The Center Seat

where i am

2010-12-02T15:35:00.000-06:00

This is what work (you know, my day job) has been like for me this week:

That's me with my pretty manicured nails clawing the air.

See you next week when someone makes this cube into a seven-layer salad.

day zero update #3

2010-11-26T04:20:00.004-06:00

It's the day after Thanksgiving, and I'm SO NOT in line at the stores. I intend to spend this entire day in my pj's, feasting on leftovers. So there.

Completed Tasks

~~#44: Get all new gifts put away and house in order.~~ With a LOT of help from Mr. Nayana.

Tasks in Progress

#15: Watch all AFI 100 movies. I saw Platoon! Now at 45/100.
#16: Get 200 Facebook fans. No movement here.
#17: Watch all Academy Award Best Picture winners. I saw Platoon! So now I've seen 43/82.
#19: Watch all Coen brothers movies. I posted the list on Wednesday; I'm at 8/15.
#22: Stay caught up on Google Reader for a month. Still going! This task will be completed on December 11.
#23: See all feature films directed by Hayao Miyazaki. I'm planning to post this list next Wednesday. I'm about halfway done.
#24: Pay off all credit cards. Nothing to report here.
#25: Pay off car loan. Or here.
#47: Finish name changes. Does the electric company really have to have my legal name on file?
#64: Eat at ten new restaurants. No new restaurants this week. Still at 1/10.
#65: Learn sign language. Had to skip my ASL class this week; hope I didn't miss too much.
#71: Complete our wedding registry. No real progress, but I did convert much of it into a Target "List", so family has a nice Christmas list to work from. (Am I the only one that usually draws a blank when someone asks what you want for Christmas?)
#77: Watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series) from beginning to end. We're through Season One! See yesterday's post.
#82: Get caught up at work. I expect to be done with this by this time next week. Yay!
#85: Structure my work time into a set schedule, and stick to it for a month. Still going! I should be done with this goal December 9. I'll probably stick to it after the month is up, as it makes my job MUCH easier, and gives me time for blogging.

There you have it! Have a fantastic weekend.

buffy the vampire slayer: season one, episodes five-twelve

2010-11-25T04:20:00.049-06:00

Nayana's standard Buffy disclaimer/Reverse spoiler alert: This is my first time EVER watching this series. I am very interested in keeping my experience pure, so please take care in the comments to not give any spoilers, clues, or insights from future (to me) seasons or episodes.

We've been powering through these episodes! They're so fun to watch, so it's really easy to keep clicking the "Next Episode" button when we're done with one. Eight episodes in a week... it's not going to be the standard, but it could definitely happen again.

Episode 5: Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

Buffy's got a date! Despite all the bug-hacking, witch-fighting and vamp-hunting, the girl still wants a social life. That proves problematic, though, as Giles' vampire-slaying prophecies tend to coincide with when Buffy is supposed to be slow-dancing with shy, bookish Owen. Of course the two sides of Buffy's life don't stay neatly separated, and Owen gets the full Slayer experience. It turns out to be a little too exciting for Owen, though, and Buffy has to cut him loose.

Though it's not the meatiest of episodes, I enjoyed Episode 5, as it helped me sympathize with what the life of a teenage Slayer might be like. It's hard enough for any sixteen-year-old to juggle the responsibilities of young adulthood, but the responsibility shouldered by the earth's sole Slayer would indeed be profound. This episode was notable, too, in that it introduced the Anointed, a young boy who is being groomed by the Master for what appears to be Buffy's destruction.

Episode 6: The Pack

I found "The Pack" alternately fascinating and horrifying. The premise is as follows: a group of kids, including Xander, sneak into the closed hyena exhibit at the zoo, and become possessed by the hyena's spirit. So it's a bunch of high school kids acting like hyenas.

At first, they're just mean to some of the other kids. After a while, though, it gets nasty. They eat the school mascot, a little pig... and later, minus Xander, they eat the principal. They eat the principal. Blech.

Of course, Buffy et al eventually saves the day, and Xander is back to his Xander-y self. But the principal doesn't get uneaten. *shudder*

Episode 7: Angel

I already knew Angel was a vampire. Of course I knew... if you ever watched TV in the 90's, the commercials basically told you. So that wasn't a surprise. But the backstory was interesting: the gist is that he used to be ravenous and amoral like all other vampires until a group of Roma (gypsies) cursed him. Now he's a vampire with a soul, which means that he can't bring himself to kill humans. He staked Darla, though, which was a relief; I was getting sick of her.

Episode 8: I, Robot... You, Jane

Willow accidentally puts a demon on the Internet when she scans the book in which the demon had been imprisoned. All hell breaks loose.

I admit that, viewed from a 2010 perspective, this episode seemed a bit silly. It really highlights the vast differences between the online world of today and the infant Internet of 1997. For starters, when Willow seemed to have a new online love, Buffy and Xander reacted with extreme suspicion; nowadays, of course, it seems quaint to not meet your spouse on the Internet.

I'm a fan of the computer teacher, Ms. Calendar, who was introduced in this episode. She's cute, and witty--is it too much to hope that she could be a future love interest for Giles? But... techno-pagan? Come on.

Episode 9: The Puppet Show

I knew from the second I saw the kid with his creepy ventriloquist's dummy that the dummy was going to come to life. That part was über-predictable. It was completely unpredictable, however, that the creepy-ass dummy turned out to be a good guy! That was a nice surprise. I have to say, though, that they laid on the suspense extra-thick at the end. Giles on that guillotine.... Ack! It reminded me of when Sylar was stealing brains in the first season of Heroes.

Also, Armin Shimerman as the new principal! Loves it! He's not exactly Quark, but he's pretty fan-freaking-tastic. I wonder if this one will get eaten...

Episode 10: Nightmares

Everyone's nightmares are becoming real. Turns out it's all because a kid in a coma is projecting his "astral self" around Sunnydale... or something.

Two great things about this episode:

Almanzo Wilder is Buffy's dad! ZOMG!
Vampire Buffy, who delivers this beautiful line to the Ugly Man right before she kicks his ugly heinie:
"Scary. I'll tell you something, though. There are a lot scarier things than you. And I'm one of them."

Episode 11: Out of Mind, Out of Sight

Cordelia was apparently really mean to a girl she never actually noticed. That's nothing out of the ordinary. What is a bit extraordinary is that this girl (whom no one else ever noticed either) actually became invisible. And then she went cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs.

Everyone does start noticing Crazy Invisible Girl, though, when she starts attacking people and then leaving cryptic messages. Buffy, et al, eventually deduce that Crazy Invisible Girl's main beef is with Cordelia; they try to protect her, but not hard enough. Crazy kidnaps Buffy and Cordy, and of course Buffy eventually saves the day.

My geek moment was when I recognized pictures of the actress who played Crazy Invisible Girl: she was also Winona Ryder's funny-farm roommate in Girl, Interrupted. I don't know if I've seen her in anything else, but she does seem to have a knack for playing nutjobs.

Episode 12: Prophecy Girl

What do you do when you hear a prophecy (assuming you believe in prophecies) that states that if you continue to do your job, you will die tomorrow? You quit your job, right? That's what Buffy tries to do when confronted with that very prophecy by Giles and Angel. Of course, it doesn't pan out, she goes a-hunting anyway (in a knockout dress), and she dies. Sort of. Xander performs CPR. Sort of.* And she jumps up, stronger than ever! (Should I be suspicious?)

This episode was pretty great as season finales go, with a climactic battle at the end that leaves the Master apparently dead. One wonders if he's ALL the way dead (the skeleton's still there, after all), and even if he is, that little Anointed kid is still running around. So I'm sure there's much more trouble ahead for Buffy.

"Prophecy Girl" was the only episode of Season One that was actually directed by Joss Whedon, and the difference is stark. There was a heaviness, a moodiness, throughout this episode which made it feel almost like a movie. It's hard to describe, but "Prophecy Girl" just felt different. In a good way.

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm back tomorrow with another Day Zero update.

*No one on TV, including Xander, seems to know how to correctly perform CPR.

day zero: my coen brothers movie list

2010-11-24T04:20:00.004-06:00

I heart the Coen brothers. They are easily my favorite local-boys-made-good (they're from Minnesota, just like me!) So I think it's tragic and a bit embarrassing that I have not yet seen the entirety of their oeuvre. Therefore, I added it to my Day Zero list at lucky #19*, and I can tell you this is one task I'm really looking forward to.

Here's the list:

Blood Simple
Raising Arizona
Miller's Crossing
Barton Fink
~~The Hudsucker Proxy~~
~~Fargo~~
~~The Big Lebowski~~
~~O Brother, Where Art Thou?~~
The Man Who Wasn't There
Intolerable Cruelty
~~The Ladykillers~~
~~No Country For Old Men~~
~~Burn After Reading~~
~~A Serious Man~~
True Grit

I've got 8 out of 15. How many have you seen? Any thoughts on the ones I haven't seen yet?

*Just saw the "Nightmares" episode of Buffy. Review tomorrow.

127 hours: whaddaya think?

2010-11-23T15:06:00.000-06:00

All signs are pointing to Oscar nominations for Danny Boyle's new release 127 Hours, in theaters now. If you don't already know, this is the story of that guy who got stuck in a canyon a few years ago and escaped by sawing his own arm off. Compelling story, but... ew.

I'm about as queasy as they come. I can't usually handle the gore. But this is supposed to be a fantastic movie, and it seems destined for the Oscars. So what do I do? Do I suck it up and go, watching the icky scene through my fingers? Or do I stay home and just get by on everyone else's reviews?

platoon

2010-11-22T16:21:00.002-06:00

I am a pacifist. I'm going to level with you all and confess that I didn't quite know which direction to take with this review, as pacifism isn't exactly a philosophy that is appreciated and understood by most, especially in a time of war.

Let me just say that while I love and appreciate the soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and guardsmen who protect my freedom to believe in peace above all, I have a big problem with governments who choose to put those folks in harm's way when there may be other, more effective options available. War is costly (both fiscally and socially), it's ugly, it's the birthplace of a whole host of evils, and in this blogger's opinion, it's morally wrong.

OK, I'm putting my soapbox away, and getting to the movie now. I just figured you would get more out of my thoughts on Platoon if I first let you know where I was coming from.

Oliver Stone, the writer and director of Platoon, based this movie on his own experiences serving in the Vietnam War. I believe this movie is a success because it shows, on a few different levels, some of the distinct evils that war begets.

Platoon is the story of Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen), a soldier who dropped out of college and actually volunteered to serve in Vietnam. His idealism is quickly brought down to earth as he witnesses, and experiences, the soul-changing nature of war.

After a member of Taylor's platoon goes missing and is subsequently found mutilated and tied to a post, the humanity of many of the soldiers starts to fray. The platoon comes upon a village; the soldiers suspect the villagers of conspiring with the North Vietnamese Army, and they take that excuse to terrorize the petrified civilians. Taylor finds himself screaming at a disabled boy and shooting at his feet, forcing him to dance; another soldier eventually bludgeons the boy to death and laughs at how his head falls apart.

As some of the prominent villagers are being interrogated, one woman bravely confronts the intruders, and is summarily executed by the villain of the film, Sgt. Barnes (Tom Berenger). He then takes a screaming child, presumably the murdered woman's daughter, and threatens to kill her too if the villagers do not give up information about the NVA (which they may or may not have). Sgt. Elias, played by Willem Dafoe, confronts Barnes and saves the little girl, but this is only the beginning of the war between the two sergeants, which becomes a "civil war" (in Taylor's words) within the platoon.

Americans like to believe that when we go to war, we're doing it for a just cause. We want to think that our soldiers are out there being noble, helping the locals, making things right. That's just not always the case, and Platoon lays that out quite clearly. The men were supposed to be fighting a specific enemy, the North Vietnamese, but they ended up fighting and killing civilians, each other, and sometimes themselves.

I don't know why we were in Vietnam. I've taken plenty of history classes and read plenty of books, but I still haven't heard a justification that makes sense to me. It was a mistake which cost millions of Vietnamese, Laotian, Cambodian, and American lives, displaced even more innocents, and poisoned an entire country's landscape, with effects still being felt today.

So yeah, I'm anti-war. But can I say I'm pro-war-movie? At least when it comes to movies like Platoon which unabashedly show the horrors of war; I'm probably kidding myself here, but if enough artists show truth as effectively as Oliver Stone did here, maybe we'll think carefully before getting ourselves into more scrapes like Vietnam... or Iraq... or Afghanistan...

day zero update #2

2010-11-19T04:20:00.004-06:00

One more week has gone by, and I've made a teensy bit of progress.

Completed Tasks

None this week. I have a feeling there will be many weeks like this.

Setbacks

#83: Get to work on time and leave on time every day for a week. This is really, really hard. I've tried and failed twice already. Next attempt will be the week following Thanksgiving.

Tasks in Progress

#15: Watch all AFI 100 movies. Still at 44/100.
#16: Get 200 Facebook fans. Still at 89. Active users are up, though, so maybe that's a good sign?
#17: Watch all Academy Award Best Picture winners. Go look at my list, which I posted Wednesday. I've seen 42/82.
#19: Watch all Coen brothers movies. I'm roughly halfway done. I'll post this list soon.
#22: Stay caught up on Google Reader for a month. Well, I've stayed caught up this week. If I keep it up, this task will be completed on December 11.
#23: See all feature films directed by Hayao Miyazaki. I'll post this list in the next few weeks. I'm about halfway done.
#24: Pay off all credit cards. Ha.
#25: Pay off car loan. Double ha.
#44: Get all new gifts put away and house in order. Triple ha. But I intend to get this done before Thanksgiving.
#47: Finish name changes. I've been slacking on this one this week.
#64: Eat at ten new restaurants. I forgot to include this one last week! Mr. N and I checked out a local Italian restaurant called Amici. The food was delicious, but pricey. Incidentally, Pistola says Amici has given her food poisoning in the past. So maybe we won't go back there. But anyway, that's 1/10.
#65: Learn sign language. I've just signed up for the second round of classes. It's community ed, so I'm not learning as much as I'd like to, but it's good for what it is. I'll have to take a college course on ASL at some point in the future.
#71: Complete our wedding registry. No progress on this.
#77: Watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series) from beginning to end. If you read yesterday's post, you know I've started on this one. And I'm loving it!
#82: Get caught up at work. I have actually been kicking ass on this one. Mostly because of...
#85: Structure my work time into a set schedule, and stick to it for a month. This has been amazing for my productivity. I'm almost all the way caught up, and I haven't felt overwhelmed at all since I've started this. I guess you could say I started doing this on November 9, so we'll consider it completed on December 9, assuming I keep it up.

I didn't complete anything this week, but I'm still feeling positive because I made some good progress on some of those goals. We'll see where we stand next Friday! Have a good weekend, folks.

buffy the vampire slayer: season one, episodes one-four

2010-11-18T16:10:00.000-06:00

Nayana's standard Buffy disclaimer/Reverse spoiler alert: This is my first time EVER watching this series. I am very interested in keeping my experience pure, so please take care in the comments to not give any spoilers, clues, or insights from future (to me) seasons or episodes.

Last night Mr. N and I sat down to watch the first several episodes of Buffy, and I actually had to give him the above disclaimer a few times. I really want to experience the storyline as Joss Whedon wanted it to unfold; I've already got a great opinion of him as a storyteller, and I'm really looking forward to the experience. Now, without further mucking about, my thoughts.

Episodes 1 & 2: Welcome to the Hellmouth/The Harvest

As an introduction to the Buffy mythology, this pair of episodes did a great job. There was plenty of exposition, but the story never got boring, which is quite a feat. We meet Buffy Summers, newly transferred to Sunnydale (yes, I did relish the "sunny" and "summer" irony) High School after being expelled from her former school.

Buffy is a Vampire Slayer--the only one in the world--and, as such, she's got super-human strength, martial arts skills, and comprehensive vampire knowledge. It's unclear at this point how much of that is innate, and how much was learned. We are led to believe that Buffy was expelled for events that were a direct result of her battles with vampires: a burned-down school gym, missing classes, etc. As a result, Buffy is reluctant to get back into the vamp-killing game, but we all know that the "I don't want to kill vampires anymore" angst will last all of 10 minutes.

We also meet Rupert Giles, a Watcher (kind of like a Slayer's coach?); Willow, a nerdy girl befriended by Buffy (Alyson Hannigan, whom I already LOVE LOVE LOVE); Xander, a sweetheart of a doofus who's got the hots for Buffy; Angel, a mysterious hot guy who seems to know an awful lot about vampires; and Cordelia, the (for lack of a better term) class bitch.

The storyline in these two episodes centers around a den of vampires who live in Sunnydale's underground electrical tunnels and their Master who is trying to come back to the surface to feed on human blood. The vampires plan to trap a group of humans and feed on them, somehow sending their souls directly to the Master, who will gain strength from them and then be able to return to the surface. Of course, Buffy and her gang thwart that plan.

I truly enjoyed this introduction to the Buffy mythology, and I really like the character of Buffy herself. I don't know what I expected, but I was surprised to find her relatively intelligent, and her superhuman strength, agility, and mid-fight banter was very entertaining. Also, maybe it's because I'm watching this for the first time post-True Blood and Twilight, but it was a bit jarring (and, admittedly, refreshing) to see actual ugly vampires. I'm looking forward to more of this; it's not a bad way to spend an evening.

Episode 3: The Witch

Buffy wants to be a cheerleader. Naturally. That part made me roll my eyes a bit, but I dug the fact that there was a mystery in this episode right off the bat. I hope more of the episodes do that; I like a little self-contained mystery in a TV episode, a la Law & Order. During the cheerleading tryouts, one of the more promising girls inexplicably bursts into flames. Later on, a few other not-so-nice things happen to other would-be cheerleaders, and it turns out there's a bit of witchcraft going on in Sunnydale. Who's surprised? Not me, though it is nice that they've branched out a bit from the vampire thing. We think we know right away who the witch is, but in a sneaky little twist, she's actually switched bodies with her mother, Freaky Friday-style. Unfortunately Buffy ticks her off, and becomes the victim of a spell which starts to slowly kill her. Giles does a little "chemistry" of his own, reverses the spell, and once again Buffy saves the day with her super-hot Jackie Chan moves. My favorite line?

