Matt’s Weeks in Dork! (7/13/14-7/19/14 & 7/20/14-7/26/14)

    Due to a technical difficulty, I present two weeks…


(7/13/14-7/19/14)

    On Sunday, my lady and I headed in to DC to see the National Building Museum and its human sized maze.  An informative tour and a nice exhibit on House & Home.  But darn it, that maze was cool.  Mazes have always been a fascination, and getting to go into one was a treat.  Part of me would love to do one much, much larger.  From there we went to The Hamilton (where I felt distinctly under dressed) for a nice brunch, and then to E Street, where we saw Life Itself.  A good day in DC.

Life Itself:  This portrait of the famous populist movie critic Roger Ebert does a fine job of showing the man behind the face.  Not all one thing or another, a character, and a great ambassador of film.  His story feels like one of those old time movies, where a plucky young kid gets a dream job and has a meteoric rise, with the usual pitfalls of wine and women, and the eventual triumph.  But there’s more to it than that, as there always is.  And telling his life story, intercut with the story of his death, the ravaging cancer that would claim him, bit by bit, until it finished him off, was poignant and heartbreaking, but also uplifting and dare I say it, a bit inspiring.  A colorful character with an interesting life.  And a documentary well worth seeking out, especially (but not exclusively) for movie buffs.

The Lego Movie:  This cute CGI film is a lot of fun, occasionally very clever, and perfectly enjoyable.  It’s not amazing.  But it’s good.  I like the story, I like the voice work, and though heavy handed, I like the message.  If you have kids, this is a good one, as there’s plenty for an adult to enjoy, too.

    Friday night we met for the graphic novel club, where we discussed Aya: Life in Yop City.  I think only one person hated it, nobody seemed to love it, but a few enjoyed it enough to want to read on.  I didn’t hate it, but certainly have no plans to read any more.

    On Saturday evening, Brad and I headed over to Wolf Trap to see 2001 with live music.  This was my second time to the venue, which I’m not in love with.  But it was certainly better than I remembered.  I suppose I can see the charm of sitting on the lawn, though I don’t think I would be well suited for it, with my gimpy legs.

2001:  Just a darned amazing film.  I’ve written about it many times before.  What I’ll say this time is that seeing it, projected on a big screen, with live orchestral accompaniment was a whole new experience.  Because so little dialog happens, and when it does, it’s not with music, this movie is sort of like a silent film, witch lends itself to live music.  When I saw Casablanca with live music, there were issues because of the constant score and the original mono recording.  This was much better.  And seeing it with a thousand or so people…really something.  People nervously or knowingly laughing when Hal starts to crack.  Kinda amazing.

(7/20/14-7/26/14)

    So, on Sunday, my computer had some rather profound technical difficulties, taking me not just offline, but off writing in any serious way.  I got some more reading done, and some more movie watching, but I also had kind of a busy week.

In the Mood for Love:  Gorgeously shot, wonderfully dreamy, this romance doesn’t play the way one would expect.  It feels like you’re constantly watching surreptitiously, voyeuristically as two people come together, expressed in brief moments, looks, and seemingly innocent encounters.  Where some of Wonk Kar Wai’s films have a frantic, hand-held feel to their cinematography, this is shot wonderfully still and painting-like.

Under the Skin:  Upon second viewing, my problems with the film’s finale abated somewhat.  I think I get the idea more, so it doesn’t bug me as much.  Whatever the case, this is a fascinating film, a science fiction/horror movie with no exposition.  At no point does the script give you any information.  You just watch as things happen and are forced to make up your own mind.  There are some beautiful moments, some haunting scenes, some surreal and some wonderful things.  It’s not going to be for everyone.  But I really like it.  The closest thing I can compare it to is the rather obvious The Man Who Fell to Earth, but I was reminded of recent weirdly quiet films like Only God Forgives, too.

Fanfan La Tulipe:  France’s answer to Errol Flynn’s Robin Hood, this light hearted swashbuckling adventure film is charming and fun.  Nothing too serious.  Nothing too heavy.  Pretty women, handsome men, daring-do, and some humor for color.  Good times.

