When not writing mobile phone reviews or aerating strangers on Call of Duty, I’m partial to the occasional cinema trip. Fortunately, I have seen the majority of the films nominated for the 2009 Oscars, and thought I would divulge my humble and honest opinions regarding potential winners of the various categories.

So without further ado, let’s get this show on the road!

Best Actor:

• Richard Jenkins - The Visitor
• Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
• Sean Penn - Milk
• Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Straight away, Brad Pitt’s nomination sticks out to me as a ‘fake nose’ nomination, a la Nicole Kidman in the Hours (and she won!). Benjamin Button is a great film and Brad Pitt is integral to its success, but as his physical form changes his is the only character that seems emotionally the same throughout.

More a feat for ‘computer technicals’ rather than acting gravitas, Pitt is simply outclassed up against the abrasive performance of Langella as Nixon, or Sean Penn’s deep and nuanced Harvey Milk.

The winner? Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler, hands down. Defying the cries of stunt-casting as he plays a washed up star with one last chance to shine, he brings such an emotionally rousing and believable performance to this tale of a man who just cannot live without the cheer of the crowd. The film itself may be cliched and predictable, but is only Rourke’s brilliant work that allows it to be mentioned in the same breath as the four above.

That is why he deserves to win.

Best Supporting Actor:

• Josh Brolin - Milk
• Robert Downey Jr. - Tropic Thunder
• Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
• Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
• Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road

First surprise, this is the only acting nod for Revolutionary Road! It’s got Jack and Rose back together, Mr. American Beauty directing, and the only nod is for Michael Shannon. Who? Oh, it’s because he’s “playing a mental”, leaving Kate’s Oscar tirade in Extras ringing in my ears…

For me, this is only between Ledger and Downey Jr. due to Doubt’s sensitive subject matter, and the fact they stole the show in their respective movies. Also, they were both utterly transformed. The Oscar clarion call has been ringing loud and clear for Heath’s performance as the Joker since release, and justifiably so.

The ability to take a single phrase like “Why so serious?” and cement it into cinematic history, as well as his untimely demise is testament to the depths he went to bring out such a memorable performance. He was an actor that exorcised the demons of his rom-com past, and had so much potential as a ‘real’ actor ahead of him.

Robert Downey Jr. in blackface for an Oscar? I was entirely ready to hate this performance for obvious reasons, but he is hilarious. Does the fact that his character Kirk Lazarus symbolises the crazy lengths method actors go to (see above?), and that he was the funniest thing this year make it justifiable? Not sure… Okay, I’ll give it to Ledger, but Rob deserves an honourable mention for sharing Kate’s opinion on how to bag an Oscar…

Best Actress:

• Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
• Angelina Jolie - Changeling
• Melissa Leo - Frozen River
• Meryl Streep - Doubt
• Kate Winset - The Reader

Hathaway? Hasn’t paid her dues, still a Disney actress in many people’s eyes. People have never forgiven Mira Sorvino or Marisa Tomei for winning Oscars, and they were for Best Supporting Actress. Heads will roll if she takes it from under the noses of names like Jolie and Winslet.

As for Winslet, the irony if she wins for being in a film set during the Holocaust will not be lost on many (see above ‘Extras’ link)! I also felt her portrayal as a wife steadily broken down in Revolutionary Road was stronger than tram conductor Hanna Schmitz. But come on, six nominations and no wins? It’s about time…

However, I think Melissa Leo could clinch it with Frozen River. The relatively unknown film topped a bevy of end of year lists, and rightly so. Leo plays a hard up woman who tries to eke out a living by trafficking illegal immigrants from Canada to the US. The human aspect of this role, her turmoil between doing the right thing by her family and her fellow man against the right thing in the law’s eyes is truly moving.

As for Jolie in Clint Eastwood’s Changeling? I don’t know, it just felt like an Oscar vehicle /acting showcase rather than a truly great movie, something Million Dollar Baby didn’t have at all…hence the 7 nominations and 4 wins for that against Changeling’s 3 nods.

Best Supporting Actress:

• Amy Adams - Doubt
• Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
• Viola Davis - Doubt
• Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Tale of Benjamin Button
• Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler

I loved Penelope Cruz in VCB! In the midst of a love triangle, Cruz grabs the role of Juan Antonio’s artistically gifted yet tragically flawed wife Maria Elena in both hands, and proceeds to take over the whole movie. The narrative structure of VCB allows for the character to be steadily built up in our minds long before she appears, the constant references to her gifted nature as an artist and fiery temperament only serves to set the stage for her to chew up the scenery upon arrival. And boy, does she.

