A Commentary on Modern Conditions that's Swarming With Magic Robots.

Welcome Back!!! Oh wait...

2009-10-18T23:07:00.000-07:00

Whoa Doctor, by gar it's been a while. I feel like celebrating...etc. etc. etc.

Okay, I'm done.

I decided to start this puppy back up again, give her a brand new sheen and maybe a fine winter coat.

I was thinking the other after walking out of a particularly excellent new film, that I really wish I had some kind of venue in which to discuss my plentiful feelings of admiration towards said film and some of my frustrations with what I perceive to be "confused" responses to it by other people.

Long story short, I want to write about movies again. I miss it, I love doing it and from this day I vow to you to write about one movie per day for as long as I can. I feel like I can avoid the whole "julie and julia" knock off by first acknowledging that this is a completely unoriginal idea (see Kevin Murphy's book for a far more outlandish and entertaining take on the subject) and I don't really think I have anything to add, I just want to write. So there you have it, nothing new here, maybe even nothing coherent and legible. But it is something, and isn't that in the end the real truth? The answer is no.

There you have it, a movie a day, just my thoughts and musings. We'll start tomorrow...

Coming Soon...

Where the Wild Things Are

Adieu

Bill Moyers

2008-05-03T14:16:00.002-07:00

Nate sent me a link to a Bob Herbert editorial today that just about sums it up...

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/03/opinion/03herbert.html?hp

I watched this, this morning. It was from last night's Bill Moyer's Journal.

The whole thing makes you want to throw you hands up in defeat.

I once asked a reporter back from Vietnam, "Who's telling the truth over there?" "Everyone, he said. "Everyone sees what's happening through the lens of their own experience." That's how people see Jeremiah Wright. In my conversation with him on this broadcast a week ago and in his dramatic public appearances since, he revealed himself to be far more complex than the sound bites that propelled him onto the public stage. Over 2000 of you have written me about him, and your opinions vary widely. Some sting: "Jeremiah Wright is nothing more than a race-hustling, American hating radical," one viewer wrote. A "nut case," said another. Others were far more were sympathetic to him.

Many of you have asked for some rational explanation for Wright's transition from reasonable conversation to shocking anger at the National Press Club. A psychologist might pull back some of the layers and see this complicated man more clearly, but I'm not a psychologist. Many black preachers I've known — scholarly, smart, and gentle in person — uncorked fire and brimstone in the pulpit. Of course I've known many white preachers like that, too.

But where I grew up in the south, before the civil rights movement, the pulpit was a safe place for black men to express anger for which they would have been punished anywhere else; a safe place for the fierce thunder of dignity denied, justice delayed. I think I would have been angry if my ancestors had been transported thousands of miles in the hellish hole of a slave ship, then sold at auction, humiliated, whipped, and lynched. Or if my great-great grandfather had been but three-fifths of a person in a constitution that proclaimed, "We the people." Or if my own parents had been subjected to the racial vitriol of Jim Crow, Strom Thurmond, Bull Connor, and Jesse Helms. Even so, the anger of black preachers I've known and heard about and reported on was, for them, very personal and cathartic.

That's not how Jeremiah Wright came across in those sound bites or in his defiant performances this week. What white America is hearing in his most inflammatory words is an attack on the America they cherish and that many of their sons have died for in battle ? forgetting that black Americans have fought and bled beside them, and that Wright himself has a record of honored service in the Navy. Hardly anyone took the "chickens come home to roost" remark to convey the message that intervention in the political battles of other nations is sure to bring retaliation in some form, which is not to justify the particular savagery of 9/11 but to understand that actions have consequences. My friend Bernard Weisberger, the historian, says, yes, people are understandably seething with indignation over Wright's absurd charge that the United States deliberately brought an HIV epidemic into being. But it is a fact, he says, that within living memory the U.S. Public Health Service conducted a study that deliberately deceived black men with syphilis into believing that they were being treated, while actually letting them die for the sake of a scientific test. Does this excuse Wright's anger? His exaggerations or distortions? You'll have to decide or yourself. At least it helps me to understand the why of them.

But in this multimedia age the pulpit isn't only available on Sunday mornings. There's round the clock media — the beast whose hunger is never satisfied, especially for the fast food with emotional content. So the preacher starts with rational discussion and after much prodding throws more and more gasoline on the fire that will eventually consume everything it touches. He had help — people who for their own reasons set out to conflate the man in the pulpit who wasn't running for president with the man in the pew who was.

Behold the double standard: John McCain sought out the endorsement of John Hagee, the war-mongering Catholic-bashing Texas preacher who said the people of New Orleans got what they deserved for their sins. But no one suggests McCain shares Hagee's delusions, or thinks AIDS is God's punishment for homosexuality. Pat Robertson called for the assassination of a foreign head of state and asked God to remove Supreme Court justices, yet he remains a force in the Republican religious right. After 9/11 Jerry Falwell said the attack was God's judgment on America for having been driven out of our schools and the public square, but when McCain goes after the endorsement of the preacher he once condemned as an agent of intolerance, the press gives him a pass.

Jon Stewart recently played a tape from the Nixon White House in which Billy Graham talks in the oval office about how he has friends who are Jewish, but he knows in his heart that they are undermining America. This is crazy; this is wrong -- white preachers are given leeway in politics that others aren't.

Which means it is all about race, isn't it? Wright's offensive opinions and inflammatory appearances are judged differently. He doesn't fire a shot in anger, put a noose around anyone's neck, call for insurrection, or plant a bomb in a church with children in Sunday school. What he does is to speak his mind in a language and style that unsettle some people, and says some things so outlandish and ill-advised that he finally leaves Obama no choice but to end their friendship. We are often exposed us to the corroding acid of the politics of personal destruction, but I've never seen anything like this ? this wrenching break between pastor and parishioner before our very eyes. Both men no doubt will carry the grief to their graves. All the rest of us should hang our heads in shame for letting it come to this in America, where the gluttony of the non-stop media grinder consumes us all and prevents an honest conversation on race. It is the price we are paying for failing to heed the great historian Jacob Burckhardt, who said "beware the terrible simplifiers".

So Get On Up There and Give Us A Speech!

2008-02-18T15:36:00.002-08:00

With the 2008 Academy Awards officially less then one week away, I figured it was high time I throw my hat into the ring of non sensical and utterly un-important Oscar predictions. Because as everybody knows, the stakes are high and many if not all must get their two cents in before those names are read off of those envelopes on that oh-so special night.

Who Will Win?

Who Should Win?

Who wasn't even nominated?!?!?!

Which contemptuous piece of self-congratulatory hooplah will offend us the most?

Only time will tell, but until that day. I give you my list of oscar predictions and rants about why my taste is completely superior to that of the academy.

Editor's Note:
I am not an oscar prognosticator, usually my predictions are wrong. I think sure things are long shots and surprises usually pop up in categories that I think are solid locks. I also usually disagree violently with the majority of the decisions for awards so a lot of this is being written out of spite.

Just wanted to be up front with that...

Here we go, just starting from the top on down:

BEST PICTURE:
ATONEMENT
JUNO
MICHAEL CLAYTON
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
THERE WILL BE BLOOD

Who Will Win:
No Country for Old Men

Who Should Win:
No Country for Old Men

Should have been nominated:
Zodiac, Sweeney Todd, Into the Wild, Ratatouille, The Assassination of Jesses James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Diving Bell and the Butterly, Once, 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days. and the list goes on and on and on...

I'm probably jinxing myself by predicting this because No Country will be the first time I movie I genuinely loved and actually thought was the best picture of the year is in fact the best picture of the year. It seems to have a lot of momentum behind it, and the only real threats I see it having are Juno and Atonement. Everyone knows what will happen if Juno wins (there shouldn't even be an award show due to the simple fact that its nominated). I think No Country will pull it off.

BEST ACTOR:
George Clooney
Daniel Day Lewis
Johnny Depp
Tommy Lee Jones
Viggo Mortensen

Who Will Win:
Daniel Day Lews

Who Should Win:
Johnny Depp

Should have been nominated
Emile Hirsch, Phillip Seymour Hoffman (for either the Savages or Before the Devil Knows You're Dead), Casey Affleck for either Gone Baby Gone or Assassination (the movie really is about him and Pitt is the supporting performance see Training Day for another backwards example of this, Mathieu Almaric, Tommy Lee Jones for No Country (again movie is really about him), Chris Cooper, Frank Langella, Christian Bale. I don't know how you would fit all these guys in here though

Okay, I know that Daniel Day Lewis completely owns this years award and nothing will stop that. And by a certain logic he deserves it, no other piece of acting was as compulsively watchable and out and out earth shattering as his take on Daniel Plainview. That being said, if I were on the academy, I would cast my vote for Mr. Depp. Technical skill aside and all that objective stuff, I was more impressed with Mr. Depp's performance in terms of its difficulties and how he not only surmounted them but improved upon them. He had a tougher job and he created a more memorable portrait taking the idea of a singing actor to bold new places.

BEST ACTRESS
CATE BLANCHETT
JULIE CHRISTIE
MARION COTILLARD
LAURA LINNEY
ELLEN PAGE

Who Will Win
Julie Christie

Who Should Win
Julie Christie

Should have been Nominated:
Nicole Kidman, Helena Bonham Carter (although some might argue she was more of a supporting player), Wei Tang, Amber Tamblyn (Stephanie Daley), Jiseon Kim (In Between Days), Carice Van Houten (Black Book), Anamaria Marinca (4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days)

This also appears to be somewhat of a lock. My heart is torn (to use Ebert's coinage) between Christie and Linney. I want Linney to win not only because she is amazing in the Savages but to make up for the travesty that was the 2000 academy awards when she lost to that faux-empowering ego fueled piece of blather known as Erin Brockovich. Then again Christie is the most devastating and deservedly will win the award. I must admit, I still have not seen La Vie en Rose so maybe I am completely wrong about all of this, except for Erin Brockovich sucking of course.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett
Rube Dee
Saoirse Ronan
Amy Ryan
Tilda Swinton

Who Will Win
Ruby Dee

Who Should Win
Amy Ryan

Should have been nominated
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Catherine Keener, Laura Vasiliu (4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days)

This is a tough one, not only because all of the nominees are deserving in their own way, but also because of the inability to predict the winner based on the swarming tides around three nominees. First it was Amy Ryan winning and everything and anything in her path. Then Blanchett wins the Golden Globe, then Ruby Dee wins the sag and now its just a big clusterfuck. Personally, I'd be happy if one of those three wins the award, maybe also Tilda Swinton because she gave a masterful performance.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Casey Affleck
Javier Bardem
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Hal Holbrook
Tom Wilkinson

Who Will Win:
Javier Bardem

Who Should Win:
Tough call but Javier Bardem

Should have been nominated
Either Mark Ruffalo or Robert Downey Jr. for Zodiac, Adrien Brody (The Darjeeling Limited), Ethan Hawke (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead), Ed Sanders (Sweeny Todd)

Like the supporting category, all of these nominees are quite deserving. I am torn between Javier Bardem who captivated the crap out of me and Hal Holbrook who sneaks up on you and breaks your heart. Javier's gonna win it no doubt, but again I wouldn't be against any of these nominees winning. This is a surprisingly strong year for Supporting work. Good job academy! Keep up the good work!

BEST DIRECTOR
Paul Thomas Anderson
The Coen Brothers
Tony Gilroy
Jason Reitman
Julian Schnabel

Who Will Win:
The Coen Brothers

Who Should Win:
The Coen Brothers

Should have been nominated:
David Fincher, Tim Burton, Tamara Jenkins, Sarah Polley, Sean Penn, Brad Bird, Andrew Dominik, Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi, Christian Mungiu, Sydney Lumet

Not much to say about this one, get rid of Gilroy (even though his movie is really really good), definitely get rid of Reitman (god he sucks) Other than that, it's a strong field and I just want to see what the Coen Brothers say in their acceptance speech. That and they deserve it for directing the shit out of that movie.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY (this is a heartbreaker)
Juno
Lars and the Real Girl
Michael Clayton
Ratatouille
The Savages

Who Will Win:
Juno

Who Should Win:
The Savages/Ratatouille

Should have been nominated
The Darjeeling Limited, Margot at the Wedding, Eastern Promises, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

This one just sucks, one of the most irritating screenplays ever published is going to take away some much earned attention from The Savages just because its "indie" enough to be "hip" The academy has always had a tin ear for writing (see 2005 Crash over the Squid and the Whale are you fucking joking me) But this is taking their poisonous streak too far, the good people of Hollywood can do something about this before its too late, please vote with your hearts and your minds. Anything but Juno.

Best Adapted Screenplay
Atonement
Away From Her
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood

Who Will Win
No Country for Old Men

Who Should Win
No Country for Old Men

I just wish the Coen Brothers had written an original script this year, but in lieu of that they definitely wrote the best adapted script of this year. Although the accomplishments of Away from Her and Diving Bell should not be overlooked. Not much else to say about this one, I think its the Coens this year.

So there you have it, all the big awards parceled down to one mealy blog entry. I could go on and on about Best Cinematography and Best Live Action Short film, but does anybody want to read that? I don't want to read it or write it. Let me just say that it's not a matter of these awards being more important (although they definitely get more press). It's that all of the awards are equally unimportant, and I just decided to highlight these particular high profile names because therein lay the potential for the most amount of words to be spewed.

In conclusion, a great movie has the potential to take its rightful place alongside such masterpieces as:
Crash
Million Dollar Baby
The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Chicago
A Beautiful Mind
Gladiator

and don't forget...Braveheat!!!!!

And other half-rate movies, most of which were not even worth the 3 cent dvd's upon which they were eventually stamped. And some of them even down right blew.

So no matter what happens, movies will continue to evolve and remain hopelessly dated at the same time. People will carve out their own niches, trends will be ignored, and demographics will not allow themselves to be exploited. The heart and power of filmmaking and movie-watching lies not in the useless trinkets one can accumulate, but in the quest to seek out the movies that never even had a chance.

Jack, I Swear...

2008-01-30T00:59:00.000-08:00

I don't really have much to write about as a cohesive whole.
So, I'd rather make a bunch of little observations and notes.

-I'm a little more than halfway through Mark Oliver Everett's (E of EELS) memoir: Things The Grandchildren Should Know and before I jinx myself and the book I will say its a harrowing read comparable to Didion's Year of Magical Thinking. I don't really know what I was expecting but this has already far surpassed it. I will write more about this later except to warn you, read with a box of kleenex and maybe a good friend or loved one nearby.

-If there is a planet Radiohead, I would like to live on it. Rolling Stone recently called them the band of the future, I would like to think we've been saving their music in a time capsule so that future generations will know what it was like to be alive at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. Also, their new album In Rainbows has officially reached the heights of masterpiece. (It just took a few listens) and try not to get chills after listening to videotape.

-The Heath Ledger story is an incredibly sad one. I don't really know what else to say, I had planned on writing a long tribute to him analyzing his performance in Brokeback Mountain. I decided it wasn't necessary and more words would only add to the clutter of noise surrounding his death. I just finished re-watching Brokeback Mountain and I will say, it's an absolutely beautiful performance. Daniel Day Lewis was completely right at the SAG awards, that last scene is like a punch to the gut. It's a tragedy when anyone dies, so I don't mean to prescribe more worth to Mr. Ledger's death than anyone else's But since he was in the public eye and we saw his contributions to the world, it's hard not to stop and think about what he was capable of and what we will now never see. At least we have Brokeback Mountain, and not to harp on this but this is the performance that completely turned me around on him, it's just breathtaking.

-I've decided that I hate award shows. I guess I'm just tired of seeing people with their heads lodged up their own asses in real life, I don't need to see it on television. Especially when it just boils down to 2 hours of advertisements and ten minutes of awards, I think I have better things to do with my time. Plus when we live in a country (here comes Mr. Self Righteous) where more people watch american idol than vote in a national election, I think we need to re-think our priorities. Also after watching Brokeback Mountain and thinking about how that piece of shit Crash won best picture (it was also up against good night and good luck, capote, and munich...dear lord). It's hard not to just want to actively boycott the damn things. Then I think about maybe I'm taking all of this a bit too seriously and like I said there are more important things to worry about, then I think about how JUNO might win best original screenplay.

And I'm right back where I started.

Good night.

To Fix or Ruin

2008-01-27T00:40:00.000-08:00

It's Late. I'm tired. I'm about to delve into E's memoirs.

This is all I got.

Kevin Devine speaking for me once again (on almost everything)

You wrestle yourself to the ground
you springboard and kick yourself in the mouth
cause all of that drama, that embarrassed charade
couldn't stop you or settle you down

so you got back with your black hole
and you don't care who's out there or who knows
cause you're spent and you're sad
cause you've bronzed it, it's your badge
and you've fixed it to all your clothes

every t-shirt and overcoat
so it's with you through hot or cold
but i would tear it from the cloth
yeah, i would tear it from the cloth
grow up and knock it off

cause there's a world awake outside
with injustice and music and july, july
with history's arc,
with your family,
with art.
but it don't mean nothing
not to you, not tonight

you can't see past the length of your nose
the biggest problems, well you're sure they're your own
that girl you cut loose
those two friends that cursed you
and all that powder that you can't leave alone

and you say, you know, you know, you know
but i know that you don't, you don't, you don't
cause if you did, you'd really try
if you did, you'd really try to let all that die

so marry yourself to your work
and crowd your confusion with words
then round out your life with some records you like
while you bury your love in the dirt

cause it's endless, the ditch you can dig
you're stubborn, and you're prideful, and you're all over it
so i suggest you make sense of the time you've got left
so you don't end up back where you've been

and you say you won't, you won't, you won't
and i hope that you don't, you don't, you don't
but if you mean it, then stand up and fight
but if you mean it, then stand up and fight
cause i mean, it's only your life

i mean it's only your life
to fix or ruin
to figure what to do with
it's only your life
to fix or ruin
cause no one else is going to do it
cause it's only your life

...And SCENE!

2008-01-16T20:52:00.001-08:00

Here is something that happened to me.

Roughly translated into screenplay format.

Enjoy.

EXT. RALPH'S ON WILSHIRE-EVENING
A young man walks out of a Ralph's supermarket carrying a Marie Callender's Frozen Sweet and Sour Chicken and a plastic bottled Dr. Pepper. He turns the corner and heads to the Rite-Aid parking lot across the street where he is currently illegally parked.

He wears a collared shirt and corduroy pants.

It is relatively late for dinner, he is tired, hungry, and eager to get home.

As he rounds the corner, AN OLDER MAN approaches him. He is well dressed, carrying a BEBE shopping bag. He is laughing at the YOUNG MAN, he begins rubbing his chin.

OLDER MAN: Hey, you got the look man.

The Young Man walks by hoping this is the last of their conversation.

OLDER MAN (cont'd): Look at you. You slick.

YOUNG MAN: Thanks.

OLDER MAN: Hey, you got the look, all you need is a suit. You small time though now right? Small time.

The YOUNG MAN doesn't really understand what the guy is saying so he keeps walking in the hope that he will eventually lose interest and walk the other way.

OLDER MAN (cont'd): Yo, you small time but check this out.

He indicates to the BEBE bag.

OLDER MAN (cont'd): You see this bag, this is a 3,000 dollar Burberry Handbag. Do you understand how much this is worth? How much you can make? Yo, if you want to come with me, we could do this.

The young man begins to catch on, very slowly.

YOUNG MAN: No, that's okay, I'm not interested.

OLDER MAN: Nah, man you don't understand. They got these clubs in Beverly Hills, underground clubs, beneath the ground clubs. Nobody knows about them, I can get you in, just come with me.

YOUNG MAN: No really, that's okay I need to get...

They stop at the Young Man's car.

OLDER MAN: Look, you got the look and you small time now. But all we have to do is get you a suit, you could be making 5,000 dollars a day. How much you make now? I bet it ain't that.

YOUNG MAN: I'm sorry, but really I just want to...

OLDER MAN: All we gotta do is, I get you a suit. We go in together, I take the salesperson, I distract them. You head to the back, you can grab at least 3 or 4 handbags at a time. You slip out, there you go, there's the money right there.

Bam.

YOUNG MAN: I'm really not interested in that.

OLDER MAN: I see, I see, you still small time. You into the low risk thing, that's cool.

The YOUNG MAN notices the OLDER MAN pointing at his frozen dinner and soda. Then it hits him.

YOUNG MAN: Oh no, I didn't steal this. I paid for this.

OLDER MAN: You mean you didn't...

YOUNG MAN: No, I just paid for this like a minute ago. I had the receipt but I threw it out.

Silence.

YOUNG MAN: I just...I don't like plastic bags.

Silence.

YOUNG MAN: They're bad for the environment.

OLDER MAN: Oh.

YOUNG MAN: Sorry.

OLDER MAN: Okay well. Alright.

YOUNG MAN: Sorry about that.

The Older Man slinks away into the shadows. The Young Man gets into his car and drives out of the Rite-Aid parking lot, back to his apartment.

THE END

Over-rated, Under-Rated, and Useless Trinkets

2008-01-15T23:50:00.000-08:00

Wow, two blog posts in 72 hours, that must be some kind of new world record.

I would like a medal for that.

Now where was I? Ah yes, proclaiming what I felt were the most over rated and under rated movies of the year.

Let's start with the over.

THE MOST OVER-RATED MOVIE OF 2007

JUNO

Is this a surprise? I guess not to the outside world, but to the blogging world, yes. I would like to think this is the last I will ever speak about this movie, but I'm sure it will come up again (hello Crash?) I don't know what else to say really, a lot of this movie bugs the shit out of me. The preposterous dialogue (I have a thing against dialogue that sounds like a writer hunched over their computers pounding out obnoxiously quotable catch phrases and calling it real human interaction), the obvious and ham-fisted direction. The nauseating soundtrack, the fact that again the dreaded abortion is handled with kid gloves. As is the whole pregnancy as even ardent admirer a.o. scott pointed out in his latest times piece. Here's the thing, I'm all for movies where teenage girls don't just sit on the sidelines or act like uptight prudes, it's definitely an under-represented group. That's probably why this movie is all the more disappointing, either that or because it sucks.

THE MOST UNDER-RATED MOVIES OF 2007

MARGOT AT THE WEDDING, BREACH, LUST, CAUTION

I know, I know my indecisiveness is again my undoing. I was originally going to single out Margot and then Breach popped into my head and then lust, caution. Basically the gist is all of these movies got somewhat of a bum rap when they were released and thus died quick box office deaths. With Margot, people couldn't get over the fact that these characters were so hideous. I couldn't get over how funny, engaging and well played they were. God forbid a movie wants to understand a person rather than fall in love with them. Breach, I don't know, it seemed to have everything. The best performance of Chris Cooper's career so sneaky and exciting. A timely story (I don't even have to get into that one) and a movie about government that doesn't end in sermonizing. But people said it was boring, (so is that kind of work unless you're james bond) so I think the truth is in the details and this movie nails them. Maybe this whole why can't movies about the war sell any tickets can be answered by this: good or bad people want wild hogs, national treasure 2, alvin and the chipmunks, juno, and the bucket list instead of anything else (notice a trend amongst all these?) And Lust, Caution is not a particularly great film. But worth seeing regardless because of the unique poise of Ang Lee. He tried to pull something off her that doesn't always quite work (there's tedium where there should be intrigue) But the effect of the film will stick with you for days and it is only until you put all the pieces together that you see where his heart was in the story. The devastating effects of love and sex and how struggles for power always lead to admissions of weakness. It's fascinating work that will hopefully live on far longer than its worst reviews said.

WORST MOVIE OF 2007

SOUTHLAND TALES

This was a no-brainer but I'm tired of reading about this movie from the gaggle of idiots who all seemed to have slimed their way over from the village voice. It's way brilliant, I think it's just about the greatest post modern deconstruction of our generation. I just put it on my list because everybody hated it, therefore I have something to say. Fuck all that, this movie blows and you would know it if you could stand to sit through it. Destined to become a midnight staple for stupid hipsters everywhere. Fuck it, avoid it like the plague and hope that Kelly can successfully dislodge his own head from his ass. But if he follows the sage like word of these voices writers, that isn't going to happen anytime soon. This movie blows and TRANSFORMERS sucked ass too.

Well that about wraps her all up in a neat little bow. It was a very good year and I can't say I'm excited for 2008. But who knows.

Toodles.

The Anti-Fanboy Top Ten 2007

2008-01-13T21:08:00.000-08:00

Well here we are, that magical time of year when critics, bloggers, and online movie fans ramble on and on about their favorite movies of the year in the hope of proving that their list is superior in every way to all other lists.

I am here to tell you that my list is the list of all lists

Period.

No, this whole practice of list making is kind of silly, it doesn't really serve a purpose other than for critics to justify their pathetic existence. I kid of course, it's just fun and of course it means nothing but if you want to get into that debate I might as well shut down this blog right now. I enjoy doing this and it allows me to think about the movies I love in a different way.

So without further ado...

Drum roll please.

1. ONCE
I consider this to be my favorite movie of the year. Maybe some movies were better shot and more professionally assembled, but no other movie this year lifted me up the way this one did. It may not have the polish of other movies, but it is still perfect. You fall in love with this movie and not because it offers phony uplift but because it quietly sneaks up on you and breaks your heart. It's about two people who need each other at the exact same moment but are wise enough to know they can not be together. It's funny, honest, and full of the kind of moments you rarely find in life let alone film. Oh yeah, and the music is fantastic.

2. ZODIAC
As soon as the credits came up on David Fincher's Zodiac I not only knew I had just seen not only one of the best movies of the year (and Fincher's personal best) but maybe one of the best movies of the past decade. Exhaustive, exhilarating, and enormously fascinating, this procedural leaves all others in the dust. It takes a certain kind of talent to assemble of the information of a thirty year investigation (that's still active) and convey it with the visual deftness of an artist. Fincher puts that into every single frame of the film and it's an astounding achievement. I bemoaned the quick box office death of this film, but the fact that a major studio even made it is a victory in and of itself.

3. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Chasing right at the heels of Zodiac (in a perfect world they would be tied) the Coen Brothers' No Country For Old Men has the same kind of scarily perfect execution of craft. And they both sacrifice empty violent redemption for a more meditative questioning of how violence can destroy the mind. No Country features the kind of borderline sadistic suspense sequences that make you forget you are comfortably sitting in a theatre. Not to mention three performances that complement each other so well, it's a marvel they just barely every appear on screen together. The Coen brothers have always been a unique and surprising team, but here they revel in their masterly expert storytelling abilities and the results will floor you.

4. SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET
I saw Sweeney Todd on opening night and it instantly placed on my list. I saw it again and it shot up to number four. Tim Burton's unrelentingly bleak horror musical lays waste to all the stagnant, empty musical pageantry that has plagued our theatres these past couple of years. This one goes to those places that seem only reachable in nightmares but does so with jovial musical numbers. Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham carter sing their asses off and it shows not only in the melodies but in the performances. It's a rare blend of raw emotion and nuance that would be difficult for any actor to pull off, let alone two untrained singers. All praise be to the Depp/Burton alliance, one of the most satisfying actor director team ups of all time.

5. THE DARJEELING LIMITED
Granted this movie probably earned a spot probably when I heard it was announced. That being said, Wes Anderson's fifth film is funny, touching, and genuinely moving. People like to accuse Anderson of relying too much on quirk and repeating the same story over and over again. That's idiotic, but I have noticed a theme running through all of his films. He loves stories about people reinventing their lives, usually going to any means to recreate a story in which they are essentially, happy. Darjeeling is no exception and the most heartbreaking thing about it is that happiness is not found. Anderson rewards the journey rather than the destination, I love this movie.

6. THERE WILL BE BLOOD
Paul Thomas Anderson's horror/western Daniel Day Lewis freak out puts you in a grip that you can not shake free of until several days have passed. In tandem with Jonny Greenwood's powerful score, Anderson finds a way to take you down with protagonist Daniel Plainview's descent into hell. It's an astonishing experience and Daniel Day Lewis plums the very depths of the worst in humanity and comes up with something funny, scary, and all together fascinating. Points also to Paul Dano for matching him note for note, their scenes together burn with an intensity that you can not look away from. Anderson has taken a relatively simple story and packed it with the kind of allegorical heft usually saved for great fiction.

7. INTO THE WILD
Probably a biased call in this case because any movie packed to the gils with Eddie Vedder's music will probably find its way into my top ten list. That being said, Into the Wild is a tragic yet inspiring story consumed with lust for the imagery of its hero's heart. The film offers a surprisingly complex portrait of its lead but more than that, I found it to be a love letter to America. And not in the chest thumping flag waving way, but in about the areas of this country that are still unexplored my most. Where people work, live, an die with the kind of dignity and passion that few of us will ever understand. And in Hal Holbrook's tremendous performance, it is ultimately, a love letter to people.

8. THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD
The most beautiful film of the year and featuring a stand out, titanic performance by Casey Affleck. This slow burn of a movie methodically traces the last days of Jesse James and the beginning of the infamy of Robert Ford. In assessing modern celebrity culture and the intersection of myth and fact, Andrew Dominik's western has the quality of watching legend become history. That is not to suggest this is some kind of flat historical document, rather this is about how the country is shaped by people who take control of their own story and in the process create that world for themselves. The tragic element of it is how destructive it can be to the people, the land, and the myth.

9. THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY
Diving bell manages to convey not only the physical claustrophobia of the main's locked in syndrome but also the psychological capacities in inspires. The results are scary, liberating, an all together incredible to see. The story inspired a kind of collusion of camera and sound that takes you to a place you didn't know movies could take you. It's flashy yet subdued, emotional but never cloying, and above all it's beautiful. With a story that is not so much about over coming illness than it is reassessing one's life and coming to terms with all the mistakes, guilt, and blown opportunities. Schnabel's film is wrenching for sure but ultimately a kind of life we all aspire to.

10. RATATOUILLE and PERSEPOLIS (tie, yeah that's right)
I know I said earlier how a tie would be out of the question. I changed my mind. But I feel like this is completely justified in that these two were revolutionary animated films that are technically brilliant while never losing their humanity. Instead of berating us with pop culture references and celebrity voices. Persepolis and Ratatouille are more interested in character and truth and they succeed brilliantly. Ratatouille may be the best directed film of the year animated or otherwise (I can not wait to see what Brad Bird does in live action) and Persepolis achieves a certain kind of grace in telling the story of a young girl growing up without a proper home. They are both funny, surprising, and wonderfully drawn. Maybe people will rediscover that no matter what D you are in, it's always about story.

ALL TIED FOR 11th PLACE (seriously I love these movies but for the sake of being succinct, I couldn't squeeze them all in)
The Savages, Margot at the Wedding, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, No End in Sight, Eastern Promises, Sunshine, I'm Not There, Control, The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, Rescue Dawn, Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten, The Host, Gone Baby Gone, Away From Her, Michael Clayton, Sicko, The Bourne Ultimatum, Lust, Caution, Deep Water

Special Achievement Award (for surpassing the hype and then some:
The Simpsons Movie (you didn't think I forgot about it did you?)

I'll be back later with my annual over-rated, under-rated titles as well my Worst of the year selection.

Until then, it's been real.

Flightless Bird

2007-12-15T17:12:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with you, an account of an experience I had a few weeks ago at the Iron and Wine concert in downtown L.A.
The show was amazing (big shocker there) and it was so despite the most determined efforts of a group of hipster fuckwads behind me. I won't get into the agonizing details of their vain attempt to sully one of the most moving musical experiences I've had in recent history. Let's just say, it confirmed what I've always thought:

Concerts would be great if it wasn't for the fucking audience.

Anyway, what I wanted to talk about (and not have this spill over into a long, angry diatribe against certain members of the audience) was when Sam Beam and his sister came back onstage for the encore. He ditched his band, it was just him, his sister, and his guitar. He only played one song for the encore, The Trapeze Swinger. Which I would bet dollars to donuts is not one of the, if not THE most beautiful song ever written. On top of that, the room fell silent when he played, allowing each of us to crawl inside our own space and feel as if he was playing that song just for each of us, individually.

What also made it special was that Trapeze Swinger has a certain affiliation to Cinnamon because it was used in a video Nate made for mom and also due to the fact that Nate pointed out how Sam Beam was like the human version of Cinnamon. His head blanketed by hair, his demeanor peaceful, calm, serene, and full of wisdom.

