King Kong Redux

Better the second time.

I may be the manager of an art-house theater, but "King Kong" is, hands down, the best movie of the year. "Capote" is high on the list, if not number two. I highly recommend it. And "In Good Company" with Topher, Dennis Quaid, and Scarlett is very high too.

But it all pales against what Jackson achieved with Kong.

Taking "Go See For Yourself" Literally

CNN has an bizarre and interesting story of a Florida teenager who skipped school and found his way to Baghdad to see what was going on in Iraq first-hand.

I suppose if you really want to know what's going on that's probably the best way to find out. Although considering he was a high school student he probably should have thought it through a little better. (Hat tip to the revitalized Hordes of Kreuser for the link to the story).

Hordes of Kreuser Back On-Line

After a hiatus since May and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Joe's blog "Hordes of Kreuser" is back on-line today. Industry blogging officials were pleased at the announcement. Said one commentator, "This is a great example of the power of the blogging medium. We expect to see more blogs from places such as Reading, England, where graduate students have time between their war games to post their own thoughts and commentary."

The same industry official, who shall remain anonymous, also praised erikemery.com and called it "one of the best of its kind." Mr. Hanberg was not available for comment.

That Ol' Post Christmas Feelin'

The week between Christmas and New Years will be--I predict--a week-long holiday for the majority of US workers by 2015. More and more people are getting this week off, and I think at some point, enough corporations or medium-sized businesses will find that doing work in the office this week just won't pay off.

Services like the Grand and grocery stores and department stores will of course stay open. But I think that we might see this week just become a national down-time, where we can get ready for the new year.

Just a prediction. I'll update this blog again in 2015 with my assessment of the results.

Not Much to Say ...

... with the Christmas holidays going and all. Saturday in Ephrata, Washington, was my first Christmas of the year with my dad's dad's side of the family. Tonight it's dinner with the immediate family at an Argentinian steakhouse and then presents between us.

And then I'm working Christmas Eve at the Grand, which is the best night to work, I think, because everyone is still filled with the Christmas spirit.

And then Christmas Day with the extended fam. Busy few days!

Erik's New Clean Well-Lighted Place

A new desk in my walk-in closet and a red leather office chair have created what I hope will be a 'writing nook.' Stephen King talks about the importance of a corner in his very good "On Writing." And Paul Simon's recent "Hurricane Eye" is pretty simple, too:

Find a quiet place / Use a humble pen

It's still where I store DVDs, CDs, luggage, and toilet paper, and I still think of it as Lady's Room, after is former feline tenant, but it should do.

My Man Roger Ebert ...

... has published his top ten list for the year:

Crash
Syriana
Munich
Junebug
Brokeback Mountain
Me and You and Everyone We Know
Nine Lives
King Kong
Yes
Millions

I'm a little troubled by his inclusion of Sally Potter's YES, which I had a hard time stomaching. And I don't know that Crash was the best film of the year, although it was really really good. I'm looking forward to Syriana and Munich and Brokeback. I think he's slighted Kong a little bit, actually. I would have some serious considerations about putting it on the top of my list. Millions is a surprise entry at #10, but I think it's a symbol to him of how good a family film can be if you really want to make a good one and not churn out Cheaper by the Dozen 2 or See Spot Run.

I feel his introduction is worth quoting here:

How in the world can anyone think it was a bad year for the movies when so many were wonderful, a few were great, a handful were inspiring, and there were scenes so risky you feared the tightrope might break? If none of the year's 10 best had been made, I could name another 10 and no one would wonder at the choices.

It really has been an awesome year for movies.

The Arts in Tacoma

My respect for Jen Graves skyrocketed during her coverage of TAG's sudden closure last December. As the arts editor for The News Tribune, Jen was frequently criticized for a million different reasons, and I likely leveled some of criticism her way as well.

But she was tenacious in her pursuit of the City of Tacoma to repair the Water Forest, and her devotion to revealing the truth about TAG's woes--not just reducing the problem to a "he-said/she-said" situation--was wonderful journalism.

Her swan song article at the Tribune is worth reading, and its summary of the arts in Tacoma is well-done. Enjoy Seattle, Jen!