Marisa Tomei gives an equally moving performance in The Wrestler, mirroring Rourke’s character as a stripper just past her prime and looking for some kind of solace in a life she just isn’t happy with. This Supporting Actress nod, she deserves.

Taraji P. Henson gives a performance of a lifetime in Benjamin Button, a far more emotive performance as his surrogate mother Queenie. She is the one that goes through the journey I expected of the protagonist. The protectiveness over someone different, the unconditional love that transcended race, disability and even time, she gave all the love to Benjamin and I felt it just wasn’t reciprocated by Pitt’s character.

Cruz for the win!

Best Animated Feature:

• Bolt
• Kung Fu Panda
• WALL-E

Beauty and the Beast is the only animated film ever to have been nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. WALL-E should have been the second.

Best Picture:

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Frost / Nixon
• Milk
• The Reader
• Slumdog Millionaire

The big one. All ensemble pieces, all films with strong performances as much as being brilliant at capturing slices of history. Both Benjamin Button and Slumdog Millionaire deal with the passage of time in clever and interesting ways, telling the story of how chance encounters and circumstance can carve out peoples’ lives so strongly.

Frost / Nixon and Milk deal with pivotal moments in American political history, brilliantly coincidental with new milestones being created today.

The Reader deals with a pivotal moment in world history, events which are epic in scale but given intimacy and immediacy by being viewed through the eyes of individuals.

For the universal scope of the story, the excellent performances, the quality of the almost invisible special effects and the life-affirming ending, I’ll say Slumdog Millionaire The Curious Case of Benjamin Button for the Oscar. Yes, definitely. Yup.

The Google Drive or GDrive, is one of the most anticipated products that Google is rumoured to be developing. The GDrive would allow users to access their personal computer from any internet connection.  All your photos, music, word documents, power point presentations, software, emails would be stored  on Google’s servers. This would make the personal computer into a mere conduit for information, removing the need for much of the expensive hardware in today’s computers. There would be no need in buying expensive computers because everything that you want to do can be achieved online through Google’s servers. This would be really bad news for computer manufacturer as well as civil liberties.

The idea of a company having unparalleled access to its users’ information is galling to say the least. Once Google gets hold of the information it will be no time before government agencies, law enforcement  or the secret service are piling on the pressure for Google to release the information.

Google hasn’t confirmed the GDrive but are quoted in Guardian to saying:

‘There’s a clear direction … away from people thinking, ‘This is my PC, this is my hard drive,’ to ‘This is how I interact with information, this is how I interact with the web.’

Guardian

It’s a good time to invest, not in the pound but in companies that produce Obama memorabilia. The world’s favourite president has inspired a range of novelty items that are being snapped. If I were you I’d sell my stock in George W. Bush related merchandise, their value has dropped to an all time low.

The day of love is fast approaching. What better way to mark that auspicious day than to take your better half out for a slap up…chippy.

These aren’t ordinary chippies, oh no no. The ten below are the best in the country. They’re chip shop delis that have upped the culinary ante. Gone are the days of the haddock or cod options of old now we have new choices of cole, hake and salmon to tempt us. Fish and chips, the backbone of British cuisines, is going through a renaissance.

