And we're back

And the long weekend has come to a close. It seems we are unable to have an end of summer activity that doesn't end in sunburn. Last year the beach trip resulted in massive burns and kidney stones for my wife. This year we went to watch border collies herd sheep. Hopefully we can skip the kidney stones. I was a little surprised at how much fun it was to watch the show, but there you go. Plus there was plenty of food and some Scottish Highland games going on in the background. I suppose we should buy some sheep for Ein to practice with. It would be pretty amusing to see how she handles something like that.

Sahara ended up being a lot of fun. If you've read a Clive Cussler book, you know what to expect. And despite my initial wincing over the casting decisions, things worked out. The banter and chemistry between Steve Zahn and Matthew McConaughey was actually just about spot on. They still don't really fit the physical descriptions, but they fit the part. And I have no idea why everyone hated Penelope Cruz in this movie. I didn't find her accent that hard to follow and I think her acting was fine for the role she was cast in. Besides, it's an adaptation of a Cussler book. What are you expecting here? So, yeah, Sahara was just what it should have been. Could be the beginnings of an interesting franchise.

White Noise, however, was mediocrity in it's purest form. In theory it's a spooky idea. In reality not so much. I suspect part of the problem lies with my own personal beliefs on the afterlife and how we interact with it. The movie tries (mostly) to play it straight - up until the end - and those sections work alright. I was able, for a while, to just sit back and watch the show, but ultimately I just couldn't buy it and my own biases ruined any real enjoyment that might have been had. I think the problem stemmed from the fact that the movie tried to play it straight - since it was serious, my own world views felt no need to take a hike so I could just watch. And so, in some ways, the ending lost a lot of its impact.

If nothing else, it is an interesting topic. My friends and I messed around with Ouija boards for a bit (well ok, a very small bit) and my wife and her mother have some interest in psychics and communication with those who have passed on. I certainly believe that we continue to exist and I think that communication is possible. But it follows very strict rules. And when you try to just randomly interact with that world, you're asking for trouble. Part of me wonders if the end of the movie is meant to add credence to that view. While on the one hand he helped someone, it wasn't necessarily worth it.

And I think I'm going to have to rent The Longest Yard. It looks funny...

Radio silence

And this will be me for a couple days. Time to enjoy the weekend and spend some time with the folks and the kids. I've managed to round up enough booster packs of Pirates that I can attempt the full game so we'll see how that goes. And we may track down a copy of Sahara. Or who knows, maybe there's actually something worth seeing at the theater.

Have a great weekend, and our hearts go out to those in Louisiana.

Tasty

Ah, Del Taco. You are my friend. And Graeme has decided that Del Scorcho sauce packets are the best of toys. I tried to take one away from him and he cried until I gave it back. That's devotion to your hot sauce. ^_^

And so the four day weekend commences. I predict much laziness attempted and some laziness accomplished. Gonna coerce my Dad into a game or two of Pirates and we may track down a copy of Sahara. Other than that, who knows.

Sounds like Blockbuster has decided to get rid of their VHS tapes. A silly move at this point if you ask me. There are still plenty of classic movies that aren't out on DVD yet. And Star Wars 3 won't come out on DVD. Eh. Whatever.

And I borrowed a copy of Super Monkey Ball from a guy at work, so much monkey goodness will be had.

Evil

Kohl's. Kohl's is evil. One day sales. One day sales are evil. Especially one day sales at Kohl's. Went in to get some shoes (which I did), came out with shoes and shirts. Lots of shirts. I did manage to leave behind the t-shirt that read, "Work Bad. Videogames Good." though. (It was a close call...)

Family is in town again. Will be nice to see them for a bit. And it's a long holiday weekend. Posting may be very sporadic over the next several days. I'm sure you won't notice.

So. The computer world is waiting on the new announcement from Apple. And the gaming world is still hoping to hear more about the Nintendo controller. And apparently Nintendogs is "better than Barbie". Groovy.

And there was some horror film festival in the UK. Grrrr...

Spin

Nice short film.

Book 32 and Cake

True Story: Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa by Michael Finkel is an odd book. A good book, but an odd one. I was unfamiliar with the events depicted, but Finkel certainly weaves a fascinating narrative out of a surreal situation. Fired from his dream job with the Times magazine for fictionalizing parts of a story he wrote, Finkel is alerted to a situation where Chris Longo (charged with killing his family) has been captured while impersonating Finkel. It makes for a compelling read as you realize the little games the two men begin to play.

Layer Cake was vastly different from my expectations. Having seen Snatch I expected a witty (if convoluted) British crime drama. Layer Cake leaves out most of the wit. It's still convoluted and a crime drama however. I don't think some of the pieces came together as well as they could have, but it's an interesting film. The swearing does wear thin though. Definitely a rental.

Travel

Get your bug going here...

Pirates and Ghosts

Picked up a handful of the Pirates Constructible Strategy Game packs. I suspect I've found a CCG that I could play. I've always enjoyed Pirate games and the little ships that you construct in this one are quite nice. Build some ships, sail the seas, find treasure, and blow up your opponent. What's not to like? The basic game is pretty easy to pick up and the advanced game looks like it adds some length and strategy without adding too much to the difficulty. Perfect for the upcoming speak like a pirate day. Arr...

