(no subject)
It is so gorgeous outside that I can hardly believe it's real. The sun is shining, the air is warm and the day is perfectly beautiful. The only things that would make this better are leaves on the trees and not being at work.
I watched 'Beyond the Sea' from season one X-Files last night. Wow. I'd forgotten what an amazing episode it is. Brad Dourif sent chills down my back and Gillian Anderson owned every scene she was in. I was completely and utterly captivated. mmmmmmmmmm I <3 Scully.
I have heard that in a recent episode of that new Law & Order show Joe Toye is shown wearing a newsie cap. Oh.My.Gosh. I need screencaps and pictures, stat.
I also popped my latest Netflix rental into the dvd player last night. It was Woman of the Year starring Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy and it's a fascinating film. As a modern woman I don't completely agree with all of the sexual messages of the film, but then again it's extremely progressive for its time. The script is layered full of character and social observation and it more then deserved the Oscar for that year. I'd never seen a Hepburn/Tracy film before and am now completely won over by the two of them. Wow. What actors, what chemistry. It's a good flick and one that I'll be mulling over for quite a while.
For anyone who's interested, here's a list of the next 20 movies currently residing in my Netflix queue.
The Ladykillers, 2004 I put this in, sat down with my knitting and was only able to bother with it for about 15 minutes. I guess I just wasn't all that interested at the time. It's a shame as it had a lot of very good actors in it.
Jersey Girl I'm going to go out on a limb here and say this is the best movie Kevin Smith has ever made. The story is heartfelt and mature and real and for the first time Mr. Smith doesn't rely on fanboy injokes and instead lets the story simply tell itself. The performances are all amazing (I kind of like Ben Affleck, I can't help it, he's endearing) and the film looks gorgeous. It's a horrible shame that so many people blasted this movie so heartlessly because it deserves all kinds of love. Plus, how can you not love a movie that performs Sweeney Todd in an elementary school. Perfection.
Osama What a horrifying movie. In this case horrifying does not signify the quality of the movie itself, but rather the horror of the situation that it depicts. Cinematically it is perfectly crafted and it has directional and narrative layers that will prey upon your mind long after the movie itself has ended. This is a great movie that explores a horrific situation with wisdom and honesty and it should be seen by everyone. This is not only good cinema, it is important cinema.
The West Wing, Season 2 discs 4-6 Marry Me, Josh Lyman
Kandahar Another movie that deals with the plight of women in Afghanistan, this time through the eyes of an Afghan-Canadian who re-enters the country in search of her sister. While not as strong a film as Osama and primarily focused on looking at Afghanistan through Western eyes it is still a very, very good movie.
Ghost World An interesting movie with some really good performances. The story itself didn't ping me very hard but then adolescent turmoil never has done a lot for me. I enjoyed seeing Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi play off each other. Seeing Enid's development as a person was rewarding and it was nice to see the post-high school drift between friends so easily and organically managed. It was good but not extraordinary.
The Station Agent What a great movie. This is a prime example of movie storytelling at its finest. Three flawed and hurting people who only want to run away from their pains and troubles and obligations. Three people who find themselves bound together inspite of themselves. A simple, beautifully told story that hinted and cajoled and elaborated so perfectly. This is the first movie I've seen in a long time where I unequivocally like the characters, flaws and all. The actors do an amazing job of bringing these people to life and the director is quite talented at taking quiet moments and making them as screamingly poignant as the spectacular breakdowns. A wonderful, amazing film.
The Triplets of Belleville What a fascinating film. It's animated and French and extremly image heavy. It doesn't rely on dialogue so much as music and image to tell the story. It's just a good movie, one that kind of sneaks up on you and surprises you and then won't go away. I found myself thinking about it and having images burst into my mind long after the end credits had rolled. A thick, interesting movie.
