Further to Fly

The 40-Year-Old Bicycle Thief Around The Corner

Posted on September 5, 2011 by Helen Hayward

So, I realised that I haven’t checked back in for a while on my goal of watching 50 movies that are new to me this year. Despite being behind schedule, there are quite a few to add to the list since last time I posted, so I’m not going to go through them one by one. Instead, I’ll pick out a few and comment as it comes to me.

First though, here is a list of the movies I’ve watched since the last update:

The Bicycle Thief
Bridesmaids
Knowing
Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost
Fargo
The Strand
The Big Bounce
Adaptation
To Wong Foo
All Good Things
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Lover Come Back
The Shop Around The Corner
The Social Network

(Bringing my total so far up to 24).

As I was typing out that list, I noticed that I had no idea what some of those movies were, and even had to Google them to be sure I hadn’t made a mistake. They obviously made a great impression on me. So, perhaps as a tip from that, I would recommend avoiding: The Big Bounce, Knowing, and All Good Things. Although now I remember it, Knowing is good for some classic cheesy, apocalypse-themed, over-the-top Nic Cage acting for a laugh. It’s like a genre all of its own.

Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost

I was particularly excited about Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost. It was the first installment of the series that I actually had to wait for and watched on TV as it premiered. I told you it was exciting. Once more we’re brought into the familiar world of Paradise, Mass., with the usual faces greeting our day. Except for the new police chief, who’s the son-in-law of a local councilman and a nuisance to Stone. Even after a period of involuntary retirement, Stone finds himself investigating the death of a friend and once again, shows why he’s the man for the job. Even if he doesn’t think so. As always, Selleck and his moustache didn’t disappoint, and Innocents Lost is another gem to add to the growing basket of Jesse Stone splendor. Long may he live.

The Strand: Venice Beach, CA

The Strand is a little known movie from 2005 about the weird and wonderful world of Venice Beach, CA. I think it is actually only available to watch online, and you can find it here: strandvenice.com. I have to admit, I mostly watched it because the wonderful James Morrison is in it (albeit briefly). But, it turned out to be a well-made, intriguing look inside Venice, CA and the quirky people who make up the various facets of its character. The movie makes use of locals as well as actors of varying experience, and was a worthy project in my opinion.

Lover Come Back

Finally, I’d like to give special mention to Lover Come Back, starring Rock Hudson and Doris Day. Every summer, the wonderful city I call home, Fredericton, New Brunswick, has an ‘Under the Stars Classic Film Series’. For 8 or 9 weeks we’re treated to some great movies in the beautiful open air, a stone’s throw from the St. John River. And did I mention it’s completely free? One of the movies on show this year was Lover Come Back. Being partial to classic movies, I tend to go and see them whatever is playing, but this one I especially enjoyed. It was genuinely funny and can even keep modern audiences enthralled. We follow the humorous competitive antics between two advertising execs (Jerry, played by Hudson, and Carol, played by Day), and in a series of unfortunate events for Carol, when she finally meets Jerry she doesn’t realise who he is. Jerry, a keen enthusiast of alcohol and women, of course takes advantage of this to one-up his fiery competitor. Hilarity ensues, and well, you can probably guess the rest. Worth watching if only for the great performances and the sly innuendos (or not so sly, in some cases!).

I could say much more about some of the others on my list, but well honestly, I have stuff to do. So, as a quick tip I’d recommend checking out The Bicycle Thief, Fargo, and Adaptation. And, To Wong Foo and Bridesmaids if you want a good laugh. Leave a comment if you’ve seen any of these movies, and let me know what you think.

Now onto the other half of my target for the year…

Posted in Movies | Tagged goal-setting, james morrison, jesse stone, movies, tom selleck | Leave a comment

Dream Big, But Put Pen To Paper

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Helen Hayward

After a brief hiatus, I have returned to kick some social media butt. To start it off, I thought I’d go back to the beginning.

