Lightstream Marketing Blog

Welcome to my blog page where I post opinions and stories about anything and everything, not just web marketing. I always have my camera with me when I'm out and about so I often include things I see going on around me on my travels. I also like to keep up with the latest movies and share my opinions on them. Please contact Steve Tyler for more information.

Movie: The Happening 14 June 2008 Another interesting movie from the director M Night Shyamalan. I enjoyed his earlier offering The Village and this has a similarly spooky old-school feel to it. There's a good message about the environment turning against mankind, and the story unfolds in a gripping way with plenty of shocks to keep the suspense going. A couple of ideas from 28 Weeks Later get re-surfaced here, and there's good cinematography, reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds.

Chinese New Year 7 February 2008 This year London is hosting the biggest celebration of Chinese New Year outside Asia. It all kicked off on February 6 and today (the 7th) the lion and dragon dancers were doing the rounds of Chinese shops and restaurants in the Gerrard Street area. Their aim is to bring prosperity and good luck for the coming year to each place they visited, accompanied by the pounding beats of Chinese drumming. It was noisy and spectacular, and hundreds of red Chinese lanterns have been strung up over Gerrard Street. On Sunday there'll be another day of lion and dragon dancing in London to celebrate the fact that it's the Year of the Rat.

Ministry of Sound Sixteenth Birthday Party 17 November 2007 A cracking night at the Ministry of Sound to celebrate the club's sixteenth birthday. The mighty Grandmaster Flash hosted the fun with his awesome dexterity at the wheels of steel, playing tunes old and new in some amazing mash-ups.

Movie: Joe Strummer The Future Is Unwritten 11 July 2007 An interesting documentary about the life of Joe Strummer, frontman of the punk band the Clash and 'world music' rockers the Mescaleros. Joe was passionate about many things and this comes across in his music and the movie.

Movie: Pirates of the Caribbean 3 23 June 2007 A touch on the long side but really excellent. A tour de force of all issues to do with sixteenth-century pirates, and a good third edition of the story. Bring an umbrella, its wet, nautical and squelchy. Wonderful dialogue, action, monsters and special effects. And a romantic theme running all the way through, thanks to Kiera Knightly and Orlando Bloom. Johnny Depp is marvellously loopy, and what a great idea to get Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones to play his dad. The Black British actress Naomie Harris is very decorative and gives a powerful performance as the sea goddess Calypso. She's a rising star to watch out for in future. Brilliant.

Movie: Vacancy 16 June 2007 This is very good. Not too long, gripping and interesting. Kate Beckinsale as usual is excellent. It has many similarities to Hitchcock's Psycho, and as expected there are lots of references to the legendary director and his horror mangum opus throughout the movie. I don't think snuff movies were around in Hitch's day and this concept appears in Vacancy to bring the fear factor up to date. I was almost expecting the great man to make a fleeting cameo appearance as he used to enjoy doing in his own films. Now that would have been really weird!

Art Outdoors in London's Soho 15 June 2007 London's National Gallery has turned the West End into a giant outdoor art gallery by lining the streets of Soho, Piccadilly and Covent Garden with some of the world's most famous paintings. They will stay there for twelve weeks. Alongside each painting is a phone number to call for recorded information about that particular masterpiece.

Malaysia Week Fashion Show, London Covent Garden 10 June 2007 A month-long "Malaysia Now" Festival is taking place in London to provide Brits with an insight into Malaysia’s vibrant and exciting cultures. Colourful aspects of Malaysian heritage are being presented, including multi-cultural performances, craft-making demonstrations and fashion shows featuring batik and songket textiles. The picture was taken at a fashion show in Covent Garden, and there are more pics in the Photo section of this website.

Movie: Ocean's Thirteen 9 June 2007 Ocean's Thirteen reinforces my belief that they are making many movies far too long these days. The story is essentially quite a simple one but it was padded out. I haven't seen Pirates of the Caribbean 3 yet but many of the reviews say it's too long. It's a bit like those rock bands of the past who used to play for four hours with 20 minute songs with endless guitar solos and drum solos. Then punk rock blew them away with 45-minute sets and three minute songs which said much more.

Dancers at Monument station 8 June 2007 Got off the train at Monument station in the City of London. When I reached street level I saw a troupe of dancing girls on the street! What a pleasant alternative to the usual suits and people pushing free newspapers into your hands. The girls were promoting a night club and casino that had opened in Leicester Square. What a great idea to brighten up people's day and get publicity! Luckily I had my trusty camera to hand. There are more pics in the Photo section of this website.

Tomcat Leather boutique 16 Jan 2006 Did a good photosession at this boutique for their website. Tomcat Leather is right in the heart of London's Covent Garden. The guy in the picture was driving a hard bargain for a leather jacket, so the owner said they'd do a deal with him if he posed for pictures. A win-win situation all round! There are more pics in the photo section of this website.

Steak and Cherry Night Club Glasgow 29 Oct 2005 Today in the early hours of the morning I signed up a nightclub in Glasgow for a website and did a photosession featuring the clubbers having a good time. Steak and Cherry is a popular place which stays open until 4.30am.

AbsBar in Ware, Hertfordshire 8 Oct 2005 Signed up AbsBar for a website and over the following weeks was invited back to take photos on various clubnights. This was great fun, there was always a good crowd there and everyone was very happy to be photographed. It was also great fun to meet the DJs and take pictures of them in action. There are more pics in the photo section of this website.

Movie: Wolf Creek 21 Sep 2005 I didn't like this film because of the graphic violence, the bleak and negative message, and most of all because of its portrayal of the murderer. He was shown and being smart and cool with his one-liners, his jaunty bushman's hat and his skill and relish at killing. I didn't walk out of this one but by the end I wished I had. A horrible, ghastly movie.

Movie: The Last Samurai 19 Jan 2004 Tom Cruise plays an American military advisor who was hired in Japan in the 1870s to teach the Emperor's troops to use modern weapons and to destroy the Samurai. But after he is captured in battle he ends up respecting and embracing the Samurai culture. A great idea for a movie but I don't think Tom Cruise pulled it off. I found it boring and walked out half way through.

Movie: Underworld 14 Oct 2003 An excellent movie about vampire warriors fighting werewolves. The film has an interestingly dark look and feel to it, much of which comes from the very elegant Kate Beckinsale. She sets a stylish tone for this movie which is supplemented with good special effects. Some say this is The Matrix with vampires, and they're right - Matrix fans will love it. Bill Nighy is good in it too.

Movie: Confidence 25 May 2003 A nice, sharp movie about crooks conning eachother. Very stylish with good dialogue and a great cast including Dustin Hoffman and Rachel Weisz. There's sharp, wisecracking dialogue. Strong characters keep you entertained, particularly Dustin Hoffman's mad mobster and the slinky gangster's moll played by Rachel Weisz. The plot keeps you guessing all the way with plenty of double-crossing.

Movie: 8 Mile 17 Feb 2003 I really enjoyed this movie. Eminem was very good, playing a young rapper in Detroit. The movie has tension, laughs and a lot of excitement. It's simple, with no special effects and relies totally on good acting. In addition to Eminem's excellent performance, there's a good supporting cast including Kim Basinger and Brittany Murphy.