1. The Townhead Cafe - 185 High Street, Biggar, ML12 6DJ - This stellar establishment was recently announced as Scotland’s number one chip shop. I’ve actually been here; there was a queue around the harbour and you could choose from Pollok, Lemon Sole, Haddock and Hake. Certainly a cut above your average chipper. The flesh melted off the bone.  All their fish are sourced from sustainable waters off Shetland so everything tastes extra nice.
2. Taylors Fish and Chips 66 Tylacelyn Road, Pennygraig, Tonypandy, Mid Glamorgan, CF40 1JU T. These guys are the best of the welsh chip shop contingent. They specialise in the four favourites; cod, plaice, haddock and scampi. Their cod is also available “steamed with lemon”.
3. Tommy’s Fish and Chips (Ballykelly, Northern Ireland) has been a local favourite for over 40 years.  The cafe has been a firm favourite with the English, Welsh and Scottish soldiers who were stationed in nearby Balkenny and frequented the Cafe during World War Two. Their specialities are Pollack and Coley as well the classic cod and chips.
4. Colman’s of South Shields, Tyne and Wear (182-186 Ocean Road, South Shields, Tyne & Wear, NE33 2JQ) are next on the fish and chip count down. The family run business have been serving up fish and chips to the folk of Tyne and Wear for more than 100 years. During that time they’ve won the accolade of best frier in the North-East of England. They serve all the traditional favourites like quality cod and haddock as well as a daily changing special of the day.
5. Seniors, 91 Fleetwood Road North, Thornton Cleveleys, FY5 4AB. These guys are the champions of the North-East of England. They have some fantastic local views and over 13 varieties of fish including Pollock, John Dory, Coley and Hake. Their very eco-conscious with their bio-degradable packaging.
6. Andy’s Fish Bar 53-55 Market Street, Church Gresley, Swadlincote, Derbyshire, DE11 9PR. In January this year they went to London to pick up their award for being the best chip shop in England. They have the newest species like Hake and Coley as well as cod and haddock with chips.
7. The Boundary, 64 High Street, Market Deeping, Lincolnshire, PE6 8EB. These guys benefit from having a 40 seater patio that’s just as popular with out-of-towners as it is with the locals. Owner, Blair Butler has cooking in his blood and has made a name for himself in the industry.
8. McDermott’s Fish  & Chips, 6 Forestdale Centre, Featherbed Lane, Addington, Croydon. This one has the famous take away along with the up-market restaurant above. The minimal decor, uplighting and professional waiting staff give the place the feel of a professional restaurant.
9. Broughton Fish & Chips, 81 Tanfield Lane, Broughton, Milton Keynes, Bucks, MK10 9N. This place has only been open a year but its already made a name for itself as the best fish and chip shop in Central and Southern England. They’re only a mile away from the M1 motorway so they’re in the perfect location to take advantage as word spreads about their success.
10. Hanbury’s Fish & Chips, Princess street, Babbacombe, Torquay, Devon, TQ1 3LW. This take away/restaurant has a wide selection of new favourites on the menu including lemon sole, brill, monkfish and gurnard. They’re also inclined to include seasonal favorites.

I can’t remember who said it but I beg to differ. Money doesn’t talk, it doesn’t even whimper.

It may be just one day out of the year but if you’re single it has that horrible habit of making you feel like a social outcast, destined to die alone. If you’re one of the lucky ones who’ve found their other half, then fair play to you, congrats. Here are some of my top money saving present ideas for Valentine’s Day. Do with them what you will.

1. A home made card is a true gift from the heart and it’s much better than all those generic, off-the-shelf numbers from Clinton’s.
2. How about a foot massage? Buy the woman in your life a big plastic tub, some Radox bubble bath, run the tap and let the bubbles flow. Your lady will be putty in your hands with the offer of a “foot spa” with your clever money saving gift.
3. Take her with you to a tall building, doesn’t really matter where, as long as it’s tall so you can admire the view together. If it’s a sunny day, even better - you’ll get extra brownie points. This option is cheaper than cheap, it’s free in fact. So take advantage!
4. Buy in lots of Cava. She’ll never know the difference between that and the real stuff. In all honesty, who can. The bubbles may not last as long but what’s that got to do with anything.
5. Make an album of her favourite love songs. All this costs is the price of a CD.  Go for the classic love songs ala Tony Bennet or Chris De Burge - works a treat.

Please note - the details contained above are not to be taken literally. Well, maybe the Cava one. No one can really tell the difference, can they?

Happy Valentine’s Day x

See, I knew I’d have some good news eventually. It’s not bring out your dead, it’s let’s have a party. Primark has looked at the recession and told it to swivel. This Christmas was another successful one for the low-cost clothes retailer with like for like sales up by 4%.

The continued success of Primark may be in part be in due to the opening six new stores in the UK as well as a sea change in British consumers’ atitudes. The increase in sales for Primark prove that the populace is becoming more price conscious and switching to budget shopping, look at Iceland’s expansion. This will be good news for Primark considering they have been linked to UK sweatshops where workers were underpaid, over worked and mistreated.

The Guardian

In today’s Guardian John Harris has poured water on Evan Davis’ claim that David Bowie caused the credit crunch. Arguably Davis’ article was a humorous attempt to look at the credit crunch in a novel way. In no ways did he actually believe that Bowie lit the touch paper that eventually resulted in the implosion of the global financial system.

First of all Bowie Bonds were released over a decade ago well before the recent financial troubles began. Secondly the concept of securitisation where investors receive a share of the repayments of a debt or in Bowie’s case royalties had been in use since the 70’s. In the 70’s banks sold on debts from credit cards and car loans to investors who would receive a share of the repayments over a certain period of time. Bowie Bonds were certainly an innovation but only of an existing concept. Investors paid Bowie up front for a share of his royalties over a ten year period. Thirdly and this is the most important, Bowie did not envison this scheme himself. Hell, he’s inventive, creative and is wildly inspirational but I doubt that his creative talents could be applied to the financial sector. Instead it was Bowie’s wily financier David Pullman who was behind the scheme.

