Stuff

Tom Waits - Misery is the River of the World

2007-04-02T03:12:00.000-07:00

This is an awesome video for the Tom Waits song "Misery is the River of the World." Enjoy.

Technorati Tags: Tom Waits, youtube, misery, music, music videos, animation

Big Love

2007-04-02T02:30:00.001-07:00

I just finished watching the first season of HBO's new show Big Love. It's definitely interesting, to say the least. It's a family drama, something that HBO is familiar with, but there is a pretty big twist in there -  this family has not one, but three wives. Here HBO has, again, pushed the boundaries and shown us something we don't normally see. It truly amazes me that they have managed to use a medium normally associated with, at best, mediocrity, and used it to it's full extent.

With Big Love, we are shown this family that is as messed up as other TV families, but thats it. Their problems are different, but they aren't depicted as any more or any less morally problematic than those of a traditional family. They aren't abusing their kids or forcing them to marry at a young age. They aren't even forcing them to plan on polygamy when they grow up. In fact, they are fighting the polygamists who do do those things. Instead of a diatribe against polygamy, the audience is given an interesting story with three-dimensional characters, who just happen to exist outside the normal American paradigm. While most will find their way of life deplorable in one way or another, it is very difficult to dislike the characters.

If you get a chance, I highly recommend this show, as well as any other HBO series you can get a hold of - I haven't found one I dislike yet.

Technorati Tags: HBO, cable, television, mormonism, mormons, polygamy, big love, chloe sevigny, bill paxton, jeanne tripplehorn, ginnifer goodwin

Even more Rasputin's stuff

2007-03-23T12:23:00.001-07:00

When did I become "anonymous?" My name is right there in the "about me" section on my blog! Several people have linked my Rasputin's noise, and they keep calling me anonymous. Not sure why, as they knew my name the first time

Anyway, let me clear up some things - the sign went up last night - currently its just a big banner covering the old tower letters, but that will probably change at some point.

The cash registers actually were up at one point, but were taken down so the counters could be rebuilt. They'll (hopefully) be put back up today.

The "metal cage thing" is for t-shirts, ala T-Shirt Orgy from Berkeley. This is definitely a good thing for Fresno, as we have a severe cool t-shirt store shortage - sure there's Hot Topic, but that's just The Gap for kids who like to wear black.

Blondie's probably isn't happening (I asked), but the store is supposed to get a cafe at some point.

Hope this satisfies some curiousity.

Technorati Tags: rasputin's, rasputin music, blondie's pizza, berkeley, t-shirts, fresno, movies, music

Further Rasputin's info

2007-03-22T23:10:00.001-07:00

So it looks like we will be opening Saturday, even if things aren't fully prepared. Doors will probably open at 10 or 11 am. I'm not really sure. We got the place looking a little bit closer to presentable today, but there's still quite a ways to go. If anything changes, I'll let you know.

Technorati Tags: rasputin music, rasputin's, fresno, tower records, cd's, dvd's

Feminism 101

2007-03-21T01:41:00.001-07:00

I found a blog whose whole purpose is to educate people about the basics of feminism. it seems to delve into both feminist cultural theory and real-world issues. You may want to take a look if the subject is of any interest. It gives a basic introduction to some of the issues that are dealt with by feminist activists in an easy-to-understand way. It also points to other places where further detail can be found about what ever issue is under discussion.

The writer seems mentally stable, and has a good sense of style, so it gets my seal of approval.

I also recommend Pandagon, which explores the same kind of issues and is often quite funny.

One of these days, such things as "feminism" will become obsolete because all women everywhere will be treated as if they are real people as well. Until that day, these kinds of sites should be required reading, especially for the friendly neighborhood chauvinist pig.

Technorati Tags: feminism, blogs, pandagon, feminism 101

Update on Rasputin Music in Fresno

2007-03-21T00:54:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned before, I used to work at Rasputin's in Berkeley, and ran into my former manager here in Fresno a few days before Tower Records closed down. Anyway, I just wanted to let anyone who cares know what's going on with that. I'm currently working there (hopefully not for too much longer) and we are supposed to open this Saturday (3/24/07). Personally, however, I wouldn't bet on it. I would call next Saturday a much more likely scenario.

Anyway, as Saturday nears, I'll post the goings on here.

Technorati Tags: Rasputin's, rasputin music, fresno, tower records, cd's, dvd's, movies, berkeley

Intelligent Design

2007-03-13T10:46:00.001-07:00

I found this picture on the Saint Gasoline webcomic/blog page.

Brilliant, if I do say so myself.

Technorati Tags: ID, intelligent design, atheism, creationism, evolution, stupidity, politics, religion, michael behe, darwin

Hugo Chavez vs George Bush

2007-03-11T00:24:00.001-08:00

Hugo Chavez and George Bush are currently making their rounds of Latin America, shoring up support and trying to look like good guys. Bush preaches the joys of foreign investment while Chavez talks of Socialism. The most interesting thing is that Chavez is promising more aid to the impoverished Bolivia than the leader of the richest country in the world. He talks of aid to the tune of $15 million, while Bush keeps it under $2 million.

I'm definitely not a fan of either man. However, despite misgivings, based on Chavez spending way too much on guns when he could be working on social projects, my opinion about a guy who's willing to help his neighbors, and offer a lot more then the guy in the big house down the road, is something that could alter its course.

Technorati Tags: Hugo Chavez, George Bush, USA, bolivia, venezuala, wto, world trade, nafta, gatt, socialism, capitalism, foreign aid

Atheism

2007-03-10T23:47:00.000-08:00

I recently listened to an audio book of Richard Dawkins The God Delusion. I've been an atheist for about two years now, ever since I took a class on Biological Anthropology, where I found out that everyone who ever told me that there is no evidence to support the theory of evolution was either lying or wrong.

Before reading this book though, I'd never heard anyone argue so adamantly for the non-existence of god or the veracity of evolution. I found the concept interesting, and the book engaging. Even before I became atheitized, I despised religion, mostly because of the misery and sheer stupidity it has wrought on the world. In Dawkins, I found someone else who felt the same way. For me, that is a bit strange, as even the few non-believers I know refuse to take a stance against belief.

