Last things first. I have decided to go play a couple events at the World Series Of Poker next week. I had intended to all along, and then decided not to just cause I'm away a lot as it is and only 10% of the field cashes so odds are it's just gonna cost me money. But as the hype built (at least for those of us who go to poker websites, I don't think the hype's been building at the local Starbucks) I started really feeling the itch to go. I thought about it a lot more, and I think it's a good decision for a bunch of reasons which I won't go into here (I know, if you don't get into it in a blog, where will you get into it -- but I just don't feel like splaining). I'm going directly after our Boise gig on Saturday, and then flying back up to the Portland gig next Friday. Just a quick jaunt, but I'll get into events #4 and #7. Hoping for a cash, of course, or at least to make my entry fees back in the cash games. But regardless, looking forward to the experience.
So, on with the shows. Recent movies I've seen, reviewed quickly.
Star Trek -- Terrible. But everybody loves it. Went with my wife and her sister. They loved it. Every critic loved it. I think I might have been in a bad mood, or maybe had too high expectations or something. Cause to me it was just one cliched line or plot turn after another. It was the Abrams Reel Of Movie Cliches. Then about a week later, I was at the cinema again, and two guys in the bathroom were having a discussion. And the first guy is going to Star Trek, and the second guy tells him, "just don't give up on it in the first half, it gets way better". Which is, like, entirely the complete opposite of reality (parts of the first half were sort of bearable). And the first guy says, "What did you think of the new Spock?" And the second guy, who's this greasy little middle-aged fella, looks like he steals change from the cups of blind beggars, says "well, I'm an actor, so I was approaching it more in terms of craft..." He kept going, but I was leaving the bathroom. I don't know why, but that conversation made me dislike the movie considerably more. I'll still go to the sequel.
Wolverine/X-Men Origins/Whatever It's Called -- Saw this one in Spain. It was the only one in English. Unlike Italy and France, where they show the movies in English with subtitles, in Spain they dub them into Spanish. Which meant we saw less movies in Spain than we normally do on vacation. Anyway, this sucked too. But it didn't seem to be trying as hard as Star Trek, so I didn't dislike it as much. It does seem caught halfway between the superhero movies of the Michael Keaton Batman era and the Christian Bale Batman era. You know, you're supposed to be dark and realistic and gritty now. And so everybody's trying for that. But if you don't pull it off, you're kind of in this nether region where you're probably closest to the cartoony movies, but that wasn't really what you were going for, so you're orphaned.
Terminator -- Speaking of Christian Bale. I actually quite enjoyed this. It's loud and very things blow up a lot, and there is about the same relationship between plot and action as porn movies have between plot and sex. Just enough story to justify the explosions. Basically the story can be reduced to, the humans win the day, but there's plenty of fight left in the machines (read, the franchise). Gotta say I don't really like, for the most part, movies with time travel elements. There isn't any actual time travel in this movie, but there's a lot of speculation over how time travel not actually contained herein will affect present/future events. Kind of just gets distracting, trying to sort through the ramifications.
Duplicity -- Saw this one in Rome. Not the most original movie I've ever seen, but thought it was tight, well-acted, moved along nicely and had a reasonably good twist. Two thumbs up.
Angels & Demons -- A big improvement on the DaVinci Code. Just as preposterous, but much more entertaining. And a really good twist at the end. I honestly think one of the best twists I've seen in a movie, not Sixth Sense level but the tier below, in that it affords you the opportunity to revisit almost the entire plot with a new perspective. Much better than the vastly overrated "Usual Suspects" twist, which basically makes you feel like you just wasted two hours. I mean, I know it's a movie. But play fair.
Sunshine Cleaning -- Not terrible, just kind of boring. If you like low-key movies and think quirky = good than by all means. But yeah, definitely not terrible.
Fighting -- Terrence Howard is one of those guys I'll go to a movie just cause he's in it. Plus something in the trailer made me think this could be pretty good. I later read in a Terrence Howard interview that this was like 'Midnight Cowboy' only with fighting. Not so much. Also he kind of seemed strange in the interview. Also I'm starting to think he might be a little one-note. But I'll definitely go to his next movie, at least. I'm not committing past that. Anyway. I liked lots about the movie, but it was a little cheesy. A few characters you'd expect to find on the set of Scarface. They never get that volatile, but I'm sure they do off screen.
I Love You, Man -- Some pretty good laughs but overall a movie that just didn't need to get made.
Adventureland -- Pre-MIchael Cera this probably would have seemed pretty original. Now it's not original, but that doesn't mean it's not good. Pretty lightweight, don't think it's destined to be a classic or anything, but nice and relaxed and pretty entertaining. Read somewhere that Ryan Reynolds was badly miscast as he pseudo-rock star maintenance man, but I thought he nailed it. And I generally think he's pretty bad (man, that one coming up with Sandra Bullock looks beyond reasonable; why can't she be in a good movie, like, once). Also, I laughed pretty hard when the one teenaged nerd calls no one in particular "Fucking Sadists" for repeatedly playing "Rock Me Amadeus". Which reminds me. Trevor met the girl who played keyboards on that track. Unless she was lying. Which people do. And which she may have been, but not necessarily.
Life On Mars -- Not a movie. A TV show. It got cancelled after one year, which the producers knew was going to happen, so they were able to wrap it all up nicely. I watched it in fits and starts on the DVR, and missed some episodes, but my overall feeling was that it should be nominated for some kind of award. An award, not for like, 'excellent in broadcasting' but maybe more 'good broadcasting'. Buy it on DVD if it's reasonably priced.
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