Archive for December, 2008
Why the dragons?
I don’t understand why the “film” Dungeons & Dragons got made, nor do I understand why Jeremy Irons was in it, nor do I understand why I watched the end in HD.
3 commentsA dog chasing cars
1 comment“I’m a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught it. You know, I just… do things.” – The Joker
The Spirit
Let’s say you made a movie that looked kind of like Sin City, but more colorful, yet not nearly as beautiful. You gave the movie a boring story with generally boring characters. If you did those things, you followed the same path as the people who wasted film on The Spirit.
5 commentsDoubt
So, Doubt is definitely the flat-out best theatrical film I’ve seen all year. I was really excited over the trailer, but the actual film blew me away.
Based on a stage play of the same name, Doubt takes place in 1964 and is the story of a rather brutal Catholic nun, Sister Aloysius, and the very personable Father Flynn. Sister Aloysius is the principal at a Bronx Catholic school, a school which she runs with an iron-fist. Every single student palpably fears her, and her sister nuns are equally obedient toward her rules. Father Flynn, however, is a rather progressive priest and school teacher. He believes in a warmer, friendlier Catholic Church. Sister Aloysius doesn’t like this one bit, she doesn’t trust his methods, or his motives. So, when she discovers Father Flynn taking a private interest in a young boy, the school’s first and only black student, she immediately decides that the relationship is abusive and cause for Father Flynn’s removal. The crux of the situation is that she has absolutely no proof beyond her personal certainty and the circumstantial, while he ultimately has no proof to refute her.
The film’s such a fascinating examination of faith and the lengths that one will go to in order to protect and justify said faith. It’s also a spectacular metaphor for the fact that life doesn’t always have clear-cut answers, nothing is black or white, but rather endless shades of gray. It makes us look into the idea that morality is a very relative thing.
Meryl Streep is absolutely brilliant as Sister Aloysius, she literally made me tear up, as she delivered her dialogue so perfectly. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is also outstanding as Father Flynn. I could easily see the film again right now.
8 commentsStarting Apocrypha
So, now that I can read real books again, I’ve started Apocrypha by Catherynne M. Valente. It’s a book of poetry and prose, excellent stuff so far.
Valente’s such an artist with the written word, she writes sentences that are simply beautiful no matter the context. Her first novel, The Labyrinth, is honestly one of the most bizarre and gorgeous things I’ve ever read, so I’m pretty sure Apocrypha won’t disappoint. I’m also totally excited about her upcoming novel, Palimpsest, the excerpts I’ve read are spectacular.
Comments are off for this postThe last about Dune
Well, I finally did it, I finally completely finished Dune. I successfully hated it from beginning to end. Honestly, my problem isn’t with the story per se, but the prose just killed me, the use of “Presently, he said,” or “He swallowed with a dry throat,” over and over again. It’s just such a flatly written book.
Maybe at 15, a virgin to sci-fi and life in-general I’d have found it brilliant, but at 28 (as of 12/31/08), it just didn’t do anything for me.
2 commentsMidnight mass over and done
From a writer’s perspective, midnight mass was pretty spectacular. Personally, it was rather awful, I’ve never felt so lonely, but the writing material… Wow.
My mom was married to a fellow, Randy, for about ten years. This marriage didn’t go particularly well, by which I mean, it went astonishingly badly. Still, my mom and Randy get along much better not having to live together.
So, Randy isn’t usually in town for Christmas, but this year’s different. Since he’s here, mom decides to invite him to midnight mass, and much to my surprise he actually says yes. He hadn’t seen the inside of a church for at least ten years, until tonight. He shows up at the house in a festive mood, but on the drive over it becomes apparent that Randy’s quite drunk. So, while we’re in church the sleepy part of being drunk starts to kick in, my brother has to keep kicking him to prevent his nodding off. During the communion he declares that he can no longer remain awake and has to go, now. Mom tells him to go nap in the van, my brother hands him the keys and he promptly does so.
After communion the mass is ended and it’s time to go in peace. Randy’s sleeping so peacefully in the van that he won’t wake up to unlock the van, which I find amusing, but not as amusing as when he does wake up and simply can’t figure out how to operate the locks, thus triggering the car alarm.
Obviously, we did get back into the van and we did get home.
3 commentsHappy birthday Kitty Jesus!
Happy birthday Kitty Jesus! Next we get to celebrate Your Kitty Crucifixion and Resurrection.
1 commentLet-down
I gather they’re re-airing the TAL episode, as I’m getting lots of new readers.
Wow, you people must be pretty fucking let-down. I’m sorry about that, on many levels.
18 commentsMidnight mass
Every single year, my family goes to midnight mass to ring in Christmas. This year, I think I’d rather eat glass, or read Dune than sit in church. I just don’t feel it. I also have absolutely no idea how to escape it.
Perhaps Kitty Jesus will show me the way, but I seriously doubt it, being that I’m not a kitty. I know Regular Jesus definitely won’t help me. Santa’s pretty useless too. I suppose death, taxes and midnight mass are just inevitable.
10 comments