Adventures in Housesitting
So far I like the future brother-in-law, although I haven't seen him much yet.
I'm also house-sitting for a woman from my parents' church, which has kept me from mingling with my family. I've mainly been reading and watching TV/DVDs--nothing too interesting, although I did watch Peter Bogdanovich's much-maligned version of Daisy Miller, starring his then-girlfriend, Cybil Shepherd. It's not terrible, but it's very uneven, and Shepherd's performance is the main culprit. At times her attempts at being a boorish, oblivious American made me cringe, but a few times (mainly when she had a chance to slow down and be more subtle), her talent shows through. Cloris Leachman is great as Daisy's mother, as is Barry Brown as Winterbourne, the American who observes Daisy's downfall, and many of the other supporting actors give strong performances.
I also saw Michael Richards apologize on Letterman last night for his racist rant last week. What was odd is that he was on via satellite while his friend Jerry Seinfeld was actually on the set with Lettermen. When Richards began apologizing, several people in the audience giggled and laughed until Seinfeld snapped, "This isn't funny!" But I could understand why some people laughed. Richards sounds like Kramer when he talks, even if he's not as spastic, and in a post-Andy Kaufman, let's-blur-the-lines-between-reality-and-fiction era, some moments seem so surreal I'm not completely sure how to respond myself. Anyway, Richards seemed sincerely sorry and horrified by himself--I hope maybe something good can come out of all of this.
I'm also house-sitting for a woman from my parents' church, which has kept me from mingling with my family. I've mainly been reading and watching TV/DVDs--nothing too interesting, although I did watch Peter Bogdanovich's much-maligned version of Daisy Miller, starring his then-girlfriend, Cybil Shepherd. It's not terrible, but it's very uneven, and Shepherd's performance is the main culprit. At times her attempts at being a boorish, oblivious American made me cringe, but a few times (mainly when she had a chance to slow down and be more subtle), her talent shows through. Cloris Leachman is great as Daisy's mother, as is Barry Brown as Winterbourne, the American who observes Daisy's downfall, and many of the other supporting actors give strong performances.
I also saw Michael Richards apologize on Letterman last night for his racist rant last week. What was odd is that he was on via satellite while his friend Jerry Seinfeld was actually on the set with Lettermen. When Richards began apologizing, several people in the audience giggled and laughed until Seinfeld snapped, "This isn't funny!" But I could understand why some people laughed. Richards sounds like Kramer when he talks, even if he's not as spastic, and in a post-Andy Kaufman, let's-blur-the-lines-between-reality-and-fiction era, some moments seem so surreal I'm not completely sure how to respond myself. Anyway, Richards seemed sincerely sorry and horrified by himself--I hope maybe something good can come out of all of this.