Brazilian Surfer is a Contender for World Record – Biggest Wave Surfed

Posted on January 7, 2014 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

28 October 2013 saw one of the largest swells of the year at Praia do Norte, Nazaré. In this video witness spectacular surfing and a possible world record for the biggest wave ridden by Brazilian surfer Carlos Burle.

This video was shot at the Nazaré ‘North Canyon’ and shows a selection of big waves, with Burle’s record contender seen at the end. It was a day of high drama as legendary Brazilian surfer Maya Gabeira nearly drowned, only to be rescued by Carlos Burle, who then went on to ride one of the biggest waves ever seen – possibly even topping the magical 100 feet.

“It was luck. We never know when we will be catching the wave. I still hadn’t surfed any wave and everyone had already had their rides. Maya almost died. For me, it was a big adrenaline moment to get back there after what happened”, reveals Carlos Burle.

Has Carlos Burle beaten McNamara’s largest wave record? May be someone out there can help us out.

Tagged with: biggest wave, Carlos Burle, Maya Gabeira, Nazaré, portugal, surfing
Posted in Sport and Adventure

Comedy and the Ages. Lenny Bruce, Charles Bukowski and Hunter S Thompson

Posted on January 7, 2014 by observationblogger — 11 Comments

George Carlin himself once put it: “Lenny Bruce opened the doors for all the guys like me.”

Last night I watched the sobering documentary on the infamous American comedian Lenny Bruce called, Swear to tell the truth. It was disturbing to see him persecuted and harassed by the police and judicial system in the US because of his anti Catholic rhetoric.

It occurred to me after watching a lot of Lenny’s material here and on you tube that ‘comedy’ seems only truly savored in the era it is performed. Lenny’s material was undoubtedly cutting edge for its time, but I didn’t find it hilarious or particularly poignant. Comedy in general doesn’t seem to age well unless there is a personal connection to the artist and era it was communicated. I even noticed my favorite sit com ‘Seinfeld’ is beginning to age as its social commentary is becoming less and less ‘current’. For example, Stanley Kubrick’s classic, Dr Strangelove is considered one of the greatest comedies / satires about the cold war, yet if you didn’t live with the threat of nuclear war in the 60s it may be difficult to appreciate its ingenuity.

Recently I watched the documentary about the German born American writer Charles Bukowski – Born Into This. Bukowski was a LA based novelist, poet and social commentator, who changed the way people thought about writing. Like Lenny with comedy, Bukowski was a major instigator of change in the literary world reflecting what many people were thinking, but wouldn’t dare write about.

Wikipedia states, ‘His work addresses the ordinary lives of poor Americans, the act of writing, alcohol, relationships with women, and the drudgery of work. Bukowski wrote thousands of poems, hundreds of short stories and six novels, eventually publishing over sixty books. The FBI kept a file on him as a result of his column, Notes of a Dirty Old Man, in the LA underground newspaper Open City.’ Read more here.

Bukowski wrote in his novel Women,“I like to change liquor stores frequently because the clerks got to know your habits if you went in night and day and bought huge quantities. I could feel them wondering why I wasn’t dead yet and it made me uncomfortable. They probably weren’t thinking any such thing, but then a man gets paranoid when he has 300 hangovers a year.” See more quotes from ‘Women’ here.

8 count

By Charles Bukowski

from my bed
I watch
3 birds
on a telephone
wire.

one flies
off.
then
another.

one is left,
then
it too
is gone.

my typewriter is
tombstone
still.

and I am
reduced to bird
watching.

just thought I’d
let you
know,
fucker.

“No sympathy for the devil; keep that in mind. Buy the ticket, take the ride…and if it occasionally gets a little heavier than what you had in mind, well…maybe chalk it off to forced conscious expansion: Tune in, freak out, get beaten.”
― Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

I recently read the undisputed king of rollicking good times Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S Thompson, which is undoubtedly one of my favorite books. This hasn’t aged to me at all. The rhythm of the book is unmatched. I read this classic in just two sittings. I am loathed to see the movie since I have these vivid images in my head of what I think the story is. I don’t want to ruin that. The mastery of wordsmanship in this book cannot be faithfully replicated on screen. It’s impossible. Words speak volumes in our minds over mere vision and portrayal.

Tagged with: Born Into This, Charles Bukowski, Dr Strangelove, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Hunter S Thompson, Lenny, Lenny Bruce, Notes of a Dirty Old Man, Swear to tell the truth, Women
Posted in Movies and TV, Reading, Reflections

Winter Light (1963) – Ingmar Bergman

Posted on January 4, 2014 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

Marta Lundberg, an atheist local school teacher sits and laments at the church pew because she is deeply in love with a pastor whose faith in God, himself and Marta is dwindling into an existential nothingness. At the point of her absolute utter despair she is confronted by Satan who takes on the appearance of the church organist. This is her Garden of Gethsemane.

