Derby Baby - coming soon to a cinema near you

This looks great - a trailer for a documentary on roller derby leagues in America, Germany, the UK and Ireland. Looks like 'Whip it' has got a challenger! The blurb on Vimeo says: "Emmy-winning filmmakers Robin Bond and Dave Wruck take you along on their quest to learn why women's flat track roller derby is the most controversial and fastest growing sport in the world."  Watch out for the skeleton face-paint.

Enjoy and have a great weekend :)

Pure Climbing

Ah, Fridays. Now if only the weather gods would remember that it is summer in the northern hemisphere! This is from an incredible climbing film, featuring Anna Stoher, Sarah Marvez and a few boys too. For all you height-junkies ...  Pure Climbing from Chuck Fryberger.

Happy weekend!

Wanna arm wrestle lady?

What do you get if you add arm wrestling plus fancy dress plus a few beers plus a shed-load of screaming women? The Collective of Lady Arm Wrestling, that's CLAW to you and me.

It all started three years ago in Virginia, USA and is spreading around the States faster than you say big guns pardner. Billy Hunt and Brian Wimer are making what looks like a great documentary, following the women around and putting together the story of how much money they are raising. Well, that is they are hoping to make that doco. They emailed me from Kickstarter - a website where creative types promote their plans and ask for mico-funding - and honestly, if the film is half as intriguing as their trailer, it's well worth a few dollars or euros or whatever your bank is stocking.

Their project home is here at CLAW  They're only looking for about $1,600 more, piece by piece building up to their five grand total. This is their idea:

UPDATE: CLAW reached their total and then some.

Adventure sports in Ireland

 It's a beautiful morning here in Ireland, summer may finally be here. And it's the start of a three-day weekend for us so lots of outdoor plans being made.

This is a tourism promo (from one of our many, many tourism boards) with shots of the adventure sports you can do in Ireland. Sometimes it's just good to be reminded of what is on our doorstep. Enjoy, and have a great weekend wherever you are! 

Watching Hanna

SPOILER WARNING: if you haven't seen Hanna stop reading now.

Hanna

I finally made it in to this, having been excited since I saw the trailer in February. Great to see Saoirse Ronan (Ireland) and Cate Blanchett (Australia) starring and running a film together (well, with some input from Eric Bana to be fair). So aside from having two strong female roles with any gratuitous sex - except that strange scene in the camping tent between Ronan's character and her new best friend, what was that about? - was it a good film?

Not quite sure in the end how strong the female roles are as Ronan is completely guided by Bana's character, to the point of not even being sure who she is. Blanchett, although her actions start the sequence of events off, also seems dependent on Bana's decisions. I'm not quite sure if that is how the director meant it to play out.

But from a martial arts perspective, great fight scenes, very well-choreographed and executed especially for the scenes between Ronan and the 'baddies' in the truck-yard.

And definitely set up for a sequel with that lovely circular ending. I enjoyed it a lot more than most films out at the moment, and read a piece on how teenage girls in the States were inspired by watching it.

This is, of course, the slightly sticky ethical point; inspiring or glorification of violence?

Wordless Wednesday

Whip It - for real pic from flickr xxcrystal85xx

Wordless Wednesday is a group of bloggers who give words a rest once a week.

Snow-time in Switzerland

Just when we thought winter was over in Ireland, temperatures dropped again this week. And the snow continues to fall elsewhere too, bit of a blessing if you snowboard and take a deep breath if you don't. Have you seen Chalet Girl yet? Not sure if I will fit it in as I'm pretty sure the story-line is maybe, umm, a little predictable! 

If you do go to see it, leave a comment here and let us know if it's realistic! 

In the meantime, enjoy this film from Mpora with some real-life snow-girls shot earlier this year at Saas-Fee, Switzerland. (Important -  no comment on the lifestyle of these women implied)

More Snowboarding Videos

Who should play Wonder Woman?

Wonder Woman womenanimating

So it looks like the new Wonder Woman series is happening. It's not really clear how they're going to vamp her up for the new century but could be a lot of fun.

