From the brain of Pablo Cheesecake…

Just some random shit from my brain to the interweb

fashion

I am not exactly a what you would call a snappy dresser. I have my own fairly casual look that I’m comfortable with but on occasion in a fit of pique I go a bit bonkers.  (This probably explains the bright red hair, nipple ring and tattoos but the less said about that the better). My latest fashion purchase is fucking epic, not to everyone’s taste I’ll grant you but check these bad boys out.

Please note that this isn’t a photo of me modelling said jammies. I’m more of a keg that a six pack! Aren’t they fab though. Animal from the Muppets. How cool is that.

gadget show live

Mrs Cheesecake and I have got tickets to check this out at the NEC in a few weeks. Last year we missed out so I am real excited that I can attend. I love tech. I am going to be in my element. Mrs Cheesecake better nick my wallet or I am likely to go on a spending rampage. Actually I’ll probably have to hid her purse as well as she is as big a gadget freak is I am.

fantasycon 2010

Gonna get tickets to Fantasy Con 2010. This event is held in Nottingham, right on our doorstep, in September. Last year we only managed to attend one day but this year we are going for the whole thing. Again highly likely that the old wallet will take a pounding but you know what, fuck it.

kick ass & clash of the titans

I’m not sure which of these films I am most excited about. Both are now firmly on the horizon so Easter break will most definitely include more than one trip to the local multiplex. I also read recently that Tron is coming out on blu-ray. I may have to purchase that.

note to all readers

Please remember loyal Pablo Cheesecake fans that as ever there is an Easter egg in my blog. This *comprehensive* additional content is yours if only you can locate it!

 

Pablo Cheesecake vs The Third Dimension

Lets set some parameters for this blog. For starters  - I love film. All of it. Even the shit ones that no one else particularly appreciates. (I’m looking at you Rabid Grannies, Rollerblade Warriors, Blood Sucking Pharaohs in Pittsburgh etc). I’ve always kinda been of the belief that every movie deserves to be loved. Why not. People invest a lot of their time, energy and creativity in an effort to entertain the masses. Good on them I say. Long may it continue.


Recently however I have noted a worrying trend.  I’m concerned that this will effect my enjoyment of something I love dearly. What, I here you cry, could illicit such a reaction from the normally docile Mr Cheesecake? I’ll tell you, just two alphanumerics in a movie title…..3D.

Now before I continue lets get one thing straight. I don’t hate all 3D films. Avatar blew my tiny little mind. I expect Tron Legacy to do exactly the same.  The key thing about the use of 3D in both these examples as that it’s used by the directors to enhance the visual style of each film. The extra depth enhances the experience. I get that and I consider it perfectly valid.

The sort of thing I have a problem with is things like. U2 in 3D, The Jonas Brothers in fecking 3D. Why do cinema goers have to be subjected to such shite. If your interested in seeing U2 or indeed The Jonas Brothers go to a fucking concert.

I’m also worried that films are getting made in 3D just for the hell of it. I heard that the last couple of Harry Potters are in going to be in 3D. For the love of great goggly moggly WHY! The previous films didn’t require an sort of enhancement like that to hold an audiences attention so why do it now?

3D has prompted great debate at Cheesecake Towers. I am my usual unsure and slightly sceptical self while Mrs Cheesecake has embraced this new technology wholeheartedly. She does agree however that 3D is not necessary for all genres but does consider it inevitable as it’s all about the dollar dollar.

Who knows where we’ll be in a couple of years? The Chinese have a curse. “May you live in interesting times” I guess currently for movies it is just that….Interesting.

A slightly unsure Cheesecake

Watched the movie…..got the T-Shirt

Among my many and varied hobbies, all three of them, I collect t-shirts. I’ll be honest the more obscure the cultural or movie reference the more likely I am to buy. Over the years I have started to amass a reasonable collection

Now those of you that frequent my little sinkhole of cyberspace already know that I also like the silver screen *Understatement Alert*. Most of my t-shirt wardrobe does point to this fact . Check out some of the fine cotton I have below.



