When the Cheshire emerges...

On this day one year ago I did a pretty good wrap of my 2012 highlights and I was excited for 2013. Now I'm hanging out for it to be tomorrow so I can start afresh and get my life re-sorted.

I don't really know what I should say about 2013 as a year.

It started great with my trips to the Australian Open and Brisbane/Port Stephens. I have nothing but good memories with those, so can't complain about the summer really.

But then it just fell to pieces by the time winter came along. There were so many things not clicking in different parts of my life and I felt rather lost. I was unhappy with work, which didn't make for a healthy mind, and felt helpless.

The last few months have really helped in restoring what I thought was gone. I'm still getting there, but I really feel anything's going to be better than the rollercoaster of the last 12 months. My connections with friends in Dubbo strengthened when I needed them most, and for that I'm eternally grateful.

And importantly, I landed a job that piqued my curiosity as well as that of many who know my new employer's reputation.

This year has made me doubt my abilities as a journalist, and I still have those doubts sometimes. But in Darwin I've been given the chance to give it a red-hot go and that's all I ask. In a completely different vibe from Dubbo, I've been socially active from the start with people that want my company - no questions asked. You couldn't imagine the difference it makes, whether you know people in a place (as I actually do here) or not.

Having said all of that, it's over. There were lessons learned, as outlined perfectly by this blogger. January 1 brings that fresh start we all need at this time, that knowledge anything's possible. There's plenty for me to look forward to in 2014, namely my World Cup trip and two weddings to attend. I have hope, and that's all I wish for everyone else.

Happy New Year to you all. Sorry for the soppiness. x

Photo: tenplay.com.au

Having immersed myself in the latest season of Glee this week as part of an ongoing TV catch-up post-move, I wanted to talk about a couple of things regarding the show.

1: The Cory Monteith tribute episode.

I didn't watch it at the time; the news of his death was horrible, I was particularly busy and I hadn't watched the episodes before it. Finally getting to it a couple of months later though, it was still incredibly sad. Glee has always dealt with strong topical issues, from school shootings to gay acceptance, and Monteith's death was dealt with accordingly.

If I'd watched the Cory Monteith tribute ep of @GLEEonFOX when it aired I would've been a right mess. Still am after watching it only now...
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) December 23, 2013

2: The Beatles episodes.

I can't say I've ever been a huge Beatles fan. The only song of theirs I think I have on my iPod is Get Back because that's what my dad had downloaded once (and I was influenced by his taste for different pop/rock music). But listening to the Glee crew singing their way through a snippet of their illustrious catalogue, I was touched by the simple lyrics and melodies. It's actually made me want to go and buy their 1 album.

I love that five seasons in, Glee has the ability to still influence younger generations into appreciating good music - while still embracing modern and perhaps dubious acts like twerking.

I've only briefly mentioned on here that I will be at the World Cup next year, but with things moving quickly a lot has happened and my planned trip is really coming together.

With the help of my wonderful travel agent in Sydney, I first tried to figure out if the Fanatics option was cheapest/the best. After deciding yes and getting frantic about the Rio de Janiero start of the tour selling out, I still managed to get on the Sao Paulo start. I'm really happy about that now because there'll be less people to start with, and we're taking in the atmosphere of opening night in the host city.

So who else has been screwed over by the Aerolineas Argentinas pull-out? Was only told today my #Brazil2014 #WorldCup flight was cancelled.
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) November 13, 2013

To get to Rio I had booked a G Adventures tour starting in Buenos Aires, and found some really cheap fares from Sydney there with Aerolineas Argentinas. Soon before moving from Dubbo I get a call telling me they were pulling out of all Australia flights effective April. So I had to rebook flights wtih another airline, stopping in Auckland and Santiago before Buenos Aires. On top of that, with the move to Darwin I now need a domestic connection and because of the bad flight time I cut a day of South America time to accommodate that. On the plus side, I'm now in Santiago for the last two days of my trip so I'm taking in four countries (Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Chile).

