No reason

Just to get proper perspective on things...

Another great trailer for Animal Kingdom

The word in the industry is that Jacki Weaver (who plays the mum) may get an Oscar nom. Well, it's an Australian film and Oscars are American, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Australians have new Prime Minister

In a rather sudden turn of events, Kevin Rudd stepped down and was replaced by this foxy lady.

Julia Gillard is the first female Prime Minister in the history of Australia.










Read more here.

Watch the drama here.


Here is a report from Guardian.
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Julia Gillard becomes Australia's first female prime minister

Sudden change of leadership comes after Kevin Rudd steps down rather than face Labor party ballot

Ellen Connolly in Sydney

Thursday 24 June 2010 08.57 BST

Julia Gillard vows to call an election in the coming months Link to this video

Australia has its first female prime minister, Julia Gillard, after Kevin Rudd stepped down as Labor party leader, avoiding a ballot he was certain to lose.

In an extraordinary day in Australian politics, Gillard told a media conference in Canberra's Parliament House she was "truly honoured" to become prime minister.

The 48-year-old who came under attack in 1998 when she entered parliament for being single and childless, said it was also an important milestone for Australian women.

"I think if there's one girl who looks at the TV screen over the next few days and says 'Gee, I might like to do that in the future', well that's a good thing," Gillard told reporters.

Gillard, who was born in Wales and came to Australia in the 1960s with her parents, said she accepted her new role with "the greatest humility, resolve and enthusiasm" because she believed a good government was losing its way.

Gillard said she would stay in a suburb in Melbourne's north, and not move into the prime minister's Canberra residence, The Lodge, until after she had won the next election.

"I'm very happy in my home in Altona (in Melbourne's north) … very happy in my flat in Canberra," she said.

"Indeed, I believe it is appropriate for me to stay there until we have an election and I have fulsomely earned the trust of Australian people to be prime minister."

Her historic – and unexpectedly swift – rise to the top job was sparked by a report in yesterday's Sydney Morning Herald that Rudd had used his chief of staff, Alister Jordan, to sound out the backbench on the level of support for him. This followed a Herald/Nielsen poll which showed the government would lose if an election were held now.

Gillard, who had been publicly and privately loyal to her leader, was livid, and regarded Rudd's action as a sign that he did not trust her repeated assurances that she would not stand.

"It was offensive and disloyal," said a Gillard supporter.

It led to a push to oust the leader, and in the end Rudd, aware he didn't have the numbers, stood aside this morning.

Rudd, who was once regarded as Australia's most popular prime minister which led to him being known as "Mr 60 Percent", for his high approval ratings, has seen his support plummet to record lows this year as the nation reacted angrily to a series of government U-turns on key election promises.

The most damaging was the decision to shelve its flagship emissions trading scheme until 2013. He also came under fire over plans to tax the "super profits" of the key mining sector by 40%, earning the wrath of resources firms and their many shareholders.

Rudd, the first Labor prime minister to be dumped by his party before he could complete a term in office, was in tears today as he declared "I have given it my all".

He said he was particularly proud of the apology to the so-called stolen generations – the tens of thousands of Aboriginal children taken from their families in a strategy of white assimilation only abandoned in 1970.

"What I am less proud of is the fact that I have now blubbered," a teary Rudd said.

He said he would stay on and fight for the re-election of the Labor party at the next election.

Gillard's partner, Tim Mathieson, said he was greatly surprised at the rapid chain of events that led to her appointment to lead the country.

"She will absolutely be a fantastic prime minister,'' Mathieson said. "She has the right mindset and she is very consultative.

"I am so proud to be her partner and to be able to support her today.''

In parliament this afternoon, Gillard defended her role in the leadership ambush of Rudd, saying she did what was best for her party and the country.

"I formed the view that the best way of making sure that this government was back on track … was to take the course that I took last night and this morning," she said.

"Cane Toads: The Conquest 3D" Los Angeles Film Festival Review

I was telling you about this brilliant mock-documentary some time ago, and now guys over at Collider had a chance to see the film in its 3D glory at LA Film Festival.

