Recently in cinema Category

Yesterday, I left work early to get some rest and recover from the cold that had caught me on Wednesday. I managed to hang my jacket on the right hook, dump my backpack in its assigned spot (behind the couch), and deposit my wallet and keys in their proper places on the counter, before teetering to the couch and conking out for three hours straight.

When I awoke, I checked the mail and found two Netflix DVDs waiting for me. I joyously opened the red envelopes to see what movies I had received. Both were from past Cinequest film festivals (I had tried to time my queue correctly, but I was off by a week).

One was a Norwegian comedy-drama called Chlorox, Ammonia and Coffee (2005). This one I set aside because I wanted to be awake when I watched it.

The other was Amargosa (2001), a documentary by Todd Robinson, who wrote White Squall. This disc I slid into the DVD player. The plan was to watch it until I fell asleep and rewind it to the point where I dozed off when I woke up. (I am a notorious documentary-dozer. Usually, the more interesting the subject, the faster I fall asleep.)

Within two minutes, I was down. I blame Mary McDonnell's soothing narrating voice and the sweeping camera shots of the desert for my instant slumber. An hour or so later, I scanned to the beginning of the film and watched it all the way through.

The documentary is about Marta Becket, a dancer from New York City, who performed at Radio City Music Hall and on Broadway before creating her own show and taking it on the road. That fateful tour would lead her to discovering an abandoned theater in Death Valley Junction, once a mining camp, but only a ghost town in 1967. After a year of repairs and renovations, she opened the newly renamed Amargosa Opera House and gave her first performance. She's been dancing there ever since.

While Becket comes across as an eccentric woman, Robinson shows her in a sympathetic light, allowing the audience to see the hard-working, creative, and likable spirit underneath. It's difficult not to be inspired by her story. Here's a woman who has found her place in the world, in the middle of the desert, and cultivated it to fulfill her dreams. Hers is a story about defying convention, taking risks, and giving oneself completely to one's art, regardless of the consequences.

After the movie was done, I hopped online and happily discovered that Becket is not only alive (she was in her mid-seventies when it was filmed), but she is still dancing. I think it would be fun (and quite enriching) to see her perform live. It would also be one more reason to visit Death Valley.

The actor Heath Ledger was found dead this afternoon in an apartment in Manhattan, according to the New York City police. Signs pointed to a suicide or an accidental overdose, police sources said. Mr. Ledger was 28.

That is what the New York Times reported just a few hours ago. At first, I thought it was a hoax. Obviously, somebody from The Onion had slipped a bogus article in for laughs. Then I read it again and reluctantly dismissed the hoax theory.

Most people will remember him for his role in Brokeback Mountain, the movie that earned him an Oscar nomination. I haven't seen that movie yet, mostly due to the over-quoted line, "I wish I knew how to quit you". After hearing it repeated everywhere, I vowed to stay away from the film until people quit saying it.

I'll best remember Ledger for his role in The Patriot, a rather violent film set during the Revolutionary War. Mel Gibson was the patriot, a pacifist and father forced to fight when his family is attacked by the British. Ledger played Gibson's oldest son.

I only saw him in two other movies (The Brothers Grimm and A Knight's Tale). Neither of them were very good, but I gave both a chance because of Ledger. He was a likable actor with promise. I'm sorry his life and career were cut short.

Now I just have to figure out a way to get over that confounded quote so I can see him in his most memorable role.

This weekend, I

> watched the Sci Fi Channel's Tin Man online. It's a miniseries that takes L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" and gives it a modern science fiction twist. Unless you're a silver-slipper-wearing Ozophile or somebody who must watch every second of film featuring Zooey Deschanel, this is 6 hours of entertainment you can skip (4.5 hours without commercials).

Some of the re-imagined elements are clever (like Toto as a shapeshifter), but most are corny (like tattoos that transform into flying monkeys). Instead of Dorothy in Oz, we get DG in the O.Z. (and no, Mischa Barton does not play the Scarecrow).

For me, the most compelling character wasn't DG, but Wyatt Cain (played by Neal McDonough). He's a former policeman (or "tin man") who rebelled against the evil witch, was imprisoned in a metal suit by her henchmen, and forced to relive the moment when they took his family (his heart) from him for many years. After DG frees him, he sets out on a quest to exact revenge. Keeping that storyline and eliminating everything else would have made for fifteen minutes of worthwhile television.

> read Jim Butcher's Storm Front. Inspired by Ealasaid's praise for his books earlier this year (bottom half of the page) and needing a few "quick reads" to successfully reach my goal of 52 books in 52 weeks (7 books in 21 days is doable, right?), I began reading The Dresden Files.

Harry Dresden is a wizard struggling to make a living as a private investigator in Chicago. In the first book, while trying to help the police solve a supernatural murder case, he battles scorpions, a vampiress, a demon, and a black mage. He also tries to go out on a date. As expected, Dresden has more success battling than dating.

With one foot in fantasy and the other in mystery, Butcher combines to the two genres and creates a story that is exciting, well-paced, funny, and original. I'm already reading the second Dresden book and can't wait to see how the rest of the series unfolds.

> saw The Golden Compass. I went with high expectations and wasn't disappointed. Chris Weitz did a good job of adapting the first book in Philip Pullman's trilogy to the big screen. He managed to keep the film to a reasonable length (just under two hours) without losing the joy of the story (the mystery of Dust, the alethiometer, the Gyptians, and the armored polar bears). There were changes and omissions from the book, but they weren't as egregious as those I've seen in other recent adaptations.


The movie also benefited from an outstanding cast. Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig were convincing as Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asrial. Sam Elliott was made to play the cowboy aeronaut, Lee Scoresby. But most of all, I couldn't get enough of Dakota Blue Richards as Lyra Belacqua. She came across as a smart, brave, clever, defiant, curious, and vulnerable young woman. In other words, she portrayed Lyra perfectly.

After I saw The Fellowship of the Ring, I left the theater wishing I could go back in and see the sequel. The Golden Compass gave me a similar feeling. Unfortunately, The Subtle Knife doesn't come out until 2009.

> sauntered around Calero County Park. Because of a late start on Sunday afternoon, I was only able to hike 3.6 miles of the full 6.2-mile loop suggested in the Healthy Trails brochure. I'll post a short report with a photo or two tonight. I hope to try the full hike (or a longer hike) at the end of the week.

"Tom Cruise runs funny."

M says this last night while we're watching Mission: Impossible III.

"He does?" I reply noncommittally. I consider myself a fairly good observer, but the way people run isn't something I typically notice when watching movies. Apparently, it's something M does.

From that point forward, I find myself focusing on the way Ethan Hunt (a.k.a. Mr. Cruise) runs – the way he kicks his legs too high and pumps his arms too hard, the way he leans back while keeping his back as straight as a board, and the way his eyes and stiff neck bulge as he exerts himself.

"You know, maybe he does," I finally say after watching him a few seconds. "He kind of reminds me of that sprinter, what's his name, Michael Johnson. He's like the shorter, whiter version of Michael Johnson."

As I say this, a horrible image of Cruise running in a formfitting sprint suit races across my brain. I shudder.

The longer I focus on him, the funnier he seems to run. Then it dawns on me that most of the movie is Tom Cruise running.

If you don't believe me, just take a peek at the pie chart I baked up based on a minute-by-minute analysis of the movie.

Of course, now I'm going to have to watch every other action movie Cruise has ever been in to see if he has always run this way or if his unique technique is only a recent development.

Proving yet again that I'm the last to know, I only just read on The Disney Blog that LEGO will be releasing Indiana Jones-themed sets in conjunction with the new movie, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

According to the comments on Brickset, there will be four sets based on the original trilogy released in January 2008 and four sets based on the new movie released in May 2008.

Also, the same company that created the LEGO Star Wars games will be releasing an Indiana Jones title based the original trilogy some time next year.

As a LEGO fiend and a fan of Indy, I'm stoked! The anticipation of it all is almost too much to contain.

If I want any chance of having enough money to enjoy it all, I better start saving pennies now in a jar labeled "Indy Fund - Don't break until 2008. Not to be used for coffee/Skittles/hiking emergencies. No exceptions!"

"I want to kiss this girl because she has just the kind of lips I like... one on top and one on bottom."

- Junior Potter played by Bob Hope in Son of Paleface (1952).

I'm currently watching Son of Paleface for the second time in three days. It isn't that I think the movie is so great that it merits a second viewing so soon. It's just that I fell asleep during the first viewing, which reflects more on the comfort of my recliner than on the appeal of the film.

