Semi-god

"Beautiful Burnout" (Sydney Festival) @ Seymour Centre with PB

A promising young boxer's journey, paralleled by that of his doting, worrying mother. All of the other living, breathing stories of could-be and never-was from his gym. No-nonsense dialogue delivered in no-nonsense Scottish accents. Dance sequences in which exercises, boxing and the distinctive motions of the referee became steps. Thumping Underworld soundtrack. Interesting use of and interaction with background visuals. Humour and pathos and tragedy. Life in the square circle.


"The Darkness II" launch/Insert Coin(s) retro night @ Oxford Art Factory with strangers half my age

Old-school records on the turntable. A line of "T/D/II" stations in demo mode, giving us a taste of "quad wielding". Twenty-plus classic arcade machines set to "free play"; some dedicated, some multi-game. (Ever seen "Gauntlet II" in a two-on-one-side cocktail cabinet?) Struggling with a sticking joystick as I relearnt the patterns on "1942", "Gyruss" and "Xevious". Free beer for those of us with sparkly VIP bracelets. Sweet green relish on my American-style hotdogs. An alcoholic ice-cream drink I swore I wasn't gonna have, but bloody loved. "Skyrim" cosplayer, Deadmau5 impersonator. Alas, I could only spare two hours and had to leave before the graffiti artists hit the stage.


Director John Landis speaking in "SFX #217":

"There's still a place for monsters. We live in conservative and more reactionary times. It's one of the reasons I think zombies are so popular now. They're the monster of the 21st century, because they represent - aside from the obvious things, like illness, decay and age - anarchy, chaos and loss of social order."