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Day: 16 March 2016

Review: Hail, Caesar!

Hail, Caesar!, the latest film from the Coen Brothers, explores the extravagant goings on at Capital Pictures in 1950s Hollywood. The Golden Era of Hollywood is beautifully recreated and reflects the silliness of filmmaking at a time when studios would make the decisions at the expense of directors and producers.

This silliness is embodied in Capital Pictures’ attempts to counteract the imminent arrival of television by creating more spectacular dance routines, cheesier westerns, and the grand prestige picture: Hail, Caesar!: A Tale Of Christ’s Life—featuring global star Baird Whitlock (George Clooney). Despite a large portion of Hail, Caesar! is devoted to Baird Whitlock and his film, the real focus is guilt-ridden studio head Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin), who is tasked with keeping things ticking over, rushing from set to set to deal with the mounting problems.

These problems include key studio actress DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johansson) playing a mermaid in a mesmerising underwater swimming routine, giving the studio the headache of being pregnant and unmarried, and sophisticated English director Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes) being furious for having to cast Western star Hobie Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) for his English drama. The biggest headache for Mannix to unravel is on the set of Hail Caesar!, where world famous actor Baird Whitlock has been kidnapped, threatening to derail Capital Pictures’ most important film.

These forays into exuberant sets form the majority of events, which are joyous and indulgent sequences but aren’t afraid to push the boundaries of their welcome. A riff between Hobie Doyle and increasingly frustrated Laurence Laurentz—who tries to get heavy southern accented Doyle to don a sophisticated English dialect—is ludicrously long; but for many, it will be full of laughs. Similarly a dance routine featuring a tap dancing Chaning Tatum as an outbound sailor distraught at the absence of ‘dames’ on his voyage, is superbly choreographed, but is essentially irrelevant to the story despite its long routine. To anyone not spellbound by the charms of these sequences, they may seem unnecessary voyages from the plot.

The chunk of the story revolves around the capture of Whitlock, but any intrigue or suspense surrounding his kidnapping is lost to the journey through the different studio sets. Instead, the real focus is Mannix’s internal battle with the film industry itself. On the one hand he’s tempted to leave the poorly paid, painstaking fantasies of Hollywood behind and enter into a more serious business, but on the other hand—there may be joys to be found in the escapism and excitement of Hollywood. Mannix’s internal battle embodies the key questions Hail, Caesar! asks about why people make films, and whether the film industry actually means anything. This storyline is cleverly woven in, but gets lost at times under numerous gags and set pieces and ends up as a whole seeming a little incoherent.

Yet these brilliantly entertaining set pieces are enough to carry the film and are helped by some excellent performances. Clooney provides some big laughs as the simple-minded Whitlock who is put through a rollercoaster ride of surreal situations, yet seems as happy as ever. In one particular scene Whitlock enjoys a bizarre meeting with his capturers due to its educational value, and belief that it’s a ‘study session’. Ehrenreich’s Hobie Doyle is similarly hilarious as a cowboy singer lost in the glamourous but serious production of a classy English drama. Although given the most screen time Brolin’s Mannix is the straightest of the bunch, looking consistently weary as a stressed studio manager, but successfully holds the story together through his entertaining interactions with the cast.

Despite the long takes and large parts riding on the audience connecting with its sense of humour, Hail, Caesar! is a brilliantly entertaining celebration of Hollywood and the absurdity that is film-making.

4/5

Re-wardrobing your wardrobe

As the first half of second semester draws to a close, the effect of our student loans can no longer be seen in our bank balances, yet the internet is awash with street style looks from fashion week. What’s a fashion lover to do? With all this new inspiration and so little money, full of hope and creativity, we must look to our current wardrobes.

Being stylish is often less about buying the latest pieces and more about creating your own style. However, it is easy to fall into a rut of wearing the same outfits because they are easy and comfortable. So when you are procrastinating, look to your wardrobe for hours of entertainment. You never know what might work unless you try.

The 90s trend is still going strong so this is a good basis tor your re-wardrobing inspiration.  T-shirts layered under cami dresses gives a subtle nod to Cher Horowitz, and also means you can wear the most darling summer dresses in March. Similarly, throw your biggest jumper over the top of a summer dress and play with seasonal style. Layering is essential in the spring because of the changeable weather, and a great way to create new looks.

Chances are, if you see an outfit that you like on Instagram, Pinterest, or from your favourite blogger, when you take the individual items apart you’ll have some of them in your wardrobe. Then work with the pieces you do have to make your own version of said outfit. Sometimes a bit of inspiration can make you appreciate what you’ve already got.

Cavern of Anti-Matter: Void Beats/Invocation Hex

Released 19th February via Duophonic Records

8/10

Stereolab were one of the most consistently brilliant and inventive bands around for most of their 19 year run, releasing many bizarrely named masterpieces, from Transient Random-Noise Bursts With Announcements to Chemical Chords. Leading man Tim Gane has a new band: Cavern of Anti-Matter, krautrock revivalists even more indebted to Neu than Stereolab were. The group previously released a record on a tiny Berlin label that’s now rarer than a decent episode of Doctor Who, but Void Beats/Invocation Hex is their first proper album, a retro-futurist throwback with the tracklist revealing references to science fiction, bizarre philosophy and indeed the BBC’s shit show time bollocks. Cavern of Anti-Matter have a lot to follow, but have they delivered a worthy follow up to Stereolab?

Well they’ve sort of just side-stepped the question. Void Beats/Invocation Hex is very different to Stereolab. Instead of using multiple vocal melodies, almost every song is instrumental and strongly rhythmic, relying on either carefully crafted beats or Joe Dilworth’s exceptional drumming. The overall sound is closer to Beak>, Geoff Barrow from Portishead’s own krautrock homage. Opening track ‘Tardis Cymbals’ begins with careful guitar strumming, before switching gears to ultra-motorik repetitive rhythms and punchy analogue synths, slowly swelling and shifting over its monolithic 13 minute runtime. It showcases everything Cavern of Anti-Matter can do in a single track. The brilliantly named ‘Blowing My Nose Under Close Observation’ and ‘Melody in High Feedback Tones’ follow, experimenting with rhythm and texture over more normal song lengths.