He starts playing the song, the noise in the room drops to zero. And in those 7 or 8 minutes something happened that I've never experienced before in a concert. I felt some kind of merging (again attributed to the fact that it felt like he was playing that song just for me) wherein it felt like the words were leaving Sam Beam's mouth along with the gentle plucking of his guitar and floating out into the air. And in that time they ceased to be concrete things, infusing with my thoughts, memories, and grief. It was as if the words brought Cinnamon back to life for those few brief blissful minutes. They became a part of everything.

I know that sounds vague and quasi dazed but it's hard to explain. But it got me thinking about all of the things we cherish, like the little sense triggers that unleash an onslaught of memories and moments. And how through music, movies, books, conversations, sights, or whatever it may be, through those instances where we are lucky enough to catch ourselves and realize what wonderful things have happened to us. This is how he lives forever.

It's like my man E said...

"There are two kinds of Christmas people, those who like their Christmas lights to stay on solid and those who like them to blink. As a kid, I always had a thing for sitting in the dark and watching the lights blink on and off at random. In the end, what we have are these little, great moments. They come and they go. That's as good as it gets. But, still, isn't that great?"

Takk You

2007-11-04T22:46:00.000-08:00

Sigur Ros is a benefit to humanity.

Not a very bold statement or even original one, and maybe I'm just on a high from seeing Heima today.

For whatever reason, as of this moment nobody could talk me down from that.

Here's what I mean.

Sigur Ros makes music for the very reason music was meant to be made. There is no prior knowledge one needs of musical history in order to enjoy the sound these people produce. There is no need to understand even the basics of musical instrumentation or songwriting in order to enjoy these tracks. There is no need to understand the language in which the lyrics are sung. What makes this band so special is that their music transcends all limitations. I don't mean this to sound naive and gushing, I am writing from what I feel when I listen to their music and it is the reason I will continue to listen to their music for as long as I have the ability to hear. When you listen to Sigur Ros (at least when I do) I forget about all of the bullshit that is associated and very much a part of "the industry." All of the things that are what we commonly associate as popular culture and what it takes to be successful within that culture. You forget about the coffee, the assistants, the meetings, the phone calls, the errands, the parties, the handshakes, the scripts, the interviews, the press kits, the publicists, the managers, the executives, grocery shopping, interns. It all disappears and all you are left with, is the music.

I remember that the point of all this is to share a common experience with other people, an experience or a thought or a memory or a moment or a fragment of a memory of a thought. To share that with total strangers and hope that through the darkness and the neurological chain reaction it triggers you find some kind of understanding that helps you feel like you are a part of the world. That's what I think the point of all this is, to connect, to share, and to learn. It seems so simple and some how these four guys and girls from iceland have found to way to do that at a very profound level. And they did it all on their own (with a lot of help I'm sure) from their little country in their little homes based on their little lives. Through all of that they made me appreciate the world and my part in it. A tall order for a band, and I'm sure someone could find fifty ways to call bullshit on me during this post. I can't help it, it's sigur ros. Terence Malick understands it, David Gordon Green understands it, Nathaniel Carota understands it, Explosions in the Sky understand it (a lot of other creative entities do too but I must refrain from acknowledging them right now). We live in a spectaculr, changing, breath taking world and we make our own lives and we do the best we can. Isn't that great?

P.S.
When I say other creative entities, I, of course refer to my family and friends. I could list them here but you guys know who you are. That's pretty great too.

No More

2007-09-18T23:44:00.000-07:00

Another reason...

I speak for a man who gave for this land
Took a bullet in the back for his pay
Spilled his blood in the dirt and the dust
He's back to say:

What he has seen is hard to believe
And it does no good to just pray
He asks of us to stand
And we must end this war today

With his mind, he's saying, "No more!"
With his heart, he's saying, "No more!"
With his life he's saying, "No more war!"

With his eyes, he's saying, "No more!"
With his body, he's saying, "No more!"
With his voice, he's saying, "No more war!"

Yeah, nothing's too good for a veteran
Yeah, this is what they say
So nothing is what they will get
And there's no American way

The lies we were told to get us to go
War criminals let us be straight
Let's get to the point where our voices get heard
And I know what I'll say

With his mind, he's saying, "No more!"
With his heart, he's saying, "No more!"
With his life he's saying, "No more war!"

With his eyes, he's saying, "No more!"
With his voice, he's saying, "No more!"
With his body, he's saying, "No more war!"

No more innocents dying
No more terror rising
No more eulogizing
No more evangelizing
No more presidents lying
No more war

With our minds, we're saying, "No more!"
With our hearts, we're saying, "No more!"
With our lives, we're saying, "No more war!"

Here's to the State...

2007-09-18T23:42:00.000-07:00

One reason why Eddie Vedder is a genius...

Here's to the judges of William Rehnquist,
Who wear the robe of honour in their phoney legal fort.
Oh, justice is a stranger when the partisans report,
When the court elected the president it was the beginning of this war.
Whoa here's to the land you've torn out the heart of,
William Rehnquist, find yourself another country to be part of!

And here's to the government of Dick Cheney,
With criminals are posing as advisors to the crown
And they hope that no one sees the sights and no one hears the sounds
'Cause the speeches of the president are the ravings of a clown
Oh, here's to the land you've torn out the heart of
Dick Cheney, find yourself another country to be part of

And here's to the churches of Jerry Falwell,
Where the cross, once made of silver, now is caked with rust
And the Sunday morning sermons pander to the fear of men in lust
Heaven only knows in which God they can trust
Oh, here's to the land you've torn out the heart of
Jerry Falwell, find yourself another country to be part of

And here's to the laws of John Ashcroft,
Congress will pass an act in the panic of the day
While the Constitution is drowning in an ocean of decay
And freedom of speech is dangerous, I've even heard them say
Oh, here's to the land you've torn out the heart of
John Ashcroft, find yourself another country to be part of

And here's to the businessman of George W.,
Who want to change the focus from Halliburton and Enron
And their profits, like blood money are spilling out on the White House Lawn
TO keep their hold on power they're using terror as a gun
While the bombs that fall on children don't care which side that they're on
Oh, here's to the land you've torn out the heart of
George W., find yourself another country to be part of

It's A Motherfucker

2007-09-13T22:08:00.000-07:00

"With your beauty so precious and the seasons so fast..."

I don't really know what else to say. Thirteen years just seemed to have blinked by and now he's gone, he was always there and now he's gone. We have been preparing ourselves for this on and off for the past five years, they tell you that goldens don't live much longer than 9 years old. Through all that time you figure we would have found a way to not make it hurt as much but I can assure you that is definitely not the case. That nauseating feeling circulated through my body when I heard, as if preparing myself for the massive upheaval that was about to occur. You can't blame us for wanting to keep him around forever, anybody who spent more than five minutes with him was instantly hooked. He had the ability to heal wounds with just a look of that slightly amused dead pan expression he always wore. His compassion and love made him unique, but his sense of humor made him a life saver. He never wanted to be left alone, he never excluded anybody (except when it came to eating), and he would listen without judgement or complaint. He would make a complete ass of himself and never act embarassed or self-concious, or make someone else feel small when he did. He was perfect so we didn't have to be, he was our therapist, best friend, and confidant. He never asked for anything in return. That's what I'll miss I suppose, he was full of that spirit that makes you appreciate life and more importantly your life a little bit more. We're all looking for it, we're lucky in that we found it in such a silly creature. I miss you buddy, but I know you're doing the exact same thing you were doing down here, so I'm not worried.

There's a Calvin and Hobbes I thought of today, well actually, two of them and I couldn't stop thinking about them all day today. The first being one where Calvin finds a raccoon that dies a few hours later. Calvin says this in reponse to the whole event, it pretty much sums it up...

"This is where dad buried the little raccoon, I didn't even know he existed a few days ago and now he's gone forever. It's like I found him for no reason, I had to say good-bye as soon as I said hello. Still...in a sad, awful, terrible way, I'm happy I met him. What a stupid world."

And the other one is one where Calvin and Hobbes are in bed saying goodnight to each other. They realize, however, that they can meet up in each other's dreams so they can continue to play. Bill Watterson said he wrote that after his cat had died and he thought the best way to see her again was in his dreams.

I hope I see Cinnamon in my dreams, and Summer too. It's so hard to imagine him not being around, maybe I can see him whenever I want, maybe he will be around forever. He would like us to think so I imagine.

This is a song I've been thinking about a lot today. I was going to just use a quote, but here's the whole thing...

Keep a fire burning in your eye
Pay attention to the open sky
You never know what will be coming down
I dont remember losing track of you
You were always dancing in and out of view
I must have thought youd always be around
Always keeping things real by playing the clown
Now youre nowhere to be found

I dont know what happens when people die
Cant seem to grasp it as hard as I try
Its like a song I can hear playing right in my ear
That I cant sing
I cant help listening
And I cant help feeling stupid standing round
Crying as they ease you down
cause I know that youd rather we were dancing
Dancing our sorrow away
(right on dancing)
No matter what fate chooses to play
(theres nothing you can do about it anyway)

Just do the steps that youve been shown
By everyone youve ever known
Until the dance becomes your very own
No matter how close to yours
Anothers steps have grown
In the end there is one dance youll do alone

Keep a fire for the human race
Let your prayers go drifting into space
You never know what will be coming down
Perhaps a better world is drawing near
And just as easily it could all disappear
Along with whatever meaning you might have found
Dont let the uncertainty turn you around
(the world keeps turning around and around)
Go on and make a joyful sound

Into a dancer you have grown
From a seed somebody else has thrown
Go on ahead and throw some seeds of your own
And somewhere between the time you arrive
And the time you go
May lie a reason you were alive
But youll never know

I wish you'd've done this for me when I was a kid. But you didn't have a drug problem then.

2007-09-02T10:30:00.000-07:00

I feel like so much has happened since I last posted. It feels like as if an entire summer just breezed by like a cane field in a high wind. A lot to talk about, not nearly enough time to do it. And since this will probably be the last post I write for another couple of months (I knew it, I AM like Salinger), I will try to get to the meat 'n mud of it all.

Something I would like to address right off the bat, I can not, CAN NOT wait for The Darjeeling Limited. If I had to go out on a limb, and with this blog I find that I most frequently do have to, I would say it's the movie I'm most excited for this summer. Followed in a close second by Noah Baumbach's Margot at the Wedding (more on that closer to its release date). Anderson is my favorite director working right now and I suppose the reason for that is because he is the director I most aspire to rip off in my own work. After having just watched the Royal Tenenbaums, I realized just how comforting his movies are and how pleasant they are to re-visit. Darjeeling looks like all that and more, it feels like he's going after bigger emotional game here while sticking true to his obsessions and fantastic visual style. I've heard the complains that Anderson has made the same movie over and over again, but I feel like you could say that about a lot of great directors and Anderson is a GREAT director. They have obsessions, themes they can't seem to shake, and god forbid a visual style. If Anderson made a movie that looked like something Spike Lee had directed, I'd be kind of let down. It's a delicate tight rope to walk and I understand the complaint completely, I guess it just doesn't bother me. I think the reason is because Anderson's movies all take place within their own meticulously production designed universes. So all of the behavior and peculiarities of the characters are not meant to be mocked because to them in their world they are completely justified (listen up napolean dynamite). And that's the key to Anderson's work, he never talks down to his characters, he celebrates them in all refracted flaws and glories. They are capable of the best and the worst in and from each other. He also seems to cherish the notion that family is whatever you make of it, it's our job to make each other happy and to love each other. If he's not one of the most optimistic and hopeful voices in filmmaking I don't know who is? Plus he wraps it all up in some of the most sharply observed comedy in American filmmaking, he's not out to rub your face in shit because he thinks its good for you, nor beat you over the head with his pleas for forgiveness (take that Haggis). Okay I'm done, but go see Darjeeling, I would like to right a full review right here at this blog. And what's that you say? You would like to read it, okay if you insist. Will there ever be a rainbow?

Also a quick aside, I was saddened and upset at the news of Owen Wilson's health problems. It doesn't mean anything but I wish him the best and I hope he gets the help he needs and recovers quickly. I think the media coverage of this is disgusting, I wish magazines like People and US Weekly would just go away and never come back. Wilson has accomplished some great work in his career and I look forward to more, I hope he gets better.

The screening for ASD went over like gangbusters last week (ASD is what they will be calling it on JoBlo, Chud, and AICN when the time comes). I love it to death, I'm a little biased of course, but I think its a masterpiece. It felt at home up on the big screen and I think thats quite an accomplishment. And even after driving across country, pre-production, and being there every day for the shoot. I still find myself getting caught up, immersed, and watching the movie not as crew but as a fan. I think there's something to be said for the storytelling talent at work when you can pull somehing off like that. And Flip like Wilson, I can't wait to see what he does next. You'll get a better write up over at the REAL director's blog. It's quite an accomplishment, I tip my non-existant cap.

I feel like there's so much more to squeeze in here, Josh Ritter, No End in Sight, New York City, John Wells Productions, U.S. News and World Whatnot, Resignations, why Once and Zodiac are the two best movies of the year so far, how little has changed since All the President's Men, San Francisco, The Genius of Wes Anderson (oh wait I already covered that), the genius that was THE SIMPSONS MOVIE. Okay, I'm over stimulated, I better sit down here for a minute. Wait a minute, I AM sitting down.

...And her.

Au revoir,

I like fruit baskets because it gives you the ability to mail someone a piece of fruit without appearing insane. Like, if someone just mailed you an apple you'd be like 'Huh? What the hell is this?', but if it's in a fruit basket you're like 'This is nice!

I like sports; I like professional football. I like to get to the stadium and see the games live, you know. And I paint my chest before I leave the house. But I don't have many friends, you know, so I usually just do punctuation and tack on a group already in progress. But sometimes it works out kind of weird because we ended up on TV one time and it said 'JETS?'

Yippee Kay Yay Mr. Falcon

2007-06-15T00:15:00.000-07:00

Hello there, I know it's been a few hours north of a month since my last post.

I'd like to make amends right now, by giving you folks a little something I like to call.

Ethan's People, A new segment for the people by the people.

Actually, it's really more of a rant that I've been thinking about for quite some time, and by some time I mean the past couple of hours and a few minutes here and there while I was on a run today.

As you no doubt have heard, it is now official: Live Free or Die Hard has been rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, language, and a brief sexual situation, apparently.

What da fuck?

Granted, I knew about this several weeks prior when it was officially leaked via bruce willis through some drunken rant he gave at a nets game wherein he not only revealed the rating but how uniquely jersey trash he actually is. So this really isn't new news, however, it is upsetting. And there are several reasons why: but first let me issue a disclaimer:

I here acknowledge that we as citizens of the planet earth were and are still in no need of a fourth die hard movie especially one called live free or die hard. I was always a little against the project from the beginning, primarily because die hard with a vengeance was so goddamn good (and as Spiderman 3 proved) it is very hard to go out strong on your third movie. There was a sense of completeness there like they waited five years between die harder, they got John McTiernan back, everything had come full circle. When it was announced, after many gestating years of rumors and false starts, i was more than anything in need of a reminder as to what a fourth die hard movie could be. Plus the whole set up just seemed like a cash-in and a lame one at that. Techno terrorists? Live Free or Die Hard? Bald Bruce Willis? The whole enterprise just seemed so smug and aware of its ludicrous existense that it seems like it wants to fit nicely next to Snakes on a Plane for a double feature of shit. The only saving grace behind this comatose franchise being brought back to life via mouth to mouth from the guy who did not only underworld but underworld 2 was that it would be loud, vulgar, and violent. Not that I am ordinarily in need of those things in movies (in fact people are usually idiots when it comes to that stuff) but Die Hard has a certain finesse when it comes to those topics in that it never seems gratuitous or mean spriited like Eli Roth type torture porn (and I will always call it that), I at least hope it would be a satisfying action movie. Then the trailer came along and I wasn't blown away by it or completely assuaged in my fear. But it did look like fun with one shot that pisses me off only because I had the idea for using a car as a missile against a helicopter many many years ago except I always imagined it taking place over a very small river, not sure if that would have worked. I don't know what's more depressing, that I thought of it or that Die Hard 4 is the Die Hard that wound up using it. Anyway, the trailer had some lame parts, it seems a bit too jokey and self aware in a way the old movies were not and the Kevin Smith cameo looks pretty bad and I really like kevin smith. In essence, red flags. Then I hear this bullshit about a PG-13 rating and I lost it.

Why is it that filmmakers are allowed to carve up, disembowel, castrate, behead, and dismember teenagers (usually Female) at the drop of a hat and still get away with an R rating. Why is it okay for teenagers to sneak into those movies (The very same who are getting killed) but the idea of such a fragile minded young individual sneaking into an R rated Die Hard movie is too appalling to consider. I won't turn this into a rant against the MPAA because violence always gets a free pass no matter what especially when it comes to sex. But how come horror is allowed to be R now but action is not. The R Rated action movie has all but disappeared, replaced in its stead by the Neal Moritz shit parade. Classics such as The Fast and the Furious Trilogy, S.W.A.T Stealth and many more have been produced under the guise of this bullshit bastard. And it was in these films that they stumbled upon a formula, if they could only subtly hint at the mindless violence of the 80's action movies without showing anything, they could make a bundle. They could get every kid in every mall to be exposed to the kinds of movies they want to see without their parents having to be dragged along, its win win for everybody. Blood and mayhem were replaced by rapid fire editing and an inane inability to accurately stage an action sequence. Violence was something to be feared on screen. Which is weird, because for a time in the early to mid 90's there were moments when it seemed impossible to escape another R- rated action movie ready to fire somebody out of a tower on alcatraz and have them impaled on a fence post. What happened? was this a reponse to 9/11 (a half assed one at that). Did kids suddenly exhibit their buying muscle while adults just gave up and watched the very things that makes being an adult great go to waste?

I've realized that i've already typed more than I intended to, I will continue this tomorrow.

Until then...

to be continued...

The Songs You Wrote, Got Me Through A Lot, Just Wanna Tell You That.

2007-05-13T21:25:00.000-07:00

After a whole "day" of travelling, it's good to be back home. Real real good.

I am in anticipation like you would not believe to be back in the city with the old karl krew. You know the ones I mean.

I'm excited for Tess's big celebration. I'm excited to meet the one who calls herself Hughes.
I'm excited for John's...

I like John.

All in all, should be a hoot 'n a holler about which I should be reporting constantly. As long as you care to listen.

But just to let you know, as a wise man once said.

"It's a very exciting time."

I have tried to post on my blog for the past week, both times they were videos cribbed from YouTube that I found quite quirking. And both times I was denied, no stairway style.

I hope this one works.

I've been thinking about Elliott Smith a lot recently (I know, I know the collective eye roll begins with the oh hear comes another plea for Mr. Smith) After hearing New Moon, the collection of B-Sides and lost recordings just released this week, I am simply stunned as to the man's songwriting abilities, I think he is unrivaled in his age bracket. Even the stop he didn't put on the album is better than what most slave over to press to disc. It's inspiring and then a bummer for its just another reminder of what a colossal we lost when he died. After listening to the cd, I decided to take a trip over to the Audio-Video solutions store where the Figure 8 album cover was shot in front of. It's quite a sight actually, thousands of hand-written notes by fans from various points throughout the last three years since his death. Some of them are touching and poetic, some not so much, and some were inspired. The common thread through all of these was, "Your music got me through a lot of shit." or "I wouldn't have made it without you, thank you so much." Obviously, more elegantly worded than that. Now, it's debatable whether or not that's true, I can't speak for the people who wrote the messages, and a lot of music is supposed to do that. But I think it's really interesting that all of Mr. Smith's fans chose to thank him for that particular part of his music, as if to suggest that his talent and his emotional gifts as a songwriter somehow translated into therapy for a few listeners. And to me that is what's so fascinating about his music and ultimately rewarding, the constant push and pull between disaster and recovery. On the one hand, his music culminates with some really dark subject matter, places no human being likes to see inside themselves or inside each other. On the other hand, here is a guy who would get up on stage with a guitar and just release all of this and people got better because of it (or so they thought). That's why to me, his music has always been much more complicated than happy/sad, sure there are sad moments in it, but I think his music is about survival. Ultimately he succumbed, but that by no means makes him a martyr for the music. It just proves once again the age old wisdom that music is immortal and in a strange way, so is Elliott. (I know I stole that from the end of Big Fish, but it works really well.) Anyway I was just thinking about that, and just how I wish he were still around.

I'm gonna try posting a video in the next entry (we'll see if it works this time, thank you very much youtube.) I'm not sure when it's from, but it's Kevin Devine covering The Biggest Lie, which is an Elliott Smith song and if there's anyone I want to hear covering Mr. Smith, it's Mr. Devine. (To give credit where credit is due, Bright Eyes also does a fantastic cover of it as well, there's even a video on youtube of Mr. Oberst playing that song in a what looks like a gymnasium in full on halloween get up, I think it's from the year he died, check it out I'll let Nate post that one, even though he swore off videos for a while.)

Happy Mother's Day too, if you want you should check out this website, it's got a pretty moving short film directed by Robert Greenwald. Just reminds you the simplicity of the message and how complicated it is to put it in action. Hope you all did something special and worthy of yo mama.

http://mothersdayforpeace.com/

Good night america,

"You look and him like you've never known him
but i know for a fact that you have
the last time you cried who'd you think was inside?
thinking that you were about to come over
but i'm tired now of waiting for you
you never show."

All the Way to New York City

2007-04-24T00:55:00.000-07:00

I was thinking about how much I love quiet music.

Quiet shows, quiet audiences, that's where I feel it.

I was thinking about how some of the music I like can be talked over when played live.

This is for all those quiet performers.

It's also for all the people, places and moments I miss in New York City.

I wish I could take you with me
All the way to New York City
We could get an apartment there
Be closer to our families.

We could take my station wagon
And fill it to the brim
And wave goodbye to all our lovely friends
Never to return again

You could write for picture shows
And I could get a job waiting tables
At a restaurant where famous people like to go
We could buy old overcoats and walk through the snow
All the way around central park
Our cheeks as pink as wild roses

We could take the subway home
And stare at our reflection in the window panes of the train
And see how much New York has changed us.

Got my main man adam duritz on the speed dial.

2007-04-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

The following are not my words, they are those of Adam Duritz.

Wise and dreadlocked.

This is for that girl who decided to let me know she thought dashboard confessional sucked as I walked towards St. Mark's place however long ago that was.

Feast on it.

For instance, I think Chris Carrabba is a great songwriter. I think Dashboard Confessional is a great band. I hadn’t heard of them until Gil Norton (see Recovering The Satellites (1996)) told me he was going to make an album with them but (and take this with a grain of salt since I pretty much worship the ground Gil walks on-if you agree, let’s hang out and that’ll be our “scene”, I guess) I think A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar (2003) is a fabulous album (and, as I later discovered, so are The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most and The Swiss Army Romance). I was flattered to be asked and proud to be on Dusk and Summer (2006).Then a little while later I started hearing all about something called “Emo”. Now I’m not saying Chris started the movement; I’m just saying he was the first I heard of it. I have to admit I was a little more inclined to like Emo than any other scene just because Emo is short for “emotional” (I think) and I like the idea of music that has actual feelings involved in it. I was starting to get really worn out by “irony”. It’s just too easy to be clever and NOT care.
So, in “Hands Down“, the opening song from A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar when Chris sings:Hands down, this is the best day I can ever remember
Always remember the sound of the stereo
The dim of the soft lights
The scent of your hair that you twirled in your fingers
And the time on the clock when we leave cause it’s so late
And it’s one thing we shared together
The streets were wet and the gate was locked
So I jumped in and I let you in

And you stood at the door with your hands on my waist
And you kissed me like you meant it
And I knew that you meant it

I know that he means it. I really do because there’s too many details for it to mean anything else. “Hands down, this is the best day I can ever remember” might seem like a corny line in the hands of someone else but not when Chris sings it and DEFINITELY not when ANY songwriter follows that line with the 10 lines that follow it in this song (even if I got some of the lines wrong). So if that’s “emo”, count me in.

Long live AD and DC

Why Am I So Pathetic? Don't get it.

2007-03-29T01:37:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to write a few things before I go to bed. It's about 1:36am now and I've fallen into this weird habit of going to bed later for no particular reason. It's not like I'm galavanting around town, naked as a jaybird, I'm just sitting here, watching t.v. or reading shit online. Trying to read the huge pile of books in my to read box, not really getting any of it done. I've become quite skilled at wasting a lot of nights. The only problem with this comes when I wake up early in the morning, I just can't not do it. I really like being up in the morning and I want to start waking up earlier but I feel like that would sacrifice sleep, and since I don't drink coffee, nor do I handle being tired very well (as evidenced by the USC tour guide who spotted me yawning emphatically during her speech), I need to find a way to get to bed earlier and wake up earlier. Then everything will be alright.

Wow.

There you have it, I just wasted four minutes of my night right there typing out that nonsense.

I hope I didn't waste your time.

Quick Things: (Seriously this time)

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Blinking Lights and Other Revelations is definitely on my list for desert island records (however that notion has become someone outdated with the invention of the ipod). No other album in the small history of my musical life has the ability to re settle me the way that one does. There's something about his vocals and the story he tells on that album, it's like listening to a voice on the other end of the phone in the middle of the night telling you not to worry beceause bad things happen, good things happen, and the lights are always blinking no matter where you are.

Secondly, All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone is some kind of musical miracle. I say that because somehow Explosions in the Sky have managed to out do everything that has come before in their musical cannon (no small feat). That is not to say their earlier stuf is now negated, but they soar to ridiculous heights on this album. The weird thing is, it didn't hit me at first. Sure I loved it and was completely bown away by it, but this album is like meeting a good friend for the first time. You hit it off at first but there's still some hesitancy due to the fact that you don't know each other. Then somewhere along the trail everything clicks and you need to be best friends with this person, right now. That might be a little abstract, but that's the best I could come up with. This is their most complex album, the melodies swirl in and out of each other with such precision and skill that the narrative is much stronger on this album than it has been before. On top of that there is a much more spontaneous shift to this record, as if to suggest these songs are being recorded on the spot. I have no idea how they do it, it has the raw surging power of a live show with the emotional complexity of superb storytelling. It fucking rocks.

Last thing, I promise. Annie Hall is a great great movie. All I have to say about it is that it once again proves that the need for any kind of movie about the ins and outs of relationships has been negated. It was Say Anything, Chasing Amy, All the Real Girls, and now Annie Hall, actually, I would also like to add Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to that list. All of these movies say it all and it pisses me off. Maybe I can find a way to incorporate Ned Beatty into my movie, they wouldn't see that one coming.

Okay that's it, I'm going to bed.

"this is the day
that i give myself up cold

the dust of ages
settles on your days
and so you shake your coat off
and get on your way

bloodshot and trembling
a new day has begun

the dust of ages
settles on your days
and so you blow it all away
and get on your way

the dust of ages
settles on your days
but i'm not fuckin' around anymore
i'm on my way"

It's Natural to Be Afraid...

2007-03-20T22:40:00.000-07:00

Well, I hope you all read up and studied each and every manufactured thought that appeared in yesterday's L.A. times concerning the box office success of 300 versus the relative disappointment of Zodiac. Like I said, I hope you didn't break anything in your fit of rage. Then again, it's important to remember these are just half rate idiots writing for a stupid newspaper and they don't really care about telling a good story or even telling the truth. They write whatever will give them the quickest easiest answer to complicated questions, actually most journalists do that too come to think of it.

Anyway getting down to business, this article pissed me off in so many ways, I don't know where to begin.

Let's start with the basic assumption the article makes:

That 300 is a new cultural phenomenon in league with Star Wars, The Matrix, or Lord of the Rings. And like those films it's success is based around the fact that it supposedly celebrates the things that movies do best (visuals, speed, classic story telling) and how it is invincible to any sort of criticism because the very thought of analyzing such a work would rob of the purpose it serves as a movie. It's not a dissertation after all.

The first part of this I would like to debunk is that 300 is some kind of cultural phenomenon. That simply is not true, you need a little bit more time than a week to prove that. You also need a better response than the movie has gotten thus far. If you apply this logic to every movie than in this year alone, Norbit, Wild Hogs, and Ghost Rider would be considered cultural phenomenons. Not to mention scores of other movies most people only remember as something they dug out of their ears. I would even argue that Lord of the Rings is not quite yet a cultural phenomenon, it was at one point but I think the true test is to see how long it stays in the public sphere of conscious after its initial release. Star Wars has passed that test (the original trilogy anyway, but I won't get into that now), and I think the original matrix will any day now. The point being, 300 is a movie that made a shit load of money on its opening weekend and it surprised some people. are we really going to remember this, ten years later, as a watershed day for cinema? That's the dumbest thing I ever heard.

The article then goes onto to discuss the drubbing the movie received by the critics. Which is also inaccurate, for according to metacriic the movie received a score 53 which it describes as mixed to average reviews. Compare that to the score of 27 received by both Norbit and Wild Hogs. Point being, while it didn't get great reviews, a couple of big critics like entertainment weekly and rolling stone liked it. And even the people who didn't like it didn't hate, the sampling the L.A times takes are from critics who really hated it, of which there a few. Not to suggest that this means the movie is great, but the article essentially claims that the critics who hated the movie some how took away from it political or social commentary that wasn't there and therefore only existed so critics could rag on it. First of all, most of the negative review of the movie I've read and even the two they quote in the article (and you can see these reviews at www.metacritic.com) hated the movie because it is poorly made, not because they didn't agree with its politics (as dunderheaded as they may be). They hated it because the writing is lousy, the acting is a lot of screaming and little else, and the fact that the entire movie strives to be a feature length gorgeously rendered video game. Any mention of the nationalistic, drumbeating, pro war homophobia that supposedly exists in the movie, goes by as more of an afterthought. More like, yes the movie sucks and p.s. here is some weird shit in it. The article, however, quotes director Zack Snyder as laughing off the reviews, saying they came across as "so neo-con" and "so homophobic" (yes his actual words) and that "they couldn't just go see the movie without trying to over-intellectualize it." This is idiotic in so many ways, first of all he uses the words neo-con and homophobic as if he doesn't know what they mean. And I think it's very interesting that he equates intellectualizing something with being neo-con and homophobic. Does one make you the other? I guess I never thought about it that way. He also doesn't seem to understand that when someone accuses you, based on your film, of subscribing to a certain set of ideas, that doesn't mean they are always right. However it doesn't mean that pointing those ideas makes them fervent followers of them. I actually don't even know what he's trying to say, it doesn't make any sense and he sounds really stupid saying it. The critics pointed out how homoerotic the movie is to deflate the toxic machismo that seems to permeate every frame of the damn thing. They said it to make fun of you mr. snyder, not gay people. The article acts as if no movie in the history of cinema had ever grossed a lot of money while receiving mostly negative reviews. It kinda happens all the time, and it's one of the great mysteries of life, hopefully this writer will sleep better knowing he has contributed much by way of public knowledge about the subject. What it seems to me, with all of this, is that Snyder made an irresponsible movie (and that's okay by the way). He made a politically irresponsible movie and he won't cop to it, I think he put a lot of shit in there without realizing it and refuses to admit it because he will come off as a buffoon. Well, tough shit, own up to it at least, I think that's what the Spartans would have wanted. That's the man's way of dealing with it.

The final part of this article that actually enraged me (the other stuff just kind of got on my nerves, whereas this part sent me off the fucking cliff). The writer attempts to make some half assed connection between why 300 succeeded and why Zodiac failed to attract any of that attention.

Oh no he didn't.

