TUWOPS - The Re-Edit is (pretty much) complete!

Huzzah! Just for a slight re-cap for those who didn't know, our house was broken into on Christmas Day, and with the rest of our loot, they stole the majority of my editing suite, including all my hard-drives and back-ups. Which, as you might guess, included my film. Luckily they never saw any value in stealing my HD tapes, so I still had the original footage - but that's about it. So despite having almost no time, I was able to re-edit the film in a little over a month thanks to help from A LOT of people with BIG HEARTS. From loaning me cameras to re-dig the footage, to recreating art work, tracking down photos, digitizing footage, music, etc... it certainly took a village to re-edit this child, but here we are - nearing the finish line. The only things outstanding are two photo graphs that I've been putting off taking since we wrapped production, and a little graphic thing that needs to be done, but might just be done when we online the film. Also underway is the scoring of the film. I recently put a facebook request for people to submit songs from musician friends for our closing-credit song - and we're narrowing down the list (thanks for all the submissions!).
So now we just need to organize the rest of our post and finish this film. Really excited to do a cast and crew screening. Also we'll be probably gearing up with a website of some kind in the near future - as well as a sneak-preview trailer of the film. We're still submitting to festivals so keep checking back here for news of when and where it'll be screening in the next few months. The festivals in the US are kind of a crap shoot, and all the big Canadian ones don't start up to the late summer/fall, so it might be a little while till an official public screening.
So thanks again to everyone who helped make this re-edit possible so quickly. Even if it was just your kind words and thoughts. It helped a lot!

Jack of Fables #2: Jack of Hearts

I never thought that I would be enjoying this series as much as I am. Jack was never one of my favorite characters in Fabletown, but he's definitely the character with the most back-story, being that every fairy tale that features a Jack, is, at least he claims, about him. So there's a wealth to draw from - more, probably, than any of the other Fables (excluding perhaps Bigby).

There's some interesting stuff going on in this series, and they're definitely setting it up for the long haul. The most fun is just the idea of Jack's ego and how that plays into the narration of it. I'm probably going to take a little break from this series to catch up on some other reading - but I'll be back to it shortly as The Great Fables Crossover (Fables #13) comes out this week and I want to catch up on both sides of the story before reading it.

1314 - Jesus is Magic

I've loved Sarah Silverman for a long time. I've got a crush on her. Can't deny it. She's about as funny as it gets and she goes about as far as one can go. The stand-up is brilliant and edgy, but it's the musical numbers that are just simply outstanding. Sarah's got bigger balls than anyone going today. I want to see people cast her in roles that go as far as her material does. Stop casting her as the boring girlfriend. She's fantastic and deserves fantastic stuff.

p.s. I love Sarah Silverman. Not sure if that was clear.

1313 - Seven Pounds

I won't lie. When this came out I just passed it off as oscar-bait. And maybe it was. I mean, is that a crime? Most of the time films are made just purely for profit, so what's wrong with them being made for the recognition of a golden statue?
What follows here, I believe, is a little more than that. I figured out pretty early on what our hero was up to, but it didn't matter, it still unfolded beautifully and the characters were still interesting. It was watching Smith's character struggle with his decisions and motivations. He was magnificent. I knew exactly what he was thinking, how he was feeling, struggling. I've loved him in a lot of his work - but this was the work of a controlled and talented performer. A far cry from the Fresh Prince we first met many many years ago.
Dawson, above, is lovely as well, and your heart goes out to her. She makes you believe in the healing power of love.
Sounds sappy, but this is a wonderful little film. It's not necessarily uplifting, and maybe it's a tad convoluted, but I didn't care - worked for me. It's not the film I think I'll ever need to see again, but I'd recommend it to anyone even vaguely curious about it. There's some wonderful things going in the telling of this story.

Jack of Fables #1: The (Nearly) Great Escape

Because the next Fables book (due out soon) is a cross-over issue with this series I decided it was high-time I caught up on the adventures of Jack Horner. Jack was never my favorite character and so I was never super interested in this book, but I have to admit, if they continue to be this entertaining it won't be a chore to get through. What was most interesting about this book was realizing how many characters the other Fables series still hadn't used. Amazing really. There was a surprise return from one of the old villains that was a pleasant surprise. Looking forward to where they head with this series, and hope it keeps interesting.

1312 - The Dead Girl

I had never heard of this film until recently. It's essentially a series of short films all revolving around this dead girl. The cast is pretty amazing in it's ensemble - it's filled with a lot of recognizable faces, and talented ones at that - all on top of their game. It's a rich film that's sad and yet hopeful. I quite enjoyed it and recommend it thoroughly.

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Volume 2

Wow. What an intense and bizarre follow-up to the first book. What's lovely about this series is just how literate it is, and how many references are all over the place. At one point, in one tiny corner of the frame you can see what appears to be Peter Rabbit being eaten by wolves. Never drawn attention to. It's just there. He exists in this world because he exists in England around this time of publication. Really brilliant.
But other than that, after establishing a really interesting 'team' in the first volume, they have no problem whatsoever ripping it apart and forever damaging it. This was never going to be a tight crime fighting unit. I suppose I never should have thought of it this way. To say that some of the directions that they go into are surprising is an understatement.
This is a book for any one who is well read and likes a fun adventure. You can't beat it, really for that.