Recently, I decided to try and undertake a new social media project related to a non-profit that’s close to my heart (more on that at a later date). I had a lot of ideas floating around in my head for some time, and a lot of enthusiasm for where I could take them, but it was time to start putting a plan to paper.

So, with all these ideas, hopes, dreams, questions and good intentions mixing it up at their own party in the sky, how do you know where to begin? And in what order, when and why?

With a little help from an objective friend*, I took a step back and clarified a few things:

What is the heart of the issue, and what difference can I/we make?
What contribution can I personally make?
Why now? Is this the right time?
What are the ideal results or goals from this?
Who will be involved? Is there a team, and if so, what are the best ways to take advantage of everyone’s skills?

* I highly recommend this practice, by the way. Even if you just have a friend or two who ask questions about what you’re doing and why. Like the relationship between a writer and a good editor. It can really help to keep your energies on track and working efficiently.

Once I had those things in mind, it was easier to tackle a “plan” in more traditional terms. So, then I organized my ideas into the following areas:

Aims (I was quite detailed about this, and covered 8 items)
Initial activities (you can be as detailed about this as you like, depending on what ideas you have had). For example:

Agree on aims, purpose, character.
Set up Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Causes.com. Others will follow as identified.
Spread the word and get followers / likes.
Research, listen, monitor and communicate with related causes, organizations, potential donors, good contacts, medical circles etc.
Maintain regular updates and communications.
Set measurement goals (e.g. would like X number of followers by X date).
Campaign for awareness.
Campaign for funding.

Further activities (there may be some big ideas you’ve had that may come at a later date). For example:

Register and participate with “social good” websites, e.g. Hope 140, Pepsi Refresh, Umovement, etc.
Create and maintain a blog (can include updates from other sites like Facebook). Can have multiple bloggers.
Create Flickr account & group, and encourage people to add photos, perhaps as part of a campaign.

Goals or deadlines (even if you don’t know where things are going to take you in the first instance, at least set some dates at which you will pause to assess and reflect on what you’ve achieved and to ensure you’re on track according to your aims).

A big part will be researching ideas on what to do and how to make the most of what you’re doing, and this should never stop. Every piece of advice won’t necessarily need to be put into practice, but it’s certainly good to keep on top of trends and ideas from peers or thought leaders. Even if it only serves to reinforce what you’re already doing.

Activities will also depend on your specific circumstance and where your audience or influencers are conversing. It may take some trial and error, so making sure that you reassess at regular points is all the more important.

So, that’s where I am with my planning so far. Where it takes me is dependent somewhat on others in the team, but here’s to dreaming big AND setting goals.

Posted in Social Media for Non-profits | Tagged goal-setting, nonprofit, social media for non-profits | Leave a comment

Facebook for Non-Profits? Good Idea!

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Helen Hayward

Gah! I’m not even going to mention how long it’s been since I last posted, so instead, I’m just going to jump right in.

Recently, I read a very clear and useful resource by HubSpot, called 100 Awesome Marketing Stats, Charts and Graphs. It’s jam-packed full of good stuff to mull over and work from, so I’m going to pull out a couple of things that I personally found interesting.

Facebook: once the playground of tweenage girls joining groups and liking pages such as “I make groups just to see how many fans it would get!” and “Gwen Stefani Taught Me How To Spell B-A-N-A-N-A-S”. Now, HubSpot handily tells us that 93% of US adult Internet users are on Facebook. Changes the landscape a little, doesn’t it?

If you were feeling unsure whether joining Facebook or creating a page for your non-profit was worth the time, consider this:

1 out of every 8 minutes online is spent on Facebook.
Facebook has become the preferred way of sharing content, second only to email (for now).
We’re not just engaging with our friends on Facebook. We’re engaging with businesses of all kinds.
Many internet activities that once took place on separate, isolated venues are now funneled through Facebook. These include email, instant messaging, blogging, gaming, video-sharing and online shopping.

The truth is that it’s highly likely that a great deal of your audience, potential supporters & potential donators use Facebook. The more content you want seen, the greater brand awareness you need, the more conversations you want to have, the more it makes sense to go where your people are and make it as easy as possible for them to interact.