These rhythmic experiments are the band at their best, and it’s only when singers appear that the album falters. Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox appears on ‘Liquid Gate’, which is a brilliant single, but musically a step backwards, only two minutes long and sandwiched between the album’s two best tracks; the towering, astonishing ‘High-Hats Bring The Hiss’ and ‘Pantechnicon’. The combined effect is just a bit jarring. Sonic Boom of the exceptional Spacemen 3 appears on ‘Planetary Folklore’, but suffers from the fact that, while he is an incredible musician, he isn’t a very interesting singer, although he does provide one of his best performances, and his cryptic declarations fit the album’s sci-fi feel. However, despite these two minor missteps (both of which are great outside the album), Cavern of Anti-Matter have delivered a glorious retro-futurist bolt of energy, one that’s definitely worth listening to, both through its relationship to Stereolab and in the band’s own right.

Manchester City 0-0 Dynamo Kiev

It may be the second consecutive goalless draw for Manchester City, but this one ended on a much higher note than their outing at Norwich at the weekend—City made history tonight. The Blues finished the game as 3-1 winners on aggregate and entered the quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history. Although the game was not the greatest advert for the Champions League itself, the result will mean a lot to the City faithful.

If this game was a film…

The History Boys

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

The fall of the Berlin Wall, the Holy Roman Empire and VE Day have absolutely nothing on the history made by Manchester City today (okay, maybe I’m exaggerating). In recent years City have only made the round of sixteen twice, when they were dumped out of the competition by Barcelona. This year, however, there was a change of scenery for the Blues, as they finally got a more favourable draw. Dynamo Kiev were dispatched over two legs by City, resulting in this historic achievement. Fingers crossed now that Arsenal can beat Barcelona…

Big Moments

5th minute: INJURY. Vincent Kompany went to ground after pulling his calf again. Subbed off for Eliaquim Mangala, to a rapturous standing ovation. I have not seen a man look as gutted as Kompany since my Dad showed me his wedding picture.

22nd minute: INJURY. Nicolás Otamendi was the next to go, as the Argentinian made way for Martín Demichelis.

60th minute: POST. Yaya Touré played the ball out wide to Jesús Navas who struck it hard and low, but the ball clashed the far post.

86: PENALTY APPEAL. City got away with murder here, as a double penalty appeal was waved away. Fernando clumsily brought down a player in the box, which went unnoticed, and the resulting shot hits him on the arm. Kiev will have felt hard done by.

Stat of the Game

This was City’s first clean sheet in ten games in the Champions League. Onwards and upwards!

Quote of the Presser

“When you have a new achievement, it is always important for your trust. I think that this season we are—I don’t know if the word is better prepared—but more experienced.” 

—Manuel Pellegrini on City making history, and whether they can go further.

Injury Hell

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Since his transfer in 2008, Vincent Kompany has gone from a cheap midfielder, to one of the best centre backs in European football, whilst most City fans consider him as one of the greatest players to have played for the team. It is because of this that it is so unfortunate that he has suffered so much with injuries in his time at City!

Kompany won City’s Player of the Month award for February, as he impressed since his return from a calf injury—but the problem has recurred again, as Kompany hobbled off after five minutes of the match. He will be gutted, but his pre-match captain’s notes in the match-day programme highlighted his personal battle with injuries, as he said that he will continue to fight.

When it rains—it pours. Kompany’s recent successful performances have come partly due to a great understanding between him and Otamendi, as both play better alongside one another. So, when Otamendi hobbled off with a muscle injury as well, City fans will have been doubly concerned, as it’s possible that there will only two fit centre-backs for the Manchester derby next Sunday.

Pellegrini said that Kompany will be out for a month at least, and that it is difficult to know if he will be out for the entirety of the rest of the season, however he noted that its possible Otamendi may be fit quicker and they will find out soon. Demichelis and Mangala are the only two official options for the team, however Bacary Sagna can also play centre-back and Mancunian Tosin Adarabioy would relish the chance to play against the city rivals.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

The Draw

Friday sees the all-important Champions League draw for the last eight. You’d like to think that City would be very happy with pulling out Wolfsburg or Benfica in the draw as these seem the easiest bets; however Manuel Pellegrini noted that “I think that when you are in this stage, any team is difficult.” He went on to say that all the teams at this stage are the same… except Barcelona, who he thinks is the best.

I’m sure Pep Guardiola will not be happy about that one.

Fan Watch

After City’s second choice goalkeeper saved three penalties at Wembley last month to help the Blues lift the Capital One Cup trophy, the City fans have labelled Willy Caballero as a legend at the club! This will surely be enjoyed by Joe Hart, who has always had a great relationship with any back-up at the club before—but maybe he didn’t like one of the chants thrown his way this game.

“You’re just a shit Caballero, shit Caballero” was chanted from the South Stand to Hart, who turned and gave them a grin. It was all in good jest though, as the South Stand replied by chanting “England’s Number 1”.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Man of the Match

Yaya Touré

Touré was back to his old self in this match, and showed what City missed from him in the weekend draw with Norwich. The Ivorian had a fantastic first half especially, as he made two surging runs throwing players to the ground in his wake. He always seems to look like he’s running much slower than the players trying to get the ball from him, and yet he manages to keep the ball and power through with ease. His quick feet are especially surprising for such a tall man.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Another man worthy of a mention is Sergio Agüero. The striker may not have scored, or even fashioned as many chances as he usually does, but his hold-up play was great and the skill he possessed a few times to get past the Kiev defence was mesmerising. A cheeky back-heel and spin saw off two defenders during the second half, and had City fans on their feet.