This first batch are all provided by the good peoples at Last Exit to Nowhere. They do fantastic work based on fictional companies that appear in film. As you can see I haven’t quite managed my first dozen yet but I am working on it slowly but surely. I will eventually own most of their catalogue I’m sure. Their t-shirts are all good quality, last well and are reasonably priced.

I don’t just do movie t-shirts though. I like to soothe the inner (and indeed outer) geek. Jinx do some splendid gaming and nerd wear for the discerning connoisseur. Behold!


Only a t-shirt inspired by one of the greatest books of all time.

Another one of my obsessions is pirates. Don’t even ask cause I can’t tell you why.  Pirate Mod have a huge collection of shirts all of them sublime.


There are a few shirts out there that I am still keen to get my grubby little mitts on. This zombie related shirt is a work of pure genius. Nothing better than a bit of swearing to upset the neighbours.


Not going to tell you where that one is from. I wants to keep it all to myself.

To finish my little ramble about all things t-shirt related. I recently saw the trailer for Tron Legacy. I had a joygasm and this forced me to purchase this gem.



Till next time
Mr C

Who Dares Wins – Another one of those retro thingees

Recently I wrote a little retrospective blog about Deep Rising. You can read it here. I have to say I enjoyed the experience. It was fun to revisit a film I hadn't seen in a while and remind myself of why I liked it in the first place. So much so that I've decided to do it again.


Who Dares Wins (known as The Final Option in the US) is an early eighties classic. In fact I’ll go further than that. I’m willing to lay down the gauntlet on this one. I don’t think there has been a more testosterone heavy movie committed to celluloid. This film just oozes action.

Lewis Collins, fresh from the TV nirvana that was The Professionals, is the hard as nails SAS Captain Peter Skellen. Deep undercover, he has to infiltrate a group of terrorists who are hiding out as part of the peace movement. The action begins with a crossbow bolt to the face and escalates to a terrific finale involving the storming of the American embassy in London. Ironically though the film is nearly thirty years old the subject matter remains pretty topical.

The rest of the cast are a veritable who’s who. Edward Woodward, Judy Davis, John Duttine (Day of the Triffids rocks), Richard Widmark, Tony Doyle. Even Ingrid Pitt gets a look in.

The score is by Get Carter supremo Roy Budd. The main theme has some crazy wacka-wacka guitars and dramatic keyboards. Music is used to great effect toward the end of the film when the siege takes place. There is a scene where Skellen runs down a corridor with the rest of the SAS team that is just perfect.

I revisit this film regularly. Now I know it ain’t for everyone. Some of the attitudes are (how can I put it politely) a trifle dated? It's ok though. We’ve all moved on. We’ve matured. We can view Who Dares Wins for exactly what it is a rock solid action flick.

One piece of advice though. Don’t watch the DVD while your ironing on a Sunday afternoon. Last time I did that I got all excited and had to go have a lie down.

Pablo Two Cheesecake Out

Solomon Kane – a Cheesecake’s view

Recently I was in London and as part of the trip had the opportunity to meet James Purefoy. He's terribly good looking, impossibly dashing and, according to Mrs Cheesecake and friends, should be renamed James Purejoy. You can read about my escapades here.

After my return from that there London I finally got the opportunity to go see his latest film - Solomon Kane. Based on the stories written by Robert E Howard the film is a tale of a man seeking redemption. Set in an a muddy 17th century England Kane is at the outset essentially a scumbag. He kills, maims and destroys whatever he can. He cares for nothing but himself.  Shockingly for such a nice chap a minion of Beelzebub turns up and explains that his soul is now damned and the Devil wants to collect. From this point on Kane tries to walk a peaceful path. He turns his back on his evil ways and tries to lead a good life. Needless to safe El Diablo is not such a push over and Kane is forced to face his demons (literally and metaphorically).



Somewhere on the net some person much wittier than I described Solomon Kane as a West Country Batman. I can see what they are getting at. The story fair smacks of Troubled Avenger. Not that this is a bad thing. Purefoy always manages to make Kane look pained when he has to resort to violence. Here is a man that wants nothing but peace but can't escape his past.

