Ataraxia

  The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh is ranked 775 th on The Greatest Books of All Time site, it is one of The 1,000 Novels Everyone Must Read, and it used to be one of my Top 200 Favorites, albeit I am not so sure anymore, by the time this review ends, maybe I will know better- you have thousands of notes on magnum opera from the aforementioned lists on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2026/08/do-you-have-any-suggestions-how-to-make.html   8 out of 10   The Loved One https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/08/the-loved-one-by-evelyn-waugh-10-out-of.html was stupendous on the first reading: ‘You must read this masterpiece, for it is hilarious, exhilarating and superb’ this is what I was saying in the note I wrote maybe ten years ago, though things have changed   It is a question of having too high expectations, but I think it has more to do with the image of Evelyn Waugh, as reflected in The Letters of Kingsley Amis- “Waugh very silly fellow he w...

  Slumdog Millionaire written by Simon Beaufoy and Vikas Swarup, directed by Danny Boyle won eight Oscars in 2009, including for Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Achievement in Directing and Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay, nevertheless, this is a film that I don’t like, so that should be the whole ‘review’…you find thousands of notes on films from The New York times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2026/08/do-you-have-any-suggestions-how-to-make.html and YouTube page     6 out of 10   Trainspotting https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/08/trainspotting-based-on-novel-by-irvine.html directed by Danny Boyle was incredible, 127 hours and Shallow Grave were also excellent, I am not crazy about 28 Years Later, and as for Slumdog Millionaire, I will have to reiterate what I said above: rather pretentious.   Therefore, ‘the rest is silence’, just like William Shakespeare said, this is the end of the n...

  Mad Max, written and directed by George Miller 8 out of 10 Mad Max is a legendary motion picture, included on The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made list: https://www.listchallenges.com/new-york-times-best-1000-movies-ever-made/list/13 now that we have the more recent Mad Max Fury Road, it is interesting to compare, to see how far the sequel has reached, what the differences are, if any. Although 40 years old, the original Mad Max is still impressive in its use of stunts and the technology of the time. For instance, there is an outstanding scene wherein Mad Max aka the iconic, if controversial over the past years, due to his rants when drunk and stopped by the police, Mel Gibson, is chasing a motorcyclist. The latter ends up facing a truck, which is coming from the opposite direction and the crash is credible, making the viewers think about what they used, a plastic body, how on earth have they managed to pull it off? Max is a police patrolman that has to see horrors on ...

  Dark Knight written by Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan and David Goyer, directed by the former is The Top Rated Movie Number Three, it won two Academy Awards, including the 2009 Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for Heath Ledger, it was a awarded posthumously…you have thousands of notes on films from The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made and other lists waiting on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2026/08/do-you-have-any-suggestions-how-to-make.html   9 out of 10   Christopher Nolan https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2023/12/oppenheimer-based-on-book-by-kai-bird.html might be the most important film maker of the moment, and one of the greatest of all time, which reminds me of this quote about Elizabeth Taylor, the magnificent writer, not the better-known actress:   ‘Triumphant narrative skill, a wonderful eye and unfailing humor, though not of the 'robust' nor of the ‘savage' variety, often delightfully ca...

  Pulp Fiction written and directed by Quentin Tarantino was the 1994 Winner of The Palmes d’Or, in my book, the most prestigious cinematic award, it also won the 1995 Oscar for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen, it is one of The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made, and it is ranked 9 th among The Top Rated Movies; you have thousands of notes on films from the aforementioned and other lists on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2026/08/do-you-have-any-suggestions-how-to-make.html   10 out of 10   Quentin Tarantino https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/05/reservoir-dogs-by-quentin-tarantino-is.html is one of the best filmmakers of all time, he has two of the Top 20 Best Films, in my personal file, maybe it would be Top 50, if I think of more favorites, he made history with them, I am not a great fan of the other oeuvres though   We can find the story of the making of those classics, how Harvey Keitel helped with...

  Good Business, Leadership, Flow and the Making of Meaning by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, one of the founders of Positive Psychology 10 out of 10 -           This is a brilliant masterpiece! Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is one of the geniuses of our time. He is considered to be one of the fathers of Positive Psychology. The other parent is Martin Seligman, but the two are not involved in a same sex marriage, unless we consider the Bill Maher joke: -           All marriages are same sex -           Every night it is the same sex all over again…or words to that effect…I hope The author of Flow, a classic of Positive Psychology, talks about the conditions that bring Flow to work: 1.        “Goals are clear 2.        Feedback is immediate 3.        A balance between oppor...