However, I do find that Dawkins is a bit mean spirited at times, and I can't help but feel a bit awkward associating my own thoughts with his. But, quite possibly, I sound just as angry and cruel to those who don't share my views, and a few that do. It can be very irritating to be told that I'm being "culturally insensitive," when I talk about how I can't stand Christian beliefs and the silly rituals that go along with those beliefs.

Honestly, that may be true. But I was raised to believe that crap, and so I feel like I've earned the right to criticize and ridicule. They certainly have no problem returning the favor. In fact, they've badgered and brain washed so many people into believing this crap that they've completely tied up the American political system, and convinced 45% of the American population that the earth is less than 10,000 years old.

My point is this: sure, I may be kind of a jerk when I say that god isn't real and we evolved from vaguely ape-like beings and that you should just get over it, but I don't know how else to handle it. When someone tells me that "evolution is just a theory," or that we are "too complex to happen by chance," I want to punch them in their (easily) reducibly complex eye. I'm being kind by not doing so. Take that as a gesture of good will and deal with it.

Technorati Tags: science, scientifc theory, epistemology, intelligent design, atheism, evolution, natural selection, irreducible complexity, ID, IC, Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion, biology, biological anthropology, young earth creation, stupidity

Slobodan Milosevic: Vampire

2007-03-10T01:29:00.001-08:00

To some people, the feared dictator's death wasn't enough to keep him from harming anyone else. As it turns out, Milosevic is nosferatu! So, several Serbian vampire hunters went to his grave and hammered a three-foot stake into the dead dictator to prevent him from coming back to life and sampling the local vitae.

Now they're being sued by the tyrant's family for desecrating the grave. Sucks for them.

Technorati Tags: slobodan milosevic, death, vampires, serbia, dictator, tyrant, graves, tomb, stake

Sony PS3 Sixaxis controller might change.

2007-03-07T15:54:00.001-08:00

Sony has gotten a lot of crap over the Sixaxis controller. Apparently, the lack of force feedback is a huge deal to some people. Personally, I couldn't care less. If Sony wants to be vindictive about the whole lawsuit thing, thats on them. I, frankly, find force feedback rather annoying 90% of the time.

Anyway, according to PSXextreme, Sony is not adverse to new ideas on the issue. I haven't played the PS3 enough to pass judgement on the controller one way or the other, though I can say I like it a lot better then the stupid Wiimote.

Technorati Tags: playstation 3, playstation, sixaxis, force feedback, wii

It turns out there's an anarchist cowboy raving about gun control somewhere deep inside me.

2007-03-06T00:35:00.000-08:00

The Ninja/Knight/Cowboy/Pirate test said so. Whudda thunk?

a Man with No Name

You scored 8 Honor, 3 Justice, 8 Adventure, and 4 Individuality!

It's one thing to be a gunslinger. It's another to wander into town, leave nothing but a trail of those who'd try your skill and take the town's gratitude and cash with you. Hero or villan? It's all in how you look at it and whose side you're on.

Cigar in your teeth and colt on your hip, you are ready to step into the hazy desert horizon. You'll do just fine.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 99% on Ninjinuity
You scored higher than 99% on Knightlyness
You scored higher than 99% on Cowboiosity
You scored higher than 99% on Piratical Bent

Link: The Cowboy-Ninja-Pirate-Knight Test written by fluffy71 on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Pinocchio in Iraq

2007-03-03T13:41:00.001-08:00

While looking at Warren Ellis's blog, I came across a link to a site called subvertr. It is essentially like imagefap or flickr, but political. And with less porn. Anyway - this picture was labelled "The Iraqi War."

Here we have a literal puppet being driven by its master. It seems cynical, but there is some hope though - no matter how unlikely - because, in the end, Pinocchio did become a "real boy."

Anyway, I just found it interesting.

Invisible Bigfoots...feet...whatever

2007-03-03T00:50:00.001-08:00

According to this guy, Lawrence Livermore Labs has several "bigfoots" in captivity. In fact, in the 60's and 70's, it was fairly common knowledge in the East Bay that this was the case. The thing is, you can't see them! Why? Because they spend most of their time in the fourth dimension! Occasionally, they will come into our dimension as orbs, but they tend to be shy, I guess.

I was listening to Coast to Coast AM earlier as I was driving. There was a caller who claimed to have thrown away every single reflective thing in his house because he believes his reflection was going to kill him. It was pretty great, I must say. Anyway, I got home and I wanted to keep listening, so I went to the website. Unfortunately, you have to pay to actually listen, so I browsed the site a bit instead, which is how I found the bigfoot thing.

I really find this stuff entertaining. These people who talk to ghosts, and aliens, and invisible bigfeet amuse me. I just don't understand them though. Do they not find the real world interesting enough that they have to believe these things? Sure - the government probably does some experiments in Area-51, or some other facility, but chances are they have more to do with stealth technology then they do extra-dimensional beings. And, according to quantum foam theory, there really may be other dimensions, but that doesn't mean bigfoot goes traipsing from one to the other.

The world is a cool place. Just look outside. Walk around a bit. Talk to somebody who isn't in your head. Go to Japan or Bulgaria and see even more. You'll soon realize that you don't need invisible monsters to keep you interested.

Technorati Tags: paranormal, bigfoot, quantum foam, aliens, area 51, coast to coast, george noory, art bell, lawrence livermore, berkeley, east bay

No, I'm not dead. And milkshakes.

2007-03-02T00:16:00.001-08:00

As you may have noticed, I haven't posted anything for a while. I don't really know why, but its probably got something to do with having no idea what to write about. Which is kind of weird, because the world is really big and full of crap, a lot of it interesting, even to a bored, jaded, cynic like me. So, I guess I'm going to try and post stuff as often as possible, even if it's only a few random musings or a picture I ripped off of someone else or something.

