You know, I hate poetry. I really do. If I could abolish one aspect of the literary world, that would be it. Contrariwise, yeterday I was eating lunch with three friends and one of them was hating on poetry, basically because she was forced to read it in middle school.

Normally I would've been like "yeah, fuck poetry!" It was uncanny... I felt some deep inner urge and obligation as an English major to defend poetry, despite agreeing with the fact that it sucked.

That was the main reason, at least. However, anyone who really knows me is aware that I often like to play Devil's advocate (when possible), and I like to be difficult and argumentative.

In other news...

I've taken up writing this story for one of my classes in a Hemingway style. I started writing it, but I just started writing whatever came to mind in random order, so instead of minimalistic and below-the-surface writing I got cynical first person commentary on college life from the perspective of a sick kid. I think I'm going to just tear it up and start over.

Well, and I don't want to fail.

Like John Hersey said: "To be a writer is to throw away a great deal, not to be satisfied, to type again, and then again and once more, and over and over." Or, Hemingway: "The first draft of anything is shit."

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Know what's cruel? Well, I'll answer that in a minute.

I love Seinfeld. That show definitely ranks up there in terms of comedy. Probably even my number one pick. Pure genius.

I also love Sex and the City. I've probably seen every episode. Same with Seinfeld.

Now, it was about 1:20 and Alli messaged me saying to put on channel 8, and it was the SatC series finale. Now anyone who knows SatC, or TV in general, knows that the series finale (in most cases) was split into two parts. This was part 1, which isn't bad. I'm watching it, getting all happy since I haven't seen it in a while, and it ends at 1:30. I'm waiting for part 2 to come on, and what do I see? Jerry Seinfeld doing stand-up.

This was the first time I was ever depressed to see Seinfeld come on TV. F you WB and your inconsiderate scheduling.

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The Squid and the Whale IMDb

After hearing some good buzz I finally got around to seeing Noah Baumbach's latest - "The Squid and the Whale." The film is about two boys dealing with their parents' divorce in Brooklyn back in the 80's.

The basic idea of the movie is about one of the kids, Walt (who is 16 I believe, played by Jesse Eisenberg), who takes everything his father says to heart, and the other kid, Frank (~10), who sides with his mother through everything. While there are certainly moments of comedy in this movie, it generally sticks more to providing moral lessons, like how it's alright to steal from your father's ideas (provided you use it right, i.e. calling The Metamorphosis "Kafkaesque" will make you look like an idiot), but stealing from Pink Floyd is... well, may not the best idea for a talent show.

I liked this movie a lot because both Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney play characters with Ph.D.'s in English so I could take note and either agree/disagree with their stance on some of the works they discuss. Well, plus they're both great actors and make the movie quite enjoyable.

So the movie is just over 80 minutes, which makes it a speedy watch, and the time flies by and it almost seems like it's over too quickly. The movie has its up and down moments, but overall is a pleasure to view.

Who should see this movie: Whoever can get their hands on a copy of it
Rating: 8/10

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I like to think I'm a somewhat reasonable person, so if I'm in class and your phone goes off I'll just shrug it off after being a little bit annoyed. However, there's this girl who is in two of my classes (on the same day: Tues/Thurs mornings and afternoons) and she just can't seem to grasp the concept of silencing her phone.

Tuesday afternoon in my Lit Theories class her phone went off. Sure, it was 'Afternoon Delight' for her ringtone, but it was obnoxiously loud and annoying. Then next Thursday in my first class, the same ringtone went off - same girl. Ok. Then later that day in Theories of Lit again, in the middle of class, 'Afternoon Delight' goes off, completely interupting the lecture.

Some people need to learn to not be inconsiderate assholes and take advantage of the amazing technological innovation where your phone can vibrate when you have a call instead of forcing everyone to listen to your horrendous ringtone.

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Know what's lame? Even though I do two spaces after punctuation marks Blogger changes it to just one. Pretty annoying - now I know what Russell meant months and months ago when he told me this small detail.

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The last few days I was staying with my friend in Pensacola (and had a good time), but now I am back and we shall return to regularly scheduled programming.

