Some more interesting links!

Have been reading many different stuff these days. Some links are below, which I found worth commenting on.

1. The Dark Knight was a superb movie. I have blogged previously about Heath Ledger's superb performance in the movie. This link discusses the concept of Game Theory through the medium of the plot in the movie. Those who have seen the movie would agree that the opening scene of the robbery is simply brilliant. The author of this article has described the concept of game theory that is prevalent in that scene.

2. Usain Bolt. This man is a genius. He has set the world record in the 100m and 200m atheletics events at the Olympics. A small survey of the world records shows the magnitude of his achievement. He ran the 100m in 9.69 seconds, an amazing 37 km/hr. Donald Lippincott in 1912 covered the same 100m in 10.6 seconds. So, it basically means that to remove around 0.9 seconds of the world record, it has taken mankind 98 years! This shows the magnitude of competiton that exists in the event and the intensity of physical and mental preparation the athelete needs to go through to acheive this. But, the IOC chairman Jacques Rogge, a 'sports functinary' and a kind of person who spends his time admiring modern art and literature, doesnt seem to care too much about this. Sample this,

“I have no problem with him doing a show,” Rogge said in an interview with three international news agency reporters. “I think he should show more respect for his competitors and shake hands, give a tap on the shoulder to the other ones immediately after the finish and not make gestures like the one he made in the 100 meters.”

What a load of Cr*p. I think the chairman needs to focus on being a sports functionary and not worry about how world champions react. I think he is no better than our Indian Politicians who claim that they are responsible for helping our Indian Atheletes win medals!

3. Always wanted to have your own shop? If you wanted to become a Dukaandar here is your opportunity. This is the Dukaan of the web kind, but still its kinda interesting. This website offers you a chance to create your own web store, where you can sell products from other websites and also make money in the process. What will you be selling you ask? Anything for that matter. Even Lemonade maybe!

4. Imagine sitting with your headphones on, disconnected from the world listening to your favorite music. Is it pretty much a solitary experience which helps you zone out? Does music helps you get a high? Yes. And it can get you rather stoned apparently! These are called Digital Drugs and they supposedly synchronize your brain waves with sound and move them to altered states of relaxation and alertness. Hmm, I wonder if all the musicians are getting high on dope or music, actually!

"Joker arrested trying to steal Batman" (and he succeeded!)

I came across this headline "Joker Arrested Trying to Steal Batman", on an Internet news website and for an instant thought that someone had written a movie review! I saw The Dark Knight this weekend and was amongst the many who was left spellbound. It is a good movie for all comic book superhero buffs like me; and it is also a good movie for other general audiences who want see a good entertaining flick. Christian Bale reprises his role of the caped crusader, Batman from the movie batman begins. But, the true Dark Knight of the movie is the character of the Joker played by late Heath Ledger.

This post is another one among the numerous blogs about which think that the Joker, and Heath Ledger have literally stolen the show from Batman. Ledger's portrayal of the psychopathic maniac who is least interested in anything other than destroying the very fabric of society is superlative, and I am not saying this to be sympathetic towards Ledger's untimely demise. The character is truly a villian and the kind which cannot be negotiated with. The painted face and constant lisp which the Joker has are but comic book rendering of a facade behind which the maniac thrives, and Ledger does superb justice portraying all this.

There has been speculation in the movie press that Heath Ledger deserves a posthumous nomination atleast if not an Academy Award win for his portrayal of the Joker. Irrespective of whether this happens or not, one thing that is certain is that the Joker has defenitely stolen Batman, and incredulously the actor's life was arrested!

Singh is King! The throne is his too!

So the UPA government has survived the no confidence motion. Whether the Nuclear deal is good for the country or not, is not something the common man can easily decipher. Many magazine editors, notably Vinod Mehta of Outlook has been strongly against the deal, saying that the deal ties India’s hands despite not being among the countries which have signed the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

But for the common man, I think all that matters are issues like increasing fuel prices due to the inflation. I for one am happy that Dr. Manmohan Singh’s government survived and we did not have a mid term election. Or even worse some Third Front had come to the forefront and India had a Prime Minister from one of the many ingreidient parties!

So, Singh is King!
Read On...
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Rear Window

Any search on the internet for the best crime/mystery movies will always link somehow to Alfred Hitchcock. And among his many movies two stand out: “Psycho” and “Rear Window.” Both these movies are cult classics mainly because of their superb story telling in archetypal Hitchcock-ian style. After seeing the History Channel’s montage on Hollywood villains, and after being bitten by the bug, I decided to rent a Hitchcock movie, on a recent rainy Sunday afternoon.

Rear Window, based on Cornell Woolrich’s short story was released after Psycho with a punch-line which read “See it! If your nerves can stand it after PSYCHO.” A classic crime noir fiction, Rear Window is a story about how an invalidated shutter bug with a nothing much else to do as his leg is in a cast, sets about trying to solve a neighborhood murder.

What sets it apart from the macabre Psycho is the humorous undercurrent in the entire movie. The lead character, L.B. Jefferies played by James Stewart is uncomfortable about his plight, but is nevertheless indifferent about it. He is going through his six weeks stuck to his wheel chair and his situation is an apt example for the proverb “An idle mind is a devil’s workshop”. Not only does he spend his time looking through the window and into the lives of his neighbors, he also starts doubting if his fiancée is the right woman for him!

Rear Window is also a romance in its own right. The fiancée played by Grace Kelly is a popular socialite. She, according to James Stewart’s character, who as a news photographer travels to the distant and unknown parts of the world, is too high society for his comfort. Part of the movie is how Grace Kelly’s character proves to him that she is just as adventurous as he is.

Written by Cornell Woolrich, who has been termed as the father of noir fiction, and directed by the great Alfred Hitchcock, Rear Window is a great picture for crime movie buffs.