25/25/25

CATCHING UP WITH MOVIES

2008-05-25T21:25:00.010-05:00

25 BLOG CATCH-UP
I’ve seen some more movies... this is a slow year, but I still should post about them anyway.

THERE WILL BE BLOOD – Again – In my opinion still the best film of 2007.

THE BANK JOB – Entertaining British heist flick. I love to see Saffron Burrows getting work, but why can’t the girl gain a few pounds? I also realized that Jason Statham must be incredibly short. IMDB says 5’10” but I seriously doubt it!

THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES – I will show this to my kids, when they’re born, and after they’re old enough not to be spooked by terrifying goblins, fairies, and forest gnomes.

FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL – I want to support all the people connected to Freaks and Geeks. And I did so by watching this movie on opening weekend. It’s funny.

HAROLD AND KUMAR ESCAPE FROM GUANTANAMO BAY – Gut-splittingly funny. A must-see, and then a must-see-again.

IRON MAN – Too much time spent in a Middle Eastern cave. And the gender politics are WAY regressive. Whatever, I’d rather see Harold and Kumar again.

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE – Remember those torture pictures from Abu Ghraib? This movie is about those. Hope you weren’t expecting a comedy!

21 – This movie was the 21st movie I saw in the theater this year. And I didn’t do it on purpose! No lie. Whoa, cleavage, guess they used CGI.

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL – I saw this at a midnight showing at the Davis Theater (which I was formerly boycotting, and now am boycotting again). I was seated directly in front of a large open pipe – maybe a sewer pipe – with a cardboard cover propped over it, and a bunch of air fresheners laying on top. At least the pipe had rails around it, so I could put my feet up.

BABY MAMA – Ha ha, ladies always get pregnant at the darndest times. Or perfectly, when they just happen to be dating Greg Kinnear!

A few books

2008-05-02T14:07:00.009-05:00

The Road, Cormac McCarthy

I finished this book, lo these many months ago, while visiting Maya in Chicago. I had a little cry, and then we went to see There Will Be Blood to complete my day of bleakness. Luckily, the day ended with a lot of booze and laughter while we watched the Oscars over IM with Sandy. Good times.

Anyway, I'm trying to say this book is bleak. But it's also really amazing, and one of the most affecting books I've read in a long time. This post-apocalyptic stuff is right up my alley, but even if you're not into that, I recommend giving it a chance anyway. McCarthy creates a horrifyingly believable world and characters so real, you almost wish you didn't care about them so much. I'm sad to learn that some idiot is trying to turn The Road into a movie. Even the presence of Guy Pearce (!) and Viggo Mortenson (!!) isn't enough to convince me this is a good idea.

The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova

This is a fun little adventure story about a couple of historians tromping across Europe on a hunt for Dracula. It's told from the perspective of a 16 year old girl, as she unravels the mystery around her parents' early life together, and the story is also told through letters from her father and other historians. This perspective gives it a young adult fiction feel, so of course I enjoyed it.

And of course, looks like Hollywood's making this into a movie as well. They'll probably play it very serious, like The DaVinci Code, and take all the fun out of it.

Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen

OK, so I was supposed to read this about six years ago for a Victorian Lit class that I absolutely hated, so of course I skipped it, along with just about every other book in that course (except for the Our Mutual Friend, the 800-page "loose baggy monster" by Charles Dickens, which I plowed through and LOVED). I'm so glad I finally got around to this. Austen is seriously hilarious, and here she's at her most tongue-in-cheek. I don't want to spoil my own fun by looking up any criticism of this work, but I think the whole novel is a joke. A parody of the Gothic novel, but also a response to the social critics who felt that reading Gothic novels was bad for women's minds. That they were too provocative, and women should stick to reading about flowers or some shit.

Anyway, I enjoyed it, but if you hate Austen, stay away because this one's super Austen-y.

Never Back Down

2008-03-14T23:17:00.003-05:00

I knew I had to see this movie the first time I saw the trailer a couple weeks ago. It was made with 14-year-old boys in mind I suppose, but come on – super-ripped men doing martial arts training in white tank tops, and then ripping off their shirts to savagely beat each other? It’s like porn for me! I would advise all MMA fans (we know who you are) to see this movie. The fight scenes are great, not as many technical mistakes as you usually see in fight movies, and they take up a large percentage of the screen time. Every time the movie starts to dip into back story about a particular character’s emotional state, don’t worry, it’ll only be a couple minutes before the next beatdown. And the lead actor (if you can call him that) – Sean Faris, who I’d never heard of – is astonishingly pretty, and I was transfixed by his gorgeous, perfect arms. Maybe I’m not being fair, and he could be a good actor in the right project. Who cares? I feel the same way about a handful of actors (Josh Hartnett, Olivier Martinez) – I can’t even tell what kind of acting job they’re doing because I’m just hypnotized by their perfect features. Those guys never make it into my top 5, but I appreciate them just the same. Anyway, Sandy, go see this movie, everyone else should skip it.

JUMPER

2008-03-11T01:55:00.003-05:00

I was in the mood yesterday to see a Hollywood actiony piece of crap. I settled on Jumper, which was a good decision. Maybe I’m biased because I’m naturally interested in a movie about a character who suddenly discovers he has a new talent, and can’t tell many people about it (OK, so maybe instantly teleporting to anywhere in the world is a little cooler than what I can do, but maybe I can work up to that... in a way?) Anyway, this movie deserves higher than the 16% Tomatometer rating it’s currently rocking. The pacing is tight (less than an hour and a half), the special effects are cool and kind of low-key (which is really nice for a change), the characters are blah, but still more believable and empathetic than your average Hollywood flick… basically, as an action movie it’s a solid and entertaining movie to catch – especially at the budget theater! And Hayden Christensen is a really beautiful man… he’s done some good acting work – and some bad, but the symmetry of his facial features is classic and stunning… he’s looking better and better the older he gets!

Turning Into Sandy?

2008-03-02T16:08:00.002-06:00

Jodhaa Akbar

I went out with my friend Vijay last night, and we had some wonderful Indian food (which I seriously haven’t had in months and months – what is wrong with me?!?) He asked me if I liked Indian movies, and I had to admit I haven’t seen very many due to their insane length. I agreed to give the newest Bollywood epic a try, however.
When we got to the ticket booth, the ticket-seller asked me, “Are you excited to see this film?” I think I said yes, and then he gleefully said, “You better be, it’s three hours and forty minutes long!” He probably noticed I was the only non-Indian person buying a ticket. I have to admit my heart sank a little, but I gave myself a pep talk – I sit through two movies back to back all the time, even three! If I pretended that it was two movies back to back, I thought I’d be able to manage it.
Much to my surprise, I loved this film. The vast spectacle of the landscape, battle scenes, animals, buildings, everything, was truly overwhelming on the big screen. It helped that the volume was probably turned up to the absolute maximum. Yeah, the movie was long, and there were a lot of historical details that left me completely in the dark. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen such ravishing costumes and jewelry in a film before, and the pace was quick enough to keep you from getting bored. Of course, the two leads are so creepily good-looking, it was hard to get bored looking at them as well.
I wish you could see this in the theater Sandy! Maybe there’s a big Indian population near Portland that I don’t know about, and they show this kind of thing… keep your eyes peeled, anyway.

MORE MOVIES

2008-02-29T20:59:00.002-06:00

THERE WILL BE BLOOD
Hmmm… I know you guys all have seen this movie (and I saw it with one of you, we were sober at the time so I’m sure we both remember). I’m thinking of giving it a shockingly high score on my “best-of 2007” list. This was a good year for movies! Hooray. I’ll post a link when I do my best-of list. What, March of the following year isn’t too late for that, is it?

Oh, also, I read somewhere that the person who did the cinematography has worked closed with Terrence Malick in the past, which would explain why so much of the film felt like Malick was there in spirit… and also partially explains why I loved this film so much. Not sure if that’s true or not, I’m too lazy to research it right now. The internet told me, so it must be true.

BE KIND REWIND

Ehhhh… I really wanted to like this movie more than I did. It was charming, whimsical, and its heart was certainly in the right place. But it had such an air of forced artificiality… That worked in Gondry’s last film, The Science of Sleep, because it basically takes place in the main character’s mind, and the tug between what’s real and what’s imagined is very compelling and true to how people think (well, how I think anyway). But in this film, you have to swallow the fact that AN ENTIRE TOWN is that whacked-out and full of whimsical innocence bordering on pure lunacy. And it seems forced, which interfered with my enjoyment of the film. There are a few really great sequences, especially towards the end when there’s kind of a “montage” sequence of the little movies that Jack Black and Mos Def are filming… the camera work is brilliant and creative. There are some fun casting surprises (I’m not going to say anything in case you guys see this). Otherwise it’s just kind of an endless string of quirky and cute moments interspersed with the occasional cringe-worthy one. Sorry, Michel Gondry, I still love you!

CALABRIA

2008-02-24T01:20:00.005-06:00

Time to update my favorite pop songs of 2007… Carrie is visiting me here in Chicago, and it came to my attention that she has never heard the huge hit song Calabria, which we have the pleasure of hearing in one form or another at least twice an hour on any given radio station. Maybe it’s due to the high percentage of Latinos/Caribbean natives/gay people in this city - I don’t know why she hasn’t heard this song once, but I’ve heard it 450,000 times. I’m going to post three permutations of the song here. I have to say that no matter how many times I hear this song, I still like it. The beat is too infectious to get sick of, honestly. Plus, the girl who sings it died in a car crash last summer before her song even made it big – how depressing is that?

First, the original version by Natasja & Enur:
"Calabria" by Enur featuring Natasja

Second, the Mims remix, which is more likely to be heard on the Top 40 radio stations:
Calabria 2007 Remix

Third, the Pitbull remix, which is constantly played on the Latino stations:
Anthem by Pitbull feat. Lil Jon

I’m sparing you the gay club remix, I’m sure you can imagine that on your own.
Goddamnit, you convinced me! It kind of sucks though.
Gay Remix

In case those weren’t enough, you get to hear every other phone ringtone playing Calabria as well. I do like this song, which is good as it’s absolutely impossible to avoid.

IN BRUGES

2008-02-12T01:06:00.000-06:00

Yay, finally a good movie released in the post-Christmas movie shitpile! I really would recommend this film, and not just to Colin Farrell fans, because I know I’m the only one around.
One of my least favorite genres is the hyper-violent, “clever hit man” genre. I think they’re overdone - the writers/actors/directors generally try too hard and care more about showcasing slick ultraviolence than presenting any actual ideas. Not to mention that I don’t really believe “clever hit men” exist in real life. No hit man engages in horrific, brutal acts, and then makes articulate, light-hearted quips to his partner. It’s kind of the male movie equivalent of the “hooker with a heart of gold.” It’s Hollywood; it’s 100% fake. That being said, the characters in this film are toned down a few notches to a believable level. Any below-average moments can easily be overlooked considering that it’s the director/writer Martin McDonagh’s first feature-length film.

I also hate the flippant bloodbaths that Quentin Tarantino popularized in Hollywood films. There’s a requisite bloodbath in this film, but it’s heavy. The last few seconds of the movie are a slam-dunk like nothing I’ve seen in recent memory. It takes some balls to end a movie this way, and I’m not saying anything else.

Mr. Rachel Evan Wood

2008-02-06T15:51:00.000-06:00

So I was all set to go in to clinic tonight and make up some hours, but my friend called and told me he had an extra ticket for Marilyn Manson. That sounded more fun that a clinic shift, so off I went. The only other big show I’ve been to recently was Daddy Yankee – this is kind of on the opposite end of the spectrum. I was impressed with the wide variety of people that were there. It was quite the diverse crowd, a lot of cute boys, lots of people in their 40s and up, and a couple of kids that scarily enough couldn’t have been more than 12 years old. There were a lot fewer people in full makeup and silly leather bondage outfits than there used to be at these kind of shows 10 years ago. And it was my first time at the Aragon Theater, which is this cheesy old school concert hall, standing room only, with a bunch of fake building facades encircling the whole place so that it looks like a European plaza, and the blinking night sky and constellations and all – very cute place! I don’t know any of Marilyn Manson’s songs really, except for his version of “Sweet Dreams” and “Beautiful People” of course, but the show was still plenty entertaining, and now my ears are ringing and whooshing pleasantly from all the damage done to them.

CLOVERFIELD

2008-02-06T15:49:00.000-06:00

I actually enjoyed this movie quite a bit, in a way. I’m not a fan of jiggly hand-held camera work, but I AM a fan of spooky creatures that are hinted at more than shown. Whoever was on the special effects team did a bang-up job with the monsters and the city in general. Seeing New York completely decimated on screen was actually pretty nauseating – it’s one of those movies that leaves a bad feeling in the pit of your stomach, even while you’re reminding yourself that it’s completely fake. Some people might want to skip it for that reason alone. A lot of the scenes have the nailbiting intensity of a really scary X-Files episode – particularly when the protagonists (who make an endless series of really retarded decisions) decide to walk through the train tunnels. So it’s definitely worth watching for a good scare without too much gore… especially if you catch it at the budget theater.

Book?

2008-01-28T10:57:00.000-06:00

The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger

I've been sort of plodding through this book for a month or so. It's one of those novels that's been on every book club's list for the past couple of years - my copy even had a discussion guide in the back. Holy presumptuous!

Anyhoodle, so I didn't really love this book so much. The idea is really intriguing - the main character has a condition that causes him to jump around in time. He can't control the ability, or where or when he lands. His wife first meets him when she is six and he is 43. He meets her for the first time when he is 28 and she is 20. The book is about their twoo wuv and their various meetings and crazy life together.

The execution of this premise is not so strong. Niffenegger is SO in love with her characters and her ideas that she just can't stop herself. The book is too long by half. The dialogue is ridiculous at times. Neither main character is all that likable, to be honest.

However. A movie version is coming out in June, and I am really excited about it! Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana! Awesome. All the tedious stuff will be removed (hopefully), and the actors are charismatic enough to make me like the characters more than I liked them in the book. It's exactly the kind of story that is better on screen than on the page.

Cassandra’s Dream

2008-01-21T23:55:00.000-06:00

Woody Allen’s movies have seemed to improve slightly lately, mainly because he’s veering away from the cringe-inducing comedies and towards the serious, murder-themed movies. I haven’t been super-excited about any of his recent movies in spite of their improved quality, even though they’re arguably entertaining and thought-provoking. I feel like maybe he’s such an old pro at making movies now, he’s kind of phoning it in a bit. His movies are too safe in a weird way, and definitely more cerebral than emotional. Most of the pivotal action in Cassandra’s Dream happens off-camera, and I’m not sure why. Anyway I won’t go into more detail because I’m sure you guys haven’t seen this movie yet…

One reason I wanted to see this film is of course the genius casting of two of the most gorgeous actors from the British Isles, Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell. It’s unusual to see two high-profile actors sharing screentime so evenly. I hate to say it, but Colin Farrell’s performance really overshadows McGregor’s. It’s partly the character - which is more fully realized, and also happens to be the only truly sympathetic character in the film. I’m not saying this just because Colin is my boy, either. In the second half of the movie he really knocks it out of the park – his character completely loses his shit, and he’s 100% believable. There are some really tense, white-knuckle moments, and Colin’s definitely the heart of the movie. Do people realize that he’s a good actor yet, or is it just me?

HEY! I can read!

2008-01-17T22:35:00.000-06:00

It’s been so long since I read for enjoyment, it’s really quite an amazing feeling. I can’t believe I went for so long without reading, but I didn’t really have much of a choice. Who knows how much more I’ll actually be able to read, since I have to study for the stupid board exams and write a stupid thesis paper. But I think I’ll be able to squeeze a little bit of reading in there… if not, only slightly more than 8 months of school to go!

I eased myself into the world of reading with an easy one, Steve Martin’s autobiography of his early forays into the entertainment industry, “Born Standing Up.” I love Steve Martin steadfastly, in spite of his increasing irrelevance and unfunniness (is that a word?) in movies. I should point out, of course, that his books are quite good, and he should probably stick to that in the near future. This was an easy and enjoyable read, fun not only because of the insights it gave into Martin’s early comedic process, but also because of the light is shines on the comedy industry in the 60s and 70s in general – something I rarely think about. I would probably only recommend this book to massive Steve Martin fans.

Next, I went on to a book that my friend at school recommended due to my recent successful out-of-body experience: The Art of Dreaming by Carlos Castaneda.

This book is awesomely mind-blowing. I haven’t read any of his other books, somehow, so of course I’ve got to read them all (although I’ve heard they kind of get repetitive). Give the man a break, he took massive quantities of hallucinogenic drugs. A lot of the book was impossibly wild, but since I’ve had numerous experiences along these lines (more mundance experiences, but then I’ve never been guided by a Mexican shaman), I read almost the entire book as a factual account.
The basic gist of the book is that the world we perceive is just one tiny ring in a never-ending expanse of other universes layered upon one another, and by shifting your viewpoint, you can enter other existences with either your energy body (i.e. lucid dreaming) or eventually gather your energy to move your physical body between existences. There is tons of other cool stuff in the book, like battles between humans and inorganic beings from other dimensions who want to steal our energy, etc. OK it sounds wacky, but trust me, it’s endlessly interesting. At least to me. Luckily I have about 8 more books of his to read, I can’t remember exactly how many, but it should keep me occupied.

MORE POP MUSIC

2008-01-17T22:27:00.000-06:00

Time for another pop song. I heard this particular song on the radio a few times and always thought, “Who is this? This sounds like the Scissor Sisters.” Obviously it wasn’t, but I was stumped. Of course the first time I even tried to figure it out, I did quite easily: Nelly Furtado. I knew nothing about her before (and still don’t) except that sometimes she looks really hot, and other times looks really terrible.