I bought a sweet Sex Pistols poster, and also acquired a 'The Weatherman' poster from David, so those will make good additions to my wall. Also I'll be back in Orlando tomorrow, meaning the Earth can go back to spinning.

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A few more movie reviews because my life has been a bit dull these last few days and all I've been doing is watching movies. I'm too lazy to link to IMDb so do it yourself.

Magnolia

Oh P.T. Anderson, how I love thee. Except when you make movies longer than they should be. Three hours for this flick is quite a lot to take in. However, the writing is solid and I really enjoy this movie. Philip Seymour Hoffman has a solid performance, as well as some of Tom Cruise's best. I don't like Julianna Moore, so meh to her.

The one thing I love about this movie is the ending. It's just so... brilliant. It's a deus ex machina, but the movie acknowledges it, which makes it so brilliant. I wish I would've thought of it first.

Who should see this movie: People with patience
Rating: 7.5/10

Fever Pitch

So this was lying around on DVD and I popped it in waiting for Clueless to come on Comedy Central. I was pleasantly surprised by Jimmy Fallon's performance. After Taxi (which I refused to see), I lost faith in his movie roles, but he was cute in this role (I'm not gay, I swear). Drew Barrymore wasn't bad either.

I'm all about baseball so this movie was great for me. I'm also all about the Red Sox, so double winner. This was a solid feel-good movie, though the ending was a bit too corney for me (they always are?), definitely worth the viewing time and I'd see it again.

Who should see this movie: Baseball/Boston fans
Rating: 6.5/10

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So it's spring break, and you know what that means! Lots of movies, lots of writing, and lots of reading (by me, I don't think anyone actually reads what I write). Here's some quick movie reviews, some new, some old(er), in a rundown from best-to-worst.

L.A. Confidential IMDb

This has to be one of, if not the best Thriller/Mystery/Drama movies in the last decade, and maybe of all time. A shooting in a diner twines the events tailed by three cops (amazingly played by Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, and Russell Crowe) as they try to solve the situation, which of course goes much deeper than surface level.

This movie weighs in at about 2 hours and 15 minutes, and oh how the time does fly by. There's not a dull moment in this script, and Curtis Hanson tells the story perfectly.

Who should see this movie: Everbody
Rating: 9.5/10

Gosford Park IMDb

To put it right up front, this movie takes commitment to watch and if you're not into it, it's easy to fall asleep. A huge cast of characters, almost all of them being important to the plot, drive this movie up the charts. Great directing by Robert Altman.

This movie isn't without flaws, but what makes it so good is that the screenplay - to put it bluntly - is quite possibly perfect. The plot paces just right, the character development is fantastic, the ending is superb, and I love it.

Who should see this movie: People with patience and who don't fall asleep easily
Rating: 8/10

Adaptation. IMDb

Charlie Kaufman's pre-Eternal Sunshine work, and seemingly semi-autobiographical, himself being played by Nic Cage. This movie is a bit hard to watch at times, simply because it seems so random - but that's its thing. For the most part it works.

I love Meryl Streep, and her performance was outstanding as usual. Chris Cooper has an Oscar-winning performance (though I didn't particularly like him). Nic Cage, while he looks a bit shabby, does a great job too. I like this film because it shows what writing it really like, and tries to be a movie is principles, but doesn't push them too hard.

Who should see this movie: Charlie Kaufman fans, movie dorks, and aspiring writers
Rating: 7.5/10

16 Blocks IMDb

I saw this new Bruce Willis/Mos Def flick simply because there was nothing better out, and I was pleasantly surprised with the flick. Go to IMDb if you want a summary.

I don't like Mos Def or Bruce Willis, but both deliver great performances in this fast-paced action/thriller. There were a couple weak moments (mainly scenes with David Morse), but as far as script and directing and 2/3 leads acting goes, this was a very solid genre film. It knew what its goal was (simply entertainment), and stuck to it.

Who should see this movie: All guys, anyone who is forced to go to the theatre and doesn't want to suffer through The Shaggy Dog
Rating: 7/10

A History of Violence IMDb

Ok, so this came out on DVD today and my mom rented it, so I figured I'd watch it. I heard a little hype and it was free, so why not?

