Slightly off topic - But Necessary! The NHS is crumbling.

From reading this article from the Guardian it appears that the current Tory government is still slyly trying to push through it's NHS cuts and prove it is a system that needs to be privatised. Investment is what is needed and only big business can save us.

I think that is a crock of shit. I think that for all the thoughts you or I may have on Brexit, one of the promises of the leave campaign was more money to the NHS (I know that the figure was debunked almost immediately but still it was part of the reason many people wanted to leave).

People in the UK value the NHS and the services it provides, but free health care comes at a cost. Personally I would rather pay more tax to have a great service that all people can have access to whatever their condition than one where insurance premiums dictate who can get help.

I was informed about the situation from America, so went looking and then found this page from the BBC that highlighted for an American mum to have a baby the cost could be anywhere from $8000 to $100,000. Insurance did cover those bills, but what happens if you can't afford insurance and you start trying to deliver at home with no medical help (I'm not talking about a planned home birth). I have no figures for how often this happens in the US and what mortality rates for parent or child may be and I know I can then be written of as an ill-informed scaremonger but I think playing it down is not the answer either. There is a reason the process evolved from the Victorian state of giving birth to the modern world of hospitals and healthcare. Research into what is good for mother and child has come some way since the start of the "modern" hospital.

While my first child has luckily been in mostly good health other than the odd bout of sickness or a runny nose my second child has been in and out of hospital for a recurring eye infection. We have had MRI's and blood tests and while no answer for the problem has yet been found (obvious relief that there is not some major health issue) it is infuriating that there is no simple answer as to why this is going on.

For me the NHS has had its infuriating waiting times and red tape to try to get people to talk to each other, but the more it happens the more I see that the teams do communicate. They are working together but under conditions where there is not enough staff in place to coordinate a cohesive health plan for my son. It's not that no one cares, every health care professional has been amazing for our family but you start to see first hand how these budget cuts and problems are put on the NHS and it makes it hard for them to actually do their job effectively. For those others who miss this point and just rant and shout about it in an hospital waiting room, you are shouting at the wrong people. I get frustrated waiting, I am not a patient man, but I know it's not me they are targeting it's the fact they are understaffed and doing the best they can to prioritise and see hundreds of children with more severe health problems than my son.

The NHS used to be revered around the world as a shining light of healthcare for the masses, but my in laws who now live in France are in awe of the French system (which is part private, part NHS style system. Where at times they pay but get the money back later) and the speed at which they are seen and treated for the recent health issues they have had. They are convinced the French system is better than where they spent their entire professional career helping people and trying to work to make the NHS as good as everyone expects.

This is not a review of a CD or film. It's a "I guessed I missed that" - The government is trying to remove healthcare for all by cutting provisions to many services and some world renowned names in their field (Great Ormond Street Hospital). This is a call to arms but I don't know how to suggest it change. With no government elected on a strong mandate, and if another election is called where the Conservatives do get the majority May was after, the NHS is on a precipice and dangerously close to falling into oblivion. There will be something that is built out of the ashes, but it won't be what you think it will be, and it sure as heck won't be free.

T2: Trainspotting - Film Review

So unlike many other reviews this film is only just in the cinema. At the moment you would be hard pressed to say you had missed it as it's only just out.

The film follows on from the original Trainspotting (released back in 1996) and looks at the characters we knew and loved from that film. What has 20 years done to them? What has it done to us?

Having loved the original back in 1996 and seeing that in the cinema, I decided to go back with the friend I saw it with and revisit the world inhabited by the drug fueled Scottish kids. Now though they are not kids and what is perfect is that this is a sequel with the original cast but and it's not forced to happen a few years later, riding on the success of it. The more modern desire to make sequels worried me going into this film but my fears were alleviated very quickly. The reason this film works is not only because of the success of the first but also the nostalgia and reverence that we placed on it.

My friend was unsure there was enough backstory for a newer audience to enjoy this, although it does throw in scenes and clips as flashbacks to the film. Not many that you feel they are forced, but they are lovingly added as almost a memory that is hazy in your mind. You know it happened but did you remember it quite right?

The film is very different from the original with the focus of drugs and that life style being left mostly in the past. However looking at the 4 main characters they do all have a wildly different trajectory because of the outcome of the first movie. It picks up that thread of what can 20 years do to a person and their friendships.

This is a fantastic story and fantastic film and I am loathed to talk too much about the events that take place in the film as that really is what makes it as good as it is. This film more than any I have seen before really turn the emotions inwards as it really makes you consider what you were doing 20 years ago. When we came out of the screening, it made me think what would 18 year old me think of where I ended up. I had hopes of making films, music and working in radio and while I have to some extent done those things, none of it hits the desires of the 18 year old version of myself. I am not upset about where my life ended up, but it really sparked an internal conversation of what each day can mean that flashes past and what reflection on your own life can truly highlight that you have or haven't done.