As an aside the following thought did occur to me. How old is Max Von Sydow? He seems to have made a career out of playing old men (with the exception on Ming and the Brewmeister Smith from Strange Brew. Actually if you haven't seen Strange Brew seek if out. Very odd and very funny).

Solomon Kane looks great. Its is meant to be all grungy and dark and it succeeds in spades. I think I would have liked to have seen a bit more of Jason Flemyng's character. He plays the main villain of the piece and i think he deserved a bit more screen time.



The end of the film is left wide open for a sequel and I think I would probably seek it out should one be made. Only if the following scene is used mind you. I apologise in advance to fans of Batman (1989)

[Solomon Kane dangles a thug over the side of a building]
Thug : Don't kill me! Don't kill me, man! Don't kill me! Don't kill me, man!
Solomon Kane: I'm not going to kill you. I want you to do me a favor. I want you to tell all your friends about me.
Thug : What are you?
Solomon Kane : I'm Solomon Kane. All right my lover.

Till next time

Solomon Cheesecake

Pablo Cheesecake – Random Thoughts

Normally, dear reader, I tend to use my blog to discuss film, books and at a stretch fish finger sandwiches. Today I decided that for a bit of a change I would just write a bit about stuff. Just some random odds and sods and see where I end up.

The Winter Olympics

I make no secret about the fact that I am more an Autumn\Winter kinda guy. My first vivid memory is one of snow (strange as I was born in July). This has stayed with me throughout life and I always look forward to winter. It may also explain why I like lumberjack shirts but that's not really relevant here. I think this is why I prefer the Winter Olympics to the Summer games. This time around I have been somewhat lax in my viewing (ok INCREDIBLY lax). I only managed to catch the Men’s Ice Hockey final. I was fucking ace though. The US of States vs Canadia. The third period and overtime were very exciting. Mrs Cheesecake enjoyed the game as well. Always a surprise to be caught up in a sporting event as , anyone who knows me will know, I'm not what you would describe as sporty. Portly yes, sporty no!

Blogs and Blogging

Recently I've noticed that I am reading/following far more blogs than I did before. I blame Twitter, damn your soulless black heart *shakes fist*. Though I have tried to be resistant Twitter has successfully expanded my horizons and I now follow more than a dozen blogs. Previously I followed two. The topics range from movie news to book reviews with friends blogs thrown in for good measure. I've started using Feed Demon to manage the blogs I follow. I can heartily recommend this excellent tool it allows me to categorize and view the blogs in the order I prefer.

Tea

Last year I was drinking way to much coffee. My daily caffeine intake was so high that by about 4pm I would normally have a headache. Another side effect  - I was really short tempered. I had a tendency to come home and stomp about like a bear with a sore head (if you saw me you would appreciate just how apt that description is). For about six months now I have cut right down. I still take the odd coffee but we are talking about one or two cups a month. Instead I have moved to caffeine free tea bags. You know what. I feel loads better. I think I'm a bit mellower than I was before and the afternoon headaches have disappeared.

Health

While I'm wittering about health. You may recall I wrote at the beginning of the year that I had decided to set myself a physical challenge. For two reasons (1) I could do with the exercise (2) I wanted to commit to something and see it through to completion. With that in mind I decided to cycle 500km in 2010. Two months in an I am coming up on my first milestone. By the 13th March I will reach my first 100km. I'm glad to say I am finally starting to get into the groove with this. The first month was killer but the second was starting to get easier. I suppose I should mention I'm not just cycling I and weight training as well. I train five out of every seven days. I just have to try an keep up the momentum I suppose. I have allowed for interruptions in the my regime. I figure I can allocate up to twenty days off due to unforeseen circumstance. So far I am glad to report I have only used one day.

In another health related note I got a wisdom tooth removed today. The process was a lot easier than I imagined. I am concerned that once the anaesthetic wears off it may smart a little.

In fact I don’t think I can right anymore just now.

Later peoples and remember to brush regularly

Cheesecake Out