Welcome to Life on Earth.

IMDB Storyline: On a cold winter’s Sunday, the pastor of a small rural church (Tomas Ericsson) performs service for a tiny congregation; though he is suffering from a cold and a severe crisis of faith. After the service, he attempts to console a fisherman (Jonas Persson) who is tormented by anxiety, but Tomas can only speak about his own troubled relationship with God. A school teacher (Maerta Lundberg) offers Tomas her love as consolation for his loss of faith. But Tomas resists her love as desperately as she offers it to him. This is the second in Bergman’s trilogy of films dealing with man’s relationship with God

From the very first scene, I was pulled into this melancholic and provocative tour de force of art-house cinema. It is directed with such sublime sensibility and intimacy. The realism is extraordinary; few if any other movies I have seen are so authentically delivered. Many reviews remarked how it is steeped in religious connotations, but I found its themes more closer resembling those of ‘Faith’. Not just faith in God, but faith in oneself, faith in one’s partner, faith in what it means to be human. Winter Light challenges us to reflect on our own lives, our very existence, essentially what it means ‘to be’. For me, it didn’t require multiple viewings to fully appreciate this ‘Tower of Movie’. I got why Bergman said:

“I think I have made just one picture that I really like, and that is Winter Light…Everything is exactly as I wanted to have it, in every second of this picture.”
– Ingmar Bergman from Ingmar Bergman Directs by John Simon 1972.

Despite arriving to this movie without any prior knowledge of the plot, as the last scene faded to black I gasped in awe. Winter Light isn’t really a movie per se, it’s best described as a vision, a vision so pure and finessed to screen that its almost like walking into someone else’s dream. The plot, multilayered symbolism and striking metaphors to the events of ‘The Passion of Christ’ and human suffering could be discussed at infinite length. If you revel in films that are challenging, thought-provoking and stimulating you might also find yourself living in this movie.

More from Ingmar Bergman on Winter Light:

‘The film is closely connected with a particular piece of music: Stravinski’s A Psalm Symphony. I heard it on the radio one morning during Easter, and it struck me I’d like to make a film about a solitary church on the plains of Uppland. Someone goes into the church, locks himself in, goes up to the altar, and says: ‘God, I’m staying here until in one way or another You’ve proved to me You exist. This is going to be the end either of You or of me!’ Originally the film was to have been about the days and nights lived through by this solitary person in the locked church, getting hungrier and hungrier, thirstier and thirstier, more and more expectant, more and more filled with his own experiences, his visions, his dreams, mixing up dream and reality, while he’s involved in this strange, shadowy wrestling match with God.
We were staying out on Toro, in the Stockholm archipelago. It was the first summer I’d had the sea all around me. I wandered about on the shore and went indoors and wrote, and went out again. The drama turned into something else; into something altogether tangible, something perfectly real, elementary and self-evident.
The film is based on something I’d actually experienced. Something a clergyman up in Dalarna told me: the story of the suicide, the fisherman Persson. One day the clergyman had tried to talk to him; the next, Persson had hanged himself. For the clergyman it was a personal catastrophe.’

Tagged with: Ingmar Bergman, winter light
Posted in Movies and TV, Reflections

‘Love and Theft’ – American Hustle (2013)

Posted on December 31, 2013 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

David Russell lent heavily from Martin Scorsese’s best crime dramas to make American Hustle. The narratives, music and editing are an almost direct homage to Scorsese’s 90’s work particularly Casino. Even De Niro makes a key entrance wearing the same ginormous glasses he did in Casino. Borrowing and injecting material from popular culture is not new to David Russell’s work. In Silver Linings Playbook his script is soaked with banter about popular books, classic literature, blatant marketing of iPods and musings about ‘cool’ music. Silver appeared almost in part a satire or social commentary about materialism and consumer obsession.

American Hustle like Silver demonstrates Russell’s passion for heightening the senses regarding materialism and social trends. Its perverse saturation of 1970’s references to reinforce the era it is set borders on the satirical. We are barraged with the cliched 1970’s music, John Travolta’s dancing, the uncanny focus on men and women’s hair styles, cleavage, drugs, money, quirkiness and the list goes on. But how much of it feels authentic? I’ll give him his due because he did add Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, but I was unable to ascertain how it related to what I was watching.