I don't know which parts I missed, but I have a hunch they were sequences where somebody started singing. Apparently, Bob Hope and Roy Rogers have such melodic voices that they send me straight to sleep. Two lines into "Buttons and Bows" and I'm out. They're more effective than Lunesta (and they don't have the nasty side effect of a glowing butterfly fluttering about).

I borrowed Son of Paleface because it was the only cowboy spoof I could find at the library. Why was I looking for one? It probably had something to do with still being <a href="http://randomcuriosity.com/journal/archives/001275.htmlon a Western wave while reading a Wodehouse novel. The combination cries out for a comedian in a cowboy hat (or so my brain would have me believe).

Cowboy spoofs, by the way, are rare critters. Hollywood has only made a handful of them. I had originally wanted to see The Paleface, but that movie wasn't available. (I just put it at the top of my queue, along with Jane Fonda's Cat Ballou and John Wayne's McLintock!).

If you find yourself in the mood for a good cowboy spoof, I would recommend the Paleface movies, as well as Blazing Saddles, Shanghai Noon, and Maverick. If you're in the mood for a bad one, I'd recommend Wild Wild West (a film I saw only because Kevin Kline was in it).

I saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix last night. There wasn't a line to buy tickets, but there was a line for seating. By the time the movie started, every chair in the theatre was filled.

Here are some of my observations from last night's viewing...

• The first ten minutes were the film's weakest. Once we left the Dursleys at 4 Privet Drive, the movie improved dramatically.
• The actors who portray Harry, Ron, and Hermione (Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson) have matured and gotten better in their roles.
• Draco Malfoy and Hagrid had little more than cameos this time around.
• Filch was prominently featured, but had few lines. He mainly skulked, grimaced, and hung decrees on the walls.
• Neville Longbottom made giant strides in this film and received more development than any other character.
• The back story of Luna Lovegood was eliminated to save time, so the audience was presented with a bizarre blonde witch with a high-pitched voice and bare feet. She seemed to have a greater connection with Harry than Harry had with Cho Chang (Potter's highly touted love interest).
• Thankfully, two of my favorite characters, the Weasley twins, Fred and George, weren't eliminated from the movie. They were clever and mischievous and provided one of the film's best moments.
• The innocence and wonder of classes and magic at Hogwarts, as seen in previous films, is nearly gone in this installment. The closest it came to recapturing it was during the training meetings of Dumbledore's Army.
• The pace was brisk and had to be in order to cram 870 pages of book into a 138-minute movie. The screenwriter did an admirable job, but he sacrificed an awful lot of background to do it. Characters and concepts were presented without introduction, so unless one had previous knowledge, either from the books or movies, one had no idea what was going on or why it was happening.
• I was overjoyed to see the return of one of my other favorite characters: Remus Lupin. There is something about his genuine kindness towards Harry and something about the actor who portrays him (David Thewlis) that makes him incredibly likable.
• Quidditch was missing from the movie, which was disappointing.

Ranking this with the other Potter movies, I would put this one right in the middle, behind Prisoner of Azkaban and Sorcerer's Stone, but ahead of Goblet of Fire and Chamber of Secrets.

If you're familiar with the Potter series, I recommend this film. Although I'd suggest seeing a matinee if possible. If you're a Potter neophyte, then I'd suggest renting the previous films to familiarize yourself, otherwise you'll get little satisfaction from the movie.

I saw Ratatouille on Saturday. As soon as it was finished, I wanted to see it again. As with every new Pixar film I see, I was tempted to call this one my favorite of all time, but because I truly like it, I’m going to resist.

Instead, I’m going to envision how I will feel about it a year from now, and I believe when Time has had a chance to shake Ratatouille through the filter of perspective, it will be my second favorite Pixar film of all time.

The order will look something like this (from most to least favorite):

• The Incredibles
• Ratatouille
• Finding Nemo
• Toy Story 2
• Cars
• Monsters, Inc.
• Toy Story
• A Bug’s Life

Ratatouille is another step forward for the studio. The artistry, animation, attention to detail, and storytelling are all levels above any previous efforts. Despite the fact that the movie is about a talking rat who dreams of being a chef in Paris, it felt more "real" than any film I've seen in recent memory.

The world the animators created felt so complete. In every scene, in every corner, there was a treat for the eyes. Gusteau’s kitchen was full of shelves, stoves, spices, pots, pans, utensils, and dirty dishes. The pantry was filled to the ceiling. When dinner service arrived, the kitchen was busy with a full complement of chefs preparing dishes that made my mouth water.

One of my favorite scenes was when Remy, the main character (and a rat), reaches the rooftop and discovers he’s in Paris. It's near sunset and the skyline is breathtaking. As the camera pans, one realizes and appreciates just how much time and effort the animators spent researching and studying their subject.

Finally, one of the reasons I loved the movie was the orchestral score that accompanied the film. Michael Giacchino, who wrote the music for The Incredibles (and Lost), created a musical feast for the ears. In parts, it felt as though the music came first and the action on the screen was a physical representation of the sound. It made the film feel dynamic and alive and it topped off what was a wonderful movie experience.

On Friday, I finally watched The Departed, Martin Scorsese's Oscar-winning remake of Infernal Affairs, the edge-of-your-seat Hong Kong crime thriller made in 2002.

The story is basically the same in both movies. A powerful mob boss succeeds in planting a mole the police force. Meanwhile, an undercover cop manages to infiltrate the mob. The loyalty of each is tested as the two factions fight. When both sides suspect a mole in their respective organizations, it becomes a race to discover their identities.

Beyond the basic premise, the films are quite different. I thought it would be fun to do a side-by-side comparison and award an Edge to the films in each category

Category	The Departed (TD)	Infernal Affairs (IA)	Edge
Title	The Departed	Infernal Affairs	TD - Solely on the fact that I've heard so many people call IA Internal Affairs. But maybe I'm being too critical. Play on words can be confusing and F and T sound so alike. I mean, look at the big films out right now - Surt's Up, Ocean's Fhirfeen, Tanfasfic Tour. See? An easy mistake anyone could make.
Mob Boss	Jack Nicholson	Eric Tsang	TD - By a hair (have you seen Nicholson's hair?). For one-time-viewing, nothing beats Jack being Jack. He's creepy, loud, and over-the-top, and since I hadn't seen him in anything recently, he seemed fresh and amusing. But if I were given a choice to watch his or Tsang's performance again, I would take Tsang without hesitation.
Captain/Superintendent	Martin Sheen	Anthony Wong	IA - In both films, the character was a mentor/father to the undercover cop, but in IA, he was a mentor/father to both of the main characters, which added an element of closeness and loyalty that was missing in TD.
Police Mole	Matt Damon	Andy Lau	IA - In TD, Damon's character seemed more isolated from the action and Damon came across as creepy rather than calculating. In IA, the same character seemed more involved and invested in what transpired between the two sides, so when he faced the ultimate question of loyalty and identity, it felt more climatic and the resolution more satisfying.
Undercover Cop	Leonardo DiCaprio	Tony Leung	Tie - DiCaprio was the best thing about TD. You can see and feel his internal (not infernal) struggle with his identity. He's a cop who is told he'll never be a cop by those above him. He comes from a long line of criminals and is thrust back into that criminal world, left to survive on his own. Leung did an equally incredible job of portraying the conflicted and troubled cop in IA.
Women	Vera Farmiga	Kelly Chen and Sammi Cheng	IA - While merging the original female characters into a single woman added a source of tension between the two main characters, it did so at the expense of the story's pacing.
Length	151 min.	101 min.	IA - TD covers the same amount of ground as IA, but takes nearly an hour more to do so. TD could have been stronger if it had been shorter.
Location	Boston	Hong Kong	IA - While I love Boston, its skyscrapers can't compete with the ones in Hong Kong and IA took full advantage of the HK skyline. The elevation added to the tension, especially in the final confrontation between Lau and Leung at the summit of an urban mountain.
Stealth Communication	Text Messages	Morse Code	IA - While both seem like highly unbelievable forms of undetectable communication in tight quarters, Morse code seems slightly more plausible than text messages for some reason. Everybody in TD was able to send perfectly spelled text messages from phones hidden in their jacket pockets without looking or being discovered. Plus, every guy in TD, including Martin Sheen, had the unnaturally nimble text messaging thumb of a teenaged girl. That's just wrong.
Miscellaneous Cops	Alec Baldwin and Mark Wahlberg	N/A	TD - By a Wahlberg. Both of these characters were splintered from Wong's original Superintendent. Baldwin did a nice job, but Wahlberg stole every scene he was in. His Sgt. Dignam was crass and cynical, yet utterly likable.
Director	Martin Scorsese	Wai Keung Lau and Siu Fai Mak	TD - Scorsese wins by sheer reputation and name recognition alone. He did a great job with the material he had.

