The House Husband

Being a Tuesday and being free of the gout blight, Nicktor came over last night. We had sausages and mash and white sauce! Very odd, I know, but apparently he LOVES my white sauce.

We watched Saw IV. Interesting. It managed to answer a few questions but was still frustratingly vague. It’s a case of a franchise being way inferior to the original product. It was also, possibly, the goriest of the lot. Though there’s also Saw V & VI, according to Nicktor. I’m not sure what they’ll be like as the main character is definitely dead now – we saw him cut open on the mortuary slab.

We then watched Jackie Brown, the only Tarantino film we had yet to see. I saw it years ago and had forgotten how long it is. Sadly, for Nicktor, it doesn’t feature much of that Tarantino action he loves. It is memorable for the wonderful job Robert de Niro does as the down and out-ish ex-con. A joy to watch. Anyway, Nicktor wasn’t impressed with it though he did sleep through quite a bit so I’m not sure whether he’s a fit judge. For me, I think it’s a bit long-winded but I like the style, being of the black exploitation films of the late 1970s. And it has quite a funky soundtrack though there’s only so much Motown Soul I can truly enjoy at one time.

In the World Cup, a bit of a surprise. Most of the games up till now have been a bit dull. And then New Zealand played Slovakia yesterday. I tend to disagree with most of the reports that say it was boring. I really enjoyed it. I thought the play was end to end and both teams looked hungry and desperate. Slovakia scored early in the second half and it looked like they were going to sail through with a win. But then, with 30 seconds to go, a cross from the wing came sailing into the box and a New Zealand head attached to it and it was one all. They went insane! Not only had the so-called minnows managed not to lose, they had gained their first ever point in World Cup football!

I like the fact that the NZ football team is called the All Whites versus the All Blacks rugby team. Cute.

Another Nicktor Movie Night last night. Actually, we had planned to spend a night in London with an American friend of his, over here on a business trip but he had a business dinner so Nicktor came here instead. I was looking forward to meeting Steve (his friend) and clearly would have enjoyed the night but, to be honest, I much prefer our movie nights.

We went to the 6 Bells as has become the tradition and had lamb burgers. Strangely, they served them on proper buns this week. It made all the difference. I can only hope that last week was the aberration and they’d run out of the proper ones rather than last week being the norm.

The pub had a new beer on this week. Morris Man’s Delight (or something like that). It was a very nice drop. We both spoke of how often we’ve thought of joining a Morris side. Nick, because he’d like to do the stick hitting dance, me because I like the beer. Naturally he then added that he liked the beer too.

Back at the house I put Death Proof in the DVD. This is Tarantino’s fifth film (it says so on the box) and is quite strange. There is never any explanation of why Stuntman Mike does what he does and the whole thing is filmed like a scratchy, badly preserved 50s exploitation film in the John Waters style. But the car chase in the second half of the film is amazing. Tarantino is interviewed on the second disc and says he wanted to make a car movie with real chases and real stunts, not CGI. And when you watch it, it’s just amazing what he’s accomplished. An excellent addition to the Tarantino canon. Nick loved it.

It was with some dismay that Nicktor admitted he’d watched the final three episodes of The Inbetweeners, not waiting so we could watch them together. And so, because it was now my choice due to his default, we watched Class of Nuke ‘em High, a classic Troma schlock, sexploitation, stupid, badly filmed and acted, crazy film.

I love Troma films. I don’t know why, because they’re so bad. I’m sure any normal film lover would say they’re just rubbish (which they are) and not worth watching (which they are) but I can’t help it. I just enjoy them! Fortunately I don’t mind rewatching these films, because Nicktor slept through most of it. That could have been the whisky as well as being tired.

We are sampling different whiskys on our film nights. Last night it was The Black Grouse, a blend of Grouse and an Islay whisky, which gives it a light peaty finish. Very nice for a blend, we both agreed. It was obviously very nice because there’s not much left in the bottle.

Before retiring, Nicktor insisted we put the news on and we were just in time to see that David Cameron had become Prime Minister and Nick Clegg was going to be his deputy, that Gordon Brown had left Downing Street, wife and kids in hand and that we now have a Tory/Lib Dem coalition government that Clegg insists will work.

This morning, even after having a decent sleep in, Nicktor’s head was a bit worse for wear. Apart from being tired (as usual), I was fine. These young blokes! Seedy indeed!

Last night was another Nicktor night. I made Morrocan meatballs and we drank beer and whisky. This week we watched True Romance, a film written by Quentin Tarantino but directed by someone else and Nurse Betty, one of my top 5 films. I’ve seen them both (in the case of Nurse Betty, MANY times) but they’re two films I never tire of. Interestingly, after last week, we both wanted to see Saw II.

He was very keen on True Romance and enjoyed it throughout. It is typically Tarantino, with lots of violence, strong language, sex and drugs and a great soundtrack. One of the amazing things about it is the number of big star names who crop up in cameo roles. A lot of short, star-studded scenes knit together a racing plot that never stops. An excellent film and Nicktor loved it, as I thought he would.

Nurse Betty, on the other hand, was clearly not his cup of tea. The pace was a bit slow and measured for him. Personally I think it’s the best thing Renee Zellweger has ever done. She is perfect as Betty, the hapless small town girl thrust into the magical world of Hollywood.

And today I found out that there’s a lot of references to The Wizard of Oz dotted throughout it. Betty is seen as a Dorothy, taken away from her own world and sent on a journey into a fantasy world containing the good and the evil of the world. I guess I’ll have to watch it a few ore times.

Clearly this is all lost on Nicktor who doesn’t like a lot of depth in his entertainment. There is NO way I’d subject him to my all time favourite film. It would be such a waste. I think I’ll leave the next choice up to him.

He also christened the new bed and gave it a huge thumbs up. In fact, he said he slept so well that he is now convinced the reason he can’t sleep at home is because the mattress needs replacing. He’s a funny boy.

We were also celebrating the sale of his red sports car as someone FINALLY bought it. It was his mid-life thing and while he regrets having to lose it, realises it was just too expensive to keep. And that’s without driving it!