The Great DVD Purchase of February 2010

So I'm working late with my story editor and friend, Scott McLaren, when he leaves for home and I finish up working. I'm literally on my way out of my edit suite when my phone rings. And I didn't know it at the time, but it was going to end up being an expensive phone call.

Every now and then, as a geek, you get rare opportunities to expand your library. So the call that Scott made was to tell me that the Blockbuster at Queen/Spadina has a going-out-of-business sale on that just started today. And everything is $6.99 (with a few exceptions).

So yeah. I raced over.

Now by the time I got there it'd be pretty picked over, despite the fact that the sale had just started that day. The guy behind the counter told us that they were staying open till the end of the month - I can't imagine that their stock will last the week. Seriously, unless you're looking for a copy of the new releases I'd get there tomorrow. If I'm honest, it's probably already too late to find anything great. I found a wonderfully random mix of things that are a combination of films that I've always meant to see, but never have, films I'm upgrading from VHS, films I love that I didn't own, and ones that were a STRONG recommend from Scott.

And so, the list:

GERRY - Made a lot of this decades top ten lists, so my interested is re-piqued.

BEHIND THE MASK - Strong recommend.

BUTCH CASSIDY & THE SUNDANCE KID - Never seen. I know. I'm on it.

MEAN GIRLS - Previously owned, leant out, never returned - love it.

GALAXY QUEST - Never seen, always meant to.

MONTY PYTHON & THE HOLY GRAIL - Didn't own it.

THE JERK - Didn't own it.

BULL DURHAM - Never seen it, strong recommend.

DOGMA: SPECIAL EDITION - Upgrade.

4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days - Recommend

ALL THE REAL GIRLS - Always been interested

CROUPIER - Strong recommend.

So that's that, I dropped a small fortune (not really actually considering I walked away with over a dozen films) and far less than Scott dropped, although to be fair he picked up some television seasons.

So who knows when the hell I'm going to watch any of these. I've got a stupid big pile of stuff to watch. The re-edit is nearing completion and so once that's done my nights are a little more free - I'm going to try and do a marathon of a film a night for as often as I can to catch up on my movie watching.

So there's that - if you're feeling lucky get to that Blockbuster ASAP.

1311 - Trust

I've only seen a handful of Hal's films, and all of them older, none of his recent ones. He's an interesting filmmaker in that he seems to be continually playing with variations on the same character. These ones were based a little more in grounded terms. I enjoyed it, but it didn't take my breathe away by any means. It was cool seeing a young Edie Falco. If you're a fan of Hal's work it's probably worth checking out, but it's a very slow, character driven piece. Not for all.

1310 - World's Greatest Dad

I've wanted to see this film for sometime now. I think that Bobcat is a very interesting storyteller. I haven't seen his very first film, but I enjoyed "Sleeping Dogs Lie" and looked forward to seeing what he would do next. He's really into the darker side of people, and how people deal with that side of themselves. He's not scared of dark subject matter and injects it with the proper amount of heart and indifference. On many levels this film is a wonderful slap in the face in terms of how we glorify the dead mostly just because they're dead. And how it affects us, what we do with it. It's a funny, sad, outrageous, honest film. This isn't laugh-riot Robin Williams, but it also isn't creepy One Hour Photo, Robin Williams. It's just good. Please see this film. And please pay to see it. I want Bobcat to make more films.

1309 - Sex Drive

Okay. Honestly. I wasn't prepared for this movie being as good as it is. Seriously. There's more funny per sequence here than need be and than expected. And it's a good thing. The cast is really quite delightful, especially Clark and Amanda. Sean Anders has quite the slate coming up as a screenwriter and he seems to be the go-to guy for this kind of film right now. More power to him. I look forward to his further projects. And seriously, this film is a million times better than you ever expected. If you want to see the kind of film John Hughes would make today if he was a generation later, this is it. It really is a funny, sometimes sweet film, that's a lot of fun.

Irredeemable #2

Whizzed through this one. And. Now. I. Have. To. Wait. Blast! This is the problem with discovering a series in it's infancy. You don't get the advantage of being able to blast through a bunch of back-books. You just have to admire the brilliance and wait. Alas. Luckily I have a rather large pile of movies, books, and comics that are just screaming at me to be digested. So I'll wait... patiently. But not too patiently. In case you can't tell - I really dig this book.

1308 - Rififi

I'm a member of zip.ca and so I have a big list of films on that site for them to mail to me. Hundreds actually. So often when I get a film in the mail from them I don't remember why I asked for it. This one, being a Criterion narrows it down. But I still don't know why. I'm always interested in crime films - especially older ones as they're usually a good story to draw from for inspiration. I found this one to be a little... dry. Nothing against it but I found myself disengaging and getting a little bored with it. Some nice moments but altogether underwhelming.

Irredeemable #1

So to cleanse my palette between editions of LXG (that's right, I'm using the crappy movie's acronym for 'League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and now I've written it out fully, rendering the acronym pointless... alas...) I've decided to dig into this, relatively new, comic series.

So above is a small sample of what it's about, in a way. Here's the pitch for the series: "One day Superman wakes up and says "Fuck you" to the world and goes from being the world's greatest hero to the world's greatest villain. The writer's thesis statement is that it's essentially insane to assume that everyone who is give super-powers is emotionally stable enough to be able to handle them. There are only two books in the series so far, so I'll probably read the other right away (it's a quick read and goddamn addictive).