Final Tally: TD - 4.5, IA - 6.5.

Both were good movies, but I enjoyed IA more. If you liked The Departed, but haven't seen the original, I would highly recommend watching Infernal Affairs.

There seems to be an inordinate number of movie sequels hitting theaters this summer. I thought it would be fun to list as many as I can. I've broken them into three groups - those I plan to see on the big screen, those I plan to watch on DVD, and those I refuse to see unless the fate of the world hangs in the balance.

Worth the Price of Admission:

• Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - I'm curious to see what happens to Jack Sparrow and his crew.
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - It opens a week before the last book hits shelves.

Worth the Price of Subscription:

• Shrek the Third - The first two were hilarious. The third might be, too.
• Spider-Man 3 - Critics have panned it, but I want to see why they did.
• Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - Silver Surfer is one of my favorite comic characters.
• The Bourne Ultimatum - I probably should watch The Bourne Supremacy first.
• Rush Hour 3 - It will likely be awful, but it's Jackie Chan.

Worth the Price of Omission:

• Live Free or Die Hard - Why?
• Ocean's 13 - There's something about The Modern Day Rat Pack that annoys me.
• Evan Almighty - I'm a Steve Carell fan, so I might end up watching it anyway.
• Resident Evil: Extinction - Gore and horror just aren't my style.

Elkit did this meme and it looked like so much fun, I wanted to give it a go...

1. Name a movie you have seen more than 10 times
I don't think I've ever seen a movie more than ten times. Ones that might be approaching double-digit status would include Star Wars: Episode IV, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, Gosford Park, The Princess Bride, and The Lord of the Rings: Episode I The Fellowship of the Ring.

2. Name a movie you’ve seen multiple times in the theater
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring... I think I saw it twice in two days. I couldn't get enough of it.

3. Name an actor who would make you more inclined to see a movie
Without a doubt, John Cusack.

4. Name an actor who would make you less likely to see a movie
Rob Schneider. Nothing good can come from watching one of his movies.

5. Name a movie you can and do quote from.
I'm awful at quoting from movies. The only quote that comes immediately to mind is, "To infinity and beyond!" And that isn't so much a quote as as slogan. If I could choose a movie to quote from, Airplane! would be a good one. "Roger, Roger. What's our vector, Victor?"

6. Name a movie musical in which you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs
There isn't a musical that meets this description, but there are a few that come close: The Sound of Music, Bye Bye Birdie, and My Fair Lady.

7. Name a movie you have been known to sing along with
Paint Your Wagon, a Clint Eastwood musical. "I Talk to the Trees", "They Call the Wind Maria", and "Wand'rin' Star" are difficult songs not to sing along with.

8. Name a movie you would recommend everyone see
Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Mmm... cheese!!

9. Name a movie you own
The Incredibles, just another Pixar classic, and don't miss the short that comes with it - Boundin'.

10. Name an actor who launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops
I second Elkit's choice of Mark Wahlberg. At the other end of the spectrum would be Toby Keith (Broken Bridges, blech!) and Britney Spears (Crossroads, ugh!). In other words, avoid music artists starring in films with infrastructure titles.

11. Have you ever seen a movie in a drive-in?
Yes, many, many moons ago.

12. Ever made out in a movie?
Hmm... nope.

13. Name a movie you keep meaning to see but you just haven’t gotten around to yet
The History Boys. It's in my queue, it just keeps getting pushed down by other titles.

14. Ever walked out of a movie?
Hmm... nope.

15. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater
Beaches. Technically, it wasn't in a theater, but on a plane. That must have been more than fifteen years ago. I was doing just fine until Bette Midler started singing that gosh darn "Wind Beneath My Wings".

16. Popcorn?
Every once in a long while. Salted and buttered, please.

17. How often do you go to the movies
Once every three months, on average. The advent of Netflix has reduced my visits to the theater.

18. What’s the last movie you saw in the theater?
Monster Camp

19. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie?
Comedy, followed by action. Actually, nothing beats comedy-actions for me think The Mummy or Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

20. What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?
Star Wars: Episode IV

21. What movie do you wish you had never seen?
Poltergeist. I saw it when I was much too young and it gave me nightmares.

22. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?
Donnie Darko... "Wake up, Donnie."

23. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen?
The Ring, just one of many movies I've seen that I wish I hadn't.

24. What is the funniest film you have ever seen?
I can't pick just one. Lame, I know. Contenders for the top spot include anything by Mel Brooks (Blazing Saddles), anything by Christopher Guest (Best in Show, and anything by the Zucker, Abraham and Zucker (The Naked Gun).

This weekend, I

watched Ong-bak. I remember seeing the trailers for this movie a few years back and finally got to see it over the weekend. It's a martial arts film with a basic plot (a young man travels to the big city to retrieve the head of a statue stolen from his village), but some great action sequences.

saw the finale of Grease: You're the One that I Want. I'm stoked Max and Laura won. I like to believe that it was my five votes each week that kept Max safe from elimination and nudged him ahead of Austin this past week to get the leading role in the latest Broadway incarnation of the musical.

attended a party thrown by friends for their one-year-old daughter. It's hard to believe it has been a year since she was born. It didn't seem so long ago that we were visiting L & T in the hospital and Z was but a blanketed bundle. Now she's walking. Admittedly, it's a wobbly, halted, drunken style of walking that requires a certain Jackie Chan level of mastery to imitate, but it's still walking (and that wasn't something she was capable of doing the last time I saw her).

The cynic might ask why anybody would throw a party for a one-year-old and I would have asked the same question a few years back, but I think I get it now. The party is less about celebrating a birthday than it is about celebrating the parents' survival. It's a way to for mom and dad to show friends and family that they're still alive and doing well (exhausted, but well). I hold L & T in high esteem and if I can do half as well as T when I'm a dad some day, I'll be ecstatic.

I think the quote that will stay with me the longest came from L while she was opening gifts. She said to her daughter in a genuinely excited tone, "Oh, Z, the things we'll do, the fun we'll have!"

It was such a refreshing sentiment. I've heard enough people talk about their children as burdens, advising parents-to-be or younger, childless couples to have their fun while they can. When they talk like that, I assume they're joking, but I also sense the mean it to a degree, which is disheartening. Every now and then, it's nice to hear somebody express what I hope and believe: that a child (beyond being hard work and expensive to raise) is a chance for fun and an opportunity for adventure. True, it might not be the same fun one would have if one weren't "burdened" with a child; it might actually be different and better fun.

I finally watched Stranger Than Fiction last night. I loved this movie. Will Ferrell was wonderful as Harold Crick, an ordinary IRS auditor who begins hearing a woman (Emma Thompson) narrate his life, begins to believe (with the help of Dustin Hoffman, who plays a professor of literature) that he's a doomed character in her novel, and sets off on a quest to find her before she kills him.

There is a romantic comedy aspect to the film (between Ferrell and Maggie Gyllenhaal), but it isn't the point of the film. Of course, if it were only a romantic comedy, it would be one of the more amusing ones I've seen in a long time.

Thompson was hilarious as Karen Eiffel, the successful author struggling to find a way to kill her main character. It brought back many happy (and not so happy) memories of NaNoWriMo. One of this year's writing challenges should be to use the phrase "little did he know" (or "little did she know") at least once in the novel.

The film had many little unexpected moments that made me laugh and made my imagination tingle. I had feared the narration would become an overused device, but it was used sparingly, which increased its comedic effect. I got a kick out of the diagrams and drawings that would occasionally overlay Harold's world, showing Eiffel's influence on it. And I dug the soundtrack.

As the movie and Harold neared their respective endings, though, a sickening feeling of inevitability started creeping in, something that doesn't happen too often when I'm watching movies these days. I was rooting hard for Harold to live, but was eventually overcome with the strangest sensation of acceptance, especially when he came to accept his fate.

I'll end with one of my favorite quotes from the film...

Psychiatrist: You have a voice speaking to you.
Harold: About me. Accurately. And with a better vocabulary.

As promised, here is the comic strip. That's supposedly me in the second panel, giving the voidling a solid thwacking. By the way, I don't know how I managed to wear capes in two panels. Everybody knows (especially if they've seen The Incredibles), capes can be harmful to a hero's health.