    I read the second volume of Prophet, which continues to amp up the Dune-type insanity.  I’m really loving how crazy this book is.  Can’t wait to see where it all ends up.

How to Train Your Dragon 2:  There are some bits near the end that I wasn’t enamored of, but overall, this is a pretty good sequel to the surprisingly good How to Train Your Dragon.  I like the cast of characters and the setting created.  The animation is quite good.  And they do a fantastic job of giving the dragons, particularly Toothless, a great deal of personality.  These are the kinds of fantasy films I’d have gone absolutely mad for as a lad (and still dig as an old man).  And the comic relief doesn’t suck.

The Innocents:  A well shot and creepy horror film that adds little to the genre, The Innocents is perfectly watchable.  If you’re in the mood for something like The Haunting, this is a good option.  The performances are good and the mood is thick.  The story is a bit blah, but what do you expect.  Ghost stories, especially haunted house stories, all pretty much play out the same way.

Bluebeard:  If it wasn’t for the totally exploitative use of hunting footage, where we’re shown real animals of various types really getting shot and killed, I would be singing this film’s praises.  Excepting that, it’s campy fun of the highest order.  Richard Burton is so far over the top you have to wonder if he even knew there was a top.  The women are pretty, the clothes are optional, and the comedy is weirdly good.  Again, if it wasn’t for the real animal killing footage, I think I’d have run right out and bought a copy.

    On Friday afternoon, I read the new humorous book, Fun with Kirk and Spock, a parody of the old Dick and Jane books.  It's very cute and funny.  I love me some classic Trek.

The Golden Goose:  Not one of the better German folk tale adaptations I’ve seen, this one is more annoying than good.  There are some good bits, and it teaches (as fairy tales do) some valuable lessons.  But the songs kind of suck, and the constant laughing gets creepy quick.

Elena and Her Men:  I’ve liked several Jean Renoir films, and I love Ingrid Bergman.  But this movie never got my attention.  I didn’t connect.  I suppose it’s cute, and there are some good scenes.  However, I never became invested in the characters or the story.  And honestly, I didn’t really like Bergman in it.

Demetrius and the Gladiators:  Possibly more ham-fisted than The Robe, and sadly lacking in Richard Burton, this OK sequel does feature a good performance from William Marshall and some gladiator fighting.  Not much else, sadly.

    Co-Dork Brad is at the San Diego Comic Con, sending reports back.  So far, the two most interesting tidbits to come out of the con are about the Godzilla sequel that’s going to feature Mothra, Rodan, and my favorite all time kaiju, King Ghidorah, and that there are plans to do a Skull Island film.  My hope is that this is a return adventure to the birthplace of King Kong, and not some kind of prequel or reboot.  There’s no reason the story shouldn’t be a straight-up sequel to 2005’s Kong.  And one of my complaints about that movie (which I love) was that they didn’t spend nearly enough time exploring the island and its history/mythology.  Fingers crossed.

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla:  I like the story of the disgraced soldier who redeems herself through piloting Mechagodzilla.  And this one has some pretty cool fighting.  But anyone who’s survived trashy 80s sci-fi/horror films knows, you don’t use the body parts of killers when you make your killing machines.  Don’t do it.

    I didn’t finish it, as it’s kind of like reading the Bible (or worse, 1960s Marvel comics), but I’ve plowed through a good deal the first volume of Jack Katz’s First Kingdom.  I like it a lot.  There’s something magical about it, like golden age science fiction, classic myth, and some nameless something.  Very cool.

-Matthew J. Constantine

Matt’s Week in Dork! (5/4/14-5/10/14)

    On Sunday morning, a friend and I headed to the outskirts of DC, where we ate at Ragtime, a nice little neighborhood pub.  And then from there, we walked to Theodor Roosevelt Island, which is a park I like a lot, but boy has it fallen into disrepair.  While packed with visitors, and obviously a popular destination, the statue of Teddy is looking pretty ratty, the pools are all dry, and the wooden walkways are sinking, rotting, and starting to look dangerous.  Such a nice place, it’s a shame to see it falling apart.