So yeah, I've been on a major comic bend lately, and will probably continue to be for the near future as I have a seemingly unlimited resource coming in through a story editor I'm working with on a television series. So I'm taking advantage of the resource while the project lasts. Once I've completed the re-edit of my film I'll get back into watching movies on a more regular basis - which could be sooner rather than later.

So the short of it is that this is a great book with promise for a great series. I'm interested to see how they'll sustain this idea in the long run.

1307 - Wolverine

For some reason I remember this film getting quite the flack when it first came out. I'm not sure why. I mean, it's nothing amazing or brilliant, but it's nowhere near the shitfest that was the last X-Men film. There's some logistics that I'm not sure add up, but I'm not going to be super-picky when it comes to popcorn flicks. The biggest problem with films like this that are prequels is that it loses any real sense of danger in that you know some characters are going to make it out just fine. Other than that it's a completely watchable film. Not sure it warrents a sequel - but I'm fairly curious about the Deadpool film that's currently in development - having known nothing of that character prior to watching this.

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Volume 1

I was late to come to this book, and I've never seen the (apparently awful) film version. So outside of already knowing (kind-of) whom the team was made up of, I was a bit of a virgin on this one. I have to say, it took me a little while to get into it because I was wired for Bendis' Powers books, but once I got into the rhythm of it it was quite a bit of fun. Outside of doing the mash-up of characters from other stories (something I almost always enjoy) it was just a clever little story and a nice introduction to this world and these characters. The story and action is a bit popcorn-lite in a sense, but it's background, characters, and ideas are quite sophisticated. I look forwarding to digging into the other volumes.

Powers: #12 - The 25 Coolest Dead Superheroes of All Time

So that's that. I'm up to date. Trade wise that is. I believe that they're three issues into their newest run. But... I'm kinda good to take a break. Especially since this last book wrapped things up quite well. In fact, if someone told me that this was the last Powers book, I think I'd be cool with it. It brought a major story to conclusion, and gave a lot of their cast of characters something to do in it. If I were to do Powers as a trilogy of films (no way you could cram it all into one and do it justice) this would be a perfect place to end the third one.

I'm very curious to see where they could go from here. Not to say that there isn't room to go places, there's definitely enough stuff going on - but the way this one ends... let's just say it will be interesting. Now I can breathe and read other books and get back to trying to watch movies from time to time. Although I've finally got all the outstanding pieces of my film back together so I can hit that full force as well.

Powers: #11 - Secret Identity

Eleven down, one more to go. I'm chewing through these things like they're going out of style. I can't help it. Obsession rules. It means that I'm probably missing a lot of wonderful subtle detail, but I fully intend on picking up my own copy of this series at some point and going back through to enjoy the details more. The series has gone in a wonderfully dark tone. I have it on good authority that the next book will end a big story arc, so I'm excited to see how it wraps up things. Like I said about the last book, I should be raving more but I'm just so used to it being good, and I'm chewing through them quickly. This series really delves into a lot of interesting areas that the major comic-chains just can't touch, and it does it so well. Chock full of fantastic characters and intriguing ideas - it's a must read.

Powers: #10 - Cosmic

After this one there's only two books left before I'm completely caught up on this series. And I'm kinda sad about it. And the irony is that the book has gotten SO good that an installment like this, which is full of amazing stuff, doesn't blow my mind - because I now EXPECT this book to be this good. So it's an odd thing to say, I suppose - that it's amazing, but it doesn't knock my socks off. I think in a way it does, but also I've been trying to figure out where I would go with this story and the book is doing some similar things. Not to say it's predictable. I'm just a tad obsessed. There is a really lovely creative narrative device that they use in this book that fits it well.

In a series where almost every new book is a game-changer of sorts I look forward to the next two before I have to wait an eternity to continue the story... it's okay... there's enough on my pile otherwise that I've been neglecting.

Powers: #9 - Psychotic

So while I didn't leave this installment with the "holy shit" factor, there's still some wonderful things going on inside of these pages. This almost feels like the beginning of a new chapter in the powers story, one that will grow over the next couple of issues. There's an interesting story going on inside of here, and the usual themes are in full force. In the supplemental material in the back of the book there's an in depth interview with Bendis & Oeming where they reveal that a lot of the plotlines for the superheroes are lifted from the life stories of rock stars and bands. Interesting and very revealing. Glad to know that I'm not the only one who does this sort of thing. I'm not sure yet, but every now and then I think that Powers is slowly becoming my favorite series. It's not quite there yet. But it's definitly up there.

1306 - Suzanne's Career

Eric Rohmer is dead. Not that he was a young man snuffed out in his prime, but still. Years ago I bought the "Six Moral Tales" Criterion box-set, and so in honor of the man I've vowed to finally finish watching the rest of the films in it, as well as the supplemental material which includes several of Rohmer's short films. I'm flirting with the idea of trying to do a short this spring/summer, just to keep myself sharp and experiment with a few more directing muscles.

For those of you who don't know Rohmer, he's worth looking into. I could go into great detail myself, but I'll show you a quote from Harry Knowles at ain't-it-cool that pretty much sums it up:

No filmmaker has done more to betray the male gender than Eric Rohmer. Consider this an indirect admission that, yes, we really are as silly, obsessed, weak-willed and, if granted enough independence, self-destructive as the protagonists in all of the director’s pictures, but, specifically, the fools and cads in his first cinematic cycle, Six Moral Tales. Nothing is good enough, the women we most desire are never the ones we’re with, and our timing is generally awful. The only thing that separates the dimmest from the brightest among us is our degree of honesty – with our lovers and ourselves – and the quality of our inner monologue; so, while Rohmer has scandalously exposed his fellow man as a hopeless, helpless hypocrite, at least he’s had the common courtesy to make us all sound sparklingly literate!

