Author Archives: Ian Hare

Sex Talk With Phoenix James – Love Freely But Pay For Sex – part 2

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What happens when the government opts to tax sex? ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ follows a group of rogue filmmakers as they attempt to discover how the controversial legislation affects Londoners.

If you’re unaware of the government policy, watch ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ at www.PayforSexPolicy.com, and if you haven’t already done so, read the first part of this article here Phoenix James in Frost before continuing.

For those who have, the credits reveal the government policy, the rogue film production company and the film itself is a concept created entirely by Hackney-based Phoenix James.

The multi-talented James is recognised as an actor, poet and spoken-word recording artist, but ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ is his first foray behind the camera. Not someone to do things by halves, James wrote, cast, produced, directed, edited and sound-recorded the entire film.

“I had written down the concept in a series of bullet points back in 2007, and after having filed it away for some years, I came across it again in 2011,” says James.

“I began to see what I’d written as more of a visual concept and then started to develop those points into dialogue segments. This later became a film script and from that point on, I was driven to make the film.

“Shooting began in April 2012 and by the end of July, I had everything I needed. Working on some other film-related projects gave me some time away from ‘Love Freely’ and I was able to return for the post-production process with fresh eyes and fresh ears. It also helped me to focus it all in my mind and allowed me to remain true to what I initially intended the finished product to be.

“I chose the documentary angle for the film because I wanted to create and display a type of lingering realism that I felt would only come from shooting and presenting it as a real-life, documentary-style film. All of the actors I cast did an amazing job. They each took the dialogue and made it their own.

“I had a call from one local newspaper asking where my statistic quoting 89% of people in Great Britain pay for sex came from because they couldn’t find any information on it. That may be a reflection on the state of journalism in the UK, but I’d say it’s a good measure of how effective the documentary angle has been.

“The reception I’ve received so far has gone beyond anything that I anticipated or had hoped for. When you’re creating, you have an idea of how you feel that creation might be received or how you might want it to be received, but you never really know how it will be until it happens.

“When I set out, I initially hoped a lot of people would watch it and talk about it, but it’s gone beyond that. I knew what I was making was important and would have an effect, but I’m only just beginning to realise just how much.

“Making a film on such a major scale has been a huge learning curve. I was working from scratch for almost the entire filmmaking process. But I definitely felt energized and excited throughout. Any moments where I may have felt slightly overwhelmed just added to my determination to complete something I knew would not only be groundbreaking, but a great achievement for me as well as for everyone involved.

“I think what I’ve learned overall during the making of the film is that we can all truly do anything we put our minds towards achieving. I’m very excited about exploring different avenues, new ground and uncharted waters, discovering new ways of working and writing and filming – and expanding upon what I’ve already learned in creating this film.

“I’ve been infected with the joy of filmmaking,” smiles James. “Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ is the template by which I can judge my future film projects and growth. There’s certainly lots more to come.”

Government: “Love Freely But Pay For Sex” – part 1

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Fifty years ago, almost to the day, a series of events began that eventually helped to topple the Harold Macmillan Conservative government.

In what became known as the Profumo Affair, the then Secretary of State for War, John Profumo, stepped down after deceiving Parliament about his relationship with Christine Keeler.

The affair with 19-year-old Keeler, who was also in a relationship with Yevgeny Ivanov, a naval attaché at the Soviet Embassy, strained the government to its limits at the height of the Cold War.

Half a century later, another potential sex scandal is poised to prove another headache for today’s Tory leaders as Hackney-based filmmaker, Phoenix James, focuses on the government’s pending and divisive Pay for Sex policy.Love freely but PAY for SEX - IMDb

Produced by James, ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ follows the efforts of a handful of untrained – but enthusiastic and vocal – amateur journalists and presenters as they roam across London canvassing public opinion, and pursuing media personalities and members of authority.

By pulling together the efforts of the rogue independent film and TV production group, James has found himself at the forefront of a lively and controversial debate.

In its simplest terms, the Pay for Sex policy will make paying for sex a legal requirement for unmarried men and women, one that requires couples to register.

Despite previous coalition climbdowns on pasty, caravan and charity taxes – in a world where sex is already a global money-making industry, the government see it as a natural progression, and a practical tax in line with those already on pleasures such as smoking and drinking.