I didn’t realize until I saw the music video that she also owes a huge debt to Michael Jackson… or maybe it’s a tribute? Anyway the video is Thriller-Lite. But the song is good. You guys will probably hate it too, but imagine if you actually listened to the radio for an hour a day (I’ve done it many times while driving when my CD player doesn’t work)... A song like this gleams like a shiny quarter in the stank sewer ditch of popular music.

"Maneater" by Nelly Furtado

There’s also a cool Indian remix of this which I found while searching for the video: Maneater Remix
Isn’t every song better if it has an Indian or Latin beat?

Bowie Song

2008-01-16T23:48:00.000-06:00

I've never seen their show before, but this song is funny.

INTO THE WILD

2008-01-15T23:43:00.000-06:00

Hey, the good news is that I’ve already seen 6 movies in the first two weeks of 2008!

There’s more good news, this movie is really quite excellent. I knew almost nothing about it beforehand, which worked in its favor actually. Somehow I thought it was going to be an uplifting tale of a man learning how to be independent and live harmoniously with nature, on his own terms… The movie is kind of about that, but mostly about the opposite of that. I really don’t want to elaborate because I don’t think you guys have seen this movie yet. Suffice it to say that this movie is incredibly dark and quite bitterly depressing.
It’s amazing that I have such a high opinion of the film – it’s really long, and in spite of the amazing shots of breathtaking natural vistas, the pacing is kind of plodding and aimless. The main character is also difficult to sympathize with (or even like). That’s part of the point, however, and Sean Penn rolls it all up and somehow makes it perfect by the end of the movie. It’s really quite an experience, and I’m not sure I want to see it again very soon, because the painful bits are not painful in a fun and cathartic way… Anyway I would recommend this movie very strongly, although I think it’s already left the theaters, and a lot of people will (possibly) think it’s boring.

BEST OF POP MUSIC – 2007

2008-01-15T22:55:00.000-06:00

OK, this is a new category for me. I’m nowhere ready to post my favorite movies of 2007, so this should hold me in the meantime. First of all I want to say that I’m not even sure these songs are all from 2007 - they’re very possibly from 2006 but are still hanging around on the radios. I also probably can’t even pick 10 songs I like from 2007, so the list will be a little short.

The circumstances of my having opinions about pop music are that 1. My ipod committed suicide and 2. The CD player in my car is a temperamental bitch that only plays certain CDs. As a result I’ve been listening to a lot of radio (usually flipping between the American and Latino stations). The majority of pop music is a steaming pile of smelly poo poo. There are, however, a handful of songs that make me cheer whenever they’re played on the air. Since they’re the best pop songs, in my opinion, they are very rarely actually played.

I used to listen to radio all the time when I was a kid; I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing that I’m listening again. I also miss watching videos. One of the local Chicago stations would switch over to MTV after midnight (this was probably 4 years ago though; it doesn’t happen anymore). That was the last time I watched a lot of music videos. I do get MTV Tres right now, with extremely bad reception… as much as I like reggaeton music I don’t want to spend a lot of time watching reggaeton videos, which are basically borderline hardcore porn.
So I’m going to post the videos, in case you kids haven’t seen them. I feel like no one here listens to pop radio or watches the videos, so this can be a fun and learning experience. And NO I am not including any music that is remotely independent, artistic, or out-of-the-way. This is just for 100% pop, the same shit that the 10-year-olds listen to on their ipod shuffles (scarily enough).

Lovestoned on Youtube

The first song I’m posting is “Lovestoned” by Justin Timberlake. I had heard this song on the radio occasionally, and always thought, “Who the hell is this? It sounds like Justin Timberlake, but I’m not sure…” Finally about 3 months later I got less lazy and took 2 seconds to google the lyrics, just to discover that yes, it is Justin Timberlake. My sister and I once argued about this song while listening to it in my car. She said, “This song sucks! He’s just trying to sound like old Michael Jackson, this is a knockoff Michael Jackson!” I said, “This song rules, BECAUSE it sounds like old Michael Jackson! Even current MJ wishes he sounded like old MJ!” Basically an argument that can’t be won. For me it’s a great pop song (which means I’m not upset if it’s running through my head). I can’t tell you how many times I’ve washed dishes while humming, “She’s freaky, and she knows it…. She’s freaky, but I like it!” I’m sorry, but this song is cool, even though Timberlake is kind of a girl.

End 2007/Begin 2008

2008-01-12T00:54:00.000-06:00

Yes, it's the end of the year. That's the time when everyone wonders, "How many movies did Maya manage to see this year?" The disappointing answer is: Only 65! I couldn't even reach a measly 70 cinematic viewings in the grand year of 2007. Ah well, it's a new year, and time to aim for better things...

I AM LEGEND
Ha ha, I didn’t post about this movie! I just told Sandy about it in an email!
Anyway, I thought the tone and pacing of this movie were superb, as well as Will Smith’s acting. As scared as I am of zombies, the baddies in this film were just too video-gamey to be really threatening, although the few scenes where they’re hinted at rather than really shown are pretty palpitation-inducing. CGI is better left to the backgrounds (the images of a devastated NYC devoid of people were really startling and 100% convincing) – living creatures/monsters still end up looking fakey in some strange way. Yes, this movie also made me cry, but I’m a baby (you’ll know which part I cried at if you see it).

ATONEMENT
Yes, Keira Knightley is striking, but she is SO DAMN SKINNY. Get that girl a burger. I’m not kidding, I find her skeletal frame distracting. As if any girl in that time era was that thin, seriously? Unless she were dying of TB or some other romantic disease of the times…
I haven’t read the book, so I feel like I should probably do that. The movie worked spectacularly in moments (like the often-talked-about long take moving over a wartime beach). Are unbroken long takes the new way to grovel for a cinematography Oscar nomination? I still feel like the one from Children of Men was more amazing, but this one is really quite breathtaking, and probably the best part of the movie.
Anyway, the artistic and unexpected moments are kind of neutered by the overly romanticized Hollywood cliché moments. This movie is definitely worth watching, especially for some surprising parts later in the running time, but there are probably other movies more worth your time.
James McAvoy is pretty dreamy for a teensy, pasty Brit, I have to admit.

SWEENEY TODD
Another good mood piece from Tim Burton. I’m not a fan of musicals, and this is a particularly tuneless one. Part of the fun of this movie was trying to recall the tunes and lyrics later – Andrea and I did a pretty good job of it, I thought. Great performances by Johnny, Sascha, and Helena. And who knew Johnny could sing?
Incidentally, I was sufficiently inspired by Helena Bonham-Carter’s style in this movie to make one of my New Year’s Resolutions be “have bigger hair.” I don’t want to go the whole goth route, I think I’m too old (and sane) for that, but I was impressed by her piles of crazy hair and ribbons, and decided that it’s time to take advantage of the volume that naturally curly hair gives you to work with.

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD
Oh wow, this movie was really dark. I guess I knew the subject matter was twisted, but I was still surprised by how nihilistic the whole thing was. Great structure, and the tension was palpable throughout the entire film. All this, in spite of the moronic elderly man behind us who kept leaning over to his girlfriend and whispering loudly, “You’re going to have to explain this to me later!”
Phillip Seymour Hoffman pulls out all the stops here – his puffy, red face looks like it’s about to pop at any given second. Ethan Hawke also gives an impressive performance as his pussified younger brother, who inconveniently has more of a moral center. Definitely on my list of recommended movies, but not a warm fuzzy fun one.

THE GOLDEN COMPASS
As much as I try to stay away from children’s movies, I have to admit this one was pretty entertaining. It felt like they were skimming and cramming certain parts (even though I haven’t read the book). I mean, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to have a herd of witches swoop in to save the heroes, when the witches were previously unseen and only obliquely alluded to. Good performances, especially from the child leads, make this worth watching. I thought some of the violence was pretty cringe-inducing, so it wasn’t a total baby movie. It actually made me wish I had time to read children’s epic novels… oh well, someday…

JUNO
I thought this movie would be too precious for my taste, but it actually worked out quite nicely. It probably wouldn’t have worked if the actors hadn’t been so fantastic – obviously the lead is great, but her father/step-mother were also cast perfectly, of course Jason Bateman is great (finally playing someone with a bit of a creepy edge, instead of the goofy-funny guy he always plays), Jennifer Garner scores big by playing a desperate wannabe mother in an incredibly sympathetic manner, and Michael Cera almost tops them all as the hapless impregnator. Can I just say that I was never a fan of Michael Cera in Arrested Development, but if a bandwagon drove by my house with a banner on it that said “Michael Cera,” I would jump right on! The scene where he’s talking about prom with Juno in the hallway was heartbreaking, and he does it all with his eyes. I love him! What a sweetheart! I usually don’t like guys that are kind of pussified, but whatever, I’ll make an exception for him.

I Can't Look at Close-Ups of People Shooting Up

2008-01-07T21:46:00.000-06:00

American Gangster

Hasn't anyone else on this blog seen this yet? I liked it pretty well, but I don't think it's destined to win any big awards. It kind of plods along, like many cop+gangster movies tend to do. Denzel is totally channeling Pacino in a couple of parts. In fact, if this movie were an equation, it would be:

Serpico + The Godfather Pt. II / Sleepless in Seattle * heroin= American Gangster

I liked Russell Crowe's hair. Parted down the middle and feathery, just like Keith Partridge's. I hope that style comes back next. (The teenage boys are wearing their hair Leif Garrett style now, so it would stand to reason...)

Denzel hasn't aged in ten years!

This "review" is completely superficial. Sorry.

In honor of Julia

2008-01-07T12:20:00.002-06:00

I wore these awesome shoes while puttering around the house, making soup and getting ready to go out for the evening. Julia - rest in peace.

Oopsie!

2008-01-07T11:57:00.000-06:00

I totally forgot that I forgot to tell you guys about my Anthony Bourdain encounter until you posted your book review, Sandy! It was such a major experience, akin to having a child, it seemed like everyone must already know about it.

Anyway. So the cocktail hour started at 7 and we were supposed to be seated for dinner at 8. That made me think we'd be stuck in some room "mingling" with people we didn't know at all for a full hour, so we showed up at 7:20, and the other 150 people were already there! The dinner was on the third floor of this bar/restaurant place, and when we got to the entrance, my brother informed us that Tony was behind the bar with the head chef, Tim McKee. There he was - 20 feet away! This was exciting enough, but then the elevator... When my brother said, "OK, I guess you can get on," I think Tony's exact words were, "Well, I don't know who YOU'RE here to see, but I'm here to eat Tim McKee's food. I can't wait for that!" Tim was on the elevator with us too, and he was all Aw Shucks about it. I thought it was a very gracious and sweet thing for Tony to say.

Our 30 seconds of shared air ended, and when we got into the dining area, there was a big line at the bar, and Tony just went up and started chatting with people. He was in a great mood, full of smiles. (By the way, he is taller, a little less skinny, and more attractive in person. I think I thought he would look more haggard, but honestly I think the cameras aren't that kind to him.)

Before we started eating, Tony took the podium and said, "I saw that line at the bar, and I see two glasses of wine at each seat, so I expect you to all get stinking drunk during dinner, because afterward we're going to have a Q&A, and I don't want any stupid bullshit questions. No 'what's the weirdest thing you've eaten?' OK? I want you to fucking get drunk, and think up some really interesting, sick, scandalous questions, and I promise to answer all of them."

After dinner, he got back up to the podium and said that one of his tablemates had asked him, "Are you just going to do the same fucking talk you give at every book signing?" and he said, "YES! I'm going to give that same fucking talk!" But instead he just decided to do all Q&A. I was instantly concerned, as both of you would be, given our experience with film festivals. Overall, people were OK. Some dumb questions clearly aimed at making Tony Bourdain think the asker was an amazing undiscovered comedic genius; some aimed at making Tony think the asker was MUCH more cosmopolitan than their humble Midwest surroundings make them appear; and one HELLA annoying woman who basically wanted a private conversation with Tony regarding her laziness about cooking real meals for her family. Otherwise, he was hilarious and vulgar and delightful. One comic genius asked who was more annoying, Rachael Ray or Gail Simmons (the judge from Top Chef), and he said that Gail was really very nice and smart and had a great pallate. His rant about Rachael got pretty heated and ended with him saying, "I mean, fuck that bitch." HA.

At the end, he signed books for everyone, and Bud and I had one of our books signed to our friend Nick who tried to see Tony the previous evening at a free event at a bar and was brutally rebuffed (along with about 150 other people who weren't among the lucky 500 who made it past the velvet rope). Tony told us that that had been a great event too. I thanked him for doing this and he looked saucily in my eyes and said, "Absolutely. I've had a great time." And then he leapt across the table and we made out! Just kidding.

I saw these movies a long time ago

2008-01-06T02:14:00.001-06:00

GONE BABY GONE
This is an entertaining, twisty-turny thriller. Some reviewers compared it unfavorably to Clint Eastwood’s most recent efforts, but I’ve always been put off by Eastwood’s overly simplistic, black-and-white morality, as well as his obvious emotional manipulation. I thought this movie was more nuanced. It’s a very strong directorial debut, and hopefully a sign of good things to come for Ben Affleck.

WE OWN THE NIGHT
I was overall disappointed by this movie. I’ve been following the director, James Gray, ever since I saw Little Odessa, but none of his more recent films have lived up to the promise of that debut. Actually, the only other film he’s done besides this one is The Yards. Which is not to say that We Own the Night and The Yards are bad movies – far from it. They’re just not as good as I’d like them to be.
Somehow this movie ended up being boring and felt like it was dragging. That was unfortunate because it has some of the strongest stand-alone scenes I’ve seen in any film this year. There are a couple drug stakeout scenes that are insanely intense – the kind of scenes where it takes all your willpower to stop from shouting out, “Look behind you!!!!” There are also some really strong scenes between Joaquin Phoenix and his girlfriend, played by Eva Mendes, including the often-talked-about opening sex scene. But the pacing is wrong, or something, because the movie as a whole didn’t flow well.

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
I thought this movie was quite good, but far from the best movie of the year as so many people are proclaiming. As with everything the Coen Brothers do, it’s startling in its precision. I really won’t say much more about this movie, except that yeah, the haircut bothered me. I liked the period detail – I remember well those scratchy, horrible plaid couches (we still have one in our family room). I think this movie probably contains more than I can absorb in one viewing (as all their films do – I was even underwhelmed by The Big Lebowski on my first viewing, as hard as that is to believe). So I’ll hold off on further commentary until I see it again.

Reading is my new thing

2008-01-03T19:52:00.000-06:00

Hey ya'all, I read another book. Sorry to be so boring. I also saw I AM LEGEND, but gin-stank-girl already posted about it, and anyway, what you see in the preview is pretty much what you get. Not much I can add... except that (MINOR SPOILER ALERT) never having heard of Bob Marley, even if you're Brazilian and it's 2012, is totally unbelievable.

So back to my book...

ALL SHE WAS WORTH by Miyuki Miyabe

In the spirit of Natsuo Kirino's OUT (one of my all-time favorite books, which I posted about sometime last year), this is a chilling thriller set in Tokyo. Though this was written several years before OUT, and is decidedly less gruesome, it treads in familiar thematic territory. It's about a police detective who--during a leave of absence from the force--is recruited by his distant relative to investigate the disappearance of said relative's fiancee. It's a really expertly paced mystery that keeps you turning the pages... in fact, I barely slept at all until I was able to finish it.

Has anyone else seen JUNO yet? It was cute... but it's not gonna be my #1 movie of 2007 after all.

Got Some Books for Christmukkah

2007-12-27T16:22:00.000-06:00

What do you do when you're stuffed full of pasta and bread, have already slept 15 hours, and your husband is spending ever waking moment playing World of Warcraft? How about reading three books in 2 days? (Full disclosure: two of the books had pictures.)

Book 1: Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine
I read about this "graphic novel" on AngryAsianMan.com, where it was hotly anticipated by the blogger-at-large. It deals with issues of Asian-American identity, especially as they relate to interracial romances. I wish it was a bit longer... like with chapters or something... because it was so true-to-life and engaging that it felt like I was watching a docu-drama on AZN; not reading a [comic] book. If you have ever had a romantic interest in an Asian or Asian-American dude (you know who you are), then you might appreciate some of the insight here. Also has some funny film festival in-jokes (for Carrie).

Book 2: No Reservations by Anthony Bourdain
When I first flipped through this glossy photo diary, I thought "oh, no; Tony's gone and made a coffee table book." But after reading it cover to cover, I can honestly say it has got to be one of the greatest coffee table books ever compiled. Even though I've seen every episode of the Travel network show of the same name, I was totally rapt by the photos and their accompanying anecdotes. I thought Gordon Ramsay had eclipsed Tony in my heart as favorite chef/TV personality, but after reliving some of his travails and precious moments abroad, Tony's stock went up a few points. Oh, and it desperately made me want to travel... waaah...

Book 3: Gordon Ramsay The Biography, by some bloke named Neil Simpson
Not to be confused with G-Rams's recently published auto-biography, this name-dropping rag reads more like an extended entry in the The Daily Mirror. Still, if you find the chef a compelling character (which I obviously do) it's worth looking past the gossipy portions to get a glimpse into what makes the man: from his "council estate" upbringing, to his unconventional but clearly successful family life, to what motivates his manic pursuit of perfection. And with my appetite whetted for more, I plan to check out his auto-biography as soon as I finish all the other books I got for Christmas.

I've Seen Some Stuff Recently

2007-12-12T13:17:00.000-06:00

2008 is fast approaching, and if you're neurotic like me (and I know YOU are, Maya) then you've probably been compiling your "Best of 2007" movie list in your mind (or on the palm of your hand while you wait for the bus.) My #1 spot is still unoccupied, but I have high hopes for Juno... so it better open here at the edge of the continent prior to Dec 31. My #2 spot will likely go to a sweet and charming film with an inauspicious ad promo...

