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ClareR (5603 KP) rated One of Them in Books

May 12, 2021

One of Them

Musa Okwonga | 2021 | Biography

8.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

This is a memoir in short, punchy chapters, of Musa Okwonga’s experience of Eton College. Musa’s mother, a widowed doctor, supports Musa’s wish to go to one of the leading public schools in the country, and pays 50% of the fees that his scholarship doesn’t cover. It’s still a lot of money - and what does he get for that?

Well. I would say that I’m firmly in the anti- public/ private school camp, but I can’t find any fault in Musa’s education. He seems to have really enjoyed his time at Eton. He received a well-rounded education, and it comes across, largely speaking, as a caring institution. He does have some trouble with other boys: racist comments for example. He doesn’t seem to register these instances, and only finds out through another ex-student once he has left.

I liked how Musa looks at the reasons behind Brexit, about our continuing culture of the ‘Haves’ and “Have Nots’, and how if those who went to institutions such as Eton were less self-serving, just how much good they could contribute to this country. Instead, their attitudes seem to have contributed to the rise of the far right.

It’s a really interesting, if short, book, and well worth a read.

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole, Unbound and to Musa for reading along.

Kudos

British Embassies: Their Diplomatic and Architectural History

James Stourton and Luke White

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Book

British Embassies have a special role in our history. They represent our country in bricks and stone...

LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated We Summon the Darkness (2019) in Movies

Jan 5, 2021

We Summon the Darkness (2019)

2019 | Horror, Thriller

4.7

(7 Ratings)

Movie Rating

This is fun but there's no reason it shouldn't be gorier, crazier, more inventive, and/or more insightful given the film's insanely clever choice to frame a horror/slasher flick through the lens of religious sects vs. metal culture in the 80s - but I digress, perfectly serviceable fluff trash as it stands. Daddario is awesome in it, and I just can't get enough of Knoxville as a deliciously fire-and-brimstone pastor. I at least appreciate the formality - I'm glad this wasn't an obnoxiously meta "hey, remember this?" nostalgia soundboard like droves of films or shows detrimentally feel the need to become whenever they're set in the 80s now. But at the same time, there's so much potential for super bombastic kills and nuanced commentary that never was, and in their place it just tends to lumber for no real reason. Otherwise entertaining solely on principle, with another dependably cool score from Timothy Williams keeping things entertaining. And yes the twist is as righteous as everyone says. Not going to shake a stick at the amount of blood, enjoyment, and amped-up performances this does end up delivering - it's a decent little throwback slasher on its own - but God could you imagine if like Adam Wingard had made this? Holy hell what a picture that would have been.

Kudos

Joe Jonas recommended track Do You Really Want to Hurt Me by Culture Club in Greatest Hits by Culture Club in Music (curated)

Greatest Hits by Culture Club

2005 | Pop

(0 Ratings)

Album Favorite

Details

Do You Really Want to Hurt Me by Culture Club

(0 Ratings)

Track

"What I love about Culture Club is how they took inspiration from reggae and made it into this beautiful pop that didn’t sound like much else at the time. Boy George was one of the first pop stars to come out and showcase that side of himself publicly, and in a time when it was more frowned upon than it is now. He’s always been so outspoken too, which is incredible. “I got the opportunity to meet him when he was a judge on The Voice Australia and to work with one of the artists that he mentored, Sheldon Riley. He auditioned with ‘Do You Really Want to Hurt Me’, but it was a really dramatic version of the song - it was so powerful. It was really encouraging to see Boy George work with an artist who chose one of his songs to cover, which would be a challenge for a lot of people. “Boy George is such a great frontman, with all his flamboyance - his outfits and his makeup. I would be jealous sometimes when I would walk in the room and be like, “Man, who made that?” and he would say, “Oh I made this outfit”’ And the fact that he’s still doing it and works so hard, I have the utmost respect for that."

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Kudos