Aaaaaand so the waiting for tickets begins... #WorldCup #Brazil2014 #ihopeijustgetticketsalready pic.twitter.com/RCBVPcQkri
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) November 11, 2013

Tickets to the games came to me much more successfully than I'd imagined, so for that I'm grateful. On visiting my agent in Sydney, I was told there was a first in, first served sale different to the major ballots. Finding myself in an internet cafe at 10.30pm, I'm surrounded by a ticket seller and his assistants who are struggling to get good tickets - for anything. After I realise the most effective way to refresh for any updates (a process in itself), a Category 1 3-game ticket comes up. Winning.

It's done. @Socceroos #WorldCup group stage tickets BOUGHT #Brazil2014 #excellent #bloodyexcited
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) November 11, 2013

The next day I stupidly didn't buy a pair of hiking shoes that were probably worth forking out a bit for, and since then I've managed to book a two-week Peru tour and at least get cheap hiking pants. The real adventurer begins to come out...

After a rush to try and figure out whether internal flights to two of the Socceroos games were cheaper to DIY I just went with the Fanatics package (although their flights were crazy for being chartered, they weren't all that much dearer, and at least they're direct). It then comes to today and the reason I wanted to write on this.

I received notice that an updated itinerary for the Fanatics World Cup 2014 trip has been put on their website. I knew from the beginning I would be in Brazil as one of those crazies in the green and gold. But on reading the itinerary, I got goosebumps. And watery in the eyes.

Seriously. I didn't think I'd be so emotional about it. But it's only five months away...



Maybe I can be that girl in Brazil somewhere... Photo: smh.com.au

It's been another two days. Yesterday I melted. Today not so much. I'm beginning to see how this all works... I have to wake up two hours earlier than usual to get my hair/make-up looking OK. This wasn't by choice - I had the police round today, so a pre-7am start. Totally worth it.

For those who don't know, I have moved to Darwin.

Photo: bigbrother.com.au

I had intended to write an entry on the final three, but I've been a bit behind the eight-ball this week with my television - I only watched the Big Brother finale this morning after a self-imposed social media blackout.

And HOW GOOD was the result?! Out of the three, I think Australia got the order right. And Tim was the perfect player of this game, perhaps more open in that than anyone else we've seen.

Photo: bigbrother.com.au

While fast-forwarding through the three-hour broadcast makes you realise just how much they draw the announcement out, we get a great reflection of the season that was.

I wrote this time last year about how great the 2012 season was, but when you get a season that is just as good it becomes lost on you. The 2013 selection of housemates was not just interesting, but the continued twists kept them on their toes and it made for fantastic television.

And the relationships were some of the most intense yet.

Photo: news.com.au

Well, Tully and Drew's was the biggest. She cheated on national TV, he admitted to love. It was more than Ed could manage, although he changed his original plans to 'just have fun' to 'OK, Jade's persistent so I'll go with it' - so he gets some credit, right?

This series, while I wasn't in it, was the result of a good selection of people, that had interesting conflicts. Although news on the outside that it might be rigged has annoyed me a bit today. On wondering why Justynn wasn't at the finale, it's revealed he wasn't invited. And then I find out he's a part-time actor...

Oh and speaking of, I was reminded that Tim was the Rihanna plane streaker. So this year we've had an aspiring actress/model, a race car driver's boyfriend, former AFL player and well. It's been a bit of a B-grade special hasn't it?

***

I'm sad it's over for another year though. Maybe next year I'll give it a go. It looks like they have so much fun.

Photo: bigbrother.com.au

And PS: Sonia Kruger was in possibly her best dress for the year for the finale. Stunning.

Thor: The Dark World (M)

THE TALE of Asgardian heir to the throne and all-round god Thor is Marvel's most mixed with its elements of medieval living and intergalactic reach. It's an ironic notion to think we're looking for some superior alien race, and Marvel have nothing to suggest that for much of it life is where Earthlings were 1500 years ago.

At the same time, Thor's story is most relatable with its focus on his relationship with brother Loki. The pair could not be more opposite (indeed on-screen representatives Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston appearance-wise), representing good and evil while managing to keep a light head. 

A parallel of good and evil is what this sequel first shows; while Thor is off fighting for peace within the nine realms Asgard rules over, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is still losing a two-year battle of heartbreak. Not even the bumbling charm of Richard (Chris O'Dowd) can improve her mindset.

