Film: Juror #2

For yesterday, I signed up with Cultureseekers, who were doing a Haunted London Treasure Hunt, in Holborn.. bonus points if you wore something scary.. but then Movie Roadhouse London (MRL) decided to go to Juror #2, directed by Clint Eastwood (at 93!) and starring Nicholas Hoult in the title role of a juror who thinks that the woman who's supposed to have been murdered by the defendant might actually have been knocked down by himself! Also stars Toni Collette as the prosecutor, and J. K. Simmons as a juror who turns out to be a retired cop. Showing in Cineworld Leicester Square - and so I decided to go to that instead. Could have gone to both, I suppose.. but nah, not bothered about Cultureseekers really!

Ah, it made a nice change only to be going to one event, after the last couple of days.. I booked in Bella Italia beforehand, of course. Well, I say "of course", but when I first booked the film, I couldn't actually book the restaurant, it wouldn't let me.. I do wonder whether they only open booking a certain time beforehand, because I eventually managed it. Anyway, delighted to be back here again. Mind you, it certainly wasn't busy at that time - she told me to pick wherever I wanted to sit! So I did - and was most excellently fed.

And then, with all the confusion of the last few days, I somehow thought I was going to the Vue again, like the day before.. duh! I only realised my mistake when I was getting a drink, and the person at the counter asked to see my ticket and informed me I was in the wrong cinema! Oh dear.. well, easily remedied, and I was the first after the organiser to arrive. There were four of us, in the end..

It's a small screen, but comfy seats. Some good trailers beforehand - and off we went. And very shortly, it occurred to me to wonder whether Mr. Eastwood hadn't taken 12 Angry Men as his inspiration for this - the excellent courtroom drama where Henry Fonda is the one dissenting juror who sways the entire room by introducing the element of doubt. Now, 12 Angry Men this isn't - for one thing, Henry Fonda doesn't think he himself is guilty! But I did enjoy it - I think Nicholas Hoult does a good job of looking tortured, torn by the fact that his wife is expecting a baby, and lost the last one.. and quite simply, his family needs him! We also get a balanced view of the defendant, who doesn't seem the killer type, even if he did lose his temper that night.. and as the film draws to a close, the tension ratchets up as we wait to find out the verdict. I'll say this much.. I HATE when the director leaves us on a cliffhanger, as in the last scene here. Knew it was going to happen. But as I say, I did enjoy it.

On the way home, during my interminable wait for the bus, I had a view of early Bonfire Night fireworks, in Westminster:

This evening is also looking like film. And what's coming up that's interesting is Black Box Diaries, a documentary filmed by a Japanese journalist to document her fight for justice, after she was raped by a man with very important government connections! Threatened by those in power, stigmatised by many in this conservative society, she shows great bravery in telling her story to the world. Showing in the Curzon Bloomsbury, where I'll head in due course. My one non-Meetup day in a run of them!

Tomorrow, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS), for The Buddha of Suburbia, at the Barbican - lordy, it's over a year since I was last there!

On Tuesday, back with the World Music Meetup, for another concert at St. Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation and Peace - again, it's nearly a year since I was last here, or with this group. It's a lovely group, but so often clashes with other things.. This time, the concert is with Delband, who perform traditional Iranian music with a twist - and is now sold out.

On Wednesday, I've been tempted back to the Horror Book Club, who are reviewing Out There Screaming, an anthology, edited by Jordan Peele, of short horror stories by black authors. Handily, of the specific stories they intend to review, two were on the free Amazon sample! and I liked enough of it to sign up. In the Prince of Wales again - Tube strike permitting.. I really must get on with reading the other stories, though. And that's the last Meetup for a few days.

On Thursday, looking at film again - and I'm delighted to see that the Prince Charles has resurrected one I never had the chance to see! The Worst Person in the World is a Norwegian film about a woman searching for an identity, who it seems gets married, then has an affair. Looks beautifully quirky. It's interesting how much keener I am in this than in the higher-rated Anora - another love story with a conundrum, where the young son of an oligarch falls for an American prostitute and his family sends in the heavies - could have something to do with the age of the protagonists: they just look too young in that! The Worst Person in the World looks much more relatable to me.

Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again - and having vowed never again to take a flight as late if I can avoid it, for the return leg to London I'm shunning Ryanair, and going Aer Lingus, who fly 2.5 hours earlier..

The next three days promise to be musical ones! The next two days back, I'm with TAC - first time in a while. On the 11th, I'm going to see the Fibonacci Quartet, for the Kirckman Concerts at King's Place.

And on the 12th, I'm seeing The Definitive Rat Pack tribute act, at Boisdale of Canary Wharf.

And on the 13th, I start a new run of Meetups with Over 40 Living the Life, for The Magic of Motown tribute show, at the New Wimbledon Theatre.

On the 14th, I'm back at Watkin's Occult Bookshop, first time in ages - this is for a talk from the author of a new book - on Book Curses! Eating afterwards at Bella Italia Cranbourn Street - delighted to be able to get a booking with them: they seem to be booked up a lot lately!

On the 15th, back with UITCS for The Glorious French Revolution at the New Diorama Theatre! Eating beforehand at the nearby Greene Man, which is a Greene King pub, so good food should be had.

On the 16th, back with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpies, yay! This walk is Baker Street and its Quirky Surrounds.

As is becoming something of a habit, afterwards I'm joining MRL for a film! This time, it's Gladiator II, at Picturehouse Central, with Paul Mescal replacing Russell Crowe as the gladiator who shows Rome the error of its ways, and a return by Connie Nielsen as the mother of the now-emperor.

On the 17th, I'm back with the Crick Crack Club! This time, it's Queen of Between, with Sarah Liisa Wilkinson, and it's at the British Museum again - which means I'd better leave a huge chunk of time for queueing!

And on the 18th, I'm headed to Reykjavik, in Hampstead Theatre.. which, ironically, UITCS went to last week..