And as well as a much-needed boost to the British economy, by encouraging couples to marry – and so become exempt – ministers hope to see a return to traditional conservative, family values.

Understandably, the battle lines in ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ are frequently drawn on social and age lines. Two young men are resentful and challenging, older couples are philosophical, but worried about making ends meet, while others see it as a logical step forward.

“The planet runs on sex and money,” says writer and performance poet, Phenzwaan. “It’s the perfect match.”

Whether the policy is enforceable is debatable, but the government is clearly hoping the majority of people will register for the Pay for Sex policy to avoid possible prosecution – and as a safeguard.

While the production company failed to get to the bottom of what happens if a lover is unsatisfied and refuses to pay, a registered person is likely to have some legal grounds for complaint, while unregistered lovers could find themselves in court.

The talking heads and interviewees in ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’ are wide-ranging and frequently producing support in unlikely places. Surprisingly, James’ film reveals escort agencies are welcoming the policy, believing that business will boom as men and women opt to pay for a regulated and expert lover.

Gay men and women also see it as a triumph. As the team catch up with street celebrations following the legalisation of gay marriage, becoming both liable for, and exempt from, Pay for Sex is seen as equality for the gay community with heterosexual couples.

Given the far-reaching consequences of the subject matter, it’s perhaps unsurprising that the hour-long production only scratches the surface. The production team admit that their collective aim in making and showcasing the film is to create awareness among those unaware and stimulate further dialogue among those who are. Their work to uncover, document and highlight more information about the Pay for Sex Policy is, they say, ongoing.

To find out more about the government’s Pay for Sex Policy and to see ‘Love Freely But Pay for Sex’ go to www.PayforSexPolicy.com

 

Look out for part 2 of this article soon! – Phoenix James on ‘Love Freely But Pay For Sex’.

 

The Top 10 Tearjerkers For Men

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There’s a reason why John Gray’s relationship book from 20 years ago, Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus has passed into folklore.

Whether you consider it cod psychology or insightful, it trades on the differences between the sexes. Sweeping generalisation coming up? Perhaps, but if you did a quick straw poll, you may find that men frequently consider women as over-emotional, while women think of men as being cold-hearted.ID-10043332

Case in point. My family was never demonstrative. It took a serious car crash to shake my emotions loose. Though both relatively uninjured, my friend went home and cried, therapeutically, like a baby. Not me. Instead of letting it all out, the shock of that decades-ago crash got pushed way down.

But psyche will out. The effects of that M1 impact have today manifested themselves in a potential blub-fest given any excuse – even Harry Judd’s perfect quick-step on Strictly Come Dancing a year or so back.

But what films generally get men choked up?  The final scene of An Officer and a Gentlemen where a white navy-suited Richard Gere carries out Debra Winger from her factory and into a better life has reduced a number of women of my acquaintance to tears. Blokes just wonder where they can get a similar suit, believing it’ll turn their flabby, pasty bodies into 80’s Gere-magnet.

Instead, these are the movies that get men complaining that they have something in their eye.

10. Father of the Bride – 1991

One film that few men would admit to reaching for the tissues over. Charles Shyer’s remake of the 1951 Spencer Tracy film is likeable, occasionally funny and often over-sentimental. But when Steve Martin’s George Banks plays basketball with daughter Annie (Kimberley Paisley) for the final time on the evening before her wedding, fathers with daughters of every age are sniffling in sympathy imagining their own little princesses grown up and gone.

9.Steel Magnolias – 1989

A tear-jerker that crosses the sexes. The chances of getting a guy to sit in front of this one in the present days of Fast and Furious 27, The Expendables 19, and Explosions and Car Chases 462 may be remote, but in the late 80s many a man choked up at this heart-tugging, bittersweet film of a group of Louisiana women (an all-star cast including Sally Field, Olivia Dukakis, Julia Roberts and Shirley Maclaine). Detailing life, love, birth, death and the bonds of friendship, it’s a guilty pleasure and a snuffle-fest.

