Friday, June 29, 2007

I have seen it, and it is good



Isn't that beautiful? Definitely has the Paul Thomas Anderson touch. Also some Terrence Malick.

I'm going to go watch it again.

This is killing me!

IMDb has a link to the preview for There Will Be Blood on YouTube and I can't watch it because my work is smart enough to block it!

Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

OK. I am going to calm down...

(breathe)

Hello. Allow me to explain: There Will Be Blood is the new Paul Thomas Anderson movie. He is my favorite director. The move stars Daniel Day-Lewis who is one of the greatest actors who has ever lived. You probably saw him in Gangs of New York. He was Bill the Butcher. He has also done amazing work in My Left Foot and The Unbearable Lightness of Being.

Did you get that? They are working together. My excitement at finding out this was going to happen, my words to explain it, they are too vulgar to be written here. In my mind, this is a cosmic event.

AND I HAVE TO WAIT SEVEN HOURS TO BE ABLE TO CATCH A GLIMPSE!!!

But heark, an angel tells me that there is an individual in the office who is able to view YouTube. There is hope.

Friday, June 15, 2007

Two things that made me happy

As I was running this morning, I passed a car that was stopped at a traffic light blaring music. I caught a bit and thought, "Did I really hear that?" So I listened closely. "Doo-doo-doo-doo, Doo-doo, Doo-doo. Can't touch this."

The other thing that made me happy was this preview:

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

The Spoilers (SOPRANOS!)

Crap. I mean The Sopranos (SPOILERS!). You have to admit, those words have practically become synonymous the last few days. Still, don't want to spoil that for anyone who hasn't seen it. So don't read on.

You know what's so damn funny about all of this? There's nothing to spoil. The show simply ended with a blackout. But we all have to be so quiet which is going to make those who want to play catch-up on DVD even more confounded.

Everyone's got an opinion about the finale. And I'm going to weigh in with mine.

It was brilliant. Yep, I'm (apparently) in the minority. It is exactly in line with everything that has come before.

The Sopranos has never really been a fluid show. Things begin and end abruptly. Even it's editing is sometimes cruel. Like the movie Punch-Drunk Love, it seems to want to assault you. To make you feel like these characters do.

It also follows along with The Sopranos refusing to resort to cliffhangers (the refuge of hacks). Sure, a season would end with plots begun, but it never left us hanging about the fate of a character. Each season was a springboard to the next. So it's only fitting that the show should end that way. Plots were set up (an indictment, AJ's and Meadow's new careers, Paulie new business, etc.). Most people seem to believe that Tony was whacked in the diner. I'm not so sure. It left us exactly in the middle of the things the show was about: family and the mob.

Me, I like to think that nothing happened. Tony goes on. He's indicted. AJ never becomes part of the mob. Carmela continues in her way as does Meadow. Sil...Sil probably passes. And I will miss him.

And everyone stop whining about a movie. This was not a set-up to a movie. David Chase is not that cheap. This was the end of a series. If you'll recall, it was not Chase's idea to have The Sopranos go on as long as it did. He wanted out earlier. HBO asked that he keep the show going. He's interested in telling stories. This is the end of the story.

In the end, what an amazing series. Perhaps one of the greatest character studies. Tony, I will miss you.