The Guest

I have mentioned before that every year my brother and I compare our top ten films of the year. Last year my number 1 (and my brother's number 3) was a film called You're next. You're next is an amazing film which is really worth watching. It is on Netflix so next time you're wondering what to watch, watch You're next.

The Director of You're Next is Adam Wingard who this summer has made a film called The Guest. Needless to say I have been excited about this film due to my love for You're Next.

The Guest did not disappoint. 

The basic story line is that of a family who have lost their son in the war in Afghanistan. One day a visitor arrives on their door step and says he is a friend of their sons. They welcome him into their home and he makes a big impact.

Really I don't want to say more about the plot then there would be no point in seeing it. You need to see the film without any expectation for what is going to happen; if you know you will be disappointed.

One major plus about this film is the length. A 99 minute film is ideal. It's not too long. When films get past the 2 hour mark there are always unnecessary scenes or over complicated plot lines. The Guest moves at a perfect pace. You get involved in the plot and there is certainly no time to get bored. 

The Guest is well acted, exciting, funny, surprising, it has a great soundtrack and a good story line.

I would be surprised if anyone didn't enjoy The Guest. Go and see it!

Cricketers Inn (Meopham)

This weekend the Cricketers Inn have been hosting a beer and music mini festival so I went along with my sister and her boyfriend to check it out.

The festival was alphabet themed and they had a beer for each letter of the alphabet. A fun idea I thought. I can't stand beer though! So I had a strawberry cider, which was very nice. My sister got a half of beer, which she enjoyed. The festival prices were reasonable, just over £5 for a pint and a half.

They also had a really good selection of food on offer. My sister and her boyfriend both had a hog roast and salad. Later on we had chips and my sister had an ice cream. Again very reasonable prices.

Of course the festival is not on all year round!

After our initial beer and cider we made use of the bar and had wine and gin and lemonade. I cannot pretend that it is cheap. A gin and lemonade was £4.40, pretty pricey. They also have a restaurant and the food looked and smelled delicious. A really good menu with lots of options. I would definitely like to go there and try the food!

The pub itself is lovely. A spacious outdoor area, perfect for a nice day. Well decorated interior. It has a very pleasant atmosphere. My only downside was that the toilets were a little messy and needed checking. The staff were very pleasant and efficient.

Over all a really lovely pub and well worth a visit.

Scones

Today I made scones for the very first time. I have been wanting to make them for a long time but have been told they are quite difficult to make. I enjoy baking and like to challenge myself to make new things. I have had many a disaster!

This is the link to the recipe I used.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4622/classic-scones-with-jam-and-clotted-cream

I thought that this recipe was really very good. The method is simple enough. I make sure I was and dry my hands thoroughly before starting. This is important with a recipe because you have to rub the flour and butter together. You need cold hands to do this and the washing helps. Plus you're putting your hands in your food so it would be gross if you didn't wash them.

I choose not to put in the lemon juice. This was just because I didn't have any! I just put in some extra vanilla. I also brushed my scones with milk rather than eggs. Again this was because there were no eggs in the house, but I'm also allergic to eggs so my body is happy!

After mixing the milk in with a knife, I split my mix in 2 and added sultanas to one half. I love sultanas! But they are nice either way.

In all I would recommend this recipe. Simple and delicious!

Into the Storm

I love going to the Cinema. It's my favourite thing to do. I am willing to go and see most films and have been to see many films I have thought would be pretty terrible (sometimes they are).

My brother also likes going to the cinema. When I told him that I was going to go and see Into the Storm he told me he had no interest in going to see it and that the trailers had annoyed him. On New Years Day, we both compile our lists of the top ten films of the year and compare them. I always have a very different list to him. The reason is because we go to the cinema for different reasons.

My brother reads about films and goes to see things that interest him. If he loves the director he goes to see the film. He will go to see foreign films, silent films, independent films etc. He will go to cinemas further away to see particular films.

I like going to the Cinema to escape for a while. I like to be engrossed in a film; to get excited, to get sad, to get happy. I like to forget about life and taken away to a different world. If I don't check my phone during a film, it has achieved its purpose. 

My expectations for Into the Storm were low. I wasn't overly bothered by seeing it. But it's only an hour and a half, so how bad could it be?!

There were things I really didn't like about it. It was overly cheesy in places. Too much 'cheese' is unnecessary. We follow the story and the characters so we can understand their feelings without it being such a cheesefest. Also the acting isn't especially good. I've see worse, but I have also seen a lot better. In particular there is a father who goes to rescue his sons. He manages to be completely void of any emotion during the whole film. There is also an ending which is ridiculous. People that clearly would have died live and it's just a bit silly.

