Saturday, May 07, 2005
It's not taking the wrinkled $100 bill. You got a crisp one on ya?
Duracells, Disposable cameras and portable music PC's (Thanks to Boing Boing).
Thursday, May 05, 2005
In the running for coolest hobby ever
This website was created by a couple who have been traveling and taking these pictures for nine years. It's quite an impressive gallery.
JFF: The Prelude
We may not have the most sophisticated culture here in Jacksonville, Florida, but dammit we're trying to foster one. One step in the right direction was taken when the inaugural Jacksonville Film Festival was held in 2003. I'm ashamed to say that, as big a film fan that I am, I missed the first one completely; a mistake I swore to myself I would not repeat.
The second festival, held in May of last year, had a number of interesting films being screened. I had time on that weekend to see only one and ended up passing on such films as The Saddest Music in the World, Rick and Slasher, hosted by director John Landis himself. The film I eventually chose to see was none other than Napoleon Dynamite, and thus did we here in little old Jacksonville become privy to this breakout comedy long before the rest of the nation did. And, yes, I heartily laughed my ass off, as did the rest of the audience.
And so we come to today. Two weeks from today begins the third annual festival and I plan on catching at least one film per day, if not more. Here are the films that I'm considering and the descriptions as provided by the JFF website:
Thursday (5/19):
Murderball (The San Marco Theater at 9:30 PM) - The notion of quadriplegic athletes may be unimaginable to some, but Murderball shows that they can be as great as any. The film chronicles these men as they overcome unimaginable obstacles to become world-class athletes.
Friday (5/20):
Four-Eyed Monsters (Theatre Jacksonville at 2:00 PM) - Arin and Susan, two lonely city dwellers meet online. Tired of traditional dating conventions, the pair opt to communicate through writing notes, chatting on the net and videotaping themselves.
The Works (Theatre Jacksonville at 5:00 PM) - In a nameless, faceless corporation, Victor tries to hold onto his humanity, despite the escalating humiliations and his failed attempts at resignation.
Childstar (The Florida Theatre at 9:30 PM) - A spoiled child actor's mother leaves him in the care of their driver, resulting in a relationship that changes both of them.
Saturday (5/21):
Plagues And Pleasures On The Salton Sea (Theatre Jacksonville at 5:30 PM) - Once a place for vacationers that was more popular than Palm Springs this desolate vacation spot is filled with the most unusual characters, all trying to keep Salton Sea alive.
I, Crumudegon (Theatre Jacksonville at 8:00 PM) - Director Alan Zwieg (Vinyl) looks at his fellow cranky people (including Fran Liebowitz and Andy Rooney) and how they got that way.
Sunday (5/22):
Brothers (The San Marco Theater at 11:00 AM) - Disturbingly realistic portrayal of two brothers: the younger one, the loser, fresh out of prison for a bank robbery that turned into a horrific assault on a bank teller; the older brother, the golden child, with a fantastic wife and two adorable kids who goes to do his duty in Afghanistan. While the "good" brother is in Afghanistan, the horrors of war triggers a reversal in the brothers' roles.
The Civilization Of Maxwell Bright (The San Marco Theater at 1:30 PM) - Arrogant, misogynistic, Max Bright wants a woman who will be supportive, clean up after him, be constantly sexually available, and oh, yes, beautiful and submissive. So he buys a Chinese mail-order wife. When Mai Ling arrives, she seems to be all that he wanted, but she turns out to be so much more. What could have been the set-up for a situational comedy becomes an incredibly moving story of one man's transformation, beautifully grounded in the performances of Patrick Warburton and Marie Matiko, ably supported by Simon Callow, Austin Pendleton, Jennifer Tilly and Eric Roberts.
I plan on doing reviews of each one that I end up seeing as well as commentary on the festival itself, so stay tuned.
The second festival, held in May of last year, had a number of interesting films being screened. I had time on that weekend to see only one and ended up passing on such films as The Saddest Music in the World, Rick and Slasher, hosted by director John Landis himself. The film I eventually chose to see was none other than Napoleon Dynamite, and thus did we here in little old Jacksonville become privy to this breakout comedy long before the rest of the nation did. And, yes, I heartily laughed my ass off, as did the rest of the audience.
And so we come to today. Two weeks from today begins the third annual festival and I plan on catching at least one film per day, if not more. Here are the films that I'm considering and the descriptions as provided by the JFF website:
Thursday (5/19):
Murderball (The San Marco Theater at 9:30 PM) - The notion of quadriplegic athletes may be unimaginable to some, but Murderball shows that they can be as great as any. The film chronicles these men as they overcome unimaginable obstacles to become world-class athletes.
Friday (5/20):
Four-Eyed Monsters (Theatre Jacksonville at 2:00 PM) - Arin and Susan, two lonely city dwellers meet online. Tired of traditional dating conventions, the pair opt to communicate through writing notes, chatting on the net and videotaping themselves.
The Works (Theatre Jacksonville at 5:00 PM) - In a nameless, faceless corporation, Victor tries to hold onto his humanity, despite the escalating humiliations and his failed attempts at resignation.
Childstar (The Florida Theatre at 9:30 PM) - A spoiled child actor's mother leaves him in the care of their driver, resulting in a relationship that changes both of them.
Saturday (5/21):
Plagues And Pleasures On The Salton Sea (Theatre Jacksonville at 5:30 PM) - Once a place for vacationers that was more popular than Palm Springs this desolate vacation spot is filled with the most unusual characters, all trying to keep Salton Sea alive.
I, Crumudegon (Theatre Jacksonville at 8:00 PM) - Director Alan Zwieg (Vinyl) looks at his fellow cranky people (including Fran Liebowitz and Andy Rooney) and how they got that way.