Ok, so you’re buying the Facebook idea. Now what? Good question. There are quite a few useful guides out there on do’s and don’ts, and here are a few I’ve identified: Mashable’s Non-Profit Facebook Guide, Inside Facebook’s 10 Tips for Non-Profits on Facebook, and for a series of short how-to videos, see John Haydon’s Inbound Zombie Facebook Page. Those should get you well on your way to Facebook success.

As HubSpot says, “If you don’t like Facebook yet, you will”.

Question: Have you created a Facebook page for your non-profit? What successes can you share? Any tips for things to avoid?

Posted in Social Media for Non-profits | Tagged facebook, non-profits, nonprofits, social media | Leave a comment

I set some goals?

Posted on April 26, 2011 by Helen Hayward

Way back in my first post I decided to set some goals for myself for the coming year, and I may have mentioned something about checking in down the line to see how I’m doing. Well, here I am down the line, so let’s dive in…

Goal #1: Increase my philanthropic efforts.
I struggled a little to work out how best to measure the success of this goal, but two things are obvious: First, I need to list the things I did last year. Second, I need to list the things I’m doing this year. At least then I can see whether things have ‘increased’ or not. I’ll start by listing all of my volunteer activities (I’m not sure if they all count as ‘philanthropic’, but that’s another topic). These are all the big things, not counting any random acts of kindness that may occur at any time!

2010:

Photographer for Fredericton SPCA website
Mentor/coach for kids.now 12-week program
Committee member for Fredericton Chamber of Commerce Physician Recruitment Committee
Helper at Fredericton SPCA photos with Santa Christmas fundraiser

2011:

Photographer for Fredericton SPCA website
Mentor/coach for kids.now 12-week program
Committee member for Fredericton Chamber of Commerce Physician Recruitment Committee
Canvasser for Canadian Cancer Society
Rider in upcoming two-day bike tour through NS for Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada (which reminds me, see here to learn more/donate!)

Seeing as we’re only part-way through 2011 and I’ve managed to both maintain and add to my volunteer efforts already, I’d say I’m on track.

Goal #2: Watch at least 50 movies that we new to me.
I feel that I’m a little behind schedule on this one, but I have reached 10 so far, so it’s not completely dead in the water. I’m looking forward to seeing some classic movies under the stars here in Fredericton in the summer, so I’ll undoubtedly be adding a movie a week just from there. I’m also planning to cut down on my freelance work over the summer, which will leave me more time to relax, and of course, watch movies. I’m feeling pretty confident about this goal.

Goal #3: Do at least one creative activity per week.
I wasn’t looking forward to reporting on this one. I’ve barely managed to do any creative things (whether it’s drawing, painting, photography, writing, photo manipulation, playing music, etc.). It makes me a little sad to bomb so heavily on this one, as I was really hoping to change my bad habits. However, instead of berating myself, I’m thinking that perhaps I should change the goalposts slightly. I think I could manage once a month (that sounds like so few creative things!), but starting from there I could build up to something more regular. Or perhaps I’m being a little harsh on myself, because if I really think about it, I can think of a few things I’ve done at work here and there. Still, if it doesn’t feel like I’m getting my creative juices flowing more often, then I guess I’m not succeeding in that goal.

Goal #4: Express gratitude in written form at least 5 days a week.
I have been using the website www.gratitudelog.com regularly, but I haven’t been keeping a close eye on whether I’m updating it 5 days a week. Some weeks I’m sure it’s been every day, others I don’t get to it for a few days. I think it probably evens out. To be a good goal-setter and achiever though, I should really be making sure that I’m reaching that 5-a-week target. Perhaps I could keep a weekly tally from now on and see how I really doing compared to my impression.

Considering everything, I think I’m doing pretty well so far. There are some adjustments and improvements I can make here and there, but if I allow myself, I think I can accept a little pat on the back (followed by a kindly shove to keep me going!).

