Posts by LoveUniHateExams

13

Oscar Nominations for 2020

by LoveUniHateExams in

yes, folks, it will soon be that time of year when obscenely wealthy actors, script writers and directors will collect their oscars and give little thank you speeches, strangely working in social commentary and/or extinction rebellion propaganda.. i know it's a huge back-slapping exercise that many people (including me) find off-putting.. but, there is one nomination that i've got my eye on and hope will win its category.

its nomination is for best cinematography and the film is the lighthouse (2019), directed and co-written by robert eggers.

i haven't seen it yet but it's on my 'to see list', as i really liked eggers's previous (debut) film, the witch (2016).. i'll definitely buy the lighthouse when it comes out on dvd.

LoveUniHateExams

I have the Lighthouse, haven't watched it yet. If it's an "Oscar" type film, that's usually a clue that it might be a pile of utter shite (artsy BS) - I know it's not a mainstream Hollywood film.

It could be an artsy pile of sh1te, or it could be really good.

I've watched several non-spoiler reviews. Most have liked it, praising the acting and cinematography. But, yeah, a few have called it a load of artsy crap.

My interest in the film is at least partly because I loved his previous film (The Witch) - that was a really good low-budget film, kinda artsy but in a good way.

13

Oscar Nominations for 2020

by LoveUniHateExams in

yes, folks, it will soon be that time of year when obscenely wealthy actors, script writers and directors will collect their oscars and give little thank you speeches, strangely working in social commentary and/or extinction rebellion propaganda.. i know it's a huge back-slapping exercise that many people (including me) find off-putting.. but, there is one nomination that i've got my eye on and hope will win its category.

its nomination is for best cinematography and the film is the lighthouse (2019), directed and co-written by robert eggers.

i haven't seen it yet but it's on my 'to see list', as i really liked eggers's previous (debut) film, the witch (2016).. i'll definitely buy the lighthouse when it comes out on dvd.

LoveUniHateExams

@JimmyYoung, yeah, I get you. My post pointed out how stupid the Oscars are.

But I was just saying that there's little film, The Lighthouse, made on a small budget by an independent director (Robert Eggers) who isn't beholden to Hollywood (unlike tiresome hacks such as JJ Abrams, etc.), and who doesn't try to shove trendy crap or social stuff down the audience's throat.

Robert Eggers is an old-fashioned, independent film maker.

I hope The Lighthouse wins its category.

13

Oscar Nominations for 2020

by LoveUniHateExams in

yes, folks, it will soon be that time of year when obscenely wealthy actors, script writers and directors will collect their oscars and give little thank you speeches, strangely working in social commentary and/or extinction rebellion propaganda.. i know it's a huge back-slapping exercise that many people (including me) find off-putting.. but, there is one nomination that i've got my eye on and hope will win its category.

its nomination is for best cinematography and the film is the lighthouse (2019), directed and co-written by robert eggers.

i haven't seen it yet but it's on my 'to see list', as i really liked eggers's previous (debut) film, the witch (2016).. i'll definitely buy the lighthouse when it comes out on dvd.

LoveUniHateExams

Yes, folks, it will soon be that time of year when obscenely wealthy actors, script writers and directors will collect their Oscars and give little thank you speeches, strangely working in social commentary and/or Extinction Rebellion propaganda.

I know it's a huge back-slapping exercise that many people (including me) find off-putting.

But, there is one nomination that I've got my eye on and hope will win its category. Its nomination is for Best Cinematography and the film is The Lighthouse (2019), directed and co-written by Robert Eggers. I haven't seen it yet but it's on my 'to see list', as I really liked Eggers's previous (debut) film, The Witch (2016).

