Winter love

Despite the mass conspiracy perpetrated by local media about "severe" weather alerts and "extreme" cold, winter is behaving, well, like winter. Frigid temperatures are to be expected.

Snow in all forms is what is supposed to happen. It is also what unites us as Canadians as the definitive experience that shapes our national character.

We have true grit, a toolbox essential, from sheer endurance of the winter marathon. It informs everything we see, do, read and create. Forget hockey. We are the cuddle champions of the world because winter is our civic glue. 

Read more »

Read More

Musings on Jane

The landscape for women in Jane Austen's time bears little resemblance to contemporary society. Women had no economic power. They could not own land or exert political influence.

They were expected only to be passive and pretty.  Into this pops Elizabeth Bennet, a character that readers today adore for her wit, humour and sharp observations. Pride and Prejudice is 200 years old today and Elizabeth Bennet and her Mr. Darcy are their very own cultural construct.  The novel has inspired more adaptations than Austen could possibly have conceived. Would she have approved of the many variations on the theme?
Find a hint in her heroine's character as described early on in her celebrated novel:

" She told the story with great spirit among her friends;  for she had a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in any thing ridiculous."

That spirit has earned Austen's Elizabeth millions of kindred spirits AND an open invitation to my Fantasy Dinner Party.
( Maybe I'd seat her beside an Olympian. See who I mean here.)

But what of those celebrated adaptations? It is dizzying to comprehend the Jane blogosphere and fan fiction that is out there, not to mention the big and small screen adaptations, some good, others not so much. I won't bore you with yet another clip of Colin Firth in the billowy white shirt on the now famous BBC 1995 mini series. Or that same Colin Firth brooding about with Rene Zelllwigger in Bridget Jone's Diary. I love Colin Firth-he too is invited to sit, very close to me, at the aforementioned table. But if we want something truly fresh, it might be found,  vlog style, on the web series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, which began airing April 2012.

And if vlogs  have no appeal, then why not another big screen Pride & Prejudice spin, Austenland, now at the Sundance Film festival? 

The film is produced by Twilight author Stephanie Meyer. That is almost a reason to avoid it for yours truly except that it stars, among others, the very funny Jennifer Coolidge. 

I myself will celebrate the anniversary by going back to the source.

My girls and I plan to reread the story together, chapter by brilliant chapter, beginning tonight. Yes, I know The Bachelor is on.  What would Jane think of that show? It is, after all, just a hopped up comedy of manners. Except when it's not.  

"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.” 


Here's to another 200 years of reading Jane!.

Read More

Ang Lee: Make me feel something!

stand out: to be conspicuous, distinctive, or prominent.

The success of a film, or other collaborative art form, depends upon an assortment of elements that produce magic. It is impossible to say one element is more important than another. But real balance is elusive.What stood out when the lights went up?
Here is the second in a series of snapshots of Oscar nominated films: Ang Lee's direction of Life of Pi.

Read more »

Read More

Perfection is tricky business.

 How much of Beyoncé can the world take?  After thrilling the crowd yesterday at Obama's inauguration, the singer is about to blanket every corner of the industry.  She is set to perform the half time show at the Superbowl.  In April she begins a world tour to promote her fifth album. She recently signed a $50 million endorsement deal with Pepsi. Her daughter, now one year old, was introduced to the world via a Tumblr blog, an extension of the star's official website. In a few weeks, Beyoncé's film autobiography, bankrolled and directed by the star herself, will debut on HBO.

In the film, the singer suggests that she struggles with balancing her public and private identities. 

"I'm just as scared as anyone else," says Ms B. 

 Perhaps fear explains why she allegedly lip synced her performance yesterday, according to a U.S Marine band spokesperson. Fear about losing control may also explain why she insists on all her waking moments be filmed by a personal videographer and kept in a carefully monitored digital archive since 2005.  GQ Writer Amy Wallace, in this month's cover feature,  describes the woman she met for her interview as "Business Beyoncé, hypercomposed Beyoncé".

"It stands to reason that when a girl owns her every likeness, as Beyoncé does, it can make her even more determined to be perfect.  Beyoncé isn't just selling Beyoncé's music, of course; she's selling her iconic stature: a careful melding of the aspirational and the unattainable."

