On Sunday night I went to see The World’s Fastest Indian at the Reading Cinema in Invercargill, ten days after the world premiere there. The family were curious to see if Uncle Jack Johnson got into the movie as the driver of one his 1960s cars.
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The World’s Fastest Indian is the story of Burt Munro, a 68 year old Invercargill resident who takes his 1920 Indian motorbike from a capacity of 55 mph to a speed capable of setting a world record. To do that he sets out from Invercargill for Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, via Los Angeles. Doesn’t sound much of a plot does it. But somehow this movie seems full of humanity and drama.
Roger Donaldson, director of The Recruit and Thirteen Days, takes the true local story and weaves it into a true piece of cinematographic theatre. Filming took place on location in Invercargill and Utah, making the most of financial incentives from local governments. I wonder if the one condition for Invercargill City Council support was the casting of mayor Tim Shadbolt as the man in the post office. Fortunately Tim didn’t upstage Anthony Hopkins who gave a captivating performance as Burt.
The movie has an official site at http://www.worldsfastestindian.com/ which includes a quicktime trailer. Indian Motorbikes have a page dedicated to the TWFI, including photos of Burt, trivia on the making of the film and excerpts from articles published by Burt Munro in the 1960s.
The great thing about seeing the movie in Invercargill was being able to see one of the bikes used in the movie on show in the theatre foyer. The other bonus was sharing in the laugh when Tim Shadbolt first appeared.
Going on holiday without a laptop makes it possible for me to get stuck into a novel or two. So this last week I finally got around to reading Dan Brown’s “The DaVinci Code“.
The basic premise of the novel is that the Holy Grail is not a cup but is instead the secret royal bloodline formed by Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Robert Langdon, an American symbologist, works with Sophie Neveu, a French cryptologist, to uncover the secrets of the Priory of Sion. Along the way they team up with English Grail specialist, Sir Leigh Teabing. Sophie’s grandfather, Jacques Sauniere, a curator in the Louvre museum, is killed at the beginning of the story. But his presence is felt throughout as Langdon and Neveu uncover the clues he has set in the work of Leonardo Da Vinci. We also follow the story of Silas, an albino member of Opus Dei who is ensnared in a plot to discover the Holy Grail.
Putting aside any qualms about historical accuracy, I enjoyed the book as a stirring thriller. Not as cleverly told as someone like Frederick Forsyth or Robert Grisham. But I finished the book in one day.
Dan Brown has pages dedicated to The DaVinci Code at his site, www.danbrown.com. Doubleday/Randomhouse, the publisher, has an interactive site dedicated to the book and its yet-to-be published sequel.
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I’d seen the Channel 4 documentary on the non-fiction background to Brown’s work of fiction. “The Real DaVinci Code” was presented by Tony Robinson. It has a micro site at Weird Worlds.
It’s clear that Brown has stringed together a number of speculative theories about the feminine side to religion, the family of Jesus and the Templar Knights, not to mention the role of many well known artists and thinkers throughout the ages. Despite the gaping holes in the evidence and logic of it all, Brown has the knack of making fiction seem believable.
The DaVinci Code is currently in production as a movie directed by Ron Howard, filmed in France (including The Louvre) and England (Lincoln Cathedral). It should be a hit, with Tom Hanks as Langdon, Audrey Tatou as Neveu, Ian McKellen as Sir Leigh Teabing, Alfred Molina as Opus Dei Bishop Aringarosa, Jean Reno as detective Bezu Fache, Jean-Pierre Marielle as Jacques Sauniere and Paul Bettany as Silas. The movie opens on May 18 and 19 in 2006, and has a trailer online at Sony’s Da Vinci Code site.
Sixteen weeks to go until King Kong hits the screens again. And to guide us through that time we’ve got the Kong is King site, featuring trailers, production and post production diaries, a history of the movie, and video clips of Peter Jackson and actors such as Naomi Watt and Jack Black. It’s like having the DVD Special Features before the movie comes out!
Jack Black says “I can’t believe you get to see me in makeup and costume. Isn’t that verbotten?”
Going on holiday without a laptop makes it possible for me to get stuck into a novel or two. So this last week I finally got around to reading Dan Brown’s “
The DaVinci Code is currently in production as a movie directed by Ron Howard, filmed in France (including 
Sixteen weeks to go until King Kong hits the screens again. And to guide us through that time we’ve got the Kong is King site, featuring trailers, production and post production diaries, a history of the movie, and video clips of Peter Jackson and actors such as Naomi Watt and Jack Black. It’s like having the DVD Special Features before the movie comes out!