That Rohmer stages these minor tragedies of desire with seemingly intelligent men only elevates the squirm factor; the transgressions and general foolishness grow more despicable the more they’re rationalized. This is what we do every day, and it’s only societal mores and religious beliefs that keep us from acting on instinct at any given moment. Rohmer’s triumph is that he has his men deal with the ubiquitous nearness of sin without allowing them to commit the deed, because, contrary to what Hollywood might tell you, that’s how it plays out most of the time.

Women, if you’re looking for comfort, that’s going to have to suffice. Welcome to our mind, and, please, watch your step.

This film, Suzanne's Career, isn't the best of Rohmer's work that I've seen, but it's still quite interesting to watch. The performances are bland, but the ideas are grand and so it helps to elevate them. But to that end the people, and moments, feel real and honest. Unfortunately for us, we know these characters. Hell, we are some of them.

I look forward to more of Rohmer, and I want to try and dig into some of the more recent stuff he did to see what he got up to in his later years.

Powers: #8 - Legends

Back from their epic-length tangent, the Powers explore a world where things have changed, drastically, and are about to change even more. I never would have believed I'd be as hooked on this series as I am given how I felt about it in the early books. It really is a fantastically entertaining series. I want to say so much more but I don't want to give away any of the glorious details found within here. If you're a fan of graphic novels this is a must-have series. I've been borrowing it from a friend, but I can't imagine not buying the entire series at some point. It's just that good.

Powers: #7 - Forever

And the obsession continues... So this book is a beautiful tangent away from the main Powers storyline, and it comes at a good point in time - with the main story about to shift in a whole new direction it was nice to look back and fill in some blanks and answer some questions that have been sitting around. I can't IMAGINE having been a fan and having to contend with this storyline while wanting the main storyline to continue - I mean with the collections I can sift through this quickly and then get right back into it, but the ongoing issues took weeks inbetween. Big props to the patience of those who were cool with that, because this is a really rewarding and interesting book. Brave of the authors as well. I dig it. I might take a break from Powers for a little bit and catch up on Jack of Fables in anticipation of Fables #13 coming out next month - it's a cross-over issue so I think that I need to be caught up to get the fullness of what's going on in that world. That and I've got a stack of movies to watch, and I've promised myself that I'm going to try and be better about reading actual books this year. Crazy though, huh?

Powers: #6 - The Sell-Outs

I'm probably starting to sound like a broken record as I review this series, but it does keep getting better and better. Deeper. More interesting and entertaining. By having created this alternate super-hero universe Bendis has a very large sandbox to play in and boy does he play! And he's able to go to places that the big-two can't. And he's goddamn ruthless in a delicious way. He'll take this world in whatever damn direction he pleases and I love him for it. The end of this book came with a very large game-changer for this series. Really excited to see where he takes it from here.

Powers: #5 - Anarchy

Okay. So clearly I'm on board with this comic series now. And to think I almost gave up on it. This issue was a really really quick read, and really pushed the story and characters into a new direction. There's some great discussions in this volume about the idea of superheroes to begin with, and what happens to our society when we look to others to protect us. Lots us stuff to chew on and make you think. I like it. As a side note, the graphic novel collections are packed with really great extras, Bendie and Oeming are never shy about discussing their craft, which is nice. Worth checking out for sure. I'll be honest, it takes until the fourth book for this series to really start cooking, but it's worth getting through. You could probably skip the third book altogether and not miss a whole hell of a lot.

1305 - The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

I saw the original almost a year ago when this was being advertised. I have to be honest in that I'd never really heard of it before the remake. Sorry, but it's true! Over all I enjoyed it. It's a popcorn flick so you go in with those expectations and it's a fun enough ride. I think that some of the changes they made are really quite smart. I thought that Travolta, as a villain was less intelligent than his Robert Shaw counter-part, and I was hoping for just a little bit more from that regard. I liked that he was no nonsense and did exactly what he said he'd do though.

So it's exactly the film you expect it to be, and the frenetic coke-addled energy of Tony Scott isn't overbearing here, in fact it adds a nice layer to it.

Check it out if you're even remotely interested.

Powers: #4 - Supergroup

Don't mind me as I take my foot firmly out of my mouth. So after having read the third in this series I said that I this series was merely okay, and that I don't have time for merely okay comics. Well. Powers is no longer merely okay. I said I'd give it one more volume, and as if by fate, this thing did cartwheels in a new direction. Really really great. To the point where the last volume almost seems like a bonus feature. Now, it still is a far way away from being my favorite series, but considering that I was about to give up on it after the last one, and now I can't wait to dig into the next volume, that's a big step forward.
I'd like to see this made into a T.V. series. I think that could be really great (or terrible) depending how it's handled. Some great writing in these pages. It's really starting to come into it's own.