Jane's work has led her to London, where her time as a singleton comes to an end after falling through a portal to an unknown realm and contracting the Aether. You'd be right thinking that's a bad thing - the Aether is a matter capable of destroying worlds and highly sought by exiled elf Malekith (Christopher Eccleston).

It's a triple whammy for Jane - she finds her love once more, gets to travel to Asgard and meets the parents (Rene Russo and Anthony Hopkins). But the plan to be rid of a threat known previously to Thor only in childhood stories has the saviour in a real predicament.

Photo: perezhilton.com - I love this!

The Marvel Cinematic Universe just keeps on giving with this fine continuation of the thread. The script from Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely is extremely entertaining, with plenty of unexpected twists and cracking humour delivered well by the cast. Everyone gets a go in contributing, and no one disappoints.

Importantly, the story continues the ongoing feud between brothers, founded from Loki's desire for the Asgardian throne and still fuelled by his view of supposed favoritism towards Thor. It's essentially Marvel's version of any given sibling rivalry, engrossing for its wave of positive and negative emotion as well as Loki's ability to keep everyone guessing.

Hiddleston has fun with his gleeful villain, creating the smallest bit of sympathy while still managing to exude a most evil interior. Alongside him, Hemsworth counteracts nicely as Thor with his strong presence and good intentions. The supporting cast all return, including a crazed Stellan Skarsgard, and new characters create unexpected sub-plots to add to the overall story twists.

As per usual within Marvel's realm, post-credit scenes give an insight of what's to come - and they won't disappoint. The first film delivered a good introduction, and now we learn Thor can withstand complex issues that concern Asgard and Earth. A great continuation not to be missed.

A belated week that was. It was a huge week for me personally!

With 12 YEARS A SLAVE now in theaters, @Katiinkaa explores what makes Steve McQueen so great. http://t.co/QqdWp96KJt

— Movie Mezzanine (@MovieMezzanine) October 21, 2013

7.05am: Makes an informed choice to wear the brightest top she owns. The day's set to be a stinker at 35 degrees, and nothing's going to stop her from shining today.

Coz I am a champion, and you're gonna hear me rooooaaarrrrr #empowered #greatday
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) October 22, 2013

1.37pm: Runs into the local cinema manager. He lived in her new location for six years and wasn't taking the piss as could have been the case. Said he loved it. She feels confident.

1.51pm: At lunch with her friend, she discovers a friend of her and her partner's lives there. And they want to visit. That's at least the third time the topic of visits has been mentioned for the day. Just about more than the total amount of times in two years for her current location.

1.59pm: A call from an unknown mobile number. She answers. A chief of staff from a paper she was previously interviewed at wants to discuss a possible opening in their production department. No writing involved, but using online/social media and editing skills as part of a team.

After declining the opportunity, she discovers the position for grabs back then was decided after 'very tough competition', and receives a lovely congratulations and best wishes before the call ends. She ponders the sheer randomness of that call when considering the lack of contact for about seven weeks after an interview from her home city.

3.10pm: Anxious about her use of remaining time in lieu, she asks the managing editor if he has sought necessary information. She has to wait until the next morning.

5.07pm: Walks out of work after a busy day, deciding to have eaten lollies and not go to the gym as a reward. She feels satisfied, and ready to reveal her news to the world.

7.26pm: After breaking the news on Facebook, she writes about her day. Laughs about the sheer SHOCK that has come from everyone on finding out. And then realises there's so much to be done, but just wants to watch Big Brother instead.

DESPERATION is a theme known to all of us, something that can't be escaped, avoided or underestimated. It comes to those with the strongest of faiths in a god and those with no beliefs in the hardest of times, showing itself in a million different ways. Denis Villeneuve has recognised the power of emotion and turned a story of desperation into a grim picture of human nature.

Religion plays its part in desperation as help towards finding a way out. Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) is a believer, a man taught to be prepared for everything that naturally comes to us in life. His world is destroyed when daughter Anna (Erin Gerasimovich) and her friend Joy (Kyla Drew Simmons) go missing, and naturally he and wife Grace (Maria Bello) are completely lost.

Alex Jones (Paul Dano) is brought into custody as a suspect, but inconclusive evidence leads to his release without charges. Keller's desperation comes to the fore when he believes Alex holds the truth, and sets his own plan in motion to seek it. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) is at odds with Keller, not out of his doing, and his frustration increases as his solid reputation for solving crimes does him no justice in this case.

