Sunday, April 14, 2002

Whim
n. 1. an odd or fanciful notion; a freakish or capricious fancy or desire. 2. capricious humour; to be swayed by whim.

Capricious
adj. from Caprice n. a sudden change of mind wwithout apparent or adequate motive; whim.

Such is my nature.

This weekend I have annoyed Tyson and Olivia for not going to see the pub band last night, and today I got a phone call from Mike, annoyed with good reason, for suggesting we see Panic Room this afternoon instead of A Beautiful Mind, which I could take or leave.

Waking to the sound of rain on the balcony outside my window and the thick grey curtain of clouds with little chance of clearing up, I decided this morning that it was a day to be in a cinema at least once. Back in Brisbane I would sometimes go up to Stafford City, see one movie, come out and decide to see another. I'd often go to the movies alone because 1. you don't talk to people in the cinema anyway, and 2. because I didn't have a mobile phone and trying to get people to come out at short notice never worked. When I got a phone I'd send out messages just to be polite, but I didn't know anyone who acted on whim the way I did, but I saw the films regardless. On Friday night Mike and I had agreed to see a movie today and I remember asking him whether he'd seen Gosford Park, he had and suggested A Beautiful Mind instead, I nodded, he left; I don't remember asking about Panic Room, so when I decided I'd go to the 2.45 session I sent him a message. That conflicted with plans, so in about 15 mintues I'm going to walk back to Manuka for a second visit to the celluloid alter so now we're just going to catch up over a beer and a chat, which was the reason we were getting together in the first place.

SPOILER WARNING - IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN PANIC ROOM YET, YOU MAY WANT TO SKIP THE RED TEXT

If there was a lesson in Panic Room for me it was "Do it now."; don't put off connecting that second line, don't put off recharging your phone, if someone you know has a medical condition, don't put off asking them how to help them if they need it or keeping medical supplies in a couple of different places.

I'd definately recommend this film as worthy of cinema viewing; thrillers need the dark atmosphere to get inside your head, watching the video on a bright sunny day would completely ruin that feeling. The cinematography was superb, as was the sound. The constant rain added to the claustrophobia.

I found the characters a bit annoying though. I can understand why Meg didn't stock-up the panic room with medical supplies; she didn't like the room to begin with and it was their first night in the house. However, I would've thought that the break-in crew of a security company construction guy, a hit-man and a close relative would've done a bit more contingency planning and would have at least worn ski masks just-in-case, but if you've seen the film you'll know that the 'lead' guy wasn't too bright.

Putting well-written, but annoying, characters aside, this is definately a must-see movie. It's a pity that almost every review of it I've seen has mentioned that this is the film Nicole Kidman turned down, because I think Jodie Foster is perfect for the part. I'm also glad when casting agents manage to find someone who looks like the lead for the part of the child, and someone who could act. I can't wait for this to come out for home purchase, and for another cold wet night to come along to watch it again.



Posted by Dean @ 4/14/2002 05:47:00 pm

...Survey says...

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