3 best Movies and their plots

Here are the plots of my 3 favourite movies, be careful ....contains spoilers :-) It’s a wonderful Life (this one will most certainly be on the TV around xmas) On Christmas Eve 1945, in Bedford Falls, George Bailey is suicidal. Prayers for him reach Heaven, where Clarence Oddbody, Angel 2nd Class, is assigned to save George in order to earn his angel wings. To prepare, Clarence is shown flashbacks of George's life. The first is in 1919, when 12-year-old George saves his younger brother Harry, who falls through the ice on a frozen pond, from drowning; George loses his hearing in one ear as a result. While working after school at the local drug store, George sees that his employer, Mr. Gower, has accidentally added poison to a prescription drug, and intervenes to stop it from causing harm. On Harry's graduation night in 1928, George talks to Mary Hatch, who has had a crush on him from an early age. They are interrupted by news of his father's death. George postpones his travel plans in order to sort out the family business, Bailey Brothers' Building and Loan, a longtime competitor to Henry F. Potter, the local banker and the richest man in town. Potter wishes to dissolve the Building and Loan to take over its business. George convinces the board of directors to vote against Potter. They agree, on condition that George runs the business, along with his absent-minded uncle Billy. George and Mary get married. On their way to their honeymoon, they witness a run on the bank and use their holiday savings to lend financial support at the Building and Loan until the bank reopens. Over time George establishes Bailey Park, a housing development with small houses financed by loans from Bailey Building and Loan, which allows people to own their own homes rather than pay rent to live in Potter's overpriced slums. Potter, frustrated at losing control of the housing market, attempts to lure George into becoming his assistant; George is momentarily tempted, but rejects the offer. During World War II, George is ineligible for service because of his bad ear. Harry becomes a Navy pilot and shoots down a kamikaze plane that would have bombed an amphibious transport; he is awarded the Medal of Honor. On Christmas Eve morning 1945, the town prepares a hero's welcome for Harry. Uncle Billy goes to Potter's bank to deposit $8,000 for the Building and Loan. He brags to Potter about Harry; the banker angrily grabs the newspaper, inside of which is the $8,000 – unbeknown to Uncle Billy. Realizing the potential scandal would lead to the Building and Loan's downfall, Potter secretly hides the money, knowing its loss will lead to severe financial problems for the Building and Loan. When Uncle Billy cannot find the money, he and George frantically search for it. When the bank examiner arrives to review their records, George berates his uncle for endangering the Building and Loan, goes home and takes out his frustration on his family. He apologizes to his wife and children, then leaves. George desperately appeals to Potter for a loan. When George offers his life insurance policy as collateral, Potter says George is worth more dead than alive and orders a warrant for his arrest. George gets drunk at a local bar and is involved in a fight, before he leaves and goes to a nearby bridge, thinking of suicide. The film's narrative catches up to the time of the opening scene. Before he can jump, Clarence dives into the river just before George does, causing George to rescue Clarence rather than killing himself. George does not believe Clarence's subsequent claim to be his guardian angel. When George says he wishes he had never been born, Clarence decides to show him an alternate timeline in which George never existed. Bedford Falls is named Pottersville and is a less congenial place. Mr. Gower has recently been released from prison for manslaughter, because George was not there to stop him from putting poison in the pills. The Building and Loan has closed down, as George never took over after Mr. Bailey's passing. George's mother does not recognize him; she reveals that Uncle Billy was institutionalized after the collapse of the Building and Loan. In the cemetery where Bailey Park would have been, George discovers the grave of his brother. Clarence tells him the soldiers on the transport all died, as Harry was never there to save them, as George had never saved Harry from drowning. Mary never married; when George says he is her husband, she screams for the police, causing George to flee and the local policeman to give chase. George, now convinced that Clarence is really his guardian angel, runs back to the bridge and begs for his life back; the alternate timeline changes back to the original reality. George runs home to await his arrest. Mary and Uncle Billy arrive, having rallied the townspeople, who donate more than enough to cover the missing $8,000 and for Potter's warrant to be torn up. Harry arrives and toasts George. A bell on the Christmas tree rings, and his daughter recalls a story that says the sound means that an angel has just earned his wings, signifying Clarence's promotion. City Lights

