Saving Mr Banks: A Review

This evening was spent with the lovely girls that I live with watching 'Saving Mr Bank'. I understand I may be a few months behind some other blog posts by people who may have already seen this film, however I feel my opinion and point of view are still valid and should be shared.

I have read a lot of reviews about this film on social media sites such as Twitter, but also on other blogs and online reviews by journalists. I have seen very few negative comments about this creation, possibly none if I can cast my mind back far enough but this does not surprise me now that I have seen it for myself. I know that when it comes down to it, a lot of internet sites may hide negative feedback about a film, however with this particular film, I can see that this has not been the case. Saving Mr Banks is a masterpiece.

Marry Poppins is a favourite film of mine, if not the only favourite of mine. I was born in the early 1990's so when I tell people this they are shocked that I even know the name. But my parents brought my sister and myself up with good taste in music and films. However, from a young age to now, 20 years of age, I have never known the true meaning behind Mary Poppins. For me it was an incredible film about two children who were lucky enough to get a 'nanny' to take care of them and take them on adventures, exploring their creativity and happiness. However, after watching Saving Mr Banks tonight, I can see that it is so much more. I always knew it was based on the book PL Travers wrote however I never knew that the book in question was based on her childhood. It fascinates me deeply.

With the depth that this film goes into and the stories behind the story itself shocks and amazes me all at the same time. There are so many hidden messages within Mary Poppins that I quite possibly never noticed and with good reason too - it was almost impossible to notice until you hear the back story. Which I and may others have now.

The way in which the film has been created, with all of its characters and the storyline in general, shows how truly amazing the world of cinema is. The creative minds that helped to create this masterpiece are of sheer brilliance and should be so proud of their achievement. Not only do they tell the story of PL Travers and how Mary Poppins came to life, they pull on every single heart string available within their audience. There were parts of the film that made me laugh, yet others made me cry, some even made me angry. But most of all I felt some sense of understanding. The way in which Travers was protective over Mary Poppins and how she saw her as family was completely understandable to me. When something is your life and you've created it based on your personal experiences, it can be hard to let go and pass it on to someone else. But for Travers letting go enabled her to see light - it helped her leave go of something that was holding her back and enabled her to move forward with her work, and herself. She allowed herself to open up to a new and exciting world, and it allowed her to see the positive out of the negative.

It was certainly inspirational to see how a favourite film of mine came about and how it was created and by who it was created also. To be allowed to almost step into the past and open my imagination up was remarkable. But most importantly, having something that is so personal to someone, shared with you is almost unimaginable. Being given that sense of a personal relationship with Travers and her history and family life as a child is something that one could not forget in a hurry. But having that shown through a film which is so creative and diverse, in a sense, is truly remarkable and unforgettable. I never knew the depths to which Mary Poppins as a film has until now. And I would not have known if I had not seen Saving Mr Banks or if it had not been made.

With emotions running high throughout and the intensity of the storyline, I shall not forget the experience in a hurry and neither should you.


So if you have never seen Saving Mr Banks, please do watch it with enthusiasm. It is a masterpiece that deserves a thousand awards.

Perspective

I have just watched a documentary. A sad documentary. A very very sad documentary.

I am sure a lot of you if not all of you have seen it, no matter where you are in the world but I have only just come accross it.

It's about a young boy, just 18 years old, called Zach Sobiech. I'm sure you have heard of him. He had terminal cancer, osteosarcoma. He was slowly dying, from the age of 14, a poor kid ,who hadn't even had the chance to live his life fully. The documentary was about how he was living his life, and not letting his cancer take away his happiness. He seemed so content with life. With a wonderful and gorgeous girlfriend, an incredible family and friends many of us could only dream of having. He looked so happy, he seemed to have so much potential in him, and my heart broke when watching it. Because it made me realise how life can be so short and cruel sometimes and how I, and many others, take advantage of the lives that we have.

He gave so much, he loved, he cherished everyone, he had such a positive outlook on life even though it was throwing him so much pain. He made music, something to say goodbye to his family, something for them to hold on when he had gone.