Keller is a formidable figure, losing his strength and turning to violence against those he believes have wronged him. He looks to God for his salvation and the return of the girls, and is one of many to play the blame game. Keller and Grace are more obvious in their distress than Joy's parents, Franklin (Terrence Howard) and Nancy (Viola Davis) - but they too have their strong views on those they see as responsible.

Aaron Guzikowski has thrown characters of all sorts into a story about family, trust and helplessness. His screenplay weaves Detective Loki's investigations with Keller's own journey to find the truth, adding in the impact the kidnapping takes on both of the families as well as Alex and his aunty Holly (Melissa Leo). Everyone is a prisoner, whether behind iron bars or in their minds.

Jackman is vulnerable as Keller, a man so scared of how his situation came to be he becomes someone else. Bello as the grieving mother is heartbreaking, and Gyllenhaal is great to watch as a bad-arse detective filled with doubt. But Dano's creepy suspect Alex is simply frightening, conveying with so few words a picture of secrecy and fear. Scenes between Dano and Jackman are the film's highlight.

With child kidnapping a contentious topic, films such as these show how easy it is for a family to collapse under its foundations. Villeneuve gives his cast a big opportunity to explore those emotions of helplessness and desperation, and they grab it. This tense thriller shows the strengths and weaknesses of family units as well as individuals when an unseen force comes from nowhere.

Rating: 4/5

Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) and Rotten Tomatoes from Saturday 19/10/2013

MISSED LAST WEEK'S REVIEW? See what I thought of 2 Guns.

My Prisoners film review can be accessed on here, but I'll be putting it up tomorrow in full. That's a promise. Meanwhile, my news of the week.

My review of Prisoners will be published tomorrow.

Sticking with tonight's usual theme though, you get two articles I wrote for Movie Mezzanine during the week!

After the site's reveal of our top films of the 1970s, I took the liberty at thinking about how lists come to define many people's movie-watching - myself included.

ICYMI, @Katiinkaa wrote about "anarchy disguised as order" when it comes to our obsession with making lists. http://t.co/BfepVGtozs
— Movie Mezzanine (@MovieMezzanine) October 18, 2013

And then I had something to say on the Fifty Shades of Grey production...

Could Charlie Hunnam's decision to leave Fifty Shades of Grey end up saving his career? @Katiinkaa thinks so. http://t.co/DYCYIuNpLZ
— Movie Mezzanine (@MovieMezzanine) October 18, 2013

Today I had a moment of clarity.

I went to purchase a ticket to an event for this Saturday night in Dubbo, but on exiting the building realised I hadn't actually paid.

I stepped forward a metre or so as this slowly dawned on me, and then stopped.

I stared at the ticket. My first thought? Score!

Then I looked at the bottom of the ticket: All profits from the event go to Pink Angels (a Dubbo charity). I couldn't deny a charity my money.

And as amusing as it seemed in my head to rip off Dubbo Photo News (my paper's rival), I turned around, went back in and paid the $20. The last note in my wallet, I may add.

Photo: thesoulreader.webs.com

I knew on exiting for the second time I'd done the right thing. Not because society tells us, but because I've been dealt some ongoing bad karma this year (from my own doing). It's not something I'm prepared to go through again.

Doing good deeds don't have to pay off in the way of physical gratitude, but just have to make YOU feel good about yourself. I did get the gratitude, but that's just a bonus.

2 Guns (MA 15+)

WHEN corruption within the US government is presented in film, more often than not it has to do with the country’s president. This film by Baltasar Kormakur doesn't touch on that for a change, but still shows corruption on multiple levels to say that everyone’s the bad guy.

Bobby (Denzel Washington) and Stig (Mark Wahlberg) are a team that liaise in deals with Mexican drug kingpin Papi Greco (Edward James Olmos). They rob a bank meant to be containing Papi’s money as a revenge plot for a double-cross before Bobby is found out by his partner to be a DEA agent. Stig’s no different though as a naval intelligence officer, and while the double double-cross is usually a bit of fun, it creates a snowball effect of confusion for the plot that follows.

