Conclave

The Pope dies and the College of Cardinals must go into conclave to choose his successor.  The task of heading up the process falls to Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes), who is on the more liberal wing of the church, and favours Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci) to get the job, however reluctant he may appear to be to put his name forward.  There are other contenders of course, either slightly less liber, or far further to the right, and Lawrence and Bellini are joined in opposing the possibility of that backward-looking arch conservative Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) becoming their boss.

Preventing that, and navigating all the other challenges involved, requires a lot of backroom negotiating, skullduggery, and a few dirty tricks.  Added into the mix is a mystery cardinal who none of the others were aware of, Cardinal Benitez (Carlos Diehz) from Afghanistan.  Why had the Pope kept him hidden away, and what views does he adhere to?  Who will win through in the end, and how many will be disgraced along the way.

An excellent cast, a reasonably gripping plot and some excellent cinematography.  Fiennes is at his best, despite one hammy moment of 'looking shady' as he investigates the secrets of the dead man's bedroom.  There are even a few laughs along the way, and it certainly has a surprise twist to the ending.  So it's not as dull as the subject matter might suggest.

But.  I found myself lacking any empathy for, or emotional engagelemnt with, any of the characters.  A bunch of old men choosing another old man to issue diktats to millions of people?  It's hard to sympathise with any of them, even those who are protrayed as more 'liberal'.  Maybe it was because the last film I went to see was Small Things Like These , but have any positive feelings for officials of the Catholic church were impossible to dredge up!

One element did make me laugh though, and I am still wondering if the image was coincidental or deliberate.  There were several visual references to The Handmaid's Tale, with the mass of Cardinals often looking like so many Offreds.  It certainly helped to poke fun at some of the more sinister aspects of the closeted plotters.

Dean Owens and the Sinners, Traverse

The annual pre-Xmas Dean Ownes gig is not to be missed.  Tis year, to allow a (much) bigger audience in, it moved from the usual cafe-bar location down into Traverse 1.  Dean confessed he was nervous about the switch, worrying that not enough tickets would sell to justify it.  It was a sell-out!

With good reason.  This is always a December treat for Dean's big local following.  On this aoccaison with full band.  Dean on guitar and vocals (and whistling), long term sidekick Craig Ross on lead guitar, Adam McMillan on bass, Andy Duncan at the drum kit, and Philip Cardwell blowing trumpet.  The latter indicating that Owens is still very much in his TexMex phase.  The first half was mostly newer material, much of it from the album to be released next year, including several songs no live audience had yet heard.  The second set dived more into the back catalogue, with some very familiar singlaong numbers included (such as Raining in Glasgow).    

Dean was as good as ever, Craig Ross in fine form, and the crowd loved it.  I'm already looking forward to next December...

Small Things Like These

Based on the book by Claire Keegan, the setting is the small Irish town of New Ross in 1985. The title sequence immediately gives us the theme of the story - a rotating skyline of the town, dominated by one point, the local church.

Bill Furlong (Cilliam Murphy) runs a coal merchants, drive the lorry round the town to make deliveries, before returning to his wife and five daughters.  He's a well known, well respected member of the community, treats his staff well, although his wife reckons he's a bit "too soft".  One morning he goes to make his delivery at the convent and finds, locked in the coal shed, a terrified young woman, begging him to take her with him.  He takes her in to the sisters, who fuss over and take her quickly away, then leaves.  But her fear remains in his mind.

Furlong has to decide.  Between the safety of acquiesence, as advocated by his wife (and given added persuasion by the Mother Superior).  Or the risk of becoming a social pariah, if he follows his conscience.  More information about the convent becomes obvious.  It is one of the infamous 'Magdalen Laundaries', where young women, pregnant and unmarried, are used as slave labout before thier babies are sold to childless families.  A practice that continued well into the nineties.  

These are the kind of nuns that give penguins a bad name.  This a society still in the grip of the church, which nefoces social convention and dictates who is unacceptable within the town.  The tension, the sense of oppression, is well conveyed, even as the town celebrates Christmas.  Murphy is excellent as the quiet man wrestling with the biggest decision he has ever faced, knowing that if he does the 'right thing' it will go badly for him and his family.  Knowing that standing up to this kind of evil has consequences well beyond himself.