8. Forrest Gump – 1994

Tom Hanks’ titular character has men excusing themselves to make the tea when he talks to his late wife, and lifelong love, Jenny at her graveside. “You died on a Saturday morning. And I had you placed here under our tree. And I had that house of your father’s bulldozed to the ground. Momma always said dyin’ was a part of life. I sure wish it wasn’t.”

Hope you want your PG Tips flavoured with tears.

7. The Untouchables – 1987

Not a dry eye in the house when Sean Connery’s hardened Irish cop Malone gets gunned down in his own house by Al Capone’s crony Billy Drago. Connery crawls in his own blood to alert Kevin Costner’s Elliot Ness to a timetable vital to nailing Capone, before expiring – along with many a man’s self-control.

6. The Champ – 1979

Kudos to child actor Ricky Schroder for this one. Jon Voight’s ex-boxer Billy Flynn stages a comeback to give son TJ (Schroder) a better life, but sustains a fatal injury in the ring on his comeback trail. Schroder desperately asking his dad to ‘wake up, Champ’ had whole cinemas bawling into their popcorn.

5. Philadelphia – 1993

In a film topical when AIDS was newly-terrifying and still misunderstood, Tom Hanks as Andrew Beckett hires a homophobic lawyer (Denzel Washington) to fight his case against the conservative law firm who fired him. Beckett collapses during the trial, but wins the case. The scene with Washington as Beckett nears death is a tear-jerking scene of redemption.

4. Hidalgo – 2004

This dark horse of a film – pun intended – stars Viggo Mortensen as cowboy Frank Hopkins. Taking his horse Hidalgo to compete in a gruelling endurance race in the deserts of Arabia, man and beast are near death before drawing on their last reserves in a triumph against the odds. If that’s not enough to get men sniffing, wait until the end. Forget Turner & Hooch, this is the real animal/man heartbreaker.

3. Tombstone – 1993

Kurt Russell as Wyatt Earp and Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday were never better than in the scene where the TB-ridden Doc is living his last minutes.

When the dying Kilmer says to Russell:  “Wyatt? If you ever were my friend, if you ever had even the slightest feelin’ for me, leave now. Leave now. Please?” before Russell walks away with a final “Thanks for always being there Doc.”  The tears are streaming down both men’s battle-hardened faces – and ours.

2. Toy Story 3 – 2010

One again Tom Hanks makes the charts, but this time it’s a lament for lost childhood. After three films, college-bound Andy finally gives up Woody, Buzz et al. As Andy takes one last look at the toys, he says: “Thanks guys.” and drives away. Woody, watching Andy leave, replies with: “So long, partner.” And a whole host of guys are suddenly five years old again and missing their much-loved childhood toy.

Good job this film was 3D and us guys could be macho behind our glasses while our partners openly sobbed.

1. Gladiator – 2000

Considered by many as one of the greatest movie death scenes ever filmed, the top male crying game goes to Ridley Scott’s Oscar-winning Gladiator.

If anyone on the entire planet hasn’t seen this Oscar winner – and that can only be Amazon rainforest lost tribes – the whole final scene is gorgeously set up.

First, there’s General Quintus’ (Tomas Arana) respect for Russell Crowe’s Maximus Meridius by defying deranged emperor Commodus (Joacquin Pheoenix) as he begs for a sword. There are the quick cuts to the Elysium fields where the dying Maximus sees his family, Lucilla (Connie Neilsen) kneeling over Maximus in his last moments whispering: “Go to them,” and there’s Gracchus (Derek Jacobi) asking for people to bear his body from the arena before an arena full of people steps forward – all set to Lisa Gerrard’s brilliant evocative music.

No wonder the man-size tissues all get used up.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have something in my eye.

 

 

Image courtesy of akeeris / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

A Window To The Past – Vintage Google Earth

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Google Earth has come in for some stick over time.

Its Street Map was launched amid a healthy bout of controversy over privacy. After one man was identified leaving a brothel, resulting, unsurprisingly, in the end of his marriage, Germany wisely opted to make sure coverage of properties was somewhat blurred. Meanwhile, enterprising bloggers have posted pictures of prostitutes plying their trade, drunks and nudity.