Nude feud: Kim Kardashian divides the internet… again

Now, we all know that Kim Kardashian isn’t exactly famed for being a wallflower when it comes to revealing photos, but her latest nude selfie has really kicked up a storm. Apparently not satisfied with “breaking the internet” with her 2014 Paper magazine cover, the socialite has managed to do it again, this time using the power of her own Instagram page. Framing the racy snap with the flippant (yet wonderfully sassy) caption of “When you’re like I have nothing to wear LOL”, the 35-year-old showed off her toned 2015 figure with only two black boxes censoring her, ahem… lady regions.

Less than an hour later, Twitter lost its mind. It seemed like everyone crawled out of the woodwork to give their opinion on Mrs West’s nudity, dividing fans and fellow celebrities straight down the middle. Actresses Bette Midler and Chloe Moretz chose to voice their disapproval, with Midler tweeting: “If Kim wants us to see a part of her we’ve never seen, she’s gonna have to swallow the camera”, while the younger star pointed out to Kim that she was supposed to be a role model for younger women (“I truly hope you realize how important setting goals are for young women, teaching them we have so much more to offer than just our bodies”).

However Kim K wasn’t fazed in the slightest and decided to take a leaf out of husband Kanye’s book, calling out her haters in true Yeezy style. Opening her Twitter tirade with a brazen reminder of her immense wealth (“sorry I’m late to the party guys I was busy cashing my 80 million video game check & transferring 53 million into our joint account”), she hit back at Midler and Moretz, branding the former as a fake and the latter as irrelevant. Kardashian also threw in a comment about Moretz’s Nylon magazine cover, which did well in pointing out a large chunk of irony: Ermmm, Chloe… you seem to have forgotten that the only thing covering your body on that picture is a coat—is it really that different from Kim’s?

Nevertheless, not everyone was quite so criticising. Modern Family actress Ariel Winter said it best when she reminded everyone that “No one was body shaming @justinbieber when he posted his nude guitar photo so why @KimKardashian? #herbodyherchoice #InternationalWomensDay”, and later adding that “everyone, men and women, should have the right to choose what they do with their bodies—and not be criticized.”

And isn’t she right? Surely by now people should be beginning to realise that nothing productive comes from slut-shaming women. It’s an irrelevant concept, and the fact that it even has a name shows that it’s gone way too far. Kardashian took to her app and website this International Women’s Day to defend herself, stating that she is empowered by her body and that her goal is—contrary to Moretz’s comments—to try and encourage females all over the world to take the same level of pride in their form and sexuality. She wrote “It’s 2016. The body-shaming and slut-shaming—it’s like, enough is enough. I will not live my life dictated by the issues you have with my sexuality. You be you and let me be me.”

Whatever you may think of Kim Kardashian or her Klan, you have to admit she has a point. To me, this is just another chapter in a long-running debate. Whether it be ‘free the nipple’ or ‘fat vs thin’, we can’t seem to turn our heads away from the row over women’s bodies and what they should or shouldn’t do with them. It’s the 21st century, we should be celebrating the beauty, sexuality, and confidence of women, not slut-shaming or criticising. We’re all different, but we’re all beautiful. How we choose to show that, naked OR clothed, is a personal choice.

Let’s face it, THAT picture is smoking hot and any one of us can understand why the mother-of-two would want to show it off! Let’s stop fighting and embrace the strength of ourselves as females. And to be honest, when it really comes down to it, it doesn’t matter what we all think. This isn’t her first nude picture, and I’m pretty damn sure it won’t be her last!

Review: Bone Tomahawk

Bone Tomahawk, written and directed by Craig Zahler, tells the story of a little town confronted to the horror lurking in the nearby mountains, in the American frontiers at the beginning of the 20th century. The Sheriff (Kurt Russell), an over protective husband (Patrick Wilson), one of the deputies (Richard Jenkins) and a veteran of the frontier (Mathew Fox), depart on a quest to rescue the husband’s wife (Lili Simmons), a depute (Evan Jonigkeit) and a “bushwhacker” (Sid Haig) abducted by a cannibalistic tribe of natives whose burial grounds was disturbed by the said bushwhacker.

This movie is well served by its impeccable photographic quality and actors, which perfectly captured the simplicity of the American Wild West. This maintains the viewer interested by the landscapes as the pace of the story may be considered too slow to some others. This becomes even more problematic due to the failure of this movie to deliver on the horror side of the story. The Indian tribe—though interesting in its concept of utter savagery and absence of humanity—is not developed enough and will fail to scare the vast majority. Its violent culture, though implied, is hardly ever shown and will barely impress those used to the gore of a zombie movie or a horror feature.

The camera—which remains of a stellar quality—participates in the waste of such potential and talent as it could have given the viewer a true sense of dread and the sensation of being watched. The films actors and their great performances as colourful and believable characters—not fully understanding the abominations on whose realm they are about to trespass on—only save the movie.

That, as a conclusion, can be considered a great documentary on the Wild West but alas, a failure as a horror movie—though it had the potential. I do recommend watching this film, not as rescue mission turned journey through horror—but as a simple one.

3/5

HOME Pick of the Week: Hitchcock/Truffaut

An enigma, genius and the ‘master of suspense’ all tip the iceberg upon the discussion of the man that is Alfred Hitchcock. The nature of Hitchcock is full well know in today’s society, but was something lesser known to his contemporaries. Yet fellow filmmaker, François Truffaut, saw Hitchcock for whom he really was—a true artist and auteur. This notion was developed in his 1966 book, Cinema According to Hitchcock. The book offered an in-depth insight into the mind of the director through transcribing the dialogue of extended interviews that were held between the two greats. Similar to their respective film, the text influenced generations of cinephiles into understanding the manner of Hitchcock’s work, alongside becoming a holy grail to many directors. The explorative nature that was at hand from Truffaut is centralized into Kent Jones’ latest documentary, Hitchcock/Truffaut.

