Film: Barber

Back to Ireland for the weekend. And a much nicer journey than normal, what with (a) the plane going from a gate numbered under 40, so we could get the transit there, rather than spend all evening galloping through the airport, and (b) the plane being a Lauda, rather than Ryanair's own, which meant more comfortable, leather seats and decent aircon! No wonder I slept for half the journey..

Interesting anecdote - the seats beside me were occupied by a young black couple, and when we got off, he was bouncing around the place, taking selfies.. another man asked her what the story was, and she explained that, while she'd been before, with a youth group or something, it was his first time.. in fact, it had taken five weeks to get a visa for him, just to come for the weekend! Blasted red tape - well, I hope he's enjoying it! despite the weather..

Checking films for the weekend - and what I might actually enjoy, and was on as a matinée - I came up with Barber, an Irish PI thriller, starring Aidan Gillen as the PI, with, of all people, Liam Carney as the cop in charge! Jeez, it was going to be hard for me not to think of him as the lothario building developer in Fair City! This is showing in the Omniplex, so I booked, which was handier.

Identified some extremely cheap petrol en route - it really does seem to be coming down in price! which is nice. I got some on the way back. Anyway, I wanted a snack - unfortunately, got behind a family that wanted the works, so it took a little time. And by the time I got to the screen, of course, the lights were down - again! Great - I managed to feel my way to my seat though, which I'd chosen for its proximity to the door.

Well, first off, I had great fun people-spotting! In common with most films made in Ireland, this is jam-packed with people you'd kind of recognise, even if you couldn't remember their actual names. For a start, Liam Carney isn't the only Fair City alumnus in this - Barber's and his ex-wife's daughter is Aisling Kearns, who on Fair City used to play Maria, a mild-mannered accountant from the country, who nonetheless took a blunt instrument to an intruder in one episode. She fled Dublin when she discovered that her boyfriend had lied to her. Took me a while to place her - she's blonde in this. Mind you, I did wonder about her accent, which is indeed from the country - assuming she's supposed to have been raised in Dublin, in this film. Also, the woman who hires Barber to find her missing granddaughter is Deirdre Donnelly, who plays Jacinta in Fair City - what you might call a right wagon, who causes her adoptive son nothing but trouble. She's much nicer in this. Apart from the Fair City crew, I recognised Gary Lydon, who plays Barber's police contact, David Herlihy, who is the missing girl's stepfather - and, of all people, Steve Wall, who plays an ex-colleague of Barber's on the police force, but whom I know better as the lead singer of The Stunning! Huh, I never knew he'd turned to acting! Weird that he gets such high billing though, given that he's only in one scene..

Well, this really made me nostalgic for Dublin, where I spent a few years as a Master's student at UCD. Ah, the buses, the grey skies.. Obviously, Barber does well in his profession to be able to afford a swish apartment overlooking the river! Well, €50 per hour plus expenses isn't bad. So, this is a film noir - and not a bad one at all. Not terribly original, but the characters are well-drawn, and the cast is good. It's handy that he has a Lithuanian assistant, to whom he occasionally has to explain plot points, so we can listen in and keep up. And wow, they did make an effort to be topical - it's set just post-pandemic, when people still often wore masks, and when it was actually filmed. The masks make a handy disguise in a film like this - and I find it ironic that, early in the film, we see Barber taking surveillance photos of someone who has a mask on..! Further to this, we also hear about the Me Too movement, plenty about gay rights, and Barber's daughter keeps him clued-in about social media. The story is engaging, and the whole is enjoyable. Recommended, if you come across it.

Well, from last week with no Meetups to this week with nothing else! On Monday, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for The Secret Life of Bees, at the Almeida - no seats left in the stalls, when I booked! Seatplan made me wary of the cheapest seats, so I'm in the next bracket up..

On Tuesday, back with Over 40 Living the Life, for dinner at the Greenwich Yacht Club again. Well, it was good last time - good food, cheap prices, good company. Five of us going so far..

On Wednesday, I was thinking film again - finally got the film list (partially) done, and couldn't see anything better coming up than what's advertised by The London Movie Club and The Hideout: Horror Sci-Fi Club London! both of which I'm a member of. And both of which, it transpires, are run by the same people! So I've signed up with the Hideout. Specifically, what's happening is Alien Day - a special double bill of the classic, Alien, and its sequel, Aliens, at the BFI Imax! See, the first planet where the aliens land is named LV-426.. So, you know, 26th of the 4th.. Now, I've never even been to the Imax, so this'll be interesting! Also good to meet these folks again - apparently, there'll be a break between films as well, when we can have a chat.

And on Thursday, Helen's in town for a conference - we're meeting for dinner at Colosseo, before I head off to join UITCS again, for The Good Person of Szechwan, by Brecht, at the Lyric Hammersmith!