'The Machine' a walking talking catalyst in 'The Stag'

THE MACHINE                                     THE STAG 2014

 

One immediate thought after watching 'The Stag', was how much the film was character driven. Some may disagree and point out that the comical writing drove the plot forward to its conclusion, and whilst I agree it was extremely funny and well written, this film was driven, ironically by 'The Machine'.

 

Maintaining plots can be very hard, especially as film making is moving forwards at a very fast pace, a good script is really needed to lift and drive a film to its finishing line, pulling its audience along with it. Peter McDonald who plays 'The Machine' in 'The Stag' really gets into his role as the annoying, absent but reputational brother in law of soon to be groom Fionnan. His characteristics really make the audience feel, as soon as we are introduced to him in the pub, that he is just one of those bugs in your ear you just can't get rid of. This position is maintained through the first half of the film, as Fionnan reveals, "You have no idea what it's like to spend five minutes with this man".

 

Some people who watch this however, may not be aware that the writers have positioned 'The Machine' to be something more than a childish non committed guy going along on a stag. When talking about not inviting 'The Machine' to his stag night, Fionnan continuously tells his best man Davin to "Fix it", when funnily enough 'The Machine' actually is used in the story to indeed fix it.

 

In fact, from my perspective, I continuously picked out moments of the film and was consciously made aware that 'The Machine' was a crucial plot device. Without 'The Machine', we would not have confirmation of Davin's secret love for Ruth, we would not be aware of Simon's bankruptcy, or that Fionnan's dad was having issues with the couple , Little Kevin and Big Kevin attending the wedding together. 'The Machine' disturbs the equilibrium, creating a disequilibrium between the main characters. He metaphorically represents the characters conscience, the fact they have secrets and as soon as your conscience comes knocking it’s not going to be pretty. He asks the questions, he uses his personality to annoy you, he loses your car keys, he throws your compass in the lake, and he makes you come to breaking point until you blurt out what you've wanted to blurt out. And finally, he is your resolution. Every character has changed their viewpoint on 'The Machine', and this resolution is the wedding reception. Speeches are made, friendships are reaffirmed and stronger than ever, wounds are sown and fun is had.  McDonald, who co-wrote The Stag, expressed in an interview that 'The Machine' is a "real game changer in these guys’ lives when they go on a stag", this perfectly encapsulates what 'The Machine' is for me.

This review is featured in film review from ‘YasminesUrl’

http://yasminesurl.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/the-stag-commentary.html

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05/01/14- New year? I don't think so.

New Year, New Society?

Not so long ago, four days to be exact, the world was celebrating the start of a new year. Dreams and aspirations would fly around in the heads of those who would be inspired by a new start and a clean slate, that they had been metaphorically given by a change in date, another day. I would sit and think to myself I would like to see changes in not only my life, but the world around me. That hopefully this would be the year that the media somehow takes a massive leap in helping to bash those negative stereotypes, portraying people how they really look and not a 'perfect' photo shopped mess. A year in which there is bound to be another leap forward in digital technology, and that we need to realise how susceptible young people are to the internet, what they read and what they are prompted to post themselves. A year in which people should be making a bigger deal about equality, I myself think there shouldn't even need to be a big deal made about for example same sex couples, disability etc., but obviously some people still feel the need to abuse and mentally and physically hate those that are not the same as how they view themselves.

Although this blog is titled, 'A Newfound Respect', this post is in no way a respect to what I witnessed on the illusive social network site, Twitter last night. Some may argue that Towie's Gemma Collins should expect some backlash from going on a TV show that typically requires someone physically fit. My argument is that there should be no argument, why the hell should you criticize someone who admits she wants to inspire plus sized people to not give s*** about their weight and to feel confident in themselves. When scrolling down the tag of this week's new episode of Splash, where celebrities have a hand in learning to perform dives  with Tom Daley, later performing them and getting a score on the show, I saw some downright hurtful and disgusting things that people obviously thought they needed to share to get their own narcissistic enjoyment out of. A few examples show below:

 Why would someone, sorry if I am rephrasing myself over and over, feel the need to bully someone over their weight. Oh you think she won't see what you write about her? I have a feeling because she was so nervous going on the show in the first place, she would have clicked on her tag and scrolled through your hurtful comments, how do you think that would make someone feel? How would it make you feel? I'm sure everyone at some point in their life has been bullied miserably over something they feel insure about, something like their body, their teeth, their hair, their nose, their speech, their race, their sexuality. And yet because there is no regulation on these sites, these comments are allowed to take place, so when you see a comment like these above and your a small minded person too, you feel the need to join in. Well I'm sorry its not what I wished to see in this new year either.