    Sunday night was the latest meeting of the graphic novel club, where we discussed Asterios Polyp.  It got very mixed reviews, with some strong negative feelings and some fairly positive, while many people seemed to fall closer to the middle.  I think everyone liked the interesting art and design of the book, even if folks weren’t all on board for the story.

Quai Des Orfevres:  Paris in the 40s is the setting of this odd, and oddly paced film about troubled lovers, friends, theater, murder, and petty crime.  It is much more of a character study than a mystery, with a surprising number of very interesting and fleshed out characters.  The combative couple, the focal point of the film, are less interesting than their blonde friend, or the hang-dog ex-Legion cop (Louis Jouvet).  In many ways, it feels like a classic Film Noir, yet in others it’s uniquely French.  As I write this, having finished watching the film ten or fifteen minutes ago, I can’t say for sure that it’s a good or a great film.  But it’s interesting and unusual enough, with very well crafted characters.  I would recommend watching it, but my feelings are oddly mixed.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty:  I have a feeling that this is a movie one could very, very easily dismiss.  It is, admittedly, saccharine and manipulative.  It’s ‘aw, gee shucks’ kind of mindset is way the crap out of step with modern cinema.  But darn it.  I found myself enjoying the heck out of the film.  It’s absolutely beautiful, and other than Casino Royale, is probably the best film in recent memory that makes travel seem totally awesome.  There’s nothing very complex.  You know what the film is trying to say from nearly the opening shot.  There are no surprises.  But it worked.  Is it amazing?  No.  Is it going to stick with me?  Probably not.  But I really, really liked watching it while it was on.  Like cotton candy for your eyes and brain.

    I read a couple more comics, Silver Surfer #1, Velvet #1 and the Free Comic Book Day issue of Rocket Raccoon.  Silver Surfer is…well, it’s just not what I want.  Like the FF comic, and some others Marvel is putting out, it’s taking what could be a cool science fiction title and turning it in to Wacky Adventure Time!, which isn’t something I want to read.  At least, not about a character like Silver Surfer, who I feel could be amazing, but like Wonder Woman, is rarely handled well.  Speaking of Wacky Adventure Time!, there’s the Rocket Raccoon comic.  OK, fine.  Whatever.  I like what Guardians of the Galaxy I’ve read (that Legacy trade from a few years back).  But I tried to read Rocket’s original comic and it was flippin’ terrible.  So, it’s not like there’s something for them to ruin here.  And it’s OK.  But again, it’s not something I want to read.  It’s one thing to be humorous.  It’s another to be a joke.  Also in this comic is a Spider Man short, Space Oddities.  It’s silly and not my cup of tea.  The diamond in this rough was Velvet.  From Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting (who did the run of Captain America that made me give a crap about that character), this Cold War story feels like what Winter Soldier would have been like if it wasn’t saddled with the Marvel name.  It’s James Bond at its darkest.  What I like about Brubaker’s female lead (like his female lead in Fatale) is that she doesn’t just deliver snarky, ‘oh so clever’ dialog (a la Joss Whedon characters).  I’m very interested in where this series might go.  It’s the strongest first issue I’ve read in quite some time.

The Night Porter:  This is, unfortunately, the movie I expected it to be.  It has that very specific brand of 70s Euro-sleaze dripping all over an attempted ART! film, with a heavy dose of wannabe shock-factor.  But like so many movies made to be shocking, times change, we movie on, and the shock wears off.  What we’re left with are some very good performances from the leads and a potentially interesting idea that is lost in the shuffle of “stick poking a hornets’ nest” filmmaking.  The idea of two people who were on opposite sides of something as horrible as the Holocaust, meeting by chance many years later, has the potential for some very interesting conflict, especially when a dangerous sort of sexual relationship had existed between the two.  However, this film doesn’t manage to make it interesting, or explore it in any satisfying way.  This has more of Caligula Reincarnated as Hitler (aka Last Orgy of the Third Reich) than something like Five Minutes of Heaven or In the Land of Blood and Honey.  The scene, near the beginning, where Dirk Bogarde sees Charlotte Rampling is fantastic, and makes you think you’re going to watch a better film.  You don’t.