The script mistakes its flaws as suspense. Characters are introduced without proper explanation, and a failed relationship between Bobby and fellow agent Deb (Paula Patton) serves only to get Patton topless.

Photo: digitaltrends.com

Washington and Wahlberg are a pair constantly at each other’s throats with endless banter that amounts to sheer stupidity. Walhberg’s drawling and chewing is excessive, and reduces him to his failsafe archetype of a wannabe ladies man.

There’s plenty of shoot-offs and menace from everyone involved. Bill Paxton and James Marsden get their hands dirty as government and military officials respectively, while Olmos gets a bit of a laugh out of it all.

What is evil then? In this case it’s everything - the film is not clean in character, story or look. Two guns recur as a motif throughout the film but don’t give us anything to draw from. It’s a mindless journey with typical, but still disappointing, results.

Rating: 2/5

*Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) and Rotten Tomatoes from Saturday 12/10/2013

MISSED LAST WEEK'S REVIEW? See what I thought of Gravity.

I've had a couple of self-awakenings this week.

First, I feel really disgusting if I sleep for a 10-hour period (which I never used to be able to do, and will not let myself undertake again).

Second, I really do eat too much sugar.

Photo: art.ngfiles.com

Now, while I don't go obsessive for the round things like Homer Simpson, there are certain sweets I cannot ignore.

Chocolate is the main culprit. I've written before about my excitement for Asian confectionery and baking chocolate cakes, and it's something I believe hereditary from my paternal side.

I drink chai lattes and hot chocolates as an alternative to coffee when out with friends or in need of a hot drink. I put Milo on my Weet-Bix (NOT weird, it actually does taste amazing. Don't knock it until you try it.).

***

A couple of weeks ago I thought about all of this, and then combined that with friends' views/experiences on a no-sugar diet.

While I could never go totally without sugar, I decided to look at what I was doing wrong.

First was the Milo. It's been off my cereal for nearly two weeks and it's staying off. I usually try and have fruit with my Weet-Bix when I can, and because blueberries are cheap right now they're great to chuck in - and a bit of fun too...

Is it weird that I have @DisneyAnimation's Hercules in my mind right now? #film #planetsaligned #toogood pic.twitter.com/ky4sbik7co
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) October 2, 2013

Next is not consuming chocolate all day. Now, with this I often have high ebbs and flows in that I binge for a while and then go off completely for a bit. I've had too many film nights with friends lately to give myself that chance though, so I'm really pacing myself.

I didn't have any sugary/junk food from Sunday to Tuesday, even passing up chocolate mud cake at work (my FAVOURITE). On Wednesday, my day off, I succumbed to an iced chocolate. And you know what? It didn't taste as wonderful as I expected. Still good, but not entirely satisfying.

Then I went and won some chocolates while wearing a crazy hat that night at dinner, ahead of today's Hat Day (great initiative by the way, look it up). But I didn't eat them. They're being saved for a rainy day.

***

The point of all this is really to say that I'm thinking a little bit more about the sugars I'm consuming and how it relates to my general energy levels and wellbeing. I believe if I do eat less chocolate and don't feel tempted to eat as many cakes at birthday parties then I'm on a winning run. And I think I've taken off OK.

Sugar will never leave me, but at least I can control the level of the high.

***
You are whole. You are complete. You are total in every moment that you're alive.

Today is World Mental Health Day, and while I am promoting affirmations regularly this year in my posts I hope this helps anyone affected by mental illness.

***

Your ability to be a winner 100 per cent of the time is based upon giving up the notion that losing at anything is equivalent to being a loser.

Photo: ablogtowatch.com

Our days are the precious currency of our lives.

If you're suffering in your life right now, I can guarantee that you're somehow attached to how things should be going.

The more you work at just being yourself, the more likely you'll feel purposeful and significant in your life.

The universal principles will never show up in your life until you know they're there. When you believe in them, you'll see them everywhere.

You don't get abused because there are a lot of abusers out there. You get abused because you send out signals that say, "Abuse me, I'll take that."

What you have to learn to do is fall in love with what you do and then sell that love.

You can spend the rest of your life, beginning right now, worrying about the future - and no amount of worry will change a thing.

Photo: asiasociety.org

Once you know that what you think about expands, you start getting really careful about what you think about.

