The Tree of Strife

Terrence Malick’s latest film has proved to be nothing if not divisive. I had an interesting conversation with a drunk man in a Pharaoh’s costume about this very thing one night. We both very loosely agreed that parts of it were good; we just couldn’t agree on which parts.

I’m all for experimentation in film. I love it. But Malick doesn’t do anything new. Sure, a lot of it is surreal, or semi-real. But it’s all been done before. There was one shot in the whole film that made me lose my breath a little; the flock of pigeons flying in the city. It sounds dicky when I explain it like that, but it is a truly beautiful sequence. I loved the early ‘beginning of time’ sequence. But then we got to the dinosaurs. Oh the dinosaurs. I was on his side up until then. I was willing to indulge him. Next time however, it will be the naughty corner.

I have heard critiques of critiques (suitably po-mo) which say that people who don’t like it just don’t ‘get’ it, that they need more patience or a more thorough ability to wank. I don’t think that is fair. It is not about being smart enough to understand the film or the director’s intention. Just because something is surreal doesn’t mean it is beyond understanding or beyond critique.

For Malick’s benefit though, the scenes with the family were incredible. The actors who played the sons and Brad Pitt as the Dad did a fantastic job. I liked that it wasn’t linear; it was like a small insight into the life of this family that you dipped into and left. Nevertheless, you left it feeling something for them, wondering about what happened to them for the rest of their lives. It was nice that there was no happily ever after type of scenario also. That is one of the first marks of a film beyond average.

I failed to see the point of the mother also. Her role was to look pretty and ethereal and be the nurturer. It would have been nice for her to have some complexity. Honestly too, by the end of it I think I would have screamed if she lovingly caressed one more person’s face. The dream-like sequence of the last half hour I thought could have been cut completely; it just looked like an ad for an insurance company.

Dear Terrence. He did try hard I think. Good on him for that. But ultimately it isn’t particularly new, the style is not unique and the surreal sequences are very clumsy. Also, it is so immense it just seems to take up your entire day. See it if you’re unemployed, elderly, or a stay-at-home-mum-or-dad. Possibly hallucinatory drugs might help.

Post May Contain Lashings of Turbans

Biting Off More Than I Can Knit

Not content with being a one-knit wonder (har har, see what I did there?), I’ve decided to start TWO new projects.

The first will revisit my dear friend the colour Yellow. This is wool from the same batch as Yellow Hat (ingeniously named, I know), and will be a birthday gift for a girl I’ve never met before. Like that’d stop me hoisting my craft on the unsuspecting mite. The thing is, I’ve heard she has quite a penchant for the 1950s and has Betty Page-black hair. I need no further information. A suitable candidate has been found; her head is mine.

In honour of her penchant, I am going to knit a vintage turban. The pattern is from Ravelry of course, and I am excited to see how well some of the others have turned out. Let’s see how well I can translate 1950s knitting language into the kind of knitting gibberish I speak.

The second project is one I’ve had in the back of my mind for a while. When my friend’s beloved grandmother passed away, my friend gave me all her grandmother’s wool because she knew that I loved to knit. From the immense stash I picked out these balls of wool.

They are going to become an Ice Cream Blanket. The colours of them side by side reminded me of displays of ice cream in those long, rectangular metal buckets.

Mint, strawberry, chocolate, vanilla; yum! I am hungry already. I thought I’d keep this as a fairly mindless knit because of the potential confuzzlement that might be wrought by the turban. I’m using this Super Easy Baby Blanket from Purl Bee as a rough guide. My motto here; when in doubt, garter stitch.

I should suggest that my friend start making babies so I can keep the wool in the family.

Tuneful Tuesday: Mad About the Girl

Once the giggles have finished when you start watching this clip, it is actually quite moving. I felt moved by his struggle by the end.

This song was in a TV show my whole family loved, called Gavin and Stacey. It was playing in a penultimate romantic scene. Never hurts the love you feel for it anyway!

This is another song that I dance madly around the house to. Madam Harvey has balls, I swear. Legendary.

This chick has some amazing dresses. I like her music very much, and I think it defies categorisation in a lot of ways.

The go-to song for every Aussie ex-pat.

FIN: Wine Vaults Hat

This is the Rylands Hat by Patricia Clift-Martin, on Ravelry of course. This is her blog here.

It isn’t a very deep hat to be honest. I thought it would be much more beret-like, with a tiny bit of slouch. None at all though! That’s okay, it’s still a beautiful textural hat. And it is just long enough to ensure the tops of my ears will be toasty. The pattern is fantastically well written though, and if you really wanted a deeper hat, you could just do another set of the pattern.

I called my version Wine Vaults obviously because of the colour. I like that this hat was made in honour of a vaulted ceiling in a Reading Room. It appeals to my sensibility. It's amazing what you can be inspired by!