Attack the Block:  “Trust.”  I love this Goonies meets Critters meets Harry Brown bit of wacky sci-fi horror from South London.  A good cast of characters, including a lot of good kid/teen actors.  Good music, and very simple, but coolly iconic creature design.  Unlike all too many contemporary horror films, it features characters I like and I grow to care about.  Young John Carpenter would be proud.

Godzilla:  “Let them fight.”  It took an awful long time, but they finally got it right.  The director of Monsters, Gareth Edwards, took on Kaiju a few years ago, with a limited budget and low star-power, and made one of the better horror films of recent memory.  Now, with Hollywood blockbuster bucks behind him, he managed to maintain the essence of the classic Godzilla films, while ramping up the effects and thrills.  Putting Godzilla in his proper place, as an avatar of the Earth, a force of nature that becomes active when things get too far out of balance, made me very happy.  For those expecting some kind of silly action movie, you’re likely to be disappointed.  This isn’t Transformers.  It’s not The Avengers.  It’s Godzilla.  It’s a slow build, like Alien or Jaws, taking its time to explore the characters and build dread.  Even when stuff starts getting crazy, Godzilla is nowhere to be seen.  This is actually in keeping with classic Godzilla films.  He would often not show up until the final act, where he would drop his reptile hammer on whatever monsters or aliens or alien monsters might be messing with good ‘ol Planet Earth.  My one complaint would be Aaron Taylor-Johnson.  As much as I liked him in Kick-Ass, he’s since proved to be a pretty boring drone of an actor.  Throughout the film, he looks at things with a bewildered expression, and had little function other than to be a set of eyes for us to see the madness through.  I’d have preferred the film to focus more on Ken Watanabe and Sally Hawkins, or even Elizabeth Olsen.  Good Godzilla films are made, in many ways, by a cast of interesting human characters.  The humans in this one aren’t amazing, but they’re good enough to get the job done.  Here’s hoping the film does good numbers and gets a follow-up.  King Ghidorah!  Gigan!  Mothra!  Come on.  It’s got to happen.

Il Pianeta Errante (War Between the Planets):  “Prepare to fix.”  I like the production design and model work in this film.  Unfortunately, it’s super, super boring.  Really darned boring.  Oh, my gosh.  Boring.  It keeps going.  Potentially interesting scenarios become exercises in tedium.

Creation of the Humanoids:  There’s some very cool stuff in this one.  Unfortunately, the acting is super stiff.  I like the exploration of ethics, in that way science fiction used to do more often.  And not just anti-technology, like you typically find in contemporary films.  Robots and humans trying to get along in the world after WWIII has decimated the planet.  The sets and such are good.  With a slightly better script and much better acting, this could have been a secret classic.  As it is, it’s a good watch, and one I’m glad I’ve found.  But it’s not as good as it could have been.

Godzilla 2000:  The second re-launch of the Godzilla film franchise, this film tries to get on the CGI train, while also trying to be more cinematic than the Heisei era of the 80s and 90s.  Some of the ideas are cool, and the action is certainly shot better.  It also doesn’t look as cheap as the Heisei films.  But it still doesn’t have the charm of the Showa era.  Some of the fun seems to be missing.  The moral of this story?  Don’t let Godzilla go off in your mouth.

Baba Yaga:  Much more pleasant a viewing than I was expecting, this 70s Euro-Sleaze has plenty of the expected bare breasts and awkward dubbing.  But it didn’t feature the expected endurance test of violence directed toward woman you tend to get in Italian cinema.  I like the pacing and the cinematography quite a bit.  There’s a kind of object fetish, lingering shots on various old things (books, radios, knickknacks of all kinds), and a heavy dose of atmosphere that reminds me of some of what I love in Jean Rollin films (though there’s not nearly Rollin levels of nudity).  The film is based on a comic I used to occasionally see bits from in Heavy Metal way back when.  My memory of that comic was that it had a dreamy quality, and this film too has that.  Is it great?  No.  But it’s better than the average 70s Italian film.