Also, I'd like to tell you about a milkshake I made yesterday. It was awesome. You probably don't know this, but I love milkshakes they are about the best form of frozen, sweetened dairy product available. Anyway - this particular one was made of vanilla ice cream, strawberry yogurt, an over-ripe banana, and milk. It was pretty awesome. You should give it a try.

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Technorati Tags: nonsense, rant, bored, milkshake, milk shake, ice cream

Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth

2007-01-23T17:40:00.001-08:00

I just finished the game Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth on the PC, and I must say it is one of the most frustrating games I've ever played. Despite this, it does have one of the coolest stories I've ever seen in a game, and it is told with considerable skill. There are a lot of genuinely creepy moments that put Resident Evil and its ilk to shame, and the atmosphere is very immersive. The ending is also excellent.

The problem is that the game is marred by several design flaws and a slew of bugs. A crappy save system is the main problem and the end of the game is almost unbeatable because of one of these bugs. There is a wonderful, unofficial, "patch" available that fixes a few things and makes the game a lot easier. I only used it to get past the endgame bug I spoke of, as the patch makes you move faster, which is a big help as you are trying to escape an underwater city that is about to explode.

Using the patch may make the game too easy, as it also makes you do more damage and things like that. But, in all honesty, if I'd had the patch at the beginning, I'd probably not be writing about how frustrating the game is, but how awesome it is. So, get the patch, then play the game. If you don't get the patch, don't ever play it, because it will make you want to pull your hair out.

Technorati Tags: video games, PC games, computer games, call of cthulhu, cthulhu, bethesda, survival horror

Volver

2007-01-20T22:14:00.000-08:00

Volver is a dark-comedy gem from master auteur Pedro Almodovar. It deals with life, death, and family, (some of Almovodar's usual topics) in an intelligent and unusual way. Occasionally subtle, and occasionally not, Volver is an excellent, character-centric film.

The Spanish word "volver" translates to "return," or "revert." The film makes significant thematic use of the concept behind the word. The film begins with Raimunda (Penelope Cruz), her sister, Sole (Lola Duenas), and Raimunda's teenage daughter, Paula (Yohanna Cobo) visiting the grave of the older womens' mother in a small Spanish town. When they return home, events conspire to leave Paula fatherless, Raimunda with a restaurant, and, later, Sole with a live-in ghost. Terminal cancer and confused paternity also make guest appearances. The plot would be perfect for a daytime soap opera. But, under Almodovar's expert touch, character development takes priority while the plot's cliches find themselves undermined and modified to fit the writer-director's unique sense of humor. Events that would normally be hammed up on daytime TV find themselves played for laughs. Even with all the black comedy, the film retains significant emotional impact.

Penelope Cruz gives an excellent performance. That's not to disparage the rest of the film's acting, which is great all around, but Cruz's is worth mentioning, if only because the English-speaking part of her career has been less than stellar. In Volver, the audience can feel the stress and anxiety that lie beneath Raimunda's facade. She plays a character who pretends to be strong, but doesn't realize she doesn't need to pretend. Every level of that character is visible in Cruz's performance.

Volver's cinematic style is very playful. Almodovar seems to have opted for a kind of Classical Hollywood style, but he seems to purposefully overplay it. For example, several times the camera goes beyond the normal levels of the cinematic male gaze and the camera rests on a woman's body for an inordinate amount of time. Normally, the male gaze is found in the subtext of the editing and cinematography, but Almodovar seems to revel in it. It is almost as if he is purposefully putting things into his film for film students to write about. Ironically, Almodovar is gay, which provides further evidence that this emphasis on the female body as a sex object is filmic playfulness. Roger Ebert has also quoted him as saying "Yes I am a gay man, but I love breasts."

In conclusion, Volver is a cut above most other films out today. It uses what could be called a "trite" plot in a way that emphasizes character and manipulates that plot into a shape that is both affecting and comical. Both playful and serious, Volver is not to be missed.
pedro almodovar

Golden Globe Winners

2007-01-18T00:26:00.001-08:00

When the Golden Globe nominations were announced, I complained that this year lacked the excellence of last. While I wasn't quite wrong, I should have held out for those last few movies of the year before rendering my final judgment. This year did lack a Cache or Match Point, but it did have Children of Men and Pan's Labyrinth. However, the Hollywood Foreign Press seems to have failed to notice, so it seems my cynicism was justified, at least in part. I really don't understand how Babel, a great movie, don't get me wrong, could beat Children of Men, an even greater one.

Oh well. I guess awards really are meaningless after all. After last years Oscar win for Crash, I should have figured that out on my own.

Technorati Tags: movies, cinema, film, oscars, crash, golden globes, babel

Ten best movies of 2006

2007-01-18T00:18:00.001-08:00

I've been thinking about this quite a bit, and I think I've decided what I feel were the best movies of 2006.

1: Children of Men

2: Pan's Labyrinth

3: The Departed

4: Little Miss Sunshine

5: Science of Sleep

6: The Proposition

7: Volver

8: Stranger than Fiction

9: The Descent

10: Prestige

That "Almost made it" spot: Babel

I haven't seen Little Children or The Last King of Scotland, both of which could thoretically make the list, but I figured I'd make it without them.

Obviously, a lot of people are going to disagree with this list, especially the inclusion of The Descent, Science of Sleep, and The Prestige, none of which are getting much awards chatter. But I stand by the list.

Some of it was difficult to come up with. Especially choosing between Children of Men and Pan's Labyrinth, both of which are excellent movies.

I was a bit disappointed in Babel. It didn't have the emotional "oomph" Inarritu's work has had previously. However, I think re-watching it is in order to come up with a final verdict, because I went into it expecting the level of melodrama found in Amorres Perros and 21 Grams, but instead found a more emotionally distant, and possibly more mature, film.

I'll also mention that I was highly disappointed in Darren Aronofsky's The Fountain. I bring this up because I've been very excited about the film for a few years now, from back when it was announced as a three-hour epic with Brad Pitt and I anxiously awaited it making this list. But, alas, it is not nearly as good as it should have been and failed to make the cut.