During Cinequest, I saw two films. I contemplated using the word only in the previous sentence, but considering how busy I was last week (working, volunteering, sleeping, and wondering where the rest of the time went), I'm amazed I managed to see any movies at all. One day, I'll take the entire week off and wander from screening to screening like some of the hardcore festival-goers I've seen.

Rene Hjerter (Pure Hearts) was a darker film than I expected. The star, Anders Matthesen, is a Danish comedian, so I thought he might play a more lighthearted character. I was mistaken. Like Jim Carrey or Robin Williams, Matthesen uses this movie to show he can be something other than funny, namely serious and disturbing.

The story is about Kriss, a mental ward patient, who is obsessed with Linda, a character in a 1930s film called Pure Hearts (a movie within the movie). He and his buddy, Willy, watch a videotape of the movie constantly. The only problem is that it's an incomplete copy and neither of them has ever seen the ending. Kriss is also obsessed with the story of Noah. He hates it and claims it's the reason he stopped reading. He believes Noah should have been more selective about the animals he allowed onto the ark - saving the good ones and leaving the evil ones behind. When the videotape is confiscated, Kriss and Willy escape to find the real Linda, a.k.a. Ulla Vilstrup in the real world.

At its core, this is movie about how we view life, which is like Kriss's copy of Pure Hearts. It's incomplete and nobody knows the ending, but that doesn't stop people from having their theories, letting those theories shade their views of the world, and acting as though their theories are fact. The film asks us to explore those theories by examining the motives behind our actions, challenging the views we hold, and questioning our beliefs of right or wrong.

Monster Camp is an entertaining documentary that explores the world of live action role-playing games (LARPs). In particular, it spends a year with a group in Seattle that plays NERO, which is like World of Warcraft (or Dungeons & Dragons) brought to life.

Instead of making fun of the participants, Cullen Hoback, the director, seeks to understand them. Why do they play? What do they gain from the game? The answer to the first question is pretty obvious. People play because the game is fun and it offers an escape from real life. The answer to the second question is more difficult because it depends on what people are escaping from in the first place.

By trying to honestly portray them, Hoback both reinforces and debunks the D&D stereotype. Yes, there are the slackers (a.k.a. permanent escapees) who aren't employed (and aren't seeking employment) and play Warcraft all day at the expense of everything else (work, family, health), but they aren't the only ones who play. To me, the more compelling participants include the man who learned to be confident "in game" and applied that confidence to his career "out of game"; the quirky son and father duo who bond by playing the game; and the wheelchair-bound seamstress who enjoyed sewing costumes and used the game as a means to temporarily forget her disability.

What was most amazing was the amount of effort and planning it took to make the fantasy a reality. It's a lot of hard work and the people who make the sacrifices so others can have a weekend of fun are pretty incredible. I can see how somebody might get burned out and actually see reality as an escape.

All in all, Monster Camp is a fun peek into a different world and if it (or Pure Hearts) appears at a film festival near you or manages to obtain distribution, I'd recommend seeing it.

Movies I missed that I hope will come out on DVD include The Namesake, Military Intelligence and You, and Maskot.

I had intended to include a comic strip at the beginning of this post, but I haven't finished coloring it yet, so keep an eye out for it later this evening.

Earlier today, I was volunteering at Cinequest. It's the only time I can wear a bright red shirt without feeling self-conscious. This year's design has an exploding light bulb on the front across the chest and the word "Cinequest" on the back across the bottom (or in my case, my bottom).

Today was the first time I was stationed at the San Jose Repertory Theatre, which is right across the street from Camera 12, the festival's main venue.

It had been a most ordinary day until the gentleman depicted in the comic strip showed up at the box office.

I have yet to see a film this year. I'm hoping to see two at the end of this week: Pure Hearts and Monster Camp.

Downtown San Jose's Cinequest Film Festival returns in three weeks. It runs from February 28 through March 11. This year's theme is Revolution.

Earlier this week, the program guide came out online and in the San Jose Metro. I grabbed a copy of the paper on Tuesday and have been slowly going through the listings and highlighting the films I want to see.

This will be my fifth year attending and second year volunteering at Cinequest. While I'm looking forward to seeing a few movies, I'm actually more excited about helping out. Last year, I got a rush working in the box office. Normally, selling tickets does nothing for me, but add in the festival atmosphere and it gives me a buzz.

Off the top of my head, there are two Cinequest-related blogs I know of:

• Cinequest's Blog - the official one written by event organizers.
• Cineblog - festival film reviews by Ealasaid and Fred Crowe.

If I find any others, I'll add them to the sidebar.

It has always been (or at least it seems like it has always been) a family tradition to visit the theater on Thanksgiving to watch a movie. Although the family is gathering to celebrate the holiday (at the Santa Cruz Wharf), we won't be taking in a show before the feast this year. Chalk it up to the majority's disinterest in the current box office offerings. Maybe next year.

In honor of the tradition, I thought it would be fun to make a list of the Top 5 Currently Released Movies I Would Choose to See this Thanksgiving.

1. Stranger Than Fiction
2. Bobby
3. Casino Royale
4. For Your Consideration
5. The History Boys

Whatever your family traditions may be, treasure them. Happy Thanksgiving!

Robert Altman passed away yesterday. He was 81. I recently saw the last movie he directed, A Prairie Home Companion, starring (from most to least favorite actor) Kevin Kline, John C. Reilly, Garrison Keillor, Virginia Madsen, Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson, Lily Tomlin, and Lindsay Lohan. It also featured the regular performers from the radio show of the same name, but I must admit a failure to recall their names without cheating and looking them up. With time and regular listening, I'll eventually have them memorized.

My favorite Altman film is Gosford Park. I love the characters, the story, and the setting of the movie. I love how the camera flows through rooms full of people (e.g. a drawing room with an assortment of well-to-do couples and guests) and captures bits and pieces of their conversations; every bit and piece providing a revealing glimpse of each person. I love how the camera is always moving and how easily one forgets it's moving. It's the film that made me a fan of Clive Owen, Kelly MacDonald, and Helen Mirren. It's also one of the few films I never get tired of watching.

I haven't seen many of Altman's films, but I plan to rectify that in the coming weeks. I just finished my mini-marathon of Christopher Guest movies (Spinal Tap, Best in Show, and A Mighty Wind) as a prelude to seeing For Your Consideration, so I've lined up three Altman classics for immediate viewing: M*A*S*H, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, and Nashville. They're mainly a refresher course. After that, I plan to see some of his movies that are truly new to me.

Do you have any favorite Robert Altman films that you would recommend watching?

Yesterday was a company holiday. The official reason was to observe Columbus Day, but I used it to unofficially recognize Thanksgiving Day in Canada.

It was a simple affair. I enjoyed a maple macchiato while listening to a hockey game (the Sharks won their third in a row). I also paused to list three Canadian comedians I like (Mike Myers, Phil Hartman, Eugene Levy) and one I like less (Howie Mandel) just to be fair.

By the way, Levy and Christ Guest are set to release a new movie this fall called For Your Consideration (official site). While it features the same cast as past Guest films (Catherine O'Hara, Michael McKean and Fred Willard, to name three), it abandons Guest's trademark mockumentary style in favor of a more conventional storytelling approach. Thankfully, there still appears to be plenty of improvisation, which is the heart of his comedies.

For a good laugh and as a prelude to the premiere, I should add This is Spinal Tap, Best in Show and A Mighty Wind to the top of my queue for a Guest and Co. movie marathon.

And since I can't seem to find a decent link for the maple macchiato I mentioned above, I'll link to Starbucks Gossip, an entertaining blog I stumbled across during my search, instead.

I'm bringing sexy back

It's Monday again, but on the upside, it's the first Monday of autumn. Soon, there will come cooler weather, fall colors and soft rains.

On Friday, I watched Eight Below and survived. Of course, some of the less trusting folks out there might be thinking, "Oh, sure, you quote unquote watched it, but what does that really mean? For all we know, you could have had it playing on the television while you stared at the ceiling and hummed "SexyBack" over and over again."

While I have no witnesses to vouch to the contrary, I can only give you my word that I didn't zone out and sing a Justin Timberlake tune while the film was on. And no, I didn't watch it while napping, reading or surfing the web. I sat on the couch with my eyes open and focused on the movie, which wasn't half as bad as I thought it would be.

