This And That

Ran across these interesting oddities (or oddly interesting tidbits, depending upon your perspective) this morning. Even with coffee, they have fewer calories than the muffin and bagel I might have had otherwise:

He Can't See Brick Pillars: Haley Joel Osment, who starred in The Sixth Sense as the "I see dead people" kid, wrecked his 1995 Saturn at 1:00am Thursday near Los Angeles. He hit a brick pillar, and flipped the car. Although taken to an area hospital, there is no current word of his condition. I hope the kid is OK.
It's cool to see a child star driving a 1995 Saturn, though...
Dakota Fanning, take note!






I Think I Dated Her In College: I'm not a huge fan of Uma Thurman or flicks that use a lot of sight gags, but for some reason I am looking forward to seeing this movie. That may be because it plays to a basic infatuation many men have...We are often--and at the same time--attracted to and frightened by strong, emotional and unpredictable women. The plot to me is just damn funny.




Please, Someone Do An Intervention: Daniel Baldwin wrecked his car while driving 80 miles an hour on a Los Angeles street. Oh yeah...He was driving on a suspended license. No matter how hard you try, Daniel, you can't rid yourself of Car 54, Where Are You? Live with it, pal.

Hittin' The Early Homer

I had one of my favorite movie dates one Friday night in the Fall of 1999. My wife and I, having secured a sitter for our young child, were eager to hit the streets for the first time in what seemed like months. (Those of you with young children will understand what I mean by eager to get out of the house. It was a necessity!) After talking Mrs. Film Geek out of hittin' the clubs (I tell you, that chick loves to dance) we agreed to spend the night at the movies.

One this particular Friday night, I compromised with my wife: in exchange for no dancing, we would watch horror flicks, her favorite type of movie. While I don't like horror at all, I like the bright lights even less. So, horror it was. We hit the early showing of The Blair Witch Project, which we really liked (for all the now-obvious reasons), and then we saw The Sixth Sense.

We talked about this movie for days afterwards. It was, for us at least, an instant classic. And the director, this newcomer whose name I couldn't pronounce, was a genius. The next Spielberg. A prodigy who would become a master among otherwise common story-tellers.

M. Night Shyamalan followed up The Sixth Sense with Unbreakable, Signs and The Village. All cashed in well a the box office, and most were reviewed well by critics. His next flick, Lady In The Water opens this weekend, and is getting tons of press.

Mostly though, there seems to be an uneasiness--sort of a nagging feeling, really--that people have with Shyamalan's ongoing body of work: despite the artistic integrity of his flicks and the more-than-acceptable box office, people want The Sixth Sense all over again. They want the hook, the plot they can't figure out. They want the grand slam home run. And they want it now.

Shyamalan writes and directs movies that are true works of art. The pace of his movies remind me of old Hitchcock masterpieces. He creates incredible suspense with interesting camera angles and color. He lets the story unfold, pulling the audience in slowly, but intimately. He has such patience.

I wish the movie audiences had more patience with Shyamalan.

Like Father, Like Son

Last evening as my kids and I were goofing around outside, a really large flock of birds flew overhead. My son, Jaden, became very excited:


Jaden: "Daddy...Daddy! Look. All those birds!

Me: "Wow...that is a whole lotta birds. Where do you think they are going?

Jaden: "...To the movies."

Please, Make It Stop: Part 5

Dear Oprah:

A moment ago I poured my second cup of coffee and sat down to read the online news. I skipped over most of the stories regarding the Middle East and national politics, sadly. These days I'm a bit tired of the difficulties we humans create for ourselves, and the tragedies that occur due to differences of opinion, culture, religion or economics. Frankly Oprah, all those headlines began to blend together for me a couple of years ago, when I realized I'd had enough. So, I dropped out. Most days, I head straight for the Life section of the USA Today. It's easier. Simpler. And except for a few nutty celebs, a whole lot less frustrating.

Which brings me to this letter, and my point.