Did she look scared when she strode to the microphone and surveyed the crowd at the inauguration? 
You be the judge. 

I liked her before she married Mr. I- don't- use- the- word- bitch- anymore- since- I- had -a -daughter." 
She has great pipes and knows how to move. But show business is a beast that resists control and Beyoncé may just discover that sharing too much can be dangerous. Fascinating as it is to watch, it is extremely difficult to maintain.

Who can forget this fantastic moment four years ago? 
That was a Beyoncé for the ages.

 I hope her flame doesn't flicker too soon. 

Read More

War Witch

stand out: to be conspicuous, distinctive, or prominent.

The success of a film, or other collaborative art forms, depends upon an assortment of elements that produce magic. It is impossible to say one element is more important than another. But real balance is elusive.  What stood out when the lights went up? 

Here is the first in a series of snapshots of Oscar nominated films: Rachel Mwanza in War Witch.

Read more »

Read More

Les Misérables: A Playmobil Movie

It was 1997, dangerously close to Christmas, and I stood in front of a wall of expensive looking boxes at our neighbourhood toy store.  I was stumped. Should I buy the Victorian dollhouse for my toddler, soon to be 3? It was sturdy yet gorgeous but the price tag was hefty. Smaller than the mortgage we had just secured for our real house, our first, but still a stretch. 

Nearby, a young girl, whom I guessed to be about 9, pointed to a box of dollhouse accessories. 

"Look, Mom, there's the latest set!"
"Do you like that dollhouse?" I asked. She nodded and smiled.  

Her mom was happy to share. Her nine year old adored the thing and played with it ahead of any other toy in their home.

That was it then. I could expect 6 years of play value. Not bad. There were no buttons, batteries or flashing sirens-even better.  The girl and her mom were still trying to choose which accessory to buy as I plunked the cash down on the counter.

We didn't get to the box until late Christmas Eve. Santa put it together with some help from the IKEA curse word dictionary. There were shingles to place, buds to plant and tiny spats to adorn tinier feet. I don't recall when we went to bed but we staggered down a few hours later to see Santa's stash. The dollhouse stood in the centre of the floor with a 3 inch family and servants alongside, a Downton Abbey for miniaturists. My daughter picked up one of the figures and began to name them.

It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Read more »

Read More

Blast away the blues baby

This is how I want to be when I grow up.
Happy Saturday!

For more wild culture :
Zeitgeist 2012 
Your Tuesday Groove

Read More

Friday's Red Letter List: Sweet, madcap and ecstatic!

The dark days of winter blah are upon us.  Gray mush to meet the new year. Perfect weather for dreaming about unzipped sunshine:

Read more »

Read More

Get over yourself Oscar pundits: NOBODY GOT ROBBED!

It always amuses me to ride the wave of chatter about Oscar nominations. Behind every list of supposed snubs is a flawed premise: these trophies are due to individuals for a job well done. If that were true, there would be sunshine with every snowfall and chocolate would be ruled a food group. The Oscars are not about merit. Nobody got robbed of anything except maybe political clout. They are about campaigns for merit and winners are those who ran the best campaign. 

Read more »

Read More

Family Secrets

"Who cares about our stupid family?"

Read more »

Read More

Just how mad for Downton Abbey can you get?

Is there anyone left who hasn't seen Season 3 of Downton Abbey? Illegal downloads, friends who send tapes from Britain-it appears the merry few who gather tonight at my house for my Downton Abbey party may be the only ones left to watch tonight's season opener on PBS! 

Read more »

Read More

Book your tickets now

The cultural map of 2013 is dotted with hot spots. 
Grab your calendar, some vino and begin planning! 

Read more »

Read More

It is more fun to think of the possible

I'm lousy at making predictions and resolutions. Brutal optimism is usually at fault. It buries my visiting cynic that threatens a takeover now and then. With hope as my modus operandi, I can't possibly be relied on to tell you what will work and won't in 2013: I hope for it all to be good. 

So much for predictions. Can we change the language to say "What are your hopes for the new year?"

Read more »

Read More