The West Wing, Season 3 discs 1-3 and we will have
Veronica Guerin I noticed that I keep on calling films 'fascinating' so I'll try to come up with another word to abuse. This is a good film, not great, definitely 3 stars material with a couple scenes that could be bumped up to 4. Cate Blanchett is, as always, an amazing actress. She simply inhabits the characters she portrays. Her Guerin is selfish and driven and passionate. She's the kind of person who won't stop at anything to achieve her goals. A real force of nature. Blanchett really lets us see everything, Guerin's strengths, weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Schumacher isn't a talented enough storyteller to deeply involve the audience in everything that's going on so the movie never reaches the emotional pinnacles that it could but overall it's a solid film that tells an interesting story about one person's overwhelming crusade.
Bubba Ho-Tep Duuuuuuude. How much does Bruce Campbell rock as an aging Elvis in a nursing home? He rocks so much that I don't think I've ever seen him rock more. There's a reason why he's one of the fannish icons of my generation. And it doesn't hurt that he's in a movie that is all around cool. Who would've ever thought that a movie that has an ancient Egyptian mummy feeding off the souls of residents of a nursing home could be so good. Funny and thoughtful and just plain old entertaining. And then there's Ossie Davis as a man who thinks he's JFK and Daniel Roebuck (Arzt from Lost) shows up to have these really random conversations as he and his body transport the dead bodies away from the home and it's all awesome. Don Coscarelli totally wins at life.
Intermission Okay, I saw this like, three days ago and I already have very little remembrance of what was going on. I loved the acting but with a cast that includes Cillian Murphy, Colm Meaney and Colin Farrell (who, yes, seems to be a swaggering asshole in real life but is also a really good actor) you can't go wrong. It had an episodic story that was reminiscent of Pulp Fiction or Magnolia in the way it was set up but lacked the vibrant, pulse-pounding fire of the first and, well, I wasn't all that fond of Magnolia either. Good, but generally forgettable.
21 Grams
The West Wing, Season 3 discs 4-6 adorably snarky genius babies.
Gosford Park
Frankenstein, 2003
Mean Girls
Before Sunrise
Jeremiah, Season 1 discs 1-3
Before Sunset
Baylor plays MSU in the women's NCAA basketball championship tonight. This amuses me.
I watched 'Beyond the Sea' from season one X-Files last night. Wow. I'd forgotten what an amazing episode it is. Brad Dourif sent chills down my back and Gillian Anderson owned every scene she was in. I was completely and utterly captivated. mmmmmmmmmm I <3 Scully.
I have heard that in a recent episode of that new Law & Order show Joe Toye is shown wearing a newsie cap. Oh.My.Gosh. I need screencaps and pictures, stat.
I also popped my latest Netflix rental into the dvd player last night. It was Woman of the Year starring Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy and it's a fascinating film. As a modern woman I don't completely agree with all of the sexual messages of the film, but then again it's extremely progressive for its time. The script is layered full of character and social observation and it more then deserved the Oscar for that year. I'd never seen a Hepburn/Tracy film before and am now completely won over by the two of them. Wow. What actors, what chemistry. It's a good flick and one that I'll be mulling over for quite a while.
For anyone who's interested, here's a list of the next 20 movies currently residing in my Netflix queue.
The Ladykillers, 2004 I put this in, sat down with my knitting and was only able to bother with it for about 15 minutes. I guess I just wasn't all that interested at the time. It's a shame as it had a lot of very good actors in it.
Jersey Girl I'm going to go out on a limb here and say this is the best movie Kevin Smith has ever made. The story is heartfelt and mature and real and for the first time Mr. Smith doesn't rely on fanboy injokes and instead lets the story simply tell itself. The performances are all amazing (I kind of like Ben Affleck, I can't help it, he's endearing) and the film looks gorgeous. It's a horrible shame that so many people blasted this movie so heartlessly because it deserves all kinds of love. Plus, how can you not love a movie that performs Sweeney Todd in an elementary school. Perfection.