LARS AND THE REAL GIRL
Yes, yes, the publicity stills and plot synopses make this look and sound like a perv-fest. But it's not. Ryan Gosling is brilliant and disarming and I had a lot of empathy for his "disturbed" protagonist. This movie is funny and sweet and surprising. My only nitpicky nitpick is that it's set in small-town Wisconsin and not one actor even TRIES for a Midwestern accent. Nevermind that smarmy Paul Schneider (buddy of Carrie's ex- David Gordon Greene. Where are they from, North Carolina?) with his mid-Atlantic drawl that is just SO wrong. Even a Canadian accent would have been better.

I also saw these, and though I'm not sure whether ultimately they'll break the top 12, I thought I'd write a few words about each:

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Acting, acting, acting. It's all about the acting here. Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones are pretty much guaranteed Oscar nods. (And a new category should be created for Javier's haircut... CREEPIEST COIF... maybe that belongs on the MTV Movie Awards though.) Well done, Coen Brothers, you're back in the saddle.

ENCHANTED
This movie gave me a toothache. And I wasn't even eating my usual jumbo bag of peanut M&Ms! It's just... so... sweeeet. There are certainly more than a few clever moments, but ultimately, it was just too much for my cynical, slightly-too-much testosterone-producing self. Highly recommended for girls under 12 and parents who have to take their kids to something G-rated.

Old Movies Revisited

2007-11-10T12:47:00.000-06:00

Donnie Darko

OK, Donnie Darko is not that old, but I’ve never seen it on the big screen. This was the perfect example of being able to see a film in a completely new light because of the viewing circumstances. I’ve seen this movie countless times – the first time was memorable because I was in the hospital, and watched a VHS copy by myself late at night on the tiny crappy TV in my room. Needless to say, watching it on the big screen at the Music Box was a much better situation, even though the seats there are ungodly uncomfortable.
Obviously I realized that seeing movies on the big screen is more ideal than seeing them on DVD before this viewing, especially if the cinematography is artful in any way. This is one of the first times that I saw a movie I really love in the cinema after only seeing it on DVD, which was really striking. The movie screen is really like a window into a completely different world. Sorry if that sounds gay, but it’s true.
My question is, are there any movies you guys have not had a chance to see on the big screen yet but would love to? It’s difficult because so many older films pop up in odd places in Chicago – at midnight screenings (like this one), at the cinemas that show art films, or in re-releases (see Blade Runner next!) One movie that comes to mind immediately for me is American Psycho – a movie I’ve probably seen 50 times, but never in the theater. And I would really love the chance to see Solaris on the big screen again (the Clooney/Soderbergh one), even though I did see it in the theater once.
All this aside, the version of Donnie Darko we saw was the director’s cut, and I didn’t like it as much as the original theatrical version. Sure, I’m prejudiced because I’ve seen the first version so many times. But I thought the scenes and overlays the director added later really just cluttered the storyline, which was already sufficiently convoluted.

BLADE RUNNER

I saw this movie on VHS back when I was in college, and must have been completely wasted because I remembered approximately 5 minutes of it. This is the final and ultimate director’s cut (no voiceover, no miscommunications, no Hollywood misconceptions). I loved it. Sometimes the old-school special effects are impressively amazing – this movie is from 1982, when I was 6 years old, and somehow they used their crude technology of the times to create a cityscape that vividly conjures up an imaginary place and time better than any recent movies seem to manage. I really believe that CGI has its place in moviemaking, and people are overusing it. No, I’m not super-excited to see Beowulf, which looks like a video game to me. The sets of Blade Runner have an immediacy which most directors can only achieve in their wildest dreams. Plus, how creepy and macabre is Sebastian’s apartment, full of rejected and mutated genetic experiments gone wrong? I didn’t remember that part of the movie at all, which reinforces my suspicion that I must have been really quite altered at the time of my first viewing.

Catching Up With More Movies

2007-11-10T12:37:00.000-06:00

Rendition

This movie was so-so. It’s a typical Hollywood movie in that it’s boiled down to the simplest, most black-and-white scenarios (all while supposedly dealing with morally ambiguous material). I’m sure the filmmakers thought they were making a complex, thought-provoking movie, but it’s kind of the opposite. A lot of critics complained about the love story between two incidental characters distracting from the main story, but I actually liked that part of the movie more than the main one. At least it had more of a sense of time and place than the scenes with Reese Witherspoon wandering around Washington D.C. and dramatically flipping out at various politicians.

The Kingdom

Argh, more time in the Middle East. Watching these movies back-to-back made me extremely tired of the desert. I can’t even begin to imagine how the people stationed there must feel… or the people who call that part of the world their home. It’s just very foreign to me.
Anyway this movie was entertaining, in a Hollywood blow ‘em up way. It’s worth watching for Jason Bateman’s wise-ass character. He’s somehow inherently charming, even when his characters are kind of losers. Here’s another good example of a movie that posits an anti-war message to pacifists, but would be seen as a pro-war movie by warmongers.

Dan In Real Life

At the end of our three-movie day, it was nice to see something that was a little more personal and light, even though the main characters are tortured and depressed in their own ways. This film was really quite funny and I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a pleasant diversion, or just to counterbalance too many movies about war and torture.

Michael Clayton

I loved this movie! I read a lot of reviews describing it as overly portentious and kind of boring, but I disagree completely. It’s the kind of subtle, slow-placed thriller that I just love. Which means that most people will probably not like it. The worst part is being forced to stare at George Clooney’s ugly mug for two hours. When will Hollywood wake up and start putting attractive people in movies for once?

Mop of Ginger, Live in Concert

2007-11-07T18:45:00.000-06:00

We went to see Glenn Hansard and Marketa Irglova (b.k.a. those dandy musicians from the movie ONCE) at the Crystal Ballroom last night. They are awesome, and they performed awesomely, but my enjoyment of the concert was completely and utterly eclipsed by the shitty-ass venue. Imagine a giant gymnasium (that happens to have fancy chandeliers hanging from the rafters) packed to max (standing room only) capacity. Now imagine a teeny weeny 1' elevated stage in the most arbitrary corner of said gymnasium. I was standing completely upright for 3 hours amidst a sea of perfumey, horny and/or rude people, and couldn't see shit. It sucked, man. Some tall, bulky dude tried finagling himself into the EXACT space that I was inhabiting and then got all indignant when I elbowed him in the back. He played it off like he was just trying to go throw his cup away. Yeah, whatev, taint-face. Finally when my knees and lower back (and the little voices in my head telling me to bludgeon the PDA-happy couple next to me) couldn't take it any longer, we left. Leaving early turned out to be really fucking difficult because we couldn't seem to extricate ourselves from the crowd. It was borderless. You know how when you fly over a gigantic metropolis like Mexico City or Tokyo or (I imagine) Los Angeles, the development just seems to stretch on forever, as far as your eye can see? That's what this crowd felt like. Oh man did it suck! What a shame, too, because Glenn Hansard and Marketa Irglova rock. I feel like I might be an abnormally intolerant and/or misanthropic person because I had such a miserable time. Does anyone else have a concert horror story to share? Regardless, I will never go back to the Crystal Ballroom again. Ever. Unless Michael Jackson or Bowie play there.

Things We Lost in the Fire

2007-10-20T13:28:00.000-05:00

Steve and I were debating what movie to go to last night, and decided on Rendition, with possible second choices of Gone Baby Gone and Michael Clayton. As we were waiting in line, every movie sold out. We settled on Things We Lost in the Fire, and I suspect everyone else in the theater was there because their first choice was sold out, too.
This film was actually a good example of a successful Hollywood melodrama. For a movie directed by a foreigner, it adhered pretty strictly to Hollywood norms. It was more artful, and there were some elliptical moments that made it worth watching. Also, you should watch it to support Agent Mulder… er, I mean David Duchovny’s career.

Plus, how great is Benicio del Toro? I’ll love him forever for being Dr. Gonzo, but his face is so interesting. It has more character than 2,000 L.A. pretty boys.

Movies & Malcolm

2007-10-16T15:14:00.000-05:00

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

I enjoyed this film very much, in spite of its overlong running time and my less-than-ideal viewing circumstances. The theater was crowded, and I was sitting right by the craziest person I’ve ever been trapped next to in a movie. He was smacking his lips and making grunting noises throughout the film. He would also occasionally make sounds that sounded as if he was about to vomit, and then would put his head down on the seat in front of him for extended periods of time, then stretch his arms out, sit back, and start smacking his lips again. He spent quite a large chunk of the movie not even looking at the screen. It was alarming to say the least. Ryan was sitting to my left, and I was scooted so far over to his side that I was practically in his lap. Aside from that, I’m impressed that such an artsy Western managed to get a wide release (I guess anything with Brad Pitt in it is guaranteed a release). I can’t really imagine that this movie has very broad appeal, yet moviegoers all over the country will be force-fed something very atypical just because they want to look at Brad Pitt. I would like to see this movie again without a raving lunatic sitting next to me. The music was excellent (composed by Nick Cave, who also has a cameo appearance), and everything just fit together well. There’s also a sequence leading up to a train robbery which is one of the most beautifully composed setpieces I’ve seen in recent memory.

The Darjeeling Limited

This was a pretty minor movie, but still entertaining and easy to watch. It did make me think about how most Hollywood movies are about independently wealthy people, and no one is ever strapped for cash. That’s probably the most annoying thing about Wes Anderson films – his movies are about the emotional problems of insanely rich people, and therefore his characters are less accessible. I saw this movie with my friend D, who also started a conversation about how dubious it is for rich people to travel to the third world to find themselves, and how it’s a form of reverse colonialism. Aside from all that, the movie is enjoyable, and the settings are spectacular, of course. One of the only scenes that actually hits hard is a scene involving Owen Wilson and his injuries. Other than that, all of the issues in the movie seem surfacey and slight. I’d still say it’s worth watching, especially for people interested in traveling to India (you know who you are).

Never Apologize!

This screening was awesome, and also shocking. The awesome part: It was a documentary about Lindsay Anderson, who is one of the most fascinating directors working during the British New Wave movement, and also a somewhat obscure figure due to the fact that he only made five movies and died quite awhile ago. I finally found out more about him – the film was basically Malcolm McDowell telling stories about the filming of If…. and O Lucky Man, and anecdotes about other actors and directors, etc. McDowell somehow carried the entire running time without ever centering on himself or seeming the slightest bit pretentious or conceited. The film was riotously funny (OK, I’m a little bit of a film snob, and a lot of people maybe wouldn’t think it was funny)… Regardless, McDowell’s bit about John Gielgud walking by a set during the filming of Caligula and exclaiming “I’ve never seen more cock in my life!” was so funny I was practically choking on my tongue.
Anyway, the shocking part: Malcolm McDowell was there, and was scheduled to be there the whole time, and the film was shown in one of the smaller theaters, and it was STILL not sold out! Seriously, Malcolm McDowell! He’s fucking Alex from A Clockwork Orange! He’s one of the greatest living legendary actors of our time! He’s even in Heroes, if you care about that stupid TV shit…. And there were seriously not even 150 people there to see him live, answering questions and discussing his work. My friend Craig accompanied me, and wondered what kind of corner we’ve turned, where Malcolm F’in McDowell can’t even sell out a smallish theater in Chicago… Seriously, what the hell?
But I’m pleased that I saw him, and he was more articulate and hilarious and charming than I could have ever hoped for. He helped shape my entire life when I saw A Clockwork Orange at an inappropriate age, and I’ll always love him for that.

FILM FEST, CON’T.

2007-10-13T15:46:00.000-05:00

I saw some more movies:

Maldeamores, i.e. Lovesickness

I didn’t have high hopes for this movie because it’s Puerto Rican, and I admittedly have a somewhat skewed view of people from PR. As far as I know, there is no film industry in PR. But maybe there should be! This followed a pretty traditional storytelling scheme, where several different stories are told with a loose connecting theme (heartbreak). It was cute and funny without being too cloying or manipulative. Nothing groundbreaking, but the portrayal of some of the characters (especially an elderly lady enjoying the attention of two suitors) was quite enjoyable. If this gets any sort of release I’d recommend it.

Matsugane Potshot Affair
This was ostensibly a black comedy, but I was less than pleased with it. I actually thought about leaving several times, but figured that since I was paying for parking, I might as well suffer through the whole thing (don’t ask me, it made sense at the time). Once upon a time, I used to be a fan of Japanese cinema, and went out of my way to see Japanese films. There are still a few Japanese directors I will support, such as Miike. But I have to announce that my fascination with Japanese cinema is officially over. I suffered through two hours of a slow-paced story about a small town, and I swear there were no identifiable traces of humanity or emotion in the entire film. Plus, for some reason, there’s always a creepy sexually degrading plotline involving women in every Japanese film. Enough! I am officially kicking off my Mexican/Latin American film craze, and closing the door on the Japanese one.

Doubleteamed by Mathieu Amalric
I was planning on seeing The Diving Bell and the Butterfly last night, and my friend also wanted to see Heartbeat Detector. I thought I recognized Mathieu Amalric from a tiny, blurry still from Heartbeat Detector, but I looked him up on imdb and didn’t see the movie listed. I bought tickets anyway, and guess what, it was him after all! The original French name of the film was vastly different, and that’s why I didn’t realize it was the same movie. A entire night spent with Mathieu Amalric – it was really enjoyable. The second movie was not as good, but I still got to gaze into his lovely dark eyes for two hours. Is he the hardest-working man in French independent cinema?

THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY

This movie made me ill, because I wanted to bawl like a big fat baby through the entire thing, but held it in. There were two many people around to cry like I wanted to. Aside from the emotional sledgehammer aspect of it, it’s one of the most artful movies I’ve ever seen, and the way the director (Julian Schnabel) worked with point of view was really perfect. The sound design and music was perfect too… Everything about this movie was perfect, and I’d say it’s a serious contender for best picture of the year. If you don’t know the story, it’s about the French editor of Elle magazine, who suffered a massive stroke and was completely paralyzed, except for his right eye. Everyone I know must see this movie, no questions asked.

HEARTBEAT DETECTOR

This film’s premise was that fitting into the corporate world is another form of Nazism. It’s an interesting one, to be sure, but the movie was overlong and had too many tangential scenes. It suffered from the common French film mishap of being overly intellectual. Worse things have happened, and I still enjoyed the movie (mainly due to the presence of Mr. Amalric). I had terrible shoulder pain and a headache from the last movie though, which ruined my ability to concentrate. After the movie was over I looked Mathieu up on imdb again – he was in seven films in 2007! I have to say I appreciate the way he’s trying to make himself accessible to me.

More Movies, Etc.

2007-10-06T13:44:00.000-05:00

TRADE

I actually enjoyed this film quite a bit. The basic structure is a B-movie, full of impossible coincidences and quite a bit of audience manipulation. I think it was elevated by strong performances all around, and some interesting cinematography (including really fascinating opening credits composed of aerial shots of Mexico City). I read some reviews that seemed upset to see such a pulpy treatment of a serious issue (people being bought and sold as sex slaves). I agree with that somewhat, but still liked the movie. It’s a nail-biter, and will make you depressed. You can also learn how to avoid being sold on the black market as a sex slave by learning from the characters’ mistakes.

FEAST OF LOVE

I went to see this movie mainly because Greg Kinnear is in it, and also because it was filmed in Portland. It sounded like a quirky, non-Hollywood style film about relationships. Wrong! This movie was gay, and not in the good way. While in the bathroom after the film, I heard two girls complaining about it, and I think I agree with their assessment: The movie jumped from dramatic moment to dramatic moment, and skipped all the development, so it basically felt like an empty series of people breaking up and dying and stuff. Greg Kinnear’s character was too heartbroken and needy for me to find him attractive, so it wasn’t even fun that way. Eh, whatever.

CHICAGO FILM FEST – DAY ONE
I’m not sure how many movies I’ll be able to catch at the festival. I’m hoping for at least 10, because that’s how many passes I bought. Last night I saw two movies:

Please Don’t Go, a French drama about a couple’s relationship and the various manipulations that occur when the woman starts cheating on her husband with one of his psychiatric patients. It was enjoyable, but nothing outstanding.

Bad Habits, a Mexican movie about eating disorders. The film follows several different characters and goes into pretty good depth with their various neuroses, relying on lots of heavy Catholic imagery. It reminded me of how crazy Latin American women are about weight issues – even crazier than American women, if that’s possible. There were a lot of interesting ideas, but the movie did feel a bit overlong. It’s Simon Bross’s first feature film though, so I think he’s someone to keep an eye on.

This one's for Oprah

2007-10-01T10:32:00.000-05:00

Book #13 - To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

I guess my middle school English teachers were asleep on the job, because somehow I never read this book until now. I started it back in July, I think, and I trudged along a couple pages at a time, until I finally got into it at page 80. So I loved 2/3 of the book and was bored by the first third. That's a conundrum.

I suppose, now that I know and love the characters, I would be engaged from the start upon re-reading. But where do you draw the line on these books? I'm starting to think that maybe I should make a rule about this. Maybe, when I start a new book, I should take it to a quiet place and force myself to read 20% of it in one sitting. If I'm still not engaged at that point, I give myself permission to abandon it altogether. What do you think? Have you read any books that took more than 100 pages to get into, but you still feel were worth the wait?

ONCE

2007-09-15T23:37:00.000-05:00

My first thought after this (late showing of the) movie ended was, "Damn, I wish there was a 24-hour record store somewhere so I could go buy the soundtrack NOW." I had to wait til the next morning and that was much too long to hear the songs again. This was the movie that-- if any of our lot had been at Sundance 2007 and seen it there-- we wouldn't have shut up about between January and when it opened.

