I'm Back, Baby!

(from September 1, 2009)

Sorry...I haven't written anything in forever. No excuse...it's just really hot in my apartment, and I've had a lot of writing to do for work, and...those are excuses. I apologize.

I only have a few quick thoughts tonight, so we'll jump right in...



1. I'm going to make a decision...I'm making a decision...decision made. I've made up my mind -- I think -- and I have decided that Inglorious Basterds is a good movie. Not great...good. I'll let you Tarantino fans get over yourselves for a second...there we go. The thing is, I'm noticing that a lot of movies fall into this category: they're so close to being really, really good, but they end up being...lackluster. Public Enemies was like that, Basterds was like that, and District 9 was like that (more on this in a second). Basterds did what it advertised; it gave us a WWII movie directed by Quentin Tarantino. It was fun enough, kooky enough, and had some classic moments, as well as a few classic lines ("Since this seems to be the end, mind if I go out speaking the king's?"). I might see it again...I might not...either way, it wouldn't really matter. That, I suppose, is the definition of underwhelming.



2. District 9, on the other hand, wasn't underwhelming as much as it was overhyped. I usually avoid things that everybody's raving about, mostly because public opinion is kind of like the "ask the audience" lifeline from Who Wants To Be A Millionaire (remember that show? Regis!) -- everybody agrees on things that are obvious. And the more people agree about obvious things, the more people jump on the bandwagon, until it just gets annoying. If the old saying that misery loves company is true, then I'd be willing to also say that stupidity loves company. Either way...there's lots of company to be had. Back to D9; it was a very original movie, and probably would have been much more enjoyable had it not been for everybody and their mother (and I did have actual mothers tell me about it) gushing about how amazing and life-changing this movie is. For the record, I enjoyed the movie very much, although the company with whom I watched it proved to be a bit...distracting...in a good way, but still. I'll probably watch it again and give more complete thoughts. One thing I loved was that the main character's name is "Wikus." And I also said the word "man" on the end of sentences for the rest of the night. As in, "come over here and take a look at this, man" like they do in that South African/Dutch accent. Classic.



3. If you are a hippie, or know a hippie, or are really into hippie culture, I bet you'll like Taking Woodstock. It's not overtly funny, it's not very dramatic, it's not all that inspiring, and it's not like an actual historical biopic or anything. It's kind of like hippies...not unpleasant, not very active, vaguely cerebral, and full of funny little awkward moments that can make you chuckle. Demetri Martin does a great job of sucking so badly at acting that he genuinely comes across as the ill-at-ease, can't-get-out-of-his-own-w

ay, really nerdy Jewish kid. Maybe he didn't have to act much to pull that one off. But whatever he did or sucked at doing, it worked beautifully for this role. The story is just about a kid who hates living in upstate NY (as we all do/did) and more or less stumbles his way into bringing the Woodstock music festival to his neighbor's farm. Real quick, one disappointing thing was that they didn't play/show nearly enough of the music from that event; not even a fake Dylan sighting or an allusion to Hendrix...nothing. Another disappointing thing was the pushing of the gay agenda...I wasn't there, but it just seemed forced in the movie; like they felt they had to put it in because of all the other "freedom" type movements of the period. But there were two lines that I absolutely loved: a) "It's August...it's not going to rain." -- classic if you live/have lived in upstate NY. It doesn't matter what time of year it is...it's either going to snow or rain at least once every 10 days. I lived there for 25 years. It just happens. b) "Thanks Mike...you smell great...like apple fritters." -- Random and perfectly delivered by Martin after his character smokes a bit of the reefer and delivers a press conference speech that inadvertently makes the concert a free event. The dialogue seemed authentic, the visuals were pretty great (as far as the realism of the festival, the scenery, the oddly amusing use of some props, and the costumes), and it was fun. If you can handle some amusing nudity, a few f-bombs, and some gay references, go see it.

4. Fantasy Football has started...I have tips for you to help you win your league. I will put those together and post them soon.

5. Valley Center High School football has started. Be sure to read my work blog (www.ikidyounotvc.blogspot.com) to keep up with that. Also, be sure to watch ESPN this Saturday night, 7:30 pm PST, to see Washington Huskies WR James Johnson (a VCHS alum) start (as a true freshman!) against LSU. It's a big deal, and he's pretty pumped about it...so watch for the kid with jersey No. 3 and see the great football player I've been watching for the past three years.

That's about all for now...I'll be back with more soon...