And if you fell in love will you hold on to it (PART I)

Okay everyone out there in internet land. Sorry about last night I meant to write a rather lengthy entry about a variety of topics, each one more fascinating than the last. However, it was midnight and when it came down to it, I just couldn't muster the strength. However, I am here now, hopefully not a day late and a dollar short. Still writing the same annoying sarcastic blog entries. "Groovy."

Seriously, as most of you know, I have been living in Los Angeles for almost a month now. I don't have a job yet, but everyday gets me closer to that interview which will eventually get me rejected from all the hottest and noisest jobs. I'm just kidding, I knew it was going to be difficult so I'm not discouraged. It's a pretty big world and I am awful small but there's gotta be a little place for me to put my cheeks down on the dirt. It will happen, I just have to keep working at it.

Anyway, the point of this is: I like it out here a lot. The weather is the tops, we have a great apartment, I got two fabulouso roommates (we are a colorful bunch, we've been dubbed the three muskateers), and I'm surrounded by a culture so fascinatingly perverse it provides endless fodder for entertainment. There are also a lot of astoundingly beautiful things out here, like the view from Griffith Park (something I don't think I'll ever get tired of), and the way the city lights up at night. I'll keep you guys posted on the progress of exploration. There is so much out here to see, I hope I get to see it all. But as it stands, I'm having a great time out here and I want to get used to it. It is weird to walk down the sidewalks here and be the only person within 15 miles all around walking.

That being said, I miss New York, a lot. There's a real sense of community to that city, I guess some people don't feel it and they find it isolating. I think it's the exact opposite, you may not feel connected the way you do in a small town where you know everybody. You feel connected to something bigger I think, something more like a feeling or a spirit. I don't mean to get all philisophical but it's something about New York that seperates it from any other city. Keep in mind, I do not prefer one to the other. Sure New York is much more familiar at this point, but that will change in time. They are both so different, it's like two positively charged ions on the north and south pole. You can't compare them, and I think the pros and cons of each city outweigh each other. I still miss New York, I hope I haven't seen the last of it. I'm sure my reps over there are taking good care of it.

Let's see, what else? There's been so much stuff going on recently in the world that I wanted to write about all at different points. Now they've all passed or are too big to confine to this one blog, I guess what I'll do is give you a quick run through of all the movies I've seen. Quite a twist huh? Bet you didn't see that one coming. Here they are, since I've been out in L.A.

The Illusionist
I don't know if this is playing anymore. But I had a good entertaining time with it. I think it's Paul Giamatti's best performance and it makes up for that travesty of a mockery of a movie, Lady in the Water. Norton's good as usual, Jessica Biel was pretty bad unfortunately but again pretty usual for that to happen. The movie itself plays out like a big magic trick (although I must admit the end is a bit of a cheat) then again, it's a damn good time that gets those wheels a turnin in your mind. Can't else for much more than that, catch it if you can.

Half-Nelson
Really strong film, I can't recommend this one enough. Again, this also may not be playing anymore but it should be out on video soon. Ryan Gosling plumbs depths rarely seen in actors of his age. It's one of the most complete performances of the year, intense yet never falling into the chasm of actorly tricks begging for sympathy. Shareeka Epps is perfect as well, playing the student opposite him. A challenging film whose subject (neglected school districts) usually leads other films to lengthy polemics about the power of easy answers to complex questions. None of that here, this one sticks with you.

This Film is Not Yet Rated
Another good romp of a flick exposing the cavalcade of idiots, hypocrites, and liars who call themselves the MPAA. Testimonials from beleagured filmmakers pepper this film with frank commentary from people who have fought and lost. Although most of the time the filmmakers win, when they lost it can't be devastating to a film. There were some problems, it gets repetitive after a while and the film raises one or two points too many that it can't really handle. It is a thrill to see the members of the board identified and exposed as the frauds they are. It's also kind of sickening to see members of the clergy (two of them are on the appeals board of the MPAA) deciding how many pelvic thrusts are allowed into a movie, or how much of maria bello's pubic hair we can see in one shot. I hope a lot of people saw this movie.

