GARAGES OF BANGKOK

That’s a misleading headline. But I did eat at a place called Garage Burger & Grill. Which had a garage theme.

Sort of.



See that picture on the wall in the upper right corner? I think that’s the king and queen of Thailand.

Anyway, I got the “My Thai” burger, which came with sweet chili sauce and a fried egg. It looked like this.



It was pretty good, I must say.

DISCLAIMER: I realize in some circles it’s not considered cool for Americans to go to a non-American country and eat burgers. I should stress that I had quite a bit of Thai food as well. But I confess I’m a sucker for local interpretations of the hamburger.

Also, c’mon, who wouldn’t try a restaurant with van seats?



That is a tasty burger,

This is dF

THE KING AND ME

As you may know, Thailand has a king.

As you may also know, when in Thailand, you don’t dis the king. Ever. Not even tangentially.

Anyway, I saw his picture a lot.





Here’s that second one from a slightly different angle. Whilst standing next to a lingerie shop.



No dis intended, of course. I just liked the composition possibilities and the idea of giving the king a good view of a lingerie shop, and ...

Okay, I also like women in lingerie. Sue me.

It’s good to be the king,

This is dF

I THINK OF AIRPORT DEMONS

No half-assed series of Bangkok business trip pics would be complete without some gratuitous giant airport statues of local mythological demons keeping watch over the check-in counters.

Talk about tough security.

See also: this display of (I think) demons and humans fighting over the Buddha.





And there you are.

High security,

This is dF

TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER TITAN

The cinemas have my money. Now you get film reviews.

Wrath Of The Titans

It’s a sequel, it’s in 3D and it involves people fighting giant CGI monsters. In 3D.

Which is all you really need to know. If you liked the Clash Of The Titans remake, you may like this as well. Personally, I feel the same way about it as I did about the first one: CGI overload, shaky camera work, takes itself too seriously, clunky dialogue, etc.

On the plus side, you’ve got a Big F***ing Lava Monster and Bill Nighy acting loony (two things I can never get enough of). So I’m not saying it was an afternoon wasted. But essential? No.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I don’t read much John Le Carre, but I was willing to give this adaptation of one of his more famous spy novels a chance, mainly on the strength of Gary Oldman playing George Smiley.

The plot is a familiar one in the spy genre – there’s a mole in British intelligence, and Smiley is called out of his forced retirement to find out who it is. However, this being Le Carre rather than Fleming, there’s no gadgetry, major action scenes or busty women with double-entendre names, but plenty of intrigue and introspective brooding – particularly from Smiley, who seems weary, emotionally detached and even grimly amused by the situation.

Which is why Oldman really is the brilliantly understated centerpiece that holds the film together. That matters because the screenwriters tend to play their cards so close to the vest with what was already a long, convoluted story to start with that it’s hard to figure out what’s going on. That’s probably not an issue for people who have read the book, but for people like me, it’s something of a chore. The fact that Smiley’s investigative technique involves asking short questions and staring you down until he gets an answer doesn’t make it easier.

Still, it’s pretty compelling to watch – so much so that I’m tempted to go see it again before its run ends. There’s not many movies I can say that about.

A mole in one’s circus,

This is dF