Take 'em to the chorus

The snow-covered vistas captured on film were incredible and the sled dogs did a fine job of acting. Anyone who has a soft spot for dogs (or pets in general, like cats or kinkajous) will likely find himself or herself drawn to the dogs' plight and the protagonist's quest to rescue them.

The human acting left something to be desired, but I thought the one bright spot in the cast was Bruce Greenwood. He's been in numerous television shows and movies, but I'll always remember him as Thomas Veil from a short-lived show that aired a decade ago called Nowhere Man. The show's first (and only) season is available on DVD and is now at the top of my queue.

With the excitement of Eight Below out of the way, I can now return my regular television viewing.

Go ahead, be gone with it

Last night, I watched the premiere of Grey's Anatomy, giving it just the nudge it needed to beat CSI in the ratings. To ensure it stays on top, I guess I'll just have to keep watching it for the rest of the season.

Right now, I'm about to sit down to watch Eight Below, a "subzero survival story" (according to the Netflix blurb) that is certain to warm my heart. It's a movie my mom requested, but since I won't be seeing her for another day or so to pass along the disc, I thought I'd check it out.

It's a Disney movie, so my gut instinct tells me it's going to be dorky. I know it's wrong to pass judgment on something I haven't seen, but my gut can't help it when it comes to the company that actually spent money to make Herbie Fully Loaded and remake The Shaggy Dog.

To satisfy my curiosity, I just visited Rotten Tomatoes to see what it scored on the Tomatometer. It rated a 70%, which is pretty good, but I thought the Consensus was amusing and more revealing...

"Featuring a stellar cast of marooned mutts, who deftly display emotion, tenderness, loyalty and resolve, Eight Below is a heartwarming and exhilarating adventure film."

I like how they compliment the animals, but fail to mention the actors. Apparently the sled dogs display emotion and tenderness more skillfully than their human counterparts - the blond guy from The Fast and the Furious (Paul Walker) and the pie guy from American Pie (Jason Biggs).

Walker and Biggs are supposed to be Antarctic scientists. For some reason, I'm having trouble picturing that in my head, so I should probably wrap this up and actually watch the movie.

Two weeks ago, I watched two baseball movies: Eight Men Out and 61*.

Eight Men Out was a film about the Black Sox scandal where players from the Chicago White Sox took money to throw the 1919 World Series. The most recognizable faces in the cast were John Cusack, Charlie Sheen, D.B. Sweeney, John Mahoney (from Fraser) and Studs Terkel.

Cusack played George "Buck" Weaver, Chicago's third baseman, who knew about, but refused it to participate in the fix. Hoping the others would come around before derailing the entire series, he kept quiet. His silence would cost him dearly.

After the scandal broke, baseball's first commissioner, the tough Kenesaw Mountain Landis (how I love that name), banned the seven conspirators and Weaver from baseball for life with the following statement:

"Regardless of the verdicts of juries, no player who entertains proposals or promises to throw a game, no player who sits in conference with a bunch of crooked players and gamblers where the ways and means of throwing games are discussed and does not promptly tell the club about it will ever play professional baseball."

The movie painted a sympathetic portrait of Weaver, so it was easy to feel that Landis punished him too severely. On the other hand, if Weaver had spoken up when he had the chance, he might have squashed the whole thing.

Before the Series began, his manager, William "Kid" Gleason, played by Mahoney, saw that something was distressing Weaver. With just the two of them staring out at the empty ballpark, Gleason gave him a chance to say something, say anything, but Weaver clammed up and essentially sealed his fate (at least, as the movie tells it).

Compared to Landis' swift and stern response to the threat gambling posed to the game, the current commissioner's response to the steroid threat seems even more indecisive. It has only been over the last year that baseball's leaders have seriously addressed the issue. Bud Selig recently released an open letter to fans outlining the sport's stance and response to the use of human growth hormones. I'm glad he at least said something officially, but it will be interesting to see what action will be taken and how forcefully it will be taken against those who attempt to cheat the game.

The second movie was Billy Crystal's inspiring 61*, the story of Roger Maris' and Mickey Mantle's historic 1961 season. Early in the year, both men were on pace to beat Ruth's record. As the season progressed, the single season home run record became the story of the year.

Here were two Yankee teammates chasing the Babe's record in the house he built. Mantle was the crowd-pleasing veteran. Maris was the reclusive youngster. Despite the media's claim of a feud or a rivalry, the men were actually good friends who helped each other deal with the pressures the additional attention brought. Just as people focused on every plate appearance when McGwire and Bonds threatened and eventually broke the previous single season record, the intensity was just as strong forty-five years ago.

One of the story's aspects I found interesting was how Yankee fans loved Mantle, but hated Maris. Mantle was handsome, friendly and outgoing. He was the media darling, the fan favorite. He had played in New York for a long time, so he was their man. Maris was quiet and never smiled. The media immediately disliked him and so did the fans. He had only spent a year with the team, so to them, he wasn't a "true" Yankee. Whenever Mantle hit a home run, they cheered. Whenever Maris hit one, they jeered.

As Maris got closer to the record, fans became more hostile. They started sending him death threats and hate mail. It didn't matter that Maris was a wholesome guy with a wife and kids. It didn't matter that Mantle partied too much or cheated on his wife. Who they were as men played no part in who people chose to be their hero.

All Maris wanted was to play baseball and the public punished him for it. Seeing how poorly fans treated him made his record-breaking home run even sweeter. It was a moment of exhilaration and relief; exhilaration for what he achieved and relief because his achievement also meant freedom from the inhospitable glare of the spotlight.

Crystal's love of the game was evident throughout the film, as was his admiration of both players, especially Mantle. I'm just glad he didn't whitewash the sport or lapse into simple hero worship. The film didn't shy away from the ugly side of the game and showed Maris and Mantle at their best and worst during that most amazing year in baseball history.

Yesterday

> was Election Day in California. I didn't vote, which I feel somewhat bad about because I know every vote counts. A couple of people were actually kind enough to remind me of that fact after I told them I hadn't visited my polling place. Of course, neither of them could tell me how much my vote would count and I have a feeling it wasn't because they didn't know, but because they didn't want to admit that it wouldn't count for much.

> was also June 6, 2006, which in its numerical form is 6-6-2006, the number of the beast's lesser-known cousin, Walbert, whose latest foray into evil resulted in the production of Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties. What's truly evil is the temptation I feel to watch the movie just to see if it's as atrocious as it looks in the previews.

> I hung out at the blogger gathering at Barefoot Coffee Roasters. The conversation covered a wide range of topics including rabbis, copyright laws, unpacked moving boxes, Kathleen Harris, metrics of fame, ethanol, mycereal.com and outsourcing, which may sound boring in a list, but is a hoot in a coffee shop. It is... really.

> San Francisco's Jason Schmidt struck out 16 batters in a complete game victory over the Florida Marlins. He tied the team record set back in 1904 by the great Christy Mathewson. The Giants are in a three-game winning streak and are three games out of first place in their division. With Moises Alou returning to the lineup, they will hopefully keep the streak going and gain more ground.

I attended Barry Eisler's book release at Kepler's in Menlo Park last Thursday. The Last Assassin is the fifth book in his six-book John Rain series. I wasn't going to mention it until I finished reading the novel, but with a stack of unread library books accumulating dust (and potential late fees) at home, I have no idea when that will be. June would be nice. July is more likely.

One reason why the books remain unread is that I watched two baseball movies on Friday and Saturday. The first was Eight Men Out, a film about the Black Sox scandal where players from the unstoppable Chicago White Sox took money from gamblers to lose the 1919 World Series. The second was Billy Crystal's 61*, the story of Roger Maris' and Mickey Mantle's 1961 pursuit of Babe Ruth's single season home run record. I want to write more about both films, but feel rather pressed for time now, so I'll just say I enjoyed them.

Another reason I didn't read is that I saw X-Men: The Last Stand on Sunday. I went in with high hopes, but came out rather disappointed. From the previews, I thought the film had potential. A government-funded laboratory announces a "cure" for the mutant gene. At the same time, Jean Grey (a.k.a. The Phoenix) returns. What happens next? Well, to me, what happened next was a muddled mess. If the two plotlines were dance partners, they were stepping all over each other's toes. They didn't move well together and actually seemed to hinder one another. Certain elements that worked in the previous installments seemed diluted in this one: the rivalry between Charles Xavier and Magneto, the love triangle involving Jean Grey, Cyclops and Wolverine. Even the tension between the government and mutants seemed watered down. And at times, it felt as though events unfolded a specific way, not for the sake of the story, but for the sake of showing off mutant abilities.