Buffy: "Guess what? I feel better."

Episode 4: Teacher's Pet

Buffy's really smart, but doesn't like to do her homework.* She gets a lecture from her science teacher about teacher-y things like Hard Work and Potential. Of course, as soon as Buffy's out of the room, the teacher gets attacked by something with a big insect-y claw. He doesn't show up to class and is replaced by Miss French, a boy-baiting femme fatale of a substitute teacher.

Meanwhile, the cryptic hot guy Angel shows up and warns Buffy (cryptically, of course) about what turns out to be a vampire with razor-sharp claws. Soon afterward, the science teacher shows up decapitated in the school cafeteria freezer. Everyone assumes the new vampire, or "fork guy" as Buffy calls him, is the culprit, and Buffy goes "hunting".

On her little excursion, she doesn't get the vampire, but she does discover that he is unusually terrified of Miss French, who happens to be walking down a nearby street with some groceries. The kids do a bit more research, and discover--wait for it--that Miss French is actually a giant praying mantis disguised as a hot woman. They find her house, and slash her to pieces just as she was about to mate with (ew) and then decapitate Xander.

"Teacher's Pet" was the most predictable episode so far, but I didn't care that much; it was hella entertaining.

*Sounds familiar. Hey, maybe I could have been a high school vampire slayer too!

day zero: my academy award for best picture list

2010-11-17T16:09:00.002-06:00

Task #17 on my Day Zero list requires me to watch all movies that have won the Academy Award for Best Picture. This is one of those tasks that I want to be able to say I have done, but I'm not all that excited to actually get down and do it. I think that's mostly because some of the Academy's choices over the years have sometimes been, as we all know, a bit flawed.

All that having been said, I'm determined to jump into this task along with all the others. So here's the list; movies I've already seen have been struck through. Just like with last week's list, I've decided to only count the movies I've seen in the last fifteen years. I have a hazy memory of watching Mutiny on the Bounty with my parents when I was about ten... but there's no way that counts.

1928 - Wings
1929 - The Broadway Melody
1930 - All Quiet on the Western Front
1931 - Cimarron
1932 - Grand Hotel
1933 - Cavalcade
~~1934 - It Happened One Night~~
1935 - Mutiny on the Bounty
1936 - The Great Ziegfeld
1937 - The Life of Emile Zola
1938 - You Can't Take It With You
~~1939 - Gone with the Wind~~
1940 - Rebecca
1941 - How Green Was My Valley
1942 - Mrs. Miniver
~~1943 - Casablanca~~
1944 - Going My Way
1945 - The Lost Weekend
1946 - The Best Years of Our Lives
1947 - Gentleman's Agreement
1948 - Hamlet
1949 - All the King's Men
~~1950 - All About Eve~~
1951 - An American in Paris
1952 - The Greatest Show on Earth
~~1953 - From Here to Eternity~~
1954 - On the Waterfront
~~1955 - Marty~~
1956 - Around The World in 80 Days
1957 - The Bridge on the River Kwai
~~1958 - Gigi~~
~~1959 - Ben-Hur~~
~~1960 - The Apartment~~
~~1961 - West Side Story~~
~~1962 - Lawrence of Arabia~~
1963 - Tom Jones
~~1964 - My Fair Lady~~
~~1965 - The Sound of Music~~
1966 - A Man for All Seasons
1967 - In the Heat of the Night
1968 - Oliver!
1969 - Midnight Cowboy
1970 - Patton
1971 - The French Connection
~~1972 - The Godfather~~
1973 - The Sting
~~1974 - The Godfather Part II~~
~~1975 - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest~~
1976 - Rocky
~~1977 - Annie Hall~~
1978 - The Deer Hunter
~~1979 - Kramer vs. Kramer~~
1980 - Ordinary People
1981 - Chariots of Fire
~~1982 - Gandhi~~
~~1983 - Terms of Endearment~~
~~1984 - Amadeus~~
1985 - Out of Africa
~~1986 - Platoon~~ - watched 11/20/10
1987 - The Last Emperor
~~1988 - Rain Man~~
~~1989 - Driving Miss Daisy~~
~~1990 - Dances With Wolves~~
~~1991 - The Silence of the Lambs~~
1992 - Unforgiven
~~1993 - Schindler's List~~
~~1994 - Forrest Gump~~
~~1995 - Braveheart~~
~~1996 - The English Patient~~
~~1997 - Titanic~~
~~1998 - Shakespeare in Love~~
~~1999 - American Beauty~~
~~2000 - Gladiator~~
~~2001 - A Beautiful Mind~~
~~2002 - Chicago~~
~~2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King~~
~~2004 - Million Dollar Baby~~
~~2005 - Crash~~
~~2006 - The Departed~~
~~2007 - No Country for Old Men~~
~~2008 - Slumdog Millionaire~~
~~2009 - The Hurt Locker~~

As you can see, I've done OK in recent years, but I've got a lot of catching up to do. I've got 42/82 so far. How many have you seen?

why I like sappy made-for-tv christmas movies

2010-11-16T15:10:00.000-06:00

Two or three years ago, I would have reacted to that title the way many of you probably did: with an eyeroll and a "did Nayana have a stroke?" But my dear mother has converted me.

Thanksgiving weekend 2008: Mom and I were sitting in her TV room, and she was insisting on yet another Hallmark/Lifetime/ABC Family original movie. Because I love my mother, I kept watching. To be sure, I rolled my eyes and told her why the cheesy movies were making my teeth hurt. "Mom," I sighed, "This is not realistic. In real life, everything doesn't just get wrapped up with a neat little bow by Christmas Eve."

She replied that that was the point. Apparently not everyone wants edgy gloom and doom when they're feeling Christmassy. My little indie-girl brain did not compute, but as I sat back and started to let the saccharine Christmas cheer wash over me, I started to get it. And, as much as I hated to admit it, I was all over the sappy-ass movies when the 2009 holiday season rolled around.

This works much better for me if I compartmentalize, and just tell myself that these "original movies" on cable are not actual movies. I watch movies for artistic value as well as entertainment, but maybe it's OK once in a while to shut the indie brain off and relax. The purpose of watching A Christmas Visitor, starring Meredith Baxter and William Devane, is not (believe it or not) to appreciate the masterful cinematography*, but to let yourself float away on a gingerbread-y, deck-the-halls-y, Christmassy cloud. And that's OK on a Tuesday night.

So if you're looking for an excuse tonight to plop down and watch Hallmark's The Christmas Card (one of my favorites), here's a list of reasons why I think it's ok for a film geek to occasionally indulge:

Made-for-TV movies provide honest work for non-movie-star actors. In just the next few days, you can see Ed Asner in The Christmas Card, Kelsey Grammer in Mr. St. Nick, or Wallace Shawn in Karroll's Christmas. Inconceivable!
It's safe to watch this stuff with Mom. As I hinted earlier, this is perfect family viewing fare. My mother is a very sweet lady, but I can't exactly enjoy my all-time favorite Christmas movie with her. A budding romance between two body doubles on a porn set is not her idea of a fun storyline.
Fun with clichés! When you're watching schlock, it's 823 times more enjoyable if you mock it just a teeny bit. I'm a big fan of Entertainment Weekly's annual Holiday Movie Cliché Checklist, which is fantastic raw material for a drinking game, assuming Mom's not sitting next to you on the couch. See last year's version here. (Even more fun here.)
They make you feel Christmassy. OK, I know that's pretty damn glurgey. But it's a glurgey topic, so there was really no avoiding this. The truth is, I loves me some Christmas. LOVES IT. I usually try to show some self-control by not playing my ska version of "Joy to the World" until November... but it's a losing battle. And to be honest, these made-for-TV movies stoke those holiday embers for me till I have a lovely, chestnutty blaze. And I don't see anything wrong with that.

*Heh.

i can't get this out of my head...

2010-11-15T09:28:00.002-06:00

Apparently it's a phenomenon. More here.

day zero update #1

2010-11-12T04:20:00.005-06:00

Each Friday, I'm going to try to update you all on my progress on my Day Zero list. Hopefully that will get me motivated to work on the thing! As Mr. Nayana mentioned last week, I've already gotten a few things knocked off the list (though not as many as he gave me credit for).

Completed Tasks

~~#21: Get caught up on Google Reader.~~ I did it! I don't want to tell you how many items there were when I started. :-/
~~#43: Get thank-you notes done.~~ Of course I've got no reason to whine about the lovely wedding gifts we received, but those thank-yous can lurk in your mind like the yet-unseen killer in the first 20 minutes of a slasher flick! I got tired of seeing them waiting for me on my desk every day, so I set a deadline: November 5, two months after the wedding date. And they went out! Just waiting on Mr. Nayana to deliver a few at work, but I think we can consider this one completed.
~~#86: No Facebook at work for a week.~~ It wasn't easy, but I did it. And it was amazing how much work I got done that week, though I obviously shouldn't have been surprised.
~~#88: Influence another person to make a DayZero list.~~ Mr. Nayana doesn't count, because we're kind of doing it together. But this was still the first task I completed; one day after I started, my friend Karen got on board. Yay!

Tasks in Progress

#15: Watch all AFI 100 movies. I just posted my progress on this one on Wednesday. Right now we're at 44/100.
#16: Get 200 Facebook fans. We're at 89 right now, people. If you haven't "liked" me yet, go here. And tell your friends!
#17: Watch all Academy Award Best Picture winners. I'm sure I'll post my progress on this one in the near future, too. I'm not as excited about this movie list as some others, just because some Best Picture winners have, frankly, sucked.
#19: Watch all Coen brothers movies. I'm MUCH more excited about this one. I think I'm about roughly halfway done.
#22: Stay caught up on Google Reader for a month. I officially got caught up yesterday, November 11. So this task will be completed December 11, 2010.
#23: See all feature films directed by Hayao Miyazaki. See #19. Pretty much the same goes here.
#24: Pay off all credit cards. Aren't we all working on this? It'll be a few years.
#25: Pay off car loan. See #24.
#44: Get all new gifts put away and house in order. Working on it. But, "house in order"? Yeah, right.
#47: Finish name changes. I actually changed my name with my cell phone company today! All I've got left to do is insurance company, electric company, cable company, one of my credit cards, and my passport. Have you ever tried to change your name? This is my third time. It's a pain in the ass.
#65. Learn sign language. I'm taking a class on this every Tuesday with my friend Karen (see #88 above). Super fun, though I've not had to use it with an actual deaf person yet.
#71. Complete our wedding registry. This is going to be a whole lot closer to completion after Christmas.
#82. Get caught up at work. Working on it, but it will be a few weeks before I can cross this one off.

And that's my progress so far. I hope to have good news for you next Friday.

megamind

2010-11-11T04:20:00.000-06:00

OK, kiddies, I'm going to get right to it. Megamind is good. It's entertaining, witty, fast-paced, and it'll make you giggle. There. That's my review. Now, on to some not-so-reviewy thoughts I had while watching the thing (a few mild spoilers after the jump):

Firstly... Is it weird that I think this guy is kind of hot?

Secondly... I'm loving the in-jokes! Will Ferrell's Megamind alternately lifts lines from Dr. Evil ("I had a fairly standard childhood") and does an obnoxious caricature of Marlon Brando as the new "hero"'s father. And those were just the obvious ones. There were so many little one-liners sprinkled throughout this film, that I found myself snickering every 60 seconds or so..

Thirdly... Is Jonah Hill not the best, most neurotic superhero villain in recent film history? There was quite a bit of Buddy/Syndrome from The Incredibles mixed in, but that whole "referencing other superhero films" thing was par for the course throughout this movie.

As a matter of fact, fourthly, that was one of the greatest things about Megamind. It was quite self-conscious, as any quasi-parody must be; but it was not done in an obnoxious way. References, plot devices, and entire characters lifted from other franchises were treated with good humor. The whole thing had a potential to get tiresome, but we never got to that point. Rather than beating the superhero genre to a gooey pulp, Megamind celebrated it... and actually made me want to go see another superhero movie!

I must say, as someone who has wearied of parodies recently, that I was quite pleasantly surprised.

day zero: my afi 100 list

2010-11-10T04:20:00.002-06:00

I posted an earlier version of this a while ago, but this is going to be my official Day Zero version. Task #15 on my list requires me to watch all the movies on the AFI Top 100 list; so here's where I'll keep track of my progress. So far I've seen 44 out of 100: not bad, but not nearly good enough. See the full list, after the jump.

I only counted movies I've seen in the last fifteen years; anything before age sixteen is probably something I don't remember too well. Movies I've seen have been struck through. How many on this list have you seen? And do you have any recommendations as to where on the list I should start?

~~Citizen Kane~~
~~The Godfather~~
~~Casablanca~~
Raging Bull
~~Singin' in the Rain~~
~~Gone with the Wind~~
~~Lawrence of Arabia~~
~~Schindler's List~~
~~Vertigo~~
~~The Wizard of Oz~~
~~City Lights~~
The Searchers
~~Star Wars~~
~~Psycho~~
~~2001: A Space Odyssey~~
Sunset Boulevard
~~The Graduate~~
The General
On the Waterfront
~~It's a Wonderful Life~~
Chinatown
Some Like It Hot
The Grapes of Wrath
~~E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial~~
To Kill a Mockingbird
~~Mr. Smith Goes to Washington~~
High Noon
~~All About Eve~~
Double Indemnity
Apocalypse Now
The Maltese Falcon
~~The Godfather Part II~~
~~One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest~~
~~Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs~~
~~Annie Hall~~
The Bridge on the River Kwai
The Best Years of Our Lives
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
~~Dr Strangelove~~
~~The Sound of Music~~
King Kong (1933)
Bonnie and Clyde
Midnight Cowboy
The Philadelphia Story
Shane
~~It Happened One Night~~
A Streetcar Named Desire
~~Rear Window~~
Intolerance
~~The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring~~
~~West Side Story~~
~~Taxi Driver~~
The Deer Hunter
~~MASH~~
North by Northwest
Jaws
Rocky
The Gold Rush
Nashville
Duck Soup
Sullivan's Travels
American Graffiti
Cabaret
Network
The African Queen
~~Raiders of the Lost Ark~~
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Unforgiven
Tootsie
A Clockwork Orange
~~Saving Private Ryan~~
~~The Shawshank Redemption~~
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
~~The Silence of the Lambs~~
In the Heat of the Night
~~Forrest Gump~~
All the President's Men
Modern Times
The Wild Bunch
~~The Apartment~~
Spartacus
~~Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans~~
~~Titanic~~
Easy Rider
A Night at the Opera
~~Platoon~~ - watched 11/20/10
12 Angry Men
Bringing Up Baby
~~The Sixth Sense~~
Swing Time
~~Sophie's Choice~~
~~Goodfellas~~
The French Connection
~~Pulp Fiction~~
The Last Picture Show
Do the Right Thing
Blade Runner
Yankee Doodle Dandy
~~Toy Story~~
~~Ben-Hur~~

introducing mr. nayana

2010-11-09T12:00:00.005-06:00

I've been married for a little over two months to this great guy; we'll call him Mr. Nayana. I know I've mentioned him a few times over the past couple years, but this will serve as his official introduction.

Mr. Nayana is a geek, like me, though not of the artsy film-and-novel variety. Rather, his interests lie in things like anime (I like me some Miyazaki, but some of Mr. N's tastes go far beyond my level of comfort), video games (the current soundtrack which won't get out of my head is to something called Rogue Galaxy), and Dungeons & Dragons (it's how we met, actually). He also works at the Science Museum of Minnesota, of which he is justifiably proud.

So we've got this artsy-sciencey dichotomy in our house. There's a little bit of friction, but in the end it's probably good for both of us.

Mr. Nayana has joined me in the Day Zero project, and has been journaling his efforts here. You might see him comment on this blog from time to time... and now you know who he is. :-)

pride and prejudice (1995)

2010-11-08T04:20:00.012-06:00

Mr. Nayana was working late the other night, so I took the opportunity to curl up with Zoe the Putty Tat, a bottle of Door Peninsula American Riesling (a holdover from my kickass bachelorette party), and Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy.

I used to roll my eyes when people would say, "Oh, you like Jane Austen? Have you seen Pride and Prejudice?" I would nod, commenting that I thought Keira Knightley was a surprising but good choice for Elizabeth Bennet. "No," they would reply, "I mean the BBC version." Oh, sure. Like I'm going to spend six hours watching some made-for-TV-movie.

Good Lord, was I mistaken. When a coworker finally insisted I borrow her copy of the BBC's 1995 Pride and Prejudice, I was impressed in spite of myself. I had recently read the novel, and it was astonishing how faithful the mini-series stayed to the spirit, and the letter, of the original work.

Readers may be surprised to sit down with a 200-year-old book and find it as lively, witty, and fast-paced as P&P; I had much the same reaction to the BBC mini-series. Yes, it's six hours long, but who thinks about that when you've got Mr. Darcy galloping around on his horse; Mrs. Bennet (Alison Steadman) shrieking about wealthy prospects for her daughters; and Mr. Collins (David Bamber) simpering around like the little Victorian bitch that he is. At any given moment, you're giggling, rolling your eyes, or catching your breath; there's no time to be bored.

Oh, and those long looks between Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet (Jennifer Ehle). The sparks fly between these two actors, whether they're hating each other or falling in love despite themselves. This thing smolders, more so than most feature-length "romances". The trick is that it actually makes me believe that these two people have fallen in love; and I tend to be more skeptical than most when it comes to movie love.

So Mr. Darcy has married his Elizabeth. The Riesling is gone, and the cat is attacking some invisible foe which lives halfway up the living-room wall. I'm feeling utterly relaxed and right with the world, as I always seem to do after a healthy dose of Jane Austen. But I'm sure it won't be long before I get a craving for Mr. Darcy again.

my day zero project ~or~ 101 things in 1001 days

2010-10-10T04:20:00.034-05:00

I just got married. Whoo. :-)

So now I'm moving on with the REST of my life. Kind of a daunting task, as there's about a million things I want to accomplish.

Enter the Day Zero Project.

The point of this thing is that you come up with 101 things you want to do, and you get 1,001 days to complete your list. That's about 2.75 years, which is great for a professional procrastinator like yours truly. It's exciting, though: of course I've got tons of goals, and now I'm going to attempt to actually keep track of them! And yes, one of my goals is to spend much more time with my dear blog readers (you know...you).