I'll definitely buy The Lighthouse when it comes out on DVD. I guess it could be sh1te, but I've heard some positive (non-spoiler) reviews.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/jan/13/oscar-nominations-full-list-for-2020

180

Languages, Dialects, Accents

by LoveUniHateExams in

jw
friends

just though i'd start a thread devoted to languages, dialects/sociolects and accents, with the idea being that posters can comment on any language, or dialect or accent of any language, on this thread.. any phrases, expressions or idioms that you find interesting are also welcome.

first, the subject of english accents came up on another thread.. the british isles have many different types of accent (although many of the dialects may be dying out), and if i start to take a closer look, i can't help but see 'patterns' .... in received pronunciation of standard english, the letter r is pronounced initially, between vowels, and after consonants, e.g.

red, arrow, break.

LoveUniHateExams

methods of addressing one another which I found intriguing - yes, this is fascinating.

I can give a couple of examples right now.

Here's a Gaelic name: Seumas (James). It's pronounced 'Shey-mas' because 's' is pronounced like English 'sh' when it's either before or after slender consonants. But when you address people in Gaelic, you put the name in the vocative case.

So, if you want to say hello to Seumas, you'd say: 'hallo, a Sheumais'. The 'S' is lenited, meaning the letter 'h' is written before it. The digraph 'sh' is pronounced like an English 'h', so Sheumais is pronounced like Hamish.

And to say hello to Padraig, you'd say: 'hallo, a Phadraig', 'ph' being pronounced like English 'f'.

Sentence formation is also interesting.

For one thing, the verb usually comes before the subject:

Tha Seumas agus Morag a' dol a Ghlaschu an-drasda.

(Seumas and Morag are going to Glasgow now.)

19

IRAN - An inevitable clash of civilizations just up ahead (1953-1979)

by Terry in

jw
friends

satan peeks over the horizon in qatar :).

arbitrary borders on a map of the middle east, post wwi.. .

civilizations were uprooted.. .

LoveUniHateExams

Yeah, good comments, Rub a Dub.

There is much sectarian division, hatred in the Middle East.

In reality, they often hate each other (think apostates) more than they hate Western society (infidels) - yes, this is true. The number one enemy for Iran is Saudi Arabia and the number one enemy for Saudi Arabia is Iran. Those two countries hate each other more than they hate Israel.

What's the solution? I don't know.

Some people say that the West should just leave and let them fight it out amongst themselves.

^^^ I can see the sense in this but there are vulnerable minorities in the region, such as Yazidis and Christians, that need protection.

It seems that a lot people in the Middle East - a lot of Middle East Muslims, anyway - just aren't ready for Western democracy.

What should be done? Prop up strong man-types who rule with an iron fist but are no threat to the West?

Dunno ...

180

Languages, Dialects, Accents

by LoveUniHateExams in

jw
friends

just though i'd start a thread devoted to languages, dialects/sociolects and accents, with the idea being that posters can comment on any language, or dialect or accent of any language, on this thread.. any phrases, expressions or idioms that you find interesting are also welcome.

first, the subject of english accents came up on another thread.. the british isles have many different types of accent (although many of the dialects may be dying out), and if i start to take a closer look, i can't help but see 'patterns' .... in received pronunciation of standard english, the letter r is pronounced initially, between vowels, and after consonants, e.g.

red, arrow, break.

LoveUniHateExams

Just thought I'd return to this thread again.

Last year, I starting learning Scottish Gaelic, for 2 reasons.

First, I had actually gone to the library intending to continue learning Arabic, but the Arabic learning pack of book + CD was incomplete because some tosser had borrowed the pack but hadn't returned the CD. So, rather than get too upset over this, I decided to just pick another language pack that *did* have the book and CD. I chose Gaelic.

Second, I have in-laws up in the Highlands, the traditionally Gaelic-speaking areas of Scotland (a' Ghaidhealtachd). I'm a bit of a language geek, so when I visit them, the bilingual road signs always catch my eye. There are names in this weird and wonderful language (Gaelic or Gaidhlig) that 99% of tourists (and, indeed, 99% of Scots) haven't got a clue how to pronounce.

Of course, all 6 Celtic languages have suffered greatly over the centuries due to the expansion of English and French. So, anybody learning any Celtic language must be a good thing.

And I'd like to focus on the second reason, that of Gaelic orthography (spelling system), here.