This weekend, I

> ambled through the U.C. Davis' Whole Earth Festival. Every year, the festival organizers aim to increase environmental and social awareness through education, food, music and art. There were vendors selling organic food, hemp clothing, tie-dyed clothing, the usual arts and crafts found at festivals everywhere and henna body art. Made keenly aware of my own materialism, I didn't buy anything.

I was most impressed with the geodesic domes and the concept of community composting, which was rigidly enforced through the removal of all trash and recycling receptacles from the vicinity.

I was least impressed with the man at the tent providing information about local trail preservation efforts. I glanced at some of the brochures he had on display, but didn't take any of the literature. As we moved on to the next tent, he said, "If you don't stop to ask questions, you'll never learn anything. Just keep walking. It's the mindless twenty-first century." I don't know what he was hoping to accomplish with his remarks, but if he was hoping to win me over with his charm, it didn't work. It's not what he said (for I agree with him). It's the way he said it.

> annoyed strangers and acquaintances alike with my constant sniffling and bouts of sneezing. My allergies were at their worst on Friday and Saturday and were only slightly better on Sunday. They finally began to let up in a noticeable way after I used an over-the-counter nasal spray that I purchased from Costco during a medicine run last night. I decided to stop buying everything in 12-dose quantities where the pills are individually sealed and separated in a perforated field of plastic and foil and packaged in a box one-hundred times the size of the product it contains. From now on, I'm buying my allergy medication in bulk.

> celebrated Mother's Day with my mom the day before Mother's Day. Since my dad planned to treat her to a dinner for two on the actual day, the family dinner was moved a day ahead. We had Chinese food, which is the default food for almost all family occasions. Every birthday, anniversary and holiday has been celebrated with Chinese food at least once. Nothing says Christmas, Thanksgiving or St. Patrick's Day like a plate of chow fun and bowl of steamed rice.

> bought a dozen easy-to-install solar lamps for the backyard. They were on sale and the hardware store was also having a special tax-free weekend event, so I snapped them up. When fully charged, each light provides fifteen hours of white LED goodness in a bronze-colored fixture. The best part is that they are wireless, which gives the yard an unusually clean look and makes future relocations easy. I never imagined myself being one of "those people" with outdoor lighting, but now that I am, I feel inclined to go all in and buy a set of tiki lamps, a flock of plastic flamingoes and a horde of lawn gnomes.

> watched The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (TGtBatU) on DVD. Within the past two months, I've seen the three spaghetti westerns that make up Sergio Leone's unofficial trilogy featuring The Man With No Name played by Clint Eastwood. (The first two in the trilogy are A Fistful of Dollars and A Few Dollars More.) After watching them, I can confidently say that nobody squints better than Clint. I've always been a big Eastwood fan, but this most recent viewing also made me a fan of Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach and Ennio Morricone. Van Cleef played Angel Eyes (or The Bad) in TGtBatU and Colonel Mortimer in A Few Dollars More. Wallach played Tuco (or The Ugly) in TGtBatU. Now I'm curious to see his performance in The Magnificent Seven. Morricone composed the music for all three films.

Watching Leone's movies, I can see how he influenced Robert Rodriguez's El Mariachi trilogy. Now I want to see how Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo influenced Leone's A Fistful of Dollars.

Cinequest finished on Sunday. For devoted movie enthusiasts, the film festival was a twelve-day cinematic excursion. For me, it was the traveling equivalent of two weekend getaways bridged by a long stay in Workland.

I don't know how some of the more avid film fanatics were able to do it. Most of their waking hours were spent sitting in theaters, watching movie after movie, immersing themselves in film. I like movies well enough, but I don't think I would have the stamina. A day of movies? Perhaps. Twelve days of movies? I'm thinking overdose.

As a movie experience, this year's festival was so-so. That probably had more to do with the movies I chose to see than with the movies actually offered. If I were to rank the four I saw from most to least favorite, this is how the list would look:

• An Enemy of the People
• Clear Cut
• Loop
• Frozen Land

An Enemy of the People was an adaptation of an Ibsen play of the same name. Loyalty was one of the film's major themes - loyalty to self, loyalty to family and loyalty to community. In the story, the main character tries to stay true to all three, but events within and beyond his control ultimately force him to choose one above the rest. It was a well-paced, well-acted film. It was also my finale for this year's Cinequest, which was good because it would have sucked to end on a movie I disliked.

As a side note, when I first went through the festival guide, I hadn't set out to watch movies from one particular country over another, but as it turned out, two of the four films I saw were from Norway (Enemy and Loop). What's scary is that it should have been three, but I accidentally switched the plots in my head between Frozen Land and a film called Kissed by Winter. Frozen Land, by the way, is from Finland, so I apparently had an unconscious craving for Scandinavian flicks this year.

As a volunteer experience, this year's festival was great. I took shifts both weekends, working as a greeter, an usher and a ticket agent. Of the three, selling tickets in the box office was the most fun.

The box office felt like the hub of activity. From there, I could gain a sense of the festival as a whole, which was important to me. The best times corresponded with the busiest (and most stressful) times, when movies were showing on all screens and lines of moviegoers materialized out of nowhere. If I volunteer next year (and I definitely hope to), the box office will be my first choice.

Cinequest 16 begins in three days. The nearly two-week long film festival runs from March 1 to March 12. I only grabbed a copy of the program guide last Thursday as I passed Camera 12 and only went through the movie listings yesterday. I know the guide is available online, but there's something about sitting in a busy cafe, reading descriptions printed on paper and physically circling potential picks that I like. For a few moments, I can pretend to be cultured.

Of course, for me the fun is in the planning. It begins with the pen and program guide and ends with a spreadsheet to help me avoid scheduling conflicts between movies and pesky "obligations" like work, meals and sleep. One additional obligation this year is volunteering for the festival. I just heard from the coordinator and I'll be helping out at the box office for a few hours over the next two weeks.

As I went through this year's offerings, I noticed I had become much more finicky. In 2003 and 2004, I easily found ten movies I wanted to see. I didn't end up liking all ten of them, but I at least gave them a chance. Last year, only five movies made the cut for potential viewing. This year, I again only found five I was willing to pay nine dollars to see and that number dropped to four thanks to a timing conflict.

A more positive spin might replace finicky with discerning, but the fact remains that my tolerance level has lessened, which makes me less receptive to potentially good films. I'm not happy about feeling like I've become somewhat closed-minded because that isn't who I want to be. The only thing I can think of to remedy the situation is to go through the guide again and ask myself why I don't want to see certain movies. Perhaps a theme will present itself. If I can see what chains are holding me back, I can break out of them.

Anyway, here are the four films I hope to see:

1. Clear Cut: The Story of Philomath, Oregon
2. An Enemy of the People
3. Frozen Land
4. Loop

This weekend, I:

> finished watching Gettysburg. This was a big feat only because the movie was over four hours long. The film, based on Michael Shaara's novel, The Killer Angels, which I've yet to read, was made in the early nineties and starred Martin Sheen (General Lee), Tom Berenger (General Longstreet), Sam Elliot (General Buford) and Jeff Daniels (Colonel Chamberlain).

Shot on location at Gettysburg National Military Park, it featured thousands of Civil War re-enactors and dozens of artillery pieces. Between relatively bloodless battle scenes, I felt like I was watching a Greek drama with heroes delivering emotional monologues or philosophizing on the battlefield. That element of the movie I can forgive only because the film strove for and achieved authenticity in every other respect, especially when it came to facial hair.

Of the many men waxing poetic, Buford moved me the most. An excerpt of his "speech", as he stood on the outskirts of town the day before the battle and observed the Confederates approaching, is at the end of this entry.

> watched part of Super Bowl XL. I missed the first half, but caught the half-time show and most of the second half. With no real interest in either team, it didn't matter to me if Seattle or Pittsburgh won. Because I'll soon forget, Pittsburgh prevailed 21-10 and the quarterbacks were Hasselbeck (Seahawks) and Roethlisberger (Steelers).

The Rolling Stones were the much-hyped half-time performers. The most impressive thing about their act was the stage, which was in the shape of their logo (the big lips with the big tongue hanging out) and surrounded by hundreds of screaming fans. During their first song, "Start Me Up", the tongue rippled until it finally fell away to reveal more screaming fans underneath.

I've never been much of a Stones fan. I'm sure they are great musicians and performers, but I just don't find them or their songs very likable. Considering that football's biggest event was happening in Detroit, I would have rather listened to the sounds of Motown.

