- atque, ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant. – Tacitus
They made a desert and called it peace
Caught Mr. Holmes recently. Just when you thought there was no new twist on Sherlock Holmes, along comes Ian McKellen and Laura Linney with a wonderful new take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective.
If there is any justice in Hollywood, both will get Oscar nominations for their performances.
McKellen portrays Holmes in many ages – a remarkable feat. Lovely story and some great performances.
Give yourself a treat this weekend. Go see it!
ipsa scientia potestas est (Knowledge is power – Frances Bacon)
while it’s good to see South Carolina legislators voted to remove the Confederate flag from in front of the State House, I wonder if it will be as easy to cleanse the deeply-rooted racism that led a young man to massacre 9 black worshippers in the African Episcopal church in Charleston recently.
Until they implement meaningful gun control laws and until they overhaul mental health services, I fear the removal of the flag will be an empty gesture.
Just took in Helen Mirren in The Audience as part of the Cineplex Live from The National Theatre in London.
What a wonderful performance. This was the original version of the stage show. Mirren is currently starring in it in New York.
She recreates what it might have beem like to listen in on the Queen’s weekly audiences with her Prime Ministers- from Winston Churchill to .David Cameron.
It’s witty and poignant and very perceptive. it gives you a glimpse of politics from an oddly non-political point of view. Who would ever guess that socialist Harold Wilson, the quiet Oxford don from grimly working class Huddersfield, was her favourite PM. Yet she asked her to invite her to tea at number 10.
or was James Callaghan her favourite.
one thing’s for sure. It wasn’t Maggie Thatcher.
You get the feeling Mirren has come to admire the Queen. In the interview after the show she talks about how she has studied her speech and her mannerisms in order to portray the Queen accurately.
Cineplex is doing a great job with theatre and opera “live.” They’re putting on Last Night of The Proms live from the Royal Albert Hall on Sept. 12.
melior tutiorque est certa pax quam sperata victoria. (Livy)
Better and safer is certain peace than hoped for victory
We gain an extra second today, as our calendar catches up with the Earth’s rotation. In 1752, however, there was a major calendar shift in Britain, as England and other parts of Western Europe moved from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian one we now follow. Back then, they skipped 11 days. They went to bed on September 2 and woke up on September 14. Hmm. All without a trip to the LCBO or mind-altering drugs!