We watched The Ring Two last night. I would say it wasn't as scary as the first one, but it had a pretty good story. And the extras on the DVD were quite nice. I especially liked the Rings short. It's a nice piece of Ring mythology that fills in the events that led up to the beginning of the second film. Quite well done. I still find it interesting that they're bringing over the Japanese directors to re-make these films. Part of me wishes they'd just release them, but it is interesting to see what the re-makes are like. The second one has several nice moments including the scene with the deer and the (in)famous bathtub sequence. We get more of Samara's background and more creepy little kid moments. Plus a really good contortionist.

In related news, there's now a box set of all the original Japanese Ring movies out. Sounds like a birthday present to me.

Book 31.5

Tried reading The Dante Club. I wanted to like this book. Intriguing premise and some Dante. And in a lazy sort of way, I did like the book. Just not enough to finish it. So that marks about three books that I've started recently that I haven't been able to convince myself to read. We'll see if the next one bucks that trend. I suspect it will. Actually I have a couple more books on tap, so expect something relatively soon. As for whether or not I'll try counting any of the failures, I guess not. But I'm leaving the half score in my count. Well, not visibly, but I'll think it every time! ^_^

The Brothers Grimm is getting pretty mixed reviews. Which may imply a Gilliam Effect. Typically you either love him or hate him. My wife's undecided enough that this one may get relegated to rental status as opposed to theater venture, but I'll carry a special place in my heart for it.

Session 416

Viral video for Serenity. Per Whedonesque, that's Joss in the chair. Heh...

And one year later...

So. It's been a year. And frighteningly enough, I'm still here. A venture started due to lack of sleep and irrational desire continues through pretty much those same commodities. I've started taking weekends off (mostly) but otherwise you get to endure my pointless ramblings and the odd link or two that you've seen thirty other places. And the infrequent kid pictures. Can't forget those.

At any rate, I don't have anything terribly special to mark this momentous milestone. So let's just opt for a coupe lines of silence...



I think that's enough. The neighbours next door are moving. They've been there since just before we moved in. I suspect it will be a couple teary days for the kids as they're losing their most frequent playmates. I offered to save them the trouble of moving the big screen TV, but they seemed oddly attached to it. Go figure. ^_^

The Brothers Grimm opens this weekend. I expect all of you to patronize the movie (in the original sense, thank you very much). It's good to see a Gilliam film in the theater again. Now we just need Fincher's Zodiac...

It's funny, I think I had some ideas I meant to jot down here in commemoration, but at the moment nothing's jumping out. I could point you over to Neil Gaiman's site so you can listen to the first bit of Anansi Boys, but that's fairly predictable. (And yet I'll do it anyway.)

If nothing else I expect my sanity level has been on a slightly more even keel this past year. It's nice having this outlet. Random writing is good for the soul.

At least you have the fall TV season to look forward to. New NCIS, House... And a whole slew of spooky shows. Good to see horror getting its 15 minutes.

Heh

This is hilarious.

Couple random links

This one is a transcription/description of the Serenity panel at the recent San Diego ComiCon.

And this is the Cry_Wolf blog.

Kind of different and yet the same. It's been interesting to me lately to see a little further behind the curtain of the movie industry. Between reading Bruce Campbell and Robert Rodriguez, listening to commentary tracks on DVDs, and skimming through film blogs, bits and pieces of that world have opened up. Things to think about. Film can certainly be a powerful medium.

Monday catchup

Here's Macworld's Mac Gems blog. If you have a Mac, chances are there's something for you there.

Watched The Cat Returns. For the Ghibli title we knew the least about (out of the last batch of three released) we ended up enjoying it the most. This one is a nice little fairy tale. The girls loved it and my wife and I weren't far behind.

Rescue Me is what Dennis Leary would have done with The Job were it not on network TV. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I like Dennis Leary, but I think he's a little better when he's working under some restraint. The Job is probably just a touch better than Rescue Me, although it has been quite some time since I've seen The Job - that could be the nostalgia talking.

And school is back in session. The world breathes a collective sigh of relief and I suspect we'll start gaining back some semblance of sanity. There are times when the track system is terribly appealing.

Don't look

Just don't.

Red Eye

Red Eye is a nice little thriller. Some great acting, nice tense moments and a plot that clips along. Makes you remember why movies used to be ninety minutes.

This is an interesting article. Moreso for the question it asks as opposed to the actual content of the article. Which is a pity, as it really is a rather interesting question. One that I shall have to think about some.

Thursdays

Not really much you can say about Thursdays. Poor Thor. God of a day that most people would skip if they could. Not yet Friday, but close enough to the end of the week to be frustrating. This marks the last week of summer for the kids. Back to school on Monday. And the world sighs with relief.

The letter 'r' and I will hit Red Eye tomorrow. It's getting pretty good reviews. Looks like Craven may have a hit on his hands again. Speaking of Craven, have an interview. Those wacky folks at Twitch score again. I especially liked the bit about the rating of Last House on the Left. Never saw that one...

Quick question

When did Winnie-the-Pooh become all about Roo? Is Elmo behind this?

Oshiro

This should keep you busy...

Werewolves

Dog Soldiers is good. Low budget British horror flick featuring soldiers vs. werewolves. There are a couple plot oddities, but overall an enjoyable film. It's an odd fact of life that the best horror movies now seem to be coming from outside the US. Britain and Asia seem to be the new reigning horror champs. We're stuck in remake/sequel land. I've heard Red Eye is supposed to be good, so maybe there's some hope left.

And soon it's off to my daughter's guitar recital. That should prove to be interesting...