Long Haul Lit- Breath

Funny, you never think much about breathing, until it's all you think about

I can't remember the last time I bought a paperback and sat down for a good, solid read. For the last couple of years, it just seems to be an indulgence that I simply struggled to find time for.

But with the contemplation of a full day of travel to get from the Gold Coast to Cape Town, I grabbed a copy of Tim Winton's 'Breath' and set about knocking it over during the flight.

First, I must say that it is good for the soul and mind to lose yourself in a great book every now and again. I had forgotten about the sense of freedom and possibility that evolves when you transport yourself mentally into the virtual world of a skilled writer.

After finishing the book, my mind slipped back to a conversation I once had with a late writer of note. He bought up A.B. Facey's classic novel, 'A Fortunate Life', as an example of how greatness can be found in brevity of expression.

Facey was self educated. His auto-biographical novel is a timeless example of how honesty, and simplicity of language, can translate into something greater than the sum of their parts. It is a wonderful piece of writing in all respects, and there is something in this work that makes me think of Winton.

Winton's great weapon is honesty. His writing speaks of ordinary people living ordinary lives. He doesn't regress into fairy tale endings or feel compelled to find resolution in every conflict. Winton's words express the mundanity of the everyday but contrast it with the universality of spirit and hope, usually repressed by circumstance.

There seems a simplicity to Winton's prose too, but such an impression is ultimately superficial. He ignores the self indulgence prone of writers looking to legitimise themselves to the cognoscenti, and appears to be at a stage of his career where he writes for himself rather than the plaudits of critics and fans.

In this way, the reflections of Pikelet, the 14 year old protagonist of 'Breath' stay true to character and possibility. Somehow though, Pikelets narrative is anything but childish, and despite his age he's not spared from the responsibility of recognising the relationship between action and consequence, a key theme throughout the text.

'Breath' is a wonderful piece of writing, a great read on a number of levels and a seminal piece of Australian fiction that will be talked about for decades to come.

Long Haul Cinema- Take Two

With 14 hours to kill on the flight from Sydney to J'burg, there is more than enough time to check out a few new movies,

Adventureland

This was a cracking film with surprising level of emotional depth and feeling, very much at odds with its suggested 'teen movie' leanings. In fact, I'd say that it was the best of its type that I have seen since 'Almost Famous', which was for me a real benchmark for the coming-of-age genre.

Without giving too much away, the gross-out components of it are handled well enough to not leave you cringing, and the acting of the characters portraying marginalised and identity seeking teenagers is spot on. Really good stuff.

Disgrace

I thought, you know, maybe I was too expectant/tired/distracted to do this movie justice the last time I flew. So, I watched it again from the point where I turned it off in August. Unfortunately, the second half is even more laboured. You almost feel obligated to say nice things about a movie that has John Malkovich in it, but ultimately this is a real dog that bobs up and down on the spot and leaves you wondering how the screenwriters managed to so successfully butcher JM Coetzee's epic book.

Enron- The Smartest Guys in the Room

Brilliant doco. Compulsory viewing for every rampaging capitalist spruiking the beauty of the free market economy and de-regulation. A tale of total greed and disgusting manipulation of the stock and electricity markets in the U.S. by Enron, of lies and deceit and fraud on a scale almost too huge to imagine. And, when you look at the ease with which this all came together and the complicity of banks, business and regulatory authorities who allowed it to continue, you are all too aware that it can and probably will happen again.