Having said all of this, Into the Storm achieved its purpose for me of escaping for an hour and a half. Its an exciting storyline. Being about storms gives it a realistic element where you think (excuse my language) 'shit, this could happen'. They don't drag anything out too much and the film moves at a quick pace. You get caught up in it enough for it to not be a terrible film.

Essentially this isn't a film you will go and see twice, but for an hour and a half of entertainment it's not all bad.

The Inbetweeners 2

The Inbetweeners started off life as a funny tv show. Now being shown for the 1000th time (perhaps slightly exaggerated) the novelty has worn off. It's a great tv show, but it really doesn't need to be on all the time.

In 2011 The Inbetweeners managed to create a successful film, focusing on the boys lads holiday to Malia. It was a funny film and highly successful.

I can't understand why they don't leave things on a high. Seriously when are comedy sequels ever as funny as the originals?

Unfortunately The Inbetweeners 2 has not managed to escape the curse of the sequel.

Despite being released 3 years later, the film did not make it clear as to whether the new film was set 3 years later or not. Having watched it I would say it was set a year after the first film. It would of been far more interesting if they had made it 3 years later and dealt with Will and Simon graduating. It would've made it far more plausible for them to bead off to Australia.

The film isn't bad but it's just not very good either. I didn't come out feeling like I had just been to see a comedy. There just weren't enough laugh out loud moments. I would struggle to tell you something that happened in it that was hilarious. It tried to hard for laughs and missed the mark.

People that like the inbetweeners will like the film. I liked the film. Would I go and see it again? No. Would I buy it on DVD? No.

Plenty of people will love this film and find it hilarious. For me it failed to live up to expectation.

The Five Bells, Eynsford

Eynsford is a little bit outside of my usual stomping ground, so I was reluctant to travel to Eynsford for a pub. My sister has been working there in a pub called The Five Bells, so with not a lot else to do, I went to sit at the bar whilst she worked.

Eynsford itself is a lovely village with plenty of pubs and restaurants and would be a great location for a walk or bike ride on a nice day.

One of the good things about The Five Bells is its large beer garden. On a nice day there is room to sit outside and enjoy the peace of the countryside. It is a well maintained garden with plenty of room for kids to run around and have fun. Dogs are also welcome in the pub and garden. Very family friendly.

The interior of the pub is classic pub really. The bar is split between 2 rooms which is slightly quirky. There is plenty of room to sit down and it is bright and airy. The pub has many locals which gives a nice friendly vibe.

The pub is pretty pricey. A large glass of rose wine is £4.90 so not cheap but I doubt you'd find this price unusual for the area. The pub serves local ales and has a good selection of beer and wine.

The pub also has a sign which says it serves hot and cold food. It does not. Don't go in for food. It has a sister pub that serves food but it doesn't itself. My only other complaint was the lock on the toilet door. They have kept old features so you have to lift and slide simultaneously. If I'd had one more glass of wine, I doubt I would have been able to lock successfully.

Finally the barmaid. She might spill a lot but she's pretty decent. Unfortunately she's leaving in 2 weeks! Doubt they will find a decent replacement, not that I'm bias.

All in all a very nice, friendly pub.

Hercules

Friday night at review that! HQ this week involved a trip to the the cinema. Tonight we saw Hercules.

Now Hercules l, for me, is a much loved Disney film. "Bless my soul, Herc was on a roll" etc etc. I can sing it all. A live action Hercules film is not exactly my thing. If I'm honest, I've seen everything I want to at the cinema and am seeing the inbetweeners on Monday. So it was a bit of a see Hercules or stay home situation.

Well I am glad I went to see Hercules. My brother beforehand had asked me why I was going and couldn't understand why I'd go and see this film. I had agreed with him. Sometimes I think going in with low expectations is beneficial. There is so room for disappointment.

Hercules provided a good hour and a half of entertainment. There was enough of a storyline to keep it exciting without too much fighting. It wasn't overly complicated so I didn't get confused (confusion is common for me). There were some twists to keep you interested. My main worry was that it would be an hour and a half of fighting, which it wasn't. I really dislike a lot of fighting in films. Hercules perhaps went on a bit too long in the first fight, but it redeemed itself by not constantly continuing the fighting.

One thing I did not care for really was the fact that there was one American in the film. 99% of the cast had European accents with the exception of Hercules himself. The rock could have attempted to do something with his voice. Maybe he did and it was just pretty bad!

What I liked about the film was that it wasn't to serious. Often with films like this everyone is trying so hard and they are so worried about being taken seriously. This inevitably leads to it being bad. Hercules had enough humour to make it lighthearted without it being silly or fall into the comedy sector.

Overall all three of us were pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the film. Happy customers.

Hercules is not as bad as you might think.