Seeing written Gaelic is very strange to me, an Englishman. But there *are* spelling rules, the most important of which being leathann ri leathann agus caol ri caol (broad with broad and slender with slender). Gaelic divides a, e, i, o, and u into two groups: 'broad' (a, o, u) and 'slender' (e, i).

So, the Gaelic word for 'coffee' is cofaidh. It's pronounced much the same as in English but it looks f'ckn weird on the page! XD Well, the 'a' is only there because the 'f' is preceded by a broad vowel (in this case 'o'). So, following the above spelling rule, 'f' must be followed with another broad vowel.

The 'dh' is preceded by a slender vowel and so is pronounced like the English 'y'. And if you have a 'y' following a short 'i' sound, it kinda gets smushed together, making a long 'ee' sound.

English has borrowed the Gaelic word ceilidh (meaning a get-together). The plural of ceilidh is ceilidhean ('ceilidhs'? in English). The second 'e' is only there because the 'dh' is preceded by another slender vowel.

Gaelic looks strange but there is some kind of logic to it. I hope I've explained it fairly clearly.

BTW I discontinued learning Gaelic because my laptop and head-phones broke down and I guess I felt kinda awkward going to the library and carrying on learning Gaelic in public. I guess it is kinda weird. One of my uni lecturers told me and my student colleagues: 'embrace your inner nerd.' Perhaps I should do this ..

10

JW's kick apostate son out of home - then he became a terrorist

by The Fall Guy in

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-51049853.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-31987242.

LoveUniHateExams

Not that surprising, really.

JWs wait on God to slaughter the Kuffar.

Islamic extremists do it themselves.

Allahu Akbar!

57

Which songs give you goosebumps?

by LoveUniHateExams in

i don't know if this topic has been covered before - it might 've been.. i also recommend flipper's excellent music thread ('what songs have you been listening to?

', or similar).. but, i'd just like to start a thread about certain songs giving me goosebumps.

y'know, when you hear a song that profoundly effects you in some difficult-to-describe way and the hairs on your arm stand on end even though the room temperature's comfortably warm.. so, which songs give you goosebumps?.

LoveUniHateExams

@Simon - that poem was pretty good and kinda reminded me of Bobby Dylan.

My dad liked/likes Dylan.

Here's one of of his songs that I remember hearing as a kid and is pretty powerful ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5al0HmR4to

6

English as a first language

by road to nowhere in

jw
friends

pronunciation is so hard.

the butchered word this time is scourge pronounced as skorj.

4 different people, maybe because the reader did it first.. these same ones also pronounce the w in sword.. a pet peeve of mine is blatantly not learning how to speak and pronounce the native tongue.

LoveUniHateExams

English is my mother tongue, too.

In some respects it's a good thing - English is a world language (a macro-language, as linguists call it), and the language of the internet.

But in other ways, it's not that good - ethnic English people (myself included) tend to be crap at learning other languages. The fact that English is a world language has made us lazy.

As Ricky Gervais has said:

"You don't need to speak French in France. If you're on holiday in France, speak English. If they can't understand you, try speaking louder. If that doesn't work, just smash the place up, secure in the knowledge that you've tried your best!" XD

But seriously, we English are often lazy when it comes to learning foreign languages.

Not everyone fits this stereotype - my aunt's partner is a Londoner who went and lived in France for over 20 years. He learnt the language and is totally fluent. In fact, he has a daughter with his ex-wife (who's French), and his daughter lives in France and speaks only French. She speaks some English but only as much as the average French person - her English dad didn't bother making her bilingual.

19

IRAN - An inevitable clash of civilizations just up ahead (1953-1979)

by Terry in

jw
friends

satan peeks over the horizon in qatar :).

arbitrary borders on a map of the middle east, post wwi.. .

civilizations were uprooted.. .

LoveUniHateExams

Yeah, good comments, Shepherdless.

in short, Iran is not a natural enemy of the West - yeah, the Iranian masses, the ordinary people aren't.

But the current Iranian government clearly is. It has killed and attacked US soldiers in Iraq.