The Little Tramp first meets the Flower Girl, and discovers she is blind when she cannot find a dropped flower. That evening, the Tramp runs into a drunken millionaire who is attempting suicide on the waterfront. He takes the Tramp back to his mansion and gives him a change of clothes. Early the next morning, they return to the mansion and encounter the Flower Girl on route to her vending spot. The Tramp asks The Millionaire for some money, which he uses to buy all the girl's flowers and then drives her home in the Millionaire's car. After he leaves, the Flower Girl tells her grandmother about her wealthy acquaintance. When the Tramp returns to the mansion, the Millionaire has sobered-up and does not remember him, so he has the butler order him out. Later that day, the Millionaire meets the Tramp again while intoxicated and invites him home for a lavish party. The next morning, having sobered again and planning to leave for a cruise, the Millionaire again has the Tramp tossed out. Returning to the Flower Girl's apartment, the Tramp spies her being attended by a doctor. Deciding to take a job to earn money for her, he becomes a street sweeper. Meanwhile, the grandmother receives a notice that she and the girl will be evicted if they cannot pay their back rent by the next day, but she hides it. The Tramp visits the girl on his lunch break and sees a newspaper story about a Viennese doctor who has devised an operation that cures blindness. He then finds the eviction notice and reads it aloud at the girl's request. He reassures her that he will pay the rent. But he returns to work late and is fired. As he is walking away, a boxer persuades him to stage a fake fight, promising to split the $50 prize money. Just before the bout, however, the man receives a telegram warning him that the police are after him. He flees, leaving the Tramp a no-nonsense replacement opponent. Despite a valiant effort, the Tramp is knocked out. Sometime later, he meets the drunken millionaire who has just returned from Europe. The Millionaire takes him to the mansion, and after he hears the girl's plight, he gives the Tramp $1,000 to give to the girl for her operation. Unbeknownst to the Millionaire and the Tramp, two burglars were hiding in the house when they entered. Upon hearing about the cash, they knock out the millionaire and take the rest of his money. The Tramp telephones for the police, but the robbers flee before they arrive, and the butler assumes he stole the money. The Millionaire cannot remember the Tramp or giving him the $1,000. The Tramp narrowly escapes and gives the money to the girl, saying he will be going away for a while. Later, he is arrested in front of the newsboys who taunted him earlier, and he is then jailed. Months later, the Tramp is released. Searching for the girl, he returns to her customary street corner but does not find her. With her sight restored, the girl has opened up a flourishing flower shop with her grandmother. When a rich customer comes into the shop, the girl briefly wonders if he is her mysterious benefactor. But when he leaves with no acknowledgement, she realizes again she is wrong. While retrieving a flower from the gutter outside the shop, the Tramp is again tormented by the two newsboys. As he turns to leave, he finds himself staring at the girl through the window. His despair turns to elation and he forgets about the flower. Seeing that he has crushed the flower he retrieved, the girl kindly offers him a fresh one and a coin. Embarrassed, the Tramp tries to shuffle away, but the girl stops him and hands him the flower, which he shyly takes. When the girl takes hold of his hand to place the coin in it, she recognizes the touch of his hand and realizes he is no stranger. "You?" she says, and he nods, asking, "You can see now?" She tearfully replies, "Yes, I can see now", and holds the Tramp's hand close to her chest. Tearful and elated, the Tramp smiles at the girl shyly as the film fades to black. Dogfight (its very difficult to get a hold of this DVD, especially in the UK with region 2)

