Thursday, December 09, 2004
Wolf vs Werewolf
Everybody seen "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban?" Well, do yourself a favor and DO IT. I'm probably the last person from whom people expect to hear this, but I really loved this movie, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to children and adults of all ages.
It's fundamentally a coming-of-age story, but it's also a terrific fantasy film that gives us a thrilling view of a 100%-believable Harry Potter world of which I was previously unaware. It reminded me of the first time I really appreciated Empire Strikes Back (OK, it's not that good, though), in that it drops the viewer right into a world that's totally worth exploring. They don't have to waste time with exposition, they just show you the cool stuff, most notably an ABSOLUTELY BITCHING feral wolf-vs.-werewolf fight towards the end that has to be the best monster-on-monster battle I've ever seen in a movie. I mean, previously we could only imagine what a fight between a wolf and a werewolf would look like. Now, we don't have to! It's perfect. And I don't want to blow it for you but...well, werewolves are pretty badass. Especially this one.
Back to work.
Everybody seen "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban?" Well, do yourself a favor and DO IT. I'm probably the last person from whom people expect to hear this, but I really loved this movie, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to children and adults of all ages.
It's fundamentally a coming-of-age story, but it's also a terrific fantasy film that gives us a thrilling view of a 100%-believable Harry Potter world of which I was previously unaware. It reminded me of the first time I really appreciated Empire Strikes Back (OK, it's not that good, though), in that it drops the viewer right into a world that's totally worth exploring. They don't have to waste time with exposition, they just show you the cool stuff, most notably an ABSOLUTELY BITCHING feral wolf-vs.-werewolf fight towards the end that has to be the best monster-on-monster battle I've ever seen in a movie. I mean, previously we could only imagine what a fight between a wolf and a werewolf would look like. Now, we don't have to! It's perfect. And I don't want to blow it for you but...well, werewolves are pretty badass. Especially this one.
Back to work.
Saturday, December 04, 2004
My long absence can be attributed to the Jedi training which I have lately undertaken. Threats from other websites made during my absence will not be lightly regarded, and may be dealt with by use of special powers. What powers, you ask? How about the power to kill a yak from 200 feet away...with mind bullets!?! But that's a lesson for another time.
In all seriousness, certain issues in my personal garden have required tending; and although it's an ongoing process, I have regained the necessary measure of creative energy to continue wasting the time of others with my ramblings here. To wit, I have compiled a never-before-seen list of my favorite songs of all time. I will release the first 3 of these today, teasing you for the final three...when I get around to figuring out what they are.
Tis the season to give unto others, and it's my hope that, as happened with the recently-deceased Old Website (RIP), this Top 6 will lead my faithful readers down the path to musical discovery. What you discover there is, I believe it goes without saying, not my responsibility.
In alphabetical order:
"Crazy Love, Vol. II" (Paul Simon, Graceland): Graceland is the best driving album ever recorded, for my money, and the yearly car trips my family made to Lorain, Ohio during my childhood were made immeasurably easier with this tape in the dash. This song feels like falling in love, but Paul Simon's lyrics are purposely at odds with that sentiment. Which is one of the reasons it's a great song. Fun fact--I have no idea if there's a Crazy Love, Vol. I
"Fight Test" (Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots): Clearly, I don't rate songs based on their titles. Although it took awhile to grow on me, and although it steals so blatantly from a Cat Stevens song I can't recall the name of that the Lips now pay royalties to the former Mr. Moonshadow, there are a few lines in this song that capture something essential about my experience in this universe:
"I don't know where the sunbeams end and the starlights begin, it's all a mystery.
I don't know how a man decides what's right for his own life, it's all a mystery."
Maybe you have to hear him sing it. I urge you to do this.
"Girlfriend" (Matthew Sweet, Girlfriend): My favorite song to catch on FM radio, simply because it's on so rarely and because it is the perfect blend of '60s-pop naivete and grizzled, jamming, hard-rocking guitar prowess. Crank it up loud, as the liner notes suggest, and roll your windows down if you can. Girlfriend is the first CD I ever owned, and still one of the best. On a scale that measures absolute cultural enjoyment, I find Girlfriend (the album) equal to The Empire Strikes Back, and "Girlfriend" (the song) equal to the scene with the lightsaber duel between Luke and Vader.
In other news, intrepid world-traveler David Fischer can be reached at this email address: daviddf@umich.edu. I can now be reached at pjk2106@hotmail.com, since IU rudely and without warning terminated my old email account and website (as aforementioned). All signs indicate that I will shortly begin transmitting outbound emails from this account.
In all seriousness, certain issues in my personal garden have required tending; and although it's an ongoing process, I have regained the necessary measure of creative energy to continue wasting the time of others with my ramblings here. To wit, I have compiled a never-before-seen list of my favorite songs of all time. I will release the first 3 of these today, teasing you for the final three...when I get around to figuring out what they are.
Tis the season to give unto others, and it's my hope that, as happened with the recently-deceased Old Website (RIP), this Top 6 will lead my faithful readers down the path to musical discovery. What you discover there is, I believe it goes without saying, not my responsibility.
In alphabetical order:
"Crazy Love, Vol. II" (Paul Simon, Graceland): Graceland is the best driving album ever recorded, for my money, and the yearly car trips my family made to Lorain, Ohio during my childhood were made immeasurably easier with this tape in the dash. This song feels like falling in love, but Paul Simon's lyrics are purposely at odds with that sentiment. Which is one of the reasons it's a great song. Fun fact--I have no idea if there's a Crazy Love, Vol. I
"Fight Test" (Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots): Clearly, I don't rate songs based on their titles. Although it took awhile to grow on me, and although it steals so blatantly from a Cat Stevens song I can't recall the name of that the Lips now pay royalties to the former Mr. Moonshadow, there are a few lines in this song that capture something essential about my experience in this universe:
"I don't know where the sunbeams end and the starlights begin, it's all a mystery.
I don't know how a man decides what's right for his own life, it's all a mystery."
Maybe you have to hear him sing it. I urge you to do this.
"Girlfriend" (Matthew Sweet, Girlfriend): My favorite song to catch on FM radio, simply because it's on so rarely and because it is the perfect blend of '60s-pop naivete and grizzled, jamming, hard-rocking guitar prowess. Crank it up loud, as the liner notes suggest, and roll your windows down if you can. Girlfriend is the first CD I ever owned, and still one of the best. On a scale that measures absolute cultural enjoyment, I find Girlfriend (the album) equal to The Empire Strikes Back, and "Girlfriend" (the song) equal to the scene with the lightsaber duel between Luke and Vader.
In other news, intrepid world-traveler David Fischer can be reached at this email address: daviddf@umich.edu. I can now be reached at pjk2106@hotmail.com, since IU rudely and without warning terminated my old email account and website (as aforementioned). All signs indicate that I will shortly begin transmitting outbound emails from this account.
