Cowboys and Aliens

I went into this movie expecting a lot and for once I received what I hoped for. It makes a nice change from the movies I have high hopes for to under-deliver on their potential. Of course, the movie couldn’t start with the confrontation of the Cowboys and Aliens right away and rather had to build up to it and I thought that in these beginning moments that the movie would have been a good one if there were no Aliens in it either.

*SPOILER ALERT*

The characters were also stereotypical and some of the action was predictable but it was enjoyable. The standard Western archetypes were in the movie being the bandit who has turned his back on his gang and is trying to live the good life (or was until the Aliens arrived), the powerful cattle baron, the American Indian servant who loves his boss. But the actors playing these roles did enough with the characters to make you like them.

The Aliens were kept “secret” and parts hidden until the appropriate time when one corners a young boy. It was here where I felt there was a bit of a break in that the alien didn’t attack the boy but rather “felt” his face with a pair of secret hands trying to understand the boy. This might have paid off if the alien was shown to be in opposition to the rest of its cohorts, but this is never explored and all the aliens encountered later were rather bloodthirsty in their dealings with the cowboys.

The humans were shown in great detail with all of our petty hates toward each other with American Indians and Bandits coming into the story later to assist the cowboys against the aliens. This was probably handled better as I believe it highlighted the animosity between the people in the time period. There was a barge which was never explained how it got to where it was (some critics of Lost would be critical because it was a question never answered) but it wasn’t needed for the story.

The moment Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) found the alien spaceship I couldn’t help but think of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series and was waiting for the Crimson King to appear on the ship’s balcony.

Overall, it was a good movie which I enjoyed thoroughly.

I Feel Sorry For The All Blacks

I am a rabid Springbok fan but I have to admit that I feel sorry for the All Black rugby players. These rugby players carry with them the hopes of a whole nation to overturn a 24 year drought in the World Cup. They have come so close so many times only to fall short each and every time. New Zealand dominates the periods between World Cups only to fall short at the big event.

The World Cup is being held in New Zealand this year (quite possibly for the last time EVER), so it would be the perfect time for them to win the World Cup. Every team is a different proposition in their home country and the All Blacks are no different. The only question is whether they can handle to pressure heaped onto their shoulders. The pressure would have only become more after the loss on Saturday. The loss means that they go into the World Cup on the back of two losses and surely people must be starting to question whether they have the ability to be able to win it this year.

I will reiterate that they will be a different team at home but they have never had the kind of pressure they will have on their shoulders while playing a game at home. I can’t help but wonder how the All Blacks will react if a must-win match when they’re eight to ten points down. Will they try to throw miracle passes to try and breach defences. If so, there is a good chance they’ll pass an intercept try and then it’ll be good night nurse.

Like I said, I feel sorry for the All Blacks.

Stuck between Drafts

Who would have thought that I would be stuck in the middle of spreadsheets while trying to finish my novel?

I certainly didn’t see this coming.

I have finally finished my reread of Pecan Hill and I can say that it is heinous. Maybe I should view it as a feather in my cap that I can recognise how bad the writing is, but it’s incredibly cringeworthy. You could say it was one of those situations where you’re trying to find what’s wrong with your project and the list of what is right is shorter.

The positive to take out of the situation is that I know what I have to do to fix the manuscript. I only have to work my way down the list, fixing everything as I go down and it should be presentable at the end of the day. Of course, when I’ve finished going down the list, it’ll be time to read through the manuscript again and find out what’s wrong with the new draft and then fix that. I wouldn’t say it’s a thankless task, because this is what I enjoy. Writing. Besides it’s supposed to be easier to fix a page than it is to fill a blank page.

My problem is that Pecan Hill was my discovery written manuscript. Now, after the dust has settled and I’ve pulled myself through the finished draft I can see that I’m going to have to sit down and make sure everything is there. I call it ‘planning on the backend’. And it’s at this point where I’m now “stuck” (I’m not really stuck I’m making progress but I’m not writing). I am going through the manuscript and making a detailed scene-by-scene outline of what’s already there. When I’m done with this little task I’m going to have to see what I’m missing in the manuscript and where it should go and then insert new scenes to make sure I cover all my bases.

Once I’ve finished with these spreadsheets I can finally go back and do some writing. Although the writing won’t be too much (hopefully). Then it’ll be the editing phase.

I can’t help but think it might have been easier if I had sat down before I had written the project and done a scene-by-scene outline. It would shorten my current phase by half. Not to mention, it would have cut out those times when I was wondering what should come next.

My next project (maybe all of them in my future) will have a HEAVY planning element in the beginning.

Ban the Haka?

The 2011 Rugby World Cup is a mere 27 days away (at the time of writing) and excitement levels are building. People in the North might like you to believe that teams like England and France have a chance of actually winning it this time around but let’s be honest: there are only three teams capable of lifting the William Web Ellis trophy on 22 October 2011 in Auckland, New Zealand and that’s the Tri-Nations countries of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

The SANZAR deal has provided South Africa and Australia the opportunity of regularly playing in New Zealand for the last 15 years. Both teams know how to play in the Land of the Long White Cloud and win there.  Northern Hemisphere teams have a torrid time of it down in the Antipodes. South Africa has beaten New Zealand (the All Blacks) in New Zealand in 2008 and 2009. What are the chances of the Boks pulling off another infamous victory?

But this isn’t about the World Cup (yet), this is about the suggestion of ex-Wallaby Greg Martin to ban the All Blacks haka (pictured right). His reasoning is that it provides the All Blacks with physical superiority because of the war dance. I don’t believe for one instant it provides them with a physical advantage. My belief is that it provides the ABs with a psychological advantage over their opponents. Especially since rulings which started last year that teams are not allowed to do anything else other than simply stand and watch the haka. Opposition teams who have turned their backs on the haka have been fined for their disrespect.

This smacks of favouritism in my eyes. Altering rule books to allow one team to have to face a challenge in a certain way is an abuse of power [Psst, the person who passed such judgement is the head of referees, one New Zealander named Paddy O’Brien]. Conspiracy theory? Maybe.

Under the current “legislation”, the Springboks facing down of the Haka at the 1995 World Cup Final as a team while the ABs performed the war dance would have been fined.

Do I agree with Mr Martin?

No.

BUT, I believe that if the haka is allowed then every team facing it should be allowed to face it as they wish, even if it means the Scots wearing kilts and mooning the ABs at the end.

The ruling to allow the haka and favour one team over all others is pure discrimination.