The Magic Flute:  There’s nothing wrong with this movie.  Ingmar Bergman’s direction is typically solid, the performances are good, the style is good, and the music is good.  I simply never got into it.  Mozart is a composer I can listen to, but seldom am moved by; and this adaptation of his work sort of sums up my relationship with him.  All the pieces are there, but I’m left cold.

Godzilla VS. King Ghidorah:  This film represents what the Heisei era is.  The plot is nearly unintelligible, the effects are a mixed bag, the human characters aren’t especially interesting, and the acting is kinda awful (with a few exceptions).  And the whole thing looks like it was shot for television.  I like some of the bits, particularly the connections to WWII.  But the terrible time travel (seriously, some of the worst time travel writing I’ve ever come across) and the rejiggering of Ghidorah’s origin…I can’t get behind that.  A lot of cool(ish) creature designs come out of the Heisei films, but not a lot of good Godzilla storytelling.

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome:  While often dismissed and frequently dissed, I love this film.  It features more of the Odysseus-type journey than The Road Warrior (which is, absolutely, a much better film).  I love the way the world has fallen and is trying to rebuild itself in a new image.  I love the Lord of the Flies oasis Max discovers.  I love the look and feel, and the wild music.  I’m guessing I first saw this when I was about 10, and it had a profound effect on me and particularly on my early writing efforts.  Watching it again for the first time in quite a while, I still love it.  But, I have to admit, the third act is weak.  Max and the kids return to Bartertown, and they recreate the final action climax from The Road Warrior.  That could have been better.  Perhaps Max helping the children in a siege of their village.  Perhaps an exodus away from Bartertown.  Maybe some other element.  I don’t know.  But while I still enjoy it, that last fifteen minutes or so are not as good as they could and should have been.

    Good times had by all.

-Matt

Matt’s Week in Dork! (3/23/14-3/29/14)

    On a much needed (MUCH needed) vacation this week.  I did a lot of sleeping, a lot of reading, and a lot of watching.  It was a pretty good week.

Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon:  I don’t ever want to be in a place where I’ve got to drink the “Golden Soup” to cure my parasites.  Not ever.  This over the top Hong Kong fantasy film is a lot of fun, though perhaps a bit overlong.  This is supposed to be early in Dee’s career, and sees him facing off against a conspiracy of foreign invaders and a mysterious sea monster, all while trying to figure out who the monster man is, and what his connection to the beautiful courtesan might be.  It’s the kind of mostly silly, kinda cool, effects filled movie that Tsui Hark is known for, for better or worse.  I’m not a fan of Tsui’s visual style, and this isn’t an exception.  He’s very similar to Andrew Lau and this movie reminded me a lot of Lau’s The Duel and The Storm Riders, but I tend to respond better to Lau’s films.  Still, I enjoyed this and the ending is about as crazy as you can ask for in a film of this sort.  Probably best for kids, this might make a good introduction to Chinese fantasy.  Someone who really enjoys the Pirates of the Caribbean films might take note.  There are tonal similarities.  I could see younger Matt really digging it.  As it is, a pretty good, but not great entry in the fantasy film list.

Pollyanna:  This Disney classic is perfectly enjoyable and fun, and good for the family.  There’s nothing especially profound or life changing about the movie, but it’s well made and does have a healthy dose of medicine for fire & brimstone preachers.  Worth watching with younger kids, but hardly a great classic.

    Figuring I’d best use my vacation for something other than lollygagging, I read the first three volumes of B.P.R.D.’s Hell on Earth arc and the first League of Extraordinary Gentlemen spin-off Nemo books.  Good stuff, all round.

