The Ghost Writer

Went to see The Ghost Writer last night. Was only showing in 2 theatres here in Austin so we had to travel a bit but it was worth it. This movie has a very high score from all the major sources so who am I go against the grain....but I must say that as a group, those of us that went last night, we didn't get the motivation of the lead character. Why did he do all of this instead of just keeping his nose down and writing the book? Oh well, it was entertaining, but a back-story that presented the writer as this investigative and tenacious type might have helped me buy it all a bit more than I did. There seemed like there were under currents of other "stuff" that didn't make it into the movie that might have made things less confusing too, but that's speculation. The dubbing of the "F" word was a bit distracting too throughout the film. With that said, it is certainly a good movie. Well written, well acted, well shot. Beautiful in fact. But for being so much, I wanted more. I'm just not sure what is was that was missing that would have made the film wholly satisfying. Go see it. I recommend it. Just clue me in if you figure out what I missed!

Avatar

Last night I went to the sneak peak midnight showing of Avatar at Alamo Drafthouse (yes, in 3D). I loved the movie. No, it's not an epic film like LOTR or Star Wars despite the price tag. Could it have been? Maybe. I sorta hoped it would be. It had all the makings for it.

Avatar by both definitions is applicable. The story touches on both reincarnation (the sanskrit definition) as in the continuation of life energy (think Gia here) , along with the obvious modern day definition where it is something representing us that isnt' really us.

The storyline was basically Pocahontas but sci-fi (aliens, Gia, etc.). The Pocahontas equivalent was a strong female character, the likes of which I wished were available in the movies of my childhood, always craving for the strong competent independent female. The storyline wasn't big enough for me but I will still be going to view this movie on IMAX this Sunday. Yes, it was that good in my opinion.

The CG is awesome, the motion capture some of the best to hit the big screen, the acting sold, the characters well presented, the Pandora landscapes breathtaking and the story sufficient. There were a few "cheesy" parts, but nothing I couldn't overlook as a whole. If you like sci-fi and CG art, this is the film to see this holiday.

Julie and Julia

I watched the movie "Julie and Julia" recently. I loved it. Of course I loved it. It's about women who follow their passions and one of them shares my passion for writing! It left me wanting for my own blog that was filled with purpose and passion like Julie's. The movie is about Julie, who wanted some focus in her life and decided to cook all of the recipes in one of Julia Child's cookbooks in a single year (no small feat). I loved it in concept and in execution. It not only entertained me, it inspired me. How I act on that inspiration is yet to be determined, but it has me thinking for certain.

I often find myself without a cause, desperately wanting to write but without inspiration. It's like a lightbulb in the dark...without electricity, so close and yet so far. I love to write. I really love to write. Am I any good at it? I don't particularly care how talented I am at it. It's a passion. So I blog. But blogs have themes, don't they? Shouldn't they? And Menagerie Mind has no focus?? It's my personal brain dumping ground. Instead of deciding upon a focus, I'm all over the place, wherever the wind or whim seems to take me.

Do I need a focus? Do I need an audience? I don't know if it matters to me at present. But they are good questions to explore.

Caprica - the TV Series Pilot

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to see the pilot for the new and upcoming TV series Caprica. Being a big Battlestar Galactica (circa-2004 TV series) fan, I was tentatively hopeful about this prequel to BG. I wasn’t getting my hopes up of course…I mean, how do you pull off a story line about the creation of the Terminator 1 reminiscent Cylons in a way that is engaging and that the audience can identify with, without be cliché?

Well, they pulled it off. You come away thinking that you’d probably have made similar decisions if placed in the same situation. And the wildcards introduced are to some extent unexpected, elements I don’t remember being addressed in BG, but sure to make for some interesting twists and turns. In a way, it helps make the whole Cylon revolt back-story plausible..imagine that.

It was nice that it wasn’t put into motion by another weak-willed and self-gratifying Dr. Gaius Baltar scenario, and instead was a catalyst of love, regret, fear and loss…things most of us can identify with to some level.

