A quick glance at stuff

I haven’t written blog-like entries for a while. I have written a bit of prose which I’ve posted and is, at the moment, infinitely more fun to write. Not much has gone on. Inside or out. I’m in slight hibernation mode perhaps. But here are some stuff I did want to mention before my memory fails me and I forget I was ever thinking these thoughts. If you came here looking for the second part of the story, it’s right underneath. If you’re looking for part 3, that’s coming next.

And as usual, ‘quick’ for me doesn’t necessarily mean ‘quick’ for everyone.

Movies
I don’t go the movies much anymore. Here are the last three I’ve seen and what I though of them.

Kingdom of heaven Good. I liked. Great cast, probably the best battle scenes I’ve ever seen in a movie, unfortunately let down by a rather dry and often-clichéd script. Despite some negatives, please don’t compare this to the other post-Gladiator sword epics. KOH is heaps better than any of them. Ridley Scott still does this kind of movie better than anyone else in the business.

Star Wars 3 Good but disappointing. Nothing much new to say here but I’ll say them anyway. Better than 1 and 2. Not as good as 4, 5 or 6. Thing is, for all the flash, these new Star Wars movies lack the charm of the old originals. Where the hell is the humour? The banter? I’ve said before and I’ll say it again – Lucas has some great ideas about movies but he has no idea about making movies great. Please remember that only Ep 4 was written and directed by him. 5 and 6 were directed and even written by others. Joss Whedon could’ve made a better Ep 3. And you’d think after Mark Hamil, he’d pick a better protagonist this time around, so who has he come up with? Bloody Hayden Christensen (can’t be bothered checking the spelling of that), the latest star graduate of the Keanu Reeves School of Dramatic Arts. And what’s worst is that Lucas’ inept script even makes usually stellar actors like Natalie and Ewen and Samuel L look like cardboard cutouts. Palpatine and the computer generated Yoda make up the only two interesting characters in the entire film. Maybe it’s just me but after seeing Matrix Reloaded, great special effects are no longer enough to impress me. SW3 has great only good special effects. Thing is, there’s just too much of it. As my friend Minh said, it’s like watching a cartoon. Especially that stupid lizard thing that Obi Wan rides. The animatronics from the original movies were more convincing. Again, it could be because I play computer games (esp. Star Wars games) and these effects look pretty much like game graphics. The people I’ve spoken to who were impressed by the effects in this movie are mainly non-games players. Don’t get me wrong. SW3 is not a bad movie at all. I enjoyed it. It’s just that it could’ve been so much better. It could’ve been one of the most important movies in history. Seriously, the ingredients are all there. Lucas just couldn’t put it all together. For a better Star Wars experience, play the Knights of the Old Republic games. The story and character development are so much better (although it’s not a fair comparison because compressed to a movie format, the two KOTOR games would make about two 6-7 hour epics).

Mr & Mrs Smith Fun. Not fine cinema by any standards but brings a big fat smile to my face. The story is inconsequential. But the chemistry between the leads is obvious and infectious. Brad Pitt is so underappreciated for his acting skills. He’s good. Don’t even compare him to a Tom Cruise. He’s in a different class, acting-wise. Tom Cruise is just better at picking the right roles. Speaking of Tom, there’s a Freekatie website somewhere out there. It’s funny.

Next movie Batman Begins. If I had a bladder problem, I’d be wetting myself in anticipation.

Save it for Sunday afternoon TV Sisterhood of the travelling pants (is that the right title?) I have no idea what this is about and don’t care. But it has Rory from Gilmore Girls and Joan from Joan of Arcadia. Guilty pleasures… but I can wait.

DVD I got Wonder Boys on DVD for $7. It’s the movie of my favourite book. With a great song by Bob Dylan. Kinda just pleases me in all different ways.

Observation I like good looking male actors who can act (Orlando Bloom, Johnny Depp & Co.). Or even good looking male anything who are good at what they do. If they’re nice guys, even better. This isn’t a gay thing where I wish I could sleep with them. It’s a vanity thing, where I wish I could be them. Used to be I was most envious of Andy Roddick because he’s a good-looking tennis player of considerable skill who was dating Mandy Moore. Now I think it’s Tony Parker, who is a good looking basketball player of considerable skill and is dating Eva Langoria. I want to be those people.

Next…

On Sunday I took my family out to Wildfire at the Overseas Passenger Terminal. I liked it. Food was great and it had the feel of casual fine dining… if that makes sense. The occasion… 20 years in Australia for the family. I’m thankful.

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Book 1 was good, 2 was great, 3 started to drag and 4 was a bloody romance novel. I haven’t read 5. If you haven’t read these, do. At least the first two. Really funny and clever. Just loses steam over the four books.

It’s late. I’ll write more later if I feel like it.