Bits & pieces
Bits & pieces is GLÖD's short article page. Here we mix amusing facts with info about current events and readers' reviews of films and books.
In the mix
Web info
“Can you tell somebody is homosexual just by looking at them?” Ask and get answers, debate, and get party info at www.rfsl.se, RFSL’s site for homosexual and bisexual teenagers and young adults.
Refugees welcome
We in Sweden are becoming progressively more open to accepting refugees from other countries. Most Swedes think that everyone who lives in Sweden should have the same rights, even if they come from a different country. A lot of people would be interested in doing something personally to help Sweden become a more integrated society. Unlike in some other countries in Europe, xenophobia is declining in Sweden. (Sources: The Swedish Integration Board and The SOM Institute at Göteborg University.)
Safe sex with Casanova
The famous seducer Giacomo Casanova – who lived in the 1700s – used condoms. Casanova used to blow up his condoms, made from animals, to check them for holes. Legend has it that he said “I don’t care if I am inside a piece of dead dog when I am showing that I myself am utterly alive”. The topic is just as hot today. People who claim that sex with a condom is about as fun as eating sweets with the wrapper still on have a lot to learn about Casanova, the master of love! Read more at www.kondom.nu
Dumb laws
Andy Powell and Jeff Koon have collected weird laws from all over the world, but especially from the USA. Did you know that there is a law about train traffic in Kansas that makes Swedish Rail look smooth in comparison? “If two trains meet on the same track, neither train may continue until the other has passed.”
And you have to wonder what they were thinking when they passed certain laws! In Chico, California, you will be fined 500 dollars if you detonate an atom bomb inside the city limits. And one more thing: If you have an elephant with you when you are in Florida and tie it up at a parking meter, you have to pay for the elephant as if it were a car. There’s something you should never forget… Read more at www.dumblaws.com
Honesty is the best policy?
A new American study shows that we lie an average of once a day. If you count the white lies, we fib seven to nine times a day. Men lie more than women – often to improve their images. Women lie too, of course, but more often about others.
Great movies
Hard reality
LILJA 4-EVER tells the story of 16-year-old Lilja, who lives in a grim and poverty-stricken suburb somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Her only friend is a young boy, Volodja. They roam the neighbourhood and dream of a better life. Lilja feels a spark of hope one day when she falls in love with Andrey. He asks her to come with him to Sweden and begin a new life. Director Lukas Moodysson says: “This is a movie about wanting to get away, about being left alone, about never giving up, about rich people who think everything is for sale, about being spat on, about death, about never-ending friendship, about a light that never burns out.” And this movie is special. The actors, Oksana Akinshina (Lilja) and Artyom Bogucharsky (Volodja), give gritty and gripping performances, the music makes the movie even more emotional. It is scary and real, it will make you angry, but you have to see it!
Lilja 4–ever from 2002. Director: Lukas Moodysson
Passion, rock ’n’ roll, and a fantastic mum
It’s 1973 and 15-year-old William has just discovered rock music. He is obsessed by it, and his enthusiasm persuades the famous music magazine Rolling Stone to ask him to do an interview with a new band, Stillwater. William goes on tour with the band and finds out what it’s really like to live like a rock star. Almost Famous is a sweet movie about growing up a bit too fast, and about true friendship. A movie that makes you happy!
Almost Famous from 2000. Director: Cameron Crowe
A great movie about love and rebellion
Indian Mina (Sarita Choudhury) has grown up in Uganda, but the family is forced to escape to the US when General Idi Amin ejects all Asians from the country. Mina forms a stormy relationship with a black man, Demetrius (Denzel Washington). Their families have a hard time accepting their relationship because they have different skin colours. A wonderfully funny and romantic movie about defying your family and friends for love. See it!
Mississippi Masala from 1991. Director: Mira Nair
Longing for forbidden love
Jamie lives with his mother in a concrete suburb in England. The neighbours in his building all hang out on the landing. They like sticking their nose in other people’s business, especially when the people are arguing. Jamie’s friend Steve lives two doors away. Steve has an easier time of it in school than Jamie. He is never teased and is always included by the others and playing football. Steve sometimes sleeps over at Jamie’s when everything stinks at home, like when his dad has hit him. Jamie can’t quite get over the fact that he is lying next to Steve. He wants to kiss him, but he doesn’t dare. Until one day...
The movie is about the friendship and eventually love between Steve and Jamie. A warm atmosphere and an entire line-up of funny and talented actors make this a really good movie about longing for love and having the courage to be yourself.
Beautiful Thing from 1996. Director: Hattie Macdonald
Review:
RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS - “By The Way”
Since the early 80s, the Red Hot Chili Peppers have developed a unique mix of funky rock and punk-influenced roll. Anthony Kiedi’s voice and distinctive singing style have given them a sound that can’t be compared to any other band.
On the follow-up to the 1999 hit record Californikation , they have packed in about as much sound as you can get on a CD, almost 70 minutes. At its best, the music is immediate, full of melancholy and has a beautiful, filmic feel. At its worst, it’s just flat and boring. The title track By The Way is a great song and feels the most ”hitlike” on the record, but it probably won’t become a modern classic like Under The Bridge from 1991. But my bet is that several of the songs are going to show up in future on the soundtracks of American college movies. /By: Petter Fredriksson