A criticism I would put to it is not really a criticism at all, but because 20 years ago these actors were arguably still all starting out and unknown there was no part of me that watched it and thought "That's Ewan McGregor". This time around they are all very recognisable because of the work they have done over that 20 year period. Robert Carlyle is Begbie through and through, but he is also now Rumplestiltskin (from AMC's TV Show "Once Upon a Time") and Jonny Lee Miller is Sherlock from CBS's Elementary.

The other observation we had between us on leaving the cinema was the fact it felt more mature in every way, not just that they are older. Danny Boyle has now made many great films, but looking at the style of Trainspotting to T2, there is a more professional and well crafted feel to the whole thing. It made it even more perfect as you can see that there is a growth in every aspect of this project.

This film is now in contention as one of my favourite films and I think it is better than the first for many reasons, mostly that the nostalgia factor for the first is really well constructed and handled beautifully and it does not feel like a sequel and definitely not forced. The genuine passing of time for me makes this a new film and not a sequel as it stands alone for it's own new merits. Many reviews I have seen are praising it and I agree wholeheartedly with that sentiment but I would be interested to see what someone who has not seen Trainspotting or only saw it more recently and does not have the growth connection of the film makes of it. How do they feel about it? I expect they will like the film as it is a very well produced, but the connection people like myself will have can not be replicated by just enjoying the films if you watched them later in their life cycle. I am not trying to diminish others enjoyment and hope people do see it (there were 6 people in the cinema at 21:10 (9pm) on a Wednesday night showing of a fairly new film) but I enjoyed having Trainspotting as a distant memory and seeing this spark memories about that film and my own personal 20 year journey between the two.

Apologies! First review of 2017. Lemony Snickets: A Series of Unfortunate Events - Netflix

To start off 2017 I must apologise. Through November and December last year I did nothing and January 2017 so far has not been any better!

I thought I would start this year with a controversial review of Lemony Snickets: A Series of Unfortunate Events. 

This is a Netflix Original series and is produced by the big name of the cast, Neil Patrick Harris. 

If you don't know about this series yet, is based on the books of the same name and loosely from the Jim Carey film of the same name, although I expect they would credit themselves as their own entity in this collection. They are able to do more in the TV series than the film ever could due to the time constraints a film has. 

As this is a Netflix offering it also can play with the run time of each episode. Most are about 45 minutes, however the second episode is 64 minutes. They can ignore the restrictions of normal network TV and if they have to "run over" they can. This is quite refreshing to see as they can follow how a network TV station would produce their shows but not limit the content to the same rules. 

My wife has read the books and informs me that each two episodes are one of the books. There are 8 episodes so 4 of the 13 books have so far been produced. This I expect will be expanded over the next few years. 

The first episode in the series is directed (and I am guessing has a showrunner type hand in the rest) by Barry Sonnenfeld. If you have seen Men in Black or Pushing Daisies (also by Barry Sonnenfeld) you can see his style heavily influence how this is produced. 

It has a stellar cast and production team and this is why I a now differ from many of the other reviewers and articles I have read about the show. I can't find a flaw to the show, it is well acted and well produced, but I just don't get it. My wife loves it, I just found myself not interested. I watched all 8 episodes and if it had been many more than that I am not sure I would have carried on. 

Now this is not a review of don't watch it as it is not terrible, in fact the complete opposite. It is the type of series that you need to make your own opinion on and develop your own views. You may love it, you may hate it but I think it's less like marmite with polar ends of the scale. It's perhaps more you will love it or, like me, just not get it. It's a kids story book, transferred to a TV Series suitable in the most part for children, but has an adult visual style to the final product. 

My reasonings behind not liking it are most of the characters are terribly unlikeable (which I do understand is deliberate to the tone of the stories). The essentially formulaic way in which the story plays through and how stupid all the adults around the children are annoyed me. Again I understand it is a kids book, so empowers the children to the stupid adults, but it is not handled in such a way as to engage me as an adult viewer of the tales. 

There are plenty of kids shows that I find excellent but I think because it feels like a TV show produced for adults that does not engage the adult as a viewer. 

This might just be me, as I see so many great views and plaudits praised on the series creators. It is so far being loved by adults and children alike. Reviewers and audience, and I am pleased that Netflix keep producing interesting new series and genuinely original content (despite this being a remake of sorts, although arguing to that point is daft as it is more a reimagining of the source material). 

Since finishing this series we have started Orphan Black on Netflix and this is a truly great piece of television that I will come to in later reviews after we have finished season 1. Until then I will say watch Lemony Snickets show as it is a masterful creation with a phenomenal crew working on it. Just be aware it may not engage you as you had first hoped as it does create a world that, for me at least, is hard to find interesting, relatable and most of all likeable.