Technorati Tags: movies, cinema, top ten, golden globes, oscars, awards, film, 2006

The Queen

2007-01-16T22:41:00.001-08:00

The Queen, or, more appropriately, How Tony Blair Saved the Monarchy, is an interesting look into the inner-workings of the British government and Royal Family in the week after the death of Princess Diana. The audience gains entry to the previously guarded Royal Family life and its interactions with Number 10 Downing Street. Dry humor, great acting, and an original premise make for an interesting, though not perfect, film.

The movie starts out with Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) winning the prime minister election and meeting the queen for the first time. Soon, the Royal Family receives word that Diana has died in a car accident and they soon find themselves in the midst of political turmoil. Blair finds himself thrust into the whole thing when the Family fails to agree on how things should be handled and the public begins to take notice. Blair finds himself working to keep the British people happy, while at the same time preventing Queen Elizabeth II (Helen Mirren) from committing political suicide in a new society that she doesn't understand, before he is even sworn in.

With The Queen, Stephen Frears does a great job of humanizing the UK politicos and royalty that make up the cast. Showing these people on the news or in print distances them from the normal people of the world. They seem like they are just pictures and words, speeches and policy. Most of the time, when powerful people are depicted on screen, the closest the filmmaker comes to showing them as real human beings is to depict them as bumbling idiots, ala American Dreamz. Frears takes a different tact. While he does depict Her Majesty's moments of indecision, stubbornness, and weakness, her moments of strength and the reasons behind that stubborn indecisiveness are also shown. She is shown doing things, such as breaking down in a car, that most people would never even associate with the Queen of England. Frears never insults his characters with the kind of one-sided characterization found in many films, and that is very refreshing.

Stylistically, the film is average. It relies very heavily on reaction shots and there are a few scenes where the cutting could have been slowed down. A lot of the cinematography is very good, especially the shots of the Balmoral Estate. Altogether, the cinematic technique is functional, but nothing to be beholden to. Simple Classical Hollywood Style doing its unobtrusive job. Obviously, Frears was only looking for utilitarian functionality, so complaining about it would be a little out of line.

The combination of wit, good writing, and interesting characters make The Queen a great entry in the Frears canon. However, it's not the kind of movie that is worthy of the praise it has received. It is a good film, but not magnificent. It occasionally drags and doesn't push very hard on the cinematic technique side. However, it is enjoyable and sheds a new light on this normally cloistered group, making it well worth the watch.

Apparently, everone in Ireland does coke

2007-01-11T00:44:00.001-08:00

A recent study found that 100% of the euro notes in Ireland have at least trace amounts of cocaine on them. Kind of funny, if you ask me. Which you didn't, but still.

Also, the use of meth brought in from eastern Europe has extremely high sulfate content, which comes out through the user's sweat and degrades the euro notes, causing them to become brittle and crumble.

I guess the message there is not to do drugs, because they'll make you poor.

Technorati Tags: drugs, euro, dollar, money, ireland, germany, cocaine, meth

Children of Men

2007-01-11T00:35:00.001-08:00

Alfonso Cuaron's Children of Men is the first science fiction masterpiece of the new century. It is a bleak meditation on violence and the human condition, and Cuaron's deft cinematic touch leaves the audience breathless in the film's wake.

A biology student once said, "The only thing unique to humans is their ability to create other humans." Children of Men deals with a world where even that is taken away. The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic near future. This isn't a quick, flash-and-everyone's-dead apocalypse. This apocalypse leaves humanity to crawl towards the inevitable end in the aftermath of an inexplicable loss of human female fertility. The entire future of human existence is limited to the lifespan of a single person

Theodore Faron (Clive Owen) and Julian Taylor (Julianne Moore) had a child at one point, but lost him to the flu pandemic that took place soon after the loss of fertility. Now, Julian is the idealistic leader of a revolutionary group seeking to bring equality to immigrants in England. Theo has given up his activist roots in exchange for cynicism, alcoholism, and a successful business career. During the course of the film, he finds that his idealism isn't completely gone, it was just in hiding, waiting to be used again. He has this opportunity when Julian asks him to help with humanity's single most important mission: to escort the first pregnant woman in eighteen years out of London and to safety.

While this may sound like a run-of-the-mill story, Cuaron is able to bend and stretch the material to his liking. Combined with excellent dialogue and memorable characters, the story takes on a life of its own. The film's refusal to explore the issue of why women are infertile is also quite interesting. Though a couple of explanations are offered, they are never explored. This suggests that this issue is beside the point. The story is not about how people got to their current condition, but what they do to escape that condition. The cause is irrelevant.

Though extremely bleak, their is also a lot of humor in Children. This helps lighten the mood and prevents the film from being too depressing to bare. At the same time, this humor makes the parts of the film that are bleak that much more so by contrast. This not only makes the movie more enjoyable to watch, but makes the narrative more complex. It has emotional valleys and peaks, which keeps the audience from getting worn out on one side of the spectrum or the other.

Cuaron obviously trusted his cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki, as the camera work is hardly touched by the editor's shears. Long takes are the norm, tracking the action and allowing every detail of every person or violent act to soak into the audience's psyche. Almost constant movement prevents the image from becoming dull. Though jerky, documentary-style cinematography is used, it isn't overdone to the point of cliche as it is in many movies that attempt to be "realistic." In Children, realism comes from the way this futuristic collapsed society is depicted. The majority of the population lives in squalor, while very few are able to do much better then that. Anger and hopelessness lead to violence becoming a part of everyday life. What makes this realistic is that, for many people, this is the way they live today, in 2007. For them, society has already collapsed.

When the credits roll, it is difficult to really leave Children of Men. It is, in a word, enthralling. The brutality of the cinematic text haunts the spectator, refusing to let go. The immediacy of each frame leaves a lasting impression. Finding a film that is capable of such a feat, without the emotionally manipulative chicanery many films employ, is something to be remembered. And Children of Men definitely shall.