The lead guy is the singlemost attractive ginger male I have ever seen in movies, TV, or otherwise. He owes most of his sex appeal not to his carrotty mop but to his singing voice, showmanship and generally awesome musical talent.

THANK GOD IT’S GOOD MOVIE SEASON

2007-09-15T10:02:00.000-05:00

I’m not fond of fall, but September always heralds the best time of year, cinematically speaking: The end of summertime schlock and the beginning of good movie season! Even the movies that aren’t that great (like The Brave One) are at least ambitious.

3:10 to Yuma

I can count the number of Westerns I’ve seen on one hand, but if they can get this good, maybe I should see some more. Steve thought this movie was only OK, but I thought it was superb, with really exciting action sequences that rely more on old-fashioned suspense rather than special effects. The performances of Christian Bale (who can really do no wrong) and Russell Crowe made this a really compelling movie. I wasn’t bored for a second.

Eastern Promises

I want to say so much about this movie, but I won’t, cause I know y’all haven’t seen it. Don’t read any reviews! Just go watch it! Viggo is so mind-numbingly awesome! Yeah, I’m biased when it comes to Cronenberg, but I’m not lying, this movie is wonderful.

The Brave One

Eh, whatever. One of the points of going to movies is that you get to empathize with characters who have questionable morality. But the morals of this movie are hopelessly muddled and unbelievable, so it was really difficult to enjoy it. It has its good points, and I’m glad to see that artful cinematography is becoming more routine in Hollywood movies. I also continue to find Terrence Howard attractive, even though he seems like a total jackass.

DADDY YANKEE

2007-09-05T20:24:00.001-05:00

Ryan and I went to this show of our own accord; Andrea was dragged unwillingly. I have never in my life been to a booty-shakin’ concert before, as I don’t often listen to that sort of music, but I have to say I had a great time. The arena was like a giant icebox, but the pyrotechnics actually warmed the place up. It wasn’t filled to capacity, so they switched our crappy seats for some on the side that were actually really close. I love reggaeton music no matter what anyone says, and I thought the whole thing really fulfilled my expectations of what a spectacle concert should be: Costume changes, indoor fireworks, lots of almost-naked dancers (both female and male), even dancing robots! Oddly enough, I heard less Spanish being spoken in the crowd than I have ever heard anywhere in the entire city of Chicago since I moved here… which was funny, because the crowd was approximately 100% Latino. I think Ryan was the token non-Latino there (although he doesn’t look particularly lily-white). Poor guy didn’t understand a single word Daddy Yankee said, but I don’t think it bothered him one bit. I can’t wait for the concert DVD to be released. My sister only enjoyed herself marginally. Whatever, she’s European, she can’t be expected to understand our pop culture.

It’s Already September and I’ve Only Seen 38 Movies

2007-09-05T20:21:00.001-05:00

Oh god, how did I fall so far behind? Even if I do a glut of movies at the Chicago Film Fest, I’ll never get anywhere near 100 this year. Here are my two most recent viewings:

THE NANNY DIARIES
I actually enjoyed this movie quite a bit. Maybe I’ve been watching too many Hollywood movies due to the time of year, and my brain has been rewired and programmed to find them more amusing than they actually are. The framing device of the movie is a sociological study of rich women who live in Manhattan’s upper East Side, and it was clever enough to win me over. I don’t quite get Scar Jo-Jo’s appeal; she’s cute and all, but far too sulky and bland to really stand out in my opinion. She did a decent and believable job as a clueless college grad thrust into the world of super-needy, pampered women. I’ve put up with a few women like that in the past, and am quite happy that I don’t presently have to. I suppose a good chunk of the humor was the uncomfortable variety that was funny because I could empathize with it.

WAR
Hey look, Keith is in this movie for some reason:

This movie was bad. Sorry, but it was. It’s an action movie with almost no action in the first solid hour. Crappy action movies are fun because of the violent setpieces, which are tied together with implausible scenarios and terrible dialog… Now imagine an action movie made only of the painful dialog and bad acting and none of the action. Sample lazy dialog line: “Your obsession with this man has already cost us our marriage, don’t let it cost you your son!” I’m serious… Not fun at all! I’m sorry, but why in the world would you pay Jet Li countless millions if you’re not going to utilize his skills? Dude didn’t even throw a kick for at least an hour and twenty minutes! To be honest, there were some good twists and great violent bursts in the last half hour, but at that point it was too late and I was thoroughly bored.

Halfway there

2007-09-05T09:52:00.000-05:00

Movie #12, Stardust

Stardust seems to belong to the '80s; it belongs in a trilogy with Labyrinth and The Princess Bride - fantasy movies that don't take themselves so seriously. I think Stardust captures many of the strengths of The Princess Bride, but some of the weaknesses of Labyrinth.

In my opinion, Stardust really works best when it winks at its own over-the-top drama. Neil Gaiman's sense of humor is showcased here to great effect. Robert DeNiro and Michelle Pfeiffer are particularly fun to watch, but I enjoyed Claire Danes and Charlie Cox too, and I was surprised to find myself engaged by their love story.

But there are pacing issues. And the main character remains a bit of a blank, so sometimes it feels like there's really nothing to hold onto. The motivations of the characters get really muddied, and the movie asks you to take a number of mental leaps that the story just doesn't back up.

And yet... I could see myself watching this movie over and over, because there are a lot of great little moments to make up for some of the flaws. Or maybe I should just read the book.

Tee hee

2007-08-20T10:27:00.000-05:00

Movie #11, Superbad

It's official. The Apatow group is the funniest around right now. Superbad is hilarious and sweet at the same time, just like Knocked Up. Can I declare them the best comedies of the summer even if I haven't seen any others?

Superbad concerns the immature machinations of three graduating high school boys trying desperately to get booze to bring to a party to impress girls. What the movie really accomplished (other than causing me to snort rather embarrassingly) was to make me realize that high school SUCKED. I've actually spent the last eight years believing that I loved high school, and that I had a great time there. NO. So false. Watching Superbad made me realize how much pressure we were under then. How much it sucked to never know the right thing to do or say, to always feel wrong somehow. The movie also makes you realize that it is truly amazing to come out of that time with even one great friend, and I'm luckier than most to be able to say that I have a whole slew of them.

I Saw Some More Movies

2007-08-18T16:42:00.001-05:00

SICKO
This movie didn’t outrage me as much as I thought it would, mainly because none of the ideas were new to me. I guess I was already sufficiently outraged about our national health care situation before seeing it. All of the stuff about how the national health care plan was actually set up in the 70s by Nixon was new to me – and made my blood boil. This is probably more terrifying than any horror movie out in the theaters at the moment.

EVAN ALMIGHTY
Blah, how much money did they spend on this bloated, so-called comedy? I think I chuckled two or three times. Steve Carrell was wasted along with all that money.

SUNSHINE
Good for those people who are interested in slow-paced, cerebral sci-fi (probably less than 1% of the general population). Outstanding performances by all of the actors involved, especially Chris Evans and the lovely Cillian Murphy (as always). The last third does go a bit off the rails, but I think it’s more than justified. I probably need to see this again, if nothing else for the stellar cinematography (stellar, get it? Ha, ha).

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE
Whoever hasn’t seen this movie really just needs to get to the theater and see it immediately. The first half hour in particular will make you choke on your popcorn. I thought the writers wouldn’t be able to come up with new material that’s still funny – I was dead wrong.

I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK AND LARRY
The most surprising thing about this movie is that it’s actually very funny. I laughed through the whole thing. I thought it was fairly sensitive in spite of the barrage of gay jokes, and I’d definitely recommend this as a rental or budget theater movie. There’s Hollywood stupidity galore, of course, but it’s really one of the funniest mainstream comedies I’ve seen recently.

THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
The thing I liked about this franchise (the first one in particular) was the crystal-clear cinematography which allowed you to see every detail of the fight and chase sequences vividly. That’s completely abandoned in this film for blurry, camera-jiggling, quick-cut editing, which results in the general impression of violence. I don’t like not being able to see what kind of action the characters in action movies are involved in. Especially when the actor is Matt Damon, and he looks great, and you know he trained damn hard to get in shape. This movie will get your adrenaline pumping, especially during the sharp-shooter assassin sequences, but overall I was somewhat annoyed by my inability to see anything.

4: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER
Thanks, budget theater, for my almost-private screening of this movie. One other person was in the theater with me – I still can’t believe that out of all my matinee viewings in Chicago, I have never seen a movie in a completely empty theater yet. Anyway, this was marginally interesting. Horrible acting and dead, flat dialog, of course – but I didn’t expect anything more from it.

Why so hot?

2007-08-13T11:27:00.000-05:00

Movie #10, The Bourne Ultimatum

Oh, I am so proud that in the late 90's when all young ladies were taking their stance on that oh-so-important life question - Matt or Ben? - Sandy and I both chose Matt. The Bourne Ultimatum is just as awesome as the other two Bourne movies. What's great is that the filmmakers haven't turned Jason Bourne into James Bond or Indiana Jones or whatever. He's almost a throwback to the more stoic heroes of Westerns.

(I also saw Ratatouille and Harry Potter, and loved them both. HP especially, because this was the first movie where I thought all the young actors did a great job, including Dan Ratcliffe, with whom I've never been very impressed.)

I've been busy

2007-08-09T09:42:00.000-05:00

Books 11 & 12: Shih Tzu owner's manuals

We just moved into a new house and not three days later, I was approved to adopt this little guy. I didn't think it would happen so fast, so we've spent the last couple of weeks packing, moving, and then frantically unpacking and buying supplies for mini Cooper over there.

OK, I'll be honest, the whole point of this post is to show off my cute dog, but we did buy two different guides to help us with training him, one from Barron's and one from Animal Planet. Unfortunately, they contradict each other a lot. In those situations, we've gone with the Animal Planet book, because it seems more reasonable. For example, it says to NEVER use a choke chain on shih tzus, while the Barron's book says that they're great for training, even on a little four-pound puppy. How could anyone think a choke chain would be a good idea?

My Precious...

2007-07-24T17:46:00.000-05:00

Book #9 - Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, by J.K. Rowling
Book #10 - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling

What can I say about Harry Potter? He's been a part of my life since I was 19, and I can say that this last book surpassed all my expectations, and is easily my favorite book of the series. And now I am just sad, because there will never be another one.

And I doubt that there will ever be a phenomenon like Harry Potter again in my lifetime. Movie series like Star Wars and Lord of the Rings have a similar feeling, but those come along every decade or so. Harry Potter is different. I've gone to three midnight release parties to get my books (including the one last week). They are like the Geeky Teen Super Bowl, and it's a wonderful thing to see. All these kids who usually don't feel comfortable in their skin, all proudly sporting their Gryffindor scarves and SPEW buttons and wizard robes, and they're all talking to anyone and everyone about these darn books. It helps to remember these people when you start to question whether it's normal to feel so attached to these characters and to this world. The answer is: millions of other people feel the exact same way.

To anyone out there who has still only seen the movies, but never read the books: I'm almost envious of you, but seriously... what the hell are you waiting for?

Vacation Reading

2007-07-24T16:37:00.000-05:00

Book #7 - Two for the Road, by Jane and Michael Stern

Jane and Michael Stern live a sweet life of traveling around the country, eating a lot of food. Usually around 12 meals a day or so. That sounds a little over the top, but otherwise it's tough to imagine a better way to spend your time. Besides their column in Gourmet and appearances on NPR's Splendid Table, they've put out a ton of cookbooks and guides to Road Food. This book is 2/3 memoir of life on the road, 1/3 recipes and tips on finding the best off the beaten path. It was a fun and easy read.

Book #8 - All the King's Men, by Robert Penn Warren

Speaking of fun and easy... this book is neither. Well, it's fun in the sense that I haven't read a better book since I graduated college. It's absolutely incredible, and I feel unequal to the task of talking about it. Robert Penn Warren does amazing things in this book, but the most amazing to me is the seamlessness of the writing. You're humming along, enthralled by the plot, when suddenly you stop yourself because you've just read a passage like this and you barely noticed it because Warren just slipped it in:

"He lived for a few years and in that time he learned that the world is all of one piece. He learned that the world is like an enormous spider web and if you touch it, however lightly, at any point, the vibration ripples to the remotest perimeter and the drowsy spider feels the tingle and is drowsy no more but springs out to fling the gossamer coils about you who have touched the web and then inject the black, numbing poison under your hide. It does not matter whether or not you meant to brush the web of things. Your happy foot or your gay wing may have brushed it ever so lightly, but what happens always happens and there is the spider, bearded black and with his great faceted eyes glittering like mirrors in the sun, or like God’s eye, and the fangs dripping."

My point is, you should read this book now.

Scary and Scarier

2007-07-12T21:19:00.000-05:00

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

By now you should know better than to expect these Potter movies to be "good." As Marc said, as Potter fans, we see them more out of obligation than out of excitement. Right? If so, then this is a respectable entry into the tome. I can't keep track of who directed it, but he made it adequately scary. Award for Freshest Performance goes to Luna Lovegood; Most Improved Acting to Harry; Best Build to strapping young Ron Weasley!

Sicko

This gave me nightmares! I recommend seeing this documentary from the comfort of a European country with a national health plan. Yes, now we know why, as Americans, we are brainwashed to hate the French and the Brits: their smug countries (see photo)look after their citizens (and visitors)... and ours doesn't.

If you are lucky enough to be plugged into your employer's group health scheme (or unlucky enough, depending on the job you have to put up with to get it), then run out and see this immediately. You likely don't know what all the fuss is about when it comes to American health care and you bloody well should. But if you, like me, buy your own health insurance or, like many young people I know, are uninsured-- watching this will get your panties twisted really tightly. Have a stiff drink before watching. And write your representatives!

SUMMER MOVIE TIME

2007-07-07T14:54:00.000-05:00

Hmmm, my movie-viewing this year so far is going at a sluggish pace. Halfway through the year, and I haven’t even hit 30? Time for an intervention…
Anyway, Steve and I caught another double-header at the General Cinema on Sunday. Actually that theater is now called “Kerasotes Showplace,” but since it was once General Cinema, it will always be General Cinema to me.

LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD
Yes, I liked the first three installments of this series, especially the third one with Jeremy Irons. They almost seem like indie films in comparison to this one – they were all cat-and-mouse games between an alluring Eurotrash Bad Guy and Bruce Willis’ lazy cop. This installment is more about pyrotechnics, endless car crashes, and Bruce Willis doing insane stunts that would have been impossible for his character in the previous three films. He’s basically a caricature of his former character. It’s weird, but as far as popcorn action flicks go, it’s decent. The rapport between Bruce and the Apple Guy is pretty fun, and the barrage of car/helicopter/airplane shootouts made me really want to spend more time playing Grand Theft Auto. This would be a good movie to see at the budget theater.

RATAOUILLE
I avoid animation as a rule, because movies made for children are usually completely retarded. For some reason I was excited about this movie, because it’s about rats, cooking, and France – three things which aren’t usually dealt with in American films, and three things which seem interesting to me. This movie more than met my expectations – it was entertaining throughout, it was intelligently made and funny, and the animation was quite frankly astounding. Steve and I kept turning to each other to remark how we couldn’t believe that certain sequences weren’t actually real – the foggy nightscape of the Seine, all of the water sequences, the red onions, the hairs on the rats, their little hearts beating through their chests – the hyper-realism was mind-boggling. Comparing this movie to last summer’s Happy Feet is like comparing the most exquisite dish from your favorite restaurant to a steaming turd.

I'm a-scared!

2007-06-25T09:49:00.000-05:00

Movie #7, 1408

I read Carrie for the first time when I was about 12. I figured it was my duty. I liked it, and moved on to Misery. Soon I was reading 1000 page monsters, like IT and The Stand. In 8th grade, when I was finally getting over my horrible middle school introversion, I met a kindred spirit. Nick and I spent many a class passing notes back and forth about Stephen King. One of my strongest middle school memories involves Nick getting a little too chatty--when our German teacher called him disrespectful, he replied, "Oh my fucking God," which seemed like the absolute limit of disrespect. He was promptly removed from class and sent home for a couple days.

Anyway, 13 years later, Nick and I are still friends, even though he lives a half a world away. He's home for a month and a half, and when he suggested that we see a movie, 1408 seemed like the perfect choice.

Based on a short story by Stephen King, 1408 is about a cynical author who writes about haunted places. When he's warned not to go into one particular room in a New York hotel, he can't resist. John Cusack seems bored with his life and bored with acting, but that boredom kinda works here. He turns the juices on when it counts, and the movie is a lot scarier for it.

I don't usually see horror movies in the theater, because I don't like feeling that I can't get away. When I read scary books, or watch scary movies at home, I can always put the book down or hit pause and leave the room for awhile. When you're in a theater, there's nowhere to go and you can't make it stop. I would have liked to hit the old pause button a few times during this one.

Shia LaJailbait

2007-06-24T23:40:00.000-05:00

Disturbia

Add this one to the list of soon-to-be Gen-Y teen classics like Mean Girls and... well... dang, is that all they got? Poor suckers. Anyway, this movie is good. It had way more going on than Rear Window. Actually I always fall asleep before Rear Window even ends... in my book, that's never an indication of good pacing. (Sorry, 2001. Sorry, Apocalypse Now.) So Shia LaBeouf (which I think means 'the beef' in French) is very beefy indeed. As if that wasn't enough to make your loins long for teenagerdom, he's even got a smart-assed and incredibly cute Asian-American sidekick (the heretofore anonymous face of Cinema AZN, Aaron Yoo.) Mysterious neighbor David Morse manages to be creepy and sexy in that middle-aged earring way that Harrison Ford's had going on since his 60th birthday. The chicks in this movie are hot, too. Carrie Ann Moss kind of looks like she's wearing a fat suit, but it works for her. But lest you think this movie is all about sex appeal, it also has some laughs and tears and pulse-pounding moments. I daresay it's a great date movie, or a great Friday night rental.