All I really have to say - to start - is thank Christ this movie was only 95 minutes. I don't mind Aragorn or Ed Harris or Maria Bello, and the movie was solid for the first, oh, 40 minutes, but it jumped the shark when Ed Harris dies (sorry kids for spoiling it) and had no way to recover.

A cheesy, Hollywood ending to the film seemed boring to me. If you see it, talk message me, so when we discuss the ending, I can say "Come the fuck on." It was that bad.

However, there were a few moments of action and dialogue that I enjoyed, so it wasn't all bad. There was just a few kinks and I wish the film would've taken a different direction.

Who should see this movie: People who can see it for free and want to waste their life
Rating: 6/10

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Recently Annie Proulx (author of Brokeback Mountain) posted her opinion on the upset of Crash winning best picture. I have to disagree with something:

"None of the acting awards came Brokeback's way, you betcha. The prize, as expected, went to Philip Seymour Hoff-man for his brilliant portrayal of Capote, but in the months preceding the awards thing, there has been little discussion of acting styles and various approaches to character development by this year's nominees. Hollywood loves mimicry, the conversion of a film actor into the spittin' image of a once-living celeb. But which takes more skill, acting a person who strolled the boulevard a few decades ago and who left behind tapes, film, photographs, voice recordings and friends with strong memories, or the construction of characters from imagination and a few cold words on the page? I don't know. The subject never comes up. Cheers to David Strathairn, Joaquin Phoenix and Hoffman, but what about actors who start in the dark?"

Full article here.

Her whole article was pretty cynical, and while I see her points, I have to disagree (with this one). The comparison of portraying real people vs. fictional ones is the fact that the real people portrayals, while having a "model" to go off of, have much more to live up to in the eyes of the public. It's much more of a challenge. People wouldn't give a shit if Jack Twist (Jake in Brokeback) had black hair or blonde, but if Philip Seymour Hoffman didn't perfect his verbal stylings or look the perfect part, there is no way he would've won.

So in conclusion, I think it takes more skill to accurately play the role of someone who once lived than to make up your own image of a character - because it's easier for people to criticize.

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Failure to Launch. IMDb

Tom Dey's third movie, after a humorous Shanghai Noon and terrible buddy-cop movie Showtime. Matthew McConaughey takes a break from recent 'serious' roles (Sahara and Two For the Money) and returns back to his romantic comedy persona, circa How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. Sarah Jessica Parker does her second real movie after finishing Sex and the City, and doesn't look totally unattractive.

So, going into this movie I knew it was going to be/have a few things:

A) Predictable.
B) Cheap jokes.
C) Happy ending.

However, I was in the mood for an easy-going movie since the last stretch I went on were all heavy dramas (Capote, Brokeback Mountain, Good Night, and Good Luck., and Syriana, just to name a few), and I enjoyed the film overall.

If you haven't seen the previews, here's a quick summary: Matt M. plays a 35 year-old who still lives with his parents, and they hire SJP to start dating him and give him the confidence to move out.

There were a lot of similarities between this and 'How to Lose a Guy...,' but since that's one of my biggest guilty pleasures, that's not a bad thing coincidence. The only problem in this comparison is that Kate Hudson is gorgeous and SJP looks like a horse. Running gags, like the animals always biting Matt M., got old fast, but the movie didn't drag on and was overall an enjoyable watch.

There's only one thing really worth mentioning about this movie, and that is how Zooey Deschanel is one of the most underrated actresses out there - both in talent and physical appearance. Every scene she was in, playing the depressed alcoholic friend turned sentimental romantic good-girl, made the terrible acting of SJP look even worse. She was hilarious in a dark-comedy way (well, "dark" for this type of movie), and definitely the highlight of the movie. For more Zooey, see also: Almost Famous. Elf.

So, overall:

Genre Score: 7/10
Real-World Score: 5.5/10

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Last Oscar post for a while - I promise.