He is such an inspiration. He was so talented, he had so much to give to the world, if only he had the chance to do so. Instead he passed away, this year in fact, not too long after his 18th birthday. Yet he's left this impact on everyone that knew him, of everyone who has seen the documentary about his life. He's left a song that changes everything. One listen and your whole life is put into perspective for you.

It isn't about complaining about things that have very little to do with life, it isn't about letting people decide on your happiness or letting yourself go.

It's about changing things, making a difference to the people who mean the most to you, making a difference to the world. Doing something that will make people remember you, that will leave this impressive and huge impact on everyone. Even those who don't even know you on a personal level. People who live the other side of the world to you. It's changing their whole outlook on life.

I have been blessed by seeing this video because it's given me the incentive to change my outlook on life and to realise that you won't always get the chance to be happy, because one day you won't be here to be happy.

I recently lost my grandfather to cancer, and that changed a lot for me, that changed me as a person. But seeing Zach's documentary and listening to his song has changed everything else for me.

30 Facts About Me

So I know a lot of you are probably thinking who I am and why I blog about the things that I do. So I have decided to let you all in on my life and give you some facts about myself. Just for the fun of things and to lighten up my blog after the posts that I have previously written.

So here goes.......

1. I was born in South Wales, United Kingdom
2. I am half Welsh and half Italian as my father and his family are Italian
3. I have family all around the world including America, Spain, Italy, France and many more places
4. I am a university student studying Events Management
5. I was a street dancer for 3 years and came third in the World Streetdance Championships within my first year of dancing
6. I want to live in Australia or America when I graduate from university
7. I sing, (used to) dance, write lyrics, blog, draw & paint and write short stories
8. I have been writing a novel the past year which I hope to have finished in the next few years (trying to get everything perfect)
9. I value my friendships more than anything else (except for my family) and believe that the respect I give them should be returned
10. I am more mature than most people I know my age
11. I value my personal relationships and always put in as much effort as possible to maintain the relationship that I am in 
12. I have a life-plan in place and have done so since I was 18. 
13. My main goal in life is to have a successful career once I have graduated
14. I don't want to be rich but I would like to have enough money to be able to pay my bills and still have some left over for shopping and going on annual holidays
15. My favourite TV show is Hollyoaks
16. I own one pet, being a beautiful black cat
17. I have one tattoo at the moment which is dedicated to my deceased pet dog Morgan, she was my best friend for 12 years and my tattoo is there for a sign of my love to her
18. I only now have one piercing, that being a lip piercing however I used to have this piercing along with a nose piercing, ear piercings and a top ear piercing
19. When I see tattoos on people that were only had for the fun of it, it angers me mainly because I believe to scar yourself with ink for the rest of your life should be done only for that scarring to be important and personal
20. I am currently in love with somebody who means everything to me
21. I keep in touch with those who bother to keep in touch with me
22. I can be a cow sometimes and sound a bit too stuck up in some people's eyes
23. I currently work for an events company that own two night club venues
24. I volunteer as much as possible, I currently permanently volunteer for WIN which is a company based in Northampton, I will be volunteering for Silverstone in June and August for the Formula 1 and Grand Prix and previously I have volunteered for Marie Curie and Macmillan Cancer Research
25. I help others whenever I can 
26. I don't believe in Racism or Sexism or Fascism or anything ism
27. I don't feel the need to brag about my experiences with men - Things like that should be kept personal
28. My favourite musician/artist is Lady Gaga 
29. My favourite band is Lostprophets and even though bad things have been said about the lead singer I always be a fan of theirs, I will not judge the rest of the band on one member's actions
30. And finally, I believe everybody should be given a second chance - But not everything deserves forgiveness.

So that's me, summed up in a nut shell :) 30 probably not so interesting facts about myself. 

Just Love or In Love?