I'm starting this project today: October 10, 2010. 1,001 days from today will be July 8, 2013. Totally doable. And I'll be keeping you up to date as I make progress on my goals, both in this list and in regular "dayzero"-tagged posts. (Strikethrough means I've finished the goal; italics mean it's in progress.)

So...here goes:

Health

Run a 5K race
Track my food and exercise for a month on SparkPeople
Go swimming twice a month for a year
Fly in an airplane without a seatbelt extender (I have a juicy ass, FYI)
Eat five freggies a day for a month
Ride my bike to work
Drink 8 8-oz glasses of water a day for a month
Run a 10-minute mile

Movies, Writing, & Blogging

Write in my blog every day during Oscar season
Get paid to write
Attend a film festival
Get 100 hits on my blog per day and maintain for a week
Participate in five blogathons
Write a short story
Watch all AFI 100 movies
Get 200 Facebook fans
Watch all Academy Award Best Picture winners
Make an updated Top 100 movie list
Watch every Coen brothers movie
Go back to college
~~Get caught up on Google Reader~~
Stay caught up on Google Reader for a month
See all feature films directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Finances

Pay off all credit cards
Pay off car loan
Go a week without buying anything
Put an entire paycheck into savings
Achieve a good credit score
Build a three-month emergency fund
Buy a house
Go an entire month, only eating out once

Travel

Put my hair in the ocean again
Go on a cruise
Get another stamp in my passport
Visit Washington, DC
Go camping alone with my husband
Take a spontaneous road trip
Eat at a Waffle House
Go to Canada with my husband
Ride the Ducks at Wisconsin Dells

Discipline & Spirituality

Keep the house clean for a full month
Go to church twelve Sundays in a row
~~Get thank you notes done~~
Get all new gifts put away and house in order
Buy 10 food items for the sole purpose of donating them to a food bank
Organize our storage closet
Finish name changes
Join a small group at church
Participate in a run or walk for a cause
Move husband's curio cabinet to our home
Plan meals a week at a time, every week for a month
Get tree up by December 5
Take tree down by the end of January
Leave a 100% tip
Read a book by Greg Boyd
Cover a meal for a random serviceperson
Brown bag my lunch every day for a month

Just for Fun

Get a tattoo
Take a Spanish class
Ask 10 friends to suggest one book each, and read them all
Read three books from the banned books list
Run a D&D game
Do a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle
Eat at 10 new restaurants
Learn sign language
Perfect five signature dishes
Go to a Jimmy Buffett concert
Get three pedicures in a six-month period
See a play or stage show in Minneapolis or Saint Paul
Knit a scarf and hat
Complete our wedding registry
Go to a football game
Organize a hide and seek with at least 20 friends at IKEA
Beat five video games I've never beaten
Learn how to make jam
Beat my husband in Risk.
Watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series) from beginning to end
Go back to the Elephant Walk B&B
Learn the Electric Slide
Beat five Guitar Hero songs on hard
Beat one Guitar Hero song on expert

Work

~~Get caught up at work~~
Get to work on time and leave on time every day for a week
Take a personal day every three months for a year
Structure my work time into a set schedule, and stick to it for a month
~~No Facebook at work for a week~~
Keep my office clean and organized for a full month

Relationships

~~Influence another person to make a Day Zero list~~
Meet the A-Team (not what you think)
Complete wedding photobooks
Complete honeymoon photobook
Host a wine-tasting party
Have a baby
Drive to Michigan to visit Grandma
Have five different couples over for dinner and games
Drive to Wisconsin for the sole purpose of visiting my sister
Host a Lord of the Rings movie marathon at my home
Make friends with someone I don't like
Soak in a hot tub with at least three friends
Mail out Christmas cards
Host a Red Curtain Trilogy viewing party at my home

And there you have it. I've got to be honest: from here, it looks a bit overwhelming. It will be hard, but guess what? I can do hard things. :-)

fargo

2010-05-01T04:20:00.001-05:00

Hey Center Seat readers! I'm back from my much-needed hiatus. Wedding plans and work duties are back on track, so here I go again with this crazy film obsession of mine.

How is it that I've never reviewed Fargo before? After all, I am a Minnesotan... I've lived here for 12 years, I love it here, I probably will never move.

Minnesotans in general tend to have a love-hate relationship with the movie Fargo. For one thing, it drives us nuts that many assume Fargo to be a city in the good ol' Land of 10,000 Lakes. It so isn't. Go get yourself a map of North Dakota. For another thing, we don't all talk like that. I don't think I've ever in my life uttered the words, "Yah, you betcha." We do all say "Minne-soh-ta", but that's pretty much the extend of it. So to have folks from the coasts coming in, giggling at us, and asking us to say lines from the movie, can get a little grating.

But aside from all the "I'm annoyed because I'm a local" conceit, it's really freaking brilliant. I know I may skew a bit on the favorable side when it comes to movies from the Coen boys, but there's a good reason for that, folks. They're masters.

Have you ever looked out your window on a January day and thought to yourself, "Damn. There is no color out there. My life is a black-and-white movie"? OK, you smartasses in California and Arizona get a pass, but that is exactly what Minnesota looks like half the year. And the Coens captured it perfectly; the starkness, the colorless landscape. And the way that, even in the city, Minnesota in winter can start to resemble Siberia.

Beyond the setting, Fargo mixes comedy and violence more effectively than any other movie I can name*, without making the bloodshed seem trivial. The murders that happen in this story come about in a very matter-of-fact way, but the contrasts between the casually violent attitude of the criminals and the mournful viewpoint of Marge the pregnant cop can be quite jarring. You find yourself being grateful for Marge's frank perspective, while feeling a bit guilty that in the first half of the movie you were almost rooting for the bad guys.

Of course the cast is wonderful: I think the witless schemer Jerry Lundegaard is William H. Macy's best role; and the same could probably said for Frances McDormand's Marge. The script is great too, and the setting wouldn't be as powerful without the amazing cinematography. But when you're watching Fargo, you're not thinking about any of that. Setting, script, characters, and acting are all blended together homogeneously into one beautiful product, as though shoved through a wood chipper and sprayed onto the white snow of your screen.

*Except maybe another Coen brothers movie.

postlet #23

2009-10-01T14:53:00.000-05:00

OK, this is going to happen once in a while. I am currently buried at work, so you won't see anything earthshaking from me in at least a day, maybe two. I'll be back soon. Stay tuned for reviews of The Time Traveler's Wife, It's A Wonderful Life, and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

glee

2009-09-28T12:20:00.000-05:00

This is a movie blog. But I'm gonna talk TV for a second.

Can I tell you how much I love, love LOVE Glee?

I don't watch a whole lot of TV. That's partly because I've got lots to do; partly because I hate commercials; but mostly because, frankly, TV is crap lately.

Not Glee. Only four episodes into its first season, Glee is on the FOX network (home of some of my three least favorite shows). In contrast to FOX's normal fare of escalating torture-based serials and tired reality shows, Glee incorporates humor, drama, and goosebump-y music in a way we've not seen in ages. Matter of fact, have we ever seen a television musical series that was actually good?

Glee centers on a high school teacher (played by Broadway vet Matthew Morrison) who is trying to relive some past glory by putting together a kickass show choir. The thing is, the fabulously singing students are a bunch of... well, freaks. The brat, the stutterer, the flaming gay boy, the sassy black chick, the jock, and the kid in the wheelchair are all relative unknowns. A few have done stints on Broadway here and there, or bit parts on the odd TV show, but this is the first time most of us have ever seen them. Together, they're absolutely magic.

The cast is rounded out by some fantastic villians: Jessalyn Gilsig (don't you remember Ms. Davis from Boston Public?) plays the teacher's spoiled wife, and the scene-stealing Jane Lynch is a nefarious cheerleading coach who wants nothing more than the demise of our little glee club.

If you haven't caught this show yet, it's on Wednesday nights on FOX... and you should definitely catch up by watching the first four episodes on Hulu. It's free, and no, Dad, it won't put a virus on your computer.

For now, enjoy Glee's football team and their rendition of Beyoncé's "Single Ladies".

fiddler on the roof

2009-09-25T04:20:00.000-05:00

I realized something weird today. Out of the 172 posts I've written (yeah.), I've only featured two musicals. And I really love musicals. I can only think of one musical I didn't enjoy--From Justin to Kelly--and nobody enjoyed that one. I don't even think Justin and Kelly enjoyed that one.

So I'm going to be talking more about musicals I love, starting with Fiddler on the Roof. My parents brought me up on this one; I think I probably saw it for the first time in third or fourth grade, and then I think we came close to wearing out the VHS. My parents would close their eyes reverently when Isaac Stern would get going on his solo during the title credits, we'd all sing along with all the songs. And as part of his extraordinary parenting philosophy, Dad would spout Fiddler wisdom at really random times ("why, you ask? I'll tell you. I don't know"). It went well with his Rolling Stones wisdom ("you can't always get what you want") and his Pink Floyd wisdom ("if you can't eat your meat...")

Anywho.

For me, Fiddler is one of those classic movies, like The Princess Bride and The Wizard of Oz, that never fail to entertain and thrill me, even if I think I know the whole thing by heart. Of course it's got its classic moments: the parents singing "Sunrise, Sunset" at the wedding; the freakishly awesome bottle dancers (does anyone know if those bottles were somehow affixed to those hats? Mr. N and I had a bit of a disagreement about that); and my favorite part, the drunken inter-cultural dancing at the tavern.

What really sets Fiddler on the Roof apart, though, is its lush versatility. In one cinematic breath, it showcases the mundane life of a Russian turn-of-the-century peasant, and then knocks you over the head with huge issues like revolution and bigotry. This movie goes in a heartbeat from light comedic banter, to poignant longing for a simpler time, to plain awe at what makes life beautiful.

Most of all, I love to watch Tevye as he navigates the precarious tight space between his long-held beliefs and his love for his daughters. It mirrors what I've figured out in the past few years: just because you've believed something as long as you can remember, don't be surprised when you learn it's worthless in the face of real life.

the proposal

2009-09-24T04:20:00.001-05:00

I didn't want to see The Proposal. I even (briefly) considered featuring it as a FWLFS. From the moment I saw that first trailer, the whole thing just felt... icky. The premise--a put-upon gopher is forced to get engaged to his abusive female boss so that she can stay in the U.S.--is classic, egregious sexual harassment. Would we laugh, I opined, if the genders were reversed, and a lecherous male boss did the same to his female subordinate? Of course not. Because it's awful.

With my air of progressive hipster superiority fully satisfied, I happily shunned all opportunities (including a free preview) to see The Proposal. It was beneath me, don't you know.

But then some writers whom I actually respect (I'm looking at you, Jess!) had to go and say it wasn't that bad. So on my inaugural Wednesday night movie, I headed down to the Riverview and saw it for $3.

OK, seriously. The premise is awful. But looking past that for a second--can I just say how much I've missed Sandra Bullock? She hasn't been this yummy in a rom-com for at least nine years. And her chemistry with Ryan Reynolds was muy caliente.

So, really, this movie was saved for me by two things: first, the delicious cast (Mary Steenburgen! Betty White! Coach! Oscar from "The Office" doing a lap dance!); and, secondly, the hilarious script*. I have not laughed this much since Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

Yes, The Proposal was a run-of-the-mill romantic comedy, and yes, it followed a formula. You always knew what was going to happen next. But--it didn't suck. I was smiling as I walked out of the theater; and that, in itself, transcended my best expectations.

*"You know I can't swim!" "Hence, the boat." If you saw it, you know what I'm talking about.

wednesday nights are movie nights: whaddaya think?

2009-09-23T00:01:00.002-05:00

Relationship Nayana has been beating the crap out of Movie Nayana. So last week that whole thing came to a head, I got upset, decisions were made. Relationship Nayana is still in charge, but she has to let Movie Nayana out once in a while. So...

Wednesday night is movie night! I'm gonna go, every week, by myself, to a movie in the theater. But here's the rub... I have no idea what I should see this week. I've been unplugged for far too long. I need your guidance, my bloggy friends.

Here are some of my options. Suggestions, please!

Food, Inc.
The Proposal
Public Enemies
9
Extract
The Informant!
Inglorious Basterds
Julie & Julia

OK, lemme have it.

(500) days of summer

2009-09-22T10:40:00.000-05:00

I've had quite the struggle lately between the movie-lover me and the relationship me. It's not that Mr. Nayana actively keeps me from going to the movies per se... it's just that it hasn't occurred to me to get my ass to the theater when I could just hang with my best bud at home. Does that make any sense?

Anyway, this whole "I never go to the movies anymore" thing came to a head this week. More on that tomorrow. But Mr. Nayana, in his infinite sweetness, saw that I was upset and promptly decided to take me on a date. We saw (500) Days of Summer, which I had been itching for since I first read about it months ago.

First of all, it's definitely not your standard romantic comedy (which, honestly, was a huge part of its appeal for me). Secondly, it stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, both of whom I looooove.

The coolest thing about this movie is that it doesn't give us the normal crap we get about love from your standard commercial film:

Step 1. You meet someone of the opposite sex whom you immediately despise.
Step 2. Your quirky best friend helps you realize you actually are in love with aforementioned despised person.
Step 3. An unfortunate misunderstanding will drive the two of you apart.
Step 4. It all comes right in the end (thanks again to your quirky best friend).

This, as we should all know, is complete shit. And (500) Days of Summer--blessedly--doesn't do that. We are taken on a journey through a realistic relationship... the highs, the lows, the initial blush, the later disillusionment. And guess what? They don't like each other exactly the same amount! Sound familiar?

This movie was a beautiful, refreshing look at the real stuff we go through when we make the rash decision to allow another human being to become intimately close to us. It's not always pretty, but it's real life, not fantasy. And as for me, I'd much rather my film (or music, or art) reflect the life I actually lead.

changes are coming...

2009-09-21T11:24:00.001-05:00

So, yeah. I haven't blogged in about a million years. (Five months is about a million years in bloggy time, isn't it?)

I think that may have a lot to do with the fact that my life has changed dramatically in the last year... but I do miss y'all. So I'm going to give The Center Seat a face lift and we're going to get going with a second wind. Hopefully this week, but I make no hard and fast promises.

Biggest change: remember Nuevo Man? We have to change his handle, I think. On September 7 he asked me to marry him.... so maybe "Mr. Nayana", a la "Mrs. Fletch"?

one flew over the cuckoo's nest

2009-04-23T17:26:00.004-05:00

I've had three Netflix movies sitting on top of my TV for the last two or three months... I'm in that weird Netflixian stage in which you never really feel like seeing what you've got, but you feel guilty returning them, so you're in Netflix limbo. Who knows how long this would have lasted if Nuevo Man hadn't sat down last night and watched one with me?

Our selection was, as my oh-so-brilliant readers have probably figured out by now, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. It's always been in that category of classic movies that I've wanted to get around to, but never did. And now I have. Yay me.

Anyway.

If you are in the tiniest minority of film geeks who don't know this, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest centers on the population of a ward at a state mental hospital, circa 1963. The head nurse, Ms. Ratched, pretty much runs the show, though she chooses to accomplish that through intimidation and humiliation. Let's face it: her charges are easy victims. A monkey wrench is thrown in the proverbial works when Randle McMurphy (a young Jack Nicholson... mmmmm) comes to live on the ward. He's an habitual trouble-maker, but his playful needling of Nurse Ratched becomes personal when he recognizes the tyrant behind her calm, sunny disposition.

As some of you know, in my real life I've worked in the human services field for about a decade, specifically with people with developmental disabilities. The story of Nurse Ratched and her ward sounds horrific, and in many ways unbelievable, but I was struck with how much I recognized a lot of the behavior in this film. Often, it happens when someone has worked with the population for too long (everyone tends to burn out eventually), but not everyone can see themselves doing it. It is so easy, especially after several years of dealing with troublesome personalities or irritating behaviors, to become passive aggressive and controlling.

Now don't get me wrong... I've never actually met a real-life Nurse Ratched. That's what prison cells are for. And I certainly don't condone it; emotional abuse is still abuse. But I was astounded at how well this aspect of institutional life was captured in this film.

On a lighter note, I really enjoyed:

young Christopher Lloyd
young Danny DeVito
the aforementioned young Jack Nicholson (he used to be a great actor!)

So now I'm hoping to get to my final two Netflix movies. On top of the TV set at the moment are The Proposition and The Deer Hunter. Any suggestions?

postlet #22

2009-04-23T10:09:00.000-05:00

Last weekend I discovered that one of my dreadlocks is shaped like the "crooked road" in Joe vs. the Volcano. Even my dreads are film geeks. I wonder if any of the other ones have a favorite film...

postlet #20

2009-03-19T12:49:00.000-05:00

Will somebody please explain to me what is the big flippin' deal about Twitter? The media can't seem to shut up about it. I tried it long ago, and never got anything out of it. Truth be told, I am much more Facebooky. But seriously, if there's a reason I should care about this Twitter thing, would you please let me know?

seasons may change, winter to spring

2009-03-18T16:33:00.002-05:00

So it's March 18. I'm not sure what March is like where you live, but in Minnesota it's like picking up the weather, rolling it up into a little ball, and throwing it on a giant cosmic roulette wheel.

Last Wednesday... March 11. I stayed home sick. Good thing, too, because the temperature didn't spend more than an hour or two above zero. That's air temperature. I think the windchill stayed at scary-below* all day.

Two days ago... Monday, March 16. I did not wear a coat. We hit the mid-to-upper sixties. I drove home with both car windows all the way down. I opened the windows at home... Zoe the Putty Tat finally got to breathe fresh air for the first time in six months. You know, you really forget how great ambient outside noises are until they're filling your apartment after a season of silence.

Today we're back to a normal March temperature... if there is such a thing in Minnesota. I guess it must be somewhere in the forties... all I know is that my insides seem to be thawing. And the big winter coat is still at home.

OK, I know it's a movie blog... and I'm essentially talking about the weather. It's really not meant to be bloggy small talk though. This is really the stuff that's guiding my psyche about now. In Minnesota it's ALL about the weather. We experience some pretty incredible extremes; actually, that's one of the things I love about living here. You see, it's really impossible to appreciate the hazy sweetness of the first spring rain if you didn't first go through an Arctic-ish winter. And the sound of a lawnmower... or a robin chirping outside your window. Or best of all... driving to work through a canopy of multicolored blossoms.

