I recently had surgery and a few weeks off in which I'd hoped to catch up on some movies. I never get to just sit and watch movies. It didn't quite turn out as planned, but I made a list of what I managed to watch along with my short, not-well-thought-out reviews:

Rumor Has It - A clever way to sequel a classic film (The Graduate) while not actually making a sequel. But it's basically a sequel. And a Nellie McKay soundtrack is just as good as a Simon and Garfunkel soundtrack.

Picture Perfect - Could easily have been a basic cable movie. Illeana Douglas, Jay Mohr, and Faith Prince are some of my favorites, though. Kudos for the P. J. Clarke's reference.

Dan In Real Life - I recall tweeting: "DAMMIT! "Dan In Real Life" tricked me into watching a movie with Dane Cook." And then I wrote "Norbert Leo Butz was a pleasant surprise, though." I love that guy. Plus, I'm a big sap; this movie really moved me, and I wasn't even on medication. I bought the awesome soundtrack after watching it.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno - I felt some sort of pop-cultural obligation to see this. Plus, it's a Kevin Smith film. I didn't need to see it, turns out. One of the only redeeming parts was the use of 5 seconds of a Donald Fagen song. And Justin Long rarely disappoints.

Less Than Zero - Not a feel good movie. Quite 80's. Robert Downey Jr is never not awesome. I just read there's actually going to be a sequel.

Slumdog Millionaire - Instantly settling in near the top of my all time favorites films list. I can't say enough about it, and I don't want to seem like a bandwagon jumper, but it really is that good.

The Happening - I don't know why this movie was so hated. I liked it. It's even got a bit of a "The Stand" vibe. Maybe I just like apocalyptic movies that have people wandering the rural northeast.

Diner - Great cast, classic film. It was okay. One of those I'd always been meaning to see.

Eagle Eye - Not as unrealistic as, say, "The Net" or "Die Hard 4" (I'm going to hack into that building with my crappy old cell phone and make it explode somehow).

Step Brothers - Another of those I felt obligated to see, but John C. Reilly and Will Farrell are a guilty pleasure. And I still think Mary Steenburgen is hot for an older chick. :)

Vicky Christina Barcelona - Great movie. Woody can do very little wrong in my eyes. Great performances from Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem. This one didn't really teach me anything, though.

A Prairie Home Companion - A little slow at first. All star cast. Kevin Kline was great. There was one song I had to own, so I bought the soundtrack after watching this one, too.

Shadow of a Doubt (Hitchcock 1943) - A perfect nightcap, despite the government propaganda.

Phone Call From A Stranger (1952) - Shelly Winters and Bette Davis, among others. The time period, black and white presentation, dialog, and the way the characters treat each other gave me the warm fuzzies, even with tragedy. I liked it.

So with some overlap, that's 2 Jennifer Aniston films, 2 Kevin Bacon films, 2 John C. Reilly Films, 2 Richard Jenkins films, 2 movies with Elvis Costello influence, 6 or 7 set at least partially in NYC, and 3 that became instant favorites. I feel strangely accomplished.

I've known for months now that the universe wants me to notice something about 1977.  It's the most bizarre thing ever.  I thought I was going through a regular 70's phase, with the movies I'd been watching and the music I'd been listening to.  I just got on this weird kick.  But it turns out that nearly everything I'd been watching and listening to was from the year 1977, specifically.  

In 1977, I was living in the apartment I now live in.  The room I'm in right now, when I was 5.  1977 brought us Star Wars, Annie Hall, Saturday Night Fever, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  Roots aired.  The Concorde airplane, Three's Company, The Talking Heads, The Clash, and the Apple II debuted.

Freddie Prinze, Elvis Presley, Groucho Marx, Bing Crosby, and 3 members of the Lynyrd Skynyrd died.

Capital punishment returned to the United States.  The Son of Sam murders swept through the city.  The New York City blackout (which I thought was the end of the world) lasted 25 hours, resulting in looting and riots.

My boyhood hero, Reggie Jackson, hit 3 home runs on 3 consecutive pitches in game 6 of the World Series to give the Yankees the Championsip.

A few weeks ago, on July 7th (7-7-07), I was having a conversation with my mom about something that she remembered happening on 7-7-77, thirty years previous to the day.  We figured it was probably almost exactly to the hour at the time.

A city bus passed me the other day with an ad for something called "The Bronx is Burning".  Having been born in the Bronx, I found it intriguing.  Turns out it's a miniseries about, well, 1977.