Osama What a horrifying movie. In this case horrifying does not signify the quality of the movie itself, but rather the horror of the situation that it depicts. Cinematically it is perfectly crafted and it has directional and narrative layers that will prey upon your mind long after the movie itself has ended. This is a great movie that explores a horrific situation with wisdom and honesty and it should be seen by everyone. This is not only good cinema, it is important cinema.
The West Wing, Season 2 discs 4-6 Marry Me, Josh Lyman
Kandahar Another movie that deals with the plight of women in Afghanistan, this time through the eyes of an Afghan-Canadian who re-enters the country in search of her sister. While not as strong a film as Osama and primarily focused on looking at Afghanistan through Western eyes it is still a very, very good movie.
Ghost World An interesting movie with some really good performances. The story itself didn't ping me very hard but then adolescent turmoil never has done a lot for me. I enjoyed seeing Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi play off each other. Seeing Enid's development as a person was rewarding and it was nice to see the post-high school drift between friends so easily and organically managed. It was good but not extraordinary.
The Station Agent What a great movie. This is a prime example of movie storytelling at its finest. Three flawed and hurting people who only want to run away from their pains and troubles and obligations. Three people who find themselves bound together inspite of themselves. A simple, beautifully told story that hinted and cajoled and elaborated so perfectly. This is the first movie I've seen in a long time where I unequivocally like the characters, flaws and all. The actors do an amazing job of bringing these people to life and the director is quite talented at taking quiet moments and making them as screamingly poignant as the spectacular breakdowns. A wonderful, amazing film.
The Triplets of Belleville What a fascinating film. It's animated and French and extremly image heavy. It doesn't rely on dialogue so much as music and image to tell the story. It's just a good movie, one that kind of sneaks up on you and surprises you and then won't go away. I found myself thinking about it and having images burst into my mind long after the end credits had rolled. A thick, interesting movie.
The West Wing, Season 3 discs 1-3 and we will have
Veronica Guerin I noticed that I keep on calling films 'fascinating' so I'll try to come up with another word to abuse. This is a good film, not great, definitely 3 stars material with a couple scenes that could be bumped up to 4. Cate Blanchett is, as always, an amazing actress. She simply inhabits the characters she portrays. Her Guerin is selfish and driven and passionate. She's the kind of person who won't stop at anything to achieve her goals. A real force of nature. Blanchett really lets us see everything, Guerin's strengths, weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Schumacher isn't a talented enough storyteller to deeply involve the audience in everything that's going on so the movie never reaches the emotional pinnacles that it could but overall it's a solid film that tells an interesting story about one person's overwhelming crusade.
Bubba Ho-Tep Duuuuuuude. How much does Bruce Campbell rock as an aging Elvis in a nursing home? He rocks so much that I don't think I've ever seen him rock more. There's a reason why he's one of the fannish icons of my generation. And it doesn't hurt that he's in a movie that is all around cool. Who would've ever thought that a movie that has an ancient Egyptian mummy feeding off the souls of residents of a nursing home could be so good. Funny and thoughtful and just plain old entertaining. And then there's Ossie Davis as a man who thinks he's JFK and Daniel Roebuck (Arzt from Lost) shows up to have these really random conversations as he and his body transport the dead bodies away from the home and it's all awesome. Don Coscarelli totally wins at life.
Intermission Okay, I saw this like, three days ago and I already have very little remembrance of what was going on. I loved the acting but with a cast that includes Cillian Murphy, Colm Meaney and Colin Farrell (who, yes, seems to be a swaggering asshole in real life but is also a really good actor) you can't go wrong. It had an episodic story that was reminiscent of Pulp Fiction or Magnolia in the way it was set up but lacked the vibrant, pulse-pounding fire of the first and, well, I wasn't all that fond of Magnolia either. Good, but generally forgettable.
21 Grams
The West Wing, Season 3 discs 4-6 adorably snarky genius babies.
Gosford Park
Frankenstein, 2003
Mean Girls
Before Sunrise
Jeremiah, Season 1 discs 1-3
Before Sunset
Baylor plays MSU in the women's NCAA basketball championship tonight. This amuses me.