I've been harboring this ever since I became aware of the 70 million opening for 300. Dammit, that was Zodiac's money and it fucking earned it. Why a movie like 300, that is chest thumping, simple, comic book gore gets the audience, whereas a devastating, thoughtful, and supremely executed detective story like Zodiac gets none. Why can't they both get it? I imagine there are more than enough people in this country to make up for Zodiac's deficit, right? Why Zodiac didn't do well is for another blog, I want to dicuss why 300 did so well instead. The article supposes that is because David Fincher made the movie for himself and for no one else. That he wasn't thinking about the audience or the critics, only about himself. Well, moron, filmmaking is an extremely personal artform and in case you forgot, David Fincher's (along with several other thousand) name will be attached to this movie forever as not just the director, but as the guiding vision. If he doesn't make it for himself, than why make it in the first place? I hope this guy knows that his name and only his name will be attached to this shitty article forever, so he is not allowed to blame anybody else for this debacle. Second of all, the claim that Zodiac is somehow inaccesible is complete and utter bullshit. I have not been more enthralled by a movie like that for a long time, how is that not accessible. And obviously not every audience member shares the same tastes as me. But it doesn't really matter whether people like it or not but there is something in this movie for everyone to at least check out. To least buy a goddamn ticket. Also, God forbid, a director tells a story without the usual cinematic pay offs. God forbid he makes a murder mystery not about the violent porn of most serial killer movies (and stupid T.V. shows by the way) but about the cereberal and haunting life of its own that a case can take on when it infects the mind of ordinary human beings. God forbid a director attempt to show the transformation of a city and its media from mild indifference to the kind of paranoid delusions we still suffer from today. God forbid a director try to make a movie not about death, but about how life rebounds or doesn't from that death. Again, these are not radical concepts, merely interesting ideas explored with precision and depth by the makers of Zodiac. It is not like some kind of thought exercise that will only appeal to intellectuals (christ, I liked this movie) but rather a movie that poses a lot of interesting questions and theories but allows its audience to come to its own conclusion. Dammit, that's what filmmaking is all about and it pisses me off that because Fincher doesn't revel in bloodletting, he somehow has receeded into the dark corncers of artistic pretension, and that nobody should see his movie. That is complete and utter bullshit, to the highest degree. I loved Zodiac, I was into every single minute of it, and I watched it feeling as though I was in the hands of one of the most capable story tellers working today. Other than that, it was a weird and deeply confusing artistic experiment that left me feeling cold and indifferent because Fincher didn't include an ending where Jake Gyllenhall cuts off the Zodiac killer's head in slow motion with a battle axe while sreaming something about the glory of the San Francisco Chronicle. Oh yeah, everybody.

Okay, I've chewed everybody eyes and ears for about long enough now. I hope this rambling tale of magic and heroism made a little bit of sense. Again I should have prefaced this by saying I haven't seen 300 yet and maybe all of this is moot. However, I plan to and when I do, you will be the first to hear about it.

Go see Zodiac.

"i said johnny and i, we got lost tonight, but we doubled our chances we've got somewhere to go, we've got devils chasing us to hunt us down, and we know we can't go like this from now, i've got a feeling of you, and we danced for so long, i want your arms around me, said never gonna let you down, never gonna let you down, but i will always let you down "

Go ahead, Cornelius, you can cry.

2007-03-20T00:29:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to post anything of my own today.

I would instead like you all to read this article from the L.A. Times about 300.

Try not to smash something...

300': It's just a movie -- or is it?
Call it a grand, vivid spectacle -- nothing more, nothing less.
PATRICK GOLDSTEIN
March 20, 2007

DON'T tell the critics, but "300" is a new kind of action movie, a clever synthesis of the stylized epic storytelling practiced by Peter Jackson in "Lord of the Rings" and the stop 'n' start fast-motion cutting of the Wachowski brothers' "Matrix" series. Let's call it Hyper Cinema. "300's" entire visual environment — its billowy wheat fields, its stormy gray skies, even blood that miraculously evaporates before it hits the ground — is a fabricated universe, created by 1,300 effects shots generated in a computer after the actors have gone home.

It's a gamer's view of the world that film critics don't relate to because they seem to have forgotten the kick they got from reading comics as kids. When I went to see "300" last week, the theater was full of scruffy guys who looked like they spent a lot more hours playing Final Fantasy X11 or God of War II than working out at the gym. In an era when it's increasingly difficult to reach young males, "300" offered a vivid spectacle of glistening pecs — as one admirer put it, "Ray Harryhausen crossed with Leni Riefenstahl" — that couldn't be replicated at home.

"We took a singular idea and went all the way with it, which I think resonates with audiences," director Zack Snyder, whose only other feature was a remake of "Dawn of the Dead," said on the phone from London. "It gives you that feeling that made you go to movies in the first place, as in 'Holy [smoke], that was awesome!' "

Populated with unknown actors, the retelling of the gory battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC was airily dismissed as hokum by America's leading critics.

Where the fanboys saw an easily identifiable theme — "me and my buddies are gonna band together and kick some butt" — critics spied pandering trash. The Boston Globe's Wesley Morris called "300" "action porn." The New York Times' A.O. Scott said " '300' is about as violent as ' Apocalypto' and twice as stupid." And the Washington Post's Stephen Hunter, dripping with disdain, exclaimed, "Go tell the Spartans that their sacrifice was not in vain; their long day's fight under the cooling shade of a million falling arrows safeguarded the West and guaranteed, all these years later, the right of idiots to make rotten movies about them."

Those idiots grossed $129.2 million in just 10 days. And Snyder says he wasn't perturbed by the nasty reviews. "Nah, I love 'em, they were funny," he says. "The reviews were so neo-con, so homophobic. They couldn't just go see the movie without trying to over-intellectualize it."

The critics were disturbed by a host of issues, not the least being the film's macho belligerence, cartoonish lack of interest in history and racial stereotyping of Xerxes' Persian hordes as dark-skinned, decadent club queens. But a key reason critics reacted so harshly is because they have been trained to value realism over fantasy, whether it is the stoic drama of Clint Eastwood's "Letters From Iwo Jima" or the cool psychological precision of David Fincher's "Zodiac," which has flopped at the box office, despite critical raves.

"Zodiac" had everything a critic could love. It was smart, full of context and armed with a compelling narrative about an obsessive search for an enigmatic killer. Unfortunately, Fincher is a filmmaker who has little interest in what audiences — or studio executives — think about his movies. He makes them for himself.

In contrast, Snyder's "300," with its Xbox ethos, is a movie made for a generation of visual sensation seekers. Critics are largely shaped by the aesthetic of the cinematic past, which is why you often get the feeling they've been dragged, kicking and screaming, into a new world they describe as coarser, more superficial and less intellectually stimulating than the golden age of their moviegoing youth.

The complaints are almost always the same. "It's an epic without a dream," said one critic. "The loudness, the smash-and-grab editing, and the relentless pacing drive every idea from your head, and even if you've been entertained, you may feel cheated of some dimension — a sense of wonder, perhaps." Those words were written 30 years ago by Pauline Kael, reviewing "Star Wars."

If anyone knows how late critics come to the party, it is Fincher, whose breakthrough 1995 thriller "Se7en" was roundly dismissed by many of the same top critics who were "Zodiac's" biggest admirers. The Wall Street Journal's Joe Morgenstern called it "ponderous," Time's Richard Schickel dubbed it "twaddle" and Newsweek's David Ansen described its style as being a cross between "a Nike commercial and a bad Polish art film."

Now that his work is more familiar, Fincher is considered an old master, at least compared with a nervy upstart like Snyder. As it turns out, the two men's backgrounds are surprisingly similar. Fincher, who is only four years older than the 40-year-old Snyder, began his career at ILM doing optical effects on George Lucas films before directing a series of commercials and music videos for everyone from Aerosmith to Paula Abdul. Snyder had a similar career path.

"I'm part of the 'Star Wars' generation — it's what made me want to become a director," Snyder says. "Blade Runner," "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "Excalibur" — films he saw in his mid-teens — are the ones he cites as big influences.

It's obvious that Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" series has served as an influence as well. "300's" deformed hunchback, Ephialtes, who betrays the Spartans, is uncannily reminiscent, both in physical form and in moral ambiguity, to "LOTR's" Gollum.

Snyder has learned that film is a subliminal art, in the sense that he uses his visuals to supply the film's emotional underpinning. In "300," the sky is always dark and unsettled, as if to signal the bitter bloodshed to come. "We tried to make the sky reflect the emotion in the movie, which you can't do in a regular movie," he says. "That's what is great about this kind of green-screen filmmaking. It's not just the actors who matter. Every element in the frame supports the emotion of the moment."

Sadly, our critics, who seemed content with hooting at "300," have lost touch with what makes movies different from other art forms. Hollywood's mass-audience films are not a literary or an intellectual genre. Never have been, never will be. They are built around visuals and emotion, the two elements that "300" used to capture the public imagination.

No one understands this better than 13-year-old Tristan Rodman, who saw "300" (with his dad, since the film is R-rated). "I guess the critics have not liked the movie for the same reason that the majority of people in America did like it," he told me. "Most people just went to see it. Not for the acting or the story, which was just OK, but for the spectacle."

Tristan got a great thrill from seeing "300." And whether you're a critic or just a fanboy, isn't that what people have always gone to the movies for?

I will write more on this tomorrow, stay tuned...

Would You Erase Me?

2007-03-12T00:15:00.000-07:00

Okay, another blog entry I've owed for a long time. I think it's pretty good though that the last entry I made was a little more than a week ago, the window is getting smaller. And I'me excited about that, maybe I can close it between a week next time.

Maybe...

So first things last, I need to give you guys an Oscar recap. The most pressing issue of the whole issue is how once again the Oscars took a lot of short cuts and rewarded films that didn't deserve nominations. I should break this down nomination by nomination, don't worry I'm not going to go through them all. And yes I am aware of the fact that they are almost a month old and therefore no longer relevant, so don't bother pointing that out.

Best Picture
The best of this lot was Babel, plain and simple. With The Queen and Letters From Iwo Jima a close second respectively. It seemed though as the announcement loomed that the award was up for grabs between the two least deserving titles, The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine. Don't get me wrong both films I enjoyed, but the Departed fucked up in a lot of vital areas that made it severely not great. And Little Miss Sunshine is just kind of slight, there are moments in that movie I love but others that just seem like they came out of the indie dysfunctional family cookbook. Watch this film and compare it with the much more delicate Squid and the Whale and you will see why the academy sucks so hard. But that makes sense the Oscars were never about making difficult choices, because these awards are for the regular movie going audience. Snide as that sounds it is not intended to be, what I mean is that the Oscars are meant for people who don't see a lot of movies for whatever reason that may be. The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine were the most popular at the box office and they were clearly the most widely seen. However, The Departed simply had the obvious distinction of an iconic american director and a classic genre studio movie. Compared to the upstart "indie" that Little Miss Sunshine claimed to be, the message from Hollywood was clear, tonight, we honor ourselves.

Best Director
I was against all the buzz I was hearing about Scorsese winning. I thought this was another of those Academy covering their own asses and giving an award to a nominee for a career that they so callously ignored in years past, rather than the film at hand. And yes Scorsese should have won it many times for many other films in the 70's and 80's (except when he lost against Redford, if there was some way they could have tied that would have been acceptable, Ordinary People for life). And yes he is a great filmmaker and one of most influential of pure craft of any other american director. However, when it came down to it, he made a film that was more interested in piling up bodies than about whether or not anybody cared about those bodies. I remember reading an article (spoilers ahead, stop reading if you haven't seen the movie) where Scorsese said one of his main stipulations in agreeing to do this movie was that everybody had to die, plain and simple. I think he just had this idea in his head that he was going to do something radical in a mainstream movie and kill off all the big stars so that he could get across his message that our world is rotting from within. I just think the job he did on the departed was more interested in the destination than the journey. Paul Greengrass on the other hand, took an extremely difficult subject matter and handled it with such precision and with nary a mis step that it's breathtaking. He made a better film and he had a lot more at stake between the two of them and when it comes down to a directorial award, that should come into consideration. Anyway, the point of all this is, all was forgiven when I saw Coppola, Spielberg, and Lucas giving the award to their pal. I gave in, it was very nice to see at least for a few seconds and in a completely staged proceeding that some people can remain friends in this business for so many years. I'm glad he won, he just should have pulled a Ving Rhames and given it to Greengrass out of gratitude. That's all I got to say.

Best Screenplay (Original and Adapted)
Once again the Screenplay award fucked up, they really never get this one right. The same I said for best picture applied for these two awards (Won by Little Miss Sunshine and The Departed). As far as adaptations go, I think Children of Men should be studied in classes for many years to come as a model of a pristine film adaptation. The amount of information conveyed in that script without any kind of expository tidal waves and the amount that they pared down to get to the essential meat of the story really makes the movie in my opinion. And it's easy to lose sight of that admist the visual miracles being performed but watch it again and see how subtly and convincingly the writers give us a world with unlimited possibilities and how easily they get right to it, like they've been living there all along. As for original, Pan's Labyrinth connects two stories in a way that seems to just flow rather than grasp for any kind of thematic resonance. The way Del Toro handles his material gives the sense that he has had this material inside of him for a long time and he knew it down to every single beat and pause. Michael Arndt's script, while charming had a lot of snappy zingers in it and uses a lot of easy characterizations to make emotional shortcuts. It's a good script but Del Toro's script feels like a fairy tale, artful and timeless.

Okay that's enough, I've chewed everyone's ear off enough about how I think I have all the answers and the academy just misses the boat year after year. Obviously none of this really matters, the movies are the movies and they will stay that way for all of us to enjoy and argue about for years to come. By no means is this a definitive answer, and really, I don't know what I'm talking about.

I think I'm going to call it a evening on that note, next time, a thrilling post on the week that was Bike Week 2007. On that note, keep smiling america.

"where 24 turn 25, i heard you try to take your life, why
you don't realy know.

where 24 turn 25, there so much pression in this times to be
something that you don't.

where 24 turn 25, i try to hold your head up high, why
well i don't realy know.

where 24 turn 25, make this the best time on your life, why
i don't realy know."

And the winds to gravel roads.

2007-03-02T00:33:00.000-08:00

Last night's entry came through only as an aborted one. I planned to write a small re-cap of what has happened to me in the past week, but it felt like the words were being rippped untimely from my brain. I gave up and settled on quoting a really good tom waits song instead.

But now I'm here to settle a few scores.

I need to gush for a second, I just saw Josh Ritter at the el rey and I think he is one of the greatest musicians alive today. I know I say that a lot, but his lyrical abilities are astounding, not to mention is excellent guitar plucking skills. He's also damn funny and a great peformer, see what I mean? I'll sum it up this way, the album version of Thin Blue Flame is jaw dropping but hearing him play that with just an acoustic guitar will make your heart swell. He really is a great man, I just can't get enough of him now. Just listen for one of his songs in A Slow Dissolve, used ingeniously by the way, and it's one I can't get out of my head. But that's a good thing, not a bad thing like the Beyonce medley I had in there a while ago.

A post script to that, the submarines are also really good too. For just a guy, a girl, two guitars, a couple random instruments and a laptop they know how to make some shit happen. My appreciation for them was deepened greatly by this performance.

A quick recap of some movies I've seen recently, I think last time we talked, I had just seen Letters from Iwo Jima. Since then I haven't seen much, let me think actually.

The Lives of Others
Definitely deserved the academy award, if only it hadn't been up against Pan's Labyrinth. I hate to make choices like that, but seriously Lives of Others is pretty flawless. It's recreation of the Stasi in the mid-80's of Germany feels monotonously real and the passion of the film is subdued to the very end when it hits you and it feels like a great story has just been told.

The Astronaut Farmer
I have a soft spot for movies like this (see Millions) but rest assured this one is really good (also see millions). First of all, it's beautifully shot with some surreal and beautiful desert farm landscapes that can only really exist in movies or places where you live. It's got a great flippant sense of humor that refuses to rest when the hokier parts of the story threaten to take it over. The Polish Farmers are not just merry pranksters, they mean every word of what they say, and I think it can be as cheesey as it wants to be, cause the shit's real.

Breach
A damn compelling and fine film. Chris Cooper is scary good, real scary good. Billy Ray furthers the promise he showed in Shattered Glass, I could definitely see him becoming a buttoned down Michael Mann. His ability to peer into the minds of working men is un parallleled in hollywood. He just does it to the stiffs who work in an un funny version of the office. What is most interesting about Breach is how it explores the contradiction inherent in the intelligence system. It's designed to deal with some of the most melodramatic and epic shifts in human history. Yet its operators are taught to be detached liars who keep secrets from everyone so that they can operate with as little emotional influence as possible. Ray nails that and it makes breach a fantastic character piece.

That's pretty much it for now, I need a full blog for an oscar re cap. Look at...the craziness

Also everyone needs to play laser tag with Gabe at some point in their lives. Especially if he uses his trademark method he crafted at action zone, to see that in action again is like watching kareem pull off a sky hook. But seriously Gabe, any time you're up for it again, color me tickled pink. I'm really itching to get back into the fog machine filled sweat covered, acne and dirty kids infested Doogan controlled arena that is laser tag. Also we gotta beat to those kids next time, that was really embarassing. I'm waiting.

"Though I'm here in this far off place
My air is not this time and space
I draw you close with every breath
you don't know it's right until it's wrong
You don't know it's yours until it's gone
I didn't know that it was home ‘til you up and left"

San Diego Serenade

2007-03-01T01:18:00.000-08:00

I never saw the morning til I stayed up all night
I never saw the sunshine til you turned out the light
I never saw my hometown until I stayed away too long
I never heard the melody, until I needed a song.

I never saw the white line, til I was leaving you behind
I never knew I needed you til I was caught up in a bind
I never spoke i love you til I cursed you in vain,
I never felt my heartstrings until I nearly went insane.

I never saw the east coast til I move to the west
I never saw the moonlight until it shone off your breast
I never saw your heart til someone tried to steal,
Tried to steal it away
I never saw your tears until they rolled down your face.

You ain't even in my top ten again!

2007-02-17T23:34:00.000-08:00

Hey there, the moment you have all been waiting for, like the salivating dogs that you are...

TOP TEN FILMS OF 2006.

I'm sure you are all stunned, taking a few steps back away from your keyboards as you read this.
How can you have a top ten list for the year in film 2006 in the middle of February of the following year.
Well the short answer to that is it took me a while to see Letters From Iwo Jima, and I had to do this right.

Otherwise what are we fighting for.

So, without further apu, I give you...

1. Pan's Labyrinth
I guess it gave it all away right there, but I hope you read on even though it's all downhill from here I guess. While not the most original choice for best film of the year (thank you very much TGWSY). It is still an absolutely worthy choice, Guillermo Del Toro is one of the greatest living directors for his precise lack of pretension and child like wonderment at the world. With this film he has crafted the best kind of fairy tale, frightening yet some how comforting at the same time. He refuses to coddle us to sleep and the result is a film that grows with every waking thought I have of it. And I have only seen it once, it's mind blowing.

2. Children of Men
Another one from the three best directors of 2006 (more on that later). Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men is a great film because it functions perfectly on the level of three different kinds of films. One, it's a breathless action film with some of the most original and inventive battle scenes in recent memory. Two, it's a pitch perfect political commentary with some of the most frightening imagery to tackle Iraq, Abu Ghraib, and the domestic war on terror since mainstream journalism gave up on it so long ago. And three it's a moving personal redemption story about a man who realizes that it's about time he gave a damn again. We should take notice and act accordingly.

3. Babel
Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu, Guillermo Del Toro, and Alfonso Cuaron made the three best films of 2006 and they have one thing in common. The Mexican thing, I guess, but also their films share a big universal theme, the effect children have on the world. Babel is a devastating account of what happens when our universal differences reveal universal truths about the world we all share. Some accused it of being unrelenting, yet I found it oddly hopeful. Some accused of it being an excercise in pretentious melodrama, I thought it's ultimate theme was so subtle it only reveals itself if you connect the emotional dots rather than the narrative ones. In other words, Iñárritu is a unique talent, and this is his best film.

4. United 93
The film no one wanted turned out to be one of the most essential films of the year. Not simply because of its subject matter (by the way there have been a lot of movies made about 9/11 since 9/11) but the way it handled a worldwide tragedy not with kid gloves, nor with some kind of bullshit grandoise message about the meaning of it all. Paul Greengrass is nothing if not a humane filmmaker and his clear eyed perception of the events of that day are shattering. United 93 is not a story of heroes but about ordinary people who acted heroically and ultimately suffered a tragedy not a sacrifice. Expertly crafted and performed, Greengrass' reminds us how hard we were hit that day not how hard we hit back.

5. Letters From iwo Jima
Yes, this film is that good. Usually Eastwood's laissez-faire direction fails to live up to the hype but this time he has found a new friend in melancholy and the result is an emotional involvement not usually found in his films (I blame that as of recent on Mr. Haggis). A deep sadness hovers over this film matching that of the ultimate futility of the Japanese stand on Iwo Jima. A sadness that can only come from being ordered die and not knowing what for. A personal and tragic take on war that is all the more satisfying for its honest understanding of the so called "enemy." Succesfully blending the elusive combination of war and anti-war, Eastwood has made a film about violence, allegiance, and ultimately death that is his best work to date.

6. The Queen
Sometimes a movie doesn't have to do much more than be perfectly cast, meticulously scripted and directed without a wrong note or beat. That may sound like a lot but The Queen pulls it off so deftly, without drawing too much attention to itself that it surprises you in the best possible way. In capturing the royal family in the days after Diana's death, Stephen Frears and company have made an invigorating document examining what role the monarchy still plays in modern British society. Mirren's Queen is utterly fascinating in how cold and stubbon she appears, yet how absolutely right she is in her convictions. As exciting as a behind the scenes documentary, as heartbreaking as a personal memoir, in other words: perfect.

7. Half Nelson
I had some kind of ridiculous fever dream that after Ryan Fleck's powerful and searing Half Nelson, all those piss poor teacher in a bad neighborhood movies would cease to be made. Then Freedom Writers came out and that dream died. Nevertheless, Half Nelson damn near obliterates the entire genre with its refusal to settle for any easy answers, and its unblinking eye for character details. Gosling really has to be seen, his performance does things in one scene that some actors can't do in an entire film. Shareeka Epps is right there with him, devastating in her refusal to stoop to cute kid histronics, she and Gosling make the film soar. Half Nelson is a good reasoon why independent film will always be relevant.

8. Marie Antoinette
One of the most unfairly dumped upon movies of the year (except for the most unfairly dumped upon, to be documented later). Sofia Coppola's melancholy, colorful, and (god forbid) fun take on the Marie Antoinette story is one of the definitive "girl" stories of the last ten years. It sucks you in with its candy color palette the way Marie herself was seduced by it, then as the years wear on the moments of sadness begin to creep in, and we understand this is not just a story about a girl who wanted to party all day and sleep all day. It's about a girl who lost something and took a country with her to find it, kind of a perfect companion piece to the Queen and I just made that up.

9. A Scanner Darkly/Fast Food Nation
Okay this is a bit of a cheat, I guess this is my top eleven, but whatever, I do shit like this all the time. The reason Scanner and Fast Food are tied for 9 is not because they are made by the same filmmaker (Richard Linklater) but because they represent two of the most satisfying political films of the year. In a way they are kind of a one two punch for Linklater, Scanner being the paranoid nightmare of a country ruled by fear, and Fast Food Nation looking past the paranoia to how suffocatingly toxic parts of this culture have become and how difficult it is to go about fixing them. These two films are not preaching to the choir they are inspiring to the masses.

10. Shortbus
Perhaps the most flawed film on the list. Sure the acting is amateurish and the story basically non existant, but this was hands down one of the most enjoyable films of the year. You know how some movies just get a feeling right and the damn thing has you singing. Shortbus accomplished that in spades, it's joy and optimism are infectious and its daring exploration into the mental and physical effects of sex is achingly beautiful while never once descending into simple minded gloom. It's also a big fuck you to the prudish, misogynistic, and homophobic rhetoric of our Bush administration culture and a great movie about living in New York. A lot was made of the sex in this movie but what will suprise you most isn't the size of its package, but the size of its heart.

Some other movies I really liked this year (tied for 11th place basically...)
The Science of Sleep, The Fountain, Inside Man, Deliver Us From Evil, Blood Diamond, Monster House, Cars, Volver, World Trade Center, Little Children, Bubble, Sweet Land, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, The Prestige, Neil Young: Heart of Gold, The Lake House

Worst Movie of 2006.
Snakes on a Plane
I know this is an easy target, but this movie really pissed me off and I'm glad it died a quick death. It took everything that is fun, spontaneous and absurdly hilarious about watching a bad movie (the MST3K phenomenon) and turned it into a buzz filled internet marketing phenomenon. Watch as hilarity ensues when bad filmmakers intentionally make a bad film all the while assuring us that they are actually talented and are just slumming for our benefit, fuck this movie.

Most Underrated Movie of 2006
The Fountain
The Fountain was unfortunately written off as pretentious sci fi babble, and not to get all Travers on you here, but god forbid a movie uses the visual medium to express ideas rather than explain everything through the character's flapping mouths. The Fountain blows out the conventions of science fiction, romance, and visual effects into a film that can best be described as an experience. One wrapped in the mysteries of life, death and love that somehow communicates all of those things without any kind of compromise or cyniscm. Maybe that's a pretentious explanation but isn't that what we're supposed to feel when watching movies?

Most Overrated Movie of 2006
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
It still baffles me as to how many critics lovingly heaped praise on this movie and adorned many of their own top ten lists with its annoyingly long title. I admit, Sacha Baron Cohen has talent and his ability to improvise is impressive but its a shtick and it gets old real quick. Okay I get it, American are thoughtless, racist, sexist, homophobic etc I don't think Cohen simply exposing that is anything the least bit revolutionary or even new. It also allows him to hide behind his character and not really comment on it or get involved in it. The film too often stoops to some Jackass type stunts that prove two things to me. One being that Cohen didn't have enough ideas to sustain a movie as short as Borat is anyway. And two, that maybe all he wanted to do was gross us out, mission accomplished but that doesn't make him a genius.

There you have it, the Mexicans came and kicked all our asses, except for a few that is. And we wrap us this year (a bit late) with the comforting knowledge that there will always be more than enough movies to stock a top ten list. Hopefully they stick around and it's not a matter of finding them.

"I put my feet up on the coffee table
I stay up late watching cable
I like old movies with Clarke Gable
Just like my dad does

Just like my dad did when he was home
Staying up late, staying up alone
Just like my dad did when he was thinking
Oh, how fast the years fly"

Let us hope that we are preceded in this world by a love story.

2007-02-08T01:08:00.000-08:00

I don't have too much to say tonight. Other than Sweet Land is a fine film.
I finally got around to seeing it and it was well worth it. It's amazing how Hollywood is incapable of capturing a romance that feels like it could actually happen. Sweet Land nails it, every sweet, tender, and aching moment of it. It's not about who can out wit each other like some kind of game, it's about a glance that shouldn't have happened but you're glad it did anyway.
I could go on forever about this sort of thing but if you want a sweet and refreshing romance, check out sweet land any way you can. I think it's gone from movie theatres so put this one on your netflix queue or go look for it at blockbuster.

That's all I got, I'll have more later.

I know in the past I've found it hard to say
Tellin' you things, but not tellin' straight
But the more I pull on your hand and say
The more you pull away

Dry your eyes mate
I know it's hard to take but her mind has been made up
There's plenty more fish in the sea
Dry your eyes mate
I know you want to make her see how much this pain hurts
But you've got to walk away now.

Fashion Awards

2007-01-30T04:45:00.000-08:00

It's 4:43am on a Tuesday Morning.

And I'm going to a fashion show.

I'll let E tell you the rest...

let's go down to the fashion show
with all the pretty people that you don't know
we'll sit down in the velvet chairs
they'll hand awards out for best hair
and if we don't win one, well, then
we'll blow off our heads in despair
we'll blow off our heads in despair

i smell magic in the room
flashing lights and sonic booms
lovely saps all without a care
nobody said that the world was fair
and if they did say so, well, then
we'll blow off our heads in despair
we'll blow off our heads in despair

let's go down to the fashion show
with all the pretty people and piles of blow
we'll sit down in the velvet chairs
and hang on tight to our bus fare
and if it falls between the seats
we'll blow off our heads in despair
we'll blow off our heads in despair

What A Year For A New Year.

2006-12-31T21:29:00.000-08:00

I admit, I had a grand plan to swing back into the blogging world with a vengeance. However, that planned entirely hinged upon me having a top ten film list ready to share with the world.

The fates intervened.

Someone had a different plan.

No actually I didn't get to see all the movies necessary to tabulate a formidable and ass kicking top ten list. That will happen soon, most likely mid january. It's going to be a sprint as soon as I get back to L.A. In the meantime I shall offer the first entry of 2007. It's a heavy weight to bear, I'm not sure I can handle it.

I could go on a rant about how celebrating new years only fills me with a certain blahness mixed with regret about the end of a year. And how disturbing it was to hear dick clark's voice this year, or how depressing it was to see ryan seacrest and christina aguilera engage in real conversation.

I've done all that.

Instead I'm going to throw my hat into a different kind of year end retrospective, one that always inspires feverish debates from all participants and can encompass a variety of tastes and preferences. I'm not going to pretend that I heard enough new music this year to formulate a true top ten list. And I know I won't be able to listen to all that music (for a true top ten list of the year in music as well as a spectacular song countdown of the year 2006 head over to the Girl Will Scar You.

Here's my lame attempt...

I've broken it down into three categories, with one album assigned to each. So think of this as a top three list, but this is not just any top three list. These are the three most important albums for me in the year ending 2006.

The First Category is:
Biggest Surprise of 2006

My Chemical Romance-The Black Parade

This category is a hands down no brainer for me. I thought these guys had turned into a joke, a bastardized fall out boy esque mtv version of the worst kind of generic watered down emotional music. They had a concept album as their follow up to their first "big" record, worst, it was a concept album about a cancer patient about to expire on his operating table. I thought they were in way over their heads and doomed to fail by giving into the worst kind of goth emo punk pretensions. Rather than do that, they came roaring out of the gates and shoved a big, great scream of an album right in my face. Without getting into all the genre name dropping homages I find in the album to prove not only my extensive musical knowledge, but also how "legitimate" this band is by critical standards. I merely offer that The Black Parade is the most emotional, exhausting, and exhilirating album of the year. One that doesn't merely feature tracks but a detailed, epic battle for living over dying complete with bigger than big moments that could have crashed and burned in lesser hands. The fact that they took the risk is the most satisfying element of the album. Singer Gerard Way gives the best performance of any singer this year on any album and he does it by just saying yes to it all. He takes us to hell and back, and when he makes a plea for us to carry on, I'm there. People who lump these guys with the rest of the generic emo pop punk bull shit just aren't listening. Hopefully this album will change some minds, it changed mine.

"I see you lying next to me
With words I thought I’d never speak
Awake and unfraid
Asleep or dead

I am not afraid to keep on living
I am not afraid to walk this world alone
Honey if you stay
I'll be forgiven
Nothing you can say can stop me going home"

Most Personal Album of 2006

Kevin Devine-Put Your Ghost to Rest

This category name may be confusing. It's meant to be that way. It basically means the album that meant the most to me, that had the most emotional effect on me. The one that made me stop and think about some of the choices I've made and the kind of consequences (good or bad) that they have wrought. It's also personal because Kevin Devine seems to somehow illuminate the kind of every day ruminations I have but could never put down as eloquently as he does. Sometimes I feel like his thoughts are even superior. The point being, he seems to speak for me (I know it's not just for me) and with every new album he makes me stop and observe things a little more carefully. His music has a very precise impact on my life. Put Your Ghost to Rest is his best album yet, such strong musicianship with some of the most complex, challenging, and catchy compositions he's ever come up with on an album. His lryics are on a par with no one else, combining stining political indictments, devastatingly honest observations about himself, and a sense of humor that is sorely missing in a lot of music these days. He can do it all, and he just seems to be getting better at it. His album is about wanting to fix the worse parts of yourself while completely induling in them at the same time. And the kind of havoc that can wreak on your life and the lives of those around you. The fact that he does it in a way that is touching, heartbreaking, and inspiring without ever sinking to sentimental mush or easy answers is in an of itself, a think of beauty.

"And your silver tounge
Masks your hungry hate
While your haggard heart
Whispers through its cracking cage,
"You still can change; you have to know
You still can change."

I know, I know - for now, I want to be this way.
This was a choice; this was never a mistake."

The Best Album of 2006

Pearl Jam-Pearl Jam

This should come as no surprise to anyone. Seeing as how Pearl Jam is the greatest band in the world, it's no surprise they released the greatest album of this year. This is not an arbitraty decision by any stretch of the imagination. Don't think I just thought: "hey, new pearl jam record, it's gotta be the greatest, you follow what Im saying?" It's the best album of the year because it combines classic genre busting music with a sense of moral outrage and responsibility few artists are capable of. Pearl Jam shafted the grunge logo a long time ago, they have always been a rock band through and through. A rock band not afraid to stay true to the purpose of why they all started playing music in the first place. The fact that they have survived this long is an accomplishment, the fact they produced a record this ear blasting, and this vital at this point in their career is simply astounding. From the blistering opening to the sobering finale where they proudly proclaim that they will not lose their faith. Pearl Jam proves that all of the misconceptions about them are just that. They go beyond left/right, red/blue in their politics to an area of moral responsibility where few artists tread. It's complex, humane, and full of a desire to keep on fighting. At the same time no one can craft a song like these guys and no one can sing like eddie vedder, who still manages to find new shades of his personality to share with us. These guys will always matter and hopefully some day people will stop judging them based on record sales or what spin magazine thought of them back in 1991. They will be around forever.