I'd love a time machine.  But Deloreans are expensive.

Currently listening: Saturday Night Fever By The Bee Gees Release date: 10 July, 2007

Well, summer's been pretty cool so far. My little girl Shadow became deathly ill. Getting better and relapsing several times. I had a few talks with the vet about euthanisation, and we were very close to it. But she pulled through and has been fine since. Better than ever in fact. She's 16 and has great energy.

July kicked off with a new studio apartment in Yorkville. The floor is a little slanty, and I've seen some bizarre bugs that may have been the result of experiments gone terribly wrong, but overall I really love it. It's pretty big for a studio, and the building is small and quiet. The neighborhood is amazing. Mostly 5 and 6 story buildings, lots of outdoor bars and restaurants and cool stores. I'm around the corner from the famous Elaine's restaurant...

...and also down the block from where this recently happened.

A lot of family came to visit in the past few weeks, and more are yet to come before the summer ends. It's been so great to see them and it's given me the chance to be a bit of a tourist, hitting the usual spots. We also got to see a few Broadway musicals. In The Heights, which I've seen 4 times off Broadway before catching it on Broadway. That was the day before it took the Tony for Best Musical. I've been a champion of this show for over a year, telling people about it and recommending they see it. But only now do they want to see it because they've "heard of it". I guess if there aren't TV commercials for it, it doesn't exist.

Also caught Rent for the 3rd time (4th if you count a touring version). I might try to see it again before it closes for good in September. Apparently, some evil genious decided Mayor Bloomberg wasn't destroying New York fast enough, and have used their powers to close both Yankee Stadium and Rent this fall.

I saw my all time favorite band, Steely Dan, two Friday nights in a row, and had my own Rerun/Doobie Brothers Bootleg moment when I nearly got kicked out for recording video of the show. Security pulled me outside and forced me to erase it in front of them. I managed to get some video the week before, though.

Last week, I caught an off-Broadway performance of "Some Americans Abroad". Two of my favorite actors were in this one. Tom Cavanagh and Anthony Rapp.

A play about professors and students on a literary tour of England. Uncomfortable silences and awkard moments galore made it hilarious. I saw a few of the actors hanging out after the show, but the biggest highlight was noticing Julie Bowen, who wasn't in the play, milling around. Tom Cavanagh and Julie Bowen are the leads in one of my all time favorite television shows, "Ed". Tom turned out to be an amazingly nice guy, very gracious and generous with his time. He introduced me to Julie who was also very nice. There are some people I like so much that I don't want to meet them, because I don't want to be disappointed in some way. I was even a little nervous for some reason, but there was nothing to worry about with these two.

At some point, while putting my arms around them, I was looking at Julie (for obvious reasons) and not paying attention to Tom. While lifting my arms, I poked him in the nose. Yep. The nicest guy in the world who I admire so much. I go and punch him in the face. That's me. This is why I don't have friends.

Anthony Rapp was also talkative and generous with his time. As a latter day Rent head, this was a thrill for me.

This summer, I also took some guitar lessons, learned about the Alexander Technique, wrote a few songs, mastered the ancient art of Ninjitsu, and mugged a hobo. Some of those may not have happened. Work keeps me incredibly busy, but I have been so laid back and content with things that I've been having a blast. Come on August! I can handle ya.

In my subconscious desire for the mental equivalent of comfort food, I've managed to settle on comfort television.  Although I'm still trying to stay away from TV, I've recently become hooked on the Bob Newhart show.  Not the one from the 80's where he and his wife ran a hotel in Vermont.  This is the 70's one where he was a Psychologist in Chicago.

God, I love the 70's.  I want to go there somehow.  I want to live in Chicago in the 70's.  I want orange and brown decor and dark wood paneling.  Things would be in color, but a little grainy and less vibrant.  I want to walk down the lightly trafficked streets in my trench coat and hat on an overcast day, carrying a briefcase while disco-ey music with lots of horns plays in the background.  This theme song of mine would be written by Lorenzo Music and his wife Henrietta. 

I'd hop on an above ground train, and arrive at my apartment with a balcony view of the city.  I definitely wouldn't mind if Suzanne Pleshette was there waiting for me, either.  My neighbor would be a bachelor airline pilot, and I'd work in an office with a wacky dentist and a receptionist who looks and sounds uncannily like Mrs. Krabappel.