TUWOPS - The Re-Edit Begins

It's no surprise that, having picture-locked the film, I was a bit disheartened at the idea of having to re-edit it. Not from scratch mind you, but close enough. I backed up the project in several locations for fear of drive-failure, however I never took into account theft. It's my own fault I suppose and it won't happen again in the future. Having been trained as an editor I should no better. Alas. So for now I work from an old project file in addition to the picture lock quicktimes that I'd made for the composers of the film.

We're back up at the farm for New Years and I'm digitizing the footage in the background of our relaxing festivities and I have to admit that it's nice to see all the footage coming in again. Makes me miss being on set. The process. The people. I don't think that there's a single actor in this film that I wouldn't jump at the chance to work with again.

Part of me wants to take this opportunity to re-examine the footage, and part of me doesn't want to give our burglars that satisfaction that they were able to have a positive effect on the film. With the outstanding music there was always going to be a little minor tweaking anyway. We'll see. I'll keep this blog updated as I re-cut the film.

Also as a way to motivate me getting into better shape and out of bad holiday-eating habits I've decided that after my birthday next week I'm going to put myself on a strict regiment until the film is completely finished and we have the cast & crew screening, which I'm hoping, given out setbacks, will be sometime in late February or early March as I'm not really sure how long it's going to take me to re-cut the film given everything else that's currently going on. That and given the low-budget nature of the project we're not at the top of the priority list for the companies that are going to be working on our post-production finishing. We've got the film submitted to several festivals at this point, but none have confirmed screening dates so time is on our side so far as that is concerned.

1304 - Star Trek

I'm not a Trekie. In fact I think, maybe that I watched a few episodes of Next Generation when I was a kid and that was ONLY because the guy from Reading Rainbow was on it. I'm familiar with the characters enough and somewhat of the storyline just from pop culture, and so I'm not locked down to stuff like fanboys are. So I loved what they did with the time travel storyline. The way they were able to honor the original timeline in a way while keeping themselves completely free to do whatever they want. Like a get-out-of-jail card. Really clever.
So not a whole lot to say except it was a fun little ride. It's not going to make me want to go out and start from the beginning and watch all the Star Trek that's out there (I can't even imagine how long that would take) but it is an entertaining film and I'll check out the inevitable sequel for sure.

1303 - Away We Go

It's been two days since I saw this film, and it's going to be a different review than if I'd written about it right away. Right away I thought this was a pretty sweet little film. John and Maya are really really enjoyable, and they're believable as a couple and I dig them. Upon reflection what this film really is is an examination of different finds of families and how they work, using these two as a way to get to them. It's contrived, and that's okay. That's how these kind of films have to be to show a diverse group of people with varying opinions. I guess the problem I have in further reflection on this film is that the groups of people are a little too stereotypical for me. I feel like I want these two to remain unbiased, but there's a definite bias with the filmmakers. Some characters are left to feel real and others being characatures and I don't think it's fair to the mindset of the people that they're meant to represent. As a person who has pretty specific views and opinions on how I want my family to be, and a strong view of how I see other people's families, I thought the film was a bit... judgmental. That being said, I recommend it. I want to revisit it and check out the extras on the DVD. It's a film I need to watch more to see if some of my reservations are intentional, and what those intentions might just be.

1302 - Run Fatboy Run

This was a pretty by-the-numbers film. It does just about what you expect. What disappointed me the most in this film is the love-triangle. They were setting up the Hank Azaria character as a pretty decent dude, and then they go the asshole route which is SO EASY. Of course she's not going to pick him in the end. He's an asshole! So our hero has to work that much less to win her over. It's a poor weak choice that I expected from lesser filmmakers. Alas.
So this is an okay film. It's not horrible, there's some funny bits to it, but it's nothing spectacular. See it if you already had prior interest.

1301 - Quantum of Solace

I LOVED Casino Royale. I thought it had an energy and rawness that we'd never seen from James Bond. Although that's the trend now, isn't it? For reboots to add raw and gritty. And that makes them original and fresh. Ironic that it's getting stale.
So going into this I was excited. And then quickly I wasn't. I was lost for at least the first half of the film. I had NO idea what was going on. So all of the action sequences had zero context for me, and so were kinda meaningless. I didn't know why they needed to catch so-and-so and so I didn't care. And then half-way through I caught up. Kinda. What I really wanted more of was Gemma Arterton's Strawberry Fields. I thought there was a nice classic dynamic to her and I wanted to see it expanded. Although what happened to her was in true Bond fashion.
So, for me, this was a step back from the last installment. Too busy and chaotic. Too much action for the sake of it. Give me a story that I can latch onto damnit!

Powers: #3 - Little Deaths

I got turned onto this comic series recently and in addition to my writing about television and films I'm going to keep a little dialogue about the graphic novel series I'm reading as well.
I'm not entirely sure how I get about 'Powers' to be completely honest. There's some really great back-and-forth-banter-dialogue going on in here, but that alone isn't enough. More often than now I find myself wanting to get to the point. The series itself takes place in a world where people with powers are normal. And there's a cop, Walker, who is a former Power, that is the go-to-guy for dealing with crimes involved with Powers. So that's interesting and intriguing. But the stories they tell are just kind of 'meh'. I mean besides slowly teasing us about Walker's past there isn't a whole hell of a lot of intrigue or a sense of some bigger over-all story going on here. I mean, there's definitely some commentary here about the idea of super heroes realistically surviving in society, but it feels a little like Watchmen-lite to me. I've got two more of these books outstanding to read, and I will read them, but if it doesn't pick up I'm gonna set it down. There are too many great comic series out there to spend time on ones that are 'just okay'.