THE NAMESAKE

2007-06-22T20:24:00.000-05:00

I caught this movie on its last day at the Logan Budget Theater (thanks again, Logan Budget, for pulling through and showing good films when nobody else is!) I sort of, kind of wanted to see this movie, and would have certainly seen it a lot sooner if I had any idea how much it would blow me away. Sorry, but my preconceptions about Indian films are biased. For some reason every Indian-American film has to be about how American-raised Indian children have to deal with their “crazy” parents and fight about whether to date white people or other Indian-Americans. After this movie I feel like nobody should bother trying to touch on these themes again, because this is the definitive treatment (for any family, not just Indian immigrants). The movie is gorgeously filmed from start to finish, the acting is superlative and heartfelt, everything about this film is so perfect that I really wish I could have seen it sooner, just so I could have forced everybody I know to see it in the theater. I spent the last 1/3 of the movie crying, and had to sit through the credits to compose myself. After the credits were done and the lights came up, I left the theater, only to see an 80-something woman sitting by herself in a trance… she was clearly not able to compose herself even after the credits were done, and that made me even sadder. I’m officially editing my Best Of 2006 list and putting this movie in the top 5, if not higher.

I'm back! and I see dead people.

2007-06-17T14:38:00.000-05:00

28 Weeks Later
Movie #??

I can't even believe I went to see this. I'm not quite as terrified of zombies as Maya, but I've had enough of them star in my nightmares to know better. Fortunately this relatively strong sequel (as far as horror flicks go) was gorey, but not all that scary. Granted I don't scare easily. Marc's 15-year-old sister (who we successfully convinced to see this instead of Waitress) slept with the lights on.

Even if you didn't like 28 Days Later (and I didn't-- too many repetitive zombie chases, and in broad delight to boot--yuck) you might enjoy this one for its apocalyptic leanings and all-American heroes.

Ocean’s Thirteen

2007-06-13T19:08:00.000-05:00

Yay, the Ocean’s movies are good again! If you want to watch an actiony, slick and witty movie that is entertaining about 98% of its running time, go watch this one. This movie takes my expectations of a summer blockbuster and blows them beyond what I would ever hope for – I’ll even see this one again in the theater! Seriously, it’s weird how often we drag ourselves to the theaters to see these bloated blockbusters that we really don’t want to watch… I mean, we ALL knew Spiderman 3 would blow chunks and be painfully long and insincere, and I know that Pirates 3 will be totally excruciating when I finally choose to see it… but there’s this weird compulsion, or maybe the completionist impulse, that forces me to sit through this shit… Basically I’m trying to say that even though this is the third installment of a trilogy (and the second one was unbelievably bad and self-indulgent), you won’t be disappointed, unless you hate impeccably edited, fun, and splashy movies. Be warned, however: Al Pacino is bizarrely orange. I guess it fits the character he’s playing, but seriously, what happened to him?

Huh?

2007-06-13T11:13:00.000-05:00

Movie #6, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Someone help explain this movie! I saw it this weekend, but I am at a total loss as to how to talk about it. I'm not even sure if I liked it. I don't particularly want to see it again, so maybe that means I didn't?

I also can't say whether it was better or worse than the second film, because I can't remember more than five minutes of that one. And I liked that one. Well, more than most people, anyway.

Guh! Maya? Sandy? Anyone else wanna tackle this one?

Which comedy group reigns supreme?

2007-06-07T10:48:00.000-05:00

Movie #5, Knocked Up

Judd Apatow and his stable of funny people have created some of the best television and funniest movies in the past ten years. Freaks and Geeks was wonderful and touching and damn hilarious, and Undeclared... needed more time to live up to its potential. 40 Year Old Virgin was sweet and funny, if a little uneven. Now, I hesitate to say this without re-viewing Freaks and Geeks, but I think Knocked Up is my favorite thing Apatow has ever created.

Er, um, ok, no. I can't do that. Freaks and Geeks is still the best. But Knocked Up is for sure my favorite Apatow movie. I was more attached to these characters, the storyline was located closer to reality, and the laughs were consistent and surprising.

So this led me to this question: which comedy group is the best out there right now? Or the best of all time? I know there's some overlap in all of these, but here are a few:

The Apatow group: includes Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Steve Carrell, Will Ferrell, Jason Segel, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Martin Starr, Leslie Mann, Jane Lynch, Amy Adams AND seems to be mixing with all the awesome people from Arrested Development

The "Frat Pack": includes Will Ferrell, Luke Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller, David Koechner, Christine Taylor

The Christopher Guest group: includes Christopher Guest, Eugene Levy, Michael McKean, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, Bob Balaban, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Lynch, Fred Willard, Harry Shearer, John Michael Higgins, Ed Begley Jr., Michael Hitchcock, Larry Miller

Are there others I'm forgetting? It's hard to argue against the sheer incredible talent of the Christopher Guest crew, but I think maybe these Apatow-adjacent people are becoming the comedy group of this generation. Any thoughts?

I read stacks and stacks of books!

2007-06-07T10:13:00.001-05:00

OK, well not stacks. But three is pretty good for me at this point. And I just realized they were all Christmas presents! Thanks Bud's Mom, Brother Eric, and Nicole!

Book #4 - Breakfast at Tiffany's, by Truman Capote

I read this a few months ago, and it was short and delicious, but I don't remember much about it. I'm sure you've all seen the movie.

Book #5, The Nasty Bits, by Anthony Bourdain

Sandy wrote about this last year, so I won't go into too much detail. It's a fun and easy read, like all of his books. This one is less cohesive, by virtue of the fact that it's really just a random assortment of his writing. Some magazine articles, some little essays, even a short fiction piece. I particularly liked the travel pieces, again, although the one with his wife made me sad because of their eventual divorce. So, anyone know if he and his new model girlfriend had their baby yet?

Book #6, The History of Love, by Nicole Krauss

Amazon.com constantly recommends this book to me, so I was very pleased when Nicole gave it to me for Christmas. I read it in just a few hours, and was totally absorbed. It's the story of an old man who escaped Poland during the Holocaust, and lives alone in New York with no family. It's also the story of a young girl who was named after a character in a book her parents read when they were falling in love, and the author of that book. It reads like a flower opening, and I know that is cheesy, but that's the way it feels. Every chapter opens up a little more of the story. If I say too much more, this will really devolve into some major Book Club babble; "theme" this and "motif" that. Anyway, it's a smart, funny and engaging read.

More Movies

2007-05-29T21:45:00.000-05:00

FAY GRIM
So I went and saw Hal Hartley’s new movie, which we missed at Toronto last year. I usually am not crazy about his movies – the dialog is so forced and artificial that it tends to get on my nerves. This time it worked somehow, and I thought the first half was completely hilarious, and expanded the characters from Henry Fool quite well. The second half gets more convoluted and is full of bizarre monologues about terrorism and politics, during which I mostly zoned out. I’m not entirely sure what the point was; it was definitely an overdose of ideas and themes. It was nice to see a big part in a non-romantic comedy given to a woman, and I do like Parker Posey in spite of the fact that she always seems like she’s playing every character as herself. I was also glad to see that Saffron Burrows is still working, even though she looks like she’s in the final days of a hunger strike.

BUG
I refuse to see anything resembling a horror movie by myself, so Steve accompanied me to this screening. It’s a great character study, and not as scary as I thought it would be, although it’s certainly horrifying and nerve-wracking. You can tell that it was originally a play, but that didn’t bother me. The actors were uniformly excellent, and the film gives a great sense of time and place – one of my favorite things to experience at the movies, since Hollywood films only succeed in achieving a sense of complete artificiality. Ashley Judd is 100% convincing as a desperate trailer-trash woman at the bottom of a downward spiral, and both the men in her life are terrifying in their own special ways (Harry Connick Jr. as the abusive husband fresh out of jail was still disturbingly hot though). There’s a lot of funny dialog in this movie, although it’s mostly funny in the ha-ha-nervous way. I’d definitely recommend this film for anyone who’s interested in feeling acutely uncomfortable.

Bjork!

2007-05-29T21:44:00.000-05:00

I forgot to post about one of the best concerts I’ve ever seen – Bjork, finally! I’m not crazy about her new album, but there are a couple tracks I love, and it’s growing on me. Seeing her live was quite the spectacle – she’s like a deranged outer-space priestess and really plays to the crowd. It was kind of a greatest hits tour because she played so many of her popular older songs (albeit with new twists, and all extremely loud and exciting).
Now, to complain – is it too much to ask not to have your concert-going experience ruined when you’re spending over $100 for tickets? Steve and I have a constant problem of sitting near disruptive people in movies and concerts. It might be because we go to so many events that it just seems like we’re around noisy douchebags all the time, but I really think that we’re both exposed to a greater-than-average number of people hell-bent on ruining our fun. I also think it happens because we’re two of the few people I know who always tell the people around us to shut up, and end up getting in fights with strangers who somehow think we’re interfering with their right to talk through whatever show or movie they’re ostensibly watching. Long story short, two seconds before Bjork gets on stage, these two insanely drunk and slurry girls sit directly behind us. I shouldn’t say sit, because they were standing, leaning over us and weaving dangerously. They started off by introducing themselves to the people around them and saying, “Hi Bjork fans!” I knew we were in trouble. They proceeded to sing along with the choruses (loudly enough to drown out Bjork since they were about a foot from us), and talking to one another at all other times. I could tell Steve was about to turn around and strangle them, and I was silently hoping they would just calm down and that no one would have to die. Eventually it reached a ridiculous level, and we both turned around to scream at them (Steve had already told them to shut up several times, and each time one of the girls would squeal, “Oh my gawd, the guy in front of me told me to shut up!” as if she was absolutely aghast at his bad manners). I couldn’t really back him up too much because this was during the three days when I completely lost my voice, so I was just making angry gestures. After the fact, I found out that the girl had actually spilled her drink on Steve’s head TWICE – I would have gone completely ballistic, so I have no idea how he held it together. He stormed out after this and got an usher to kick them out. I was afraid they’d just get talked to and come back, but they actually got thrown out – easier to accomplish than I thought. When they got escorted out, everyone sitting near us started clapping.
Anyway, they were gone by the fifth song, so not too much of the concert was ruined. I’m sure those girls will be talking about how they got unfairly thrown out of a Bjork concert for years to come.

Sugar and spice and everything nice

2007-05-25T09:21:00.001-05:00

Movie #4, Waitress

I bet most reviews of Waitress use pies as a metaphor. It's almost impossible not to do that, and I'm not going to try: watching Waitress is like eating a slice of Lemon Meringue — it's sweet and light, but it's got a real bite to it.

Keri Russell is just fantastic as Jenna, a weary waitress and baker of incredible pies who desperately wants out of her life. Finding out she's pregnant with her controlling husband's baby makes everything that much worse.

Russell can certainly do "weary," but what's interesting about Jenna is her absolute fury about her life. Russell never loses track of this overwhelming anger, and it colors every aspect of the character. I think it makes the viewer root even harder for Jenna, because she's not simply resigned to the life she's living. There's no quiet suffering here, and that's a pretty refreshing thing for a feminist movie buff to see.

Writer, director, and co-star Adrienne Shelly was murdered in her apartment a few months before the film's premiere at Sundance. I knew that going in, but I wasn't prepared for how devastated I felt when the movie ended. Like Wes Anderson or Tim Burton, Shelly made a film that seems to inhabit a slightly different world than this one, where the colors and flavors are all a little brighter, and the people are all a little off-kilter. She is such a delight as sweet, naive Dawn, but it's the loss of a great female writer and director that hits the hardest.

2007-05-17T17:27:00.000-05:00

Movies #17-21
Low-Budget Fun
I wanted to see a movie today, and seriously could not find a single film I wanted to see – goddamn this is a dry time for film buffs! Anyway, I happened to notice the Chicago Latino Film Festival had just started, and my interest was piqued by a film called Welcome To the Barrio – filmed entirely in Chicago on a low budget. I usually have a problem with low budget films – not to generalize, but I hate it when films are sloppy, and you can tell the actors are amateurs, and it’s painful and juvenile… This film was about a Hispanic guy coming home to the South side of Chicago (Little Village) and getting in trouble with his old friend who’s now a gangbanger – yeah, nothing new there… But I have to say I was extremely surprised by the high quality of the script, editing, and acting overall. The story was completely clichéd, sure, but the filmmaker really captured how it feels to drive through grungy Chicago streets and alleys to get to ghetto Latino nightclubs, and how it feels to chug beer by the lake or on rooftops while overlooking the city…
The actors all showed up for the Q&A, which was a nice surprise, too. So – here’s a conundrum – will I be more open-minded in the future, and see more low-budget films? Or will I only be open-minded if the film holds the promise of cute Mexican and Puerto Rican actors?

The Valet
This movie was a French trifle, a comedy about infidelity and relationships in general. It was actually quite amusing, even though I found one of the main characters a bit unbelievable - a supermodel who was sweet, open, and not the slightest bit high-maintenance. The film did make me jealous of Parisians and their constant lunching in outdoors cafes.

Spiderman III
OK, whose idea was it to give Sam Raimi eleventy billion dollars to make a movie? Did they not see Army of Darkness? A lot of the jokey moments in this movie reminded me of that one through and through. Some of the comedy bits worked, like Bruce Campbell as the French waiter – but even that is a wink-wink moment for his old fans. There are so many parts of this movie that don’t work, such as:
Diaper-Face, aka Snaggletooth Dunst, whose ability to suck at acting and look hideously ugly at the same time is nearly transcendent.
Tobey Maguire’s transformation into “Bad” Spiderman, where he just wears eyeliner and has a slightly gayer haircut.
When “Bad” Spiderman walks down the sidewalk giving ladies the finger-guns, either attracting or repulsing them.
Every scene where his grandma gives him relationship advice. Who the hell cares what that old lady has to say? This is supposed to be an action movie!
The pinnacle of stupidity in the movie, where Tobey upstages Snaggletooth in a jazz club. This is the point of the movie where I thought, wow, $350 million can probably restructure a third-world nation. But instead, we have Spiderman 3.
Oh, but James Franco is cute.

Double Feature Day: Fracture and Hot Fuzz
Yay, I saw two good films in one day! Almost washes out the bitter taste of Spiderman 3.

Fracture
This movie was truly excellent. The clash between two clichés (cold-hearted criminal and cold-hearted lawyer) is nothing new, but there are plenty of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. The acting was remarkable, of course, and the cinematography was stunning – every shot was set up absolutely beautifully. This is a must-see for anyone who hasn’t see it, especially Ryan Gosling fans (you know who you are).

Hot Fuzz
This movie was long, but truly funny. I don’t think you have to be a Brit comedy fan to enjoy this. It’s ridiculous and over-the-top, and really enjoyable from start to finish.

Why, hello there!

2007-05-07T08:38:00.000-05:00

Movie #3, Spiderman 3

OK, so I'm cheating a little here, because I really haven't seen a movie in three months, but I did go to a film festival. Unfortunately, I was working, not watching. But I did see roughly one-quarter to one-third of several different films while working, so I'm mashing them together and calling them one big film experience, and calling Spiderman 3 my third movie of the year. PATHETIC.

Apparently, Sam Raimi paid no attention to the cautionary tale that was XMen 3. You're making the third film in a comic book franchise in which the second film totally outstripped the first, so what do you do? You make a list of characters who haven't yet shown up in the movies, throw them all in the script and just cross your fingers that it all works out. At least in X3, you could blame Brett Ratner. Sam Raimi's got nowhere else to point the finger.

Some storylines did work, and there were some charming and fun scenes. Topher Grace was adorable and James Franco really stepped up his game. Tobey Maguire is much more convincing in his scenes with other men than with the ladies. But I blame Kirsten Dunst, who continues to have no ass and even less talent.

SPORTS MOVIE DAY

2007-04-02T00:02:00.000-05:00

Pride

I read the reviews of this movie… to be honest, I wasn’t too thrilled. “African-American swim team” isn’t a phrase that’s going to make me rush into the theater. I recently saw the trailer, however, and my jaw literally dropped. “Almost completely naked, totally ripped, glistening wet black-man team” IS something that gets me to the cinema. It really didn’t disappoint me. Pride is getting bad reviews mainly for being a standard Hollywood uplifting underdog sports movie. And it is that, to be sure, but I thought that it captured the time and place extremely well. The beaded-up balls of sweat on faces, the afro puffs, the grungy graffiti-covered buildings, the crowded busses… everything was very evocative of a different, long-gone world. And if the movie is rote and predictable… so what, it was entertaining enough.

Blades of Glory

Oh my god, this movie is gut-bustingly funny! I don’t need to say much more about it, I know you’ll all see it. All I’m going to say is that Jon Heder more than keeps up with Will Ferrell, and was maybe even funnier than him, which is pretty impressive. And although a lot of the film would seem on the surface to be taking pot-shots at both the sport of ice skating and gay people, it’s all good-natured… I never felt that they were reaching too far for any of the laughs, which is a pretty common flaw of modern comedies. Anyway, see it, and have fun – I’ll probably see it again in the theater.

Movies #14 and #15

2007-03-31T10:55:00.000-05:00

I Think I Love My Wife
I wanted to like this movie more than I did because I like the idea that Chris Rock was ballsy enough to try to remake a Rohmer film. It’s not really a remake, just the same general idea transferred to our day and age. Actually it’s been so many years since I saw Chloe in the Afternoon, I hardly remember it at all. I should have just put it at the top of my Netflix queue and skipped this one. There are funny moments, but I don’t think it’s intended to be a comedy. There are too many contrivances, and the mood of the film changes from somber to slapstick without warning. Plus, the woman who Chris Rock is “tempted” by is one of the most retardedly manipulative hos I’ve ever seen portrayed on the big screen. This movie will have your brain screaming “PLEASE tell me men are not so stupid as to fall for this shit!?!?” But of course they are.

