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| Saturday, November 7th, 2009 | | 5:22 pm |
Movies, upcoming
Two quick notes: The trailer for Avatar is reeeal pretty, especially in HD. Even though the story only looks OK, I want to see it in IMAX. I had absolutely no interest in seeing 2012, aka "Roland Emmerich destroys a whole lot of stuff - again". But now that I've read this review, I'm thinkin' MSTy party. | | 5:07 pm |
Movies, current
Sharon's out of town for a few days, visiting a friend, so I treated myself to a couple of movies that I knew wouldn't interest her. Zombieland is incredibly gory, very violent, over the top, and one f*ck of a lot funnier and more emotionally satisfying than it has any right to be. The cast strikes a perfect balance, playing people who were quirky even before the zombie plague hit, but playing them absolutely straight, without a single wink to the audience. The fight scenarios are ridiculous and inventive, the script as a whole well constructed. The pseudo-science behind the zombies is complete garbage, of course (mutated mad cow), but other than that the logic of the world works just well enough to keep the movie going. The biggest flaw, I think, is that the character arcs were awfully predictable. In the end, though, I gave in to it and laughed a lot. (BTW, the filmmakers chose - wisely, I think - to front-load the gore. If you can get past the first fifteen minutes, the rest is fairly easy to take.) The biggest WTF of the evening was seeing a trailer for New Moon, the new Twilight movie. Where exactly is the audience overlap between gory zombie comedy and angsty vampire romance? Astro Boy has gotten mixed reviews, so I was pleasantly surprised. There's a real script here, with a plot that's more than a series of incidents, setups that lead to payoffs I didn't always see coming, plausible character motivations, and some nice plot bits. The CGI animation may not be state of the art, but it's close. The main characters are visually faithful to Tezuka's originals. The voice work isn't spectacular, but it's all solid. Good stuff, overall. | | Thursday, November 5th, 2009 | | 2:39 pm |
| | 8:58 am |
| | Wednesday, November 4th, 2009 | | 2:27 pm |
Some of my friends will be interested in this
The Stratford Shakespeare Festival has posted its 2010 Members Guide, with show descriptions, casting info, and a full calendar. Our must-see is The Tempest. My mother wants to see Kiss Me, Kate, so we'll go to that. Others that may end up on our list include As You Like It, Dangerous Liaisons, Jacques Brel, and For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again. (We see anywhere from four to six shows in one trip, depending on the offerings in a particular year.) What looks good to you? | | 8:15 am |
This week's SYTYCD thoughts
It was a week for confounding expectations, especially from those who looked weak going into the competition. Legacy and Mollee, in particular, earned every bit of praise they got from the judges. I don't think anyone could have predicted how fast Legacy would improve. Nathan and Mollee are going to be this season's Evan and Randi, the cute couple the audience loves. Fox did the right thing for both Billy and Brandon. Good for you, Fox. Last week, I couldn't see why the judges were gushing so much over Karen. I thought she was good, but not outstanding. This week, I'm a lot more impressed. Russell and Kevin were both great, but both were in their comfort zones. We'll see. I successfully called all four of the bottom group in advance, but that was partly from hearing the judges' comments, not just from their dancing. Then again, it was really obvious that Phillip was toast. Last night proved that he doesn't have the upper body strength to be an effective partner. I don't know if Peter will have the same problem, since his and Pauline's routine this week didn't have any lifts. Victor survived, but I don't expect him to