Technorati Tags: children of men, clive owen, julianne moore, alfonso cuaron, movie, cinema, review, film, science fiction, oscars, golden globes

Perfume: the Story of a Murderer

2007-01-10T00:12:00.001-08:00

Perfume: the Story of a Murderer is the compelling, and creepy, tale of a man doomed from the day he was born. The film is directed with technical virtuosity and an extremely adept visual sensibility by Tom Tykwer. The story is bizarre, and, at times, tragic. However, the film suffers near the end when the story takes an almost nonsensical turn that reduces the film's visceral impact and fails to fit the rest of the story thematically.

Based on the novel by Patrick Suskind, Perfume tells the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Whishaw), a fictional 18th century Parisian perfumer, who is also the subject of the Nirvana song, The Scentless Apprentice. His life starts with a birth beneath a fishmonger's stall. Soon schlepped off to an orphanage, Jean-Baptiste realizes he has a uniquely superior sense of smell. Later apprenticed to perfumer Giusseppe Baldini (Dustin Hoffman), Grenouille begins to explore a darker side of perfume making in his attempts to create the perfect smell.

Dealing with personal alienation and serial murder is rarely a "fun" thing in any medium. But, somehow, Tykwer manages to tell the story in a surprisingly watchable fashion. The world is treated with a certain sense of humor, and even death is shown in a comical light, from time to time. Rather than creating a morose, dark film, Tykwer balances sheer creepiness and dark comedy that makes the film enjoyable, without turning it into a farce. Another interesting point is that the film never judges Grenuille. The townspeople definitely do, and their judgment is harsh, but that appraisal stays within the narrative of the film. In fact, a narrator is used to tell the majority of the story. This technique helps to distance the spectator from the main character, giving the spectator enough space that he or she can withhold their verdict, allowing them to enjoy the movie, as a hated main character tends to make any film less fun to watch. However, purposefully preventing the audience from identifying with the main character is a double-edged sword. Doing so requires the character to remain somewhat undeveloped, and an underdeveloped main character is never a good thing, as it leaves the audience without any sense of the character's motivation. Even the antagonist in a good story requires some kind of explanation of their motives, otherwise the spectator is left wandering "why?" throughout the entire film.

Visually, Perfume is a feast for the senses. It would be the perfect film to showcase Hans Laube's Smell-o-Vision, (or John Water's Odorama, for that matter) but even without such a gimmick, the film is able to showcase the sense of smell beautifully. Tykwer and DP Frank Griebe use extreme close-ups as a stand-in for Jean-Baptiste's exceptional sense of smell, and it works extremely well. Combined with Alexander Berner's exceptional editing, every rotting fish and beautiful woman almost feel as if they are in the audience under Griebe's wide-open lens.

In the end, Perfume: the Story of a Murderer is a well told story that spends most of the time being a story worth telling. It deals with its main character's emotional alienation in an amusing way. It only fails in not fully developing its characters and having an ending that is borderline inexplicable. Other than those faults, it is a very easy film to recommend to anyone who doesn't mind a bit of macabre humor or a character that is certifiably psychotic.

Technorati Tags:Tom Tykwer Tom Tykwer, perfume, murder, patrick, suskind, dustin, hoffman, ben, whishaw, nirvana, serial, killer, grenouille, film, cinema, review, movie

Super Parrot

2007-01-08T23:50:00.001-08:00

There is a parrot in New York who has developed a vocabulary of over 950 words. Beyond that, he has a sense of humor, and likes to make up words when he doesn't know one to fit the situation.

I wonder if this is something every African Grey is capable of, or if this is an exceptionally intelligent bird. Either way, it is quite interesting, especially considering that humor is something that requires a rather high level of mental development.

Technorati Tags: parrot, parrots, birds, african grey, intelligence, humor, animals, language

Video game save systems

2007-01-07T15:22:00.001-08:00

At some point while playing any video game, the game will need to be saved. The player has to exist, for a little while at least, outside of the game world. Beyond that, it would really suck to start a game over from the beginning every time the player's digital avatar met its pixelated demise. So, game developers have to implement some kind of system so that the player's progress can be saved.

Most games allow the player to save at any point, usually by simply hitting "F6" or the like. Thats fine. What is a problem is when the developers allow the player to save only at some specific point in the game, such as between "scenes" or at a save point indicated by some silly in-game item, such as a computer, or glowing blue ball. That is silly. Saving is not realistic. It never will be realistic. So, why put the save process into the diegesis? It doesn't belong, so don't pretend it does.

When the game can be saved at any point, the player can save just before the difficult battle occurs. So, when that part has to be repeated a few times, its no big deal, as the player doesn't have to waste time before trying the hard part again. However, when the game only allows you to save every now and again, the player often has to repeat the same minute long walking-towards-the-battle sequence, or the same conversation, or even a ten-minute long cutscene, that, while great the first time, starts to really annoy by the third time through.

What is really amazing about the whole thing is that almost every review for a game that only allows saving at specific moments complains about how the arbitrary save point system sucks, but developers don't seem to care. It's doubtful that changing the save system to be more forgiving would alter the sales of a game, so why not do so? Or, maybe give the player the choice at the beginning of the game? What a novel idea.

Technorati Tags: video games, saving, game development, computer, nintendo, ps2, ps3, xbox

Pan's Labyrinth

2007-01-05T14:12:00.001-08:00

Guillermo del Toro's new film, El Laberinto del Fauno is a fantasy masterpiece that has the tenacity to deal with several subjects at once, without ever missing a beat. On the one hand, the story concerns a group of Spanish guerrillas during the early days of Franco's regime. On the other, the story is about a young girl, Ofelia (Ivana Baquero), who finds herself thrust into both a guerrilla war, and the royal political dealings of an underground kingdom, of which she is, apparently, the princess.

Ofelia serves as the main character in the fantasy side of the film, but is merely a supporting character in the other half. Her step-father, a captain in the Fascist army (Sergi Lopez), and Mercedes (Maribel Verdu), the Captain's maid and a member of the Resistance take the positions of main character in the "real-world" story. It is never clear if Ofelia's fantasy world is real or imagined. Being relegated to the position of a supporting character in the "real world" could be what lead her to create the underground kingdom and its denizens.