I don't think the Oscars have had such a good year since 2000. Recently the best pictures have either won by a landslide with little or no competition (Million Dollar Baby, A Beautiful Mind...), were consolation prizes (Lord of the Rings 3), or only had one real opponent (Gladiator vs. Traffic, Chicago vs. The Pianist). 2000 was such an amazing year, and since I like to be nostalgic, here's a rundown.

American Beauty - amazing movie, and glad it won best picture. Beautiful directing, writing, acting, score... everything. Sure it kinda dominated the awards, but at least the other movies were amazing too.

The Cider House Rules - I'm so glad this won for writing, because it was truly a powerful movie. Michael Caine winning supporting actor was great as well. I love this movie.

Magnolia - Some people say this had a huge influence on 'Crash,' and I kinda see it. This movie, while a bit too long, was outstanding, both in writing and directing, and writing this up makes me wonder why the hell I haven't bought it yet. Maybe today...

Aside from those 3, there were plenty of other movies that were amazing in one way or another, unlike these days where it seems like there's maybe 2 or 3 movies per year that take most of the awards. The Green Mile, Sixth Sense, Being John Malkovich... Hell, even The Matrix came out this year. I miss 2000.

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I don't want to jinx myself since I have a paper due today, but it's gotten to the point where, for school papers, I don't even bother proofreading anymore. Not once, or at all. I have enough faith in my grammar and sentence structure that I just let it all go in one sweep. I don't plan ahead either. It's weird.

This is proven since I got 85, 87, and 90 on my last 3 papers. Hopefully the one due today has a similar outcome.

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Today I finished 'Choke' by Chuck Palahniuk. His writing style never ceases to amaze me. It's kinda creepy how a lot of his stuff is inspired by real life experiences. I guess as I get older I'll have more material to work with. Hopefully.

I don't know if I liked this one better than 'Invisible Monsters,' but it was better than 'Fight Club.' Apparently it's going to be made into a movie with either Heath Ledger or Ryan Gosling in the lead (Victor), and I really hope it's the latter.

Don't know what I'm going to read next. Maybe either 'Catch 22' or the first random cheesy fiction book I find at the bookstore. I'm also reading 'Heart of Darkness' again. And trying to polish my short story from a while ago. Funny how I'm doing all this and neglecting my 6 page paper that's due on Wednesday.

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Yeah....... Oscars were alright. Got 6 out of the big 8, and (not counting stuff I didn't see, like foreign films and documentaries) 12/15, so 80%. Not bad.

Jon Stewart hosting was nice, and while his jokes were funny, most of the actors' weren't - especially Ben Stiller's.

This article pretty much sums up my opinion on 'Crash' taking best picture. Losing cinematography was a big blow to Brokeback (pun intended?), so it was a bit foreshadowed. But come on, the only thing Crash really won was Writing and Editing, both of which I think were "gimmes." No director, no actors, and no nominations in half the other catagories. Sigh.

Crash is surely much easier to watch, but I still stand by saying Brokeback is a much better film. Again, see the article linked above.

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The other day I downloaded 5 CDs of Disney's greatest hits. Overall it made me miss my childhood quite a bit. Anyway, I think I'm going to make a "top Disney movies" list. Putting them in any order would be too hard, but here's some that are so good:

(only animated movies that are non-Pixar for now)

-Aladdin
-Beauty and the Beast
-Sleeping Beauty
-Alice in Wonderland
-Lion King
-Jungle Book
-The Emperor's New Groove
-Lilo and Stitch
-The Little Mermaid

Of course, that's quite a few, but what the hell, I love Disney. I wish they still made 'em like they used to.

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Recently one of my friends introduced me to the show Project Runway on Bravo. I'm not a big fashion person, but the show isn't bad and I watched last week and this week's episodes.

During one of the commercial sessions, Bravo plugged their new show "from the producers of Project Runway." The show is called Top Chef.

Basically it's (I think) like any other reality show - the contestants make food and get judged and get eliminated periodically.

I don't see this show having much success because of the fundamental difference that people can see and appreciate the clothes that the fashion designers make, but they can't taste the food through their televisions. American Idol is another example - people can hear and see the contestants and either agree or disagree with the judges. Someone needs to be fired.

Edit on 9/2/2008: Guess who needs to be fired now? I freaking love this show.

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