It might be set in the past, but it feels so recent, with TV programmes and cars that many of us can still easily recall.  It is still very relevant, for that kind of oppression has many forms, and the fascist verion is looming over us so much nowadays.  A poerful reminder of the need to stand up to evil.

Rachel Walker and Aaron Jones, Traverse

Very professional.  Two good voices, two good musicians.  She the purer of tone, on keyboards, he with the more distinctive sound, on guitar and mandola.  A set of songs from their new album, and a couple from their last one.   Mostly slow paced ballads, in a mix of Gaelic and English (she’s from the Gaeltacht, he from the north of Ireland), almst all telling sad tales.  They can both relate a story too.

But.  While enjoyable enough, as a show it lacked variety of pace and tempo, lacked laughs, lacked any Wow moments.  Pleasant, gentle, mildly entertaining.  And ever so slightly soporific.

But full marks for ending with the beauty of The Broom o’the Cowdenknowes...

Will Pound & Jenn Butterworth, Traverse

 This had everything I could want from a gig.  Virtuoso performances, wonderful tunes and songs, and madcap humour.  

Pound is a harmonica genius, and not far behind that on the melodeon. Butterworth is the consummate accompanist, on guitar and stomp, as well as being a quality vocalist. It was a set of variety. Trad material in the main, but not as you'v eheard it before. New tunes, mixtures of fast, slow, and more fast.  Tunes from England, Ireland, Scotland, Holland, Spain…  Improvisations that made you wonder how many different variations on a simple melody line could there possibly be? Plus songs from Jenn’s upcoming solo album, with sympathetic backing, and solos, from harmonica.

And very funny, very unpredictable, and solidly on the left of politics.  What’s not to like?

Detained (A Play, a Pie and a Pint), Traverse

 Yemi (Titana Muthui) has been detained in a detention centre for refugees and asylum seekers.  Bea (Laura Lovemore), , her best friend eventually visits.And what’s the big difference between them?  A UK passport.

The threat of deportation hangs over Yemi, and months will pass as her solicitor works to get her free.  And, more importantly, prevent her being sent back to South Africa where a far worse fate awaits her. But Bea is a narcissist, and insists on relating her trivial probllsms, what she perceives to be her 'suffering', than to listen to her friend. And it takes further trauma for Yemi before she realises just how serious the situation is.

It's a low key script, with not a lot happening, a reflection of the tedium of incarceration. There are few laughs, mostly low level embarrassment for Bea's lack of self awareness. Muthui is convincingly despairing, but Lovemore took time to warm up, and looked a bit lost in the opening 20 minutes.

That tedium has it's uses though, bringing home the pojt of the asylum system. Dehumanising, threatening, boring, and designed to keep inmates (who may have done nothing wrong) in a constant state of anxiety. And, with Yemi’s case, a reminder that everyone who migrates has their own individual reasons, sometimes from circumstances that may be hard to explain.  They can put their own loved ones at risk if they divulge too much.

Not a sparkling addition to the PPP canon, and it’s a subject that really needs much more than 50 minutes, but it provides a decent stab at raising awareness of how terribly the UK behaves towards people seeking a new start in life, and how little understanding of their plight there really is.

The Manfreds, Queens Hall

We saw The Manfreds in Musselburgh about two years ago, and not much has changed since I wrote that review, which you can read here.  

The same line up of msicians, including Jones and McGuiness from the original 60s Manfred Mann line up.  Much the same set list as well, which meant mostly numbers dating back to those sixties days, plus a few blues outriders.  A Ben E King number included a memorable flute solo from Simon Curry, and channeling Howlin' Wolf brought out the best of Paul Jones's harmonica abilities.  There was the odd solo from each member of the sextet as well, notably from Marcus Cliff.

The set also included some material from McGuiness' late band, McGuiness Flint, and it was one of those, When I'm Dead and Gone, that really brought the audience to life and from then on they joined in with everything.  Those old Mann hits were certainly catchy!

Paul Jones' voice is in it's declining years, and can sound strained and a bit off key at times.  But he remains a charismatic front man, with great phrasing and that wonderful blues harmonica in his repertoire.  McGuiness remains as good a guitarist as ever - understated, sparse, but capable of sudden surprise and runs.

Yes, this is an act trading on nostalgia, and playing to a audience of (moslty) pensioners.  But they still have the musical chops and sheer enjoyment needed to create a good night of music.