December 30, 2004
S.W.A.T.
The only reason I rented this was because it was directed by a Homicide alum. It is very predictible and there is very little reason for any of you to rent it.
Posted by chip at 09:07 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Zumm Zumm / Madeline
The When: 12/29/04
The Where: 40 Watt
The WhoWith: Kate
Zumm Zumm seemed to amuse themselves during their set. They were actually very good when they played but it started off kind of slow and there was a bit more chatter than I was in the mood to listen to. But, I would like to get a CD because the music was good.
Y'all know I always enjoy Madeline. She played a very slow kind of moody set because she had a sore throat. But, that is the kind of music that I like. Kate and I just sat on one of the sofas and watched. I like getting to sit down at shows.
Posted by chip at 06:25 AM | TrackBack
December 29, 2004
"Shadow of the Hegemon" by Orson Scott Card
I realize it is odd to review the 6th book in a series because at that point, you are either going to read it or you are not. But, I am going to use this blog to keep track of everything that I read for a while so I will be a completest. Sam and I just discovered last night that OSC is writing an 8th book in the series and so we may be reading these forever.
I'll give you a brief summary of our story so far. In Haiku. Spoilers sort of follow.
Ender's Game Ender is way smart. He is just a little kid. Saves the human race.Speaker for the Dead
Skip 3000 years.
Ender has aged a little.
Relativity.Alien piggies.
Why did they kill a human?
What's the deal with trees?
Ya know, I am already bored with this. Maybe a limerick?
Xenocide There once was a disease called descolada That was no normal bug, but was smarta On the way is a fleet Let's hope Jane can't be beat -- OK. I got nothing for a fifth line.
So, yeah. "SotH" is a sequel to "Ender's Game" about Bean and Petra and Ender's brother Peter. That's all you need to know.
Posted by chip at 08:13 AM | TrackBack
December 27, 2004
"In July" or "Im Juli"
Scooley showed up last night with In July, a German romantic comedy / road trip movie. It starred absolutely no one that I had ever heard of. I really enjoyed it for a couple of reasons.
1. The fact that it was in German (and Turkish and English) made it seem more exotic to me than it really was.
2. The fact that I didn't have any preconceived notions about the actors or the type of people they should be.
3. It's a roadtrip movie that goes from Hamburg to Istanbul. That's just cool. How many romantic comedies (that I see) take place in Bavaria and Turkey and Romania and Hungary? It sort of makes me want to go there but not enough to really go.
Story: Juli is a woman who likes Daniel, a quiet school teacher. She tries a scheme to get him to like her but it backfires and he is smitten with Melek, a woman on her way to Turkey. She leaves and Daniel decides to follow. As fate would have it, he picks up Juli along the way and wacky hijinks ensue, or as Daniel would say it lustige Sachen geschehen.
Posted by chip at 07:27 PM | TrackBack
"The House in Good Taste"
Amazon: "The House in Good Taste" (1914/2004)
Originally published in 1914 and reprinted this year, Elsie de Wolfe's The House in Good Taste offers an interesting window into the history of interior design. De Wolfe is often credited as the "first professional interior designer" in America, and this book is actually based on a series of articles that she published in magazines and newspapers. Her ideas about design were completely at odds with the Victorian styles that were popular in the late 1800s/early 1900s. Since then, however, her influence can be seen in much of the design of the last century.
I think what I love most about the book is that many of the design ideas that are popular again are advocated nearly 100 years ago by de Wolfe. In the last few years, white-painted trim around windows, doors, etc. is popular again, an idea that can be traced to de Wolfe. The large picture or mirror hung above the fireplace? Classic de Wolfe. Those little indoor fountains that everybody was buying two years ago? De Wolfe thought we all needed them. I even think the overarching ethos of shows like Trading Spaces can be linked to de Wolfe. Early in the book she writes, "A person's environment will speak for their life, whether they like it or not," which I think summarizes pretty well why shows like Trading Spaces exist in the first place. There are increasing demands (especially in the media) that American homes get rid of their clutter, get organized, and get stylish. (Think about the emergence of the "home improvement stores" like Home Depot & Lowe's, plus the interior design stores like Pottery Barn and Crate & Barrel. They are pretty much inventions of the past two decades, and I don't think they'd be such massive corporations if this persuasion process wasn't about style wasn't so effective). I also think that if you take the rooms of Trading Spaces as a whole (well, maybe not Hildi's so much, but that woman's just crazy), they are pretty close de Wolfe's three basic design ideas: "When I am asked to decorate a new house, my first thought is suitability. My next thought is proportion. Always I keep in mind the importance of simplicity."
It's a fairly fast read (just 201 pages), and I enjoyed it, although the latter chapters perhaps get into slightly obscure topics (indoor trellises of vines? Yikes.). De Wolfe is mostly clearly writing for an upper class audience, but at least seems aware that not everybody has a giant house (she even includes a chapter on decorating apartments). Admittedly, it's an odd little piece of non-fiction, but I could see myself re-visiting every once and a while as I re-decorate.
Posted by hannah at 02:16 PM | TrackBack
"De-Lovely"
IMDB: De-Lovely (2004)
Netflix: De-Lovely (2004)
A fairly good biopic/musical about the life of Cole Porter, one of the great composers of musicals in the 20th century. I liked the film, although felt that the set-up was perhaps trying a bit to hard to be like Chicago (i.e. the reason for the musical numbers in Chicago is that we're in Roxie Hart's brain, while in this movie, Cole Porter and a companion are watching his life unfold on-stage). Perhaps a pretentious set-up, but strong performances from Kevin Cline as Porter and Ashley Judd as his wife make up for it. There are a lot of musical cameos throughout and I was surprised by how many of the tunes I recognized. The music is well integrated into the story, with most songs either sung by Porter in scenes where he's performing for guests, or musical numbers on-stage as Porter opens new shows on Broadway. The movie isn't asking you to believe that everyday people spontaneously burst into song, which perhaps makes it more palatable. But if musicals really aren't your thing, this is probably not the movie for you, however, because a lot of screentime is spent on Porter's music.
Both Klein and Judd give really nice performances. Porter and his wife had a very "complicated" relationship (and that's putting it delicately, since Porter engaged in multiple affairs with men throughout his marriage), but Klein and Judd made me feel a certain compassion for both of them. It's a portrayal of marriage that is certainly not conventional by Hollywood standards, and perhaps challenges some assumptions about what makes a "good marriage."
In addition to the music and the performances, it's simply a very pretty picture. Very nice cinematography, beautiful period costuming, and good pacing (it's always hard to compressed a long-lived life into a 100-minute film). If I were using some five-star rating system, I'd give it about 3.75 stars.
Posted by hannah at 01:55 PM | TrackBack
December 26, 2004
"The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (2004)
IMDB: The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
NetFlix: The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
iTunes: Soundtrack
I think my love for Mr. Owen Wilson may be at an end. Usually, he is the best part of a movie for me but in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou he was by far my least favorite. He has a Southern accent which was needless and annoying.
Bill Murray was funny at times but only because you see him and remember him in some funny scene from Rushmore.
Willem Defoe, Anjelica Huston, and the guy playing guitar were good.
If you are a fan of Wes Anderson, you will go see this anyway but if you are not, I really wouldn't bother with going.
The music was awesome. Can't really beat acoustic Porteguese David Bowie covers.
Posted by chip at 11:38 PM | TrackBack
I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
Testing linking. Not offcially starting the blog until 1/1/05 but I guess since it is here, we can use it.