Now let's not get all crazy here. It is only March 18. That first rain hasn't quite happened... no lawnmowers yet, and only a few really brave robins. And those blossoms won't arrive till May. But I'm looking out the window onto a bare (read: no ice) road under a bright (not pale) blue sky. So all that other springy stuff can't be too far behind, right?

*scary-below: (adj) a blanket term Nayana uses to describe frigid, below-zero temperatures that are literally life-threatening (to any form of life stupid enough to be outside).

jane austen + sci-fi: whaddaya think?

2009-02-25T14:57:00.000-06:00

There are currently three projects on the way that fuse Pride & Prejudice (one of my most sacred cows) with sci-fi... basically zombies or aliens wreaking havoc on Jane Austen's most beloved cast of characters.

Do me a favor: read one or two (or all) of the following articles, then let me know what you think by answering the poll on the right.

four thoughts on the 81st oscars

2009-02-24T15:17:00.004-06:00

I got 6 out of 8 of my predictions ("who will win") correctly. That's a heck of a lot better than I did last year! (Captain Crash slaughtered me, and his movie knowledge is about on the same level of my rugby knowledge.) I missed two categories: Best Supporting Actress, which was pretty much a toss-up anyway, and Best Actor, which was probably close, but I did list Sean Penn as my pick who should win. So I'm going to claim it as a modest victory.

I've heard some back and forth on this, but I fall solidly in the camp that loved Sunday night's show. We are so on the right track here. A few of the musical numbers seemed to start out a bit awkwardly, but always ended spectacularly. The structure of the show actually made sense (imagine that!), and I loved, loved, loved the idea of having previous winners pay tribute to each of the acting nominees. For the first time, the Academy put some weight behind the cliché that "it's an honor just to be nominated." I'd like to see this same idea implemented for some of the other categories (directing, writing), but I know that might be a little much.

I've gotta soapbox it for a second. Rant alert. I am getting so tired of hearing people talk about how boring the Oscars is, how it doesn't make for good TV, how the awards are not in touch with the masses, and how they should just not televise some of the less-than-sexy awards (Visual Effects, Sound Mixing, etc.) If you agree with all that, I'm going to talk directly to you for a second: Get over yourself. The Oscars do not exist to entertain you. It's not about the TV production, and it's much bigger than what you choose to watch on one Sunday night a year. The movie-making process is a gargantuan undertaking, and most of the really hard workers are already relegated to an untelevised "Scientific and Technical Awards Banquet". We only have a few, major-as-hell technical awards at the televised Oscars, and you can suck it up and sit through the award that goes to the guy that labored for months making your movies just perfect. We do not need our Oscars to be dumbed down.

If it weren't for the Academy Awards, our film industry would be completely money-driven, as opposed to mostly money-driven. We'd lose all the art, in favor of a money-making machine. The Oscars, other awards, and the acclaim that go with them, are why little movies like Frozen River and The Visitor even have the chance to exist. If it were not for that, do you think studio executives would spend a dime on a production that wouldn't appeal to the masses? Remember, these are the same masses that helped Beverly Hills Chihuahua stay at #1 at the box office for a week last October. I don't want the Oscars to relate to those masses!!! OK, I'm calm now. But just one more thing. Remember 1984? Remember the Fiction Department, with the computer-generated plots, characters, and storylines? Take away our way to honor the art within film, and see how long it takes to get there. I'm just saying.

Finally, to end this post on a bit of a lighter note, I give you Pistola Whipped and her favorite Oscar moment, which was...

"...when Jennifer Aniston was presenting with Jack Black and the camera cut away for an Angelina Jolie close-up. Her fake laughing should have stopped the ceremony so the producers could have grabbed the trophy from Penelope Cruz's hands and awarded it to Jolie. That was truly legendary acting. Her best ever."

nayana's 2009 oscar picks

2009-02-20T13:13:00.005-06:00

As of last night, I've finally done it! I've had the chance to screen every movie that's nominated for a major Academy Award this year. And so, here you go: my Oscar picks for 2009.

Best Picture

Nominees: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ~ Frost/Nixon ~ Milk ~ Slumdog Millionaire ~ The Reader

Who will win: Slumdog Millionaire. It's an underdog that's not under anything anymore. It's got 10 nominations overall, and has largely swept the awards circuit, getting major awards from BAFTA, the Golden Globes, the National Board of Review, the Producers Guild, the Screen Actors Guild, and the Writers Guild, among others. Plus, it's a great flick. This won't break my heart.

Who should win: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Despite everything I just said, Benjamin Button was the film that captured my heart this year. I've heard a lot of people deride this movie as slow, weird, the second Forrest Gump... whatever. It was beautiful, and it touched me. That plus Cate Blanchett is all I need for a Best Picture. Besides, it didn't end with jazz hands. WTF, Slumdog?

Best Director

Nominees: David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ~ Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon ~ Gus Van Sant for Milk ~ Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire ~ Stephen Daldry for The Reader

Who will win: Danny Boyle. Besides the fact that Oscar likes to give Best Director and Best Picture to the same film, Boyle really did do a fantastic job with this one. On the other hand, it's cool that Stephen Daldry has gotten his third nomination...for his third film! No other director of at least three films has ever been nominated by the Academy for his entire body of work. Even so, Daldry will have to be happy with that. The Oscar goes to Boyle.

Who should win: David Fincher. Everything fit so well together in this movie: the flow of the story, the performance of the actors, the special effects, the overall feel. It was seamless, and for that I give credit to Fincher.

Best Actor

Nominees: Richard Jenkins for The Visitor ~ Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon ~ Sean Penn for Milk ~ Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ~ Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler

Who will win: Mickey Rourke. Everyone loves a comeback. And I'm thinking a lot of people just want to see what he'll do at the podium when he wins.

Who should win: Sean Penn. In all honesty, I think Sean Penn is kind of a tool. He's one of those people who takes himself way too seriously. But he can act. And he did a great job acquainting us with the flawed, brilliant, trailblazing Harvey Milk. Though I'm not a fan of his, Sean Penn did his job, and he deserves to be rewarded for it.

Best Actress

Nominees: Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married ~ Angelina Jolie for Changeling ~ Melissa Leo for Frozen River ~ Meryl Streep for Doubt ~ Kate Winslet for The Reader

Who will win: Kate Winslet. She's been previously nominated for her acting five times, and has yet to win an Oscar. Besides, her performance was brilliant, conflicted, and moving. I'll be happy for her.

Who should win: Angelina Jolie. I have similar feelings for Ms. Jolie as I do for Sean Penn: not a big fan of her personally, but I can't deny her acting ability. She knocked me on my ass in Changeling. By the way, I'd also be thrilled if Anne Hathaway took this one home. Her performance was powerful, touching, and (it may seem weird to say this about an Oscar nominee) underrated.

Best Supporting Actor

Nominees: Josh Brolin for Milk ~ Robert Downey, Jr. for Tropic Thunder ~ Philip Seymour Hoffman for Doubt ~ Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight ~ Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road

Who will win: Heath Ledger. It was an astounding, buzzed-about performance before Ledger's tragic death, and when he passed on, it became legendary. Voters will want to give him the Oscar he should have received for Brokeback Mountain.

Who should win: Heath Ledger. OK, I'll go along with that.

Best Supporting Actress

Nominees: Amy Adams for Doubt ~ Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona ~ Viola Davis for Doubt ~ Taraji P. Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ~ Marisa Tomei for The Wrestler

Who will win: Viola Davis. She's a long-respected theater actress, and she blew our minds with just one scene. She managed to take a position which was unthinkable and make it relatable.

Who should win: Amy Adams. Same movie, not as flashy... but perfect. Plus, I gotta root for my hometown girl.

Best Original Screenplay

Nominees: Courtney Hunt for Frozen River ~ Mike Leigh for Happy-Go-Lucky ~ Martin McDonagh for In Bruges ~ Dustin Lance Black for Milk ~ Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, and Pete Docter for WALL-E

Who will win: Dustin Lance Black. The Academy won't want Milk to go home empty-handed, and Best Actor is not necessarily a lock for Sean Penn.

Who should win: Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, and Pete Docter. A story almost without dialogue that moved audiences so profoundly; this hasn't happened since The Red Balloon.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Nominees: Eric Roth and Robin Swicord for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ~ John Patrick Shanley for Doubt ~ Peter Morgan for Frost/Nixon ~ David Hare for The Reader ~ Simon Beaufoy for Slumdog Millionaire

Who will win: Simon Beaufoy. Slumdog'll sweep it.

Who should win: David Hare. I was a fan of the book, The Reader, and Hare didn't make me hate the film. It's a rare achievement (adapted screenwriting is harder than anything most of us will ever do), and it should be rewarded.

Best Animated Film

Nominees: Bolt ~ Kung Fu Panda ~ WALL-E

Who will win: WALL-E. Pixar has never made a bad film; in fact, they seem to get better and better. This romantic, touching fable deserves an Oscar sweep.

Who should win: WALL-E.

So, there you have it. Tune in Sunday night to see how it all unfolds... and then come back here next week to see me gloat... or, more likely, take my lumps.

LAMB devours the oscars: best actress

2009-02-19T12:49:00.002-06:00

Note: this post was part of an annual feature at the LAMB entitled "LAMB Devours The Oscars". Each day one blogger discussed one category of the Academy Awards. To read more of the entries, click here.

As I've complained ad nauseum on The Center Seat, I've been a very bad film geek this year. I'll spare you the gory details, but life has conspired... and I've actually had to make a conscious effort to see all the 2009 Oscar films. But still, I thought I was doing pretty well... until Fletch assigned me Best Actress, a category in which I had, at that point, seen only one of the nominated films!

Actually, it was a good thing. I got off my booty and went to the theater (and, in one case, Blockbuster), and now I can hold my head up in the LAMB's distinguished company. So, here we go.

Melissa Leo, Frozen River

This was a gripping story about a recently single mother who resorts to border smuggling to pay the bills--and it's the Canadian border. Cool twist, right? We're saturated with Mexico border stories, so this was refreshing. And I have to say... maybe it was the snowy backdrop, or the northern accent, or the raw desperation to keep her head above water, but I saw a lot of people I know in Melissa Leo's character. She's real, frank, unadorned, the anti-glamour-puss. Of course a lot of the credit for that must be shared with the person who created the character: screenwriter Courtney Hunt, who is also nominated.

Leo is fairly unknown; a quick perusal of her IMDB page reveals lots of guest stints on Law & Order and CSI, and roles in various obscure films, perhaps the least obscure of which is Mr. Woodcock. Did you see that one? Yeah, me neither.

I'm actually really cool with Leo's obscurity. How great would it be if relative unknowns were nominated at every Academy Awards? Of course she doesn't have a chance in hell, but it'll be nice to see her there Sunday night.

Meryl Streep - Doubt

Meryl Streep has gotten fifteen Academy Award nominations. Fifteen. That's more than any other actor or actress in the history of the Oscars. I'm sure there's a chair somewhere in the Kodak Theatre with Meryl's ass-print permanently molded onto the seat.

Still, it shouldn't be a surprise. Girlfriend can act. Overall, Doubt was a bit depressing for me (it's the story of a priest who may or may not have misbehaved with one of his school's young male students), but it was one of those movies that seemed custom-built as a showcase for great acting. And, naturally, Streep didn't disappoint. She portrayed a harsh, militant nun who suspected the priest of wrongdoing and did all she could to prove herself right. That character had so much potential to be flat and uncomplicated, but Streep gave her flashes of humanity, with a fleeting look of uncertainty or a slight shaking of the hands. This is one case in which the actress seems to have made the character who she was. But, fairly or not, that's what we've come to expect of Meryl Streep. Anything less than perfection in her would be a disappointment. Kind of a tough place to put her in, huh? Whatever. She's got fifteen Oscar nominations.

Kate Winslet - The Reader

I came to this movie with the distinct disadvantage of having read the book. We all know that books tend to far surpass their movie adaptations. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this movie, with its raw sexuality and complicated morality.

It's hard to think of a more complicated, conflicted character to challenge Kate Winslet. In this movie, she played an illiterate Nazi war criminal who has an affair with a 16-year-old boy. It's kind of Summer of '42-meets-Judgment at Nuremberg-meets-...I don't know... a Lifetime movie about illiteracy. Of course Winslet pulls it off. She is somehow able to portray vulnerability and pride simultaneously, but perhaps her greatest feat is that we forget about Kate Winslet and instead become wholly absorbed in the story. This is a case, in contrast to Doubt, in which the acting is merely a part of the experience of the film.

Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married

This is it. We are officially no longer allowed to dismiss Anne Hathaway as Princess Mia. I think we all suspected she was awesome (how much ass did she kick in Brokeback?) but now, there it is in black and white. She is a contender for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

It wasn't just handed to her either. In a film which was sometimes difficult to watch, Hathaway delivered a stunning performance as a recovering addict trying to fit in with her family upon her return from rehab. She's the classic black sheep, but the issues go deeper than that. In fact, the myriad issues of this textbook dysfunctional family explode at perhaps the worst possible time: the days surrounding the wedding of the "good" sister.

I have never seen Anne Hathaway like this. She knocked me on my ass. Frankly, she would absolutely get my vote for this particular Oscar, if it had not been for the final contender in this category...

Angelina Jolie - Changeling

I get a lot of flak from people I respect (Pistola, I'm talking to you) about my professional regard for Ms. Jolie. In this case, it's sometimes hard to distinguish feelings about Jolie's personal choices from judgment of her acting ability. Many people dismiss her as a skank/homewrecker/baby factory/whatever, and I'm not necessarily arguing with that. But I have always been a fan of Angelina Jolie the actress. From her first major role as a doomed supermodel in Gia, to her Oscar-winning turn as a sociopathic mental patient in Girl, Interrupted, to her heartbreaking portrayal of her own friend Marianne Pearl in A Mighty Heart, to this most recent role as a bereaved mother in Changeling, Angelina Jolie is a devastating actress. Her work speaks for itself.

I was shaking after I saw Changeling... Jolie is heartbreaking as a mother who tirelessly fights to find her lost son, even angering police and being thrown in a mental institution in the process. Of course she's a great actress, but she brought something outstanding to this particular role. We all know, regardless of our personal feelings for her, that she loves her kids. In addition, she lost her own mother shortly before starting filming on Changeling. Perhaps it was this personal experience that allowed her to lay herself open on screen in such a raw way.

I am going to unabashedly throw my full support behind Angelina Jolie for this Oscar. But the truth is, no matter who wins this year, we can't lose. The Academy has nominated five outstanding actresses, and whoever wins will do so because of merit, and not because of pity, or politics, or "it's about time", as in certain previous years (Halle Berry, I'm looking at you.)

thirty, flirty, and thriving... -or- the center seat turns one!

2009-01-15T04:20:00.003-06:00

This January has brought two momentous occasions... well, they're momentous to me, anyway.

On January 4, I turned thirty.
And today, January 15, this blog o' mine turns one year old.

So 2008 was a pretty amazing year for me. I'm hearing a lot of people talk about how 2008 was one of the worst years ever (usually they're talking about the economy, the war, politics, what have you), but I think it was one of the best of my life. And I owe much of it to this blog, and to all of you.

It all started with a conversation in Diamonds Coffee Shoppe in Northeast Minneapolis. Dad (there he is on the left...handsome, huh?) and I were having one of those Meaningful Talks... this one was about where exactly my life was headed. I'd been divorced for about a year, and everyone knows how life-changing a divorce is. But for me, it was more than that: it was self-changing. After I had gone through the anger, and the depression, and the self-pity (believe me, there was plenty of that), I stepped back and looked at myself. I realized I was not the person I wanted to be, and only I had the power to change that. So how exactly does a person go about a full overhaul--a head-to-toe reinvention?

The thing that Dad said to me that was so powerful was that he had become successful when he had found something he was passionate about and then just pursued a career in that field. I honestly had a bit of a Juno moment (remember Mac McGuff? "Heating and cooling.") Dad's passion is life insurance, retirement plans... financial shizz. *Snore* Oh, sorry. And mine--as we all know--is the world of film. I have no idea why I never thought about writing on this subject... but I can say that ever since I started, it's changed my life. I dived headlong into this passion, and guess what? I'm happy! Will this ever lead to a full-blown career? I don't know. But I hope so. I've gone to college for journalism, psychology, special education... none of that has really lit my fire. But for the first time in my life, I have a vocational dream, and I feel like this blog has started me on that path.

Of course there were other things that changed. I had to take a frank look at a lot of things, including politics. (Can y'all believe I used to be a staunch Republican?) There were crises of faith--how can I love my gay friends, advocate for them, and still hold true to what the Bible says?* I grew close to a new group of friends, and moved away from others. And for some reason I decided to get crazy-ass hair (the dreads are totally sick now, by the way... check me out on the right). All these crazy changes have added up to this: if I look at the "me" from twelve months ago, she's barely recognizable. And that's ok. Because I'm So. Freaking. Happy.**

So what's up for 2009? Well...

I'm going to keep it up.
I'm going to stay true to myself.
I'm going to try to blog more frequently.
I'm going to try to do my job (my real job, the one I get paid for) better.
I'm going to be a better person.
And I'm finally going to show you my face.

*The answer is really quite easy. But that's a whole other blog post, on a whole other blog. Buy me a beer sometime, and we'll chat.
**I hear Kevin Kline from French Kiss in my head "When people tell me they are happy, my ass begins to twitch." But I don't care. That's how freaking happy I am. :-D

nonreview: slumdog millionaire

2009-01-14T04:20:00.002-06:00

This one is tearing it up on the awards circuit this year. It just won Best Motion Picture - Drama at the Golden Globes last Sunday, but it also snagged what I think is a much greater honor: the best-reviewed movie of 2008 by the members of the LAMB (my kickass movie association), with an average rating of 5 LAMBs!

I also really enjoyed it. It was the first movie I went to see with Nuevo Man; afterwards he said what has come to be his standard post-indie movie observation: "I liked it a lot more than I thought I would." There's hope for him yet, folks.

Below are some stellar reviews of this stellar movie by some stellar movie bloggers. Please do click through and support my friends.

