Its been a while since my last update. I don’t imagine there will be too much action on this site over the next year while I undertake the remaining three chapters. At the beginning of November I submitted my first chapter to Simon (my supervisor) for supervision. It is a relief to get that behind me and I’ve given myself a couple of weeks off … I have some hard slog ahead. I’ve learnt a lot about phenomenology in film, but in the same breath I could also mention that I’ve learnt a lot about my daughter’s favourite bedtime book of Party Fairies and their associated special powers. At least I am leading a balanced life of sorts.

I haven’t seen too many films in the meantime. Just Party Fairy books and study. However, I did catch up with the technically astounding Gravity which I enjoyed a lot. If you take Gravity on face value it is nothing more than a clever Hollywood romp, but if you know anything about its director, Alfonso Cuarón (Children of Men) you’ll realise that this film is painted with a far deeper palette. It seems that you can read this film in multiple ways, although it is immediately apparent that this is a film about interiority and exteriority on a personal level … the struggle to face the world in-spite of the ease to do otherwise. This duality is evident in so many parts of the film; its two characters, the themes, the plot, the sound, the lighting, to name a few. It really is a simple film that has been dealt a master stroke.

See it, enjoy it, and then think about it.