"Those undecided
Needn't have faith to be free.
And those misguided,
There was a plan for them to be...
Now you got both sides
Claiming 'killing in god's name'.
But god is nowhere
To be found, conveniently... "

There you go, my music picks of 2006. Maybe there is a common theme amongst the three, I don't know. I just seem to click my wheel to them the most frequently. There were other great albums this year, but these were the most important to me. I think that means something, anyway I can't wait to do my top ten list. See ya in the funny pages...

As for this new year business. I offer these words of wisdom to some up how I feel about the change and resolutions.

"Less yesterday, and more today.
I gotta get my head on straight.
Less Yesterday, and more today.
I gotta start to live that way."

"I want to stop it...
But it's the only life I know how to live."

Merry Christmas

2006-12-25T05:01:00.000-08:00

I'm going to start posting in this thing again I swear.

But until then...

Merry Christmas everyone.

remember last year when you were on your own
you swore the spirit couldn't be found
december rolled around and you were counting on it
to roll out

well, everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas

well everybody's lookin' for you down at the house
the tree is looking so inspired
there's a yuletide groove waitin' for you to move
i'll go and throw another log on the fire

everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas

as days go by the more we need friends
and the harder they are to find
if i could have a friend like you all my life
well i guess i'd be doin' just fine

everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas
everything's gonna be cool this christmas

p.s.

A Slow Dissolve is great cinema. It's going to tear up the screens, it's only a matter of time...
They won't know what hit them.

All of A Sudden I Miss Everyone

2006-11-20T23:11:00.000-08:00

A lot of new stuff to report.
But as they say, out with old, in with the nucleus.

First of all, the explosions in the sky and kevin devine concerts last week were wonderful experiences. Those two are acts that get better every time I see them, and I feel like I know their music so well that it becomes a much more personal experience. Especially Kevin Devine, who played a quiet and intimate set with just a guitar that was the loudest and energetic I've ever seen him. While I hope he achieves success because he deserves it, I also hope he remains relatively close to the status he is now. I don't want to be one of those guys who wants to keep an artist all to himself, but can't I just have Kevin Devine? One day, I will write a movie set to his music...one day. Same goes for explosions, I just hope these guys keep making better music and as long as they have the means to keep doing so, I could give a damn whether they have a video or Rolling Stone writes a cover story about them. Anyway they both put on a great live show, and everybody should try to seem at least once. You best.

Second of all, Babel is one of the best movies I've seen all year. It's a divider, apparently some people falling into the love it camp and others falling into the hate it group. I personally loved it, I think Inarritu makes films like nobody else. I put him in the same class as Terrence Malick in that his films make emotional sense rather than narrative sense. And if you're up for it, it can be one hell of a movie going experience. It overwhelms not only with its cinematic power but also how it delves into the moments that make up a life. It does it without ever becomeing grandoise or self-indulgent, Babel springs from the minds of people who see the brighest light in the darkest night. Babel is a reason why movies are still important and always will be to me.

I have one last thing to share, this was something I was thinking about on the way home from work today. It all ties into the honesty of kevin devin'e music and the beauty of Inarritu's film. I think it does, but just assume it does and we'll meet up halfway.

It all started when I went to a bonified L.A. party this past weekend. I don't say that to be glib or to brag, I'm just an observer relaying how an incident sprung forth some supposed insight from my mind. Anyway we go to this party and for one thing my name was on the guest list. I thought it was very strange that while these two nicely dressed women were pleading with the bouncer to make some special arrangement to let another one of their friends in, Danno and I stroll in like VIP. Me and my dashboard hoodie and my tattered rags, gettin the velvet rope pulled aside for us. Something just didn't seem right. Then we're at the party and it's like everything I'd ever seen in a movie before about L.A. A lot of fake. Fake smiles, other fake body parts. People walking in a certain motion that makes it look like they're posing on a runway, even as they walk to the bathroom. Topher Grace strolled by us on his way to the bathroom, he didn't have a pose, he seemed pretty normal. Sorry about the name dropping, it's the only one I got for this story and I thought it helped add to the atmosphere. Everybody just seemed into this game they were all collectively playing. It seemed like the object was to appear as if you knew something the rest of the club didn't know. To appear as if you had all the answers and were not anywhere near divulging them with the rest of us. It seemed like a very isolating game, but I guess if you're playing with like minded people, it becomes a group effort. People just seemed out to one up each other on every possible level.

This got me thinking about creativity and artistic expression. Where does it happen in all this? How does someone say someting personal about life through this? Not that this was the be all end all of film producion in Los Angeles but a good portion of these people have a lot stake in the process. I've always thought of filmmaking as a chance to say something and connect with someone else in a way that is unlike any other connection possible. It's hard to explain but think about how you felt when you saw a film that really meant something to you. Where you could tell the creators put themself on the line and said something so unabashadely sincere that if this were an alternate universe, you could have made that movie. That's filmmaking, not agents, managers, assistants, executive assistants, clubs, events, bookings, deals, and all the other stuff that people seem to talk about more than what those terms are supposed to support: creativity. I'm sure this will be met with a collective eye-roll, seeing as how I've only been out here a month and a half and am nowhere near grasping how this industry works. I admit to that, but from what I have observed in my time here, this is how I process all of it. I don't have any answers, just more questions. I know I sound naive, but movies to me have never been about what they seem to be about. They're about something I can't name but I've felt it, and hope to capture one day on my own. I don't know, I guess I just felt out of place at this shindig, maybe that's all there is to it.

Sorry for the conclusion, I guess I just ran out of steam.

Good night.

I lost my gun today when I left you and I'm the laughingstock of a lot of people. I wanted to tell you. I wanted you to know and it's on my mind. And it makes me look like a fool. And I feel like a fool. And you asked that we should say things - that we should say what we're thinking and not lie about things. Well, I can tell you that, this, that I lost my gun today - and I am not a good cop. And I'm looked down at. And I know that. And I'm scared that once you find that out you may not like me.

I can't let this go. I can't let you go. Now, you... you listen to me now. You're a good person. You're a good and beautiful person and I won't let you walk out on me. And I won't let you say those things - those things about how stupid you are and this and that. I won't stand for that. You want to be with me... then you be with me. You see?

2006-11-12T18:26:00.000-08:00

GABE WATCH THIS!!!!!

So let's shake and trade and be on our way...

2006-11-10T00:18:00.000-08:00

Let's go, go, go.

Not much new to report today, I just felt like jotting down a few things before I shuffle off to bed.

The cable box on my television struggles to survive and continue feeding me pictures of the new Real World Denver cast, this is extremeley important to me right now.

I bought the Jóhann Jóhannsson cd on itunes today per nate's suggestion and now I'm listening to another band called On Fire, they were also from itunes. I randomly found them and somebody said they made beautiful music on a par with Sigur Ros, how can I turn that down? Also Johann seems pretty good so far.

The new Spiderman 3 trailer is pretty damn cool. I still don't know who or what venom is, but the movie looks like it's going to blow us out of the back of the theatre.

I'm going to see Babel tomorrow night and the director is going to be there for a post film Q+A, not that I will ask a question but he is one of my favorite directors so it will be cool to see him in person and hear what he has to say. I also really want to see Babel, like really really want to see it. It's going to be big, Gabby Hayes big.

I wish I had some cool stories to report, but my journeys at the Sony Lot have yielded nothing yet, but hold on. Just like Tom Waits said, we gotta hold on and something will happen.

That's it for me, I'm Joe Namath, good night america.

"You still can change, you have to know you still can change
I know, I know, for now I want to be this way
This was a choice this was never a mistake
This was never a mistake."

We're not lost and I'm not embarrassed for us all...

2006-11-08T23:50:00.000-08:00

I just want to preface this by warning I will not be revealing any new revelations about the election, pretty much everything I have to say has probably been said by somebody much much better than me, much. Check out Greenwald's blog, go over to Democracy Now! Crooks and Liar Kos AmericaBlog, I'm sure they have some good insight into the whole bloddy affair.

I gotta say it feels weird, Jarrad makes a good point that it's so hard to determine in politics whether one party really does have the right answer. Politics has a lot to do with personal decisions, morals, and conscience and it's hard to do that with party politics playing as big a role as they do. At the same time, I'm all with Nate's righteous anger (I'm sure Jarrad is too). I think change is a step in the right direction and I think the people who have led this country into the place it is in now deserve some kind of retribution, if losing the job's is the least that happens to them they should consider themselves lucky. And I think this speaks volumes to the will of the people and to the resounding rejection of fear mongering and severely anti-democratic measures perpetrated upon the citizens by the so called safe guards of democracy. To polish off an old chestnut, we're mad as hell and have voted against taking it anymore.

On the other hand, I'm cautiously optimistic. As much as I don't agree with Nader most of the time, he brought up a good point on Democracy Now when he said the democrats ran on a non-mandate, they had no plan. They fed off the anger towards the republican party. Do they have a plan? I know that's always been a joke against the democratic party, but now that they are the majority, it's not really a joke anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm extremely happy, but what happens if the anger dies down in 2008 and people go back to the voting patterns they displayed 2 and 4 years ago? These are all hypothetical and maybe I've grown too disillusioned with the whole American political system to believe something good has happened. I don't want to be that guy and I don't think I am. I know there are severe, solid differences between the two parties, and I do think now we have people in office who will listen to our complaints rather than live in a bubble. We will continue to complain and we should still keep a vigilant eye, now maybe they will be heard. I guess what it comes down to is that politicians from both parties have very different policies, but they all play the politics game. They're like movie studios, they want to put asses in the seats. They want to sell as many tickets as possible. They cater to the lowest common denominator.

I guess now is the time to celebrate the fact that our electoral process has, for the first time, since I've been aware of politics (that began in 2000), has atually reflected the will of the people. And it was not hijacked by a bunch of republican cronies and stolen from us. We spoke, they heard, things changed. Sure it's not perfect but it's the best system we have...

...for now.

And with that I leave you with kevin devine to wrap things up.

"The tabloids tell us hate the rat who strikes those subways closed and puts you out
Forget those 50-hour tunnel weeks inhaling steel dust poison through his mouth
Well if he don't deserve a pension that makes his family feel secure
If we're now so disconnected it's our relfections we ignore
And if our constant choice is skimming past the writing on the wall
Oh whoa oh woh
Then I'm sad to say we're lost and I'm embarrassed for us all"

2006-11-05T01:34:00.000-08:00

The Black Parade

Apparently you tube didn't honor the URL I posted in the last entry.

So here's the video for the Black Parade, watch it and rock.

I also I just want to clarify that even though I said the album is about death and the band is optimistic. I was not being contradictory, the fact that they can be that way in the face of such gloom highlights just how talented they are.

It's later than it needs to be...

2006-11-05T00:47:00.000-08:00

Apparently, the way this thing works is whenever I have a lot of stuff to report, I never actually write in my blog. I get the notion but then I think to myself, I have so much to say that I will eventually get frustrated with how badly I communicate it, it slowly becomes not worth it.

So now I have decided to write, but I'm not going to write a lot because I've noticed the last couple of entries have been unwieldy, I will try to be concise. I can't promise I'll try but I'll to try.

Saw two more movies to recommend to you all. The Prestige and Marie Antoinette, I liked Marie better but more on that in a second. Prestige is worth seeing because Christopher Nolan is developing into one of the most unique talents of his generations. I just watched Memento and insomnia again recently, Insomnia being insanely under appreciated in my book and Memento, I think pretty much damn near revolutionized the thriller genre. The only problem with Prestige is that it doesn't add up to much and the ending is a bit of a cheat. That being said, it's a great ride getting there.

With Marie, I think Sofia Coppola is also a singularly unique talent in her generation. She knows how to capture loneliness with the subtlest of gestures, it's captivating to watch. Marie has gotten a lot of flack for ignoring historical accuracies and for ignoring the political context of the story. I have no defense for either of those charges except to say, you missed the point, you fool. Seriously though, I think Coppola was going for more of a mood piece than a period piece. And her interpretation of marie antoinette leads me to believe she sympathized with her as a girl stuck in the wrong place at the wrong time. And how the purpose she served was never to lead her own life, but to build up the lives of others. It's a sad story, and Coppola gives it the right amount of compassion and distance to feel her isolation. Plus versailles and the soundstrack are pretty stellar, this is a movie that has definitely grown on me since I saw it.

Speaking of Music, two really good albums I want to tell you about. The first one being kind of obvious: Kevin Devine's Put Your Ghost to Rest. Devine's gotta be my favorite singer songwriter working in music today. His songs have become so personal to me that they're like catching up with an old friend you haven't seen for a while. Plus he's advancing in ways I never predicted. His lyrics are sharper and much more powerful, his songwriting and arrangements have stepped into all kinds of new territories. He even has an alt country kind of song called Less Yesterday, More Today that hints at even better things to come. My only hope is his Capitol Records deal doesn't slow down his out put, he needs to keep making music. I love this album, I can't stop listening to it and I hope to make a movie one day set to his music, I'll be ripping him off anyway.

The second music item is really unexpected, it's The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance. Before you write these guys off as emo screamo weirdos. Let it be known, this album rocks and they too step out on such a ledge that I immediately admire them to not sticking to any kind of generic mtv playbook. They could have flopped hard, but I think they're flying inside right now. Black Parade is a concept album about a patient dying from cancer and the entire album is from his point of view on his death bed. Sounds like fun, but it actually is and I usually don't like really loud stadium rock but I'll be damned if I don't admit this guys me amped. Welcome to the Black Parade is the best single to be released so far this year and I think it will continue to be as such even when the year is over. I like My Chemical Romance because they're not afraid to be earnest and optimistic. And dammit, they mean everything they say and this shit is important to them. Any kind of compassion like that just uplifts my soul and makes me happy, I say more power to them. If you don't believe me then check it out for yoself...

The Black Parade.

Other than that, had a fun weekend in Monterey last weekend. Real pretty country up in those parts, Nate kicked ass in the half marathon, showed those country folk how a city boy runs it. Had a crowded Halloween this year where I not only missed Better than Ezra perform live, well that's pretty much all I missed. It was fun none the less, especially looking for parking.

Now if you'll excuse me, I will retire...

"So we laid glowing in the grass
To watch the sun swap with the moon
Trade our future for our past
The present tense was all we knew..."

2006-10-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

Star Wars: Fix You

I swear, everytime I let my mind wander and I even remotely forget about Star Wars.

Something like this comes along, and I remember.

It's kind of corny, but still. I wish I had cinemax, and corn me up good sir.

Check it out.
Star Wars is the shit.

Alone at last to figure how you got this way. (PART II)

2006-10-19T22:49:00.000-07:00

I just realized something. This blog is ugly, I mean really ugly. I look at Nate's blog and it looks like it was all done up by Rembrandt Q. Einstein. Anybody have any suggestions on what I can do to tidy up this place, I've tried nothing and I'm all out of ideas.

Ya follow what I'm sayin'?

Before I forget, I just want to say that I'm glad certain athletic competitions ended a certain way.
That's all I'm going to say about that.

Where to begin? There's a of stuff I wanted to talk about like how great the new Kevin Devine album is. It's great like Frosted Flakes (and I'm listening to it right now). But I think I'll start with the old reliable, flick-a-shows. I got some good ones.

I know I always say I got good ones but this time I mean it. I saw three really really good movies this past week, all in a row actually. It was something I was no expecting, but it just kind of happened. It's a great feeling to see movies that just totally take you by surprise. Movies you expect not to affect you, wind up sticking with you several days afterwards.

I saw The Queen on Sunday night. Before I tell you about it, just know that as good as the hype is, the movie is even better. Beacuse it's real. Seriously, unlike Public Enemy you should believe the hype, it's that good. Hellen Mirren nails her performance, it's kind of scary the kind of command this woman has over the acting craft. She does so much glances, half suggestions, and pauses between words. It's a deeply felt performance that is just one of the strong elements of this film. What's so fascinating about this film is watching a relic of the monarchy fight against the light of modernity. It's tragic the way Queen Elizabeth desperately clings to the last vestiges of her livelihood as the entire world engages with her in a duel over the death of Princess Di. The most remarkable thing about the film is how much you sympathize with the Queen and her plight without Mirren or the filmmakers heaping heavy excesses of heroism upon you. She is a woman clinging to her principles, frought with consequences. She and the film never take the easy way out. The rest of the cast is very strong too, especially Michael Sheen playing the newly elected PM Tony Blair. Sheen is so good because he carries on this cloak of moral outrage at how the Queen is being treated by his staff and the people, yet you can always ever so slightly see a kind of shifty plotting of a young man trying to figure out his new place of power. It's one of the best movies I've seen this year.

The next day, I followed that up with Shortbus, and before you ask, I will answer. Yes it's the sex movie. But that's such a cheap and superficial explanation to the kind of power this movie has. Okay it has explicit sex in it (you see everything, and all kinds of variations of it) but there is so much joy, passion, and humor in this movie that it de-eroticizes all the hardcore stuff. The sex becomes so goofy and more an extension of the anxieties of these disconnected New Yorkers that each one seems like a circus act of mercy. I loved this movie, and before you start making any weird assumptions about me, I'm going to say it again, I loved this movie. Sure it's not perfect, the acting is extremely amateurish and the movie has a lot of rough edges. But the formalities are never the most important thing for me. A lot of the times, a movie lives or dies by how it's personality shines through all of the dollies, cut, and re-takes. This movie has personality to burn and John Cameron Mitchell has a spirit and an optimism that is infectious. And he took a precarious subject and made something unique that is totally his thing but he also wants to invite us in on the fun. There's fun to be had, trust me. At least know this, it's a movie about explicit sex that I recommend to everybody I know. It's about lonely people finding solace in each other and how random connections occur when you least expect them. We all need a movie like that once in a while. Mitchell is an optimist as the revolutionary, he will find the shimmering amongst the dank and so should we.

After that, (one more I swear), I caught up on Deliver Us From Evil, Amy Berg's searing and heartbreaking documentary about the life long sexual abuses committed by Oliver O'Grady on far too many children than one would like to think possible. Berg captures the psychological torture on these children (well into their adult years) in a way that allows us to understand yet we get choked up because we know we will never understand it. She also emphasizes the raging hypocrisy committed by the Catholic Church in a way that humanizes it rather than turn it into a cheap slogan campaign. The Cardinals, bishops, and priests claim a moral authority on everything except the all-mighty themselves. I guess it's that moral authority that allows them so sacrifice innocent children to protect their way of life. When the Church heirarchy learned O'Grady's offenses they did nothing more than send him a few miles away to another parish in California, to unleash him on a new set of unsuspecting children. It's a hypocrisy we see in almost every facet of political, social, and religious life. The most corrupt are always those who claim to be immune to it. This an organization to which, a great many people seek comfort, salvation, and hope. To take that kind of faith and spit it back in the face of children and their families is a unique kind of stain on one's soul. Berg let's you see how the psychological strains tear through each member of each family. It's a an epic topic broached through a personal, human scopt. One of the most powerful documentaries I've ever seen.

There you have it, three movies I think you all should go out and see right now. They each have a distinct style, soul, and spirit. They will get you in some way, maybe not a good way, but they will definitely not leave you glazed over. So see them and react. It's all the movies ask you to do.

"A man in a hotel room, tangled to his teeth by the telephone
He's waiting on a woman, wondering what she's doing,
And pacing so his pulse won't slow.
He drums his legs and pulls his hair; he carves her dimples in the air.
The raging world has spooked him scared, and he don't want her lost out there.
So now it's later than it needs to be
And though his aching eyes want sleep
Against all rationality
Against everything he believes
He prays for her protection,
Heaven bound & glory be.
I pray for your protection,
Heaven bound & glory be."

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

2006-10-16T22:46:00.000-07:00

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.

2006-10-15T19:42:00.000-07:00

Black Dollar Bills

Hey All,

I'm going to write a proper post tonight. But for now, I would like to share with you a music video that got me hooked. The song is called Black Dollar Bills, the band is called Hope of the States.

Check it out.
I'll be back later.

Into the blue again...

2006-10-09T00:41:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, I didn't even come close to reaching my goals for this blog once I moved out to L.A. I know there have been no updates whatsoever except for a link to a video on you tube, one of the most unoriginal things I could have done. No pictures, no funny stories, not even an anecdote about my endlessly amusing escapades in the city of angels.

I'm sorry.

...suckers...

Anyway, I will be updating this more frequently. And I say that as casually as I can so that when the time comes that I need to defend it, I will just say I never committed to it that much by using a lot of showy language and clever catch phrases. I can just say I said it, that's it.

But seriously, I will but right now its just a little bit after 12:30 and I just got back from the Album Leaf show at the troubadour. My first concert in Los Angeles by the way, actually my second, but the first that I planned to see and excecuted thusly.

A great show, I might add. They know how to play their shit and their new album is really good by the way. Their music always seems to transcend whatever time of day or season or mood in which I find myself and lift me up just a little bit. I hope it does that to other people too. The guys who make this music are believers and we need more of them out there today. Watching them play live is like watching a symphony conducter calmly coordinate all these sections into one sprawling whole, it is quite a sight.

It was weird being at this show, I should add. The crowd was fine, and the band was great, nothing with wrong in that department. It's weird how you get used to something as casual as going to a concert with your brother and then how much you miss him when he's not there. It's just not the same without you, Nate I guess is what I mean. Oh well, we'll always have human contact.

One other thing, does anybody know who I should call to get customer support from Apple regarding my Itunes account. It's doing this weird thing where I can't play any music I bought from my old account because I deactivated it before transferring all my stuff to my new computer. I'm confused too, don't worry. But I can't listen to a lot of my stuff because of it, so any suggestions, I'm open to them.

I'm really tired, I'm going to go to sleep.

Goodnight.

"so you spend the next week playing weakened,
rolling three men alone in the dark of your kitchen.
your apartment can't talk so it's safe for your secrets,
all the stories you've invested with a massochist, menacing meaning,
those tired tricks that you play to graph the life to your name
and you know it's not yours but for now it's okay."

If only there was some way to drink coffee faster!!!

2006-10-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

Please, just go here

Please.

You shan't be let down.

Shan't.

Carry Me, Ohio (Montpelier)

2006-09-14T19:23:00.000-07:00

Greetings from beautiful Montpelier, Ohio.

How yall doin' today?

We have set out on Katrinka and Ethan's Bogus Journey. The sequel to the box office smash, Nate and Ethan's Excellent Adventure. Driving out west to settle up in sunny Los Angeles, CA. We are in a Holiday Inn which according to the guest directory exists in a place called Holiday City, not Montpelier as AAA would have us believed. Strange things are afoot.

I don't have much to say or anything to link you to right now. Just to inform you that I will be taking a new approach to anti-fanboy right now. I feel a change is due. I want to keep you guys updated to my journeys in Los Angeles. Not that it will be interesting, but it's gotta be better than that last Barbara Streisand movie. Maybe I'll re-design the site (probably not), give it a snazzy new name (again probably not) and write in it much more frequently (gotcha.) Anyway stay tuned, there will be some interesting new developments here at anti-fanboy.blogspot.com.

And that's the way it is.

"Well I guess we'll pack the ghosts as well
and move on now
and move west now.
with our big dreams, all in boxes.
Oh are dreams aren't as quite as big as our boxes."

The saga is complete

2006-08-29T23:08:00.000-07:00

Before I begin. I was just watching letterman and Zach Braff was on to promote his new movie the last kiss. As Braff walked on the band started playing "Last Kiss" in some kind of jazz band ensemble cover of it. Last Kiss is the J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers song that Pearl Jam completely kicked ass with. I thought it was an odd choice, just wanted to share that. Also the movie looks lame, Zach Braff is lame.

Anyway, as Nate's blog has previously reported, we are all done here. Tomorrow morning, Nate and I set out on expanse across this great nation of ours en route to Avondale. Everybody else has left and all that remains is this dualistic notion of loss (end of Summer, always a sad time for me) and extreme joy and elation (in light of completing the movie). We are going through the seemingly contrasting and negating oppositions of those two extremes of emotions. It's a weird thing, not a bad thing by any stretch of the imagination. We did it, there's no reason to be bummed. And I personally think Nate has a pretty damn good movie on his hands (sound issues aside...oh boy). Maybe this just means that (gasp!) we had a really good time shooting this movie and we're going to miss it. How awful.

"Are you being sarcastic, dude?"
"I don't even know anymore."

In summation, I'm really happy we're done, and I'm really happy to leave. I'm really happy to go home. I'm happy.

"I want to see my family
my wife and child waiting for me
I've got to go home
I've been so alone you see"

An exaggeration perhaps but a really good song covered by Iron and Wine that I was listening to today. I like this whole stream of concsiousness thing...it fits me like a speedo.

"I'm a selfish old crank, and that fits me like a Speedo"

Okay, I'll stop.

Two more things before I tucker off to bed...

I watched a movie tonight (recommended by Dad) called Paris, Texas. It's about a guy lost in the desert who goes on a search to essentially reunite his son and wife. It's an epic movie muted by a refreshing lack of excessive mush usually heaped upon hollywood projects such as this. It's also got an amazing visual style, extreme neon colors accentuate the perpetual lonliness of the American west (a topic I am becoming more and more interested in as you will not in later blogs). The environment seems to be built on harsh extremes not meant for sane human beings. It's a really powerful film that doesn't really hit you until after you watch it. Then it's like a punch to the gut. There was one scene that stuck with me, and it makes sense because Roger Ebert called it one of the best movie monologues in cinema history (I don't know about that, I mean Roger Ebert is never wrong so I don't know what to think). Anyway, in the scene Travis (Harry Dean Stanton) has relocated his estranged wife in a peep show booth in Texas. He clarifies to his ex-lover, Jane (Nastassja Kinski) the reason for his departure in an explanation that has untold years of regret sewn into its account. Regret for not for ony for his actions but for the self pity he used to rationalize them. She ends the scene with one of the most devastating monologues I've ever heard. It's too complex for tears.

"I... I used to make long speeches to you after you left. I used to talk to you all the time, even though I was alone. I walked around for months talking to you. Now I don't know what to say. It was easier when I just imagined you. I even imagined you talking back to me. We'd have long conversations, the two of us. lt was almost like you were there. I could hear you, I could see you, smell you. I could hear your voice. Sometimes your voice would wake me up. It would wake me up in the middle of the night, just like you were in the room with me. Then... it slowly faded. I couldn't picture you anymore. I tried to talk out loud to you like I used to, but there was nothing there. I couldn't hear you. Then... I just gave it up. Everything stopped. You just... disappeared. And now I'm working here. I hear your voice all the time. Every man has your voice."

Definitely check this out if you have the chance. Really strong flick.
While you're listening to my recommendations, also check out Nine Lives while you're at it. The only film I can remember that captures of the feeling of reading a great collection of short stories. Check it out for real.

One last thing. See this is what I do, I get all my stuff out in one blog entry and then I lay dormant for weeks and weeks on end. I need to parcel this out a little more evenly, that will be a new year's resolution.

It made my heart sing to see the U.S. Government protecting our security and livelihood in the face of such an undeniable terrorist threat as the one posed by these San Francisco citizens. It's truly mind blowing to me that this "conservative" administration has adopted such a neo-conservative attitude when it comes to demolishing civil liberties and ignoring the consitution whenever they see fit.

Yet, somehow, when it comes to an issue that really calls for Government Assistance (you'd figure the neocons in charge would jump all over an opportunity like this), like the Hurricane Katrina relief. They are nowhere to be found, they are admirably sticking to their conservative roots of non governmental interference. Except of course when it comes to awarding no bid contracts to businesses (exploiting this American war zone just like they did the one in Iraq). And essentially putting a big "whites-only" sign all over most of New Orleans through their sleazy means. If this all sounds a little extreme (I apologize if it does but this is a real pisser), check out Amy Goodman's coverage of the anniversary of the disaster over at Democracy Now! (make sure you check out August 29th's show if you're reading this tomorrow. There's some real fascinating and damming stuff over there and coupled with a recent ass wiping of the constitution that our government seems to encourage. I don't know. Sorry to complain.

Okay, I'm going to bed. I've talked your ear off enough, this should give you enough to chew on for another month, when I decide to write in this thing again. See you guys back in PA.

"Cheer up, you miserable fuck
This has gone on long enough
And I don't want to hear anymore
'Cos it you wait for the day
You find your thinking bends to straight
You'll be waiting for a long, long time
Oh you, well you are no fun
And I'm so dumb
But please let us not be lonely, again."

I think its time to put the top down

2006-07-23T22:29:00.000-07:00

Just saw Clerks II. It was okay, something weird going on in it though. It wasn't nearly as funny as the original obviously. Granted it was funny, but Clerks is its own unique kind of funny, yeah that sounds dumb but that's how it is. Anyway, I've always felt Smith was really good at emotional stuff (Chasing Amy is his best movie, deal with it, Dogma is a close second). And this one had that but it felt forced, like he had this crazy funny self-aware sequel but he felt that since he's older he needs to make it mean something. That kind of thinking is fine by me, if it's organic. Why couldn't he just make a ridiculous clerks movie? I guess it would be pretty lame of him to make a movie that would only amuse him and a few of his friends (take that me). In all seriousness, the emotional stuff didn't work. And I say that as a kevin smith fan who likes the emotional stuff.

Anyway, that's all I'm going to say about that. I have a headache and we're going to start this movie soon, gotta get my shit together.

All I have left is a song...

your hand on his arm
the hay stack charm around your neck
strung out and thin
calling some friend trying to cash some check
he's acting dumb
that's what you've come to expect
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
he's wearing your clothes
head down to toes a reaction to you
you say you know what he did
but you idiot kid
you don't have a clue
sometimes they just get caught in the eye
you're pulling him through
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
now on the bus
nearly touching this dirty retreat
falling out 6th and powell a dead sweat in my teeth
gonna walk walk walk
four more blocks plus the one in my brain
down downstairs to the man
he's gonna make it all OK
i can't beat myself
i can't beat myself
and i don't want to talk
i'm taking the cure so i can be quiet
wherever i want
so leave me alone
you ought to be proud that i'm getting good marks
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay
needle in the hay

In defense of bashing M. Night Shyamalan.

2006-07-21T21:41:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you are all sick of hearing my rants against M. Night Shyamalan. Yes, you know I think he's been downhill since Signs (Signs included, and I don't just mean a slight decrease of quality, he's crashed into the fucking mountain). Yes, you know the Sixth Sense is slow (and not the Terence Malick good kind of slow but slow as in lacking dramatic tension), ponderous, and cheap thrill scary until the final twist where you say, that doesn't make up for the suckiness of the rest of the movie. It is what it is, a twist. For a better example on how to use a twist ending see Unbreakable (his only good film, and a great one at that) there is a twist in which the story that preceeded it is cast in a new light. The twist makes it a different movie, a better one. And since most of the people who read this blog are out here in Idaho, I imagine this will come as no surprise to the two (maybe three) other people who read this thing.

Regardless, the reason for this is I wish to write a response to two (yes, two) articles I have read in the "prestigious" village voice and Slate.com both titled "in defense of M. Night Shyamalan. I thought to myself, why does he deserve a defense? What has he done to warrant this kind of heedless admiration from a publication as notoriously cynically impossible-to-please as the village voice? I'm sure you will all roll your eyes at this comparison but when Revenge of the Sith came out, even people who loved the movie went out of their way to tear George Lucas a new one (except for A.O. Scott of the New York Times, he's a certifiable hero). Since I've been basically writing a long defense of George Lucas article ever since this blog began, I need to point out that Lucas (and countless other filmmakers) have done what Shyamalan's done. Except they (Lucas etc) celebrate the sharing of their myths. Shyamalan celebrates himself as the creator of them. For further evidence, anyone who doubts Lucas as a director obviously watch Star Wars. But pay important attention to THX-1138 and American Graffiti as examples of a director who can impress a distinct visual style on two very different works of film.

Anyway, before I try to stuff 8 billion blog entries into one. Let me present some of the "evidence" in the Slate.com article and then present a few counterpoints to these claims.

"But Shyamalan's missteps have been interesting, his mistakes worth a second look, and his obsession with the integrity of his own artistic visions, however irritating, has distinguished him from nearly all his young-Hollywood competitors."