There is a relatively large difference between loving someone and being in love with them and recently it has come to my attention that certain people do not know the difference and this has started to get on my nerves, knowing that these people do not know the difference yet they throw the words around as if it means nothing.
People as young as 13 seem to be throwing the term "I love you" around and it's clear that none of them know what it really means. They also claim that they are in love with a person they have only been in a relationship with for a short period of time and although it can take only seconds to fall in love with a person and it can happen at any age, it doesn't mean that these children know what the terms even mean, and it's clear that they have no idea what the difference it. But there are adults that are the same, not knowing the difference is. So here's a little something to help you know.

I LOVE YOU
So do you know what "I love you" means? You can love anyone, a friend, a family member, a pet even a partner. You can love anybody and anything, even an inanimate object but it does not mean you are in love with them or it. So, you love your partner? Your boyfriend or girlfriend? Then okay, but what is loving someone? It is caring for them, wanting to be there for them, looking after them in their hour of need, but more importantly it is loving them for who they are and taking them as they come without wanting to change a thing about them. It's basically just having strong feelings for a person, whether it is a family member or not.
It doesn't seem like much does it? To say I love you to somebody who means something to you. But it is in their eyes, because although it means you aren't in love with them, it still means you care and want to be near them or spend time with them.

Now, what about this...

I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU
Being in love with somebody is completely different to just loving them. There is more to it. Being IN love with someone comes from the bones, from every single inch of you. You feel it all over your body. When that one special person comes near you you get butterflies in your stomach, you smile even at the thought of them and you have a stupidly huge grin on your face when you see them. It's wanting to be with them every second of the day and being unable to think of your life without them. It's wanting to take care of them at every opportunity you get and wanting to make sure that they are always close by. Being in love is having that one person on your mind every second of the day, and worrying about whether they are thinking of you. They are the first person you think of when you go to sleep and the last person you think of before you go to bed at night. They are your whole world who gets you out of bed in the morning because you know you'll be able to see them. And there is so much more but I think I've made the point.

So, has that summed it up slightly? Given you all an insight into the difference between the two? I hope so. Maybe now the terms won't get mixed up or mislead somebody.

Thatcher

I have seen all over the internet people talking about Margaret Thatcher's death and her funeral. I have witnessed some disgusting view and opinions of her being pasted over the internet on sites such as Facebook and Twitter and I have got to say, I do not agree.

People have been celebrating her death and to me I believe that is it morally wrong. No matter what your personal views and opinions are of a particular person, you should not let those wish to celebrate their death. Where is the respect? Fair enough, you don't like the woman. Clearly not many people do, but that does not give you the right to write some of the horrid things you write about her. Think of her family and friends, the people who did actually like her when she was alive. Would you like it if somebody in your family died and their death was celebrated, not for the life they lived, but for finally leaving this world? No, You would not. I certainly wouldn't.
And so no matter what my personal opinions are of Thatcher, I still would not celebrate her death or be glad that she has gone. What she did when she was Prime Minister was over ten years ago, and therefore it needs to be forgotten because what she did wrong, has been corrected. And that is all that matters and that should not depict whether you celebrate her death or not.

I was not born when Thatcher was the PM of the UK and therefore I do not know exactly what she did and did not do for our country. I was never brought up in a household that knew a great deal about what happened in politics because my family did not care. To them, they felt that it had nothing to do with them and they were not bothered, therefore I was never taught about what Thatcher did. All I have ever known about Thatcher is what I have read on the internet or what others have told me.

The main thing that grinds my gears about Thatcher, is that tax payers are expected to pay a certain amount of her funeral, bearing in mind that the funeral is expected to cost at least £10million. This is outrageous! Why should tax payers pay for a funeral for someone that most of them did not like, and in general.
It is her funeral, not ours, and therefore her family should pay. I'm sure she had more than enough money kept in her bank accounts over the last few years that could foot the bill for her funeral. I mean, how is it even justified? The government's justification is that they are footing the bill, whereas this clearly isn't true, and it is clear the it is in fact taxpayer's money that is footing the bill. But will we get anything for it? No!

So why on earth should we pay for that woman's funeral? What did she ever do for us exactly? I know she did do some stuff that was good for our country but she also did some stuff that was inexplicable.