If you depend on others for your value, it's "other-worth", not "self-worth".

In Western civilisation, we're accustomed to believing that what we produce and what we get for ourselves is a measure of who we are, when, in fact, that's a dead end.

When you're ready, whatever will need to be transformed will be there.

When you're just like everyone else in the world, you have to ask yourself, "What do I have to offer?"

Happiness, fulfillment and purpose in life are all inner concepts. If you don't have inner peace and serenity, then you have nothing.

Only a ghost wallows around in his past, explaining himself with descriptors based on a life already lived. You are what you choose today, not what you've chosen before.

A successful person isn't someone who makes a lot of money. A successful person brings success to everything that he or she does, and money is one of the payoffs.

This. Film. Was. Amazing.

Just go.

Photo: empireonline.com

Last night I attempted to try corn-flavoured confectionery.

Yeah, this stuff...

And - it was OK. Creamy corn. It was more the liquid that tasted flavoursome, the jelly itself ultimately became rather tasteless but still nicely chewy.

I love trying new foods.

***

I got to have a do-over last night, as I wrote my second review of Runner Runner in a week. I think I like the Movie Mezzanine version better. Check it out and if you've read both tell me what you think.

RUNNER RUNNER -- a world of beautiful people and corruption you hardly care for. Our review by @Katiinkaa. Read on: http://t.co/ILUkjGDykM
— Movie Mezzanine (@MovieMezzanine) October 2, 2013

Runner Runner (MA 15+)

Photo: The Telegraph (UK)

I was lucky enough to receive some Chinese confectionery from my friend Carina a few weeks ago, who had gone over there to discover a bit more about her family and where she comes from.

It's a lovely assortment of chocolates and jelly shots, all of which I'd never tried before.

As Asian junk food in general is not known to me, I have been intrigued and pleased with what I've had so far.

Until this.


Midway through my conquest of the lolly bag, I am attempting to eat a CORN flavoured jelly shot. The picture shows little corn cobs in a cream sea, see?

It won't open for me though... almost as if to say to me, "No, eat your dinner first, then me," or, "I'm too weird to eat, weeeird."

You will find out how it went tomorrow.

***
On another note, I will publish my movie review in a separate post shortly. It will not be neglected!

My film review will be published tomorrow night, apologies for the delay.

Photo: lukemelia.com

Those who behave in ways that you dislike are sending out their disharmony toward you because that's all they have to give away. Hating them is akin to hating moss for growing on the tree.

You don't need to let anyone in your life unless they come in with love and harmony.

One of the highest places you can get to is to be independent of the good opinions of other people.

You're doomed to make choices. This is life's greatest paradox.

***
Why?

I'm documenting the Brownlow Medal as I see it through Twitter on my Storify account.

Rolling throughout the night, so check it out.

I will reveal here that my fave dress of the night was on Belinda Riverso, girlfriend of Rory Sloane. Love cobalt! She looked gorgeous - although it was hard to pick. Even Brynne Edelstein looked nice.

My home city has been the subject of people's attention this weekend as mega boy-band One Direction touched down in Adelaide to start their first Australian tour.

There was a bit of confusion. I concluded people were idiots.

The week leading up to it was interesting enough. As life usually is. Read on!

Turbo (G)

SPRING will see a healthy number of race-related films hit our screens, but before the adults get their turn with Ron Howard’s Rush, the kids get their share ahead of school holidays. With Pixar rival Planes hoping to appeal to audiences who loved its predecessor Cars, DreamWorks has released its own competitor.

They’ve decided to stay on the ground because they believe slow and steady wins the race. Their choice to feature one of Earth’s slowest creatures is entertaining in premise. Working on the idealistic moral of everyone wanting to follow their dream, one little snail has (of his world’s standards) a most impossible wish - to race the Indianapolis 500.

Turbo/Theo (voiced by Ryan Reynolds) is a believer. And good things come to those who wish upon a star, right? Things come along to those who deserve them, and when Theo finds himself in a bad situation it ends up being the beginning of a great adventure.

He becomes Turbo a la Spider-Man, with a bit of nitrous oxide altering his DNA to make him super-speedy. Turbo is the toast of new peers after he and brother Chet (Paul Giamatti) are found by Tito (Michael Pena), and he uses his newfound ability with no sense of that so-called great responsibility.

