Irving Penn portaits – I am ready for my close up…Mr Penn
If you are interested in photographic portraits you will want to go see Irving Penn at the National Portrait Gallery.
Penn clearly had a style all of his own and it noticeable how this style evolved over time. He started with full length portraits often in an awkward corner of a room, to later closer shots with staged artless poses: you will either love or hate the style.
However there are some very charming photos for example Spencer Tracy exuding charm and charisma; similarly Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly. Also you can remind yourself of who once was famous.
A single man (with a plan)
I went to see A single man starring Colin Firth and directed by Tom Ford somewhat reluctantly. However it was a pleasant surprise. The story concerns a bereaved academic mourning his lost lover and decides that he cannot go on and plans his suicide.
A single man has a style of its own which is very formalised and stylish, for example Firth’s face turns from grey to colour when he meets someone interesting. Julianne Moore is excellent as his best friend a washed up lush.
Some might find the film a bit too slow burning even if supremely stylish.
Fantastic flamenco festival
In case you have missed it Sadler’s Wells is holding its annual Flamenco festival during the second half of February. The festival is always a great chance to see a wide range of flamenco styles of the highest quality.
Rojas & Rodriquez and the Nuevo Ballet Espanol were excellent with fabulous costumes and great ensemble singing/dancing. For a slightly different view read the Express south.
My tips are book early as tickets go very quickly because of the quality of performers and the multibuy 20% is excellent and well handled on their website.
Every good boy deserves favour – musical madness
If you have a passing knowledge of orchestral music, and like witty word play, Every good boy deserves favour, at the National Theatre, is you. EGBDF, by conductor Andre Previn and playwright Tom Stoppard, mixes music with funny word play using musical terms.
The play, set in an Russian psychiatric hospital in the bad old days, concerns two ‘patients’ who might or might not be ‘mad’. One who is sure he can hear an orchestra and imaginatively conducts the musicians that the audience can see .
Very enjoyable and highly recommended it deals with serious issues but is also very funny.
The Pitmen Painters – miners with motivation
The Pitmen Painters, at the National Theatre, by Lee Hall is based on the book by William Feaver. This true story tells how a small group of Ashington miners in 1930s Newcastle learnt how to paint in their spare time.
They wanted to ‘know what paintings mean’ which leads them to learn to paint themselves. In the process they learn what it means to share experiences, be ‘patronised’ by the rich and have their own exhibitions.
This really enjoyable play had the audience continually laughing but also pondering the meaning of art. If you don’t understand Geordie you will struggle.
A Prophet – a prison parable
A Prophet by Jacques Audiard has been compared to the Godfather which might explain why the Barbican was packed with eager viewers.
The story of how a very young Malik (Tahar Rahim) enters a very tough French prison and by the time he leaves has becomes a gangster kingpin is certainly unusual. In the meantime we learn a bit about prison life, Corsican gangsters and how being a human chameleon can aid survival.
However I was strangely unmoved by the end of it though others have found it a great film: I prefer The Beat That My Heart Skipped.
Up in the air – Ryan learns to care?
Up in the air is a hybrid – part comedy, part tragedy, and a commentary on modern life.
Ryan (Clooney) is a corporate ‘terminator’ paid to fire staff by companies that don’t want to do it themselves. He loves his life of living out of a suitcase and his main ambition is to amass 10 million air miles.
Things change when a free-living woman comes into his life, his own company changes and his sister gets married all of which make him reflect on his own life.
A very enjoyable film that avoids glib answers and does not have an obvious ending.
A British Museum double header – Anglo-Saxons & Native Americans
If you have an hour to spare and don’t want to spend any money get over to the British Museum.
Staffordshire hoard: they are showing a small sample of the biggest hoard ever found of Anglo-Saxon treasures. They are still uncleaned but the quality of the gold and semi-precious stones is clear.
Warriors of the plains: in room 91 (upstairs) there is a fascinating exhibition about the native American from the plains. This includes head-dresses (plus scalps, tomahawks, peace pipes. However these are not John Wayne’s ‘indians’ but a semi-disappeared culture full of myths, symbols and complex rituals. One for anthropologists.
The Road – its long and winding
The Road is based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy starring Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron and Kodi Smit-McKee.
Director John Hillcoat has done a great job of visualising a destroyed and dying world populated by dangerous people. The camera work is excellent, and atmospheric, which helps create and sustain an ominous air of tension up to the last minute.
The man (Mortensen) and his son (Smit-McKee) are battling their way wearily towards the coast and hopefully security. In the meantime they have to evade ferocious cannibals and not knowing who to trust. A very creditable film with an unexpected ending
Wild thing – Epstein, Gaudier-Brzeska & Gill
The exhibition Wild Thing at the Royal Academy finishes soon so if you like modern sculpture go soon.
The concept of showing all three sculptors together works quite and is a good introduction to three very different artists.
Epstein the controversial revolutionary – Rock Drill is still outstandingly modern. Too see more Tate Britain is worth a visit.
Gaudier-Brzeska has been a favourite of mine for his works in Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge – some really delightful animals like the deer on show.
Gill has become notorious for his sex charged life (read Fiona MacCarthy’s biography) which is reflected in his work.