One of the headlines that caught my attention this morning centered on you denying that you are gay. Seems your 30-year friendship with Gayle King has been questioned by some as being more than platonic. Although I had never questioned your sexuality, lots of folks apparently have, causing you to believe it necessary to explain otherwise.

Trust me, O. It isn't.

I won't watch your show any more or less because of your announcement. I won't have more compassion for you, nor will I sign up for your book reading club. Your comments also won't make me seek out your friend Gayle in whatever-gig-she-is-doing-now, or hope against hope that she lands the vacant spot on The View. I simply don't care to whom you may or may not be attracted.

And I wish more people cared less, too.

Power and huge amounts of cash often lead folks to feelings of superiority. And when people feel superior, they con themselves into thinking that the tiniest aspect of their lives has significant meaning to the masses. That perspective is a dangerous one to buy into, Oprah, because it has an obvious superficial appearance. When one begins to believe their own press, expects others to heed maxims and cliches designed to sound like advice and speaks out against the rumor that she is gay (but not about press that suggested she is the nation's spiritual leader), there is something wrong with one's perspective. It needs adjusted. Reminded of really important qualities of life, like humility. And the personal dignity that comes from doing good quietly, without cameras and photo ops.

Anyway, Oprah, friendships like that you seem to share with Gayle are rare. I wish more of us had those types of lifelong relationships. Enjoy it. Just remember, though, that simply because it is important to you does not mean the rest of our society gives a damn.

Sincerely,


The Film Geek

Stay

My post about Stay may be my shortest about a movie yet. And that's a shame, because this movie is so great that it deserves lengthy discussion regarding it's plot, the visual way the story is told by director Marc Forster and the incredible acting by stars Ewan McGregor, Ryan Gosling and Naomi Watts. Problem is, there isn't much I can say about the movie without giving away spoilers. And believe me, you don't want the spoilers...You want to enjoy this movie moment by moment, and allow the film to reveal itself to you. It is that satisfying.

Stay is a rare gem: a movie I hadn't heard much about, didn't consider seeing in a theater and didn't know what to expect when I hit "play." Like similar gems from years past--movies like Memento, or The Sixth Sense, for example--Stay keeps you thinking long after the credits end. The most basic part of the plot, which involves psychiatrist McGregor trying to help Gosling, his patient in crisis, is all you need to know for starters. But don't get too wrapped up in that dynamic, cause you soon realize that all is not what it seems.

If you take my advice and see this movie, stick around a few moments into the credits for a hauntingly beautiful song. And let me know what you think of Stay...I really wanna talk about it! ****

By the way, if you want spoilers, they are here...and here. (But, you don't...Trust me.)

Discovering The Video Junkyard

One day in 1979, when I was 14 years old, I walked up to the counter at the Ben Franklin store (commonly called the Five & Dime in my hometown) and plopped down a copy of Aquaman, two Superman titles and an issue of World's Finest. The cashier looked at me with a crooked brow, which caused me to clear my throat and shuffle my feet as I weakly proclaimed:

"My brother sure loves comic books."

The lady--who, in my memory, looks a lot like my junior high school's cafeteria lady, for some odd reason--didn't respond. She slowly began to ring up the total with an I'm-on-to-you look.

"He's just a kid. 8 years old. Picked these up for him so he can use them to help in learning to read," I said, while doing my best Barney Fife nervous shuffle.

Granny Cashier took my money, handed me the change and my comics in a bag, and I rushed the hell out. Embarrassed. Insecure. A known liar and a lover of comic books!

Several years later, after moving away for college, I discovered comic shops. I loved my town's comic shop...The smell of the old boxed issues, the colorful racks with new issues, the mounds of just-delivered comics each Friday morning. But most of all, the people there didn't judge me. They understood me. They accepted me. No longer needing an excuse to buy comics was liberating, and comforting. I found myself wanting to hang out there, to talk to people about story-lines, art and characters. Conversations I couldn't have on the outside.