DC Women Kicking Ass says the script calls for a real woman who is powerful but vulnerable.Right, a real woman who runs around dressed like that and saves the world. Maybe it was simpler being a Superhero 30 years ago, that's definitely not something that came across in our childhood memories?

The rest of the released script says: "Female, late 20s to 30s. A kick-ass Superhero / Powerful C.E.O. / A vulnerable woman. Long flowing black hair, blue eyes. Amazon-like, muscular, an Olympian. The charismatic stage presence of a rock star. A crime fighter. Also, a real woman who yearns to live a normal life. She is accessible and appealing to all people, men and women alike…"

We talked about the ideas for the new WW costume here.

Who do you think should play Wonder Woman?

Are violent females in movies a good thing?

Have you seen Hanna? I saw the trailer here in Ireland at the weekend - and I'll be going. Yes, I know it's violent but isn't it about time we recognised that violence isn't a gendered thing, that everyone is capable of inflicting pain?

And more than a tad refreshing to see two main characters played by women who stay dressed for the duration (what I saw) of the film. What do think - violent female characters as a step forward or a regression?

Dear and Yonder surf film

Dear and Yonder

The soundtrack on this trailer for  surf-film 'Dear and Yonder' is 'Been so long' from Vetiver - and if you're reading this in Europe, it's probably feeling very long since the summer was here.

Plus tomorrow January 19th is apparently the most depressing day of the year. Great! But just 'cause it's too cold to swim, doesn't mean you can't dream. This film will definitely bring a smile to your face with Steph Gilmore (Australia), Sofia Mulanovich (Peru) and Kassia Meador (USA) surfing at home and in their favourite travel-spots.

Where do you think about when you can't get out to do your favourite things?

Thankless Female Film Roles

The Town

I posted a while back on MovieNewsFirst about sports movies with great female characters - took a while to find enough good ones for a list but we got there.

A reader ( Thanks Laura!) just sent me a link to this slideshow on NYMag -  14 Most Thankless Female Roles

It must have been hard to narrow it down to fourteen, just looking at it I can think of more to add already. I wonder what goes through producers' minds as they set up the films - I mean we pay the same ticket-prices, it might be fun every now and then to see actresses with their clothes on, brains intact and driving the plot?

Pic shows Blake Lively playing one of two female characters in The Town - she's a drug-addict, doesn't take care of his kids, brings the male lead down and all-round disaster. The only other woman in the film falls in love with her kidnapper. I really wanted to like this film but ...

Let's make some Christmas cheer - movies with strong women characters anyone?

Guest Post on Movie News First

pic credit speckham on Flickr

I was chatting the other day with some boys-who-like-sport and sports movies came up. There are so many great films about sportsmen. But women in sports movies? That was a little harder to list. But when Olive over at Movie News First asked me to write a guest-post, I did find some inspiring work for her.

My Top 5 women in sport movies are on her blog here Movie News First

Pop over and have a look, and please share if you have other faves not here! And as always, please leave a comment for her too.

Iranian Women's Rugby Team

Every now and then you see a sports documentary that really opens your eyes to something new. A Kiwi director made a documentary called "Salam Rugby" about the Iranian women's rugby team. I read about this a few months ago on Ricochet but hadn't watched the clips. But with the men's teams taking to the fields this week in Ireland and the UK, it seems like a good time to bring it all up.

The women play wearing a maghneah which covers them and protects them from charges of immodesty at home. The fuss made over their clothing reminded me of the drama in Thailand when women started fighting MuayThai there. Imagine women wearing vest T-shirts in public, imagine taking off your clothes at the weigh-in, imagine kicking a head-kick and displaying your thighs in public. All very shocking at the time.

Iron Jawed Maidens

Elections are taking place in the States as I type. It's strange how large they loom over here in Ireland. I'm excited about how many women are running. But scared at the kind of woman so many of them are. End of political broadcast.