Sunday (5/22):
Brothers (The San Marco Theater at 11:00 AM) - Disturbingly realistic portrayal of two brothers: the younger one, the loser, fresh out of prison for a bank robbery that turned into a horrific assault on a bank teller; the older brother, the golden child, with a fantastic wife and two adorable kids who goes to do his duty in Afghanistan. While the "good" brother is in Afghanistan, the horrors of war triggers a reversal in the brothers' roles.
The Civilization Of Maxwell Bright (The San Marco Theater at 1:30 PM) - Arrogant, misogynistic, Max Bright wants a woman who will be supportive, clean up after him, be constantly sexually available, and oh, yes, beautiful and submissive. So he buys a Chinese mail-order wife. When Mai Ling arrives, she seems to be all that he wanted, but she turns out to be so much more. What could have been the set-up for a situational comedy becomes an incredibly moving story of one man's transformation, beautifully grounded in the performances of Patrick Warburton and Marie Matiko, ably supported by Simon Callow, Austin Pendleton, Jennifer Tilly and Eric Roberts.
I plan on doing reviews of each one that I end up seeing as well as commentary on the festival itself, so stay tuned.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
The Amityville Hubbub
There was an interesting sidebar in the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly. It talked about how the release of the Amityville Horror remake recently has started bringing people back to the town of Amityville, NY looking for wayward ghosts, horrific happenings and spooky-ass houses.
As you can imagine, the residents are not happy with this. They had seen a similar onslaught after the original film and thought they had seen the worst of it pass. They're doing their best to fend off the tourists whose annoyance factor seem to outweigh any money they bring in. One particular statement I found funny was this: "The Library's policy is to stay out of it".
Now, there was no elaboration on this statement (It was a short sidebar), so I'm forced to do some conjecturing. Considering how they hype the movie with the "based on a true story" malarkey and how, I'm told, the characters in this new version do visit the local library in order to research their house and the town's history, does this mean the actual library is turning away people wanting to do research?
The librarian purist in me wants to be offended. However, as is the case with all professional people who go through their education as idealists, the reality of the working environment puts a different spin on things. There are situations and patrons that are disruptive to the point where the time being used to deal with them prevents librarians from helping others.
A quick perusal of the library's website does not reveal any comment about the film. It's quite possible that the "stay out of it" party line means that librarians will point people where possible sources are, but they'll be damned if they spend any more of their own time helping you. If you want to do research on the goofy house that thousands before you have done, then you'll have to do the legwork yourself, which is ultimately fair.
Now, if only the town could do something about those damn sharks...
As you can imagine, the residents are not happy with this. They had seen a similar onslaught after the original film and thought they had seen the worst of it pass. They're doing their best to fend off the tourists whose annoyance factor seem to outweigh any money they bring in. One particular statement I found funny was this: "The Library's policy is to stay out of it".
Now, there was no elaboration on this statement (It was a short sidebar), so I'm forced to do some conjecturing. Considering how they hype the movie with the "based on a true story" malarkey and how, I'm told, the characters in this new version do visit the local library in order to research their house and the town's history, does this mean the actual library is turning away people wanting to do research?
The librarian purist in me wants to be offended. However, as is the case with all professional people who go through their education as idealists, the reality of the working environment puts a different spin on things. There are situations and patrons that are disruptive to the point where the time being used to deal with them prevents librarians from helping others.
A quick perusal of the library's website does not reveal any comment about the film. It's quite possible that the "stay out of it" party line means that librarians will point people where possible sources are, but they'll be damned if they spend any more of their own time helping you. If you want to do research on the goofy house that thousands before you have done, then you'll have to do the legwork yourself, which is ultimately fair.
Now, if only the town could do something about those damn sharks...
Let's go out to the lob-by...
According to a brief news snippet this morning on the Today Show, the Loews Theater chain are finally addressing an issue that has been pissing off movie goers for some time now: Commercials. They have offered a compromise in their adjusted policy: Instead of getting rid of commercials altogether, they will now post starting times for films that are actually for when the movie starts, enabling ticket buyers to come in after the commercials are over.
Is it a perfect solution? Not at all. Earlybirds such as me will still have to sit through a lot of crap before getting around to the film, and this solution does nothing to those attending opening weekend films who know that if they get there closer to when the movie starts, they're likely to guarantee themselves bad seats. However, this eliminates the guessing game some people who plan their evening have to play in order to figure out how late they will be getting out of the theater. If they known the running time of the film and the posted start time, then the calculation is now easier.
There is no news update at the Captive Motion Picture Audience of America website, either lauding or criticizing this development. As for myself, I applaud their efforts (even though I personally will not benefit from this since there are no Loews theaters in Jacksonville). It's a step in the right direction, at least. The less time we waste watching dishwashing detergent ads on the big screen, the better.
Is it a perfect solution? Not at all. Earlybirds such as me will still have to sit through a lot of crap before getting around to the film, and this solution does nothing to those attending opening weekend films who know that if they get there closer to when the movie starts, they're likely to guarantee themselves bad seats. However, this eliminates the guessing game some people who plan their evening have to play in order to figure out how late they will be getting out of the theater. If they known the running time of the film and the posted start time, then the calculation is now easier.
There is no news update at the Captive Motion Picture Audience of America website, either lauding or criticizing this development. As for myself, I applaud their efforts (even though I personally will not benefit from this since there are no Loews theaters in Jacksonville). It's a step in the right direction, at least. The less time we waste watching dishwashing detergent ads on the big screen, the better.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Germany blames France for buying that discount iron lung
Defense: England Oxygen-Deprived at Birth
Memo to ABC: Guys, would it have killed you to put a "Pfc" in the headline?
Memo to ABC: Guys, would it have killed you to put a "Pfc" in the headline?
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