Ross Douthat (the writer) makes a fair point that a bloated ego and incomparable self love don't necessarily equal a filmmaker without vision, talent, or intelligence. My response to that is, narcissism does hurt a filmmaker when he allows his talent to become a showcase for it. His films become an excuse for his greatness, as Shyamalan's films do, not the passion that inspired them . Examine how his twists talk down to the audience, it becomes a sadistic game of simultaneously egging the audience on to figure it out by promising one and then slapping them down when you pull the rug out from under them with the twists of all twists. When this happens, your twists are the story and there is nothing else to the movie worth watching. Not exactly the mark of a good storyteller as Shyamalan wishes the masses to proclaim him. Shyamalan gets off on deception, on proving he can out wit his audience with trick-less tricks. If David Blaine were a filmmaker, he's be Night's best bud. But twists aren't the only problem with his films, there are more sinister forces at work here defending his garbage. Check this one out...

"It's worth comparing Shyamalan's career choices, for instance, with those of Bryan Singer...Singer has essentially reinvented himself as a director of comic-book blockbusters, a man to be trusted with massive budgets and well-known franchises. He's been making movies for the studios, in other words, instead of doing what Shyamalan has tried to do—which is to persuade the studios to make movies for him."

"But this path comes with a price. You find yourself making sequels and franchise pictures rather than finding (or writing) new and unusual stories of your own...Shyamalan, by contrast, doesn't make sequels or franchises (he turned down a chance to script Indiana Jones IV). He doesn't adapt Dan Brown best sellers, or Robert Ludlum potboilers, or Disney theme-park rides. He doesn't rely on CGI, or even use it much."

I don't know wear to begin with this shit. First of all, Douthat calls Gore Verbinski versatile and talented. I guess that's how well you can gauge his abilitiy to judge talent. Second of all, just because you come up with original stories, doesn't mean they are any good. They can suck just as much or more than comic books or adaptations. I'm not bemoaning Shyamalan for sticking to his own material (we need more of it these days) I just think it's a massive stretch to ultimately label every thing that pops out of his brain gold. Shyamalan may write original screenplays, but he definitely follows a formula that's as tried and true as any brand name (in fact his films do come with a brand-name, ever notice his name above the goddamn title?) And this goes far beyond the twist ending bullshit I talked about earlier. All of his films are about ordinary men over come with some sort of inconceivable grief, who, through the power of the supernatural (and Shyamalan's self proclaimed story telling brilliance) find their way back to redemption and learn how to be better men through an acceptance of faith and belief. A certain kind of creepy christian domination is certainly none-too-subtle in some of his films, no wonder he and Mel got along so well. Now I understand that there is such a thing as a common theme uniting a director's body of work, but there is a serious difference between that and telling the same goddamn story every single time. Shyamalan's films don't represent a constant drive to understand the human condition, they represent a filmmaker high on his own gas, unable to come up with anything else. If you notice, nothing different ever happens to that thematic line. He never strives for a variation on it, he's content with setting em up and knocking em down every single time. I say that impulse, rather than a willingness to work with someone else's material indicates a death of originality. Shyamalan sold out to his own shit a long time ago. Also I believe the reason Shyamalan sticks to his own scripts all the time is because he doesn't think another writer is capable of topping or even countering his vision of cinematic prowess. Also, a personal note, if I hear one more so-called film theorist proclaim someone a genius because he or she doesn't use CGI. I'll let you fill in that blank.

"Shyamalan seems to be aiming for something, amid our summers of high-grossing superhero movies and our winters of little-seen Oscar-bait projects, that's increasingly rare these days: a marriage of entertainment and art, of mass-market tastes and elite sensibilities... So, Shyamalan deserves credit, despite his vanity and his missteps—not because he's succeeding, necessarily, but because he's willing to keep trying and unwilling to take his place with those timid, highly compensated directors who know neither victory nor defeat."

It's interesting how certain critics foam at the mouth when they get the ability to trash a film by Spike Lee, Oliver Stone, or even someone like Steven Spielberg. Because those are three directors (among others), who never make boring films. They always have a certain creative stamp that bears the mark of someone who is always exploring, always pushing the limits of his or her talents. And while crash and burn they sometimes do, I have yet to see a collection of articles such as these making an attempt to justify these failures. They often use the films they hate as impetus to suggest that "this" is proof that these directors never had any talent to begin with, or have subtly lost it along the way. People let Shyamalan off the hook with the greatest of ease. Possibly because unlike Lee and Stone, Shyamalan never says anything that pisses people off the way those two do. But beyond that, it's the one part of the Slate article, that I can't figure out. Why do people let Shyamalan off with such an easy pass when his movies have so obviously sucked the past couple of years? In the words of Elliott Smith, I don't think I'm ever gonna figure it out.

P.S. I wrote most of this while watching The Thin Red Line, which only added to my venom. People call Shyamalan a born filmmaker, no, Terence Malick is a born filmmaker. It's not even worth a comparison, but I need a good dose of Malick to offset this Shyamalanonsense. But you should all watch The Thin Red Line. It's fucking amazing.

Here is the slate article. Check it out if you feel I mis-represented it.

That's about enough...

"I need some sleep
Time to put the old horse down
I'm in too deep
And the wheels keep spinning 'round
Everyone says I'm getting' down too low
Everyone says you just gotta let it go
You just gotta let it go
You just gotta let it go

You just gotta let it go"

I am the man who heard voices

2006-07-17T19:59:00.000-07:00

So getting back to my initial frets about the Israel/Hezbollah (Hizbollah, I've seen it spelled both ways) conflict. I should probably amend that to include Hamas/Palestine/and Lebanon, and if I really wanted to break out the big guns, I would throw in Syria and Iran, the boogermen.

I'm no middle eastern expert, I'm sure everything I say has been said better and more eloquently by somebody else out there in the world wide web. I'm sure people opposing and agreeing with me would tear me down in a second for my naive and bias views.

With that all out of the way, this concerns me because the neocons seem to dusting off (or reloading) their torches and pitchforks, calling for the heads of the leaders of Syria and Iran. Well, I shouldn't say they are going to be using those weapons, they will call on some poor uneducated minority to do that. And if they can't get them, they'll just go with the white supremacists. Or this. Either way, the people who want this war will be doing everything in their power to avoid fighting it.

Check out Glen Greenwald's blog. In his words he makes an extremely relevant point about the lack of honest debate about the Israeli lobby influence over U.S. Foreign policies. Definitely check out the washington post article he links to, it's long, but the detailing in it of the inner workings of AIPAC and other organizations is pretty revealing. Anyway, Greenwald's point is that if anybody tries to question Israeli policy, they are usually labeled anti-semites or coupled with some other extremist group. The lack of honest debate has led this country down some really dark paths in the past (Iraq, Iraq, and Iraq). Engaging in a new conflict with anybody and everybody that poses a threat to Israel seems like another aggravatingly weak justification for war that some of these assholes seem to be drooling for.

It seems to me that Hezbollah and Hamas are capable of extreme violent actions, considering they struck first. Israel is right up there with them, everybody is capable of extremes and sometimes peaceful democracies like Israel act out of a violent desire to swing their military might and prove their worth to the rest of the world. Why we excuse this kind of foolhardy aggression is beyond me, other than only to say we participate in the same kind of cowboy macho bull shit. See, it's the male gender's fault, we should attack them, I mean us. I don't wish to slant this in anyway, but both sides are at fault. It's just that Israel seems to be goading us into a full on cluster fuck. That really sticks in my crawl.

Hopefully the voices of reason will outweigh the hawks, and with Iraq looking the way it is now, I can't believe there are people out there who want to spread this all the way around the rest of the middle east. Also, to all the Gingriches and Kristols out there, don't give me this shit about the sacred mission of protecting Israel human life. I have one word for you, Africa, well maybe another one, oil. Maybe that's for another post, to be continued.

The new Night movie comes out on friday, and from all forecasts, it's looking pretty shitty. I don't want to sound like an asshole and say something like I want him to fail (i save that bile for Eli Roth and Brett Ratner, maybe Paul Haggis now). It's just that he's been obsessed with his own brand ever since his shit took off. He's openly admitted he's out to start pop culture phenomenons. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that pop-culture's job not some wannabe Spielberg/Hitchcock mis-mash. Also I think it's really interesting that he has all but ignored his first two films (Wide Awake and Praying With Anger) two religious comedies that didn't feature twists endings or pretentious supernatural allegories. I think the reason behind that is they didn't make any money. That's my other big problem with him, he equates his worth as a filmmaker with how much money they bring in. He could have directed Battlefield Earth and as long as it made money, he would have thought it was this century's citizen kane. It will be interesting to see how Lady in the Water does, hopefully it will be such a colossal crash and burn that Night will re-think his career and maybe stop making movies about how brilliant he is.

I might try to see it because I think Night's career has been very interesting in how each movie has gotten progressively worse (except Unbreakable, good shit) and just when I thought he couldn't get enough of his own hubris, he tops himself, it's kind of like how not to be a filmmaker, I should pay attention. I guess all I can say for him is that, like the Mel Gibson character in his mean, facist religious movie Signs, Night is not beyond redemption. He probably doesn't want it though, he's an asshole.

That's it for now, see ya in the funny pages.

"I'm a connoisseur of roads. I've been tasting roads my whole life.
This road will never end. It probably goes all around the world."

A Skin Too Few

2006-07-16T23:15:00.000-07:00

A pretty interesting idea from a poet named Nick Drake.

Live Air by Nick Drake

The deserted second hand record exchange;
Just a bald guy and his ponytail
Guarding the memory palace of dead vinyl;
Multiple copies of Rumours and Blue
And the Carpenters' Greatest Hits in brown and gold;
Pink Moon's playing on the sound system,
Nick Drake's last LP; soon he would die
On the night Lord Lucan disappeared, Miss World
Lost her crown as an unmarried mother,
And the sun's November mercury slipped
Off the indigo horizon at 4.04 pm...
I browse the bins, and luckily I find
Fruit Tree, the deleted posthumous box set -
Five Leaves Left, Bryter Layter, Pink Moon;
Three big black discs, acetate ammonites
Coded for ancient technology.
I offer Bela Lugosi my credit card;
He stares at the name, my face, then up
To the shivering strip light and the obscure ceiling
Where sound waves collide with dust to conjure
Nick's sad ghost in the live air, whispering:
Know that I love you, know that I care,
Know that I see you, know I'm not there
Then the song fades to recorded silence -
The hushed acoustic of his after-life -
Before the static, the perpetual heart-beat trip
Round the record's inevitable zero...
Lugosi looks from the dark vacancy,
The tangled wires, the drifting motes
In the creaky auditorium of dust
Where the ghost had sung and disappeared; he grins;
"Oh man, oh man, I thought you were dead..."

Right on.

Go Haunt Someone Else

2006-07-15T23:39:00.000-07:00

Very exciting news, Kevin Devine's new single is up. Listen to it here.
You have to click on Show #99 to here it. It's the first song in the program, you shan't be dissappointed.

He has a new album coming out in October, kind of bummed only because I thought it was coming out in August. Dramatic turn of events, I know, but I still, I wanted me my Kevy Devine now. Right now. Anyway, the new single is good. I wish I had a better quality cut of it but he seems to be making an interesting transition to a more traditional method of songwriting. I'm not chastizing him for this in anyway, but I know he signed onto a major label so it will be interesting to see how his DIY style will meld with the whole Major Label thing. He definitely has the smarts and the integrity to withstand whatever creative pressures come with a major label. I say, give 'em hell.

A lot of stuff has been going on recently that's very troubling. I will elaborate on this further, I just need to bulk up my knowledge a little bit more. Plus it's late and I can barely type this post coherently. I am not talking about anything personal, I mean in the area of Global Conflicts, okay I'll just say it. The Israel Lebanon/Gaza thing, it's really starting to get me worried. Anyway I'll let you all sleep on that, sorry, I'm a bastard I know.

Good Night...

"And it's fucked up, fucked up
And this is fucked up, fucked up
This your blind spot, blind spot
It should be obvious, but it's not.
But it isn't, but it isn't."

I am Jor-El, master of scheduling!

2006-07-05T23:25:00.000-07:00

I was watching a new show on mtv called Why Can't I Be You with nate (the new director as he should be called) and a thought occured to me that kind of bummed me out. It had to do with how shallow and harsh we are with each other (don't worry, I'm included in this condemnation.)

This reality show has to do with someone wanting to experience life through somebody else's eyes for a few weeks while MTV makes it all happen and documents it. They in essence become somebody else, as the title indicates. At first I thought this was a step in the right direction for MTV, they were documenting a positive experience in a person's life rather than watching them puke for cash or make out with a stranger in a drunken haze while puking, for cash. In this episode a cheerleader wanted to break down the fear and stereotyping she created around another student who seemed to be following the goth-punk scene or a hybrid of the two if no such singular scene exists. Anyway, the cheerleader initially showed a real commitment to learning about a life she had previously cast off with the greatest of ease. I thought this was a show that would bring people together.

I learned later on in the show that it actually pulls us further apart. I know you are probably all thinking, it's an MTV show, what did you expect. Or that I shouldn't get so worked up about something that's designed to solve a life time of problems in thirty minutes. I agree with you on all that, but bear with me, I don't write in this thing very often.

Anyway, the show, through its various machinations proceeded to suggest that high school can only be survived if you find a particular fad, trend or niche and dedicate yourself to following the strict rules of that group at all costs. But also that human beings (especially teens) are ONLY defined through their exteriors (clothes, hair, piercings, carefully coifed mowhawks). It was interesting to watch the punk girl because that whole act is heavily immersed in notions of anti-conformity, anti-establishment, and anti-everything that's not punk. If they are anti-conformity, then why do they all dress the same? Why are people who are part of the punk scene so easily identifiable as such. They all conform to a set of standards that are just as shallow and surface obsessed as the cheerleading group. And whether they want to admit this or not, they are just as dismissive and judgemental of outsiders as everybody else is of them. What's especially upsetting about this (for the punk kids) is that none of them will look like this in ten years. The style to which they so heavily cling right now will be nothing more than a memory as they quietly sell out like everybody else and adopt a set of standards that will allow them to keep a steady job.

I don't mean to be cynical and I don't mean to direct all my questions towards one particular group. I don't even like using the term punk because it has so many connotations that probably don't apply to what I'm talking about. I might as well start calling them the grunge kids. It's just for the sake of simplicity, it's the best way to describe the group I saw on this show.

It upsets me that bright, creative, and passionate kids are stunted like this into defining themselves through such irrelevant and temporary means. It's like nobody wants to take the chance and express something about their personality, they would rather have their clothes do it for them. Maybe I can take comfort in the fact that punks and cheerleaders share the same kinds of anxieties and neuroses that will maybe bring them together when they least expect it. Don't get me wrong, I take no joy in other people having anxiety, I just want them to get together because of it. Stereotyping is probably the easiest thing a person can do, and nothing sucks more for a young mind then trying to figure yourself out while somebody else (or yourself) has already got you pegged. When people act in a way they think they SHOULD be acting, they never live up and it can be kind of a drag.

I don't know how this ends, I don't really have any solutions. I hope this all even makes sense, I guess I just hope everybody finds their way. That's what I call a glib, self-serving solution to everyone's problems. I knew I had it in me.

"Stop light plays its part so
I would say you've got a part.
What's your part? Who you are.
You are who who you are."

Here's to the state of mississippi

2006-07-03T22:56:00.000-07:00

I found this on the Nation website. It's a speech Frederick Douglas gave on July 4th 1852.

Granted, in this context he is specifically talking about slavery.

I still feel a lot of what is uttered in this speech applies today regardless of the specifics.

Happy 4th of July...

WHAT TO THE SLAVE IS THE 4TH OF JULY
by Frederick Douglas

This...is the birthday of your National Independence, and of your political freedom.... It carries your minds back to the day, and to the act of your great deliverance; and to the signs, and to the wonders, associated with that act.... Pride and patriotism, not less than gratitude, prompt you to celebrate and to hold it in perpetual remembrance.... The principles contained in [the Declaration of Independence] are saving principles. Stand by those principles, be true to them on all occasions, in all places, against all foes, and at whatever cost....

Fellow-citizens--Pardon me, allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here to-day? What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?... Would to God, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to these questions!... But, such is not the state of the case. I say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me.... This Fourth of July is yours, not mine....

I shall see this day and its popular characteristics from the slave's point of view. Standing there, identified with the American bondman, making his wrongs mine, I do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this Fourth of July! Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. America is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future....

What to the American slave is your Fourth of July? I answer, a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass-fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy--a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very hour.

Go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms of the old world, travel through South America, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the every-day practices of this nation, and you will say with me, that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival....

Fellow-citizens, I will not enlarge further on your national inconsistencies. The existence of slavery in this country brands your republicanism as a sham, your humanity as a base pretense, and your Christianity as a lie. It destroys your moral power abroad; it corrupts your politicians at home. It saps the foundation of religion; it makes your name a hissing and a byword to a mocking earth. It is the antagonistic force in your government, the only thing that seriously disturbs and endangers your union. It fetters your progress; it is the enemy of improvement; the deadly foe of education; it fosters pride; it breeds insolence; it promotes vice....

Allow me to say, in conclusion, notwithstanding the dark picture I have this day presented, of the state of the nation, I do not despair of this country.... While drawing encouragement from the "Declaration of Independence," the great principles it contains and the genius of American Institutions, my spirit is also cheered by the obvious tendencies of the age. Nations do not now stand in the same relation to each other that they did ages ago. No nation can now shut itself up from the surrounding world and trot round in the same old path of its fathers without interference.... A change has now come over the affairs of mankind. Walled cities and empires have become unfashionable. The arm of commerce has borne away the gates of the strong city. Intelligence is penetrating the darkest corners of the globe.... Oceans no longer divide, but link nations together. From Boston to London is now a holiday excursion. Space is comparatively annihilated. Thoughts expressed on one side of the Atlantic are distinctly heard on the other.... No abuse, no outrage whether in taste, sport or avarice, can now hide itself from the all-pervading light.

Forgive me

2006-06-24T20:50:00.000-07:00

Forgive me, this is a little bit of self indulgence here.

Actually it's a big bit of self-indulgence.

About to leave for idaho, lots of strands swirling around in the old coconut.

There's one in particular I can't really shake.

This song is for that strand. It's cheesey I know, but dammit, at least I know it.

It's a new dashboard song, that pretty much says it all...

She smiled in a big way
The way a girl like that smiles
When the world is hers. And she held your eyes
Out in the breezeway, down by the shore
In the lazy summer

And she pulled you in
And she bit your lip
And she made you hers
She looked deep into you as you lay together
Quiet in the grasp of dusk and summer

But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
When you only had barely enough to hang on

And she combed your hair
And she kissed your teeth
And she made you better than you’d been before
And she told you bad things that you wished you could change
In the lazy summer

And she told you, laughing down to her core
So she would not cry
And she lay in your lap as she said
“Nobody here can live forever
Quiet in the grasp of dusk and summer.”

But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
When you only had barely enough to hang on

She said “No one is alone the way you are alone.”
And you held her looser than you would’ve if you ever could’ve known
Some things tie your life together
With slender threads and things to treasure
Days like that should last and last and last

But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
But you’ve already lost
When you only have barely enough of her to hang on
Hang on
Hang on
Hang on

Here is his trying to catch a fly ball with an oven mitt!

2006-06-22T19:54:00.000-07:00

Heard this on aintitcool.com and they linked it to a website called tv week.

Sounds pretty legitimate...

Three years after Fox canceled the show, Matt Groening's "Futurama" will resume production for a 13-episode run on Comedy Central. The new episodes will be added to the network's library of 72 "Futurama" episodes previously licensed from 20th Century Fox Television. Voice talent Billy West, Katey Sagal and John DiMaggio will return for the new episodes, which will debut in 2008.

"There is a deep and passionate fan base for this intelligent and very funny show that matches perfectly with our audience and it is great that we can offer them not just the existing library, but something they've never seen as well," said David Bernath, senior VP, programming, Comedy Central.

"Futurama" marks the third Fox project revived by basic cable in recent years. New episodes of "Greg the Bunny" are being ordered by IFC, and Fox resurrected "Family Guy" after the series found success on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.

Long live the king.

It's a worldwide suicide.

2006-06-05T15:22:00.000-07:00

An Inconvenient Truth once again proves my theorem that movies can be about so much more than Vaugniston or Brangelina. I don't know why I picked those two because neither brad pitt or angelina jolie have a movie out, but you know what I mean. Movies have the power to do exactly what they set out to do, move people. There's something exhilirating about feeling that collective vibe permeate throughout a screening room when everybody realizes they've just been empowered. Sure it's cheesey and maybe it's a little naive, but when you feel it, you'll know.

I felt that last night and as shocking, sobering, and almost defeatist as the movie may seem, you don't walk out of the theatre that way. You'll shake your head at the astonishing irresponsibility of certain administrations, you'll wonder how you could have possibly ignored such a calamatious situation. But you won't walk out of the theatre feeling lost, you know exactly what to do. And ignore all the partisan crap you might read about the movie, I've heard the new york post review is particularly bilious and I also read that a fox news commentator compared Gore to Goebbels (if you think about it hard enough your head might explode). All I know is the facts are indesputable, the truth is right there and frankly I don't really care anymore who is to blame. Even though I think I know who is to blame (us), that doesn't matter any more. Trying to parcel out blame turns this into a red state blue state he said she said bullshit contest that won't amount to much of anything. We just need to fix this shit. Now.

With that being said, go see the movie, let everyone know what you think. It is important, because one thing the movie highlighted that I had somehow forgotten was that this is not just a problem for humanity. This is a problem for every form of species on the planet, and some of these ever so delicate ecological systems depend on the tiniest of organisms to function properly. The damage being done right now will directly affect those systems for the negative, and everybody knows, we've already fucked the animals over enough. We at least owe this to them. Point being in all seriousness, this is for the planet not just for us.

And for those of you who didn't think Gore was funny, did you not see futurama? Get with the program here...

Everybody do something.

Meanwhile, I got something from e.v. and mike mcC

"Medals on a wooden mantle. Next to a handsome face.
That the president took for granted.
Writing checks that others pay.

And in all the madness. Thought becomes numb and naive.
So much to talk about. Nothing for to say."

"Searching hope, I'm shown the way to run straight
Pursuing the greater way for all human light.

How I choose to feel is how I am.

I will not lose my faith
It's an inside job today

Holding on, the light of night
On my knees to rise and fix my broken soul
Again."

I sincerely apologize for all the trouble I've caused

2006-05-31T21:33:00.000-07:00

A couple of things I've been meaning to talk about, forgive me if this entry seems a little bit scatter-brained.

-The Da Vinci Code was not a whole lot of fun. I've avoided the books because I heard they were garbage, but I thought the movie looked fun in that detective code cracking kind of way. Plus they shot at a bunch of really cool locations, I figured it was worth a try to check out and see what all the fuss was about.
The first half of the movie has more exposition than the three movies I'd seen previously combined. Characters seemed to have no purpose other than espousing history and useless knowledge to each other in a zane attempt to understand the situation. It's only when ian mackellan shows up, sorry sir ian mackellan that the movie begins to have any sort of punch to it. Granted it doesn't get better but at least you get the sense there could have been a lot of fun here. The movie's not boring it just sort of plods along in that bad ron howard kind of way, where you feel like a robot could have directed the movie and achieved the same result. I guess I can't say its a shame since I'm tired of the book, tired of hearing about it, hopefully this movie will put the whole thing to bed.

-The new phillip roth book "everyman" is excellent. I liked how compact and precise it is, it really allows roth to explore the main character, in a way that never feels like it is in any kind of service to the plot because there is no plot. And it works because roth weaves character and story together in a way that never feels forced, things happen the way they do in real life, according to this one particular man's actions and motivations. There are some passages in the book about getting old and dying that are damn near heartbreaking. And even though the main character is kind of a prick, his voice brings a kind of pathos that is quite satisfying.

-The song Marker in the Sand is one of the best songs pearl jam has ever written/performed in their long history. I don't know what it is about that song, it's infectious, i just get happy listening to it. I also generally like music that doesn't make me want to move (I don't really have a good answer for why that is by the way) but I want to move when I hear that song. The lyrics are dead on and his voice carries it all the way through. I think its my favorite song off the new album and definitely in the top three right now (I don't know if anything can unseat rearviewmirror so maybe marker is #2).

-Nate's totally right, I just saw X-Men: The Last Stand and I gotta say as low as my expectations were, I'm still bummed by it. I keep going back to three years ago and how exhilirating X2 was and still is. There was something in the way bryan singer weaved together the holy shit moments with a story that resonates because it's character driven. It wasn't about filling parts in between the huge set pieces, he had a story to tell. Brett Ratner on the other hand ignores those impulses or is not capable of them, either way he fucked up royally with X3. Granted there were some moments that me revelling in X-Men geekiness, which I should clarify that I am not an X-men geek because I've never read a single comic and I never watched the cartoon. For some reaon the movies have triggered a special reaction with me for these mutated punks. I think it's because watching them is like watching the 72-10 bulls or a great jazz ensemble. I love the moments when they are allowed to riff and improvise with their powers yet still remain a solid unit. That shit kicks ass. Maybe I look too much into it, or I just want super powers of my own. Anyway, back to the movie, it seemed that in their rush to make this epic and final, a last stand if you will. They sacrificed so much of the story telling that was so prevelant in the first two. Powerful emotions are handled like filler and just when you think a scene is about to reach a dramatic peak, Ratner cuts away to something else. This is basic shit and he just plain sucks at it. Yes the action is cool, but up to a point. Some of it is rather poorly staged and clumsily edited, plus there are only so many times you can watch a character get hurled into the air and rise to their feet without a scratch. The anticipation kind of wears down after a while. Plus someone please explain to me why you take the climactic battle of the x-men trilogy and shoot it in the middle of the night, in the fucking dark? This guy's got a lot of chutzpah, missy.

Two final things that ran through my mind during my viewing of X3 or whatever it's called.

-Episode III is ten times better, a million times better even. It's the be all end all movie for trilogy cappers, X-3 shouldn't even be allowed to lick the dogshit from it's boot-heels.

-I hope somebody one day let's me direct one of these super hero movies. I want to do something really cool with one of them, hopefully they're still popular when I step up to the plate.

Okay, I'm tired, I'm going to bed.

"i am no more
i am not good
i am so sorry
if you misunderstood
i'd make it up
but i cannot
if i am an animal..."

What nate and john did on their summer vacation...

2006-05-30T05:54:00.000-07:00

A little treat for y'all...

Recovered texts from the journals of nate and john's summer road trip 2004:

Robin Hood and Little John
Walkin' through the forest
Laughin' back and forth
At what the other'ne has to say
Reminiscin', This-'n'-thattin'
Havin' such a good time
Oo-de-lally, Oo-de-lally
Golly, what a day
Never ever thinkin' there was danger in the water
They were drinkin', they just guzzled it down
Never dreamin' that a schemin' sherrif and his posse
Was a-watchin' them an' gatherin' around
Robin Hood and Little John
Runnin' through the forest
Jumpin' fences, dodgin' trees
An' tryin' to get away
Contemplatin' nothin'
But escape an' fin'lly makin' it
Oo-de-lally, Oo-de-lally
Golly, what a day
Oo-de-lally, Oo-de-lally
Golly, what a day

Quick, to the FALCON!!!

2006-05-04T17:28:00.000-07:00

Check this out.

I never thought they'd do it, but apparently they were persuaded enough by fan pressure to release the original "unaltered" or "old-school" star wars trilogy as it was seen in 1977, 1980, and 1983 perspecitvely. Goddamn fanboys have way too much power.

My thoughts on this: It's cool, I hope some of the long time star wars fans are happy and they get back those films they claim George Lucas has stolen from them with the prequel trilogy and the special edition. Me, I could go either way. As it has been long documented on this blog, I saw the trilogy as the special edition when I was 13. I fell in love with those movies, I'm happy with them, I don't miss anything when I watch them. It will be cool to have those original versions on dvd just for the sake of movie history. Oh and for the record, greedo shooting first DOES NOT diminsh the han character at all. The man was a rogue not a viscious psycho path who blasted anyone who got in his way. The reason his redemption works at the end of the movie is not because he's evil, it's because he doesn't care about anyone. That's why to see him come blazing through that star light destroying one of vader's tie fighters will always be a thrill, that's why.

I love the new pearl jam album. I love it, I love it, I love it. I've loved everything they done, but this one is especially memorable. It's everything they do well but at the same time it's stuff they've never done before. I find myself asking, "this is a pearl jam song?" after song have finished. Plus it's some of the most focused and pointed political commentary to come from a mainstream band in many a moon, but it ends on a none of hope, what more can you ask for? Nothing, they are the best band in the world, period, exclamation point, whatever you want.

Key Songs: (Even though they are all amazing, I mean that)
Marker in the Sand
Come Back
Life Wasted
Unemployable
Comatose
Big Wave
Severed Hand

I'm off to see Josh Ritter now, he should be good. I hope he plays good man.

Those undecided
needn't have faith to be free.
And those misguided,
there was a plan for them to be...
Now you got both sides
claiming 'killing in god's name'.
But god is nowhere
to be found, conveniently...

What goes on?
Walking tightrope high
over moral ground.
Walk the bridges be-
-fore you burn them down!
Do come round
with the living, let
what is living love.
Unforgiving, yet
needing forgiveness first...

God, what do you say?

God, what do you say?

Life's Just Too Short Little Ndugu

2006-04-29T20:32:00.000-07:00

I guess I've been away for a while. I don't know, I guess I haven't really had much to say. Everytime I get something, I seem to lose it between the thought and actually sitting down at the computer. But I feel like now, I've got some thoughts that I just can't shake.

Nate and I just got back from United 93, head over to his blog for some interesting thoughts on the subject. Before I get to the movie, a little history should be provided to preface my thoughts as a whole.

When I first even imagined the idea of a movie about the events of the morning of September 11th, I was against it. I thought they were doomed to fail given the fact that the images most likely to dominate the film were images we all saw happen on tv, and in a lot of cases, with our own eyes. I thought, how could a film, a piece of celluloid or maybe digital video recreate an action we all saw? Special effects cheapen it (see Pearl Harbor) even a real life recreation can't compete with the images of life processed in the human mind. I personally, never thought it would actually happen.

Then I read that Paul Greengrass had a project in the making and suddenly, I did a complete flip flop. For those of you not familiar with Paul Greengrass, he directed a movie back in 2002 called Bloody Sunday (if you haven't seen it, go out and rent it as soon as possible, or if not possible, I have it and I will loan it to you). Bloody Sunday is about the clash between the British Military and unarmed protesters in Derry, Ireland that ended with the deaths of 13 people. It's one of the most stunning recreations of a dramatic event that I have ever seen. Greengrass gives a documentary like immediacy to the action that does more than put you there, it surrounds you. He centers right at the heart of the violence and finds the heart of the wounded, it's the most we can hope for from an artist. So when I heard he was taking on United 93, my fears were assuaged a little. Here was a filmmaker that I trusted to respectfully represent this material. I also trusted him as someone with a non-exploitative agenda, I knew he wanted to make this film as a filmmaker, not as a thoughtless purveyor of an easy sell.

Nothing can prepare you for this film. I need to stress that more than anything, if you even have the slightest inkling of a doubt about seeing this movie, than stay home. I do not feel this is something every american should see as their patriotic duty, I do not think this is a movie every citizen of the world should see as their humanitarian duty. This is a film about a nightmare and I do not urge people to re-live nightmares. If you want to go, than go. I went because I respect the power I see in movies to represent all the things our minds and bodies are capable of. I went because Paul Greengrass is an artist I respect and I want to see his work. I went because this movie is important, good or bad, it is important.

I have never had an experience in a movie theatre (or life in general) comparable to the one I had sitting in that dark room on Second Avenue watching United 93. Visercal doesn't even begin to describe it. This movie squeezes hard and it does not let go. I can't even say it's let go of me yet. There are images in this film that even if you shield your eyes, your mind will recess into the deepest coils of your memory and bring back that same awful feeling you had in the pit of your stomach when you first heard the news. The overwhelming surge of mis-communication that occured as fear and panic took over and you were unable to discern whether the horrific or the truly horrific was actually happening. This movie captures all of that and with a precision and compassion that is undeniably moving and truly heart wrenching. I don't know what else to say, I guess all I can say is that I didn't think a film about 9/11 could move me because I'm still trembling from that day, what more could a film do? Whatever that is, United 93 did it. I'm sure I will write more about this, but I'm still lost as of right now.