Back to Eastern Washington

We're leap-frogging Leavenworth this year and journeying to the heart of Washington State, Ephrata. Don't think I'll be able to do too much blogging amidst all the Po-Ke-No and freezing cold walks.

More on Sunday

Notes from the Dark Side of the Force

Sometime way back in college Angela made me drink coffee. I believe it was a white chocolate mocha, and I think I grimaced through the whole thing. Eventually I came to enjoy it.

Then later Mary, Lisa, and Rosa transitioned me to a breve of some kind that I eventually dropped in favor of the vanilla latte. Earlier this summer that became the non-fat vanilla latte.

Today, I ask for drip with room. I've hooked up my little 4-cup coffee maker in my place. I've even drunk coffee sold at Dunkin Donuts.

Within a few short months, I fear, I'll be drinking it black. Shortly after that I'll have to get a new coffee machine so that it starts making coffee before I get up. At some point I'll likely start mixing Folgers crystal in with my yogurt or my oatmeal.

Maybe I'll have to look into getting a patch.

Poor Becky

I would have liked to see Trump pick Rebecca as the Apprentice, but Randal wasn't a bad choice, either. The live segments were a little weird.

Kong is still King

Good God, what a movie.

King Kong achieves a level of myth that not even Jackson's Lord of the Rings can match. Watching Kong climb the Empire State Building and then go after planes is elemental, like cinema stripped down to its most core potential. The scene is momentus, following three hours of other great scenes.

I don't want to dwell on the special effects. They are of course better than in 1933. But one of the joys of the 33 production is how effective the effects actually are. What I will say is that they are used to assist the story. It is thanks to the special effects that we understand Kong is old and Kong is lonely. And New York has never looked as good as it does in this film.

What sets this film apart from--and truthfully, above--the 1933 classic is the story itself. The characters are well-flushed out. There is a range of emotions simply not present before. I feared that Jackson would end up with a Kong like Van Sant's Psycho; ie, pointless. Instead, Kong has been revamped not just for revenue but for relevancy. This film hits home in many ways, and it is a wonder to behold. It is funny at times, exciting and exhilarting during its break-neck action scenes, but ultimately tender, gentle, and not just a little sad.

You must see this film in the theater. Don't cheat yourself by waiting for the DVD. Kong is what movie theaters are made for.

Kong Tonight!

Review following tomorrow.

Tis the Season

Am feelings particularly good today, having received 12 donations in response to our request for money. Yeah for community spirit!

Kong is King

I confess to skepticism about Peter Jackson's King Kong. Last year the Grand played the original King Kong on the big screen and it was a sight to behold.

But I appreciate my buddy Ebert's review: "[Jackson's Kong] is like the flowering of all the possibilities in the original classic film." He calls it a great modern epic and one of the year's best films.

Wow. Skeptic no more. Sign me up!

Aslan is on the Move

I should also mention that the biggest worry I had about the live-action Narnia going into it was that it would attempt to dumb down the Christianity that is so very very obvious in the novels. Didn't happen. Aslan still equals Jesus.

Although if Narnia used to celebrate Christmas, then it is clear that Jesus already died to save the sins of Narnia at some point in its history. Why then it needs another savior-messiah, in the form of a talking lion, is a mystery and does not speak highly forits residents.

Always Winter and Never Christmas

A quick post from the land of Spare Oom. Narnia was well done, though a bit unnecessary, I thought. Central question: did it add anything to the best current version of "the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", the 70's animated version? Yes, and no.

Yes, in that it gave it a "Lord of the Rings" feel, which detracted from the story because it continually came up short versus Peter Jackson's opus.

And no, in that it's pretty much the same, but souped up with a few big action scenes. And the actors weren't as good as their cartoon counterparts, especially Susan and Peter, though Lucy was not bad.

A Case of the Mondays ...

Usually Mondays are tough, but I'm feeling the burn today. Yeah for a good Monday!

Hawks are good?

Seattle's become quite the football town and Tacoma has followed along. The Seahawks have killed Sunday attendance at the Grand and glued most people to big TV sets.

I suppose it's not surprising that in a climate like the Northwest we're all just fair-weather fans. :)

Go Seahawks! 21 - 3 before the half!