My Reading Material

I'm a bad reader. There I've said it. In fact, I'm a horrible reader. I think about some of my influences as writers/filmmakers and some of their profound influences and it just overwhelms me a little bit. We live in an age where there is just so much content. And with the internet more is being created every day. To call it over saturation would be an under-exaggeration. I find that the books I do read are either on the craft of writing or filmmaking, or for enjoyment more and more I lean towards graphic novels - which is also in part of studying the craft as I'm constantly flirting with the idea of writing a comic. I was never a big comic geek when I was a kid. I had a bunch, mostly because my cousin was a comic geek and passed a lot of his collection on to me. But in truth it just seemed like this vast universe that was impossible to catch up on. Even now I can't be bothered with the storylines that follow the major DC & Marvel characters such as Spiderman, Batman, Superman, or the various X-Men. Sure, I've read some of the big series stuff they've done with those characters, but personally I gravitate towards more singular series comics: Fables, or Y: The Last Man. I just dropped a wad of cash on a bunch of books that I'll comment on more here when I get around to reading them. Hopefully sooner rather than later. I've recently switched my subway-commute time from podcast listening to reading and so I find I am catching up more than I have been in recent years.
I know I should read more novels, and I want to. I've got a stack of them. But it just seems like such an effort. And I hate that I feel that way about it. It could be that between work, family, and side-projects my leisure time is more or less non-existent and so when I do get a chance to absorb content I want to be able to do it in a short period of time and so movies, tv-series, or comics just fit into that a bit better. With a book I want to know I can read it within a few days to keep track of the storyline, and because that's rarely an option, I don't pick them up. It's just intellectual-guilt, I suppose. But I just feel like life is too short to read or watch something that you're interested in only because you know you should be - regardless of its quality or value in society. So I just need to come to terms with knowing that I'll probably never be a well read individual. And that's okay. For me.

1300 - Adventureland

My wife and I are on this fantastic role of actually watching films instead of just TV series. I wonder if I'm jinxing myself by even mentioning it. I read the script for this film back when it was on the blacklist a year or so ago, and I remember enjoying it quite a bit. Motolla gets that age group and has a penchant for coming-of-age films. I'm not sure if this one is powerful or funny enough to obtain the cult status of his previous effort but it's a solid film nontheless. It feels real. That's what he's good at, creating characters and performances of people that we all know, or at least I knew growing up. This is a movie worth checking out for sure, but it's not the put-it-on-the-top-of-your-list type film. It's more of a make-sure-you-check-it-out-at-some-point film.

TUWOPS: Update!

It's been awhile since I updated about the film so I figured I'd better get on that since people have been asking. I'm going to start with the absolutely worst news and go from there. I wasn't going to write about this, but I think I might as well. As some of you know, my house was broken into on Christmas Day. Which sucked. A lot. We were out of town and our next-window-neighbors (we don't have a door in that part of the house) called us. So instantly we knew something bad had happened. They said our kitchen window was smashed in and it looked like we'd been robbed.

So we rushed home. Sure enough: robbed. And as soon as we got the call my mind thought "What's the absolute worst thing they could take of stuff we have that's worth anything?" My iMac? Well that would suck, but I'm good about backing up most stuff. The worst thing would be the hard-drive I've been editing TUWOPS on since the film is still in the offline stage. Sure enough. Stolen. I can't lie. I cried. Loud. Luckly I had an (old) back-up of the edit project file on a data-stick, and I had uploaded the film to an FTP so music can be composed - so I have an OLD version of the film to work off of and a reference for the locked cut. I'll have to re-digitize all of the footage - which sucks - but it could be worse. It could be gone completely. But because I'm booked full time on Carlawood: season 2, AND starting in January I'm going to be teaching film one morning a week at Niagara College, my free time is nill. I imagine it'll take me a month to get the cut back up to speed. Which is okay because....

We didn't get into Sundance :( We got a nice rejection letter from them, but it was rejection all the same. We continue to submit to festivals, and the earliest the film will screen in one will be late winter, so time is on our side to finish the film. I'm really looking forward to showing it to the cast and crew (but first I have to edit it all over again). Sigh.

In good news for the film, we've got some great musicians now attached to the soundtrack. We're still waiting to get confirmation on some others, but here are the ones that I can officially announce:

• Amy Millan
• Timber Timbre
• The Most Serene Republic
• Los Campesinos!

So once the rest of the soundtrack is in place I'll announce that as well.

So I'm in a good place. In fact my computer stuff wasn't the worst that was stolen. My wife, Emily, lost some family jewlery that is irreplacable. So my film, which is not gone, just set-back, seems small in comparison. And they stole some other random stuff including Ephraim's umbrella stroller (seriously, who steals a kid's stroller?!)...

So that's it for now. I'll keep you up to speed. Plan is to start re-diging the footage this week and get to work. Going to sit down with the rest of the post team in the new year and figure out a schedule to finish this bad boy and get it out into the world. I'll keep you up to date with how it all unfolds!