Did you set yourself any goals for this year? How are you doing? I’d love to hear about it.

Posted in Random Musings | Tagged goal-setting, philanthropy, volunteering | Leave a comment

More Woody Allens and Some Randoms

Posted on April 25, 2011 by Helen Hayward

It’s about time that I update my movie list. I’m falling a little behind schedule for my goal of watching 50 movies in 2011 that I haven’t seen before, but I can now add six more to the list since my last update! Hurrah!

Celebrity

Following on from Whatever Works, I watched a couple of the more recent Woody Allen films to fill in the gaps in my Allen movie knowledge. First, was Celebrity. I wanted to like this movie, but I just couldn’t do it. Firstly, Kenneth Branagh’s Allen impersonation grated on me, which didn’t help considering how much he was in the movie. Secondly, I just didn’t like any of the characters. Well, that’s a little harsh. I didn’t mind Joe Mantegna’s character, but that’s probably only because I love Joe Mantegna. Thirdly, it was just kinda boring. It only just-about-barely-managed to hold my attention until the end. Let’s move on.

Match Point

Next on my Woody Allen list was Match Point. I vaguely remembered hearing good reviews of this one, so I was hopeful going into it. Unfortunately, I found out soon enough that Celebrity was considerably more enjoyable than this one. I found every character highly irritating, and I was hoping for the worst possible outcome for each of them just to serve them right. Jonathan Rhys Meyers was top of my list for annoying the heck out of me, followed closely by Scarlett Johansson. I’ve never rated her as a great actress, but I guess that’s not why she’s there. I enjoyed her performance in Lost In Translation though, so I don’t know what happened in this movie. There are comparisons between this story and that of Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors, where the main protagonist suffers through a morality battle resulting from their extra-marital affair. Unfortunately for Match Point, the previous incarnation of this story sits leagues above the recent attempt. Indeed, Crimes and Misdemeanors is one of my favourite Woody Allen films. I guess he should have just left it there. My first venture to the movie theatre this year was for Unknown, starring Liam Neeson.

Unknown

I wasn’t expecting too much, and was just hoping for a fairly entertaining, let your mind drift and your disbelief suspend kind of a time. It was just about that. The story took on the familiar premise of mistaken identity, and added a few twists here and there. The performances were nothing spectacular, and it dawned on me about 5 minutes in that I’d never actually seen any Liam Neeson films before. (No, not even Schindler’s List). That turned out to be the most remarkable feature of this movie. Don’t get me wrong though, it wasn’t the worst way to spend a couple of hours. The next two films I watched were DVDs given as gifts for Christmas that I hadn’t gotten around to watching yet. First up was Three Amigos.

Three Amigos

I have a bit of a soft spot for Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and silly 80s comedies, so this was pretty much a winner for me before it started. Three actors, (played by Martin, Chase and Martin Short) who find themselves out of work, end up accepting an invitation to a small Mexican village to act out the roles they’re famous for – bandit fighters. Unbeknownst to them, they are playing it out for real against a local outlaw gang, and of course, the comedy ensues. Despite the presence of so many magical ingredients, it’s not the funniest film I’ve seen, but it’s certainly one to catch if you come across it while you’re channel hopping.

Sherlock Holmes

The next Christmas DVD I lined up was Sherlock Holmes, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. It was an interesting take on the legendary partnership of Holmes and Dr. Watson, but mainly it was just meant to be light-hearted action thriller. I think that’s what they call them anyway. Robert Downey Jr. was pretty charismatic as Holmes, but generally I found the film a little too self-aware with the usual array of one-liners expected in these kinds of films. What is interesting though, is that Robert Maillet, the actor who plays Dredger, is originally from New Brunswick. Forgive me, as I love to fly the New Brunswick flag whenever possible!

