Sweet Sweet Manual Labor
Went from 10-9pm doing tech load-in. I put up a whole bunch of lights and cabled the entire downstage pipe pretty much all by my lonesome self (with some help labeling and scheming with Julie). I'm pooped. But, on the brighter side, this week's movie reviews:
The Squid and the Whale
I didn't really like it, didn't really hate it. It's a movie about divorce, with the kids taking on interesting character traits of either parent. It has one moving but short monologue which hails back to the title and the end of the film. While it is an insightful and no doubt accurate depiction of the petty squabbles and short fuses, it didn't wow me. There are much better movies about divorce and troubled marriages. This has a interesting focus on the impact for the children, but not interesting enough for the whole movie... maybe about 20 minutes of engaging material that was in the film.
Directed by Alan Smithee
Interesting non-fiction film about the fictional name used for movies where a director wants his name removed. It discussed the history of how the name began, superficially discussed the films it has been used in, and primarily focussed on American History X which brought it to the public's attention through the somewhat immature actions of the director Tony Kaye (who ironically, was not granted license to use the Alan Smithee pseudonym). This became the primary focus of the documentary which was actually pretty interesting. The film proceeded to touch upon An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn a parody of the name and for which, ironically, the director requested his name to be taken off the picture and was granted the pseudonym of Alan Smithee.
Idiocracy
Ok, this is one of the funniest films I've seen this year. Granted, the story is pretty basic, but this movie is all about the details. I mean, seriously. If you've ever lived poor, you can appreciate this movie. You'll notice how everyone is wearing those shiny synthetic articles of clothing that you can pick up at Walmart or Ross for cheap. You'll notice that there are advertisements at a level that you can currently only find at NASCAR. (Including a character named Frito and the President's middle name being Mountain Dew.) If you've ever argued with stupid people, you can appreciate this movie. There is one scene where the main character is trying to argue logically and is laughed at and ignored for sounding "like a fag" [read: too intelligent] and another where he offers an explanation that isn't accepted because it is contrary to a popular company's slogan. Like I said before, the plot may be average, but the writer's attention to detail make it fun and hilarious. I mean, it's not Woody Allen; it's Mike Judge (who also wrote for King of the Hill). You'll also find a whole bunch of funny people making cameos, including: Justin Long (from the Mac/PC commercials), David Herman (from MadTV and Office Space), Stephen Root (from NewsRadio and Office Space), Terry Crews (from The Longest Yard and Soul Plane) and Thomas Haden Church (from Wings). There are just so many things about this movie that are hilarious that I am glad I saw it and will likely buy my own copy of it shortly.
The Squid and the Whale
I didn't really like it, didn't really hate it. It's a movie about divorce, with the kids taking on interesting character traits of either parent. It has one moving but short monologue which hails back to the title and the end of the film. While it is an insightful and no doubt accurate depiction of the petty squabbles and short fuses, it didn't wow me. There are much better movies about divorce and troubled marriages. This has a interesting focus on the impact for the children, but not interesting enough for the whole movie... maybe about 20 minutes of engaging material that was in the film.
Directed by Alan Smithee
Interesting non-fiction film about the fictional name used for movies where a director wants his name removed. It discussed the history of how the name began, superficially discussed the films it has been used in, and primarily focussed on American History X which brought it to the public's attention through the somewhat immature actions of the director Tony Kaye (who ironically, was not granted license to use the Alan Smithee pseudonym). This became the primary focus of the documentary which was actually pretty interesting. The film proceeded to touch upon An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn a parody of the name and for which, ironically, the director requested his name to be taken off the picture and was granted the pseudonym of Alan Smithee.
Idiocracy
Ok, this is one of the funniest films I've seen this year. Granted, the story is pretty basic, but this movie is all about the details. I mean, seriously. If you've ever lived poor, you can appreciate this movie. You'll notice how everyone is wearing those shiny synthetic articles of clothing that you can pick up at Walmart or Ross for cheap. You'll notice that there are advertisements at a level that you can currently only find at NASCAR. (Including a character named Frito and the President's middle name being Mountain Dew.) If you've ever argued with stupid people, you can appreciate this movie. There is one scene where the main character is trying to argue logically and is laughed at and ignored for sounding "like a fag" [read: too intelligent] and another where he offers an explanation that isn't accepted because it is contrary to a popular company's slogan. Like I said before, the plot may be average, but the writer's attention to detail make it fun and hilarious. I mean, it's not Woody Allen; it's Mike Judge (who also wrote for King of the Hill). You'll also find a whole bunch of funny people making cameos, including: Justin Long (from the Mac/PC commercials), David Herman (from MadTV and Office Space), Stephen Root (from NewsRadio and Office Space), Terry Crews (from The Longest Yard and Soul Plane) and Thomas Haden Church (from Wings). There are just so many things about this movie that are hilarious that I am glad I saw it and will likely buy my own copy of it shortly.