Star Trek (4/5)
On a lark, and to avoid the crowds, a friend and I went to the 6am showing at the Seattle Center IMAX. What were we thinking. There were twenty people there. The movie was good. I like my sleep though.
This is life.
You hope for things, perhaps children, they don't marry and you're not happy, they marry and their spouse is crap, or their spouse is good and their kids are crap, you're not happy, you're bored, you're not happy, you want something, you want a job, you want peace of mind, it doesn't happen. I've heard that your 30s are meant to be a time of less insecurity, well I have learned to be ok with what I have and that has indeed lowered my insecurity. ...
Oh H1N1
The news reported that the CDC and others are encouraging the news to not call it "swine flu" but rather "H1N1 virus". And then, the next story: "Swine flu hits Canada!" Brilliant.
Traitor (4/5)
Just joined Netflix and this was their first recommendation; actually hit me square--I liked this underrated picture quite much. Loved the balance of action and politics and the ending is amazing. Cheadle is a good actor too.
Quantum Of Solace (2/5)
Nearly all the brilliant improvements that Casino Royale brought to the flaggingly goofy franchise are undone by the last reel: vaguely compelling super-villains, female objects attempting vitality, fancy set pieces that are mere dressing this go around, worthless chase scenes that are laughably cut (I imagine the stunt men came back to see their work on the monitor with dropped jaws--you cannot tell what is happening, they should have used stop ...
17 Again (2/5)
I kinda get the Efron thing--he was cute and had long bangs that were my envy for half the film. And Lennon stole nearly every scene he was in; there weren't many others challenging him though.
The Amazon is a river.
Jeff Bezos was on The Daily Show a few weeks back pitching the new Kindle® and touting the brilliance of their AmazonPrime™ program, which apparently provides you "free" two-day shipping for only $79.95 a year. Stewart's hasty appraisal: "except it costs $79.95 a year". When I see the "33% more free!" label or 10/$10 special that is really 1/$1, a part of me dies inside. I suppose there are marketing professionals sitting around boardroom ...
Gran Torino (3/5)
Eastwood ends his acting career as a bad-ass racist neighborhood grump. As a director he often prints the first take, which can work well if you're shooting veterans. I wonder if he should have given his younger bloods a few more takes though, some of the scenes are wince inducing.
Funny Games (3/5)
I really do not know what to think of this film. I peeked at the critics for some explanation and they were all markedly divided. I don't think anyone rated it ok. It is either brilliant satire/criticism of the torture film genre or just another of the sort. To Haneke's credit, he doesn't show the gore on screen like we all expect, but the menace is still there nonetheless. Nor does he deliver the justice we would hope for--not even close. So if ...
Two Lovers (5/5)
A seemingly simple love triangle that illuminates how we love and how we are loved: we idealize, we let others idealize, we lust, we discount loyalty, we act like fools. If familiarity breeds contempt I now see why my first viewing of this made me squirm--I saw the best and worst of myself in many of the characters' neurotic, passionate, confused, impulsive actions. Tons of data to analyze in this film for those of you who enjoy such cinematic...