Spent my Halloween getting super creative. Started the day with my friends and the kids, and took a visit to the Archibald Prize at the Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, which was so impressive. I really liked the winner, very dark and gothic with that serious and spectacled face and those terribly creepy hands, but my other favourite was the black and white portrait of the man standing in a grand space with the tiniest pop of green colour coming from his shoes and the floor space, very striking.
After so much inspiration, it seemed important to come home and do some of our own portraits. We painted, sketched and created at the table for a good part of the afternoon and then hit the kitchen to create a seriously delicious array of Halloween feasting goodies.
I had my first attempt at making pasta from scratch, and it was a pretty good effort actually because the results were damn good! For starters we indulged in spinach and ricotta stuffed ravioli with napolitana sauce, followed by pumpkin gnocchi with sage and butter sauce and to top it all off, a spiced pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing for dessert. Needless to say that we were were all as fat as hogs by the end of it all, but it was a grand feast with everyone (even Craig who was a whiz at rolling the pasta) pitching in a hand to make the feast a success.
Spent the evening rolling around on the couch like a satisfied cat watching back to back episodes of The Simpsons Tree-house of Horror until my eyes could bare it no longer and I retreated to my bed and slept like the dead.
Thought I would try and milk a little more out of my Halloween weekend and went to the movies on Sunday to see this new gothic offering.
After so much inspiration, it seemed important to come home and do some of our own portraits. We painted, sketched and created at the table for a good part of the afternoon and then hit the kitchen to create a seriously delicious array of Halloween feasting goodies.
I had my first attempt at making pasta from scratch, and it was a pretty good effort actually because the results were damn good! For starters we indulged in spinach and ricotta stuffed ravioli with napolitana sauce, followed by pumpkin gnocchi with sage and butter sauce and to top it all off, a spiced pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing for dessert. Needless to say that we were were all as fat as hogs by the end of it all, but it was a grand feast with everyone (even Craig who was a whiz at rolling the pasta) pitching in a hand to make the feast a success.
Spent the evening rolling around on the couch like a satisfied cat watching back to back episodes of The Simpsons Tree-house of Horror until my eyes could bare it no longer and I retreated to my bed and slept like the dead.
Thought I would try and milk a little more out of my Halloween weekend and went to the movies on Sunday to see this new gothic offering.
CRIMSON PEAK
Release Date: 2015
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 119 mins
In spite of the actor's best efforts and a pleasingly sumptuous visual display of gothic lushness, Crimson Peak failed to excite me with it's largely predictable story line and somewhat pointless horror efforts.
Edith (Mia Wasikowska) leaves her American home behind after her father dies under terrible circumstances. She moves into her new husband's (Tom Hiddleston) rundown gothic homestead in England that he shares with his surly older sister (Jessica Chastain). Edith quickly becomes aware of a supernatural force in the home that appears to be trying to communicate with her, which leads her down a mysterious and gruesome path of discovery.
Guillermo del Toro has pulled out all of the stops here, incorporating mystery, horror, romance and graphic violence into the story, including some of his older and already used effects from The Devil's Backbone. Unfortunately, it just doesn't translate very well, and although this was a visual delight, the story came across as cheesy. The exceptional cast are trying very hard, but there just wasn't much for them to work with, so the film just seems to stumble over it's own ridiculousness, desperately clinging to the creepy surroundings of Allerdale Hall, which was the best thing about the entire film.
FINAL SAY: A crimson tide of disappointment.
2.5 Chili Peppers
Release Date: 2015
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 119 mins
In spite of the actor's best efforts and a pleasingly sumptuous visual display of gothic lushness, Crimson Peak failed to excite me with it's largely predictable story line and somewhat pointless horror efforts.
Edith (Mia Wasikowska) leaves her American home behind after her father dies under terrible circumstances. She moves into her new husband's (Tom Hiddleston) rundown gothic homestead in England that he shares with his surly older sister (Jessica Chastain). Edith quickly becomes aware of a supernatural force in the home that appears to be trying to communicate with her, which leads her down a mysterious and gruesome path of discovery.
Guillermo del Toro has pulled out all of the stops here, incorporating mystery, horror, romance and graphic violence into the story, including some of his older and already used effects from The Devil's Backbone. Unfortunately, it just doesn't translate very well, and although this was a visual delight, the story came across as cheesy. The exceptional cast are trying very hard, but there just wasn't much for them to work with, so the film just seems to stumble over it's own ridiculousness, desperately clinging to the creepy surroundings of Allerdale Hall, which was the best thing about the entire film.
FINAL SAY: A crimson tide of disappointment.
2.5 Chili Peppers
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