The best commercial I saw was a MasterCard spot featuring Richard Dean Anderson reprising his role as (Angus) MacGyver. The closing scene of him at the grocery store buying tube socks, paper clips and chewing gum and stuffing them in his pockets was classic.

> finished reading C.S. Lewis: A Biography by A.N. Wilson. I read this book because of my renewed interest in the author since the release of the Narnia movie.

The film rekindled the battle between those who wish to deify Lewis and those who wish to demonize him. Instead of listening to either side, I hunted for an unbiased biography. Wilson presents Lewis in a fair light, revealing his strengths and weaknesses, providing the reader with a realistic picture of the man.

Lewis was a brilliant literary critic whose theological writings were most powerful and accessible when rooted in allegory and imagination. At the same time, he was an inferior poet (his first professional aspiration) and philosopher (his second) who could see the talent of others, but was blind to his own.

The most surprising thing I learned about Lewis was his thirty-plus-year relationship with a woman twenty-seven years his senior, who he claimed was his adopted mother, but was most likely his lover. My favorite (and probably the most famous) story is the one concerning Lewis' late night walk through Oxford with J.R.R. Tolkien and Hugo Dyson, which eventually led to the writer's conversion to Christianity.

> finished reading Der Ring des Nibelungen by Richard Wagner (translated by Andrew Porter). One of Lewis' childhood influences was Wagner, specifically his Ring operas, which were inspired by Nordic and Germanic mythology. Normally, I actively avoid anything related to opera, but once I read the basic storyline, my curiosity led me to read the English translation of the German libretto (in book form) and listen to the first two operas (Das Rheingold and Die Walk�re) in the four-opera cycle.

Although I'm still not a fan of operatic singing, I must admit that Wagner has me hooked. I'm blown away by his prodigious array of leitmotifs to represent characters, places and themes. I'm also taken with his effective, if sometimes excessive, use of alliteration (Stabreim), which I learned from one of the essays was a very old German form of rhyming.

While I was intrigued by the story's underlying mythology, I was most struck by some of the similarities between it and Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien didn't come anywhere close to plagiarizing Wagner, but one can tell that he was aware and likely influenced by the German composer. With a quick search, I was able to find a great New Yorker article comparing the two sagas.

"Meade will finally attack, if he can coordinate the army. Straight up the hillside, out in the open... in that gorgeous field of fire. We will charge valiantly and be butchered valiantly. And afterward, men in tall hats and gold watch fobs will thump their chests... and say what a brave charge it was. Devin, I've led a soldier's life... and I've never seen anything as brutally clear as this. It's as if I can actually see the blue troops in one long bloody moment... going up the long slope to the stony top... as if it were already done... and already a memory. An odd, set... stony quality to it. As if tomorrow has already happened and there's nothing you can do about it"
- Sam Elliot as Brigadier General John Buford

"That's the way it crumbles... cookie-wise."

I happened to watch parts of Billy Wilder's The Apartment this weekend on PBS. It starred Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine and won an Oscar for Best Picture in 1960. I loved the satire of the film and found it helped with my novel... procrastination-wise.

Speaking of which, consistency has been a problem this past week... writing-wise. I either have lacked the motivation or have been easily distracted by computer problems or Lost podcasts. The result has been three zero-word days. The nice cushion I built early in the month is gone. Today, I'm hoping for some heroics to get ahead of the daily quota again.

Over the last couple of days, I've been thinking about my novel... description-wise. I've been searching for the perfect "something meets something" label. As far as I can tell, my novel is The O.C. meets Timeline meets The Da Vinci Code. With any luck, it will all meet the Recycle Bin in another week.

Just in case I don't get another chance to post today, I wish you all a happy and tasty tomorrow, Thanksgiving-wise and turkey-wise, respectively. I leave you with one of my other favorite quotes from the movie.

"Ya know, I used to live like Robinson Crusoe. I mean shipwrecked among 8 million people. And then one day I saw a footprint in the sand and there you were."

I'm operating on three and a half-hours of sleep and an extra cup of remarkably strong coffee today. That's because I was out all night Pottering. (When I'm fully awake and read that sentence again, I'm going to cringe and want to cry.)

We caught the first showing of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire at midnight. Now I can claim to be one of the first to see the movie. Well, actually, the first to see about 95% of the movie. I accidentally dozed off for a few minutes somewhere in the middle.

It was a spontaneous decision to go. We were watching the six o'clock news and they ran a story about the sold out showing of Goblet of Fire in Santa Cruz. This, of course, prompted me to ask M, "So, if our theater had available seats for Harry at midnight, would you go?" She said yes and eighteen seconds later (give or take an hour), we were at the ticket window.

We bought tickets and since there were only five or six teenagers camping in the seating queue, we decided to return an hour before the movie. When we returned, the group of six or so had become a mob of 1,123 (give or take a thousand). Teens and tweens made up most of the crowd with a few parents thrown in for variety. Nobody wore house colors or had lightning bolt scars on their foreheads, which was disappointing.

Anyway, afterwards, my initial opinion was that the movie was merely okay. I liked it, but was dissatisfied with how abruptly it seemed to end. In many parts, it felt as though the editor paid more attention to the clock than the story. And I couldn't get over Rupert Grint's hair. He plays Ron Weasley. His hair was very red, very big and very there.

With a few hours to sleep on it, my current opinion is that it was good (the movie, not the hair), but not great. The film had a wonderful blend of humor and heaviness, but it was spread over a forced mixture of action, suspense and romance (manifested as moments of awkwardness or jealousy). The usual cast of students and professors didn't have more than cameo appearances, but on the bright side, that allowed more time for the interesting and creepy "Mad-Eye" Moody, the latest Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

Was the movie worth getting less than four hours of sleep? For avid Potter fans (and I include myself), I'd say yes. For others, I'd say no, but would also say it's a worthwhile matinee.

For future reference, here is how I would rank the four released Potter films from most to least favorite:

1. Prisoner of Azkaban
2. Sorceror's Stone
3. Goblet of Fire
4. Chamber of Secrets

Only two more years until Order of the Phoenix arrives!

It's dark and drizzly outside. It's also Monday. I don't know why, but I feel like scoring things today, so on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the bad and 10 being the good, I'd give this Monday a 4.

This morning, I had a hot cup of coffee, a tasty bowl of oatmeal (with brown sugar and maple syrup) and some peaches. I'd give breakfast a 7. And since the commute has been so smooth and the light rail is actually running on schedule, I'll give it an 8. Things are copacetic.

Over the weekend, I wrote approximately 4,000 words for NaNoWriMo. I'd give myself an 8 for effort, but a 3 for originality. I've been trying to develop creative plot twists, but everything seems so predictable. So far, my story has as many surprises as a merry-go-round. What I need is a merry-go-round that dumps water on people and plunges a hundred feet without warning.

I did half of my writing on Saturday, at the Il Fornaio cafe in Carmel, which I'd give a 9. Although it is an enclosed space, the place feels open and airy with its octagonal shape, towering walls and canopies hung high to diffuse the natural light shining through the glass ceiling.

I'd give a 6 to Orchard Valley Coffee in Campbell where I did the rest of my writing on Sunday. The place was bustling with activity during the Farmers' Market, which was great, but it just felt darker than usual inside, like a cave. Despite the large storefront windows, there wasn't enough sunlight for my liking.

I watched two DVDs over the weekend: The Eiger Sanction and Dogtown and Z-Boys.

The Eiger Sanction was a Clint Eastwood film from the 1970s. The official synopsis claims the movie is about a retired assassin (Eastwood) who comes out of retirement for one last mission, which just happens to involve killing an enemy assassin while climbing the Eiger, a mountain in the Swiss Alps. What the movie is really about is climbing the Eiger. All that other stuff is just an implausible pretext to fill the ninety minutes preceding the climb. The dialogue was unbearable, but the climbing sequences were fantastic. As a serious spy thriller, I give it a 3. As a spoof of a serious spy thriller, I give it a 7.

Dogtown and Z-Boys is a documentary about skateboarding. In the 70s, a group of teens revolutionized skateboarding by incorporating crazy surfing moves into their skateboarding style. Twelve guys and girl made up the Zephyr Skating Team (a.k.a. the Z-Boys) and they all grew up in Dogtown, an area that encompassed parts of Santa Monica and Venice, California. The insights by the various members were hit or miss, but the archival footage and photos were amazing. Overall, I'd give it a solid 6.

Well, that's all I have time to write this morning. I think this entry deserves a score of 4. I hope tomorrow's note is better.