The last update on my list for now is Walk The Line, the tale of the legendary Johnny Cash, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. I enjoyed this one the most out of the six I’ve mentioned here. I didn’t know a great deal about Johnny Cash before seeing this movie, despite loving so many things about 50s and 60s America. I own music by various musicians such as Elvis, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Dion and the Belmonts, The Everly Brothers, and The Del Vikings, just to name a few. I’m a huge James Dean fan, and I’ve even made the pilgrimage to his home town of Fairmount, Indiana. But for some reason, I’ve not crossed paths with Johnny Cash’s music or his tale as often as I should have.

Walk The Line

I got the sense that the movie was made with great sensitivity to those involved. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon put an enormous amount of effort into making it as authentic as possible, learning to play the guitar and the autoharp, and singing the songs themselves. It was all worth it, and helped to make it as engrossing as possible. Again, Witherspoon is one of those actors that I haven’t seen in much before, but I was totally taken by her portrayal of Cash’s love and artist in her own right, June Carter. Johnny Cash reportedly hand-picked Joaquin Phoenix for the role himself, and he chose well. I was left with a desire to learn more about the man, and will no doubt end up reading a biography or two. The film also left me weirdly yearning for a period in history that I wasn’t even alive for, but for which I’ve always felt an unexplainable connection. Since then, I’ve found myself listening to those artists I mentioned earlier again, with a little smile on my face. I was grateful for the reminder.

Posted in Movies | Tagged celebrity, joaquin phoenix, johhny cash, match point, reese witherspoon, sherlock holmes, three amigos, unknown, walk the line, woody allen | Leave a comment

5 Great Non-Profit Infographics

Posted on April 12, 2011 by Helen Hayward

I have a quick post today that should firstly pay thanks to @blackbaud (via @SMacLaughlin). A blog post referred to by these folks provides some insightful information on 5 Great Non-Profit Infographics.

Whether you love infographics or not, this handful stood out to me as containing some useful information. Number 4 in particular (eNonprofit Benchmarks Study) caught my eye. Having used email marketing in my various lives in marketing, I’ve never been convinced of its effectiveness. This infographic illustrates that for every 1,000 subscribers, non-profits have 110 Facebook users and 19 Twitter followers. It also shows that emails relating to advocacy have a 13% open rate and those relating to fundraising have a 12% open rate. Taking those numbers you can see that, even at those rates, more people are still opening one of those emails than they are following on Facebook or Twitter. When you get down to response rates and click-through rates the numbers are smaller still, but I’m sure the trend is similar for Facebook and Twitter followers also. The relative ratios between the different formats surprised me a little, and enforced the idea that I shouldn’t forget the effectiveness of certain communication channels, even if I personally am one to hit delete before I even give emails a chance.

The 5th infographic (The Truth About Donor Research) also had some great nuggets. Right off the bat it states “Most donors don’t spend a lot of time researching, and those that do look for simple, digestible info”. This reinforces my instinct that the easier you make it for people to understand and help, the better. 62% of those who do some research before donating are looking for facts and figures (vs. detailed reports, stories, quotes, testimonials). While that makes me a little sad for stories, it makes sense (and although not related to non-profits, reminds me of this gem from The Oatmeal).

However, it’s the first statistic that really has me thinking: 65% never researched before making a donation. So how did they know who they were donating to and what it was for? They knew because they most likely had already heard about the cause somewhere, even if they can’t remember where. They’d seen or heard their peers talking about it, they’d seen the logo around or had seen people taking part in fundraising events. They’d seen campaigns, or tweets, or someone liking it on Facebook. All of these things contribute to the overall awareness and image of a non-profit. It’s not a good idea to assume that people will connect to your non-profit just because it’s a non-profit. Being proactive in creating that connection will reap rewards, even if you don’t realise it at first.

Posted in Social Media for Non-profits | Tagged infographic, non-profit, non-profits, nonprofit, social media for nonprofits | Leave a comment

Non-Profit: What’s Your Story?

