Film: A Real Pain

For tonight, second film night in a row, I went to A Real Pain, a comedy where Jesse Eisenberg finds himself travelling around Poland with his really annoying cousin as a travelling companion. Showing in my closest cinema, Curzon Aldgate! Two showings I could make - I went for the later one - had a lot of work to get through, and I could leave later for that one.

Intending to eat in Cote St. Katharine Docks, I could walk there, so in due course I did. A few minutes for anyone to notice me standing at the door, and I was seated without too much bother. Ai me though, the service.. I was later told they were "covering". Huh. I'd believe it. It took ages for anyone to take my order. When I got a carafe of water, I wasn't given a glass and had to ask for one, which was eventually thumped down unceremoniously. My wine didn't arrive until after I'd started eating. It took 25 minutes for my main to arrive after I'd finished my starter - which still hadn't been cleared away, and wouldn't be for a few minutes more, despite waiters passing all the time. Was never asked how my meal was, either, or whether I'd like anything else. To top it all, I'd asked for a dessert at the start - I was having the Prix Fixe menu - but with all the delay I didn't have time for it before the film, so instead asked for the bill straight away. And - you guessed it - was charged for dessert.

I only noticed after I'd paid. I should have declined the service charge, too - anyway, I kicked up a fuss about the dessert: but they were taking so long to fix it, I had to leave. I've complained, for all the good it'll do me - they can go to hell if they want to give me a discount in lieu, I never intend to go back there. Jeez, did they come over from Cote in Hay's Galleria, another place with atrocious service?! or from Bar + Block Aldgate (same problem). Kee-rist, is there anywhere left that's decent to eat..?

After all that, as I remarked to the guy at the cinema, I could do with cheering up. At least I got my ticket for free! Unfortunately, though advertised as a comedy - this really isn't. There are some funny bits, at the beginning - these cousins are on a package tour, Jesse Eisenberg's character is quite uptight, his cousin is the carefree one. And as someone who's taken quite a few of these tours myself, I really empathised! There are some amusing adventures involving trains, smoking weed in hotels, seeing sights. Sadly, it soon turns introspective, with the carefree cousin battling his own demons. It's a good film - but it shouldn't have been marketed as a comedy. A real pain of an evening in all, I guess you could say I had..

Tomorrow, delighted to have managed a cheap ticket for Dara O' Briain! See, he's touring later in the year, but is doing this warm-up show in the Pleasance Theatre.. now sold out. I jumped at the chance as soon as I heard of it.. and that should actually be funny. Eating at The Depot beforehand. They have a low standard to live up to.

Then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend. Where the film looks like to be A Complete Unknown, a Bob Dylan biopic starring Timothée Chalamet, with Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, another singer with an activist bent, who backed Dylan until they had a falling-out. Showing widely - I'm thinking of Ennis for it. Ironically, Movie Roadhouse London is going the same day, in London! Happens so often..

On Monday, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for Tarantula, at the Arcola.

On Tuesday, I'm back with CT for Stage Time, the improvised comedy show at Shoreditch Balls. Eating at The Blues Kitchen Shoreditch beforehand.. ooh, looking forward to that!

With the film list out nice and early for once, next Wednesday I'm off to see All We Imagine as Light, at last - showing in the BFI. I booked, because it was selling out. Set in Mumbai, it describes the relationship between two female roommates of different ages, and their different experiences of love.

Next, two Meetup days in a row - I have none this week! On the 23rd, I'm heading to A Good House, at the Royal Court, with UITCS - eating in Cote Sloane Square beforehand.

And on the 24th, I decided to accompany The Hideout to see Presence! Venue TBD. Well, it doesn't have a terrific rating, but neither does it have a bad one - and the trailer looks good.

On the 25th, back with the Crick Crack Club at King's Place, for The Three Snake Leaves, with Hugh LuptonBen Haggarty, and Sally Pomme Clayton - music by Sheema Mukherjee. Accompanied by my sometime companion from UITCS. Potentially meeting Ivan for a late-night drinking session afterwards - TBD.

On the 26th, two Meetup groups I haven't been with in an age - in the morning, I'm headed with London Literary Walks for a parade commemorating the execution of Charles I! Never heard of it, but apparently it's a thing. We're meeting at The Red Lion, Crown Passage.

And in the evening, I'm back with Buddies on Budgets in London, for the Winter Lights show in Canary Wharf.

Finally, on the 27th, I'm back at King's Place for a Kirckman Society concert by the Paddington Trio. It'll be good to get back to classical music, it's been too long..

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Play: Player Kings

New Year Social

Meetup Social