This weekend, I

> saw highlights of the lengthy struggle between Houston and Atlanta. It ended with the Astros beating the Braves in the 18th inning. They will face St. Louis in the NLCS (National League Championship Series).

It's the matchup I wanted to see. My gut believes St. Louis will win, but the rest of me secretly hopes Houston will make it. I've always had a soft spot for the Astros. They were the visiting team against the Giants in the first major league game I ever attended. I remember Nolan Ryan started for Houston.

I'm also a fan of Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell. Until this season, the two were mainstays at the top of the Astros lineup. Both have also played for the same team their entire careers (Biggio since 1988, Bagwell since 1991), a rarity that is becoming ever more rare these days.

> watched the Angels clinch their series from the Yankees. I'm happy for three reasons. First, it's always fun to watch the Evil Empire fail despite Steinbrenner's millions. Second, it helped alleviate some of the disappointment of the White Sox sweeping the Red Sox. And third, New York's defeat made Joe Buck and Tim McCarver eat humble pie. Those two Fox broadcasters drive me insane.

Now that it's between Chicago and Los Angeles, I'm rooting for the White Sox. And just in case somebody is thinking I have a grudge against the Angels because they beat the Giants in the 2002 World Series. I don't. I have a grudge against them because of their thunder sticks and crazy rally monkey.

> saw Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit and loved it. It's hard to believe that stop-motion characters can look so alive. Nick Park is a master with Plasticine. The movie had an abundance of action, humor and rabbits. The scene where Wallace and Gromit catch rabbits on Lady Tottington's estate with the Bun-Vac 6000 is classic. I also got a kick out of the scene where Gromit flipped on the radio and heard part of a Simon and Garfunkel's tune, a random reference to a less cheery movie also involving rabbits.

> rediscovered SimCity 4. It's probably unhealthy to have this much fun planning a city, but I can't help it. It certainly beats playing violent games.

Currently, I'm attempting to improve the standard of living for the citizens of Beantown, a town of 12,000 simulated souls. The most pressing problem is the pollution. One solution is to create open spaces like parks or forests, but so far, I haven't been so successful. For somebody who loves open spaces, I have had a difficult time resisting the urge to zone every available square of land. This evening, I'll have to be strong and decide which developed areas I'm going to demolish and clear to create the Beantown Green, the first step in an effort to bring breathable air back to the people.

> finally cleaned a room I swore I would clean for the last 91 years. I had been meaning to do it for so long that it actually appeared on my to do list decades before I was born.

Bright eyes
Burning like fire
Bright eyes
How can you close and fail?
How can the light that burned so brightly suddenly burn so pale?
Bright eyes

"I am a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar." – Wash, the pilot (played by Alan Tudyk), attempting to navigate Serenity to safety, pursued by relentless Reavers, through the onslaught of Alliance ships.

I saw Serenity on Sunday and enjoyed it immensely. The film picked up where the series left off, but I think Joss Whedon did an adequate job of reintroducing the background and characters, enough to bring newcomers up to speed on the key points. My greatest fear was that it would feel like I was paying $6.50 to see a television show. Admittedly, the first part felt more suitable for the small screen than the big screen, but I think that's only because I was familiar with the series.

Actually, when Firefly was on television, I sometimes felt like I was watching a film. Part of it had to do with the special effects and part of it had to do with the set design. Whedon and his crew built both levels of Serenity in their entirety. That doesn't seem like much, but it allowed for camera angles that put me in mind of a movie. The camera could also travel the length of the ship without having to cut away, which was a nice touch.

The movie featured the entire original cast. I was happy about that because one of Firefly's strengths was its ensemble. If some of them had been missing, it would have undermined the sense of family, one of the major themes of the show and movie.

One of my other fears was that the movie would try too hard to be funny, characters becoming caricatures of themselves. That didn't happen. There were plenty of one-liners and sarcastic remarks, but they were one-liners and remarks the characters would normally make. There was also some great physical humor, in as much as fight scenes can contain physical humor. Nathan Fillion, who played Captain Malcolm Reynolds, has a way of taking a punch that makes me both cringe and laugh at the same time (an odd sight to see in itself).

Given the medium, Whedon had more freedom to do what he wanted with the story and characters. In most television shows, primary characters have an invisible safety net that protects them from irreparable harm. If a regular is shot, he or she makes a full recovery by the next episode. The safety net reduces the sense of real danger. Extras and guest stars are poor substitutes for the characters that viewers know and love.

With two twists, one I saw coming and one that blindsided me, Whedon ripped away the net and put his characters in real peril. By doing that, I think the emotions his characters expressed - fear, desperation, anger and resolve - felt more real.

Compared to other shows made into movies – I'm thinking primarily of Star Trek – Serenity is one of the best I've seen. In fact, the movie was so good, it might very well be one of the best I've seen this year. With the way it ended, I have mixed feelings about a possible sequel. I would love to see the story continue, but at the same time, I would be quite satisfied if this were the end. In either case, I'm looking forward to the DVD release. I would see it in the theater again, but I'm saving my next $6.50 for Wallace and Gromit.

Perusing the last few weeks of box office reports, the titles in the top ten haven't impressed me much. I think the major production companies could have saved some money if they had collaborated to make one monstrous movie called Bigalow, The 40-Year-Old Wedding Crasher of Hazzard.

Judging from recent trailers on television, it seems the only films out are brainless comedies and gory fright flicks. Maybe I'm mistaken. Maybe the companies producing the worthwhile movies are simply averse to advertising through mainstream media outlets. Maybe they simply can't afford it. Whatever the case may be, if they're out there, they're doing a fine job of hiding.

The only movie that looks anything close to appealing is March of the Penguins, but I'm of the opinion that a documentary, even a exceptional one with penguins and Morgan Freeman, isn't worth ten dollars. Don't get me wrong. I want to see it. I just don't need to the full "theater experience". I'm content to add it to my queue and watch it when it comes out on DVD.

Until then, either I can continue to rant about the slim pickings or I can be more positive and make a list of upcoming movies that have caught my eye. Let's go with the second option. Here are the Top 5 future features I want to see in the theaters.

1. The Chronicles of Narnia. The seven-book series by C.S. Lewis comes to life. I hear that it will be a trilogy, a la The Lord of the Rings, where Disney releases one installment each December.
2. Serenity. It's the movie adaptation of Joss Whedon's short-lived television sci-fi western. I hope the show translates well to the big screen.
3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I'm curious to see how much the actors have changed since the last one. The plan is to watch the first three again over a period of weeks to keep the interest burning, but at the same time, not burn out.
4. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. They endeared themselves to me with their short films. Wallace is the wacky inventor who loves cheese. Gromit is his dog and the smarter of the two. They finally get their first full-length film.
5. King Kong. It has the potential to be campy and awful, but I'm hopeful that Peter Jackson will be as masterful with dinosaurs and a giant gorilla as he was with elves and orcs.

The office has been hectic this week. I took Monday off and that's the only thing preventing me from making a break for the sunshine. All I have to do is survive until Captain Saturday comes to the rescue. But before he and his sidekick, Sunday Boy, arrive in the Weekendmobile, I thought I'd quickly review last weekend's highlights.

Last Saturday evening, I attended a South Valley Symphony concert. They perform primarily in Gilroy, at Gavilan College, but for one night, they played at the Advent Lutheran Church in Morgan Hill. The orchestra is about thirty instruments strong and all of the musicians are volunteers, which is neat. It isn't the same experience as seeing the San Francisco Symphony perform at Davies Symphony Hall, but it has its own charm.

The music director and conductor, Henry Mollicone, led the orchestra, which performed three pieces:

1. Concert Waltz #1 by Glazunov
2. Violin Concerto by Sibelius
3. Symphony #4 "The Tragic" by Schubert

Admittedly, I wasn't familiar with any of the pieces and the only composer I recognized was Schubert. Despite the lack of name recognition, I liked the first two pieces more than the third. The waltz was lively and drew the audience in for the violin concerto, which was dark, tragic and featured Dale King, the solo violinist, who was brilliant. Because of the small venue, he stood no more than twenty feet away from us. Actually, all of the musicians were so close that it felt like we were in the orchestra pit with them.

During intermission, instead of paying eight dollars for a glass of wine, like we would in San Francisco, we paid two dollars for bottled water and Reese's Pieces. Thinking about it makes me laugh. I enjoyed the small-town symphony experience.

On Sunday, after dim sum (which I refuse to give up no matter what