The Dark of the Matinee (****)
Getafilm (A+)
Doodad Kind of Town ("I could literally feel my spirits soaring")
Blog Cabins ("It's in the hole!" [aka Excellent])

doubt

2009-01-13T04:20:00.001-06:00

It's not great news, folks.

This film's gotta go in that category, along with Little Children and Black Hawk Down, of movies I'm glad I saw, but never want to see again. You can watch a movie like this and know in your head that it's great: great direction, great acting, great cinematography... but it hurts your heart. I know Doubt is good... but it's freaking disturbing.

It should go without saying that anytime you get Philip Seymour Hoffman, Meryl Streep, and Amy Adams in the same movie, you're going to get some Acting. And I really can't gush enough on that cinematography: crazy off-kilter shots to add to the uneasiness of some of the scenes, overhead God-view shots...

But ick.

For those of you who've seen this one, I want to know: Did he or didn't he? Leave a comment, be opinionated. Like you all will have trouble with that.

the curious case of benjamin button

2009-01-12T12:27:00.005-06:00

I know I've been complaining about my inability to get into the theaters lately, ad nauseum, but it really is my current greatest frustration. Seriously, I see a movie preview on TV and I almost cry. Well, the new guy in my life* must also be getting pretty sick of my whining, because he made sure we got to two** movies this weekend!

I've been waiting to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button for about a year. That's when Entertainment Weekly started talking it up, probably just because of the crazy-ass concept. (It also didn't hurt that it costars my favorite actress, the sublime Cate Blanchett.) For those of you who don't know, here's the film's premise: for no apparent reason, the title character is born as an old man, who then ages in reverse for the rest of his life. So he's wrinkly and feeble for a few decades; then he's Brad Pitt-a-licious for a little while; then, inevitably, he turns into a kid and dies.

So the concept is crazy. And, I admit, that's what sucked me in. But what kept me sitting in that seat was the amazing love story between Benjamin and Daisy (Blanchett). I generally have a HUGE problem with most movies' portrayal of love. A lot of films, especially mainstream ones, completely get it wrong. Movie love tends to be trite, unrealistic, and, frankly, insulting to my intelligence. Not Benjamin Button; this film gets it right. The love between Benjamin and Daisy is real: it's rarely glamorous, and it's certainly imperfect, but it's solid, sweet, simple, and enduring.

I have to take issue with some reviews that have knocked Benjamin Button for its format. The story is a flashback, à la Bridges of Madison County, in which a dying mother relates the romance to her incredulous daughter. To add a bit more drama, the mother and daughter are in a New Orleans hospital in 2005 as Hurricane Katrina comes ashore. To be honest, I can't really see anything wrong with that. The bulk of the story takes place (or has its roots) in New Orleans, and Katrina was arguably among the most profound events in that city's history (along with the Civil War, I guess). Actually, the Katrina situation reinforces one of the main themes of the movie: nothing lasts forever, no matter how much we might want it to. And if you know anything about Brad Pitt, the boy's been neck-deep in Katrina charities for years, even moving his whole huge-ass family to live down in New Orleans. So what's the problem? I don't get it.

I do really recommend this movie. It was lovely. And it had me in tears towards the end. I think that actually surprised Nuevo Man a bit, but seriously--he's going to have to get used to that.

*Pistola calls him Nuevo Man, and I think that's as good a handle as any, though it does make him sound a bit like an archaeological find. "Nuevo Man walked upright but had weird dorsal fins." Kidding. Haven't found any dorsal fins... yet.

**We also saw Doubt, which I will do my best to review sometime this week. Really, I will.

australia

2008-12-05T15:57:00.005-06:00

I feel like I'm way behind this year. In the last few years, I've taken pride in the fact that I tended to see prestigious or award-winning movies right away. I was always right on top of the conversation.

This year, things are different. It may have something to do with my decision to drop my subscription to Entertainment Weekly.* It may also have to do with my recent negligence in following my favorite movie blogs. But I think the main reason I'm a bad, bad movie geek this year is that I've got two jobs, and a desire to crash and do nothing on my rare night off.

So last night I took a step in rectifying this sad state of affairs... I actually went to a movie in the theater.** I'd wanted to see Australia ever since I heard it was coming out, mostly because I adore director Baz Luhrmann and believe he can do no wrong.

I was not disappointed last night. I know it's gotten mixed reviews, but I have to believe they came from people who don't understand the genius that is my Baz.

If you're not familiar with Luhrmann's work, he's known for his Red Curtain Trilogy, which includes Strictly Ballroom, William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet, and Moulin Rouge! His movies tend to be visually stunning (and a bit head-spinning); they're unique for their over-the-top characters, intense cinematography, and wildly avant-garde style.

Interestingly, Australia had more in common with classic epic romances like Gone With the Wind and Titanic than with any of the Red Curtain films. There's still a bit of the trademark Baz Luhrmann stuff (those of us who love him most will recognize it), but this film is by far more mainstream. The setting is lush, wild 1930's Australia, and our story comes complete with a swashbuckling, mysterious hero and a refined-but-feisty heroine.

Truly, it's just fun to watch (how often does that happen at the movies anymore?), but what really knocked me on my booty was the ROMANCE. Oh, Lord, it was romantic. I'm actually feeling kind of swoony right now thinking about it. The kissing. And the Hugh Jackman. And the guy who can't declare his love at all till it may be much too late. (God knows I've got experience with that.) And the rescues. And more kissing. And more Hugh Jackman.

OK, yeah, I gotta go cool off.

*It was getting WAY too expensive. Why don't they offer renewal rates that are as low as the rates for new subscribers? No worries. My card's in the mail.
**This used to happen 2 or 3 times a week... but last night was my first time since W. In October.

the "one" meme

2008-12-04T09:58:00.001-06:00

This one I picked up from my bud David Bishop over at Hoping For Something To Hope For. Here goes:

1. One movie that made you laugh: Juno

2. One movie that made you cry: Dances With Wolves

3. One movie you loved when you were a child: The Neverending Story

4. One movie that you have seen more than 10 times: The Princess Bride

5. One movie you've seen multiple times in the theater: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (A bit of a backstory here: this one came out when Greg and I were newly married. When we would get into a fight, I would cool off by spending 3 hours in Middle Earth. I must have seen it in the theater 7 or 8 times.)

6. One movie you walked out on: I honestly can't remember one. I tend to stick it out, even through the dreck.

7. One movie that you can and do quote from: Star Wars

8. One movie you loved, but were embarrassed to admit it: Crossroads. The key word there is "were"... as many of you know, I have come to embrace the humiliation that comes with loving the Britney Spears movie. I can't help it. I want to be on a road trip with those girls.

9. One movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven't gotten around to watching yet: The Deer Hunter. I've had it from Netflix for the past month or so.

10. One movie you hated: Before The Devil Knows You're Dead. Pistola and I discussed this once.

11. One movie that scared you: Enemy Mine, when I was 5. I tend to avoid scary now.

12. One movie that made you happy: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. I left the theater with an actual spring in my step.

13. One movie that made you miserable: Taxi to the Dark Side

14. One movie musical for which you know all the lyrics to all the songs: The Sound of Music

15. One movie that you have been known to sing along with: Moulin Rouge!

16. One movie you would recommend that everyone see: Casablanca. I admit I stole this one from David, but he's right on.

17. One movie character you’ve fallen in love with: Peter Bretter (Jason Segel) in Forgetting Sarah Marshall

18. One actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie: Edward Norton.

19. One actor that would make you less likely to see a movie: Steven Seagal.

20. One of the last movies you saw: Once

21. One of the next movies you hope to see: Australia

once

2008-12-02T15:49:00.002-06:00

This is really weird.

I've loved this movie from the moment I first saw it. I've since seen it many times, bought the DVD, acquired the soundtrack, gone to see Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová in concert, and discussed them numerous times on this blog and others. So how is it that I haven't written a freaking review?

I think I've said this before: the movies that I love the most are the hardest for me to write about. It's true. It's perfectly simple to gush endlessly about them to those around me... but somehow that just doesn't translate to a blog post.

So here's the deal: Once is what all movies, in my oh-so-humble opinion, should aspire to be. It's a very simple story (we don't even ever learn the names of the main characters) with great music and real emotion. It was created for next to nothing in a couple of weeks with a couple of cameras and a couple of non-actors. So instead of commercial polish, we get substance. And instead of formulas, we get originality.

Once is almost a romance, but it's not really about that. It's really about the magic that happens when two compatible musicians sit down and create together. It's not something most people get to see every day, but I'm telling you: when the Guy and the Girl sit down and sing together for the first time, it's almost like there's a chemical reaction in the air. Now there's a special effect you can't create on a computer.

sid & nancy

2008-11-25T12:51:00.003-06:00

This is one crazy-ass movie.

That sounds simplistic, and it is. But it's really hard to start writing about Sid & Nancy in any other way.

In truth, it's a crazy-ass movie because Sid and Nancy lived crazy-ass lives. For those of you who don't know, Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen were lovers, losers, junkies, and geniuses. Nowadays I'm sure they'd both go to rehab, get clean, and start living quasi-productive lives sometime in their forties. Heroin addiction just isn't as cool as it used to be.

A few decades ago, though, you'd be hard-pressed to find the successful musical prodigy that didn't have some mind-altering chemical or another polluting his veins. That's, unfortunately, what deprived us of more amazing talent than I really want to think about: Presley, Hendrix, Joplin... and Vicious, I guess.

It's depressing stuff. Not really that fun to watch. What kept me watching Sid & Nancy, though, was this: in spite of being completely drugged out and fucked up, these people managed to actually love each other. The whole story is a downward spiral... genius being diluted by smack... lost opportunities... lost lives... but through it all, the two of them never let go of one another. Now of course you could say that Sid and Nancy stayed together because of the drugs; that they were co-dependent and the relationship was part of the addiction. But there's a puny, struggling remnant of romanticism within me that just wants to believe love can conquer all.

Oh, yeah... and Gary Oldman can act.

the alphabet meme

2008-11-24T15:03:00.001-06:00

It's not that I don't like memes... it's just that (like everything else lately) it seems like it takes me forever to get around to them. So, fellow bloggy peeps, continue to tag me. And once in a while, though it may be really, really late... I'll do it. Here goes. (Fletch tagged me on this one, by the way.)

The Rules

1. Pick one film to represent each letter of the alphabet.

2. The letter "A" and the word "The" do not count as the beginning of a film's title, unless the film is simply titled A or The, and I don't know of any films with those titles.

3. Return of the Jedi belongs under "R," not "S" as in Star Wars Episode IV: Return of the Jedi. This rule applies to all films in the original Star Wars trilogy; all that followed start with "S." Similarly, Raiders of the Lost Ark belongs under "R," not "I" as in Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. Conversely, all films in the LOTR series belong under "L" and all films in the Chronicles of Narnia series belong under "C," as that's what those filmmakers called their films from the start. In other words, movies are stuck with the titles their owners gave them at the time of their theatrical release. Use your better judgment to apply the above rule to any series/films not mentioned.

4. Films that start with a number are filed under the first letter of their number's word. 12 Monkeys would be filed under "T."

5. Link back to Blog Cabins in your post so that I can eventually type "alphabet meme" into Google and come up #1, then make a post where I declare that I am the King of Google.

6. If you're selected, you have to then select 5 more people (I didn't do this. Everyone I love seems to have been tagged already. If you haven't been tagged, and you're now weeping on the floor because you think I don't love you... get over it and post your own. I do love you. Really. --Nayana).

Now, Fletch didn't specifically say it had to be our favorite film starting with that letter... but I'm going to try to do that anyway.

So.... My list.

Across the Universe
Before Sunrise
Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, The
Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The
Elf
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Garden State
High Fidelity
Into the Wild
Juno
Knocked Up
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Moulin Rouge!
No Country for Old Men
Once
Persepolis
Quick and the Dead, The
Rain Man
Schindler's List
Taxi to the Dark Side
Untamed Heart
Volver
William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet
X-Men
Y tu mamá también
Zoolander

postlet #19

2008-11-21T16:10:00.002-06:00

So Captain Crash is off living with his mommy in Arizona. Greg is doing who knows what somewhere with a high school girl*. And Nathaniel and I broke up on Wednesday**. So it's back to just me and Zoe the putty tat. Ah, well. Maybe now I'll have time to catch a movie here and there.

*Don't really know, don't care to know.
**I hold him in the highest respect; we just couldn't agree on a deal-breaking issue.

oliver stone's thoughts on his portrayal of george w. bush

2008-10-23T13:20:00.002-05:00

I've had quite a few interesting political discussions with friends since I posted my review of W. yesterday. So of course, when I found this piece on Slate, I just had to share it. Click here to read Oliver Stone's thoughts on the players, decisions, and fuckups in the Bush administration (and, of course, the dramatic license he had to take).

w.

2008-10-22T09:33:00.003-05:00

Tina Fey said something really insightful on some talk show or other last week. I'm paraphrasing: "The thing I've realized about Sarah Palin is that she's exactly as smart as me. And I'm certainly not qualified to be the vice-president." It's true, right? I don't know about you, but I want someone in office who's way smarter than me, and who can comprehend all these complicated issues a whole lot better than I can. Seriously. Y'all are not ready for President Nayana.

That seemed to be the overriding message in Oliver Stone's new biopic about President Bush II. I think a lot of people saw Stone's name and thought, "Oh. Liberal Bush-bashing. Cool." But really, that's not what it was about. Obviously "Bushie" (as Laura calls him) is not the best president ever. Probably not even in the top 80%. But the message of the movie was that here's a regular guy, with a good heart and good intentions, who got in way over his head. Now you all know where I stand on this little election we're having (it's emblazoned on my sidebar), but I wonder... Obama gets slammed a lot for being elitist and intellectual. Now exactly what is the objection to that? I want someone who knows his ass from his elbow to represent me on the world stage. I don't think that's too much to ask for.

Back to the movie... it was really well done. The casting was fantastic, with the possible exception of Thandie Newton as Condie Rice (a tad caricaturish). Elizabeth Banks disappeared into the role of Laura Bush, Jeffrey Wright couldn't have been more compelling as Colin Powell... and Richard Dreyfuss was INSANE as Dick Cheney. That guy knows how to portray eeeeevil.

I guess it comes down to this: no matter what side of the political fence you're on, I recommend this movie as a reminder of what we want to avoid in our government. Maybe catch it before November 4. Call it election prep.

rushmore

2008-10-21T10:13:00.005-05:00

There are the Wes Anderson lovers, and there are the Wes Anderson haters, and then there are those of us in the middle--the moderate majority--who can enjoy a Wes Anderson film if we just get ourselves into a very Wes Anderson place beforehand.

I think that was my mistake last year when I went to see The Darjeeling Limited... not enough W.A. prep. But I was ready last night... and so Rushmore knocked my socks off.

Rushmore is the story of Max Fischer, an eccentric fifteen-year-old who, though adventurous and charismatic to the point of absurdity, happens to suck at academics. Enter the sweet first-grade teacher with the British accent, and of course Max falls hard for her. But then so does an equally eccentric Bill Murray... and hilarity ensues.

I hate to say that I may be a product of a Lifetime Movie world, but I kept expecting a little Mary Kay Letourneau action to go down. Thankfully, it didn't, everything worked out, and the film left me with a smile on my face.

One thing struck me as exceptional, however. This is one of those movies in which there is a play within the film; Max happens to be a talented playwright, and we are treated to portions of many of his productions. Recently I've seen quite a few films that fall into this drama-within-the-drama category--Waiting for Guffman, Hamlet 2, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall immediately spring to mind--but the plays in Rushmore are actually really, really great. That seems to be an exception to the rule, as crappy-ass productions provide better comedy fodder.

Oh... you're right. The Dracula puppet musical was sublime, too, wasn't it? All right, never mind.

taxi driver

2008-10-20T10:08:00.004-05:00

---Spoilers ahead, for anyone who hasn't seen this 32-year-old movie*---

About three months ago, I took a part time job in order to help maintain my lavish (ha!) lifestyle. One big advantage of the job is that I get all kinds of time to watch movies on my portable DVD player; a glaring disadvantage is that I get a lot less theater time, and a whole lot less blogging time. Oh, well. I gots to pay the bills somehow.

In the course of my moonlighting, I get to sit in my car for hours at a time, next to an alley in a really seedy part of town. So I get to see all kinds of exciting things. Like the drug addict who passed out in the alley and was revived by police this last Saturday night. Or the haggard homeless lady who took it upon herself to do a complete wardrobe change in broad daylight, sans underclothes, in the middle of a parking lot.

Travis Bickle saw a lot of interesting shit on his job, too. For those of you who don't know, he was a cabbie who worked some of the shadier parts of New York City in the seventies... Granted, he was also a RAVING LUNATIC... but here's hoping my vocational experiences don't ever lead me to practice whipping out my gun in front of a mirror.

One of the things about having decided only recently to dive headlong into my movie obsession is that I still have not seen many cinematic essentials. Actually, Saturday night was my first ever viewing of Taxi Driver. And so I've seen all kinds of movies which have obviously been influenced by Scorsese's masterpiece, before I saw the original work. For example, when DeNiro's cabbie shaved his head into that mohawk as he was preparing to go medieval on politicians and pimps, I saw blinding flashes of Ed Norton's hardened, murderous skinhead from American History X. I'm sure this happened in reverse for everyone who saw these movies in the order they were released, but for me it was like seeing a prequel and having the pieces finally fall into place.

Also, I bet a lot of people see Jodie Foster in grown-up roles and have flashes of the little twelve-year-old hooker in Taxi Driver... for me, again, it was the opposite. She was so precocious at that young age, I just saw the adult Foster in her little face. Young Harvey Keitel weirded me out... young Albert Brooks weirded me out, too... and of course young DeNiro was weird. But smokin' hot.**

I've been really remiss in my blogging lately, but I have done my best to keep up with the "Viewed But Not Reviewed" list on the sidebar. So if any of you have been following that, you can see that I've been doing my best lately to catch up on must-sees that I've missed till now. At home now I've got Rushmore, Sophie's Choice, and Dr. Strangelove. Any suggestions as to which one I should see on my shift tonight?