More stuff coming soon, new Pearl Jam album on tuesday, graduation, all kinds of stuff. I want to write again, and hopefully I won't forget to.

Remember...

sing loud
sing louder
sing to feel
sing for everyone
please sing loud
sing louder
sing to heal
sing for everyone

sing for life sing for choices
sing for everyone without voices

sing for...
love - laughter - everyone here and after.
fear - hatred - everyone less than sacred.
life - choices - everyone without voices.
you can pray while they all keep sinking away.

City of justice, city of love.

2006-03-11T13:31:00.000-08:00

Oh wait,

That's gotham city. Nevermind

As most of you know, we are venturing off into the deep blue yonder of paris, france for a week.
I know that I probably don't post enough to necessitate something like this but I'm going to get back into the swing of things.
Therefore, I just wanted say au revoir for the week and I will see you all when I return.

Until then...

It's the letter, the letter that never came.

Dearest Children, Since we have been abroad we have missed you all so much. Certain events have compelled us to extend our travels. One day, when you're older, you will learn all about the people we've befriended, and the dangers we have faced. At times the world can seem an unfriendly and sinister place, but believe us when we say there is much more good in it than bad. All you have to do is look hard enough. And what might seem to be a series of unfortunate events, may, in-fact be the first steps of a journey. We hope to have you back in our arms soon darlings, but in case this letter arrives before our return, know that we love you. It fills us with pride to know that no matter what happens in this life, that you three will take care of each other with kindness, and bravery, and selflessness as you always have. And remember one thing my darlings and never forget it - that no matter where we are, know that as long as you have each other, you have your family, and you are home. Your loving parents.

Unleash Mr. Beast

2006-03-08T18:35:00.000-08:00

To piggy back off of nate's post, the new mogwai cd is really really good. Pitchfork said it was too soft for their tastes, but like I usually say, fuck pitchfork. Mogwai has the ability to make their sound sound new and unique every time they put out an album. And, yes, the cd is soft but it rocks at the same time. I'm really really impressed, and I don't get impressed too easily.

New Pearl Jam single is out, World Wide Suicide, it's starting to get stuck in my head, and it rocks. Thank god pearl jam is coming back to whip us into shape and kick our asses into submission. I'm excited about the new album (i know i'm always excited) but this time it's different. The guys seem more invigorated more enthused than ever about the shit they're putting down. On top of that, Stone Gossard said it's their most accessible album to date, which would make some people cringe, but I'm cool with it. I think it just means they made a rock record, nothing that's going to play on mtv, but a straight ahead rock record still has the ability to rock. People said Takk was Sigur's most accessible album to date, if that's what passses for accessibility these days, I'm down.

Yeah, the oscars sucked, but they always do. I didn't watch them this year, which was kind of weird because I usually make a point to watch them. I'm kinda bummed I missed some of stewart's stuff, it sounded quite quirking. I like the idea of the political ads, especially about dame judi stench. Getting back to the winner, I thought all the actors were deserving but what's with everyone turning on Reese Witherspoon now? Apparently she's too perky, too cute, god forbid somebody is excited about winning an oscar. Now I didn't see her speech so maybe she was noxiously annoying, all I know is she and joaquin made walk the line, without them, the movie sinks. That doesn't mean it's bad, I thought it was a fine flicka show. But something happened between those two, and you can tell because sometimes the movie soars with them at the helm. I just think that if an actor can take lesser quality material and upgrade it, that's a performance. Look at what Denzel did with training day, would that movie had been a tenth of what it was if a lesser actor attempted that part? They would have made alonzo just a psycho-path, Denzel made him something ten times scarier, a psycho path we understand. Sorry to go on the rant but I was just thinking about how awesome Denzel is. Anyway Reese deserved it, she should be happy, I hope she does more good work in the future.

As for the best picture debacle, people are comparing this to back in 98 when Shakespeare in Love won over Saving Private Ryan. First of all, no, Shakespeare in Love is a fantastic movie, just as much deserving of the oscar as SPV was. Crash blows ass and does so on every possible level (except for the acting, which is the only reason it is remotely watchable). If I hear one more person sing its praises about how groundbreaking the movie is, I'm gonna shoot out my own knees. Spike Lee made a a movie back in 1989 about race relations, it was called do the right thing. Shit didn't even get a best picture nomination. The point is Do the Right Thing is a perfect movie on all accounts, script, style, and direction. There's not a false note or a wrong turn anywhere on screen, it's perfect. That and You can count on me are two of the most perfect scripts ever written for the screen, at least that I've counted. I'm sure there are more. Anyway getting back to do the right thing, there's something very fishy about the fact that Spike Lee has been screaming and hollering for almost 20 years about race relations (everyone knows I love spike and I don't mean that in a bad way) and for some reason when a white guy like Paul Haggis makes a movie like Crash, people think its groundbreaking and it wins. To me Crash is one of those pat yourself on the back feel good liberal race movies where you say, oh my god people are awful but thank god I'm not like that. That makes people feel good about themselves, Do the Right Thing makes you say, oh my god, I'm like that and I'm capable of that as well. That doesn't make people feel good, hence, no oscars. It's alll bullshit, but just so people are sure, not only do I disagree with the politics of crash, it was also a lousy movie. I wouldn't be nearly as pissed off as I am if crash had been a well made, well written film, which it is not.

Now, for something positive...

I'm on a roll, this way I won't have to write another post for at least ten years.

We finished Golf The Movie this past weekend, and whatever I say will probably cheapen into some sort of hallmark sentiment. But I was really blown away with everyone's performance, the cast, the crew, the hospitality (mom), I couldn't have even imagined the help I got. There is something so exhilirating about watching a bunch of people busting their ass to make a creative endeavor as good as it possibly can be, and to watch those people get excited about the process, it's a thrill I don't even want to try to describe because I don't think I can. I just want everyone to know that I am forever grateful and that this is one of those things I will never ever forget, for as long as I live. This is for everybody who helped in anyway possible with this movie. I owe so many people favors and whatnot that I will probably never be able to repay them. But, it's good knowing you got people like that in your life backin you up. And on that note, a little kevy dev...

And I have been feeling this good for a reason
my friends and my family
you all are my backbone
you keep me balanced and settled
and I'm in debt to you all endlessly
Yeah I'm in debt to you all endlessly

Happy Valentine's Day

2006-02-14T15:06:00.000-08:00

I guess I've given up on writing anything anymore...

As the candy hearts poured into the fiery quasar, a wonderous thing happened, why not? They vaporized into a mystical love radiation that spread across the universe, destroying many, many planets - including two gangster planets and a cowboy world. But one planet was exactly the right distance to see the romantic rays, but not be destroyed by them - Earth. So all over the world, couples stood together in joy. And me, Zoidberg! And no one could've been happier, unless it would've also been Valentine's Day. What? It was? Hooray!

Happy Valentine's Day.

to: elliott, from: portland

2006-02-08T19:48:00.000-08:00

I always do this, I know. A real post is coming soon, I promise.

It's just that, whenever someone writes anything about Elliott Smith, it's usually very touching. The other day I was listening to one of his songs (or a cover) I'm not sure, anyway, I thought to myself: I wish he was still around. That's all.

Here's what the man wrote,

To his fans, Elliott Smith was someone who told your sad story and made you feel like you were not alone. He took your desperation, your toils and torments, and he made them beautiful, and in doing so he made you beautiful.

To those who knew Elliott personally, he was a tortured soul, full of love and grief and an insatiable desire for something more.

For all his odes and allusions and beautiful references, Portland thanks him. For making the darkness of this world gorgeous, we all thank him. May he rest in peace

-Anthony Davis, Expunged Records

P.S. I actually found a decemberists song I can stand listening to. It is an elliott smith song but progress is progress.

We have to overcome the idea that everyone is the same.

2006-02-04T07:01:00.000-08:00

Hey, it's time
To move away and shine!
You can be all you ever want
In a dream.

You can take time along the way,
Let this music in your head.
You can be all you ever want
Inside a dream.

And if you take this time,
And you will move their minds,
You'll find it's all in a dream.
It's the only way
For you to be...

And if you see me down at the liquor store, please don't tell my dad. And if you see my dad down at the liquor store, don't tell me anything at all.

2006-01-27T21:12:00.000-08:00

A couple of things I wanted to share...

I watched Junebug again tonight, really strong flick. The direction, the performances, and the script are all fantastic. Movies like this have become a joke, newly christened spouses introduced to a backwards-ass family, they've been done to death. This one is so careful with its observations and so natural in its tone that it feels quite outlandish at times. You forget that not every family has a sex crazed barbara streisand as its matriarch. Anyway, I wish I could have put it in my top ten cause it really was one of the best films to come out last year, and a great source of comfort knowing its director was a first-timer. Also if amy adams doesn't get an oscar nomination for either supporting or lead (I'm not sure which she qualifies as) then I will add to list of 999,000 reasons why the oscars should be done away with. Her breakdown scene at the hospital is reason enough to see this movie and it's one of the best performed scenes of the year by any actor.

"God loves you just the way you are but he loves too much to let you stay that way."

Also, I am becoming obsessed with that Antony and the Johnsons CD, I am a bird now. There is something about that guy's voice, it's like nina simone combined with a transexual ghost. Haunting doesn't even begin to describe it. Particularly the first song, Hope There's Someone, but I'll get to that later. The writing is spot-on and the instrumental back up is every bit up to snuff, especially Fistful of Love which begins with a Lou Reed poem of some kind. Also Rufus Wainwright shows up for the song, What Can I Do? Rufus is righteous. Anyway, back to Antony, there's something so hearbreaking about this album because you get the sense that it's about someone wishing to do away with whatever life he or she has now and start over with a completely different one. They're trapped and this is their only solace, I know that makes it sound corny but just listen to the record or sample it whatever you want to do. I think it's one of those things that if you're into it and it gets you then it does, if not, no biggie, it's cool.

Anyway, please watch this This is the first song off of the Antony and the Johnsons record and it's one of those songs you need to listen to over and over again. Especially right before you go to sleep. It will make you feel better, I think. That's all, good night everybody....

Hope there's someone
Who'll take care of me
When I die, will I go

Hope there's someone
Who'll set my heart free
Nice to hold when I'm tired

There's a ghost on the horizon
When I go to bed
How can I fall asleep at night
How will I rest my head

Oh I'm scared of the middle place
Between light and nowhere
I don't want to be the one
Left in there, left in there

There's a man on the horizon
Wish that I'd go to bed
If I fall to his feet tonight
Will allow rest my head

So here's hoping I will not drown
Or paralyze in light
And godsend I don't want to go
To the seal's watershed

Hope there's someone
Who'll take care of me
When I die, Will I go

Hope there's someone
Who'll set my heart free
Nice to hold when I'm tired

You ain't even in my top ten!

2006-01-01T07:22:00.000-08:00

Okay, okay here I go again hitchin a ride on the blog bandwagon, shoving another top ten list down the throats of my dear readers. Then again, this blog was never built on anything resembling an original thought, idea, or concept. Plus, I used to do these for my highschool newspaper and they were always my favorite things to write at the end of the year. Actually, I always wrote them mid january due to the fact that in delaware, we had to wait several weeks before the limited engagements (whatever the hell that means) releases made their way down to our humble abode. All that aside, here are my top ten films of 2005, actually my ten best films of the year in alphabetical order. They are equal in the eyes of the anti-fanboy.

The Ten Best Films of 2005 (in alphabetical order)

Brokeback Mountain
Ang Lee's intimately epic western achieves a kind of power that stays with you long after the end credits. Lee has a compassionate gift for understanding a tormented psyche, and his amazing cast pulls off a beautiful and heartbreaking love story. With its mountain vistas stretching on forever into the horizon and its painterly cloud splotched sky lines, Brokeback Mountain reminds us that behind any face there be could be untold reservoirs of sorrow, longing, and regret. Some movies just know how to hit you where it hurts, the is one of them, and it will not be forgotten.

Capote
Phillip Seymour Hoffman has been consistently remarkable for so long that I forgot he has never had a staring role for himself. My memory is now surely intact after his astounding portrayal in this stunning film. It's the best biopic we've had in the past couple of years, because it uses the life of an artist to illuminate a character study of one man's decent into his own personal hell. First time director Bennett Miller also captures the stark, lonely nature of the mid-west, the shockwaves that result from a brutal act if violence, and how the two sometimes go hand in hand. Look out for Clifton Collins shattering confessional to Hoffman in his death row cell. Make sure you remember to breathe.

Good Night, and Good Luck
The passion for this project permeates through every frame and every carefully measured performance. Some accused Clooney and Co. of hero worship, nuts to that. Clooney is making a statement about people who acted heroically during a time when such feats were in short supply. Too bad nothing has changed. No need to despair, Good Night's sure handed intelligence and gracefully entertaining execution is a testament to the power an artists yields to enact change. This movie got people thinking, and we should all be grateful.

Last Days
The caper in Gus Van Sant's fantastically daring "death trilogy" is the best of the bunch. A biopic in the loosest sense of the word, Last Days accounts for the final lonely hours of a Kurt Cobain-like rock star. Never before has this kind of despair been so perfectly captured on film. Always questioning, but still containing a clarity of vision that places the viewer under a hypnotic spell. Van Sant's wandering eye puts us in the place of a disembodied spirit looking for a looking for a body, one that may never be found. It's a testament to Van Sant's talents that he can pull off this kind of spiritual aplomb within the confines of Michael Pitt's solitary march to death.

Millions
Finally, a film for children that lives up to the vivid imagination of a child. Finally, a film for children that doesn't peddle a bunch of easy answers and morals. Finally, a film for children so tender and moving, only the hardest of hearts need not apply. Danny Boyle's vibrant and colorful look at a child hood in transition does what all great children's stories do: sings us to sleep without coddling. Alex Etel gives the best performance by a child actor in many a moon. Watching him in this film, it's easy to remember that there is goodness in this world.

Munich
Screw the box office success! Ever since Saving Private Ryan, Steven Spielberg has hit an artistic stride the likes of which we've never seen. He seems to be getting better and more challenging to himself and his audience with every film. Munich thoughtfully explores a complex subject and Spielberg uses his masterful command of the filmmaking craft to take the Hollywood blockbuster to bold new levels. Spielberg's cast is equally game with Eric Bana's gut wrenchingly subtle performances leading the way. Munich is a globe-trotting thriller suffused with a compelling anti blockbuster brain. The film pleads for peace, not politics and the devastating final shot reminds us just how much is at stake.

The New World
Terrence Malick's historical epic is the most beautiful film of the year. In fact, it is the most beautiful film to grace our screens since Malick's last outing: The Thin Red Line. Malick's films bleed through the confines of cinema: the cuts, the frames, and the words are almost rendered arbitrary. Watching one of his films is a completely immersive experience and no other director in the history of film operates on the same level. The New World reminds us that there is still some pure and untouched wonder in this world waiting to be discovered. Whether or not those places actually exist is up to us. Malick's quest is a masterpiece of one of most important directors in history, passing up the opportunity to see this one on the big screen is insane.

The Squid and The Whale
Noah Baumbach's achingly funny family memoir adds another gem to my favorite genre: the melancholy comedy. Jeff Daniels, Laura Linney and the rest of the cast give career defining performances in a film that never takes a wrong step. Baumbach's screenplay (the best original of the year) allows his characters to embarrass the hell out of us and each other. His fearless representation of an incredibly flawed group of people is reason to cheer. Baumbach is an unflinchingly honest director, and this is personal filmmaking at its best. It reads like great fiction but feels like real life.

Syriana
Stephen Gaghan's head spinning examination of the toxic tentacles of corruption that have infested oil, politics, and business startles us with its wealth of information and rattles us with its passion to fight back. The film gives no easy answers, but its intentions are nowhere near defeatist. The very nature of the film itself immediately begs for further examination, and maybe a greater grasp on what is wrong. Gaghan's script and direction are a marvel of multi-narrative story telling. Each scene ending with the finality of the perfect last line, only to leave us begging for more. The cast is uniformly excellent with Clooney giving the best performance of his career. What's more, the film gets better on repeat viewings.

Winter Solstice
Here is a movie that was unfairly ignored during its initial release and has been pretty much forgotten since then. This movie is a quiet force, one that, if allowed, will rattle you wit its realistic emotional core. The cast here is doing something extraordinary, they are acting to not act. This sounds like a cliche, but this film feels like a carefully observed real life, right down to the most minute details. Josh Sternfeld's assured and understated direction only gets richer with each viewing. It's a thrill to see drama moving like a memory and not like a something out of a screenwriting manual. Perhaps the greatest feat of all that this film accomplishes is that it looks so effortless.

Now that I've gotten the top ten out of the way, here is a list of some other films that I really liked but for the sake of title purposes, could not be crammed into my top ten.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Bad News Bears
Breakfast on Pluto
Broken Flowers
The Constant Gardner
Corpse Bride
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
Grizzly Man
A History of Violence
Happy Endings
Jarhead
Junebug
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
Me and You and Everyone We Know
Pride & Prejudice
Sin City
The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Transamerica
War of the Worlds

Here's something I saw the onion do and I though it would be a fun idea...

MOST OVERRATED MOVIE OF 2005

Crash
This is without a doubt, hands down, the easiest decision to make for this particular subject. Yet for some reason, I see this film popping up on all kinds of top ten lists of critics who I used to think owned brains. How could anybody fall for this nonsense? A film without any kind of resemblance to real life is being touted as a monumental dissection of modern racism. What bugs me the most is that this is a film that says absolutely nothing at all, but it just so happens to do it very loudly. Director Paul Haggis (who was also responsible for one of last years most overrated films, Million Dollar Baby) needs to understand that just because you can exploit melodrama for the sake of manipulating an audience, doesn't mean you should.

MOST UNDERRATED MOVIE OF 2005

Elizabethtown
You might as well put this on my honorable mention list. Cynic critics didn't vibe with Cameron Crowe's optimism as an act of revolution mindset and all I can say to them is that they missed out on the fun. This isn't so much a film as it is an essay set to that perfect soundtrack that only Cameron Crowe seems to know how to assemble. Crowe has the confidence to let his film wander but never meander, like the Dunst character says, every day has a purpose and every scene has one too. Cameron Crowe movies inspire a specific kind of wonder inside of me, perhaps that's way I'm susceptible to them. He loves the characters he writes about, and he loves the places they visit. I walked out of this movie invigorated, hopefully he was too.

And finally...

THE SPECIAL JURY PRIZE OF 2005

Star Wars Episode III-Revenge of the Sith
I knew you all were wondering where I was going to put this one on my list. I can see you sweating frantically, worrying that I had given up on the one film that was the purpose for creating this freakin blog. Don't worry, dear friends, I just figured that it wasn't fair to put this film in the top ten because it belongs in an even higher echelon of best film categorization. This film was a summation of everything I love about movies and it was one of the single greatest experiences I have ever had in a theatre. Can anything else really compare to it? No, and it doesn't have to. Star Wars has always been in a category unto itself for me ever since I first layed eyes on the opening crawl. I usually tell people right away whenever they ask me for my favorite films (and that happens almost every hour) that my favorite filmed story of all time is the Star Wars Saga and then I go off from there. Revenge of the Sith was like a childhood memory I experienced at 21, it was the only movie I ever clapped for at its completion and it is the only movie that I could spend nine hours of my ass on the concrete sidewalk waiting for without a single regret. This was the movie of my dreams and it's quite an exhilarating feeling, watching a movie live up to that. Even if this is the last of the series (and I hope it is), I never want to let go of that desire to let a movie simply envelop you to the point where you just surrender all your senses and just say wow. I never want to let go of Star Wars.

There you go, it was a good year but good movies always come out and people will continue to see them. Don't listen to this nonsense about the death of the box office or the death of good cinema (even though I could be accused to doing that sometimes). The movies are out there, and it's a simple matter of getting off your ass and checking them out. I guess that's all I got to say right now.

Oh wait, one more thing...

"One day, while taking a look at some vistas in Dad's stereopticon, it hit me that I was just this little girl, born in Texas, whose father was a sign painter, who only had just so many years to live. It sent a chill down my spine and I thought where would I be this very moment, if Kit had never met me? Or killed anybody… this very moment... if my mom had never met my dad… if she had never died. And what's the man I'll marry gonna look like? What's he doing right this minute? Is he thinking about me now, by some coincidence, even though he doesn't know me? Does it show on his face? For days afterwards I lived in dread. Sometimes I wished I could fall asleep and be taken off to some magical land, and this never happened."

Merry Christmas.

2005-12-25T06:06:00.000-08:00

"There are two kinds of Christmas people, those who like their Christmas lights to stay on solid and those who like them to blink. As a kid, I always had a thing for sitting in the dark and watching the lights blink on and off at random. In the end, what we have are these little, great moments. They come and they go. That's as good as it gets. But, still, isn't that great?"

It's back.

2005-12-15T16:07:00.000-08:00

I just read an article by new york times film critic a.o. scott. He's writing about the criteria one has to make and observe in order to successfully gauge the pick of family films this season. He mentions the reaction his 9 year old son had this past summer...

"After I took my 9-year-old and a friend of his to "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith" last spring, for example, they kept coming back to the awful final battle, in which Anakin Skywalker's limbs are severed and his face horribly burned. This was a more intimate kind of violence than they were used to encountering, and they needed to make sense of its place in the movie's narrative. They were disturbed as well as fascinated, and what fascinated me was how seriously they took the scene, which is a grisly confirmation of Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader and a punishment for his allegiance to the dark side. In some ways I wish that George Lucas and I had spared them such a gruesome spectacle, but at the same time their reaction to it confirmed the integrity of Mr. Lucas's story."

Damn right, and that's why it's still the best of the series.

'Splosions

2005-12-12T20:55:00.000-08:00

I'm on a record pace here, two blog entries in one day.

Real exciting...

Anyway, just got back from the Explosions in the Sky show at the bowery ballroom. One of the best flat out rock shows I've ever seen, it was a short set yet but it was so focused and executed to perfection it's hard to complain about the length. These four guys from Texas don't so much play their instruments as beat them into submission. You get the sense that they own every single guitar string, every inch of the crash cymbal, and every thrash they indulge us with. This music is not created, it is channeled through these four guys and flows through them like electricity. It's this intangible thing that you know is amazing but you can't get a hold on it. It's what I was talking about last week with the images in Malick's Thin Red Line, it's so much about the environment and the place of that exact time and moment. This music isn't about steadfast answers, or knowing every single goddamn thing on the planet. It's about asking the questions, the yearning of that journey. It's about staring up into the sky to see a cloud unfurl, or a star stand alone. It's bliss. So please, if you can listen to some of their music, please do. I think they are one of the best bands on the planet and this show tonight was the reason people go to rock shows. To be reminded that some of the most beautiful music on the planet can come from a place like four guys banging away on their instruments, I think I might just be inspired.

The Only Moment We Were Alone was my First Breath After Coma then With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept. I awoke and I took Your Hand In Mine to Greet Death, I asked it Have You Passed Through This Night? It said I have a A Poor Man's Memory but it appears that The Moon Is Down. I thought that was an An Ugly Fact Of Life and that these were Our Last Days As Children I looked up at The Sky Above, The Field Below and I thought Inside It All Feels The Same. You said Remember Me As A Time Of Day and we had A Slow Dance on this Lonely Train.

so long, so long...

2005-12-12T16:51:00.000-08:00

I know in the past I've avoided "personal" issues in this blog. Although the stuff I've revealed about my unhealthy relationship with star wars is enough fodder for embarrassment.

Things have changed with me recently, I didn't want them to but they did. And there's nothing I can do about it. I'm sorry this sounds really cryptic and vague, I guess behind all of this I'm just not comfortable talking about these kinds of issues on an internet blog. I'm not here to piss and moan. I'm sure lots of eyeballs will roll when this post. I do admit i'm being whiney, self-indulgent and just flat out mopey. I don't mean to be, but it's hard to avoid, and everything is sort of fresh. Which then raises the question of why not give it some time and maybe I can sift through the immediate malaise and write something more thoughtful. My answer to that is, if I wait too long, I won't write about it at all. I want to get this down, because it just feels like the right thing to do and it feels good (at least I hope it will).

This is really lame I know (remember the whiney self indulgent defense I gave earlier) But I've been listening to this song a lot and rather than attempt to sort through all of these emotions and splatter them onto this blog, I'll let it speak for me. This has proved far more difficult than I previously expected it to be. I'm not ignoring these emotions, I just can't organize them in any rational way. That's the great thing about songwriters, poets, and all writers in general: they have the ability to speak to and for you. A great song can be personal and universal all at the same time, so I don't feel like this is a cop out.

Anyway, I don't mean to be a bummer. I'm going to try and continue to write about all kinds of things here at bi-mon-sci-fi-con. I'm going to see one of the greatest bands in the world tonight. I'll let you all know about this amazing show later on, although I think nate will do a better job than me. He'll definitely take better pictures, see you guys later...

so long, so long

Hand out the window
Floatin’ on air
Just a flip of the wrist
I’d be wavin’ you goodbye

Drive past the lifeguard stand
Where I sit around waiting for you to remember
Well past the beach hotels
Where the girls are getting’ bronzed on their monogrammed towels

I drive this ocean road
And remember

How the girls could turn to ghosts before your eyes
And the very dreams that led to them are keeping them from dying
And how the grace with which she walked into your life
And stay with you in your steps , pace with you a while
For so long, so long
so long so long

The speaker in this door is blown
So nothing sounds quite right
And I drive this ocean road
And I remember
The small of your back
And the nape of your neck
And the soft way you’d hold me in the night

I remember

How the girls can turn to ghosts before your eyes
And the very dreams that led to them are keeping them from dying
And how the grace with which she walked into your life
Will stay you in your steps, and pace with you a while
So long, so long,

so long, so long

And I will leave under the cover
Of summer’s kiss upon the sky
Like the stone face of your lover
Just before she says goodbye
I was thinkin' that the season could be held between my arms
But just as summer’s hold is fleeting
I was here but now I’m gone
I’m gone

I'm gone, I'm gone

say nothing...

2005-12-07T19:20:00.000-08:00

The people have spoken
I understand their complaints
I will keep this one short and sweet
For I have nothing more to say...

I came to a horrible realization tonight that my dreams for an epic teen romance to end all teen romance movies have been dashed. say anything... was made 16 years ago and it accomplished everything that could be accomplished with the teen romance genre. Where will I turn? Maybe my unfinished wesley snipes script, or maybe a sitcom about a sassy robot.

Only time will tell...

Seems like a long, long time
Since I've been above you seen and loved you so
You pick a place that's where I'll be
Time like your cheek has turned for me

Can you still do good with it?

2005-12-06T06:17:00.000-08:00

I know, this is going to sound all humanitarian and preachy and what not, but this story really got to me when I first read about it. And I got an email claiming there was something I could do, so instead of clogging all of your email boxes with this message, I will instead post it up here and allow you all to do with it what you may. Just one of the many horrible things going on in Iraq right now, and maybe we can do something about this one...

To those who are holding the Christian Peacemakers Team in Iraq, and to people everywhere of all Traditions of Faith and Peace:

We who write you affirm what all the traditions teach that trace their spiritual origin to Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all teach explicitly that to kill even one human being - even more strongly one who is doing no harm, most especially one who is seeking peace and nurturing human bodies and communities -- is to destroy a world. All other religious traditions agree about the holiness of human lives.

This teaching applies to all innocent Iraqis and foreigners who have been killed or taken away in Iraq out of anger against the US occupation - and it applies with special clarity and strength to the members of the Christian Peacemakers Team who are being held in Iraq. Like us, they too opposed the US attack. They came to serve the Iraqi people. They came not only to urge peace but also to live peace.

We who have opposed the US invasion and occupation of Iraq call on all who live in Iraq to seek the release of these people into safety and freedom. And we call on all people of good will everywhere to join in this call.

No doubt, those who planned and executed the US invasion and occupation of Iraq will cite this action as evidence for the rightness of their action. We utterly reject this logic, and affirm that the war undertaken by the US has multiplied the violence it pretended to oppose.

We hold morally responsible for the lives of these Christian Peacemakers both those in Iraq who have taken them, and those who have brought about the deaths of thousands of Iraqis and Americans by pursuing this war.

Once again, we call for a swift end to the US occupation of Iraq and for peaceful action by the entire human community to assist Iraqis to achieve their own self-government. And we send our loving prayers to those who have become victims of their own loving commitment to peace, justice, and healing.

(Signed by the initial emergency list of signatories below)

Dr Sayeed Sayyid, Secretary General, Islamic Society of North America;
Sheila Musaji, editor of The American Muslim;
Abdul Malik Mujahid, chair of the Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago; that Council as a body;
Anwar N. Haddam, elected Member of Parliament of Algeria (Dec 1991), chairman, board of trustees, Education for Life, Northern Virginia, and member, executive committee, Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations of Greater Washington Area (CCMO);
Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad of Bethesda, MD; Muhammad Ali-Salaam of Boston; Abdul Cader Asmal, MD, PhD;
Rev. Robert Edgar, general secretary of the National Council of Churches;
Rev. Osagefyo Sekou, Director of Clergy and Laity Concerned about Iraq;
Rev. Peter Laarman of Progressive Christians Uniting in California;
Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Rabbinic Director of The Shalom Center.

Click here to sign the online petition.

"When the power of love becomes stronger than the love of power, we will have peace."

If I never meet you in this life, let me feel the lack...

2005-12-04T08:52:00.000-08:00

I guess I've kind of given up on this blog in the past couple months or so. I don't know why but for some reason, I get the inspiration to write about something, and then as soon as the physical action of the thing starts up, all my energy gets sapped. It's the damndest thing, I think what I've come to realize is that I need to write as soon as my mind conjures up a thought. That way, I could write like a billion blog entires a day ( I wish, most of the time I'm just doodling or mentally un-dressing the female parishioners...Homer said it). The point being, I found something to write about, and I'm going to do it, that's the way it's gotta be and that's the way I gotta do it.

The Thin Red Line is the most gorgeous movie ever made, it's definitely one of the top ten films of the 90's and maybe even the last half century. It has an absorbency unlike any other movie ever made, on no matter what size screen you watch it, you become enveloped by the images. The jungle swallows you up, and your fate is the same as the soldiers. It's the kind of film you know that if you had half the talent, visual bravado, and confidence as these people do, you still wouldn't be able to come up with a tenth of their achievement, although you still really want to try.

So much has already been written about this film, it feels somewhat futile to try and add anything new. I think it's a shame it was overlooked the way it was back during it's initial release, sure it was overshadowed by Saving Private Ryan ( a film I refuse to bash because it is brilliant in it's own way). But I think even without the burden of Ryan, Line still would have been forgotten because it's a war film where soldiers wander into war rather than fight it. It's a war film where giving another soldier enough morphine to kill himself after a fatal wound is the closest anyone gets to an act of courage. And it's a war film not so much about characters and individuals, but about some kind of collective unconscious that floats through the air and intersects through the entanglements of a mind induced to violence, and a nature that has to watch itself be destroyed. That doesn't mean it takes some kind of scholar to appreciate a film like The Thin Red Line, and as much as I don't want to dissect, analyze, or do any of that other cinema studies stuff, but for me, this film works on every single level of aesthetic, content, and execution. Malick has a method of finding the film while it's being shot, and some critics have complained that Line feels incomplete, (it's original cut was 6 hours long, god I hope they release that on DVD some day). I couldn't disagree more, to me there is not a moment in the film that feels wasted or from some other far away part that was never properly developed. Every emotion is earned, every death is felt, and every image is a perfect representation of not a clear and distinct message, but of a feeling or a state of mind that makes the experience of the film so much more enjoyable because it is yours and yours alone. Very few directors can do that, Malick is one of them and forget about all the mythology around the guy, the mystery and all that other bull shit. Just watch Badlands, Days of Heaven, and (hopefully) The New World, and you'll see an artist who has such control over his craft that it no longer becomes his, it passes through as a kind of transcendence between artist and observer and only the best art in the world is capable of that.

