too much information

I think I watch too many movies, and I think that dampens my enjoyment of the really good ones. I haven't been to the theater in a while, the last time being the screening of Eagle vs. Shark (complete with q & a with Taika Waititi and the leading lady) because every time I think of it, I guilt myself into "enjoying the weather" instead. Sometime that means sitting in my bedroom with my laptop, watching DVD's.

It's only fitting that Ingmar Bergman just passed away, as I've been watching a lot of movies from the Scannies these days. That's my own term, and I don't mean it to be insulting to my brethern from the Nordic region. I truly enjoy the time I've spent there. I just like the word Scannie.

So I can't give you actual reviews, I'll just give you some statements.

Together (AKA in Swedish: Tillsammans)
I gave this 4 out of 5 stars, just like I did the other two Lukas Moodysson films I've seen (I'm too scared by what I've read to see his most recent.) I don't know. Maybe I just like listening to Swedish. Maybe I just like the geeky teenage crush story. Or maybe I'm sentimental, and like watching these people build their own wacky family from what they've got.

Brothers
Danish - kind of shocking story how war forces two brothers to switch roles. I thought the acting (even the kids - loved the pancake scene) was pretty damn good, and if there's anything I like listening to more than Swedish, it's Danish.

I know, I know, "Danskerne taler med kartofler i munden." But I still think it's hot. Except when your PTSD is manifesting itself in the form of ripping apart your house and trying to kill your wife and kids, then it's as scary as English.

After the Wedding
I tried not to get nostalgic as father and daughter were sitting at one of the Tivoli Restaurants. What's this movie about. Choices, secrets, power, regret. Not sure why I liked it so much, but there's the Danish again. And every character was pretty flawed, so I guess that's kind of real.

The Secret Life of Words
I was loving the quiet quirkyness of life on the rig... just enjoying the movie for what it was and wondering what I could do to get a job cooking on one of those contraptions... then, when Hanna finally starts telling her story, they almost lost me. It was seeming so textbook for a while. But then I realized that what she was saying was so unimaginable, it's never going to seem real. I keep thinking about it, and it's been a few weeks, so it must have been good after all.

Summer in the City

It seems like there's something to do at every moment.

This morning: 12 mile run

Last night: Awkward (because I wasn't drinking in preparation for said run and didn't know most of the people very well) pre-wedding party for colleague.

Thursday night: Live taping of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me at Millennium Park, followed by dinner at an Armenian restaurant. (Just in case anyone's wondering, this sort of activity would probably meet my expectations for a "perfect date" but it wasn't a date, because there were three of us.)

Wednesday: Self-procalimed holiday of "Decemberists Day." Spent the morning slaving over a stove. Lunch with other hooky-playing friends at Glenn's Diner, followed by picnic and slightly rainy Decemberists show in Millennium Park. A great day, but I was too tired and irritated by the drunk people who weren't listening to the music to really enjoy the show as much as I wanted.

Before that I was in Denver. Tonight I think I might head over to one of Chicago's neighborhood festivals to check out the Redwalls and Poi Dog Pondering. Old and new(er) denizens of Chicago's rock scene? Tomorrow there's talk of going to someone's place to play with the Wii. I hear it's a good time.

three in one, netflix dvd reviews

fur
loved it. asking/answering the questions about how someone from a prim and proper background ends up documenting the seedy underbelly. the surreal lens, the colors, the fur, hair, sex, etc, were pretty awesome. I could barely stand to watch the shaving scene though. I don't even remember how I used to shave my legs.

gray matters
Piece of crap. Yes, people I know and like enjoyed it but well, I'm convinced that Heather Graham's character will stay single forever. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But see, she thinks it's because she's been chasing the wrong gender all her life... even though she thinks she gay now, she's still got the problem that she's fucking obnoxious.

slc punk
Well, I liked this. Though, I think there were probably a few anachronisms, and there was a clear lack of a plot, it was still a fun little essay of poser/punk coming of age in Salt Lake City. I was drawn to this after spending two weeks there on business recently. I like the actors though, and a did shed a tear when the one dude died.

Counting Backwards - Paris Je'taime and other stories

Every time lately that I listen to something, see a film, or read a book, I want to talk to someone about it. But then I seem to forget some of the most important parts in the telling. And I think, myabe I should write this down.

Maybe I should, and maybe I'll fill in this blog with the backlog in my head, but maybe I should just start with last night.

My office building was evacuated, and not knowing quite what to do withourselves on a Friday afternoon, some colleagues and I ended up at a bar. Did you know that beer is more expensive before 5:00 in evanston?
After 1,2, then 3, it was only 6:30, and and apparently time to see a movie.

We were some of the youngest people in the crowded theater, surrounded mostly by over-60 couples. A bunch of little stories about Paris, and it's hard to pick out my favorite. Tom Tykwer's catalog of memories flashing through a young man's head when he thinks he's being dumped was a favorite, as was mime's story, and the story of Ana, a young mother who sings the same lullaby to her own child with such warmth only to vacantly sing for someone else's as her job later. The moment she wakes up in the dark stands out to me, the blue cups and saucers for a dying's man's coffee date, and Nick Nolte telling his little grandson to shut up. It was pretty cool.

The last story though, of the letter carrier from Denver, eating a sandwich in the park was so awkwardly real to me too. Feeling lost, ending up eating chinese food when she wants to experience paris, wanting some one standing next to her to say "Isn't this beautiful?" to. I have this loneliness when I'm travelling alone. And it makes me sad, but would it really be better if there was someone with me, I don't know.

Anyway, it's worth seeing, whether you've been to Paris or not, but I imagined all these couples sitting in the dark, reminiscing about their romantic trips there in their younger days. I did remember my stroll by the eiffel tour with the Johnson sisters from Idaho, and my lonely hours wandering and getting lost, and finding comfort in a nutella banana crepe.

I would want to see how this is done with other cities too. These stories were more about people than places, so they really could happen anywhere. I didn't like the vampire bit very much, but even that had its moments.

And just like they say about Chicago, Denver, Boston, and probably even Paris, if you don't like the weather here, wait five minutes.

Welcome to my new blog.

How long will it last? Your guess is as good as mine. The title was inspired by the SNL sketch/video on sloths. in case you didn't hear the last line, the nature video was not entirely accurate.

Neither am I.

But I'm going to attempt to post some music, book, and film reviews. I'm going to attempt to not post a lot of personal information that I will regret, and then later delete.

In case you're wondering what happened to TronaPower, I decided that it was just a little too much information for me to be sharing with strangers. And WAY too much information to be sharing with family and colleagues.

In case you're wondering what happened to the stolenmusic project:

A) I got over it
B) I accidentally deleted all the postings while I was trying to clear out TronaPower.
C) Both of the Above

(The answer, like on many tests, is C.)