Website of the week

A collecion of photos that Dads may wish hadn't survived - or may be not.

Enjoy Dads are the original hipsters.

hattip - @welshkaren

Young Adult

Mavis Gary is a thirtysomething divorcee (played by Charlize Theron) who is the ghost writer of a series of young adult novels set in high school - a bit like the Sweet Valley High series. Having received an email from an old high school boyfriend announcing the birth of his daughter, she heads back to her small home town determined to win him back. She has never grown up, is borderline mentally ill, and is an over the line alcoholic. The film traces her return and the car wrecks - both literal and metaphorical - that ensue.

From the writing and directing team behind the excellent Juno - Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman - Young Adult is a dark comedy about returning home, trying to recapture moments from your youth, and someone who has never grown up. Sharp and sad in equal measure there is probably not one character you'd like to spend time with as all seem to be both self obsessed and not self aware at the same time - but that adds to the dark comedy of the piece.

Charlize Theron is excellent and the supporting cast are great as the plot moves along from one self delusional cringe inducing moment to the next. It's not for everyone and I suspect it's a very Marmite film - you'll either love it or hate it. For me any film that has the line "I'm a middle aged fat geek - I know what a zombie is" can't be bad, and the ending is true to the direction of the film; it doesn't wimp out.

Could be a real left field choice as a Valentine's Day date movie - though you'd probably need to be pretty sure of where your relationship was with your partner before going...

There is one major flaw though. Mavis drives home listening to an old mix tape - since when did Mini Coopers come with a cassette player??

Flash, bang, wallop, what a picture...

Been a bit of strange week, and a quiet(ish) weekend looks to be ahead, so as Friday evening approached I decided to head of for a wander around the excellent National Portrait Gallery which, like a lot of galleries and museums in London, is open late on Fridays.

I managed to catch the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition before it ends next weekend. I've come across this in the past - it's an annual competition - and, once again, I found there were numerous stunning images to draw you in.

The portraits vary from films stars, to quirky people, to a sort of reportage style - all are photographic portraits. It's not a massive exhibition but there is plenty to look at and ponder over. You may not agree with the prize winners - I'm not sure I did - yet there isn't a dud portrait to be found. I'm always fascinated by portraits, I think partly because I hate having my photo taken so am intrigued that people will sit for such photos, and ended up spending a lot more in the shop than intended!

The exhibition ends on 12th February - but if you do find yourself passing it definitely provides a diverting and rewarding few minutes of your time.