What's On? 10/11/16 I was all set to go this weekend to watch the Amy Adams sci-fi, Arrival, when to my dismay, I found another film I should go and watch instead - one of those movies you know you need for your hipster development. A film by a director whose work I've wanted to see more of, Jim Jarmusch. His film The Limits of Control re...

7/11/16, Nocturnal Animals I'm still not sure about the ending. My friend, next to me, asked me what it meant. I listened to those behind and beside me, and they seemed uncertain too. The ending eventually settles down and I think I understand it. Here comes the spoiler: in relationships, there are no second chances. As for the rest of this complex...

Gina's Trans Diary, 23.10.16: entry 13 When You Feel You're Losing It Insanity appears to appear when I can't control things. For me, nothing brings on the appearance of insanity like technology gone wrong (I suck at I.T.). Three days ago, a file of notes I'd typed up disappeared. I was stunned, being sure I'd saved the file. I remember moping over...

What's On? 3/11/16 Having eagerly pored over Empire Magazine for my monthly dose of cinema news, I can report back to you all with the insight that November will be remembered as the month of the actress Amy Adams. For some (like my friend Yesenia), Adams is the innocent girl in Enchanted, to others (like me), she's the sly and multi-layered con ar...

3/11/16, Dr Strange I entered the Imax amphitheatre of Cineworld with 3D glasses on, sat back and was blown away; Dr Strange is a film that deserves to be watched in 3D, in an Imax cinema. For visual effects, I've seen nothing like this before, not even The Matrix or Inception. Having said that, I'm still trying to work out the empty feeling I had ...

Gina's Trans Diary, 30.10.16: entry 12 The Danger of Being Incompetent Last night I took a bus to Musselburgh to see old friends. It didn't take me there; it took me to Dalkeith and beyond. I thought I'd worked out the route online, I thought the '33' bus would take me there. When I got on, I asked the driver, 'Is this going to Musselburgh?' The dr...

What's On? 27.10.16 After enjoying Louis Theroux's My Scientology Movie last weekend, I did think about watching a Tom Cruise film this time. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is there in the cinema, dangling attractively like a free subscription to be audited. Yes, it's probably just a harmless bit of fun and nothing more (Jack Reacher, not Scientology)...

25/10/16, The Girl on the Train + My Scientology Movie A bleak film which, with so much of importance stacked right at the end, is tricky to review without giving everything away. The murders aside (sorry!), The Girl on the Train casts an interesting look at middle-age singledom and the bitterness and loneliness that can develop. In this respect, I...

Gina's Trans Diary, 23.10.16: entry 11 When the Mirror Lies It was in The Matrix that I first heard of residual self-image, the picture of ourselves that we carry around with us in our heads. It's the perfect us, the 'Dorian Gray' portrait that never ages. It affects us all to some degree, at least in the West, where our faces are so important to u...

Gina's Trans Diary, 22.10.16: entry 10 On Lady Gaga Lady Gaga's new album, Joanne, was released yesterday. It's not the album I needed it to be. Admittedly I've been listening to it without headphones on a tinny computer, but I can tell it's not the sumptuous, lush, melodic orgasm I needed. It sounds raw. Gaga doing her own thing, not giving a fuck...

What's on? 21/10/16 It's received middling reviews, but My Scientology Movie at the Cameo cinema at least looks interesting. One of my favourite 'what-the-hell-is-this?' movies was The Sound of My Voice, the film that got me hooked on the genius of actress/writer Brit Marling. I will write about Marling another time, she's worth an article by ...

Gina's Trans Diary, 16.10.16: entry 9 On Taking Hormones (I) Notice the 'I' in the heading: I'm sure there will be updates on this subject. I hope to God there will be a need for updates on this subject. I've been on hormones since late June and so far the effect is minimal. Still, this is something to record in a diary, to let any reader out there...

16/10/16, American Honey Aldous Huxley said the most difficult part of a story is the ending; it's invariably unconvincing because in real life, there is no real ending, life just keeps going on. I thought about this as I left the Filmhouse cinema on snazzy Lothian Road yesterday, having watched American Honey. I even heard people leaving the cinem...

What's On? 13/10/16 I really don't want to watch Shia LaBeouf this weekend. He's intense and he means well, but he's also annoying and devoid of charisma. And yet, he's in this weekend's most intriguing movie, American Honey. This is a road trip movie – and when American road trip movies are done well, they're something special. America, seen by hi...

Gina's Trans Diary, 09.10.16: entry 8 These Doubts I Have I could have written about several things with this entry. In the end, I've decided to opt for what I think could be the source of a general period of psychological malaise. I think I'm feeling low at the moment because everything seems so normal, to the point where I wonder what it would be...

What's on? 06/10/16 So, to a review of what went on before; I watched Deepwater Horizon. In Cineworld, it was effective, the cinema's giant high-tech screens ideal for this kind of disaster movie. It was a little unsettling that they so comprehensively ignored the damage to the sea life (we see one floundering pelican crash into a boat as a portent...

Gina's Trans Diary, 01.10.16: entry 7 On Self-Pity and Bitterness I was at a dinner party the other evening. Nice people, great food, delicious wine. The kind of night that should send you to sleep with a smile on your face. I woke up at five in the morning, feeling sad about my life. When you're 41, it can be strange, sitting in the company of tho...

What's on? 29/09/16 Following my spending debacle at the Festival Theatre last week – in which I blew my budget on a follow-up cinema visit, on ice-cream, cider and crisps, I have decided that I shall go to the cinema this weekend, whatever happens. Nothing much can happen, to be honest. I've no plans to return to the glories of the Festival Theatr...

Gina's Trans Diary, 25.09.16: entry 6 On Finding Work I won't pretend that coming out hasn't hurt me financially. I used to be an EFL teacher, working abroad, and by the end of my career, I was a very well-qualified academic manager. In Edinburgh, I focused on my Masters, but when my MA was winding down this summer, I needed to start thinking about...

23/09/16, The Richard Alston Dance Company at the Festival Theatre Modern dance is a new passion of mine. I came to Edinburgh in the autumn of 2015 and signed up to watch a series of shows at the Festival Theatre. The modern dance acts all through the year swept me away, so much more than ballet – which sticks to a story you kind-of have to follow....