What famous leader are you?
Another little quiz. I'm VERY happy with the results. Heh.
Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask and he will tell you the truth. - Oscar Wilde
I thought this was a fun and appropriate little online test (since everyone love these things so much).
It's a pleasent surprise when a film that is so talked about lives up to its hype. Sideways is one of those films. There was a point in the film that I thought about how much I wish I had seen it waaaayyyy earlier in the year, so that I could love it before it became "trendy" and then I could share it with other people and tell them that they should go see it. That's how I felt about the movie. I real want to share it with the people I know who love movies.
A few not so random comments at this late hour.
...here's the trailer for Stephen Chow's (Shaolin Soccer) newest film, Kung Fu Hustle. Roger Ebert describes it as "a film in which Jackie Chan and Buster Keaton meet Quentin Tarantino and Bugs Bunny. Yes. That describes it nicely."
I'll have an arcticle in the upcoming Sheaf and I'll have more accurate predictions and such after I finish seeing some more films this weekend. Still I have some things to say. Firstly lets discuss the Best Supporting Actor race.
Performance by an actor in a supporting roleThis is a relatively competitive category. Some people have been saying that Jamie Foxx's votes are going to be split between "Collateral" and "Ray," but I just don't see that happening. Firstly Jamie has so much momentum in the Best Actor category, and secondly there's a lot of really close competition in this category already that I don't think a significant number of voters are going to give Jamie's role in "Collateral" much thought (although I for one thought he was excellent and perhaps more accomplished in that film. It's one thing to give an award for good acting rather than being a good mimic). I think the award could go to either Clive Owen, whose performance in "Closer" was outstanding, or Thomas Hadyn Church ("Sideways"), especially seeing as how they snubbed Paul Giamatti! Alan Alda has an outside shot, but seeing as "The Aviator already has so many nominations I don't think this is one that it's going to get, but he is a beloved Hollywood character playing out of type. Morgan Freeman just doesn't have the buzz around him, so I don't see it happening. On top of that "Million Dollar Baby" is going to rack up enough stuff anyway, at least that's what I predict.
Alan Alda in "The Aviator"
Thomas Hadyn Church in "Sideways"
Jamie Foxx in "Collateral"
Morgan Freeman in "Million Dollar Baby"
Clive Owen in "Closer"
Talking about animation. Anyone who isn't familiar with Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki should become familiar. He is often called the "Japanese Walt Disney", which pretty much sums up the kind of influence and stature he is given in Japan and among animation circles. I don't like that term because I think Miyazaki is on par with the best Disney.
Oh, one other thing. I always get people asking me about my DVD collection, what I have, how many, etc. You can browse my collection, which is now up to date, here at dvdaficionado.com.
A few comments to clarify ideas I've been touting as I try to put some thoughts down this evening:
I played shinny (hockey for the uneducated) last night with my man Luke down on Broadway at the Victoria school rink, across from the Hose. It was tons of fun. I hadn't played hockey like that in a couple of years. Luke, who blogs here, I ran into at Blockbuster on 8th St. (where I was doing more DVD trading and picked up Collateral and Before Sunset). Later, Luke called me up and said that his mom and bunch of others who work on Broadway were playing shinny and I could come. One of the guys was a janitor or something for Victoria school, so we got to have music on the outside speakers. It was just a good ol' fashioned game of shinny and I remembered the joy of hockey.
Caitlin writes here about listening to other people's conversations and being pissed off by their ignorance.
I had mentioned in one of my Top Ten posts that I was going to award a "Special Jury Prize" to a film that didn't quite make the list, but still deserves mention in some special way. That film is Shaun of the Dead.
U2 just announced the locations and dates for this summer's "Vertigo" tour. Unfortunately, the closest they come to Saskatoon is GM Place in Vancouver on April 28th. Now I've gotta figure a way to work this.
This started out as a comment on Caitlin's blog, but I figured I might as well make it a post. She was talking about an uncle of her's who is a judge, yet said that "his job (a judge) is about human motivations and the ideas of the greater good. He says that law doesn't seem to enter into that, and he's not particularly interested in the law." Law is one of those careers that I've always been somewhat drawn to. The fact that it's still a viable option (as Caitlin's uncle, who has a PhD in English, an attest to) is also a factor. However, whenever I think about it enough, I realize that there would be certain parts of Law that would really bug me.
Professsor: Two young men steal a car and proceed to go on
a joyride. In the process the second young man decides he no longer wants to be
involved and asks to be left out of the car. Before his friend can comply they
accidently strike and kill a woman crossing the street. The question is, who is
guilty of what?
Bruce Wayne: Well I would find them both guilty of
grand theft auto, but only the first young man would be guilty of manslaughter
as the second young man had asked to be left out.
Professor: I'm afraid you're wrong, Mr. Wayne. Both boys
would be guilty of manslaughter, since they were both party to the stolen
car.
Bruce Wayne: But sir, is that justice?
Professor: No, Mr. Wayne. That's the Law.
I just finished watching Friday Night Lights with Anton and Ryan. It's not the sort of movie that I would have thought I'd like, judging from the trailers and all that, but Aren went to see it with some friends and liked it so he bought it. It got some pretty good reviews and I do like football, so I thought it would be worth checking out.
After all the year end hoopla, which I finally finished with the posting of my top movies of the year, I find myself forging ahead, excited about what the new year of movies will bring. 2004 was a solid film year, but 2005 proves to be even more exciting.
I have taken a Myers-Briggs personality test many times before, but it's always fun to see how you score mainly for consistancy. I'm different from a lot of the people I know: I'm an ENFP.