Doctor Who: Genesis of the Daleks:  The Doctor, Sarah Jane, and Harry get pulled back in time by some bloody meddling Time Lord, in order to try to find something in the origin of the Daleks that might help fight them in the future.  Here we see the previously hinted at war on planet Skaro and meet for the first time Davros, the mad genius who gave the Daleks life and purpose.  It’s a dark story, with lots of interesting side characters, and some sticky ends for allies.  In spite of their over-use over the long run of this show, I genuinely like the Daleks, their origin story, and the visuals of Skaro.

The Mad Executioners:  It’s like they folded two not very good scripts into one jumbled and weird mess.  Bad English dubbing, at least one sub-plot too many, and some goofy characters go through the standard Euro-horror silliness of the era.  The girl is pretty, the villains stupid, and the sleaze sadly muted.  And you’d swear the movie was much more than its 90 minutes.

Fellowsihp of the Frog:  Pretty typical ‘masked mastermind’ stuff, but there are a few good scenes.  When the frog machine-guns that dame, I’ll admit, I was pretty surprised.  It’s still generally silly, a bit boring, and even for its time, feels hackneyed.  But then, it’s based on the works of Edgar Wallace and variations on this Frog story had already been on screen several times.

Doctor Who: Planet of Evil:  I’m always a fan of the more science fictiony Doctor Who stories, and this is one of the really fun ones.  In the far future, on an alien world, something is killing members of exploratory and rescue missions.  The Doctor and Sarah Jane face the usual suspicion from the timespace-locals, while trying to figure out what’s killing people and how they can stop it.  I love the set and costume design in this.  And while the story is fairly typical of this type, it’s a solid, fun watch, with good guest actors.  It’s still weird for me to go back and watch Sarah Jane Smith stories now, after having loved her recent spin-off series.  She’s so strong and assured on The Sarah Jane Adventures, but she’s so screamy and weepy, and while not quite useless, too damsel in distress for my tastes.

Doctor Who: The Brain of Morbius:  This story is gross.  It’s cool.  But it’s gross.  Steeped in Frankenstein, it also gets into some weird Time Lord business, introduces techno-priestesses, and has some nasty onscreen gore (that big Igor looking dude getting shot in the chest is almost Total Recall level nasty).  There isn’t really all that much too this story, but I love the look and feel of it.  It could be considered filler, but if it is, it’s really good filler.

    On Wednesday, co-Dork Brad and I got together to go Kaiju crazy.  A day of watching Toho classics will do anyone some needed good.  Man, I love those movies.  I love how crazy the series gets.

Mothra:  Before Godzilla became ‘defender of the Earth,’ and was still just a giant monster rampaging across Japan, there was Mothra, also a giant monster rampaging across Japan, but with a message of peace.  Mothra and her two tiny heralds want humanity to cut it out with the bomb dropping and the pollution, and they’re gonna bring the noise if it doesn’t stop.  Greedy businessmen are there to exploit the situation, of course.  But in the end, three people learn a lesson and tons of people are displaced and/or killed.  And there are super-racist portrayals of island people.  Still, this early Kaiju film is a ton of fun, and its hippie message would become integral to later Godzilla films.

Godzilla VS. Mothra:  A giant egg washes up on shore (to be claimed by greedy businessmen), Godzilla starts to cause some trouble, and some intrepid reporters seek help from a giant moth.  I love these movies.  There’s plenty of monster mayhem, greed brings jerks low, and the aw-gee-shucks, can-do attitude of reporters will of course, save the day.

Invasion of Astro-Monster:  A rocket ship journey to the mysterious Planet X, a sexy femme fatale, aliens who want to cure our cancer, and a sinister plan to control our Kaiju.  Godzilla gets really nuts with this movie about two astronaut buddies who have to save the world from sunglass wearing baddies from beyond.  One of my favorites for a lot of reasons.  I love Glenn and Fuji, our dashing heroes.  And of course, the one and only King Ghidorah in what is probably his best appearance.  He drops the electric hammer on Japan with three heads spraying lightening every which way.  A beast that only the combined efforts of two or more of Earth’s Kaiju can slow down, Ghidorah is probably the single nastiest of the giant monsters.  Usually under control, or sent by the hand of, some danged alien fiend.