1299 - Paper Heart

Another film I wanted to check out when it was in theatres. Hell I wanted to check this film out the absolute second I heard about it because I had an immense amount of fear that it was identical to the feature I directed this summer. So, a sigh of relief, it's all fine. There's some similarities, sure - but they're different films through and through. This really is a lovely film. There's some real honest documentary sections with some fantastic home-made recreations. The B-Story relationship stuff feels a little bit fabricated, 'cause it is, but the moments feel real enough, and the moments they choose to make are pretty interesting and inspired. I feel like it's real even if I know that the moment is not. Does that make any sense whatsoever?
I'll be interested to see what Jasenovec does after this as he seems to have some chops going on here. The guy playing Nick was fantastic, and that was some of the best parts of the film, watching someone struggle between getting the good stuff and letting their friend be.
Strongly recommend checking it out if you're at all interested. It's not your typical romantic comedy by any means, but it's a nice little piece and I think it'll put a smile on your face.

1298 - (500) Days of Summer

I really wanted to love this film. I really enjoyed the script when I'd read it a long time ago, but fleshed out… I don't know… it worked in very small moments here and there. And the worst part is that I'm a fan of the actors involved. But here… they just didn't work. They were cast properly I'm sure. I just don't know what it was. It's almost as if the production team was more focused on getting the quirky bits right and completely missed the point of the emotion. I wanted to FEEL what Tom was feeling. The excitement, the anger, the roller coaster of emotions that comes along with falling for the wrong person. But instead I was just brought along to watch. It was okay. I didn't hate it like I know some people did, but I didn't love it. And I'm not sure I can recommend it. If you had planned to see it anyway, go for it, but if you're looking for an indie-gem - I'm not sure that this is it for you. Really wish I'd felt differently.

1297 - Scrooged

Every year I like to watch a Christmas film or two to get into the spirit. More often than not it's Muppet's Christmas Carole, but I only have it on VHS and since we always come up to the farm for the holidays, unless I watch it before hand it never works out. For those who don't know, my mother died just before Christmas when I was a teenager, and for many years the Muppet film was the only thing that got me into the holiday spirit. I've gotten past that now, but I still look forward to showing that film to Ephraim when he's old enough. The same goes with this film.

Every year I intend to watch this film and then get annoyed when I realize that I don't actually own it. So I made a special point today of picking up a copy. It's the same old story we all know, but it's just so damn entertaining. It's definitely a product of the eighties, it SCREAMS eighties at certain points, but that being said it's still very watchable and without-a-doubt a Christmas classic. Bill Murray is stellar here. His career around this time was quite the thing. You've got your Ghostbusters, in another half-decade Groundhog Day. His people knew how to find solid projects for him.

So if you've never see this film chances are by the time you read this (I'm writing on Christmas Eve, but probably won't post till several days after) it'll be past Christmas Day, and I can't imagine you'll watch this until next holiday season - however, it's definitely one of those films you have to see. It might not be as funny now as it was back then, but it's still a fun little ride..

1296 - Funny People

So I suppose today was my double-feature of director's third outings. I missed this in the theatre. Haven't been keeping as current with the little guy around now. Thank goodness films come to DVD so quickly. It's interesting to see Apatow's directing career and how it differs from his career as a producer and writer.
There's some great stuff in here, so great jokes, and some wonderful insightful little bits about the human spirit. Based loosely on Gatsby this film has much warmth to it. It's long but I didn't feel it as badly as I probably should have. The pace was there. The performances entertaining. I have to admit I have a bit of a crush on Leslie Mann. Rogen and Sandler both at the top of their game.

1295 - Up in the Air

Jason Reitman could just be my biggest inspiration/influence in terms of newer filmmakers. He's a force. With each film he gets more refined. To the point where we have this, which is, for all intent and purposes, pretty much flawless from where I stand. From a technical standpoint it's just beautiful. The cinematography is elegant and homemade when it needs to be. Teaming up with the production design it creates a world that looks very familiar to us, eerily so. In my opinion this film is an absolute triumph for all involved and you should see it as soon as humanly possible. In a time where I often wait for films to be on the cheap used rack at Blockbuster, I'll pay full price for this one the day that it's released.
It's a film full of honesty and heart. Subtle humor and great pathos. See it. Please. Please. Please. Please.

1294 - Californication: season three

Here's a show that has moments of absolute perfection, however they're few and often padded beside episodes that are more or lesser filler. I wish it weren't true. The fact that the premise of the show is pretty thin, so it's spreading itself almost as thin. Which is a shame. I think they could go deeper and bolder, which if my thoughts are correct, that's where they're heading going into the fourth season. With a devastating and pitch perfect season finale I can't wait to see where they take the fourth season. This season came back fighting after a pretty lackluster season two. Keep it up Hank!

1293 - Dexter: season four

Holy fucking hell. I have to force myself not to give away any spoilers - but good goddamn. What a season. What an ending! Hot damn. This season did an amazing job of edging towards Dexter becoming more human and with that he became messier to boot. It was beautiful to watch. And Jennifer Carpenter was stellar this season - shame she wasn't nominated. Lithgow and Hall have already been nominated for Golden Globes. It would be amazing to not see at least one of them take home the prize.

Having now re-watched the episode it's just… devastating to watch. It's effected me deeply in a way I can't recall from storytelling in a LONG time. Emily was a wreck after watching it. Dexter is hands down her favourite show, but she's not sure she wants to watch the next season (which is something considering when she realized this was the season's final episode she was very disappointed). I know that come next fall she'll be all about it.

What they did was a game-changer. It was like pressing reset on the series in a very interesting and challenging way. They could literally do almost anything now. And with their show runner Clyde Phillips exiting, it's a whole new day for Dexter and his Dark Passenger. Can't wait to see where it goes.