The Lookout

Yay, I saw a good movie next! This is getting the odd bad review, but I don’t know what those people are thinking. The only problem I had with the film is that the end is wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly. The main characters are multidimensional and perfectly portrayed by Jeff Daniels and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The baddies will have you cringing, and the whole situation is very believable. It’s one of those “bad choice” movies that tend to infuriate me, but the fact that the main character has impaired mental functioning makes it all work.
I would say more, but I seriously think you guys should see this movie, and know as little about it as possible. By the way, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is really attractive. I used to think he was too young for me, but he’s 26! That’s totally within my range. See this movie and let me know what you think.

Breach

2007-03-27T17:01:00.000-05:00

Wow, three weeks without a movie in the cinema… that must be some sort of record. I have no explanation, except that the end-of-winter blahs took hold, and I was busy with finals, and there’s seriously NOTHING out that I really am excited about seeing… Luckily, I found some free time last Sunday to pop over to the budget theater and see Breach. I’d definitely recommend this movie – it has a similar feel to The Interpreter, another underrated recent thriller, in that it seems to stick to a cinematic style that went out of vogue a couple decades ago. There are no explosions, no chase scenes (except for one very, very slow-paced car chase), no twists and double-twists and triple-double twists… It’s just a good, solid story about one person in a battle of wits with another person. Chris Cooper is a great actor, and makes what could be a despicable stock character into a weirdly sympathetic man. It’s never clear what any character in the movie really knows about anyone else, and because of this, a lot of people probably thought it was boring and obtuse. I wouldn’t say it was the best movie I’ve seen recently, but this is a good example of the thriller genre slowing down and utilizing actual suspense… I absolutely appreciate that.

Zodiac

2007-03-04T22:47:00.000-06:00

This is a long but really entertaining movie. I should modify that statement by pointing out that I’m more fascinated by serial killers than your average citizen, and spent a lot of time reading books about them including the Zodiac Killer, of course. This movie details the (somewhat fictionalized) minutiae of the case – the excitement of new leads, the dread of coming face-to-face with possible murderers, the frustration when bureaucratic red tape stops the investigation dead in its tracks… And everything is filmed in a very palpable past, San Francisco in the late 60s to late 80s. The sets and cinematography perfectly immerse you in the time and place, and the acting is solid all around. My only complaint is that the film does drag on with a mostly unnecessary last act involving Jake Gyllenhaal’s obsession with the case, and the last quarter of the film is really the only time when it delves into standard Hollywood nonsense. On the whole the predictable suspense-movie cliches are kept to a minimum, and the movie is really outstanding… I’d especially recommend it to true-crime fans, and people with long attention spans.

GAY DRAGON MOVIE

2007-02-28T18:11:00.000-06:00

Only the tenth movie of the year so far… I’m always a little slow during this season. I finally got to the budget theater to see Eragon, which has been on my must-see list for quite awhile (solely due to the presence of Jeremy Irons in the movie, of course). This movie got shit-tastic reviews, but wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected. It’s a children’s movie first and foremost, and is plenty entertaining when that is kept in mind. I did lose a bit of interest after Jeremy Iron’s character departs from the action, but I have to admit the battle scenes were actually exciting.
Interestingly enough, a family behind me was so enthusiastic about the movie that they told the ticket-taker they wanted to see it again, and he told them to just wait until the theater was cleaned and go back in. Nice to know that you don’t have to sneak around for multiple viewings there (as long as you’re seeing the same movie, I guess). Talk about a family after my own heart – even if they’re misguided about wanting to see Eragon twice in a row, which isn’t really necessary – how fun to have a kid who’s excited enough about a movie to sit through it twice!

Movies: Stop being so freaky.

2007-02-20T13:02:00.000-06:00

Movie #-1, Pan's Labyrinth

Oh, hey look! To the left you will see the one image in this entire film that isn't absolutely horrifying or disgusting! Never mind the fact that in this moment, little Ofelia was being chased down a hallway by a murderous monster with eyeballs in his palms!

OK, I exaggerate a bit. There were certainly more moments than this that were beautiful and sweet. I think I remember three. But the vast majority of this film gave me the creeps. Nasty slithering, slobbering, grasping things. Brutal violence. Bugs everywhere! This is a film that I appreciate and respect, but I never want to see it again.

Movie #1, Animation Show 3

We saw this with a pile of smelly hippies and desperately earnest undergrads, so the films themselves had to overcome a lot from the outset. Some of them succeeded, some not so much. Don Hertzfeldt's "Everything Will Be OK" was of course a standout, as was Bill Plympton's "Guide Dog." "Rabbit" (shown above) was really clever, but did go on a little long for my taste. Some of the others felt like good attempts that just didn't work on a story level. It got me wondering about the submission process and if this is really the best animation out there right now. Anyway, we did have fun and Bud even won a t-shirt due to his deep knowledge of the Beavis and Butthead oeuvre.

Reading Online

2007-02-20T11:46:00.000-06:00

Book #2 - Candide, by Voltaire

Back when Maya was a desk jockey, she read hundreds of books. I don't have the luxury of kicking my heels up and openly reading a book while I sit at my desk, but I do openly surf the net. So I've finally combined the two! Candide was my first online reading experience, and I've got mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, being able to read something during my downtime (once I'm through all the blogs, and celeb and TV gossip sites, of course) is pretty sweet. But it feels wrong to read a book on a screen instead of a page. And with this one, the site I used didn't list the translator so I couldn't figure out if it was the best option.

Anyway, it's a classic, yadda yadda. And it is pretty funny and over the top and whatnot, but like I said, the translation wasn't great, which hurt my enjoyment of it.

Music and Lyrics

2007-02-18T21:33:00.000-06:00

I went out for Indian food and movie day with my friend Patty. We were debating various films, including Breaking and Entering, The Lives of Others (both of which were at Toronto), and The Painted Veil. Then we thought about seeing the Oscar Shorts programs at the Music Box (they show both the live-action shorts and the animated shorts that are nominated for Oscars, and I never end up going). To make a long story short, we ended up seeing Music and Lyrics. It kind of sucked, but was diverting enough not to make me complain very much. I find Hugh Grant likeable, and Drew Barrymore is OK too. There wasn’t a lot of chemistry between the two, which was one major problem with the movie. The two leads seemed to get along very well, but more in a chummy sort of way. The best parts dealt with Hugh Grant’s 80s has-been status and his day gigs at amusement parks. The less-interesting parts were the chick flick parts, of course… like the part where two people spend less than one week together, and sleep together only once, but somehow still merit a long, drawn-out conclusion. Huh? When was the last time you dated someone for less than a week but were so torn up about it?

“Feminist” Movie Day

2007-02-12T19:19:00.000-06:00

I watched That Obscure Object of Desire the other night (Luis Bunuel’s last film) and started thinking about feminist film interpretation again. This movie is an undeniable classic, and contains multiple layers of possible truths that can be picked apart for days on end, but no matter how you approach it, the film is completely encompassed within a male frame of reference. It was made by a man, every character in the movie is approached only from the male perspective, and every idea in the movie is valid only from a man’s point of view. It’s not a misogynistic film, but it’s a little bit annoying to watch a film like this – not because of its inherent masculine one-sidedness, but because this film was made in 1977 – three freaking decades ago, when I was one year old – and the plight of women in cinema has not improved one iota in the thirty years since then. I swear, it hasn’t!

When a true feminist is working in the system, her movies tend to slip by the public unnoticed – how about Jane Campion (The Piano, In the Cut) or Mary Harron (American Psycho)? Isn’t there a way to make a movie for women, by women, that can also be enjoyed by men? If I can enjoy the most hyper-masculine movie, is it too much to ask that an intelligent man enjoy a challenging movie made by women? I’m not asking for a slew of feminist manifesto-type films… just anything from a female perspective that even comes remotely close to reality would be a nice change. It doesn’t even have to be directed by a woman (see The New World)!

This is basically a long preface to let you know that I accidentally saw two films centered around women today – but neither of them had much to say, except that women are loud, needy, and vacuous without a strong man to hold them in check.

#1 – Because I Said So – This film was basically crap. It was enjoyable in parts, and I find Mandy Moore very appealing, in large part because of her almost-normal body frame. I mean, you can see at least an ounce of fat on that girl’s upper arms. But this movie was the worst of chick flicks – unreal at every moment, and indulging in the most gratuitous of Hollywood Female Fantasies, i.e. the Noble Single Father. And would women this repressed really have graphic conversations about sex with their crazy mother? At one point Mandy Moore’s character is about to have a fling with a guy, and tells her mom that he’s uncircumcised (in so many words) on the phone right as she’s about to do the deed…. A wee bit unbelievable.

#2 – Factory Girl – This was a pretty good movie, worth watching, but nothing superb. I knew nothing about Edie Sedgwick before seeing this, and they made her out to be a slightly more intelligent version of Paris Hilton – basically, the first person to be famous just for being an heiress. It was sad, she took a lot of drugs, she had no real friends, she was super-needy and never found what she truly wanted, etc.

So, after nearly four hours of women crying, bitching, screaming, and being pathetic, I feel like I don’t even know where to turn… It’s even more depressing to see people that should be strong, interesting female role models (hello, Diane Keaton) doing work that makes us look worthless. Can’t we stand on our own two feet? Why does every “Female Empowering” movie have an ending where the woman finally finds the man that makes her Complete? And if she can’t find that man, she dies completely alone and desperate in a hotel room of a drug overdose? Honestly, with the choices the movies give me, I prefer the hotel room O.D.

Book #1 of the New Year

2007-01-31T10:50:00.000-06:00

Songbook, by Nick Hornby

When Nick Hornby started this book of essays about some of his favorite songs, he thought that many of them would tie to big events in his life. Instead he realized that most of our favorite songs transcend events, and the ones that are connected to something major are often terrible, cheesy songs that you wouldn't mind never hearing again.

Instead, good music becomes a part of our life. We become attached to songs because of what's going on in our life, not because they happened to be on the stereo at the moment of some big event. This is a theme Hornby returns to a few times in the book. Had he heard Springsteen when he was older, it may have been too late. Badly Drawn Boy wrote a song for a movie based on his book, five years after he wrote it, and yet this song seemed to be specifically about what he was going through in the present. Had it been written when the book came out, it would have passed him by.

Nick Hornby is an eminently readable author who manages to get his passion and personality across in little more than a line or two. The book came with a CD that includes most of the songs he writes about, which is a really nice bonus.

Oh, and books of essays are definitely the way to go if you're trying to drive up your numbers! I should have been doing this all along.

Movie #-2

2007-01-31T10:20:00.000-06:00

The Queen

Helen Mirren, director Stephen Frears and screenwriter Peter Morgan have really accomplished something major here. They may have rehabilitated the British monarchy in the public eye. Previously, my feelings about them went something like, "Wills - hot. Queen - old and boring. Charles - ugly." Now, well - now it's pretty much the same except I've turned into a fangirl about Queen Elizabeth. I know it wasn't the real Queen up there on the screen, but it felt real enough that I forgot all about Helen Mirren. The film is so British-y, with all the restraint and the dry humor, and she is just the perfect person for this role, and really any role. Mirren for prime minister!

David Lynch’s INLAND EMPIRE

2007-01-29T20:35:00.000-06:00

This movie was long, long, long. The opening 5 minutes or so were astonishingly good, and there were isolated moments that were breathtaking in their beauty and emotional profundity. Plus, Jeremy Irons is in it – how cool is that? I was disappointed that he didn’t play a creepy character, but he does play a quirky director and has quite a few funny lines. Lynch has been pretty vocal about his switch to digital, and I have to say I’m all right with digital as long as people are able to use it as artfully as he has here. Lot of great textures and lighting as well as creative fades and blurs. Usually people with digital cameras just point and click, and we’re left with a pixellated, gray-toned, indistinct mess. The depth of color is definitely sacrificed, but he achieved some great clarity of light and tone.

Like I said, this movie was long. Three hours long. The seats in The Music Box are damn uncomfortable, and there are far too many shots of Laura Dern walking down an indistinct, poorly lit hallway while menacing music plays. If Lynch was trying to induce a trance-like state, he certainly achieved that. I feel like there was a lot going on, and I’d love to dissect this movie more – but on DVD, in the comfort of my own home. It’s definitely more successful than Mulholland Drive.

Guess what? David Lynch was there! He introduced the movie, and while he was standing onstage in front of the huge red velvet curtain, with hundreds of camera flashes going off, all I could think of was, “Gee, this looks like a scene from a David Lynch movie…. Whoa….” They also brought an armchair up afterwards, and he sat in it and answered questions. He seems to be an entirely cheerful, jovial, and friendly man, and it was a wonderful surprise to be able to see and hear him in person. Lehn had bought the tickets a month ago, and said that supposedly Lynch was going to be there, but I figured he wouldn’t show up and forgot about it until I got there. Nicest surprise of 2007 so far!

Movie #5

2007-01-20T09:36:00.000-06:00

Blood Diamond

Great cinematography and interesting story – unfortunately too Hollywoodish and far too long. Leonardo looked more rugged and manly than I think I’ve ever seen him. Good acting all around… did those limbless orphans ever get those prosthetic limbs they were promised by the production company, though?

HAPPY 2007

2007-01-13T13:34:00.000-06:00

I'm trying to get a good jump on this year and should hit 100 films with no problem… I was slacking a little in 2006.

#1 – Casino Royale: Bond, James Bond, one more time at the budget theater.

#2 – Pan’s Labyrinth: Good horror flick, but far from the best film of the year as the critics are saying. Yes, it’s creative and visually stunning, especially when contrasted with the typical genre entry, but I found it somehow too cold and manipulative to be very moved. It’s extremely gory, and the dude with eyes in his hands is way, way scarier than he looks in the photo stills.

#3 – The Science of Sleep: Sunday morning show at the Music Box. I seem to be alone in saying this was the best film of 2006. What happened to all the fanboys creaming themselves over Eternal Sunshine? This movie is 1,000 times better!

#4 – Curse of the Golden Flower: I went to see this with my kung fu friends. They all loved it, but I was indifferent. It was basically an overwrought melodrama. The set design was gorgeous, but resembled a hippie’s acid freakout more than an imperial Chinese palace. The best part of the movie was definitely Gong Li as a quintessential diva.

Movies #-4 and -3

2007-01-11T09:33:00.000-06:00

Movie #-4, Dreamgirls

I will admit to being a bit of a sucker for the occasional show tune. The really good ones, if there are two or three in a show, will make me believe that I loved the entire thing. It's only later, when I think back on all the cringe-worthy moments and cheesy "Oh I'm just walkin' down this street / just sayin' hello to the people I meet" nonsense that I realize, hey! I only liked those two or three songs! The rest of the show was kinda crap!

This movie was really no exception. I felt like I was waiting for two hours to see the "I'm Tellin' You I'm Not Goin'" scene (see pic above), and while it was great, you can't build a whole movie around one great song. There are other pretty good songs and everyone in the movie is pretty good: Jaime Foxx, Beyonce and Eddie Murphy are good; Jennifer Hudson is slightly better. She should stick to her day job though, because she was markedly better in the singing scenes than the non-singing ones.

Movie #-3, Children of Men
Easily the most disturbing and terrifying movie I've seen in years. It's just remarkable, and it will not let you go after the credits roll. There are so many things to praise, I'm not sure where to start.

Michael Caine is charming and wonderful as a hippie living off the grid with his invalid wife.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is pretty. And also very good as a radical with his own agenda.

19-year-old Claire-Hope Ashitey should be cast in five movies a year, minimum. She is beautiful and really talented. The repoire between her character and Clive Owen's is easy and natural and totally believable.

Which leads us to Clive Owen, who is simply one of the best actors alive today. Period. He's becoming one of those guys I immediately think of when casting movies in my head.

I'm so impressed with the way Alfonso Cuaron continues to raise the bar every time he makes a film.

New Year, New Us

2007-01-09T08:50:00.000-06:00

Well hello! It's been awhile, and you may have noticed that I didn't so much meet my exceedingly easy goals of 25 books and 25 movies last year. In penance, I'm adding the deficit onto this year's total. The movie total will be pretty easy, since I'm planning to hit Toronto with Maya and Steve (and maybe Sandy? Maybe?) this fall. The book total, however... will be less easy.

I did attend more than 25 cultural events, but you know... I don't think writing about those translates all that well. I feel like after a concert I've got nothing much to say beyond, "It was good. Loud. The people around me were annoying." Etc. So maybe we could change things up a little bit. Maybe drop the cultural events and just focus on books and movies. Or maybe we could add 25 of something else - new recipes, new songs, exciting goals accomplished?

MOVIES 94-96

2007-01-06T13:35:00.000-06:00

Sorry to disappoint – didn’t hit 100 movies in 2006. I’ll be more disciplined this year.
#94 – Stranger Than Fiction

A good deal for 3 dollars. At the very beginning of the film, Andrea leaned over to say “This movie is going to be stupid!” By the end, she was tearing up. Nothing groundbreaking, but it was enjoyable and cute. Some of the characters strained credibility (Maggie Gyllenhaal’s liberal baker), but some were entertaining in spite of their overdone quirkiness – including Will Ferrell in the lead.

#95 – Children of Men

Much darker and more depressing than the reviews and trailers led me to expect. I’d say this is definitely in the top 10 of the year and a must-see. Just be prepared to be somewhat devastated. Oh, also - Clive Owen is a super-stud.

#96 – Notes on a Scandal

Great powerhouse acting performances by Cate Blanchett and Judi Dench. I’m usually not a fan of voiceover narration, but Judi Dench’s narration makes this movie exceptional. This film was also darkly funny and centers around one of my favorite film subjects – age-difference relationships – although this crosses into icky territory.