Godzilla VS. Megalon:  Atomic testing opens cracks in the surface of the Earth, and the underground (or underwater, depending on who we believe) people of lost Mu, or Atlantis, or Lemuria, or whatever don’t like it.  So, obviously the only sane thing to do is raise a giant beetle with skyscrapers for hands and a glowing star on its head to go destroy humanity.  But don’t worry, a little kid and his two dads are on the case.  Dad #1 is also an inventor, and has made a robot that is totally not Ultraman (Jet Jaguar: pronounced jag-you-are).  Who’s kidnapping who?  Who’s controlling who?  What’s up with that crazy cube house?  How does Jet Jaguar program himself to grow to enormous size?  The answers are all inside…except for the giant size thing.  That doesn’t make a lick of sense.  Oh, and Godzilla shows up.

Terror of Mechagodzilla:  One of my very top favorites of the series, this one features more dang dirty aliens trying to take over the world so they can build a city that will let them get their bodies back…Or something.  Anyway, they’ve recruited a bitter scientist and his cute daughter to mind-control a giant sea kaiju (as you do).  Also, they’re rebuilding Mechagodzilla, the giant robot Godzilla.  As you can imagine, Japan gets kicked around a bit in this one.  It also features possibly the best Godzilla reveal in the film franchise.  So badass.  This marks the end of the classic Godzilla era, and they went out on a good note.  I don’t think the films ever got back to this level, or really even all that close.  The ‘Millenium Series’ starting with Godzilla: 2000 gets the closest, but…  Anyway, Terror of Mechagodzilla is a pretty darned cool finale.

 Doctor Who: The Sunmakers:  Hardly subtle, this adventure takes the Doctor and Leela to a world run by number-crunchers and penny-pinchers.  A society crushed beneath taxes and red tape, ruled by a power elite who crush the will of their workers.  There are plenty of good characters, some cool sets, and a strong dose of humor.  As usual for this era, it does get pretty dark at times, too.  And then there’s Leela.

    On Thursday morning, I watched a few episodes of The New Avengers.  Though not nearly as good as the best of the original, it’s still quite fun and watchable.  I have the weirdest feelings about Joanna Lumley, though.  She’s a Brit Sci-Fi staple and supposed to be a great beauty.  But like Barbara Steele and Karen Black, I feel like my primitive brain spots her and gets all excited,  but then my aesthetic brain recoils.  Unlike Steele and Black however, Lumley does display a degree of talent and charisma.  Also, and I guess ironically, she tries to ‘ugly’ herself up in an episode by dressing in a kind of stereotypical librarian outfit with glasses and the whole bit.  Turns out, she looks great like that.  Anyway, the show itself lacks some of the wonderful surrealism of the original, and now the sexual innuendo is between Lumley and the dashing, young Gareth Hunt.  Unfortunately it isn’t charming and cheeky as it was between Mcnee and Rigg.  It comes off much, much more harassing/rapy.  Rigg and Mcnee were always sparring equals having good natured fun.  Hunt is like a jock who doesn’t get the message that she’s not into him, and while Lumley seems like she can handle herself, you can’t help but feel for her as this weird, gropy guy keeps leering.  It's uncomfortable.

    Later Thursday, I watched the first disk of the second season of Night Gallery.  There are a few good stories, but so far, it’s not batting too strong.  The one I think I liked the most of this batch was about a sinister military school.  Felt like something out of Nowhere Man or The Prisoner.

    For the next meeting of the graphic novel club, I read Sweet Tooth Vol. 1 &2.  If I had never read Y: The Last Man, I’d probably really dig it.  But reading it, I couldn’t help but feel like it was a kinda half-assed rehash.  I may read the remaining volumes, just to see if it goes in an interesting enough direction to make it stand on its own.  But, meh.  I definitely wouldn’t have read very far if I were picking this up monthly.

    And on Friday morning, I finished up the first season of Defiance.  I don’t know.  I kind of like the show, but it’s also not that great.  A lot of pretty typical characters going through a lot of pretty typical stories.  Very much like a lot of other Western meets Science Fiction things that have come before it.  The aliens aren’t unique enough, the setting not unique enough, etc.  I’m enjoying watching it just enough to keep watching it, but not enough to go out of my way, or be particularly concerned with what happens to any of the characters.