*Like me, as of three days ago.
**Rowr. Yes, I'm talking to you, Bobby.

before sunrise (and before sunset)

2008-09-23T14:38:00.004-05:00

Lately I've been whining to anyone who would listen that Hollywood seems to be incapable of portraying human relationships, specifically romantic relationships. I alluded to that a little bit on this blog last week.

But I'm good now. Late last Tuesday night, in a deserted parking lot, I lost myself in Before Sunrise. I had seen it ages ago when it was relatively new, but my reacquaintance with this masterpiece was long overdue.

If you're unfamiliar, Before Sunrise is an extremely unique movie: it follows two strangers (played by Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy) who meet on a train and impulsively decide to spend an evening together in Vienna. The whole movie is dialogue. Just talking. No chase scenes, no gratuitous sex, no washed-up comedians playing multiple obese characters. I know, it's revolutionary, right?

What Before Sunrise did so well for me was that it perfectly captured the dynamic of a brand-new relationship. You know, how it's all awkward when you know he's looking at you and you just can't meet his gaze or you'll turn tomato-red... or when you're not sure if it's ok to touch him... or that breathtaking moment when you know for sure he's about to kiss you. And at first you have this weird guardedness, but after a few hours you're suddenly telling him stuff you don't usually admit to family.

Another fantastic thing about this movie is that it was made in 1995... but it's not dated. It feels like it could be happening right now. Before Sunrise effectively ignores all the easy tricks that films use to convince us of their cleverness; it just portrays real humans, behaving in a realistic fashion, in a real city, in a situation that is absolutely believable. But for all this realism, the movie is still entirely magical.

Before Sunrise is one of those films that is entirely loved by those of us who love movies... and unappreciated by everyone else. It has a 100% Tomatometer rating... and it grossed only 5.5 million in the U.S. But this brings me to one of the things I love about independent filmmakers: they made the sequel, Before Sunset, anyway.

Granted, it did come nine years later, but it was so cool to see those two characters still alive and doing what they do. It did provide a bit of closure, although the ending of Sunset was nearly as maddening as the ending of the original movie...

But to find out what I mean by that, you've gotta watch 'em.

two bright spots in a dreary 60th emmy awards

2008-09-22T12:57:00.001-05:00

Is it just me, or have awards shows completely lost their magic? The Emmys last night were just depressing. It could have been the lame humor, the five(!) hosts, or the fact that The Office and Weeds got completely jacked. It could also be that I'm a movie girl, so the TV thing didn't really speak to me.

Whatever. It was a crappy show. Except for two things:

Josh Groban's TV-theme medley. It had the potential to be corny--OK, I guess it really was corny. But I lurved it.
Mr. Sexalicious Paul Giamatti won his first Emmy for his masterful portrayal of John Adams in the HBO miniseries of the same name. So well deserved. (Everyone else connected with John Adams seemed to rake 'em in as well, but I only had eyes for Paul.)

Even so, I'm skipping the Emmys next year. Unless Justin Kirk gets nominated. (I met him last week, by the way. More on that to come.)

city of angels

2008-09-12T10:04:00.007-05:00

This post is part of a larger feature on my friend Fletch's site, Blog Cabins, entitled "Cagefest: The Nic Cage Film Festival". For a selection of Mr. Cage's films, Fletch had a blogger present either a PRO or a CON argument. This is my PRO review for City of Angels. You should definitely head over to Cagefest to read some of the other reviews when you get a chance.

I've had a growing impatience lately with movies that depict love unrealistically. Like, most of them.

You know what I'm talking about: the couple sees each other, has a few furtive conversations, and suddenly they're "in love" and are willing to move heaven and earth for each other. That is SO NOT how it works. In real life, love is immensely complicated, hard to come by, and requires effort, time, and sacrifice.

So why do I love City of Angels so much, given that it's the textbook example of this "instant love" phenomenon? Easy. I don't accept love as the turning point of the story.

If you don't know the movie, here's a big fat SPOILER ALERT... and now I'll fill you in. The premise of City of Angels is that an angel (Nicolas Cage) falls so deeply in love with a surgeon (Meg Ryan) that he chooses to forsake his immortal life and become a human, just so that he can be with her.

It's a sweet idea, if that was what really happened in the movie. Oh, they definitely feel lust for one another. Longing, too. But I think the real draw for our angel is not love, but life.

Let me explain. There's a lot of imagery in City of Angels of the simple, sensual pleasures of being human: the way a pear tastes; sunlight filtering through trees; the bracing ecstasy of a really hot shower. I get that stuff completely, because as anybody who knows me well can tell you, Nayana is all about the sensual pleasures*. I find it really easy to lose myself in things like dazzling sunsets, light reflecting on water, kickass thunderstorms, cherry cheesecake... So if I were in Seth the angel's position, would I give up immortality and the ability to sit on overhead freeway signs in order to experience all these things? Hells yeah.

I guess my point is that the real romance of this movie is not the Nic Cage/Meg Ryan slobberfest, but the romance between a human being and life itself. Get it?

*OK, perv, that's not what I mean. Sensual. We could talk about the other thing too, but that's not the topic of the day.

what can i say? i'm a sucker for nicholas sparks weepers.

2008-09-08T10:59:00.003-05:00

I read Nights in Rodanthe when it first came out, and loved it.

Does this mean that the movie, starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane, will also be good? Probably not.

But do I plan to be in the theater to see it the first chance I get? Absolutely I do.

friends won't let friends see... bangkok dangerous

2008-09-03T08:00:00.001-05:00

Top 5 reasons to skip this one...

5. That title. Ugh. I can't even type it without a little bile coming up.

4. Have you seen Nic Cage's hair in this one? It's like Billy Mitchell's Jesus hair got together with Tom Hanks' Da Vinci Code mop and made sweet, sweet hair love. In a big puddle of jerry curl.

3. Apparently the Thai movie on which it's based wasn't that good either.

2. They won't screen it for critics. Always a bad sign.

1. This trailer.

hamlet 2

2008-09-02T18:20:00.001-05:00

Truthfully, if Hamlet 2 had come out two months ago, or two months from now, I (and many others) probably would have waited for the DVD. But fortunately for Steve Coogan's quirky little film, it's out in late August/early September, aka Where Bad Movies Go To Die. Seriously, my other choices this weekend included Disaster Movie, The House Bunny, and Babylon A.D. Yeah. I went for the goofy indie flick.

The basic premise of Hamlet 2 is that a God-awful out-of-work actor becomes a God-awful acting teacher who tries to save his school's drama program with a God-awful original play, a sequel to Shakespeare's classic work. Hey, remember how pretty much everyone dies at the end of Hamlet? Not a big deal. Hamlet 2 has a time machine. Which explains the cameos by Jesus Christ and Albert Einstein.

Sounds awful, right? The movie itself is ok; I did chuckle here and there. Supporting performances by Catherine Keener and David Arquette were delicious, although they were drowned out by Steve Coogan's scenery chewing. But to be honest, I wasn't really sold until we finally got to see some of that atrocious play (which, in my opinion, is actually pretty freaking awesome.)

Oh yeah, and Elizabeth Shue plays herself. Exquisitely.

hackers are people too

2008-08-29T04:20:00.001-05:00

Are they?

Of course they are. They're people, like any brand of geeks. Kind of like movie geeks, really.

Hackers Are People Too is actually a documentary produced by hackers; it premiered at this year's DefCon in Las Vegas.

As I'm not very familiar with that particular subculture, the movie appealed to the Discovery Channel in me. It was interesting... and educational... but perhaps a hazard of a movie produced by its subject is that it came off as a little self-serving. I'm thinking the goal of the film was to humanize hackers to the general public, but in all honesty, hackers would probably enjoy it more than any other group of people.

Still, it's fairly interesting, and less than an hour. If you swing that way, you can get it for $10 here.

friends won't let friends see... babylon a.d.

2008-08-28T16:20:00.002-05:00

I hadn't heard much about this action/adventure/sci-fi/ *yawn*/thriller until reading this post by Fox over at Lazy Eye Theatre... not good.

It's generally a really bad sign if both the director and the lead actor of a movie brutally trash it during promotion season. Bad, bad sign.

you've got mail from the shop around the corner

2008-08-28T04:20:00.001-05:00

I've known David Bishop for about a year and a half. He is officially one of my favorite "Internet people". He also, by virtue of his impeccable (read: similar to my) taste in movies, is one of the three or so people on the planet who can be called my Movie Muse. About 90% of his recommendations make it onto my Netflix queue.

It was at David's suggestion that I rented The Shop Around the Corner, a 1940 film starring Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan. I've been a fan of You've Got Mail since it first came out, and The Shop Around the Corner is the chief inspiration (along with AOL, I guess) for You've Got Mail.

Both films center around a man and woman who correspond with each other as mystery pen pals, and who coincidentally know (and hate) one another in real life. Of course, eventually the jig is up, they discover the identity of the other, and fall madly in love.

Yeah. This could never, ever happen. So why do I like the idea so much?

Aside from these basic plot points, the two movies really aren't that similar. Really, how could they be? One is set in a leather goods shop in 1940's Budapest while the other is set in New York City, half a decade later, with the disembodied voice of America Online ("You've got mail!") as the third lead character.

Let's start with The Shop Around the Corner. Like I said, I enjoy the basic premise, unrealistic as it may be. But somehow Stewart and Sullavan never muster enough chemistry to convince the viewer that they like each other after all. It just seems clunky, abrupt, and absolutely un-romantic. Even the subplot of an affair with the boss' wife comes off as superfluous and, frankly, boring.

In You've Got Mail, on the other hand, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan knock it out of the park. Come on, we all knew they were fantastic every time they share screen space. I've loved them in everything they've done. (What's that? Even Joe vs. the Volcano, you ask? Especially Joe vs. the Volcano.) I think the plot could be crafted by Mary Higgins Clark, and these two would still sell it. I should point out, though that this script was very well crafted. The dialogue is superb (remember Tom Hanks' character relating every life problem to something from The Godfather?)--and in the subplot department: Meg Ryan's little shop being driven out of business by Tom Hanks' Barnes & Noble-esque leviathan was topical and touching.

All that having been said, it is a little distracting watching the workings of the Internet circa 1999, but that was inevitable given how heavily the film relied on a fleeting technological gimmick.

So this is why I let David influence me so much. The Shop Around the Corner was not nearly as entertaining as my pick, You've Got Mail, but I'm really glad I saw it. My appreciation of this fluffy little romantic comedy is greatly enhanced by having seen its predecessor.

Next up on the Netflix queue, at David's (and Nathaniel's) urging: Memento.

vicky cristina barcelona

2008-08-27T09:41:00.004-05:00

This is a fantastic date movie. I saw it on a date with myself last night. That sounds pathetic, doesn't it? It really wasn't. I don't get nearly enough me-time anymore. I caught Vicky Cristina Barcelona, then headed to Panera for a turkey-artichoke panini, copious amounts of herbal tea, and free wi-fi. Couldn't have been a more perfect evening. Gotta do it more.

Do you like Woody Allen movies? I mean the really good, older ones? If you do, then you'll enjoy this movie. It's an exquisitely crafted story, full of dynamic characters (who make crazy-ass choices), stunning Barcelona cityscapes (I want to go! I so want to go), and yummy Spanish accents.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona's cast is a big part of what makes it so enjoyable. Javier Bardem is so natural in his native surroundings. He's very sensual, but his obvious comfort in that setting put me at ease, too. I reacted with a lot more "Rowwrrr" than "Run, he's got a weird air-gun thingie!!!" this time. Kind of refreshing. Penelope Cruz is also much easier to stomach when she's speaking Spanish. (Exhibit A: Volver. If you haven't seen it, do.) Scarlet Johansson was surprisingly non-annoying, and I have to say I love this new actress, Rebecca Hall. She reminded me of Anna Popplewell (Susan in the Narnia movies), but ten years older and sexualized.

What really works in this movie is the narration. It's the main vehicle for moving the plot along, it adds a great stylistic element, but my favorite thing is that it gives the viewer a feeling of reading the movie, like it's a novel.

If you like interesting, thought-provoking films, then I highly recommend this one. If, on the other hand, you prefer vanilla Lifetime Originals with no loose ends, see something else. Honestly, I wish I could go back in time and explain this to the group of cranky biddies sitting behind me last night. Just because it's not Danielle Steele doesn't make it a bad movie. Quite the contrary, actually.

nonreview: man on wire

2008-08-25T15:26:00.001-05:00

I massively enjoyed Man On Wire, a documentary about a guy who walked a tightrope between the twin towers of the World Trade Center. I shit you not.

Click on the links below to read some reviews by two of my favorite movie men.

Fletch at Blog Cabins
Daniel G at Getafilm

postlet #18

2008-08-18T08:44:00.000-05:00

Reason #57,483 why I love living alone: the freedom to weep loudly and shamelessly in my living room while watching sappy girl movies. (I saw Stepmom and The Notebook last night.)

friends won't let friends see... star wars: the clone wars

2008-08-15T10:44:00.001-05:00

Remember when Star Wars used to be cool? Groundbreaking, even. But that was like 25 years ago. I was a cute little cherub in pigtails.

I've moved on, and so should George Lucas. MSN critic Jim Emerson agrees.

On the Tomatometer: 23%. It's not pretty.

Update: Click the link for another great reason NOT to see this one, presented by the brilliant Piper of Lazy Eye Theater.

american teen

2008-08-08T12:41:00.004-05:00

I hated high school.

It just wasn't for me. I think I'm too much of a non-conformist. As a result, I got made fun of and usually ate lunch at a table by myself, with a book to help pass the 25 minutes. I dated the choir dork (with a voice like a sick mule) and the Star Trek geek (you don't even understand--he wore Star Trek t-shirts to school every day). I did exceptionally well in my classes without really trying, which also added to my social troubles. And I was chubby. So, not a fun four years.

Watching American Teen last weekend was like sitting in the visitors' SUV at Jurassic Park if all had gone well. You sit in the comfort of your protected environment, watch the Tyrannosaurus munch on the goat, you feel a bit of empathy for the goat, but then you also thank your lucky stars that the T-Rex's paddock is electrified.

I remained in the (relative) comfort of Uptown Theatre, watching the carnage (the Tyrannosaurus in this case is blonde, athletic, and goes by the name of Megan Krizmanich), and remembered. The movie depicts a world just like mine 15-odd years ago, sans the texting, instant messaging, and other scary new ways kids can hurt each other.

I would so have been friends with Hannah Bailey in real life.

American Teen's realism is startling, but it's also a very entertaining documentary. I found myself rooting for these adolescent underdogs at least as much as I did for The King of Kong. Oh yeah, and the soundtrack kicks ass. Definitely worth seeing.

the dark knight

2008-08-05T09:47:00.003-05:00

Yeah. I know. I'm massively late.

That tends to happen when I see a movie and can't bring myself to talk about it. Sometimes that's because my love for the movie runs so deeply (see: Forgetting Sarah Marshall), and sometimes it has more to do with a sense of disappointment, which ends up morphing into indifference.

That's the case here.

Before The Dark Knight's debut, buzz was running higher than I've ever seen it in my short tenure as a film geek. I was excited, too, but there was a definite vein of skepticism running through it. Obviously a big cause of that buzz is, of course, Heath Ledger's stunning performance followed by his untimely death. Hey, I was stunned by the trailers, too. I thought it looked great before he died. But then the tragedy came, and people were all jumping on the bandwagon, yelling, "Oscar!" As nice as that sounds, if he gets that Oscar I want it to be for the right reasons (a career-topping performance), not because of sympathy, or regret. That way it can be a real victory, undiminished by legitimate criticism. It's sad that a great performance may have been overshadowed by all this hysteria.

I hate to do it, people, but we need to get real. Heath Ledger was a fantastic actor. One of my favorites of all time. He almost always delivered a stellar, mind-blowing performance, from 10 Things I Hate About You, to A Knight's Tale, to The Dark Knight. But in my opinion, none of that, even his turn as the Joker, even came close to Brokeback Mountain. That performance actually haunted me for a few days. I'm really sorry, but Dark Knight is no Brokeback.

Others have been saying The Dark Knight was the best movie of 2008, or even the GREATEST MOVIE EVER. Not so. Sorry. It's a superhero movie. It's a good superhero movie, but it never reaches beyond the conventions and limitations of that genre. You always know what's coming... you can sit in the theater and say, OK, we're only an hour into it, so there will be about 3 more suspenseful climaxes....

And I'm sorry, but Christian Bale's voice modulation whenever he put that suit on was super-distracting. It's like the second he got in that mask, he needed to get his Darth Vader on too. I think the role would have been far more interesting if he had lost that weird affectation.

Now, I don't want you to think I didn't like this movie. I did. Ledger was great. Gyllenhaal was great. Freeman was great. Eckhart was great. Oldman was great. Bale was great (except for the whole voice thing). Et cetera.

It truly was, by far, better than any of the pre-Batman Begins Batman stuff. But it was not the best movie of 2008. Perspective, people.

oliver stone's "W": whaddaya think?

2008-07-31T12:45:00.004-05:00

Watch the trailer, then let me know what you think by answering the poll on the right.

Update: Upon poll closing, 70% of you answered "Ohmygod, I can't wait!", and 30% of you said you "needed to know more". Nobody said "No freaking way". So the buzz seems to be "for"... we'll have to see what happens. I'll probably check it out.

postlet #16

2008-07-31T10:17:00.001-05:00

Keeping in mind that Pistola is deeply in love with her boyfriend, and that I am fabulously in like with Nathaniel, and hoping that you'll receive this with the self-deprecating and ironic spirit that we intend: Pistola and I have decided that relationships are for bitches.

romantic gestures in film

2008-07-24T08:23:00.006-05:00

Maybe it's because Nathaniel and I had an AMAZING DATE last night, or maybe it's just because I'm intrinsically a big giant sap... but EW's list of 25 Most Romantic Gestures in Film got me all gushy today.

