Daily Archives: September 12, 2011

The Troll Hunter

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Sometimes the best movies are the ones that sneak up on you. Craig and I made a last minute decision to check out the Norwegian fantasy film The Troll Hunter and I must say it was one of the most enjoyable and fun movies that I’ve seen in a very long time. Filmed in the style most recently made famous by The Blair Witch Project, The Troll Hunter is an infinitely classier production. Not that I’ve seen The Blair Witch Project myself but there was something about the humour mixed in with realism and fantasy in tonight’s movie that made it pretty special.

The Troll Hunter follows a group of students who want to tell the story of trolls under the theory that there has been some giant government cover-up to hide their existence. They team up with a reluctant “bear” hunter, played by Norwegian comedian Otto Jespersen, to try and capture these trolls.

I think it was the wit and the dead-pan way that the whole story was told that drew me into this film and it almost fit into the so-silly-it-was-utterly-enjoyable-category. The actors, mostly unknown, were superb and I really loved Otto!

Its very hard to explain the magic it wove over me but I’m definitely under the spell of The Troll Hunter. Troll! A must see film.

Port of Manila

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I keep looking for that perfect Filipino restaurant in London but alas my search still continues. Every Thursday I got to the markets for lunch at Hammersmith, specifically I go to the Port of Manila stall as they serve some of my favourite Filipino dishes: Lechon (roast pork), Bicol Express (pork stew of chillie, shrimp paste, and coconut milk) and afritada (meat stew in tomato sauce with vegetables normally including carrots, capsicum and plaintain.) Thinking that I could build on this success I thought it would be a good idea to also check out their restaurant located nearby.

Both our starters just ended up being of the deep fried variety – White Bait and Lumpia Shanghai (Mini minced pork roll served with sweet chilli sauce.) Ok without being stunning. My Mum’s Lumpia shanghai are much nicer 😉

For main’s I thought we should try something that’s slightly unusual for those not used to Filipino dishes – Kare Kare (Tender Ox tail & tripe in peanut sauce with annatto oil, pak choi, aubergine, string beans served with sautéed shrimp paste) and of course a BBQ dish (chicken on this occasion.) Done well Kare Kare is a comforting dish (though without the shrimp paste could be a bit mild tasting for some) but I guess I should have known better than to order it in a restaurant where we were the first (and for most of the meal, only diners.) Kare Kare relies on the meat being tender, soft and fall off the bone and realistically unless the restaurant has a pot sitting there stewing away, the dish you will get is going to be tough and unsatisfying. The BBQ was alright though I would have been happier with more meat and less veg. heh heh.

I would have liked to have sampled dessert, since the Philippines is actually one Asian country that does good ones, but sadly we had to depart to make our movie.

Overall, Port of Manila was not a bad experience. The staff/owners are friendly (it was hard to measure true efficiency as we were the only customers for the most part) and accommodating. Food is reasonably priced. I still think I’m looking for that killer Filipino restaurant. Perhaps I just have to eat in the Kitchen of Dad and Mum …