Cultural Events #24 and #25

2007-01-06T13:34:00.000-06:00

I didn’t do this on purpose, but I hit exactly 25 cultural events now that I think about it. I saw DJ Rupture at the Empty Bottle – he’s a great DJ who mashes together seemingly unrelated styles – world music, hip-hop, rap, R&B, oldies, etc., to make a great drum and bass synthesis which is more experimental than anything you’ll hear any other DJ do. He threw in some funny stuff too, like a highly distorted version of “Sexyback.”

Also saw Gogol Bordello – big fun as usual. I was very happy to be on the balcony, which was sweltering – but at least there was space between all of us. People on the ground floor were saturated with other people’s sweat. Grody! I am way too old for that mosh-pit nonsense.

The Holiday

2006-12-25T19:48:00.000-06:00

Slim pickings here in Sheboygan, WI. We saw this on Christmas Eve. It has cute moments and Kate Winslet is gorgeous, but overall it’s a chick flick you should feel free to skip. Jude Law’s character is the embodiment of what Dan Savage has been complaining about in his column lately – the completely unbelievable male lead in romantic comedies which trains gullible women to believe that men like this actually exist – which they don’t. Anywhere. In the entire world. And that’s fine, because I don’t think I could deal with a man like that. But at every one of the contrived “sweet” plot twists involving Jude Law’s character, everyone in the audience said, “Awwww…” I’m serious! I had to admit he looked more handsome than usual. Whatever, I’m excited to get back to Chicago and a better selection of films.

Movie #92 – The Queen

2006-12-13T18:38:00.000-06:00

So close to 100, I can taste it… but I’m still not sure I’ll hit 100 this year. Actually, what am I saying? I’ll do it, easily. Only 7 more this year? No problem.

Much to my surprise, the Logan Budget theater is now showing The Queen. I was hoping that I’d be the only person at the 4:20 screening, but there was a crowd of about 6. I’ve still never been the only person in a theater at a movie since I moved to Chicago – and that’s after at least 350 separate viewings. Oh well.

This movie was great. Very funny and well-filmed. Everyone seems to agree that Helen Mirren is the bomb – and she is. The part was absolutely perfectly acted, down to the most miniscule detail. I smell an Oscar nomination! Me and a bunch of other people! I don’t have a whole lot else to say about this movie, but it did make me think about what it must be like to live under monarchy rule – I mean, I’ve always known England is a monarchy, and I’ve seen countless British movies and TV programs, but it never really occurred to me how much that political system can influence people on a daily basis.

Mini Movie Day

2006-12-10T23:42:00.000-06:00

I went to River East for another full day of movies, but couldn’t time it out right to see three movies, so just stuck to two. They raised ticket prices again – now the pre-noon shows are $6 (and night screenings are $10 – ouch!)

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
This was a pleasant diversion, but as with all of Christopher Guest’s movies, it felt slight. Lots of funny characters and situations, but nothing earth-shattering. Taking a stab at Hollywood types is pretty easy satire, after all. It’s definitely worth watching for Catherine O’Hara’s shocking and all-too-real transformation over the course of the film. You’ll know what I mean if you see it – I don’t quite know how she pulled it off, but it’s scary.

THE FOUNTAIN
This movie is getting mixed reviews, which is bound to happen since it’s an Art Film with a capital A. It’s definitely overblown and strains credibility, but I was extremely moved by it. All the special effects are done the old-fashioned way, with sculpted miniatures and manipulated microscopic images. When viewed as just a series of images, the movie is a staggering achievement, and one of the most artfully-filmed movies I’ve ever seen. It also has a twisty-turny narrative that quite frankly made little sense. But if you’re able to sit back and just let yourself get washed away, it’s mind-blowing. I was crying and devastated by the end of the film. Seriously, Darren Aronofsky deserves accolades for this movie – how many directors set out to make movies that are celestial, transcendant, elusive, and cerebral? He’s hitting big issues here head-on, and there are no easy answers. Gut-wrenching and eye-searing. Definitely in the top ten of the year.

The Wonder Spot

2006-12-08T10:14:00.000-06:00

Book #15 - The Wonder Spot, by Melissa Bank

Let's just start off by lamenting the fact that I'm going to be a minimum of eight books off my (stupidly easy) goal of 25 for the year. That is sad and pathetic, but I'm planning to do penance by adding whatever I've got remaining this year to my 25 for next year. Someday, I will stop watching so much Intervention and Top Chef, and start on my two full shelves of unread books.

A little time in the airport and on the plane to Chicago and back (hi Maya!) was the perfect amount of time in which to read The Wonder Spot. This is the second novel by Melissa Bank, the author of The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing, which Sandy posted about earlier this year. This novel follows the same narrative style - short vignettes about one woman at various points in her life. It's chick lit in that it's by and about a chick, and she dates people. That's pretty much the model, right?

Well, to be more specific, the model is something like: "Girl is underappreciated and underpaid at the law office / publishing house / ad firm where she works, but at least she's got her gay best friend who helps Girl shop for shoes so that she looks fabulous for her date with Dream Guy who is in fact not as wonderful as he seems, but in the meantime Good Buddy is waiting in the wings and it turns out he is in fact her perfect match."

Thankfully, Melissa Bank avoids most of those traps. There is no one guy waiting in the wings for Sophie. There are many guys, all shapes and ages, all of them a little wrong in their own ways. Even in the end, it's not clear that Sophie has found happily ever after. Instead, to quote a chick lit fave, she's found "happy right now." OK, seriously, the book is not as cheesy as it sounds.

But it's impossible not to compare it with Girl's Guide, and I found it less 3-dimensional. The characters and the world they inhabit seemed less real and less engaging. It's a good read, but I hope that Melissa Bank tries something new with her next book, because I think she's got it in her.

Beefcake Double Feature

2006-11-29T09:38:00.000-06:00

Movie #20, Casino Royale

Beat-up, sun-kissed Bond?

Or steely, gun-wielding Bond?

Let's have both, shall we?

On the advice of pretty much everyone I know, I high-tailed it to the theater to check out the new Bond. I've seen a little Bond here and there – I even saw the last one in the theater – but I just don't like him. Or, didn't like him, I should say. Daniel Craig's James Bond is different.

Back in high school, my Golden Eye-loving guy friends used to pose the question to us girls: "James Bond or Han Solo?" And every one of us said Han Solo. Now, maybe it's an American thing, but I would posit that girls are just turned off by the smarminess of Bond. Cheesy one-liners and presumptuous grabby hands are really unattractive, no matter how hot the guy. But Daniel Craig managed to strip the smarminess away and replace it with a suggestive mischievousness instead. I would say he added a little Han Solo to James Bond. And it works, baby.

Oh, there was a point to this movie other than the attractiveness of Bond? Well, the only other thing I really noticed was the ham-fisted product placement for Sony and Ford. Damn, filmmakers, try a little subtlety next time.

Movie #21, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

For our second beefcake pic of the night, we were treated to Sasha Baron Cohen in various states of undress. This movie was as hilarious as Maya claimed, but my question is whether I can truly state that I saw it, considering that I watched most of it in the following position: crouched low in my seat, hunched over my knees, hands over eyes, thumbs covering ears. Obviously this was the most uncomfortable viewing experience I've ever had. I imagine that it will be more fun to watch on repeat viewings, but it will never become less terrifying. Jesus Christ, some people are horrible.

We’re On Movies #88 and #89

2006-11-26T03:02:00.000-06:00

#88 – Happy Feet
I only saw this movie in the theater because I wanted to see two movies, and I wanted to see Casino Royale, and nothing else would time out right with the pay-for-one deal. So Steve and I paid for Happy Feet and snuck into Casino Royale. I didn’t like Happy Feet; I loved Casino Royale. Here are the reasons why:
Happy Feet is about penguins who have to go to school for some insane reason and learn to sing. Even though it’s an animated movie, I had a credibility problem from the very beginning (why does it matter if a penguin graduates from school?) There are some great effects, but the color palette and surroundings are overall too bland to sustain a feature-length film. At one point Steve leaned over and pointed out the fact that the filmmakers were really banking on the fact that everyone in the theater had seen March of the Penguins.
Around the halfway point the film went off the deep end. This is when the “plot” supposedly develops. The main character penguin (who can tap dance instead of sing, as you probably know from the reviews and commercials by now) leaves his home and finds a new ice-covered land populated by different penguins. These penguins are half his size, and speak in heavy Latino accents. This was when Steve and I began to giggle nervously. I mean, you know how the characters sound when you’re playing Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and you accidentally stumble into the Cuban ghetto? This is how these pint-size penguins sound. It was stereotypical and embarrassing. It goes downhill from there: The Latino penguins are more materialistic than the tall penguins; they listen to Reggaeton and flirt with ghetto-fabulous penguin females. They also have a spiritual leader, who is voiced with great abandon by Eddie Murphy (that would be the black preacher stereotype). This penguin also sleeps with multiple female penguins. At this point Steve leaned over and asked me if we were watching a PG-rated movie.
It goes on and on from this point. Overall, this is a message movie, but so hopelessly muddled that I don’t even know what the message really was (other than the clear main message, which was Follow Your Heart). Skip it! I guess I hate kids’ movies, unless they’re Babe.

#89 – Casino Royale
I have never seen a single James Bond movie before in spite of the fact that I’ve seen nearly 2,100 movies in my life. In high school and college I avoided them on purpose because I was a Feminist, and everyone knows that feminists can’t watch shit like Bond movies. Well, it’s true.
I happen to love well-made action movies – this film fit the bill in spades (har har). I can judge a great action film by my heart rate. During virtually every moment of this film, I was leaning forward in my seat with an accelerated heartbeat, wishing that I could jump in and sprint alongside James Bond and somehow help him with his super-spy feats. I can’t critique this movie in light of the history of Bond films, but as a standalone action film, it’s superb.
Daniel Craig also happens to be some sort of mutant stud. He’s not traditionally handsome, but he’s ripped and can really wear a tux. The movie is long, but if you’re a fan of great action sequences, or men who look great in suits, or men who look great out of suits, or perfect biceps, watch this film.
Incidentally, four thugs walked out at the halfway point, announcing loudly to the rest of the theater that “This movie fucking sucks!” We joked with the people next to us that they were probably confounded by the dialog – there was a good 20 minute spell with no running, shooting, or explosions. You're officially warned.

I Can Read, Y’All

2006-11-25T17:09:00.000-06:00

I forgot about a few things:
Cultural Event #22 – The Mosquitos. I went to this with Kelly and a few other friends. It’s some Brazilian band whose members she met in Madison, and she got the tickets and set everything up. It was pretty fun, but instead of playing high-energy Brazilian dance music, they played really lounge-y stuff (and then complained that nobody was dancing, seriously). They were mainly notable for having two backup singers, one of whom was a gay gentleman in short shorts. The opening bands sucked.
Cultural Event #23 – Piano Recital! Some dude called Fazil Say from Turkey. Patty got free tickets so I went with her. I won’t bore you with my full review of why I had problems with his performance (trust me, I could fill pages with my critique). Basically, he did whatever the hell he wanted and mangled some traditional classical pieces pretty badly. Sure, it’s possible to spin old pieces with a new interpretation, but this guy wasn’t doing that. He clearly loved being the center of attention. Also, it was pretty sloppy (to be fair, the last piece he played was Liszt’s B Minor Sonata which is difficult). But it was sloppy nonetheless. I usually avoid recitals because they make me nervous, and all I hear are the mistakes.
Book #3 – I read Guns, Germs, and Steel months ago. At least I read most of it. I have to admit I skimmed through the end. Pretty interesting stuff. I think it’s safe to say I won’t be doing any more non-school-related reading for the rest of the year.

Déjà vu

2006-11-24T11:25:00.000-06:00

This movie was so-so. It was entertaining in parts, boring in parts, and pretty unbelievable overall (and this is coming from someone raised on Dr. Who). If you watch this movie, I would recommend that 1. You don’t discuss problems with the plot, or you’ll be talking for hours and 2. Catch it at the budget theater, if at all.
I actually wish they had spent more time with Jim Caviezel, who’s scarily convincing as a patriotic terrorist and doesn’t get nearly enough screentime. I wish they had spent less time with the bland, generic female lead, whose only reason for existing is to look pretty and get kidnapped. Denzel Washington is fine, whatever, but has been in much better action flicks recently – Out of Time and Inside Man comes to mind.

Ha! Forgot one!

2006-11-22T13:26:00.000-06:00

Book #14: I'm Not the New Me, by Wendy McClure

I totally forgot that I read this a month ago on a car trip to Green Bay. Wendy McClure is the hilarious mind behind this and these, and she also used to write for Television Without Pity – my personal Alpha and Omega of the internet. Her book covers the first few years she spent writing her online journal, Pound, and the life stuff that happened in that time. Weight loss and gain, painful dating experiences, professional quandaries – through it all, Wendy struggles to find and maintain her sense of self. She is a reluctant internet celebrity – someone who set out to record her weight loss progress, but ended up with an audience of thousands. Even as her readers pressure her to be their guiding light, she doesn't shy away from admitting or even celebrating her slip ups. Even the title seems to be a way of keeping other people's expectations off of her.

Despite the distance she tries to create between herself and her readers, she surprises herself by finding kinship with her readers and fellow bloggers, and this book is as much about those nice discoveries as it is about dieting and dating. This is not a chick lit novel – Wendy isn't buying a size 6 wedding dress at the end. It's a section of one person's life, and happily that person is a damn fine storyteller.

More Kid Lit!

2006-11-21T13:32:00.000-06:00

Book #13: The Westing Game, Ellen Raskin

I'm SO lazy. All I can handle is YA novels, but in the meantime, I'm reading a 600-page baggy monster, so I don't feel too bad about myself.

This one was like going in the wayback machine. I probably read it when I was 9 or 10, and a few things felt familiar as I read, but for the most part, it was all new to me. It's a murder mystery set in an apartment building where all the characters are somehow connected to each other or to the murder victim (who lived in a mansion up the hill from the apartment). Anyway, it's a fun one. More for younger kids than the usual early-teen YA that I love. Get it for the little kid in your life! Not that I know anyone with little kids in their lives.

OK, time to find a new fluffy book to read alongside the heavy one.

Sex Flick in the Afternoon

2006-11-13T19:26:00.000-06:00

SHORTBUS

What better way to spend a Monday afternoon than seeing a movie containing a ton of hardcore sex? Ryan and I were initially wary because everyone else in the theater was a slightly creepy old man by himself. There were a few gay couples, and one older lesbian. I felt like I was about to watch a porno.
Anyway this movie was really great. Once you get used to the explicit sex (and there’s a lot of it), it’s actually quite heartwarming. It definitely exists in an alternate film universe - I find it very hard to believe that there could a community of New Yorkers so accepting and emotionally open with one another, under any circumstances at all. It’s an interesting treatment of fluid sexuality, and felt somewhat surfacey, but I was elated by the (literally) climatic ending. It’s like spending a couple hours with a bunch of adorable gay people with all the fun and none of the drama (again with the alternate film universe). Sure, some of the people have pretty serious problems, but it ends up feeling light and cheerful nonetheless. Overall well-filmed, fun, and definitely worth watching – plus an outstanding soundtrack.

HARSH TIMES

2006-11-12T22:21:00.000-06:00

The title pretty much says it all. This movie is hovering just above 40% on the Tomatometer, with most critics complaining about how violent and unpleasant the main character is. Considering that’s the point of the movie, it’s no big surprise. What most people aren’t mentioning is that it’s full of super-funny moments, including many laugh-out-loud ones. It’s satirical and contains black comedy elements that must have eluded certain critics.

The basic gist of the movie is that Christian Bale’s character returns from war in the Middle East and can’t secure a job with law enforcement. He spends his days driving around the ghetto underbelly of L.A. while drinking heavily with his friend (Rico from Six Feet Under), engaging in various petty criminal enterprises, being psychotic, and basically getting ripped. I’ve seen him play psychos before many times (pop quiz! How many times?), but this is the first thuggish psycho, and he’s scarily convincing. The cinematography and dialogue are pulsating and immediate; I was reminded a little of the atmosphere of the television program The Shield. There are a lot of interesting ideas about war and violence and the male psyche – and it’s all wrapped up by Bale’s perfect performance. This guy is pretty much at a 100% success level, and still most people have never heard of him…

As an added side note, Christian Bale’s Spanish is really great. I don’t think he speaks Spanish, but he has the natural delivery and accent of a real Spanish speaker. I know he’s an actor, but this is one of the better accents I’ve heard. The acting is great all around, and once you get past the disconnect of seeing Christian Bale hanging out with Rico, everything is smooth. Even Eva Longoria is good – I was dreading seeing her with Christian Bale, but don’t worry! She’s Rico’s girl in this flick!

Three Movie Sunday

2006-11-05T21:36:00.000-06:00

Maybe the last three movie Sunday in awhile, since I should be working by next Sunday. Joined by my movie buddy Steve, I saw:

MARIE ANTOINETTE

We saw this first because we suspected it might suck. Much to my surprise, I actually liked it, although it was longer than it needed to be. Beautifully shot, gorgeous costumes, and even Diaper-Face herself does a decent job. It’s enjoyable simply because it’s not a standard historical biopic. My boy Mathieu Amalric even has a part in it! Only about two lines, but still…
I didn’t even have a problem with the 80s New Wave music, it was used well for the most part and seemed to fit somehow. Occasionally it was a little distracting (I hear New Order and I really have to sing along). The score was excellent too – overall not a bad way to start movie day.

