40 Days of Enough ... Day 16 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

I was given The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on blu-ray by Olly on the 12th December, 2013. It was an early Christmas present, one that came about because I couldn't find my copy on DVD to watch the night before we went to see The Desolation of Smaug (a film I thoroughly enjoyed).

My wife didn't intend for me to receive it 13 days before Christmas but understood my frustration / disappointment at not being able to source the DVD. Olly understood why I wanted to see the film and kindly gave me the film early, worrying as she did that I wouldn't appreciate it as part of my Christmas ... how wrong she was, it means more to me now. I have not only a good film to watch when I want (the extended version is fun) but I have a story of a wife's love and devotion to her husband, a wife I am proud to call mine.

40 Days of Enough is about understanding the connection we have with things and treasuring the sentiment that is wrapped up with them. My most precious things were given to me by my Olly or my we'ans or my parents ... mostly because of the love that is given with the 'thing'.

I might have too much stuff, as might we all ... but we can never have too much love and must not take it for granted when it is given. It is a kingly gift, like the Mithril shirt given to Bilbo, a shirt that could have bought the Shire.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 15 - Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness

I love Star Trek. I'm not a big Trekkie / Trekker ... certainly not as big as my coffee-buddy at work ... but I do love the whole Star Trek narrative, one of friendship and adventure, of interdependence and working together for the common good.

J.J.Abram's reboot of the Star Trek film franchise is unbelievable, everything I could have wanted ... I even love the lens flare!

Part of the reason I love them so much is that they are stories I can and do share with my family, we are all big fans of the reboot albeit I think Chris Pine / Jim Kirk has something to do with the devotion in my wife & girls.

When I look at the films I have in my 'collection' they all fulfil this key element - they are experiences for the whole family. I don't own many films that I wouldn't share with them ... I'm not about that. 40 Days of Enough is about knowing the true value of something, the value that comes from a shared, meaningful experience.

Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness are films I've seen in the cinema with my family, multiple times in the case of Star Trek ... and they made perfect sense to own on blu-ray ... so we can relive our share experience.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 14 - Batman Begins & The Dark Knight

I am a huge fan of Christopher Nolan's version of Batman and found these blu-rays in a local charity shop for £2 each. When I saw them I promptly bought them, expressing my delight to the shop manager as I did so.

I am proud to support charities through their shops. I consume a lot of media from them, probably too much. I have books that I've 'found' that I've never read, whilst this is unfortunate I know I've done my bit by donating. I don't want these films to suffer a similar fate and intend on watching them with my family  as soon as I can.

I guess one person's rubbish is another person's treasure ... but that doesn't mean I need to overfill my house with stuff I'll never use. The whole 40 Days of Enough thing is about appreciating what I have and not always looking for more, even if it is for a good cause.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 13 - Blade Runner 30th Anniversary boxset

I've spoken about the Blade Runner soundtrack ... and thought I'd mention the boxset I purchased at the same time. It is the pride of my collection, even though my personal favourite version of Blade Runner is the original European Theatrical release ... I like the voice-over, if you must know.

This artefact is something special ... its more than just the films but the whole thing, the whole artefact, that means something to me. It was bought with the proceeds of a special recognition award, received from my employer, and I've kept it together, resisting the temptation to frame the cards or the still, or use the tin as a piece box - something I would love to do but can't.

In today's digital age, the artefact has never been more important. Kindles and iPads have or will rid us of the 'pulp' books and films ... the stuff we'll read or watch once and then forget about ... but they will never rid us of the content we dearly treasure and obsess about, the stuff we want to keep and pass down to our children. Savvy content-creators understand this and look to provide the best version they can, or at least provide something special, something that will last. This boxset is such a 'thing', and it is something I am grateful to own and one day pass on.

Tx

Loving ... the video for "Storm Petrel" by David Lawrie

This is a real treat!

David Lawrie has released a video for the title track of his most recent EP “Storm Petrel” ... an EP I described as:

"a worthwhile listening experience … one that stirred the heart whilst entertaining the mind with vivid word-pictures. I could quite happily listen to the music on its own … the instrumentation contained within being something of wonder. However, with the addition of Lawrie’s vocals, something beautiful is formed … something magical and unique … something it is hard not to love."

This Is Not A Scene

Lawrie recently teamed up with animator Stas Shch (Stas3dArt) to create something truly beautiful and utterly inspiring ... the video for "Storm Petrel" maintains the simple performance element of his previous video, “Feline”, whilst enveloping it in a wild 3D world where origami skyscrapers grow like trees, sound looks like neon and catastrophic tidal waves are made from particles of light.