Throughout the film, the real world is depicted as a depressing, bleak place where terrible people are allowed to do terrible things, despite the best efforts of the people who are not terrible. However, hope and a willingness to struggle are shown to often be enough to make life bearable. Ofelia's fantasy realm is thematically different than that of imagined worlds found in many other movies. Normally, these fantasy realms, such as that in Jim Henson's Labyrinth,

are places that the character goes for a while, learns a life lesson, and returns, ready to face reality. In Pan's Labyrinth, the sheer brutality of the "real world" makes that impossible. The typical "normality - complicating action - escape to fantasy world - resolution - return to normality" plot structure doesn't work in mid-40's Spain, as the real world is much worse then the fantasy one. Instead, the two worlds slowly merge into each other, at least in Ofelia's mind. Things , such as mythical roots, from the fantasy world begin to carry over into the real one. This new take on the fantasy world plot is part of what makes El Laberinto

such an excellent film.

Maribel Verdu and Ivana Baguero both give excellent performances as Mercedes and Ofelia. All of the acting in the film is exceptional, but these two stood out in my mind as worthy of recognition. They both seem to grasp the inner workings of their characters and consistently show these inner workings to the camera.

Stylistically, the film is excellent as well. Generally, I deride movies that use high-contrast film stock because they tend to look like car commercials or Matrix rip-offs. The style tends to read as highly derivative. However, del Toro and cinematographer Guillermo Navarro seem to have known exactly what they were doing in choosing the film stock as it looks excellent and highlights the mood of the film. The editing is very interesting as well, using numerous visual match cuts to move the action from setting to setting.

Del Toro obviously went through a lot of effort to make this movie look exactly the way he wanted, and the final product looks great because of it. Special effects-wise, it is one of the best looking films I've ever seen. Despite having a budget much smaller than a typical Hollywood SFX movie, Pan's Labyrinth is able to use its minimal CGI and amazing costumes and sets in a way that leaves the spectator concentrating on the film, not the nifty explosions. The effects are subservient to the film, rather than the other way around.

Overall, El Laberinto del Fauno is an excellent example of what a fantasy movie can be, but rarely is. The film deals with complex themes, but never moves into the realm of the didactic. In addition to that, the excellent acting and a firm directorial hand make this, easily, one of the best films of 2006.

Technorati Tags: movie review, Pan's Labyrinth, El Laberinto del Fauno, Guillermo del toro, cinema, movies, franco, spain, 1944, guerrilla warfare, fascism

Console Wars

2007-01-01T14:13:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years, the videogame console market has been in a constant state of warfare as Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony vie for dominance. Sony has always dominated, with a 62% market share in 2003, and about the same, as of mid 2006. However, Microsoft is poised to take about a 15% piece of that pie before 2011. Analysts predict Sony will remain king, with Microsoft a close second. Nintendo will be left in the dust with a mere 16%. Of course, these predictions were made before the ridiculous PS3 shortages, so the numbers will probably change some. However, these shortages will probably not be enough to really alter the gap between Nintendo and its competitors.

Come next generation, Nintendo is going to have to really step things up if they want to remain competitive. Using last years technology and adding a motion sensitive "Wiimote" as a gimmick doesn't make for a great system. Hyping up revolutionary gameplay that isn't doesn't make for a happy fanbase. Despite the current 55% market share for Nintendo (this includes handhelds, where Nintendo is the definite winner), there is a good chance that their sales have already peaked. As PS3's become available, Sony will slowly, but surely, take back their share of the market.

The Hudsucker Proxy

2006-12-27T00:40:00.001-08:00

The Hudsucker Proxy is one of the Coen Brothers' minor entries in the pure comedy genre. It is by no means terrible, in fact, it is very funny, but compared to most of their remaining oeuvre, it lacks something. It is able to keep the laughs moving, but they come a little cheaper then usual.

The story concerns Norville Barnes (Tim Robbins), a recent college
graduate, who inadvertently winds up as CEO for a giant
corporation after the untimely demise of the company's founder. Barnes
is given the position by the former CEO's right-hand man, Sidney J.
Mussburger (Paul Newman) to scare the stock market so that the
company's stocks will come down in value enough that the board can buy
a controlling share before the public is able to. Jennifer Jason Leigh
plays Amy Archer, a Pulitzer winning journalist who falls for Barnes
after labeling him an idiot in her paper.

The Hudsucker Proxy is a play on the screwball comedy movies of the late thirties to early fifties. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington especially comes to mind. The idea seems to be that Proxy is a send-up of the screwball genres. The typically eccentric characters and borderline ridiculous situations are pushed a little bit further then usual. However, the movie seems to actually be a screwball comedy, albeit with a bit higher octane fuel then normal. It fails to really push the genre over the edge.

The characters are amusing, but two-dimensional. Barnes is intelligent, but naive. Archer is the typical movie reporter - always sarcastic, always unwilling to make real inter-personal contact. Mussburger is the vile company man whose eye never leaves the bottom line. They don't make for very interesting characters, but as caricatures, which is what a comic farce needs at times, they do their jobs adequately.

Stylistically, the film is a typical Coen Brothers postmodern mish-mash of a particular film era, this time the forties. The snappy dialogue, naive protagonist, and cynical, worldly leading lady are obvious throwbacks. The Coens have definitely done their research and make perfect use of the various era-specific devices, including Citizen Kane-esque over-the-top visuals. This filmic playfulness adds a lot to the comedy, at least for someone who is aware of film conventions in the black-and-white days.

That leads to one of the films biggest accomplishments- while Proxy is replete with elements that only a certified film buff could immediately grasp, it is very accessible to modern audiences who aren't aware of what is going on between the lines. The dialogue, story, characters, and situations are funny in themselves, but the references to film history make the text richer for those with some knowledge of cinematic history (at least those who aren't repelled by the mile-wide postmodern streak).

Overall, this is a very funny movie, but it can't match the bizarre humor found in other Coen films such as Raising Arizona, or The Big Lebowski. By sticking too close to the material to which they make homage, they may have fallen short. Making a screwball comedy is not the same as making a satire of screwball comedies. The film maker siblings didn't drop the hula hoop completely, they just couldn't keep the pace up to their usual level.