Sullivan’s Travels:  There are some problems with the latter third of the film, but this comedy about a pampered movie director trying to find out about suffering is extremely funny.  The dialog, especially involving the Hollywood moguls, is lightening quick and hysterical.  Veronica Lake makes for a great partner once she’s introduced.  The way she glams it up one minute, then goofs it up the next, makes her especially charming.  This movie feels like a work in defense of making movies fun, of not always trying for gritty realism.  Bravo.

Rushmore:  This early Wes Anderson film still has a good deal of his particular oddness about it, and explores many of the themes he continues to explore to this day.  Fathers and sons (surrogate or biological), and difficulty with women.  Bill Murray is especially good in this.  His transformation from together to total emotional ruin is so sad.  But he also feels genuine.  That’s the thing with Anderson characters; they’re all so distinctly odd, yet they all remind you of someone you’ve known, maybe someone you’ve been.  Great stuff.  Along with Bottle Rocket, this would probably be a good 'gateway' movie into Anderson's universe.  It's odd.  It has a bent sense of humor.  But it's less artificial, less the 'doll house' of his later films.  He's got the themes he'll go on to explore all in hand.  But his style is still forming.  By his next picture, The Royal Tenenbaums, that his style is fully realized.

    On Saturday morning, I read Steed & Peel: The Golden Game by Grant Morrison.  I know everyone loves the guy, but I don’t think I’ve really enjoyed a Morrison book yet.  This doesn’t change things.  It was OK, at best.  And it totally misses the mark on capturing the fun of the show.  Occasionally he tries, but the dialog never works.  And both stories contained within would have made for forgettable episodes if they’d been filmed.  This felt more like the Gold Key comics based on Star Trek.  Like the writer was given only the vaguest idea of what the show was about and then told to write X number of pages.  There’s no heart.  No love for the characters.  While technically fine from both a writing and art standpoint, it’s not The Avengers, for sure.

The Lion in Winter:  “I’m villifying you, for God’s sake-pay attention!”  I’m torn on this movie.  On the one hand, it’s kind of awesome to see all these excellent actors spewing such vile, humor tinged hatred at each other.  On the other hand, after more than two hours, it does become a bit much.  Though shot like a medieval epic of its time (and well), everything about the acting and the dialog would tell you it was based on a stage play, if the credits did not.  In some ways it feels very, very modern, with many nods and winks to the contemporary audience.  So, while I didn’t love it, I’m sure glad I saw it.  And for anyone who likes any of the actors involved, or who enjoys some powerfully hateful dialog, the likes of which you don’t tend to get outside of a good Film Noir (Sweet Smell of Success kept coming to mind), this is one to see.

    Finally, on Saturday night, I sat down to the second of my cinematic resolutions.  I watched The Lost Weekend several weeks back.  On to Sunset Boulevard…

Sunset Boulevard:  “We didn’t need dialog.  We had faces!”  This movie is much more interesting than the famous clips you see in ever classic movie montage.  It’s more than being ready for a close-up for Mr. DeMille.  It’s a Noir, but even there, turns many of the genre expectations on their heads.  It’s cynically satirical, biting, and even heartbreaking.  And in its way, it’s both an evisceration and a celebration of movies and the people who make them.  Gloria Swanson manages to play someone who has gone ‘round the bend, living in a sort of heightened, almost campy delusion, without making the character a caricature.  The cast is quite good all around, with stand-outs being, of course Swanson,  former director Erich von Stroheim, who is phenomenal as the enabling butler with plenty of secrets, and a surprisingly good cameo from Cecil B. DeMille himself.  One of those classics you’ll recognize bits of, since folks have been lifting from it for more than 60 years.

    That’s about it.  I got a bunch of reading done, though not as much as I’d wanted.  Caught up a bit on my movie watching.  As always, I could use a few more days off.  Alas.

-Matt