Here is their review. :-)

Cane Toads: The Conquest 3D Review

Director Mark Lewis has a made a career out of directing odd and quirky documentaries that center around animals. He’s directed documentaries about rats, chickens, cattle shows, and ferrets. In his latest film, Cane Toads: The Conquest 3D, the director returns to a subject which he explored previously in 1988 with Cane Toads: An Unnatural History. In that film, Lewis told the story of the cane toad and how it was taking over Australia. The toad had been brought into the country with hopes that it would eliminate a pesky bug which was ruining the countries sugar plantations. The cane toad failed at doing that job and instead began to multiply by the hundreds and began to spread around the country at a incredibly fast pace.

Cane Toads: The Conquest picks up decades later from where Lewis last left off. The cane toad has now spread all over Australia with 1.5 billion toads hopping around and the number just keeps on getting higher. Lewis not only revisits this odd bit of history and how it’s affecting Australia, but he also spends most of the film documenting the colorful characters that have been affected by these toads as well.

What Lewis has made is not a scientific nature documentary, but instead a deadpan comedy which just happens to be a nature documentary. From its opening scene set “million of years ago” that ends with a giant cane toad starring you down before rushing at you while the screen cuts to black and its title card appears in the most dramatic fashion, it’s clear that Lewis isn’t taking this subject too seriously and just wants to have fun.

Thankfully, the rest of the film is filled with scenes like this. There are dramatic inserts of toads spliced into archival footage, a scene depicting an acid trip as experienced by a dog after licking a toad, and a sequence showing an art piece done by a man who decided to pose all of his dead stuffed toads reenacting a wrestling scene and a car accident. All of these scenes and a lot of other ones are done in such a serious manner that you can’t help but laugh.

If the documentary wasn’t fun enough by itself, the 3D surely helps. Lewis constantly decides to use 3D to his advantage by creating a number of scenes which show the beauty of Australia, but shows the depth and distance of all of the scenery by placing a toad in the forefront. Plus, the acid trip as seen from a dog’s perspective is also something great to see in 3D. If you’re able to not take anything in the documentary too seriously and see it as a comedy, then Cane Toads: The Conquest really is a surprising amount of fun and I recommend you seek it out if it comes by your town.

Can't wait to see it! :-)

X, Y, Z... or I'm really sorry to see our classes end :-(

It's so difficult to let this go... so I probably won't ;-) I'm intending to keep this blog and post something from time to time.

Even if I have another class next year, it won't be the same without your group. When I started I wasn't entirely sure what it would be like and what the heck I was doing ;-)

THANKS TO YOU ALL FOR GOING ON THIS JOURNEY WITH ME! :-)



Ok, but now enough of saying goodbye, it hasn't ended yet. ;-P We still have a couple of topics to discuss.

1. Youth culture and youth problems

In a way we have already touched upon that talking about subcultures. Pity we didn't have a chance to watch Romper Stomper.

And it seems we won't be able, either, to watch any of the two films which would be a perfect illustration of the topic.

Both deal with the insecurities of young people: loneliness, lack of understanding, problems with defining one's identity, lure of the big world and its temptations, and so on...
Both star a very talented female - Abbie Cornish - who is well on her way to become next Cate Blanchett.
In both she co-stars with two Australian actors representing the young generation whose potential has been recognised by Hollywood.

Here are the trailers for you:

Candy (2006)



Somersault (2004)




2. Time Zones

Australia has 3 Time Zones

• EST - Eastern Standard Time
  Australian Capital Territory,
  New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria
  
• CST - Central Standard Time
  Northern Territory and South Australia
  
• WST - Western Standard Time
  Western Australia
  

		Standard Time	Daylight Savings
1	Western Australia	+ 8.0 hours GMT	no change
2	Northern Territory	+ 9.5 hours GMT	no change
3	South Australia	+ 9.5 hours GMT	+ 10.5 hours GMT
4	Queensland	+ 10.0 hours GMT	no change
4	Lord Howe Island	+ 10.5 hours GMT	+ 11.5 hours GMT
5	New South Wales	+ 10.0 hours GMT	+ 11.0 hours GMT
5	ACT	+ 10.0 hours GMT	+ 11.0 hours GMT
6	Victoria	+ 10.0 hours GMT	+ 11.0 hours GMT
7	Tasmania	+ 10.0 hours GMT	+ 11.0 hours GMT