One last thing because there is only so many times I can gush about a film, but The Thin Red Line, as previously stated is the most beautifully shot film ever made (for me). Malick has a such a delicate touch that even a shot like that of a jungle leaf penetrated by gun fire being illuminated by the mid-day sun never feels arty or self-conscious. There is one shot in this film that always confounds me with its simplicity and earth shattering profundity. It's an empty hill side, the hip-high green blades of grass gently swaying with the wind. The frame is empty and all of a sudden, the field becomes illuminated by the sunlight, inch by inch, blade by blade. I have no idea how in the world they planned for that, how they executed it, maybe it's all fake but it sure doesn't look like it. I think it may be one of my favorite shots ever, and I could go on and on for this movie. I have to mention the gliding camera movements tracking the battalion's movement over the insurmountable hillsides, the eloquent encircling of a tree trunk, or the peaceful destruction of Witt. It's so hard to convey the exact feeling these shots extract from me, but I can say it's quite close to a state of bliss.

Okay I've yakked enough, it's sunday and it's snowing outside, get out and enjoy it.

"Are you righteous? Kind? Does your confidence lie in this? Are you loved by all? Know that I was, too. Do you imagine your suffering will be any less because you loved goodness and truth?"

Pray for Michael Sullivan

2005-11-24T14:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, and all the usual shit people say to each other.

All I got today is a nice little tune, it's so good not even the famous "Conor" himself could screw it up...

i'm waiting for the train
the subway that only goes one way
the stupid thing that will come to pull us apart
and make everybody late
you spent everything you had
wanted everything to stop that bad
and now i'm a crushed credit card registered to smith
not the name that you call me with
you turned white like a saint
i'm tired of dancing on a pot of gold flake paint
oh we're so very precious, you and i
and everything that you do makes me want to die
oh i just told the biggest lie
i just told the biggest lie
the biggest lie

all our fears fall on deaf ears tonight.

2005-11-22T12:56:00.000-08:00

I went to see the USS Intrepid, or maybe it's just the intrepid, I'm not sure. It's a retired naval battleship if you couldn't guess from the name that enjoyed a rather notorious run during world war II when it sustained five kamikaze attacks and several torpedos during a battle which was not named specifically at the museum. I went because I had to, before you all start assuming I'm into world war II which would be the worst assumption anybody could possibly make about me. I have to write a paper on it now and turn it in the monday after thanksgiving, shouldn't be too hard and I was looking foward to going until I got there and they had a piece of paper on the window to the main entrance indidcating that the flight deck was closed due to inclement weather.

That's just great. The whole reason I wanted to go was to see that stupid flight deck, to stand on its mighty surface and take in the majestic view of the city would have been something nice right? Instead I got gray skies, lots of rain, and a museum with dummy soldiers that really freaked me out (more on that later). Or maybe I'll talk about right now, as soon as I stepped into the museum (which is sort of located in the vital organs section of the ship itself) I felt like I was walking into a graveyard. I got the eerie feeling that this was a ship of ghosts, everything felt very much lived in, even though no one has seen the inside of this ship during battle for well over two decades. The replica/original air craft they stowed inside the museum had these dummy soldiers re-enacting bomb loading procedures, and while they were by no means life like they had a supernatural quality to them that could only be described as someone being turned into a statue by a spell. The memorial inside the ship with all the names of the men who died while serving on it, did not feel like it was honoring the end of their lives, but rather honoring the lives they had on the ship. The warm yet distant nostalgic memory photos of the men living their routine lives on board were so heartbreaking because you forget sometimes that these men lived with each other and not just the enemy for years at a time.

I swear it felt like their voices still echoed through the engine rooms, then I looked up and saw that it was just chatter coming from the mess hall sponsored by McDonalds. Yes, those brave souls certainly fought and died protecting our freedom, our freedom to eat toxic chemical sludge. I'm sorry that's very simplistic and general, but I can't help myself, couldn't they have hired some mom and pop store to be their lunch supplier, did it have to be mcdonalds? It's just a little hard to swallow when you're walking around this historic and epic battleship only to see a sign suggesting that I "Eat chow just like the soldiers did in the McDonalds mess hall." It really took me out of the whole experience, and it cheapened the museum a little bit. Besides aren't there like ten mickey d's in times square alone? DId they really need to spread the seed of their evil empire all the way out to the west side highway? I guess they did and they must have known that history buffs get extra hungry when visiting naval landmarks.

Something else that I found really interesting about the musuem, was the small but nicely ogranized section examining the lives of the Japanese soldiers (no Germans were profiled but I guess that's because Americans did most of the naval battling with Japan). It didn't really examine their lives actually, more like what they were like when they were bombing the American ships. They talked about the Kamikaze pilots and how the idea behind it was not only complete and utter anihilation of enemy combatants, but also that coupled with the glory of self sacrifice for the Nation of people you were defending. It's an interesting paradox to consider, on one hand there's the idea of a shared sacrifice, that your death will be felt by every single person living in the nation you have sworn to protect for the rest of their lives. On the other, your sole desire is to kill and destroy every living thing that is unfortunate enough to be in the closest shade of existance of your enemy soldiers. It's like you have your noble purpose and your kill crazy psychotic purpose and which was the motivating one? And when I say noble I just want to clarify that while I think there is some nobility in sacrificing one's life for the lives of others, that nobility (in the case of the kamikaze) is earned as a battle sacrifice. I don't revel in battle or war of any kind, but if you are engaged in one and you act heroically it should be recognized. The point of all this was that its hard to make the distinction between a noble sacrifice and a senseless slaughter even if it is in the name of protecting the freedom of a nation. How do you justify it to yourself? Do you even have a choice in the matter?

Something else about the Japanese portion of the exhibit that troubled me a little bit: There were two items housed on display, one was a mock business card that read "Official Jap Hunter" with a sub head line that read "Open for Business" or something along those lines. In the little description panel next to the item the words read something like "This card represents the dehumanizing effects of war and the animosity that existed on both sides in the fight for the pacific." Those weren't the exact words but you get the idea, then I walk over a few feet to see a japanese flag, completely unfurled and six different stains each with a hole through them adorning the permiter of the flag. The inscription next to it read that it belonged to a japanese soldier who met his end during the battle for Iwo Jima, the flag had the stains on it because the bullet pierced through it on the way to the Japanese soldier's heart. The flag must have been folded up several times, which is why the stain repeats itself over and over again. I hope that makes sense because it was a really haunting image, this piece of cloth was the last thing that bullet past through on its way to a human body of a Japanese soldier. Anyway, an American took it off the body and wrote with a pen "stolen from a dead jap" and put the date. I was struck by this only because on the inscription next to it, after explaining where the flag came from, it read once again This flag represents the dehumanizing effects of war and the animosity that excisted on both sides in the fight for the pacific." It just made me think to myself that if they have this standard boilerplate response to two completely different representations of war time racism. Then do they think those feelings of hatred are not only natural but expected of a soldier during war time, that it's just this blanket phenomenon that happens whether you want it to or not? During world war II I definitely believed that kind of thing happened to a lot of soldiers, but it is troulbing to me that this musuem dealt with it in a slogan rather than any kind of real insight. They didnt' bother to explore the roots and causes of this problem, they just wrote it off as part of the dehumanization of war. You rarely read about men who fought in the war who were real bastards, everyone sort of becomes these saintly do gooders when they strap on those boots.

There is plenty more to talk about, I have some pictures but my flickr account is full and I don't know how to put pictures just on blogspot by itself. And I don't feel like learning either. It's getting dark now, and I'm reallly gonna try...

"The rungs torn from the ladder can't reach the tumour
One god, one market, one truth, one consumer

Just a quiet peaceful dance!

Just a quiet peaceful dance for the things we'll never have."

Corruption is why we win.

2005-11-21T16:50:00.000-08:00

Getting back to the matter of things, this being the anti fanboy blogspot, I feel should report on the latest Harry Potter release. Now, before I continue with this critical in depth analysis I should warn you all of something very plain and simple: I don't care much for Harry Potter and the rest of Rowling's crap, in fact I don't care for it at all. It's rubbish mate, and I know, I haven't read a single word of the text so how am I able to make such a critical assessement.

There are some things man was not meant to know.

But I have seen the movies and after checking out the third and fourth installments by two real directors, I have come to the conclusion that when it comes to the first two movies, I've seen better film on teeth. The first two harry potters had no imagination, no visual energy they were almost like re-enactments of the book. Which I guess is all well and good if you love the book, but for the rest of us, I already used up my film on teeth line so I'll let you guys figure this one out. Things improved a little bit with the third film, at least it looked good but I remember being totally disconnected from the story. Nothing about it held my attention for more than three minutes, plus they did this thing at the end with time travel that was utterly ludicrous and amounted to nothing more than showing the same ending twice. Alfonso Cauron didn't just ape off of Rowling's world, he created his own and it resulted in a really gorgeous if emotionally distant film. I feel like he set a precedent with that film and Mike Newell's latest interpretation is pretty much more of the same. That being said, this time I am surprised to report that there were sections, sections mind you, of the story where I was actually involved and I cared about what happened to the characters. That's how the film was for me, it worked in spurts, for about twenty minutes, the film focuses on the jealousy, puberty, adolescent love triangle involving harry, hermonie, and ron, that shit was reallly really good. Steeped in embarassment and mis-understandings, it was like a good angsty drama being played out. Then that part would go away and oh look harry gets chased by a giant dragon, whoopeee, now I'm really back into it. Then at the end harry enters a horrific maze, at the end of which he must confront his mortal enemy and the man who killed his parents: the nazi from Schindler's List. That scene has fear, tragedy, and the kind of mythic scope that makes the story seem more important than it actually is, plus it's accompanied by a really powerful death of a fellow student scene, really potent shit. Then it goes back to this nonsense about magical biting candy and the tri-wizard tournament and I am bored to tears. So I realized what it is I don't like about these movies, the magic. I feel like (and I wonder if rowling's shit is like this too) the makers are too wrapped up in the glory of their own imaginations and they operate entirely on hyper drive when it comes to the whimsical litlte touches displayed in each movie. It gets to the point where I just want to shout, okay I get it paintings come to life, candy can bite you, everything is something in this castle, move the fuck on. I'm not sayinig these movies should be flat and boring (we already saw what that can do when Columbus sailed the ocean blue) but they need to get off the self-satisfied magical nonsense. There should be magic, don't get me wrong but they don't need to underline hightlight or spotlight it whenever it happens. To wrap up, the same issues I had with the first three films were still prevalent here, lame story, bland lead performance by Radcliffe, and the fact that I just don't give a damn about this stuff. But at the same time there were moments and it's a well made film so I guess I'm in the realm of I'll see the rest just to see what happens, but I still don't want to touch a page of Potter. That may sound harsh but look at this way, I didn't even make it all the way to the third lord of the rings movie, I gave up at two. And I don't plan on going back, ever.

In other news, there's a really interesting article up on Rollingstone.com, check it out here
I heard the guy who wrote it on Democracy Now! today, he was pretty interesting, I didn't get to hear all of him because I was working at the time, that's right, I'm in a wheelchair! The article is basically about the lengths to which the Bush administration went in organizing a specific group to spread misinformation and discredit sources who opposed them in the build up to the iraq war. I know it probably sounds like old news but the writer knows what he's talking about and he's not just a muckraker, the detail he goes into and specifics of the article are quite terrifying, but judge for yourself. It's surprising to see such a facist magazine like Rolling Stone print something as damaging as this, but sometimes they surprise you.

That's about enough for now...

"And when they tell you that they think they've got you figured out
And when they tell you that they think they know what makes you tick
And when they step with their 12-point program for being like them
And when they tell you that you're blowing every chance you get
And when they tell you that you're setting up a life of regret
And when they tell you that you just can't get a single thing straight
Well, it's too late
But this is the life
No matter what they say, you know that
This is the life
For better or worse, it'll stay that way"

Thank god for John Cusack...

2005-11-15T11:06:00.000-08:00

Seriously this guy deserves a a full blooded ceremony in his honor where people sit around and talk about how great he is.
Not only is this man responsible for Lloyd Dobler, Martin Blank, Vince Larkin, Captain John Gaff, Nelson Rockefeller, Craig Schwartz, Rob Gordon, and the list goes on and on. He so good I will sit through the most arbitrary boring trash imaginable just hoping I'll get one of those john cusack moments that can brighten the dreariest of fucking days.

Anyway the reason for all this Cuasck love is not only does he make interesting, off the beaten course movies that do not reflect a desire to cash in at a moment's notice (well maybe some of them do, but he hasn't done anything as reprehensible as yours, mine, and ours) but he also wrote this piece for the huffington post, and it's about as dead on as you can be. Read it for yourself and let me know what you think, throughout the piece he makes several mentions of his heroes Hunter S. Thompson, Bill Moyers, and Dr. Martin Luther King and frequently thanks god for their ideas, presence, and words. Which is why I say in response, thank god for you john cusack.

"I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that."

Insert obvious comment about length of elapsed time between blog entries.

2005-11-14T19:43:00.000-08:00

Rip off
Originally uploaded by airman0184.

Ah the years, where do they go?

It seems like years since I've been back on this thing, thirty two years to be exact. I know my adoring public has been clamoring away for some of my sharp insights and biting commentary, ah hell who am I kidding? I kinda forgot about this thing and everytime I was motivated to write something, the idea of writing it and knowing it won't come out the way I wanedt to always halted my process. And by process I mean the act of sitting down in a chair and typing. I'll get back in the groove of things in a little bit, but for now enjoy some picatures. I'll see ya...

"Get with it. Millions of galaxies of hundreds of millions of stars, in a speck on one in a blink. That's us, lost in space. The cop, you, me... Who notices?"

"Someday my dream will come. One night you'll wake up and you'll discover it never happened. It's all turned around on you and it never will. Suddenly you are old, didn't happened and it never will, 'cause you were never going to do it anyway. "

You wanna do the mandance?

2005-10-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

So little to say and so much time in which to say it.

Wait a minute...

Strike that, reverse it.

I got really excited about the advanced movie today. Got some pics from the gooney golf course (that is its actual name) and it gave me goosebumps. Well not actually, but I can see the movie now whereas before I was just writing about vague recollections of a really shitty golf course and the people who inhabit it. Now, the course is a character, and this course is the kind of course that for example if you were to say somebody has an unattractive face you would say their face has character like steve buscemi or wilem defoe (bless their nasty mugs). This course has got so much character, its hard to contain it all in one script. The rotting standees, the filthy putting green, the bathroom signs that read out of order instead of men/women. I don't think I even need an art director for this thing, this course is fucking perfect the way it is. It's trash of the highest calibre, and better yet its Delaware/Pennsylvania trash but we're going to swing more to the delaware side on this one. And that's what I want this movie to be about: all the dissappointment, bitterness, and anger that come from living in this state. I am not, however, trying to make the case that delaware is number one shit hole in the country, I know there are at least a baker's dozen worst places on the eastern seaboard alone. But I'm not from any of those places, and Delaware I feel, has its own kind of frustration associated with it that is unique to any other state, I haven't quite figured it out yet, but I'm working on it. And again it's a comedy (supposed to be one anyway) and things are exaggerated for comedic effect, its anger but funny anger. The kind of anger where you just thrash about for a few seconds and then immediately run out of gas and forget why you were so pissed. The kind of anger that displays itself at the most inopportune times, and above all things, it's about how sometimes you half to travel half way across the world...to find yourself. No wait, that was the amanda bynes movie, nevermind. But believe me, the script is nowhere near done, I need to do plenty o' drafts before I can start ripping into that beehive. I probably can't make it entirely about delaware, I'll probably have to broaden it to make it more accessible and maybe none of the points I want to make about delaware are valid. What do you guys think? Remember, it has to be funny above all things. FUNNY.

Saw Stay this aftenoon, kinda dissappointed by it. The script was written by David Benioff who wrote 25th hour and troy and a book of short stories that is fucking brilliant. This script however was so traditional and standard and it bummed me out more so than if it had been written by a hack because I know how powerful this guy's voice is and how captivating he can be. All in all it wasn't a terrible flick, it had an excess of ambition in what it wanted to do, something I can't really hold against it. But for me there was no investment, no emotional impact, it was all surface and camera trickery and in the words of D.A. "weird camera angles." At the end of the film when the final twist was revealed, I found myself wishing they had sculpted a better story out of a really neat concept (no spoilers here, this is the anti fan boy blogspot). Anyway, I thought afterwards that Benioff could have knocked this shit out of the park as a short story, if anyone wants to know the twist by the way, just sign on and IM ME. But oh well, i got a really funny movie friday night and a lame one today, what can you do.

That's it for now, i should go to bed because like manuel, I have a train to catch in 7 odd hours. Good night to you all.

"We don't want your forgiveness. We won't make excuses. We're not gonna blame you, even if you are an accessory... But we will not except your natural order. We didn't come for absolution, we didn't ask to be redeemed. But isn't how it is, every goddamn time... Your prayers are always answered, in the order they're received... "

p.s. if anyone can tell me what this here quote is from, I'll make sure you are in pizza face paradise.

Gabe Johns Shoot

2005-10-22T12:19:00.000-07:00

Gabe Johns Shoot
Originally uploaded by airman0184.

This is a test...

TEST

TEST

Whoop that trick.

nobody broke your heart. you broke your own cause you can't finish what you start.

2005-10-21T23:27:00.000-07:00

I wish I had remembered this in time, but the website www.sweetadeline.net posted that this october 21st marks the second anniversary of elliott smith's death. It's a few hours late, but i just wanted to acknowledge it, it still bums me out.

I have nothing really to add, no profound statements to accurately sum up smiths music or the effect blah blah blah...

I'll let my main man Mr. E do that for me...

R.I.P. ELLIOTT:
EELS are very saddened to hear of their friend and neighbor Elliott Smith's death. E and Elliott had talked about doing something musical together but, sadly, never did. E: "Elliott was very encouraging to me about my songs and that meant a lot to me. He was a really sweet guy that wasn't equipped to deal with some of the cards that life dealt him. I'll always remember walking off stage one night after playing "It's A Motherfucker" and Elliott walking up behind me in the dark and patting me on the back. That's how I will remember him."

Oh that's right he's dead, and rather pungent.

2005-10-18T19:37:00.000-07:00

I finally found some lyrics I felt like sharing with you all...

TEARS TO SHED
What does that wispy little brat have that you don’t have double
She can’t hold a candle to the beauty of your smile
How about a pulse
Overrated by a mile
Overvalued
Overblown

If he only knew the you that we know

And that silly little creature isn’t wearing his ring
And she doesn’t play piano
Or dance
Or sing
No she doesn’t compare
But she still breathes air
Who cares
Unimportant
Overrated
Overblown

If only he could see how special you can be
If he only knew the You that we know

If I touch a burning candle
I can feel no pain
If you cut me with a knife
It’s still the same
And I know her heart is beating
And I know that I am dead
But the pain here that I feel
Try and tell me it’s not real
And it seems that I still have a tear to shed

A sure redeeming feature from that little creature, is that she’s alive
Overrated
Overblown
Everybody knows that’s just a temporary state
Which is cured very quickly when we meet our fate
Who cares
Unimportant
Overrated
Overblown

If only he could see how special you can be
If he only knew the You that we know

If I touch a burning candle I can feel no pain
In the ice or in the sun it’s all the same
Yet I feel my heart is aching
Though it doesn’t beat, it’s breaking
And the pain here that I feel
Try and tell me it’s not real
I know that I am dead
But it seems that I still have some tears to shed

We're the real splitters and no one is fucking with us.

2005-10-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

Nothing to coherently tie all of these things together other than they are all awesomely outrageous...

-I've been listening to the jackson browne song "these days" every day for the past couple of weeks. I have become dependent upon it and it's not because I need to listen to it or anything, although it is a very comforting song. I just think it is one of the most perfect songs ever written, lyrically that is, there is not a wrong word or sentiment in the entire song. It has the simultaneous effect of being almost diary entry personal but at the same time universal in a way that all songs strive for but few can achieve. I was listening to mr. browne talk about these days and he said he wrote it when he was 16. What kind of 16 year old writes the line, "don't confront me with my failures, I have not forgotten them." Although he did say it was in a different form back then, but still the tone of the song couldn't have been any different. That baffles me, but I will probably continue to listen to it.

-I really need to see Episode III again, I know a unanimous eye roll is bound to happen as you guys read this, but I was watching the documentary about the original trilogy on dvd yesterday and I just go really nostalgic for it even though it happened only a few months ago. Maybe it's not that I want to see it again so much as I want to go back to that wednesday night midnight showing, I wish I could take myself back to a place where I haven't seen it yet and see it again with my friends for the first time. It is coming out on dvd in a few weeks and we will do the entire trilogy in one day I guarantee you that, I'll be sure to do an extensive post concerning that little hootenanny. There are so many moments I need to see on a screen again: anakin screaming in tortorous pain, uncle owen standing on the crest of the hill as the sun sets in the distance, vader's mask slowly lowering down to anakin's face, the look on yoda's face right before he and sidious end their dramatic confrontation via lightning, the list goes on and on. Maybe I just want to see count dooku snacking on some salt 'n vinegar potato chips again...

-Spike Lee's He Got Game is one of the most beautiful films ever made, if ever a film achieved the heights of visual poetry, I would rank this one up there with any of terence malick's films. The last line denzel's character says to ray allen is one of the best send offs and summation for a character of any movie I've ever seen. No matter how many times I've seen it, that moment always gets to me at the end. Plus its about basketball, I really wish I still played, I think I'm going to take advantage of the palladium gym and start shootin' hoops. I say that every year the more I think about it, I just need to get a routine going where I just shoot around every day. I'm not ready to play competitive games or anything, I just want the ball, the net, and the quiet. Then, I'll start kicking ass, it's such a beautiful sport, I really wish I hadn't let it go. (I'm making this sound over dramatic I was not ever a really die hard serious basketball player, but I did enjoy playing it a lot. And I do miss it.)

-This administration has had more indictments, subpeonas, and court hearings than any in recent history (if that's not true somebody correct me). It just seems like as of recently, everybody's getting their asses handed to them. Granted nothings happened yet but if public opinion is as judgmental now as it was of the Clinton years, hopefully this shit will never leave our minds. I just think its baffling that these guys (Frist, Rove, Scooter, and DeLay to name a few) could have all these allegations of wrong doing toppling down around them and there are still people in the press defending them. The best one I heard so far was that everybody knew of Valerie Plame's CIA identity and leaking it was not a crime as it were. Where's Ken Starr when you need him? Oh yeah, that's right he works for them, there is Fitzgerald but unlike Starr he doesn't seem to want to make the investigation about a second rate witch hunt and instead actually pursuing the various injustices and punishing those who committed them. We'll see how this all plays out, but the really bitter and angry side of me wishes I could stuff this down the red state's throats, I hate to cast such a general net of blame but, I had to get it out and maybe now we can find a more rationale explanation as to how these villains got elected twice. Where's Rage Against the Machine when you need them, they would probably have had ten more albums out if they stuck around. Zack come back.

-Also, what's with these stupid ass nicknames: Scooter? Brownie? Is Bush running a goddamn tree house brigade or something? It all fits into the fact that we have a president with the mind of a five year old running our country. That would explain an awful lot, but I think also most normal five year olds would do a better job than him.

That's it for now, I think.

Yeah...

Yeah definitely...

Yeah definitely, see ya.

"i'll take a dog's life
just layin' in the sun
i'll take a dog's life
'cause i don't care for this one"

Gabe need help re:tuneskis

2005-10-12T13:11:00.000-07:00

Yo Gabe, sorry I'm not calling you but I know how much you love to read this blog. You like reading it almost as much as I like writing it, so the reason I'm posting this is to ask for your help. Please give me detailed instructions as to how you play music on your blog whenever you open it. I know you did it with yours so just let me know, thanks.

-ethan

But I want to debate this particle cube thing...

2005-10-12T06:24:00.000-07:00

If you've read Nate's blog, and by this point I'm pretty sure you all have. You will know that he and I attended a speaking event hosted by Dr. Robert Thurman (he teaches at Bone's School). My interest was peaked when I read that the Dustin Hoffman character in I Heart Huckabees (or I Love Hucklebee's, as an anonymous film teacher put it) constantly espoused the theory of inifinity made popular by Dr. Thurman. In other words, the Bernard Jaffe character was sort of based on Thurman. The lecture was titled Buddhism the new enemy of the church, a title about which even Thurman was confused, he was just there to talk about buddhism straight up.

There was so much stuff in there last night, to try to distill it all down to a blog entry would be useless (and from a friendly critique given to me by Gezus, far too much reading) Although, not to get sidetracked here but didn't you, gabe, write an entire nba pre-season out look in your blog, those were kinda long right? Practice what you preach is all I'm saying. And...

Whoop that trick.

Anyway, one of the things that really interested me from last night's talk was this idea of the deconstruction of our identity. Thurman framed it as one of the noble truths of the Buddha, but I forget exactly which one it was. The idea being that we as human beings are absolute in our physical identities. I'm me, that's who I am, and you are you and so on. This kind of thinking however, allows us to partake in the notion that if that is indeed true, and we are so absolute in our one-ness, therefore, by definition, we must be the center of the universe. The problem comes when you think about what are the basic goals for human life, one of them is to be happy. And for a lot of people that happiness only comes by making those around you happy, or when the people you love are happy.

Thurman cited a more speciific example of two people in love, for when a relationship is kicking in high gear you and your partner think the other is the center of the universe, the most important person in the world. What happens next is doubt begins to creep in because of our concrete isolated identities, you begin to think well does he/she really love me the same way I love them. Because in order for you to satisfy your "others" sense of self worth and their own self centered universe, you must sacrifice your own and it is from this dogged pursuit of happiness that suffering is born. The Buddhist ideal is founded in the notion that there is no identity, you are you, but connected to everything that lives, breathes, and dies in this plane of existance. You may not be the center of the universe because you are the universe and therefore your happiness does not depend on a select few feeling a similar state of mind.

I feel like a lot of the time, we are motivated into the me oriented thinking involving own little universes and what not. So, it's actually almost soothing and comforting to think that everything and everyone around you all exist within the confines of infinity, which has no confines! It means the possibilites are endless and a wealth of knowledge about all things awaits you like items piled into a bottomless shopping cart on one of those televised shopping sprees nickelodeon used to show.

Sorry to ramble on, I'm sure I dumbed down whatever fascinating insights Dr. Thurman provided. But check out one of his books, re-watch I heart huckabees (I had to last night after the lecture because it made me giddy in remembering how comicallly alive and curious that film was in exploring the very ideas dr. thurman touched upon) I think it's pretty cool that a movie motivated me to pursuit the quest for more knowledge. Hopefully next time I won't need the movie...

Yoda: Careful you must be when sensing the future, Anakin. The fear of loss is a path to the dark side.
Anakin: I won't let these visions come true, Master Yoda.
Yoda: Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them, do not. Miss them, do not. Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed, that is.
Anakin: What must I do, Master Yoda?
Yoda: Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.

To Say Something That Means Nothing to Anyone at All

2005-10-08T19:04:00.000-07:00

In response to the recent slanderous attacks on my blog posting board, I would like to address the following issues

I am not nor have I ever been a douchebag.

The film in question that was quoted on the very same post board was in fact Changing Lanes.

Pleasantville is a fine film.

Explosions in the Sky is one of the best bands on the planet, I need to know where they are and when they are at any time of the day or night.

And as for the regularity of the posts, I say this in response...

EASE UP! BACK UP OFF ME! YOU THINK YOU KNOW ME!

Okay, now that that's out of the way, on with the post...

With Nate back in the city I've been able to catch up on some much needed to be seen flicka shows. Let's start from the top.
Capote was first on tuesday night and this was definitely one of the best films of the year. I'm a sucker for artists' inspiration stories finding neverland and shakespeare in love come to mind. With Capote, however, it's a completely different take and unlike any of the recent slew of bio pics I have seen crowding our cinemas. First of all, Phillip Seymour Hoffman owns every single inch of this movie. This is his first legitimate starring role (state and main is the closest I think he's ever come), he's always been a great team player by filling in key roles and never hogging the narrative thrust. With this film he is allowed to hog the spotlight a little bit, but he never does it for the sake of a starring role. He is so much the soul of this film that all the camera really needs to do is train itself on his face and all the crap they teach you in film school just pours out of him. Not to say that the director and writer were lazy in any sense of the word, the direction is paced and executed in such a way that you don't usually expect from a first time director (waiting...anyone?) (okay that's not really fair, I haven't seen waiting... but come on you were all thinking it). And the script offers some fascinating insights into the crime itself and the story of its creation as the "non fiction masterpiece of the century". This really is a film to see in a theatre listening to the moments of silence where the rest of the audience is just as enraptured as you are. At least as enraptured as I hope you are.

Thumbsucker, a delightful little romp about four horny high school buddies trying to score on the night of their high school prom, when inadequacy ensues, you can be sure the laughs will folllow. Bet you didn't see that one coming...

Actually Thumbsucker is pretty damn good as opposed to most movies made about teenagers. The key to this film I think is a reliance on non-answers and empty solutions, you just accept that that's all we got and get on with it. Also what I really liked about this film was the portrayal of the parents, in the performances and the writing. Usually in films like this we are used to the bumbling idiot parents who are so cluelessly dumb about what their kids are going through that they substitute any sort of parental concern for spouting out inane and dated hip hop catch phrases. They are merely cartoon versions of parents and it's a rare teenage film that presents parents with anything resembling human behavior. Thumbsucker is, luckily one of those films. The parents are fucked up but struggling to make things right, they don't understand their kids but they want them to be happy even when they have absolutely no idea how to do it to themselves. They have failed dreams themselves and moments when they thought everything they had accomplished was worthless. Thumbsucker has some really touching moments because of this and surprising in how rewarded we feel by the conclusion that everybody is fucked up. The cast is great, including, because I have to mention this in the face of all the nay-sayers, Keanu Reeves. He once again proves that given the right role he can be a really subtle and funny comedic actor. Anyone remember thomas haden church, a once has been joke who is now a golden boy because of sideways? It just takes the right role.

Paradise Now was last night (again thank you dev) and that was at the new york film festival, it doesn't open until the end of the month. I had some problems with the film mainly because it couldn't decide at the end of the day whether it was an issue oriented message film or a character driven drama about two men making an absolute choice when they haven't gotten it all figured out yet. My main issue was the lack of character with the two leads, they didn't possess any individual humanistic traits besides the need to breathe and eat that made them the least bit compelling. I had a hard time following them around because I wished they were more interesting to watch. I wished we were given compelling human beings rather than mouthpieces for ideological statements. With that in mind, what happens too often with message oriented movies is that they cease to exist as human drama and become simply an excuse to espouse a checklist of facts, ideas, and historical interpretations. This alone did not bother me, I applaud any filmmaker who tries to inject a political stance, as long as they don't sacrifice the drama because of it. That being said, Paradise Now, is worth seeing. It has a final shot that will stick with you long after you leave the theatre and it's a positive step in the right direction for future films like it.

Finally, the last was Good Night, and Good Luck. Really strong film and before I get into it let me just pause a moment to appreciate the talents of George Clooney...
I know, he was a tv actor on a remarkably successfull drama, and yes it took him a while to find roles suited for him (with the exception of from dusk till dawn which fit him like a speedo) But right now, I think he is on a roll, he directed this film, he's got Syriana coming out in november (which looks fucking amazing) and he's got another collaboration with Soderbergh out next year. Personally I think making out of sight back in 1998 was the best thing that could have happened to him, and kudos to soderbergh for taking a chance on him. Something I really admire about Clooney is that he cares, he said a few days ago that he wanted to make more politically oriented films like the paranoid thrillers of the 60's and 70's and that makes me happy to hear a hollywood star wants to make films that challenge popular opinion. That doesn't mean they are all going to be great, but they at least they are not complacent with the popular culture of today. They attempt to be subversive. Films like Good Night, and Good Luck want to engage us and not simply bore us to tears. Clooney wants to make films like this and the fact that he directed Good Night is an indication that he will put himself on the line to do so. He's like a non-psycho version of tom cruise, neither of them are "great" actors but when they are good, they are better than good. And most importantly, they work their asses off on every project they are involved with, and they care about the movies they make. I don't know, I was just thinking about what a steady and positive contribution George Clooney has made over the years and I'm glad he's doing it.

