Here is a still frame from a film I’ve been watching lately. Any guesses?
(And I know I should watch films in one go but in my defence the dvd started skipping halfway through and I have to get a new copy)
Someone’s been MIA lately….
I’ve been swamped with work lately and haven’t been able to watch a film in its entirety for a while. I have had the chance to read a bit. However, I sometimes end up reading multiple books simultaneously, which means it takes me quite some time to finish a single one.
One of the books I’m reading these days is Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad and according to the reviews it is the most brilliant book in the history of the universe. I’ll reserve judgement until I’m done with it.
Psycho (1960)
There’s a lot to be said about this classic horror film but I’d like to focus on two specific things:
1. The opening credits. They’re sleek, modern and basically just awesome.
2. Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates. Perkins delivers an incredible performance – childlike and vulnerable one minute and absolutely sinister the next. Unfortunately, I think over the years the Norman Bates character has turned into a caricature of sorts (“A boy’s best friend is his mother”), making it all the more important to watch the film again. Also, I was kind of surprised to find myself feeling sympathetic towards Bates and I know for a *fact* I’m not the only female viewer who felt this way.
I am lazy as hell. I sit in bed and write. I grumble a lot. I wake up thinking, uff, what am I going to do with myself today – and for the rest of my life.
—Vikram Seth, author of A Suitable Boy and Golden Gate, in my interview with him when he was in town for the 3rd Karachi Literature Festival.
