Movie Review: Side Effects, Starring Katherine Heigl
The cover of this, makes it look like your run-of-the-mill romantic comedy. At least, that’s the excuse my dear sweet husband gave me, when half way through this rented DVD sort of looked at one another, and said, “WHAT is this!?”
He’d been in charge of rustling up the evenings entertainment, and my plea for a chick flick had not gone unheard. Or at least that’s what I thought.
The story starts out with Heigl shrieking at the top of her lungs, causing both my husband and I to leap out of our seats to adjust the volume, lest it wake the toddler. The very same toddler, who is suspected in the disappearance of the remote control, which necessitated the ‘leap’ in the first place.
A few minutes into the movie, we became aware of the fact that this was not going to be your average romantic comedy.
In fact we were very concerned that the apparent lack of quality of cinematography, and the fact that the line-up was completely devoid of familiar faces (except for Heigl herself) that this was going to be one of those moments that we discover that Heigl may have been involved in some kind of shady backyard movie, and at any moment people were going to leap out of their clothes with very little encouragement, and for no apparent reason.
Thankfully, this was not the case, and it turned out that what we were watching, was a kind of tongue in cheek pseudo-documentary about pharmaceutical reps (You know, the tall leggy types that sell prescription drugs to the medical establishment?) and whether or not they have consciences, develop consciences etc etc.
Without giving too much away, the movie was watchable enough to make it to the end, and discover the message behind the movie, and why it was filmed in such a manner.
The entire movie, cost only $190 000 (I’m guessing Heigl worked for free) to make, as opposed to the $15 000 000 000 (yes that’s fifteen billion dollars) that the pharmaceutical industry spends on the marketing of their products.
So, interesting look into the life of a pharmaceutical representatives life, and what drives them? Yes.
Savagely funny romantic comedy? No.
Tourist for a Day: Cape Town
The current economy has many people around the world tightening their belts, thinking more about saving, and consequently spending less on family holidays.
In fact, it’s leading to a rediscovery of the sights and sounds of familiar places and if we can derive enjoyment from simple pleasures, within a days drive of home, then why not? It has less impact on the environment, boosts local business, and helps us all to live in the moment, and simply enjoy life, right now.
It is in this frame of mind, that my family undertook a short trip some of my favourite parts of Cape Town, looking at it through the eyes of a tourist.
Many Capetonian locals pride themselves on having many a secret haunt that is somehow ‘better’ or ‘less crowded’ than those frequented tourists, but it occurred to me, that we sometimes focus so hard on avoiding those places popular with tourists that we miss out on all the good stuff!
Our first stop was the new stadium, currently being built in Greenpoint, for the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup.
The visitor centre (housed in an portion of the old Greenpoint stadium), offers a video presentation (which we did not stay for as it would have meant an hours wait for the next one) about the process of building the stadium, and of the history of the land that the stadium is being built on.
Unfortunately, though understandably, there were no tours being offered which allow you to visit the inside of the stadium in his current state of construction. It is however, looking quite magnificent, and the final finished piece should be quite spectacular.
I was really impressed by how we were welcomed by the staff, and ushered in, and the sense of pride with which we were greeted and told about what was on offer.
As a former sceptic, I’m now happy to say that I think that this world cup, may just show the world what South Africans are capable of. (Don’t you dare prove me wrong South Africa!!)
We were unable to even get close enough to the stadium to get a decent photograph, so we decided to drive up Signal Hill to see what it looked like from up there.
It is quite incredible just how much things have changed, in the cityscape that greeted us from on top of Signal Hill.
It was lovely to see the excitement on the faces of the American tourists that were there en mass, correctly picking out Robben Island (pictured) where our own Nelson Mandela spent most of his incarceration, and getting into the rhythm provided by some local ethnic drummers who were performing, and getting them involved in the drumming.
Ahhh. Cape Town. Despite your many problems, you still take my breath away. There are few greater sights in all the world.
There of course many spectacular sites the world over, and many that I desperately miss, and can’t wait to see again, but for a simple day trip? To have this on my doorstep is a most welcome and awe inspiring delight.
Which brings me to this…
The drive back down Signal Hill is almost better than the one on the way up, given that you get to see this wondrous view of Table Mountain, followed by the descent into Kloof Nek, and onwards to Camps Bay beyond.
Driving over and into Camps Bay like this, one never knows what to expect, you could easily have bright sunshine in the city bowl, only to be faced with a massive cold front rolling in to the Atlantic Seaboard, but we were lucky, and nothing but bright clear sky greeted us, along with an almost Fiji-an like blue sea.
We followed the road around and down to Hout Bay, where we headed straight for the tourist mecca that is Mariners Wharf, for the obligatory fish and chips, and dive bombing sea gulls.
A piece of Hout Bay Beach, next to Mariners Wharf, and Mariners Wharf itself – not nearly as busy as I would have expcted, considering that it is currently Spring Break!