As much as Jones creates an autobiographical piece for Hitchcock—outlining his origins as a title card designer and continual growth into the film industry—an atmosphere of critical appreciation towards such films like Rear Window, The Birds and many more is paramount. The narrator, Bob Balaban, is articulate in this manner. Through incorporating a wide variety of acclaimed directors as Martin Scorsese, Richard Linklater, Wes Anderson and Kiyoshi Kurosawa in the role of talking heads only serves to underline the cinematic importance of Truffaut’s book. Their discussion is not only key in developing the contextual background for the book, they also serve as significant reminder of the impact of the text, alongside both director’s works. Their passionate interviews place them amongst us—the audience—into our cinephilic nature.

Being an auteur, in theory, brings along with it boundaries in audience’s expectations for a director’s distinct style. Similarly, in regards to Stanley Kubrick, audiences of the time perceived Hitchcock as simply outstanding at one thing—suspense. Truffaut, however, saw past this social stigma in recognising and appreciating all of Hitchcock’s films as individual, and rejected to succumbing to audience’s stereotypes for Hitchcock as a director. In playing with audiences, Hitchcock transgressed the barriers of cinema in classics like Vertigo and Psycho. Jones is quick to draw attention to this particular factor in using them as a base for discussion and exploration.

Hitchcock/Truffaut is fully deserving of its subject matter and baring the title of two of the greatest film makers to have lived. Its deep focus on Hitchcock himself does not really leave any room for discussion up Truffaut as paramount to the French New Wave movement with films like The 400 Blows. Nonetheless, Kent Jones has created something that is a must see for any avid film lover and film enthusiast.

4/5

The “Generation Y” problem

Experts say that the Generation Y—people born in the 80s up to the mid-90s—demographic has been hit hardest by the economic crash in 2008. Recent research claims a “perfect storm” of factors have combined, putting young people in an extremely difficult position compared with their elder counterparts.

It is nothing new for young people to hear that their current economic position is somewhat precarious. Since the economic crash, global statistics on youth unemployment, graduate prospects, house prices and living costs have all made fairly bleak reading for the millennials.

A study by the National Office for Statistics found that in almost all countries which were considered as part of the research that young people suffered relative income losses compared with the generation before them. Pensioners’ disposable income, however, had increased. There are calls to address the problem that have seen a complete reversal from young adults earning more than the average national wage to them earning 20 per cent less nowadays.

Experts warn a broad set of socio-economic problems may arise from what is seen as a growing marginalisation of millennials and critics of the government will claim there is already evidence of this as the cost of living continues to climb.

According to homeless charity Shelter, “house prices are now almost seven times people’s incomes.” This comes as the nation has seen an increase in homelessness, particularly among young people.

In research from the Equality and Human Rights Commission published last year, young people were singled out as particularly vulnerable. Individuals from the 16-to-24 age range were the most likely to be living in poverty.

London, which is often seen as the epitome of modern inequality in the UK, has become an increasingly difficult place for young people to live. According to the real estate company Rightmove, the average house price in the capital stands at £548,857. The average rent fee per month is currently at £1,500, a figure that sparked protests last year as part of wider demonstrations opposing what charities like Shelter are calling a housing crisis.

Beyond these acute social concerns is also the difficulty in accessing the job market. The crash in 2008 has had devastating effects on young graduates’ job opportunities and is seen as central to the growing economic disparity between generation Y and the rest of the population.

The job market appears a very fluid entity, with a host of conflicting research and opinion on the matter. Some purport, despite graduate opportunities shrinking in the wake of the recession, that there have been recent signs of slow improvement.

A study last year reported a record 68.2 per cent of graduates were in professional roles and a survey conducted by the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services found that “81.5 per cent of respondents agree that the graduate labour market was more buoyant in the year to 31 July 2015 than the previous year.”

The Complete University Guide scores the University of Manchester’s career prospects at 75.5 per cent, with Imperial College London topping the list with 89.9 per cent. Economic analysts have warned a British exit from the EU could harm graduate prospects, the job market, and the UK economy as a whole.

Although the outlook for graduates may have improved marginally, critics of generational inequality will argue the position of millennials in society is, for students, one characterised by debt, and with those most economically vulnerable suffering the most.

Review: A Conscious Dream

A Conscious Dream is a clear example of a reflexive documentary. It plays with a specific reality in which the author presents its philosophical-abstract point of view through the use of aesthetic resources.Following the journey of band along Latin America, the author reflects about issues related with the culture of this region of the world and adds interesting insights about what is the meaning of life and death.

This film is a reflection in which the author presents multiple characters in the journey a band along Chile. The style of the director creates a constant oscillation between what these characters in the journey think about the culture and mix it with interviews of writers and philosophers who perceive the same topics from a different perspective.

In this sense, the film breaks the old-fashioned documentary style in which tries to present an objective reality composed by historical records. Instead, it mixes the interpretation of the author portraying its particular point of view through the creative portrayal of the characters that met along the way. A Conscious Dream then, presents innovative and creative content not only in terms of the content of the topics that are discussed, but also on the style that gives a deeper connotation towards what apparently is real.

Rediscovering Tel Aviv

Being a country so widely followed due to its turbulent politics and history, it’s a rare occasion one gets a cultural insight into the leisurely side of Tel Aviv. Home to over 400,000 people, it is a hugely forward thinking, western city with a lot to offer. It has a prominent LGBTQ+ scene, and the pop culture and party scene is second to none—even the Black Eyed Peas claimed it as their favourite place to perform. Were we still in 2009 we would perhaps all be a lot more impressed.

Having grown up with Tel Aviv as my second-most visited city, I’ve been able to experience it without prejudice or fear. Walking around, it is more than easy to forget the context of the country you’re in. It’s a city that feels alive; there’s colour and noise everywhere, and enough eccentric Israelis to keep you on your toes and interested (shout out to Jesus on a moped), but it’s also impressively relaxed, filled with a silly amount of attractive youth with life long tans, sauntering the city and getting drinks with their really attractive faces.

1.     Pop culture and the party scene:

The nightlife in Tel Aviv is buzzing. It’s a city that starts late and finishes late, and unlike the British, seems to understand how to construct a nightlife without 18 year olds passing out, vomiting, or as Pangaea reminded us all, anything else. Entrance therefore to clubs in general tends to be restricted to over 21’s, but will be well worth the wait. The Lonely Planet ranked Tel Aviv in the top 10 cities for young people, due to its vibrant and exciting clubbing and music scene.

