Film: Under the Flags, the Sun

Tonight, decided on film again - and that was Under the Flags, the Sun, a documentary about the Paraguayan dictatorship. Showing, of course, in the Curzon Bloomsbury, home of documentaries in London. Going from the office, I could walk there - and for all the promised rain today, it didn't rain a drop on me.

I left the office late, still had plenty of time to eat beforehand - the film was late. GBK, of course, where you pay in advance - and I was rather sorry I tipped. Service was weird - it took ages for my wine to come, and then she came down with a beer and a red wine. She'd mistaken the table of course - and didn't seem to know anything about my white wine. Still took about five minutes after that - he brought it. And when my food finally came, she was the one to spot that the burger "without tomato" had tomato.. So that also took ages to replace. I was glad I'd come early.. and wouldn't you know, she came down later to apologise - "My bad," she said. Goodness me.. But it was delicious. Even if it did, as usual, repeat on me later.

And so to the cinema, where I arrived a little early. I was worried they didn't have my usual chocolate, until I realised they'd just changed the packaging.. took myself downstairs to wait for the screen to be ready, they have seating all over the building. And knew the screen was ready when I saw the cleaner emerge. Handily, I'd booked a seat by the wall - plenty of space for my things, including rucksack with laptop.

So, this is basically a compilation of documentary footage, scoured, as they explain, from all over the world, relating to the Paraguayan dictator, Alfredo Stroessner. A military general, he was backed by a party called the Colorado Party, of all things! A far-right party that nonetheless used the colour red, it helped him to dominate the country for 34 years, would you believe.. the only ones allowed to broadcast on the single tv channel, they associated themselves with the Catholic Church as well.

However, there's almost no commentary to the film - just more and more footage of people waving flags and looking patriotic. It switches to colour after a while, and it isn't until he was finally ousted, in 1989, that we get to hear about people looking for their "disappeared" relatives. There is an interesting sequence where they break open a sealed room and discover all this confiscated material - Communist literature and the like. Oh, and funnily enough.. the Colorado Party was in power long before Stroessner arrived, and - it still is. So what's actually changed, I can't see - perhaps the disappearances stopped..

My bus journey home was a nightmare, with the laptop especially - where I caught the #188 is near the start of the route, and usually early enough to beat the crowds. Not tonight - a load of people crammed on in front of me, and I ended up standing most of the way. I was exhausted by the time I dragged myself in. Thank goodness the laptop only comes out once a week.

Tomorrow - well, I just couldn't resist going to Bring Her Back with The Hideout. From the makers of the notable recent horror, Talk to Me, this is a must-see, focusing more on those who are left to grieve, apparently. It was eventually confirmed to be in the Vue West End, but I signed up a while ago, because I know I want to go with them. Even though the London Horror Film Group actually went to the same film last Sunday, I'd rather wait.. :-) And anyway, if I'd gone with them, I wouldn't have had the chance to meet London Museums A-Z.. Booked Bella Italia for beforehand - first time in over a month!