last much longer. As good as he is technically, he has no personality when performing. Of the remaining women, I think Kathryn and Noelle are the blandest, and most likely to be overlooked by the voters. (Overall, this bunch has many more interesting personalities than we saw in season 5.) I was sorry to see Bianca go. I would have chosen Noelle, as one judge did. Bianca's was the one performance where I thought the judges were too harsh - it sure looked to me like she was into the spirit of the dance. I'll admit, though, that I don't think she could have gone all the way. There are too many who are better all-around dancers. Ellenore firmed up her position as my current favorite. I love her personality, and that tango was flawless. | | Saturday, October 31st, 2009 | | 12:20 am |
Geeky moment
I was watching the second episode of White Collar, a new show on the USA network. They introduced a new character, FBI agent Lauren Cruz. She first appeared with her back to the camera. But as soon as she turned around and spoke, I said, "That's Wendy!" | | Thursday, October 29th, 2009 | | 4:33 pm |
TV ramblings
It's been a pretty good week for stuff I like. The less good, which isn't that bad: - Because of the World Series, there's no So You Think You Can Dance results show this week. That meant no viewer voting, so the judges chose who went home. I'm not too unhappy with their choices. And it meant more time to read last night. (Similarly, no Fringe tonight means more reading time.) - I forgot to record Dollhouse while I was at OVFF, and online reviews say it's a good and significant episode. No problem, I'll watch it online. - Dollhouse is being pulled for November sweeps due to lousy ratings, which almost certainly means it'll be over once the rest of this season's thirteen episodes finish airing. Too bad, it had gotten a lot better. The good stuff: - SYTYCD had a good first performance show. My favorite was Ellenore and Ryan's routine. - I recorded and watched the pilot of White Collar on USA, and it was more than good enough to get my attention for a few more episodes. It's a classic buddy formula. A smart, charming, handsome art thief and forger is let out of prison in the custody of the FBI agent who caught him, in return for helping with cases. What makes it work is the scripting, especially that the agent is also very smart and well educated. He had to be, to catch this crook. The chemistry between them, and between the agent and his wife, is already good. I hope it can maintain. - I also recorded and watched last Friday's episode of Monk. I hadn't done that in a while, hadn't even been watching consistently, since it had been going downhill. But this final season has marked something of a recovery, and this episode featured the return of Sharona. ( Monk fans will know what that means.) It was even better than I'd hoped, with great character work, laughs, some unexpectedly serious moments, and the possibility of more to come. If you were ever a Monk fan, find this one. - ABC just announced that my favorite sitcom, Better Off Ted, will be returning on December 8th. Strongly recommended. | | Monday, October 26th, 2009 | | 11:12 pm |
Joining the chorus
Like others who have posted, I'm home safe and happy. This year's OVFF was one of the best ever. Circles, socializing, performing, everything was . . . hell, it's late, and I don't have enough superlatives on hand. One thing for sure, I'm staying over for the dead dog every year from now on. Going around the circle in my head, and apologizing in advance to those I miss, thank you Mary, Ed, Mary Ellen, Ben D., Brooke, Ben N., Seanan, Sooj, Tony, Vixy, Debbie, Merav, Elliot, Phil, Dave, and Heather for an incredible evening. | | Saturday, October 24th, 2009 | | 11:34 am |
| | Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 | | 11:32 am |
| | Wednesday, October 21st, 2009 | | 2:30 pm |
| | 1:49 pm |
Things that make you go "Hmmm . . ."