Enjoy the video ... and if you like what you here, please support Lawrie by buying his music.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 12 - The Lord of the Rings trilogy, extended editions

Fellowship of the Ring was the first blu-ray I bought ... purchased with birthday money in 2012 along with my LG blu-ray player. I am a HUGE LOTRs fan and I particularly love Peter Jackson's vision of Middle-Earth. I have the extended versions on DVD and, well, they've been over-played. I needed to replace them and used this as an excuse to buy an inexpensive LG blu-ray player.

There is something special about these films, something I cherish. They are precious to me ... and to have them on blu-ray is a real pleasure.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 11 - "Hugo"

Martin Scorsese's Hugo is a marvellous film and one of my favourites. I bought it on blu-ray to make up a '3 for £20' deal ... with The Two Towers & Return of the King ... late in 2012.

I had rented it from my local library and had thoroughly enjoyed  it with my family ... so much so I received the soundtrack for my Christmas in 2012.

It is a masterpiece, one that has been sorely overlooked by so many people. There is nothing offensive about it to warrant it being ignored, other than it being a bit slow in places. It looks stunning and features some great acting talent ... such as Ben Kingsley, Sacha Baron Cohen, Ray Winstone, Christopher Lee, Frances de la Tour, the late Richard Griffiths and Jude Law.

I love this film so much that it was the only choice when I was asked to host a film night at my church ... as I said, there is nothing offensive about it, it is a lovely yarn that is suitable for all ages ... and all ages enjoyed it on the night.

I was never sold on blu-ray until I watched Hugo ... it is for blu-ray what The Matrix was for DVD ... and when I watched it I was convinced.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 10 - "Olias of Sunhillow"

I have "Olias of Sunhillow" by Jon Anderson on both LP and CD. The CD came first ... bought with Christmas money between Christmas and Hogmanay, 2013; The LP came later ... picked up for less than the CD in Vinyl Villains in Edinburgh recently.

I know this goes against what I was saying yesterday ... and it does seem rather crazy to own both versions ... but. in my defence, I love this album so much. It is a wonderful progressive expression with some seriously great synths ... it sounds great on my hi-fi or in the car.

What's more ... I love the packaging of the LP. The artwork on the CD is a poor reflection of the LP ... it is really bad, in fact. Holding the LP cover and examining it is a real pleasure ... one that we lose with plastic CD covers (not so much card sleeves).

'40 Days of Enough' is about appreciating what you have. Collecting vinyl, in a perverse way, is too ... it is about the albums that are so special that you want (but not need) them on vinyl.

My intention with record hunting is to find albums that I don't have ... but every-so-often an album will be so good I'll grab a second copy. I guess that's the power of great music.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 9 - "Blade Runner"

The soundtrack for "Blade Runner" by Vangelis is possibly my favourite album of all-time. I picked this particular copy up in 2007 when I was given a special recognition award at my work. I used the award to buy the 5-disc special edition DVD of the film, this 3-disc edition of the soundtrack and "Lifeforms" by Tom Middleton.

I am something of a Blade Runner nut ... and a huge Vangelis fan ... and I want the film on Blu-Ray and the album on vinyl. I want but certainly don't need.

I guess that's the point of '40 Days of Enough' is to remind myself of what I have ... and separate my wants from my needs like the chaff from the wheat.

Materialism doesn't just tell us we need MORE ... it tells us we need MORE of what we already have. This is something I need to fight against. I recently caught myself buying an album from Poundland (for £1) that I knew I had ... just because I didn't know where it was. It was cheaper to own a second copy than to spend the time looking for my original. That is nuts! It is a waste of money and a waste of space.

We don't need more until we know what we currently have.

Tx

40 Days of Enough ... Day 8 - "Takk..."

I picked up my copy of "Takk..." by Sigur Rós on CD from HMV in East Kilbride. I bought it in one of their sales for a fiver long after it was released.

"Hoppipolla", the third track, is one of my all-time favourite pieces of music and it still has the power to transform me into a transdimensional space goat even after it got over-exposed on British TV. I had the privilege of seeing them live in Glasgow in 2008 and "Hoppipolla" sounds even better live with fans attempting to singalong.

Sigur Rós are one of the few bands that I share with Olly ... we try to singalong ourselves ... and snigger together when Jonsi sings a word that sounds funny in English: one song in particular sounds like he is singing "urinal". Its one of those 'you have to be there' moments.

"Takk..." by Sigur Rós is my favourite album of theirs ... and possibly one of my personal top ten albums. It is that good.

Tx