The first portion of the film is set on November 21, 1963 (the day before President John F. Kennedy was assassinated). Birdlace and three of his Marine buddies have arrived in San Francisco for twenty-four hours, before shipping off to Vietnam, and are planning on attending a "dogfight" (a party where Marines compete to bring the ugliest date, unbeknownst to the girls they bring) later that evening. They separate into the city to attempt to find dates. After a few women reject his advances, Birdlace ducks into a coffee shop, where he encounters Rose, a waitress, on her break, practicing her guitar. She is not particularly "ugly", but rather plain, shy and awkward. Birdlace attempts to charm her, complimenting her on her guitar playing, and inviting her to a party. She is suspicious of his motives, but decides to accept his invitation. While walking to the bar where the party is to be held, Birdlace begins to have second thoughts about playing such a cruel trick on Rose after realizing she's not ugly enough to compete, and attempts to talk her out of going in. However they encounter one of Birdlace's buddies and his "date" in front of the bar, and so he has no choice but to proceed with Rose into the dogfight. Birdlace proceeds to get drunk, presumably feeling guilty. Shortly after, Rose convinces Birdlace to dance with her, though at first he resists because he knows that's where the dates get judged. The alcohol and dancing eventually make Rose feel dizzy, and she rushes off and ends up getting sick in the rest room. Rose does not win the dogfight; Marcie, the date of Birdlace's friend Berzin, is the winner. In the ladies' room, it is revealed that Marcie is actually a prostitute whom Berzin has hired (which is a violation of the rules of the dogfight) and clues Rose in to the true nature of the party. Rose is devastated, tears into Birdlace, and then storms off. Birdlace immediately regrets having treated Rose so cruelly, and chases after her. He convinces her to let him buy her dinner, in an attempt to make it up to her. After dinner, the two walk to a club where Rose hopes to perform soon, and then to an arcade. Birdlace is surprised to find himself enjoying spending time with Rose, so much so that he forgets that he was to have met up with his three buddies at a tattoo parlor where they were to get matching tattoos to solidify their friendship. Rose tells Birdlace about her dream to become a folk singer, and he reveals to her that he will be shipping off to Okinawa the following day, and from there on to "a little country called Vietnam," he hopes. She offers to write to him, and asks if he will write back. Birdlace walks Rose home, and they share an awkward moment on her doorstep, before she hesitantly invites him in. They attempt to talk, but end up engaged in a self-conscious yet endearing sexual encounter. As he is leaving at dawn, Rose gives him her address and asks him to write. Birdlace meets up with his buddies, where they board their bus. Birdlace makes up a story that he did not show up because he spent the night with the beautiful wife of an officer. Berzin later shares with Birdlace that he saw him with Rose; Birdlace counters that he is aware that Berzin's "date", Marcie, was actually a prostitute. They agree to keep one-another's secrets, as Birdlace tears up Rose's address and throws it out the window of the bus. Rose is then shown with her mother, weeping and watching coverage of President Kennedy's assassination on TV. The film then cuts to 1966, where Birdlace and his three friends are shown in Vietnam. They are playing cards and trying to pass time, when they are suddenly mortared. The scene descends to chaos. Birdlace is then shown getting off of a Greyhound bus in San Francisco. Discharged from the Marines, he is walking with a limp (presumably from his injuries from the explosion), and it is suggested that his three friends were all killed. He is taken by how much things have changed in the three years since he was last there, with hippies and flower children everywhere. He walks to the neighborhood where Rose's coffee shop is, and goes to a bar across the street to have a drink. The bartender tells him that Rose's mother has turned the coffee shop over to Rose. He then makes his way across the street and into the coffee shop. Rose, not having heard from him in three years, is surprised to see him, and can only say "hi". She walks over to him, and they fall into an ambiguous embrace, as the film ends.

Reading

To read is to fly, it is to soar to a point of vantage which gives a view over wide terrains of history, human variety, ideas, shared experience and the fruits of many inquiries. It's our duty to install this passion of reading in our children. Keep them away from these game consoles. A reader lives a thousand lives. Many novels aspire to do nothing more than just amuse us but even then they have their place, we still have the opportunity to consider our own experiences then see them mirrored from other angles in the books we read. Refracted in different guises that society perhaps forbids us to take. A extension from the limited personal experiences and what we know from our own immediate circles, in the pages of a book we can empathise, love, hate and fear but know once we close that book we have escaped the situation. Novels disclose differing worlds, much deeper than we can ever venture in our own existence. We exercise our sympathies and other emotions beyond our sphere of our day to day humdrum life. We look at the paths we never took without the consequences we would face if we did.

Reading promotes insight into ourselves and others. The better the novel the richer the possibilities, the more dimensions of pleasure we experience.

