This week I am mostly liking...

As I can't really think of anything really meaningful or interesting to write about after being skullfucked by the awesomeness of inglourious basterds (pardon the crudeness, but honestly there is no other way to put it, pure and simply the film had me transfixed from start to glourious epic conclusion) I am instead going to offer up some delights I have found for myself in the hopes that you too may go and enjoy them yourselves.

Webnet Wonders: If you are a gamer, or are interested in gaming as a storytelling medium, you'd be hard pressed to find something not likable about The Escapist Magazine. It updates daily, and features wide topics including the future of video gaming, the "casual gamer phenomena" and other such gaming topics. It also hosts some stellar videos, notably ZeroPunctuation, and The Unforgotten Realms. If that all gets too much for you why not chill out in the forums Now I know what you're thinking, "A gaming forum, why that'll be chock full of uberWoWers who will do nothing but 'LOLFAG' the whole the whole time and compare the size of their virtual phalluses", but nay, these boards are host to a range of topics, some of them quite specific, like the obvious gaming threads and the like, others being a little less so, like one I was reading about a 15 year old terminally ill boy whose dying wish of losing his virginity was granted to him by hospital staff. It often throws up some interesting stuff and is worth checking out, if only to pass some time.

Celluloidal Pleasures: Well, as you can tell from the opening paragraph I will obviously be writing about Inglourious Basterds. In fact, I would be screaming its praises from the highest mount were my lips not so securely glued to its arse at this very moment. Yes, QT is back and with style. I can't really talk about it in depth without giving too much away, but suffice to say it had me at the edge of my seat for the full 150 minutes. The setting is beautifully realised, Nazi occupied France seeming downtrodden, slightly seemy and for all intents and purposes defeated except for the small crew of guerilla fighters, the eponymous "Basterds". The characters are what really bring this film to life though of course, as with any Tarantino flick, and i have a feeling that Aldo Raine, Donny Donowitz, Hugo Stiglitz and Hans Landa will reside among Mr. White, Vincent Vega and Beatrix Kiddo as some of Tarantino's most memorable characters.I really wish I could give this film higher praise, but words really cannot do it justice, my advice would be to go watch it as soon as possible, and then possibly watch it again, as I plan to.

Audio Treats: Although not new by any means, I have recently taken a renewed liking to Friendly Fires, after having seen them at Oxegen. They have a single due to be released this week I think, called "Kiss of Life", and is executed in their trademark style of samba/african based rhythms and percussions coupled with modern keyboard and basslines. An odd mixture, but one that proves itself to be a teriffic one, enjoy!