My favorite romantic gestures on EW's list are the ones from Moulin Rouge!, Brokeback Mountain, Once, and The Wedding Singer... but I felt there were several glaring omissions from my own romantic movie canon:

Forgetting Sarah Marshall: Peter retrieves the topless photo of Rachel from the men's bathroom at the bar, knowing full well that in doing so he'll get the crap beaten out of him.
Never Been Kissed: Sam publicly forgives Josie and demonstrates his love with a full makeout session on the pitcher's mound of a packed baseball stadium.
Love Actually: Jamie learns to speak Portuguese... poorly... and flies to Portugal to propose to Aurelia, with whom he's never actually had a real conversation. (Meanwhile, she's also learned to speak English... poorly.)
Somewhere In Time: Richard falls in love with a woman in an old painting... and goes back in time to woo her.
Walk the Line: Johnny proposes to June on stage, mid-song, and won't take no for an answer.
City of Angels: Seth renounces his immortality and becomes human so that he can be with Maggie.

Your turn...

friends won't let friends see... beverly hills chihuahua

2008-07-19T20:58:00.006-05:00

So I was watching Freaky Friday on "The Wonderful World of Disney" tonight* and the Disney people took the opportunity to relentlessly plug their upcoming film, Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

Unfortunately, it only confirmed my initial instinct about this movie... it's just a big vapid animal stunt. 100 dogs manipulated by CGI + tired, exploitative jokes + the voices of George Lopez and Drew Barrymore = a big fat WHO CARES?

With all respect to costars Barrymore, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Piper Perabo (all of whom I love), I'm thinking that if you're over the age of six, you really need to find something better to do with your $9. There's a recession on. Use the cash for something worthwhile... if you're taking the kids out, go see WALL-E again.

*Yeah. In my pj's. With a big bowl of mac and cheese. That's how I roll.

hype attacking! evasive maneuvers...

2008-07-18T10:27:00.005-05:00

Remember when you were a little kid, and you got in an argument with a playground rival, and there came a point when you resorted to sticking your fingers in your ears and yelling "La, la, la, la, la..." at the top of your lungs?

I'm nearly 30, and I've found myself doing that repeatedly over the last week or so.

This is the problem. Nathaniel. He's so great. We're going to see The Dark Knight on Sunday at noon. Now, those of you who know me even a little bit can see right away how much I like this guy... otherwise, there's no way in hell I'd wait so long to see a movie that's so highly anticipated, and so much of a sure thing, on top of essentially being Heath Ledger's swan song. But I am waiting--and I don't mind--except...

Except that The Dark Knight is EVERYWHERE. A quick search of my Google Reader reveals no less than 121 Batman-related items. That's thanks, in large part, to Big Mike's Movie Blog, which has been running a Batman Blogathon (if you're not at a Batman overload stage, you really should check him out; he's a fantastic blogger), though everyone's been hyping it up, from Slate to EW. (I'm actually adding to the hype too, huh? Irony. Hm.)

I'm one of those people who would prefer to have absolutely no information prior to a movie viewing; too much hype can kill my enjoyment of a film. So I've been avoiding Batman like he's the Ebola virus, but since this is such a monstrous story, that's damn near impossible.

Yesterday I was watching "The Today Show" in bed, as per my usual routine, when they announced they were going to review The Dark Knight in the next segment. Groaning, I dragged my ass out of bed and went into the bathroom. I turned on my radio, and my favorite morning people were--you guessed it--discussing The Dark Knight. Ugh. I got ready for work in silence. It was maddening, to say the least.

So it's Friday, and The Dark Knight is actually in theaters. Now I have to avoid friends as well as media, and all my favorite bloggers... until Sunday. I suppose I could sneak into a theater and see it early... but, no, I can't do that. Nathaniel reads this blog (hi, cutie), so he would know. And I really am looking forward to seeing a fantastic movie with an equally fantastic guy. I don't know, maybe a little self-denial is good for me?

And of course you know as soon as I've seen it, Batman will be splashed all over this blog too. So I don't know what my point is. Maybe I just needed to whine a bit.

wall-e is... a fascist???

2008-07-15T15:15:00.003-05:00

A friend of mine forwarded this to me today. Apparently WALL-E has pissed off some right-wingers with its environmental message (how awful!) and "fascist elements" (like EVE getting in touch with her emotions).

Good God. I'm honestly having a hard time figuring out how these people think they have a leg to stand on.

Give me strength.

the wackness: on the passage of time and scary relationships

2008-07-14T19:46:00.006-05:00

I've heard a few people wonder about the validity of nostalgia for the mid-1990s. It doesn't seem all that long ago. I was in high school. I'm not so much older than that now, am I? In reality, 1994 (when The Wackness takes place) was a full fourteen years ago. I've long since figured out that as I get older, time will pass at an increasingly freakish rate. Seriously. Think about this: September 11, 2001 was almost 7 years ago. There are tee-ball players and cookie-selling Girl Scouts (ok, Brownies) who weren't even around when the towers fell.

Right. Enough with the random rambling.

The Wackness is a passable movie with a few really sweet spots. When it wasn't busy relying on "remember when" moments (remember Forrest Gump? remember Giuliani? remember when we didn't all have cell phones?), it reminded me what it really felt like to be a teenager in (puppy) love for the first time. The film very effectively recalls the alternating feelings of head-spinning exhilaration, and terror of rejection.

I suppose it was more powerful for me, as I'm in a new relationship at the moment. Like the kids in the movie, I've got all these crazy feelings swirling around... crippling fear, blinding hope, constant curiosity, delightful discovery... you get the picture. And The Wackness does a great job of playing on those feelings, contrasting the dead marriage of Ben Kingsley and Famke Janssen with the heady infatuation of Josh Peck and Olivia Thirlby. I've been in both those situations, and I've experienced that whole range of feelings: depressing lows and dizzying highs. Frankly, thinking about it makes me want to take a nap.

Here's hoping I wake up somewhere in the middle.

great movie endings

2008-07-14T11:15:00.003-05:00

As we all know, a movie's ending is critical. There's nothing worse than being captured by a seemingly fantastic movie, only to be let down in the end by a major cop-out of a finale.

So Entertainment Weekly (aka The Keepers of the Lists) came out with this slideshow, "20 Movie Endings We Love." I'm thinking certain filmmakers should be rounded up and forced to watch these selections. Anyone know who I'm thinking of?

My favorites are The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Lost in Translation. Comments, please.

this is gonna be sweet

2008-07-13T20:40:00.005-05:00

Generally, when a trailer is overplayed on TV, it makes my teeth hurt. And the spot for Pineapple Express, Judd Apatow's new stoner flick, has certainly been running ad nauseum. So why is it that every time I see it, I start vibrating in anticipation?

Check it out. It's set to open August 8.

the stone angel

2008-07-10T11:08:00.008-05:00

The Stone Angel opens tomorrow in six theaters around the country. So if you don't live within movie-watching distance of Edina, MN; Los Angeles, CA; Encino, CA; Pasadena, CA; New York, NY; or Bethesda, MD... I guess you're out of luck. No word yet on a wide release.

I do think it's one to keep your eye on, though... I'll lay down modest odds that we'll see an Oscar nod for Ellen Burstyn. More on that in a bit.

First, the movie. I was lucky enough to score an advance screening last night; in all honesty, I kept flashing back to Fried Green Tomatoes. The formula is familiar: Meet old person. Old person has dithering family. Old person has dismal living situation. Oh, but look at this flashback. Old person used to be young and feisty. Old person used to have lots of sex.

Overall, it was pretty depressing, and a bit predictable. I did enjoy Fried Green Tomatoes once upon a time; unfortunately, The Stone Angel substitutes empty sexuality for true warmth, and pithy wit in the place of genuine joy.

The one redeeming factor in this movie is Ellen Burstyn, the aforementioned old person. She gets all the great lines (some of them really are fantastic), and it's obviously intended as an Oscar vehicle for her. Nothing wrong with that. Her performance is impeccable, and I'd be surprised to see her snubbed.

It's just... I forget... entertainment is supposed to be entertaining, right?

friends won't let friends see... fly me to the moon

2008-07-09T16:45:00.005-05:00

Two posts on the same feature, in the same day. Not my usual M.O., but this festering turd couldn't be ignored. A big thank you to Fletch for tipping me off on this stunner, coming to a not-so-discriminating theater near you this August. The premise: three flies become stowaways on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. *Yawn* Oh, sorry.

Among the myriad reasons you should skip this one:

As many have noted, the three flies seem to be Alvin and the Chipmunks reincarnated, complete with Simon's round glasses. People, the actual Alvin and the Chipmunks movie sucked donkey balls. What makes you think a ripoff of our favorite trio of singing rodents will do any better?
The dialogue is atrocious. It seems aimed at your average six-year-old. Simple sentences. Formulaic "hooray!" reactions. Nothing stimulating whatsoever. (I've got nothing against six-year-olds, but the best animated films appeal to all members of the audience.)
The quality of the animation...well, is it just me, or did I see this stuff on a straight-to-video release that came free with a Pizza Hut Pepperoni Lovers', circa 1999?
It's showing only in 3D. That's going to set you back about $15, folks. Don't do it.

Here's the trailer:

friends won't let friends see... space chimps

2008-07-09T16:06:00.007-05:00

I actually mulled this one over for a while. The premise had promise, in an absurdist kind of way. I guess I thought there was the chance that it could end up being campy and cool.

So today I watched the trailer and... yeah. It's vapid slapstick. Doesn't seem to be worth the film stock it's shot on.

Decide for yourself (trailer after the jump), but I vote "no".

downs and ups

2008-07-09T10:20:00.008-05:00

Isn't it crazy how life can suck one minute and then be amazing the next?

I had a crappy day yesterday. All kinds of things (budget woes, hair woes, work woes, dating woes) were dragging me down. But in the space of 24 hours...

I'm just so frickin' happy to be alive today:

As of last night, I'm officially in a bonafide, albeit fledgling, exclusive romantic relationship (I'm sure you'll read more about Nathaniel in future posts).
As of this morning, work is getting under control.
As of five minutes ago, I was overwhelmed by some spontaneous raves about this here blog from a respected colleague.

The budget woes and hair woes are still right here looking at me... they're just not so woeful. It's amazing how when a few things go well, all the other stuff doesn't seem so bad.

postlet #15

2008-07-06T22:14:00.002-05:00

Captain Crash is leaving me. Good for the swinging bachelorette pad... bad for the swinging bachelorette's budget. I gotta get me one of those part-time job thingies.

Oh, and I suppose I'll miss the big lug...

friends won't let friends see... disaster movie

2008-07-01T14:42:00.005-05:00

From the geniuses who brought you Date Movie and Meet the Spartans...

America, wake up! You're making these idiots rich! Stop it! Stop it now!!!

nonreview: wall-e

2008-06-30T16:00:00.005-05:00

Everyone else is reviewing this one, so I won't. I'll just add my voice to the throng: it was awesome.

Some great WALL-E reviews from my posse:

Film Arcade
John's Movie Blog
The Dark of the Matinee

postlet #14

2008-06-30T11:46:00.005-05:00

Note to all Minnesota movie-goers: the folks at the Brookdale 8 Cinema have stopped trying. The place is falling apart. There's a funky smell. The boors who frequent this establishment have loud conversations mid-movie, unchecked by management. It can't even be called a dollar theater anymore, as the ticket price has been raised to $3. For the same price, the Riverview is a much better option.

forgetting sarah marshall

2008-06-26T10:17:00.001-05:00

I've wanted to write about Forgetting Sarah Marshall for quite some time.

I first saw it when it first came out, months ago. Then, a few Fridays back, I escaped from some tiresome company to see it again at the Riverview. Last night, I saw it for a third time.

I'm not sure why it was so hard for me to just sit down and blog about this movie. For one thing... I love it. Maybe I love it so much that I'm terrified I won't do it justice.

At the same time, it may be hard to tell you what's so great about this movie without revealing too many of its delightful little nuggets of realism, comedy, genuine heart, singing puppets, naked guys... you know.

This is what I can tell you. Forgetting Sarah Marshall holds up to repeat viewings. Every time I've seen it, there's more stuff that just makes me laugh out loud. The humor is a bit raunchy... most of it's sexually based... but to be honest, I'm good with that. (This is the girl that reviewed Kinky Kong, remember, people?) It's not for kids. There's plenty of nudity, of all kinds. The F-Bomb is dropped indiscriminately (you know... like in life).

But beyond the sex, the nudity, the cussing, at the heart of the movie... it's real. The characters feel like real people, the emotional ups and downs are real, the romance is real. To be honest, these are people I'd be friends with in real life, with the ~~possible~~ probable exception of the title character, Sarah Marshall. I'm sure it's no big spoiler to tell you she's pretty much a ho-bag.

And how could I forget... the casting of supporting roles is outstanding. This is true in most any Judd Apatow movie, but it's especially true in this case. Jack McBrayer is awkward and hilarious, Mila Kunis is lovely, Russell Brand steals the show. Paul Rudd is brilliant as always (he could easily play the pretty boy in every movie, but he eschews that in favor of interesting, unique characters. I respect him so much for that.) Oh yeah, and Jason Segel is officially now one of my favorite people in film.

Anyway... my worst fears have come true. I have come nowhere close to doing this fantastic movie justice. But let me just say... 5 stars out of 5. Absolutely fantastic. The best (in my opinion) of all Judd Apatow's movies. And... perhaps the most telling... I actually plan to buy this movie on DVD*.

Please see it.

*Not a common occurrence.

pistola whipped: time to shack up?

2008-06-24T16:11:00.004-05:00

My girl Pistola waxes philosophical on the prospect of moving in with her (entirely cool) boyfriend.

At what point in a relationship is it okay to throw romance, passion and the beauty and solace of one’s apartment or house for a shared living space?

I’m not exactly sure, but I have been thinking about it lately. And not just for fun but because it may be time. Yep, time to co-habitate with the boyfriend.

We’ve been dating roughly seven months, haven’t known each other even a year and here we are: I’m forwarding him house listings from MLS. We’re emailing about yards, square footage, mortgages and central air conditioning. And it’s fun…right now. Speculating about our future, dreaming of barbecues in the backyard with all of our perfect couple friends. Decorating to each of our own tastes, satisfying both of our odd collections. I can see myself now, shaking my head and fighting a smile as I re-wash the dishes that my boyfriend carelessly rinsed and threw in a pile next to the sink. Oh, good times. And I’m sure we can still maintain our interesting and exciting sex life after taking out the trash, weeding the garden, painting over the weird kitchen borders the previous owner chose to hang, paying bills and sending off the errant solicitor. I’m sure we won’t disagree or grow sick of each other. I’m sure we’re the exception to the rule.

So, why should we carry on the way we are? I mean what’s great about having a safe, solo haven where I can drink a bottle of Cabernet and listen to stupid songs and air sing at the top of my lungs and fall over and break my own stuff without having to feel guilty about it the next day? I actually don’t like standing in front of the open fridge door in my underwear dipping sweet and sour pickles into a jar of crunchy peanut butter. Well, I don’t actually like doing it in front of others. And I mean, I hate going on the annual weekend-long garage sale tour with my friends and picking up the grossest paintings I can find and hanging them on my walls immediately after getting home. I hate that.

And what do I do when the boyfriend and I get in a fight? It’s nice to go home and fling myself dramatically in my bed and shamelessly pound on the pillows with nobody watching except for the movie audience I am acting for in my mind. What bed can I do that in if he’s already done it in ours?

I guess I’m struggling with a battle against the unknown. I know things right now are fantastic, awesome, and truly fabulous. I still get smug when one of my imperfect couple friends (scratch them off the backyard barbecue list) complains about their boyfriend’s showering habits. Like that he doesn’t shower. And I know that mine does, because he has time alone in his own apartment where he showers and writes songs about me and emails all his friends about the super cool chick he is thinking about buying a house with. I can still imagine him doing all this independent stuff and that warm feeling surges through me. But is that warm feeling true affection or is it because he is doing stuff I don’t get to know about and do with him?

I imagine we’ll end up living together. It seems like the natural progression of this thing that I like to call a relationship. I suppose we’ll just end up being another couple, buying a house and playing at being adults. Perhaps we’ll fail? Maybe we’ll succeed. What if he comes home one night and I’m on my knees, earnestly singing along to Bob Seger’s ‘We Got Tonight’ and he likes me for it? Even loves me for it? And what if he likes doing that too? Then we could listen to the Kenny Rogers/Sheena Easton duet version instead and fall down and accidentally break each other’s stuff (I’ve never liked his Ikea chairs anyway). Maybe it’s too jaded to think too far ahead in the future and assume that all the day-to-day stuff can get in the way of the cool thing we have. I think Bob sums it up the best, ‘We’ve got tonight, who needs tomorrow, we’ve got tonight babe, why don’t we stay?’

entertainment weekly new classics: best 100 movies of the past 25 years

2008-06-24T11:13:00.006-05:00

If you've been reading this blog o' mine for a while, you know about my love affair with lists. (If you haven't, you can go here, here, and especially here.)

So imagine my delight when I got home yesterday, and waiting in my mailbox was the 1,000th issue of Entertainment Weekly. The cover boldly proclaimed: "The New Classics: The 1000 best movies, TV shows, albums, books, and more of the past 25 years". Did I wait to read it till I got inside? Silly blogosphere. You know me better than that. Of course I ripped it open right there in the apartment lobby.

And now you get to be treated to the movie portion of the list. This is EW's 100 best movies of the past 25 years... basically, anything that's come out since 1983. The ones I've seen are in bold; also, because I'm eminently proud of my own top 100, my ranking appears next to the title of any movies that happened to make my list.

Pulp Fiction
The Lord of the Rings trilogy (1,2,3)
Titanic (77)
Blue Velvet
Toy Story
Saving Private Ryan
Hannah and Her Sisters
The Silence of the Lambs
Die Hard
Moulin Rouge (4)
This Is Spinal Tap
The Matrix (21)
GoodFellas
Crumb
Edward Scissorhands (40)
Boogie Nights
Jerry Maguire
Do the Right Thing
Casino Royale
The Lion King
Schindler's List (7)
Rushmore
Memento
A Room With a View
Shrek
Hoop Dreams
Aliens
Wings of Desire
The Bourne Supremacy
When Harry Met Sally...
Brokeback Mountain
Fight Club
The Breakfast Club
Fargo (34)
The Incredibles
Spider-Man 2
Pretty Woman
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (72)
The Sixth Sense
Speed
Dazed and Confused
Clueless (59)
Gladiator
The Player
Rain Man (86)
Children of Men
Men in Black
Scarface
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
The Piano
There Will Be Blood
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad
The Truman Show
Fatal Attraction
Risky Business
The Lives of Others
There’s Something About Mary
Ghostbusters
L.A. Confidential
Scream
Beverly Hills Cop
sex, lies and videotape
Big
No Country For Old Men (41)
Dirty Dancing
Natural Born Killers
Donnie Brasco
Witness
All About My Mother
Broadcast News
Unforgiven
Thelma & Louise
Office Space
Drugstore Cowboy
Out of Africa
The Departed
Sid and Nancy
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Waiting for Guffman
Michael Clayton (60)
Moonstruck
Lost in Translation
Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn
Sideways
The 40 Year-Old Virgin
Y Tu Mamá También
Swingers
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Breaking the Waves
Napoleon Dynamite (81)
Back to the Future
Menace II Society
Ed Wood
Full Metal Jacket
In the Mood for Love
Far From Heaven
Glory
The Talented Mr. Ripley
The Blair Witch Project
South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut

There you have it. I've seen 61/100, and 15 of my favorite 100 movies made their list. I've done much better with this list than either the IMDB 250 or the AFI 100, probably because EW picked so many mainstream movies.