After much ham-fisting the movie eventually finds its own two feet. Unlike Silver Linings which leads to a squeamish Strictly Ballroom sequence, American Hustle does have some great plot twists worth waiting for. It becomes its own beast as it were. Christian Bale as always is exceptional and the sassy Amy Adams is stellar. There are a lot of comical undertones. They apparently did lots of improvisation which undoubtedly enhanced its spontaneous appeal. I admired Russell’s The Fighter because of it’s authenticity and sincerity, but I detested Silver Linings Playbook for being the exact opposite. American Hustle seems to breach the two.

Tagged with: American Hustle, Amy Adams, Casino, Goodfellas, Jordan Belfort, Martin Scorsese, Silver Linings Playbook, Wolf of Wall Street
Posted in Movies and TV

Ingmar Bergman and Wild Strawberries (1957)

Posted on December 28, 2013 by observationblogger — 2 Comments

Many years ago, I had the audacity to create a list of my 100 favourite movies on IMDB without having seen a single Ingmar Bergman picture. I was more or less cajoled to watch Bergman if my list was to be taken seriously. I admit I had not heard of the adored Swedish director, but enough coaxing led me to procure arguably Bergman’s ‘signature’ masterpiece The Seventh Seal (1957). The second Bergman movie I watched a few days after my Bergman initiation was Wild Strawberries. Akin to its predecessor – The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries left an indelible mark on my psyche. Thereafter I went on a Bergman binge and never looked back. Suffice to say, my top 100 movie list underwent a major shake-up.

Wild Strawberries is a day in the life of an an aging professor (Isak) who is forced to confront the emptiness of his existence. But this isn’t just an ordinary day for Isak, it’s a grandiose one in his professional life because he will receive an honorary degree. So, as he sets out in his car to attend the award ceremony, he has good reason to be proud of his professional accomplishments and simply assume the role of contented old man. However, this ‘going through the motions‘ ego trip is about to be turned on its head as the ‘expert’ professor will eventually be prescribed to assume the role of befuddled student.

This process begins when his daughter in law (exquisitely played by Ingrid Thulin) unleashes what appears to be a carefully rehearsed verbal assault on our chummy professor vividly recalling what Isak said to her and his son when they pleaded for his help. This scene is pivotal to what lay ahead on Isak’s journey. While on this day he will be at the behest of his pervasive dreams, the candidness of his family, and the intrusion of youthful exuberance; fundamentally he will be confronted with the stark reality of his past and be at its mercy to internalize it. It will be the profound realization that life is much more than professional achievement and status and that the effect he has on others is the most valuable currency there is in life.

It is the wild strawberries of life which evokes such sentiment and longing in this man. Isak at last questions what it really is to be human; something he has been devoid of doing his whole life. For me at least, this movie was a truly transformative viewing experience which no essay or review can do it justice. The only reviews I have seen which come close to providing worthy synopses of Ingmar Bergman movies are The Breaking Down Bergman series.

David, the creator of the Breaking Down Bergman series told me on IMDB about how their project got started:

“My friend Sonia is a relatively new cinemagoer (at least to the degree she is now…which is several movies a week), and so we decided to embark on a “project.” At first, the plan was simply for us to watch all of the films of a director who had died, observing their growth — or lack thereof — throughout their career.
It was initially intended to just be for ourselves, but after the first movie Sonia pulled out her laptop and started to take notes. From there we had about five films of notes and nothing to do with them. Sonia suggested that we write short essays on each movie, but I didn’t see the point. I figured they’d only be plagiarized, at best, or ignored, at worst. So instead we decided to make some YouTube videos, which theoretically are more interesting and will interest a wider group of people.
A little bit of our early explanation and intentions can be found in our first video:

The series has certainly grown beyond our initial intentions, from meeting the Demon Theater folks to interviewing Liv Ullmann, so I have to say this journey has been quite unpredictable and pretty exciting for us.”

Tagged with: Ingmar Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries
Posted in Movies and TV, Reflections

Results – Favourite Bob Dylan Songs as voted by ‘Expecting Rain’ Bob Dylan Discussion Community

Posted on December 25, 2013 by observationblogger — 26 Comments

Watch the video below ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ video when you consider Allen Ginsberg’s comments – ‘Dylan had become a column of air, so to speak, at certain moments, where his total physical and mental focus was this single breath coming out of his body. He had found a way in public to be almost like a shaman, with all of his intelligence and consciousness focused on his breath”

——————————————————————————————————-

This time last year I conducted a survey in the Expecting Rain (ER) Bob Dylan discussion forum about what participants felt were their 10 favourite Bob Dylan songs.