In the ten years that followed the issue of the Bowie Bonds, traders used the concept of securitisation but applied it to mortgages. The trouble was there were selling on mortgages from people who had no ability to pay them back, what the market calls ‘junk status’. That’s what caused the credit crunch, billions of pounds of bad debt injected into the financial markets which fundamentally corrupted the global economy.

The Bowie Bond was influential but only in the music industry where other arts used securitisation to secure large one of payments in return for giving their investors access to their royalties, most notably James Brown and Iron Maiden. So next time you hear ‘Bring your Daughter to the Slaughter’ on an Iceland ad, there’s some investor in Wall Street who’s got paid a dollar.

My basic point: leave Bowie alone. Plus I get to stick one more Bowie video in, just for kicks. Little China Girl one of my favourites.

The Guardian

The bankers got us into this mess and now they face the aftermath of their reckless greed. Merrill Lynch, the financial management and advisory company have made the single biggest lay-off in the history of the Square Mile. The lay-offs represents 30% of their combined work force in London and a 7% reduction in staff numbers in the Investment Banking and Investment Management (IBIM) division across the globe.

They’re will be a lot of people hawking their Gieves and Hawkes suit, selling off their blackberries and looking for work elsewhere. But seriously, although it seems hard to feel sympathetic about financial workers losing their jobs, there will be a lot of people affected by the lay-offs who never benefited from their huge bonuses. Every financial institution is made up by support staff, administrators, IT people and many others. These are the people who will be hit hardest by losing their jobs as they never received huge salaries and mega bonuses.

London Paper

As well as being one this 20th century’s most influential recording artists, David Bowie, it seems is also influential in the world of economics. Now’s the time I should think of some great Bowie pun, but I can’t. It’s 3pm and I’m jet lagged.

Bowie is an early adopter and always seems to be involved at the forefront of the most important trends from glam rock, rock, pop, dance, ambient, electronic and looking like a middle aged woman:

So it seems Bowie came up with an ingenious ruse to get his hands on some ready cash in the mid 90’s. Arguably his most creatively bankrupt period. He should have been spending more time making great music rather than dodgy investments. Bowie sold his projected royalties in the form of Bowie Bonds. He sold the rights to his future royalties to shareholders up front instead of waiting for them to accrue over the course of the years. This gave him access to a large up front sum and it gave his investors a ready flow of cash from his royalties.

Everyone prospered that was until the banks cottoned on to this clever scheme and started selling on the mortgages they had loaned to their customers in a similar fashion. By buying up a mortgage an investor would receive the mortgage repayments over the course of the payment period. The scheme works perfectly if there is a return on the original investment. In Bowie’s case, the payment from royalties would continue indefinitely however the banks were selling on mortgages they had loaned to people who couldn’t afford the repayments. When the mortgages payers defaulted those who had bought up these bad loans lost billions and that little thing called the credit crunch began.

There’s a recession, a lack of liquidity in the market, people are losing their jobs and companies are going into administration. But we still have Bowie, and if doesn’t cheer you up, you must be dead inside.

Price Waterhouse Cooper have decided to treat people with Zavvi gift vouchers as creditors. As all creditors are equal in the eyes of the law, the gift vouchers must join the long queue of people trying to get their money back. If gift vouchers were bought after the 27th of November, there is more chance of getting a refund. Before this date, reimbursement is less likely.

To make a claim, you have to write to the joint administrators quoting their Gift Card / Gift Voucher number (s), enclosing original Gift Card / Gift Voucher (s) and quoting their full name and address for return correspondence. Please find the joint administrators address below:

zavvi Vouchers
c/o The Joint Administrators
Ernst & Young LLP
100 Barbirolli Square
Manchester
M2 3EY

Full details can be found on the Zavvi site.

Why Price Waterhouse Coopers has chosen to treat gift vouchers holders as creditors is a mystery. The administrators of Woolworths let customers with gift cards use them within the stores right up until the shelves were stripped.

Woolworths is the major reason for the problems at Zavvi. Entertainment UK was part of the Woolworths group and responsible for providing stock for Zavvi. When Woolworths got into problems Entertainment UK (EUK) were unable to provide new stock for Zavvi in the crucial run up to Christmas.

Zavvi was already in some financial difficulty but being unable to get the latest DVDs, CDs and games in the run up to Christmas meant they lost out on a large proportion of their yearly profits. Also, the problems at EUK forced Zavvi into a stock clearance sale. This is because the stock in the Zavvi stores was owned by EUK. When EUK as part of Woolworths went into administration Zavvi had to unload all the EUK stock, to pay EUK’s creditors.