The Science of Sleep
Michel Gondry has got something on the pulse of the romance culture in this world. He is able to make films about love, loss, and connection that are undeniably personal to him, yet universal in how his audience connects with them. This is a film that somehow feels personal to everyone who sees it. That's a remarkable achievement. I also really liked Gael Garcia Bernal in this. He threw himself all over this movie with the kind of reckless abandon that is quite admirable. He balances romance with slap stick with a little dash of pathos in a way that is a beautiful thing to watch. Gondry's got an eye straight from his heart, he means every single frame of this film. And because of that it never gets too precious, it also makes me pretty damn happy, (The scenes of the two leads creating nonsense out of every day items was a particular delight to me). It's not as structurally tight and dazzling as eternal sunshine, but it makes up for it with a generous amount of sincerity and imagination.

Idiocracy
If you haven't heard about this movie, that's because Fox did everything in their power to keep it from seeing the light of day. Mike Judge finished it two years ago, needed a little more money to complete some ambitious effects shots and put other various finishing touches on the movie and fox said no. After an apparently disastrous test screening, fox decided the movie just wasn't worth their trouble and they dumped it in a few screens and prepared to ship it out to dvd subsequently. For more on the saga of idiocracy, check out this article. The movie itself is okay, it's hit or miss. But obviously a movie that was neglected before it ever had a chance to do something great. It's not nearly as bad as fox thinks it is, and it's got some great great moments in it. When it comes out on DVD, give it a chance. I just hope Mike Judge never makes a movie again. These damn studios don't deserve him.

jesus Camp
A fascinating and unsettling experience. It had me locked into a world I never wanted to experience yet I felt myself compelled by it. It's reality that I am not at all conscious of or connected with. The extreme evangelical movement is one that even if I were a practicing christian, I don't think I'd be comfortable with it. The film doesn't probe very hard into the cause and effect relationship of religion and politics. Particularly the well established connection between the right and the evangelical movement. It also does it a little bit too much with the haunted house music during the religious ceremonies. That being said, it's a film people should see not so they can cluck their tongues in disgust. But to understand that this is real movement in our society and is growing in a way that will not be considered fringe by the next generation. Is this a problem (I think it is) but this is an issue to be discussed in a later blog.

The Departed
A really fun satisfying ride of a movie. Leo and Matt are in top form, Nicholson is good for about a half of the movie. Meanwhile Alec Baldwin and Mark Wahlberg turn in some effortlessly funny supporting roles that are two of the strongest works of their careers. The movie bears all the trademarks of lil' Marty and it is cut like nobody's business. The man knows how to make flicka shows, it's as easy as that. He lights some of this shit on fire. That being said, the movie totally shoots itself in the foot at the end and betrays a lot of the integrity and tragedy of the original Hong Kong version (which I think is definitely better). It cops out for a lame audience satisfaction ending and a last shot that seems like it was directed by someone else. It's a shame because it's a grand old ride up until that point, an exhilirating crime drama with a lot of meat on its bones. Then it becomes this clusterfuck filled with all the tricks that hacks usually use, this movie deserved better.

Renaissance
Not much to say about this one, it didn't do it for me. The animation is beautiful (yet oddly dull at times) but the story fails to engage on any possible level. It also doesn't make any sense and the voice acting is a kind of bored I've never heard in the field before this. Skip this one, that's all there is to it.

Okay, that felt pretty good. My grammar is still awful and I sometimes sound like a pull quote from a fake critic in an obnoxious t.v. commercial, but I like writing these little blurbs. I like keeping you guys up to date. I'll be back tomorrow with two bigger pieces about two really good movies I've seen recently (two of my favorites of this year so far). Check back in for that one tomorrow. Also new Kevin Devine, enough said.

Keep watching the skies...

His name was Charles
He said he was in love with me
We were both fourteen
Then I had to move away
Then he begin to smoke crack
Then he had to sell ass
I don't know where he is
I don't know where they are.