2.     Dining

The food in Israel is diverse and more than available. There’s endless opportunity for street food and authentic middle eastern cuisine, which I strongly recommend as the way to go. However, should you crave something a little more international, there’s a huge range of restaurants available. Head over to Rustico (located on Rothschild Boulevard), should you be craving a killer pasta or Nutella pizza.

3.     LGBTQ+ scene

Perhaps surprisingly, the LGBTQ+ scene in Tel Aviv is prominent, with Out Magazine naming it the “gay capital of the Middle East”. There is an annual Pride Parade in Tel Aviv each June with over 100,00 participants, and in 2013 a poll by Haaretz showed 59% support for same sex marriage among Israelis.

4.     The Beaches

The beaches in Tel Aviv are a huge selling point in my opinion. They are large and clean, with white sands, palm trees and clear warm water. There’s rarely beach sellers like you find in many holiday destinations, yet more often than not, you’ll find beach huts selling drinks and ice creams. Visiting in the day time guarantees you a tan and a perhaps even a chat with a (once again) hugely attractive lifeguard if you’re lucky/dumb/smart enough to get a little lost out at sea (because the water is just that warm). What’s more, sunsets on the beach in Tel Aviv are addictive. Gather the troops, get some food, and watch from the shore. You won’t even need a jumper.

And there you have it, more than enough reasons to plan your next trip away with your friends to Tel Aviv. It’s not cheap, but well worth it.

Is anti-Semitism to blame for the rise of the ‘Jewni’?

Last week, The Telegraph published an article on ‘Jewniversities’—listing a collection of higher education institutions across the UK that the young Jewish community flock to. According to the Union of Jewish Students (UJS), 61 per cent of UK Jewish students attend just six universities: Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham, Oxford, Cambridge and Manchester.

Emily Deaner, former President of Manchester’s Jewish Society (JSoc), explains that Manchester can not necessarily be counted as a top ‘Jewniversity’ any more: “Manchester has historically been a university that attracts large numbers of Jewish students, however in recent years these numbers have fallen massively.”

But when Jewish students do decide to come to Manchester, Deaner insists that it not the large community of Jewish students that is a deciding factor:

“When I chose to come to Manchester I was attracted more to the city and the university than the number of Jewish students that would be there,” adding that this is a general consensus amongst Manchester’s JSoc.

Still, “Manchester as a city has the second-largest Jewish population in the country, and so has great resources for more religious students” if that is what they are looking for.

“It is an added bonus that there is a great community but I think that if someone was thinking about being with lots of Jewish students they wouldn’t necessarily pick Manchester.”

One explanation behind this growing trend is the fear of anti-Semitism on campus. According to the National Jewish Student Survey taken in 2011, 38 per cent of Jewish students reporting concerns of anti-Israel movements at their university.

Concerns over this matter grew last month after claims of anti-Semitism in the Oxford University Labour Club (OULC). The Chairman of the group admitted that “a large proportion of both OULC and the student left in Oxford more generally have some kind of problem with Jews.”

Miss Deaner is certain that this isn’t the reason that the Manchester JSoc community is depleting, saying: “I’ve never experienced any anti-Semitism on campus” and “that all my friends are really interested in my religion.”

As well as the OULC controversy, several universities are in talks to boycott Israel due to human rights abuse against Palestinian people. University College London made this decision last week.

Speaking on the matter, Emily Deaner explains that “it’s quite obvious that JSoc do not agree with the BDS movement and as someone who is pro-peace I do not think it’s really going to achieve any good.

“I think that a lot of people are misinformed and do not truly understand the Israel-Palestine situation and there should be a conversation about what is happening rather than a mere boycott of everything Israeli.”

Apart from 15 lecturers from the University of Manchester who signed up to join the national boycott of Israel last year, the university has not officially taken the stance on the conflict.

Royal Mess Up: Papers misreport anti-racism campaign

Both The Sunday Times and The Independent were forced to remove articles which claimed that the ‘I, too, Am Royal Holloway’ campaign advocated the removal of a statue of Queen Victoria on campus.

The campaign intended to promote the inclusion of Black. Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students by raising awareness of casual racism present at the university. This was inspired by previous movements such as ‘I, too, am Oxford’ and ‘I, too, am Harvard’, which similarly used a compilation of photographs of BAME students holding up quotes of racist slurs or micro-aggressions they had experienced.

Confusion of its purpose arose when The Tab in Royal Holloway reported the campaign with the headline ‘BME students ‘feel excluded’ by Queen Victoria’s Empress of India statue’. The Sunday Times followed on the 6th of March with ‘Anti-Imperialist Students Turn Fire on Victoria’, whilst The Independent claimed ‘Students Have Demanded That a Statue of Queen Victoria at Royal Holloway Be Removed’.

Royal Holloway’s Students’ Union responded with a statement denouncing the the headlines, asserting: “the campaign does not call for the removal of the statue of Queen Victoria in Founder’s North Quad” and that this alleged purpose of the movement was “completely untrue”.

In addition, Grace Almond, who was thought to be at the forefront of the ‘I, too, am Royal Holloway’ campaign later tweeted: “There are no plans for a #Victoriamustfall campaign at Royal Holloway. The articles written by @Independent and @thesundaytimes are false”.

All three articles have now been deleted.

The controversy over the misreport of the anti-racism campaign comes at a time where the colonial pasts of several universities are being disputed through student protest. This was initially sparked a year ago with the Rhodes Must Fall (RMF) campaign at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, where a statue of Cecil Rhodes—a Victorian Imperialist who supported Apartheid-style measures—was defaced before being taken down.

RMF then spread to the University of Oxford, where a number of students began to challenge the presence of a Cecil Rhodes statue at Oriel College. Despite unsuccessful attempts to remove it, the attention provoked a ‘Mass March for Decolonization’, which occurred on Wednesday the 9th of March. This saw over 100 students take an ‘alternative walking tour’ of sites linked to Oxford’s colonial past.