It was tasty, delicious, peaceful, and all around awesome, and the perfect way to wrap up our ‘Tourist for Day’ adventure.
The next installment of “Tourist for a Day” will be out later this week: Location: To be advised!
All photographs are copyrighted, by NessWorld Online Magazine, all rights reserved.
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Book Review: Mr Nice & Mrs Marks By Judy Marks
the autobiography.Autobiographies are not generally high up on my list of must reads, unless they are by people whom I admire, and whom I feel have made some kind of contribution to the world, or at least people I feel I can learn something from.
Mr Nice & Mrs Marks: Adventures with Howard
Amazon gives the description below:
Thanks to the technical brilliance of his networking skills, it was estimated that he was trafficking as much as a tenth of all the marijuana smoked in the world. But this is only half the story, for intimately involved throughout was Marks’s wife Judy.
From living the high life hobnobbing with movie stars and nightclub scene-sters to mixing with the IRA and CIA, and finally the long, increasingly desperate years on the run, this memoir is about the exhilaration of the criminal life and the hell of not knowing what’s happening when your husband stops telling you the truth.
Now, for the first time, Judy tells her own side of the tale.”
About the Author
Judy Marks met Howard Marks in 1972 at a dinner party in Brighton when she was 16 and he was 27. They eventually married in 1980.
here.Food: Quick and Easy 2-Potato Bake
Disclaimer:
Not Recommended for:
Lactose Intolerant People, Celebrities Who Shun Carbs, Models etc.
Highly Recommended for:
People who like to eat their body weight in carbohydrates, with added grilled cheese toppings
Easy 2 Potato Bake
(Caters for Family of 4 – Adjust as necessary for larger gatherings…bake the carbs, and they will come)
You will need:
- 4-5 Medium/Large Potatoes
- 1-2 White Sweet Potatoes
- 1 Small Onion diced
- 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock
- 1 tsp crushed garlic
- Salt and Pepper
- 2 Cups of Grated cheddar
- Parmesan (to sprinkle – optional)
Pre-Heat your oven to 180deg centigrade
Peel potatoes and sweet potatoes and allow to stand in a bowl of water (so they don’t discolour) while you ready your oven dish.
Slice potatoes and sweet potatoes and layer them in any fashion in a shallow oven proof dish, whilst pausing to sprinkle diced onion in between.
Add your tsp of crushed garlic to your 1/2 cup of chicken stock, and pour over the assembled potatoes.
Season with salt and pepper as per your desired tastes.
Use your two cups of grated cheddar to sprinkle over the top, and add parmesan cheese if you’ve remembered to buy it, and could find some under a gazillion dollars in the shops.
Bake in your (did you remember to pre-heat the oven?) oven at 180 deg centrigrade for 40 mins until golden brown.
Hmmm, smell your yummy kitchen? Have the family gathered in anticipation yet?
Take a closer look, the onions should just be crispy, the potatoes will be soft, and you will have quickly and easily created the perfect accompaniment to any barbeque, braai or dinner.
If you have a house full of boys (as do I) then feel free to serve them this by itself. It has protein (the cheese and chicken stock), and 2 different kinds of vegetables (well potatoes and sweet potatoes are vegetables right?) and starch. I’d never claim that this dish is actually well balanced, or even healthy, but it’s definitely tasty enough to be requested more than once by hungry males.
read moreBeauty Product Buy: L’Oreal Eye Contour Cream with Pro-Xylane
The Editor of NessWorld donned the hat of Health and Beauty Editor for the day and went shopping.
Her mission: To acquire new eye cream, that would defy countless sleepless nights and rapidly advancing age. To disperse multiple bags and dark circles from too many nights hunched over the computer instead of sleeping.
So basically miracle cream.
She came back with this…
Then dispensing with the third person whilst compiling her review, I decided to share my experience of L’Oreal Derma Genesis Eye Contouring Cream 
I see in America, they’re calling it ‘Skin Genesis‘. Must be because they don’t speak Latin like the rest of the world. Hah.
I am assured by spokespersons (spokespeople? I can’t afford to hire a copy editor yet, so you’ll have to forgive me any major grammatical blunders – sorry Mrs Crutchley!) such as Eva Longoria, and other very boring, and in fact merely average looking American women such as Scarlett Johansson, that simply applying this to the contours of my eyes will instantly lift and tone this area, as well as diminishing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, with use over time.
How much time exactly, is probably dependent on how much money one has because, after forking out ZAR159.00 for the tiniest pot of cream known to humankind (but it’s pure magic, so surely I won’t need a lot?) I’m going to need a whole different set of creams for tending to the new crease on my forehead thanks to worrying about the cost of maintaining my new Scarlett Johansson look.
This will of course be the line of defense that I use with my husband…and of course, because I’m worth it.
On a realistic note, after the first application, I experienced a very pleasant tingling sensation in my eye contour area, and even though I’m operating today, on about 3 hours of sleep, it certainly FEELS as though my eyes look as good as Scarlett’s.
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