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Helen Hayward

It has been far too long since my last post, so I’m more than ready to play around with some ideas on using social media for non-profits. Instead of following my original, logical path, from now on I’m just going to dive in and post about things I pick up here and there. It may a quick post inspired by something I’ve seen recently, it may be a thought, idea or question that popped into my mind, or it may be a more in-depth study of a particular aspect. Any way it comes, I’ll be sharing it here with you, but I think that if I try to be too logical about it, I end up stalling (as I have done so far…). So, without even further hesitation, I’m going to write a little bit about ‘stories’.

I think it’s a good idea for a non-profit to share their story. When trying to use a formal, structured approach to social media, there’s a risk of forgetting the human element. One of the things that generally sets non-profits apart from for-profits is the common core of caring. Of course, for-profits can cross over into that group too, but usually non-profits have a reason for being that transcends making money. Such a genuine, appealing, and uniting story should be shared and be made sharable. As your story grows, continue to share it with people. Include them in the story. You’ll find that people will want to tell others about it off their own back, and a concern of the heart builds strong connections between fellow humans.

One way to share your story on an ongoing basis is through a blog. You can use a blog to show what you’ve been doing, who you’ve helped, how you’ve helped, how your efforts are contributing to good, the positive effects of those interacting with your non-profit. Use the voices of others to grow the story by inviting contributing authors to write blog posts. Use text, photos, videos. Remember that your story is unique, so don’t be shy in sharing it with others and engaging your audience.

The work it takes to sustain and grow your non-profit can build to a whirlwhind, so don’t lose sight of why you’re there in the first place. If you do, then you can be sure that your audience will lose sight of it, too.

Posted in Social Media for Non-profits | Tagged non-profit, non-profit blog, non-profit story, social media for non-profits | Leave a comment

Social Media for Non-Profits: Quick Guides

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Helen Hayward

Following on from my previous post on social media resources for non-profits, I want to point out a few guides that I have come across in my initial search for information.

The first is “50 Social Media Tactics for Nonprofits“, which goes hand-in-hand with “50 More Social Media Tactics for Nonprofits” by Chad Norman. There are a lot of extremely useful nuggets of information in these guides, largely covering the main resources of Twittter, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr. A lot of them are quite specific and therefore at times may not be relevant to your personal cause, but the general common sense approach is useful to soak up in any case.

The next guide I’d like to mention is dedicated to Twitter: “Twitter Jump Start: The First Guide for Small Non-Profits” by John Haydon. Twitter can be a wonderful tool for getting great results, even for non-profits of just a handful of people. This guide lays out the benefits of Twitter for non-profits plain and simple, as well as steps to follow for getting the most out of Twitter. But more than just providing a laundry list of things to do, this guide offers advice and best practices that help to create a bit of context behind why you should do the things you should do.

The next guide is “21 Ways Non-Profits Can Leverage Social Media” by Rich Brooks. Whilst this guide may not necessarily bring to light much more than can be found in the previous guides mentioned, I found it to be useful in its succinctness and clarity. It also provides a number of links to other resources that go into more detail on certain tactics.

The last guide I’d like to point out today is “Social Media for Non Profits” by Cheri Hegi / Primalmedia. Although this resource does offer some useful tips, the standout for me was the array of statistics it provides on how social media is being used today. The stats are a little out-of-date now, but even still, it very quickly and clearly shows just why social media is such a powerful way to connect directly with so many people. If I come across a resource with similar but more up-to-date statistics, I will be sure to share it here.

Those are just a few good resources to get started with. As there is a wealth of information out there, I am always keen to hear from others who have found particular guides useful. Make sure you leave a comment if there’s something you’d like to share!

Posted in Social Media for Non-profits | Tagged non-profits, nonprofits, social media | Leave a comment

Whatever Works (and two more Jesse Stone movies)

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Helen Hayward

After a hesitant start, I am now well on my way to fulfilling my goal of watching 50 movies that are new to me in 2011. I have brought my running total up to four, and one of them isn’t even a Jesse Stone movie! Hurrah!