A number of other universities have also faced anti-colonial action. On Wednesday, Jesus College Cambridge pledged to remove a bronze cockerel from its dining room. This was looted from Nigeria during a British colonial expedition in the 19th Century. A college spokesperson on Tuesday stated that the rightful location of the ‘Benin bronze’ was a complex matter requiring further discussion.

Meanwhile in the United States, the Harvard Law School Committee has put pressure on the University to remove its crest that has ties to 18th century slave traders. The image, which depicts three sheaves of wheat, is based on the family crest of Isaac Royall Junior, the son of a wealthy slave owner and trader whose bequest endowed Harvard’s first law professorship. This comes after the successful campaign for the removal of the term ‘master’ from academic titles due to the word’s contentious connection with slavery.

Amherst College Massachusetts has also faced scrutiny due to its link with informal mascot, Jeffrey Amherst, an 18th century general accused of permitting the infection of Native Americans with smallpox.

Princeton is another, whose school named after Woodrow Wilson has been questioned, due to the former President’s allegedly racist views and contempt for ethnic minorities.

Review: JustFest 2016

Organised by the Student Development and Community Engagement Division (SDCE) and its programme Ethical Grand Challenges (EGC), JustFest 2016 is the university’s annual social justice festival. Despite it only being its second year running, this year’s JustFest’s comprised a main stage, stalls and exhibitions, a film ‘igloo’, a talks tent, and a number of local food stands. Associate Vice-President For Social Responsibility, James Thompson, informed The Mancunion on how the idea of JustFest was first established:

“The university, as part of a social responsibility goal, is trying to create a series of programmes that all students can access, which complement people’s curriculum but also extend the learning and interests they might have. We’re piloting this over the next few years.

“We’re looking for a way to attract students to come to debates and be confronted with issues of social justice, so JustFest is an attempt to think about a different form of engaging students, rather than putting on a series of lectures.”

Its outdoor main stage boasted a range of cutting-edge artists engaged with social justice issues, including the legendary Don Letts, spoken word artist and rapper George the Poet and Akala’s Hip Hop Shakespeare Company. Thompson said that the SDCE and the Students’ Union worked closely together “and there’s a whole series of staff involved with aspects of the music industry working to get a number of [the] artists. A lot of people have given their time for free, [while] we’ve paid some artists to come.”

In the talks tents, speakers had just five minutes to talk about their chosen social justice topic. The short but sweet approach worked well—each speaker got straight to the heart of the issue. Inside, the stalls and exhibitions held in Academy 1 were full of of interested crowds all afternoon.

Prior to the festival, a short film competition was opened up for students to submit a film on an issue they are passionate about. A shortlist of nine was announced about a week ago, with the winner announced on the main stage at the end of the festival. The judges chose two winners: Spot The Difference by Ben Capener, and Social Justice, Mental Health by Vay Whittaker. The People’s Choice winner was To Refuge by Hanna Krabchi. The Grand Prize was given to Ollie Thomson for his film When I Say I—a look at sexual abuse. All shortlisted films can be watched here.

The festival aims to make social justice accessible and relevant to all, instead of just the interest of a minority as it is often portrayed. “There seems to be a big call for students now,” Thompson told The Mancunion, “and people generally, to be both real experts in what they know—their core discipline, and to have wider areas of interest and be engaged with other issues. So that you can be a pharmacist, say, who’s got a great understanding of sustainability and social justice. So what we’re trying to do here in Manchester is give students that opportunity.”

The festival has seen support from a range of people and groups. “The Students’ Union have been brilliant in supporting this. In the long term, we see it as a really important partnership between the Students’ Union to engage students with a range of issues. We’ve got loads of local campaigning groups, the student groups and staff research representatives—it’s a really good combination of all those things.”

Regarding the future of JustFest and similar events, Thompson stated, “we’re going to evaluate this year’s festival. The idea eventually is to make it a much bigger event and think about where on campus it might happen.

Already this year, almost organically, a number of fringe events started appearing, such as the Debating Union’s Fossil Fuel debate. So eventually I’d like to see, you might have a festival day, but perhaps a week on social justice issues.”

You can follow updates from the Ethical Grand Challenges here and on their Facebook and Twitter pages.

The Whitworth strikes gold in VisitEngland Awards

The Whitworth has won yet another gold award, this time from Visit England in the large visitor attraction category. The University of Manchester’s art gallery beat an array of renowned competitors—including Chester Zoo and Salisbury Cathedral.

The Whitworth reopened its doors to the public in February 2015 after a £15 million redevelopment, which doubled the size of the building—the largest renovation in the gallery’s 125 year history. Since then, the gallery has scooped multiple national and international awards, including Europe’s Best Emerging Culture Destination, Museum of the Year 2015, and North West Building of the Year.

The most recent gold award for the The Whitworth is from the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence, which represents the highest accolade in English tourism. The Awards are firmly established in recognizing the highest excellence in practice and customer service, celebrating businesses of supreme quality and innovation.

Sally Balcombe, CEO of VisitBritain and VisitEngland, said: “These awards are the highest accolade in the industry, recognising the world class tourism experiences that can be found throughout England. As ever competition has been fierce, with winners from the regions coming through to compete at a national level so my congratulations to all our winners, especially the Gold Award winners who are the standard bearers for English tourism.”

Gallery Director Maria Balshaw said: “It has been a momentous period for the gallery—and winning this award, one of several now, is again a wonderful way to say thank you to all those who made it possible.”

The Whitworth is located on Oxford Road, and is open 7 days a week from 10am until 5pm, and on Thursdays until 9pm. For more information on upcoming exhibitions and events, visit www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth.

Review: Pat Flynn: Half-life of a Miracle

Manchester Art Gallery’s ground floor, The Manchester Gallery, has been transformed into a white cube space for this, the largest solo show of Manchester-based artist Pat Flynn, to date. Unless you’re familiar with his work, which I wasn’t, they look on first glance like they could be photographs or hyper-realistic paintings. They are, in fact, created entirely using 3D computer graphics software. The represented scenarios do not exist in the physical world; in other words, they’re all made up.