3. Zoos


Sydney Aquarium - Amazing - The most amazing videos are a click away



















Australia's Heritage

TV

Now, where do I even start... ;-)

Inevitably this topic is going to be very arbitrary. Imagine that a foreigner asks you to recommend best 10 programmes/soaps/talk shows on Polish television now and in the past. Yes? Well? Czterej Pancerni or Szymon Majewski Show? I bet everyone would come with a unique list...

I've been nagging my Aussie friends for suggestions, plus I've discovered some gems of Aussie TV on my own. It will be a very incomplete list, but I feel that's the only way I can do it - just to share with you my personal favs.

First visit the infallible Culture Portal for a comphehensive insight into the history of TV in Australia.

And now you are ready to look at Top 10 Programmes (or rather categories - but let's not be too pedantic, eh? ;-) )

1. comedians: Adam Hills, Tim Minchin, Judith Lucy

You've seen some clips with Adam and Tim already, but now have a look at the one which unites them on screen :-)



And this one shows Judith at her sarcastic best. :-D I rarely find female comedians funny, but her style of comedy never fails to entertain me.



2. radio presenters guesting on TV shows: Hamish and Andy, Myf Warhurst

Hamish and Andy are a comedy duo with their own radio programme but often appear on Spicks and Specks and Rove.

Here is a little clip in which they instruct their mothers to play pranks on Mother's Day. It is not very highbrow humour, mind you, but it's endearing nevertheless :-)
Look for the expression of sheer dread in the boys' faces when they realise what they have made their moms do. And you have to admit that the ladies are really game to take on any challenge ;-)



Myf appears as team captain on Spicks and Specks. She is the heartwarming, adorable, gentle soul of the show. But her being the only girl in the gang, the host - Adam Hills and Kiwi team captain Alan Brough never miss an opportunity to put Myf in an embarrassing situation ;-)

Here is what happened one of the very rare times when Myf's team actually won...



3. talk show hosts: Rove McManus, Andrew Denton, Paul McDermott
4. comedy shows: Spicks and Specks
5. kids TV: The Wiggles, The Upside Down Show, High 5, Marine Girl, Silversun
6. soaps: Neighbours, Home and Away, Blue Heelers
7. modern TV dramas: Love My Way
8. "mystery"/sci-fi: Bryan Brown's Twisted, Two Twisted

From Two Twisted promo:
'Two Twisted' follows on from the 'Twisted Tales'(1996) series produced by Australian actor/producer Bryan Brown. These Australian series' follow the tradition of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' and 'The Twighlight Zone', of short dark thrillers which develop with a surprising twist. 'Two Twisted' consists of 14 episodes of 30 minutes each, screened in pairs, with a link connecting each of the two episodes. Can you spot the link?

It's another show which I love to bits! :-) Mostly because when I was your age I used to write such sting-in-the-end stories. Nice to see they sometimes make it to the screen.

Hare is the trailer:




9. spoof documentary: The Games

This is the clip which I tried to show to you last time, but the loudspeakers wouldn't work. Have a look at it again. It's worth it! :-)



10. entertainment: Strictly Come Dancing

Half of the Alphabet....

The best laid schemes of mice and men...

I was going to ask you to perform a couple of tasks over the past two weeks, but other things took over... oh well.

Anyway we have a bit of catching up to do with the letters T, U, V and W. But it won't hurt, I promise ;-)

Here is the list:

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- Tasmania
- TV
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- Uluru
- Life, the Universe and Everything (astronomy and Aboriginal astronomy) <- in a way we have already covered this topic

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- Victoria
- Vietnam war (past - Australians at war + now - Australia's involvement in international conflicts & people's reactions)

Here is an example of how outspoken Aussies can be on this topic:



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- Western Australia
- wine industry
- weather and seasons

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Remember to check this place in the following days as I'll be adding more links.