Queens Birthday Long Weekend

Continuing our day of self-indulgence yesterday, taking advantage of the long weekend, we had to decide between Color Me Kubrick and The Chumscrubber. For some reason we made the mistake of choosing the latter, based almost entirely on the presence of Jamie Bell. The film seems to be a contrived effort to establish itself as a cult success, following the pattern set be Donnie Darko. This includes a male teen protagonist, dosed up on anti-depressants, who wanders somnambulently through suburban drama, guided by an imagined undead companion complete with Frank-esque vocal effects. This Film Threat review is totally OTM;

"The art of the suburban-culture film has become paint-by-numbers filmmaking. Throw in some insane characters, medication and a little violence, and…voila, it’s a dark and profound satire on the absurdity of modern life."

Following the film we had a drink at Markov, a new bar buried down Markov Place - a tiny lane off Elgin Street. Like the film, this bar feel contrived and paint-by-numbers. There's nothing wrong with it, it's just another bland bar with all the accouterments - stylish lampshades, dark-red walls, the bar shelves lit up to show off their stock. It's as though there's an Ikea-like catalogue that potential bar-owners can order from, where they purchase all their furnishings, as well as compilation CDs of bland, innocuous house music. Then, we wandered through to Brunswick Street and had dinner at The Fitz. For a busy Saturday night on Brunswick Street, the service here was spot-on; fast, efficient, friendly, and detailed. I had lamb shanks on mashed sweet potato, which was very good. The missus had gnocci with macadamia pesto.