With great power comes the inevitability of one losing their way a bit. Turbo’s dream of racing in the Indy 500 becomes real with Tito’s enthusiasm, but is knocked back by Chet’s overwhelming disapproval.

Photo: wearemoviegeeks.com

Childhood heroes are also exposed to not be everything they seem. Racing legend Guy Gagne (Bill Hader) finds Turbo intimidating enough to bully him with fear. In both relating the irony of talking to a snail and what this little animal has dreamed of their meeting, it gives the overall story a stab in the side.

The oddness of this all centring on snails is something that lingers as the film goes on. Their lack of speed is well utilised with entertaining slow-motion shots, while the enormity of their day-to-day affairs are highlighted in much the same way Antz and A Bug’s Life did so long ago. But it still brings a fascination to those watching.

David Soren brings a feisty protagonist to his first directorial feature, a young Generation X snail believing he can do it all. Reynolds brings the ‘I can’ attitude to the room to make Turbo a nicely likable character you want to cheer for.

Ken Jeong (The Hangover trilogy) hams up his feminine side voicing nail technician Kim Ly, while Snoop Dogg is Smooth Move... a smooth mover.

The script by Soren, Darren Lemke and Robert D Siegel blends a cute tale of pursuing your dream amongst those who shoot you down. Slow and steady, their DreamWorks snails are quite possibly the coolest they’ll ever look or sound.

Rating: 2.5/5

What’s over is over. You did what you knew how to do. It wasn’t right or wrong or good or bad. It just was. But all you’ve got is today. You can’t have it back.

No one can get behind your eyeballs and experience life the way that you do.

The only difference between ALONE and ALL ONE is one L… and that stands for love.
In matters of taste, you alone are, and must be, the sole judge of what pleases you.

Everything you “have to have” owns you.

It takes not one drop of sweat to put off doing something.

When God speaks through your hands and smiles upon the earth through you because you’re an unconditional giver, a purposeful being who asks nothing of anyone… prosperity will be your reward.

I had a week off and spent it back home in Adelaide which was fabulous. I relaxed, saw all my friends and family, and even got to the Royal Adelaide Show.

As such, I've been slack in my new Storify venture, but I've caught up. If you want to see what I was interested in this last fortnight, follow the tweets.

Katina's week that was (from Monday 2/9/13) http://t.co/wbmULLgfPw #storify #auspol #ausvotes
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) September 17, 2013

Katina's week that was (from Monday 9/9/13) http://t.co/spX9Dv7Kqt #storify #adelaide #weather
— Katina V (@Katiinkaa) September 17, 2013

Networking can never fail. It’s so powerful because you just keep creating more power sources. It’s like geometric progression.

If you can conceive it in your mind, then it can be brought into the physical world.

If you work at living your life a moment – instead of a decade – at a time, then you can cope with your challenges.

You can attend a beautiful service every Sunday, and you can practice all kinds of Bible sayings, and you can label yourself with the most fantastic tags that you can come up with, but you won’t find your heart in a temple if you don’t have a temple in your heart.

The beggars in the streets of New Delhi, the boat people in Malaysia, the royalty in Buckingham Palace, the factory workers in Detroit, and you (whoever you are) are all equal cells in the body called humanity.

If children are raised in peace, they will not know how to be warlike.

We are all at once teachers and learners in every encounter of our lives.

Every problem you have you experience in your mind. The solution to the problem is in the same place.

Starvation is part of what the universe is about, but so is my desire to change it.

You’re not your form. You’re something much more magnificent, divine and grand.

Anytime you get hate, send out love. Then love will come back and you’ll be free.

When you no longer need to learn how to deal with disharmony in your life, you’ll stop creating it, and you’ll create love and harmony virtually everywhere you turn.

Instead of saying, “Why is this happening to me? Isn’t this awful. Poor me,” begin to say, “What do I have to learn from this?”

That we breathe, that we showed up on this planet, that we communicate, is a miracle.

The purpose of life is to know God.

The difference between being neurotic and being a no-limits person isn’t whether someone has problems. Everyone has problems. It’s attitude. Do you look for solutions or more problems?

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