1292 - Leatherheads

This film had a wonderful charm about it. Clooney clearly loves screwball comedies, and as a director he owns it. Zellweger absolutely owns every moment of her fast-talking-reporter. John Krasinski shows that he's more than just the guy from The Office here. There's a few features he's been in recently that I need to catch up on.

With a charming score from Randy Newman this film is a delight from beginning to end. A great little story that holds everything together. I highly recommend this.

1291 - Eagle Eye

D.J. Caruso makes better films than the advertising or premises would lead you to believe. While this and his previous Disturbia, I suppose, could be billed as popcorn flicks, he's much more than just a popcorn flick director. Here's a guy who knows how to grab you and take you for a ride. I'm in the moment during this entire film, I'm with them. I'm feeling it. He doesn't over plan the sentiment and he doesn't underplay the emotion. He's masterful. The film is far better than it needs to be, which is not meant to be an insult, it just means that with the premise it could have been more over the top, but the film was actually, in a weird way, somewhat relevant and believable. If nothing else, a realistic cautionary tale letting us know that information is sacred and shouldn't be taken advantage of.

It's more than a popcorn flick, I believe, however if that's all you're looking for to watch then it works for that as well. Another great performance from the on-the-rise leading man Shia, as well as a lovely outing for the gorgeous Michelle Monaghan. Check it out if you're at all interested in seeing it.

1290 - Vantage Point

This film was more or less underwhelming. It has a very interesting premise that ends up feeling a bit episodic and over played by about halfway in. Although that's also around the same point that it started to get a lot more interesting.

My main issue with this film is that you never get a clear sense of the 'why' - it seems to be more about clever story telling techniques rather than good story telling in general. If there's a message to be had here I missed it completely. Overall it's just simply 'meh'. Don't bother unless you were super intrigued by the premise. But don't expect the kind of mystery/thriller where you can figure it out along the way. This film is carefully designed so the only way it can come together is if they spoon-feed you the answers at the end - and that they do… all expect why it all happened - apparently that's not as important as the style of the film.

1289 - Freddy Got Fingered

I'm kind of embarrassed to say that I watched this. Especially when I've got a stack of movies I should be watching. In all fairness I was half-watching and half working on a Christmas present. Either way. Scott McLaren owes me 87 minutes of my life back and I will have it somehow! I really shouldn't blame him - he described the scene above and I was intrigued. It's my own damn fault... however I'll still claim those minutes...
I now need to clense myself with something good. I've been bad about watching films lately, but it's only because I'm so immersed in catching up on TV series. I've got at least a half a dozen on the go. Alas, it still makes no excuse for me wasthing my limited viewing on stuff that I know will be trash.
Whoever greenlit this film should be deeply ashamed.

1288 - Bruno

First off, I can't imagine even trying to make this film in the wake that was Borat. The mass success, plus the exposure that Cohen got would have made it difficult to film given how he works, not to mention the expectations. The project was, somewhat, doomed from the start.

I have to say though, this film picked up a bit in the middle. And there's some wonderful and disturbing stuff in here, particularly regarding what some parents will allow their kids to go through in an effort to get a gig. I'd go into specifics but I wouldn't want to rob you of the jaw-dropping experience.

Hit or miss, no one has bigger balls than Cohen for the situations he'll put himself into for the pure exploitation of human nature.

This film isn't firing on all cylinders, but there's enough here to make it worth the watch. Bruno was always my favorite character of Cohen's and so I expected more, but understand the circumstances he was under. It could have been a hell of a lot worse.

1287 - Redbelt

I was really surprised by how much I liked this film. It's not that I expected to dislike it, but wow. It just flowed beautifully for me, the characters, the story, it all just... worked. I really wish that I had more to say about this, but I strongly recommend it. Really really nice.

1286 - Three Amigos!

I never saw this film as a kid. I remember this girl I had a crush on that worked in the video store where I grew up always watched it while I was in the store, and so I never wanted to rent it because I knew it would mean she'd have to turn it off and give it to me. So that's my excuse.

It's such a product of it's time and you could never get away with the wonderful goofiness today unless you're making a dick & fart Wayans-type film. There's some really great jokes in this film, my favorite is when Chevy Chase shoots the invisible swordsman by accident.

There's been several films of this ilk since this came out: Tropic Thunder, Galaxy Quest (which I haven't seen either) come to mind.

Glad I finally saw it.

1285 - Mad Men: season three

First time I watched this series as the episodes were airing. I love this show. In the absence of The Wire it fills that void of solid epic novel-esque writing. I adore this series and all that comes with it. I don't want to ruin a damn thing, so all I'll say is that this was a fantastic season in what is a truly great story. They've done some really interesting things in this season, in particular the final episode and I can't wait to see the next chapter of this story. I can't recommend this show highly enough.

1284 - A Dirty Shame

When you sit down to watch a John Waters film you have a pretty good idea of what you're in for. Everything is hyper-real. That's the point. He's trying to make a comment on society in a way that entertains him. And does it entertain others? I suppose that's a matter of opinion. I'm not phased or shocked by sexuality - but I think that the big problem for me is that I didn't quite get the point of it all. Maybe I wasn't trying hard enough. If you're a Waters fan you'll no doubt enjoy it - if not, it might be hard to get into it.