Diary – 8 February 2018

I’ve been meaning to write a Spectator diary since the summer but as a Gemini with Aries rising I find I have the annoying trait (just the one?) of being too easily distracted. Not by social media as so many are — Twittering and Instagramming only grab my attention for a couple of minutes each day. No, what entrances me are movies, and the wonderful cornucopia of films available on Sky, Netflix, Amazon, iTunes and so many platforms proffering my preferred pastime on my big-screen TV. I refuse to be hunched over a tiny screen downloading the latest blockbuster from Disney or DreamWorks. I search for and find, like an eager fisherman, the classics: Bogart and Bergman in Casablanca (I’ve seen it 50 times at least), Kelly and Reynolds in Singin’ in the Rain (40 times), Davis and Henreid in Now, Voyager, Grant and Kelly in To Catch a Thief (not so many times — it’s not a repeater like the others) and hundreds more. Every time I become glued to the great films of the Golden Era I notice so many new things, particularly the reactions of the supporting and background performers.

I’ve tried to watch the latest batch of potential Oscar contenders sent to me by the Academy and Bafta; the stack of DVDs we attempted to wade through during the Christmas season is now three-feet high. Talk about snooze-making! I pulled off some high-quality naps watching some of these boring bombs. I am not alone in my opinion that many of them are dull, pretentious and preachy; most are far too long and drawn out, and many of my fellow Oscar voters are bemoaning the lack of a good solid product. Hollywood will probably despise me for saying this but when I watch a motion picture I want to be entertained, kept interested and intrigued.