In the beginning, there was a pilot.

Oh, pilots. When I first watch them, I rarely realise how important and mythical they will become to me later on. I can't even remember the first time I saw the pilots I love most. It feels like I've always known the famous lines off by heart, and have always laughed at the outdated haircuts the characters are sporting.  It's the moments that define the show's entire story, the lines that are referred to again and again later on in the series and the meeting of characters that will have epic relationships that make them so freaking special.

The inspiration for this post came from watching one of the greatest pilots ever, the very first episode of One Tree Hill. We meet Lucas Scott and his enemy Nathan. They're enemies who just happen to share the same father. A very un-cheery Peyton and Lucas have their first meaningful, which-one-is-more-brooding conversation. The contrast between those at the River Court and those in the gym is set up so that we know that Lucas has never belonged indoors. Nathan seems to- but maybe it's just the ghost of his father. Brooke doesn't feature at all in the pilot, which is a noticeable absence! Even so, as any dedicated fan will know, the basketball game that closes the show changes many of the characters' lives and is a defining moment in One Tree Hill history.

If you have never seen this pilot, watch it. Once you've watched the rest of the show, go back and watch it again. Then maybe you'll understand.

If not, just ignore me. That's fine too.

Arty Beginnings

Sometimes, movies can be just too arty. Sophia Coppola's Somewhere comes to mind, a film that left both me and my movie going partner with one simple question- 'what?'.

Luckily, Beginners doesn't fall into this trap- it is just arty enough. Whimsical characters and the photographs and drawings that are interspersed throughout the story are simply cute and funny, rather than seeming to scream 'look at me! I'm profound!'. Oliver (Ewan McGregor) is a man in his late thirties who has just lost his father, Hal (Christopher Plummer). Dragged along to a party by his friends, where he dresses as Freud and can't help but take his friendly dog Arthur (who is complete with subtitles), Oliver meets a girl that is equally sad and equally interesting- the beautiful french actress Anna (Melanie Laurent). The movie follows their romance and flashes back to Oliver's childhood and his final years with his father, who came out in his seventies and began a relationship with a younger man.

Each of the different stories complement each other perfectly, explaining why Oliver is who he is now. Plummer is fantastic as a man living the final stage of his life to the fullest, not worrying in the slightest about the years that have passed or the years that won't happen. The closeness that develops between Oliver and Hal is sweet and comforting, while Oliver and Anna's romance is nothing short of lovely: a classic tale of two lost souls finding their place with each other. Of course, one of the highlights is definitely the cute animal: Arthur is a chatty and loyal pet that we can probably all recognise. It's not a movie I'd watch again and again, as it was quite long and heavy at times, but it's definitely worth at least one look.