But while that may be one window to the world, Google Earth also offers another. For a guy who once spent a week on an archaeological dig getting sunburnt while recovering the remains of someone’s mediaeval camp fire, Google Earth’s option to slide back into vintage photos of the same aerial view is a guaranteed way for me to fritter away hours.

You’ll need to have Google Earth 5 downloaded to do it, but it’s free and well worth a nose.

London’s war damage is evident, but you should definitely check out how quickly the Americans turned Las Vegas from a desert into a neon wasteland. Answer: 35 years. Or you may just want to see what your parents or grandparents meant when they say: “In my day, this was all fields, rivers, Roman ruins, dinosaur territory, etc.etc.” My (copyrighted) saying is: “Everyone’s house is someone else’s field.” And here’s the proof.

Just to get you in the swing of it, here’s my parent’s neck of the woods. Their house was built in 1931, and here’s the area pictured in 1945 and 2010.

My place, meanwhile, was still an orchard. Mind you, that still doesn’t explain the 1920’s fragment of cup I found in the garden last week.

One Pill Makes You Larger – Raving Puppets

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So. Festival Season is upon us – at least, in those rare glimpses of summer between the monsoons.

And yet again, Glastonbury provided some superb spectacles, and I don’t mean Bono’s rain-spattered shades. No, I’m talking about all those sideshow acts and crowd-brought additions that give any show that bit of extra atmosphere.

My personal favourite was from Glastonbury 2005. While The Kaiser Chiefs rattled through their set, a giant, inflatable, long-necked dinosaur loomed over the crowd, watching the Leeds outfit with a beatific smile.

And carrying the theme through, Garbage’s Shirley Manson later borrowed an inflatable doll from the front row and used it as a prop during ‘Why Do You Love Me?’

Now, a Rugby-based company are taking that crowd involvement one step further.

Raving Puppets raison d’etre is to provide fun and interactive entertainment on the dance floor itself.

Says Edward Allan: “People are constantly complaining to me that there isn’t enough in the way of stuff to do or see in raves and this is something Raindance have always appreciated and approached by hiring performers such as dancers and stilt-walkers – turning their event into a proper mini-festival.

“We’re different to every other entertainment because we’re not on the stage or on the sidelines, we are actually on the dance floor with the clients – something no other entertainers can do.

“We’re also a lot more interactive with the crowds, chasing people, dancing with people and playing tricks, like stealing hats and coming up behind people who are in groups – so everyone else sees them except the victim.

“Think mischievous spirits,” he adds.

The puppets are operated ‘muppet-style’ by a black-clad performer who wears the puppets on his or her shoulders, ensuring the focus is on the puppet.

Raving Puppets have appeared all over the UK, including Glastonbury, Reading and Raindance among others.

So, next time you’re approached by a 10 foot tall puppet who decides you’re the perfect dance partner, it’s probably not time to stop drinking or blaming the dodgy tablet a shadowy figure gave you earlier.

It might just be a Raving Puppet.

www.ravingpuppets.com

Chainsaw Barbie Gives New Greenpeace Campaign The Buzz

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After Dream Houses, Corvettes and a rather limp boyfriend, Barbie’s latest accessory is a genre-busting chainsaw.

Hundreds of Barbies have been hidden throughout the UK by Greenpeace as they launch their new campaign to stop manufacturers Mattel using material from the Indonesian rainforest in the doll’s packaging.

Greenpeace’s James Woolley says Mattel are putting the survival of orang-utans and Sumatran tigers at risk, while more than 150,000 Greenpeace supporters have already emailed Mattel demanding they stop.

And to help highlight the cause, Greenpeace volunteers have been hiding Barbie dolls – complete with pink chainsaw – around the UK.

Members of the public are invited to visit a map on Greenpeace’s website to locate a Barbie near them, find the doll and then register their find to get involved.

To get your own eco-terrorist Barbie and join the campaign, go to

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Smokers & Smoking: The Next Generation?

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When the ban on smoking in enclosed public places came into force in July 2007, England joined the rest of the UK in banishing smokers to wretched huddles outside offices, pubs and restaurants.

Tobacco advertising had already been prohibited in 2005 –thereby relegating the famous Hamlet cigar ads to YouTube, and now, six years later, the anti-smoking lobby is beginning to make noises about the clouds of smoke drifting around the forlorn groups gathered in doorways throughout Britain.