Technorati Tags: movie review, coen brothers, hudsucker proxy, tim robbins, paul newman, jennifer jason leigh, screwball, movies, movie, film, cinema, review

The fine art of Shark Jumping

2006-12-24T03:49:00.001-08:00

"Jumping the shark" refers to that point in a TV series where everything just goes south. Remember the final season of the X-Files when Mulder was replaced by that other guy? Or on Enterprise when they went back in time and found Nazi aliens? Both of those are definitely shark-jumping points. Usually shark jumping involves the show's creators coming up with a bunch of really dumb ideas to try and reinvigorate a series, or they just come up with a bunch of ideas so bad that no one has ever tried them before. Turns out, the phrase comes from an episode of Happy Days where Fonzie literally jumped over a shark on water skies.

What brought this whole issue to mind was the last episode of Sleeper Cell's second season. Sleeper Cell is a TV show on Showtime about a FBI officer, Darwyn Al-Hakiem who infiltrates an Islamic fundamentalist terrorist cell. What is really great about this show is that the main character is, himself, a Muslim. The entire issue is dealt with in a much more mature fashion than anything Fox News would try to foist on the viewing public. The differences between true Islam and that of the terrorists are shown in detail. The reasons why terrorists become so hateful are explored as well, to a much deeper degree then "they hate our freedoms."

Then, after spending two seasons explaining how true Muslims don't target innocents, and don't go after revenge, Darwyn loses it, convinces the CIA to fly him to London, where he masquerades as a mujahadin, convinces the villain's wife to go with him, flies to Yemen, surreptitiously puts a GPS tagged satellite phone in her bag, gets brought to the villain's camp, where the tagged phone becomes the homing beacon for a missile. A homing beacon that the villain's wife is carrying. As if that weren't enough, Darwyn and his arch-nemesis then have a Rambo-esque shootout, leaving Darwyn with a few bullet holes.

Ridiculous. Not only was this whole segment stupid and over-the-top, it completely changed a) the show's entire storytelling dynamic, and b) the personality of the main character. I really don't understand how the creators could have lost touch like that. Sure the second season was a little lackluster compared to the first, but that's mainly because the first did such a good job exploring its themes that a second was unnecessary.

One day, all television and movie producers will learn that making things not suck is a really good idea.

Honestly though, that's probably wishing for a bit too much, even if it is Christmas Eve.

Technorati Tags: tv, television, sleeper cell, islam, muslims, happy days, fonzie, jumping the shark, terrorism

Grindhouse

2006-12-22T16:44:00.000-08:00

There are a couple of trailers up now for the new movie(s), Grindhouse from Quentin Tarantino & Robert Rodriguez. This is an interesting concept they're trying out. The whole thing is that they are each making a feature length movie, but the two will be shown back-to-back. Very strange, indeed.

The two movies are very much in the vein of the old "grindhouse" movies. Grindhouse is an exploitation genre, generally focusing on sex. A lot of them were porn movies masquerading as documentaries about nudists and such. QT & RR's Grindhouse will probably have lots of sex, but it looks like the main focus is going to be schlocky horror-action, a la From Dusk 'til Dawn.

That leads me to my one problem with the whole thing. While I love Tarantino as much as the next person, and Robert Rodriguez is pretty cool, too, I worry that they may not be able to really give us something all that different from what they've already done. Tarantino's Kill Bill already used up the exploitation genre's post-modern, inter-textual reference quota. From Dusk 'til Dawn did the whole action-horror B movie thing as well as it can be done. What more do they really have to offer us?

I guess I should just have a little faith. Tarantino hasn't delivered a truly bad movie thus far, so why would he now? Plus, there's a girl with a machine gun for a leg. How can that possibly be anything less then awesome?

I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Trailers:

Technorati Tags: grindhouse, grind house, quentin, tarantino, robert, rodriguez, rose, mcgowan, sex, violence, movies, trailers, film, planet terror, death proof

Thirteen Moons by Charles Frazier

2006-12-20T01:56:00.001-08:00

When I read Cold Mountain a few years ago, I was awed by the imagery,

haracters, and the way that the story unfolded. The writing was superb; without being overly verbose, Frazier was able to wring out every last detail from a scene.

His second book (after a decade long hiatus), is a similar sort of thing, but not as masterfully rought. The story concerns the extraordinary life of Will Cooper. Adopted by a Native American chief at a young age, he heads down the river of life, working his way through the rapids of politics, war, and many other, more amorous, pursuits. All the while, he is stuck on one thing: a girl he won at cards named Claire. She flits in and out of his life, but he is never able to hold on to her for very long.

Thirteen Moons deals heavily with loss. The Native Americans lose their land, Will his life's love. Frazier depicts this life as unavoidable. Will tries everything to save the land for his adoptive Nation, but has some trouble holding on to it. The intruding white colonialism, with all of its high-and-mighty God-said-so, does what it takes to consume. The victims of this intrusion are rendered impotent when the U.S. lays claim to land that doesn't rightly belong to them. Only through sheer force of will and a lot of luck is any of the land saved. The theft of the Natives homeland is unavoidable, because those who are making the rules do so thanks to the inalienable rights that gunpowder brings.

The relationship between Will and Claire is interesting. Will wins Claire in a card game, but is never really able to lay claim to her. She refuses to let him keep her. Though he never uses his winning as a reason for her to stay with him, he seems to think about it fairly regularly. However, he can't bring himself to claim her as winnings, as it would cheapen her. She would become an object, and he has no interest in owning her. He wants her to be a part of his life of her own accord. This means she would have to detach herself from her husband who, in some ways, is willing to treat her as an object. For a long time, he leaves her on the shelf. Then, when he finally finds the need for her, he takes her off and puts her to use. At many times, it seems as though she makes the long-term decisions for herself and that she could leave to be with Will at any time, but really the fact is that she deferrers all her decisions, in regards to how she will spend her life, to her husband.