Adventures in Mid-Yorkshire

Finished "Dialogues of the Dead" last night at about 3:30 am. It's a fine book to the add to the "Dalziel and Pascoe" series of Reginald Hill. There's much to admire in the mysteries of Northern England. The series started in the 70s, but stand up incredibly well.

I can't recommend starting the series with this one, but reading "Arms & the Women" should be a good entry into the series. And his "Pictures of Perfection" is the kind of novel that is, dare I say it, sublime. Beautiful? I can't recommend them enough.

The Dark Side of Oz

Ever synched "Dark Side of the Moon" with "The Wizard of Oz"? This is one of those experiments I've never actually attempted, but still have managed to know the legends about it.

The Grand is playing the 35 mm print of Wizard with Dark Side tomorrow night and I've been screening it this morning to test it versus a list of things that are supposed to correlate. It's actually kind of cool, and some of the synches still line up perfectly, despite the troublesome formatting involved in film vs. a DVD.

But at the same time, it makes me remember that The Wizard of Oz is actually a good movie, and I just want to shut Pink Floyd up and watch Dorothy. Ah well, I'll do that Sunday morning.

Harmonious Horses are awesome

You must, absolutely must, follow this link. Must.

Done and done

The paper's in and I'm done for the year. Although I should visit my advisor and find out if I can take any classes in the winter. I may have to take a term off, since I'm already missing 10 days for the Olympics anyway.

4.5 pages done ...

... and another 5.5 to go before 6:45 Wednesday night on race and economic segregation problems in urban cities. Piece of cake. :)

More on Google Whacking

Eppig has found that google-whacking fits in well with his schedule at CERN, birthplace of the Internet, home to the Large Hadron Collider, and just west of Geneva. He's found a kludge (a cobbled-together solution to a problem) that filters junk files and produced "adunc whopper" as his first Whack.

This is farther than I ever would have gotten. In fact, to get this far in the post I've had to consult dictionaries and wikipedia at multiple times to understand what I was writing about. I've also consulted the official googlewhack rule site which makes no mention of kludges, but seems to suggest that filters may not be allowed.

The most recent googlewhack on the site is "cardholding seductress".

B&N

Get to spend the day at Barnes & Noble for the Grand. We're getting 15% (at least) of purchases made during the day (of the people who bring in the special coupon, that is). I don't know if I can take 12 hours in a bookstore without buying at least a hundred dollars worth of books. It'll be a true test.

Maybe I'll just make a really long inventory of what I want and tack it on to the end of my Christmas list.

Witness For The Prosecution

Since the Grand played its "Wilder & Wilder" film series this fall, I've been interested in some of Billy Wilder's lesser-known works. His "The Apartment," "Sunset Blvd," and "Some Like It Hot" are some of the best films ever made, but I wasn't much familiar with some of the others.

"One, Two, Three," his cold-war farce about a Coca-Cola Executive in West Berlin was midly entertaining.

"Stalag 17" about a POW camp was very good.

"The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes" was a disappointment.

and now it's "Witness for the Prosecution" where Tyrone Power is accused of murder and his wife testifies against him, for the prosecution. The defense attorney is Charles Laughton. The only face in the film I was at all familiar with was Marlene Dietrich, who played Power's wife and she was superb. The rest were all good, but the plot, an Agatha Christie concoction was just a little two wrapped up in its own twists for its own good.

It's not a bad film, but not what you'd expect from the director of so many classics. I'll keep watching his films. I've since added the original "Sabrina" to my Netflix queue and "The Lost Weekend," about the dangers of alcoholism, which won Best Picture in 1945.

And it's gone ...

Our brief burst of winter disappeared this morning. As the manager of cinema dependent on weather for attendance, I was pleased. But as the young man who still loves snow days, it was a disappointment.

Ah, well. Winter officially starts on the 21st anyway, so I've got time for more snow to fall.

It could have snow all night ...

... and still have snowed some more.

It'll melt through the day but probably start up again tonight! Pretty pictures here.

Finally!!

And it's really coming down now. Big pictures of snow tomorrow. I promise. Assuming it's all still here.