At least, most of them are. Some of the works on display contain representations of pre-existing images, such as Wise Man/Shining city upon a Hill, which is a recreation of the side of the Wizard’s throne in The Wizard of Oz. The Wizard of Oz is, of course, also made up; a movie adaptation of a fictional novel. So how real is this throne? Is a representation of a pre-existing fabrication still a fabrication, or does the movie provide some concrete standing in the physical world? There is an interesting paradox of fact and fiction at play here: we see the familiar shapes of everyday objects in some of these works and we recognise them, but they are simply digital pixels, ordered and manipulated to create illusions of these familiar objects, questioning the reliability of our system of perception. The analogy of smoke and mirrors was used by Flynn in his Untitled (Smoke) series and sums up his concept nicely.

We can remove ourselves from the smoke and mirrors and enjoy these works on a purely aesthetic level. There is a sort of cleanliness to their aesthetic, a clean cut, straight-lined utopic purity that resonates through them. The colours are bold, the palettes small and the works are easy to look at. There’s a certain beauty in simplicity that draws comparisons with minimalism; some showing the influence of Donald Judd; others the forms of Dan Flavin. There is also an awareness of, and nod to, certain other areas of art history with the chiaroscuro of Caravaggio and the symbolism of Bruegel both subtly but clearly referenced.

Manchester Art Gallery until the 17th of April.

For more information about the exhibition and Pat Flynn’s work visit: Half-life of a Miracle

University of Buckingham brings in sniffer dogs to improve mental health

As part of a move to rid their campus of drugs and “improve the well-being of students,” the University of Buckingham has invited in a group of drug sniffing dogs to parole the campus. The initiative was established by the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Sir Anthony Seldon. The University of Buckingham is the only private university in the UK that does not generate a profit.

Seldon is an outspoken advocate of students’ wellbeing and healthy student culture. Drugs, he argues, are a major contributor to poor mental health. Much of this is based on his own experiences with alcohol and drug consumption during his time at university.

Under Seldon’s guidance, the university has devised a ten-step plan to help improve mental health on campus. Drug sniffing dogs have been used as a kind of warning to deter against illegal drug use. The local police have also been given access to the campus at any time.

“Universities must start embracing the problem, and stop ignoring and even exacerbating it by failing to engage fully with best practice, and by permissive policies which turn a blind eye to alcohol abuse and other causes of distress,” Seldon explained in a press release by the university earlier this year.

Alistair Alcock, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University, describes to The Mancunion how “having sniffer dogs on the campus sent a strong visual message that we do intend to enforce the [zero-tolerance] policy.

“Allowing the police to walk through the campus and into our public spaces is not just about deterring drugs. It is to emphasise the general safety of the campus and as much, if not more, to make clear to non-students that the campus is not a police-free zone as to deter any wrongdoing students may be engaged in.”

A four-year report from the Higher Education Funding Council for England has found an increase in more than 50 per cent of the number of students seeking counselling services in their university. Seldon has deemed this a nationwide “crisis in University mental health.”

Alcock explains how “we do not wish to be expelling students for involvement in drugs, but we do wish to deter any from considering such involvement and force those that have become involved to engage with our Welfare Department to get away from them… the University’s Welfare Department has an active programme to help those who realise that they do have a problem, to overcome it, but we will take action against those who do not come forward and engage.”

The University of Manchester has a less strict policy towards drugs and alcohol, and it is undeniable that students in Manchester face the same issues with mental health. However, the measures initiated at the University of Buckingham may not work everywhere.

“I’m not really sure everyone would be comfortable with that,” one Manchester student who requested anonymity said to The Mancunion. “It seems like an invasion of privacy.”

Review: All Rise

All Rise follows a story based on six talented individuals from different parts of the world, facing different kinds of socio-economic problems, with one goal in mind: to win Jessup. Jessup or Philip C. Jessup International Moot Court competition is the largest moot court competition with participants from over 550 law schools in more than 80 countries.

The film in the first part follows these six individuals, where they talk about their aspirations and their expectations from Jessup, as well as discussing the hardships that most of them go through in the regular scheme of life—the pressure mounted on them from different people to go and do something miraculous in the competition. In the second part, the rigorous competition starts in a football World Cup-style format, where in the beginning there are 80 teams that compete against each other in different groups which lead to next round of 32, where teams start to get eliminated in a one on one match. The two teams competing have to defend two fictional countries on an international dispute; they have to remember every case, every international law and have to make sure that the opponent does not get a hold of them in any case. In this process the six individuals that are followed have to take the pressure on. During this process some will falter, and some emerge as winner.

Petition made for Piccadilly Gardens revamp

Given the general dislike for Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens, as well as its extremely high crime rate, the Manchester Evening News has put forward a petition to Manchester City Council to revamp the whole area and take it back to the glory days of the 1950s.

Currently, the area consists of a small playground, tired grass patches and a huge concrete wall that dominates the scene. On the review site TripAdviser, the area has been described as “the dumping ground of Manchester” and “stale and lifeless”.

The area’s crime rates are unusually high, with 87 separate incidents recorded by the Greater Manchester Police in December 2015 alone. Piccadilly Gardens is widely known as a hotbed of drug use and dealings, with one TripAdvisor user stating that the area has “more drugs than Boots.” From August 2013 to 2014, 80 separate arrests were made in the area in connection with drug dealing alone.

A recent Manchester Evening News survey found that over half of the participants did not feel safe in the gardens at night—The Tab reported similar findings, with one Manchester student adding “I don’t travel anywhere on my own.”

The gardens in 1949. Source: HistoryMe

The heyday of the gardens was the 1950s, when the area saw tended flower beds, trees, and a working fountain. One commentator on the Chorlton History website described the area has having an all-around “friendlier” atmosphere than today.