Oh! And I tried the magic loop method this time, rather than my metal wire and pliers technique. It was easier than I thought. Just goes to show what you can do if you try!

Sew Accomplished

I feel very much like a sixth Miss Bennet these days. Possibly a bit pre-empted, since I’ve only just started sewing, and I can’t play the piano or do tatting or embroider and am not in the least concerned with ribbon as the proper Bennets are. But I’ve started sewing at least! And I love it! Already I’ve learnt the power of tacking (as my mother learnt the power of tacking and so passed it onto me), and I can sew and pin and cut and hem tentatively but proudly. The pattern is from Simplicity Lisette, and you can find it here.

I felt so incredibly happy and Bennet-ish while hemming my dress that I can’t wait to try my hand at more! The dress sits quite well. I'm somewhat of a conservative when it comes to dresses; this one sits just above my knee.

The darts in dresses always concern me a little. The boob darts are potentially problematic because all ladies are differently endowed. There is always a risk that the darts will end up making you look like you're wearing Madonna's conical bra underneath. This dress is more forgiving; the darts are sewn in an interesting V shape in the front, which I guess makes it architectural as well as functional.

It seems infinitely more justifiable to spend money on fabric rather than buying pre-made stuff because they are so cheap to make yourself. There is also a fairly solid guarantee that they will be original. And how lovely to be able to say proudly ‘I made it myself’! Completely egotistical of course; that is Caroline Bingley getting in the way of my modest accomplishments. At least I am and will probably always be incredibly crap at piano. And will probably never give a toss about ribbons.

The Most Awesome Rocky Road In The World

And I finally have a picture. So beautiful it is.

Tuneful Tuesday: Deliciously Over-the-Top Bollywood

I love a good Bollywood number or too, I'll admit it. My tastes are shameless. I know all the words to songs my Indian friends would groan upon hearing. The more deliriously sequinned and romantic the better. If there is copious amounts of rain, all the better. If there are cameos by famous actors, all the better. If there are multiple wardrobe changes, all the better. Here are a couple of my most recent favourites. Perhaps the one thing they all have in common is that each has made me dance madly around the house when no one else was home, complete with lip synching and highly emotive facial expressions.

Laung Da Lashkara from the film Patiala House. My favourite line is 'Patiala peg lagake naachunga'. Translated it means I'll drink a Patiala peg (a measure of spirits) and dance.' Funny, that's what I do too.

Jab Se Tere Naina from Saawariya. Based on a story by Dostoevsky apparently. Copious amounts of nudity, for Bollywood. Need I say more? Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the director always has lavish sets. I think the inspiration for this was Moulin Rouge.

Munni Badnaam Hui from Dabangg. The main line of the song translated means 'Munni (a girl's name) has a bad reputation, because of you darling.' A saucy number it is. Also, the actress in this is dancing to this saucy song with her brother-in-law, the actor in the police uniform. More than a little creepy.

Barso Re from Guru. Aishwarya is actually tolerable in this clip. She's stunning of course, that goes without saying. Just not a very good actress, in my opinion. She also does have a propensity to be in songs where she gets caught in the rain. Mind you, that seems to be a fairly common plot point. Not that I mind. I love rain. And this one also has goats!

Last but not least, Dhoom Taana from Om Shanti Om. Fantastic film, one of the first that was somewhat self-reflexive about the film industry. All the actors that are in this film are from old classic films, and all the costume changes are also homages to these old films. I think the actors were done by blue screen or some fancy similar way. Too lovely it is. Especially the first guy, the topless one with the big silver chain around his neck. I <3 Sunil Dutt.

To Eat, Perchance To Knit

While glancing through my mother’s magazines recently, I came across this beauty on the cover of Australian Gourmet Traveller.

The recipe is on the website, and sure at first glance (glance? More like first rapturous gaze), all you really see is the dark denseness of that chocolate tart. Denseness in a man: very bad unless he’s very handsome; denseness in a chocolate tart: the realm of true holiness.

But then look at the colour of those glorious quinces! After wiping the drool off my chin, I thought how fantastic it would be to knit something in that delicious quince-y colour. I’m sure there is wool out there somewhere with that colour.

Then I unearthed a heap of other things in different colours I’d love to knit with. I’m sure bees experience similar feelings when faced with riotously coloured flowers.

Got to love the orange penguins! The simple design and that bright orange colour. Marketing genius! Well clearly I fall for it anyway....

This Kookaburra was hunting for worms when he spied me admiring his feathers. I love his stripy tail of course, but that beautiful colour change in his body is beautiful too- powder blue and chocolate brown!

Pink would not be my first choice for wool, but this pink has balls. This pink is not to be messed with.

Aaah, marigolds. Divine!