This YouTube video is of a failed Comedy Central pilot from 2000, and stars Patton Oswalt, Brian Posehn and Sarah Silverman. Super Nerds is about a couple of guys who own a comic shop, and the geeky folks like me who stop in from time to time. It isn't drop dead funny, nor is it a real artistic achievement. But, I sure understand it, and it makes me feel comfortable and safe. More than a failed sitcom, this video seems a lot like real life to me.

Match Point

Match Point has a really interesting pedigree. Written and directed by Woody Allen, the film co-stars Scarlett Johansson (in an uncharacteristically emotional role), and Jonathan Rhys Meyers who, as Chris Wilton, seems to be both constantly plotting and perpetually plodding.

Match Point isn't Annie Hall. Or Sleeper. Or at all like any other Woody Allen movie you can name. It's in no way a comedy, and not really a thriller. The film is really a look into the role luck plays in the lives of it's characters. Like a tennis ball that hangs on the net for just a brief second, luck can work for or against you. Which side of the net the ball finally bounces--and the effect it has when it eventually lands--is central to the movie's plot and final outcome.

Struggle through the mostly boring first half, because in the end the film is worth it. Johansson acts great and is really sexy, and Meyers has a controlled intensity that never seems to let up. For some reason, Match Point reminded me of old Fred MacMurray movies, like Double Indemnity. **

Giving Credit Where It's Due

Excerpted from AOL Movie News:

BEIJING (July 7) - A Chinese actress who played Hollywood movie star Zhang Ziyi 's naked body double in "The Banquet" wants her name in the movie's credits, state media reported on Friday.

"The Banquet," a Feng Xiaogang-directed film set for release in China in the autumn, stars "Memoirs of a Geisha" actress Zhang Ziyi and features several body doubles to play her in nude and fight scenes, the Nanfang Daily newspaper said. Shao Xiaoshan said she was paid 20,000 yuan ($2,500) for shooting several nude scenes in comments carried by the paper.

There may be a lawsuit. Who says jury duty sucks?

Tonto Gets No Love

I'm calling for a boycott!

Boycotts work for Bill O'Reilly. Well...At least he calls for them all the time. When his dander gets up, he calls on his boyz to boycott things. Including countries, for Christ's sake. That's because boycotts are the life's blood of American protest. A way to right wrongs, and a method to draw attention to major slights and faux pas.

The reason for this boycott, you ask?

Tonto was left off the list of All-Time Top 50 Second Bananas.

The Top 5 of all-time were (5) Lucy's friend, Ethel Mertz; (4)Chewbacca; (3) George Costanza; (2)Batman's chum, Robin; and (1) Ed McMahon.

The rest-of-the-50 included such side-kicks as: Tattoo, from Fantasy Island, Robin Quivers, Howard Stern's perpetual laugh track and Pedro from Napoleon Dynamite.

No Tonto, Kimosabe.

It escapes me how the Lone Ranger's best bud could be left off a list of 50. And a list that includes Pedro. It's just wrong. Tonto is the quintessential side-kick. The mold from which all other second bananas are created.

Tonto started it all!

So, I'm calling for a boycott. But I don't know who or what the boycott should take on. I need suggestions, and I need 'em quick.

The Brothers Grimm

The Brothers Grimm is another movie I stayed away from for quit a while. Not that I thought it wasn't good, really. Fact is, I typically hate movies that are set back in the day, and those where the characters have thick accents or dialect. I usually can't follow the dialogue; I'm just not that bright.

Terry Gilliam directs Matt Damon and Heath Ledger in The Brothers Grimm. Because I like Gilliam's work, I decided to give his latest a shot. Mostly, I'm glad I did.

Jake and Will Grimm play hustlers, circa lat 1790s, who find themselves hip deep in a supernatural mystery where children are being stolen and used, ultimately, for the resurrection of an evil queen. The plot isn't that interesting, really. The best aspect of this movie is Gilliam's use of imagery and visual technique. The forest in which the Brothers Grimm travel is a character in and of itself, and the atmosphere sets a disturbing tone that lasts throughout the flick.

The Brothers Grimm ain't a great flick, but it's nowhere near as bad as I expected. It may be best watched late at night, with really low lighting. **