And I've been dossing off work watching clips from this film "Iron Jawed Maidens". It tells the story of the first American suffragettes and what they went through to get the vote for women. All women, even Sarah Palin. I read about it over on From Byline to Finishline  - thanks!
Best Movie quote: In women courage is often mistaken for insanity

Happy Birthday She-Ra

Some little girls had Barbies, some She-Ra. I was coming to the end of my doll phase when she appeared which was a pity. I battered some Sindys through an assault course or two; She-Ra might have been more durable. And, of course, there was that classic line: "For the honour of Greyskull! I am She-Ra"? As clear as mud that. Fighting the Evil Horde and Skeletor - if only life was still so simple.

I didn't appreciate then how unusual it was to have a doll who didn't depend on high heels and an invisible corset to hold herself together. But I'm sure there are lots of kick-ass martial artists and sportswomen out there who have a She-Ra stashed in their cupboards.

She-Ra from Hack Princess

Would You Watch More Women's Sport ?

If you've noticed that more and more women are taking part in sports, you're not alone. The Commission on the Future of Women's Sport (UK) released figures this summer which shows surprisingly high levels of interest.

• 50% of those questioned said women's sport is getting more popular (only 36% said the same about men's sport)
• 44% think the quality of women's sport is better than ten years ago
• 54% think watching women play sport is as exciting as men's
• 61% say they would watch more women's sport if it was on the television

You can read the full report here on the Women Sport and Fitness Foundation website. It goes on to push this growth as an investment opportunity so hopefully, as we lead towards London 2012, business people will take notice. So what about you, what sports would you like to see more of on the TV?

Flickr pic by Robert Couse-Baker

The Chick Flick Wakeboarding

Talking to Melissa Ray this week reminded me of how hard it was to fit in MuayThai training with friends. She learns Thai on her day off, I used to head out to Lake Taco and try to wakeboard while my mates zoomed around the man-made lake. Fun, lots of fun. The Chick Flick is a doco written around female wakeboarders Dallas Friday, Amber Wing and a list of other great athletes. They make it look so easy but I've got the embarrassing photos to prove it's not quite so effortless. Read more about the film on The Chick Flick

How do you cope with learning things which are fun but super-hard to do?

Salt How Strong Does Jolie Look?

I went to see "Salt" yesterday and spent most of the film wondering how it is actually possible for a woman who is so thin to, cough, be so strong?

Schreiber and Jolie in Salt credit Hollywood Chicago

I do appreciate that it's just a film - and that Santa isn't real. But seriously, could they not try to build her up just a little? Liev Schreiber is not a small guy but she takes him out. Plus dozens of agents on the side. Okay, she sweats a little over it but seriously, if guys were this easy to beat up, we'd all be world champions. To be fair she trained in MuayThai and Krav Marga to get ready but ...

Am I being too picky - do I need to just work on the 'suspension of disbelief' and get on with the popcorn?

With This Ring, a Film about Indian Women Boxers

With four world titles, three Asian titles and nine Indian national titles packed around her waist, amateur boxer Mary Kom isn’t someone you’d mess with. Not that you could tell from looking at her; she fights at 46 or 48 kgs and has a grin wider than the Cheshire cat.

Spring demo 2010 (With This Ring) from with this ring / anna & ameesha on Vimeo.

With This Ring isn't finished yet so this is just a taster. The two film makers, Ameesha Joshi and Anna Sarkissian, have been fascinated by the Indian Women’s team since they became the most successful women’s amateur team at the 2006 Championships. I've been reading their blog on the dramas of making the film on Women Boxers in India. Or you can check up on Mary Kom on her site. It's enough to make you want to get in the ring - or is it?

Do You Like the New Wonder Woman Costume?

Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Wonder Woman's had a makeover at 69 years of age. Probably showing my own age 'cause I remember when she was the only female superhero in the middle of all the cape-twirling boy wonders! 

I did use to spend some time thinking about what kind of sports bra would hold her in place without any straps but thought it was just me. Now her new designers have not only given her straps but a full jacket and spurs as well. Not so sure about the jacket – it’s a bit too '70s Hong Kong martial arts flick for me, but see what you think…

Wonder Woman 2010 thanx Good Comics