the way in which Marvin’s Walker never really quenches his thirst. I’m not suggesting that Walker doesn’t get his pound of flesh- he absolutely does. Nor am I about to break the Cinema Tweets Guarantee and give away spoilers. But the idea here is that the closer Walker gets to the revenge he seeks, the less fulfilled he becomes. Why? Because Walker learns none of this was really personal. He’s one cog in a massive corporate machine. No one knows who the fuck Walker is? No one cares. This wasn’t someone coming for Walker & everything the man owns and loves: Walker’s friend was desperate to pay some other corporate douche back. All of which is to suggest that maybe none of the juice was worth the squeeze for Walker in the end- which is a theme we don’t often see explored in revenge films. Revenge films today are so heavily focused on whether the protagonist actually achieves his goal- not whether the goal is worthy to start. That’s why this story feels different & refreshing.  The editing & cinematography in this movie took my breath away. This was shot in 1967 but I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a film look this gorgeous. Boorman filmed this in 35 mm using Panavision anamorphic lenses, all of which gives us that super, super widescreen format. You see everything. You’re totally engulfed in Walker’s surroundings. And all of that’s captured perfectly by Lee Marvin’s presence as the film’s centerpiece. Then there’s the editing- you guys know how much I love cutaways. I love stories that weave different characters’ separate journeys together. And I love editing that goes back & forth in time. All of that is present here. It helps accelerate the story & keep things moving.  Lastly, a word on Lee Marvin. Let this be the start of a massive Lee Marvin Rabbit Hole I go down. I know nothing about this man. But this film makes me want to learn everything. What an incredibly commanding performance- his eyes say everything. His physicality is equally as impressive. The gravity of Marvin’s presence on screen just really hit me.  This movie is all I can think about.

@AuthorGFAllen If you asked people I know who's my favourite author? They would roll their eyes and all reply, Paul Auster.😀

@AlanpjamesAlan What kind of books do you usually recommend to others?

How many adults hold library cards?

@david_perell Years ago I worked the night shift, picking tapes in a data library, where a colleague and I would shout out 'Bird by Bird,' whenever we experienced a heavy workload.

Some highlights from the interview: 1) "The point is not to try harder; it's to resist life less." 2) "Reverence is about constantly asking yourself: how alive am I willing to be? It hurts to be fully alive. It means taking off some of your armor." 3) From her husband, Neil: "Everything true and beautiful can be discovered on any ten-minute walk." 4) What Anne says to her inner critic: "Thank you for keeping me alive as a child, but I won't be needing you right now. I'm in the middle of something." 5) Two rules for writing: Remove the boring stuff. Then, write the hard stuff. 6) If it sounds literary, remove it. The goal isn't to sound literary. The goal is to sound human. 7) The ABDCE formula for storytelling: Action, Background, Development, Climax, Ending. 8) "If you've survived your childhood, you have enough to write about for the rest of your life." — Flannery O'Connor 9) "Worship good editors. They save you from yourself, from your blind spots, and from your weird little habits that you think are charming but actually are not." 10) The first thing she says at all her writing workshops: "You've got to stop not writing." 11) Writing is like getting into very cold water. Once you're in, you might as well paddle around for a minute. 12) Laughter is carbonated holiness.

@nguyenhdi I have fond memories of attending a screening of The Dead, at the Whitechapel Gallery, many years ago.

Just watched "The Dead" (John Huston's film, adapted from James Joyce's short story). Deeply moving. If you're on the Criterion Channel, the film is leaving on 30/4.

@pollybirkbeck Yes, I agree it's not always easy to avoid spoilers, especially on TV.

@AlanpjamesAlan I always mean to do that but sometimes it just pops on screen before you can cover your eyes

Yet again caught “suicide” in the list of trigger warnings for a film we just watched. Why can’t they just put “SPOILER WARNING” beforehand. Grrrrrrrr

@jonwaddy Thanks, I've been trying to remember the author's name, as I saw a copy of the novel, ages ago in the library, and planned to read it sometime.

yeah this was a Great One