I am glad that I am not a taxpayer due to being a student who doesn't earn enough to pay tax (not because I'm dodging it like some people do) because I would not want my money paying for that woman's funeral! But then again, the tax I have paid in the past from a past employment is probably going to go towards her funeral and I really do not see why it should.

A funeral is meant to be meaningful and personal to a particular group of people. Family and friends are meant to be the people who put to rest their deceased family member/friend and then celebrate their life at the wake, it should not be paraded through a town for millions to see just because they were once the Prime Minister who quite frankly disgusted most of the UK.

I would not want my money paying for somebodies funeral, especially to not pay for a funeral for a woman who brought in Section 28 - Anti-gay act! I mean come on, what kind of sadistic bitch would do something like that? Homophobes are disgusting and make me want to punch them in the face. Not that I ever would because I'm not a violent person. But being Prime Minister and bringing in an act such as Section 28 was unacceptable and morally wrong. Thatcher went on about how teaching children that homosexuality is morally wrong, and then banned those children from being taught about it. Forcing people to stop running LGBT societies incase they were in breach of the act. IT WAS WRONG.

What happened to equality? Then again I suppose PM's don't understand equality seeing as they seem to be ruining the lives of poor people for their own gain.

But what I really want to know, so somebody please enlighten me, is what taxpayer's are actually paying for? Her family are paying for the transport, the flowers, the coffin and most probably the venue/catering for the wake (if they do one). So what else is left for taxpayer's to pay for? Cancelling public transport, closing roads, stopping people being able to go to work without delays etc? Exactly what I thought. We aren't paying for anything remotely important for her funeral. Therefore leave it for her family. £10million is a ridiculous amount for a funeral anyway, what is she trying to do? 'One up' Michael Jackson's funeral or something? Or are taxpayer's paying for the cameras that will film her funeral? Ridiculous!

Moral of the story - EVEN THOUGH HER DEATH IS SEEN AS A TRAGEDY TO MOST - TAXPAYER'S MONEY SHOULD NOT FOOT THE BILL OF HER FUNERAL. I FEEL DISGUSTED THAT THEY EXPECT THOSE WHO PAY TAX TO PAY FOR A HOMOPHOBIC'S FUNERAL!

Politics

I always used to find politics boring, the whole voting business and choosing someone to basically tell you what you can and cannot do always seemed pointless and boring to me. But over the past few years, the more I have matured and the more politics have become televised it's started to get my attention a lot more. And what's the worst? The past few months it has angered me more than I ever imagined something could. 

A man I know is disabled with Cerebellar Ataxia and a few years ago he was accused of fraud for receiving incapacity benefits after he had fallen in work and needed time off work to mend a broken ankle and knee (all on the same leg). Not long after this started he was then, alongside this, accused of claiming DLA (Disability Living Allowance) under fraudulent circumstances. A long and tiring investigation was carried out for both of these accusations from the government. Finally, when the man turned up at court, walking with the assistance of not only his wife but a walking stick because of his then recent injuries from work, the court room and magistrate took one look at him and there and then decided to drop all charges against him. 

This man has been disabled with Cerebellar Ataxia since he was eighteen, when this all happened he was roughly early to mid forties of age. 

What angers me about that paragraph is that the government accused a man, who had been disabled at that point for almost thirty years, who had claimed DLA because of his disability, was accused of fraud just because he had to claim incapacity benefit because of a fall at work that was caused by an idiotic man making a disabled man, who had and still has a pretty much non existent balancing mechanism, to climb on a computer/desk chair to fix a broken security CCTV camera. But the fact he was accused of fraud is inexplicable and undeniably ridiculous. Understandable most people who receive DLA and incapacity benefits are fraudulent but in this case it is clear that this man was in no way, shape or form trying to receive something he may or may not have been entitled to. 

The moral of this part is the fact that the government need to seriously consider how their accusations can affect a person and even that person's family.