The current fountain is out of action and has been broken on at least 5 separate occasions since its installation in 2002. The city centre was rebuilt that year after the 1996 Manchester bombing, but the design has proven very unpopular.

The petition to makeover the “scruffy” gardens was released on 2nd March of this year and within 24 hours, it has received over 10,000 signatures—only 4,000 are required to demand that the city council publically discuss the issue. Once the petition has gathered 20,000 signatures the Manchester Evening News will present it to the council leaders to show the outpouring of the support it has received, hopefully prompting them to take action.

There have been several ideas put forward for the renovation already. The concrete wall and what to do with it features heavily in all of these suggestions, from demolishing it entirely to turning it into “something that everyone can enjoy.” This could include turning part of it into a backdrop for new restaurants and bars, to create a “flourishing night-time economy” or covering it in creeping plants and creating extra green space for the city.

If you would like to sign the petition, go to petitions.manchester.gov.uk/petitions.ti/piccadillygardensmen on the Manchester City Council website.

Review: London Has Fallen

In Babak Najafi’s London Has Fallen, the action takes a trip across the pond from the White House to the City of London as this adrenaline fuelled sequel to Olympus Has Fallen brings Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart face to face with a mass act of terrorism once again. With an event in the British capital that requires all major leaders of the Western world to attend, a terrorist attack is able to leave London injured and down on the ground—forcing the President of the United States and his trusty bodyguard Mike Banning onto a two-man crusade against, what appears to be, the world.

Scenes of fiery explosions, ferocious fist fights and nail-biting shootouts bring back the feel of a classic Hollywood action film. The film has been criticised in regards to the use of poor special effects. But when wanting to show London’s greatest landmarks being blown to smithereens, how realistic can you make it look? It gives off this old-school action effect—a Die Hard notion with a hint of the aesthetics from The Expendables—minus the comedy. London Has Fallen gives you the chase scenes that drive an action film and unlike its prequel, allows the President and Mike to work together as a team, leaving viewers to turn to social media to refer to the pair as an onscreen ‘bromance’.

Some of the original cast members from Olympus Has Fallen come back for more in the next round of the action. Morgan Freeman returns to his role as the Vice-President to watch the action unfold from the safety of the White House and uses his famously known ‘God-like’ voice to fiend the attackers off from afar. Angela Bassett reprises her role as the Director of the United States Secret Service, who joins both the President and Banning on their journey across the Atlantic and feels the heat of the attack personally to say the least, claiming that “it’s one thing to plan for this… it’s another thing to live through it.” Both provide plausible supporting roles in the film and by choosing to keep several of the same actors for this sequel, a somewhat saga is created.

Aaron Eckhart’s performance is stunted due to the helpless characterisation of the President and likewise, Gerard Butler provides an admirable performance as Mike Banning as much as the narrative and genre of the film allows him to. There were moments of Butler’s performance within London has Fallen that reminded me of his performance during his role as Clyde Shelton in F. Gary Gray’s Law Abiding Citizen. It is these moments of Mike’s pure anger and hatred that are portrayed by Butler in London as Fallen that stem from certain catalysts. The film touches on some controversial matters as the plot revolves around the Western world being attacked by the Middle East—a topic relevant in current affairs at the moment. In a scene which shows Mike Banning in a head to head with one of the leading attackers, Gerard Butler’s character refers to the home country of the terrorists’ as ‘Fuckheadistan’, which leads me to question what sort of message this film emits to its audience members. The West is presented as the hero and the East as the enemy. In a highly anticipated Hollywood blockbuster, is this really what needs to be presented given the current circumstances of global politics?

If you like the non-realistic stereotypical cheesy action film, then London Has Fallen may be just for you. But if you are into an action film with a little bit more of a thrilling and stimulating drama to the narrative, then you may need skip the trip to the cinema to see this one. The White House has fallen and the City of London has fallen but is there really any need for anywhere else to take the fall?

3/5

TV Binge: Cuckoo

Back as an online exclusive, the late Cuckoo’s unlikely son Dale is played by Taylor Lautner, who has just returned from a business trip in China. Naïve innocence dressed in a suit and aviators provides instant comedy as he prepares ‘di shui-dong ribs with braised eggplant’, exotic fruits and chicken chop suey for the family.

Meanwhile Lorna (Helen Baxendale)—pregnant and convincing Ken (Greg Davies) to take six months paternity leave—oversees the household and acts as the beacon of normality that clashes with her husband’s new scarlet corduroys. Dylan, the all-grown-up Jake (Tyger Drew-Honey) from Outnumbered, is left unquestioned to his teenage boy pursuit of sleeping with his girlfriend as many times as possible before she goes abroad: “9 more shags to go”, slipping out of the door before a chance of reprimand from the family.

Daughter Rachel (Esther Smith) is still seeing the clingy two-shoes Ben, Matt Lacey from her ‘gap yah’, and is searching for something more than the sit down office job with the uninspiring target goal of promotion to manager. Perhaps a volunteering scheme in Perah.

Easy to plunge into without the prerequisites of the first two series, each episode begins with a brief recap of what happened before so you’re not left completely clueless.

A surprising hit from Andy Samberg’s series debut in 2012, Cuckoo has progressed to involve familiar characters with ups, downs and frankly hilarious cameos gracing the screens after children’s bedtime (if you haven’t seen the clip of ‘Ken on E’ you haven’t lived).

With Twilight star Taylor Lautner in a new, playful light as he bounds around the family home like an untrained bunny, the gold of the show shines from his kind soul and misguided actions. Unaware of his romantic competition with Ben, his every move wins over the hearts of Rachel and the viewers as he jogs the 12-mile journey to the hospital after getting excluded from Ben’s car.

With Dale’s tribal upbringing so removed from the stereotypical indirectness of English emotional awkwardness, the contrast provides hilarity as the foreign bird settles in to nest.

With plenty of back story, character development and plot twists, Cuckoo is an easy-watching experience with intermittent laughs and without fear of the implausible. Settle in for kidnapping, drug barons, Shanghai brides and above all, Greg Davies in magenta trousers.