ENFPs are both "idea"-people and "people"-people, who see everyone and everything as part of an often bizarre cosmic whole. They want to both help (at least, their own definition of "help") and be liked and admired by other people, on bo th an individual and a humanitarian level. They are interested in new ideas on principle, but ultimately discard most of them for one reason or another.
ENFPs have a great deal of zany charm, which can ingratiate them to the more stodgy types in spite of their unconventionality. They are outgoing, fun, and genuinely like people. As SOs/mates they are warm, affectionate, and disconcertingly spontaneous. However, attention span in relationships can be short; ENFPs are easily intrigued and distracted by new friends and acquaintances, forgetting about the older ones for long stretches at a time. Less mature E NFPs may need to feel they are the center of attention all the time, to reassure them that everyone thinks they're a wonderful and fascinating person.
ENFPs often have strong, if unconvential, convictions on various issues related to their Cosmic View. They usually try to use their social skills and contacts to persuade people gently of the rightness of these views; his sometimes results in their neglecting their nearest and dearest while flitting around trying to save the world.
Work Environment: ENFPs are pleasant, easygoing, and usually fun to work with. They come up with great ideas, and are a major asset in brainstorming sessions. Followthrough tends to be a problem, however; they tend to get bored quickly, especially if a newer, more interesting project comes along. They also tend to be procrastinators, both about meeting hard deadlines and about performing any small, uninteresting tasks that they've been assigned. ENFPs are at their most useful when working in a group w ith a J or two to take up the slack.ENFPs hate bureaucracy, both in principle and in practice; they will always make a point of launching one of their crusades against some aspect of it.
1)
Wednesday's are a special day for me. As many of you know that's the day of the week when new comic books arrive at the stores and I collect my weekly stack spending several hours that should be devoted to school reading instead enjoying the stories of men-in-tights, barbarians and Jedi.
So I went to see Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera last night. I'd been wanting to see it for a while, mostly because I'm a fan of Webber's musicals, not so much because I hate Joel Schumacher for what he did to the Batman franchise. All in all though, I ended up enjoying it.
Sometimes Hollywood makes me really, really sad. It's the part of being an obsessive movie fan that is really depressing. Take these two trailers for example.
3)
The Incredibles
Directed by Brad Bird
115 min; Featuring the voices of Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson and Jason Lee
"Everybody is special, Dash."
"That's just another way of saying nobody is."
The truth is that I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop with Pixar’s films. I thought both of the Toy Story films, and to a lesser extent A Bug’s Life, were great. I ended up liking Monsters, Inc. even more, and Finding Nemo has become a favourite of just about everyone’s. So rare is it that a company has such success in producing films that are not merely technically brilliant, but so full of humour and heart for just about all ages.
The Incredibles keeps the magic alive. The film begins in a world where superheroes are prevalent, catching villains, stopping train wrecks, and even saving kittens. However, when a prevented suicide sues Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) for saving him when he didn’t want to be saved (“You didn’t save my life, you ruined my dead!”), anti-hero lawsuits become too much for the government and the heroes are forced into a kind of witness protection program. Mr. Incredible, and his wife Elastigirl, then find themselves 15 years later, re-christened Bob and Helen Parr, and living a suburban life, eking out living as an insurance broker and homemaker, while starting a family of superpowered kids. The problem is that Bob misses the hero days. He and his friend Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) sometimes sneak out, their wives convinced they’re bowling, to do some adventuring. But mostly Bob is frustrated by a world that holds back people’s gifts, and encourages mediocrity.
From that brief introduction, it’s clear that while children will enjoy the surface of the film, that below lurks a story with themes that are targeted quite specifically at the adults in the audience. It’s critical of a society that is rife with litigation, and a society that promotes mediocrity by forcing the special people to “blend in,” lest they offend anyone with their powers. While this may sound preachy, it’s definitely not, but rewards those who want to come away from the film with something more than just superpowered antics.
As for those, however, the film has plenty. The computer animation is bright and vibrant, and characters seem like they actually have some weight and texture. Pixar proves film after film that they have little to nothing to worry about from the competition. As a huge superhero fan, I found a lot to enjoy in the conventions of superhero drama, including the enemy – Syndrome (Jason Lee), a former fan turned Bond-villian – who warns us of the dangers of “monologuing.” When Mr. Incredible is lured back into the hero life by Syndrome, his family comes following, setting up an adventure where their special powers will be put to the test, and a family’s ability to work together is key.
Director Brad Bird (who’s last film, The Iron Giant, was a critical, if not box office, success) manages to mix all the ingredients of a successful action film, while exploring the family drama of a superhero team, not unlike the Fantastic Four. Bird also voices one of the more humorous characters in the film, the Q-like Edna Mode, who provides the superheroes with their costumes and gadgets. Pixar manages to keep their winning streak alive with one of the strongest family films of recent years, as well as exploring some prescient themes as well. All in all, The Incredibles is one of the best films of the year, for any age, animated or not.
4)
Well, I just finished my travel proposal for the Hannon Travel Scholarship. When I first considered applying for this I thought, "Heck, if they're going to give me $5500 to go somewhere, it's worth a shot." Now after doing the research and finishing the itinerary, budget, etc. I'm really excited and hope that I get one (six are awarded this year, here's hoping).
5)
I got home from work (which I was bored to death from because was so dead; compared the Christmas rush it seems like I didn't have any customers) and I find that my mother, and my two brothers are both already in bed with the flu or some type of severe cold. Of course, in an effort to stave off the effects of this possibly debilitating illness, I immediately set to work making a pot of Chinese Green Tea.
Since both Caitlin and Joel have posted their answers to this survey thing, I feel compelled to do the same, since they are always such fun. Also, since they are so similar it'll be fun to see how similar I am too.
6)
7)
I hate deadlines, but I can't work without them. "Ain't that funny?"