So now it's your turn. How many have you seen on this list? Do you have any thoughts on EW's choices?

friends won't let friends see... meet dave

2008-06-23T16:03:00.007-05:00

I honestly don't think Eddie Murphy actually reads the scripts anymore. Makes me sad, really.

This one looks god-awful. If you're not convinced, watch the trailer after the jump. But don't say I didn't warn you.

new feature: friends won't let friends see...

2008-06-23T13:44:00.005-05:00

As someone who takes cinema a titch more seriously than the average duck, I get a lot of requests for recommendations. This ranges from Dad calling me right before heading to the theater a few weeks ago, to my coworker Virgin Mother sitting in my office this morning until I emailed her a list of DVD recommendations.

It's always cool when someone respects your opinion. Often, though, I have to break out the anti- recommendations; it occasionally becomes necessary to talk my loved ones out of seeing a stinker. They don't always heed the warning, but at least they can never say I didn't warn them.

And with this in mind*, I'm starting a new feature: Friends Won't Let Friends See... It will be based on my solely objective estimation of a movie's potential putridity. Most of the time, I'll anti-recommend something I haven't (and won't) see**, based on what I've read, and my opinion of the trailer. On the occasion I did see something absolutely cruddy, I'll certainly include it.

One more thing... I don't really have an objective rating system for movies I've actually seen... so I will also not implement one here. Just take my advice, or leave it.

*I admit I was also inspired by the trailer for Meet Dave this weekend.
**No one has yet offered to pay me to see the dreck.

sir ian, sir ian, sir ian

2008-06-17T11:55:00.002-05:00

the promotion

2008-06-16T16:01:00.005-05:00

The Promotion belongs in that category of movie that has everything going for it (respectable cast, interesting idea, potential for uproarious comedic moments) but just doesn't amount to anything.

If you've not heard of this movie, the premise is this:

Hard-working, decent assistant grocery store manager wants promotion.
Another, equally hard-working, decent assistant manager wants same promotion.
Hilarity ensues.

Here's the problem: hilarity never actually ensues. I kept waiting for the comedy to skyrocket, but it never sputtered past "mildly amusing".

At first glance, the cast seems outstanding: the two competitors are played by Seann William Scott (Stifler from American Pie) and John C. Reilly (Acadamy Award nominee for Chicago), and the cast is rounded out by Jenna Fischer (Pam on "The Office"), Lili Taylor, Fred Armisen (brings the funny on "Saturday Night Live"), and Gil Bellows (remember him from "Ally McBeal"? Hang on while my heart stops fluttering).

So why couldn't a great cast like that nudge this movie into more than a bland blob of blech?

Well... they are a great cast. They weren't so great in this, though. I was pleased to see no trace of the obnoxious, moronic Stifler in Seann William Scott's performance... but honestly, there was no trace of anything in Scott's performance. Bo-ring.

I was also expecting a lot from Armisen, being a big "SNL" fan, but his role wasn't even one-note; it was more like a quarter-note. Tired.

So, yeah. I left the theater bored. And tired.

the big lebowski

2008-06-13T12:36:00.007-05:00

I had never seen The Big Lebowski before last night. Honestly, that's (in part) why I nominated it for LAMB's new feature, Movie of the Month. It's been on my list for so long; everyone (including you, probably) has told me it's a must-watch. And this way, I knew I wouldn't be able to keep on procrastinating.

So that was a really long, wordy way of telling you that I've now seen "the first cult film of the Internet era." I'm now in the club. If you look at me, nod your head, and murmur "The Dude Abides"... I will not only know what you're talking about, I'll feel warm and fuzzy knowing that it's true.

Here's the real question, though: with all that build-up, buzz, hype, what have you... could I actually enjoy the film? Does the Dude live up to his cult-leader status?

Uh... yeah.

The Big Lebowski is a perfect example of why I love the Coen brothers. The crazy camera shots, absurdist humor, whimsical storylines and infectious music will hypnotize you (you may be apt to forget what time it is)... and the boys aren't afraid to get all trippy, either. It's hard to pick a favorite scene, but I immensely enjoyed the Dude's two acid flashbacks/dream sequences. And I can't get over the milk in the mustache.

I also fully get why this is considered such a quotable movie. If I were a bit more familiar, I'd likely be right there with the other freaks at the Lebowski Fest every year. Truth be told, I'll probably watch it again tonight.

Best dialogue (feel free to present your own favorites):

Jesus: You ready to be fucked, man? I see you rolled your way into the semis. Dios mio, man. Liam and me, we're gonna fuck you up.

The Dude: Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.

***
UPDATE: Check out the other LAMBs' reviews of The Big Lebowski here.

the princess bride

2008-06-12T11:13:00.008-05:00

The Princess Bride is one of the most beloved movies for those of us who were precious little girls (or boys too, I guess) in the 80's. One catch: because of my limited exposure to then-current movies as a kid, this particular film geek didn't see it till she was eighteen.

Still. Totally. Amazing.

The great thing about The Princess Bride is... oh, who am I kidding? There are so many great things about The Princess Bride. I spent some time working through this with my friend Virgin Mother, and this is what we came up with:

"Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
Somehow Mandy Patinkin (who is totally not Spanish) brought this Castilian character impeccably to life on the screen. There was so much potential for cheeseballishness* with Inigo; on the contrary, Patinkin treats him with reverence, heart, and wit. The result is that we actually care about the guy instead of just laughing at his antics.
The Fire Swamp.
It's the reconciliation scene for Westley and Buttercup, but there's plenty of humor and action (as well as story exposition), so it's never in danger of sinking in its own sappiness.
Andre the Giant.
He was so sweet. And so huge. And so funny ("Anybody want a peanut?") And so perfect for the part. Also, I was just old enough at the time of his death to realize how tragic it was. So watching The Princess Bride is, in part, like looking at pictures of an old, dear friend.
The score.
If you've never noticed this, next time you see The Princess Bride, listen to the music during the sword fights. It's freaking awesome.
The Bishop at the wedding.
Mawwwaige. This was our toast at my little sis' first wedding.
Billy Crystal as Miracle Max.
Seriously, an MLT doesn't sound like a bad idea for lunch. I wonder if you can get one of those anywhere in Minneapolis?
The interplay between the Grandfather (Peter Falk) and the Grandson (Fred Savage).
It gave the movie a little bit of boy-cred, especially when the kid would balk at the "kissing parts". Plus, Savage is 2 ½ years older than me... so watching this movie always reminds me of how young I used to be. Sure, I didn't see it until I was a young adult, but whenever it comes on I somehow get tossed back into my eight-year-old self. And how often do you get to be eight again?

OK, so what did I miss? This is my official comment call for your favorite Princess Bride moment.

Oh, and did I mention? The Princess Bride is #20 on the 2008 Nayana's Top 100.

* It's my blog. Cheeseballishness is absolutely a word in the Center Seat universe.

guest critic: the strangers

2008-06-11T11:28:00.005-05:00

I am a bonafide horror movie wuss. I will never, EVER see The Strangers. So imagine my delight when Pistola Whipped agreed to review it for The Center Seat! You mean I get to post the review, but don't actually have to sit through it? Yippee!!! Thank God for friends (at least ones that are a bit more hardass than myself). Enjoy.

I do not question Nayana’s love and respect for movies. She has written about movies and we’ve discussed movies that I wouldn’t dream of seeing. And not because I’m a snob, but because…. well, yeah because I’m a snob. I appreciate that kind of dedication, whether it is to movie watching or classifying moss found only in temperate climate forest beds.

However, her love of movies does not encompass the horror/slasher flick genre. I usually don’t like them either. However, my friends had a different idea. They agreed to see Sex and the City with me, and then sneakily tricked me into seeing The Strangers instead. And since Nayana is definitely not going to see this one, I thought I would take it upon myself (I am so busy not doing my actual day job) to review it here: in the blog-a-go-go.

Let me start off by saying that I think that this movie was inaccurately portrayed as a horror/slasher flick in the previews. It actually played out as more of a psychological/psychopath movie along the lines of Silence of the Lambs or Seven. And that, to me, is a big distinction. I watched the first 20 minutes of this movie through my hands because I was expecting that weird tentacled thing in Carol Anne’s closet in Poltergeist to appear. After all, I’m old enough that I have to get out of bed at least once during the night to pee, but young enough to believe that a monster could still hang out under my bed. I watched it through my hands because movies about ghosts, oversized bugs loitering in the mist, crop circles and angry aliens freak me out. Your average roaming group of masked killers doesn’t. That being said, there were parts of this movie that did scare me.

So let’s start with a little plot familiarization. Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman play lovers who have hit a bit of a snag. They attend a wedding, return late in the evening to Speedman’s parents’ comfy summerhouse, and try to make the most of the night by drinking and listening to Sad Bastard music (see Jeff Tweedy, Richard Buckner and Don Gibson). They are startled by a knock on the door. It’s a strange girl covered in shadows asking where Tamara is (how did the writer know that the name Tamara is the creepiest name ever?) They inform her that Tamara doesn’t live there and instead of going away she stands at the end of the driveway, swings on the swing set, stands listlessly amongst the pine trees in an attempt to scare the viewer. At this point, naturally, Liv runs out of cigarettes and Scott runs out in the deep, dark night to fetch her some.

Enter the other two creepy, shadowy figures and let the madness unfold…

This is when my hands came down from my face and rested obstinately atop of each other. Over the next hour the viewer is exposed to sinister encounters with the three masked marauders who torture Liv and Scott for no other reason than ‘you [they] were home’. Bryan Bertino, writer and director, did a few interesting things to make this a creepfest. He would cut to shots of the house, which looked calm and kinda gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling like when you’d see a shot of the ‘Golden Girls’ house after a commercial break. One would never assume that any horrors other than floral-patterned wicker furniture were taking place within the walls of that solidly built 70’s rambler. And Bertino did kind of play on that whole Manson cult killing spree idea that kind of freaks me out too (side note: the Manson thing took place in the sixties--I don’t understand the sixties, and am therefore afraid of them), but overall there were too many token horror flick tricks and plot holes to make this a sincerely terrifying experience. Truly the scariest scene had to be before the movie even started, when the new Nic Cage ego-driven movie was previewed. Yep, it’s called Bangkok Dangerous. Chills literally just ran down my spine.

Liv and Scott get ups for decent acting and I think Bertino could go on to make a downright scary movie. However, the phony ‘based on real events’ beginning to the ‘it will be easier next time’ end line, as well as the casting of Franchise Queen Liv suggests that Bertino could get stalled out making even un-scarier sequels. So, my advice is to see this one…just skip the previews.

postlet #13

2008-06-09T14:03:00.002-05:00

Attention parents!

I don't care if it's a kids' movie.... if your kid can't stay quiet and pay attention, or if he can't follow the movie without asking numerous loud questions, you have no business bringing him to a public theater.

mean girls

2008-06-09T14:00:00.001-05:00

I'm sure most of us share the same opinion of teen movies in general. They tend to be corny, self-serving, and obnoxious. So why do we still sometimes give them a chance now and then?

Because there have been some truly wonderful teen movies. Clueless was one. Juno's another one. American Pie and Bring It On also make my list, even if their sequels kind of blow. Quality is rarely found in this genre, but when it is, it can't be ignored. And Mean Girls definitely gets to be in that club.

Mean Girls was my girl Tina Fey's screenwriting debut. It's smart, insightful, hilarious, and not even a tiny bit corny. It is (in my opinion, though some have disagreed) SO much better than some of Fey's more recent work. The cast is littered with SNL alums like Tim Meadows, Ana Gasteyer, Amy Poehler, and Fey herself; it also boasts a few young actresses who, in the four years since the movie hit theaters, have begun to seriously hit their stride.

OK, yeah. You know I'm not talking about Miss Lohan. Her performance was actually quite decent in this particular movie, but we all know what's happened since then. Actually, scratch that--the whole message of the movie is not to pick on people who are in trouble... I'll lay off.

But Rachel McAdams, Amanda Seyfried... good on ya!

Tina Fey deserves enormous credit for Mean Girls. It's very watchable--and given all the stories of bullying I've read lately, especially cyberbullying--it feels extremely topical. Definitely worth your 97 minutes.

postlet #12

2008-06-05T13:43:00.002-05:00

When I wasn't looking, I surpassed 100 posts. This is officially #103, I think. Yay me!

garden state

2008-06-05T13:41:00.001-05:00

"Is it funny? Good. It's good to hear that things are funny. I find them funny, but I never know if anyone else is going to find them funny. If nothing else, I'm making a movie that I'll enjoy."

That's Zach Braff, on the set of his feature writing/directing debut, Garden State. I love that quote because it captures exactly why I love indie movies.

Major studio movies are too often tailored to focus groups, market research, and the big guy in the suit's idea of art. I love the idea that we can each decide what is art, and what is funny, and what is moving... and individuality like that can show up in movies, even if they don't make a ton of money.

So, Garden State. Have you ever gotten together with a friend that you haven't seen in a while, and you just have the best time? And then you think to yourself, "This person is amazing. Why don't I spend every freaking weekend with this person? All my other friends are losers."

That is how I felt last night when I sat down and re-watched Garden State. I've seen it before, when it first came out... and I know I liked it... but I've never seen it again since then. And I have no idea why. The movie is fugging phenomenal. It's hysterically funny, but intelligent too. It effectively explores those in-between stages of life... and right now I can so relate.

Oh, yeah, and the Shins kick ass.

weezer

2008-06-05T13:03:00.003-05:00

This is brilliant.

I love the irony that "Pork and Beans" (Weezer's unique way of thumbing their collective nose at their label) is a bonafide hit.

i was there

2008-06-04T10:26:00.003-05:00

20,000 Minnesotans crammed themselves into St Paul's Xcel Energy Center last night to witness Barack Obama's declaration of victory (for the primary, at least). Dorcas Hathaway, her partner Psych Clone, Captain Crash, and I were among them.

We waited in an epic line to get in, and then sat for a few hours waiting for the big guy to take the stage. The excitement was palpable. Seriously. I actually palped it for a little while until Dorcas told me to stop.

This morning, my throat hurts from screaming. But I'm so glad I went. I can tell my kids and grandkids, you know?

I know we're a long way from the finish line. And I know it's corny. But I really am feeling hopeful.

"guarantees" by atmosphere

2008-06-02T17:43:00.002-05:00

This is my favorite song right now. I just can't get sick of it.

P.S. Atmosphere (like so many amazing things) is from Minnesota.

postlet #11

2008-06-02T09:44:00.000-05:00

This is what I did yesterday.

I love Minnesota.

made of honor

2008-06-01T04:20:00.001-05:00

I don't care what anyone says, Made of Honor is NOT just a reprise of My Best Friend's Wedding.

Actually, if you compare the two movies, Made loses every time. For one thing, My Best Friend's Wedding was far more original. It had the ending that you hated (at first), but grew on you when you realized it was more just, more intelligent, and allowed the characters to grow.

Made of Honor doesn't do that. It's a decent chick flick, enjoyable enough... but it's not any more than that. It's got its funny parts; it's got its romantic parts; it's not completely predictable. It does tend to blur with other rom-coms I've seen lately. And it's missing one fabulous ingredient from My Best Friend's Wedding which no movie shall ever have again:

Paul Giamatti before he was famous.

then she found me

2008-05-31T04:20:00.001-05:00

***BIG FAT SPOILER ALERT***

I wish Helen Hunt the best. I really do. I've always loved her, first in "Mad About You", then especially in Twister and As Good As It Gets. She seems like a regular person; one that wouldn't be hard to approach, to have a chat with over brunch.

But I just couldn't enjoy her directorial debut, Then She Found Me. It was a big glob of gloom. Basically... she's getting old and having trouble conceiving. Then her husband leaves her. Then her mom dies. Then she finds a nice guy... but she cheats on him. Then she gets pregnant... but miscarries. Then she finds her birth mom... who turns out to be a pathological liar. The big happy ending is... a baby from China. Yeah, that's sweet, but it so did not make up for the previous two hours of big fat bummers.

It was well done and all, but I left the theater utterly dejected.

Why, Helen? I spent $8.75 and two hours on that! Come on, girl!

sex and the city

2008-05-30T07:40:00.007-05:00

I think I'm getting old. Years ago, I'd have had no problem staying out past midnight and then showing up to work at 7:00 the next morning. Note to self: You're not 21 anymore, Nayana.

Oh my Lord, it was fun. There were eleven of us in the bar, then twelve of us in the theater, then four of us in the bar again. And as crazy as it sounds, because we're such movie buds, it was the first time I actually saw a movie with Pistola.

Part of our group. Pistola Whipped is top row, third from left. Smokin', ain't she?

The movie was great, by the way. Fantastic. Amazing. Met all expectations.

The big draw of "Sex and the City" (the series) is, of course the sex. And the fashion, too. And the comedy, of course. But what really drives the show is the deep, real, emotional connections, especially those among the four women. And, to my delight, Sex and the City stayed true to that. Of course there was great sex, and great fashion, and some kick-ass laugh-out-loud moments, but the heart of the movie--the real memorable moments--came from the love those girls have for each other.

I can't think of one thing I disliked about the movie. And, in case you're curious, J. Hud knocked 'em dead.

See it. Please see it. I'll be there again this weekend.