Shutter Island and Inception are simply the two best films released this year. Both are brilliantly written, masterfully directed (do you expect anything less from Nolan and Scorsese?) and wonderfully acted.

Both films are examples of the very best of Hollywood.

For all its gimmicks (*cough* 3D *cough*) and its continued complaints about piracy, these films show that, despite a recession, with decent actors and decent directors films can still keep you on the edge of the seat and leaving you wanting more.

They show that films don’t have to resort to tacking on an extra dimension (rather an extra layer to 2D) to draw in the crowds.

People returning again and again to see inception reinforce this.

Both these films must also reinforce Leo as one of the best leading actors in Hollywood. (Anyone who isn’t gutted at the end of Shutter Island has a heart of steel!)

His performances elevate two great scripts into two of the greatest films of a generation.

Leo’s stellar acting also means that the directors don’t have to resort to massively expensive special effects (I’m looking at you Avatar) to wow audiences.

Not bad for a guy who’s middle name is Wilhelm eh Leo? ;P

Hopefully Hollywood will realise that it doesn’t need 3D, if it continues to push films like this then audiences will surely be willing to pay.

And if you haven’t seen them yet. Shame on you. Order Shutter Island now!

the better twin

When i first created this site i was still learning alot (still am). It was my first attempt at a site built with wordpress and i pieced together my previous portfolio site which was a static single page with my wordpress blog. While i was initially pleased with the result, in my constant stive to do my best i realised this site could be far better. Therefore i have started work on a total redesign.

Heres a little sneak peak:

Drawing inspiration from Microsofts fantastic Metro UI (featured in their Zune HD and soon to be released WP7) hopefully this site will be more pleasing to the eye as well as easier to use.

There is no eta for this redesign because of the lack of internet at my current accomodation (which also makes it very difficult for me to post on here too) but hopefully i will be able to roll it out in the near future.

thanks for reading

thebettertwin

2010. The year the UK surrendered its democratic values.

Harsh words? Perhaps? Yet most people who have witnessed the way through which the Digital Economy Bill was rushed through parliament without proper scrutiny and debate will probably agree.

An unelected peer (Peter Mandelson) was the one who introduced the Bill (to claims that it was written by the big media corporations), over 20,000 people emailed their MP’s to demand a debate reflective of the size and scope of the bill and only 40 MP’s turned up to discuss it at its second reading.

Hardly due democratic process, I’m sure even the staunchest proponents of the Bill would agree.Rushing the Bill though Parliament is not even the most damning condiment of British democracy compared with the actual contents of this draconian law (for thats what it is now; it is too late to stop it, the Queen will sign it in as she has no power to actually refuse).

The Bill goes against the rights of UK citizens in that there is no due process and there is an assumption of guilt. A copyright holder, let’s say the unscrupulous BPI, may merely make accusations on a whim to which the ISP (Internet Service Provider) has to take action against.

Anyone accused may have their connection terminated and the only way to prove innocence is to pay out of your own pocket at an independent tribunal.The account owner is the person liable under this new law, this will effectively mean an end to free wifi as companies (like McDonalds, Starbucks, etc), libraries and Universities will stand accused if someone has breached copyright. Furthermore, if anyone is in a shared house they may face disconnection if a flatmate has downloaded something.

Another aspect of the Bill gives the secretary of state the power to block any website which is suspected of aiding copyright infringement.This blanket clause has so much scope to be abused it is ridiculous. Websites such as Wiki leaks could be shut down for hosting infringing material, say, for example, a whistleblowers report on the incompetence of the government.

This Bill brings Britain’s digital future more in line to that of China than that of a free information democratic society.

Clearly, this Bill will have a great effect upon the UK and more likely than not it will be severely damaging.

The Music and Film Industries, who have been brandishing ridiculous figures of the “cost” of piracy, which change with every sound bite, may even feel the ill effects of this Bill themselves. Recent reports have suggested that illegal downloads make up the majority of legal purchases. Its common sense to realise that by sharing music people are helping to promote the bands they like. 

Some artists even support sharing as the music labels swallow the majority of the profits from legal purchases anyway and free file sharing allows them to gain support that they would not otherwise see. Summing up, this Bill highlights how out of touch MP’s are with the electorate.

Rather than listening to the concerns of many, (and these aren’t just the deluded ramblings of “internet nerds”) the politicians pandered to their financial backers and voted without even the slightest bit of insight to the components of the Bill. That is if they turned up at all.

Ignoring the obvious fact that real pirates will never be caught, this Bill is a gross breach of Human Rights and will make the UK fall further behind other countries when it comes to the internet.

Ill leave you with one final thought,which will also help you if you want to find out more and to help oppose the Bill.

And you thought you lived in a democracy?

Dont want to read what i have to say? Go straight to the download here. Users modifying the registry do so at their own risk and i accept no liability should something go wrong.
Back up you PC with system restore before using.
It should work fine for users simply unzip and double click, restart Zune and enjoy.
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A quarter of the way through 2010 and MS is still being totally silent on whether international fans will ever be able to fully enjoy the zune service, rather than just a gimped video service on their xboxes.

Windows 7 Phone may bring the marketplace but there are many still waiting for the players which MS has been sketchy about since 2006!

Those of us who cant stand using the monstrocity that is iTunes have been using Zune music player and enjoying its simplicity, features and style. That was until update 4.2 came out and effectively crippled it removing half the features. A good job then that international users arent stupid and discovered registry hacks that bring back these features.

Hopefully MS will see sense in that there is still a market for those who want a DEDICATED music player, especially outside of the US!

well the zune 4.2 update has just hit and it seems to have caused quite a stir with its inclusion of references to a Zune phone, however, us folks here in europe are still awaiting the original player.
that might be about to change with the 4.2 update including FAQ’s for French, German, Spanish and Italian. heres some screenies as proof (click to make bigger):

To me this can only really mean one thing, a launch of the software and hardware for europe.
lets hope that at the World Mobile Congress (WMC) next month MS doesnt dissapoint us.

the better twin