The take away? Bad things can evolve out of good intentions. We all hate that when it happens. There are no true villains yet, just a bunch of people trying to do what they think is right. Good writing. No scapegoats this time. At least not yet.

The bottomline is, if you liked Battlestar Galactica I am guessing you'll like Caprica.

Watchmen

I'm not sure what it is about this movie. I've heard more variety in responses regarding this movie than typical. I'd read some of the comic, but not the entire series and I absolutely loved it. Dark, racy, and fun. Of course the ending isn't exactly "satisfying", but that's exactly how it's intended IMHO. I've heard some even ragging on the movie before they'd even SEEN it. Yes, Jack, that would be you!

I understand that if you're not familiar with the comic, you won't have the same frame of reference and the movie will have a different (less?) effect on you. But even if you've read the comic series, the movie deviates in its ending (better than the comic from what I've heard from many fans of the comic series). Still I can't imagine not seeing this movie. It would be like living life without having seen Sin City or 300. That just doesn't seem right to me.

Another thing that doesn't seem right is people bringing their single-digit-aged kids to this movie. This is NOT your bubblegum and baseball cards type of comic. When we saw a lady sit down in the cinema with her 9 year old, we were both floored. This is definitely a hard R. Keep that in mind. Full male frontal nudity (mostly ala CG...or else, be still my palpatating heart!) in quantities I've frankly never really seen before in mainstream film, steamy scenes with Silk Spectre II as well as new and bloody uses for a hand-grinder round it off nicely for the adult intended audience.

And I just gotta say, I love Rorschach. Jackie Early Haley did an amazing job in this performacne. Rorschach rocked the house. My favorite quote of the movie (the whole theatre roared): "You don't get it. I'm not stuck in here with YOU! YOU'RE stuck in here with ME!!!"

Jason's Twin Brother Interviewed on CBS!!!

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Here's Jason's twin brother on TV. Spot on predictions too! Go Sean (Smith not Penn)!!

The Changeling

I watched The Changeling last night via VOD. After having viewed a "the making of" snippet on the film, I was happy to have a chance to finally see the movie. I'm so very glad I did. This movie was really wonderful. Today, I'm still ruminating on the life of Christine Collins. Eastwood did a great job. The acting was first class. The writing (J. Michael Straczynski) although seemingly over the top Hollywood, after an online search of the topic, appears to be dealing with the facts of the case amazingly enough. This is a film I'll watch again.

The Wrestler

The Wrestler is a one of those movies that doesn't come along very often. After seeing the trailers, it seemed to take forever before it was showing in Austin. And as luck would have it, it's at the Alamo Drafthouse. This movie scored off the charts on Rotten Tomatoes. Of course, Darren Aronofsky made another sad movie, no surprise there. But it was done extremely well. Mickey Rourke should win something for his role. It was an amazing performance. Marisa Tomei had no problem holding up her end of the movie either. And what an incredible body at any age, but off the hook at 44. This movie is gritty, no glamour, no sunshine up your skirt and it is delivered with incredibly real performances. Go see it. You won't be disappointed.

The United States of Tara

When I saw the first trailer for this new series, I was intrigued. Steven Spielberg. Diablo Cody. A family with a mom that's got multiple personality disorder.

I loved the writing in Juno so I've been looking forward to the next Diablo Cody work. The cast was top notch. But how were they going to pull this off?? A couple with two kids living with this disorder in a comedic drama. Could it be done?

After watching two episodes, I'm already thoroughly hooked. Toni Colette and John Corbette are perfect. The writing is simply incredible. The whole thing works on so many levels. It's funny and authentic and relevant and clever (all the same things I loved in Juno). This is definitely a keeper. I've already added it to my DVR series list, and I'm looking forward to next week.

My only complaint. I wish it were longer than 3o minutes.