Barton Fink (Coen Brothers) – A Screenplay Masterpiece

Posted on December 24, 2013 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

Such is the allure of watching engrossing and dynamic characters like those in Barton Fink, the Coen Brothers 1991 cinematic gem, that if I had my time all over again I would focus every ounce of my efforts on screenwriting. IMDB states, Barton Fink is ‘a renowned New York playwright is enticed to California to write for the movies and discovers the hellish truth of Hollywood‘. It may be little a dark for some tastes, but as black comedy goes this is the blackest and the most biting there is.

This morning, I finished viewing Barton for the second time and I recognised how the Coen Brothers’ writing in this picture is mostly that of irony, like Kaufman in Adaptation. They seem to be writing mainly about themselves in the act of writing, with the fears, trappings, conjecture and allurement of their art in Hollywood and making us ponder questions about our existence (while incorporating 1940’s dialogue no less). Some have even compared this work to a Bergman or Fellini of the 90’s. It lacks an underlying morality and an absence of good and bad, which gives the viewer a feeling that it could go anywhere.

Barton Fink 1

John Goodman who appears in many Coen Brothers movies, most notably The Big Lebowsky and more recently Inside Llewyn Davis is a tour de force in Barton Fink and should have been nominated for an Academy award.

Related links:
1. Here is a very recent interview with John Goodman on David Letterman about his latest Coen Brothers effort – Inside Llewyn Davis.
2. On an episode of Screen Bites, Jeremy, Jared, and Justin discuss the careers of Joel and Ethan Coen, as well as name their favorite and least favorite of their films here.
3. I’m A Writer! // A Review of ‘Barton Fink’ (callumvinton.wordpress.com)
4. Clear as folk > The Coen brothers’ latest film echoes the filmmakers’ 1991 flick Barton Fink. (newsreview.com)
5. The Coen brothers grow up (chicagoreader.com)

Tagged with: Barton Fink, Big Lebowski, Coen brothers, Hollywood, Inside Llewyn Davis, John Goodman
Posted in Movies and TV

East of Eden – John Steinbeck

Posted on December 12, 2013 by observationblogger — Leave a comment

East of Eden by John Steinbeck is considered one of America’s great literary classics along with his other treasured book The Grapes of Wrath. According to Steinbeck’s third wife, Steinbeck considered East of Eden his magnum opus. He further claimed: “I think everything else I have written has been, in a sense, practice for this.”

I think its reputation as one of the ‘greatest books of the 20th century’ is richly deserved. It’s an epic novel of 601 pages and my mind was swimming in the complex tapestry Steinbeck wove of these two families, namely the Tresks and the Hamiltons. A very well received screen adaptation was made of the book starring legendary protagonist of Rebel Without a Cause James Dean playing ‘Cal’. Upon being introduced to James Dean on the set, author John Steinbeck exclaimed, “Jesus Christ, he IS Cal!” Interestingly, the film only covers the latter part of the novel.

Wikipedia states, ‘The novel was originally addressed to Steinbeck’s young sons, Thom and John (then 6½ and 4½ years old, respectively). Steinbeck wanted to describe the Salinas Valley for them in detail: the sights, sounds, smells, and colors.’ I can attest to this since the book evokes such a wondrous feel of the places and the period it was set. A truly remarkable novel.

Related Articles:
1. John Steinbeck – A California Writer (napavalleywriters.net)
2. We Are All Cains Who Mayest: East of Eden (emilyjanuary.wordpress.com)

Posted in Reading

This Blog

Posted on December 10, 2013 by observationblogger — 27 Comments

Welcome and thank you for visiting my site. My name is Matthew and I am from Australia, but reside in Bogota, Colombia.

I have no aim or subject matter by which I decided to develop this blog. I thought I could occupy my time by writing about stuff. A journal of comings and goings, splishes and splashes of musings, none which should make the least bit difference except fill the void.

I just want ‘to be‘. I recently quoted ‘Wikipedia’ about existentialism in a book review of The Stranger by Albert Camus: ‘The most important consideration for the individual is the fact that he or she is an individual—an independently acting and responsible, conscious being (“existence”)—rather than what labels, roles, stereotypes, definitions, or other preconceived categories the individual fits (“essence”)‘.

I believe by writing this blog it is a reminder to myself – that yes I am still an individual in the existential meaning of the word. Everything else is an afterthought.

Related Articles:
1. Camus’s Stranger: Hero or Sociopath – shakemyheadhollow (Gary Gautier)
2. What is natural? Thoughts about The Stranger by Albert Camus
3. Book Report: The Stranger

Tagged with: Albert Camus, Existentialism, Jean-Paul Sartre, Stranger
Posted in About

8 count

Thank you for your response. ✨