On to good night, and good luck. I know I've been saying this a lot but I really liked this film. Clooney shows a remarkable restraint and amazing improvement over his last film confessions of a dangerous mind, a film I liked but grew tiresome with because it was 8 billion different things at one time. Good night has none of that bullshit, it's a claustrophobic thriller only instead of submarines and gene hackmen it's white guys with glasses smoking cigarettes while duking it out on the air with stone cold killers like joe mccarthy. What I especially liked about the film was the fact that while their was definitely some mythologizing and hero worship going on (I think it's impossible to avoid such pratfalls myself) a lot of it was subdued by the fact that the cast went out of its way to paint these people as recognizably human. They joke, they make sarcastic comments, and they treat their cause not like a cause, but rather something that simply should be done. The CBS studios they inhabit are filmed like a Byzantine maze, always contorting itself into some new shape and direction, finding new areas for the actors to hide or be discovered. It's a dizzying effect, giving one the feeling of constant motion and a real time documentary feel as we watch this story unfold. I don't think I can say enough how masterfully this film is directed, but I'm having a Clooney induced love fest so maybe that's what that's all about. Fascinating film, David Strathairn is great and he is one of those actors like Frank langella (who is also in the film) that seems to float by from film to film and deliver strong work every time out but never really achieve the recognition they deserve. It's great that this month two films, one starring phillip seymour hoffman and this one with strathairn are giving two great performers the chance to be actors and not just character actors.

Okay, I think that's enough, I could go on about squid and the whale, but I've already talked about that. Check out a mid july post to get the skinny on that film, but in short I loved it and I think everybody and their mothers should go see it, together. Or mix and match what do I care. So I hope this blog entry was long enough, I hope you enjoy reading it....suckers.

"Don't say your sorry
Cause sorry means something is wrong"

p.s. I suck as a critic I know, but I've got to be better than Rex Reed right?

Remember when we were kids, remember what we used to say to each other?

2005-10-02T21:54:00.000-07:00

EXT. BENCH. DAY

Sammy and Terry sit on a bench near the bus stop. Terry's
backpack is by his side.

SAMMY
Do you need some cash for the bus?

TERRY
No, I got a few bucks... Aren't you
gonna be late for work?

SAMMY
Oh -- Yeah. That's OK.
(Pause)
Terry, I don't even know where you're
going.

TERRY
Oh, well, I didn't really have a
concrete plan yet. I have to go back
to Worcester and get my stuff...

SAMMY
Oh, are you gonna try to see that
girl?

TERRY
Well... Yeah... You know... Thought
maybe I'd try to show my face... Let
her brother have a crack at me...

SAMMY
What?

TERRY
No...

SAMMY
...I don't want anyone to have a
crack at you.

TERRY
I'm just kidding. I just thought...
Just thought I'd check up on her...
(Pause)
Anyway, after that, I don't really
know. I've been thinking about Alaska
a lot. I still got some friends out
there. I don't really know. Anyway,
I'll write you.

SAMMY
You will?

TERRY
Sure, Sammy. Of course I will. You
know that.

Pause.

SAMMY
What is gonna happen to you?

TERRY
Nothing too bad... But I gotta tell
you, I know things didn't work out
too well this time...

SAMMY
Well, Terry --

TERRY
...but it's always really good to
know that wherever I am, whatever
stupid shit I'm doing, you're back
at my home, rooting for me.

SAMMY
I do root for you.

She starts crying, and looks down.

TERRY
Come on, Sammy. Everything's gonna
be all right... Comparatively... And
I'll be back this way...

SAMMY
I feel like I'm never gonna see you
again...!

TERRY
Of course you will, Sammy. You never
have to worry about that.

SAMMY
Please don't go till you know where
you're going. Please...!

TERRY
I do know where I'm going. I'm going
to Worcester and I'm gonna try to
see that girl. And then depending on
what happens there, I thought I'd
try to see if there's any work for
me out West. And if there is, I'm
gonna head out there for the summer
and try to make some money. And if
there isn't, I'll figure something
else out. Maybe I'll stay around the
East. I don't know... I really liked
it in Alaska. It was really beautiful.
You just -- It made me feel good.
And before things got so messed up I
was doin' pretty well out there.
Seriously. But I couldn't stay here
long, Sammy: I don't want to live
here. But I'm gonna stay in touch.
And I'll be back. 'Cause I want to
see you and I want to see Rudy. I'll
come home for Christmas. How about
that? We'll have Christmas together.
(Pause)
Come on, Sammy. You can trust me...

Still looking down, Sammy shakes her head, tears leaking
down her cheeks.

TERRY
Come on, Sammy... Look at me... Look
at me...

She looks at him.

TERRY
Hey, Sammy... Remember when we were
kids, remember what we always used
to say to each other . . .?
(Pause)
Remember when we were kids?

SAMMY
Of course I do...!

She throws her arms around his neck. He pats her gently.

INT./EXT. BUS. DAY

The DOORS OPEN and Terry comes up the steps and into the
bus. Outside, Sammy watches him pay the driver and move
through the bus toward his seat. The BUS DOORS CLOSE.

EXT. BUS. CONTINUOUS

Sammy waves till the BUS DRIVES all the way down MAIN STREET,
turns a corner and is gone.

INT. BUS. CONTINUOUS

Terry, in his seat, turns forward and watches the view go
by. He smiles a little.

INT. SAMMY'S CAR (MOVING). DAY

The morning sunlight flickers through the windshield into
the car as Sammy drives along toward work. She passes the
TOWN HALL CLOCK and sees that it's 9:20.

She dries her damp cheek with a forearm and rolls down her
window to let the morning breeze blow through.

Squaring her shoulders a little, she drives through town at
a slow and easy pace.

The days are just packed...

2005-10-02T08:08:00.000-07:00

I read a review of the complete calvin and hobbes collection that is about to be released.

I found this from a calvin and hobbes website, it's a poem from Scientific Progress Goes Boink!

It's not even worth the attempt to put into words the genius of those books. I just wish Watterson would give up his whole anti marketing and licensing stance (although that's probably what I most admire him for) and let me make the movie. Think about it, it could totally be a Robert Rodriguez/Frank Miller/Sin City collaboration. I would just take the dialogue word for word from the text and slap it up on screen. I wish I knew more about animation though, because doing this live action would just be stoopid. But assuming I am an animation wizard, he would be a co-director of course and I would absolutely not tamper with his vision and turn calvin and hobbes into some kind of racing stripes talking animal movie kids movie. It would be an important kids movie, but oh well, maybe someday. The books are still here, and they are just one of those things that will never go away for me, it's funny because they always make me nostalgic for when I read them the first time. Some of the images and words, I can pin point a pretty close approximation as to when and where I read them. Then I read them again, now, and I'm not nostalgic anymore, because I'm right back to those moments. I guess that's how nostalgia works though isn't it? Oh well, I'll take whatever I can get. And these books give a lot, because the more you know, the more you grow...

On window panes, the icy frost
Leaves feathered patterns, crissed & crossed,
But in our house the christmas tree
Is decorated festively
With tiny dots of colored light
That cozy up this winter night.
Christmas songs, familiar, slow,
Play softly on the radio.
Pops and isses from the fire
Whistle with the bells and choir.
My tiger is now fast asleep
On his back and dreaming deep.
When te fire makes him hot,
He turns to warm whatever's not.
Propped against him on the rug,
I give my friend a gentle hug.
Tomorrow's what I'm waiting for,
But I can wait a little more.

I done fucked up in the game now...

2005-09-30T15:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I forgot to give the address for Bennett's response to his own comments:

http://mediamatters.org/items/200509300008

You can also hear Rush Limbaugh defending his pal...

http://mediamatters.org/items/200509300009

Check it out.

We have a black man in a mercedes driving the speed limit...take him down.

2005-09-30T14:19:00.000-07:00

First of all, can somebody tell me what fucking century we are in right now?

And before anybody gets huffy, yes, I'm going to quote this out of context. But you can read the entire transcript and hear the damn thing at www.mediamatters.org, the following was said by Bill Bennett, the former Secretary of Education under Reagan

BENNETT: "Well, I don't think it is either, I don't think it is either, because first of all, there is just too much that you don't know. But I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could -- if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky."

Apparently somebody called his show claiming that the lost revenue from all the aborted fetuses from the past 30 years would be enough to preserve America's Social Security's solvency. And Bennett went on to make the point that such ridiculous extrapolations like that of aborting every black fetus would lower the crime rate, have the right idea but they are too dangerous, immoral, and wrong by design. I like how he covers himself there at the end, we wouldn't want anybody to get the wrong idea.

Maybe I'm looking into this too much, but this is sounding like some colonial slave talk right here. Wasn't one of the arguments for the slave trade the idea that Africans were incapable of living by themselves because of their savage nature? That they would tear themselves limb from limb if it weren't for their white saviors, what the fuck is going on? People still think like this? Is this guy really saying that the crime problem in this country will dwindle if the African-American new born population is discontinued? How long until somebody suggests this to living breathing human bodies? I don't want to get melodramatic and all doom propheting and there's probably no connection to this kind of thinking from idea to practice, but this is really freaking me out nonetheless. He's not advocating this solution, but his words indicate that the reasoning behind it is not completely artificial. And it's not just that he's a racist, that's not what bothers me about this. Yes, it's reprehensible to say that black people are predisposed to crime and violence, don't get me wrong. But this guy's line of thinking is so violently aggressive and hateful. I just don't understand how anybody could react like this in the year 2005. At the same time, I understand also that this guy (hopefully) speaks for a very limited and powerless minority, but then again he was the Secretary of Education for the united states, he's in charge of the education standards for the children of this country. Again, what the fuck?

If a former or current government official went on CNN and said that the world was flat, wouldn't he be discredited and laughed off to obscurity. Hopefully the same will happen to this guy.

The day after he made the initial comments, like Pat Robertson, he was back to discredit his attackers (as he calls them, why do all these right-wing guys think they're martyrs?) But, as it turns out he defended his comments with more falsehoods. You can read his response here, which never really addresses the true nature of his words, merely the context in which his dumbass presented them. I know what I heard, and believe me, it doesn't bring me any pleasure to write about shit like this, hopefully this guy will wise up. I used to think people still hated each other as much now as they did back then, they just knew how to hide it better. I guess they're not hiding it anymore.

I'll let PVT. Train take you home...
"This great evil--where's it come from? How'd it steal into the world? What seed, what root did it grow from? Who's doing this? Who's killing us, robbing us of life and light, mocking us with the sight of what we mighta known? Does our ruin benefit the earth, does it help the grass to grow and the sun to shine? Is this darkness in you too? Have you passed through this night?"

the wind

2005-09-28T06:36:00.000-07:00

Shadows are falling and I'm running out of breath
Keep me in your heart for awhile

If I leave you it doesn't mean I love you any less
Keep me in your heart for awhile

When you get up in the morning and you see that crazy sun
Keep me in your heart for while

There's a train leaving nightly called when all is said and done
Keep me in your heart for while

Sha-la-la-la-la-la-la-li-li-lo
Keep me in your heart for while

Sha-la-la-la-la-la-la-li-li-lo
Keep me in your heart for while

Sometimes when you're doing simple things around the house
Maybe you'll think of me and smile

You know I'm tied to you like the buttons on your blouse
Keep me in your heart for while

Hold me in your thoughts, take me to your dreams
Touch me as I fall into view
When the winter comes keep the fires lit
And I will be right next to you

Engine driver's headed north to Pleasant Stream
Keep me in your heart for while

These wheels keep turning but they're running out of steam
Keep me in your heart for while

Sha-la-la-la-la-la-la-li-li-lo
Keep me in your heart for while

Sha-la-la-la-la-la-la-li-li-lo
Keep me in your heart for while

Keep me in your heart for while

Oh sirrah! A man writing an opera about a woman? How delightfully absurd!

2005-09-27T05:18:00.000-07:00

So, at the opera last night...

I don't think anybody expected this blog to begin like that.

Seriously though, I went to an opera last night at Lincoln Center, Falstaff was a name of it and it was operacized version of Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor with some King Henry IV thrown in for good measure. And it's the damndest thing, I really liked it. It's not that I expected not to like it, it's just that I didn't know what to expect. The only opera experience I've had prior to this was La Boheme but that was a Baz Lhurman production so that was really like a big elaborate lazer show really. No, that was really good to but you know how he is, everything's gotta be boom boom boom! Getting back to falstaff though, it was a beautifully designed, lavishly decorated, and seriously well sung performance. The ending was something out of a great screwball comedy, come to think of it shakespeare is sort of the grandaddy of all screwball comedies, and somebody should thank for him for that. Opera has always puzzled me in that it's just so hard to put a human face on that singing, it doesn't sound natural. This is not a criticism of any kind, but being the simple minded person that I am, I still marvel over the fact that these are human voices making these sounds. I just can't comprehend how someone finds and develops that gift, it just seems so extraordinary, I guess a lot of singing is like that though. I remember reading somewhere that Rufus Wainwright gets heaps and loads of musical inspiration from Opera, not just in his singing style and musical taste, but in his lyrics as well. So much of what he has seen in opera, he has translated into his words, hopefully someday he can write an opera that will stop all the world. That will show everybody. But yeah I had a fabuloso time last night, and one more thing before I wrap this up, that Lincoln Center has one grand old theatre, to see a full blown opera up on that stage is something I'm really glad I got to see. Plus I was with ravishingly beautiful company so that didn't hurt. There was one little minor fib on my part, apparently and if somebody wants to break this down too me this, now is the time: I chew my gum too loudly. Right after the first scene in the first act, the woman in front of me asked me if I could stop chewing my gum because she could hear it the entire time. I half expected a chorus line of oompa-loompa's to come cartwheeling in singing about the horrors of chewing and chewing all day long. I guess since I don't chew gum as often as I used to I'd forgotten about proper etiquette, so wherever that woman is I apologize. Remember that kids, gum and opera just don't mix, and I can't be taken anywhere.
That unfortunate business aside...
I want to say one more time and I promise and absolutely swear this will be it. Thank you, dev.

"Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is...and felt how awful goodness is."

(This quote really has nothing to do with the opera, I just saw it on a website and felt like posting it)
Okay, I'm off...

Take that, Miklos Rozsa!

2005-09-26T21:35:00.000-07:00

AFI Recognizes Most Memorable Film Score

The American Film Institute revealed its top 25 Film Scores of the past 100 years on September 23rd at the Hollywood Bowl.

A jury of over 500 film artists, composers, musicians, critics and historians selected John Williams' iconic score from the classic film STAR WARS as the most memorable film score of all time. John Williams is additionally noteworthy as the most represented composer on the list with three scores making the top 25.

1 STAR WARS - John Williams

2 GONE WITH THE WIND - Max Steiner
3 LAWRENCE OF ARABIA - Maurice Jarre
4 PSYCHO - Bernard Herrmann
5 THE GODFATHER - Nino Rota
6 JAWS - John Williams
7 LAURA - David Raksin
8 THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN - Elmer Bernstein
9 CHINATOWN - Jerry Goldsmith
10 HIGH NOON - Dimitri Tiomkin
11 THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD - Erich Wolfgang Korngold
12 VERTIGO - Bernard Herrmann
13 KING KONG - Max Steiner
14 E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL - John Williams
15 OUT OF AFRICA - John Barry
16 SUNSET BLVD. - Franz Waxman
17 TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD - Elmer Bernstein
18 PLANET OF THE APES - Jerry Goldsmith
19 A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE - Alex North
20 THE PINK PANTHER - Henry Mancini
21 BEN-HUR - Miklos Rozsa
22 ON THE WATERFRONT - Leonard Bernstein
23 THE MISSION - Ennio Morricone
24 ON GOLDEN POND - Dave Grusin
25 HOW THE WEST WAS WON - Alfred Newman

KING KONG AINT GOT SHIT ON ME!!!!

YEAH lord of WAR!!!

2005-09-25T21:58:00.001-07:00

As you can tell by the title of this here post, I finally got around to seeing Lord of War. I saw it at the Loews on 34th street right near penn station and I only mention this because tickets were only 9.50, that's a horse of a differnt color. So yeah maybe I should do all my thievin up there from now on. Anyway Lord of War was one of my big ticket (i totally sounded like leonard maltin there, who is by the way the most attractive critic on television) fall movies for the specific reason being that it was written directed by andrew niccol. Writer of the truman show and director of the criminally ignored and underrated gattaca, he has a knack for alternative realities and posing questions about humanities relationship to its paritcular environment. At least that's what the film school side of me says, and on top of that he's a fucking sharp writer and director. Lord of War is definitely his most ambitious and most technically assured film to date, there is a knockout opening sequence tracing the construction and eventual usage of a bullet told from that perspective. People have compared the style of this film to David O's Three Kings, I don't really see that. This looks like an andrew niccol film, he seems to have a thing for sleekness whereas Russell is much grittier and used. Anyway as I was saying this film is in some ways a colosssal leap for him in terms of thematic qualities but otherwise it fits right into his normal milleu of obsessions, except, unfortunately for us, this film takes place in our time and claims to have been based on a true story. Not to divulge too much story and bore you with details, it's basically about the rise of a ukrainian gun runner who keeps everything about his life secret from his model wife while dodging and evading a determined interpol agent, all the while juggling his coke head brother who used to be in business with him. This is where the film failed for me, it feels like Niccol had all these angry and cynical things to say but couldn't find the right device for them story wise. The plot feels too ordinary and Niccol is too smart of a writer to not at least know he was exploiting cliches. Don't get me wrong, this is a strong film Cage is great and there is something very angry about this film that makes you laugh at certain points where you're not really sure whether you are supposed to be laughing. Sure parts of it are over done, like Cage's extended drugged out sequence, but at the same time you admire a film that has an excess of ambition rather than one scared of it. I'm not saying that makes bad movies good, but sometimes if a film tries at all you can see the passion and integrity that went into it and you admire it just a little bit more. So yeah, go see it if you have the chance if only to support andrew niccol's career and grant him the opportunity to make more films.

In conclusion to yesterday's thrilling entry, I missed the floating island again, this time at Carl Shurz. I just didn't have enough time to get up there, stupid lack of public urinals. And when I got there the river was bone dry (with tugboats that is) Its too bad because the more I read about it, the more interesting it sounded. This guy was saying that the whole thing was a tribute to the brain behind central park. And that it is a testament to man made nature the same way that central park was just a dump until somebody decided to simply dump more grass and trees on top of it to make the postcard image we see today. It's just interesting to take a small chunk of that almost and drag it around the island, I dont know maybe i just really like tugboats. Come to think of it I dont think I've ever seen one in person, someday, someday.

Tonight's simpsons had the best O.C. parody ever and one of the best lines about divorce ever. I hope I can remember this

" But Lis, if mom and dad get divorced, you can compensate by marrying a much older man. Meanwhile, I'll be one of those 35 year old guys who hangs out at high school basketball games."

I missed the goddamn tugboats

2005-09-24T14:36:00.001-07:00

So I went looking for the floating island exhibit, floating all around the island of manhattan. Apparently this guy thought it would be quite quirking if he installed dirt, grass and trees onto a barge and lugged it up, down, crossways, and sideways in the waters of the east river. The point being I went to see it today at the East River Park, which according to the artists' website is located at the East River and E. Houston Street. Easy enough to find right? Well let's just say if this were an Indiana Jones movie and they cut to one of those shots with a map and a thick black line indicating my journey from point A to point B, it probably would have looked like it was written with a spirograph. I went in the most convoluted, roundabout, exactly the wrong way to go to get there and on top of all that I missed the fucking thing. So I'm going tomorrow to Carl Shurz park where somebody shot a frankly lame boy and girl piece there last year to try this again tomorrow about 11:15 ish I think in the AM, if there are any takers well, it's not exactly mai-thais and yahtzee but LET'S DO IT!!!! But the fact remains that I still know nothing about New York City. I could have walked down to water street from where I ended up and not even noticed it. Quite lame

At least it was a nice day today...

Something that has come to my attention however, I know some people who've lost some people recently. And I thought of this quote as all I could think to add. From an oft quoted band on this blog: Eels, the song P.S. You Rock My World. Which has no relation whatsoever to the award winning short of the same name, I can assure the director was not aware that the Eels' P.S. and his P.S. stood for the same thing. That's all, anyway here's the line for those we have lost.

"...and i was thinking 'bout how everyone is dying and maybe it is time to live."

More quotes part deux...

2005-09-22T18:28:00.000-07:00

I'm a fuckin' un-original bastard...

"I was married, I mean I haven't been for five years. My wife died in an accident just south of town. She was picking up my youngest son from baseball practice, on the way home she was at an intersection. And there was this guy he was coming the other way and he was trying to beat a yellow light, but it was raining so he changed his mind and he tried to stop but it was too late. The car went into a skid and he skidded across the intersection and he slammed into my wife's car. She died on the way to the hopsital, and I never got to speak to her again. Yeah, it could have been worse, I mean thank god Pete made it through it. He's okay more or less. You know it's really weird, sometimes when I'm concentrating on something really hard or in the morning, just as I'm waking up, I forget. Just for a second, I forget. You know it's this really strange thing where everything you build your life on, everythink you think you are is just gone. It's just gone."

Where would we be without indie family dramas?

In the jingle jangle morning, I'll come following you...

2005-09-21T15:30:00.000-07:00

They're buildin' the gallows outside my cell.
I got 25 minutes to go.

And in 25 minutes I'll be in Hell.
I got 24 minutes to go.

Well, they give me some beans for my last meal.
23 minutes to go.

And you know... nobody asked me how I feel.
I got 22 minutes to go.

So, I wrote to the Gov'nor... the whole damned bunch.
Ahhh... 21 minutes to go.

And I call up the Mayor, and he's out to lunch.

I got 20 more minutes to go.

Well, the Sheriff says, "Boy, I wanna watch you die".
19 minutes to go.

I spit in his face... and I kicked him in the eye.
I got 18 minutes to go.

Well...I call out to the Warden to hear my plea.
17 minute to go.

He says, "Call me back in a week or three.
You've got 16 minutes to go."

Well, my lawyer says he's sorry he missed my case.
Mmmm....15 minutes to go.

Yeah, well if you're so sorry, come up and take my place.
I got 14 minutes to go.

Well, now here comes the padre to save my soul
With 13 minutes to go.

And he's talkin' about burnin', but I'm so damned cold.
I got 12 more minutes to go.

Now they're testin' the trap. It chills my spine.
I got 11 minutes to go.

'Cuz the goddamned thing it works just fine.
I got 10 more minutes to go.

I'm waitin' for the pardon... gonna set me free
With 9 more minutes to go.

But this ain't the movies, so to hell with me.
I got 8 more minutes to go.

And now I'm climbin up the ladder with a scaffold peg
With 7 more minutes to go.

I've betta' watch my step or else I'll break my leg.
I got 6 more minutes to go.

Yeah... with my feet on the trap and my head in the noose...
5 more minutes to go.

Well, c'mon somethin' and cut me loose.
I got 4 more minutes to go.

I can see the mountains. I see the sky.
3 more minutes to go.

And it's too damned pretty for a man to die.
i got 2 more minutes to go

I can hear the buzzards... hear the crows.
1 more minute to go.

And now I'm swingin' and here I gooooooooo....

Sigur Ros makes the most hopeful, inspiring, jaw-dropping, serene, calming, beautiful, devastating, and flat out rockingest music I've ever heard.

2005-09-19T06:45:00.000-07:00

I stole the title of this post from the name of a facebook group, except replace sigur ros with bright eyes, so that's the origin of that.

Anyway, to piggy back off of nate's last post, the new sigur ros album Takk... is one of the most gorgeous pieces of music I've ever heard in a long long time. I know I tend to droll at the bit over a lot of things on this blog (Star Wars, Eels, the gathering darkness) but this album makes me weep. And seeing them at the beacon last monday night was like some kind of miracle, the show was awe inspiring, you hear these sounds on a record and you think to yourself, well yeah it's all machine processed and manipulated. Once you see that it's just these four icelandic dudes rockin out, it makes you feel like all the things Robin Williams tells Matt Damon he's missed on that park bench in Good Will Hunting. First off, singer jónsi birgisson's voice sounds like Thom Yorke's DNA reconstituted into the body of a ghostly angelic Icelandic child. I do now know how he does it, but goddamn, whoever encouraged him as a child into music should have endless amounts of riches and doubloons heaped upon them. The standout tracks are the previously written about Glósóli and Sæglópur, but Mílanó, Andvari, and Hoppípolla are just like as one reviewer put it rather ostentatiously, listenting to god cry tears of gold. That's ridiculous I know but the point remains. Hell the whole album is spectacular, these guys seem to get better and better with every new recorded output, this is their best album yet. Takk indeed.

With all this being said, I should recognize a major failing of mine and apologize to Mark Primeaux. I remember in 11th or 12th grade, I forget which, he came into muz (our lunchtime music listening club) and was really jazzed about this band sigur ros and their album Ágætis Byrjun. Me being the damned fool that I was and still am, looked at the cover with its angel fetus plugged into some kind of electrical device and hearing about how the guitar player uses a violin bow instead of a pick. I brushed them off as weirdos and didn't even give them a chance, laughed them off as a wannabe radiohead.
Ah the foul stench of youth how it corrupted ye... Luckily I am much older and much wiser now, so I know better.
Sorry Mark, you were so fucking right.

"Night falling on the city
Sparkling red and gold
Don’t it just look so pretty
This disappearing world"

P.S. The new david gray album is really good too.

Come on y'all, eat some of this shit!

2005-09-11T08:19:00.000-07:00

There's a really interesting article in the new york times this weekend, it's part of the fall movie preview. A.O. Scott wrote about how movies this fall and movies in general are tending towards fantasy, nostalgia, and in some cases a flat out retreat to adolesence. Movies are not really being made about what it's like to live in america and the world right now, and when they are, they're overwrought pieces of self-serious wildly unrealistic trash like crash, hey that rhymes. He closes his article with something I thought I would never hear a film critic say and I dig it...

"Or maybe not. Several recent movies have sparked interesting conversations - about the war in Iraq, the fight against terrorism, the ethics of human cloning. These were the action blockbusters of the past summer: remakes, sequels and franchise pictures like "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith," "Batman Begins," "War of the Worlds" and even "The Island." Last fall the movie that galvanized similar reflection was "The Incredibles." Of course, all these movies deal with contemporary reality on the level of allegory, which provides its own form of distance. But it is interesting that the half-encoded topical meanings found in them seem to be part of the intentions of their makers, rather than the projections of critics and other interpreters. It may be that the role of the blockbuster is to engage with matters that more self-consciously serious movies shy away from. I can't wait until next summer."

That being said, I decided to post a list of the ten films (That's a good number for lists like this) that I am excited to see this fall. Luckily, since I am not a film critic I do not look at the list as symoblizing some sort of sociological trend in filmmaking, I just see a bunch of rad-ass movies, I'm going to shell out 10.75 and up for this fall. Then again, I did see A Sound of Thunder, well there's one off the list.

The following is in no particular order

-Elizabethtown
-Jarhead
-The New World
-Lord of War (although that's tricky since it's coming out next week, but Andrew Niccol kicks ass)
-The Corpse Bride (again, next week, I hope all the good shit doesnt't come out right away and then vanish)
-Good Night, and Good Luck
-Capote
-Brokeback Mountain
-All The King's Men
-Syriana

This was actually more difficult than I expected, everything save for the last two films I have seen trailers for so I have some idea what they're going to be like. With King's and Syriana, what I've read and who is involved has got me chompin at the bit. I realized going through the films this fall that there are a few flicks like Stay (written by David Benioff) Prime (Directed by Ben Younger) and the infamous Get rich or Die Tryin (directed by Jim Sheridan). The names I associated with these films are the reason I want to see them, but for one reason or another their perspective trailers just haven't really done it for me. I really want them to be good, meaningful films but I am not completely assured yet. And none of the event movies this fall are doing anything for me, I could, however, use some more films from David Gordon Green, David O. Russell, and Wes Anderson and why not throw in another eerily beautiful minimalistic gus van sant film while your at it. That being said, I'm sure there's stuff I've forgotten about and hopefully there will be constant surprises in the coming months.

Before I go I have to give a big "whaddup" to a film First Run Features is putting out this fall, it's called One Bright Shining Moment: The Forgotten Summer of George McGovern, it's about the 72 McGovern campaign if you haven't figured that out. And it features interviews with grown up nerds like Gore Vidal, Warren Beatty, and Gloria Steinem. And it's narrated by Amy Goodman, who kicks ass every day on her radio show democracy now. That being said, it looks interesting, I haven't seen it yet but I will, I like movies.

Sorry, one more thing, The Squid and the Whale is coming out this fall, pretty soon I think, it's fantastic, I didn't put it on the list cause I already seen it. That is to say I saw it. You, however should see it.

Thus, I good you bid evening...

"The man-poet who banged Frances - dark lady of philosophy. The parking lot crusader of truth... who turned his back on his other like a cold-blooded gangsta."

Don't mind if I already did...

2005-09-08T14:27:00.000-07:00

I fear we have awoken a sleeping giant...

That's right, kounterklockwise is back, comin' out GUNS BLAZING!!!! Head on over to the site and check it out.

www.kounterklockwise.com I still dont know how to put links or any of that other fancy shit. That's as good as I can do. Deal.

On a lighter note, you can also go to http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/ and watch sigur ros's new music video. It will restore your faith in music videos again. Well, probably not but it's absolutely beautiful and the song kicks ass, plus its got weird doll like icelandic kids walking around enjoying each other's company, dancing, holding their evil in check. It's just a great video, I was telling nate that the last time I got the same reaction from one of those things was when I watched the scientist video way back in freshman year. I'm sure there are milliions of other great music videos out there, I just gave up on them a while ago, but this one is a shocker alright.

There's more stuff to report but I'll do that in the coming days with more frequent posts. I just wanted to get you fools to watch that sigur ros video. That is all.

"So? I'm just as important as him.
It's just that, the kind of importance I have ...it doesn't matter if I ... don't do it."

mmmm, that's good satire!

2005-09-02T06:44:00.000-07:00

Dear Mr. Bush:

Any idea where all our helicopters are? It's Day 5 of Hurricane Katrina and thousands remain stranded in New Orleans and need to be airlifted. Where on earth could you have misplaced all our military choppers? Do you need help finding them? I once lost my car in a Sears parking lot. Man, was that a drag.

Also, any idea where all our national guard soldiers are? We could really use them right now for the type of thing they signed up to do like helping with national disasters. How come they weren't there to begin with?

Last Thursday I was in south Florida and sat outside while the eye of Hurricane Katrina passed over my head. It was only a Category 1 then but it was pretty nasty. Eleven people died and, as of today, there were still homes without power. That night the weatherman said this storm was on its way to New Orleans. That was Thursday! Did anybody tell you? I know you didn't want to interrupt your vacation and I know how you don't like to get bad news. Plus, you had fundraisers to go to and mothers of dead soldiers to ignore and smear. You sure showed her!

I especially like how, the day after the hurricane, instead of flying to Louisiana, you flew to San Diego to party with your business peeps. Don't let people criticize you for this -- after all, the hurricane was over and what the heck could you do, put your finger in the dike?

And don't listen to those who, in the coming days, will reveal how you specifically reduced the Army Corps of Engineers' budget for New Orleans this summer for the third year in a row. You just tell them that even if you hadn't cut the money to fix those levees, there weren't going to be any Army engineers to fix them anyway because you had a much more important construction job for them -- BUILDING DEMOCRACY IN IRAQ!

On Day 3, when you finally left your vacation home, I have to say I was moved by how you had your Air Force One pilot descend from the clouds as you flew over New Orleans so you could catch a quick look of the disaster. Hey, I know you couldn't stop and grab a bullhorn and stand on some rubble and act like a commander in chief. Been there done that.

There will be those who will try to politicize this tragedy and try to use it against you. Just have your people keep pointing that out. Respond to nothing. Even those pesky scientists who predicted this would happen because the water in the Gulf of Mexico is getting hotter and hotter making a storm like this inevitable. Ignore them and all their global warming Chicken Littles. There is nothing unusual about a hurricane that was so wide it would be like having one F-4 tornado that stretched from New York to Cleveland.

No, Mr. Bush, you just stay the course. It's not your fault that 30 percent of New Orleans lives in poverty or that tens of thousands had no transportation to get out of town. C'mon, they're black! I mean, it's not like this happened to Kennebunkport. Can you imagine leaving white people on their roofs for five days? Don't make me laugh! Race has nothing -- NOTHING -- to do with this!

You hang in there, Mr. Bush. Just try to find a few of our Army helicopters and send them there. Pretend the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast are near Tikrit.

Yours,

Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
www.MichaelMoore.com

P.S. That annoying mother, Cindy Sheehan, is no longer at your ranch. She and dozens of other relatives of the Iraqi War dead are now driving across the country, stopping in many cities along the way. Maybe you can catch up with them before they get to DC on September 21st.