Jul 25
Jul 24
In honor of the dull, boring, fairly lame Lady in the Water, I present to you, “What a Twist!”
Jul 23
One good quote generator deserves another.
Anchorman: The Legend of the Quote Generator
Pretty self explanatory really.
Jul 23
Self-indulgent is the term I have heard most often about Lady In The Water. I had read some of the review blurbs before I saw this film so I went in with low expectations. The movie didn’t exceed even those low epectations.
M. Night is a great director and writer. I don’t doubt this. But not every movie can be a masterpiece. The Village and Lady prove this. Still, with a mediocre story he’s able to do quite a good job directing. The movie looks great and flows along nicely. The story just isn’t there. M. Night gives himself a bigger acting role than usual. I don’t think that’s bad nor do I think that he’s bad in the role. But I think that is an example of how he made this movie for himself.
The bedtime story is of a water nymph that is sent to the humans to give us hope. I guess. The message wasn’t particularly well stated. I kept hoping for some big payoff at the end and never got it. The lead-in to the different roles of all the characters is too transparent, even with the “twist” he tries to throw in. (”what a twist” reminds me of a hysterical Robot Chicken sketch featuring M. Night). I was never fooled by the “twist” in this movie.
Frankly, M. Night needs to get away from the “twist.” It’s played out. Sure, there should be some mystery but it’s just gotten old. It’s old hack and we’ve all come to expect it. We aren’t fooled anymore when the obvious turns out not to be so obvious because that’s exactly what we expect to happen in an M. Night flick. I want to see something different. All his movies are the same. Is he really just a one trick pony?
The characters are interesting but almost comical in some respects. A crossword puzzle solver is over the top, his kid is over the top. The guy who only works out one side of his body is over the top (and lame). The Asian family is over the top. Get the point? All the characters are so over the top they don’t become interesting or believeable or likeable.
The fairy tale could be interesting on its own. I felt like M. Night created this fairy tale then squeezed a short story into a two hour flick. He should have gone two ways with this, either keep it a short story/film, or gone the other extreme and make a fantasy epic with his fairy tale world. I’d love to see a new fantasy universe that’s not LOTR, or elves, or any of that crap. What we learn about the fairy tale in this movie is interesting on its own and doesn’t need this goofy story to sell itself.
The directing makes this movie watchable, the story and acting does not. I wouldn’t really recommend this. Maybe see it at a matinee as I did or hold off for a rental. Only hardcore M. Night fans should bother.
Jul 22
I’m not even supposed to be here today! I really wanted to love Clerks II. You see, I have a history of sorts with View Askew (as well as hosting History Askew archives). It’s long and not that interesting so I won’t really get into it. Needless to say, I love the original Clerks. I love Mallrats. I love Chasing Amy. Dogma and J&SBSB are ok, but still fun. Clerks II had a lot to live up to in the Jersey Trilogy (I realize there are more than three).
The movie didn’t have that fresh, raw feeling that Kevin Smith’s first three did. I think he would argue that’s not a negative. But I think that’s part of the charm of the original three. That’s always the problem with sequels though, they have to live up to the standards set by the original and rarely can. Usually I don’t expect them to for that reason and hope they at least live up to some of the “goodness” of the original.
Clerks II draws on what made the original interesting, good dialogue and everyday life. Smith writes some of the most clever, most real dialogue in the industry if you ask me. This movie is a lot of raunchy sex humor. Not out of the oridinary for Smith, but in this instance not all that good. It’s too forced which is common with sequels because they can’t have that same originality.
I think Brian O’Halloran and Jeff Anderson give pretty good performances as they reprise their roles as Dante Hicks and Randal Graves. Anderson is a funny guy and can deliver Smith’s dialogue perfectly. They had a lot riding on their shoulders as they aren’t “A” actors and had more than decade of cult followers and new audiences alike hinging on their performances. They delivered, bravo to them.
Where the movie falls short for me is that it’s just not as fun and original as I hoped, even in a sequel. Jay and Silent Bob have about the same sized roles as in the original Clerks but I felt it could have used a bit more and they are the well-known charactes. Of course, they’ve had their own movie so I suppose the decision made sense and I can’t argue with that.
Despite being a little disappointed I don’t think Smith let me down. It was still good, just not great. He stuck with the spirit of the original Jersey Trilogy, everyday people with everyday problems, clever dialogue, a bit raunchy humor (to my surprise the very old couple near me didn’t walk out during the donkey show). If you’re a fan you must see this movie. If you’re not, you probably aren’t missing a lot since I think it really does take some knowledge or concept of Smith’s work to truly enjoy what he’s doing with this film.
Jul 22
I’ve started training for the TC 10 Mile. I didn’t actually get selected in the lottery but a friend did and she doesn’t want to do it by herself so I am training to motivate her (and myself). Another friend got in but he may not run it and give me his packet so I need to be ready.
I am using the Hal Higdon 15k training program. That’s what my friend is using as well. I don’t know if she’s doing the novice or intermediate. I’m doing something in between. The novice starts too easy for my current level but I’m not quite ready for the intermediate. No biggie, just going to do something inbetween.
I’m also starting at the end of week three with a 4 mile run this morning. It works out nice because that’s about the level I am at given the rest of the program and next week is an off week. That’s perfect because I’ll be on vacation and probably not wanting to go nuts on the training though I do plan to workout.
Today’s weigh-in was my lowest yet at 203.8. I want to hit 185 by the Oct 1 race. I don’t anticipate a problem as long as I stick to the training and cut out drinking lots of beer (after vacation of course).
My run went well this morning. I felt good. The shorter days on the program should allow me to build some speed as well. My 5k race on Wednesday was ok but I don’t have a clue how much I can push myself. I had a lot in me at the end so I could have probably pushed myself much more than I did. I was still happy with my time though but it could improve.
Jul 21
Ok, ok, I saw a chick flick. It looked good and was getting good reviews so I took in a matinee. You know what? I liked The Devil Wears Prada. Short and to the point.
Meryl Streep was fantastic. I really don’t particularly like her in any of her previous roles but she owned this one. Anne Hathaway was very good as well, playing an innocent, naive assistant to Streep’s ruthless magazine editor in chief. Stanley Tucci also gives an excellent performance.
In the end Hathaway learns a lot about herself through the hardships she suffers at the hands of Streep. Yay, happy ending. This movie is funny, clever, and well written but the acting is what really stands out. Chicks will dig it, but I think even boyfriends won’t mind going along.
Jul 21
I love Jack Black. He’s a naturally funny guy. Nacho Libre hopes to leverage that but unfortunately falls short. When you are making a movie it’s not the same as just having Black on stage being funny. There has to be some story, some humor written into the film on top of Black’s natural talent. Black is unable to carry this fairly boring movie along. This is also Jared Hess’s sophomore film after Napoleon Dynamite.
Perhaps this is one of those movies that will get better with repeated viewings. I thought Anchorman was just so-so the first time I saw it but on subsequent viewings it has become one of my favorites. I don’t really think Nacho Libre will do the same, but you never know.
The plot is funny enough, a boy raised as a monk who dreams of becoming a taboo luche libre. But I can come up with a very basic plot that seems funny, it’s just not enough to make a whole movie. Other than a few gutbusters, the movie is pretty boring and not particularly humorous.
Jack Black fans should check it out because that’s what we do. But don’t expect School of Rock funny because it’s just not there.