Movie Moment

Black Swan

I love a good dance movie, one that gets me moving in my seat (think Centre Stage and the Step Up movies), but admittedly after a while they all seem to blend into one another and become, well, a bit boring. They lack a sustainable plot and while I understand many are aimed at a younger audience it would be nice for a change. Which is exactly what director Darren Aronosfsky did as he delved into the darker side of dance in the Black Swan.

A psychotic thriller, The Black Swan follows protagonist Nina Sayer's (Natalie Portman)life after she lands the coveted role of Swan Queen in the New York Ballet Company's production of Swan Lake. It's a life that's far from normal as Sayer suffers tremendous pain and suffering in her attempt to perfect the character of the innocent White Swan, and more importantly, her seductive, evil twin Black Swan. Mila Kuris plays carefree recruit Lily, Sayer's rival and confidante. The yin to her yang.

Call me naive but I entered the cinema expecting a psychological mind-game similar to Shutter Island and Inception. And it does achieve this, with the viewer constantly second-guessing what is real and what isn't. It was the horror element I was unprepared for, and the most unexpected moments that had me practically jumping onto the person sitting in front of me. I quickly learnt to cover my eyes whenever I felt uneasy.

It's a must-see movie that had me laughing, cringing, jumping and gasping, and weather you love it or hate it, it will stay with you long after you leave the cinema.

Fashion Moment

I had a brief fling with blazers last winter, after my fashion-guru friend adellieblogger showed me just how on-trend and versatile they can be. I was convinced, but not committed. But, I can now say that our little fling has developed into a full-fledged relationship. With the Aussie summer finally getting into full-swing, I seem to be looking a little too far ahead at A/W and have purchased two new blazers within a week. Here comes obsession #1372...

Twenty-One

I love twenty-first season, in fact if I could I would say 'it's my favourite time of the year', but considering it only happens once in a lifetime, I'll settle with 'it's my favourite year of life' (doesn't sound quite so good).

With the last champagne bottles popping, and Living On a Prayer's (drunkenly) sung, the season is dwindiling to a close for me, and I'm savouring every last party. Which was why, when my Dad questioned whether I was sick of them yet, I got to thinking...Should I be sick of them? I mean, generally the rule is excessive consumption of one thing (21sts included) leads to boredom and well we all know how exhausting drinking free alcohol and eating free food can be every weekend....not very. So, no, I am not sick of them, and will continue to eat and drink free food and beverages as long as my waistband lets me.

Here's a list of other reasons to enjoy the season of Twenty-One:

- free alcohol, need I say more (yes, I realise I've been raving on about the free drinks, but hey, do you have any idea how much they charge for a vodka, lemon and lime these days?)
- the chance to go all out and wear your prettiest dressest and highest heels (or suits for the guys)
- the chance to dress up, literally- themed 21sts provide the perfect opportunity to be someone you're not.
- it's an opportunity to catch up with friends you might usually be too busy to see
- the birthday cake is always deliciously fancy (don't lie, you know you get excited when you walk in and see that sugary, fluffy tower of cup-cakes)
- you can let out your inner-freak and bust out your craziest moves to Bon Jovi, Backstreet Boys and Michael Jackson
- the hangover doesn't feel quite so bad (alcohol was there, it was free, you had no choice really)

When I was a tween...

So I understand that it’s been a disturbingly long time since I’ve written a blog entry (so much so that my old blog account was deleted!) In my defence I’ve been busy...and perhaps enjoying the summer break a little too much. But the New Year is now upon us, so no more excuses.

With my uni graduation ceremony looming I’ve been quite nostalgic, reminiscing about times when life was simpler and my biggest worry was deciding which Spice Girl was most like me (it was always Baby Spice). I’m talking about my ‘tween’ years, a time when life was filled with primary school crushes, friendship clubs and Leonardo DiCaprio (Titanic was huge at that time, and needless to say, Leo was the man every tween wanted).

Nowadays, my tween years are mostly reminiscent of Spice Girl sing-alongs, knickerbockers and, most importantly, the iconic Sweet Valley High books. Sweet Valley twins, Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield, were my idols throughout those ‘angsty’ tween years and I devoured each book with greed. I had always envisioned myself to be more like Jessica (or so I hoped), the fun, ‘pretty’, fashionable twin who loved to party. But, now I’m older I can definitely make connections with Elizabeth- smart, sensible and an aspiring journalist. For those of you who have never heard of the books I probably sound like a slightly strange girl who likes to make friends with fictional characters (this is not true). For those of you who have, you will probably understand my excitement when I say that mastermind behind the series, Francine Pascal, is set to release ‘Sweet Valley Confidential’, where readers can ‘get to know Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield at 27’- counting down the days is an understatement.

The reason for my excitement is simply the fact that the book represents another time in my life, my pure and unbridled days as a youngster. With the demands of university, work and stress it’s sometimes hard to savour every moment of our days, knowing we will never get them back; but it’s the sweet memories that are all we need. Maybe you had a favourite song you listened to when you were young, a film you regularly watched, a place you visited? Whatever it is, I urge you to take a step back in time and release your inner-tween. As for me, I’ll be eagerly awaiting March 29 and the chance to reacquaint myself with the Wakefield twins...