Jesse Stone: Thin Ice

I’ll begin by admitting that we didn’t do very well with the whole ‘trying to pace ourselves with our Jesse Stone movie watching’ thing, so the next two movies on my list are Jesse Stone: Thin Ice and Jesse Stone: No Remorse. Despite no longer being based directly on Robert B. Parker novels (although of course the characters are still the same), these movies follow on well from the previous installments in the series.

Jesse is still struggling with his many demons, whether he immerses himself in a case or withdraws to his house alone in the fog. The plots of these two movies were enjoyable as well, and they have a way of engrossing you enough without needing too much to happen.

Jesse Stone: No Remorse

These movies are played well by a number of actors who are surprisingly recognizable. That’s one thing I forgot to mention previously. There are a a few recurring actors in this series who are actually fairly well seasoned, and they help to bring some genuine charm to the movies. William Devane (James Heller in 24, and Secretary of State Lewis Berryhill in The West Wing) plays Jesse’s therapist, William Sadler (Heywood in The Shawshank Redemption, Klaus Detterick in The Green Mile) plays Boston mobster Gino Fish, and Stephen McHattie (too many to name and lots of things that make you exclaim: “Oh, that’s where I’ve seen him before!”) plays Captain Healy, and puts in a noticeably good portrayal of an injured cop in Thin Ice. Interestingly, while Googling him, I found out that he is originally from Antigonish, Nova Scotia. You really do learn something new every day.

The bad news is that the last Jesse Stone movie to date hasn’t been aired on TV or released on DVD yet. Gasp! I don’t know when the hallowed release date will be, but I guess I’ll just have to find other movies to watch in the meantime. Cue, Whatever Works.

Anyone who knows me will be well aware that I like Woody Allen movies. I even somehow managed to get away with writing about his films for my American Studies undergrad degree dissertation. I’m a little behind the times though and I’m not very well versed on his more recent movies. So, with a generous Amazon gift voucher that I received for Christmas (thanks, sis!), I bought a few of the more recent Woody Allen movies on DVD.

Whatever Works

Being a Woody Allen fan and a Seinfeld fan, I of course had to buy Whatever Works. I didn’t want to assume that I’d like it because of those two elements though, so I tried to go into it with an open mind. I didn’t need to in the end, because it really is pretty good. A lot of people say that the more recent Allen movies aren’t up to par with his older gems, and not being too familiar with many recent ones I can’t really enter that argument. However, I will say that Whatever Works was really so very Woody Allen. I didn’t see much of a gulf between it and his ‘older’ movies, but maybe it’s an exception.

Whatever Works stars Larry David as Boris Yellnikoff, a self-proclaimed genius, ex-professor of quantum mechanics, and reluctant children’s chess tutor. Boris likes to pontificate on his existential ideologies, all the while condemning people around him as imbeciles and “brainless inchworms”. There’s a great Allenesque monologue near the start of the movie that lays out Boris’ opinions plain and simple to the audience. It’s a laugh-out-loud scene (well, it made me laugh), and one that would have fitted nicely into my self-reflexivity thesis focus back in university.

An absurd situation sees Boris inviting simple-minded runaway Melodie St. Ann Celestine to live with him. Her naive charm and his dim worldly views start to rub off on each other, and yada yada yada, we find that absurd can work if you let it.

Whatever Works examines life and love in true Woody fashion with sharp one-liners, flawed characters you can’t help but admire, and a cheeky but charming playfulness with the “rules” of the medium. This is definitely one for the re-watch pile.

Side note: I would strongly recommend never burning microwavable popcorn. That’s all I have to say about that.

So, to recap on my goal I can now update my list as such:

1. Jesse Stone: Sea Change
2. Jesse Stone: Thin Ice
3. Jesse Stone: No Remorse
4. Whatever Works

I’ll admit that’s a little Jesse Stone heavy, but there will be more variation to come for sure.

Posted in Movies | Tagged jesse stone, larry david, tom selleck, whatever works, woody allen | Leave a comment

The 40-Year-Old Bicycle Thief Around The Corner

I set some goals?

More Woody Allens and Some Randoms

Whatever Works (and two more Jesse Stone movies)

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