BABEL

Another surprise, because I was prepared to be underwhelmed. It’s not a staggering achievement like Amores Perros, but it’s a damn good film nonetheless. He squeezes some excellent performances out of the actors, and the cinematography is stunning. One scene in particular, the nightclub scene in Tokyo, was really outstanding. Gael Garcia’s part is quite small, but it’s a juicy one – a greasy Mexican who gets wasted on cerveza and shoots his gun into the air! Finally! Even as a greaseball, he’s totally cute. Gonzalez Innaritu’s use of non-linear storytelling is well known by now, but he still has a few tricks up his sleeve for this movie. Definitely worth watching.

FLUSHED AWAY

I wanted to see The Queen, but Steve convinced me to see this. I never, never, ever go out of my way to see children’s movies, unless there are talking baby pigs involved. This was actually not bad, some good British humor, clever little visual tricks and a fun story. It was nice to see something like this for a change, but children’s movies and animation are two things that I’m not a big fan of. The kids around us seemed to really like the movie as well. Also, a bag lady came in with apparently all her worldly possessions and sat down a few seats away from us. It was a little confusing – I’ve never seen anyone bring so much stuff into a movie theater before.
On our way out, we saw the masses lining up for Borat – apparently the showings are still out of control and sold out.

Borat!

2006-11-03T23:43:00.000-06:00

I saw the Borat movie with the long title I can never remember on opening day. I thought I wasn’t going to because all the evening shows were sold out at all of the locations before Friday even rolled around…. But I caught a 4:30 show with Kelly – which was also sold out, but not until the movie actually started. Which executives were worried about this movie’s performance again? I doubt they’re worried anymore.
Anyway, this movie is absolutely hilarious, as everyone seems to agree. It’s a must-see. It’s pretty crude and tasteless, and I’m still shocked and horrified at some of the things I saw and heard in this film. You’ll know what I’m talking about later. Two things I already knew which were reinforced by the viewing are: 1. Frat boys are awful 2. I’m glad I don’t live in the South.
What are you waiting for? Go see this movie already!

Fearless

2006-10-29T20:19:00.000-06:00

Although Jet Li decided this is the movie to cap off his martial arts film career, I found it to be a pretty standard entry into the genre and not a towering achievement by any means. That’s not to say it isn’t completely enjoyable, because it is. It has all the standard benchmarks of a good martial arts epic: Cool turn of the century Chinese clothes, typical People’s Republic reactionary shots of Westerners infringing upon traditional society, a wise and pretty blind girl, a smackdown in a restaurant that involves the total destruction of said restaurant, etc. This movie also has heavy doses of Buddhist teachings, which is probably why Jet Li feels so strongly about it. The fights are cool, and it made we want to work out more. There are a couple twists that set this film apart so it’s definitely worth watching, especially for fans of kung fu films.

Me First!

2006-10-25T10:51:00.000-05:00

Movie #18, The Departed

OK, I totally saw this like three weeks ago and then never posted about it. So now I'm in the familiar position of writing, "Yeah. What Maya said." Sigh. Well anyway, this is my favorite movie of the year, easily. If Scorcese doesn't win this time around, etc., etc.

Also, I can't believe we both agree that Leo turned in the best performance, considering the company he's in (*cough* Matt Damon *cough*). While critics want to either dismiss him as a pretty boy or crown him as the great actor of his generation, I tend to think he's been a little bit of both. Not once in The Aviator did I feel that Leo lost himself in the role – it was "Leonardo DiCaprio plays Howard Hughes." But then there's What's Eating Gilbert Grape. In that film, the vulnerability comes across as real, whereas in The Aviator, Leo just communicates it through a series of tics, without letting it go deeper. That vulnerability is really what sells this character in The Departed. We've all seen undercover cops in movies and on TV, but this sense of despair sets this performance apart. I can't believe I'm saying this, but... maybe, possibly, (if you refuse to acknowledge Ryan Gosling), you should sorta... give the man an Oscar. At least a nomination.

Movie #19, The Prestige
I saw this on Sunday too, so it's possible Maya saw it before me, but still! If I had just been quicker on the draw, it would have seemed like I was first.

I didn't see The Illusionist, and I also haven't seen reviews that claimed it was better than The Prestige. Their Rotten Tomatoes ratings are just about identical. But here's what I know: the actors really match up well in terms of talent, but not in terms of looks, so I'm going to give this round to The Prestige. Also, I will love Christopher Nolan until the day I die for giving me my first true movie obsession (as anyone who talked to me between the months of January-July of 2001 can attest).

At any rate, I totally figured out half of the twist within the first 30 minutes, but it's a credit to the filmmaking that I didn't stop second guessing until the very end. This one gets a thumbs up, at least partially because Christian Bale = pretty.

This Blog is Now All Maya, All Movies

2006-10-25T00:36:00.000-05:00

Hope you guys don’t mind. Anyway, I caught Tideland during its ONE WEEK run at the Music Box. That’s right, Terry Gilliam pissed off enough people to secure a one week run in a major city. Oh well.
I swore long ago never to let negative reviews keep me from the theater… actually, I made that vow after seeing Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, falling in love with it, and then reading a torrent of scathing reviews. Terry Gilliam is a very individualistic director with a finely-tuned vision that not many critics can appreciate. Tideland is around 10% on the Tomatometer right now.** I read a lot of reviews and prepared myself to be disturbed and depressed, but was completely surprised to discover that this movie was actually pretty funny. It’s bleak, but the main character is so irrepressible and delightful that she carries you past the hideous things happening all around her. I don’t know how he did it, but Terry Gilliam nailed the internal monologues of creative little girls (including the bizarre hierarchies their dolls are subject to). I can see why this movie made a lot of people upset, but it’s not nearly as graphic as your average PG-13 film. It’s sort of a gothic horror movie seen through the eyes of a little girl who doesn’t realize she’s trapped in a horror movie. Every day when you’re little is a new adventure – remember how every muddy little stream is a torrential river in your imaginary world, and abandoned houses are amusing enough to play in for an entire day? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a film that captures that feeling so perfectly. Terry Gilliam deserves praise for this film. And the lead actress is unbelievable – I’d take her over 50 Dakota Fannings.
It’s also interesting that two films in the theater right now specifically deal with the ability of imagination to transcend real life (Tideland and that Science-y movie with Gael Garcia). Yay for movies that are art, and not just mindless entertainment!

** Note: This movie was at 10% last time I checked, one day ago – now it bumped up to a 28%. Well done!

Three Movie Sunday, $5

2006-10-23T18:21:00.000-05:00

Today was a successful Sunday, because I saw three movies for $5 total. And all three movies were extremely enjoyable! This is a pretty unusual occurrence, especially considering the fact that each film I saw clocked in at over 2 hours. Even when I felt ambivalent or confused by moments in each film, I can honestly say I wasn’t bored for one second – and I was in the seat from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. (including previews, and a 5 minute break between movies). Incidentally, the theme of each movie was TRUST NO ONE (which I already learned from The X-Files of course).

MOVIE #1 – THE PRESTIGE
OK, every reviewer needs to mention how this movie pales in comparison to The Illusionist. Yes, The Prestige is overly convoluted, and if you watch very closely, as the movie itself admonishes you to do, you’ll figure out a lot of the “secrets” far before the end. But it’s damn entertaining. The fact that Christian Bale and David Bowie are all over the place really makes it hard for me to be an impartial reviewer. I’ll be the first to admit that I would willingly watch a 2 hour film of Christian Bale spitting into a bucket and give it a glowing review. I swear it’s not just my personal conviction here - this film will reinforce your belief in the Almighty Christian - everything he touches is golden. He’s a superb actor. Everyone else in the movie is up to the task too, so it’s really not a bad way to spend a couple of hours, even when it starts to stretch its credibility towards the end.

MOVIE #2 – LITTLE CHILDREN
Where did Patrick Wilson come from? Apparently he’s only in movies with castration themes (see Hard Candy), and apparently he’s also super hot. He’s got that studly jock thing going for him, but there’s more… enough to intrigue me, anyway. Here’s another film with solid acting all around, and I’m always overjoyed to see gorgeous people have sex during movies. It kind of turns into a weird morality play towards the end, and I might have an issue with that, but I have to think about it some more. Anyway, I’m glad I’m not married with kids in the suburbs, if nothing else.

MOVIE #3 – THE DEPARTED
Another tour-de-force of acting ability. This movie day must be a fluke. Since everyone is giving this movie such slobbering reviews, I feel like I can skip that part. The Departed takes its source material (the HK thriller Infernal Affairs) even farther and deeper. Hong Kong movies can be a little glib, to be honest, and this movie is really different enough to be viewed as a totally separate entity.
And who wins the Best Actor award in this all-star cast? I’m sure you’re dying to know my opinion, and I’m sure you’ll want to disagree. Remember Leonardo DiCrapio? I have to call him that, just because it’s cute. I’ve always defended his acting ability, even during his Titanic phase. I always thought he was an excellent actor, and has a much better range than most people give him credit for (just go to Gilbert Grape for confirmation – seriously, no one has ever played a mentally challenged character better than that in the history of film, and I’m saying that on the record). But with Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen, and Marky Mark, someone was bound to out-act DiCrapio… Just kidding, he was the best.

I HIT 75

2006-10-18T01:21:00.000-05:00

This is good – last year, for some reason, I only saw 66 films in the theater. This year I have 2 and a half months to go, and I’ve already hit 75. Yippee.

Last Three of the Chicago Film Fest:
12:08 East of Bucharest – This was a socio-political comedy about a supposed revolution in Romania 16 years ago. I know nothing of the history of this region, but apparently it’s unclear as to whether there was actually a revolution, or whether the communist leaders fled first, followed by the hordes of people marching through the streets. This question is examined during the last half of the movie in the form of a low-budget TV show.
The film captured the small-town Romanian atmosphere very, very well. Is this really what the small cities in Romania are like? Mud roads, public-access TV, furniture from the 70s, total poverty and alcoholism at every turn? This movie makes me think that’s what Romania is like. I don’t want to visit and find out for myself…

Suzanne – A French film about old people finding love in their twilight years. Considering the fact that this was a French film, I was pretty unimpressed. But it still made me want to live in France! The characters spend all of their time either 1. Cooking dinner and throwing dinner parties 2. Going out to parks and bars 3. Visiting the local pastry shop…. That’s it. That’s enough to make me jealous. I enjoy my life here, and think I do a good job of not stressing out too much, but I can’t find a good frangipane croissant to save my life! This movie also did an admirable job of using non-stereotypical body types. In other words, the title character was pudgy (not chubby by Hollywood standards, but actually obese by Hollywood standards). She had a good 20 pounds on me, but still looked beautiful in this film. France is doing an awesome job of using actresses who don’t fit particular body molds – when will our country take a hint?

Host & Guest – This was a Korean film about a severely depressed man who has no purpose in life. He becomes friends with a Christian, and they have wacky Odd-Couple capers. This movie was amusing mainly because of the constant digs at George Bush – at one point, a used cum-rag is tossed onto a picture of W, and another time the main character drops ramen on a newspaper, and the camera cuts to a shot of George W with a noodle-head. It’s very funny.

All in all, I wasn’t really impressed with the film fest this year. I took a chance, and saw 8 movies I hadn’t previously read about. It worked great for my schedule, and I liked a couple of the flicks, but I wouldn’t really recommend any of them to anyone. Oh well.

Chicago Film Fest Day #3

2006-10-14T15:55:00.000-05:00

Saw two movies last night. Nothing outstanding, but at least the second one was entertaining and very funny.

Flannel Pajamas – I like Julianne Nicholson and think she’s cute, but seriously, this movie was so bad. It’s basically a two hour deconstruction of a relationship and all the various ups and downs. The beginning is all cuddly moments, inane pillow talk, and making out. The ending is all endless complaining and pointless arguments. The problem is that it’s filmed in a very uninteresting way – there’s nothing to look at (in spite of the fact that it’s filmed in New York City). It’s filmed in super-grainy DV (annoyance). The dialog is over-scripted and rings false nearly the entire time (strangely enough, most of the reviews praise the naturalism of the dialog. NOBODY talks like these people do)! And the characters are disgustingly boring! If I ever met people this uninteresting, I would run screaming from them. If you want to see a movie that imparts more information about how people think and how relationships work within 1 minute than the entirety of Flannel Pajamas, watch The Science of Sleep. If you want to see the movie that gave a jumpstart to this whole genre, watch sex, lies, and videotape (which is infinitely superior to all the talky knockoffs it spawned. Plus, it has young and dreamy James Spader in a mullet).
Just Sex and Nothing Else – This is basically a Hungarian version of Bridget Jones’ Diary. It’s very fun – it’s kind of nice to see a straight-up Hollywood movie that takes place in Europe. The director said the Hungarian film industry is very sluggish, and she wanted to make a light-hearted and fun movie that would bring people to the theaters to see something other than the American movies they usually watch.

Chicago Film Fest – Day Two

2006-10-13T01:06:00.000-05:00

Film #1 – The Trials of Darryl Hunt. This movie gets zero stars for artfulness, but lots of stars for telling a story that needs to be told. I’m pretty familiar with exonerated prisoners since I was reading up on that for awhile - the facts are so mind-boggling and the racist details are so similar from case to case, they start to blur together. This documentary tells the story of Darryl Hunt, a black man who was convicted in 1984 for the rape and murder of a white woman in North Carolina. The crime was horrible, to be sure, but the only eyewitnesses the prosecution had were 1. A multiple felon who called in testimony under a false name and 2. Two Klansmen. There was no physical evidence linking him to the crime, and he had witnesses testifying to his whereabouts during the time in question. The jury was all white. Needless to say, the next two hours is a depressing look at how disgustingly racist people can be, and how the judicial system truly is stacked against certain people, namely African Americans and economically disadvantaged people. Luckily he had a lot of people fighting for him the entire time, including his original state-appointed defense lawyer, and the case crawled all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. By the time the DNA evidence was tested retroactively, proving that Hunt was not the rapist, the film travels to a point way beyond farce. At this point the prosecution started arguing that just because Hunt didn’t “deposit semen” in the victim didn’t mean he wasn’t involved. It took a random linking of a similar case and the willing admission of the true perpetrator for Darryl Hunt to finally be pardoned and released from prison.
So, to sum up: The movie is not a great one, and consists of super-grainy footage and bizarre POV shots that are inserted for no discernible reason. This movie is important just for the fact that it brings the case more attention. While leaving during the credits, Darryl Hunt passed me in the hallway (there was a panel discussion afterwards). I did smile at him, but felt odd… what was I supposed to say, “Bummer about you being cooped up in prison for 19 years by a bunch of racist assholes. Oopsie!”

Film #2 – Azuloscurocasinegro, i.e. Dark Blue Almost Black (with no spaces, for no reason). This was a cute movie filmed in Madrid. Very entertaining, good use of music, nice plot and characters, etc. Nothing outstanding, but worth watching. It was put together better than most Spanish films, to put it that way (I’m not talking about you, Almodovar!)

Poo on the Chicago Film Fest

2006-10-11T20:15:00.000-05:00

Movie #68

This week, Jonathan Rosenbaum (the movie critic for the Chicago Reader) published his annual preview of the Chicago Film Festival under the headline: “The Best of the Fest – At a Fest That’s Not the Best.” I was a little annoyed – DUH it’s not the best festival, everyone knows that, why shit on it in advance and possibly dissuade people from attending? But so far with my one movie, I haven’t had a great experience. I saw The Page Turner, a French film which Steve saw in Toronto and raved about. I thought it was really an excellent film – great, taut little thriller, good characters and pacing, superb use of music, etc. But the print didn’t make it and they showed a goddamn screener! That’s right, they showed a low-quality DVD with the caption “PROPERTY OF DIAPHANA” in the upper left-hand corner the whole time. I don’t know whose fault it was, and don’t want to point fingers. They did offer free vouchers to everyone who was unhappy, so at least I got a free movie ticket out of it.
Steve has seen about 12 movies at the festival already (looks like he was busy while other people were having weddings). He’s been ambivalent about the vast majority of them and has only liked a couple. I pointed out that if he had watched 25 movies at Toronto he would have surely seen something he didn’t care for as well. He’s having a bit of bad luck (he also had to sit through a projected screener).
Anyway, I have two screenings on Thurs. and two more on Friday. So hopefully – no more screeners!

I Also Go To Movies

2006-10-05T11:00:00.000-05:00

Movie #16: Half Nelson

If you've read a review of Half Nelson, chances are you already know all about Ryan Gosling's outstanding performance in this film. Well, I hope you like broken records, because I'm not going to say anything new here. Gosling somehow manages to extract all the sensationalism out of the role of Dan, and infuses him with more life and honesty than I believe the script even provides. This is not to say he "rises above the material" (for an example of that, rent The Notebook) because the writing and direction are also impressive. The film treats Dan's drug use as a fact of a troubled life. Just one fact, though, among many. Dan is an engaged history teacher, intent on getting his students interested in dialectics. He coaches girls' basketball. He is funny and sweet and loving and depressed and smokes crack sometimes. See how easily that slips in there?

Some of the film was improvised, which speaks to the strength of not only Gosling, but Shareeka Epps as well. Epps's only other credit (besides her high school plays) is in the short that led to this feature. She plays Drey with a quiet intelligence and sadness, while somehow managing to hold on to a ray of innocence.

Anyway, Ryan Gosling has climbed even higher up my Mountain O' Movie Stars with this one. Now, everyone: Go rent The Believer and The Notebook, and go see Half Nelson. If Gosling doesn't end up at least in the foothills around your personal Mountains, I'd check your pulse, because you may already be dead inside.

Movie #17: Little Miss Sunshine

You both already talked about this one, so I'm not going to go into much detail. I liked it, and I LOVED little Abigail Breslin. Also loved Alan Arkin. The whole movie could have been about the two of them and I would have been thrilled. Everyone was good, on the whole, but I will admit that I got a little tired of the quirks. And Maya's right - the end routine got very long and was a little unbelievable. It was genuinely sweet and funny, though.