My wardrobe would be furnished by Botany 500 and a cat in a circle would "Meow" at the end of it all.

There would be no mobile phones and no internet (available to the public), and yet, society somehow still functions.  No TiVos or even VCRs (in homes), no digital cable, no iPods, and no spell chek.  People use typewriters and listen to vinyl records and 8 track tapes.  The geeks are ham radio operators.  People would have wooden letters on their walls and bookshelves for no apparent reason.  Cars with power windows, remote control televisions, and answering machines are rarities, almost futuristic.  Everything is analog, and we like it!

Seriously, what is wrong with me?

When I was a kid, the television was my lifeline.  It was on every single moment I was home.  TV was a constant reminder that the world existed and that things were happening somewhere.  It was comforting.  Whenever there was dead air, I'd panic.  It would actually frighten me and I'd have to change channels quickly, regardless of what was on.  Part of that was probably because I was a latch-key kid and home alone alot.

As a 35 year old in 2007, I am exceedingly grateful to the Writers Guild of America for going on strike.  Not only because I'm behind them 100% for standing up for what they deserve, but also because I'm detoxing nicely from the tube.  I'm refusing to watch reruns or get behind any new shows, and because of that, I've caught up on both of my DVRs, some movies, podcasts and other things.  There's now time to research subjects that interest me more thoroughly, become more politically active, and basically do everything necessary in order to figure out my next step in life.

And I dare say, I now enjoy the silence.  It's addictive.  I've even started reading books again.  (Gasp!)

Part of me wants to leave that big shiny HD TV behind when I move.  Yep.  Okay, it's true, I actually do have a fever right now, but I think I'm of sound mind.  I think.

Here's an interesting article that actually touches on everything I just mentioned, and then some (like the suggestive hypnotic alpha state your brain enters when watching television)...

Keep shooting yourselves in the foot, corporate media.  Strike on WGA!  I have a life to live.

 

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Escapism - noun:   The tendency to escape from reality by indulging in daydreaming, fantasy, or entertainment.

Music hasn't really been working, so I've been watching movies.  I may have forgotten one or two, but in the last week, I've seen...

The Last Kiss - "You can't fail if you don't give up"

Scoop - "I see the glass as half full, but of poison"

Casino Royal - The one from 1967.  "I have a very low threshold of death. My doctor says I can't have bullets enter my body at any time".

Super Size Me - "Who do you want to see go first? You? Or them?"

Superbad - "I am McLovin"

Take The Money and Run - "After fifteen minutes I wanted to marry her, and after half an hour I completely gave up the idea of stealing her purse".

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - eh

What's Up Tiger Lily - "Nothing much to report... oh, somebody tried to shoot me during the opening credits".

This is Spinal Tap - "Well, it's one louder, isn't it?"

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry - "A ring is like a circle, it goes on forever. It's not like a triangle, triangle have corners. It's like a circle".

State and Main - Mamet is awesome.  "So, that happened".

25th Hour - Some of this was shot where I jog.  "Champagne for my real friends, and real pain for my sham friends" (originally a Francis Bacon quote.)

Beer League - "I was gonna surprise you by making your little plastic man on the cake a Derek Jeter action figure. But now? No. I'm making you one of those Puerto Ricans from the fucking Mets!" "Don't even joke like that, Gina!"

I suppose I could write a blog post to prove that I'm still around.  Things are okay.  I've strangely had a hard time getting into music.  I can't listen to some of my favorite stuff because too many memories are stirred up, and I'm just not up to discovering anything new right now.  I crave familiarity, but pretty much anything I've come to love in the past 10 years is out, for now.

This time of year reminds me of the White Album.  It's always been a cold weather record to me.  I remember being about 17 or 18 walking around Central Park alone, freezing and having to pee, listening to the White Album.  I've been listening to it again lately.  On second thought, it also reminds me of getting mugged.

Simon and Garfunkel remind me of early Autumn or late Spring.  Too late for that.

iTunes has made available an album I've been looking for for years.  I have a cassette of it, but it's never been released on CD, and my tape is a bit damaged.  It's a little known album by Graham Parker.  But that's a strictly summer album to me, so I can't really listen to it either.

Screw Holiday music.  I want to hear something that brings me down a bit.  Not necessarily depressing; Melancholy is the mood.  I need me some of that.  

Actually, I came home to the new Donald Fagen "Nightfly Trilogy" Box set in the mail today.  This could work.