As the smokers’ world grows ever smaller, a Birmingham company believe they have the answer. E-Lites electronic cigarettes hope to revolutionise smoking and bring the smoker literally back in from the cold.

E-Lites say their cigarettes contain no burning paper, no tobacco, no tar and no cancer-causing carcinogens. Instead, the E-Lite contains a nicotine cartridge, coloured like an ordinary cigarette filter, an atomizer that heats water to give a smoke-like vapour and a rechargeable battery. And just to be on the safe side, the business end glows with a green LED to avoid any confusion with the real thing.

Puffing on their new E-Lite at their display kiosk in Euston, Sales Representative Dan Andrei said: “They’re cheaper than normal cigarettes – about 75% cheaper – and unrestricted, which means you get the freedom to smoke anywhere you want.

“There’s no smell and no smoke, so no passive smoking and they can be ordered online or bought from kiosks like this one.”

E-Lites launched their newest incarnation of their electronic cigarette, the G9, this week and are hoping for big things.

“We only launched two days ago,” said fellow Sales Representative, Reese Barnard. “Obviously, It’s all about getting people to try it. It’s something totally new and totally different so smokers need to try it before they decide to buy.

“The response has been pretty good so far.”

Since the 2011 Budget, a pack of 20 cigarettes costs an average of £7. In comparison, E-Lite nicotine cartridges last for roughly the equivalent of 12 cigarettes. With E-Lites retailing at £40 for 200 and refill cartridges at £8 for £80, smokers could make a considerable saving, both in their pocket and in their health.

With World No Tobacco Day just gone, the lively hubbub around their Euston stall on a Thursday lunchtime suggested E-Lites have enough going for them to garner initial interest. Whether the company has factored in, and can conquer, the ‘cool’ factor and peer pressure remains to be seen.

For more information, go to: www.e-lites.co.uk

Money Shot: The Beginning Of The End For Cash?

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According to the comics of the last 50 years, the future would be one long time of leisure. By now, we’d have moonbases, flying cars and robots to attend to our every need.

Instead, the moon is a forgotten, lifeless dusty shell, cars clog up our roads and if you can find a robot capable of more than a few token gestures before it falls flat on its face, you’re doing pretty well. But as we face up to our brave same old, same old world, there is one prediction that is, if not knocking on the door, is at least approaching from the bus stop down the street.

The cashless society.

Umpteen pulp stories, or sci-fi novels boast about how money has long been discarded by the gentle, enlightened society. But, cynic that I am, I was still less then impressed by the mailshot I received from Barclays today.

The bank has joined forces with Orange to launch the Samsung Tocco Quick Tap Phone.

In short, according to the blurb: “It lets you pay for things £15 and under – like coffee, sandwiches and magazines – quickly and easily. So no more fumbling for change at the till. Just tap to pay, and go.”

Now I don’t know about you, but I don’t tend to get frustrated at having to dip into my pocket for a handful of change. And I’m willing to bet it scores fairly low on anyone’s scale of irritants, certainly behind screaming children in restaurants, queue-jumpers in pubs and, oh, pretty much everyone on reality TV.

Considering mobile phone theft is now scaling new heights, what an added bonus it may be to pinch someone’s phone that also carries a little spending power.  In fairness, Barclays and Orange have anticipated this and the user has the option to set up the phone with a PIN number, while Barclays also insist the phone will carry the same fraud protection as a card.

However, how the snappily-named Tocco Quick Tap compares to the iPhone in terms of other functions remains to be seen, but somehow I can’t quite see Apple shaking in their boots. It may just be the phone really is as safe as houses because it’ll be considered too uncool to steal.

It’s difficult to say if we’re standing on the edge of a brand new world. Personally, in this format, I can’t see it catching on in any big way, but I’m sure someone said that about the internet. Or it may be that someone else will pick up the ball and run with it using bigger, better technology. If that’s the case, pick up your Tocco Quick Tap soon, before it goes the way of Betamax and the Sinclair C5.

www.orange.co.uk/newmovement

Picture courtesy of Petr Kratochvil – http://www.publicdomainpictures.net