Will Cooper himself narrates as if he is writing his autobiography. He does so with a lot of wit and a good mixture of self-congratulation and self-debasement. He claims not to remember a lot of things, owing to their distance in the past, but is quite able to recall the exact smell from a particular river bank on a particular day, so it isn't clear if his claiming to have a faulty memory is reliable.

This book is very episodic, which sometimes leaves it a bit disjointed. It has the feeling of being Will's journal, a medium which often gives rise to rambling tangents. This can be a good device to add the wanted mood to the story, but it seems to occasionally leave important parts of the story untold, or fails to blend to disparate sections together in a way that shows why these two particular portions are juxtaposed.

Overall, the book is very good, but not as impressive as Cold Mountain. It is funnier and easier to read, but it doesn't exude the same level of emotion or provide the same kind of attachment to the characters and setting. Of course, it isn't very fair to constantly compare Thirteen Moons' performance to that of its predecessor, as their are many, many other books in the world which can't even attempt to reach the heights that Thirteen Moons has.

3.75/5

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Technorati Tags: books, book review, thirteen moons, cold mountain, charles frazier, civil war, native americans, indians, will cooper, cherokee, the south

Indian athlete fails "gender test"

2006-12-18T02:29:00.001-08:00

At the recent Asian Gamers athletics competition, an Indian woman won a silver medal in a track race. Everything normal so far. Then they subject her to a "gender test," and she fails. I don't really understand what constitutes a "gender test," and I have great difficulty with the nomenclature, which is why I keep surrounding it in quotes. What's really weird is that this same woman passed this test last year. So, what happened? She grew a penis since last year? I'm a little confused.

Golden Globes

2006-12-17T18:42:00.000-08:00

Lets take a moment to examine the Golden Globe nominations, shall we?
For starters, 2006 has been a rather weak year for American cinema in general. Nothing (thus far- my hopes are high for Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth, however) has really stood out in my mind the way Woody Allen's Match Point, or Michael Haneke's Cache did last year. Both of those are exceptionally well-made films that dove deep into the various themes they took on.

Nothing this year has really succeeded, in my mind, the way those and a few other films did last year. The Departed is a great movie. Brick is pretty awesome. The Proposition and The Prestige were both very interesting. Babel, though a little disappointing, was more-or-less sound.

Anyway - here are some of the nominees and my opinion about the particular category

Best Picture - drama:

BABEL
BOBBY
THE DEPARTED
LITTLE CHILDREN
THE QUEEN
I'd like The Departed to win, personally, but I've only seen that and Babel so far. The reviews for Bobby have been a little lackluster, so I'm not really sure what's going on there.

Best Picture - comedy:

BORAT: CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
DREAMGIRLS
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
THANK YOU FOR SMOKING

I've seen all except Dreamgirls and The Devil Wears Prada in this category. Borat is a definite surprise here. It's a pretty funny movie, but not really the kind of stuff awards are made from. I'd like Little Miss Sunshine to win, I think. It is one of the few notable comedies this year. Missing from this category, I think, is Michel Gondry's The Science of Sleep. It is quite the exceptional film and deserves some recognition. Gondry's career has made him kind of a wunderkind, so I'm sure at least one of his future efforts will make the award show cut.

There's another strange nomination further down the list; Running With Scissors is one of the worst reviewed movies of this year, but pulled a "Best Actress- Comedy" nomination for Annette Bening. I suppose acting can be good despite a bad flick, but it's a little surprising.

Leonardo DiCapprio and Clint Eastwood are both competing against themselves, which is kind of different as well.

Other then that, everythings more or less normal. I'm a little sad about the whole thing, but with a year like this has been, I guess the nominations can't be helped.

First post, and some comments about Fresno

2006-12-16T03:08:00.001-08:00

Having used MySpace for a good while now, I've decided I'm not overly fond of the blogging interface. I also decided that I wanted to feel special. So, now I have my own website, sort of. I suppose that makes me just a little bit special. Considering it is free and all, I guess I'm not that special, but still.

Probably, this will more or less be like my MySpace blog, with me writing random crap occasionally and amusing/irritating a few choice people. In other words, it will be like most people's blogs, except for one key difference: I can spell. I also know not to talk in the passive tense, and I have a keen sense of hyphen usage. Plus, my vocabulary is fairly extensive.

Anyway -

As many people know, and a few others are starting to realize, Fresno is a pretty lame place. However, in the past 24 hours, It's coolness went up ten-fold. A new movie theater opened. This theater, the Criterion Cinemas 16, is operated by North American Cinemas. They have promised to reserve three (I think thats the number anyway. It's a nice number.) theaters for movies made outside of the Hollywood Studio machine. That is exciting news. What is also exciting about that is I never have to go to another Regal-operated theater again. That is fantastic. Regal has had a literal monopoly on Fresno theaters for two or three years. I'm happy to say that the movies they think I should be watching are no longer the only movies playing in town.

That accounts for only part of my increased respect for this hell-hole.

Tower Records went bankrupt last year. They have been slowly sliding into retail oblivion since then. That is good news- while the store may have had a 8/10 when it comes to selection, their prices left something to be desired. Everything was sold at MSRP. That is ridiculous. In the era of eCommerce, nothing should be sold at MSRP. It just isn't competitive. So now Tower Records is leaving us for good.

Thats not the good news. The good news is that it is to be replaced by something much, much cooler - Fresno's very own Rasputin Music. I used to work at the Berkeley store, and I can assure you, Rasputin's is orders-of-magnitude cooler then Tower Records ever was beating even the Tokyo Tower Records (the biggest record store in the world). Their prices are competitive with places like Best Buy, and they tend to have a much better used section, (though I won't promise miracles in that regard as they'll be limited to stock brought in from Fresno...ites). Selection wise, they easily defeat even the best stocked Tower Records. 9/10 there. They miss that crucial last point as they don't always order enough copies for the street date.

I found this out when I went to Tower today to pick over the corpse. Actually, my manager from the Berkeley store was there going through some stuff, so I talked to him for a bit. They should be opening around the end of February, so I look forward to that whole heartedly.

Technorati Tags: rasputin, tower records, fresno, new blog