Gran Torino

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to see Gran Torino. This film was superb. I think we all probably know an old man like this. And I think many of us know of families like his too unfortunately. It was a real delight to see the goodness in this crotchety ol'koot. Who says an old dog can't learn new tricks? I came away from this film thoroughly entertained and a bit hopeful that diversity can be embraced more fully in our society. Clint did a fine job.

Battlestar Galactica Mid-Season Premier

Looking forward to a night at the Drafthouse with friends next week to enjoy the mid-season premier of Battlestar Galactica. Jason and I have been watching this show many seasons now. Cool that we get to do this at the drafthouse too!

Valkyrie

We finally made it to the cinema to see Valkyrie this weekend. Good movie. True story. Well done. The tragedy was an eye opener to me. "History Love" is never going to be one of the things you'll find on the right hand side of this blog as part of The Menagerie Mind, but I found this film to have a sense of authentic and realistic direction, not overly dramatic, not too glitzy, and not even particularly vilifying either. If you like this sort of thing, you'll like this movie. Even if history isn't a big thing on your like, like me, you may find it engaging. Highly recommended.

Kung Fu Panda

Last night, Christmas day, Jason and I wanted to see the new movie Valkyrie. When we arrived at the theatre, the parking lot was PACKED. Since it was pretty clear we weren't going to get good seats (we never manage to arrive early), we just turned around and went home. It was opening night and a holiday so we shouldn't have been so surprised. It was a good thing though as I had forgotten that I'd preheated the oven and taken out the Stouffer's lasagna from the freezer. Boy oh boy did I catch grief for that, and rightfully so.

So I popped the lasagna in the already hot oven, and we did pay-per-view and watched Kung Fu Panda. With Jason being a professional CG (computer graphics) artist, I am happy that we see most of the animated movies targeted for kids because I just love them. I am pretty sure that I've watched some animated movies more than most because of my son, Nick. He wanted a video playing at all times, so I can recite the words to plenty of animated movies including: The Incredibles, Monsters Inc., Ice Age, Cars, Lilo and Stitch, Shrek, Toy Story, Treasure Planet, and Finding Nemo to name just a few. Pixar and Dreamworks do simply amazing work and I look forward to each new movie either release.

Kung Fu Panda was simply adorable. I absolutely loved this film. The story was cute. The art style was appealing. The characters were beautifully well done. The humor was clever and spot on. Jason fell asleep partway through but when I told him this movie was one I could watch again and again, Jason decided to start where he left off and watch the rest of it and he wasn't disappointed. I immediately recognized Commander Vachir as the voice of Michael Clarke Duncan but I had no idea until afterward what a star-studded cast this film featured. Wow! Dustin Hoffman, Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, and a few actors that had to be looked up on IMDB. I hope you have a chance to see this film.

I learned a piece of trivia too when Jason told me that Oogway's voice was Randall Duk Kim (the keymaker in the movie The Matrix Reloaded) and that Randall was one of the founders of my favorite theatre, APT (American Players Theatre), in Spring Green, WI. Every time I visit Wisconsin I will be sure to visit this amazing outdoor theatre at least once. If you are ever find yourself in southern Wisconsin during summer/early fall, I highly recommend that you take the scenic albeit long drive out to Spring Green, with a picnic dinner, a good bottle of wine and some friends to catch one of their outdoor plays. You won't be disappointed!

The Movie Lover: Punisher: War Zone (2008)

Punisher: War Zone (2008) opened this weekend. I was looking forward to total gratuitous gore. I mean, this is the Punisher, right? It didn't even hit a rating of 20 on Rotten Tomatoes. But, it had to be total testosterone, right? This was a unique experience for me. There wasn't nearly the amount of gore expected. Unfortunate. But the really bad thing was the whole sappy deal with the little girl....people were actually laughing out loud in the cinema. The script it was that lame. A real disappointment. How hard can it be to write a decent script for something so inherently perfect? I loved Ray Stevenson. He was perfectly cast. But not even he could carry this load of dung. Bummer.