On the road earlier today, I spent a few minutes driving behind a big, white, mostly windowless van. There were no markings on the sides, but on the back I saw this, in neat black letters: IGOR DISTRIB. CO. What would Igor distribute? Current Mood: bemused | | Tuesday, October 20th, 2009 | | 9:34 am |
Little pleasures
Tuesday through Friday, my project team has an 8 AM status call with the customer. Today, I dialed in to find that the 8 AM was canceled, because we have a 10 AM call on another topic. So far, so good. I headed downstairs to have breakfast (one of the perks of working from a home office), which was the remains of the excellent omelet (chorizo chili cheese) that I had when we went out to brunch Sunday. Also a glass of fresh apple cider. As the omelet was heating, I turned on the TV for a little background noise, and found that Comcast just added a dozen new HD channels, including Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, IFC, Spike, Biography, and MGM. Not a bad way to start a Tuesday, all in all. | | Sunday, October 18th, 2009 | | 12:55 pm |
| | Saturday, October 17th, 2009 | | 11:52 am |
| | 11:21 am |
Review: Where the Wild Things Are
Director Spike Jonze and writer Dave Eggers have crafted a movie version of Maurice Sendak's "Where The Wild Things Are" that's divided viewers and critics. Some say it's dull and overly serious. Others say it's a masterpiece. I don't know about masterpiece, but I do think it's very, very good. Jonze (the director of "Being John Malkovich" and "Adaptation") has chosen a naturalistic look, with odd and intimate camera angles that draw you into close contact with the characters and a subdued color pallet. Jonze and Eggers have chosen, wisely I think, to leave a lot unsaid, to let the audience figure things out for themselves. And what they've ended up with is definitely not a Hollywood studio film, and may or may not be a good children's film, depending on the child. Instead, it's more of an art film, using Sendak's simple story to explore what it's like to be nine, sensitive, imaginative, and troubled. Those more psychologically inclined might speak of "acting out" and "abandonment issues". I'd rather just say that this is a remarkably honest portrait of a kid faced with more than he can comfortably handle. There isn't much of a plot, just a series of events. There's no villain, just personalities in conflict. (Or perhaps I should say pieces of personalities, as I've seen reference to either Jonze or Eggers saying that they saw the Wild Things as representing Max's jumbled emotions.) But there's plenty of characterization, all of it good. As Max, Max Records never hits a false note. I believed in him, and that's not an easy thing to accomplish. The Wild Things are marvels. A combination of voice acting, people in costumes, and CGI faces, they're every bit as believable as Max. This may be the most sophisticated CGI I've seen all year. "Where the Wild Things Are" will stay with me. I recommend it. | | 11:04 am |
Ah, the joys of home ownership
Two guys are currently in our basement, installing a new furnace. One of them is the fella who was here Thursday. Turns out he was wrong about one thing. The problem with the heat exchanger was bad enough that after the blower died Wednesday, the heater never came back on. It's currently 60 degrees in the house. They wouldn't have been able to get a replacement heat exchanger until Wednesday. Sharon and I talked it over, and decided to go with a new furnace and humidifier. Heat exchanger issues are a known problem with the furnace model the builder installed - our next door neighbor had the same problem. And there are a few ameliorating factors: - Since we're having the whole furnace replaced, they're not going to charge us for the blower motor replacement they did on Thursday. (They'll be able to re-use the motor, but that still saves us the labor cost.) - Next year, we'll be able to get back 30% of the cost as a tax credit. - Technology has advanced. The old furnace claimed 90% efficiency. The new one claims 96%. So our gas bills this winter should go down. It's been an interesting couple of days. Last night, we went out to dinner and a movie just to get out of the house for a while, watched some TV wearing coats and blankets, then put extra covers on the bed. (I slept in sweat pants, heavy sweat shirt, and socks.) Today, we're working in shifts, so there's someone in the house while the installers work. I went out to breakfast and the farmers' market. Sharon just left for lunch and errands. If all goes as planned, we'll have heat coming out of the vents in another hour or two, and have a warm house by this evening. Sadly, we aren't quite done. The furnace replacement uncovered a leak in the air conditioner. We'll have to replace that in the spring. Current Mood: resigned | | Friday, October 16th, 2009 | | 2:44 pm |
| | Thursday, October 15th, 2009 | | 4:55 pm |
Furnace update
Remember this? (Yes, I know, this morning was a long time ago.) The repairman showed up about 3:30, and just left. He quickly determined that the blower motor had burned out. And yes, that would account for the burning smell. This, however, is not my favorite way for someone to start a conversation with me: "I've replaced the blower motor. But I found another problem, and it's not a good one." It seems the heat exchanger is badly clogged, to the point where we need to either replace the heat exchanger or the whole furnace. The good news, such as it is, is that we had the warranty papers for the furnace on file, and the heat exchanger is under warranty for as long as we live in this house. The bad news is that we'll still have to pay for labor. Ah, well, at least the furnace is working for now, however inefficiently. |
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