Recently we all know, who are in tune with the news that most people receiving DLA have been questioned and investigated as to whether their claiming it legitimately or fraudulently. What some fail to see is that David Cameron, the man himself who has issued warrants for these people to be investigated receives DLA himself. Personally, I have never seen anything about him having a disability and I have never heard him mention that he is disabled or what his disability may be. He might want to keep it on the down low which is of course his business, but with the salary he earns and the benefits he gets, including his mortgage being paid, his bills being paid and the other benefits and 'added extras' he receives because of his "employment" he doesn't deserve to be on DLA. DLA is there for the disabled that need it, of course every disabled person is entitled to DLA no matter how severe their disability is, but with Cameron receiving all the money he does at the moment, he doesn't deserve to receive it. The money he receives every year from DLA could go to somebody else who probably cannot get it because so many people are on it who don't need to be.

On another topic, the recent issues with money, tax and other issues revolving around the government. I don't understand why they think it is okay to take more money away from those who need it the most and give £10,000 worth of tax or whatever back. HOW IS THAT EVEN LEGAL?

But then again they always say, you fend for your own..So clearly because Cameron and everyone else are rich bastards they have to look after the rest of the rich people out there and give them even more money which they'll probably spend on a new Rolex watch even though there are people out there who are being threatened to have their houses repossessed because they can't afford to pay their bills because all of their money goes on tax! There are families starving, CHILDREN starving because food is too expensive to buy. Where is the justification in all of this?

And the WORST of all, the fact they are trying to privatise the NHS. Why? So that people can die because they can't afford to buy the medication they need or afford to pay to see a doctor? Oh no wait, the rich won't have to worry about that, with the extra £10,000 they'll have in their pockets will be enough for them to afford all the medication in the world that they need! 

THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION TO TAKING MONEY OFF THE POOR AND GIVING IT TO THE RICH! 

Marriage

So, I've always wanted to be a wedding planner ever since I was little and I'm now on track to fulfilling that dream by being a full time student of events management. However, recently I've been watching a few episodes of The Hotel and Don't Tell The Bride and have been thinking, is a wedding really appropriate?

Something came to mind the other day when I thought, do you need to get married to have a happy relationship? I mean, I understand why religious people get married, it's part of their beliefs, but why get married just to prove you love one another?

I was reading a story the other day about a couple who have been together for over 26 years and that couple have not been married. All this time they've built up a life together, had children and created a family and are living the happy dream that most couples wish to have, they aren't married. Maybe they are so happy because they haven't gotten married and they don't have the stress of being a good husband or wife holding them down.

I mean, I understand again why most get married, some people do it to show their love for one another, you don't need to be married just to have a healthy, sustainable relationship. In fact you don't even need to get engaged.

I sometimes feel that most couples, especially young couples nowadays tend to get engaged because of programmes like The Hotel and Don't Tell The Bride, these shows are broadcasting big, white, princess weddings to the future of society and these people then decide "I want to do that". Don't get me wrong, I would love to get married one day, it's one of the things I've always wanted for myself and like all women a part of me wants to get married because of the big, white wedding, however the main lust I have for a wedding is based purely on the fact that I'm a Roman Catholic and it's a part of me that wants to keep to that religion. Now I'm not the most religious person in the world, I smoke, I drink alcohol and have sex without being married, but I do take some parts of my religion seriously, like being against abortion, believing in God and wanting to be married in the eyes of the Lord.

But others don't want that, the fantasy of being somebodies wife and having their big wedding day which is all about them are some of the only reasons why they want to get married. The do it because a wedding is the most important thing in their eyes (which is of course a load of bull), they want that one day where everyone has to look at them and think "Oh I'm so jealous". You know what? Grow up.

Marriage is to be taken seriously. You do not build a marriage up on a wedding alone, you do not get married and suddenly you're marriage is complete. No. A wedding is just the beginning and is meant to be a religious and meaningful ceremony in which it brings to people and two families together, in the eyes of the Lord. It brings two families to join as one and create a bond so that they can support and cherish their family members, new and old and to unite the couple as one. So that couple can embark on new adventures together and so that they can become a real couple, a couple blessed with a new family and a new life ahead of them.