To my son I say never stop reading, go on that adventure with Gangster Granny, ride of that giant peach with James, walk though the halls of Hogwarts with Harry, just never ever allow anyone to tell you to stop, always be a reader. Joy, sadness, heart break or your lowest ebb, books will never let you down, will never disappoint or reject you.

Birthday cake for my son

Today I made a Birthday cake for my son Sam who turns 13 on Saturday I choice to make a dense fruit cake with glace cherries and sultanas with lemon peel and a dash on cognac (the alcohol will burn off during baking) I then prepared a fondant icing which I dyed blue which is his favourite colour. Its lactose free and with the very minimum of gluten. Ingredients 250g Lactose free butter, softened 250g light muscovado sugar 1 level tbsp ginger 1 level tbsp ground cinnamon Finely zested rind and juice of 1 lemon and half orange 300g coconut flour (asda) 1lbs packet dried mixed fruit 1 x 170g packet Glace cherries and 1 x 170g packet sultanas ¥6tbs oak aged fine Cognac 20cm round cake tin or 18cm square, lined with baking parchment, or 2 x 1 litre ovenproof pudding basins, well buttered and floured Method To ensure that the cake will be central in the oven, position a shelf just below the centre. Set the oven to 140°C/275°F/Gas Mark 1. In a bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, ginger, cinnamon and orange and lemon zest until light and fluffy., adding a little coconut flour until all mixed. Beat in the orange and lemon juice. Fold in dried mixed fruit and cherries Spoon mixture into the prepared tin or bowl, level the surface, and smooth with a wet hand. Place the cake in the centre of the oven. Round and square cakes take about 4-4½ hours, and basin cakes take about 3-3½ hours, or until firm to the touch in the centre and a skewer comes out clean after being inserted into the cake. Place the tin/basin on a wire rack to cool for about 15 mins. Spoon over the Cognac Let round or square cakes cool completely in their tins, but turn the basin cakes out on to a wire rack to cool. I then spread on strawberry jam to help the icing which I am about to apply stick down.

For the Fondant icing I use sugar, water and cream of tartar, which are boiled together until the syrup reaches what is called soft ball stage (when a spoonful of the sugar syrup is dropped into a bowl of cold water and forms a soft ball when rolled between the fingers). The mixture is kneaded into a smooth dough, then I add the blue food dye, knead more then roll out flat and cover the cake cutting the excess off. I then finished by putting some popping candy around the cake. A little writing on the top with icing and one birthday cake made. The only tragedy is I won’t see him to give him it due to a certain situation but Sam is in my thoughts and heart always and I made this cake with love for him. HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAM Daddy loves you Son

Book Review: Nutshell by Ian McEwan

Time for another book review, I am certainly getting through these books nowadays, and Nutshell by Ian McEwan is about 200 pages long so it’s easy to crack with one good sitting, reclined on the sofa and reading lamp on, this is exactly what I did at the weekend.

Nutshell is told from the perspective of an unborn boy. This young tot spends his time listening. He listens to conversations going on around him and he listens to podcast lectures, self-improving audio books and the BBC World Service. This is why he has an impressive word range that would put most grown-ups to shame. “When I hear ‘blue’, which I’ve never seen, I imagine some kind of mental event that’s fairly close to ‘green’—which I’ve never seen. . . I am, or I was, despite what the geneticists are no saying, a blank slate. But a slippery, porous slate no schoolroom or cottage roof could find use for, a slate that writes upon itself as it grows by the day and becomes less blank.” The idea of the fetus who learns to think, philosophize and even scheme by listening in to his mother's radio, I found extremely funny, even though entirely unbelievable. I had to keep looking up obscure words (looking them up on my Iphone sitting by my side), which was amusing as well, coming from a pre-nate... There is a gripping story line and some interesting characterization going on in the 'real world', and some powerful thoughts about the absolute vulnerability of the unborn baby to the behavior of the adults in its life, including the effects of drink and sex, and the relative importance of mothers and fathers. I think it's a great book if you can take it as largely a joke making some serious points. It is basically Shakespeare’s Hamlet retold from the womb and really well done in my view. I would recommend this book if you fancy something light to pass a rainy night in as I did one weekend evening in Falkirk in the company of a bottle of wine…..really enjoyable.