Episode #11: “Dead Poets Society” (1989 Film) review + talking poetry

In this episode Mark talks about one of his favourite films: the 1989 American teen drama film “Dead Poets Society” written by Tom Schulman, directed by Peter Weir, and starring Robin Williams. And Mark also talks about what poetry means to him and how blessed he feels to be a poet and an author of poetry.

My Poem “Why?”

There is always a reason,
there is always a why,
there is always a motivation
for the myriad of actions
that people sometimes take
and for the many decisions
that people sometimes make
that they have no trouble in
being able to justify.

Where there is a spark
there will always be a flame...
where there is touch and proximity
there will always be intimacy...
where there is language
there is will always be consideration,
interpretation and loss -
because truth and reality
are not always the same...
where there is the evidence of stories
of the past there will always remain mysteries.

Myths, legacies, stories, records,
chronicles, cave paintings, rock carvings
are important depictions of a mixture
of both fiction and fact all rolled into one...
sometimes it doesn't take anything more
than someone saying that they heard
a voice tell them to do something
for them to immediately act
seemingly without thinking,
nor without a fight...
symbols, signs, warnings, lessons,
cautionary tales are vital for
any civilization to learn the merits
of what is right and what is wrong...
sometimes it takes the bravest of the brave
to stop something that they know
is going to happen before it happens -
so that some day someone won't have to
look back upon a choice that they made
and have to justify to others
and perhaps to themselves
the answer to the question: why?

Episode #10: “Field of Dreams” TV adaptation? *TV News*

In this episode Mark talks about the recent announcement of a TV adaptation of one of Mark’s films, “Field of Dreams” (1989) directed by Phil Alden Robinson – which itself was an motion picture adaptation of W.P. Kinsella’s novel “Shoeless Joe”. The story of “Field of Dreams” is about a farmer in Iowa who builds a baseball field in in his cornfield that attracts the ghosts of baseball legends, including Shoeless Joe Jackson and the Chicago Black Sox. Considering the original 1989 film is considered a classic to fans, cinephiles, and baseball enthusiasts around the world, Mark asks whether the television adaptation being developed by Michael Schur for the streaming service Peacock needs to be made and whether people will be drawn to watch it.

Episode #9: “What if…?” – Ep. 1: “What if… Captain Carter Were the First Avenger”

In this episode Mark does a review of the first episode of the Marvel Cinematic Universe Disney+ television series: “What if…?” – Episode #1: “What if… Captain Carter Were the First Avenger”.

The Mark Hastings Experience – Episode #8: “Star Wars: The Bad Batch” (TV series) – Episodes 14-16: a review

In this episode Mark talks about episodes 14, 15 and 16 – the penultimate episodes of Season One – of the animated Disney+ television series “Star Wars: The Bad Batch”. *Spoilers*

The Mark Hastings Experience – Episode #7: “Jolt” (2021 film)

In this episode Mark talks about the 2021 film “Jolt” directed by Tanya Wexler and starring Kate Beckinsale, Bobby Cannavale, Laverne Cox, Stanley Tucci, and Jai Courtney. The story of film centres around Lindy Lewis (played by Kate Beckinsale), a young woman afflicted with the intermittent explosive disorder – which causes her to react with violent rage at the slightest transgression – who finds herself on a road of revenge, while also inadvertently finding herself and her disorder being used for a nefarious purpose without her realising. Mark also talks about the everyday experiences and encounters when some people find themselves being manipulated or compelled to make an emotional or a physical outburst.

My Poem “Same Language”

The language of thought
is the same as the language of light...
the language of stars
is the same as the language of life...
the language of music
is the same as the language of the soul...
the language of dance
is the same as the language
of the natural world...
the language of a sunrise
is the same as the language of eternity...
the language of a sunset
is the same as the language of gravity...
the language of connection
is the same as the language of purpose...
the language of love
is the same as the language of trust...
the truth is that there will always
be a universal language:
the language of touch -
which is more complex than
any other language in the universe
but which is inherently every other language
combined into one.

The Mark The Poet Experience – Special Episode: “Ten Years in the Life of a Poet”

To celebrate the one year anniversary of the first episode of “Mark The Poet – The Podcast”, in this episode Mark takes a poetic trip down memory lane and recites eight poems from seven of his books, including his poems: “Back to the Spark”, “The Journey”, “Through Your Fingers”, “Heart to Heart”, “Balloons”, “Light of your life”, “Words Enough and Time”, “Memento Vitae”. And Mark also reminisces about the last ten years of his journey as a writer/poet/author. You can check out hundreds of Mark’s poems, both published and unpublished, on his website: http://MarkThePoet.Me

My Poem “Gone”

No matter how much
you try to hold on to something
sometimes you lose things,
sometimes you lose people,
sometimes you lose time;
however, one day you unearth
a piece of your past
and you look at it for the first time in years,
and, to your amazement,
it does not not mean to you
what it once meant -
where before you would have
done anything to not be parted
from a particular thing,
now, all the feelings that you
once felt for something, you discover,
seem to have evaporated,
seem to have become lost,
seem to have left without you knowing -
and though, before, you might have
told yourself that you could
never live without that
particular thing in your life,
you come to find that time appears to have
helped you more than you realize
to get passed what might
have been holding you back,
because now you find it easy
to walk away from what was never meant to be,
because what once was is now gone.

The Mark Hastings Experience – Episode #6: “Cool Runnings” (1993 film)

In this episode Mark talks about one of his favourite films: the 1993 American comedy sports drama “Cool Runnings” directed by Jon Turteltaub and starring John Candy, Leon Robinson, Doug E. Doug, Rawle D. Lewis, and Malik Yoba. The story of the film is loosely based on the true story of the first Jamaican Bobsled Team’s debut debut at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.